Guyana Times -- Tuesday, April 26, 2022

World Press Freedom Day:

National conference & symposium to bring together stakeholders from across local media P5

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

Issue No. 4990

THE BEACON OF TRUTH TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022

Pres Ali to give keynote address to UK Caribbean Council/House of Lords See story on page 3

– audience to include UK MPs, peers & UK-Caribbean business leaders

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WHAT'S INSIDE:

Ex-media P10 worker awaits sentencing for attempting to smuggle cocaine through CJIA – GRA employee, ex-CANU officer released on $1.5M bail

Teen arraigned for stabbing villager to death during argument P14 Essequibo man remanded on causing death charge P7

After being closed for two years owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, public schools on Monday fully reopened their doors to children across Guyana. Over the next week, students in every grade will be returning to the classroom for face-to-face engagement

2021 human rights report

PPP/C Government shows political will to tackle Police corruption Page 9

PAC recommends Mechanism Police investigate put in place to mitigate former housing backlog in APNU/AFC Reg 2 – Min Rodrigues engineer Autopsies on duo found in hotel parking lot inconclusive Page 7

Page 11

– recommendation receives bipartisan support

Page 2

18-year-old Lusignan Prison inmate nabbed with ganja in underwear P12

Trio robbed at gunpoint along North Road P2 Mechanic dies after pick-up turns turtle P15

2 NEWS

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Autopsies on duo found in hotel parking lot inconclusive T he autopsies performed on the bodies of Justin Teixeira and Richie Hansraj are inconclusive and as such, the families were instructed not to cremate.

The autopsies were performed by Government pathologist, Dr Nehaul Singh on Monday at the Memorial Gardens Funeral Home days after the two men were found dead in a motor car belonging to Teixeira.

In light of the pathologist

Dead: Justin Teixeira

Dead: Richie Hansraj

Trio robbed at gunpoint along North Road

T

hree persons were on Saturday evening relieved of their personal items by two motorcycle bandits in the vicinity of Guyana Football Club (GFC) Ground, North Road, Georgetown.

Nicholas Samaroo, 31, of East Street, Georgetown, was robbed of one blue iPhone 13 Pro Max and $92,000 cash while Mahindra Ramcobeer, 39, a fisherman of Section N Cove & John, East Coast Demerara (ECD), was relieved of One black J2 Samsung cell phone

and Cindy Persaud, 23, a housewife of East Street, Georgetown, was relieved of one white iPhone 11, a Guess handbag and $20,000.

Police stated that on the day in question at about 21:30h, the victims returned to Georgetown from the Jubilee Fun Park, Timehri, East Bank Demerara (EBD), via a route 50 Toyota Pitbull Minibus, driven by Samaroo when the bus encountered a mechanical problem.

The victims were in the process of checking to ascertain the problem when

they were confronted by the two suspects - one who was armed with a handgun and the other with a knife.

As they dismounted the said motorcycle, one of the men pointed a black handgun in the victims’ direction and demanded that they hand over their personal items.

The victims then became fearful for their lives and complied. After committing the act, the suspects then made good their escape west on North Road, Georgetown.

not being able to pronounce the cause of death of the two men, Police have since advised the families not to cremate the bodies in case they need to exhume them.

Samples from their stomachs were taken and are expected to be sent overseas for further testing. However, information reaching Guyana Times indicated that the two men were seen leaving the hotel together but returned some 50 minutes later.

Upon their return, the two men never left their parked vehicle, video footage has shown.

The bodies of Paishnarine Hansraj called “Richie”, a 25-year-old singer/music producer from Hague Backdam, West Coast Demerara, and 34-yearold Justin Teixeira were found in the wee hours of Saturday.

Following the discovery, it was revealed that Teixeira had reportedly suffered a seizure moments before midnight, and his relatives were alerted.

It was reported that an employee of the Marriot Hotel reported that they received a phone call from Teixeira’s mother at about 23:30h, informing them that the flight attendant was hav-

Teixeira and Hansraj in happier times

ing a seizure and asked if someone could check on him.

Another employee was sent to Teixeira’s room on the sixth floor but it was empty. The hotel staff then went to Teixeira’s vehicle – a black Vezel motor car (PAC 2607) – in the parking lot, and the gruesome discovery was made.

Teixeira was reportedly sitting in the driver’s seat, and all the windows of the vehicle were halfway down. The employee said he opened the front passenger door and discovered Hansraj sitting in a crunch-like position.

Both the Police via 911 and an ambulance with an

EMT were summoned to the scene, where the two men were pronounced dead by a doctor. The Police said no marks of violence were seen on the exposed parts of the two bodies.

Meanwhile, in a bizarre twist of events, American Airlines spokesperson Laura Masvidal, International Communications, confirmed to a section of the media that Teixeira was not, and has never been, an American Airlines employee.

A senior official when contacted explained that anyone can get their hand on an AA lanyard for ID since it is sold at the airline’s brand store.

NEWS

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TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS OPENINGS BRIDGE

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

Tuesday, April 26 – 00:30h – 02:00h and Wednesday, April 27 – 01:00h – 02:30h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Tuesday, April 26 – 13:30h – 15:00h and Wednesday, April 27 – 14:25h – 15:55h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

Parika and Supenaam departure times – 05:00h, 10:00h-12:00h, 16:00h, 18:30h daily

WEATHER TODAY

There will be thundery showers and light rain showers during the day. Expect partly cloudy skies and light rain showers at night. Temperatures should range between 23 degrees Celsius and 29 degrees Celsius.

Winds: North North-Westerly to North-Westerly between 1.78 metres and 3.57 metres.

High Tide: 13:48h reaching a maximum height of 2.32 metres.

Low Tide: 07:22h and 19:48h reaching minimum heights of 0.98 metre and 0.83 metre.

SATURDAY, APRIL 23, 2022

LOTTERY NUMBERS H

06 13 16

18 22 27

FREE TICKET

19 Bonus Ball

MONDAY, APRIL 25, 2022

DAILY MILLIONS

09 10 11 17 26 LUCKY 3

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Afternoon Draw

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Evening Draw

DRAW DE LINE

Pres Ali to give keynote address to UK Caribbean Council/House of Lords – audience to include UK MPs, peers & UK-Caribbean business leaders

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n continuing a trend of high-profile engagements on the regional and global stage, President Dr Irfaan Ali will deliver the keynote address at the prestigious Caribbean Council’s House of Lords Annual Reception on Wednesday, in the United Kingdom (UK).

The Caribbean Council’s House of Lords Annual Reception is geared towards providing UK, Caribbean and Central American countries and companies the opportunity to network with their counterparts in Europe.

According to a statement from the Government, the reception will see the attendance of over 200 guests active in Caribbean politics and business. They include an influential mix of Members of Parliament (MPs) and peers (noblemen and women).

Additionally, the audience will include High Commissioners, Ambassadors, UK civil service members from the Foreign Office, UK and Caribbean business leaders and international investors, non-governmental organisations and members of the Caribbean community in the UK. “President Ali is expected to speak on Guyana’s status as the fastest-growing economy globally and the rapid development that his Government has embarked upon. He is also expected to highlight Government’s plans for stimulating and expanding the country’s traditional sectors, especially its infrastructure and attracting inward investment across the country,” the Government explained.

“While in the UK, President Ali will also lead a delegation to participate in the Guyana Investment Seminar to be held at Carlton House. The Head of State will be accompanied by the Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce,

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223-7230-1 (Ext 55)

President Dr Irfaan Ali

Oneidge Walrond and CEO of the Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest), Dr Peter Ramsaroop.”

Guyana has been taking a prominent role in the promotion of the UK-Caribbean partnership. This was evident at last year’s 10th UK-Caribbean Forum, where Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hugh Todd had talked up the need for exceptional measures to restore debt sustainability and address urgent financing gaps.

Minister Todd had also referenced the need for vaccines, which he said are an immediate and fundamental step to enable early achievement of herd immunity, which will curb the pandem-

ic, protect citizens and allow for the full reopening of economies.

Moreover, he highlighted the key role of structural transformation and access to financing in building resilience over the medium to long term. The UKCaribbean Forum is a biennial event, which provides a platform for exchange between Foreign Ministers on bilateral, regional, and global issues.

Last year’s event focused specifically on climate change, economic resilience, disaster management concerning small island developing states (SIDS), COVID-19 recovery, and immigration, among other areas.

At the conclusion of

the forum, the Foreign Ministers of the United Kingdom and Caribbean countries had agreed on an action plan for a two-year period, up to 2023, when the next full forum meeting is currently envisaged.

This action plan was intended to allow for a strategic and sustained approach to the UK-Caribbean relationship, based on ambitious, yet focussed and realistic commitments.

It serves as a road map for the practical implementation of the communique and sets out the enhanced commitments of both the UK and Caribbean Forum countries for a renewed and strengthened partnership.

According to a Caricom statement, it was concluded that it is important to act together for mutual benefit and the global common good, based on their many shared values, particularly around the COVID-19 global pandemic and climate change.

Additionally, this action plan will remain a standing agenda for review at quarterly meetings between Caribbean High Commissioners based in London and the Minister for the Caribbean at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). Together, they will agree joint action in cases where specific objectives are at risk of not being met.

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guyanatimesgy.com

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022

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

Problems not insurmountable

T

he blinding need for oblivion from harsh realities of overwhelming problems is the driver behind many persons seeking to quit life as the ultimate solution to difficult situations.

A person suffering from deep depression needs assurances that solutions can be found. Problems are not insurmountable, but coping with extant and future challenges necessitates one staying alive, not taking what seems the easy way out, leaving much devastation in the wake of one’s action, especially the grief and guilt that surviving family members have to cope with.

Suicide is indeed a mental health problem, often precipitated by one catalysing factor at a moment’s impulse. This global phenomenon is a scourge affecting every nation of the world.

However, suicide is preventable, and education through generally interactive counselling sessions — especially in schools, churches and at various youth fora, as well as easily-accessible helplines that could provide timely interventions by way of a conduit, a compassionate listening ear, and provision of advice based on rational reasoning for revealing bad experiences and expressing negative emotions, especially impersonal ones — can serve to reduce the crippling pain to bearable levels, and enable rational thought that defuses intentions of selfdestruction.

In a national context, there needs to be a holistic approach involving multi-sectoral agencies, especially in the health, education, and social services sectors.

In a report by the World Health Organisation, Guyana was cited as the country with the highest suicide rate in the world — 44.2 suicides per 100,000 deaths, four times the global average.

The WHO report was an attempt to bring global attention to the issue of suicide. The goal was to encourage individual countries to take steps to prevent suicide, considering their specific culture and addressing local risk factors. In early 2015, Guyana became one of only 28 countries to develop a suicide prevention plan in response to the report. The plan identifies factors that could contribute to the country’s high rate of suicide.

Records reveal that approximately 70 per cent of the country’s suicides occur in rural regions, where many people assuage their feelings of hopelessness with overindulgence in alcohol to cope with their poverty and economic despair. Instead, the alcohol exacerbates depression in minds deprived of reasoning powers by alcohol-induced neurosis, precipitating suicidal thoughts.

Prioritising formulating a strategy for suicide prevention has become an imperative, because the consequence is not only the tragic, preventable loss of a life; but this one irreversible and tragic act has many victims, especially loved ones on whom are inflicted a lifetime of unendurable pain and emotional and psychological scars.

Guyana Government Psychologist and Addiction Specialist Caitlin Vieira avers that there is a lack of clinics and social support networks in some of these villages, but that there are plenty of rum shops. She says “sporting”, Guyanese slang for drinking, is a popular pastime.

Additionally, a study by the Pan American Health Organisation reported that nearly 80 per cent of Guyanese adolescents had their first drink before the age of 14, and some children try alcohol for the first time in elementary school.

Dysfunction in family constructs and bullying in schools and workplaces also contribute to Guyana’s high suicide rates.

Illicit drug usage has also become a major contributory factor to violent, anti-social behaviour and domestic abuse, oftentimes leading to murder and suicide.

Raising community awareness and breaking down the taboos are also important for countries like Guyana to make progress in preventing suicide.

It is imperative that Government prioritises the fructification of the suicide prevention plan, because one life lost to suicide is one too many.

In celebration of his birth anniversary, President Dr Irfaan Ali was on Monday presented with a portrait by senior members of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) at State House, Main Street, Georgetown.

In addition, the President was treated to a medley of local tunes by the GPF steel pan orchestra. In photo are President Ali, Deputy Commissioner "Administration" (ag) Calvin Brutus; Deputy Commissioner 'Operations' (ag) Ravindradat Budhram and another member of the Force

The awful truth is dawning: Putin may win in Ukraine. The result would be catastrophe T BY: S imon T isdall

he contrast was startling. In New York, António Guterres, the UN Secretary General, launched a belated, desperately needed initiative to halt the war in Ukraine. “At this time of great peril and consequence, he [Guterres] would like to discuss urgent steps to bring about peace,” his spokesman said. The UN chief, he revealed, was proposing immediate, in-person talks with Vladimir Putin in Moscow and Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Kyiv.

At roughly the same time as this hopeful development unfolded, the UK’s Boris Johnson, riding a “Partygate” getaway plane to India, was colourfully rubbishing peace efforts. Putin, he claimed, was an untrustworthy reptile. “I really don’t see how the Ukrainians can easily sit down and come to some kind of accommodation. How can you negotiate with a crocodile when it’s got your leg in its jaws?” Johnson asked.

This gaping disconnect is doubly disturbing. It suggests lack of coordination between the UN chief and a permanent member of the UN security council on how best to proceed. It also highlights a wider problem: diverging, sometimes opposing, occasionally self-serving, approaches to the crisis by

western leaders who have hitherto trumpeted their unity of purpose.

The outrage in western countries sparked by Putin’s 24 February invasion is starting to fade.

Likewise the burst of optimism that followed Ukraine’s success in repelling the Russian advance around Kyiv. Now, as Moscow begins a huge, slow-motion offensive in the east, concern grows that this conflict has no end-point and that the enormous economic and human damage that results may be permanent – and global.

Johnson supports a free, independent Ukraine but, like other alliance leaders, appears to lack a thought-through, longterm plan to achieve it.

Johnson, typically, is not looking much beyond the present moment. The UK and NATO, he said, would just “keep going with the strategy” of imposing sanctions on Russia and supplying weapons to Kyiv. Johnson supports a free, independent Ukraine but, like other alliance leaders, appears to lack a thought-through, longterm plan to achieve it.

What if Ukrainian forces start losing? What if the country is partitioned, or nears collapse?

The price of failure – the true cost of a Putin victory – could be staggering. It is potentially unsupportable for fractious

western democracies and poorer countries alike, beset by simultaneous post-pandemic security, energy, food, inflation and climate crises. Yet out of myopic self-interest over issues such as Russian oil and gas imports, and from fear of wider escalation, western leaders duck the tough choices that could ensure Ukraine’s survival and help mitigate such ills.

The past week furnished a grim glimpse of the future that awaits if Putin is able to continue to wage war with impunity, commit more heinous crimes, threaten nuclear and chemical blackmail and trash the UN charter. Drastically downgrading its growth forecasts due to the conflict, the International Monetary Fund predicted global economic fragmentation, rising debt and social unrest.

David Malpass, head of the World Bank, said a “human catastrophe” loomed as an unprecedented, estimated 37 per cent rise in food prices, caused by war-related disruption to supplies, pushed millions into poverty, increased malnutrition, and reduced funding for education and healthcare for the least well-off.

More than 5 million people have fled Ukraine in two months, and more will follow, exacerbating an international migration emergency that ex-

tends from Afghanistan to the Sahel. In droughthit east Africa, the World Food Programme says 20 million people may face starvation this year.

Putin’s war did not create the drought, but the UN warns it could hurt efforts to reduce global heating, thereby triggering further displacement and forced migration.

The broader, negative political impact of the war, should it rage on indefinitely, is almost incalculable. The UN’s future as an authoritative global forum, lawmaker and peacekeeper is in jeopardy, as more than 200 former officials warned Guterres last week. At risk, too, is the credibility of the international court of justice, whose injunction to withdraw was scorned by Putin, and the entire system of war crimes prosecutions.

In terms of democratic norms and human rights, the full or partial subjugation of Ukraine would spell disaster for the international rules-based order – and a triumph for autocrats everywhere.

What message would it send, for example, to China over Taiwan, or indeed to Putin as he covets the vulnerable Baltic republics? Islamist terrorists who now furtively plot to exploit the west’s Ukraine distraction would relish such a victory for violence. CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

guyanatimesgy.com

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022

5

News

World Press Freedom Day

National conference & symposium to bring together stakeholders from across local media

T

he Department of Public Affairs has organised a national conference and symposium to commemorate the UNESCOdesignated World Press Freedom Day on Tuesday, May 3, and Wednesday, May 4, 2022, at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC), Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown.

The event which brings together industry practitioners and stakeholders from across the local media and communication spectrum will focus discussions on the global theme for this year “Journalism Under Surveillance” and Guyana’s national subtheme: “Partnerships

in Communication for Development (C4D).”

The conference opener will be headlined by a feature address by President Dr Irfaan Ali. Several special guests will also attend the event including Minister of Home Affairs

The awful truth is...

FROM PAGE 4

Failure to stop the war, rescue Ukraine and punish Russia’s rogue regime to the fullest extent possible would come at an especially high price for Europe and the EU. In prospect is a second cold war with permanent NATO bases on Russia’s borders, massively increased defence spending, an accelerating nuclear arms race, unceasing cyber and information warfare, endemic energy shortages, rocketing living costs, and more Frenchstyle, Russian-backed rightwing populist extremism.

In short, the dawn of a new age of instability.

Why on earth would politicians such as America’s Joe Biden, Germany’s Olaf Scholz, and France’s Emmanuel Macron tolerate so fraught and dangerous a future when, by taking a more robust stand now, they might prevent much of it from materialising? By supposedly avoiding risks today, they ensure a much riskier to-

morrow.

Sending weapons and best wishes is not enough. Conferring last week, western leaders debated providing security guarantees for Ukraine after the war. All well and good. But this war is happening now. Who will guarantee Ukraine’s survival in the possibly decisive next few weeks? Who, if push comes to shove, will move beyond training missions and provide direct, in-country military support?

Let’s get real. For all its heroism and sacrifice, Ukraine may lose this fight. Dreadful though it sounds, Putin could win.

If the west so abandons its principles and values to let that happen, the longterm price, for everyone, will be a whole new world of pain. (Excerpt from The Guardian) (Simon Tisdall is a foreign affairs commentator. He has been a foreign leader writer, foreign editor and US editor for the Guardian)

and Information of Barbados, Wilfred Abrahams; Head of the Press Office of Suriname, Alven Roosveld, as well as

other Caribbean and international partners.

Participants will interact with several panels of leading local and visiting industry practitioners and experts during the symposium.

Of considerable note too, is the unveiling of the ground-breaking Guyana Media and Communication Academy (GMACA) during the conference ceremony.

The Academy’s online learning platform developed in collaboration with Coursera, will immediately be open to the first cohort of learners

following the unveiling.

The PPP/C Administration values its extensive record in and out of office, of advancing and preserving the freedoms enjoyed by the local press and the wider media fraternity, while addressing issues of concern whenever and wherever they arise.

The Government recognises that the transforming landscapes of Guyana’s economy and society will have corresponding implications for the evolution of the Guyanese media and as

such, efforts are ongoing to facilitate scholarships for advanced industry studies, upskilling opportunities and other interventions, to further enable an environment for a free press to thrive and grow.

It considers the mainstreaming of C4D, as a potential catalytic partnership with the “Fourth Estate” which if forged, can help to underpin Guyana’s transformational thrust. To register, persons are asked to visit the link http://www.wpfconference.gy

Delayed cremation Ferry service disrupted Dear Editor, HH Swami Aksharanandaji’s recent letter highlighting the abominable and incomprehensible actions of one Mr Gary Hinds who used his “position” and authority imagined or real - to cause a significant delay in a cremation ceremony on April 18, 2022, at the Kaashi Daam Cremation Site has caused my blood to boil.

It is quite disappointing that the hundreds of mourners and sympathisers present did not ignore this misguided individual and proceed with the last rites of the deceased person and adapt a more Hanumanjilike stance. Perhaps a reminder of the noncombative and peaceful nature of Hindus generally.

As a Hindu, I am deep-

ly incensed and now add my call to the Ministry of Health to break their silence and issue an official statement on this matter and particularly to advise what disciplinary action has been taken or will be meted out to this patently “power-drunk” individual.

I urge the immediate family of the deceased individual to lodge an official complaint with the Ministry of Health, the Region 3 authorities, and the appropriate NDC. Editor, I am asking through your medium if it is possible to request the Ministry and other appropriate authorities to issue an official response on this matter.

Yours sincerely, Chris Persaud

as no Plan B in place

Dear Editor, Pulling a ferry out of service for purposes not related to its core function, that is, the provision of river transportation for commuters. without it seems a Plan B, resulting, it is alleged, in the disruption of the service and passengers left stranded (News Room April 25), is the level of incompetence the public is subjected to on a daily basis from those who provide public service.

Surely the boat cruise was known in advance to the authorities. It did not happen suddenly.

It would have been thought that if a ferry, out of a fleet of two, it seems, servicing the route, is pulled,

then a relief captain and crew would be in place to take over, ensuring smooth sailing and continuity of operations and passengers and the traveling public would not have been left disadvantage and stranded. It was unconscionable to expect the one captain and crew to work all day without relief.

Are the small, little things being subsumed by the big, mega things, and members of the public are made collateral damage?

The authorities should issue an apology to the public for the inconvenience caused by their callous attitude.

Sincerely, Shamshun Mohamed

6

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022

Page

Foundation ◄

I

n this fun and easy science experiment, we’re going to explore and investigate weather by observing air pressure.

Materials: Table Newspaper Ruler

How it works: When you strike the ruler, the newspaper will not move as the air pressure on the newspaper will hold it down. Air pressure is simply the weight Instructions: of all the tiny air Place the ruler on a table so that molecules that press two inches hang over the edge. down on you and the Place a double sheet of newspaper Earth. It is this air over the ruler. pressure, or weight “You teach best Align the edge of the newspaper of the air molecules, what you most with the edge of the table. that hold down need to learn” – Strike the edge of the ruler. the newspaper.

Richard Bach (sciencefun.org)

By Dennis Brutus

It is the constant image of your face framed in my hands as you knelt before my chair the grave attention of your eyes surveying me amid my world of knives that stays with me, perennially accuses and convicts me of heart’s-treachery; and neither you nor I can plead excuses for you, you know, can claim no loyalty – my land takes precedence

of all my loves.

Yet I beg mitigation, pleading guilty for you, my dear, accomplice of my heart made, without words, such blackmail with your beauty and proffered me such dear protectiveness that I confess without remorse or shame, my still-fresh treason to my country and I hope that she, my other, dearest love will pardon freely, not attaching blame being your mistress (or your match) in

tenderness.

1) Summarise the poem 2) Analyse the following lines "It is the constant image of your face, framed in my hands as you knelt before my chair the grave attention of your eyes surveying me amid my world of knives" "that stays with me, perennially accuses and convicts me of heart’s-treachery;" "and neither you nor I can plead excuses for you, you know, can claim no loyalty – my land takes precedence of all my loves."

WORD SEARCH

7 PAC recommends Police investigate former APNU/AFC engineer NEWS

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

– recommendation receives bipartisan support

T

he Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has recommended that former Government Engineer Dannie Ramdolar be investigated by the Police after he allegedly perjured himself before the Committee at its statutory meeting on Monday.

Ramdolar, who left the employ of the then Public Security Ministry in June of 2021, was questioned by the PAC regarding various findings by the Auditor General in his 2017 and 2018 Reports.

For instance, the civil engineer was asked about a project to renovate the Mazaruni Prison, that saw a contractor being overpaid almost $900,000. Ramdolar, who said that he looked over all the projects during his time at the Ministry, admitted that errors were made.

“The accounting officer

at the time and all the other superiors there, relied singularly on your advice.

If the Auditor General did not pick up this project, it could very well mean that this would not have been seen as an overpayment and the Government (would have) lost in terms of value for money… we cannot keep accepting genuine error. We have to understand what is the issue,” Mahipaul said.

Ramdolar was further questioned about a contract for revetment works at the Lusignan Prison, which also resulted in overpayments.

Specifically, the contractor was supposed to renovate a self-acting sluice at the western section of the prison, a $4.6 million contract.

According to the Auditor General in his 2018 report, it was found that the works were certified by the engineer as completed

since December 16, 2018.

However, when the Audit Office examined the project on May 3, 2019, it was revealed that the contractor was still on-site affecting works. It was the Auditor General’s finding that the works were therefore falsely certified.

During questioning, Ramdolar, who admitted to being responsible for overlooking all the projects, claimed that the works were remedial in nature. But his answers failed to satisfy the PAC. In fact, his responses were not supported by what the Auditor General found.

“Payments were made for additional works, which was the fabrication and installation of a metallic self-acting (sluice) door as indicated. And in our engineer’s report which we have as our records, I’m looking at the structure here.

There is a slot for the door to be installed, but the door isn’t there. So, I can tell you offhand that that, in particular, wasn’t there,” one Auditor explained.

Despite being warned by PAC Chairman Jermaine Figueira that misleading the committee is a breach of the Legislative Bodies (Evidence) Act, Chapter 1:08, Ramdolar maintained that he stands by what he said. Finance Secretary Sukrishnalall Pasha advised that the engineer could be surcharged, based on the AG’s findings.

“Based on what I see in the audit report, where the engineer falsified the certificate, and in my opinion, that is criminal. Unless the language used by the AG could be interpreted to mean something different to my interpretation. This particular instance, there is justi-

Essequibo man remanded on causing death charge T

wenty-six-year-old Nicklous Singh, who has been evading Police for the past eight years, was on Monday slapped with a causing death by dangerous driving charge.

He appeared at the Charity Magistrate’s Court before Magistrate Esther Sam and was not required to plead to the charge which stated that on August 12, 2014, he drove his motor car in a manner dangerous to the public thereby causing the death of Chandanie Das. She was reportedly the Branch Manager for Courts’ Richmond office. Singh, of Abram Zuil, Essequibo Coast, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam), was arrested on Friday during a Police operation in the region.

Charged: Nicklous Singh

He was reportedly charged with the offence of causing death by dangerous driving after an accident which occurred along

the Annandale Public Road on the Essequibo Coast on August 12, 2014.

Based on reports received, he had collided his vehicle with another motor car being driven by Chandanie Das, a former Manager of Courts Guyana Inc and late resident of La Union, Essequibo Coast.

Following that accident, a file was prepared and sent to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, and it was advised that an inquest be held into the matter. The inquest saw 10 witnesses testifying, and it was subsequently found that Singh was criminally responsible for the death of Das. Singh was charged and expected to be arraigned at the Suddie Magistrate’s Court on November 19,

Dead: Nandanie Das

2015, but he never showed up. As such, a warrant was issued for his arrest.

He had managed to evade the Police until now.

Former Public Security Ministry Engineer Dannie Ramdolar

fication for surcharging the engineer,” Pasha said.

According to Figueira, who called the news disturbing, the engineer appears to have misled the PAC. He made it clear that this was unacceptable. This view received bipartisan support, with both PAC member and Public Works Minister Juan Edghill and PAC member Ganesh Mahipaul, supporting a criminal investigation.

“If the officer stands by his words, as a member of the PAC, I am making a request that this committee adopt a process that the FS refers this matter for a criminal investigation,” Edghill said.

“If I may be permitted,

on the basis of the officer maintaining that he stands by his word and given that we are witnessing difference in terms of information coming from him and the Audit Office, I’d like to second the request made by comrade Bishop, for this matter to be referred to the Finance Secretary and an investigation be meted out,” Mahipaul said.

Ramdolar was also asked to recuse himself from further proceedings, while Figueira subsequently requested that the Audit Office collaborate with the Finance Secretary on having the matter investigated by the Police.

8 NEWS

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Duo goes on trial next week for 2016 murder of Tuschen man

Murder accused: Rocky Lallu

Murder accused: Somar Shako

wo men – Rocky Lallu and Somar Shako – will go on trial from next Tuesday for the 2016 murder of a 22-year-old Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo (EBE) resident. Lallu and Shako were arraigned before Justice Jo Ann Barlow at the Demerara High Court on Tuesday.

They pleaded not guilty to the joint charge for the capital offence of murder. It is alleged that on January 1, 2016, at Greenwich Park,

EBE, they murdered Dewaun Anthony Baksh.

Lallu is being represented

by Attorney-at-Law Ravindra Mohabir, while Attorneys-atLaw Sophia Findlay, Konyo Sandiford, and Narissa Leander are appearing for his co-accused.

State Counsel Latifah Elliot and State Counsel Marisa Edwards are appearing for the prosecution. The trial of the two accused will commence on Tuesday before

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a 12-member mixed jury.

It was reported that on January 1, 2016, at about 21:30h, Dewaun Baksh was picked up and rushed to the Leonora Cottage Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival. On the day in question, Baksh, who had returned to Guyana after five years to spend Christmas with his family, left home in the company of his two brothers to celebrate the New Year.

They left home at around 17:40h for Bushy Park, Parika, EBE, but subsequently went to Meten-MeerZorg, West Coast Demerara (WCD), and then to a popular shop in Greenwich Park.

However, while there, Rafeek Baksh, the youngest of the three brothers, recognised a man who reportedly had a relationship with his sister some years ago.

The man was with a group of men. Rafeek reportedly approached and asked the man if he remembered him to which the man answered “no”. One of the men from the group misinterpreted what

Polling opinions…

A Murdered: Dewaun Anthony Baksh

was asked and proceeded to use abusive language toward Rafeek.

Dewaun approached and enquired of his brother if he was okay and as they turned to walk away, they were attacked by the group of men with glass bottles. It was during the attack that one of the men broke a glass bottle and stabbed Dewaun several times about his body.

Man pleads guilty to killing Soesdyke re-migrant …another admits to killing pensioner

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wo men pleaded to separate manslaughter charges when they appeared before Demerara High Court Judge Jo Ann Barlow on Monday. Initially indicted for the 2016 murder of Anthony Breedy, 25-year-old Keino Corbin opted to plead guilty to the lesser offence of manslaughter.

He thereby admitted to unlawfully killing the 60-year-old Soesdyke-Linden Highway re-migrant between March 12 and 14, 2016, during the course/furtherance of a robbery.

Sentencing for Corbin has been deferred to May 9,

Confessed killers: Keino Corbin (left) and Leonard Fredericks

2022, when a probation report on him will be presented to the court. The confessed

killer is being represented by Attorney Ravindra Mohabir.

Police said that the body of

Killed: Anthony Breedy

Breedy, a farmer of Hill Foot, Soesdyke-Linden Highway, was found in the lower flat of his home at about 11:00h on March 14. His body bore multiple injuries to the head.

Breedy, who had lived alone, was found with his hands and feet tied. According to a Police press statement, the upper flat of the elderly man’s home was also ransacked.

Meanwhile, Leonard Fredericks was arraigned for unlawfully killing 65-yearold Peter James. Fredericks, too, was indicted for murder but opted to plead guilty to the lesser count. He admitted to killing the pensioner on December 30, 2015, at Hell Hill, Matthews Ridge, Region One (Barima-Waini).

Reports stated that Fredericks stabbed James several times. The men, who had a two-month-old argument, had been drinking at a bar on the day in question.

Fredericks was also arraigned before Demerara High Court Judge Jo Ann Barlow. He will be sentenced on May 9 after the presentation of a probation report.

The confessed killer is being represented by Attorney-atLaw Teriq Mohammed. State Counsel Latifah Elliott is appearing for the prosecution.

…or shaping opinions couple of weeks ago, the International Republican Institute (IRI) announced the results of a poll in our country conducted back in January. The IRI, Dear Reader, was the group that took such a great interest in our politics that just before the 2011 elections, it spawned a host of “civil society” groups like the Red Caps and also the “Vote like a Boss” to assist “voters’ education” during the elections. They sure had an “educational” impact since the PPP was effectively checkmated to be removed in 2015!!

They were formed in the early 1980s after Reagan announced that America had to export “democracy” abroad. John McCain was its head for some 25 years!!

It’s mostly staffed by Republicans while their compatriot Democrats have their National Democratic Institute that also only works abroad from their HQs in Washington. The local US politics is already quite democratic, thank you!! You heard about all those “coloured” democratic revolutions all across the world including the “orange” one in Ukraine??

Well, these two groups played quite a big role, but are too modest to boast about it!!

Anyhow, since our democracy isn’t that entrenched – the British tutoring for 100+ years on democracy’s nuances wasn’t enough! – the IRI continued carrying out its burden here. And this brings us to the above-mentioned poll. They brought in a group from Costa Rica called CID Gallup even though it has no connection to the famous US Gallup!!

The PNC’s new Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton – and camp followers – responded first since the “findings” seem to support some of their claims about the elections.

Especially about their concerns about the “integrity of the electoral system”. For instance, it claims that 64% of the population “agree that there’s a problem with ethnic or racial discrimination of voters during elections”. How that discrimination occurs wasn’t explained!

The other response was from PPP’s Gail Teixeira who claimed that the poll was very highly flawed for quite a number of reasons. From where your Eyewitness sits, the major one was the IRI admitting that of their 1500 respondents identified to give an ethnic, regional, gender, and other balances, they only had a 20% response! Now, how the heck can those 300 persons be representative since there is no way in hell they could’ve self-selected randomly to match the original representativeness!!

Another more fatal problem was the type of questions posed. How many Guyanese could answer, “To what degree can legislative reforms successfully address weaknesses in the current system?” Then if 81% voted, why would 69% want new parties? And 29% -- 100 of the 300 who chose to respond – were not eligible to vote?

Fake poll!! …in France Many in the West breathed a sigh of relief that in the just-concluded French elections, incumbent President Emmanuel Macron secured 58% of the vote to beat the right-wing challenger Marine Le Pen. But what’s critical to note is there was only a 63% turnout in a system where there’s a first round that winnows out all other competitors.

Meaning that Macron’s support isn’t that solid, as for many, he was “the lesser of two evils”!

But more to the point, Le Pen, whose platform played on the nativist and anti-immigrant fears that have swept the West, picked up more votes than she did in 2017. It isn’t ironic Brexit was precipitated by Poles and Ukrainians flooding Britain? And in the end, her right-wing philosophy really won since Macron had to shift in that direction to stave off defeat. The rightists are now setting the agenda as in the UK, US, Brazil and in most European countries!!

Expect this trend to continue and immigrants to feel more unwelcome up north! …on Opposition’s seriousness Rather than just kvetching about having no power, your Eyewitness has been pushing the Opposition to use mechanisms in place to influence Government policy.

Yet we just heard they’ve not been attending meetings of the Constitutional Reform Committee!!

The views expressed in this column are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Guyana Times’ editorial policy and stance

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

NEWS

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TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

2021 human rights report

PPP/C Government shows political will to tackle Police corruption W

hile the latest United States (US) report on human rights in Guyana states that there is a perception of corruption in the state among the citizens, this is a status quo evident in the State Department’s reports since 2016 that the report notes the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government is showing the political will to tackle.

A perusal of the 2016 report shows that with only one year gone into the term of the former A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government, widespread public perception of corruption involving officials at all levels, including the Police and the Judiciary was cited.

“The law provides for criminal penalties for corruption by officials, and the Government generally im-

plemented the law effectively. There were isolated reports of Government corruption during the year, and Administration officials responded to the reports,” the report stated.

The year 2017 was no different. But the succeeding reports, 2018 and 2019, were worse since it was noted that “corruption by Police officers was frequent”.

Despite the prevalence of corruption highlighted in the report, it was noted that there were no reports of any members of the Police Force being prosecuted in 2018 or 2019.

It would not be until 2020 that reports of prosecution of corrupt officers, including Police Officer Richard Persaud, would be highlighted in the report.

According to the report, Persaud resigned from the Police Force in August 2020

and as of October of that year, the prosecution continued.

The fight against Police corruption took a dramatic

turn in 2021, when according to the human rights report covering that year, 11 Police officers were arrested and charged with multiple

counts of fraud, conspiracy, and larceny for inflating the costs of meal procurement for Police officers and keeping the difference.

“On October 27, (2021) two of those charged were released, and the judicial proceedings for the others were ongoing,” the report states, also noting that the Government effectively implemented anti-corruption laws.

Only recently, Transparency International Guyana Index (TIGI) President Fred Collins had pointed out that Guyana has over the past few years made significant improvements on the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI).

While Guyana scored 39 and was ranked at 87 out of 180 countries that were studied in the Transparency International (TI) index for 2021, Collins had noted

during a recent appearance on Globespan that Guyana’s improvement has been consistent. At one point, Guyana had a score of 29 and a ranking at 119, back in 2015.

Earlier this year, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo had pointed out that with more lapses from APNU/ AFC’s time in office being exposed, this could cause the country to slip further on the corruption index.

He had noted that many of the lapses that caused TI to score Guyana the way it did, occurred under the former Government. This is compounded by the work of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which has been exposing wrongdoings under the former Government, with its examination of the Auditor General’s report.

GPF, GCCI sign 5-year partnership agreement to build capacity, improve service delivery

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he Guyana Police Force (GPF) and the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) on Monday signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) to improve the delivery of quality services and building capacity.

The agreement was signed in the GCCI’s Boardroom

by Deputy Commissioner “Administration” (ag), Calvin Brutus and GCCI’s Junior Vice President/Chairman of the Security and Governance Committee, Kester Hutson.

The five-year MoA will

see the GCCI supporting the GPF in building capacity while improving relationships in critical areas such as customer relations, security management, financial management, accounting training, scholarships for youths, and other support services and resources that will aid the progression of the Force.

GCCI will similarly assist the GPF with equipment procurement, community relations and other activities and programmes.

“We are very proud to be at this stage of signing this

MoA, which speaks to increasing the relationship between the Guyana Police Force and the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry,” Hutson stated.

Additionally, he pointed out that the GCCI looks forward to collaborating and partnering with the Police Force in a strategic way over the next five years with the aim being to improve the overall quality of service being provided to members of the public across Guyana.

Deputy Commissioner “Administration” (ag) Calvin

Brutus also lauded the collaboration between the Force and the Chamber and indicated that a main pillar of the Force’s strategic plan is partnership, which is critical to the vision of the GPF. He also alluded to the fact that the GPF has had engagements with the GCCI in the past and he is pleased that, moving forward, the strengthening of these bonds of friendship and partnership will be done in a more structured way and the signing of the MoA is testament to this commitment.

Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of “Administration” Calvin Brutus and GCCI Junior Vice President Kester Hutson holding the signed MoA

10 NEWS Ex-media worker awaits sentencing for attempting to smuggle cocaine through CJIA TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

– GRA employee, ex-CANU officer released on $1.5M bail

Cocaine mule: Zanneel Nirmala Williams

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f o r m e r Communications Officer at the Department of Public Information (DPI), an ex-Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) employee, and a Guyana Revenue

Ex-CANU agent Anil Sookhoo

Authority (GRA) officer have been charged over the discovery of $60 million in cocaine at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA).

Ex-DPI worker, Zanneel Nirmala Williams, 25, of

GRA Officer Shameka Caesar

Lamaha Gardens, Georgetown; former CANU officer Anil Sookhoo, 33, of Kuru Kururu, SoesdykeLinden Highway; and GRA officer Shameka Caesar, 27, of D’Urban Street, Wortmanville, Georgetown,

appeared before Magistrate Sunil Scarce at the Diamond Golden/Grove Magistrates’ Courts.

Williams pleaded guilty to the charge which stated that on April 22 at the Timehri, East Bank Demerara (EBD) airport, she had 9.628 kilograms of cocaine in her possession for the purpose of trafficking. As a result of her guilty plea, Williams was remanded to prison until May 30 when she will be sentenced.

Magistrate Scarce ordered that a psychiatric evaluation be performed on her. A probation report will also be

The cocaine that was found in the woman’s luggage

compiled on her. Meanwhile, Sookhoo and Caesar denied the charge and were each released on $750,000 bail.

On the day in question, Williams was an outgoing passenger on a JetBlue flight destined for the JFK International Airport, USA, when CANU officers found a quantity of cocaine inside her hand luggage. As a result, she was arrested and taken to CANU's Headquarters where another set of cocaine was found

strapped to her body.

Based on investigations, Police later arrested Sookhoo and Caesar. The cocaine found in her luggage amounted to 7.962 kilograms while another 1.666 kilograms of cocaine was found strapped to her body.

The narcotic had a total street value of over GY$5 million and upon arrival in the US it would have been worth US$300,000 (GY$60 million).

NEWS

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TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Mechanism put in place to mitigate housing backlog in Reg 2 – Min Rodrigues

Some of the residents who turned up at the outreach Minister within the Housing and Water Ministry Susan Rodrigues in discussion with two residents in Region 2 over the weekend

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fter clearing a significant build-up of housing matters dating back years in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) last weekend, mechanisms have been activated to prevent such a recurrence.

Minister within the Housing Ministry, Susan Rodrigues told media operatives during the outreach that residents were faced with a series of issues, which officials managed to clear up immediately. Now, the Ministry has stepped in to staff the new regional housing office adequately so as to facilitate smooth operation.

“One of the things we had to do was staff the office with capable, competent people that we are following up with and monitoring. We recently established our own regional housing office here and we’ve staffed that office.

It’s fully equipped to address the housing matters in the region. What we’re doing here is trying to reduce the

backlog so the office doesn’t become overwhelmed,” the Minister pointed out.

She said the office was being led by an individual, who allegedly was involved in fraudulent activities.

Unaware of such illegal operations, persons desirous of house lots went through the process. Since this issue has been resolved, the Ministry has also taken the initiative to honour such transactions as well.

“We had someone there from the past who was involved in some fraud transactions and had issued fraudulent receipts. We made a decision when we came into Government to honour those receipts. So, for all of those people who made payments but did so unknowingly fraudulently, we honoured all of those.”

During the outreach, residents were allocated house lots on the spot. On Friday, residents were able to interact and air their concerns

with Minister Rodrigues, and other officials.

Hundreds of residents took full advantage of the opportunity to have their pending housing, land, and water matters addressed and resolved. Attending the outreach were officials from the Conveyance Unit, the Land Allocation Unit, the Legal Department, Community Development, Planning, and Survey Units.

Rodrigues related that the Housing and Water Ministry is committed to resolving age-old issues on the coast and bringing an end to a number of boundary issues. She added that the Ministry spent three weeks accumulating data to bring on-the-spot solutions to issues affecting residents. Persons were assured that the way has been cleared for them to apply for ownership documents ranging from titles, transports, and also the agreements of sale.

For 2022, the Government has a work plan of $1.2 billion for new infrastructure works in Onderneeming and Charity where allocations were already made. Apart from 600 lots that were allocated through the “Dream Realised” initiative, the Ministry has made continuous allotments for residents in the region.

In 2021, the Government surpassed its target of distributing 10,000 house lots to Guyanese through its signature “Dream Realised” house lot distribution exercise. Because of the huge demand for housing, coupled with a backlog of applications, the Government, when it got into office, initiated its signature “Dream Realised” house lot distribution exercise held in Regions Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Nine, and 10.

Additionally, the Government had processed close to 2000 titles and transports in its first year in office, while starting construction on 1000 houses

and conducting massive infrastructural work - all part of an over $14 billion investment in the housing sector.

Plans for 2022 include the distribution of 15,000 house lots as well as the continuation of the home improvement and subsidy programme.

A sum of $12.4 billion was set aside in Budget 2022 for the housing sector, which goes towards the development of housing units and the necessary road net-

work and other infrastructure to support these housing developments.

The Housing Ministry has also said it will work with other State agencies to make more land available for housing development.

These agencies include the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL); the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GLSC) and the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo).

12 NEWS 18-year-old Lusignan Prison inmate nabbed with ganja in underwear A TUESDAY, APRIL 26,, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

n 18-year-old Lusignan Prison inmate who is serving a sentence for armed robbery was on Sunday found with a quantity of marijuana stashed in his underwear. The teenager is from Albouystown, Georgetown.

Police stated that on the day in question at about 10:30h, at the Lusignan Prison, East Coast Demerara (ECD), the teenager was found with 92 grams of cannabis.

Preliminary investigations revealed that on the

The ganja that was found in the prisoner’s underwear

date and time mentioned above, the teenager was on the prison farm during which a Prison Training Instructor (PTI) observed him acting in a suspicious manner.

As a result, the PTI conducted a search on the prisoner and two brownish plas-

tic parcels were found in the inmate’s underwear.

Commander for Regional Division 4C, Senior Superintendent Khali Pareshram said the Police were summoned and the said parcels were handed over to a rank.

The parcel was checked

in the presence of the inmate and the PTI and a quantity of ganja was found and subsequently weighed and amounted to 92 grams.

He was told of the allegation and admitted ownership. He is expected to be charged shortly.

NEWS

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TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022| GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Too early to determine dropout rate as schools reopen – CEO

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n light of the reopening of schools for complete face-to-face learning after two years, the Education Ministry will begin monitoring for dropouts.

Chief Education Officer, Dr Marcel Hutson told media operatives on Monday that with the doors finally open for physical learning, authorities will be able to gauge how many students dropped out of the education system.

Thereafter, the Education Ministry can provide the necessary intervention.

“We will know how many of them are missing, if any at all…We will get a good opportunity now to see who is coming and who is not coming to school in terms of our students,” Hutson underscored.

The full reopening is being executed in a phased approach this week. By the end of the week, all classes will be accommodated into the system. Mechanisms to allow for safe distancing and sanitisation have already been implemented at the various facilities.

This month’s complete reopening comes more than

Students of North Georgetown Secondary on Monday morning (MoE photo)

two years after the COVID pandemic struck, forcing closure to reduce an infection spread. Previously, some classes were facilitated in the classrooms while others remained online.

A few months ago, the Education Ministry launched its Operation Recovery with-

in the 11 education districts to find those primary school students who had been continuously absent from school and those who had missed the recent National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) mock examinations.

Earlier this month, Education Minister Priya

Manickchand began consulting with stakeholders to expand the programme.

It was explained that the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the education sector in two fundamental ways: loss of instructional time and learning loss due to schools being closed for over 18

months. Manickchand had said that, recognising the need to mitigate the longterm effects of school closure, the Ministry moved towards a phased reopening.

An analysis of learners’ attendance data revealed that some learners did not attend school as required.

Operation Recovery aims to get pupils back into school, and the objectives of the programme are to locate and retain learners, as well as to engage and support them.

Through encounters with students, it was learned that the reasons for absenteeism range from poverty to “carelessness”. The Education Ministry has underscored that urgent, practical, sustained measures such as teaching and learning from a consolidated curriculum; the provision of textbooks; re-training of teachers; using technology in the classroom; and Operation Recovery would mitigate against the predicted loss to our students and country.

Meanwhile, 54 per cent of the students turned up for school in Region Six on the first day of the new school

term.

Although some students had returned to school prior to this, some were required to attend face-to-face classes only on certain days. Just over half of the 11,217 students attended on Monday.

The 6004 who attended represented 54 per cent.

The primary department had the best turnout with 2559 of the 4230, or 60 per cent attending. Secondary schools recorded the lowest turnout with only 2476 of the 5264 students attending.

In addition, 969 of the 1741 students attending nursery schools, or 56 per cent turned out to school Monday.

According to the Department of Education, both the nursery and primary levels recorded a 100 per cent teacher turnout while at the secondary level there was a 91 per cent turnout, giving an overall 97 per cent of the 2226 teachers in the region turning out for work on Monday.

There are 70 nursery, 57 primary and 16 secondary schools in Region Six.

14 NEWS

TUESDAY, APRIL 26,, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Zara Computer Centre commissioned in Linden

– to provide IT training for Police, residents

The interior of the computer centre The Zara Computer Centre in Linden

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he Guyana Police Force (GPF) has partnered with the Zara Group of Companies to provide free recognised computer literacy training for Police ranks and vulnerable persons in Wismar, Linden, Region 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice).

The centre was officially commissioned on Saturday last at the Wismar Police Station.

With the Guyana Police Force on the move to enhance its operations across the country, Chief Training Officer Keithon King said he has been waiting in anticipation for the ZARA Computer training programme to be introduced in Regional

Division 10.

“When they were setting up that centre in Essequibo, it was our classroom, so we had to get a plan B. At the time, myself and staff, and stakeholders, converted the bottom flat of that building to a classroom to accommodate the Zara Centre which had a stipulated time to finish so that training could commence. Sergeant Handover, who did his initial training at that college, capitalised on the training and the learning opportunities. Today, he’s now the coordinator for all the Zara Centres within the Police environment,” King said.

As the Force’s Training Officer, King said he is op-

timistic that the Linden Computer Centre will be fully utilised by Police ranks and residents of the region.

He added that emphasis must be placed on the development of children.

“I am optimistic that this centre, I’m speaking about the Linden centre, will be fully utilised as it relates to training, not only for policemen and women but for members of the community where emphasis must be placed on the development of our children,” King noted.

Meanwhile, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Calvin Brutus said the idea to have a computer centre at Wismar was born under the Force’s strategic plan to fos-

ter partnership.

“We understand that in order to harness our youths and have them engaged in positive activities is to seek out every means possible at our disposal to do so. The computer centre is one of our primary tools to help develop our youths and keep them focused on positive activities and away from crime and social disobedience,” Brutus said in brief remarks.

He said the Force relies on NGOs to help in whatever way they can to foster development. With the launch of IT training programmes some years ago, the Zara Group of Companies has trained thousands of young people.

The company was established 39 years ago by a

Businessman pays for house lots, house for single mothers

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ith Mother’s Day fast approaching, businessman Azruddin Mohamed on Monday surprised three single-parent mothers by paying off for their lands and a turn-key home with Central Housing and Planning Authority.

The beneficiaries are Radha Beharry of Grassfield, Lusignan, East Coast Demerara (ECD); Shavannie Sookraj also of Grassfield, Lusignan, ECD, and Rashuana Harris of BB Eccles, East Bank Demerara (EBD).

In the case of Sookraj and Beharry, their allotted house lots were fully paid for by the businessman while Harris had her turn-key home paid for in full.

This definitely put smiles on the faces of the women who thanked him for his timely intervention. The

Azruddin Mohamed and the beneficiaries at his house on Monday

women and their children were also invited to the businessman’s Houston, Greater Georgetown Estate where the official documents were handed over to them.

The young entrepreneur believes that with Mother’s Day approaching and taking

into consideration the struggles of single-parent mothers in Guyana, it is fitting to do his part to bring happening in their lives.

He also feels that it is a part of his corporate responsibility to society.

As such, he extended best

wishes to the hard-working women and even men who have been both a mother and a father to their children. These parents would have made the sacrifice to provide for their children despite the many challenges.

Guyanese family mainly involved in real estate. To date, the company has collaborated with several agencies including the Central Islamic

Organisation of Guyana (CIOG) and the Guyana Police Force, to provide training programmes countrywide.

Teen arraigned for stabbing villager to death during argument

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wenty-year-old Joshua Williams, a labourer of 20 Swan Village, Soesdyke-Linden Highway, was on Monday slapped with a murder charge when he appeared at the Diamond/Golden Grove Magistrates’ Courts.

Williams was remanded to prison by Senior Magistrate Sunil Scarce until May 30, 2022. The teenager was not required to plead to the indictable charge which alleged that he murdered 41-year-old Joseph Davis.

It was reported that the two men were involved in an argument on March 19 which led to a scuffle between them. During the ordeal, Davis was badly wounded and had to be taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), where he was admitted as a patient in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

However, he reportedly succumbed to his injuries on March 28.

While he was hospitalised, Police ranks visited him on three occasions to get a statement but they were unsuccessful on each occasion. When Police officers returned to the medical facility on March 27, they were informed that he had passed while receiving medical attention.

As such, Police later issued a wanted bulletin for

Charged: Murder accused: Joshua Williams

Williams, who had been on the run. He was nevertheless arrested late last week in his father’s Kuru Kururu, Soesdyke-Linden Highway home. He was reportedly hiding behind a chair in the house.

Police had stated that on Wednesday at about 16:45h, Police went to the home of the wanted man’s father during which they conducted a search and found him hiding in the living room.

Williams’s father was also arrested for harbouring a wanted fugitive since he was aware that a wanted bulletin had been issued for his son. It is not unclear whether the father will be charged with the offence.

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TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

4 new COVID cases detected in 24 hours

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he Health Ministry on Monday reported that only four new COVID-19 cases were detected in a 24-hour period.

New statistics released by the Ministry showed that one patient is in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), 78 persons in home isolation, one in institutional isolation and 16 in institutional quarantine. Deaths have remained at 1228.

There are 62,112 recov-

eries from the 29,192 males and 34,228 females who tested positive. COVID-19 tests have amounted to 591,338 since the virus was first detected here.

Most recent vaccination statistics show that over 439,600 or 85.7 per cent of adults have taken a first dose and of that amount, more than 338,700 or 66 per cent are fully vaccinated.

For adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17, ap-

proximately 34,400 or 47.3 per cent of them have received their first dose, while some 25,200 or 34.6 per cent of them are fully immunised.

In addition, booster shots have surpassed 61,300.

Since the introduction of COVID-19 vaccines in the region 15 months ago, more than 66 per cent of people in Latin America and the Caribbean have been fully vaccinated.

Immunisation law to be upgraded this week – Health Minister

...says Pfizer vaccines available to immunise country’s adolescent population

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he Health Ministry will be updating the outdated Public Health Immunisation Act 1974 this week to reflect on the current efforts undertaken by Guyana to guarantee a safer population.

At the launch of Vaccination Week in Region Six (East BerbiceCorentyne), Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony stated that the Public Health (Childhood) Immunisation Act 1974 needs to be updated since some of the vaccines mentioned are no longer being administered, and new ones have since been introduced.

This week, the work being done by the Health Ministry with respect to vaccines will be reflected in the law.

“We’re no longer doing smallpox but we have an expanded immunisation programme. If we look at the vaccines we’re giving, we’re probably doing more than 20 different antigens. That schedule needs to be updated and during this week, one of the things we will be doing is making sure that the law is in keeping with what we have been doing over the years…The law will support that and we’ll make that change,” the Minister highlighted.

Dr Anthony reminded that vaccines have been proven useful in Guyana for decades, averting deaths

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony

and illnesses.

“We know that vaccines work and they have been working for a long time and we’ve seen that because of vaccinations, we have been able to avert a lot of deaths, especially among children.

Guyana, over the years, has been able to achieve a record amount of coverage for various types of childhood vaccines.”

During the pandemic, he added, efforts should continue to immunise children against the coronavirus and offer protection. It would significantly decrease the possibility of severe infection or hospitalisation.

“Even despite of the challenges we’ve had with COVID, our vaccination rates have remained quite high. We would not have

been able to achieve that if it was not for the workers, people who made sacrifices and made sure that we find the children and vaccinate them.”

Guyana has enough Pfizer vaccines to immunise the country’s adolescent population. By June, he reiterated that the 70 per cent coverage for COVID-19 can be achieved with a little extra action.

“I think a lot of people have grown complacent. A lot of people believe that COVID is over and because we’re not getting a lot of cases now, that we don’t have to worry about COVID. I have to disappoint you. COVID is not over and in fact, what we’re seeing now is that there are different variants or sub-variants of Omicron that are now circulating,” he contended.

World Immunisation Week, celebrated in the last week of April, aims to highlight the collective action needed and to promote the use of vaccines to protect people of all ages against disease.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) works with countries across the globe to “raise awareness of the value of vaccines and immunisation and ensures that governments obtain the necessary guidance and technical support to implement high-quality immunisation programmes”.

GUYANA COVID-19 DASHBOARD APRIL 25, 2022 UPDATE

NUMBER OF NEW CASES

4

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN INSTITUTIONAL ISOLATION

1

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN HOME ISOLATION

78

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN COVID-19 ICU

1

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN INSTITUTIONAL QUARANTINE

16

TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES BY GENDER (FEMALES)

34,228

TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES BY GENDER (MALES)

29,192

TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES IN GUYANA SINCE 2020

63,420

NUMBER OF RECOVERED CASES

62,112

TOTAL 1st DOSE VACCINATED FULLY IMMUNISED

REGION 1

2519

REGION 2

2495

REGION 3

8061

REGION 4

31,377

REGION 5

2381

REGION 6

5781

REGION 7

2423

REGION 8

887

REGION 9

4025

REGION 10

3471

HERE IS HOW YOU CAN BE SAFE DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC Wear a face mask.

439,616 338,785

TOTAL NUMBER OF DEATHS

DISTRIBUTION OF TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES SINCE MARCH 2020

1228

Keep a physical distance of at least 6 feet.

Wash your hands or use handsanitizer If you have any symptoms, call the COVID-19 Hotline.

GET MEDICAL ADVICE ON COVID-19 FROM MOH 24/7 HOTLINE NUMBERS: 2311166; 226 7480; 624 6674; 624 2819; 624 3067 OR 180/181.

Commenting on this journey, PAHO Director, Dr Carissa Etienne said, “This seminal achievement is, however, not sufficient…

There is still a long way to go to ensure that all populations at risk receive the doses that they need for protection. The inequitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, and

widespread vaccine hesitancy, have unmasked concerning fault lines along our regional landscape.”

If anyone is displaying any of the symptoms associated with COVID-19 or needs any additional information, they are asked to contact the COVID-19 Hotline 231-1166, 226-7480

or 624-6674 immediately or visit www.health.gov.gy.

Global figures show that almost 507.5 million people have tested positive for the virus and 6.22 million have died. In the Americas, more than 152.5 million confirmed cases have been reported with over 2.7 million deaths.

Mechanic dies after pick-up turns turtle

Police Constable gets bail on theft charge

A

Police Constable was on Monday charged with the offence of simple larceny.

Constable Hill appeared before Magistrate Zamilla Ally-Seepaul at the Leonora Magistrate’s Court.

He pleaded not guilty to the charge filed contrary to Section 66 (c) of the Summary Jurisdiction (Offences) Act. He allegedly committed the offence against Ravindra Singh, a 27-year-old businessman of Hubu Public Road, East Bank Essequibo (EBE).

The incident occurred on April 14 at Singh’s business place at Tuschen, EBE.

A

In the end, the Policeman was released on $10,000

bail. The case has been adjourned to June 3.

mechanic was on Monday killed after the vehicle in which he was travelling turned turtle along the Mabura Trail, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice).

Dead is 62-year-old Randy Lee of Vergenoegen, East Bank Essequibo (EBE).

At the time of the accident, the other occupants of the vehicle were Bhisham Hiralall, also called “Ryan”, 30, of Number Seven Village, West Coast Berbice (WCB); Bhoodnarine Ramgobin,

called “Mokesh”, 41, of 16th Street, Foulis, East Coast Demerara (ECD); Conrad Gibson, 55, of Friendship, East Bank Demerara (EBD) and Jailal, called “Naresh”, 34, of Supply, Mahaica, East Coast Demerara (ECD).

Police stated that on the day in question about 14:30h, the motor pick-up bearing registration number GNN 3286 was proceeding along the Number 58 Mabura trail at an allegedly fast rate of speed when the driver suddenly pulled right

to avoid a pothole.

In so doing, Lee reportedly lost control of the pick-up, which toppled several times before turning turtle along the roadway.

As such, the driver and occupants of the pick-up sustained injuries to their bodies. Lee was picked up in an unconscious state, along with the other occupants, by public-spirited citizens and transported to the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC), where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

16 NEWS

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Lethem gets $3M senior citizens’ centre

The senior citizens’ centre in Lethem, Region Nine

A

$3 million senior citizens’ centre was on Sunday commissioned in Lethem, Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo), which will provide a safe space for the senior citizens to socialise, access health services, education on fitness, dieting and overall wellness.

The commissioning ceremony was attended by Housing and Water Minister Collin Croal; Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Public Affairs, Kwame McCoy and Local Government and Regional Development Minister Nigel Dharamlall.

The Ministers commended the initiative while noting the many initiatives implemented by the Government to assist senior citizens,

chief among them being the increase in old-age pension to $28,000, along with the subsidy on water and electricity and the removal of Value Added Tax on basic food items and supplies.

Minister Croal said the initiative needs to be replicated in other regions. He noted that, “They [senior citizens] have toiled this soil, they have laid the foundation for us, all of us, to enjoy first of all the democracy, the freedom that we have…

It is initiatives like these, that help to build communities too”.

The Minister challenged the municipality to initiate a programme targeting those senior citizens who may be neglected, through home visits and the provision of necessary support, since many of them may not

be able to visit the centre.

Minister McCoy, while noting the Administration’s focus on improving primary healthcare services, especially as it relates to fighting chronic illnesses that affect senior citizens, restated the commitment to prioritising the elderly.

“We [Government] will continue to honour our senior citizens, and we have demonstrated this as a Government. In our manifesto, we did speak to issues of our seniors of not only increasing pension, to ensure they have some form of income… but also, we have spoken to facilities that will allow for seniors to be able to have access,” the Minister said.

He also recommended that a management committee be formed to care-

Commissioning of the senior citizens’ centre in Lethem, Region Nine

fully plan the various programmes that will be offered at the centre for the seniors.

In addition, Minister Dharamlall stated, “It is true that senior citizens play an integral role, have played an integral role and will continue to play an integral role in the development of our country. Part of the work programme of the Government of Guyana, is to make sure we provide for all segments of society”.

He noted too, that the commissioning of the building will go a far way in enhancing the services that the municipality provides to Lethem residents.

The Minister said other Government agencies would be willing to work along with the Lethem Town Council to ensure the centre’s success.

He also called on the Council to be non-discriminatory in the provision of those services, noting that Lethem is one of the transient towns, therefore services should be extended to areas in Region Nine.

Mayor of Lethem John Macedo and Regional Executive Officer Karl Singh were also at the event. The Mayor emphasised the importance of respecting senior citizens, as they have built the foundation for the current generation.

Meanwhile, residents have welcomed the initiative.

Businessman Lindon Franklyn told the Department of Public Information (DPI), “I think personally that this will bring a lot of relief to our senior citizens. By extension, I

would like to see some of the persons with disabilities accessing the service, as well.

It is a great initiative, and I would like to see it extend to other communities”.

Another resident, Virginie King said, “What they have done here with the Town Council, is very good for the old people to come and do their therapy, whatever, you know, it is nice.”

Petuna (only name given), a senior citizen, shared similar sentiments, expressing that, “I think it is good, at least the pensioners could come, get together here, we can all come and chat together…if we want massage and those things would be nice and learn something… it is good also to occupy ourselves.”

Yakusari Corp receives $3 million in fencing material

The fencing materials handed over to residents

Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha hands over the materials to the residents

W

ith the Government signalling its intention to develop the country’s livestock industry, the Agriculture Ministry through the Guyana Livestock Development Authority (GLDA) has moved to assist farmers across the country with developing pastures to secure their animals.

On Saturday last, Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha handed over approximately $3 million worth of fencing material to members of the Yakusari Cattle Association

Corporation.

The materials will be used to upgrade approximately 1500 acres of farmland in Black Bush Polder that have been designated for cattle grazing.

The Minister was at the time in the region hosting a series of farmers’ meetings as a follow-up commitment made by Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo during the recent Cabinet Outreach in Region Six. The materials consisted of fifty (50) 500-metre rolls of wire and 1200 wallaba posts and will benefit ap-

proximately 200 cattle farmers and 3000 heads of cattle.

During the exercise which took place at the Number 36 Village Primary School on the Corentyne Coast, Minister Mustapha said prior to the engagement, he met with farmers and committed to assisting them with the materials to fence the communal pasture in the area.

“When we met with the farmers [in] Black Bush Polder, we made a commitment to assist with developing a pasture because the rice farmers were saying that the cows are destroying

their rice. Today, I’m here to deliver on that commitment so that the cattle farmers can have a secure area to graze their cattle and the rice farmers can protect their crops. The farmers will be able to use these materials to fence the designated pasture lands so that the cows cannot destroy the rice farmers’ rice,” the Minister noted.

Further, Minister Mustapha told the farmers that the Agriculture Ministry has been working with other cattle farmers to develop their pastures.

“This is not the only area that we’ve done. Recently we fenced an area from Number 52 to Number 64 [Village] to prevent the cattle from destroying the rice. So, all across the country we’ve been meeting with farmers and listening to their concerns. We’ve been working

with them. The issues between rice and cattle farmers are not new and as a Government, we have to protect and develop both industries” he added.

With the emerging oil and gas sector bringing hundreds of expatriates to Guyana, Minister Mustapha told the farmers that the Government is working to provide an enabling environment for small cattle farmers to be able to supply those new market demands for special cuts of meat.

“We have a number of investors coming into the country to look at developing our cattle industry and increasing the cattle population as well as the small ruminant industry. Only recently the President launched the Black Belly Sheep project where almost 1000 Black Belly Sheep will be brought

from Barbados to start an industry here. So, you can see our efforts are not geared toward developing only the rice, sugar, and cash crop industries. Our goal is to develop the entire sector. We are also looking to partner with a private investor to build a modern abattoir at Rising Sun. We are now an oil and gas producing nation and the demand for special cuts of meat to satisfy the demands has to be met. We want our farmers to benefit from that market so we’ve been working with them so that they can be a part of the local content,” he noted.

The farmers thanked the Minister for the wire and said that it will help them with improving the relationship between cattle farmers and rice farmers in the area, as the animals will now be housed in a secure area.

NEWS

17

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Kaibarupai to get 1st-time access to potable water in new week

Housing and Water Minister Collin Croal tests the water system on Sunday

Minister Croal meeting with residents of Kaibarupai

esidents of Kaibarupai, Region Eight (PotaroSiparuni), will soon be able to enjoy first-time access to potable water through the new Kaibarupai Water Supply System.

Housing and Water Minister Collin Croal, Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) Director of Hinterland Services, Ramchand Jailal and a team visited the ongo-

will have first-time access to water at the service connection level. The right side hosts the health post, primary and nursery schools and village office. However, the Minister has committed to expanding the system.

“We will have an assessment to see if this system can distribute the water on the other side and we will connect the pipes,” the Minister assured.

R

ing project on Sunday.

Close to 500 villagers reside in the area and practice rainwater harvesting to receive water.

“Clean water is a basic necessity. It doesn’t matter where you live, our Government will ensure you have a better life,” stated Minister Croal.

At least 70 per cent of the community, which lies on the right side of the creek,

By May 1, 2022, the Kaibarupai Water Supply System will be fully operational.

The project is being executed by R Kissoon Contracting Services at a cost of some $34.6 million; and includes the installation of an intake pumping chamber, pump and discharge assembly in the creek, installation of a photovoltaic pumping system, solar pan-

els and accessories. Some 3000 metres of 50mm (2”) PVC pipes and 1000 metres of 19mm (3/4”) pipes with 50 service connections have been installed. A reinforced concrete base is also being constructed to accommodate four 450-gallon storage tanks.

More than 90 per cent of works have been completed and the project is only awaiting the installation of

the submersible pump.

Minister Croal also announced a number of upcoming projects to develop the community such as the training of Community Service Officers and the completion of the computer hub, as well as a bridge to connect the two sides of the village and provide a safer means of travel for students attending the school.

18

guyanatimesgy.com

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022

Regional

Nicaragua sparks backlash Royal couple told of Antigua and in quitting OAS over Ortega Barbuda’s wish to be republic re-election criticism A

N

i c a r a g u a ’ s Government said it had completed its withdrawal from the Organisation of American States (OAS), a move the group swiftly decried as violating international norms and unable to go into effect for another year.

N i c a r a g u a ’ s Government also said it had closed the local OAS office and revoked the credentials of several OAS representatives as part of an “unwavering decision” to leave the Organisation.

Nicaragua began the process to leave the 35-member OAS in November, shortly after President Daniel Ortega’s election to a fourth consecutive term amid international concern – including from the OAS – over the vote’s fairness as Ortega detained opponents and criminalised dissent.

However, the OAS said Nicaragua’s rejection of the group could not go into effect until the end of 2023 given the country’s status as an active member.

“This is a violation of the most basic international norms ... We de-

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega speaks during the closing ceremony of the 17th Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America-Peoples Trade Agreement (ALBA-TCP) Summit in Havana, Cuba, December 14, 2019 (file photo)

mand that the Nicaraguan Government respect the obligations that currently govern its relationship with the OAS and with every international organisation of which Nicaragua is a part,” the OAS said in a statement.

The OAS also said that Nicaraguan officials had “illegitimately occupied” the OAS office in the capital of Managua, and warned that they could be held responsible internationally.

Nicaragua has frequently described the Washington-based OAS as interventionist and controlled by the United States.

“Nicaragua is not a colony of anyone,” the Government said in a statement announcing its withdrawal on Sunday.

Last month, Nicaragua’s then-Ambassador to the OAS accused Ortega’s Government of repressing the political Opposition, human rights abuses, and cracking down on freedom of speech.

The United States and the European Union have called last year’s election illegitimate, and have pressed Ortega to hold new elections and release more than 160 prisoners.

(Reuters)

US looks for closer ties to Brazil at a time of turmoil and war

U

S State Department officials held their first high-level talks with the Brazilian Government since 2019 on Monday, reinforcing ties between the Western Hemisphere’s two largest democracies despite their differences over the Ukraine war.

While Brazil’s farright President Jair Bolsonaro has not condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine, US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland thanked Brazilian diplomats for voting with the United States at the United Nations Security Council.

“In a time when the world is in turmoil, the United States and Brazil need each other,” she told

reporters, saying that Russia was “undermining the principles that the US and Brazil stand for”.

Asked about Bolsonaro’s criticism of the Brazilian voting system ahead of his campaign for re-election in October, Nuland said the United States had confidence in Brazil’s strong democratic institutions.

“We have confidence in your systems and you need to have confidence in your systems, including at the level of leadership,” she said.

Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment Jose Fernandez said the United States backed Brazil’s joining the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a club of wealthy nations.

But he said the accession process “will take several years”.

The US officials expressed concern over the deforestation in the Amazon, Brazil’s Secretary for the Americas Pedro da Costa e Silva said. “They want to see concrete results,” he told reporters.

Deforestation in the world’s largest rainforest has risen under Bolsonaro and hit record levels for the months of January and February.

Costa e Silva said the US officials heard what Brazil was doing to curb deforestation along with a message that developed nations have to deliver more in terms of financing sustainable development. ( Reuters)

Peru Government proposes referendum to redraft Constitution

P

eru’s Prime Minister said on Monday the Government will call for a referendum to propose redrafting the Constitution, renewing a campaign proposal aimed at boosting the role of the State in the country’s economy.

“We have submitted to Congress a bill to amend

the Constitution with the purpose of calling a constitutional assembly to redact a new constitutional text,” Anibal Torres said, adding the process was long and that people would decide if they should call for the assembly or not.

The Government’s announcement renews a campaign promise from

President Pedro Castillo that he had all but abandoned in office and comes at a moment when both he and the nation’s congress are highly unpopular.

The move requires congressional support and is unlikely to be approved in the Opposition-controlled legislature. (Reuters)

ntigua and Barbuda should “one day become a republic”, its Prime Minister has told the Earl and Countess of Wessex during their Caribbean tour.

Gaston Browne said during a meeting with the royal couple, who are touring the Region to mark the Platinum Jubilee, it was the country’s wish to remove the Queen as Head of State.

However, Browne acknowledged such a move was “not on the cards” currently.

He also called for “reparatory justice” to compensate for slavery.

The Earl and Countess met Browne and his Cabinet at a meeting on Monday during the third leg of their Caribbean tour.

Browne told the couple:

“We continue to have the Queen as our Head of State, even though I should say we aspire at some point to become a republic.

“But that is not currently on the cards so she will remain as Head of State for some time to follow.

“We’re not trying to embarrass you, we’re just trying to build awareness.”

The Prime Minister also called on the Earl and Countess to use their “diplomatic influence” to help the country receive “reparatory justice”.

Browne said: “Our civilisation should understand the atrocities that took place during colonialism and slavery and the fact that we have to bring balance by having open discussions...

“You can even use your, let’s say, diplomatic influence to build bridges in achieving the reparatory justice that we seek here in the Caribbean.

“Because the reality is we have been left and bereft of important institutions such as universities and good medicinal facilities.”

The meeting comes after the royal couple were met by protests during their visit to St Vincent and the Grenadines on Saturday, where banners were held aloft saying “compensation now” and “Britain your debt is outstanding”.

Antigua and Barbuda were colonised by Britain in the 17th century, before being granted independence in 1981. (BBC News)

Cuba accuses US of trying to exclude it from regional summit

C

uba’s Foreign Minister has accused the United States of seeking to exclude the country from an upcoming regional summit, just days after the two nations held their first high-level talks in four years.

In a series of tweets on Monday, Bruno Rodriguez said the US was pressuring regional Governments to block Cuba from participating in the Ninth Summit of the Americas in June in Los Angeles, California.

“We have learned from various sources that the United States Government has been carrying out intense efforts and exerting pressure on countries in the Region to try to exclude Cuba from the IX Summit of the Americas,” Rodriguez wrote.

“There is no justification for excluding Cuba or any other country from this event that we have attended the last two editions,” he said.

He said US officials were already leaving Cuba

Peru’s Prime Minister Anibal Torres arrives at Congress to seek a confirmation vote, on the same day as lawmakers introduced an impeachment motion to try to oust President Pedro Castillo, in Lima, Peru, March 8, 2022

out of pre-summit conversations on such issues as a regional health strategy and migration, both of vital interest to the island’s leaders.

A US Department of State spokesperson told the Reuters news agency that “no invitations [to the summit] have been issued from the White House at this time”.

The US, at odds with Cuba since the early days of Fidel Castro’s 1959 revolution, further ratcheted up

sanctions against the country under former President Donald Trump, cutting off most travel and remittances between the US and the island.

Relations have remained tense under President Joe Biden, whose Administration has criticised alleged human rights violations against Cubans who joined rare public protests against their Government last July.

(Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Mexico’s top court strikes down controversial cellphone registry with biometric data

Mexico’s Supreme Court on Monday ruled that a plan to create a national cellphone user registry with biometric data is unconstitutional, in a blow to President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s Government, which backed the measure.

The decision is a relief for cellphone carriers, which would have had to cover the costs of collecting the data.

Out of the 11-member court, nine Justices joined in invalidating the registry, which would have included fingerprints or eye biometrics, on constitutional grounds, and two voted in favour of partial

invalidation.

The initiative backed by lawmakers from Lopez Obrador’s MORENA party was initially passed by the Senate in April 2021. It was billed as a tool to fight crime in Mexico, which has one of the highest incidence of kidnapping in the world, by making it more difficult for bad actors to remain anonymous when purchasing mobile phones.

The creation of the registry, known as Panaut, was suspended last year after facing legal challenges by organisations including Mexico’s telecoms regulator, the IFT. The Justices argued that

the registry would violate human rights and would not adequately safeguard sensitive data.

“The national registry of mobile phone users is not a necessary measure in a democracy, since it does not maintain a balance between the need for data in limited circumstances and the right to privacy,” said Supreme Court Justice Norma Lucia Pina Hernandez.

The registry would have impacted Mexico’s more than 120 million mobile lines, the majority of which use prepaid SIM cards. (Excerpt from Reuters)

guyanatimesgy.com

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022

19

Around the World

OILNEWS OIL NEWS Oil slumps over 5% to near US$100/ bbl on Shanghai lockdowns

O

il slumped over 5 per cent on Monday to its lowest in two weeks on growing worries about the global energy demand outlook due to prolonged COVID-19 lockdowns in Shanghai and potential increases in US interest rates.

Shanghai's COVID-19 lockdown misery dragged into a fourth week, as orders for mass testing in Beijing's biggest district sparked fears that the Chinese capital could be

Russia warns United States against sending more arms to Ukraine

R

ussia told the United States to stop sending more arms to Ukraine, warning that large Western deliveries of weapons were inflaming the conflict and would lead to more losses, Moscow's ambassador to Washington said.

Russia's Feb 24 invasion of Ukraine has killed thousands of people, displaced millions more and raised fears of a wider confrontation between Russia and the United States - by far the world's two biggest nuclear powers.

The United States has ruled out sending its own or NATO forces to Ukraine but Washington and its European allies have supplied weapons to Kyiv such as drones, Howitzer heavy artillery, anti-aircraft Stinger and anti-tank

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin attend a meeting with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine, April 24, 2022

Javelin missiles.

Anatoly Antonov, Russia's ambassador to the United States, said such arms deliveries were aimed at weakening Russia but that they were escalating the conflict in Ukraine

while undermining efforts to reach some sort of peace agreement.

Antonov, who has served as ambassador to Washington since 2017, said an official diplomatic note had been sent to

Washington expressing Russia's concerns. No reply had been given, Antonov said.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin visited Kyiv on Sunday.

They told Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskiy of more than $322 million in new military financing for Ukraine, taking total US security assistance since the invasion to about $3.7 billion, a US official said.

US President Joe Biden pledged $800 million in more weaponry for Ukraine on Thursday and said he would ask Congress for more money to help bolster support for the Ukrainian military. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Zimbabwean youths find cheap highs in used diapers, sanitary pads

I

destined for a similar fate.

"Shanghai shows no signs of letting up its strict zeroCOVID policy; instead vowing to step up the enforcement of COVID restrictions, which could hurt oil demand further," said City Index analyst Fiona Cincotta.

China is the world's biggest oil importer.

Brent futures fell US$5.88, or 5.5 per cent, to US$100.77 a barrel by 2:03 pm EDT (1803 GMT), while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell US$5.11, or 5.0 per cent, to US$96.96.

Both benchmarks were on track for their lowest closes since April 11 after losing nearly 5 per cent last week.

Since soaring to their highest since 2008 in early March, prices have collapsed by about 25 per cent.

That retreat has prompted US speculators to cut their net long futures and options positions last week on the New York Mercantile (NYMEX) and Intercontinental Exchanges to the lowest since April 2020.

On the NYMEX, open interest in WTI futures fell last week to its lowest since July 2016 while total daily futures volume dropped to its lowest so far this year.

Oil gained support earlier in the year from tight supplies after Russia's Feb 24 invasion of Ukraine caused customers to avoid Russian oil due to Western sanctions. But the market could tighten further if the European Union (EU) bans Russian crude.

The EU is preparing "smart sanctions" against Russian oil imports, according to a report in The Times of London that cited the European Commission's Executive Vice President, Valdis Dombrovskis.

Also pressuring oil, the US dollar US gasoline futures, meanwhile, slid less than crude, putting the gasoline crack spread - a measure of refining profit margins - on track to close at its highest since hitting a record in April 2020 when WTI settled in negative territory.

Russia's NK Rosneft PAO failed to sell oil in a jumbo tender after demanding prepayment in roubles, meaning the country's top oil company must find ways to divert more crude to Asian buyers via private deals.

The US Energy Secretary said domestic oil and gas production is rising and will continue to rise to make up for the 1 million to 1.5 million barrels of oil per day that has been pulled off the market in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

A shipping unit of France's TotalEnergies SE has provisionally chartered a tanker to load Abu Dhabi crude in early May for Europe, the first such shipment in two years. (Excerpt from Reuters)

n Kuwadzana, a high-density residential suburb in the Zimbabwean capital Harare, the day begins as early as 5 am for many of the working class, from vegetable sellers to Thomas Gundawo (last name changed on request), a 19-year-old bus conductor.

For loading a 7-seater vehicle after soliciting passengers at the top of his voice at the bus stop, he gets ZWL$100 (US$0.45). By 8 am, he would have pocketed only about

US$3, insufficient to buy food and either broncleer – a street drug mixture of cough syrup with alcohol and codeine – or dagga (marijuana).

So, he and his friends have resorted to a far cheaper alternative – adding water to the white residue found in used diapers and boiling it.

“After boiling, it forms a greyish substance and we drink the mixture,” Gundawo told Al Jazeera. “It’s semi-solid, it smells and tastes bad but we just drink. It helps us

to get high [at] less cost.

Since October 2018, the Zimbabwean economy has been on a free-fall characterised by high inflation and low investor confidence, leading to hyperinflation and high levels of unemployment as the local currency plummeted in value.

Experts say all of this has led youths to find coping mechanisms – including drugs.

Several drug users told Al Jazeera that sodium polyac-

rylate or waterlock is found in new and used diapers, as well as stain removers, bleach products and some detergents. It is the absorbent for blood on sanitary pads and urine on diapers and dissolves once boiled.

“The mix-up creates the effect sought by drug addicts … the impact of the substance is numbing and more of a psychedelic [feel], and gives an out-of-body experience,” she added. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Lab-grown meat and insects US asset freezes worsen Afghan “good for planet and health” women's suffering – UN experts

D

ining on the likes of lab-grown meat or ground-up insects could lead to big savings in carbon emissions and water, as well as freeing up land for nature.

That's the finding of a study calculating the environmental benefits of "greener" foods hitting our plates.

Scientists say pressures on the planet could fall by more than 80 per cent with such foods, compared with the typical European diet.

But it's not yet clear if consumers will want to shift their eating habits.

A host of non-conventional foods are being developed with the aim of providing food rich in protein and other nutrients, while being gentle on the planet by using less water and land.

Scientists in Finland studied the nutritional profile of some of these products and looked at three measures of environmental pressure: the use of water,

land and potential carbon emissions.

They say switching meat, dairy and other animal products for alternative foods could reduce these impacts by more than 80 per cent, while providing a more complete range of essential nutrients than a purely vegetarian or vegan diet.

But they also found that relatively low-tech solutions, such as cutting down on meat and eating more vegetables, had a similar impact on the planet.

"With significant reductions in animal-sourced foods and substitutions with novel or future foods and plant-based protein alternatives, you can have significant reductions in environmental impacts in terms of global warming potential, land use and water use," said Rachel Mazac of the University of Helsinki.

But she said there were "similar savings in impacts in a vegan diet". (Excerpt from BBC News)

T

he United States, as well as the Taliban authorities, is contributing to the suffering of women in Afghanistan through asset freezes, UN independent experts said on Monday.

The United Nations and foreign governments, including Washington, have condemned moves by the Taliban to backtrack on women's rights commitments such as on girls' education in the months following their takeover in Aug. 2021.

However, the statement by 14 UN independent rights experts also blamed the US Government for making life worse for Afghan women through blocking billions of dollars of central bank assets made up in part of aid money for the country accumulated over decades.

"While gender-based violence has been a long-standing and severe threat to women and girls, it has been exacerbated by the measures imposed by the US...," said the statement, without giving specific details.

It also blamed the Taliban's "widening gender-based discrimination" for deteriorating women's rights.

The current humanitarian crisis where 23 million are reliant on food aid is having a "disproportionate impact" on women and children, the statement added.

Central bank funds have been frozen since August as the Taliban took over and foreign forces withdrew.

US President Joe Biden issued an executive order in February to renew the freeze and said it was working to free up half of that money to help the Afghan people while holding the rest to possibly satisfy terrorism-related lawsuits against the Taliban.

The UN experts appointed by the Geneva-based Rights Council called the order's provisions "overly broad" and said they were resulting in "over-zealous compliance with sanctions thus preventing people of Afghanistan from any access to basic humanitarian goods". (Excerpt from Reuters)

20

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022

guyanatimesgy.com

DAILY HOROSCOPES

ARCHIE

Go over every detail with a microscope. Don't give anyone a chance to prove you wrong or meddle in your business. Your determination and thoroughness will be your redeeming features.

(March 21-April 19) Don't wait until it's too late. Pitch in and do your part. An enthusiastic attitude will put you in a leadership position. The feedback you receive and the results you get will boost your ego.

DILBERT

(April 20-May 20) Be careful around people trying to entice you with colorful anecdotes that make you feel like you are missing out.

Be practical and strong enough to resist temptation.

(May 21-June 20) Trust in what you know and can do, and move forward with confidence.

Share your ideas, and you'll gain respect and support. A personal or financial gain is within reach.

PEANUTS (June 21-July 22)

Keep a close watch on what others do, but don't be a copycat. Take your time and protect your reputation and cash.

Run a tight ship, budget wisely and refuse to make an unwise move.

(July 23-Aug. 22) Your timing is impeccable, and the opportunities that come your way will change your life. Jump into action, take care of business and get on with things.

Ask for what you want.

CALVIN AND HOBBES

(Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Map out what you want to achieve, then proceed. Hard work, dedication and practicality will be the way to go. Don't lose sight of your goal or let anyone lead you astray.

(Sept. 23-Oct. 23) Take care of responsibilities before moving on to enjoyable pastimes.

Indulge in something that puts a smile on your face or gives you purpose. Spend time developing your talents.

SUDOKU (Oct. 24-Nov. 22)

(Nov. 23-Dec. 21)

Distance yourself from pushy, demonstrative people using emotional tactics to win favors. A handout will come with hidden costs. Until you know what you want and what's best for you, sit tight.

You'll come up with or be offered unique ideas or ways to use your attributes. Open your doors to people who can help you make progress or improve your home, position or direction. Be attentive.

SOLUTION FOR LAST PUBLISHED PUZZLE

(Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Be careful around people who are trying to change you. Don't feel obligated to participate in something that doesn't interest you. Be honest, and head in a direction that feels comfortable.

(Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Be observant, and it will help you make better decisions. If you want freedom, you must grant freedom. Keeping the peace and maintaining equality are in your best interest.

(Feb. 20-March 20)

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022

21

Arshdeep, Rabada death overs after Shikhar Dhawan masterclass help Kings down Super Kings Shikhar Dhawan blasted 88

P

unjab Kings completed the double over their counterparts from Chennai, closing out a tight game for a fourth win that moves them back to within touching distance of the top four. Shikhar Dhawan scored a stately, unbeaten 88 from 59 balls to

CSK had looked to be heading for a much heavier defeat, only for Rayudu's innings, which included 13 boundaries, to repeatedly jangle the nerves of Mayank Agarwal and his men.

Sandeep Sharma was collared for 23 in the 15th over, and with MS Dhoni waiting in the wings, and coming off the back of a vintage display of finishing in his previous outing, CSK could not be ruled out

anchor K i n g s ' rethought approach to setting a target, and although Ambati Rayudu kept CSK in the hunt until the closing overs, his 39-ball 78 was not enough to avert a sixth defeat from eight games.

On the same pitch that Lucknow Super Giants had successfully defended 168 against Mumbai Indians the previous evening, Kings' total of 187 for 4 always looked too much of an ask.

Each of the three previous results at the Wankhede had gone the way of the team batting first, and although Ravindra Jadeja and Super Kings' preference was to chase, a lack of contributions at the top of the order again undermined their chances.

going into the final stretch.

But Rayudu was visibly tiring and when he was cleaned up by Rabada in the

Arshdeep Singh bowled a nerveless 19th over

Kagiso Rabada broke the burgeoning fourth-wicket stand with Ruturaj Gaikwad's wicket

18th, CSK were left needing 35 off 13 – an equation which became 27 off the last over, to be bowled

by Rishi Dhawan.

Dhoni smashed the first one into the crowd to threaten a reprise, and a wide from the next ball left Dhawan feeling the heat. But a well-

executed yorker was followed up by Dhoni holing out to deep midwicket and Punjab fans could breathe again.

Kings change gears The Kings' approach to the first half of the tournament was to try and batter the opposition senseless from the off. They attacked throughout, but were bedeviled by wickets falling at an equal rate. Those tactics resulted in a few eye-catching wins and several costly implosions – none more so than in their last outing, when they were dismissed for 115 and lost to Delhi Capitals by nine wickets with 57 balls to

2nd Gaico Grand Prix…

CM Taffin Khan remains unbeaten

C

Anthony Drayton v Sherlyta Campayne

andidate Master (CM) Taffin Khan is currently in the lead as the second Gaico-sponsored Grand Prix tournament reaches the halfway mark. Khan is one of only two titled players in the tournament, which is being contested by 24 participants.

Khan is the only player on four points after four rounds of intense competition. He has so far defeated Mayas Khan, Frankie Farley, Justino De Silva, and Jarell Troyer. The CM is the highest rated player in the tournament with a FIDE rating of 2018. As he heads into the final four rounds of competition this Saturday

Sasha Shariff v Rashad Hussain

and Sunday unbeaten, he is followed closely by Loris Nathoo in second place on 3.5 points. Errol Tiwari, Frankie Farley and FIDE Master Anthony Drayton are in third to fifth place respectively, all on three points. Leading female chess players – as the points stand – Sherlyta Campayne, Pooja Lam, Sasha Shariff, Anaya Lall, Jessica Callender, and Maliha Rajkumar are all on two points approaching this weekend’s games.

Rounds five to eight will be played on Saturday, April 30 and Sunday, May 1 at the Guyana National Stadium.

Trophies will be awarded for

the best female player in the tournament, as well as the top male and female junior players. Trophies and cash prizes will be offered to the top three finishers in the tournament while medals will be given to the fourth- to 10th-place finishers.

The Guyana Chess Federation (GCF) wishes to express its gratitude to Gaico Construction and General Services Inc for its generous sponsorship of the three Grand Prix tournaments.

The tournament is being supervised by FIDE arbiters John Lee, Anand Raghunaught, and Irshad Mohamed.

spare.

Here, after being inserted for the seventh time in a row, they took a more traditional approach, throttling back at the top and then opening up with wickets in hand. A score of 37 for 1 at the end of the powerplay gave Kings their slowest start to an innings this season, but Shikhar and the recalled Bhanuka Rajapaksa – the Sri Lankan back in the side for the first time since victory over Super Kings at the Brabourne three weeks ago – settled into a steady stand that provided the foundation for an imposing total.

Rajapaksa needed some luck, dropped twice before reaching double figures, but he made good on it to help Kings register their first century partnership of the campaign. The pair hit just six boundaries – one of which should have resulted Rajapaksa being caught at deep midwicket – in the first half of the innings, as Kings reached 72 for 1. But just as Super Giants did from an identical score in Sunday night's game at the Wankhede, they effectively raised the tempo through the second ten.

Shikhar lights the way A tickled single in the second over of the match made Shikhar, playing his 200th Indian Premier League (IPL) match, only the second man after Virat Kohli to score 6000 runs in the competition. By the time he had moved into the 60s, smashing back-to-back boundaries down the ground off Dwayne Bravo in the 16th over, Shikhar had notched more than 1000 of them against Super Kings alone. This was his ninth 50-plus score, and eventually enough to sink the Yellow Submarine.

Shikhar's approach set the template for his side, as he ticked along at just above a run-a-ball for the first half of the innings. A slog-swept six against Maheesh Theekshana and a driven four

off Dwaine Pretorius were his Ambati Rayudu only boundaries gave the Punjab Kings a scare with 78 off 39 until he tucked into Mukesh Choudhary in the 12th, rattling off a pair of cuts that beat the cover sweeper on both sides, and then flicking four more off the pads through the ring with fine leg up. A 37-ball fifty kept Kings Singh plucked out his leg stump. on course and, when Rajapaksa That dismissal meant Super fell in the 18th over, Shikhar Kings' batting average in the handed over the strike to Liam powerplay for this season had Livingstone, whose seven-ball dipped to 20.50 – the lowest of cameo included taking Pretorius the 10 teams. Their position in for 4-6-6. the match then got worse in the following over, as Rishi Dhawan, Super Kings' lack of powerplay making his first IPL appearance Super Kings have had since 2016, found a way through problems getting their innings Shivam Dube to leave them three off to good starts all season, and down and off the pace. once again they shipped early wickets in the chase. Sandeep Rayudu resurrects chase was one of three changes to the With the fall of Ruturaj Kings XI, as they sought greater Gaikwad, Super Kings were 89 for batting depth at the expense of 4 in the 13th over and seemingly two genuine bowlers – Vaibhav well out of contention, only for Arora and Nathan Ellis; Sandeep Rayudu to unleash a display had gone wicketless in his only of clean hitting on the way to previous appearance, the season his first fifty of the season. Six opener against Royal Challengers times he launched the ball into Bangalore, but he struck with the stands, including a brutal his fifth ball on this occasion, sequence of three in a row off Robin Uthappa splicing a pull to Sandeep during an over that midwicket. brought Super Kings back to Mitchell Santner was again within range. But with the asking asked to perform the Moeen rate down to 47 off the last four, Ali role at number three, but he Arshdeep delivered an excellent struggled along to 9 off 15 balls over of wide yorkers that cost just – four of which came via a thick six runs, and Rabada's dismissal outside edge past the keeper – of Rayudu meant there was too and was the second wicket to much to do – even for Dhoni. fall, in the sixth over, as Arshdeep (ESPNcricinfo)

SCOREBOARD PUNJAB KINGS INNINGS (20 overs maximum) Mayank Agarwal (c) c Dube b Theekshana 18 Shikhar Dhawan not out 88 Bhanuka Rajapaksa c Dube b Bravo 42 Liam Livingstone c Mukesh Choudhary b Bravo 19 Jonny Bairstow run out (Santner/†Dhoni) 6 Extras(lb 1, nb 2, w 11) 14 TOTAL 20 Ov(RR: 9.35) 187/4 Did not bat: Jitesh Sharma †, Rishi Dhawan, Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh, Sandeep Sharma Fall of wickets: 1-37 (Mayank Agarwal, 5.5 ov), 2-147 (Bhanuka Rajapaksa, 17.2 ov), 3-174 (Liam Livingstone, 19.1 ov), 4-187 (Jonny Bairstow, 19.6 ov) BOWLING O-M-R-W Mukesh Choudhary 4-0-36-0 Maheesh Theekshana 4-0-32-1 Mitchell Santner 2-0-8-0 Ravindra Jadeja 2-0-18-0 Dwaine Pretorius 4-0-50-0 Dwayne Bravo 4-0-42-2

CHENNAI SUPER KINGS INNINGS (Target: 188 runs from 20 overs) Ruturaj Gaikwad c Agarwal b Rabada 30 Robin Uthappa c R Dhawan b Sandeep Sharma 1 Mitchell Santner b Arshdeep Singh 9 Shivam Dube b R Dhawan 8 Ambati Rayudu b Rabada 78 Ravindra Jadeja (c) not out 21 MS Dhoni †c Bairstow b R Dhawan 12 Dwaine Pretorius not out 1 Extras(lb 9, w 7) 16 TOTAL 20 Ov (RR: 8.80) 176/6 Did not bat: Dwayne Bravo, Mukesh Choudhary, Maheesh Theekshana Fall of wickets: 1-10 (Robin Uthappa, 1.5 ov), 2-30 (Mitchell Santner, 5.3 ov), 3-40 (Shivam Dube, 6.6 ov), 4-89 (Ruturaj Gaikwad, 12.3 ov), 5-153 (Ambati Rayudu, 17.5 ov), 6-168 (MS Dhoni, 19.3 ov) BOWLING O-M-R-W Kagiso Rabada 4-0-23-2 Sandeep Sharma 4-0-40-1 Rishi Dhawan 4-0-39-2 Arshdeep Singh 4-0-23-1 Rahul Chahar 3-0-30-0 Liam Livingstone 1-0-12-0

22

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Pope London and Shanella London emerge victorious in LGC club tourney

… Banks DIH golf tourney set for this weekend – LGC PRO

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n Saturday, April 23, 2022, Lusignan Golf Club (LGC) hosted a Better Ball Scramble Tournament. The players were asked to register with a partner and in the end, there was a total of 10 pairs. After the action teed off at 12:30h it was Pope Emmanuel London and Shanella London who emerged victorious.

The results for the

tournament are as follows: first place was won by the Londons with a HC 6: Gross 66, Net 61; second place was taken by Max Persaud and Videsh Persaud with a HC 6: Gross 70, Net 64 and third place went to Mike Mangal and Rohan Albert with a HC 6: Gross 71, Net 65. The Nearest to the Flag prize was won by Max Persaud and the Longest Drive accolade was won by

Sam Harry.

At the end of the tournament, LGC Public Relations Officer (PRO) Anasha Ally said, “The tournament was very pleasant in overcast conditions, so it was very cool. Next on the agenda is a Banks DIH-sponsored tournament, which is going to be a big tournament and we expect a very good turnout for that. In terms of the

Marian Academy successfully hosts Invitational Tennis Tournament

The winners’ row

contribution we have played in raising the awareness of golf in Guyana, we are just happy to be a driving force, by having contributed our ideas together. The committee works very well with a lot of the members of our course to keep the club running, so it means a lot to us.”

The format of the play was Medal Play Better Ball Scramble over 18 holes and shotgun start which meant that partner handicap calculation was 15 per cent of the higher partner’s handicap + 35 per cent of the lower partner’s handicap. The team play saw both players tee off

from the teeing area, they then chose which player’s ball position to continue to play from. Upon selection, both players played from that position and then selected again which position to play from. It continued this way until completion of the last hole.

Linden Town Week Dewars Dominoes…

Jonathon Robinson

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Monisha Persaud

Kezia Luke

Saskia Persaud

arian Academy’s Fourth Form Physical Education CSEC Students successfully hosted an Invitational Lawn Tennis Tournament on Saturday, April 9, 2022 at the school's tennis court on Carifesta Avenue, Georgetown.

The Tournament is a School-Based Assignment (SBA) Class Project for students preparing for the 2023 examination. The event was declared open by the school's Principal, Sister Marie Harper, OSU, who congratulated the students on their hard work during the planning stages of the Project; in particular the preparation of the tennis court. She also expressed confidence in the Project being a success. The Tournament was divided into two categories – male and female, and was played under a knockout format with most of the players coming from Marian Academy.

1. First match started at 13:40h. Akila Mendonca and Jaquiza Chase were called to the court. Jaquiza won the match: 10-7.

2. Second match started at 13:53h. Monisha Persaud and Kezia Luke were called to the court. Monisha won the second match 10-7.

3. Third match started at 14:05h. Saskia Persaud and Jaquiza Chase were called to the court. Saskia won the third match 10-2.

4. Finals for the females started at 14:12h. Monisha Persaud and Saskia Persaud were called to the court.

Saskia won the final match against Monisha 10-4.

5. Tie breaker for third place. Kezia Luke and Jaquiza Chase were called to the court. Kezia won the tie-breaker match against Jaquiza 7-1.

The female category was wrapped up with the top three winners - Saskia Persaud placed first.

- Monisha Persaud placed second.

- Kezia Luke placed third.

Matches played in the tournament The female category

Rodwin Kasim

Anish Sharma

The male category 1. First match started at 14:30h. Anish Sharma and Jonathan Robinson were called to the court. Anish won the first match 7-0.

2. Second match started at 14:35h. Ridwon Kasim and Zico were called to the court.

Ridwon won the second match 7-3.

3. Tie breaker for third place started at 14:45h.

Jonathon and Zico were called to the court. Jonathan won the tie breaker for third place against Zico 7-1.

4. Final match started at 14:50h. Anish and Rodwin were called to the court. Anish won against Rodwin 7-3.

The male category was wrapped up with the top three winners - Anish Sharma placed first - Ridwon Kasim placed second - Jonathan Robinson placed third The winners received prizes at a presentation ceremony at the conclusion of the event.

The prizes were first-, second-, and third-place medals.

Bidders outplay CATS and Big Landing to capture $100,000 grand prize

I

n a strong finish, Bidders with 75 games staved off a surging Big Landing and CATS, both finishing on 68, to emerge as champions of the ANSA McAL Trading Inc-sponsored Dewars Linden Town Week dominoes tournament when the final was played Sunday night outside Speedy’s Juice Depot at the Wisroc/Amelia’s Ward Car Park.

But second place was taken

by CATS given the fact that they scored more fives in this final, after the tied teams were level on sixes.

The riveting final ended with victory for Bidders, who led throughout the first four sittings but were pushed to

marked six games in that final sitting, Bidders pulled away comfortably to reach 75 games, as CATS and Big Landing closed out with 68 games apiece.

Allicock for his steady play and 17 games in the final was adjudged the Player of the Tournament and received the Attorney-at-Law Candacy Welcome Trophy.

Tyrone Perry of CATS, later named the Most Valuable Player of the final, played excellent dominoes marking the maximum 18 games in the final, but his efforts were in vain. He collected the Marlon Fields Trophy for winning that award.

finishers CATS got $50,000 and a trophy, and third-place Big Landing $30,000 and a trophy as well.

Gerry Faucet won the Marlon Fields Trophy for sharing the first love of the tournament and June Cummings received the Best Female Player Award.

The presentation of the various prizes was made by organiser of the competition, Oswald “Speedy” Charles at the end of the tournament.

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BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES Organiser Oswald “Speedy” Charles hands over the winners’ trophy to Jevon Leacock (right) in the presence of his teammates

second place on 60 games when the fifth sitting ended, by a rebounding Big Landing, who positioned themselves ahead on 63 games as last tournament winners CATS were in third place with 57 games.

But Big Landing were held to just five games in that final sitting and guided

by Jevon “Massive” Allicock and Ian Bacchus, who both

While Allicock got the top score for Bidders with 17 games, Ian Bacchus marked 14 and Kelvin Hooper 12 for the winners as Big Landing’s Rampersaud also marked 12 games and won the Marlon Fields Trophy for sharing the tournament’s first love.

The winners walked away with $100,000 and the Dewars Trophy while second-place

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Groups and Excursions welcome.

(Fee applies)- Phone: 264-2946-9.

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

T

he Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) has confirmed that St Kitts and Nevis will be hosting matches during the 2022 tournament, which will run from August 30 to September 30.

St Kitts and Nevis will host seven matches between August 30 and September 4 with the home team and current champions, St Kitts & Nevis Patriots, playing in four of those games.

The Hero CPL returns to St Kitts and Nevis again in 2022 after the Federation successfully hosted the whole tournament in 2021.

Hero CPL Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Pete Russell

St Kitts and Nevis Minister of Sport, Jonel Powell

said: “The 2021 Hero CPL was an enormous success, and we are hugely grateful to the Government and people of St Kitts and Nevis who were

Hero CPL CEO Pete Russell

fabulous hosts. Warner Park is a fantastic venue, and we are very excited to be back there as the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots get their championship defence

underway in front of a home crowd.”

St Kitts and Nevis Minister of Sport, Jonel Powell said: “The hosting of the CPL in its entirety in 2021 in St Kitts and Nevis proved a success in every way for our people. Tremendous direct economic gains were made in our economy and to individuals at a difficult time due to the pandemic. Our people were able to receive some much-needed ‘COVID relief’ socially through the amazing matches, and our very own St Kitts and Nevis Patriots won its first CPL title in the most dramatic style.

“This is why we are very pleased to partner with CPL once

again as a host venue for their 2022 edition, and to have the opportunity to see our Patriots defend their title right here at historic Warner Park.”

The 2022 season will take

23

place in four countries – St Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana, with the final set to take place at Providence on September 30. (CPLT20.com)

Gold is Money, Sparta Boss kick off Magnum Cup in fine style

T

he anticipation of fierce competition prevailed at the National Park Tarmac, Georgetown on Sunday night, as the fourth edition of the Magnum Futsal Independence Cup kicked off.

As is the case in numerous futsal tournaments around Guyana, Gold is Money and Sparta Boss were on top of things when the action finally got underway.

Stalwarts of the game, Gold is Money mauled Albouystown 6-2. Randolph Wagner scored twice in the fourth and ninth minute, while Darren Benjamin tallied a double in the sixth and 20th minute.

Adding goals in the 12th and 16th minute were Philip Rowley and Jakeel Cadogan respectively. For the losers, Tevin Curry and Raphael Edinborough netted in the

second and 15th minute respectively.

In similar manner, Sparta Boss crushed Alexander Village 6-1. Eusi Phillips netted a hat trick in the sixth, 22nd and 24th minute. Adding goals in the 12th, 15th and 23rd minute were Nicholas MacArthur, Job Caesar, and Darron Niles.

For the losers, Errol Bacchus netted in the 17th minute.

Guyanese athletes for SA Youth Games from April 28

M

ore than 15 athletes from five disciplines – badminton, 3x3 basketball, boxing, table tennis, and swimming – will represent Guyana in Rosario, Argentina at the South American Youth Games, slated to begin later this week.

The third edition of the South American Youth Games will commence on Thursday, April 28 and run until Sunday, May 8 and will be broken into two waves, as per COVID-19 protocols.

In the first wave from April 28 to May 1, Guyana will participate in table tennis, 3x3 basketball and swimming, while in the second wave from May 5 to May 8, the Guyanese athletes will compete in boxing and badminton.

During a press briefing on Saturday morning, Guyana’s team were revealed by Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) Vice President Godfrey Munroe, who also noted the developmental aspect of the South American event.

“This games is developmental, like I said it’s the third edition and I think it’s a great opportunity for our young Olympic prospects to be engaged. So, as an Olympic Association, we’re quite happy to have this good nucleus of athletes participating in these games and we want to wish them all success,” Munroe shared at the GOA Headquarters in Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown.

When quizzed about the absence of representation from other sports, especially athletics, Munroe disclosed that the Associations failed to

GOA’s Godfrey Munroe and Garfield Wiltshire seated (centre) surrounded by Guyana’s contingent for the South American Youth Games (with the exception of the basketball team and coach)

respond to their request.

“We had several other disciplines with the eligibility to participate, as is customary the Guyana Olympic Association would send out notification to its affiliates to invite them to submit athletes, once those disciples are considered for participation and these were the only responses,” he said.

In further clarifying his comment, Munroe added, “To answer your question specifically, we had the opportunity for athletics, 5x5 hockey, and rugby. Those affiliates for different reasons, which we are respectful of, did not respond to the request or would have indicated they had a different priority for the athletes.”

On the other hand, Garfield Wiltshire outlined the benefit of having Guyanese athletes at the championships, which should augur well for their international performances.

“It affords our young athletes the opportunity to participate in a high-level competition and

be able to compete worldwide, or in this case, in the South American area,” Wiltshire said.

He also took the opportunity to credit an important partner, stating, “We’d like to thank one of our sponsors, Eureka Labs who would have, again, come to our assistance and afforded us the opportunity to get the PCR test done at their laboratory.”

Guyana’s team include badminton player Matthew Beharry and Coach Jonathan Mangra; boxer Travis Inverary and Coach Sebert Blake; 3x3 basketball team players Travis Patrick Anthony, Arindell Mathias, Camelo Man-Son-Hing, Anthony Kimal, and Coach Junior Hercules; table tennis players Jonathan Van Lange, Christian Sahadeo, Tauria Thomas, Jasmine Billingy and Coach Idi Lewis, and swimmers Leon Seaton, Vladimir Woodroofe, Patrice Mahaica, Paul Mahaica, Zara Crane, Ariel Rodrigues, and Coach Paul Mahaica Sr. GOA’s Nalini McKoy will act as the Chef de Mission for the trip.

A glimpse of the clash between Sparta Boss and Alexander Village

Meanwhile, Back Circle enjoyed some easy points as they downed Melanie 3-0.

David George recorded a double in the 12th and 26th, while Jermaine Beckles scored in the 17th minute.

Also among the winners on the opening night of the tournament, East Front Road made light work of

Avocado Ballers 7-0, while Mocha defeated Sophia 3-1, and Showstoppers edged Belfield Warriors 6-5. In the final match of the section, Beterverwagting (BV) defeated Road Warriors 4-3.

Action in the event continues on Wednesday at the same location.

North East La Penitence oppose Ansa McAl at 19:00h, with Alexander Village matching skills with Avocado Ballers from 19:30h, and Tiger Bay taking aim at Stabroek Ballers from 20:00h.

In the fourth clash, Leopold Street face off with Festival City from 20:30h, while Future Stars battle Vengy at 21:00h, and Gold is Money lock horns with BV from 21:30h. In the final match at 22:00h, defending champions Bent Street take centre stage against Agricola.

The winners of the event will pocket $700,000, and the championship trophy, with the runners-up walking away with $400,000 and the corresponding accolade.

The third- and fourth-place finishers will pocket $200,000 and $100,000 respectively.

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022

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

Pg 23

4-member badminton team for Pan Am Championship

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four-member team will be representing Guyana at the XXV Pan Am Individual Championship in El Salvador between April 26 and April 29, 2022.

This continental championship is promoted annually, and the events include men´s singles and doubles, women´s singles and doubles, and mixed doubles. World ranking points

players have been engaged in rigorous training to prepare for the tournament.

The Guyana Badminton Association expressed gratitude to the Culture, Youth and Sport Ministry and the National Sports Commission for affording the players the opportunity to compete in this Championship.

2nd Gaico Grand Prix...

CM Taffin Khan remains unbeaten Page 21

will be awarded as this tournament is a BWF Grade 2 Level 6 event.

National players Narayan Ramdhani, Priyanna Ramdhani, Akili Haynes, and Tyrese Jeffery will be competing in singles, with the Ramdhani siblings competing in the mixed doubles category and HaynesJeffrey in the men’s doubles.

Over the past weeks, the

L-R: Akili Haynes, Priyanna Ramdhani, Tyrese Jeffery, and Narayan Ramdhani

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