Guyana Times - Friday, September 24, 2021

Laluni main access road to be rehabilitated – Min Edghill P12

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

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Issue No. 4780

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

Leaders must work to end polarisation of access to COVID vaccines – President Ali tells UNGA …says movement of people must not be restricted by vaccines they took See story on page 3

118 Sophia families benefit from $59M in home improvement subsidies “For ExxonMobil, local content makes good business sense” – Routledge Page 9

– as majority Guyanese workforce fabricate 1st subsea jumpers

PRICE

$80 VAT INCLUDED

WHAT'S INSIDE:

4 more COVID fatalities take September P14 death toll to 119 …258 new cases detected in 24h

Cane harvester crushed by excavator at P15 Uitvlugt

Region 4 statutory meeting

See story on page 17

2 dead, 2 injured as lumber-laden truck topples at Buck Hall Page 11

File on Dartmouth fatal shooting being reviewed by PCA See story on page 2

P15

PPP/C Councillors walk out after Chairman’s “disrespectful behaviour”

Shopkeeper robbed by knife-toting P2 bandit Berbice man P17 who set wife on fire now charged with murder

2 NEWS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

File on Dartmouth fatal shooting being reviewed by PCA

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n keeping with the legal procedure, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) has dispatched the file on the fatal shooting of businessman Orin Boston to the Chairman of the Police Complaints Authority, former High Court Judge William Ramlall, to be reviewed.

This has been confirmed by the Communications Unit of the GPF on Wednesday evening. Further, the Police have said that family members of the slain businessman have been informed of the development.

These developments come days after Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn had visited the grieving family, during which he expressed disappointment at the tragic incident and assured the family that the Government is committed to having an impartial investigation done.

The family have asked for a speedy investigation, so that they can ascertain the motive behind the incident and also to have closure.

“Police killing should never occur, only in extreme cir-

Dead: Orin Boston

cumstances, where a Police life is in danger, or in a bid to save civilian lives. Our method should only occur as a process of lawful approaches,” Benn had stated.

Boston, of Hoppy Street Dartmouth, Essequibo Coast, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam), was shot by SWAT officers during a search of his home at about 04:40h on September 15.

Boston was reportedly shot

with a .223 calibre rifle, which is the standard weapon issued to the SWAT team.

However, as word of Boston’s death spread in the community, angry friends, relatives and villagers took to the streets to vent their disapproval. They hauled fallen trees, old tyres and derelict cars to the middle of the main access road and began their fiery protest. This lasted for several days.

They demanded justice and answers from the Police as to what intelligence they possessed that caused them to enter the dead man’s home.

Police Commissioner Nigel Hoppie and Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum has visited the family and promised to leave no stone unturned as they ordered an independent probe by the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR).

The Top Cop also stated that the SWAT officer who fired the fatal shot has since been placed under close arrest as the investigation continues.

Police Commissioner (ag) Nigel Hoppie

At a press conference hours after the shooting, Police Commissioner Nigel Hoppie indicated that Boston was killed as a result of intelligence gathered for an anti-crime operation. He could not say what the Police were searching for when they entered the home of the bar owner.

Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum told reporters that Boston had never been pros-

ecuted by the Police.

An autopsy performed on the body of Boston revealed that he died as a result of haemorrhage and shock due to gunshot injuries to the chest. Dr Nehaul Singh, who conducted the post mortem, also stated that a single warhead was removed from Boston’s body.

This contradicts the first report by the Police, which stated that the now dead businessman was shot to his arm following a confrontation with the SWAT team. Following the report, Boston’s wife had refuted the claim that there had been a confrontation on the morning of the deadly shooting. In fact, she related that he was

PCA Chairman Justice (ret’d) William Ramlall

in his bed when he was shot and killed.

Shopkeeper robbed by knife-toting bandit

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63-year-old shopkeeper of Industry Housing Scheme, East Coast Demerara (EBD) was on Wednesday evening attacked and robbed by a knife-toting bandit. She has been relieved of $35,000 in cash, along with a quantity of Digicel and GTT phone cards.

The Police have said that on the day in question, at about 20:15h, the elderly woman, who operates a grocery shop at the bottom of her dwelling house, was in the process of securing her shop while her sister was

assisting her in locking the gate.

As soon as the gate was locked, the suspect reportedly scaled the fence and held the sister at knife point.

She was then taken into the shop, where the suspect relieved the shopkeeper of the cash and the phone cards before making good his escape on foot.

Immediately after the incident, the two women raised an alarm and the Police were contacted.

Checks for the perpetrator proved unsuccessful, but investigations are ongoing.

NEWS

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS OPENINGS BRIDGE

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

Friday, September 24 – 04:00h-05:30h and Saturday, September 25 – 04:00h-05:30h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Friday, September 24 – 06:10h-07:40h and Saturday, September 25 – 06:35h-08:05h.

Leaders must work to end polarisation of access to COVID vaccines – President Ali tells UNGA

…says movement of people must not be restricted by vaccines they took

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY

Sunny conditions are expected during the day, with clear skies at night. Temperatures should range between 21 degrees Celsius and 32 degrees Celsius.

Winds: North North-Easterly to South SouthEasterly between 1.78 metres and 4.02 metres.

High Tide: 06:13h and 18:24h reaching maximum heights of 2.66 metres and 2.67 metres.

Low Tide: 12:02h reaching a minimum height of 0.61 metre.

President Dr Irfaan Ali addressing the UNGA on Thursday

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ccess to COVID-19 vaccines has propelled countries one step further towards ending the pandemic, but it has resulted in the polarisation of the world through the domino effect of restricted movement and other divides.

In his address to the General Debate of the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, President Irfaan Ali has called for leaders to work together to ensure that people are not penalised or disadvantaged by the type of vaccine they were administered.

He noted that countries should look at other grave challenges and concerns, such as vaccine hesitancy and achieving a state of herd immunity within their populace.

“The access to vaccines saw the world polarised. I know I speak on behalf of many leaders when I say that we must not now hurt our efforts at ending this polarisation of access to vaccines by implementing measures that divide us and curtail our movement based on the type of vaccines our people took. Indeed, our efforts must be focused on full vaccination and addressing vaccine hesitancy. Millions took the vaccines which were available at a time of much uncertainty, and they are the unsung heroes. They must not now be the subject of restrictions based on the vaccines they took,” Ali told the Assembly.

The Guyanese Head of State declared himself pleased that heads of the international organisations and CEOs of the major pharmaceutical companies have formed a technical working group to exchange and coordinate information on vaccine production and delivery.

He acknowledged actions from the global agencies geared at access to low- and

middle-income countries – a setback for many months as First World countries secure jabs while others in the lower bracket grappled with disadvantages.

“These are positive developments, which are welcome even though they have come after millions have died and many more millions still live under the threat of death… Similarly, we welcome the fact that, earlier this month, the Heads of the International Monetary Fund, World Bank Group, World Health Organization and World

Trade Organization met with the CEOs of leading vaccine manufacturing companies to discuss strategies to improve access to COVID-19 vaccines in low and lower middle-income countries and in Africa,” he said.

The Guyana Government also welcomed the summit on COVID-19 that was hosted by US President Joe Biden, and is pleased that it resulted not only in commitments for joint global action, but also in the allocation of resources to achieve necessary and agreed objectives.

Countries around the world have taken a stance to introduce COVID-19 vaccine requirements in order for foreigners to gain entry, but some have moved one step further to specify which vaccines are accepted.

A few weeks ago, a decision was also taken at the level of the Caricom Heads of Government meeting: that persons within the region are allowed to travel freely, regardless of which vaccine they have been administered. Only Trinidad and Tobago had opposed this position.

At that time, President Ali had expressed worry that some people were still not vaccinated. He was quoted as saying, “For me, nothing can be excellent if one life is lost. That is why I’m so impatient when it comes to the vaccination programme, because I am aware of the impact of COVID on the economy and country if people are not vaccinated. That is what worries me. In the context of what is happening around us and the development of this virus and the modelling of the virus…we have done the best we could under the circumstances.”

Guyana is currently utilising the Sinopharm, Sputnik V, AstraZeneca, Pfizer-BioNTech and Johnson & Johnson jabs.

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guyanatimesgy.com

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

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

Indigenous community’s integral role in national development

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ext week, Guyana will be bringing the curtains down on the celebration of Amerindian Heritage Month 2021.

According to the United Nations data, there are more than 370 million Indigenous people in the world, living across 90 countries. However, they make up less than five per cent of the world’s population, but account for 15 per cent of the poorest. They speak an overwhelming majority of the world’s estimated 7000 languages, and represent 5000 different cultures.

Indigenous peoples’ rights, and more specifically their right to education, have, over the past 25 years, become an important component of international law and policy, after being neglected for many decades. This importance was driven not only by nation states at the domestic, regional and international levels, but by Indigenous peoples themselves.

Indigenous peoples’ right to education is protected by the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which in Article 14 states that “Indigenous peoples have the right to establish and control their educational systems and institutions providing education in their own languages, in a manner appropriate to their cultural methods of teaching and learning.”

In Guyana, rights of Indigenous peoples are protected by the Amerindian Act of 2006, which clearly states it is “an Act to provide for the recognition and protection of the collective rights of Amerindians, the granting of land to Amerindians, and the promotion of good governance within Amerindian Villages and Communities”.

Particularly, Goal 4 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development calls for ensuring equal access to all levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities, Indigenous peoples, and children in vulnerable situations. According to the UN, in the Latin America and Caribbean Region, on average, 85 per cent of Indigenous children attend secondary education, but only 40 per cent complete that level of education.

Locally, advocacy for improved education has been a loud trajectory and has yielded much fruit. The Hinterland Scholarship Programme (HSP) affords academic opportunities at both the secondary and tertiary levels, and has taken centre stage in the revitalisation of Amerindian education.

This programme allows for the integration of hinterland students into the wider Guyanese society, and provides students with quality secondary and technical education not accessible in their communities. According to Government statistics, more than 1000 Indigenous students have benefited from this scholarship, which costs millions and which has produced doctors, nurses, Medexes, engineers, teachers, and agriculturalists, among other professionals.

At a regional level in Guyana, much to the credit of the PPP/C Administration, both present and past, primary and secondary schools exist in all administrative regions.

Laudable also is the fact that the Indigenous community has played an integral role in national development at the levels of national decision-making bodies, village councils, community-based organisations, and also international agencies. Impressively, at the highest decision-making forum – the National Assembly – sit a number of Indigenous persons.

Notably, while Indigenous peoples in many countries have been dispossessed and continue to struggle for rights to lands and resources, Guyana’s national laws allow for granting of legal titles to lands, land demarcation, and extensions to strengthen tenure security. Importantly, in Guyana, the Indigenous population privately owns more than 14 per cent of the country’s land mass.

There is no doubt that the Indigenous peoples all over the world continue to struggle for equality and respect for their rights. With respect to the education of our Indigenous peoples, barriers such as discriminatory attitudes and stigmatisation of Indigenous identity in some instances still very much do exist. It is these barriers which must be broken, and this can be done by more awareness of the rich cultures of our Indigenous brothers and sisters.

His Excellency, Dr Irfaan Ali and Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley along with Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo, Foreign Affairs and International Relations Minister Hugh Todd and Guyana representative to the United Nation, Carolyn Rodrigues-Burkett moments after the Guyanese Head of State delivered his address to the United Nation General Assembly in New York on Thursday

Tackling climate change is everyone’s responsibility Dear Editor, There is still time for world leaders to prevent the worst impacts of climate change, and create a safer future, but that window is closing fast. If countries do not submit stronger national goals soon, it would be very hard to deliver on their goals to limit planetary warming to safer levels. As recent reports make very clear, if we don’t tackle climate change, it would cost our economy billions, and endanger our national security and our health.

World leaders attending the United Nations General Assembly in New York City have zeroed in on climate change, recognising that people across the world are being harshly affected by the effects of climate change.

“We see the warning signs in every continent and region: scorching temperatures; shocking biodiversity losses; polluted air, water and natural spaces; and climate-related disasters at every turn,” the SecretaryGeneral indicated to the world leaders.

Stepping up now to move towards renewable energy, more sustainable agriculture can yield economic benefits. The longer we wait, the more our communities would suffer under bigger floods, longer heatwaves, more severe droughts, and

shrinking crop yields. We can’t afford that future.

Guyana, which is still recovering from the massive nationwide flooding earlier this year, has already shown an interest in providing climate leadership and championing the preservation of the United Nations-sponsored environment. President Dr Irfaan Ali made it clear, “Guyana commits to the provision of strong leadership, especially on issues of climate change and food security.

We will continue to pursue the development of our resources and people through an expanded version of the Low Carbon Development Strategy.

“We further commit to support every effort that seeks to promote peace, democracy, respect for the rule of law, and deepening of regional integration. Our strength must be grounded in principles and values, not circumstances and events.”

Climate change is severely hampering the developing world’s progress in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) by 2030. It was under the presidency of Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, who outlines an inclusive, low carbon, sustainable, clean, resilient path with increased economic opportunities and investments linked to greater social and infrastructural de-

velopment for the benefit of all.

Climate change impacts are already a reality for millions. People from around the world will be watching to see what world leaders accomplish at this round of negotiations.

The question is: why are so many people aware of climate change, but unwilling to make lifestyle modifications that could potentially slow the impact?

While the aspiration is great to have, everyone knows that the sooner we act, the less damage will be done to society, to the economy, and to the environment.

We look to our Government for action, but tackling climate change is everyone’s responsibility. Via its website, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is very much to the fore in providing lots of very helpful suggestions on what ordinary citizens can do. There are two broad areas of change responsibility that we all need to embrace regarding climate change: mitigation and adaptation.

Mitigation is about changing how we live, move, consume, manufacture, and how we best use our land to reduce and/or eliminate the production of harmful greenhouse gases.

Adaptation refers to dealing with the expected impacts

of climate change, such as flooding and sea level rise, and involves taking practical actions to manage risks, protect communities, and strengthen the resilience of the economy.

The stark reality is that we will all have to stop doing certain things, and do other things differently.

Take food for example; if targets are to be achieved, we all need to change our eating habits by eating local and by eating what is seasonal. We eat many foods that have travelled various distances across the world to get to our plates.

We may count the financial cost of the food, but few consider the environmental cost. Imagine the energy consumption for transport, refrigeration, storage, avoiding spoilage and providing additional packaging, not to mention the chemicals, additives and preservative put into the food to keep it fresh.

Contrast that energy need and environmental impact with eating locally-sourced fresh food from your own garden, allotment, local shop, or farmers’ market, not to mention the health and employment benefits for you, your community, and the local economy.

Sincerely, David Adams

guyanatimesgy.com

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

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

What SOPs are under review?

Dear Editor, Although I have an abiding interest in law enforcement, I was tempted not to get involved in the confabulation related to the killing of Orin Boston by Police at Dartmouth, Essequibo.

However, an article on the front page of one of the daily newspapers of September 21, 2021, under the caption, “Police SOPs to be reviewed - Benn says during visit to Orin Baston’s family”, titillated me to join in the conversation.

The article did not mention which SOPs will be reviewed. Let me be pellucid: there is no written SOP in place for the Police SWAT Squad. However, I wish to refer to a SOP which is extremely relevant to the investigation of the killing of Orin Boston. It should be the guiding principle for the investigators; it is a necessary guide to be used to decide whether or not the fatal shooting of Orin Boston by the Police was justified.

The SOP is titled, “When you may fire”, and it relates to the use of firearms by members of the Guyana Police Force.

It was first published

in the Police Force Orders 33/69, and then enshrined in the Police Standing Orders No 18 paragraph 31. The Force saw it necessary to republish this extremely important Police Force Orders on numerous occasions. Here it is: (1) When you are attacked and you apprehend serious danger to your person and that you are unable to defend yourself by any other means. (2) When property you are ordered to defend is attacked and you are unable to safeguard it by any other means. (3) When an attack is made to rescue persons in lawful custody. (4) When anyone is found committing or about to commit a felony, burglary, store breaking, house breaking, and does not desist after warning, and cannot be deterred or arrested by any other means. (5) To prevent a Police Station or Police Outpost from being over-run. (6) When so ordered by a superior in rank.

These guiding principles have remained pristine for over 52 years.

It is apposite for me to mention that a Police Standing Orders Review Team commissioned by

Commissioner of Police Leslie James DSS, DSM, and led by the astute Paul Slowe, which included myself and other senior retired Police officers, looked at international best practices, reviewed the Police Standing Order in question, and submitted it to the Police for possible implementation.

Unfortunately, the Police did not adopt it.

I understand that the Office of Professional Responsibility is investigating the killing of Orin Boston. I hope that, among other things, they will be guided by “When you may fire”.

On the other side of the coin, I have not heard anything from the Police Complaints Authority in relation to the supervision of the investigation.

Perhaps the Authority is quietly investigating.

Section 14 (1) of the Police Complaints Authority Act, Chapter 17:02, empowered the Authority thus: “The Authority shall supervise the investigation of every complaint or information of the nature referred to in section 12.”

Section 12 states, “This

part shall apply in relation to any complaint or information that any member of the Force has (unlawfully) caused the death of any person, or has committed any offence referred to in section 48, 49, or 50, section 55 read with section 56, or section 57 of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act, or such other offence as may be specified by the Minister by order.”

I am confident that the Authority would conduct an impartial investigation, like it did a few years ago after the unlawful killing of Lallbachan whilst in custody at Suddie Police Station lock-ups, Essequibo Coast.

In its report, the Authority hammered Policemen and women involved from top to bottom, and slammed senior officers who attempted to cover up the various elements of the crime and serious breaches of discipline that flowed.

Wow! Let the chips fall where they may.

Yours respectfully, Clinton Conway Assistant Commissioner of Police (retired)

Being vaccinated is still our only safeguard, still our only hope!

Dear Editor, From indisputable evidence that is available to us, it has been proven that persons who are vaccinated stand a far higher chance of being protected against the deadly coronavirus disease.

Reports from all across the world also attest to this fact.

It is therefore advisable that we get ourselves vaccinated at the earliest opportunity.

Those who are opposed to the vaccination programme need to rethink their position and come on board with the Health Ministry, and become immunised while at the same time encourage others to do the same.

I am talking about encouraging persons to become fully vaccinated when I say this. I am not referring to taking the first dose only, but to get immunised

with the full dose of the vaccines available. The point I am making is: vaccines help save lives, or at least give one the immunity to withstand the disease should they become stricken with the disease. “Get yourself immunised” should be the call to all across our country.

On that note, I am asking that those responsible remove politics and religious fanaticism from the pandemic, and get on board. The coronavirus disease is not a political issue, neither is it a religious issue; it is a health issue, which means that it needs to stay in that domain.

Health issues have to be scientifically addressed or dealt with in a health context.

When you analyse the present situation in our country, you see a new precedent developing; that is,

persons who are affected by the disease are claiming that they have been vaccinated and yet have come down with the disease. However, careful examination shows that these people have either had pre-existing conditions or, at the first sign of the virus, would have rushed to get themselves immunised.

This in itself is dangerous, because it means that you have been a carrier all along, and have intermingled with others of the same household, and even other

persons along the way. You certainly might have passed on the dreaded disease to others, which makes the pandemic even a greater threat to others. This puts a strain on the health sector while at the same time increases fear among the population.

My people, please get yourselves immunised today, do not wait until it is too late.

Let us help stop the spread of this deadly disease.

Respectfully, Neil Adams

The Ministry of Agriculture must be commended for its efforts thus far Dear Editor, Permit me a few lines to pen my opinion on the work of the Ministry of Agriculture thus far.

Since August of 2020, the Ministry, under the stewardship of the Honourable Zulfikar Mustapha, has seen a turnaround. There has been a remarkable transformation in terms of policies, execution, and the overall management of the sector.

Minister Mustapha, a man known for being proactive since he served as Regional Chairman of Region Six, has, in just over a year, implemented the right managerial policies that have trickled down and impacted the lives of farmers across the country.

Because of his grassroots background and no-nonsense approach to tackling the inherited issues faced in the sector, Minister Mustapha must be commended for the positive direction in which the Ministry is now headed.

The overall vision of President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali for the agriculture sector is clear: Guyana must be able to take its rightful place in the region when it comes to agriculture. Our food systems must be transformed to satisfy the regional demand for healthy food. Guyana has the land and other resources to do this, and it is clear

that the President and the Minister are working to ensure this is achieved.

The fact that the Government was able to regain its leading role in Caricom as it pertains to agriculture in less than a year in office clearly demonstrates that our regional leaders and policymakers are confident that Guyana has what it takes to lead the efforts to propel agriculture production, development and sustainability in the hemisphere.

Our leaders have stressed the importance of having a thriving agriculture sector. Being able to feed the citizens with wholesome food is of extreme importance. Our world is changing, it’s clear that our President and Agriculture Minister understand that.

In conclusion, I would like to once again commend the President and the Minister for the advances made thus far. The task has not been easy, but the commitment of these gentlemen to ensuring our farmers have access to exceptional facilities and services and that the best quality of food is available to our citizens lets me know that the sector is in the right hands. Kudos!

Continue to serve with humility and dedication.

Yours sincerely, Ralph Fraser

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

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Foundation

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oil erosion can cost the world billions of dollars every year by washing pollutants into our streams and rivers and by causing the loss of farmland. What can you do about this problem? Help save the world (and some money!) with nothing more than a few plants!

Materials

Materials and Equipment Aluminium bread pans, approximately 8 × 3 × 3 inches (6) Aluminium cake pans, approximately 12 × 8 × 1 inches (2) Soil (enough to fill all six bread pans) Peas (1 small bag), Ruler, metric Sticky notes Permanent marker Scissors or sharp knife Full-size watering can Sunny windowsill for the plants; or, if the weather in your area is appropriate, you can put the plants outside Short plastic container, or other object that can be used to prop up one edge of a bread pan to a height of roughly 3–5 cm.

Outdoor test area with a flat, level surface.

Optional: stopwatch, kitchen scale, lab notebook

Procedure

Fill each of the six bread pans with soil.

Leave a little bit of space at the top, so the soil is not flowing over the edges.

Plant the seeds in three of the bread pans, slightly closer together than the package directions say to.

Use sticky notes to label each of your bread pans with a trial number and indicating whether or not the pan has seeds. You should have three bread pans with seeds and three without seeds, for a total of six.

Use scissors or a sharp knife to puncture drainage holes along the bottom edge of the bread pans.

Place the bread pans into the cake pans.

This will allow the cake pans to collect any excess water that leaks out of the drain holes in the bread pans.

Place the bread pans into the cake pans to prevent water from spilling. Note: you should be able to fit three bread pans into each cake pan.

Place both cake pans near a sunny window (or outdoors,). Make sure the plants will receive as much direct sunlight as possible during the day. Ask an adult if you are not sure about putting the plants outside. If the weather is not right (if it is too hot and dry, or too wet and rainy) the plants might die, and you will have to start over.

For approximately the next 7–10 days, water the soil in the bread pans gently once per day. Once your plants are roughly 8–10 centimetres (cm) tall, you are ready to move on to the next section and conduct your experiment. How many days this takes may vary based on factors like temperature,

By Anonymous

Poor old lady, she swallowed a fly.

I don't know why she swallowed a fly.

Poor old lady, I think she'll die. exposure to sunlight, how much you water the plants, and the type of soil you used.

Water them gently so the force of the water pouring on the dirt does not push the seeds around. You will have to use your judgment when watering the plants. You want the soil to be wet, but not flooded. If water starts to collect in the cake pans, this means you may be over-watering. Drain the cake pans and reduce the amount of water you apply.

Make sure you water the bread pans with seeds and the bread pans without seeds. This will ensure that your experimental control (the bread pans without seeds) received the same amount of water throughout the experiment as the bread pans with seeds. This also simulates real-world rainfall conditions (a hill without plants would receive the same amount of rainfall as a hill with plants).

Make two vertical cuts halfway down the short side of each bread pan, then fold down the top half of that side to expose the soil. This will allow soil to flow out of the pan for your erosion test.

Set up your test area.

Empty and dry out the cake pans, if necessary.

Place a shallow plastic container that is roughly 3–5 cm high next to one of the cake pans.

Place the cut end of a bread pan into the cake pan, with the other end propped up on the plastic container. Only the uncut end of your bread pan should be on the box. Putting your bread pan at an angle like this simulates a hill.

Fill up your watering can. It is important to have the same amount of water in the watering can at the start of each trial.

Use the watering can to simulate "rain" on the bread pan.

Hold the watering can up high enough that you can pour water onto the entire bread pan at once. This simulates even rainfall across the entire area. Note that this will result in some water landing outside of the pans, which is why you need to do the experiment outside or in a bathtub.

Count to five slowly while pouring water onto the bread pan. Optionally, you can have a

volunteer use a stopwatch to time you.

Pay close attention to how much you tilt the watering can, and how hard the water falls on the bread pan. You will need to use the exact same method for each of your trials.

Carefully lift the bread pan up, being careful not to spill out any additional dirt into the cake pan, and set it aside.

After the test, you should be left with a cake pan filled with soil and water.

Carefully drain the water out of the cake pan, without spilling any of the soil, so you are left with only the soil in the pan,. This is the soil that was eroded from your "hillside" (the bread pan) by "rain" from your watering can.

Note that a small amount of soil suspended in the water may also drain out of the pan, but it should be a small enough amount that it does not impact your results.

Use your kitchen scale to measure the mass of the cake pan and soil. Subtract the mass of an empty cake pan (which you should have measured earlier) from the combined mass of the soil and pan, to calculate the mass of the soil alone. Enter this value in your data table.

Repeat steps 4–10 for each of your remaining bread pans. Be sure to simulate rain for each pan as consistently as possible. Refill your watering can each time, even if you do not empty it all the way. This will allow you to apply consistent water flow for each trial.

Analyse your results.

Calculate an average value of the mass of the eroded soil for the pans with seeds and the pans with no seeds. Record the averages in your data table.

Make a bar graph of your results, with the type of pan (seeds or no seeds) on the x-axis (horizontal line), and the average mass of eroded soil on the y-axis (vertical line).

Looking at your data, would you conclude that plants helped reduce the amount of eroded soil due to rain?

How do you think plants can be used to help reduce erosion in the real world? How do you think real-world situations might be similar to, or different from, your experiment?

NB: This project is an adaptation of a 2015 science project submitted by Riya C. (Ben Finio, PhD, Science Buddies)

Poor old lady, she swallowed a spider.

It squirmed and wriggled and turned inside her.

She swallowed the spider to catch the fly.

I don't know why she swallowed a fly.

Poor old lady, I think she'll die.

Poor old lady, she swallowed a bird.

How absurd! She swallowed a bird.

She swallowed the bird to catch the spider, She swallowed the spider to catch the fly, I don't know why she swallowed a fly.

Poor old lady, I think she'll die.

Poor old lady, she swallowed a cat.

Thank of that! She swallowed a cat.

She swallowed the cat to catch the bird.

She swallowed the bird to catch the spider.

She swallowed the spider to catch the fly, I don't know why she swallowed a fly.

Poor old lady, I think she'll die.

Poor old lady, she swallowed a dog.

She went the whole hog when she swallowed the dog.

She swallowed the dog to catch the cat, She swallowed the cat to catch the bird, She swallowed the bird to catch the spider.

She swallowed the spider to catch the fly, I don't know why she swallowed a fly.

Poor old lady, I think she'll die.

Poor old lady, she swallowed a cow.

I don't know how she swallowed a cow.

She swallowed the cow to catch the dog, She swallowed the dog to catch the cat, She swallowed the cat to catch the bird, She swallowed the bird to catch the spider, She swallowed the spider to catch the fly, I don't know why she swallowed a fly.

Poor old lady, I think she'll die.

Poor old lady, she swallowed a horse.

She died, of course.

Source: The Random House Book of Poetry for Children (1983)

WORD SEARCH

NEWS

7

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

“Political mischief” obstructing Guyana’s progress to herd immunity – President Ali ...says to date 69% adult population partially immunised, 36% fully immunised

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overnment’s steadfast actions to make COVID-19 vaccines available to the population and the vision to achieve herd immunity are being hampered by political mischief, plotted with the intention of thwarting the progress made thus far.

President Irfaan Ali cited this challenge during the Global COVID-19 Summit: Ending the Pandemic and Building Back Better to Prepare for the Next, hosted

by United States President Joe Biden.

In his address, the Guyanese Leader expressed that his administration had explored all avenues and injected significant resources, both capital and human, to tackle the pandemic.

However, political mischief has been deployed to derail the vaccination campaign.

“Guyana has spared no effort and vaccines for its eligible population. To date, 69 per cent of the country’s adult population is partially immunised and 36 per cent immunised…However, vaccine hesitancy and its manipulation for the purposes of political mischief are conspiring to hobble our movement towards herd immunity,” Ali noted.

A few months ago, the Head of State cautioned the population to beware of actions that drive ‘political selfishness’ after Opposition Leader Joseph Harmon came out to say that the Sputnik V vaccines were ‘fake’.

That remark was debunked by Ali, who assured that the legitimacy of the Sputnik V vaccines currently used in Guyana can be authenticated using the batch number to correspond with that of the manufacturer’s data. He thereby quashed any conclusion as to whether the vaccine was fake.

In a recorded message, he had expressed, “We have tried every single measure, and for Mr Harmon to try to discredit these efforts, for Mr Harmon to now try to dissuade Guyanese at this important public health juncture of our country, is reckless and shameful.”

President Ali had contended that the Opposition Leader’s remarks were not in the interest of the Guyanese people, and came at a time when Government is exploring all measures necessary to vaccinate the entire adult population. Moreover, Harmon was immunised with the Russian-made vaccine which he alleged was fake.

“I’m sure if one were to examine the statement by Mr Harmon in relation to the Sputnik vaccines, dissuading Guyanese from taking the Sputnik vaccines, you would find it to be self-serving, shamefully reckless, and against the interest of Guyana and Guyanese.

This is a man who shamefully tried to steal an election a few months ago. This is a man who himself took the Sputnik vaccine. There

President Irfaan Ali and other leaders at the event

is a limit to one’s selfishness.

In this case, the limit must be to issue a statement that put the lives of Guyanese families and communities at risk,” the President was quoted as saying.

After much backlash from various sections of society and officials, the Opposition Leader withdrew his statements.

Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony has also been urging people to make wise choices by taking the vaccine to protecting themselves, having identified cases where politicians have been influencing people not to do so.

“We also have some political persons who are cre-

ating mischief, sowing confusion amongst people who are hesitant, and that’s very unfortunate, because many of these political activists who are sowing that type of confusion, many of them are already vaccinated…So, they have taken the vaccine, however, now they are encouraging people not to take the vaccine. That’s a very irresponsible thing to do, because you’re now putting other people at risk by the way you’re talking about the vaccine, creating con-

fusion, creating hesitancy, and that’s very irresponsible,” the Minister said last month.

Preparation

Meanwhile, President Ali told the summit that the safety of citizens is paramount, as he recognised several policy moves that were initiated to prepare for vaccination.

“In response to the pandemic, Guyana designated the safety of our people as

paramount, even as we instituted policies to prevent the collapse of the economy.

As we awaited development of, and access to, a vaccine, my Government prepared a National Immunisation Plan which included adding cold storage capacity, training of medical personnel to administer vaccines, and developing a formal co-vigilance system to monitor for possible adverse side effects,” he said.

He also recognised the setback facing developing countries like Guyana, and maintained that uneven access would hamper holistic economic recovery in the world.

The President appealed, “Developing countries have suffered a contraction of growth, massive job losses, closure of many small businesses, and the imperiling of key sectors. Disruption to global supply chains and logistics are increasing import costs, and consequently the cost of living…Unless the inequalities in the global economy are addressed and the problems of developing states are particularised in this process, the legacy of the pandemic will frustrate developing countries’ recovery and the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals.”

8 NEWS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Miner gets bail for allegedly showing woman his genitals

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223-7230-1 (Ext 55)

hirty-five-year-old Lenroy Allman, a miner of Diamond Squatting Area, East Bank Demerara (EBD), was on Wednesday released on bail on several charges, including indecent exposure.

He was arraigned before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Police said that the man is accused of exposing his genitals to a woman who resides at Grove Squatting Area, EBD. Police said too that he was also charged

Charged: Lenroy Allman

with threatening language, assault causing actual bodily harm, and damage to property.

He allegedly committed the offences against Malika Thomas, at Prosville, Wisroc, Wismar, Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice).

Allman pleaded guilty to the threatening language charge, and was reprimanded and discharged by the Chief Magistrate.

On the other charges, he pleaded not guilty and was granted bail totalling $65,000. He returns to court on October 25, 2021.

Propagandists…

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…versus the unbiased erily reminiscent of Freddy Krueger, the local branch of “Transparency International” (TIGI) just gleefully announced, “We’re baaaaack!” They, of course, had all but disappeared from the scene during the five years between 2015 and 2020, when the PNC had slipped into office. Your Eyewitness had wondered whether it was a case of two “man-crabs”, not being able to co-exist in the same hole, or that there wasn’t a need for a transparency watchdog since the PNC coalition was crystal clear.

Like, say, when they immediately gave themselves (Ministers) that 50% salary raise. After all, Harmon had transparently “explained” that it was to keep them from being tempted by bribes. But shouldn’t they have weighed in when that Minister fella solicited those million-dollar bracelets from his own Ministry’s agencies? Surely, that should’ve raised some transparency eyebrows?

Anyhow, your Eyewitness was a bit taken aback by TIGI’s snarky tone when announcing being back. They went after some group - no name mentioned, to satisfy your Eyewitness’s curiosity! - they dubbed a “council of wise men (COW), who’re responsible for the propagation of certain narratives of politics, law, and development.” Now that’s rather sexist, ain’t it - excluding women from this “cabal” - and supercilious to the men for implying a “cowlike” stolidity? Seems this bovine collection of Guyanese teed off TIGI for saying the latter have been “selective” in subjects to scrutinise for their transparency factor. More specifically, they claimed they’re unfairly maligned as giving the PNC a free pass on the opaque shenanigans they pulled during their term of office.

TIGI explained this charge couldn’t possibly be true!!

And how did they do this? After all, the record conclusively proves their studied absence from the press with any “opacity” charges against the PNC - as opposed to their volubility during the PPP’s years. Well, seems that at a 2018 Regional TI dinner in T&T, someone threw shade at the TIGI rep for suddenly “surfacing”. Nothing about any critical comment made by them was mentioned! But hey… that’s conclusive proof of their evenhandedness, ain’t it?

In contract to the omniscient “COWS”, TIGI announced unctuously, “TIGI has a policy not to jump headlong into matters it knows nothing about. We do not hold ourselves out as experts on everything.” For instance, they said they didn’t take a position on the PNC’s NCM fiasco, because “both sides (PNC and PPP) were claiming to be right”.

But isn’t this the case with Article 13, which TIGI’s now decided to champion?

Haven’t the PPP claimed that they’re inclusive but the PNC say they ain’t? And more to the point, wasn’t Art 13 around when the PNC were in office?

Cat got their tongue then? …on COVID-19 Your Eyewitness must say that the propagandists on both sides of the COVID-19 hesitancy divide seemed to have come to a Mexican standoff: both sides have their weapons drawn, and the question is, who’s gonna blink first? Now your Eyewitness understands the dangers of “scientism” - total belief in science providing all the answers - so he’s been willing to listen to the claims of the “hesitants”.

There’s the one that vaccines will create “the mark of the beast”, and when the day of judgement arrives, they’ll be cast into hell. Your Eyewitness did nod off sometimes in Sunday School, but wasn’t belief in Jesus Christ a guarantee to pass through the Pearly Gates? Then there’s the more mundane point that all the hesitants for this reason have been all vaccinated for mumps and measles etc, when they were babies. Will one more mark make a difference?

Then, after one poor and ailing 65-year-old security guard collapsed and died at work, one person claimed she’d been vaccinated with “Gramoxone”.

Not overwork? …and Police killings After the unfortunate slaying of the Essequibo businessman Orin Boston, anti-government conspiracy theorists are having a field day.

Shouldn’t we just demand a quick enquiry, and then criticise if it’s not transparent?

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

NEWS

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

“For ExxonMobil, local content makes good business sense” – Routledge – as majority Guyanese workforce fabricate 1st subsea jumpers

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The first Guyanese-fabricated jumper being loaded out for installation offshore

resident of ExxonMobil Guyana, Alistair Routledge, is of the belief that the company and its prime contractors have been making significant efforts to bolster local content, including planning, implementing and monitoring progress years prior to a policy or legislation.

He thinks it is paramount that Guyanese continue to benefit from the development of the country’s oil and gas resources.

“For ExxonMobil, local content just makes good business sense,” he said during a recent visit to Saipem’s Offshore Construction Facility, where the first subsea jumpers were fabricated in-country by a majority Guyanese workforce.

The work was subcontracted to Guyanese joint venture Guyana Oil & Gas Support Services Incorporated (GOGSSI).

Routledge recognises this as a significant milestone in local content development. “This is a sym-

bol of the progress that is being made in developing the supply chain in Guyana to support the offshore development of Guyana’s natural resources,” he outlined.

Meanwhile, Managing Director of Saipem Guyana Inc, Thuranthiran Nadarajah, noted that the company has developed and is implementing a local content plan as part of its existing contracts with ExxonMobil Guyana.

“Saipem’s goal is to have a proper, sustainable growth in Guyana. We have completed Liza One, we are in the process of completing Liza 2, and we are working on Payara. In this process, we have also developed our own fabrication facility to be able to bring in the high-end technology for jumper fabrications into Guyana,” he outlined.

All of the major international companies contracted by ExxonMobil Guyana have a presence in-country, and have been steadily moving activities to

Guyana from Trinidad and Tobago and other locations around the globe. For instance, the three prime drilling service companies — Schlumberger, Halliburton, and BakerHughes — have also built major support facilities in Guyana.

“We truly believe it’s the right sustainable approach, the most efficient for the business, and, of course, ultimately it’s the right answer for the country, and that the people of the country feel that they’re part of that development and to ultimately benefit from the development of the resource,” said Routledge, who also recently visited the local service base of another contractor, TechnipFMC Guyana.

TechnipFMC Guyana is the provider of drilling and subsea production systems for the three sanctioned development projects offshore Guyana. The company also provides services associated with the installation, mobilisation/ demobilisation, storage and maintenance of assets provided for the projects.

“This service base will allow us to really expand our foot print within Guyana, and bring some services to Guyana that were traditionally performed outside of the country,” said Johnny Hewett, Country Manager of Technip FMC. Already, the company has employed over 50 Guyanese in different disciplines, the majority of whom are technical services personnel. Most of these employees have received extensive training abroad, with 13 currently being trained in Houston, Texas.

Hewett also indicated that the company has long collaborated

ExxonMobil Guyana President Alistair Routledge during a recent visit to TechnipFMC Guyana’s Service base

with the Centre for Local Business Development to expand and develop its local supplier base.

“In the early days, when we started exploration, there was no infrastructure, no expertise, no history to leverage, so we had to utilise the existing capability, the existing facilities in Trinidad.

Over time, now that we have that line of sight to more development, we can continue this investment journey and move more of that work, the facilities, the capability to Guyana,” Routledge outlined.

“I’m really excited to say that, by sometime in 2022, virtually all of that supply chain, all of that work, will have been moved to Guyana from Trinidad. That will be a major milestone for Guyana, for local content, for the people of Guyana.”

Steady Phased Development

With three sanctioned projects:

Liza Phase 1, Liza Phase 2 and Payara, ExxonMobil sees the potential of up to 10 projects to develop the current resource estimate of approximately 9 billion barrels of oil equivalent in the Stabroek Block. A steady, phased approach to these developments will enable sustained growth in local content, Routledge has asserted.

“The ability to look out at a number of projects enables companies and enables investors to invest, to build infrastructure, to hire and train people so that the work can be done here. It’s not just one project, it’s that sequence, and so they know that they’re going to get the payback from the investment, and the real benefit to the country is that infrastructure and that additional capacity in the workforce will be there for other purposes when we finish building the projects offshore,” he added.

10 NEWS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Labourer gets 18 months for narco-trafficking – Pork-knocker granted $150,000 bail on similar charge

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32-year-old labourer of Maria Henrietta Village in the Upper Berbice riverine community of Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) was on Wednesday sentenced to 18 months’ imprisonment on a narco-trafficking charge.

Before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan, Clarence France pleaded guilty to the charge which stated that on September 20, at Jonestown,

Kwakwani, Region 10, he had 536 grammes of marijuana in his possession for the purpose of trafficking.

The Police have said that the man was charged contrary to Section (5)(1)(a)(i) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substance (Control) Act 10:10.

The Chief Magistrate has sentenced France to 18 months’ imprisonment and imposed on him a fine of

Jailed: Clarence France

$804,000 for the offence.

Facts stated that, on the day in question, Police acting on information went to the residence of a known female in the Kwakwani district and searched her spouse.

While doing so, ranks found a small black haversack containing a wrapped transparent parcel that contained leaves, seeds, and stems suspected to be cannabis sativa. As a consequence, he was arrested and told of the offence committed, to which he admitted ownership of the drug.

He was then taken to the Kwakwani Police Station, where he was processed for court.

Meanwhile, in a similar case called on Wednesday before Magistrate Crystal Lambert at the Bartica Magistrate’s Court, Sherwin Jackson, 44, a pork-knocker of Lot 1 Number 54 Village, Corentyne, Berbice, was arraigned for possession of narcotics for the purpose of trafficking.

On bail: Sherwin Jackson

He pleaded not guilty to the charge, which stated that on September 21, he had 495 grammes of cannabis in his possession for the purpose of trafficking. He has been placed on $150,000

bail.

Facts stated that on the day in question, Police ranks acting on information went to the Bartica Arcade, Region Seven (CuyuniMazaruni) where a man was seen carrying two bags.

Upon seeing the Police ranks, the man fled, but was later caught by the ranks who gave chase behind him. In the bags he was carrying, ranks found a bulky parcel wrapped with transparent plastic.

Upon further examination, a quantity of leaves, seeds, and stems suspected to be cannabis sativa were found in the bags. The illicit drug was brought to his attention and he admitted to ownership.

He was arrested and charged with the present offence. His next court date is October 22.

NEWS

11

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

2 dead, 2 injured as lumberladen truck topples at Buck Hall

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Dead: Ameer Nizzam

Dead: Nigel Headley

wo men are now dead and another has been injured after the lumber-laden truck in which they were travelling toppled at 53 Miles, Buck Hall trail along the Essequibo River on Wednesday evening.

Dead are 50-year-old Nigel Headley, a businessman of Annandale, Essequibo Coast and 24-year-old Ameer Nizzam, a chainsaw operator of Babnazir Street, Aurora Estate. The injured men are Melvern Thomas, 44, and Ramos Alberts, 17, both of Onderneeming Housing Scheme, Essequibo Coast.

Based on reports received, the truck, carrying lumber and at least eight people, was heading out of the backdam when it skidded off the trail and toppled,

“If you want additional information as to what happened, then you need to go to Buck Hall,” the woman stated. She also posited that her husband had been a very private person.

Meanwhile, over at the home of Nizzam, his mother Anita Singh explained that Nizzam had been the eldest of seven children. He had worked with his father in the interior as a chainsaw operator for the past month.

However, on the day in question, her son had solicited a drop out of the backdam on the lumber truck. She confirmed that her son had never worked with Headley.

The devastated mother explained that after they received the news of the accident, several relatives went to the scene. “All they tell

landing with its four wheels in the air.

Nizzam, Headley and Thomas were reportedly pinned under the truck. The others managed to escape unhurt, including the now dead businessman’s brother, Westley Headley.

The three men were pulled from the wreckage, but only Thomas survived.

At the home of the businessman on Thursday, his family members were reluctant to provide any information to the media. His wife, Melanie Headley, informed the media that the little they know was that he was involved in an accident and did not make it.

me is that he crushed with the lumber… they say he done…,” the mother cried.

She added that he had gone into the interior last week, and was due out on Tuesday evening, but after he did not get anything, he stayed back for another day.

“Now he gone and left we… he left he one year-old son… now what we go tell the son when he ask fuh he daddy?” the tearful woman lamented.

Singh also stated that, based on information they received, there were about 10 persons on the truck on their way out of the backdam.

Nizzam leaves to mourn

his parents, siblings, son and other relatives.

This is the third fatal accident to have occurred on the Buck Hall trail for the past month. On September 15, Damion Culpepper was killed after the driver of a Toyota Hilux, GJJ 2153, lost control of the vehicle at 49 KM Buck Hall Road.

It was reported that the driver lost control of the vehicle after it dropped into a hole, causing the vehicle to topple several times before coming to a halt. A threeyear-old boy was injured along with a woman referred to as “Big Aunty,” and her daughter Zannie, among others.

Prior to that accident, former Assistant Superintendent of Police Gordon Mansfield died in an accident that occurred when a pick-up belonging to Aurora Gold Mines was

The truck after toppling at Buck Hall

transporting personnel from the Aurora Mine site to the Buck Hall facility along the Essequibo River. Four persons, inclusive of the driver,

were in that vehicle when it reportedly encountered mechanical problems and consequently suffered a “blowout”, resulting in it toppling sev-

eral times before coming to a halt at “Kilometre 33” on the Buck Hall Road. Mansfield was pronounced dead at the company’s health facility.

12 NEWS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Laluni main access road to be rehabilitated – Min Edghill

Public Works Minister Bishop Juan Edghill meeting with residents at Laluni on Wednesday

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esidents of the agricultural community of Laluni, located aback Kuru Kururu on the Linden-Soesdyke Highway, will soon have improved access to transportation, as the community’s main access road is slated for rehabilitation.

The commitment was made by Minister of Public Works, Bishop Juan Edghill, during a meeting with residents on Wednesday. After residents had explained their difficulty in getting their produce to the mar-

ket, Minister Edghill immediately asked that a committee be formed, and made a commitment to fix the road.

However, he made it clear that they would not be able to get an all-weather asphaltic road, since funds would not be available for such a project until the next budget.

“I want you to name three people whom the engineers will come and go to the road with, so we could do some sectional maintenance and we could agree on what are the bad

spots, so we could get an immediate relief. I would want that by next week Monday afternoon we could agree; that (is), your committee and my engineers, (on) what we will do for immediate interventions; and we will be able to look at the cost, and then I will have the headache to find the money, with the support with what you are doing, to get done what needs to be done,” he explained.

Minister Edghill told residents that while everything cannot be done instantly, Government’s intention is to bring relief to the people of Laluni in the “shortest possible time.”

The residents, meanwhile, have said they are impressed by the Minister’s swift intervention to better their lives.

Michael Patterson said he had met with the Minister and requested that he visit the community. He said the request was made on Saturday, and he is happy that the Minister responded with haste.

“I felt it was a good decision, because, right now, the vehicles that bring in people, they are talking a lot about it, because they have the cars and so on, and sometimes you have load to bring in and cars dropping in holes. I think this is a very good decision, and to do it so quickly, that is very good,” Patterson has

A section of the residents who attended the meeting

said.

Another resident, Savitri Bishundat, said the fixing of the road would really assist farmers.

“Laluni is a farming area, and the road is very important, and the initiative that he came up with to assist us to repair the road for the time, so that when the budget go through he can do a better road to use in the long term. So, the farmers will benefit,” she declared.

Neville Ferreira has expressed similar sentiments, stating, “The

road will ease a lot of the strain on the community, because instead of taking an hour to reach out to Kuru Kururu, you will take 20 to 25 minutes or so… less gas, less wear and tear on your vehicle, and give you a chance to get out faster with your produce.”

Residents also took the opportunity to raise other issues affecting them in the community, and Edghill has assured residents that every concern raised would be directed to the relevant Minister.

NEWS

13

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Massive agricultural development for Region 1 – Agri Minister

Farmers in attendance at the meeting in Wauna

Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha handing over farming equipment to Region One Chairman Brentnol Ashley

agriculture office in the region which will see officers from various fields catering to the region’s agricultural needs.

Meanwhile, he committed to offering two scholarships for youths in the White-Water community to attend the Guyana School of Agriculture, noting that it was important for residents to be trained in the sector and return to their

Some of the seeds distributed to farmers

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g r i c u l t u r e Minister Zulfikar Mustapha told resident of Kumaka, Wauna, Kamwatta and White Water in Region One (BarimaWaini) on Tuesday that the region was set to undergo a number of developments in the agriculture sector.

Among these developments is the establishment of an agro-processing facility in Mabaruma. He said it was a great investment as it would add value to farmers’ produce.

“What we’ll be doing now across the country, we are now building agro-processing facilities. Right here in Mabaruma we’ll be building a new agro-processing facility for you here. Your crops, we’ll make it more value-added instead of taking the crops from the farm and go straight to the market, you’ll take your crops to the agro-processing facility,” the Minister said.

He added that the region would also receive two tractors and an excavator to

help in the maintenance of farms, roads, and other agriculture-related infrastructure in the area.

“Comrades, we have to change… if we’re farming on the swamps, we have to move out of the swamp area, if we are farming on the lowland area, we’ll have to empolder those areas. And because of that, I’ve promised the chairman that within one month from now I’ll be sending a new machine here to Mabaruma so that you can have the empolderment done and that machine will remain in your community to do works right across the region.

“What we will be doing also… before the year is out, in Region One, through our Ministry, we’ll be receiving two large tractors with implements. The two tractors will have grass planters, harrows, ploughs and that will be based in the region and that will be used to help people,” Mustapha related.

The Minister said the Ministry would establish an

communities to assist farmers in various ways.

While in that community, the Minister also committed to two shade houses for villagers. He said farming could no longer be done the traditional way, as climate change has affected weather patterns.

He noted that the farmers who suffered losses as a result of the recent floods would shortly receive flood relief grants from the Government to assist them in getting back to their lands.

“Each and every person who would have suffered losses because of the floods, whose farms were destroyed, whose garden was destroyed, we will try as much as possible to reach out to them to give them some form of flood relief and the flood relief will take the form of monetary relief from the Government. So, every farmer that suffer losses will have not less than $50,000,” the Minister.

Residents of Kamwatta raised concerns about markets for their produce and

requested the Minister’s intervention.

The Minister committed to informing the Guyana Marketing Corporation (GMC) of the situation, to resolve the issue.

He noted that Government would continue to make the necessary investments in the agriculture sector, which remains one of the most important sectors to Guyana. Seeds, planting materials, tools, and pumps were also donated to the villagers of each community.

14 NEWS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021|| GUYANATIMESGY.COM

4 more COVID fatalities take September death toll to 119 …258 new cases detected in 24h

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ith just about six days before September comes to an end, the Health Ministry has reported that a total of 119 persons have succumbed to COVID-19.

This figure includes the four deaths recorded on Thursday.

The death toll has now jumped to 744 since the first death in March 2020. The Health Ministry has stated that a 69-year-old unvaccinated male from Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) died on September 19 while a fully-vaccinated male from the same region died on September 22.

An 81-year-old partially-vaccinated female from Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) and a 58-year-old unvaccinated male from Region Four later

died on September 23.

The patients were admitted with COVID-19-like symptoms, and died while receiving care at a medical institution. Samples taken at the time of admission subsequently returned positive results.

New statistics provided by the Ministry showed that 258 new cases were detected in one day. The total confirmed cases in the country have now climbed to 30,444.

There are 37 patients being monitored in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), 171 in institutional isolation, 3644 in home isolation and four in institutional quarantine.

Some 24,848 of the 14,508 males and 15,936 females that tested positive have since recovered.

Guyana has tested 306,364 persons since the virus was

detected here.

Of the new cases, eight were in Region One (BarimaWaini); nine in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam); 67 in Region Three; 151 in Region Four; eight in Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice); six in Region Six (East BerbiceCorentyne); three in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) and two in Region 10 (Upper Demerara- Berbice).

There were no new cases in Regions Eight (PotaroSiparuni) and Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo).

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony reminded on Thursday that the coronavirus would manifest differently in people who have tested positive. Some people would have minimal symptoms and are isolated at home until they recover.

A majority of persons, es-

GUYANA COVID-19 DASHBOARD SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 UPDATE

NUMBER OF NEW CASES

258

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN INSTITUTIONAL ISOLATION

171

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN HOME ISOLATION

3644

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN COVID-19 ICU

37

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN INSTITUTIONAL QUARANTINE

4

TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES BY GENDER (FEMALES)

15,936

TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES BY GENDER (MALES)

14,508

TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES IN GUYANA SINCE 2020

30,444

NUMBER OF RECOVERED CASES

25,848

TOTAL 1st DOSE VACCINATED

351,981

FULLY IMMUNISED

181,862

TOTAL NUMBER OF DEATHS

744

DISTRIBUTION OF TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES SINCE MARCH 2020 REGION 1

1450

REGION 2

1076

REGION 3

3969

REGION 4

14,533

REGION 5

1062

REGION 6

2249

REGION 7

1578

REGION 8

487

REGION 9

2305

REGION 10

1735

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

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.

pecially those that are vaccinated, would exhibit mild symptoms. The third category which are usually unvaccinated , usually presents with more serious symptoms.

“The other category, which is basically the unvaccinated, we have seen those persons when they get sicker, they have to come to the hospital. At all the regional hospitals, they’re able to

manage the COVID patients.

We have made special provisions to have enough oxygen and other things necessary for the treatment of these patients,” he informed.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 15

NEWS

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Region 4 statutory meeting

PPP/C Councillors walk out after Chairman’s “disrespectful behaviour”

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meeting of the Region Four (DemeraraMahaica) Regional Democratic Council (RDC) ended abruptly on Thursday when Regional Executive Officer (REO) Donald Gajraj and several PPP Councillors staged a walkout in response to what they described as “disrespectful behaviour” by APNU Regional Chairman Daniel Seeram.

At a scheduled meeting on Thursday, held at the Community Centre at Lusignan, East Coast Demerara (ECD), Gajraj was in the process of explaining several correspondences that were part of the RDC’s budget for 2022 when Seeram demanded that he “shut up”.

“The meeting was called!

The Chairman disrupted the agenda of the meeting,

PPP/C Councillor Raghunanban Singh

claiming that he only looked at three items on the agenda, and abandoned all the rest of the items. And because of that, (he said) the meeting will only deal with

‘correspondence’, ‘any other business’, and the ‘National Anthem’,” PPP Councillor Raghunanban Singh said in an interview with Guyana Times.

Singh related that while the REO was making his presentation, Seeram demanded that he “shut up”, and further went on to tell him, “I didn’t ask you to speak.”

The Regional Councillor said Gajraj then requested permission from Seeram to speak, and it was granted.

He related that Gajraj is currently suffering from an ailment in one of his feet, and as such, continued his presentation while seated. But the Chairman, Singh stated, interrupted him again, this time insisting that he stand and continue.

Singh related that al-

APNU Regional Chairman Daniel Seeram

though Gajraj informed the Chairman that he was experiencing some discomfort, the Chairman still demanded that he stand.

In response to the

Cane harvester crushed by excavator at Uitvlugt S ixty-two-year-old Deochand Lallchand, a cane harvester of Patentia Housing Scheme, West Bank Demerara (WBD), was on Wednesday crushed by an excavator while working at Uitvlugt Sugar Estate, West Coast Demerara (WCD).

The Police have said that Lallchand was in the estate backdam picking up cane a short distance away from the excavator when it suddenly started to reverse at a slow pace without stopping. As a result, the excavator track connected with Lallchand’s feet, thus causing him to fall to the ground. The excavator reportedly ran over the man’s body, killing him on the spot.

He was taken to the Leonora Cottage Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. His body is at the Ezekiel Funeral Home, awaiting a post mortem.

Dead: Deochand Lallchand

The excavator operator, a 44 year-year-old man of Recht Door Zee, WBD, is assisting the Police with their investigations.

At Lallchand’s home, family members were trying to come to grips with his death. His son Vishnu

Lallchand explained that his father was a contracted worker with a private harvester, but had been in the sugar industry for the past 20 years. He worked with the private company for the past three years.

Lallchand, late father of five and grandfather of five, had been the sole breadwinner of his family.

“I received a call around 09:30h, and was told that my father was run over by an excavator at Uitvlugt Backdam and his body was mashed…” the son stated. He noted that he was told that body parts were all over.

The younger Lallchand explained that his father had been a very peaceful man, and had had a very close relationship with his family.

“He was not a troublesome man, he was a peaceful man, he was cool, anybody could tell you; but he does not deserve to die like

4 more COVID fatalities take...

There are 157 hospitalised cases in the country. Of this number, 97 are at the Infectious Diseases Hospital – 37 in the ICU. The facility also houses six pregnant women while the Georgetown Public Hospital is monitoring another 13.

A breakdown of cases at regional hospitals shows three at Port Kaituma, two at Suddie, 10 at West Demerara, 13 at Mahaicony, four at New Amsterdam, two at Skeldon, three at Bartica, two at Mahdia, and eight at Wismar.

“At GPHC, we have limited amount of space to ac-

commodate persons there and so we normally would keep some of those patients at Ocean View. When they [pregnant women] are ready to deliver, we transfer them to GPHC,” said the Minister.

In the adult vaccination campaign, 351,981 persons or 68.1 per cent of persons have taken their first dose while 181,862 or 35.5 per cent have returned for their second dose.

For children, some 21,595 have taken a first dose or 29.6 per cent.

If anyone is displaying any of the symptoms as-

FROM PAGE 14

sociated with COVID-19, or need any additional information, they are asked to contact the COVID-19 Hotline on 231-1166, 2267480 or 624-6674 immediately or visit www.health. gov.gy All Guyanese are reminded to observe the protocols of the COVID-19 emergency measures which emphasise the need for correct and consistent use of a face mask when in public, the importance of maintaining six feet of physical distance from others and the need for good hand hygiene.

that, for a man like him, because he was good. He was a good husband, a good father, a neighbour and good family to everybody.”

The family stated that Lallchand did not deserve to die in that horrific manner.

Meanwhile, the son stated that his father’s employer visited their home and offered them $200,000 to offset funeral expenses. The son noted that they are yet to make a decision as a family.

Chairman’s “disrespect”, Singh said, the REO and PPP Councillors walked out of the meeting.

“He doesn’t understand his function. He doesn’t understand his purpose. He cannot lead. He is unable to unify this Council,” expressed Singh as he spoke about Seeram.

According to Singh, he strongly believes that Seeram acted in this manner to “impress” APNUAFC Parliamentarians Christopher Jones and Ganesh Mahipaul, who were both present at the meeting.

For some time now, Seeram and Gajraj have been at odds over the RDC’s 2022 budget.

Coalition partners APNU and AFC have slammed REO Donald Gajraj for trying to impose a last-minute budget on the RDC, but Gajraj has countered by saying that there is proof that Seeram knew two months prior that a budget had to be prepared.

In reports, Seeram explained that a budget can be tabled before the Council only when the Finance Ministry issues a circular outlining the procedures. He said the circular was issued on July 31 but was emailed to him only on September 2, with the deadline for submission being September 6.

Gajraj, however, has been reported as saying that the minutes of an RDC meeting in late July show that Seeram and the Council were aware of the need to prepare a proposed budget.

Seeram is reported as

REO Donald Gajraj

saying that “commandeering” of the 2022 budget will not be tolerated, and has since written to President Irfaan Ali, Finance Minister Ashni Singh, and Local Government and Regional Development Minister Nigel Dharamlall, asking for an extension of time within which to submit a budget.

The AFC has brought a No-Confidence Motion (NCM) against Seeram and his deputy, Samuel Sandy.

The party has cited continued failures and shortcomings in the management of the RDC. In the AFC’s statement announcing the NCM, it had pointed out the high-handedness of the APNU Chairman.

For instance, one of its concerns was the suspension of the Regional Administration of Committees’ meetings without a word to the party.

This, according to the AFC, has resulted in chaos.

Linden house goes up in flames

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he Police and officials from the Guyana Fire Service have launched an investigation into a fire which has destroyed a house at Blueberry Hill, Wismar, Linden on Thursday.

Police stated that the building was shared by 35-year-old Orlene Holder,

a housewife and her five children and on the day in question, she reportedly left home and went to her children’s school.

The children were left at home. However, about 11:45h, a neighbour who was nearby heard children screaming and upon checking, she observed smoke

emanating from the victim's home.

She managed to rescue the children and take them to safety. Subsequently, the Linden Fire Service was summoned and the firefighters were able to contain and extinguish the fire.

An investigation is underway.

Knife-wielding man arrested for threatening to kill Rose Hall Mayor

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55-year-old man was arrested after he reportedly threatened to kill Rose Hall Mayor Dave Budhu on Wednesday at Republic Arch Road, Rose Hall Town, Corentyne, Berbice.

Police stated that the Mayor was in the company of Town Clerk Natasha Griffith and other staff offloading tools from a truck when the suspect approached him on a bicycle and started to abuse him.

Rose Hall Mayor Dave Budhu

He further threatened to kill him while brandishing a knife that he drew from his pants waist.

Budhu who became fearful for his life ran to safety in the market and summoned the Police.

As a result, the Police contacted the suspect, who was told of the allegation made against him, cautioned, arrested, and escorted to the Albion Police Station, where an investigation was launched.

16 NEWS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Appeal against murder committal

CCJ to hear Marcus Bisram's case on Nov 11 O

n November 11, at 10:00h, via video conference, the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) will commence hearing arguments in Marcus Bisram’s appeal against a ruling by the Guyana Court of Appeal for him to be committed to stand trial for the October 2016 murder of Faiyaz Narinedatt, a Berbice father of two.

Given the ruling that was handed down on May 31, Bisram was expected to be placed on remand, but following his filing of an appeal, the CCJ granted an order pardoning him from incarceration until the hearing and determination of the matter.

A further order was granted suspending the ruling of the lower court.

Bisram, a Guyana-born US-based businessman, was instructed to remain in Guyana and report to the Divisional Commander or Deputy Commander of Police ‘B’ Division on Monday of every week until the matter is completed.

He was also instructed to lodge his passport with the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Judicature.

Appeal Court ruling

On May 31, the Court of Appeal in a unanimous decision overturned an order of certiorari granted by High Court Judge Simone MorrisRamall in June 2020. That order in effect quashed a directive by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Shalimar Ali-Hack, SC, for Bisram to be committed to stand trial.

Justice Morris-Ramlall had issued an order of certiorari quashing the directive

by Ali-Hack to Magistrate Renita Singh for Bisram’s committal, and further granted an order prohib-

Marcus Bisram

iting the DPP from bringing an indictment for murder against him in the High Court.

Following a Preliminary Inquiry (PI) on March 30, 2020, Magistrate Singh had discharged the charge against Bisram and informed him that he was free to go, after finding that the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case against him.

However, on the day of the discharge, the DPP exercised her powers under section 72 (1) and (2) (ii) (b) of the Criminal Law (Procedure) Act to request that the depositions be sent to her, and directed the magistrate to reopen the PI with a view to committing Bisram.

The magistrate complied, and thereafter called on Bisram, who had been rearrested, to lead a defence.

At the close of the case for the defence, the Magistrate found that there was insufficient evidence to support the charge, and adjourned the matter to April 6, 2020 for further directions from the DPP. On April 6, 2020, the DPP directed that Bisram be committed to stand trial

in the High Court. This direction was duly complied with on the said date by the Magistrate. As such, Bisram was again rearrested.

merely because he thinks the witness is lying. To do that is to usurp the functions of the jury…”

Judicial review

The DPP had always maintained that her directive for committal was lawful, as there is sufficient evidence against Bisram to warrant a trial by a jury before a judge.

In fact, during the appeal hearing, Ali-Hack submitted that the evidence against Bisram is sufficient, and any reasonable jury, if properly directed, could safely convict.

The DPP had noted that the evidence given

by Chunilall was admissible, and the issue that arises is the issue of credibility, which is for a jury to decide.

“This is a proper case for a committal, for it to go to trial in the High Court,” Ali-Hack said as she urged the court to quash the High Court’s ruling.

Also, during the Appeal Court hearing, Bisram’s legal team, led by Darshan Ramdhanie, QC, contended that the DPP’s directive was unlawful, as it infringed their client’s constitutional rights provided for in Articles 122 A and 144 (1) of the Constitution of Guyana and the separation of powers doctrine.

However, this contention was rejected by the Court of Appeal, which held that the DPP, in making the directive, acted within the ambit of powers vested in her under the Constitution of Guyana and statute.

Bisram then moved to the High Court, seeking judicial review of the DPP’s directive.

In ruling that the DPP’s directive for committal was unlawful and unreasonable, Justice Morris-Ramlall, among other things, held that the evidence disclosed against Bisram by the prosecution did not meet the required evidentiary threshold to support calling on him to lead a defence.

In fact, Justice Ramlall ruled that no prima facie case had been made out against Bisram to put him on trial by a jury before a Judge. “…the evidence is insufficient, or, in other words, it is not of the quality that a reasonable jury properly directed could safely convict on it.”

Ali-Hack then filed an appeal against Justice MorrisRamlall’s decision with the Appeal Court.

Jury trial

In overturning the decision of the High Court, the Appellate Court, led by Chancellor of the Judiciary Justice Yonette CummingsEdwards, had underscored that the issues raised in the State’s case against Bisram would be better ventilated at the trial court by a jury.

“The issues raised, we think, would have been better ventilated at the trial court, where the trial judge would have weighed all the issues in relation to the evidence and decided whether or not it would have been left for a jury,” she had said.

According to the Chancellor, “The decision to

Evidence sufficient

DPP Shalimar Ali-Hack, SC

commit by the Magistrate would have had to be based on the evidence which the DPP ought to have reviewed… We are of the view that the committal proceedings by the Magistrate and the directive by the Director of Public Prosecutions would not have been invalid.”

Totally discredited

Meanwhile, in her ruling, Justice Morris-Ramlall had outlined that the evidence of Chaman Chunilall was the body and soul of the prosecution’s case against Bisram, and that there was no other evidence, either direct or circumstantial, linking him to Narinedatt’s killing.

“At the close of the case for the prosecution, the evidence of Chunilall was totally discredited and rendered manifestly unreliable. The evidence remained substantially the same at the close of the case for the defence,” the Chancellor had noted.

But, citing a plethora of case laws, the Court of Appeal, in adopting the pronouncements therein, held that “It is not the judge’s job to weigh the evidence and to decide who is telling the truth, and to stop the case

Extradition

Bisram was extradited from the United States to Guyana in 2019 to face the murder charge. There was an extended fight in US courts to block his extradi-

Dead: Faiyaz Narinedatt

tion. He was then charged and remanded to prison for the murder of Narinedatt of Number 72 Village, Corentyne, Berbice.

It is alleged that on the day of the killing, Bisram had a party at his home, which Narinedatt and others attended. Media reports are that Narinedatt had gone to the yard and was followed by Bisram, who reportedly came up behind him and started “feeling him up.”

It was reported that Narinedatt slapped and chucked Bisram, who allegedly directed his friends to kill him. According to reports, several men had beaten the carpenter and dumped his body on the Number 70 Village Corentyne, Berbice road.

It was reported that they then drove over his body on the roadway at Number 70 village Corentyne, Berbice to make it appear like a vehicular accident.

Five other men: Orlando Dickie, Radesh Motie, Diodath Datt, Harri Paul Parsram and Niran Yacoob, are currently awaiting trial at the High Court in Berbice for Narinedatt’s murder.

Laminated vaccine card accepted, must show all details – Health Ministry

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iven concerns about wear and tear when carrying the COVID-19 vaccination booklets, persons can now laminate the booklets once all details are visible.

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony on Thursday stated that when the vaccination booklet is laminated, the particulars needed to grant access to a service must be made visible.

If these details are not visible or only part of the information is shown, he said officials could question the authenticity of the document.

“We want people to know that the document is a genuine document, but we also understand the challenges people face with walking around with this big card.

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony

If it’s not laminated, then it can easily get damaged. So, we have been flexing a little bit, but you must also present it, so you can see the particulars of the person on one side and what is inside the card. Some people have

been able to do that quite nicely,” the Health Minister explained.

In the updated National COVID-19 Emergency Measures for September, measure number 17 stipulates that any person who

wishes to enter a public building shall be vaccinated. Where an unvaccinated person wishes to enter a public building, they can do so by appointment, and by presenting a negative PCR test taken within seven days. This runs until September 30, 2021, unless extended further by the Health Minister.

Authorities have been very stringent in monitoring vaccine booklets when presented, given cases where persons were caught stealing them.

Just this week, it was announced that the Guyana Police Force is currently investigating several other cases of theft of COVID-19 vaccination booklets. Last month, two drivers attached to the Health Ministry were charged and remanded to

prison for stealing the immunisation booklets.

If anyone is caught selling or stealing these booklets, they can be penalised under Section 240 of the Criminal Offences Act, Chapter 8:01, which labels forgery as an offence.

Dr Anthony reminded, “…you can be prosecuted for forgery, and the fine – if

you’re found guilty of forgery, would be up to three years’ imprisonment. And if you forge a vaccination card, you will be liable to this type of punishment if caught. So, I want to encourage people: desist from such practices, because when we catch you, you are going to feel the full brunt of the law.”

NEWS

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

118 Sophia families benefit from $59M in home improvement subsidies

Housing and Water Minister Collin Croal

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ome $59 million in home improvement subsidies have been disbursed to a total of one hundred and eighteen (118) low-income families in Sophia by the Housing and Water Ministry’s Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA).

The contract signing for the distribution of the grants was done by the beneficiaries at the Section ‘C’ Turkeyen (Sophia) recreational facility on Thursday afternoon.

These subsidies are being distributed under the Adequate Housing and Urban Accessibility Programme (AHUHAP), which is funded by the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB). Before this event, each beneficiary participated in sensitisation sessions which allowed them to raise concerns and queries with officials from

Minister within the Housing and Water Ministry, Susan Rodrigues

the CH&PA’s Projects, Community Development, and Legal Departments.

Housing and Water Minister Collin Croal, in his address, said the “programme will improve the housing conditions of citizens in these communities, increase their access to critical infrastructure, (and) enhance mobility and safety”.

Minister Croal also noted that, through the programme, a total of $1.5 billion has been spent on the upgrade of twelve (12) kilometres of asphalted concrete roads, concrete bridges, concrete walkways, drainage culverts, and other infrastructure works in Sophia communities.

A new $51.3 million multi-purpose facility is also being built at the Section ‘C’ Turkeyen recreational ground.

Referring to the ongoing

construction of housing units in Sophia, Minister within the Housing and Water Ministry, Susan Rodrigues, highlighted that the overall aim of the Governmentis to reduce stigma and discrimination attached to the area.

“We will develop and transform the face of Sophia.

People must no longer associate Sophia with fear, [and] that is something that must be eliminated within our first term in office,” Rodrigues said.

Similar sentiments were expressed by Permanent Secretary Andre Ally, who noted that the Government’s modus operandi is one that is equitable and non-discriminatory.

Meanwhile, Chief Executive Officer of CH&PA, Sherwyn Greaves, explained that the home improvement subsidies would be no more than $500,000 for each household selected, and would be granted in the form of building materials for repairs to walls, floors, electrical works and sanitation improvements, among other areas.

Greaves said the country currently faces a housing deficit of 4,000, which has resulted in overcrowding and reducing the quality of life. As such, AHUAP plays an important role in Government’s response for more sustainable housing solutions. All beneficiaries are individuals in vulnerable households, living in structures considered to be not habitable. These are also persons who possess owner-

Amelia’s Ward man remanded for supermarket robbery

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efore Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan on Wednesday, 27-yearold Richard Caesar, a labourer of South Amelia’s Ward, Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice), appeared to answer a charge of armed robbery.

It is alleged that on August 27, at Central Amelia’s Ward, Linden, while being armed with a gun, he robbed the Xiang Wang Supermarket of an iPhone 6S valued at $80,000, and $950,000 in cash. The cash and phone are the property of Guan Xiang, the owner of the supermarket.

The accused was not required to plead to the indictable charge when he ap-

Remanded: Richard Caesar

peared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Caesar was charged with the offence as per Section 222 (c) of the Criminal Law Offences Act, and was remanded to prison by the Chief Magistrate. The case continues on October 25 at the Linden Magistrate’s Court.

Two other men from Linden 19-year-old Shamar Prince of Self-Help Scheme, Amelia’s Ward, and Schimell Doris, 23, of 1692 Central Amelia’s Ward - were earlier charged with robbing the supermarket.

Doris was charged for conspiracy to commit an armed robbery, while Prince was charged with robbery under-arms at the supermarket.

GDF rank arrested for assaulting female

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Corporal attached to the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) was on Thursday arrested after he reportedly assaulted a 23-year-old female.

The Police have said that on Wednesday at about

21:30h, the victim went to the Leonora Police Station and made a report of assault against the rank.

She has alleged that the suspect dealt her several kicks and cuffs about her body, and she was also

lashed to her forehead with a rolling pin, which caused her to receive injuries.

As a result, the suspect was arrested and has been placed under close arrest.

An investigation in continuing.

Some of the residents at the event on Thursday

ship of the said property and would have applied and prequalified for the programme.

In addition to the home improvement subsidies, the Ministry, through CH&PA, also distributed cash grants to three (3) farmers at a total of $640,000; and seventeen (17) income allowance entitlements valued $554,000 to

business owners.

These other two components fall under AHUAP’s Livelihood Restoration Plan (LRP) to compensate project-affected persons (PAP) who were displaced during the infrastructure works in Sophia. Cash entitlements were determined based on the daily income (profits) ac-

cruing from businesses/commercial activity reported by PAPs and recorded during the socio-economic survey.

In August, CH&PA also distributed a total of $164 million in home improvement subsidies and contracts for core homes under AHUAP in La Parfaite Harmonie, Region Three.

Dead: Sandramma Raju, called “Roma”

Charged: Ganeshwar Sheocharran

The United States Embassy in Georgetown has said that through cooperation among the regional security offices of both Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago, the Guyana Police Force’s Criminal Investigation

Department, US Custom and Border Protection, the US Marshal Service and Caribbean Airlines, Sheocharran was denied entry upon arrival in New York, and was sent back to Guyana.

Berbice man who set wife on fire now charged with murder

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ays after Sandra “Roma” Raju who had been set on fire by her husband succumbed to her injuries, the perpetrator, 30-year-old Ganeshwar Sheocharran, has been charged with the capital offence of murder.

He was initially slapped with an attempted murder charge and was remanded to prison by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan, but was on Thursday arraigned with the new charge when he appeared at the Whim Magistrate’s Court.

He was not required to plead to the indictment, and was remanded to prison until October 14, 2021.

It has been reported that Sheocharran and Raju had had an argument during which he used a lighter to set his wife on fire, but she managed to put out the flames by rolling on the floor.

The woman, who suffered second-degree burns to 98 per cent of her body, had been in critical condition in hospital.

Raju, a medical laboratory technician attached to the Port Mourant Hospital, had reportedly been living in an abusive relationship, but had been reluctant to report incidents of violence to the Police.

Reports are that after setting his wife on fire, Sheocharran had fled the country, but family members of Raju were alerted, and they contacted the Police.

By that time, however, he was already on his way to the US, having boarded an American Airlines flight on Tuesday.

18

guyanatimesgy.com

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

Regional

Brazil approaches 600,000 UNC Senator: Police must investigate PSC O COVID deaths in seconddeadliest outbreak pposition Senator Wade Mark on Thursday called on the Police to interview President Paula-Mae Weekes, members of the Police Service Commission (PSC) and the Cabinet.

“The Police Service should get involved in this. They should investigate this. Speak with Her Excellency on this matter. This is criminal, Interview all of them. Our democracy is on trial,” Mark said at a media conference at the Opposition Leader’s office at Charles Street, Port of Spain.

He called on the Prime Minister to say which senior

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razil has had 24,611 new cases of the novel coronavirus reported in the past 24 hours, and 648 deaths from COVID-19, the Health Ministry said on Thursday.

The South American country has now registered 21,308,178 cases since the pandemic began, while the official death toll has risen to 592,964, according to Ministry data, in the world’s third worst outbreak outside the United States and India and its second-deadliest after the United States.

As vaccination advances, the rolling seven-day average of COVID deaths has fallen to less than one fifth of the toll of almost 3000 a day at the peak of the pandemic in April.

Meanwhile, legislation aimed at reducing the size of the Brazilian State and trimming the growth of public payrolls cleared the committee stage in the lower chamber of Congress on

A healthcare worker shows the syringe to a woman after applying a dose of Sinovac’s CoronaVac COVID-19 vaccine at Cacique de Ramos, one of the most traditional carnival blocks of Rio de Janeiro (file photo)

Thursday in a significant advance for the Government’s reform agenda.

Despite Opposition objections, the measure amends the country’s Constitution to loosen guarantees for public servants, toughening performance criteria and allowing the contracting of temporary employees for up

to 10 years.

Because it is a constitutional amendment, it will require three-fifths of the votes in the plenary, or 308 of its 513 members, though lawmakers are optimistic it will muster the needed support because of the burden of Government payrolls on its budget deficit. (Reuters)

Peru to cremate body of Shining Path founder and dispose of his ashes

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eruvian authorities on Thursday said they had decided to cremate the body of Abimael Guzman, the founder of the Shining Path rebel group that killed tens of thousands of people in the 1980s and 1990s, and spread his ashes in an undisclosed location.

The cremation would end over a week of controversy over what to do with the body of one of Peru’s most reviled figures. Guzman died in prison on September 11 at the

age of 86 from an infection while serving a life sentence for terrorism.

Guzman’s widow, Elena Iparraguirre, herself a former Shining Path leader who is also imprisoned, had sought to cremate the body but keep the ashes, a lawyer told Reuters last week.

The lawyer, Sebastian Chavez Sifuentes, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Authorities wanted to scatter Guzman’s ashes to

avoid a grave site that could become a rallying point for supporters.

The cremation was made possible by a new law, passed on September 16, that allows Peruvian authorities to cremate and dispose of the ashes of those who die after being convicted of terrorism.

Peru’s Attorney General said in a statement announcing the decision that they would dispose of Guzman’s ashes within 24 hours.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Cabinet Minister was at the President’s House when the PSC met with the President to submit the merit list for the position of top cop and who presented information that prevented PSC Chairman Bliss Seepersad from submitting the names.

“Who was it? Why did they go on that evening? Was it the Minister of Energy, Stuart Young? Was it the Minister of National Security, Fitzgerald Hinds? Was it the Prime Minister himself, Keith Christopher Rowley?”

Mark said the entire process of selecting a top cop was mired in political mischief, with the Government want-

ing to hand-pick a “stooge” to arrest their political opponents. He reminded those in attendance that the United National Congress (UNC) opposed Seepersad’s appointment, saying it was against Section 126:2 of the Constitution, since at the time she was a board member of the Chagauramas Development Authority (CDA).

The Opposition has repeatedly called for the resignation of the PSC after it was sued by former Police Commissioner Gary Griffith, who insists that its letter suspending him is illegal. (Excerpt from Trinidad Newsday)

PAHO says course of COVID-19 pandemic “highly uncertain”

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he course of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the Americas remains “highly uncertain”, the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) said on Wednesday in an update to its 59th directing council meeting of health ministers.

Surges in cases in the first half of this year, coupled with vaccine hesitancy and shortages continue to pose a challenge to halting the spread of COVID-19 in the Region.

The 28-page report outlined PAHO’s response to the pandemic since the first case was detected in the Americas in January last year.

To date, the Region continues to be the hardest hit, with 88,207,746 confirmed cases and 2,175,310 deaths.

The report stated that the suppression of COVID-19 in the Americas will continue to require a comprehensive response, with sustained health services network capacities, public health and social measures, targeted vaccination operations, and outbreak control actions, such as early detection, investigation and isolation of cases, and tracing and quarantine of contacts.

“We are in the fight of our lives against the SARS-CoV2 virus,” PAHO Director, Dr Carissa F Etienne told dele-

gates. “We need to make sure that we win.”

She added that financial resources to combat COVID-19 may be less next year.

“We will not get out of this pandemic without solidarity,” she said.

The availability of COVID-19 vaccines continues to be limited, the report said, and many countries in Latin America and the Caribbean face inequities in access.

Vaccine hesitancy, the report added, may further slow uptake by the population or prevent full achievement of vaccination potential. (Excerpt from CMC)

Jamaica’s Gender Minister says 1st woman chief a “huge step” for gender equality

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ender Minister Olivia Grange, says Commodore Antonette Wemyss Gorman’s appointment as the next Chief of Defence Staff represents not only

US Haiti envoy quits over “inhumane” deportations

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he US special envoy for Haiti has resigned in protest over the deportation of Haitian migrants.

The decision to return migrants fleeing an earthquake and political instability was “inhumane”, senior diplomat Daniel Foote said in a damning letter.

Last weekend, the US started deportation flights from a Texas border town, where about 13,000 migrants had gathered under a bridge.

They have been waiting in a makeshift camp in temperatures of 37 degrees Celsius.

Local officials have struggled to provide them with food and adequate sanitation.

Since Sunday, the US has returned to Haiti 1401 migrants from the Texas camp on the border with Mexico.

In his resignation letter, Foote said Haiti was a “collapsed state” that “simply cannot support the forced infusion of thousands of returned migrants lacking food,

Last weekend, the US started deportation flights from a Texas border town, where about 13,000 migrants had gathered under a bridge

shelter, and money without additional, avoidable human tragedy”.

White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki responded in a press conference: “Special Envoy Foote had ample opportunity to raise concerns about immigration during his

tenure. He never once did so.”

Psaki also described images from the border – showing horse-mounted US officers corralling the migrants – as horrific and said horses would no longer be used in the area.

The widely shared pic-

tures, taken by an AFP photographer earlier this week, have evoked grim comparisons to US slavery and the country’s historical mistreatment of black people.

That led to pressure on President Joe Biden’s Administration, and prompted calls from within his Democratic Party to give the Haitians asylum rather than fly them back to their home country.

Many Haitians left after a devastating earthquake struck the country in 2010.

A large number of those in the camp had been living in Brazil or other South American countries and travelled north after being unable to secure jobs or legal status.

This year has brought further hardship for the impoverished country. In July, President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated – and in August it suffered another deadly earthquake. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Commodore Antonette Wemyss Gorman, who was newly promoted to the post of Chief of Defence Staff for the Jamaica Defence Force

“a huge step” for women and girls, but also gender equality in the country.

Commodore Wemyss Gorman – who will be promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral – will become the first woman appointed to the position.

Her appointment takes effect in January 2022.

Commodore Wemyss Gorman will replace the current Head, Lieutenant General Rocky Meade, who is retiring.

In a statement from the Gender Ministry, Grange said she was happy to receive the news of Commodore Wemyss Gorman’s appointment, describing it as “another great leap for women in Jamaica”.

The Minister said the

incoming Chief of Defence Staff was a “very competent, high achiever who has given exceptional service to the Jamaica Defence Force and to the country; and was a great choice for the top post”.

“I note too that she has realised her dream at the relatively young age of 48.

This is not surprising since during her time as a career officer she excelled in establishing the Caribbean Military Maritime Training Centre and the Maritime Air and Cyber Command, which includes the JDF Coast Guard, the JDF Air Wing and Special Forces.”

Grange believes that Wemyss Gorman’s appointment will inspire women and girls across the country. (Jamaica Observer)

guyanatimesgy.com

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

19

Around the World

OILNEWS OIL NEWS Oil prices rise, hit 2-month highs on supply worries

O

il prices rose on Thursday, with Brent crude touching its highest level in more than two months, supported by growing fuel demand and a draw in US crude inventories as production remained hampered in the Gulf of Mexico after two hurricanes.

Supply concerns had funds taking longer positions, analysts said.

Brent crude settled up US$1.06, or 1.4 per cent, at US$77.25 a barrel, its highest price since mid-July. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose US$1.07, or 1.5 per cent, to US$73.30 a barrel.

"The reality is setting in – there's more talk about global inventories tightening and there are concerns about supply issues going into winter," said Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago. Additional support may come as the White House takes a tougher line on Iran, he said.

On Wednesday, both contracts jumped 2.5 per cent after the US Energy Information Administration (EIA)reported US crude stocks in the week to September 17 fell by 3.5 million barrels to 414 million – the lowest since October 2018.

Also supporting prices, some members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies have struggled to raise output after years of under-investment or delays to maintenance work during the pandemic. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Defeated candidates in Russian election try to annul 'crooked' online results

Some of the defeated candidates, most of whom are Communists, have called on voters to gather in Moscow on Saturday

A

coalition of defeated parliamentary candidates in Moscow who allege they were cheated of victory in a parliamentary election by a crooked online voting system said on Thursday they would try to overturn the results via lawsuits and public pressure.

Some of the defeated candidates, most of whom are Communists, have called on voters to gather in Moscow on Saturday after eight parliamentary seats where the Communists had been ahead suddenly flipped to the ruling United Russia party once online voting results were added in.

United Russia, which supports President Vladimir Putin, won a bigger-than-expected parliamentary majority despite unease over

living standards, interim official results showed.

The authorities have said Saturday's planned meeting is illegal due to restrictions on public events related to COVID-19.

The central election commission, which has said the vote was exceptionally clean and transparent, is due to formally approve the election results today. The Kremlin said the election had been competitive, open, and honest.

In a statement published on Facebook on Thursday, the defeated candidates said they wanted the authorities to annul the results of electronic voting in Moscow and for the idea of electronic voting to be abandoned for future elections. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Quad leaders to deliver on vaccines, infrastructure, tech – US official

A

first in-person meeting of the leaders of the Quad group of countries – the United States, Japan, Australia and India – will today yield progress in several areas including infrastructure, health and cyber, a senior US Administration official told Reuters.

The Quad leaders – US President Joe Biden, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison – will also discuss regional security, the official said on Thursday, although he stressed that security was not the focus of the informal grouping that has come together in response to China's growing power.

The Quad grouping will hold its first in-person leaders meeting today

While declining to provide specifics, the official, who did not want to be identified, said the summit at the White House "will have much to say" about next steps on vaccines for the Indo-Pacific region.

"We have what we call deliverables in infrastructure, on broader health engagements on science and technology on the space, on cyber," he said.

He called a commitment made at a virtual meeting of

the Quad leaders in March to supply a billion COVID-19 shots across Asia by the end of 2022 "important".

"Obviously, there have been challenges in India over the course of the summer.

But ... we believe that it will be important to meet the ambitions that we laid out at that time."

The March initiative stalled after India, the world's biggest vaccine producer, was hit by a devastating surge of infections and halted all vaccine exports.

India has since said it is ready to restart vaccine exports in the October quarter, prioritising the COVAX international vaccine initiative and neighbouring countries first. (Excerpt from Reuters)

“Death sentence”: Low-lying nations implore faster action on climate at UN

F

aced with what they see as an existential threat, leaders from low-lying and island nations implored rich countries at the United Nations General Assembly this week to act more forcefully against a warming planet.

The failure by developed economies to effectively curb their greenhouse gas emissions contributes to rising sea levels and especially imperils island and low-lying nations at the mercy of water.

"We simply have no higher ground to cede," Marshall Islands President David Kabua told leaders in a pre-recorded speech at the high-level gathering on Wednesday. "The world sim-

ply cannot delay climate ambition any further."

Countries agreed under the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change mitigation to attempt to limit the rise in global temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius, the threshold scientists say would head off the worst impacts of warming. To do that, scientists say, the world needs to cut global emissions in half by 2030, and to net-zero by 2050.

"The difference between 1.5 degrees and 2 degrees is a death sentence for the Maldives," President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih told world leaders on Tuesday.

UN Director at the International Crisis Group,

Tedros poised for reelection at WHO as support grows – diplomats

D

r Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has gained wide support for a second term as Head of the World Health Organisation (WHO), formally nominated by at least 17 European Union members and backed by countries in other regions, diplomats said on Thursday.

As the deadline for nominations elapsed, diplomats said that they were unaware of any other names being put forward, suggesting that Dr Tedros will stand unopposed in the May election.

Dr Tedros, a former Health and Foreign Minister of Ethiopia, elected as WHO's first African Director General in May 2017, has led the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

He has steered the UN agency through attacks on its handling of the crisis, which was sparked by a new corona-

virus that emerged in China in late 2019 and has killed 4.9 million.

While the Trump Administration accused Dr Tedros of being "Chinacentric", charges he rejected, relations warmed with the Biden Administration, especially after Tedros publicly said that further investigations were needed into the origins of the virus, including audits of China's laboratories, diplomats said.

But he has been shunned

by Ethiopia due to friction over the Tigray conflict, making it necessary for other countries to step into the breach and submit his name for a second five-year term.

"He is not unscathed, but broadly the international community feels it is really important to get behind him," a senior diplomat from a nonEU country told Reuters.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Richard Gowan said there had been a "sense of existential crisis" running through the annual gathering at the United Nations.

"Both Beijing and Washington want to show

they are leading the fight against global warming. If the small islands' leaders can't get people to listen at this General Assembly, they never will," Gowan said.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

CDC advisors back COVID booster shots for those 65 and older, not for high-risk workers

Cal State Dominguez Hills student Yomaria De Santiago receives a Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in Carson, Los Angeles, California, US, August 26, 2021

A

US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advisory panel on Thursday recommended a booster shot of the Pfizer and BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for Americans aged 65 and older and some adults with underlying medical conditions that put them at risk of severe disease.

But the panel declined to recommend boosters for younger adults, including healthcare workers, who live or work in institutions with high risk of contracting COVID-19, which could narrow the scope of the US Food and Drug Administration's emergency use authorisation issued on Wednesday.

The guidelines voted on by the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunisation Practices still need to be signed off on by CDC

Director Rochelle Walensky.

The recommendations are not binding, and states and other jurisdictions could disregard them and use other approaches to administering the booster shots.

Still, the vote by the group, following the FDA's authorisation clears the way for a booster rollout to begin as soon as this week for millions of people who had their second dose of the Pfizer shot at least six months ago.

Beyond older Americans, the committee also recommended the shots for all adults over 50 with underlying conditions, as well as some 18- to 49-year-olds with those conditions, based on their individual risk profile.

Those conditions include cancer, diabetes, certain heart conditions, and chronic kidney disease and lung disorders. (Excerpt from Reuters)

20

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

guyanatimesgy.com

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ARIES

Bartering is to your advantage.

A partnership (March 21looks promising. The more April 19) you talk, the easier it will be to convince others to join the conversation. Use your imagination to captivate others.

TAURUS (April 20May 20)

DILBERT

GEMINI (May 21June 20)

CANCER (June 21July 22)

PEANUTS LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

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CALVIN AND HOBBES

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

SUDOKU

SCORPIO (Oct. 24Nov. 22)

An unexpected change will result if you make demands or let someone push you. Keeping a balanced lifestyle will help you ward off anyone trying to meddle with your plans. Be secretive.

Work diligently behind the scenes, where no one will bother you. Aim to accomplish the most in the least amount of time and move on to activities that offer mental and physical stimulation.

Stick to what and who you know. Avoid outsiders; stay within your inner circle to avoid mistrust and harsh words. Put your emphasis on improvements and doing things in your unique fashion.

Hold on to your emotions. Refuse to give someone the upper hand by showing your true feelings. Keep your life simple and stay focused on what you can accomplish without giving too much away.

Alter the way you do things, and you will learn something valuable.

A change will revitalize your outlook and introduce you to a life choice you hadn’t considered in the past.

An energetic approach to life will catapult you past anyone who interferes. Your desire to win will keep you revved up and ready to excel. Taking on a partner will slow you down. Go it alone.

A change is overdue. Put your plans in motion. Move forward without looking back or letting any hurdles deter you from taking the first step. Embrace life and take charge of your future.

Sharing too much inforSAGITTARIUS mation will slow you down.

(Nov. 23Be sure you take care of the Dec. 21) necessary details to ensure your plans unfold without a hitch. Timing is everything.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

SOLUTION FOR LAST PUBLISHED PUZZLE AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 19)

Spend more time at home or working alongside people who share your goals and interests. A domestic change will make your life easier and help eliminate stress.

Learn from experience.

Stop and take inventory.

Remember what’s happened in the past and make the necessary changes to prevent making the same mistake twice. Trust your intelligence, not your emotions.

Put your energy where it counts, and you’ll find a (Feb. 20- position that intrigues you.

March 20) Revamp your resume to fit trends.

Self-improvement projects are favored, as well as spending time with a loved one.

PISCES

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

In order to retain T20 World Cup, Windies may need someone to fill Samuels’ shoes F

ormer member of the Barbados Cricket Association (BCA) Selection Panel, Roland Butcher, believes it could be critical for the

West Indies to find a capable replacement for retired batsman Marlon Samuels if the team is to have a chance of retaining the T20 World Cup.

Wenger “ready to take that gamble” over new international match calendar

A

rsene Wenger says he is "ready to take that gamble" over his proposals to overhaul football's match calendar "to make the game better".

The former Arsenal boss has suggested fewer international breaks and staging the World Cup every two years.

In an exclusive interview with BBC podcast The Sports Desk, Wenger said: "The risk is to make football better, and I'm ready to take that gamble." He added the current schedule offered "no clarity, no simplicity, no modern way to organise a season".

Wenger, head of global development for world governing body Fifa, said: "I think if we go on like that, we hit the wall."

He said he would tackle "chaos" and "congestion" in the game.

"What is absolutely detrimental to the players is repeated travelling and jet-lag. With reducing the qualifying period, I believe that the clubs will benefit, the players would benefit."

According to a survey commissioned by Fifa, a majority of fans favoured holding a men's World Cup more frequently than every four years - although the most popular response across all age groups was to maintain the status quo.

When asked whether he risked devaluing football's showpiece tournament by doubling its frequency, Wenger said: "The World Cup is such a huge event that I don't think it will diminish the prestige. You want to be the best in the world, and you want to be the best in the world every year.

"I'm not on an ego trip. I've been asked to help to shape the calendar of tomorrow, I consult the whole world."

"Emotional response" to World Cup plans

On Wednesday, European football's governing body Uefa said the plans created four significant "dangers" for football, including a potential loss in prestige for the World Cup and concerns over player welfare.

It rejected Wenger's suggestion the new schedule would improve the competitive chances of smaller nations, and said the development of women's football, with tournaments "deprived of exclusive slots and overshadowed by the proximity of top men's events", would be impacted. It also accused Fifa of a lack of consultation.

"I'm confident, but I do not know the forces who are for or against. I just make that proposal because I think it's good for the game," insisted Wenger. "I was a long-time manager at Arsenal, and I felt always that the separation between international competition and club competition was not good enough.

"After the proposal for the World Cup every two years, sometimes [there is an] emotional response.

I'm not surprised. Many people who were completely against it changed their mind after having seen my proposal.

"Some people have judged only based on every two years of World Cup, and it was more emotional, because 'we've all grown up in that cycle', and I can understand that.

"But many responses who were negative came out because they had not completely seen the whole concept. This concept, of course, every two years a World Cup, makes only sense if you see the whole proposal and if you regroup the qualifiers."

"A proposal to make football more meaningful"

After 166 member associations voted to approve a feasibility study when it was proposed by the Saudi Arabian federation earlier this year, Wenger was tasked by Fifa President Gianni Infantino with finding the best way to change it.

His ideas include: * A biennial World Cup in even years; * Confederation tournaments (including the European Championship) in odd years; * Either one (October) or two (October and March) mid-season international breaks, for a month

in total, when qualifying for major tournaments will take place, rather than the current five windows; * Guaranteed rest periods of 25 days for players once tournaments are over.

Fifa will hold an online summit with its member associations on 30 September to discuss the international men's and women's calendars.

The current match calendar for the women's game runs to the end of 2023, while the men's expires in 2024.

"The international match calendar is fixed until 2024; so, until then, nothing can change. I've been guided by a few ideas to propose a plan to reshape the international match calendar," said Wenger.

"The first one is to make football better all over the world. The second one is to have a more modern way and more simple way to organise the calendar. Therefore, I want to reduce the number of qualifiers and to regroup the qualifying periods."

When asked if he would support such an idea if still a club manager, Wenger said: "I would agree with what I propose, because I think for the club it's much better. There is no interference during the season, and I suffered a lot from interference during the season.

"It's not about me, it is about the proposal to make football better, clearer, more simple and more meaningful to the world.

"I am convinced that the clubs gain in it, because they can focus completely, they have their players available for the whole season, and the national teams benefit from it as well.

"There's no increase of number of games, there's a better rest period, less travelling, and more quality competition. That's why I think this project is really defendable.

"Yesterday I was in a very long meeting with Fifpro [the players' union], we consult everybody. We are conscious that we need to talk to everybody. I think I've convinced Fifpro that, in my programme, the players were my first worry." (BBC Sport)

The mercurial Samuels played a key role on both occasions the team won the title, managing to put together innings that balanced an abundance of caution at the crease with scoring aggression when needed.

In 2012, Samuels average a solid 38.33, with a strike rate of 132 en route to the team’s triumph, but, more importantly, top-scored in the final with 78 from 56 deliveries, giving the West Indies a comfortable win over Sri Lanka.

In 2016, it was Carlos Brathwaite who got the accolades in a thrilling, brutal final-over onslaught in the final against England, but it was Samuels who once again top-scored at the other end, his 85 from 66 balls proving just as crucial in the team’s title triumph.

For that tournament, Samuels averaged 36.20 with a strike rate of 112.42.

“West Indies will play their brand of cricket, which is all guns blazing, but let us remember in those two World Cups that they won, there

21

was a certain Marlon Samuels who was the glue,” Butcher told the Mason and Guest radio programme. “Among all of those stars, there was someone who could hold the team together, and, when needed, up the scoring rate.

“What they need to do is to find someone to play that role, and play it successfully,” he added.

Among the candidates to do so for the upcoming tournament will be Roston Chase, whose performance during the recently concluded CPL saw him force himself into the thoughts of the selectors. For the finalists, St Lucia Kings this season, Chase averaged an impressive 49.55, with a strike rate of 144.33.

“The question will be whether Roston Chase can perform that role to that level on the international stage. This is the international level, with the best teams, it’s not the CPL. Marlon Samuels proved, not just on those two occasions, that when things were tough, he was the go-to man.” (Sportsmax)

Thompson-Herah to make shocking move away from MVP after history-making season – reports

O

Elaine Thompson-Herah

n the heels of her record-breaking, historymaking season, Olympic champion Elaine Thompson-Herah is reportedly parting ways with MVP Track Club, just under 18 months after Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce departed to join Elite Performance.

Nationwide News reported this morning that Thompson-Herah, who created history at the Tokyo Olympic Games in August, has written to MVP and to her shoe sponsor Nike, informing them of her decision. MVP President Bruce James told Nationwide that there are ongoing negotiations with the athlete about her future at the club.

Sportsmax.TV sources have subsequently indicated that Thompson-Herah has indeed informed the club that she is leaving. However, there is no indication yet as to where she might end up.

In Tokyo, Thompson-Herah became the first woman to defend 100 and 200m titles at the same Olympic Games. She set an Olympic record of 10.61 in the final of the 100m and then set a national record of 21.53 over 200m, the second-fastest time in history, eclipsing Merlene Ottey’s 25-year-old national record of 21.64.

Following her Olympic campaign, where she also won gold in the 4x100m relay, Thompson-Herah ran times of 10.54, 10.64 and 10.65, making her the only woman to run four legal times under 10.70s. She also won the 100m Diamond League title in Zurich.

MVP’s history has been replete with the departures of major athletes. Sherone Simpson, Asafa Powell, Melaine Walker and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce have all left the club over the past decade, in some instances citing a conflict with the club’s hierarchy. (Sportsmax)

22

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

Restarted IPL 2021…

Andre Russell wasn't spared either, with de Kock welcoming him into the attack with back-to-back fours.

Knight Riders' bowlers strike back

S

cintillating half-centuries from Rahul Tripathi and Venkatesh Iyer gave Kolkata Knight Riders a thumping seven-wicket win against Mumbai Indians in Abu Dhabi.

As a result, Knight Riders have jumped to the fourth spot on the points table, with eight points from nine games.

Chasing 155, Knight Riders attacked right from the start. Shubman Gill fell early, but Iyer and Tripathi added 88 in 52 balls for the second wicket. Iyer struck 53 off 30 balls and Tripathi an unbeaten 74 off 42 balls as Knight Riders chased down the target in 15.1 overs.

Earlier, a returning Rohit Sharma and Quinton de Kock put together 78 in 9.2 overs for the first wicket. At that stage, Mumbai looked on track for a total in the vicinity of 180. However, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakravarthy, and towards the end Lockie Ferguson,

pulled things back to restrict them to a sub-par total.

Rohit, de Kock lay the foundation

In Knight Riders' last game against Mumbai Indians, Eoin Morgan had deployed spin for the first

the scoring rate in check, despite Rohit finding the boundary every now and then.

At the other end, de Kock was on 6 off eight balls against spin. But once the seamers came on, he cut loose. In six balls, he hit three sixes off Ferguson and

Narine provided Knight Riders with a breakthrough when Rohit mistimed a slog sweep and was caught at long-on. That started a lull.

Mumbai managed only 29 runs from overs 10 to 15 as Prasidh picked up the wickets of Suryakumar Yadav and de Kock. The latter reached his half-century off 37 balls, before mistiming a slower ball to short midwicket.

The onus was now on Kieron Pollard to help Mumbai finish strongly. In the 18th over, he smashed Prasidh over deep midwicket for a six, before pocketing a streaky four to fine leg off the next ball. He moved to 21 off 13 balls, but was running out of time.

Ferguson then bowled an excellent final over, conceding just six runs.

Eventually, Pollard was run out off the second ball of the 20th over. Off the third, Krunal Pandya holed out to long-on as the innings petered out.

Iyer, Tripathi break the back of the chase

Kieron Pollard comes up short of his crease

five overs. On Thursday, the spinners bowled the first four overs and managed to keep

Prasidh Krishna to take Mumbai to 56 for no loss at the end of the powerplay.

Knight Riders' openers Gill and Iyer gave the side a breezy start for the second time in two games. Gill started it by launching Trent Boult over deep midwicket, before Iyer pulled him over deep square-leg for the second six of the over. In the

SCOREBOARD MUMBAI INDIANS INNINGS (20 OVERS MAXIMUM) Rohit Sharma (c) c Shubman Gill b Narine 33 Quinton de Kock † c Narine b Prasidh Krishna 55 Suryakumar Yadav c †Karthik b Prasidh Krishna 5 Ishan Kishan c Russell b Ferguson 14 Kieron Pollard run out (Morgan/Ferguson) 21 Krunal Pandya c Iyer b Ferguson 12 Saurabh Tiwary not out 5 Adam Milne not out 1

Lockie Ferguson 4-0-27-2 Prasidh Krishna 4-0-43-2 Andre Russell 3-0-37-0

Extras (lb 1, nb 2, w 6) 9 TOTAL (20 Ov, RR: 7.75) 155/6

Did not bat: Andre Russell, Dinesh Karthik †, Sunil Narine, Lockie Ferguson, Prasidh Krishna, Varun Chakravarthy Fall of wickets: 1-40 (Shubman Gill, 2.6 ov), 2-128 (Venkatesh Iyer, 11.4 ov), 3-147 (Eoin Morgan, 14.1 ov)

Did not bat: Rahul Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult Fall of wickets: 1-78 (Rohit Sharma, 9.2 ov), 2-89 (Suryakumar Yadav, 12.1 ov), 3-106 (Quinton de Kock, 14.5 ov), 4-119 (Ishan Kishan, 16.2 ov), 5-149 (Kieron Pollard, 19.2 ov), 6-149 (Krunal Pandya, 19.3 ov) BOWLING O-M-R-W Nitish Rana 1-0-5-0 Varun Chakravarthy 4-0-22-0 Sunil Narine 4-0-20-1

next over, Iyer hit Adam Milne for a six and two fours.

By the time Jasprit Bumrah bowled Gill with an offcutter, Knight Riders had raced to 40 in three overs.

Coming in at No. 3, Tripathi continued in the same vein. He slashed Boult to the right of third man, paddled Milne over short fine, and by the end of the powerplay, the scorecard was displaying 63 for 1.

Even after the field restrictions were lifted, Iyer and Tripathi didn't stop go-

G

olfing action will continue at the Lusignan Golf Club this Saturday, September 25, as the “Farmsup” Golf Tournament sponsored by Farmsup is hosted.

The tournament will tee off at 12:30pm and will be medal play over 18 holes net score shotgun start. For further registration, persons are asked to contact the Lusignan Golf Club on 220-5660 to register.

Registration closes today at 12pm.

The first-place winner will cart off a trophy plus a $5000 voucher, second place a trophy plus a $4000 voucher, and third place a trophy plus a $3000 voucher. For the best net front nine (trophy plus $1500 voucher), best net back nine (trophy plus $1500 voucher), and nearest to the flag (trophy plus $1000 voucher).

Speaking on behalf of the Lusignan Golf Club, Vice President Paton George said, "The Lusignan Golf Club will be hosting another very anticipated Best Net Medal play competition on Saturday September 25th. Sponsoring Saturday’s tournament is Farm Supplies. The golf club would like to thank FarmSup for its continuing commitment to helping grow the game of golf in Guyana.

“FarmSup delivers, whether it is delivering high-quality equipment and first-class service. Whether it is delivering spare parts to Guyana’s most remote locations.

Whether it is providing initiatives that positively impact people’s lives both within and outside the organisation, or whether it is simply ‘keeping our promises’, Farm Supplies delivers.”

The LGC has noted that players who participate in tournaments from September 18 to October 25 will be eligible for consideration for free entry as a player into the Guyana Open Tournament via a competition format.

The points for free entry will be for the first 10 best net scores for each tournament; also, points will be awarded to the top five players for the day based on their net scores.

The player who accumulates the most points at the end of the exercise will be declared the winner, and can participate in the Guyana Open without having to pay the tournament fee.

All participants are advised to contact the club’s manager on the day of the tournament to collect their score cards, pay the tournament fees, and proceed to their allocated tee boxes to tee off at 12:30pm. All COVID-19 protocols will be in effect.

KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS INNINGS (TARGET: 156 RUNS FROM 20 OVERS) Shubman Gill b Bumrah Venkatesh Iyer b Bumrah Rahul Tripathi not out Eoin Morgan (c) c Boult b Bumrah Nitish Rana not out

13 53 74 7 5

Extras (lb 1, w 6) 7 TOTAL (15.1 Ov, RR: 10.48) 159/3

BOWLING Trent Boult Adam Milne Jasprit Bumrah Krunal Pandya Rahul Chahar Rohit Sharma

O-M-R-W 2-0-23-0 3-0-29-0 4-0-43-3 3-0-25-0 3-0-34-0 0.1-0-4-0

ing for their shots. Iyer was the first to bring up his fifty, off just 25 balls. Tripathi reached the landmark soon after, in 29 balls, with a topedged six off Bumrah.

Tripathi, Morgan apply finishing touches

It was Bumrah once again who struck for Mumbai, pegging back Iyer's leg stump with a slower ball, but it was too late for a miracle. With Knight Riders needing 28 off 48 balls, Tripathi hit Chahar for a six and four, with Morgan finishing the over with another six.

Morgan became Bumrah's third wicket, before Nitish Rana reverse-swept Rohit to take the side over the line.

(ESPNcricinfo)

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History created as BCB launches youth coaching manual …red letter day in Berbice Cricket, says Foster

“W

e have achieved so much over the last three and a half years.

Our hard work has transformed Berbice cricket to its highest level, and I would like to express thanks to all the cricket officials at both the club and board levels for your hard work and dedication. Today would always be remembered as a ‘red letter’ day in the history of our cricket, as we become the only cricket board in the history of Guyana and perhaps the Caribbean to publish its own coaching manual.

“Each one of us in this room should be proud of the hard work we do, but we must always strive to achieve even more, as the future of Berbice cricket is in our hands."

Those were the words of Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) President Hilbert Foster at a simple launching ceremony of the BCB’s coaching manual at the board’s head office in New Amsterdam.

The launch was deemed historic as it is the first time in the history of Guyana cricket that a county board has published its own coaching manual as part of a developmental programme.

Foster has said that when he was elected in February 2018, he inherited a broken system with no tournament, no finance, no developmental

Youth cricketers posing with their copies of the coaching manual after the launching

project, and he committed to leading a cricketing revolution to return Berbice cricket to its glory days.

With the BCB unable to host face-to-face coaching because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it was decided to publish a coaching manual that would allow youths to work on their game in the comfort of their homes.

A special working committee headed by Julian Moore and Winston Smith was established to work on the manual. Other coach-

es who worked on the document were Leslie Soloman, Balram Samaroo and Travis Hardcourt. BCB Assistant Secretary Ameer Rahaman served as the editor, along with Foster, while Brandon Corlette provided the photos.

The manual focused on coaching for batting, fast bowling, spin bowling, wicket keeping, ground fielding, catching, running between wickets, and physical fitness among other things. It also includes fielding positions and umpiring signals.

Rutherford to leave IPL 2021 following death of father

G

uyanese cricketer Sherfane Rutherford will reportedly return home from the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 following the passing of his father Orin.

Shortly after sharing the news about the death of his father, 58-year-old Orin Rutherford, via an Instagram post on Thursday morning, the Sunrisers Hyderabad franchise announced that the batsman would be returning home to be with his family.

“The #SRH family conveys its heartfelt condolences to Sherfane Rutherford and his family on the passing away of his father.

“Sherfane will be leaving the IPL bio-bubble to be with his family in this difficult hour,” the team disclosed in a social media post on Thursday.

Rutherford was called up to the IPL franchise for the resumption of the T20 competition after Jonny Bairstow withdrew.

Also sharing their condolences was the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB), who shared: “The President and members of the Berbice Cricket Board would like to extend our deepest condolences to Sherfane Rutherford on the shocking death of his dad. It must be very painful for this young man, who was only recently call up for duties at the Indian Premier League, and then to lose your

father and role model. It is our sincere hope that Jesus would bless you and your family during these difficult moments.

“Death may take away the physical remains of our loved ones, but it cannot take the memories of them. Our deepest sympathies to you and the other members of your family.”

It has been reported that the senior Rutherford succumbed as a result of COVID-19 complications.

Special articles are also in the manual on attributes of a good batsman, mental approach to batting, mental approach to the game, impor-

tance of discipline, benefits of physical preparation, and importance of physical fitness.

Sponsorship for the his-

toric manual was provided by long time BCB sponsors Dr Tulsi Dyal Singh, Dr Puran Singh and Brian Ramphal.

Julian Moore, who co-edited the manual, stated that he was very proud to be associated with the publication, as it would play a major role in the development of new talent from the county.

Moore, Soloman and Smith all hailed the visionary leadership of Foster, who not only came up with the proposal but worked hard to make it a reality.

Soloman noted that the BCB President was very vocal that the legacy of Berbice cricket must be protected at all cost, and that new talents must be discovered to carry on the tradition.

Foster also unveiled several developmental programmes for Berbice cricket, including a coaching video, cricket gears for youths, cricket academies, and an indoor cricket facility which would be constructed with overseas assistance.

Hutson aiming for safe and successful National Juniors

W

ith the National Youth and Juniors Track and Field Championships on this weekend, Aubrey Hutson, President of the Athletics Association of Guyana (AAG), is optimistic that the AAG would be able to pull off a smooth and successful meet.

The AAG is gearing to give the nation’s younger crop of athletes the opportunity to display their skills in the National Youth and Junior Track and Field Championships which would be held on Saturday and Sunday. The meet will be an important one, with several international competitions on the horizon for the youths.

In speaking with this publication, Hutson shared the response the AAG has received and the number of athletes to expect.

“We know that we are basically hemorrhaging a little bit simply because we haven't had schools championship this year. But the clubs have been working to have this championship done, and the response we're getting is pretty good,” Hutson said during an exclusive chat with Guyana Times Sport.

“We're getting more from the youth level than we have at the junior level.

But, you know, teams like Bladen Hall and Running Brave are really and truly sending in large contingents to this competition.”

AAG President Aubrey Hutson

Further, Hutson disclosed, “Of the 13 clubs that we have now, 11 of them will be here. And as it relates to the athletes’ number, I think we're looking at around between 175 to 200 athletes that are going to be competing over the weekend.”

With a close eye on the COVID-19 pandemic, the AAG will have a COVID officer present at the Leonora Track and Field Facility to ensure the proceedings are held within the guidelines.

Hutson informed, “We will have, on the day of competition, a COVID-19 officer who has the responsibility to ensure that people wear their masks and they observe all of the different protocols that we would have agreed to between ourselves and the COVID-19 Task Force. Also, the guidelines that would have been set out to us by the World Athletics.

“So, we're looking at

making sure that our events are run off where the athletes can benefit, and it does not become a, you know, super spread event where anybody gets infected with COVID-19,” he added.

As the South American Under 23 and Junior Pan American Games come up in October and November, Hutson sees the meet as a means of visibility, to secure sponsorship for the youngsters who will be jetting off to represent Guyana.

“Yes, competition is always great. There's never enough competition or too much competition for athletes. And we're looking at, you know, ensuring that those who are at the youth and junior level really and truly showcase their talent and make sure that the sponsors out there see who they are sponsoring and be more encouraged to sponsor more athletes to get us to the South American Junior Championships,” Hutson explained.

“Because shortly after that, you know, we have Platinum, so they're going to use the South American Junior, or Under-23 sorry, as a means of qualifying for parameters concert in November.” While the South American Under-23 competition is set for October 16 and 17 in Guayaquil, Ecuador, the Junior Pan American Games would be run from November 25 to December 5. (Jemima Holmes)

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

Farmsup Golf Tournament set for this Saturday at LGC

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

Hutson aiming for safe and successful National Juniors Page 23

Page 23

History created as BCB launches youth coaching manual Page 23

…red letter day in Berbice Cricket says Foster

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