Guyana Times -- Tuesday, July 23, 2019

80 teen mothers complete school reintegration programme P12

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

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Issue No. 3993

tuesday, JUly 23, 2019

Injunction sought against House-toHouse Registration

…Christopher Ram seeks order compelling GECOM to hold elections by Sept 18

PRICE

WHAT'S INSIDE:

Car used in fatal drive-by shooting found abandoned …ammo, spent shells unearthed in vehicle

P2

See story on page 3

House-to-House Registration

Opposition will not recognise illegal voters list Page 7

Money laundering

MoU inked for inter-agency sharing of info P2

Page 11

…after private sector calls out Govt for not adhering to Constitution, CCJ orders

Woman charged for throwing P8 muddy water on PPP protesters

Mother of 2 dies in Berbice fire

P9

Minister’s husband calls for boycott of PSCregistered businesses

2019 Budgetary allocation for P10 Region 1 still in “virgin” state Regional Chair …says RDC being stymied

…as GECOM CEO cherry picks advice from legal officer to follow

Commissioner admits corruption a problem at…saysLands & Surveys several employees fired

$80 vat included

See story on page 13

Dead: Sabita Sukhnanand

PCA launches probe into taxi driver’s death at Suddie P10 Police Station

2 news

Tuesday, JUly 23, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Car used in fatal drive-by Money laundering shooting found abandoned MoU inked for inter-

agency sharing of info

…ammo, spent shells unearthed in vehicle

Dead: Leon Duncan

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s investigations continue into a drive-by shooting which has left known criminal Leon Duncan dead and three others injured including his brother, the car that was allegedly used in the commissioning of the crime was found abandoned at Cauliflower Circle, South Ruimveldt, Georgetown.

The silver-grey Toyota Carina 212 motorcar, according to Police, was impounded and detectives confirmed that 31 live 7.62 × 39 ammunition in a magazine, one live 9mm ammunition and one 9mm spent shell were unearthed.

The drive-by shooting took place at Williamstaad Road, Festival City, North Ruimveldt, on Sunday eve-

ning.

Duncan also called “Whistle” of Lot 2692 Manatee Place, South Ruimveldt, was shot multiple times.

According to Police, his brother, Shaquile Duncan, was shot to his right arm and left thigh while Orande Gordon, 28, of Lot 1195 Nutmeg Street, Festival City, North Ruimveldt, was shot to his left arm and right knee and Lawrence Simon also called “Plait Hair”, 34, of Lot 2104 Nutmeg Street, Festival City, North Ruimveldt, was shot to his left knee and suffered a bruise to his upper right arm.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the men were reportedly gambling at Williamstaad Road, Festival City, on a culvert when the occupants of a motorcar opened fire at them.

At the Georgetown Public Hospital on Sunday evening, Trade Unionist Carvil Duncan, who is the grandfather of the now dead man, told the media that he was not sure what might have triggered the drive-by shooting but described his grandsons as “good”.

He noted that the shooting incident occurred a short distance from his house and upon receiving the news, he rushed to the scene. By that

D

Abandoned car used by the gunmen

time, the injured men had already been taken to the Hospital. At the scene, Police retrieved several spent shells.

Meanwhile, Leon and Shaquile Duncan are no strangers to the police and the court system. Leon Duncan was charged for the murder of Imtiaz Roopnarine, who was gunned down at Cool Square Hotel in 2016. A 12-member jury, however, unanimously found him not guilty of the charge. Additionally, he was also charged for unlawfully assaulting Police Constable Oswyn Shepherd and Police Officer Deon Bascom while they were performing their duties in 2015.

In addition, he along with another was charged for robbing Shaneeza Hussain and Nickel Pinkerton in 2018.

In March 2018, he was

slapped with two counts of attempted murder after he was accused of discharging a loaded firearm at Kenrick Maynard and Jeremy Adams, two security officers stationed at 704 parking lot on February 23, 2018.

He pleaded not guilty and was released on bail. Soon after, he was back in court, this time for armed robberies and possession of firearm and ammunition.

His brother, Shaquile Duncan, was also implicated and subsequently charged for an armed robbery committed on Morris Enmore on Mandela Avenue in February 2019. In addition, he is before Magistrate Isaacs-Marcus for a similar charge.

The police have not released any information on the two other injured men.

ata gathering and the sharing of information have been deemed two critical components in the fight against money laundering and countering terrorism financing and, therefore, collaborative efforts by several important agencies in Guyana are essential to securing successful prosecutions and convictions.

This is according to the Head of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), Matthew Langevine, who at a signing ceremony of agreements with seven agencies on Monday stated that the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that each agency inked with the FIU allows for the exchange of information in a timely, safe and secure manner.

“The MoU was developed based on recommendations to 29 of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

Forty recommendations which require that organisations, competent authorities in every country, share information that will allow for the effective execution of its mandate with respect to dealing with the scourge of money laundering,” Langevine said at the brief signing ceremony.

The agencies which will be sharing information are

Head of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), Matthew Langevine

Guyana Gold Board, Bank of Guyana, Guyana Geology and Mines Commission, Gaming Authority, Lands Registry, Chief Cooperative Development Officer and Guyana Securities Council.

Confidentiality

Langevine explained that the MoU allows for all competent authorities to agree to share information and exchange information in an efficient, safe and secure manner, so that there is confidentiality and protection of the information that is shared.

Turn to page 12

news

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tuesday, JUly 23, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

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

Tuesday, July 23 – 09:00h-10:30h and Wednesday, July 24 – 10:00h-11:30h.

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Winds: Easterly to North North-westerly between 1.78 metres and 4.47 metres.

High Tide: 08:31h and 20:56h reaching maximum heights of 2.40 metres and 2.34 metres.

Low Tide: 14:28h reaching a minimum height of 0.84 metre.

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Injunction sought against House-to-House Registration …Christopher Ram seeks order compelling GECOM to hold elections

by Sept 18

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court challenge has been mounted against the House-to-House Registration being carried out by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), this time by anti-corruption advocate and Attorney-at-Law Christopher Ram. The Notice of Application (NOA) and Fixed Date Application (FDA) challenging the House-to-House exercise was filed in the High Court on Monday, by the law office of former Attorney General Anil Nandlall. The hearing will come up today before Chief Justice Roxanne George.

According to the particulars of the fixed date affidavit, Ram is seeking declarations from the court that House-to-House Registration is a breach of Article 106 (6 and 7) of the Constitution of Guyana. Ram is also seeking a declaration that the exercise is in breach of the recent Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) rulings.

In view of this, Ram is seeking a conservatory order from the court, prohibiting GECOM from lawfully continuing the exercise.

He is also seeking an order compelling GECOM and the Chief Elections Officer (CEO), Keith Lowenfield, to take steps to hold elections

by September 18 of this year.

To support his case, Ram noted the fact that GECOM’s lawyer, Stanley Marcus, had told the CCJ that if Houseto-House Registration was carried out, the earliest it would be completed would be Christmas. At the time, CCJ Judges Jacob Witt and Adrian Saunders had noted that such an exercise would, therefore, violate the Constitution of Guyana.

“When Mr Marcus persisted with the same line of argument, Saunders reminded him that the NoConfidence Motion was passed since the 21st of December, 2018, and, therefore, elections should have been held in March 2019, and with obvious exasperation, President Saunders held up the Constitution in his hand and said that the Court has a clear duty to uphold this document and enquired rhetorically, whether Mr Marcus wants the Court to ignore it, to reject it or to rewrite it” Ram’s application states.

Ram also pointed to the fact that GECOM’s own in house counsel, Excellence Dazzell, had advised against the exercise since it would delay elections by months.

Her advice was disregarded.

It noted that many experts in electoral matters and even three GECOM Commissioners have pointed out that the exercise cannot be properly carried out in three months and will have grave implications for the validity of the electoral list it produces.

Anti-corruption advocate and Attorney-at-Law Christopher Ram

“The Applicant fears that in order to complete this House-to-House Registration within an impossible timeframe, it will result in thousands of Guyanese being unlawfully deregistered and will omit to register thousands of qualified registrants, thereby resulting in their loss in their right to vote at the next elections,” Ram stated in his application. It is understood that the case will come up in the High Court today.

House-to-House

The House-to-House exercise, which was last conducted in 2008, will see enumerators in teams of two to three, going from door to door in various communities across Guyana. The enumerators will present forms to registrants to complete, as well as take fingerprints and pictures.

In an advertisement by GECOM, it is stated that these enumerators work from 15:30h to 18:30h during the week and from 09:00h to 16:00h on weekends and holidays. The exercise is intended to produce a new National

Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield

Chief Justice (ag) Roxanne George

Register of Registrants database and Official List of Electors.

This means that everyone, regardless of whether they were registered before or not, must register anew at their place of residence between July 20 and October of this year.

adult son and his two children.

According to the application, Zeenatoun “fears that she will be excluded from the proposed exercise of Houseto-House Registration and thereby, in effect, be de-registered and in consequence thereof, and she will be unlawfully denied her statutory and constitutional right to be registered and to vote”.

“The applicant’s right to vote will and can be protected if the respondents were to engage in Continuous Registration as provided for in Section 6 (1) of the National Registration Act, Cap 19:08,” the application advised.

Disenfranchised

The requirement for proof of residency has alarmed overseas-based Guyanese to the point where a court case was filed by an overseas-based Guyanese against House-to-House Registration on the basis that it would disenfranchise her.

In her court filings, Bibi Zeenatoun, a retired teacher and citizen of Guyana, had sought writs of prohibition and injunction and a conservatory order against GECOM. Her fixed date application explained that she worked in the United Kingdom from 1980 until her retirement in 2014. She then acquired property and maintained a residence in that country. Besides her citizenship, however, she has family ties to Guyana that include an

Order

There has also been much debate on whether the exercise can go forward since the former Chairman who signed the order, Retired Justice Patterson, was found by the CCJ to have been unconstitutionally appointed.

Additionally, GECOM has said that House-toHouse Registration will take 90 days, further delaying elections that should have been held since March 21.

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guyanatimesgy.com

tuesday, JUly 23, 2019

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

Consequences of social media

S

ocial media is a world within a world, and for those who were born in the 21st Century, technology is only but a natural phenomenon: cell phones, iPods, and video games are practically inevitable for teens and young adults. Along with these technologies come social media networking, which is part of the daily routine for many. Social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and MySpace have millions of visitors daily. Facebook alone has over 500 million users, which makes it the most popular social network website on Earth. Research conducted by Facebook shows that 50 per cent of its users are active users, who log on daily and spend over 700 billion minutes per month on the site. There is no doubt that social media and social networking are here to stay. However, added to these ‘natural’ luxuries are risks and dangers.

While these sites’ open dialogue allows individuals to express themselves, there must be some amount of user censorship, not necessarily by the domain host, but rather by individuals themselves. Creating a profile, giving details about yourself, hobbies and educational background are all acceptable; however, for many, every aspect of their day, work and lives are posted. Like driving, the users of social media should be cognisant of the five C’s – caution, care, common sense, courtesy and consideration – as many of the things posted can arise in the future to haunt thrones.

Only recently, it was observed locally that a number of young persons were posting on social media their intent to resign from their current place of employment.

Common sense – one of the 5 C’s – would inform that such information is personal, and should not be posted on a social network, as such behaviours can stymie future employment.

What if the situation changes and that person needs to stay at the current place of employment? What if an intended employer does a social media search and sees such uncouth behaviour? It is thought-provoking that an employee can overlook his/her posting on any social networking site and talk their way out of potential employment. It seems as though these consequences are often not in the minds of teens and young adults when they take to the social media world to express themselves. Interestingly, many young persons do not take into account, or acknowledge, the dangers of such postings on social networking sites, since to them all the social sites seem innocent.

Recent research has shown one of the greatest impacts of social networking is on the social skills of people. According to a BBC report, while on one hand social networking sites seem to bring people together and connected, on the other hand it creates social isolation. Research has shown that older generations of networkers learnt how to communicate and interact long before networking was even a thought, but much of the younger generations do not interact socially.

According to the report, social networking has created a serious breach in the ability of young people to communicate and interact with each other.

It is clear that there is evidence suggesting that social networking can be risky to a dangerous extent, but it is an area that cannot be ignored, as it is the driving force of the world today. Like the many pleasures of life, social networking can be beneficial in moderation; however, unfortunately, moderation and the social media world do not coincide in society. As such, all one can hope for is that young people have a deeper understanding and be conscious of what they are posing on social media, taking into consideration its impact today, tomorrow and years ahead.

Kids and adults cool off in a fountain on the Rose Kennedy Greenway during a summer heatwave in Boston (Reuters/Brian Snyder)

A victim of Maduro’s brutality speaks in support of Venezuela talks

By Dorothy Kronick

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s Venezuela’s duelling Governments continue Norway-brokered negotiations in Barbados, allies of Opposition Leader Juan Guaidó have urged him to walk away. Citing a recent United Nations report on human rights violations committed by the regime of Nicolás Maduro, those against the talks argue that it is immoral to negotiate with torturers and murderers.

One might expect Meudy Osío, of all people, to endorse this logic. Instead, she convinced me during a recent interview that it is wrong.

Thirty-five years ago, Meudy fell in love. She was 17. Fernando Albán, a cashier at the Caracas bank where she worked as an intern, was 22. Chocolates appeared on her desk. There was a weeknight movie, a stolen kiss. Two blushing faces at work the next morning.

Six years later, Meudy and Fernando married.

They were still in college — a first in both their families — working two jobs each to pay tuition.

Five years after the wedding, Meudy gave birth to their first child, a son.

Fernando exulted. He joked that he wanted four sons.

Two years later, he went to pieces over their daughter.

Meudy and Fernando founded an accounting-and-law firm together, Audi-Con , which Meudy calls “their second marriage” and “their third child”.

Their business thrived.

Their family thrived.

The trouble started in 2013, when Albán ran for city council. A longtime

friend of the family told me that he was a natural candidate. “He had charisma but not big-stage charisma,” the friend said. “He would take you by the arm and speak quietly but intensely, intimately, like a priest, or a lover.”

Albán won the election. That made him an Opposition city councilman in a mayoralty controlled

by Maduro’s party. He was given what others saw as an undesirable assignment: religious outreach. Albán, a devout Catholic, relished it. He made friends with priests, ministers, rabbis, imams. He worked alongside Meudy to cook a monthly soup dinner for the poor.

He was beloved, so he was a target. Albán’s son was recognised at school (“the son of that councilman”) and threatened, so he left for New York, to study English on a scholarship.

Albán’s daughter also left for New York, also on scholarship, after she and Meudy were spotted at a political protest. They had taken refuge in the nearby house of a stranger, hiding there for 11 hours.

In September 2017, Meudy reluctantly followed her children to New York.

Albán arrived with her, and the church helped settle them in foundation-subsidised housing in the Bronx.

But Albán travelled back and forth to Venezuela. He wanted to wrap up his term as councilman before moving to New York for good.

In the months they were apart, Albán and Meudy spoke for two or three hours every day. It was the 33rd year of their romance.

In August of last year, Albán arrived in New York for a long stay with his fam-

ily. It was a joyous visit; they celebrated his birthday and talked of new business ideas, plans for their life in New York. But they also needed money. As it happened, the janitor in the home where they lived had just been fired. Albán took his place. He washed floors and cleaned the bathroom they shared with other tenants.

On October 4, 2018, the eve of Albán’s return to Caracas, Meudy asked him whether he really needed to go. Why risk another trip? But he insisted that he had unfinished business in Caracas. He wanted to help resettle his employees. There are people there who depend on me, he told her. Besides, he asked, what would the Government want with me, a lowly city councilman?

Three days later, he was dead. He had been arrested at the airport and accused of conspiring in a drone attack perpetrated earlier that year. The Government declared his death a suicide, saying he jumped from the 10th-floor bathroom of the prison. Journalists noted that the bathrooms had no windows and that guards escort inmates to the bathrooms. An autopsy reportedly found water in Albán’s lungs. The United Nations called for an investigation into his death.

Meudy wonders why Fernando was killed.

Perhaps the Government meant merely to torture him — possibly to extract a statement incriminating Julio Borges, the head of Fernando’s political party, Primero Justicia — and things got out of hand.

Perhaps the Government felt threatened by his

ties with the community.

Perhaps it was alarmed by the energy and specificity of his plan for his legal defence, which he was allowed to present to lawyers the day before his death. Perhaps his sister’s prison visit rankled his jailers. Meudy may never know.

Some in the Venezuelan political Opposition have used Albán’s death and other human rights violations to argue against ongoing negotiations with the Government of Maduro.

Former Caracas Mayor Antonio Ledezma cited the recent torture and death of a navy captain in captivity as a reason to end the talks in Barbados. And in May, Ledezma even tweeted that the best homage to Albán would be international military intervention. Others have invoked Meudy directly, implying that Guaidó’s decision to negotiate with Maduro would disappoint her. The logic of these arguments is straightforward: We cannot sit down with the monsters who murdered a good man such as Fernando Albán.

But Meudy told me that Fernando would have disagreed. He would have supported the talks, she said, even under these circumstances. As a committed democrat, Fernando believed that dialogue is essential to politics. As a man of faith, he fought for a peaceful political transition. And as a family man, he could not countenance the alternative: more love stories cut short. (Washington Post)

(Dorothy Kronick is an assistant professor of political science at the University of Pennsylvania.)

guyanatimesgy.com

Tuesday, JUly 23, 2019

5

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

Granger and his cabal are hijacking our country Dear Editor, Do Granger’s lies really matter? Are they different from other lies? Research has demonstrated that other Presidents told lies for a variety of reasons, from legitimate lies concerning national security, to trivial misstatements or shading the truth, or avoiding embarrassment, to serious lies of policy deception.

However, when Granger continues to insist that his previous false statements are true, the institutions of Government become corroded and democracy is undermined. Of course, many of Granger’s lies are “conventional” lies, similar to those that politicians often

tell in order to look good or avoid blames but these lies are in contravention of the Constitution.

The most recent being in the process of the appointment of the GECOM Chairman, whereby he said that he would consider the previous lists of eighteen persons that was submitted and then reneged on his pronouncement, accusing Jagdeo of not acting in good faith.

Then the statement to the nation, when he lied again that the appointment of a GECOM Chairman can be concluded in days, then subsequently stated that the process can end in gridlock if his nominees are not on the

list that is being submitted

by Bharrat Jagdeo.

The other statement pertaining to the passage of the National Budget would be another deception since all governmental agencies were instructed to submit their proposals including the Regional Democratic Councils.

The integrity of David Granger as a political leader is decaying, the people of Guyana must not ever believe in him anymore because of his lies, deception, disrespect for the Constitution, doing everything unlawful to remain in power etc. The present political situation in Guyana can be considered a ‘dictatorship state’ since

the APNU/AFC coalition Government is manipulating all the systems in order to regain power.

Since the APNU/AFC coalition Government’s assumption to Government, corruption has reached an uncontrolled level, so Granger is desperately trying to prevent the exposure of this corruption by his Cabinet and Government.

The situation at GECOM is worrying and Guyana might not see another free and fair elections, we must stand up against what is happening in GECOM. Guyana needs immediate help!

Dear Editor, The commencement of a House-to-House Registration exercise by GECOM is a contemptuous matter. It was clearly done on the political directives and based on the advice of an illegally appointed Chairman of the Elections Commission. In that regard, this latest action is null and void and is of no effect. It must be stopped now.

It further notes that this is a blatant violation of the laws of the State called Guyana and a total disregard for the CCJ’s ruling on the matter. The Opposition Leader is now duty-bound to file contempt of court proceedings against the Chief Elections Officer, Lowenfield, effected by his instant incarceration and removal. This is the way forward.

We cannot continue on

a path of top officials paying scant regard for law and order in this country.

Persons in high office must respect the Constitution.

The Elections Commission rightly stands as the custodian of the democratic process in Guyana, so positioned to hold and conduct elections in a free and fair manner, therefore, for an official, especially in the position of the Chief Elections Officer to act

in such a bias and partisan manner, it means that our democracy is under siege. It goes even further that the rigging of elections, which is such a curse brought on this nation by the PNC, is real and ever before us.

Guyana has to return to the fold of democratic nations and the time is now.

Regards, Zamal Hussain

GECOM Chairman should not have affiliation/ allegiance to any party Dear Editor, The Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association welcomes the ruling on the consequential orders and more so, the commitment by all of the political players to abide by the said ruling and have a speedy resolution to the unprecedented situation faced by Guyana.

We are cognisant of the importance placed by the Court with respect to the need for a functioning Elections Commission in order for credible elections to be held as soon as possible. In this context, we exhort the leaders of the two political parties to be fully engaged in a continuous

and meaningful basis until a consequential solution is arrived at.

In so doing, we also exhort the political leaders to abide by the constitutional requirements and conditionalities as it relates to the criteria for the selection of nominees of a Chairman who should not have affiliation/allegiance to any party.

We do so given the grave consequences that could result in other local, regional and international judicial matters.

Sincerely, Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association Ltd

Lowenfield is in contempt of court and must be removed Tyranny and dictatorship

Respectfully, Neil Adams

Another delay tactic by a regime desperate to continue to wield power

Dear Editor, I remember there was one House-to-House Registration period in my lifetime (before this one that is), during that period my older siblings were registered, neither of whom were at the age of majority, but when they became eligible to vote they were automatically placed on the voters’ list.

Their story is similar to how I ended up on the voters’ list when I attained the age of majority, I was perhaps 15, I went to the GECOM office in my area, during a continuous registration period, and I got myself registered, NO, I was not on the voters’ list from 15. I took it upon myself to check the newspapers and see when I can get my ID card. Prior to the 2015 election, this was the first election I was eligible to vote in, I lost my ID card when my wallet was stolen, I went back to the GECOM office and got a replacement card, as a first-time voter, I ensured I was on the list, I wanted my voice to be heard, I did not want to disenfranchise.

House-to-House Registration commenced last Saturday. There have been multiple elections without there being House-to-House Registration, including the one which the present Caretaker Government won.

Using the current rhetoric being pushed, the coalition regime won with a bloated list?

I am 22 years old, I am a young woman, I do not want to be disenfranchised; the women's suffrage movement across the globe has ensured I have the right to vote despite class, education, finances or owning land. I am presently residing out of Guyana, we live in a globalised world, where people temporarily move to grow (whether it is to continue their education, attain valuable international work experience, or soul searching).

I am against House-to-House Registration, simply because I will be removed from the voters’ list just because I am not home as I am a student studying away. I was born and raised in Guyana, I am a citizen of one country, that is Guyana. The process of House-to-House Registration will remove me along with so many others in my situation, which is a direct violation of our constitutional right under Article 59.

What about the persons on vacation? The articles surfacing say this will take 90 days, what if someone decided to take an extended holiday? The last house to house, took well over a year.

I see this as another delay tactic by a regime des-

perate to continue to wield power and have time to start initiatives to create the illusion that they care.

This also further shows the hypocrisy of this regime, when Parliament was prorogued by then-President Ramotar, they (the present regime) talked about not upholding or abiding by the Constitution. This combined with all the broken prom-

ises; are these the real reasons behind House-to-House Registration?

The CCJ ruling made clear we should have had elections within 90 days of the passing of the motion of no confidence, thus elections should have occurred since March.

Regards, Nutana Singh

often come stealthily and cunningly Dear Editor, Tyranny and dictatorship often come “slowly, like fog creeping in on little cat feet” and do so stealthily and cunningly. At other times, they are more “barefaced” and unwittingly expose their evil intent.

The Guyanese people should not be indifferent to this brazen stealthiness

(eye-pass); it must be resisted aggressively, vociferously, rigorously, and cooperatively. To do otherwise would risk decades of tyranny and dictatorship.

Lest we forget!

Sincerely, Dr Devanand Bhagwan

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tuesday, JUly 23, 2019

Page

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he weather is warm, the days are longer and there’s more time to be outside doing all kinds of fun things!

But if you’re going to be out in the sun, especially on a hot day, you need to stay safe. Let’s find out how.

Don’t feel the burn

Even though the sun is hot, it does cool things. It keeps us warm. It makes flowers and plants grow. It even gives us vitamin D so we can better absorb calcium into our bodies for strong bones.

It does all these things by sending down light, which includes invisible ultraviolet (say: ul-trah-VYE-uh-lit) rays. These are also called UV rays. Some ultraviolet rays pass through air and clouds and reach the skin.

When your skin’s been exposed to too many of these rays, you get what’s known as a sunburn. Ouch!

Some people get a sunburn faster than others because of their colouring.

If you have light-coloured hair, light-coloured skin, and light-coloured eyes, you’ll tend to get a sunburn more quickly than someone with dark eyes and skin. That’s because you have less melanin (say: MEL-uh-nun). Melanin is a chemical in the skin that protects it from sun damage by reflecting and absorbing UV rays. People with darker skin have more melanin, but even if you have dark hair, dark eyes, or darker-toned

Foundation

skin, you can still get a sunburn. It will just take a little bit longer.

Sunburns look bad and feel worse. They can cause blisters on your skin. They can keep you inside feeling sore when everyone else is outside having fun. They increase your chance of getting wrinkly when you get older. And worst of all, they can lead to skin cancer when you are an adult. Because getting wrinkles and getting sick don’t happen right away, they can seem like things that could never happen to you. But you still need to be careful.

Prime time

You don’t need to hide from the sun completely. But you should take these two steps: Always wear sunscreen.

Take breaks from the sun often by going indoors or moving into the shade.

These steps are especially important between 10:00h (10 am) and 16:00h (4 pm), when the sun’s rays are strongest.

Use a sunscreen with an SPF rating of 30 or higher. Put on sunscreen 15 to 20 minutes before going out in the sun. The letters SPF stand for sun protection factor, and the number rating tells you how much longer you can stay in the sun without getting sunburned.

But this isn’t always true, so reapply sunscreen at least every 2 hours, just to be safe.

Do this more often if you’ve

been swimming or sweating a lot – even if the sunscreen is waterproof. And remember that you can get sunburned more quickly when you’re swimming or boating because the reflection from the water makes the sun’s rays stronger.

Be sure to put sunscreen all over your body. This includes some places you might not think of, like the tops of your ears, the back of your neck, the part in your hair, your face, and the tops of your feet. You may need some help reaching the back of your body so ask your parents or friends to give you a hand. If you want to block the sun’s rays, wear clothing that you can’t see your hand through. You may still get burned through more sheer fabrics. Wear a baseball cap or other fun hat to block your face from the sun.

Don’t forget that your eyes need protection from ultraviolet rays, too. Always wear sunglasses in the sun, and make sure they have a label saying that they block UV rays.

Drink up!

Drinking water is an important part of staying healthy, especially when it’s hot outside. When you’re sweating, you lose water that your body needs to work properly. And if you’re playing a sport or running around in the sun, you lose even more water, because you sweat that much more.

So drink up and don’t

wait until you’re thirsty – drinking before you feel thirsty helps keep the water level in your body from dropping too low (dehydration) when it’s hot or you’re sweating a lot with exercise. If you forget and suddenly feel thirsty, start drinking then.

There are lots of cool-looking water bottles around, so get one you really like, fill it up, and drink up!

tor, if necessary.

The good news is that the sun doesn’t have to be your enemy if you wear your sunscreen, drink your water, and take breaks when

you start to feel too hot. And don’t forget your sunglasses.

Not only do they protect your eyes from the sun, they make you look so cool! (kidshealth.org)

Got that hot feeling?

If you’re out in the hot sun or you’re exercising on a hot day, it’s easy to get heat exhaustion. Kids get heat exhaustion when their bodies can’t cool themselves fast enough. A kid with heat exhaustion might feel overheated, tired, and weak.

Heat exhaustion can come on suddenly. A person may just collapse when playing football or tennis, for example. It can leave someone feeling really tired after it happens.

Heat stroke is a more serious heat-related illness and can cause someone to stop sweating; to have red, hot skin; and to have a high temperature. The person might become uncoordinated, confused, or even lose consciousness. It requires emergency medical attention.

Be sure to tell an adult if you’re hot and you have a headache or feel dizzy or nauseated (like you’re going to throw up). The grown-up will want to get you out of the sun, give you liquids to drink, and take you to a doc-

I

t’s an architect’s job to create a design for a structure that is safe, functional and looks pleasing.

But how does an architect know what elements he needs to include in his design? He asks lots of questions!

Pretend that your mom or dad is an architect and that she or he has hired you to design his dream home. Have the ‘architect’ ask questions about what you want and need in your new house and there are no limits on size or expense. Some questions the ‘architect’ might ask are: >> Where will the dream house be built? In the mountains, the city, near the ocean? >> What kinds of building materials do you like? Wood, brick, concrete? >> How many rooms do you want to have? What happens in these rooms? >> Does it have an upstairs? A basement? An elevator? >> What kind of furniture do you want? Are there special features like a swimming pool?

The ‘architect’ will write down your answers.

Then, you can play the role of architect. With pencil and paper, start drawing the floor plan for your dream house. A floor plan is like a map — you are looking at it with a bird’s eye view. The floor plan shows the outside shape of the house and what’s inside: walls, doors, windows, bathrooms and special features. Each room needs to be labelled. The answers to the earlier questions will help with design.

When the floor plan is finished, build a model of your dream home or draw a picture of what the finished house would look like. How would you typically spend a day living in your dream house?

Variation: Although Architect Studio 3D was created with older children in mind and requires a fairly fast computer, you could work— with Frank Lloyd Wright as your guide — to design a house online: http://architectstudio3d.org/AS3d/design_studio.html (startwithabook.org)

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tuesday, JUly 23, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

House-to-House Registration

Opposition will not recognise illegal voters’ list …as GECOM CEO chooses which advice from legal officer to follow

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he People’s Progressive Party (PPP) has made their position clear, that they will not recognise any voters’ list arising from the present illegal Houseto-House Registration being carried out since it is likely to disenfranchise thousands of Guyanese.

This was communicated by the party on Monday, whereby they slammed the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) for embarking on the exercise and urged Guyanese, particularly their supporters, not to support the activity.

The party made it pellucid that its leadership met on Monday and decided that to participate in the Guyana Elections Commission’s illegal national House-toHouse Registration will make it complicit in aiding and abetting the violation of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) June 18, 2019, rulings and July 12, 2019, consequential orders, which upheld the Guyana Constitution.

The party reminded that in the rulings and consequential orders, the CCJ had stressed the need for elections to have been held since March 21, 2019. It was also pointed out that the CCJ had stressed the responsibility GECOM has to adhere to the Constitution.

GECOM Legal Officer Excellence Dazzell

“The PPP, therefore, shall not participate in this illegal unilateral activity by the Chief Elections Officer which threatens peace and stability in the country and undermines constitutional rule.

The Chief Elections Officer has embarked on a Houseto-House Registration in defiance of the Caribbean Court of Justice, the apex court of Guyana, and, even in defiance of the advice of GECOM’s internal legal officer, at a time when there is no functioning Commission in place. He must be stopped,” the party said in a statement.

According to the PPP, the approach to the court to bring an injunction to stop the national House-to-House

Registration is one stage of the struggle to ensure that constitutional rule is preserved. “The PPP is convinced that this House-toHouse exercise is intended to deliberately de-register thousands of Guyanese voters. The objective is to delay elections to facilitate the APNU/AFC Government remaining in office illegally after September 18th 2019.”

Instead of House-toHouse Registration, a process which GECOM’s lawyer Stanley Marcus told the CCJ would take until Christmas, the PPP insisted that the electoral agency commence the Claims and Objections period. The party made it clear it would not recognise the validity of the voters’ list produced during House-to-House Registration, a development which would mean the party might not recognise elections held with the list.

“The People’s Progressive Party urges Guyanese not to support this illegal exercise and calls on all political parties, civil society and other stakeholders, including the international community, to condemn this unconstitutional act,” the party added.

Legal advice

On Sunday Private Sector Commission (PSC) Chairman Gerry Gouveia in a strongly worded letter

had upbraided GECOM’s Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield for proceeding with House-toHouse Registration when the Constitution and CCJ rulings require elections in three months.

Lowenfield has since responded to the letter, attempting to justify the exercise by citing advise provided by GECOM’s Legal Officer, Excellence Dazzell.

According to Lowenfield, upon his request, Dazzell advised him that he could act based on an order from former Chairman James Patterson because it was issued before the CCJ ruled and invalidated his appointment.

Patterson’s order to commence House-to-House Registration was dated June 11, 2019. Subsequently, the CCJ ruled on June 18 that he was unconstitutionally appointed by the President.

Patterson subsequently resigned on July 8 and according to Lowenfield, Dazzell advised him that any actions Patterson took before June 18 was valid since he operated on the premise that his appointment was bona fide.

But in May, GECOM’s own Legal Officer had advised the Commission that subject to Section 7 (1) of the Elections Amendment Act (2000), there was no

GECOM CEO Keith Lowenfield

need for House-to-House Registration and a new list but rather, the old voters’ list could and should be updated.

Section 7 (1) of the Elections Amendment Act states “Where there is an interval of more than six months after the qualifying date …. the Commissioner shall cause the Official List of Electors and non-resident electors’ roll to be revised, in accordance with procedure established by the Commission by regulations – (a) by adding thereto the names of persons who have or may become qualified electors for registration as after the said qualifying date and before the day appointed for the election; and (b) by deleting therefrom the names of

persons who are registered as electors, but have ceased to be qualified to be so registered after the said qualifying date and before such date, being a date prior to the date appointed for the election, as may be specified by the Commission by notification in the Gazette”.

The opinion, expressed

by Dazzell, stated that: “The use of the word ‘revise’ [in the Election Laws (Amendment) Act 15 of 2000] suggest that the process is not one where a ‘new’ list is generated, but one where the most recent list is updated or amended….I, therefore, advise that procedures be put in place to ensure the revision of the list, otherwise, the Commission would be acting in defiance of the law and may prejudice a by-election that may become necessary”.

Dazzell’s advice was never followed by GECOM or the CEO, with particular Government-nominated Commissioners going on to criticise her after she would have discharged her duties of offering legal advice.

The result has been that millions have been spent to prepare for House-to-House Registration, an exercise that the PPP has said could see elections being held until next year. The registration exercise started on Saturday.

8 News

tuesday, JUly 23, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Cosmetologist charged for throwing muddy water at PPP protesters

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Cassandra Amsterdam

he woman, who allegedly threw dirty gutter water on a group of People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) protesters on July 19, 2019, at Barrack and High Streets, Georgetown, was on Monday charged for the offence and appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Cassandra Amsterdam, 24, who is a squatter at

Lot 48 Barrack and High Streets, Georgetown, appeared before Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus and initially pleaded guilty to the charge.

In an explanation to the court, she claimed that on July 19, her child was asleep and the protesters were making “a set of unnecessary noise in front her house”.

Amsterdam further claimed that she threw a cup of clean water into the crowd but it did not catch anyone, after which she apologised for the act.

The Magistrate, after listening to the woman’s explanation, entered a not guilty plea on her behalf.

The woman was released on $5000 bail and the case was adjourned.

Reports are on July 19, as hundreds of PPP supporters were protesting in front

Don’ ke’ dam…

W

Cassandra Amsterdam being escorted from the scene Friday last

of the Guyana Elections Commission, Amsterdam hurled expletives at the protesters and then proceeded into her home, brought out a cutlass and threatened the peaceful protesters.

The woman along with others in the yard were seen with knives in their hands threatening the protesters.

Several of the protesters said that Amsterdam then took

a bucket and dipped it in a nearby gutter and threw the muddy water at them. She then ran inside, picked up a pitchfork and proceeded to exit the yard with intentions of confronting the protesters.

Police ranks who were stationed at the protest quickly disarmed the pregnant woman and arrested her. She was then taken away in handcuffs.

Kitty man slapped with gun possession charge

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man, who is no stranger to the law was on Monday slapped with an illegal firearm possession charge and appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Thirty-one-yearold Royston Rowe of Lot 141 Newtown, Kitty, Georgetown, appeared before Magistrate Sherdel IsaacsMarcus and pleaded guilty to the charge which stated that

on July 16, 2019, at Campbell Avenue, Georgetown, he had in his possession a .38 revolver, without being the holder of a firearm license.

Police Prosecutor Adduni Inniss informed the court that on July 16, Police ranks received a telephone call from Rowe’s girlfriend and they proceeded to the location where they made contact with the woman. The prosecutor indicated to the court

that the woman informed the ranks that Rowe threatened to kill her with the gun and she handed over the firearm to the officers.

The court further heard that the man was released from prison in May, after spending two years behind bars on an armed robbery charge.

The man, when asked by the Magistrate if what the prosecutor said is true, stat-

ed that “The police ain’t find me with no gun. Right now my head hurting and me ain’t able waste the court time so I’ll plead guilty. All I had in my hand was two Guinness and a pack of cigarette”.

The Magistrate, after listening to the man’s explanation, entered a not guilty plea and remanded him to prison. The case will continue on July 29, 2019.

…PNC hen Burnham plunged our country into the racial turmoil in which we’re still mired, he offered his rationale in a pithy, if brutal, folk saying: “Back to back; belly to belly; ah doan give a damn; ah done dead a’ready!” Meaning, of course, he’d long decided that he would seize power by any means necessary and having cut a deal with the “imperialists” after launching his X-13 terror plan, there was no deed foul enough to faze him anymore! He wasn’t concerned about denunciations, internal or external – “he done dead a’ready!!”

There’s no question that Granger’s following the script that Burnham bequeathed him as he and his party piss all over the Constitution, the country, the people – and of course, the CCJ. Internally, Granger has battened down the hatches even tighter than Burnham: the Police, Army and civil service are all still poised at his beck and call to put down any protests civil society might try to muster in support of the Opposition.

But on the “external” front, your Eyewitness wonders where Granger’s getting his “spunks” from?? While we know about the supposed international “norm” of noninterference in other countries’ affairs, we know too that’s as big a piece of fiction as “Gone with the Wind”!!

In the real world, of sharks and sardines, little fishes look at cues from the big fishes!!

Back in the day, Burnham could count on the Americans to turn a blind eye to his excesses because all he had to do was point to Jagan and ask, with a smirk, “You want HIM to take over??” That was a time when the Cold War was on – about whether capitalism or communism could piss furthest. But it was only “cold” in the two antagonists’ homelands: in shithole countries like ours and the Congo, it was hotter than that place down under where the fella with two little horns keeps stoking the fire with his trident!!

There’s no question, of course, about who owns the trident nowadays and even though the age of ideology is long dead and buried, there’s a new interest that’s even more fundamental in play – OIL!! So the real question is whether the power-that-be will give Granger a free pass, like he obviously thinks they will, from the way he’s carrying on!! Your Eyewitness don’t think they will. While one of their presidents famously (and approvingly!) described one dictator acting in the mould of Granger as, “He’s a son-of-a bitch, but he’s OUR sonof-a-bitch”! – with the PPP showing they have enough political nous to know which side their bread is buttered, there’s no need for “sons-of-bitches”!!

Granger has overplayed his hand, and will be slapped down. …Caricom Some folks are all het up that Caricom hasn’t made a squeak since the PNC-led Government’s been blithely sticking their middle finger at the CCJ’s judgement on the NCM! After all, a quick Google search showed Caricom recently condemned terrorism in New Zealand; violence against children; and Trump calling Haiti a “shithole country” – so why condemn not the dissing of a major institution which it created??

Now they can’t say they don’t want to interfere in our “internal” affairs when back in 1998, they sent a group of Caribbean wise men to broker the “Herdmanston Accord” between the PNC and the PPP, after the former claimed electoral hanky panky. The PPP had two of their five-year terms snatched away – not to mention conceding a host of power-sharing institutions to the PNC. So what was different then? Well, for one, the PNC had come out into the streets and were creating mayhem to life and limb – with property thrown in for good measure!

So is Caricom signalling they need to be signalled by some PPP extra-parliamentary activities?? …media workers Your Eyewitness was intrigued by the story of the British High Commission commiserating with media workers who’re traumatised by stories they cover – and suggested psychological counselling.

Yes…dealing with the PNC and their bullyism is a bitch!!

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

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Tuesday, JUly 23, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Commissioner admits Integrity Commission calls for declaration corruption a problem submissions before September at Lands & Surveys I …says several employees fired

Commissioner of the GL&SC, Trevor Benn

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ommissioner of the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GL&SC), Trevor Benn, has admitted that corruption and collusion are problems at the agency.

Benn made this admission during an appearance on local radio programme ‘Hot seat’ hosted by broadcaster Stan Gouveia on Monday. Asked directly about the favoritism showed by staff for certain persons at the expense of others and the perception of corruption, Benn made no bones about the corruption within the agency.

“Corruption in Guyana is a big problem. And lands and surveys is no different,” Benn said. “There is corruption at the institution, I would be the first to admit and whenever we find it we deal with it. In fact, for this year alone we sent home a couple of staff for corrupt practices,” Benn admitted.

Another way the problem is being addressed, according to Benn, is through the digitization of records.

This allows the commission to better track transactions dealt with by staff. Benn also noted that they are working to facilitate master’s level training for lands and surveys staff.

GL&SC recently featured prominently in the news, when Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo had dropped bombshell revelations last month that the Government has been quietly distributing massive tracts of prime state lands to employees of the Ministry of the Presidency as well as close associate to the PNC-led A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) faction of the coalition Government and officials of the States Assets Recovery Agency (SARA), which was formed to recover state assets.

According to the party, the lands were all strategically located to massively benefit the beneficiaries from the coming oil boom.

Jagdeo had revealed that most of the leases for these plots of prime real estate were issued by the

Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GL&SC) after the December passage of the Opposition-sponsored No-Confidence Motion that caused the Government to fall.

Among the state employees had been State Asset Recovery Agency (SARA) executive Eric Phillips.

Phillips, had vehemently denied back in February that he ever applied for, or received any, 3000 acres of lands as was then being claimed.

But the Opposition Leader had pointed to GL&SC File No. 321132/1604 which showed 1000 acres in the Essequibo River was issued to Phillips in April 2019 and File No. 3312317 for another 1000 acres in the Demerara River.

Another prominent name to come up from Jagdeo’s revelations had been Chief Elections Officer (CEO) for the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Keith Lowenfield. According to GL&SC documents, Lowenfield received land at Millie’s Hideout, Linden, Region 10.

Since the revelations that persons closely affiliated to the government had snapped up land in prime locations, questions have been raised about the process that was used to allocate such large tracts of land.

Among those questions have been exactly how much these beneficiaries paid per acre for their land and how they received information on which prime land locations were available, in the absence of advertisements.

ntegrity Commission has called for public officials to make their submission of declarations early, given that the entity had called out over 700 officials, including President David Granger, who failed to make their declarations during the first half of the year.

In a notice published in the daily newspapers, the commission informed that Public Officials have until August 31, 2019 to make their submissions in compliance with the Integrity Commission Act. The notice stated, “All specified Public Officers are kindly asked to take note that Declarations of their Assets and Liabilities include those for themselves, spouse and children. You are also reminded to attach their supporting documents to their declaration forms”.

According to the Commission, these may include a copy of income statement (s) from employer (s) for the declaration period which may comprise of salary statements, pay slips, employment contract (s) and other documents. Copy of rental agreement (s), copy of transport (s), Certificate of Title (s)/ Lease (s) will also be necessary.

Back in May, the Commission had flagged some 716 public officials for failing to make their declarations having breached the stipulated deadline of May

Integrity Commission’s headquarters at Fifth Avenue and Church Road, Subryanville, Georgetown

20, 2019.

In addition to the President, reports also surfaced that some Cabinet members were also lagging behind with regards to their submissions. But President Granger assured that there is a commitment by all Cabinet members to comply. As of now, he displayed concerns over this matter but could not account for the tardiness on the part of these Ministers.

Among the defaulters on the list of 716 were General Manager of the Demerara Harbour Bridge Corporation, Rawlston Adams; Chief Executive Officer of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), George Lewis; Director General of Guyana Civil Aviation Authority, Egbert Field; CEO of the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission, Trevor Benn; Chairman of the Guyana National Broadcasting Authority,

Leslie Sobers; General Manager of the Guyana National Newspapers Limited, Sherod Duncan; CEO of the Guyana Office for Investment, Owen Verwey; and CEO of Guyana Power and Light, Albert Gordon among others.

A breakdown of the list includes officials from the Cheddi Jagan International Airport; the Cyril Potter College of Education; the Bureau of Statistics; the Dependent Pension Fund; the Environmental Protection Agency; the GPHC; the Guyana Gold Board; the Guyana Oil Company; and the Guyana Power and Light Inc, among others.

Under the law, any public officer who fails to comply with the Commission is liable upon summary conviction, to a fine of $25,000 and imprisonment for a period of not less than six months or more than one year.

10 NEWS

Tuesday, JUly 23, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

PCA launches probe into taxi driver’s death at Suddie Police Station

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ollowing a request by Attorney-at-Law Anil Nandlall, the Police Complaints Authority has begun investigating the death of Lalbachan Bachan, who died at the Suddie Police Station earlier this month.

Nandlall, who is representing the family of the now dead man on Monday explained that statements were taken from Bachan’s relatives on July 16, 2019, by the Police Complaints Authority. Further, he added that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Shalimar Ali-Hack, has acknowledged a letter sent to her by him on behalf of the family of the now dead man.

In her response, dated July 9, 2019, Ali-Hack stated, “I hereby inform you that I have directed the acting Crime Chief, Mr Kingston, to comply with the Police

Dead: Lalbachan Bachan

Complaints Authority Act and that the Chairman, Police Complaints Authority is to supervise the investigations as prescribed by Section 14 of the Police Complaints Authority Act, Chapter 17:02”.

Meanwhile, the former

Attorney General pointed out in his statement that the Top Cop, Leslie James, is yet to respond to his request for a thorough investigation into the man’s death.

The appeal for an investigation into the death of the 39-year-old man was made

by Nandlall on behalf of the deceased’s wife, Samanta Bachan, who publicly made calls for justice.

These calls mounted after the post-mortem examination revealed that he died from asphyxiation, and photographs of the deceased demonstrated multiple injuries about the body.

Bachan was arrested on June 28, 2019, at Maria’s Lodge, Essequibo Coast. He died during the night on June 30.

The widow recalled that her husband was arrested on June 12 for driving under the

influence of alcohol. He was placed on $20,000 bail at the Suddie Police Station and was told to appear before the Suddie Magistrate’s Court on June 20. The matter was adjourned and he was scheduled to return to court on June 28. However, after he failed to attend court, an arrest warrant was issued for him.

According to the widow, Police visited their home on the same day and placed him in the lock-ups at the Suddie Police Station. She said that she was not allowed to see her husband until the morning of June 30. The widow recalled that her husband inquired about their kids and complained of feeling unwell.

On July 1, she recounted that as the family was preparing to visit the police station, they received news that he had died. She explained that she rushed to

Lalbachan Bachan’s children, widow and relatives during a recent protest in July calling for justice

the Suddie Public Hospital where she observed her husband bleeding from his head, which was also swollen.

After the incident, Police, in a release to the media, claimed that Bachan was the lone prisoner in the cell.

A post-mortem examination conducted by Dr Nehaul Singh on the man’s body gave the cause of death as asphyxiation.

The widow’s lawyer is arguing that the Guyana Police Force (GPF) is responsible for the safety of persons in their custody and must be answerable when such situations occur.

Moreover, he told this publication that it is illegal for relatives to be prevented by the police from visiting their imprisoned family member.

2019 budgetary allocation for Region 1 still in “virgin” state – Regional Chair …says RDC being stymied

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even months have passed since the year began but to date, $3.4 billion that was approved for the Region One (Barima-Waini) Regional Administration during budgetary allocations in December 2018 remains untouched.

According to Regional Chairman, Brentnol Ashley major developmental works and much-needed projects that should have already been halfway completed for 2019 have not commenced.

“Relating to budget implementation, it is considered in the virgin stage, meaning spending has not started as yet. We know that some projects were awarded but the concern is that the projects have not started in order for contractors to part being paid so it will reflect that our budget is still unspent to date.

This is the seventh month we are in, about to begin the eight month,” Ashley told this publication.

He explained that the standstill in Region One and the delaying of crucial projects is by no means the fault of the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) but rather the blame should be placed solely on the shoulders of the region’s Regional Executive Officer (REO), Randolph Storm.

“We have not had a sitting of the RDC since April.

The REO behaves as though as if he is not answerable to the RDC or the Councillors of the RDC. This has been causing problems as it relates to the administration of the region, causing problems to the implementation of the regional budget in certain aspects,” the Chairman lamented.

Hypocritical

According to Ashley, although there are different tiers in the governance of a country, it appears as though it is only the Central Government that is “truly empowered” to execute what

it deems as fit and necessary.

“The Government speaks in a hypocritical manner about respecting and empowering the tiers…as it relates to the regional level, the RDCs are being trampled upon and its authority is being taken lightly, some REOs are carrying out political directives as against carrying out the decisions that are made by the RDC. To date, no decision that was made by the RDC since February or April have been implemented by the REO of Region One,” the Chairman said.

He lamented that the RDC was forced to postpone its statutory meeting that was scheduled to have been held last month and, therefore, members are not being kept abreast of what is truly occurring in Region One. “It was postponed owing to the fact that the elected Councillors were not informed in a timely manner.

Also, the official minutes were not prepared for the Councillors to have it to use as a tool to monitor and to evaluate what is being done by the RDC. The RDC is being stymied from carrying out its constitutional responsibility of monitoring and ensuring that value is given for the money that is being spent.”

It was also noted that at the end of this year, if the monies from 2018’s budgetary allocation have not been utilised then they would be returned to the national treasury and many of these projects would have to be “rolled over”.

Some of these projects are for the construction of health facilities, enclosure of buildings, gridding and shaping of roads, rehabilitation to health and education facilities, purchasing of vehicles and ATVs (All Terrain Vehicles) etc.

On December 12, 2018, under the Education Capital Programme for 2019, the sum of $151,200 million was approved for rehabilitative work

Regional Chairman Brentnol Ashley

to the Port Kaituma Primary and Secondary schools and extension of White-Water Nursery School. The sum also catered for the construction of sanitary blocks at Waramuri, Port Kaituma and St John’s Primary Schools and the construction and enclosure of living quarters at Unity Square and Manawarin.

Some $21.9 million was to be spent on school furniture and equipment including equipment for Smart classrooms, desks, benches, cupboards, tables, chairs, racks, fire extinguishers, musical and sports equipment at several schools in the region. $15.7 million was also allocated for transportation.

The money caters for boats and outboard engines at Moruca, Barama, Pawaikuru, and St Nicholas, Waramuri and Santa Cruz Primary and Santa Rosa Secondary Schools among others.

In the area of health, $101.1 million was allocated for the completion of an X-ray room at Pakera District Hospital and staff quarters at Mabaruma; construction of a maternity waiting home at Santa Rosa; health training complex at Mabaruma; health post at Parakese and incinerator at Kwebana; enclosure of living quarters and upgrading of central duct system at Mabaruma Regional Hospital and the provision for hot water baths.

11 Minister’s husband calls for boycott of PSC registered businesses news

Tuesday, JUly 23, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

…after Private Sector calls out Govt for not adhering to Constitution, CCJ orders

Public Service Minister Tabitha Sarabo-Halley

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he husband of recently appointed Public Service Minister, Tabitha Sarabo-Halley, has taken to social media to incite Guyanese to “boycott” any business that is registered with the Private Sector Commission (PSC).

This move comes on the heels of the PSC calling out the APNU/AFC Government for its non-adherence to the country’s Constitution as well as disregard for the orders of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in relation to the No-Confidence Motion passed in the National Assembly on December 21, 2018. The CCJ had ruled that the No-Confidence motion was validly passed and as such the Government is now a caretaker and that elections should be held as stipulated by the Constitution of Guyana.

Article 106 (6) of the Constitution of Guyana states: “The Cabinet including the President shall resign if the Government is defeated by the vote of a majority of all the elected members of the National Assembly on a vote of confidence.”

Meanwhile, Article

106 (7) states: “Notwithstanding its defeat, the Government shall remain in office and shall hold an election within three months, or such longer period as the National Assembly shall by resolution supported by not less than two-thirds of the votes of all the elected members of the National Assembly determine, and shall resign after the President takes the oath of office following the election.”

Clayon F Halley, on his Facebook account page, had a post “When last ya’ll boycott one ah dem business that is part of the PSC?” The minister’s husband’s comments have since triggered outrage on social media, with persons expressing disgust at what some described as reckless, targeting and inciting statements.

Last week, the PSC stated that the Government’s caretaker status puts the State at risk and that companies are now extremely concerned about the status of contracts with the State, now that the Government must be in caretaker mode.

“It is the Private Sector’s view that the President, by his behaviour, has put at risk all Private Sector entities and other organisations made subject to contracts and any other action authorised by the Cabinet, by presuming them to be legal,” the PSC said in a strongly-worded statement earlier this week.

The PSC said it has asked its members to seek legal advice in this regard.

cise of its legal authority. It is this caretaker or interim role that explains the three-month deadline in the first instance that the Article lays down in principle for the holding of fresh elections,” CCJ President, Justice Adrian Saunders stated.

But President David Granger, after those orders, announced that Cabinet is still meeting.

According to the PSC, the Head of State’s posture is “unacceptable”.

“It is totally unacceptable, therefore, to the Commission that the President has refused to honour the Constitution in anSince the Government fell to the no-confidence vote on December 21, 2018, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has always maintained that the Government should be acting in a caretaker capacity only and not be entering into large scale contracts.

Jagdeo’s position was vindicated by the CCJ when it ruled that the Government should act as a caretaker or an “interim” administration until a new president is sworn-in.

“Article 106 envisaged that the tenure in office of the Cabinet, including the President after the Government’s defeat, is on a different footage from that which existed prior to the vote of no-confidence. By convention, the Government is expected to behave, during this interim period, as a caretaker and so restrain the exer-

Clayton Halley, husband of recently appointed Public Service Minister Tabitha Sarabo-Halley

nouncing that the Cabinet shall continue to function.”

Despite its caretaker mode, the Government has since awarded multi-million dollar contracts.

12 news

tuesday, JUly 23, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Georgetown flooded again after heavy rainfall …Stabroek Bazaar faced with drainage tragedy

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ownpours throughout Georgetown and its environs resulted in accumulated floodwaters throughout strategic locations, thus creating a build-

ing to many areas in the capital city. As customary, areas such as Main Street, Alexander Village, Stabroek and other sections where drainage mechanisms are

inated water.

Meanwhile, vendors, especially those lined along the streets, were also severely affected. On Main Street, merchants were surround-

said Miranda, who sells garments, told this publication.

Meanwhile, the Stabroek Bazaar is always under water, even when rainfall is absent. One vendor stated that

Persons walking through the floodwaters on Main Street

Inundation across Georgetown

up of traffic and an uncomfortable environment for vendors and pedestrians.

This issue has been occurring every time heavy rainfall persists but the issue is yet to be mended. The rainy season of May to June was extended to July this year and has brought flood-

weak, resulted in floodwaters climbing several inches.

Guyana Times visited a few of these locations where it was especially difficult for pedestrians to traverse to their destinations. They were left with no option but to remove their shoes and peddle through the contam-

ed by water and expected a slow day ahead.

“People won’t come through this water here just to buy…I had to block around the tent so the water don’t come in. We don’t know how long we could stay here because every rainfall you getting this flood,”

this is due to blockages in the drainage system which is yet to be fixed.

“The pipe block up so this is not nothing new. They put a sandbag over there to go into the stall cause it looking like this since last week. In fact, since last year it start building up because the wa-

ter have nowhere to go,” Madanlall Singh told this publication.

He stated that they are forced to sell in an environment which is unhealthy for human dwelling.

The capital city is prone to flooding and numerous initiatives were embarked upon to fix the problem. Just last April, the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) announced that a series of

manual and mechanical drainage works within the capital city were to be completed. The project was expected to cost $163 million to increase drainage capacity and significantly reduce flooding throughout Georgetown. Three high capacity mobile drainage pumps were to be installed at Church Street, Sussex Street, and Ruimveldt to assist in reducing the occurrence of flooding.

80 teenage mothers complete reintegration programme G

uyana is placed amongst the highest statistics for teenage pregnancy within the Caribbean, with hundreds of young girls leaving school to care for their child.

On Monday, some 80 of these persons graduated from the Carnegie School of Home Economics with a skill to better their lives by gaining employment to provide for themselves. This initiative was created through a collaborative effort with the Education Ministry and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

Education Specialist at UNICEF, Audrey Rodrigues explained that it is an achievement for the young mothers since it gives them a chance to be independent.

“You now have an opportunity to make yourself a successful, independent woman and you have the opportunity for that to become a reality. The key is to continue learning all the days.

Some of the best lessons we have come from negative experiences which often teach us about inner security that can never be attained by passing examinations,” she

ing a trend…The adolescent who is pregnant or an adolescent mother is entitled to having the support necessary of self-development,” Rodrigues stated.

Meanwhile, Education Minister Nicolette Henry acknowledged that issues such as teenage pregnancy can have a lasting effect which poses as a negative thread in these persons. It has also widened the gap of gender disparity in education.

However, such training reintegrates them into society.

UNICEF had introduced a national policy in 2018 for the reintegration of adoles-

Some of the graduated teenage mothers

cent mothers into the formal school system.

“It is intended that this policy will assist Guyana to achieve its national, regional and international commitments. By extension, the

policy shall ensure that adolescent mothers are able to continue their education in the same school or another school at least six (6) weeks after delivery. This is critical as it will also enable

MoU inked for inter agency...

Items which were made during the craft course

While some opted to complete a course in cosmetology, others chose garment making, craft or catering, where certification was provided upon completion.

At a simple ceremony, the works of these persons were showcased and startup kits were presented for them to turn their lives around.

explained.

She also reminded of the high statistics of teenage pregnancy recorded in Guyana which has been noted for several years. There have also been cases where children are below the age of 12.

“There are some girls who are as young as 10 and 11 years old who are becom-

“As well as to share the information in a timely manner so that investigations are conducted efficiently. We have an MoU with the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) and the State Assets Recovery Agency (SARA) already that was done previously and so with all the agencies now coming on board to exchange information in a more structured and efficient manner, it should allow for a more efficient and effective process with respect to all the investigations we are conducting.”

According to the FIU Head, such a process is standard for all FIUs globally and all the competent authorities in every country. The fact that Guyana

was not a part of this process earlier was highlighted as a weakness within a National Risk Assessment (NRA) that was conducted.

Langevine further explained that the inking of such a MoU is one of the recommendations that came out of the NRA that was completed in 2017. It is aimed at ensuring that all measures that were identified in relation to improving the effectiveness of the Anti-Money Laundering/ Caribbean Financing Action Task Force (AML/ CFATF) regime in Guyana, are in place.

“We signed with seven today but we would have signed a couple already.

We have a few others that we are hoping to sign with

very shortly including the additional registries, the Commercial Registry and the Deeds Registry as well as the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) which is still outstanding which we are going to have signed off very shortly. The Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) is also scheduled to sign off with us very shortly as well.”

No SOCU successful prosecutions

He told this publication that over the past few years, since the establishment of the FIU, his agency has continuously been sending cases to SOCU so that it (SOCU) could pursue with the aim of securing successful prosecutions

Guyana to achieve its elusive goal regarding gender equality,” the organisation stated.

Statistics also showed in a report that the adolescent birth rate is at an average of 52 per 1000 girls aged 1519. Additionally, one in 10 women from rural locations are married or in a relationship before the age of 15 and 49 per cent were married before the age of 18. From the Health Ministry’s reports, the average percentage of teenage pregnancies from ages 10 to 19 was 16.1 per cent for the period 20032007.

from page 2

which would lead to convictions.

“We are sending cases all the time, we are sending reports to them, sending updated reports to reports submitted previously so it is an ongoing process.

The one thing I would like to warn the public is that money laundering investigations are very complex and it takes a lot of time and requires a lot of work and a lot of skilled resources and I think that we have to allow the process to work.”

However, he noted that getting to the stage of convictions, prosecutions and seizures of assets cannot happen until there are certain systems properly implemented.

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tuesday, JUly 23, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Mother of 2 dies in Berbice fire A

mother of two perished in a blaze, which completely destroyed a one-storey building at Lot 150 Number 64 Village, Corentyne on Monday.

Dead is 37-year-old Sabita Sukhnanand.

Reports are that Sukhnanand allegedly set fire to the building about 16:00h on Monday, but it was not until around 19:00h that fire-fighters were able to contain the fire, preventing it from spreading to other buildings.

The woman’s 42-yearold husband, Jairam, told Guyana Times that he was at work when his daughter turned up and reported

that her mother had set the house on fire.

He said when he arrived on the scene, he removed his car from under the house

while neighbours were attempting to douse the fire with water by forming a bucket brigade.

Jairam said that he at-

tempted to enter the burning building, but the curtains obscured his vision.

“When the fire catch on she, she start to holla and I jump up catch she hand, ah couldn’t get fuh hold she and pull she up. She fall down and I had to jump out back,” he explained.

This newspaper was told the couple’s 11-year-old son and 13-year-old daughter were in the building when it was set on fire and they raised an alarm.

There are reports that it was the third time the woman had set fire to the building. According to her husband, he believed that she was under the influence of alcohol on Monday when

Dead: Sabita Sukhnanand

she lit the fire. The carpenter said that when he left for work at approximately 13:00h, his wife was in good spirits and nothing seemed

off with her.

This publication was told that back in 2016, Sukhnanand set the house on fire, but neighbours were able to put out the blaze without much damage to the building.

It is believed that on Monday afternoon, the fire was set in front of the door while Sukhnanand remained in the house in her intoxicated state. She was unable to run to safety.

Residents have reported that a unit from the Corriverton Fire Service arrived more than an hour after smoke was initially seen coming from the building.

The Police are investigating.

Triple therapy filaria campaign to begin in October W ith Guyana still lagging behind with its epidemiology coverage, the Public Health Ministry will embark on a triple therapy programme this year, beginning in October which will see persons being given about seven to nine pills to tackle Lymphatic Filariasis (LF), also called filaria.

In a newspaper advertisement published on Sunday, the Ministry, in collaboration with the Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/ WHO), announced that the Mass Drug Administration

(MDA) will commence in October.

Moreover, it noted that a new drug, Ivermectin, will be introduced along with the two pills already known to the public – Diethylcarbamazine (DEC) and Albendazole.

The combination of pills, referred to as IDA, is very effective and safe, the Ministry said. More importantly, Guyana will move closer to its target of eliminating filaria with the use of these drugs. In fact, Guyana requires only two more rounds of successful MDA with this regimen.

As such, the Ministry

has urged persons to drink their pills when pill distributors come around.

The new drug, Ivermectin, is a medication used to treat many types of parasitic infestations. This includes head lice, scabies, and LF. Research shows that it is better to take the drug on an empty stomach or one to two hours after a meal.

Side effects of the drug include headache; dizziness; muscle pain; nausea; diarrhoea, swelling of hands, ankles or feet; swelling or tenderness of lymph nodes and/or itching.

Earlier this year, it was

revealed that epidemiology coverage increased from 45.7 per cent in 2015 in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara); Four (Demerara-Mahaica); and Five (Mahaica-Berbice) to 54.2 per cent in 2016 and 82 per cent in 2017 and 79 per cent in 2018 in the four targeted Regions – Three, Four, Five and 10 (Upper Demerara-Upper Berbice).

Presently, those four regions are benefiting from

the free pills as these were found to be the most affected Regions during a survey conducted by the Ministry a few years ago.

At the same event, the Deputy Chief Medical Officer (DCMO), Dr Karen Campbell pointed out that nine of Guyana’s 10 Administrative Regions are plagued by the disease.

These Regions, she added, have surpassed a one per cent prevalence in each.

According to the DCMO, the country’s current strategy would not be able to interrupt the transmission of LF by 2020 and so it is important for the programme to be implemented.

In fact, she said, “Our current use of DA (Diethylcarbamazine and Albendazole) would not achieve this and, therefore, we don’t really have much choice. We have to embrace IDA if we want to qualify.”

Almost 1 year later

Linden Passport Office yet to open

A

lmost a year after completion, the newly constructed Linden Passport Office in Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) is yet to be opened to serve members of the public.

According to Minister of Citizenship, Winston Felix, who paid a visit to the facility last Friday, the issues responsible for the delay from January to date were electrical power issues, which he noted have now been sorted out.

The minister said the necessary equipment would now be installed, and the building put to use. He said among the issues were that some electrical outlets were wrongfully placed to accommodate equipment.

When opened, the facility is expected to provide both passport and immigration services to residents across the Region.

“The Passport Office is at a stage where we were held up; we’ve now overcome the power issues, which were incomplete. Now that the power issues are sorted out, we’re now installing the equipment necessary to

Linden passport office

have the biometrics taken when applications are received, because we want to have that done in Linden,” Minister Felix stated.

He noted that, at this time, residents of Linden and other parts of Region 10, who have applied for their passports in Georgetown, will find the present system of delivery still in effect.

Meanwhile, residents have voiced concerns as they anxiously await the commissioning of the facility in an effort to utilise its services.

While Linden has been benefiting from passport

renewal services conducted out of the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) building at Mackenzie since August, 2016, this will be the first time the community will have such a building to cater for new applicants.

Applicants who apply at the Georgetown office also benefit from uplifting same at this office. However, this move will see new applicants now having access to the service from within the community.

The facility is also expected to process other documents, such as birth and death certificates.

14 News

Tuesday, JUly 23, 2019| guyanatimesgy.com

Kingston traffic diverted to facilitate Trinidad Tourism Board collapses rerouting of sewage pipes T

C

ommuters traversing the streets in Kingston, Georgetown are asked to be wary of minor disruptions in traffic as works on Pegasus Hotel’s sewage system within Battery Road are underway. These works began last Wednesday and are being conducted by Collin and Sons Construction – a private company.

According to Contractor Collin Reid, who has oversight for the project, 11 workers are, “rerouting the sewage system that passes through Pegasus Hotel”.

The private project was funded by Pegasus Hotel Guyana and entails the rerouting of one mile of sewage pipes.

The works, according to the Department of Public Information (DPI), are being conducted along Battery Road, Kingston, and commuters are asked to adhere to signs of traffic diversion.

Commuters travelling north on Water Street will see a traffic sign at the Cowan Street intersection

indicating that there is a detour 1,000ft ahead.

DPI reported that traffic proceeding east onto Battery Road is limited up to Fort Street, Kingston where vehicles must turn around. Those wishing to travel West onto Battery Road from High Street are advised to use Wight’s Lane instead. No right turns from Fort Street onto Battery Road are allowed.

After the sewage pipework on Tuesday, Collin and Sons Construction Company will rebuild the road to its former state.

This is expected to be done within 6 weeks.

Public Relations Officer (PRO) within Guyana Water Inc, Leana Bradshaw told DPI that GWI has been instrumental in guiding the contracting company throughout the project.

“It is within GWI’s interest to ensure specifications, in terms of materials, are met [and] the timelines and the methodologies used to carry out the work,” PRO Bradshaw stated. The water utility company also has supervisory staff at the worksite.

he Trinidad Tourism Ltd board has effectively collapsed in the wake of the controversial firing of CEO Camille Campbell on July 1.

Between Friday and Saturday, four of the 11 members of the board resigned, saying the board was now seen in a negative light.

On Monday another three, Candace Guppy, Thomas Lawrence and Sydelle Olivia MarchanJairam, also resigned. This means that the Janelle Commissiong-chaired board now consists of only four members, three shy of the quorum, and even with acting CEO Heidi Alert, the board is unable to function.

Campbell has threatened to sue the board for wrongful dismissal and has sent a pre-action protocol letter.

Board members told Newsday last week that it was a “race to resign” after the July 17 meeting.

Deputy chairman Dwayne Cambridge was the first to call it quits, followed by Solange De Souza, then Alicia Cabrera and finally Dennis Ramdeen.

Board sources said the

Former Tourism Minister Shamfa Cudjoe, seated at centre, is flanked by the Tourism Board of Trinidad at the Ministry of Tourism, Tower D Waterfront, Port of Spain

July 17 meeting was very heated. Members were told that industrial relations consultant Lennox Marcelle, who advised Commissiong to fire Campbell, is preparing a response to Campbell’s letter, which gave the board up to Friday to respond.

The board, which consisted of 12 members up until December, when Faye Blackburne resigned, has been in the spotlight since Campbell was dismissed.

Commissiong has consistently defended the firing, saying it was a decision by the board, but other members disagreed with that

statement.

Board members who asked for a copy of the advice were not given one and hence resigned, two of them calling the board abhorrent and odious.

When news first broke of the sacking, the Prime Minister said Cabinet needed to get involved. Cabinet subsequently discussed the issue, but no decision was made.

The remaining members of the board are Commissiong, Neil Mohammed, Heather MacIntosh-Simon and Joanna Welch-Gittens. (T&T Newsday)

Boris Johnson set to become next UK PM Israel demolishes Palestinian

B

oris Johnson is expected to be elected leader of Britain’s governing Conservative Party and the country’s next prime minister on Tuesday, tasked with following through on his “do or die” pledge to deliver Brexit in just over three months time.

Johnson and his rival, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, have spent the last month crisscrossing the country seeking to win over the less than 200,000 Conservative Party members who will choose Britain’s new leader.

Voting closed at 1600 GMT on Monday and the result is due to be announced on Tuesday morning. The winner will formally take over as prime minister on Wednesday afternoon, succeeding Theresa May, who stepped down over her failure to get parliament to ratify her Brexit deal.

Johnson, a former London mayor who resigned

homes near separation wall

H Boris Johnson

as foreign minister a year ago over May’s Brexit plans, is the clear favorite to replace her, with several polls putting him on around 70 percent. He will inherit a political crisis over Britain’s exit from the European Union, currently due to take place on Oct. 31. Johnson must persuade the EU to revive talks on a withdrawal deal that it has been adamant cannot be reopened, or else lead Britain into the economic uncertainty of an

unmanaged departure.

The only deal on the table has been rejected three times by parliament and many lawmakers - including pro-EU rebels in the Conservative Party - are also vowing to block Johnson trying to take Britain out of the EU without a deal.

He has said he would ramp up preparations for a no-deal to try to force the EU’s negotiators to make changes to the accord. (Reuters)

undreds of Israeli troops with bulldozers tore down homes in the Palestinian village of Sur Baher despite local protests and international criticism.

Residents of the village’s Wadi al-Hummus neighbourhood told local media on Monday that 16 residential buildings with about 100 apartments were being demolished.

“Preparations started past midnight as hundreds of armed Israeli occupying soldiers/ bulldozers stormed the town. Families threatened with demolitions were woken up/ moved out of their homes,” said a tweet by the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO).

The Israeli military considers the homes, which are close to an Israeli separation wall that crisscrosses the occupied West Bank, a “secu-

rity” risk.

The Israeli Supreme Court ruled in favour of the military last month, ending a seven-year legal battle, and set Monday as the deadline to knock down the homes. Palestinians say the demolitions set a precedent for other towns along the route of the barrier, which runs for hundreds of kilometres around and through the occupied West Bank.

Al Jazeera’s Rob Matheson, reporting from the demolition area, said the Israeli action began at 7:15am local time (04:15 GMT).

“We heard very loud bangs coming from a building right next door to where we are now. It was from a large mechanical digger that was ripping off part of the roof of a building that was home up until this morning to two families,” he said.

“The father of one of the families has been sitting on a chair in the street watching his home being torn apart.”

The sprawling village of Sur Baher straddles the line between occupied East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank. It was captured and occupied by Israel in the 1967 war.

Matheson said Israeli forces levelled a building in the West Bank and destroyed 50 percent of a home belonging to a Palestinian family of 10 on the East Jerusalem side.

“They took the family away - we heard screaming and shouting. And within two hours, 50 percent of the building has been destroyed.”

The demolitions marked a “very sombre and sad day” for Palestinian residents, he said.(Al Jazeera)

news

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Tuesday, JUly 23, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

US expands powers to deport migrants without going to court T he US government is introducing a new fast-track deportation process that will bypass immigration courts.

Under the new rules, any undocumented migrants who can’t prove they’ve been in the US continuously for more than two years can be immediately deported.

The policy is expected to be published on Tuesday, and then implemented across the country with immediate effect.

However the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) rights group has said it plans to challenge the policy in court.

It comes as US immigration policy comes under increasing scrutiny in particular, the conditions at the country’s detention centres on the southern border with Mexico.

Kevin McAleenan, acting

T

secretary of Homeland Security, said the change would “help to alleviate some of the burden and capacity issues” at the border.

He added that it was “a necessary response to the ongoing immigration crisis”.

Analysts say US

President Donald Trump is planning to make hardline immigration control a key element of his re-election campaign in 2020.

Previously, only people detained within 100 miles (160km) of the border who had been in the US for less

two weeks could be deported quickly.

Migrants who were found elsewhere, or who had been in the country for more than two weeks, would need to be processed through the courts and would be entitled to legal representation. (BBC)

Trump says Modi asked for US mediation on Kashmir, India denies

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S President Donald Trump has said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked him to mediate on the decades-long Kashmir dispute with Pakistan, a claim rejected by New Delhi.

“He actually said, ‘Would you like to be a mediator or arbitrator?’ I said, ‘Where?’

He said, ‘Kashmir.’ Because this has been going on for many, many years,” Trump said at the White House, where he was hosting Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday.

“If I can help, I would love to be a mediator,” the US president said, a statement that signalled a shift in longstanding US policy that the Kashmir issue must be solved bilaterally.

In response, Khan, who is on his first trip to the US as prime minister, told Trump he will have “the prayers a billion people” in the Indian subcontinent if he is able to resolve the Kashmir issue.

But India was quick to respond, rejecting the

South Korea fires warning shots at Russian military aircraft in its airspace

US offer of mediation and denying Modi had asked for it.

We have seen @POTUS’s remarks to the press that he is ready to mediate, if requested

by India & Pakistan, on Kashmir issue. No such request has been made by PM @narendramodi to US President,” India’s foreign ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar posted on Twitter.

“It has been India’s consistent position that all outstanding issues with Pakistan are discussed only bilaterally,” he wrote.

While Islamabad has

long sought US mediation on Kashmir and has repeatedly raised the dispute at international forum, India has opposed any third-party mediation, calling the dispute over the Himalayan territory an “internal matter”.

Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan, but claimed in its entirety by the nuclear-armed neighbours, who have fought two of their three wars over it.

In February this year, India, which accuses Islamabad of supporting armed rebels in Kashmir, came close to another war

following a suicide bombing claimed by a Pakistan-based rebel group.

The suicide attack killed more than 40 Indian troops in India-administered Kashmir’s Pulwama region, prompting tit-for-tat air attacks between the two countries.

Some 70,000 people, mostly civilians, have died over the past 30 years in India-administered Kashmir, monitoring groups say.

Last week, Pakistan arrested Hafiz Saeed, the alleged mastermind of a 2008 attack on the Indian city of Mumbai, who has been designated a “terrorist” by the US and the United Nations. More than 160 people were killed in the four-day siege.

Trump last year slashed millions of dollars of security assistance to Islamabad, which he accused of serving as a safe haven for armed fighters. Pakistan has denied the accusations. (Al Jazeera)

he South Korean military fired two warning shots at a Russian military aircraft that entered South Korean airspace on Tuesday, the Ministry of National Defense in Seoul said, and Chinese military aircraft had also entered South Korean airspace.

It was the first time a Russian military aircraft had violated South Korean airspace, a ministry official said.

The warplane was one of three Russian aircraft to enter the Korea Air Defense Identification Zone (KADIZ) early on Tuesday. Two Chinese military aircraft also entered the KADIZ, the defense ministry said in a statement.

There was no immediate public comment from Russian or Chinese officials.

The South Korean government would lodge official complaints about the

Van carrying 270kg of ‘ice’ worth $200M crashes into parked Police cars in Sydney

American, Australian tourists killed in Canada

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anadian police are investigating the murder of two young travellers who were shot in northern British Columbia.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) says American Chynna Deese, 24, and Australian Lucas Fowler, 23, were found dead last week.

Fowler’s father is a senior member of the New South Wales Police Force and has come to Canada with two colleagues.

Stephen Fowler described the murder of his son and his son’s girlfriend as “a love story that ended tragically”.

“I may be an experienced police officer but today I am

standing here as the father of a murder victim,” he told media at an RCMP news conference.

Two police officers from Australia have travelled to act as family liaisons during the RCMP investigation. Mr

Fowler says they will not get involved in the case directly.

“I’m an experienced police officer and I know how these investigations can go,” he said.

“But I can tell you I am more than confident in all of the officers that are working on

this case.”

Family of both victims say they had planned on travelling across Canada.

“They were bright and beautiful souls. We are all still in shock and heartbroken,” Kennedy Deese, Chynna’s sister, wrote on Facebook.

Their 1986 blue Chevrolet minivan was found near the bodies on the side of the Alaska Highway, near Liard Hot Springs, between Sunday and Monday. The springs are a popular tourist destination.

Eyewitnesses told media they saw the couple on the side of the road when their van broke down, but that they seemed to have it under

violations with China and Russia, the defense ministry in Seoul said.

According to the South Korean military, the Russian aircraft then violated South Korean airspace over Dokdo - an island that is occupied

by South Korea and also claimed by Japan, which calls it Takeshima - just after 9 a.m. (midnight GMT Monday).

“The South Korean military took tactical action including dropping flares and firing a warning shot,” the defense ministry statement said. The Russian aircraft left South Korean airspace but then entered it again about 20 minutes later, prompting the South Koreans to fire another warning shot.

The ministry said South Korean warplanes “conducted a normal response” to the incursion, without giving further details. (Reuters)

control.

Police have a composite sketch of a man who was seen speaking to Lucas along the highway and are asking for the public’s assistance, they believe he was driving an older Jeep Cherokee with a racing stripe on the top of the roof.

The young couple met at a hostel in Croatia in 2017, and had travelled the world together since then.

“Our son Lucas was having the time of his life travelling the world. He met a beautiful young lady and they teamed up, they were a great pair and they fell in love,” Mr Fowler said. (BBC)

A

Sydney driver, who allegedly crashed a van carrying $200m worth of the drug ice into parked police cars outside a station in Sydney’s northwest, has been locked up.

The 26-year-old man from, Berala, was facing three charges including drug trafficking and negligent driving, New South Wales police said.

The crash happened on Monday at 10.30am outside Eastwood police station and officers said the Toyota HiAce did not stop.

Police searched the van and seized 273kg of methylamphetamine, known as ice, which has an estimated potential street value of more than $200m.

The man appeared at Burwood local court on Tuesday and was refused bail. (The Guardian)

16

guyanatimesgy.com

Tuesday, JUly 23, 2019

Regional

Widespread blackout hits Venezuela, Government Mexico says no to safe third-country asylum blames “electromagnetic attack” discussion with US M ore than half of Venezuela’s 23 states lost power on Monday, according to Reuters witnesses and reports on social media, a blackout the Government blamed on an “electromagnetic attack”.

It was the first blackout to include the capital, Caracas, since March, when the Government blamed the Opposition and United States for a series of power outages that left millions of people without running water and telecommunications.

The blackouts exacerbated an economic crisis that has halved the size of the economy.

Venezuelan Information Minister Jorge Rodriguez said the outage on Monday was caused by an “electromagnetic attack”, without providing evidence. He added that authorities were in the process of re-establishing service.

Power returned for about 10 minutes to parts of southeastern Bolivar state, site of the Guri hydroelectric dam – the source of most of Venezuela’s generation – but went out again, according

M

People walk on the street during a blackout in Caracas, Venezuela, July 22, 2019

to a Reuters witness. Electricity was still out throughout Caracas.

“It terrifies me to think we are facing a national blackout again,” said Maria Luisa Rivero, a 45-year-old business owner from the city of Valencia, in the central state of Carabobo.

“The first thing I did was run to freeze my food so that it does not go bad

like it did like the last time in March.

It costs a lot to buy food just to lose it,” she said.

The oil-rich country’s hyperinflationary economic crisis has led to widespread shortages in food and medicine, prompting over four million Venezuelans to leave the country.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

T&T MP claims threat from gangsters

M

oruga/ Tableland Member of Parliament, Dr Lovell Francis has revealed that his life has been threatened by gangsters. The MP says he has been threatened by a gang who is extorting protection money from contractors and their workers.

Although he already revealed that a crimi-

nal gang had targeted the US$176 million Moruga Road Rehabilitation Project, Francis told Guardian Media that the gang has now targeted the contractor for the bridge construction over the Moriquite River in Basse Terre. He said that apart from contractors paying gangsters, their employees are being taxed as well.

He added that the gang also tries to determine who gets hired by the contractors.

Last week, Guardian Media reported exclusively that criminal gangs were being awarded million-dollar contracts by regional corporations. The matter was the subject of a report done by the Special Branch Police unit.

Police Commissioner Gary Griffith has gone on record to say that the award of contracts by the state to criminals has been fuelling crime.

Only last week, he said, a war over box drain resulted in a shooting incident between rival gangs. (Trinidad

exico will not agree to further discussion of safe third country status for asylum seekers, the Foreign Minister said, adding it was not clear what the Trump Administration’s stance was on the issue despite a deadline reached on Monday.

Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said that in weekend talks, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo did not address an earlier deal that the two countries look at making asylum seekers apply for refuge in Mexico if migration flows were not significantly lowered by July 22.

However, Ebrard said he told Pompeo in Mexico City on Sunday that Mexico’s view was that the proposal was unnecessary, after it helped reduce apprehensions at the US southern border by a about a third last month.

“I can’t anticipate what their stance is but the Mexican position is very

clear. We are not going to change our position. We don’t agree, and we have not accepted a negotiation about it,” Ebrard said at a news conference.

Mexico has long resisted US pressure to formally accept the safe third country status. Even so, it agreed with the United States to begin talks over changing rules to make Mexico into a safe third country if, by July 22, the United States deemed that Mexico had not done enough to thwart migrants.

That June 7 deal was reached to avert US President Donald Trump’s threat of escalating tariffs on all Mexican products sold to the United States.

President Trump has made slashing illegal migration numbers a hallmark of his presidency and 2020 re-election bid, but despite last month’s decline in apprehensions flows are still near record highs. (Excerpt from

Reuters)

Haiti officials, media say PM Lapin has resigned

Guardian)

Massive protests held in Puerto Rico after Governor refuses to step down

Monday’s protest is expected to be the largest in the US territory’s history

T

ens of thousands of people have taken to the streets in Puerto Rico to demand the resignation of the island’s embattled Governor, Ricardo

Rosselló.

It comes a day after Rosselló said he would not step down over a leaked online chat in which he and top aides exchanged obscen-

ity-laced messages.

The texts included homophobic slurs as well as insults about victims of the deadly Hurricane Maria in 2017.

Family to sue Royal Caribbean over toddler’s death

T

he mother of an 18-month-old Indiana, US girl who fell to her death from an open window on a cruise ship in Puerto Rico said there was a “million” things the company could have done in an interview broadcast Monday, according to the Associated Press.

The Associated Press reported that Chloe Wiegand’s mother, Kimberley Wiegand, told NBC’s “Today” show that her family will sue Royal Caribbean Cruises for “not having a safer situation on the 11th floor of that cruise ship”.

Michael Winkleman, the family’s Attorney, has

challenged a Puerto Rico Police report that says Chloe Wiegand’s grandfather dropped the toddler out of a window July 7 when the Freedom of the Seas was docked in Puerto Rico.

Winkleman has said she fell from a window that was inexplicably left open in a children’s play area.

Monday’s protest is expected to be the largest in the US territory’s history.

Despite Rosselló saying he would leave office next year, at the end of his term, protesters have said he must stand down immediately.

They also accuse him of failing to rebuild the territory, which was devastated by a hurricane two years ago.

Asked about the matter, US President Donald Trump said Rosselló was “a terrible governor”.

“You have totally grossly incompetent leadership at the top of Puerto Rico,” he told reporters at the White House. “The leadership is corrupt and incompetent.”

(Excerpt from BBC News)

Interim Prime Minister Jean-Michel Lapin speaks, during his installation at the National Palace in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, March 21, 2019

H

aitian Prime Minister Jean Michel Lapin resigned on Monday, according to a high-ranking Government official who asked not to be named, presenting a shakeup at the highest levels of Government in the Western Hemisphere’s poorest nation.

President Jovenel Moïse also wrote in a post on Twitter that a new prime

minister will be announced shortly, saying he had been in consultations with congressional leaders about the matter.

Haitian newspaper Le Nouvelliste first reported on Monday that Lapin had offered his resignation to Moïse.

“I have made a choice for Haiti,” Lapin said in an interview with the newspaper.

(Reuters)

Drug kingpin “El Chapo” appeals life sentence

F

allen Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, once one of the world’s most powerful and notorious criminals, has appealed his life sentence, court documents published on Monday showed.

Guzman, the 62-year-old former co-leader of Mexico’s feared Sinaloa drug cartel,

was convicted in February of smuggling hundreds of tons of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and marijuana into the United States.

On Wednesday last week, he was sentenced to life in prison in a New York federal courtroom, and sent to the notorious ADX federal maximum security prison in the US state of Colorado

nicknamed the “Alcatraz of the Rockies.”

A symbolic 30 years was also added to the sentence and he was also ordered to pay US$12.6 billion in forfeiture – a sum based on a conservative estimate of revenues from his cartel’s sales in the United States. (Excerpt from AFP)

guyanatimesgy.com

tuesday, JUly 23, 2019

17

Around the World

Israel demolishes Chandrayaan-2: India launches second Moon mission Palestinian homes

I

ndia has successfully launched its second lunar mission a week after it halted the scheduled blast-off due to a technical snag.

Chandrayaan-2 was launched at 14:43 local time (09:13 GMT) from the Sriharikota space station.

India's space chief said his agency had "bounced back with flying colours" after the aborted first attempt.

India hopes the US$145 million (£116 million) mission will be the first to land on the Moon's south pole.

The spacecraft has entered the Earth's orbit, where it will stay for 23 days before it begins a series of manoeuvres that will take it into lunar orbit.

If successful, India will

The lift-off was broadcast live on Indian television networks to an audience of hundreds of millions

become the fourth country to make a soft landing on the Moon's surface. Only the former Soviet Union, the US and China have been able to do so.

The lift-off was broadcast live on TV and the

space agency's official social media accounts.

For the first time in India's space history, an interplanetary expedition is being led by two women - Muthaya Vanitha, the project director, and Ritu

Iran's nuclear programme and tensions have grown.

Trump last year abandoned the international nuclear deal with the Iranians, and the US has imposed sweeping economic sanctions on them.

In recent weeks, the two countries came close to military conflict in the Gulf.

Speaking shortly after the Iranian announced on the arrests, Trump said: "It's getting harder for me to want to make a deal with

Iran."

Iran said the spies who are alleged to work for the US Central Intelligence Agency were arrested over a 12-month period up until March this year.

The 17 were all Iranians working in "sensitive centres" in military and nuclear facilities and the private sector who had acted independently of each other, a top Iranian intelligence official told reporters.

He did not say how many

Karidhal, the mission director.

It is the most complex mission ever attempted by India's space agency.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the mission for being "fully indigenous".

The countdown on July 15 was stopped 56 minutes before launch after a "technical snag was observed in [the] launch vehicle system", according to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

Indian media have reported that a leak from a helium gas bottle in the cryogenic engine of the rocket was to blame.

The fuel from the rocket was drained and the scientists resolved the glitch.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

Iran says it arrested CIA spies and sentenced some to death

I

ran said it has arrested 17 spies who it said were working for the CIA, and sentenced some of them to death.

The Intelligence Ministry said the suspects had been collecting information in the nuclear, military and other sectors.

US President Donald Trump has dismissed the Iranian allegations, saying they are "totally false".

Washington and Tehran are at loggerheads over

had been sentenced to death or when the sentences had been handed down.

"Sentences for these spies have been issued, some of whom are to be put to death as 'corruptors on earth' [a charge punishable by death under Islamic rules in Iran]," the Head of the Intelligence Ministry's Espionage Department was quoted as saying by the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA). (Excerpt form BBC

News)

Kenya's Finance Minister, top officials arrested for corruption

K

enya's Finance Minister Henry Rotich and other treasury officials have been arrested on corruption and fraud charges related to a multimillion-dollar project to build two massive dams, Police said.

Rotich, his principal secretary and the chief executive of Kenya's environmental authority handed themselves in to the police on Monday, hours after the country's chief prosecutor ordered the arrest and prosecution of Rotich and 27 other top officials.

"They are in custody now awaiting to be taken to court," Police Chief George

Kinoti told AFP news agency.

"We are looking for [the] others and they will all go to court."

Rotich's arrest marks the first time a sitting Kenyan Minister has been arrested on corruption charges, in a country where graft is widespread. The charges against him stem from a police investigation into the misuse of funds in a dam project overseen by the Italian construction company CMC Di Ravenna.

Rotich denied any wrongdoing in a large newspaper advertisement in March.

The company has also denied any wrongdoing.

Noordin Haji, Kenya's Director of Public Prosecutions, said the Finance Minister and the co-accused would face eight charges, ranging from conspiring to defraud and financial misconduct.

"They broke the law on public finance management under the guise of carrying out legitimate commercial transactions, colossal amounts were unjustifiably and illegally paid out through a well-choreographed scheme by Government officers in collusion with private individuals and institutions," Haji told a news conference earlier on Monday. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

M

comparison to a massive fire which hit the same region in June 2017 that killed 64 people and burnt about 55,000 hectares in a few days.

But with temperatures set to reach 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in some areas on Monday, a number of municipalities in Santarem and Castelo Branco districts, northeast of the capital Lisbon, are on high alert.

Civil Protection said

earlier on Monday the fire, which broke out on Saturday afternoon, was 90 per cent under control but warned that the remaining blazes required “a lot of attention” as the winds whipped up later in the day, fanning the flames in tinder dry conditions.

Villagers, as well as local authorities in Macao and Vila de Rei, areas in the heart of the fire zone, said there were not enough firefighters and resources to

An Israeli army bulldozer demolishes a building in the Palestinian village of Sur Baher in occupied East Jerusalem [Abed alHashlamoun/EPA]

H

undreds of Israeli troops with bulldozers tore down homes in the Palestinian village of Sur Baher despite local protests and international criticism.

Residents of the village's Wadi al-Hummus neighbourhood told local media on Monday that 16 residential buildings with about 100 apartments were being demolished.

"Preparations started past midnight as hundreds of armed Israeli occupying soldiers/ bulldozers stormed the town. Families threatened with demolitions were woken up/ moved out of their homes," said a tweet by the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO).

The Israeli military considers the homes, which are close to an Israeli separation wall that crisscrosses the occupied West Bank, a "security" risk.

The Israeli Supreme Court ruled in favour of the military last month, ending a seven-year legal bat-

tle, and set Monday as the deadline to knock down the homes. Palestinians say the demolitions set a precedent for other towns along the route of the barrier, which runs for hundreds of kilometres around and through the occupied West Bank.

The sprawling village of Sur Baher straddles the line between occupied East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank. It was captured and occupied by Israel in the 1967 war.

Al Jazeera's Rob Matheson said Israeli forces levelled a building in the West Bank and destroyed 50 per cent of a home belonging to a Palestinian family of 10 on the East Jerusalem side.

"They took the family away - we heard screaming and shouting. And within two hours, 50 per cent of the building has been destroyed."

The demolitions marked a "very sombre and sad day" for Palestinian residents, he said. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Hong Kong Police criticised over failure to stop attacks on protesters

H Henry Rotich and his coaccused face eight charges, ranging from conspiring to defraud and financial misconduct [File:Baz Ratner/ Reuters]

Strong winds reignite wildfires in central Portugal ore than 1000 firefighters battled wildfires in central Portugal on Monday, forcing the evacuation of several villages as the authorities hoped to limit the number of residents at risk.

So far 33 people have been injured, including one who is in a serious condition.

Portugal’s Civil Protection said some houses had been destroyed in the fires.

The fires are small in

near separation wall

combat the flames.

Around 1053 firefighters are on the ground, backed up by 328 firefighting vehicles and 13 airplanes, Portugal’s Civil Protection department said.

Spain announced late on Monday that it was sending two aircraft to help tackle the fires.

Data from the European Union fire mapping service showed about 8500 hectares burnt over the weekend. (Excerpt from Reuters)

ong Kong Police faced criticism on Monday for an apparent failure to protect anti-Government protesters and passersby from attack by what Opposition politicians suspected were gang members at a train station over the weekend.

Sunday’s attack came during a night of escalating violence that opened new fronts in Hong Kong’s widening crisis over an extradition bill that could see people from the territory sent to China for trial in Communist Party-controlled courts.

Some politicians and activists have linked Hong Kong’s shadowy network of triad criminal gangs to political intimidation and violence in recent years, sometimes against pro-democracy activists and critics of Beijing.

On Sunday night, scores of men in white T-shirts, some armed with clubs, flooded into the rural Yuen Long station and stormed a

train, assaulting passengers with pipes, poles and other objects, according to video footage.

Witnesses, including Democratic Lawmaker Lam Cheuk-ting, said the men appeared to target black-shirted passengers who had been at an anti-Government march.

Lawmaker Lam, who was wounded in the face and hospitalised, said the police ignored his appeals to them to intervene to prevent bloodshed. “They deliberately turned a blind eye to these attacks by triads on regular citizens,” he told Reuters, saying the floors of the station were streaked with blood.

“I won’t speculate on why they didn’t help immediately.”

Later on Monday night, a police spokeswoman confirmed the arrests of two men, aged 45 and 48, related to an unlawful assembly in Yuen Long. They provided no other details. (Excerpt from Reuters)

18

guyanatimesgy.com

Tuesday, JUly 23, 2019

ARCHIE

ARIES (March 21April 19)

Get busy, do something physical and make changes that will improve your life, relationships and lifestyle.

Expand your mind and your interests.

A change will take you TAURUS by surprise.

Don’t feel pres(April 20May 20) sured to jump into something without first getting all the facts. Time is on your side. Good things will develop if you are patient.

Alter the way you live or GEMINI how you approach carrying (May 21- out your responsibilities.

June 20) Refuse to let anyone take you for granted or manipulate you. Walk away from excessive people and situations.

dilbert

CANCER (June 21July 22)

Peanuts

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

Calvin and Hobbes

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

SCORPIO

SUDOKU

(Oct. 24Nov. 22)

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23Dec. 21)

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

solution for LAST PUBLISHED puzzle AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 19)

PISCES (Feb. 20March 20)

Your goals should be to stabilize your life and nurture meaningful relationships. Try not to let your emotions interfere with your responsibilities or productivity. Say less and do more.

Open up about your feelings. Ask questions and find out where you stand before making a move that may be unnecessary. Information is power; exercise your rights.

You’ll get more done if you join forces with someone who shares your concerns and wants to make a difference. Stick to your plan and don’t stop until you are finished.

Work hard to make things better. Doing your part and maintaining a positive attitude will help alleviate someone’s desire to control you.

Absorb information.

Don’t force your will on others. Once you have acquired the necessary knowledge, you can do as you please.

Choose action over anger.

Lay your cards on the table and sort through any differences you have with a personal or professional partner. Equality will be necessary to avoid conflict.

Not everyone will like the changes you want to make, but you have to do what’s best for you and for your loved ones. Satisfy doubt with facts.

You can recall the past and reconnect with people you miss, but you must dwell in the now. It’s essential to move forward with your life, regardless of what others are doing.

Keep life simple, affordable and free of melodrama.

Focus on the people you love and the things you love to do, and make sure to help the people who have always been there for you.

tuesday, JUly 23, 2019

19

No criminal charges ─ for Cristiano Ronaldo following rape allegations P

rosecutors in Las Vegas have said that Juventus star Cristiano Ronaldo will not face criminal charges over allegations that he had raped a woman at a Las Vegas hotel in 2009.

After reviewing a police investigation into the claim, Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said on Monday there is not enough evidence to prove the allegation beyond reasonable doubt, and no charges will be filed.

“Based upon a review of the information presented at this time, the allegations of sexual assault against Cristiano Ronaldo cannot be proven beyond a reasonable doubt; therefore, no charges will be forthcoming,” Wolfson said in a statement.

Ronaldo’s accuser, Kathryn Mayorga, who came forward with her story last year, has filed against the footballer a separate civil lawsuit in US federal court. She claims the Portugal star initially used “fixers” to stop her pursuing criminal charges, including paying her $375,000 to keep quiet.

Ronaldo’s lawyer, Peter Christiansen, has not denied his client had reached an agreement with Mayorga, who says she came forward with her story in the wake of the #MeToo movement. He says Ronaldo and Mayorga indeed had sex, but it was consensual.

Mayorga has said she had initially agreed to kiss Ronaldo so that he would leave her alone, but he eventually forced her into having sex.

“After he assaulted me, he wouldn’t let me leave again. He wouldn’t let me leave,” Mayorga told Der Spiegel in 2018.

Mayorga had filed a complaint with Las Vegas police the day after the alleged assault in 2009, but had refused to name her assailant. On Monday, Wolfson said this meant that Las Vegas police were unable to locate any forensic evidence. He added that video footage of any interaction between Mayorga and Ronaldo has been lost.

Mayorga says she was in shock for three months after the alleged assault, before she ultimately decided to draw a line under the matter by agreeing to a settlement.

When she came forward with her story last year, Las Vegas police reopened an investigation into the allegation.

Ronaldo has denied Mayorga’s claims. “I

Christiano Ronaldo

firmly deny the accusations being issued against me,” he said in October 2018. “Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in. Keen as I may be to clear my name, I refuse to feed the media spectacle created by people seeking to promote themselves at my expense. My clear conscious [sic] will thereby allow me to await with tranquility the results of any and all investigations.”

Ronaldo, one of the most famous athletes in the world, is a 34-year-old, five-time winner of the Ballon d’Or, an annual award for the best footballer in the world. He started his career at Sporting Lisbon, before winning titles with Manchester United in England, Real Madrid in Spain, and Juventus in Italy. He is also a national hero in Portugal, and has led his country to the European Championship title in 2016.

Daniel Ricciardo facing Antoine Griezmann “will adjust” style at Barcelona £10M court claim

─ over Red Bull-Renault switch

For the 2019 season, Daniel Ricciardo switched to Renault from Red Bull

D

aniel Ricciardo is facing a claim from his former manager alleging more than £10m in unpaid earnings.

Glenn Beavis has filed, in the High Court in London, a lawsuit in which he claims that Ricciardo has not paid him commissions owed on his new contract with Renault.

Ricciardo left Red Bull at the end of last season to join the French team Renault.

Ricciardo’s lawyer, Jeremy Courtenay-Stamp of Ebury Partnership, has said there is “no merit” in the claim, and added: “We are going to defend it fully.”

Legal documents lodged by Beavis’s lawyer at the High Court and seen by BBC Sport make a claim for “in excess of £10m” for “various sums due in accordance with the commission agreed between the parties”. Ricciardo’s salary and bonuses included within his two-year contract are listed in those documents but have been redacted from those publicly available via the High Court website. However, details of the claim suggest the 30-year-old Australian’s Renault salary is more than £20m.

The first-named defendant is Whitedunes International Holdings Limited, a British Virgin Islands company wholly owned by Ricciardo, who is the second-named defendant.

Beavis’s claim is that he had an agreement with Ricciardo that saw him earn “20% commission on the value of all new deals (he) introduced and which were subsequently concluded”. He claims he started negotiations on Ricciardo’s behalf with Renault Sport’s Managing Director Cyril Abiteboul in mid-2017,

and those continued into 2018 before heads of agreement were agreed on August 2, 2018.

Beavis’s lawsuit says Ricciardo told him, on December 15, 2018, that he wanted to terminate their agreement, but it was agreed that Beavis continue because “there were various outstanding matters to be dealt with first, including negotiating the long form of the Renault driver’s contracts”.

Beavis’s claim says he continued working with Ricciardo with Whitedunes’ permission until March 31, and that the long-form contract was concluded on March 7, a week before the first race of this season.

“The position of the defendants…is that the claimant has no entitlement to the commission, or to any other form or amount of commission, in relation to the Renault contract,” reads the lawsuit.

Ricciardo’s lawyer has not yet filed his defence, and says he has until end July to do so. Courtenay-Stamp said: “I can confirm that Ebury Partnership and I act for Daniel Ricciardo in relation to this claim, and Daniel’s position is very clear: there is no merit whatsoever in relation to this claim, and we are going to defend it absolutely fully.

“You’ll have only seen his claim so far; you won’t have seen our defence, because it hasn’t been filed. But it will be filed, and it will entirely refute the claim that Beavis is making,” he said.

A spokesperson for Renault has said: “This is a private matter between Daniel and a third party, and therefore it is not our place to comment.” (Excerpted from BBC.COM)

Antoine Griezmann in training with his new teammates at Barcelona

B

arcelona striker Antoine Griezmann has said he would adapt his game to suit the style of his new club.

The 28-year-old France international has joined the Catalan giants this month, after they met Atletico Madrid’s 120m euro (£107m) buyout clause.

“I will adjust, the way I did at Atletico,” said Griezmann, who is in Tokyo with Barcelona ahead of their match with Chelsea on Tuesday. “I like this style, and I know I can contribute many things,” he added.

Griezmann, who scored 133 goals in 257 appearances for Atletico after signing from Real Sociedad in 2014, had been expected to join Barcelona a year ago, but opted to sign a new five-year deal with Atletico in June 2018. He, however, announced his intention to leave the club in May; and when asked about completing his move to the La Liga champions, he said: “I called my father and I started crying with joy, because the transfer was all done; it all was over. I was with my friends, with my wife and with my children, and it was an incredible moment.”

Asked about his early impressions of Barca, who have also completed the signing of Frenkie de Jong from Ajax this sum-

mer, Griezmann said: “The first day was difficult, because I was nutmegged twice in our warm-up rondos, one of them by [Ivan] Rakitic. Atletico is faster, while here it’s more about patience. We have a team to win everything. It’s difficult, but we will have to work for it.”

Griezmann’s move has prompted an acrimonious response from Atletico, who claim Barcelona negotiated the deal before the buyout price dropped from 200 million euros at the start of July. Atletico accuses Griezmann and his new club of ‘disrespect’, claiming discussions between the two parties took place in March. They are reportedly planning to take their case to FIFA. Griezmann has said: “I am focused on fitting in among the Barcelona players. My heart is here with them.”

He admits he still has a special connection with Atletico boss Diego Simeone, describing it as “more of a family relationship than one between player and coach”.

He added: “He has been important to me on the field, but also in my private life. He knows I love him. We have a relationship that goes beyond sports.” (BBC Sport) (BBC Sport)

20

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

tuesday, JUly 23, 2019

Guyana Under-19s set to continue regional domination T

he Guyana Under-19 team recently concluded their intense training camp, and are rearing to defend their Cricket West Indies (CWI) Regional Under-19 One-Day International championship title.

Coached by Julian Moore and managed by Andy Ramnarine, the Guyana Under-19 boys are expected to travel to St Vincent and the Grenadines tomorrow (Wednesday July 24) to begin the defence of their title.

Lone ICC Under-19 World Cup player in this squad, Ashmead Nedd, is expected to captain the team, which includes some highly gifted players. Besides Nedd, the team includes three West Indies Under-19 selectees: Kevlon Anderson, Sachin Singh and Kelvin Umroa.

With this year’s tournament being played in only the One-Day International format, Guyana will head into the tournament highly rated as the five-time defending champions. These players are equipped with what it takes to continue the Regional domination. The 14-member squad will officially be announced shortly by the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB).

However, most of the players would each have included themselves in the final 14 based on experience, talent and potential t o cover the bases of the squad.

The openers pick themselves, Berbice explosive duo Alex Algoo and Junior Sinclair.

Algoo is making his third appearance at the Regional Under-19 level, and will be aiming to make a statement since this tournament would be used to select the West Indies Under-19 team for the 2020 ICC Under-19 World Cup. The right-handed Algoo was the lone centurion in the Hand-in-Hand U-19 Inter-County tournament, while Sinclair was adjudged the Most Valuable Player and the one who also had scored the most runs.

Making his second appearance at the Regional Under-19 tournament, Singh is a natural opener who may fill in at number three if required. The West Indies Under-19 selectee is one of the soundest batsmen in the team, and the left-

Guyana Under-19s are the five-time One-Day defending champions

hander can stroke the ball crisply.

His West Indies U-19 team mate Anderson is expected to bat at number four. Anderson is arguably the best batsman in the team, and is also considered one of the best youth batsman in the Caribbean.

The numbers five and six positions will be up for grabs, with the likes of Alphius Bookie, Garfield Benjamin and Seon Glasgow in contention.

The spin department will be covered by skipper Nedd, Umroa and the impressive Demerara off-spinner Joel Spooner.

With some of the tracks in St Vincent and the Grenadines being described as slow turners, an extra spinner may also be added to the final 14. Player of the inter-county final, Daniel Mootoo, or Nigel Deodat may be considered.

Gareth Bale: Real Madrid’s loss could be Liverpool’s gain, says Paul Ince

R

eal Madrid’s forward Gareth Bale would be a “perfect fit” for Liverpool, says its former midfielder Paul Ince.

Bale,30, is “very close to leaving” Real, according to manager Zinedine Zidane, who has been called “a disgrace” by the Wales forward’s agent.

Ince says Bale should “reinvent himself”, and play regular football rather than pursue high wages with a move to the Chinese Super League.

“My opinion is (that) if Liverpool can afford him, he should go there,” Ince said.

In a debate over Bale’s future, aired on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Monday Night Club, Ince and former Liverpool midfielder Don Hutchison said Zidane would win a power struggle at Madrid and force the former Tottenham player into a move.

“Liverpool’s front three haven’t had much rest before the season. Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane have played all over the summer,” added 51-year-old Ince, who played 81 times for Liverpool between 1997 and 1999.

“Bale can play right, left or central.

If I was looking at a team, if they could afford him, it would be Liverpool. He needs to reinvent himself as a player and play football week in, week out.

“He would have to take a massive wage drop; it can’t be about money for Bale, he has to go to a team who can win things. Liverpool are European champions, and they want to make a massive challenge in the league again.

“Who else could afford him?

Man City; maybe Man United, and I don’t think Tottenham would be the right club. I would like to see him at Liverpool. He still has four or five years left. I think he’d be a perfect fit.

‘Only one winner in power struggle’

Bale has been linked with Manchester United, Tottenham, German champions Bayern Munich, and a move to the Chinese Super League, where he could earn a reported £1m a week.

Zidane, meanwhile, has been linked with moves for United’s Paul Pogba and Tottenham’s Christian Eriksen.

“It’s a poker hand where Zidane is trying to move him out,” said Hutchison, 48. “Zidane wants money to bring in other players. It’s a power struggle, but there will only be one winner - Zidane. So Bale has to find somewhere he wants to play.

“For Gareth, he has to go to somewhere where he is at the elite level, and China is not, in my opinion.

“We have all been there. I remember being at West Ham in my second spell. I had two years on my contract, and West Ham got relegated; they had to get rid o f big earners, and i t was clear at boardroom level they wanted me off the books. I was getting divorced at the time, and had two years on the

d e a l .

They said they’d give me 50% of my wages to go on a free and play football.

I said I was staying, and they literally gave it a week and said we will give you 70%. I said it wasn’t (about) money, and said I literally can’t afford to move, as I

was getting divorced.”

‘Personal pride can come into play’

Bale has scored 102 goals in 231 games for Real during six seasons, in which he has won the Champions League four times, La Liga and the Copa Del Rey. Despite that success, Zidane has said it will be “best for everyone” if he leaves, a move Ince believes is “quite disrespectful”.

“There are ways of doing it the right way and showing him respect,” said Ince. “What Bale has done is phenomenal. I was at Manchester United for six years, had just signed a fouryear contract, and Sir Alex Ferguson tells me they have accepted a bid from Inter Milan.

“I was happy in Manchester, and didn’t want to go. I hadn’t thought of leaving. Sir Alex said they needed the money for the training ground and they had Nicky Butt coming through. I just felt when a club doesn’t want you they don’t want you. So I went of my own accord.

“When I went to Liverpool, Gerard

Houllier forced me out, and it was more a (matter of) personal pride: that if someone doesn’t want you at the club, I thought, I’m not here to force my way back, I’ll go and find someone who wants me.” (Excerpted from BBC.Com)

Gareth Bale

The wicket-keeper spot is sealed by Adrian Hinds, who is returning from the 2018 squad. Meanwhile, the fast bowling department is covered by Qumar Torrington and Leon Swamy, while Anderson is expected to offer much support.

Approximately eight players from 2018 are set to return, and some six newcomers will make up the final 14.

Guyana will open their campaign against the Kimani Meliusled Windward Islands team on Sunday, July 28 at Arnos Vale from 9:30h local time. The probable 14-member squad reads: Ashmead Nedd (captain), Kevlon Anderson (vice-captain), Sachin Singh, Alex Algoo, Junior Sinclair, Alphius Bookie, Garfield Benjamin, Seon Glasgow, Adrian Hinds (wk), Kelvin Umroa, Joel Spooner, Qumar Torrington, Leon Swamy and Daniel Mootoo/Nigel Deodat.

Tour de France: Geraint

Thomas says Team Ineos must stay united

D

efending champion Geraint Thomas says he must not have to compete against his joint Team Ineos leadership partner Egan Bernal in the final week of the 2019 Tour de France.

Thomas lies second and Bernal is fifth, behind Frenchman Julian Alaphilippe going into the last six stages. Thomas says his aim is still to retain the Tour title he won in 2018.

“The main thing is we don’t race against each other and throw away the race,” the Welshman told the BBC BeSpoke podcast.

After Sunday’s stage 15, Thomas has said he was placed between “a rock and a hard place”, as he could not push himself without helping Alaphilippe close down the Colombian.

On the second rest day of the tour, Thomas played down any concerns about his status as the Team Ineos co-leader with Bernal, and insisted he still wants to be the man in yellow in Paris next Sunday.

Asked whether it would be considered a good Tour for him if Bernal wins, Thomas replied: “It is the team winning, so I guess so; but obviously, I want to be the one winning.

“Egan is a natural climber, born to go uphill. He’s smaller, he’s lighter, and he’s got a bit more punch. I can jump around, but I prefer to ride to my tempo; and that’s how I’ve been the last couple of days.

“Everyone loves having a go at our team, whatever we do. They say we are all robots, it’s all science…but I don’t care if people enjoy it or not, it’s about winning the race. It’s definitely not boring now, and Alaphilippe has a big part to play in that. It must be fun for everyone to watch; and looking back in a few years’ (time), it’ll be something nice to look at. But it will be even nicer if I win the Tour,” he said.

Thomas trails Alaphilippe by one minute 35 seconds, with three tough stages in the Alps to come. There are just 39 seconds between Thomas in second and Emanuel Buchmann in sixth.

Team principal Sir Dave Brailsford had had to deal with leadership issues in the old Team Sky squad. First it was with Sir Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome, then it was with Froome and Thomas.

“There’s no sign of it at the moment,” he said. “The situation you’re dealing with changes. Once you go into the final part of the race, it’s changing; second by second, it’s a different dynamic and challenge.

“Geraint has won it before, and is an experienced Grand Tour rider. Egan is 22, he was supposed to be riding the Giro, (but he) had an accident and got switched into riding this, and (he) is riding well. It is strange, because last year and even before, no-one expected me to even be top 10, and now it’s disappointment that I am only second,” said Thomas.

“But that’s the way the media and some people work. I like to stay away from that and keep in my little bubble. I am feeling good. I am just relishing the Alps now. I have good memories of riding there, and am looking to enjoy them.”

Fourth-placed Thibaut Pinot has emerged as the strongest GC contender on the climbs in the past couple of stages, and looks like the man to beat in the Alps.

Thomas has said he would have no qualms going head-to-head with a man being roared on by French crowds that are desperate for a first home winner in 34 years.

“I’d love it! I’d relish it!” he said. “Bring it on!” (Excerpted from BBC.COM)

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ASK-G Karate grading…

5 students promoted to 1st Dan, among others

H

ead of the IKD, 9th Dan Shuseki Shihan Frank Woon-A-Tai, assisted by 7th Dan Amir Khouri and 4th Dan Roger Peroune, recently conducted a karate grading examination at the YMCA building at Thomas Lands, Georgetown.

There were some refreshing performances done by the young children, loudly applauded by parents and supporters. An enjoyable day ensued as exams in the White, Yellow, Orange, Green & Blue Belts got underway.

A short break was then taken after those exams, but the testings resumed last Sunday with the anxious and anticipated Dan levels (8 for Shodan, 1 for Nidan and 1 for Yondan).

The examinations resumed with the Purple to Dan levels being taken by 5 students who took the Shodan test. Excellent performances earned them success.

Five students were promoted to 1st Dan: Jared Rambissoon of Albion, Berbice; Kevin Fraser, Bevon Jordan, Christopher James and Bradley Fenty, all of the YMCA. Outstanding students who were promoted in grades were: Kyu to Yellow Belt: Jaden Katon, Samara Siland, Delicia Bailey, Deoanand Geer, Shivraj Brijbhukan, and Shivanna Brijbhukan.

Kyu to Orange Belt: Annastica Joseph, Allana Morgan, Teshana Lake, and Aletha Joseph.

Kyu to Green Belt: Jessica Tulla.

Kyu to Purple Belt: Kyron Thomas, Aishah Persaud, Isaiah Anderson, and Jonathon Morgan.

Kyu to Brown Belt: Thamishwar Dyasindoo, Joel Harry.

Kyu to Brown Belt: Luke Seabra

Others promoted were: Orange Belt: Ephraim James, Decourcey Scotland, Yidiel Beaton, Shaoyu Li, Madison Narine, Aaradhya Samaroo, and Suzanna Mohanlall.

Green Belt: Isaiah Browne, Kristen Sanasie, Theron Lake, Tyrese Gittens, Mia Bailey, Samuel Klass, Ravindra Lalbachan, and Jordon Hargobin.

Blue Belt: Saskia Dyasindoo, Nelicia Higgins, Nathaniel Higgins, Mia Singh, Ethan Rosine, Keith Williams, Elijah Rosine, On Beaton, Saif Tulla and Romel Samuels.

Purple Belt: Tyler Bess, Izaiah Abrams, Junxi Yang, Tyshaun Bess, Xavier Lambert.

Brown Belt: Adrian Bhawanidin, Isaiyah Proctor, Joshua Nimar, Kristen Samaroo.

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Divine Entertainment Summer Super Cup…

H&L Winners Connection blast Hi Stars

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Brown: Maheshwar Dyasindoo, Nicolai Adolph, Jasmine West, Nicholas Rampersaud, and Javed Baksh.

Brown: Obinna Utoh, Brandon Foo, Nathan Narine, Safira Williams, Anastassia Seabra.

Shuseki Shihan Frank Woon-A-Tai will be in the country for 3 months. He will be teaching on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at the Guyana Karate College, also on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the YMCA. These sessions are in preparation for the upcoming IKD Caribbean Karate Championships which are set to be staged from August 23 to 25 at the National Sports Hall. The sessions will see students preparing for the competition, also judges training courses and instructors training.

Forrester scores century, Williams scores 50 in losing effort Coomacka upset Topp XX,

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21

Winston Forrester was adjudged Man of the Match

A

ction continued in the Massachusetts State Cricket League with Guyanese duo Winston Forrester and Shaquille Williams battling each other in a 40-over affair as they represented Golden Eagles and NECC Hawks respectively.

Golden Eagles won the toss and elected to bat.

Openers Ravi Rao and Viral Makwana took to the crease, but were quickly returned to the pavilion as they became victims of bowlers Winston Forrester and Deepak Saxeena.

With the board reading 68-2, the in-form Shaquille Williams began to play his shots, but receiving no support, he was forced on the

Winston Forrester and Shaquille Williams

defensive. Eventually he fell for a well-played 63-ball 57 that included 3 boundaries and a maximum.

From there it was a downhill spiral for the Eagles, their wings being clipped by the Hawks. The only other batsman to make a significant score was Rohit Rishi, with 26.

The Eagles’ innings saw many partnerships that had looked to be converted into something big, had not the Hawks bowling been too hot to handle. The Eagles were bundled out for 190 in 35.1 overs, with Forrester 2-39, Suraj Bhatiya 2-16, while Satbir Singh, Shridhar Rao, Deepak Saxeena and Paras Patel each bagging one wicket.

Needing a simple total of 191 for victory off 240 balls, the Hawks soon found themselves in trouble, as two quick wickets fell, leaving them at 22-2 in 4.1 overs.

But when it looked as though things were over for them, Forrester and Shridar Rao put together a brilliant 150run partnership to hand their side victory by 8 wickets.

In the end, Forrester notched up a brilliant 103 off 69 ball, inclusive of 8 boundaries and 6 maximums, while Rao supported with 66, which was laced with 4 fours and three sixes. No bowler was able to make an impact with any significant figure.

Forrester was adjudged man of the match for his unbeaten 103 and 2-39.

he Coomacka Mines unit scored an unlikely win when they defeated Topp XX 2-1 in the Divine Entertainment Summer Super Cup football tournament played at the Mackenzie Sports Club ground in Linden on Sunday last.

The highlight of the night’s play, however, was Haynes and Lewis Winners Connection humiliating the Hi Stars by inflicting on them a resounding 7-0 defeat.

By virtue of their upset win, Coomacka have set up a deciding clash against Eagles United to decide the lone qualifier that would emerge from Group ‘A’ for semifinal action.

Eagles United and Coomacka Mines have each gained wins against Topp XX in their group play of this twelve team championship, which has four groups.

The writing was on the wall as soon as Coomacka, through Lionel Peters, scored the opening goal of the game in the first rundown in the opening minute, but Topp XX responded in kind, and by the 6th minute were able to even things out, with Shawn Daniels netting to make it oneall.

Scores remained unchanged at half time, and the second half tussle was decidedly an erratic encounter until the deadlock was broken five minutes before the end, Coomacka's Cassie Campbell tilting the scales in favour of his side in the 85th minute to make it 2-1.

In the Group ‘C’ clash

H&L Winners Connection’s Shaquille Frank

between Haynes and Lewis Winner Connection, Winners Connection needed to score big to increase their chances of reaching the final four when they faced Hi Stars.

They flipped the entire script on their opponent as the Connection crew’s rampage was spearheaded by doubles from Errol Davis in the 14th and 22nd minutes and Shaquille Frank in the 40th and 62nd minutes, together with single strikes by Akeem Caesar in the 42nd, Ravon Haynes in the 62nd, and Malaki Todd in the 86th minutes of play.

The action will continue today when Eagles take on Coomacka and Hi Stars battle Capital FC.

22

tuesday, JUly 23, 2019

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

West Indies announce squad for 1st 2 T20s against India …Narine, Pollard recalled, Bramble set for squad debut

S

T. JOHN’S, Antigua – West Indies’ chances against India in the upcoming MyTeam11 Twenty20 International Series, co-sponsored

by Skoda, were given a boost with the recall of the veteran duo of Sunil Narine and Kieron Pollard.

Wicketkeeper/batsman Anthony Bramble is the only newcomer in the 14-member squad selected for the first two T20Is in the series, which will be contested on August 3 and 4 at the Broward County Stadium in Lauderhill, Florida.

The Selection Panel has the opportunity to make changes to the squad before the third T20I on August 6 at the Guyana National Stadium.

The squad also includes Andre Russell, subject to his passing a fitness assessment prior to the series. He is set to return to the playing field following his early exit from the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 in England & Wales to undergo an operation on his troublesome left knee.

Left-handed opener John Campbell and leftarm spinner Khary Pierre have also been included, alongside a number of regulars led by captain Carlos Brathwaite, as the interim CWI Selection Panel seeks to explore options with the ICC World T20 looming next year in Australia.

“This squad is an excellent balance of experience and youth,” said interim chairman of the CWI Selection Panel, Robert Haynes.

“It’s not just about the present – the India Tour of the West Indies – but we are also looking at the T20 World Cup coming up next year, and it is important that we find the right combination of players and the right formula for defending our title.

“We have to make sure that we put certain things in place now, so that when it comes to picking the squad for the T20 World Cup, it becomes easier. So we are giving more players the opportunity to play and get the exposure.”

Mystery spinner Narine last played in a T20I for West Indies against England almost two years ago at Chester-le-Street, and batting all-rounder Pollard appeared last November on the Tour of

India.

“We felt that players like Narine and Pollard, who have played well in T20 leagues around the World, once they are fit and mentally ready to play, we must give them the opportunity to represent the West Indies again,” Haynes said.

The 28-year-old Bramble has given firm proof of his batting and keeping ability in the West Indies Championship for reigning five-time champions Guyana Jaguars, who also reached the Final of last year’s West Indies Super50 Cup. He captained West Indies “B” to the Final of the Global T20 Tournament last year in Canada, and was recently picked up in the CPL draft for the first time in three years. He will play for his homebased Guyana Amazon Warriors.

“We have been following his performances in regional competitions over the years, and it cannot be forgotten that he led the West Indies ‘B’ Team to the GT20 in Canada, and that team did well to reach the Final,” said Haynes.

“We figured that though Nicholas Pooran will be the first-choice wicketkeeper, we needed to have someone to deputise in case something unexpected happens, and Bramble is the perfect choice.

“He is young and has a lot of ambition, and we saw his character come out in the way he batted whenever Guyana Jaguars were in problems in the West Indies Championship and Super50 Cup; so we know he is capable of getting the job done.”

As a most feared and fierce hitter in the shortest version of the game, Russell will add further depth to the batting, and Haynes expects him and the other senior members of the squad to play big roles in the series.

“We expect that this will be a keenly contested series against India,” said Haynes. “Most of the players that we have selected have played in the IPL, and they know all of the Indian players well.

Guyana Cup 2019

Superbet among 1st sponsors to support event

T

he 13th annual Guyana Cup 2019 is scheduled for August 18th at the Rising Sun Turf Club, Rising Sun Village, West Coast Berbice (45 mins from Georgetown); and according to the organisers, Jumbo Jet Thoroughbred Racing Committee (JJTRC), this edition will be the biggest ever, with increased prize money and a mega concert planned.

Superbet Guyana has seized the opportunity to align itself with this event, which will no doubt be a massive affair, especially with the increase in prize money from $15 million to $20 million this year.

Chairman of the JJTRC, Nasrudeen Mohamed Jr., in a release to the media, noted that in addition to the feature race which will see the winner pocketing $2 million, the three-year-old Guyana-bred race will see the winner being rewarded with $1 million.

In total, eight races are on the card, and after the meet, fans will enjoy a concert that would feature six international artistes. Already confirmed for the concert are Gage, Munga, Kristo and K.I.

The prize money for the races are as follows:

- C Class and Lower feature race over a distance of one mile: $2 million

Superbet Guyana General Manager Shrikant Kisoensingh (right) handing over the sponsorship to a representative of the organisers

Three-year-old Guyanabred: $1million G3 and Lower: $400,000 L3 and lower (open to non-winners from Trinidad & Tobago): $350,000 Two-year-old Guyanabred: $300,000.

J3 and Lower over seven furlongs: $300,000.

L Class for Colts: $250,000 L Class Race for Fillies and Mares: $250,000 Some of the top animals expected to be on show are: Just Call Me Bass, Crown the King (Jamaica), Doublin

Fashion (USA), Chameli (Jamaica), Safara (Jamaica), Southern Express (T&T), Silver & Things (T&T), Sitarr (T&T), Kentucky Woman (T&T), Super Easy (T&T) and She’s a Princess.

Apart from the foreign contingent of horses that would be on show, several leading jockeys from overseas are expected to participate, adding that international flavour to the day’s event.

Fans will be able to enjoy both the horse race meet and concert for the price of $2000.

“We will have the edge for sure, because we are playing at home. At the end of the day, however, it is important that the players go out there and play to win, not just to compete, and I think we have the right balance to do so.”

Haynes said veteran opener Chris Gayle had notified him that he was unavailable for the series, due to playing commitments at the GT20 in Canada, so this has given the opportunity for left-handed compatriot John Campbell to fill the slot.

The members of the team are: Carlos Brathwaite (Captain), Fabian Allen, Darren Bravo, Shimron Hetmyer, Evin Lewis, Obed McCoy, Ashley Nurse, Keemo Paul, Khary Pierre, Kieron Pollard, Nicholas Pooran, Rovman Powell, Denesh Ramdin, Andre Russell, Sherfane Rutherford, Oshane Thomas.

FULL MATCH SCHEDULE – India to West Indies 2019 Sat, Aug 3: 1st MyTeam11 Twenty20

International – Broward County Stadium, Lauderhill, Florida (10:30am start) Sun, August4: 2nd MyTeam11Twenty20 International – Broward County Stadium (10:30am) Tue, Aug 6: 3rd MyTeam11 International – Guyana National Stadium, Guyana (10:30am) Thu, Aug 8: 1st MyTeam11 One-Day International – Guyana National Stadium (9:30am) Sun, Aug 11: 2nd MyTeam11 One-Day International – Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad (9:30am) Wed, Aug 14: 3rd MyTeam11 One-Day International – Queen’s Park Oval (9:30am) Sat, Aug 17 to Mon, Aug 19: Tour Match – Coolidge Cricket Ground, Antigua (9:30am daily) Thu, Aug 22 to Mon, Aug 26: 1st MyTeam11 Test – Vivian Richards Cricket Ground, Antigua (9:30 am daily) Fri, Aug 30 to Tue, Sep 3: 2nd MyTeam11 Test – Sabina Park, Jamaica (9:30am daily)

Burrowes commends Roberts for keeping cycling alive in Berbice ─ hints of starting cycle club in Bartica

D

uring the Grenville Felix Memorial Cycle Race in Berbice, Guyana Cycling Federation (GCF) President Horace Burrowes expressed how impressed he was with the efforts of Randolph Roberts, coach of the Flying Ace Cycling Club, to keep cycling alive in Berbice.

Cycle races have been made possible in Berbice by various sponsors, but coach and champion organizer Roberts has always played a major role in hosting cycling events in the ancient county.

With GCF elections set for August 17, Burrowes, elected President in June 2015, graced the event with his presence, and competed in the 60-mile race, winning the Veterans category.

At the presentation ceremony, he declared that Roberts has always been a great supporter of cycling.

“Robby (Roberts) has always been doing a great job in cycling in Berbice, where he has been keeping the cycling clubs alive in Berbice,” Burrowes explained.

The GCF President showed his appreciation for the efforts of Roberts, and said he is hoping that the Grenville Felix Memorial Race next year would be a bigger event.

“Hopefully we [GCF] collaborate with Robby

Horace Burrowes finishing the 60-mile Felix Memorial race in Berbice on Sunday last (Brandon Corlette photos)

[Roberts] next year and bring a lot more cyclists from the city; or even start a cycle club in Bartica and bring more cyclists to Berbice,” Burrowes declared.

With members of the general public calling for the GCF to hold elections, Roberts took the time to recognize the work Burrowes and his team has been doing, and revealed that Burrowes would get his vote when the GCF holds elections.

Roberts also made mention of the National Junior Cycling Championships which will be hosted in Guyana in August. He de-

clared that it is under the Burrowes administration that all these continuous cycling events have been occurring.

The Flying Ace Cycling Coach has himself been producing some promising cyclists, Balram Narine being among the notables. Roberts has said he has three cyclists to represent Guyana at the Junior Championships in August: Ralph Seenarine, Jeremiah Joseph and Mario Washington. This is the first time three cyclists from one club would be representing the country at this level of championships. (Brandon Corlette)

guyanatimesgy.com

tuesday, JUly 23, 2019

23

CONCACAF U-20 Women’s Championship

Guyana finish group stage undefeated …Coach Joseph calls for local improvement

F

or the first time in four games, Guyana’s female Under 20 goalkeeper Anessa O’Brien conceded a goal – in the match against Suriname -- but it was a small price to pay for the team’s success, as they finished at the top of the table in the Group stage of the Under-20 Women’s Championships.

Guyana’s unblemished run in the Group Stage has been quite impressive, with four wins in as many games. The Guyanese girls opened their campaign against Bermuda with a 2-0 score, and later defeated St. Lucia and Antigua and Barbuda by the same margin. The team’s most recent conquest was probably the most scintillating in their Group ‘A’ campaign, as they pummelled Guyana’s Dutch neighbours, Suriname, 3-1.

Guyana was almost always in control

again with Guyana’s second goal, following an excellent play.

The third in Guyana’s tally came of the boots of Captain Brianne Desa in the 35th minute, after she placed a long ball out of the reach of Suriname’s goalkeeper Deinthy Schooland.

Although the first half of play was impeccable, the same can’t be said for the second half, as the team conceded their first goal of the group stage in the 48th. Suriname’s confidence boost, coupled with Guyana’s constant fumbles in front of the goal, made for a less-than-impressive 45 minutes’ play, but the damage was already done.

As such, fitness and endurance was one point made by Coach Dr. Ivan Joseph as he critiqued the team’s final group game.

“Clearly, you can see that we’re not very

“We pulled out our centre mid early, so we were looking for two or three centre mids, and the quality of touch and d e cision-making w a s n ’ t there. When you don’t have a number 10, your game has to change, and we started to panic a little bit, so that changed that game a lot,” the coach went on to state, as he explained the reasons for the team’s falters.

In a squad predominantly made up of overseas-based players, a few local stars were given the opportunity to test their abilities. However, when they did not perform as expected, the crowd at the National Track and Field Facility at Leonora could be heard calling for their substitution. To this Coach of the Women’s Team, Dr Ivan Joseph

Guyana controlled the encounter with Suriname on Sunday

of the encounter, netting two of three goals within 15 minutes of the game’s start. Local girl Tiandi Smith set the momentum for the match with a clean strike into the goal in the 7th minute, which was welcomed by the boisterous crowd. Five minutes later, Tori DeNobrega had the crowd on their feet

fit, as that second half showed. But we’re right where we want to be. We’ve qualified for the next round, and we gave some players some significant minutes; so we can assess them. We played some very good teams and we’ve got a good handle of our abilities, so I’m pleased,” Joseph said.

end, Coach Joseph stressed the need for exposure on this platform.

“We put in two local-based players who had great hustle, excellent effort, and were really physical, but they initiated more of the attack for the other team than we would like, and that’s all a matter of repetition. I

heard the crowd saying you got to get number 6 out, but if she doesn’t get the minutes in this game, where is she going to get the minutes? So this is part of the training environment for her,” he explained.

While highlighting the need for strong players in specific positions such as the centre back, Dr. Ivan Joseph went on to explain the plight of the local players, noting that the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) should look at other alternatives to give female players some exposure.

“And I think the last thing we’ve got to think about is making sure that our players that are based here have some rhythm, so that they don’t get left behind. Cause all the others will go home and play 30 games by that time, and we’ve got to find an opportunity for local players to do the same,” In presenting a solution, Dr. Joseph identified playing with, or against, male youth teams. “The lack of local games will be a challenge, so you can’t make excuses.

Our job is to try and figure out where can these girls play an U-14 Boys team. Because at the women’s level, we’re not going to get the games they need,” he said.

Ambirs, Shepherd among few positives for Windies A in poor series

By Brandon Corlette

W

ith India ‘A’ clinching the five-match One-Day International Series against the West Indies ‘A’ 4-1, the latter team can now review their performance and observe that only a few positives can be counted throughout the series.

Top-order batsman Sunil Ambris has looked positive throughout the series, but he did not register the big score that was required of him, despite finishing with the most runs for the Caribbean team.

However, he finished as the leading batsman for the West Indies ‘A’ with 161 runs from his five innings. The Vincentian has shown great intent, finishing the series with the highest strike rate for the West Indies.

The opener, a replacement player in the International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup, had a strike rate of 105.92 in the five-match one-day series. Despite registering only one score above 50 and averaging 32.20, Ambris looked set to partner Chris Gayle at the top of the order, giving Evin Lewis the chance to recover from injury.

Guyanese Romario Shepherd has been the most watched player in the series. He finished with seven wickets, the most for West Indies ‘A’ in the five-match series.

The brisk right arm speedster who took seven wickets in four matches, including 4-36,

has bowled with venom. He also scored an unbeaten 34 and a 21 from eight balls in the series.

He will also fancy his chances for a senior team selection after his consistent performances at the Regional level.

Rahkeem Cornwall had a good outing with the ball with his five wickets, while Khary Pierre had only two wickets in the 32 overs he bowled across four matches.

Roston Chase, Rovman Powell, Jonathan Carter, Raymon Reifer and John Campbelle had poor outings for players with One Day International (ODI) status. Chase, who captained the team, scored 109 runs in five innings. He had a top-score of 84 and he had five wickets in the series with his off-spin.

Powell defended nine runs in the final over of the fourth one-day; that was probably the only thing he had accomplished across all five matches. He scored 47 runs with a high score of 41 in five innings, and had two wickets to his name.

Carter, who made a return to the senior squad in Ireland, scored 114 runs in five innings at a strike rate of 61. He lacked intensity and consistency throughout the series, which had presented another opportunity for him and

Sunil Ambris

many other players to seal a spot in the senior team.

Reifer scored only 91 runs in the series, and took two wickets, while Campbelle had the poorest of series with 30 runs in three matches.

Devon Thomas had a good match when he scored 70, but Guyanese Sherfane Rutherford was given limited opportunity. Rutherford made his presence count with a responsible knock of 65 in the final match, one of two matches he

played in the series.

Keemo Paul had a fair return from injury with four wickets in the three matches he played, and he scored 58 runs; but Akeem Jordan, who had four wickets in as many matches, was not an impacting bowler.

This series would have given the selectors a wider pool of players from which to select when the Indian tour gets underway with the white ball matches commencing first.

tuesday, JUly 23, 2019

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

guyanatimesgy.com

West Indies

Page 23

announce squad for 1st 2 T20s Ambirs, Shepherd among against

Page 22

…Narine, Pollard recalled, Bramble set for squad debut

few positives for Windies A India in poor series

CONCACAF U-20 Women’s Championship

Guyana

Page 23

finish group stage

undefeated

…Coach Joseph calls for local improvement

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