Guyana Times - Monday 13, 2019

P14

Bridging the gender gap through technology Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

Issue No. 3922

THE BEACON OF TRUTH MONday, may 13, 2019

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CCJ no-confidence cases

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WHAT'S INSIDE:

Caribbean wonders reasons for Govt approaching CCJ

Govt engineering excuses to close sugar industry – former P11 Agriculture Minister

...says Govt’s dodging of elections raises questions about its self-confidence

Woman freed of domestic P10 worker’s murder

Page 3

– UWI Political Science Head

Basil Williams creating fear with “unrest” prediction Page 9

...wants to delay elections but could be self-fulfilling

Police allegedly P2 invade Waiakabra gold miner’s home FFTP denies P8 being “trespassers” on Berbice co-op lands

Twenty-four pharmacists on Saturday evening recited the pharmacist’s oath after donning their white coats and being awarded their licences to practise

Multiple contestants for PM slot counterproductive – Trotman ...implicitly criticises Ramjattan’s bid

Page 11

Gunmen storm, rob Mother cries for Berbice Chinese justice almost 1 year after son’s death Supermarket Diamond teen’s murder

Page 12

Page 2

Head of NPTAB, Prisons Director among officials red-flagged P7

by Integrity Commission – body issues warning to GuySuCo officials who left without filing declarations

2 news

MONday, may 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Gunmen storm, rob Berbice Police allegedly invade Chinese Supermarket Waiakabra gold miner’s home

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Bullet holes on the Police vehicle that came under fire

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he proprietors of a Chinese Supermarket in Albion, Berbice, along with customers, were on Saturday evening robbed after two masked gunmen invaded the business establishment.

Reports are around 21:30h, the two perpetrators arrived at the “Z-One Chinese Supermarket” located at Lot 16B Albion Front, Corentyne, Berbice, armed with an AK-47 assault rifle and a small handgun.

The men stormed the premises and immediately ordered the customers inside to lie face down on the floor while ordering the owners to hand over the cash.

According to a Police source, while making demands, one bandit hit one

room. A few minutes later, the bandit returned alone.

It was later discovered that after the gunman collected a quantity of cash and left the room, the woman locked herself in.

Meanwhile, one neighbour reported that he saw the men coming through the street dressed in hoodies.

According to her, a Police patrol vehicle was approaching and the bandit at the door opened fire on the vehicle sending the three officers diving to take cover.

“Is bear gunshots nonstop. Is about 20 shots I hear. The Police did not shoot back. And when he finish, they just walk and go through the street.”

Another eyewitness told Guyana Times that three strangers on bicycles were

of the proprietors across the head with his handgun.

Meanwhile, the other suspect proceeded to relieve the customers of their cash and cellular phones.

One staff recalled being taken to the back to show a bandit where the room containing the money was after which he took the gun and struck him to the head.

A female Chinese national was then ordered to lead the bandit to her private

seen riding through the street on several occasions earlier in the day. According to the villager, moments before the rapid gunfire, a strange car drove into the street behind the supermarket and parked.

“After I see the man shooting I know that is a robbery and then I see the two men with guns walk and coming straight towards my house and then they turn

One of the gunmen taking one of the proprietors to the back

and go in the street where the car park so I go inside and lock up,” the witness recalled.

While the robbery was in progress, the Police were notified, and a three-member team from the Albion Police Station was deployed to the scene.

This publication was told that the crime scene was some three blocks away from the Albion Police Station, but from all indications, the Police Officers were not pre-

pared for the welcome they received.

As the ranks arrived at the robbery scene, the gunmen fired multiple shots at the vehicle, resulting in the officers having to shield themselves while running for cover to avoid being hit by the bullets that were fired in their direction.

The ranks did not have time to return fire.

According to anoth-

er Police source, the three Constables who arrived in the patrol vehicle were not from the Impact Base Unit – one is a driver and the other two are attached to the Enquiries Unit of the Police Station.

“No senior rank was with them at the time of the incident, those Constables are pretty young and were probably on the job about a year to two, and this is the first time they were exposed to rapid gunfire. Maybe they did not have enough time to act, since the bullets went flying as soon as their vehicle came to a halt at the establishment, or maybe they could not shoot back because customers were being held hostage. However, they are from Enquiries so even though we are trained to shoot, this is the first time they experienced something like this and no senior person was there to guide them.

I mean, they turned up because they were the closest, like three lantern posts away from the scene is the police station…”, the source stated.

The gunmen managed to make good their escape with the loot on foot. The Police have since recovered 20 spent shells outside the supermarket and another six inside. Investigations are ongoing.

esidents of Waiakabra, on the Soesdyke/Linden Highway, are furious because ranks attached to the Timehri Police Station allegedly invaded the home of a miner, claiming that they were searching for stolen items.

The actions of the Police have left residents to believe that they were planning to rob the man, who returned from the interior only on Friday.

Two of the ranks were dressed in uniform, while a female was dressed in casual attire. They all claimed to be ranks of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID).

Based on reports received, at about 2:15h on Saturday, residents of the village were engaged in a night of worship at the church when they saw a motorcar bearing registration number PVV 2207 passing and headed towards the man’s home.

A resident, Devika (only name given), stated that as the car passed, one of the occupants told the others, “People in the church”, but the vehicle continued driving towards the house.

The woman explained that the villagers became suspicious after they heard a loud sound, and upon checking, they saw one of the ranks kicking opened the door to the miner’s house.

She said the owner of the home came out and enquired the purpose of the visit.

By this time the congregation had left the church and headed over to the man’s house, since they feared that the villager was about to be robbed by bandits posing as Police ranks.

The woman said the ranks all appeared to be under the influence of alcohol, and more so, one of the men was reportedly smoking.

“They were shocked because the area is usually very desolate and has very little electricity, and no one would be up at that hour; but because we had an allnight prayer service, we were there, and it was obvi-

ous they weren’t expecting that,” she added.

A sister of the home owner, Oslyn Wilson, related that the Police told her brother that they were there to search the premises for stolen articles in relation to a robbery involving his son.

However, the young man who is being accused works as an operator at a gold mining company in the interior, and was at his place of employment at the time; hence he could not have been involved in a robbery, as was reported by the Police.

The Police, she said, were quite adamant that they wanted to search the bottom flat of the premises.

“We asked for them to produce a search warrant, which they did not have; but because my brother was fearful, he allowed them in,” she said.

The woman added that as her brother opened the door, the Police entered the home as did the other occupants of the car. Upon seeing this, the church members followed.

“They went in and opened the wardrobe and cupboards, and immediately walked out back. It was as if they were not even searching for anything”, Wilson stated.

Upon questioning the ranks about the stolen items they were searching for, they could not provide a response.

It is based on their actions that the residents are of the opinion that had the church not been in session, the occupants of the car would have executed a robbery.

When Guyana Times contacted the Timehri Police Station, a corporal related that he was not aware of an operation, and advised that the residents make a report to the station.

“A” Division Commander Marlon Chapman, when contacted, also said he advised the resident to visit his office and lodge a complaint, after which an investigation will be launched into the incident.

news

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MONday, may 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

BRIDGE OPENINGS

CCJ no-confidence cases

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

Monday, May 13 – 12:00h-13:30h and Tuesday, May 14 – a nighttime retraction at 01:30 and a daytime retraction at 13:30h-15:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Monday, May 13 – 11:20h-12:50h and Tuesday, May 14 – 12:45h-14:15h.

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

Caribbean wonders reasons for Govt approaching CCJ – UWI Political Science Head …says Govt’s dodging of elections raises questions about its self-confidence

WEATHER TODAY Sunny intervals are expected to prevail during the day. Partly cloudy skies are expected in the evening, with temperatures ranging between 22 degrees Celsius and 31 degrees Celsius.

Winds: East North-easterly to North-easterly between 2.23 metres and 4.91 metres.

Three of the CCJ Judges during the hearing

High Tide: 12:02h reaching a maximum height of 2.30 metres.

Low Tide: 05:31h and 18:19h reaching minimum heights of 1.00 metre and 0.84 metre respectively.

saturday, may 11, 2019

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Senior Lecturer at UWI, Dr Bishnu Ragoonath

E

ven as the coalition Government fights for its survival in the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), a Trinidad and Tobago (T&T)-based political analyst has opined that the Caribbean at large on a daily basis questions the reason Government even went to court in the first place.

This is according to Dr Bishnu Ragoonath, a Senior Lecturer and Head of the Department of Political Science at the University of West Indies at its St Augustine campus in Trinidad. Dr Ragoonath was at the time making an appearance on a Globespan24x7 Town Hall panel discussion.

According to Dr Ragoonath, observers of the case in the Caribbean have been questioning the reasoning behind the Guyana Government going to the courts, ever since they first approached the High Court.

“For all intents and purposes, there was the feeling that ever since the matter went to the High Court, ‘why is this matter going to the High Court?’ Because as far as most of us were concerned, within the context of all our laws in the Caribbean, once you have faced a no-confidence vote and you have lost, it is anticipated that the Government will hand over or call elections within three months,” he said.

“So it is something that most of us, as political scientists and lay people in the Caribbean, would have (asked) why is Guyana going down this route. Why are they not going and call elections when they should?

And why is the Government now challenging this thing when initially they accepted it?”

Indeed, on the very night of the no-confidence vote, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo had accepted that Government must follow the Constitution and call elections in three months, in accordance with

the Constitution of Guyana.

Article 106 (6) and (7) of the Constitution states, respectively: “The Cabinet including the President shall resign if the Government is defeated by the vote of a majority of all the elected members of the National Assembly on a vote of confidence.”

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

According to Dr Ragoonath, the Government’s about-turn has caused many in the Caribbean to question whether the Government is afraid of going to the polls and whether this fear stems

from a lack of confidence in itself and its record.

“I think the eyes of the Caribbean looking at Guyana believe that if the Guyana Government felt so confident in themselves, they should have gone back to the polls

and let the people give them another mandate to take the Government forward for the next five years. But there is that concern, that maybe they’re not as confident as they should be.”

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guyanatimesgy.com

MONday, may 13, 2019

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

Four-year scorecard

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he PNC-led coalition Government issued a statement on their fourth anniversary, declaring that “No government before has done more within such a short span of time.” More specifically, the statement claimed they “steered the country forward as a stable and growing economy… restored respect for Guyana as a democracy…and supported and encouraged social cohesion among our multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, plural population.” Accepting the tendency to hyperbole during an election season - which is certainly upon us - these claims yet allow us to evaluate the Government’s performance over the last four years.

The state of the economy is certainly foremost on the minds of most Guyanese. Unlike what the Government claims, however, they could not have possibly “steered the country forward as a stable and growing economy”, since they have not achieved the growth rate achieved by the previous PPP administration. Between 2011 and 2014, the rate averaged 4.8 per cent under the PPP ministrations, but dropped to 3.9 per cent over the four years of PNC rule. It is a cruel hoax that is being perpetrated to claim we are in a “growing economy”.

This becomes more poignant when we examine the various sectors more granularly. In agriculture, which for most of our history was the economy’s linchpin, the Government spoke about “our diversified but balanced agro-industrial strategy”.

It is regrettable they did not release any specifics on this “strategy”, since the most the nation was informed about was the President’s exhortation for youths to get more involved in producing and selling plantain chips.

From the beginning, in its manifesto, the PNC-led Government did signal its de-emphasis on agriculture on the coastland, where it was dominated by supporters of the PPP, and committed itself to opening up lands in Region 10, where its supporters dominated, and Region 9, where it hoped to pick up supporters.

Another signal of its neglect was its appointment of a Minister of Agriculture who refused to venture into rural areas. Reacting to continuous criticism, the Government, in the last month, appointed a Junior Minister of Agriculture for “rural areas”, presumably leaving the senior Minister, in its “diversification drive”, to deal with agriculture in the urban areas.

On the coastland, the Government’s release couched its closure of four sugar estates and firing of 7000 workers, which affected over 35,000 family members and three times that number in surrounding communities, thusly: “After giving some $43 billion in “bailouts” and severance payments to the sugar industry (the Govt) took drastic action to save and secure the jobs of over 10,000 workers.”

By lumping “bailouts” and severance payments – which were legally due to the fired workers, but had to be painfully protested for – the Government once again threw out numbers it evidently pulls from the air. Just last December, they had spoken about $32 billion in “bailouts” to sugar, which was challenged by the Opposition Leader; and even if this were accurate, it would mean that $11 billion went to “severance”.

This is patently false, since the figure is at best half of that.

But what is even more shocking about the Government’s claims on “diversifying” agriculture is its abandonment of promises to transform sugar workers into farmers by leasing abandoned sugar lands to the fired workers and divesifying sugar into cash crops for the export markets. These coastal lands were literally won from the Atlantic Ocean by the blood, sweat and tears of our ancestors, and it is criminal that this PNC Government is allowing them to revert to “bush” while it seeks to open up arid and acidic savannahs in the interior just to spite PPP supporters.

On the claim of having “restored respect for Guyana as a democracy”, one wonders where this “respect” was after the pointed questioning of the Government’s lawyers by the CCJ judges on their apparent argument for a “Monarchy”.

And finally, on “social cohesion”, the citizens of this country have never been more divided, after the Chair of the PNC, Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence, announced that Government jobs were reserved only for “PNC people”.

Winners of the junior category, Jenel Cox Greaves and Trinity; senior category winners, Alicia Brown-Deeges and Aleria and the middle category winners, Subbrina Marcus and Nashavia posed with directors of the Mother and Daughter Pageant Ingrid Fung and Dr Sulan Fung-Browne at the National Cultural Centre on Saturday evening

Venezuela’s Guaidó asks for relations with US military

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enezuelan Opposition Leader Juan Guaidó on Saturday said he’s instructed his political envoy in Washington to immediately open relations with the US military in a bid to bring more pressure on President Nicolás Maduro to resign.

The leader said he’s asked Carlos Vecchio, who the US recognises as Venezuela’s Ambassador, to open “direct communications” toward possible military “coordination”.

The remarks, at the end of a rally Saturday, mark one of his strongest public pleas yet for greater US involvement in the country’s fast-escalating crisis.

While Guaidó has repeatedly echoed comments from the Trump Administration that “all options” are on the table for removing Maduro, few in the US or Venezuelan Opposition view military action as likely nor has the White House indicated it’s seriously considering such a move.

But with tensions between the US and Maduro running high, the sabre rattling is getting louder.

On Saturday, Venezuelan Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino condemned what he said was an illegal incursion by a US Coast Guard cutter into Venezuelan territorial waters. He provided no evidence to back the claim, but said that the Venezuelan Navy vessels forced it to withdraw.

“I don’t know if other republics will accept actions like this in their jurisdiction, but we will not,” he said.

Army Colonel Amanda Azubuike, a South Command spokeswoman, said a US Coast Guard vessel was con-

Venezuelan Opposition Leader Juan Guaidó (centre) speaks to supporters next to high-profile Opposition politician Leopoldo Lopez, who had been put under house arrest by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on April 30, 2019

ducting a drug interdiction mission in the international waters of the Caribbean Sea. She declined to provide further comment.

In past days, Padrino also denounced what he said were attempts by the US military to sow discord inside Venezuela’s barracks, inviting an angry response from US Navy Admiral Craig Faller, the head of South Command, who said he “stands ready” to assist Guaidó.

“I look forward to discussing how we can support the future role of those (leaders of Venezuelan armed forces) who make the right decision, put the Venezuela people first & restore constitutional order,” Faller said.

As head of the embattled National Assembly, Guaidó launched a campaign in January to oust Maduro, gaining the support of the US and more than 50 nations.

He announced Saturday a forthcoming meeting with US military officials and said that new actions taken by the Opposition will

seek to “achieve the necessary pressure” to put an end to the Bolivarian revolution launched 20 years ago by the late socialist President Hugo Chávez.

Guaidó has said that as Venezuela’s rightful leader he reserves the right to invite foreign military actions in the same way independence hero Simon Bolivar hired 5000 British mercenaries to liberate South America from Spain. He says any such help should be considered “cooperation”, instead of intervention, something he has accused Maduro of allowing in the form of military and intelligence support from allies Cuba and Russia.

In recent days, the Government has sought to ramp up its own pressure on the Opposition with the arrest of the number two leader of the Opposition-controlled National Assembly, Edgar Zambrano. Several other anti-Maduro lawmakers have sought refuge in the Embassies of foreign nations as the country’s top court announced investigations of

Zambrano and nine other members of Congress.

Meanwhile, noticeably diminished crowds at Opposition protests reflected a growing fear and demoralisation that has permeated Guaidó’s ranks of supporters after he led a failed military uprising on April 30. In previous months, thousands of demonstrators heeded his calls to protest.

On Saturday, a modest crowd of several hundred Venezuelans gathered in the capital of Caracas.

“We live in dictatorship,” Guaidó said, urging his supporters to press forward in their campaign to oust his foe. “We don’t have the option to stay at home waiting, but to keep demanding our rights in the streets.”

Guaidó argues that Maduro illegitimately won a second term in rigged elections and has boldly declared himself interim President of Venezuela.

Maduro has maintained control of the military by securing the loyalty of top commanders. He calls Guaidó a “puppet” of the Trump Administration and says that the US is supporting a coup to oust him to exploit the country’s vast oil wealth.

“The US Empire aims to end the Bolivarian Revolution,” Maduro tweeted early Saturday, boasting of the country’s education and social security systems.

“We show the world that we can do social justice.”

A once-wealthy oil nation, Venezuela has sunk into economic and social collapse marked by soaring inflation and a scarcity of basic goods that has sent an estimated 3.7 million of its citizens to emigrate. (CNBC)

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monday, MAY 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Caribbean Voice partners with church, drum school to spread Mother’s Day cheer S

unday marked Mother’s Day and The Caribbean Voice (TCV), in collaboration with the church and youth groups from the community of Buxton, brought cheer to a number of the village’s elderly matriarchs.

Reverend Desrey Watts of the Saint Matthias Church, was on hand on Sunday as the group of volunteers travelled throughout Buxton in search of the elderly to deliver hampers and other assorted goodies to them. She explained that the programme was launched in keeping with the church’s 30th anniversary.

“All these years we [would] invite the elderly at the home or wherever we are doing a programme, like August 1st programme, we do a programme with them. But instead of just feeding them like that, the children would dance and do different things to entertain them. So we continued doing it all the years and as time goes by I started to think about other things to do.”

TCV Managing Director Bibi Ahmad makes a presentation to one of the mothers on Sunday

“So it’s usually an entire programme for the whole village, like the feeding programme on 1st August. Or Diwali or Phagwah time. But this year we decided to start this programme. When it comes to our distribution, we have decided with the church that we’re going to do [it] every year, for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.” Meanwhile, TCV Managing Director Bibi Ahmad explained that her organisation is not only collaborating with the Saint Matthias Church, but also with the Buxton Fusion School of Music and the Youth Empowerment and Faith Group in order to carry out the exercise.

“Wherever we can make a difference, we go,” she explained.

“We not just about suicide prevention, or bringing awareness about abuse. We also partner to do humanitarian work, we have the distribution of pampers, wheelchairs, walkers and walking sticks.”

“Primarily the activities were coordinated by the reverend and

I collaborated with her, to supply things to give to elderly mothers.

These mothers [we are visiting] are more or less the real elderly mothers, such as the shut-ins,” Ahmad added.

It is understood that a total of 12 Buxtonian matriarchs were visited by the organisation. Among them were Evadney Talbot, who celebrated her 107th birthday on Friday to much fanfare, Ruby Blair, an 84-year-old senior citizen, Ms Huntley, 98 years old and Ms Francis, 95 years old.

The Caribbean Voice, a NonGovernmental Organisation, has more often been associated with its work on suicide prevention and its partnership with other bodies, including the Guyana Teachers Union (GTU) last year.

Last year, it conducted a community mental health workshop at Yakusari, Black Bush Polder, and two students’ workshops at a high needs high school at Ash Youth Developers Education Learning Institute, Vigilance, ECD.

4 years of increased The APNU/AFC and their shenanigans burdens by APNU/AFC

Dear Editor, Four years after entering office with a slim but controversial victory at the May 11, 2015 polls, the APNU/AFC coalition Government has reversed the direction of Guyana into a failed state. The coalition Government’s failure to address numerous scandals is the reality, which is that this coalition Government is considered to be the most corrupt Government ever in the history of Guyana.

The APNU/AFC coalition Government has failed in every aspect of governance in order to realise the good life for all Guyanese. In just four years of governance, our country has lost hope.

The are many signs of discrimination, racial and political discrimination against critics of the

Government emerging, along with marginalisation, massive corruption in every section of the Government, the upsurge of crime is uncontrollable, taxation is the only form of revenue, unemployment of thousands of workers, no new investments or job creation especially for young people, etc.

The list of failures of the Granger-led Administration has outweighed the few achievements, if there are any. Guyana can only recover from the mismanagement of the coalition Government by a new PPP/C Administration. The coalition Government has not delivered anything tangible in four years.

Regards, Zamal Hussain

APNU/AFC afraid to face electorate

Dear Editor, While the APNU/AFC Government tries to brag that it has achieved a lot in its four-year tenure, its brag lacks credible substance.

The APNU/AFC Government seems a bit confused as to why people are not rushing to congratulate them. What is there to congratulate them about?

The fact that they are out to enrich themselves (reference: 50 per cent pay rise for doing nothing); the fact that thousands of people have lost their jobs in a country

with high unemployment; the fact that they have not produced the evidence about rampant corruption under the PPP/C Government.

The list goes on and on but you get the picture.

Clearly, the APNU/AFC Government is not comfortable with their performance or they would hold general elections as required by the no-confidence vote. They are afraid to face the electorate.

Faithfully, Sean Ori

Dear Editor, It is most shameful to know that none of the new Neighbourhood Democratic Councils is provided with the required office, an assigned Overseer or the appropriate staff to undertake service activities for the benefit of residing residents. More serious is the fact that with all the boasting by the coalition Government about early budget, none of the new NDCs has received a single cent as subvention. These and other baseless inclusions on the coalition’s agenda, confirms the farcical and usually visionless delusion with which they are associated and often disguise.

Some of these NDCs are not collecting rates and taxes because the ‘Areas’ are not regularised. Hence, the elected councillors are unable to do anything while the Minister of Communities and the Government are

barking about how many new NDCs they established.

The fact is that the creation of the new NDCs serves more as an embarrassment to the Government because these establishments are not functioning and no arrangements are in place for these bodies to carry out their mandated functions in the short term. It is clear that in 2018, the Government rushed to have nine new Local Authority Areas with the hope of including their support base to vote at the Local Government Elections, considering the massive defeat they would have suffered in 2016.

Now that the elections are completed and the results favoured the PPP, the new LAAs are left on their own. The system is failing and the APNU/AFC Government doesn’t care.

Their plans didn’t pay off and the new LAAs didn’t de-

liver to them the expected votes because the PPP has made inroads. It begs the question: What’s next for the new LAAs? Now that they are official statutory bodies, they should be allowed to carry out their mandate to offer the required services to the people and their communities.

The recently appointed Member of Parliament, Donna Mathoo, of the AFC is one of significant national interest, given the mas-

sive evidence of mass corruption at the Berbice NCN branch which she headed.

It is strange and notable that Mathoo didn’t resign her position as a Councillor of the Region Six Regional Democratic Council before swearing in as a Member of Parliament. This incompetent cabal continues to make a mockery of the National Assembly too.

Sincerely, Neil Kumar

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have six nieces between the ages of 10 and 19, and boys who are more likely to believe they are the tech exover the years, I’ve spent many hours staring at perts of their families, 53 per cent versus 38 per cent of them hunched over small screens, hypnotised by the girls. Parents may have something to do with that: In glowing light and tapping away like mad. So much for the study, they tended to give sons more credit for figuring out new technology on their own while quality time with their adoring auntie.

I usually manage to temper my im“By teaching our girls reporting that their daughters learn techpulse to snatch the device from their finto code, we’re not just nology from someone else, whether it be a parent, sibling or friend. gers, though – in part because I know preparing them to Parents give sons more digital freethat being well-versed in technology, parenter the work force dom. A variety of research has found that ticularly as girls, is going to serve them — we’re preparing girls are more likely to be targeted by well: Over the last decade, opportunities false rumours online, as well as to receive in STEM fields (science, technology, enthem to lead it.” unwanted explicit messages. That might gineering, math) have grown three times — Reshma Saujani, explain why parents of girls have stricter faster than in non-STEM fields, accordthe founder of Girls rules for their daughters’ social media acing to the US Department of Commerce.

Who Code, a nonprofit tivity – they’re more likely to require perResearch by the Girl Scout Research that aims to close mission to download apps, turn on privacy Institute, out this week, drove that point settings or ask girls to share their passhome – showcasing through a survey of the gender gap in words.

2900 girls and boys ages 5 to 17 (along technology The future is bright (if we interwith their parents) how access to smartvene at the right moment). “By teaching phones, tablets, laptops and gaming devices helps put girls on par with boys when it comes to our girls to code, we’re not just preparing them to enter the work force – we’re preparing them to lead it,” tech, or exceed them in some respects.

Reshma Saujani, chief executive of Girls Who Code, said last year. And according to the Girl Scouts’ study, timGirls use tech to learn ing is crucial: Girls are the most interested in STEM caAmong the study’s most fascinating takeaways: Boys play games for fun, while girls use tech to learn. reers in middle school, but that number drops sharply, The vast majority of children use their devices to watch by about 15 per cent, between middle school and high videos and movies, listen to music and to play games. But school. (Despite increasing demand for STEM workers, while boys are more likely than girls to play games for women account for just about 25 per cent of graduates in these fields, The Times refun – 81 per cent versus 72 ported in November.) The per cent – girls are playing Girl Scouts’ recommendato learn, the study found. tion to keep girls engaged: Girls also read books and Get involved! Particularly articles on devices more early in high school, which than boys do, 40 per cent it calls “an important incompared with 28 per cent. tervention point”.

And girls are more inclined Dean Mabel S. Douglass to use technology to create would have been proud something new, whether of me. I managed to esit be videos or coding projcape “the danger years of a ects; to discover a new talwoman” without succumbent or interest; or to coning entirely to “bridge, lunnect to social issues. cheons, dinner parties and Still, boys remain more the petty details of houseconfident in their skills. keeping” — all things she Even if girls are spending warned of when speaking more time learning, it’s

to 500 alumnae the New Jersey College of Women at a reunion in 1931.

The “danger years,” she said, began right after graduation and extended for 10 to 15 years, according to an article in The Times.

“It is during this time the women sink themselves either in the petty details of their work or in the care of their homes and children,” she said, adding that “real success” means staying “intellectually alive and abreast of the world’s events”. (New York Times)

H

ave you ever set a goal for yourself, like getting fit, making honour roll, or being picked for a team? Like lots of people, maybe you started out doing great, but then lost some of that drive and had trouble getting motivated again.

You’re not alone!

Everyone struggles with staying motivated and reaching their goals. Just look at how many people go on diets, lose weight, and then gain it back again!

The reality is that refocusing, changing, or making a new start on something, no matter how small, is a big deal. But it’s not impossible.

With the right approach, you can definitely do it.

Getting motivated

So how do you stay motivated and on track with your goal? It all comes down to good planning, realistic expectations, and a stick-to-it attitude. Here’s what you need to do: First, know your goal. Start by writing down your major goal. Your major goal is the ultimate thing you’d like to see happen. For example, “I want to make honour roll,” or “I want to get fit enough to make the cross-country team,” or even, “I want to play in the Olympics” are all major goals because they’re the final thing the goal setter wants to see happen (obviously, some goals take longer and require more work than others). It’s OK to dream big. That’s how people accomplish stuff. You just have to remember that the bigger the goal, the more work it takes to get there.

Make it specific. It’s easier to plan for and master a specific goal than a vague one. Let’s say your goal is to get fit. That’s pretty vague.

Make it specific by defining what you want to achieve (such as muscle tone and definition or endurance), why you want to get fit, and by when. This helps you make a plan to reach your goal.

Make it realistic. People often abandon their goals because their expectations are unreasonable. Maybe they expect to get ripped abs in weeks rather than months, or to quit smoking easily after years of lighting up.

Let’s say you want to run a marathon. If you try to run the entire distance of 26.2 miles tomorrow without any training, you’re unlikely to succeed. It takes the average person 4 months of training to run that far! But the bigger risk is that you’ll get so bummed out that you’ll give up your marathon dreams – and running – altogether.

Part of staying motivated is being realistic about what you can achieve within the timeframe you’ve planned. Competing on the Olympic ski team is a workable goal if you are 15 and already a star skier. But if you’re 18 and only just taking your first lesson, time isn’t exactly on your side.

(Excerpt from kidshealth.org)

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7

MONday, may 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Head of NPTAB, Prisons Director among officials red-flagged by Integrity Commission – body issues warning to GuySuCo officials who left without filing declarations

A

Director of Prisons, Gladwin Samuels

number of surprising names have made their way on to the Integrity Commission’s latest list of public officials who have failed to declare their assets, ranging from high-ranking officials in the Finance Ministry to the Director of Guyana’s Prisons himself.

According to a notice from the Commission, National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) Chairman Berkley Wickham; Head of Department, Bernard Lord; Head of Bilateral Division, Donna Levi; Head of Regional Planning, Miguel

GWI Managing Director, Dr Richard Van West-Charles

Caribbean wonders reasons...

The courtroom

But Dr Ragoonath noted that the big question was how far Government would be willing to go, if the court should return a ruling unfavourable to it. He noted that the way the case has been progressing and the way the CCJ Judges have reacted to the State lawyers’ submissions in the two days the cases were heard is very telling.

“While we cannot say what will be the verdict in this matter, the Judges did in fact ask some very telling questions, to the legal representatives of both the Government and the Opposition. For instance, they kept on asking the question of why did the courts in Guyana take so long knowing full well that there was a 90-day limit beyond the no-confidence motion, that the elections were to be held and the (Cabinet) should have resigned.”

“The fact that the Appeal

Court in Guyana went beyond the three-month deadline to give their ruling, thus pushing the whole issue back. The issue being raised about whether or not if a verdict does go in favour of the Opposition against the Government, how soon can an election be held in Guyana,” the scholar said.

He made it clear that he was not surprised by the questions the Judges put to the Attorneys. According to Dr Ragoonath, having sat and observed events in Guyana and how they were playing out, it was merely a matter of determining the next step forward.

He also noted the fact that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has given the Government a November earliest date in which elections can be held. This is a date well outside the timeframe the Constitution of Guyana sets for holding elections.

From page 3

“I think if we are to follow the questions, I think there were serious concerns that the CCJ would have had about how the Government but also the institutions acted… the Elections Commission and the Court of Appeal in how they operated in this matter,” he said.

The three no-confidence motion cases deal with Christopher Ram v the Attorney General of Guyana, the Leader of the Opposition and Joseph Harmon; Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo v the Attorney General of Guyana, Dr Barton Scotland and Joseph Harmon; and Charrandas Persaud v Compton Herbert Reid, Dr Barton Scotland, Bharrat Jagdeo and Joseph Harmon; the last of which deals with Persaud’s eligibility to vote in the House.

The oral arguments concluded on Friday, with the whole nation awaiting a ruling.

National Procurement and Tender Administration Board Chairman Berkley Wickham

Choo-Kang and Head of the Multilateral Financial Institution, Denise Desouza have all failed to make their declarations as of May 3.

The same holds true for acting Director of Prisons, Gladwin Samuels and acting Director General of the Civil Defence Commission, Lieutenant Colonel Kester Craig, who were also flagged by the Commission.

Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield and three GECOM Commissioners were also cited by the Integrity Commission, along with Head of the Guyana Energy Agency’s Fuel Marking Division, William Holder.

At the Guyana Water Inc (GWI), a slew of top

brass including Chairman Nigel Hinds and Managing Director, Dr Richard Van West-Charles were called out by the Commission while a total of 24 officials from the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) were included in the list of delinquent officials.

The Commission also states that 13 former declarants from GuySuCo who left during the declaration period are also required to complete their filings.

These include the former Wales Estate Manager Devindra Kumar and former Skeldon Estate Manager Karamchand Bramdeo.

In January of this year, the Integrity Commission had published the names of the 159 public officials who failed to submit their declarations as of December 31, 2018, pursuant to Section 19 of the Integrity Commission Act. Over the years, several Members of Parliament and other public officials have been flagged by the Integrity Commission for their failure to declare their assets and liabilities, but none of their names appeared on the latest list.

The Integrity Commission Act was assented to on September 24, 1997. The Act provides for the establishment of the Integrity Commission and makes provisions for the purpose of securing the integrity of persons in public

GECOM CEO Keith Lowenfield

life. The Commission has the power to do anything for the proper performance of its function and in discharging its function; it is not subject to the direction or control of any other person or authority.

The Commission has the authority to regulate its own procedure and may make rules for that purpose.

Public officers and positions listed under Schedule 1 of the Commission’s Act should disclose their financial assets and liabilities on or before June 30 each year.

When a public officer ceases to be a person in public life, he/she should disclose his/her assets and liabilities to the Commission within 30 days from the date that that individual ceases to be a person in public life.

8 News

MONday, may 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

FFTP denies being “trespassers” on Berbice co-op lands

Four years…

T

Head of the Co-op Society, Lloyda Angus

F

ood for the Poor (Guyana) Incorporated (FFTP) has refuted allegations that it is trespassing on lands belonging to a coop society located at Trafalgar, West Coast Berbice (WCB).

The NGO has said that, while the matter had reached the courts, it has never been identified as a trespasser or been found guilty of trespassing.

The FFTP explained that a “no objection” letter had been issued to the Community Development Council (CDC) by the Mahaica-MahaiconyAbary/Agricultural Development Authority (MMA-ADA) for the change in land use to residential purposes.

A court action subsequently brought by the head of the co-op society, Lloyda Angus, and the co-op’s

The court action document which was filed against FFTP

The court order that was issued by High Court Judge Navindra Singh

treasurer, Patsy Fraser, later resulted in a High Court order being issued by Justice Navindra Singh, stipulating that the Trafalgar/Union Community Development Council hold elections last January to elect new members to the committee.

However, it was not outlined in the court document that the FFTP was trespassing. As such, the FFTP is bringing clarity to this allegation.

Recently, members of the said coop society had called for repossession of the lands which were leased to them by the MMA-ADA back in 2006, because permission had inexplicably been given to persons to operate on the land, even though the previous lease was still valid.

Co-op Head Lloyda Angus has claimed that the lease was granted for persons to utilise three plots of land after registering with the ‘friendly societies organisation’. According to her, the lease was valid for some 50 years.

Angus said that, in 2015, the office was visited by a group of APNU supporters who demanded that she hand over the key to the building, and indicated that they would be the new occupants and she should relinquish the lease documents.

She further noted that, in 2018, the MMA-ADA then gave the land to the Food for the Poor organisation to construct houses for persons within the community, and that last December the matter was heard in the High Court, where Justice Navindra Singh ruled that the present occupants are trespassing.

…of the PNC he PNC Government had to have dislocated its shoulders patting itself of the back, the way it carried on about its “accomplishments” during the last four years it’s been at the helm of our ship of state! Imagine, it had the temerity to even boast about the “electricity supply” on a day your Eyewitness experienced at least eight - counted them, eight! – ‘blackouts’ within a twelvehour period!! And he learnt that this was a countrywide phenomenon! And imagine, we pay the highest tariffs in the Caribbean for the electricity we never get!

But a stable electricity supply isn’t just about folks like you and me pecking away at our keyboards. It goes to the heart of the dilemma our business community faces as it struggles to fulfill its charge to be the “engine of growth” for the economy -- for which the Government takes the credit when, against all odds, the business community gets the engine to kick-start.

How can you run a modern business - not just manufacturing ones - with the erratic and costly electricity in our grid? It’s not even being given a “basket to fetch water”… That at least implies there’s water; here, there’s no electricity!

The PNC Government (why even mention the hangeron AFC?) not surprisingly didn’t talk at all about what could’ve been on the electricity front: the Amaila Falls Hydro-Electric Project! With Norway already providing US$80 million as seed money and endorsing the project as the most viable one to put us on the path of a green economy; China already providing the loan; and all the technical studies out of the way, what prevented the PNC Government from going full steam ahead to give us 165MW of power?

False pride, that’s what! They just couldn’t bring themselves to admit that a Jagdeo brainchild could be a game changer!! So Guyana’s nose is cut to save the PNC’s pride! But pride cometh before a fall, no?

However, the wankers didn’t mind boasting about the East and West Coast Highways; the Sheriff St expansion; the CJIA etc - which were all initiated and had funding secured by the PPP!! They just didn’t mention those inconvenient facts!! Then they had the audacity to talk of “saving” the sugar industry to stop providing “subsidies”.

Haven’t they figured out they’re spending about the same on the NDIA -- to drain the lands that the closed estates used to do as a matter of course? Haven’t they figured out what’s the impact of the loss of foreign revenues from reduced sugar exports? Do they care about the increased social costs of having 7000 families being thrown on the breadlines?

Naaah! That would interrupt their back-patting! But time longer than twine! …of Constitutional sabotage If there’s one characteristic of the PNC regime that stands out - apart from corruption! – it’s how they’ve worked assiduously to sabotage the constitutional progress we have made since the 2000 amendments to Burnham’s 1980 constitution.

Just look at the Standing Committee on Constitutional Reform, where the recommendations from the Steering Committee have been deep-sixed by Nagamootoo. And what happened to those Sectoral Committees that’d been formed to scrutinise all aspects of the Government’s operations in real time? Deep-sixed also?

The major one, of course, was the changes that were intended to prevent the Elections Commission from being the handmaiden of the PNC to rig elections. Burnham had used two Chairmen (both Chief Justices!) so blatantly to do his bidding and rigging that the criteria was extended to include “other fit and proper persons”. Granger, however, at the first opportunity to fill the slot, insisted it had to be another fella who claimed he was a Chief Justice!!

And lo and behold, rigging’s in the air!! …of being PNC’s doormat Moses Nagamootoo had been promised a Prime Ministership on steroids to join up with the PNC in the Cummingsburg Accord. Instead, he got to be their doormat.

Now Ramjattan’s fighting to replace him!! Go figure!!

Masochists??

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

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MONday, may 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Basil Williams creating fear with “unrest” prediction

...wants to delay elections but could be self-fulfilling

I

GCCI President Nicholas Boyer

n light of a recent statement by Attorney General Basil Williams about “unrest” which might follow if the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) rules against the Government with regards to the validity of the No-Confidence Motion, President of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), Nicholas Boyer believes that the comment was a “dangerous one” and is seen as a tool to prevent the Government from going to the polls sooner rather than later.

Boyer on Sunday related that the AG should be more cautious about using sentiments that are attributed to riot or other forms of unrest during an election period.

“Some might say it could be self-fulfilling prophecies…Guyana has come a long way as a democracy and I don’t think the younger generations expect or will participate in elections violence, I think the younger generations if they feel a need to, will peacefully pro-

test. I think that the AG is trying to create fear using

President, the proprietors and staff of businesses in Guyana have not forgotten the physical destruction and crimes that occurred during some elections in previous years while noting that in today’s society, it is not expected that there will be such a repeat. “[Businesses] are expecting that as a democracy we have moved past riots.

International investors will be looking on and I feel that the older heads who were the generations that rioted will have to be mindful and

Caribbean Court of Justice

that as a weak means of supporting their claims of why elections should be further delayed,” he stated.

According to the GCCI

choose to change their modus operandi. If they want to see a new and better Guyana that we all look forward to.”

On Thursday last, the

AG had asked that the CCJ confirm the decision of Guyana’s Court of Appeal in relation to the question of the votes being required for the validity of the passage of the No-Confidence Motion to be 34 votes in the National Assembly as against 33.

In his submissions to the court on Thursday, he also reiterated that “the principle is, the majority cannot be the same for simple and in absolute”. In this argument, the coalition Government presented that given the fact that there is no half hu-

Attorney General Basil Williams

man or half vote, one had to be added to make it 34 for an absolute rather than a simple majority in Guyana’s 65-member Parliament.

“The provisions in Section 106 (7) and 106 (7) of Guyana’s Constitution have dire consequences, catastrophic consequences for Government. If successful, the motion could lead to the premature fall of the Government and possibly the premature disillusion of the National Assembly,” Williams told the Court in his submissions.

In relation to elections being held in Guyana, the AG noted that the country’s history has seen some unrest and aftermaths. He said that this could be repeated if an election is held in Guyana without the prop-

er steps in place.

“That is the difficulty that we have. And which the Court, we are asking to take judicial notice of, that around elections if the list is not right, if there is a perception of people multiple voting, phantoms etc and the list is not a credible list, it is going to be difficult and that is the history of Guyana.”

AG Williams added that the second highest court in the land had already spoken on this issue and, therefore, urged that the CCJ rule in that light as well.

The Court of Appeal, in March last, had ruled in a 2-1 split decision, that a majority of 34 votes would have been needed to validly pass a motion brought against the Government.

10 news

MONday, may 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Guyana becomes 1st eco-tourism country to join Travel Council

T

he Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) recently announced that Guyana has become the first eco-tourism country to join the transformational travel movement through a pioneering partnership with the Transformational Travel Council (TTC).

The Council’s partners include tour operators, media organisations and travel suppliers from around the world.

Guyana is the first member to illustrate the destination’s ongoing commitment to transformational travel, and its overarching belief that travel should be a relentless force for good.

This new partnership will now see the country becoming involved in a community of like-minded organisations which show interest in networking, sharing, learning, and collaborating with one another on how to shape the future of travel around these tenets, ultimately positioning Guyana as a destination thought-leader and ear-

with our destination’s strategic goals and initiatives.

We have invited the TTC to come to Guyana and conduct a workshop for our destination’s key stakeholders, tour operators, accommodation providers and indigenous communities,” he declared.

TTC Co-Founder Jake Haupert shared that, as an

GTA Director Brian T Mullis

ly-adopter.

GTA Director, Brian T. Mullis, explaining that the country holistically believes in transformation, expressed the agency’s commitment to learning and practising the philosophy of the movement.

“We, at the GTA, are excited to learn more about the philosophy and how we can take it from theory to practice in a way that aligns

emerging dynamic destination, Guyana is one country wherein the TTC philosophy should be integrated.

He underscored the country’s uniqueness. “Guyana is an emerging and dynamic destination (that is) rich in biodiversity, cultural heritage, but yet (is) also raw and real at its essence; making it a prime destina-

tion to start integrating the TTC philosophy and guiding practices into (its) entire tourism ecosystem and truly enhance (its) already unique, powerful and burgeoning story.”

The ‘transformational travel movement’ provides an opportunity to transcend from a consumptive form of tourism to a responsible

form of travel that has a sustained impact on travellers. These travel experiences should empower people to make meaningful, lasting changes in their lives.

Guyana’s commitment to this ‘movement’ is part of a larger strategy to continue to develop the destination in a sustainable and socially conscious way.

Woman freed of domestic worker’s murder

J

ustice Simone MorrisRomlall has ordered that one of the accused in the Tain domestic worker murder be set free.

The ruling came following submissions from Attorney-at-Law Murseline Bacchus challenging the committal of Nazeema Permaul to stand trial in the High Court for murder.

The action was filed against the Director of Public Prosecutions, the

Nazeema Permaul

police and the Director of Prisons.

Bacchus quoted a number of authorities, both local and overseas, and cited a number of deficiencies in the prosecution case.

The businesswoman was committed in November last to stand trial for the execution style killing of domestic worker Lelawattie Mohamed at her Lot 149, Sixth Street, Tain Settlement, Corentyne, Berbice home on February 7, 2017.

Following the committal of Permaul, her husband, Oliver Permaul, Andre James and Rohan Johnson, Bacchus filed a writ at the Berbice High Court asking

for a review.

According to the writ, there is no direct evidence against the 42-year-old woman for the murder. The Magistrate at the committal proceedings did not hold a usual Preliminary Inquiry.

She held one by way of paper committal.

The writ noted that the function of a Magistrate is to ensure that no one is sent to trial unless a prima facie case is made out against them.

“I urge that you bear in mind that for the Magistrate to have lawfully committed the applicant, she had to use the statements tendered by the prosecution and nothing more, as those statements stand in the place of sworn testimony normally given at a regularly Preliminary Inquiry”, the attorney stated.

The writ called on the Judge to order that Permaul be released from prison.

During the Preliminary Inquiry into the execution of a domestic worker on the Corentyne, Shabikie Albert, one of the five accused, was set free by Magistrate Charlyn Artiga at the Whim Magistrate’s Court.

Permaul was alleged to have been hired by Indira

Lelawattie Mohamed

Outar, the alleged mastermind, who was set free by Magistrate Charlyn Artiga last year.

Mohamed was killed execution style when two masked men broke into her home and demanded money under the pretext of a robbery. She was shot at close range to her head.

It had been reported that Nazeema Permaul was the mastermind of a plot to kill Mohamed. It was also reported that Permaul allegedly paid $400,000 to have the woman executed.

Mohamed was involved in an extra-marital relationship with Permaul’s husband. Following the application to have Permaul released, Justice Simone Morris-Romlall ordered she be set free.

NEWS

11

MONday, may 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Govt engineering excuses to close sugar industry – former Agriculture Minister

– despite declarations of spending $B to save industry over past 4 years

F

our years have passed since the APNU/AFC took office and the coalition, in a list of achievements, highlighted that some $43 billion was given in bailouts and severance payments to Guyana’s failing sugar industry.

The Government recently noted that it also “took drastic action to save and secure the jobs of over 10,000 workers”.

However, former Agriculture Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy said that the present Administration has downsized sugar by more than 50 per cent in the past four years and that was its first step towards the goal of closing the sugar industry.

“APNU/AFC is deliberately mismanaging the

Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), engineering its excuse to close sugar. While three sugar estates continue to operate, APNU/AFC is keen on finding an excuse to also close these estates.

For more than 300 years, sugar was the most important industry in Guyana, the potential for sugar being an important industry for many decades more in Guyana still exists…and it is foolhardy and reckless for anyone to give up on sugar.”

According to Dr Ramsammy, the Government wishes to end sugar in Guyana for political reasons but this will have “horrendous consequences” resulting in the Guyanese populace being collateral damage.

“For example, the start-

Former Agriculture Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy

ing of sugar closure, at the end of 2015, precipitated an unemployment problem.

Four years into the APNU/ AFC term in office, Guyana

is mired in an unemployment crisis, a crisis that started in 2015 and catapulted in 2016 by the closure of the first of the four

sugar estates that are now closed. The total closure of sugar, if the Guyanese people allow APNU/AFC to achieve this goal, will mean that the unemployment crisis will be sustained for generations to come, oil will not be able to rescue us,” the former Agriculture Minister recently stated.

Dr Ramsammy elaborated that the past four years have not been “good news” for GuySuCo or for employment in the country.

“More than 37,000 jobs have been lost, according to conservative estimates, with sugar accounting for more than 7000 direct jobs and many thousands more indirectly. By then, business activities have dropped by as much as 50 per cent with hundreds being laid

off…Meanwhile, Guyanese are dismayed at the sustained ugly disinterest APNU/AFC has shown towards GuySuCo. This deliberate disinterest by the Government and, particularly, by the Minister of Agriculture, Noel Holder, has contributed to the overall mismanagement and incompetence in the operations of GuySuCo.” He added that the Administration’s seeming disinterest is a “deliberate” strategy to end sugar in Guyana.

“Clearly, APNU/AFC appears to have engineered an economic strategy in which oil is the new economic pillar and that Guyana’s economy will be an oil economy.

There is no future for sugar under APNU/AFC.”

Multiple contestants for PM slot counterproductive – Trotman

...implicitly criticises Ramjattan’s bid

AFC Leader Raphael Trotman

L

eader of the Alliance for Change (AFC), Raphael Trotman, believes that having multiple persons vying for the position of Prime Ministerial Candidate would not serve in the interest of Government.

In an interview with Guyana Times on Sunday, Trotman revealed that he would not be contesting for this position in his party’s upcoming national conference slated for next month.

“For the record, we have an incumbent Prime Minister and at least one person expressing interest in the same position. I don’t believe that it would serve the coalition’s interest if there were multiple aspirants for what is essentially one position,” he stated.

In February last, Trotman publicly threw his support behind Nagamootoo becoming the AFC’s PM candidate at the next elections.

He explained that the replacement of the present PM would be seen as an acceptance by the Government that it has failed, and that the Opposition’s “no-confidence” motion against the administration was justified.

“The no-confidence motion was a direct challenge on the Granger/Nagamootoo leadership. In my view, if we were to jump to replace either gentleman in an emotive way, we would be openly conceding that the motion and vote were justified and valid,” Trotman had told the media at that time.

The AFC Leader had reaffirmed his confidence in the David Granger/ Moses Nagamootoo leadership to guide the Coalition Government in the period ahead.

Although other members of the AFC’s leadership have stated that it is unlikely that Nagamootoo would be proposed as the Prime Ministerial Candidate again, Trotman believes that Nagamootoo should remain where he is, as there is no other candidate to attract more votes than he can.

“The AFC has not put forward an alternative name to Moses, and right now I am not sure if anyone feels that he or she can do a better job by winning more votes nationally and has national acceptability. It is important to not only bear the ethnic factor in mind, but also to ensure that all groups feel a sense of comfort in the candidate, whether they vote for him or her or not,” he had added.

However, less than two weeks ago, Chairman of the AFC, Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan, confirmed to the media that he would be challenging his colleague for the post of Prime Minister at the conference next month.

According to the Public Security Minister, if elected, he is “up to the task”. He explained that the selection of leadership in the AFC is based on democratic principles, which are nothing new to political parties locally and internationally.

“I have already indicated my interest. There are others, I am certain, who will indicate their interest; and so it is going to be interesting. And it is good to have, instead of political parties, the regular rivalry between leaders that you would have in the democracies… So, yes, we will be looking forward for it, and that will be decided there at the national conference,” Ramjattan had explained.

Minister Ramjattan noted that the electoral process at the upcoming conference would be the deciding factor as to who would be running as the Prime Ministerial Candidate at the next General and Regional Elections.

“The Prime Ministerial Candidate is generally made at the National Conference.

And I rather suspect that (at) our next national conference there will be a recommendation as to who will be the PM. The conference will be held sometime in midJune,” Ramjattan had declared.

Earlier, in January,

President Granger was endorsed by his party, the People’s National Congress Reform (PNC/R), to run for a second term as President.

In fact, the PNC/R – the largest party in the five-party A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) – officially threw its support behind its leader via a letter from General Secretary Amna Ally.

In accordance with the 2015 ‘deal’ in the form of a Cummingsburg Accord between the two parties, AFC will have the Prime Ministerial position while the Presidential post goes to APNU.

12 News

monday, may 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Diamond teen’s murder

Mother cries for justice almost 1 year after son’s death

By Kizzy Coleman

T

he mother of 15-yearold Ricardo Singh, who was found lying in a gutter with a stab wound to his body at Soesdyke, East Bank Demerara (EBD), on July 9, 2018, has renewed her call for justice to be served almost one year after the incident.

Singh, called “Cardo” of Diamond, EBD, a former student of the Diamond Secondary School was reportedly arrested by members of a Community Policing Group (CPG) after he was involved in a brawl at a wedding house in Soesdyke.

Reports surrounding the incident indicate that the teen had left home to hang out with friends at the Linden-Soesdyke Highway junction but, however, journeyed to the wedding house which was a short distance away.

Whilst there, a gang of men attempted to rob the now dead teen’s friend of a gold chain that he was wearing and cash, which caused Singh to intervene.

A huge fight broke out which was caught on camera, showing the teen and a group of others involved in a fight.

The footage, which was seen by Guyana Times, showed two young men throwing bottles in the direction of the group that Singh was a part of.

However, shortly after, a police pick-up pulled up to the scene and a Rural Constable, later identified as 28-year-old Troy George, was seen wrestling with Singh before he was thrown into the tray of the vehicle.

George climbed in after the teen and the vehicle quickly sped away, report-

Ricardo Singh

edly headed for the Timehri Police Station. That was the last time Singh was seen alive.

Shortly after, the teen was found lying in a gutter with his innards protruding and panting for breath.

According to an eyewitness, who lives close to the scene of the crime, he heard a commotion and upon inspection saw the Policing Group van parked.

As such, he ventured outside and questioned George, who was at the time outside of the vehicle, as to what was transpiring.

“The guy that was outside of the van, he turned to me and he seh well man this man behaving bad at the wedding house and they carrying he to lock he up but he jump off the van and he gone running” the man relayed.

He recalled that he questioned the officer as to which direction the teen had escaped and was pointed in the direction of the wedding house.

“The direction he looked and he point, I see back to the wedding house side, so I looking and I ain’t see nobody from that timings that I heard the van and thing.

So I seh nah man, this ain’t

looking right so like two to three steps I took headed to the wedding house side and so there I see this person down in this drain, his face down and so on” the man explained.

According to another eyewitness, he parked his vehicle to enter his yard when he saw the police vehicle stop.

The man recalled that while looking on, he saw the deceased jump out of the vehicle followed by George.

“The bigger person who was in the back, jumped out and go around to the driver and was talking to the driver. But when this boy jumped out heading back to the wedding house, within like four, five steps, he fell.

He get up again, like two, three steps after, he went down again, that happened like three times and that is when the neighbour opposite came out” the man revealed.

He noted that after observing that others came out, he ventured over to the vehicle to make inspections but was surprised when the police vehicle sped away, leaving George at the scene.

“They just drove away.

So when we try to figure out what really happening with this young man, when we take him out from the trench and roll him over, then we actually saw what state he was in. One of the neighbours jumped into his car and went to see where the police van went” the man explained.

The eyewitness recounted that shortly after, the police van showed up at the scene with several other police ranks.

“The guy that was at the back, they were holding him so he had to know what was happening” the man speculated.

A still image from the video footage of Singh being thrown into the Police vehicle on July 9, 2018

Three months after the crime, Constable George was taken before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts after he was charged with the murder of Singh.

Police Prosecutor Simone Payne had contended that the accused and another male Rural Constable were on their way to the police station when George allegedly stopped the vehicle, exited with the teen and reportedly told the driver to leave.

It was further alleged that upon returning with several other officers, the police driver found the teen with a stab wound to the abdomen and George looking on in the presence of residents.

George was remanded to prison on the charge and

made two appearances, that is, before the murder charge against him was suddenly withdrawn.

On Sunday, Singh’s mother explained that on November 5, 2018, she and other relatives sat in court for hours awaiting the matter, which was scheduled for hearing, to be called.

However, after noticing that relatives of George, who were always present in court, were not there, they proceeded to question the Police Prosecutor.

It was then that the Singh family was informed that the matter against the accused was withdrawn – an order from the Director of Public Prosecutions office.

This reportedly occurred on October 31, 2018, without

any notice being sent to the family.

“The Prosecutor said that he didn’t know what happen, but that the DPP order that the police got to do more investigation” the woman revealed.

The family further proceeded to the Timehri Police Station where they were told by a CID rank that he would be unable to help.

“The man, his name was Singh, he said that he can’t do anything because another rank was in charge when the matter had happened” the woman stated.

The woman and the teen’s father are calling for justice and for their son’s case to be reopened.

“We want the matter to be reopened…this year Cardo would have been writing CXC but he dead and nothing ain’t coming out of the matter! All we want is justice, there are people that know what happen, people that see what happened and up to now the police didn’t interview them…I feel like I have a hole in meh stomach without my child” the grieving mother cried.

The woman revealed that since then, questions directed to the investigating ranks regarding the investigations have not been favourable.

This newspaper made several attempts to reach out to the Divisional Commander through contact numbers provided by the Police Public Relations Officer, however, all calls went unanswered.

Newly-minted pharmacists commit to no compromise on mediocrity

Pharmacists donning their white coats

T

Pharmacist Mark Persaud

wenty-four pharmacists on Saturday evening recited the pharmacist’s oath after donning their white coats and being awarded their licenses to practice.

The event, known as the White Coat Ceremony for Pharmacy Interns, was held at the Herdmanston Lodge, Lamaha and Peter Rose Street, Queenstown, Georgetown.

According to the

Department of Public Information (DPI), the newly-minted pharmacists would have acquired a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy from the University of Guyana (UG) and served a one-year internship at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC). This is the second consignment of pharmacists who would have undergone a medical training period of one year.

Turn to page 15

News

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monday, may 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Chinese Landing mining land dispute

Canadian mining co says court ruling should be upheld

The land dredges that were operating “illegally” at the Chinese Landing, Tassawini mining blocks

T

he Canadian gold mining firm which is expected to commence operations at the Chinese Landing at Tassawini, Region One, is maintaining that the land in question is not Amerindian traditional land, and that Wayne Vieira is the lawful owner thereof, in keeping with

the decision made by the Caribbean Court of Justice.

In 2011, the High Court ruled that the land in question does not belong to the Chinese Landing community, and that decision was upheld by the Caribbean Court of Justice in 2017.

The Canadian company, after obtaining permis-

sion from Vieira, has begun works to start a medium scale mining operation which is expected to employ mainly locals. The company has said it would be investing heavily, and will pay royalties to the Guyana Government.

The company said that, during the court proceed-

Chinese medical team touring Linden hospital

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Members of the team touring the Linden Hospital Complex

medical team attached to one of China’s health institutions, Yancheng Third People’s Hospital, on Friday visited the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC) in Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice).

They met with the hospital’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Dr Farouk Riyasat, as well as doctors, department heads, and other health officials in an effort to have an understanding of the environment in which doctors attached to the LHC are living and working. The team also conducted a comprehensive tour of the various departments of the hospital.

Leading the Chinese team of professionals was Vice President of the Chinese hospital, Dr Tan Junyuan, who was accompanied by Director of Health Reform and Development,

Department of Yancheng Health and Fitness Commission, Dr Tang Xiaojun; and Vice Director of Administrative Office of the hospital, Dr Wu Lihua.

The LHC presently hosts a medical team which originated from the Chinese hospital.

The LHC CEO, at an official welcoming ceremony hosted at the hospital, expressed gratitude to the team for its continued support over the past 20 years.

During the tour of the Linden hospital, Public Relations Officer (PRO) Toshanna Allicock noted that the LHC is pleased to host the team of medical professionals, and she pointed to various collaborations over the years.

“In addition to sending a team of doctors every year, we also receive donations in the millions of dollars at

the end of each year, and we have benefited greatly from those donations. One of the greatest contributions of the Chinese Medical Team is that they have allowed us to do laparoscopic surgery, and they’re the only set of doctors at this hospital who do laparoscopic surgery. So, because of them, we’re able to offer that surgery to the people of Region 10.

“This is one of the few hospitals in Guyana that (do) laparoscopic surgeries,” Allicock noted.

She said the Chinese doctors attached to the LHC who are consultants also continuously train the local hospital staff.

Presently, the LHC is benefiting from the work of the 14th Chinese Medical Brigade to Guyana. The 15th brigade is expected to soon replace this one.

ings, the Chinese Landing community was given several opportunities to present evidence of its title, but did not.

An official of the Canadian company (name withheld), in an exclusive interview with Guyana Times on Saturday, related, “The land held by Vieira is not -- and I repeat: not -- Amerindian land. This has been decided and clarified by both the High Court of Guyana and the CCJ. The Chinese Landing Community keeps saying this is Amerindian land. It is not, as per the law. Title must be granted to the local community, and it was not ever granted.

“They could not produce any title, and for them to say they were not aware of the proceedings is not true at all,” the official explained.

The official, who fears being victimised, said a team of officials from the company visited the area recently, and were threatened by residents of Chinese Landing.

“They threatened to kill Vieira and anyone who sets foot on the land,” the official stated.

Further, he stated that the community has allowed illegal mining to occur on Vieira’s concessions in a very unsafe manner. “The mining is being conducted with complete disregard for the environment. Fuel is being stored unsafely, and tailings are being disposed of in the river, which is totally unsafe, killing out fishes. Mercury is being used in the traditional or normal fashion; that is, in the final clean-up (with the exception, it seems, of the milling units). No retorts were noted, but a couple of open-air gold burning hearths were noted. The use of gloves for mercury handling was also absent, as was any concentrating being done in a restricted area or receptacles,” the official added.

The community, according to the official, has allowed buildings constructed on Vieira’s lawful concession to be destroyed, and this will cost the company millions of dollars to replace and clean up before it can commence operations.

The company currently has security presence at the mines, after the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission dismantled camps and removed illegal miners from the area on May 1, 2019.

The Minister of Natural Resources has since stated that the enforcement exercise was lawful and was conducted to uphold the CCJ’s ruling from 2017, which states that Wayne Vieira is the lawful owner of the land.

The company further said the community started claiming the land only after its residents realised that there was gold there.

Residents started to mine

An excerpt from the CCJ court ruling

on the land, and encouraged miners from other villages to mine on the land as well.

The miners pay tribute to the community.

The company explained that those illegal miners have a total of seven excavators on the land, and have removed an estimated 15,000 ounces of gold from Vieira’s concession.

“This is theft to the tune of approximately US$19 million, and not one (dollar of) royalty has been paid to the Republic of Guyana.

The approximate theft from the people and the state is $1.5 million US dollars. If they stole this (sum) from a Bank, they would be in jail for a very long time,” the official said.

According to the company, an influx of miners with land dredges, excavators, and crushers, accompanied by/or alongside shops, has resulted in the Tassawini

property being raided and its exploration facilities and infrastructure being destroyed. The “illegal” miners are from Chinese Landing, Charity, Moruca, and Port Kaituma.

On Friday last, the Chinese Landing Village Council hosted a press conference in which it made claims for the said land.

Its contention is that the Village Council had not been included in the court proceedings for the said land, and had not been given opportunity to present its title. Members of this Village Council have since met with Minister of State Dawn Hastings-Williams, who assured them that she would work with the Minister of Indigenous Peoples Affairs, Sydney Allicock, and Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman to resolve the issue.

14 News

monday, may 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Bridging the gender gap through technology E

ncouraging women to take up roles in Information Technology (IT) is a key way to bridge the gender gap disparity. This is according to Inter-American Development Bank country representative, Sophie Makonnen.

“Too often girls and women are not able to reveal their full potential in improving Guyana’s economy due to discriminatory social norms, lack of incentives… and girls tend to be underpaid,” Makonnen said.

The IDB representative was addressing the gathering at the Gala and Youth Reveal event hosted by Girls +Tech at the Umana Yana.

The occasion saw students from the University of Guyana’s robotics club showcasing their work; awards were presented to several outstanding women in the field of technology, and prizes were given to the winners of the essay competition which was titled “Girls and technology can change Guyana: The change I want to see in my community”.

“Education unlocks girls’ potential, but education in science and technology can provide them with wings to fly, to transform not only their lives but the lives of others in their families and communities.”

Rajnie Persaud, a firstyear Accounting student at

Inter-American Development Bank Country Representative Sophie Makonnen

the University of Guyana, has cerebral palsy and is

Moruca sub-district gets donation of boats, engines

wheelchair bound.

She wrote an essay on how the University and other public places/spaces can be made more accessible to persons with disabilities like hers.

Though she was not awarded a prize, Persaud believes persons with disabilities

have the power to pursue their dreams, as she will follow a career in Computer Science.

“We know the world is advancing in technology and more jobs are online where persons can work from home. Because of my disability, it’s harder for me to travel, so for persons like myself, it would be easier to work from home.”

Co-founder of Sites Guyana, Evie Gurcharan said her daughters are her motivation, and she wants them to benefit in the changing world of technology.

“I remember just having to go to the internet café and be back home before dark. My parents took out a computer on hire purchase just so we would have access to the internet and we were one of the first homes to have dial-up internet in those days and I know the changes it made for my life

because of what I was able to achieve. Had my parents not made those sacrifices for me I wouldn’t have been here. I want my girls to grow up in a world where people are making those sacrifices not only for themselves but for the generation that is coming.”

Sites Guyana is set to launch the “Girl tell the world campaign”; a programme which is intended to have training sessions for girls and women (digital and creative writing workshops, website and mobile design workshops).

The Gala, which was well attended, was a collaborative effort between the Inter-American Development Bank, Scotch Bonnet, Small Business Bureau, Metro, Guyana Animation Network, Global Technology, Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative and Vnet Communications.

Port Kaituma River contamination

Samples being tested for lead, mercury, arsenic – GWI

The two boats and outboard engines that were donated

Member of Parliament Mervyn Williams hands over the keys of the engine to Toshao of Warapoka Alan Henry

R

esidents within the Moruca sub-district in Region One (Barima-Waini), will no longer face difficulties transporting patients along the Moruca river in times of emergency.

For the villages of Warapoka and Waikrebi, as well as neighbouring villages, these difficulties have been alleviated with the donation of two boats which are outfitted with outboard engines and fuel tanks to the Toshaos of the villages

of Warapoka and Waikrebi located along the Moruca River.

According to the Department of Public Information (DPI), the simple handing over ceremony was held at the Moruca Bridge, which was recently upgraded at a cost of $119 million, and saw in attendance Member of Parliament and ministerial advisor to the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples Affairs, Mervyn Williams, who was in the sub-district for con-

sultations on the revision of the Amerindian Act. Williams, while attesting to the timeliness of the boats being donated, stated that he also hopes that they could be used to ferry the elderly who often have to travel from their villages at their own expense to be able to get their pensions.

Dr Derron Moonsammy said that the boats are long overdue and that he is happy to finally have them as it will have a great impact on the health services offered in the region, explaining that oftentimes, they are unable to transfer patients because of the unavailability of boats or there is simply no gas available.

The sub-district includes a number of villages located along the Moruca River, where for some, the only means of access is by speedboat, making it extremely difficult during emergencies to ferry patients for better medical care as boats are not always readily available.

Residents present at the ceremony expressed their gratitude with having the boats delivered. Also grateful were some of the elders who were happy to hear that they will be able to rely on the boats to be able to go and receive their pensions.

D

ays after the Guyana Water Inc stopped residents from using water from the Port Kaituma River, Region One (Barima-Waini), Public Relations Officer Leana Bradshaw related that water samples were taken at different points in the river and are being tested for heavy metals such as lead, mercury and arsenic.

A toxicity analysis was also conducted to determine whether the contamination resulted from mining discharges or from other sources.

According to Bradshaw, the water quality results will be available within a week. She said that efforts are also being made to collaborate with the Fisheries Department to perform a toxicology analysis on any dead fish found in the river to further analyse the situation.

Bradshaw pointed out that as it relates to alternative solutions, there is potable water available via a dispensing unit in the compound of the well station which was communicated via a public advisory. Additionally, technicians are working to acti-

vate a well that will provide added relief to residents.

“GWI is also working to drill additional wells so as to ensure groundwater is the main source of water supply for the community as we seek to transition from extensive use of surface water,” she said.

Residents of Port Kaituma, have been fuming over the lack of water supply in their community as a result of the prolonged dry weather. The residents who reached out to Guyana Times had related that they are forced to walk several miles to the only operational water source in the community and fetch water for their daily consumption.

The only alternative source of water available to them is the river which is no longer safe since GWI halted the pumping of water from that source due to possible contamination.

The company in an advertisement on Sunday last had advised residents in Port Kaituma to desist from using the river water following the discovery of possible contamination.

The company noted that samples have been collect-

ed and will be sent for testing both locally and overseas and the results of those tests will determine the way forward.

Meanwhile, residents said that this source of water is not adequate to service the entire community and residents of the outlying areas have difficulty in accessing that source.

“We were using the river alone because that water source they advising people to use is far away from where we living. Is months of dry weather and residents are complaining all the time but nothing is being done.

GWI is doing nothing for us here. The springs are dry.

No pumping could be done.

We are suffering here for basic water,” Trevor De Costa, a resident, told Guyana Times.

The dry weather season continues to affect residents and farmers in hinterland communities throughout the country. Residents of Region One have been complaining of the negative impacts of the lack of access to potable water. Residents and farmers said enough is not being done by the water company to offer substantial relief.

15

monday, may 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

VOX POPULI

I SAY...

What the people say

Should there be laws against persons tested positive for HIV/AIDS knowingly spreading the virus?

Angela Fung “Yes, I do think there should be laws to protect against this because I believe it is a very irresponsible act.”

Onika Lawrence “Yes, I think it’s a very wicked act and must be taken seriously. Perpetrators should be charged with attempted murder.”

Aaron Homer “Definitely. It should be characterised as gross bodily harm which in itself is covered within our laws. HIV is a lifethreatening disease that can fundamentally change lives and relationships.

Someone who knowingly has the disease (after being confirmed by a HIV test) and spreads it intentionally without disclosing their status to their partner should be liable for gross bodily harm (2-4 years’ imprisonment and a fine of up to 100,000).”

Robert Estwick “It’s up to you as an individual to protect yourself.”

Wendy Hernandez “Most definitely, this is an issue which we should be very concerned about because this STD isn’t some simple sickness that can be cured tomorrow if you get infected today. This disease causes many to have a shortened life span which eventually causes them to lose their life. So I propose that laws should be put into action to protect persons from this kind of negative action.”

Ackeim Harry “It’s a dangerous disease, the nation will last longer if less persons get infected.”

Emily Hendricks “This plague on society needs to stop and the ones who are positive of the disease are intentionally spreading it and for this, they should be penalised.

They should be charged because no one, especially young women, should have their life snatched away in that way. These laws would be able to protect persons and alert others to be more cautious on the kind of sexual relationship they are in. I strongly give my support on the laws.”

Troy Franklin “This is so technical.

It’s basic right now for all sexually active persons to just protect themselves and be conscious of our world today. If you want to trust, just go as a couple and get tested. It’s very technical in my opinion.”

Mickey Kranium “Yes. A person with HIV/ AIDS and any incurable STD should be held accountable and prosecuted if they intentionally transmit the disease to another person without informing them of their status.”

Devitri Ramnaugh “Yes, anyone knowingly spreading HIV should be prosecuted, if doctors can be prosecuted for wrongfully causing the death of their patient, then that individual can also be prosecuted.”

Devonne Williams “Of course, there are many out there spreading this disease knowingly.”

Newly-minted pharmacists commit...

As is customary, after being geared with white coats, each pharmacist lit a candle from a single flame borne

by Chief Medical Officer, Dr Shamdeo Persaud. This, according to the Pharmacy Council, symbolises the transition of leadership from the policy level all the way down to practice.

Speaking on behalf of this batch of pharmacists, Mark Persaud reflected on his time spent as an intern. He shared some of his personal experiences along with others he shared collectively with his fellow colleagues. Persaud noted his confidence that he and his fellow pharmacists will uphold their vow to be ambassadors of the profession.

“I would say, this batch of pharmacists is leaving here determined not to compromise for mediocrity. This batch is one I see standing firm and adhering to the rules and regulations that govern them and won’t support poor governance from superiors and won’t compromise with malpractice …. in this healthcare system.”

Chief Medical Officer, Dr Shamdeo Persaud

Persaud boldly declared that the commitment being made by the pharmacists to the health sector, whether locally or otherwise, is one which must be recognised.

When it comes to the values of each individual in this batch, Persaud remarked, “I rest assured that we are that batch that will make pharmacists recognised in healthcare for what we are called to do”.

Dr Persaud, who delivered the feature address on behalf of the Public Health Minister, outlined the history of the pharmacy profession in Guyana noting that locally, the profession was started by expatriates from the United

Kingdom when the country was still a colony. He explained that more widely, the profession dates back even further.

“You are now officially joining a noble profession that dates way back… you may not know but the practice of pharmacy started way back maybe 2000 years Before Christ, in the Samaritan period. In ancient documents, there are actual records of how it was put together, what was given and the frequency with which it was given.”

The recital of the pharmacist’s oath was led by Director of Pharmacy Services, O’Neil Atkins while the charge was

From page 12

given to the pharmacists by the immediate past Chairman of the Pharmacy Council in Guyana, Carl Bacchus, who encouraged the professionals to emulate the “trailblazers” who went before them as it is “an exciting journey but a serious career”.

In 2018, Guyana welcomed 17 clinically trained pharmacists into the fraternity. This is now set to be an annual feature as the University of Guyana continues to educate persons in the field of pharmacy.

Before the pharmacy internship programme was launched in March 2017, persons who would have studied the pharmacy theory went on to practise without hands-on knowledge. Today, those completing the UG programme can benefit from full-time training and practical exposure.

Also in attendance was Chairperson of the Pharmacy Council in Guyana, Levante De Santos and Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Elizabeth Gonzalves, preceptors who facilitated this batch of interns and other staff of the GPHC.

16

guyanatimesgy.com

MONday, may 13, 2019

Regional

Quake of 6.1 magnitude in Panama Mick Jagger’s ex Vanessa Neumann injures 1, no initial reports of deaths hired as British envoy to Venezuela

Local emergency services in Canoas, near the epicentre, said they had no initial reports of fatalities there

A

6.1 magnitude earthquake rattled homes in southwest Panama on Sunday near the border with Costa Rica, damaging buildings and injuring at least one person, but there were no immediate reports of fatalities, authorities said.

The quake struck some seven kilometres (4 miles) southeast of Plaza de

Caisan, Panama, at a depth of 23 miles (37 km), the US Geological Survey (USGS) reported. Panamanian authorities said there was no tsunami alert from the quake.

Panama’s President Juan Carlos Varela said on Twitter that some shops and houses were damaged and that a woman was injured in the Panamanian

port of Puerto Armuelles when the quake caused the ceiling of her home to cave in.

Puerto Armuelles is near the epicentre of the quake. A local police spokeswoman said some buildings were damaged, but there were no initial reports of fatalities.

The USGS later pinpointed the epicentre of the quake as a few km north of Canoas in Costa Rica, right on the border with Panama. Local emergency services in Canoas said they had no initial reports of damage or fatalities there.

Panama’s firefighting association said on Twitter it had received reports of the ground shaking from residents in different regions of the country, and urged calm. (Reuters)

Barbados mourns passing of veteran Journalist Harold Hoyte

Harold Hoyte

B

arbados is mourning the passing of veteran Journalist Harold Hoyte, one of the founders of the Nation Publishing Company, who died on Sunday following a long illness.

Hoyte, who retired in December 2006, was Editor

Emeritus of the Nation Newspaper up until the time of his death and had a long and distinguished career in journalism, having started his profession as a copywriter at the Barbados Advocate in 1959.

He later moved to Canada where he worked for the Globe and Mail, the Toronto Telegram and editor of the Contrast.

On his return to Barbados, Hoyte along with several other colleagues, founded the Nation Newspaper in 1973 where he served as Editorin-Chief for three decades.

In recognition of his outstanding career, the Government rewarded Hoyte with the Gold Crown of Merit in 2003 and in

2005 he was conferred with an Honorary Doctorate by the University of the West Indies.

On Sunday, the Barbados Association of Journalists and Media Workers said his death has left a gaping hole in the media fraternity.

“He was a colossus in the news information profession as a founder of the Nation Publishing Company Ltd, a mentor and coach to an array of Journalists in this country. His intellectual acumen and fearlessness as a professional media goliath will remain etched in my mind and I have no doubt in the minds of us all.” (Excerpt

V

enezuela’s insurgent leader Juan Guaidó can’t get no satisfac-

tion.

But Mick Jagger’s ex may help start him up on a new path to oust strongman Nicolás Maduro.

The British have hired The Stones frontman’s former flame, Vanessa Neumann, as an envoy to Guaidó as he attempts to revive his struggling Opposition efforts to loosen the socialist dictator’s grip on power.

“It’s my dream job, but it’s also a very strange job,” Neumann told The Times of London.

Because of the tricky and fast-developing political situation in Venezuela, the 47-year-old socialite has not been made an Ambassador to the troubled nation, though Britain is one of 50 countries, including the US, to recognise Guaidó as the legitimate leader.

She has no office and no salary, and is living at a friend’s house in west London, envoy to a government still struggling to take power.

“I’m a start-up embassy,” she said with a smile.

As for the ongoing standoff there, she said, “Of course it’s frustrating but

Cuban Police break up unauthorised LGBT rights march in Havana

C

uban Police on Saturday broke up an unauthorised pro-LGBT rights march in Havana held as an alternative to the Governmentsanctioned Gay Rights parade that authorities cancelled earlier in the week.

To the cries of "Yes we can!" the demonstrators, several waving rainbow flags and carrying signs with slogans like "Diverse Cuba", managed to march a mere 400 metres along Havana's downtown Paseo del Prado before being dispersed by Police.

The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender ac-

tivists, numbering around 100, were protesting the cancellation of the parade against homophobia organised by the Government's National Centre for Sexual Education (Cenesex), an office under the Ministry of Health, and held for the past 10 years.

The colourful parade, or "conga", used to kick off activities educating people about homophobia and transphobia that are nevertheless taking place.

At least three protesters who refused to obey orders to leave were arrested, according to AFP Journalists.

Laydel Alfonso, a 31-year-old restaurant

U

eries, and the facility has been under the protection of the army since the start of the year after President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador launched a crackdown on fuel theft across the country.

The motive for the attack on Munoz was unclear. A spokeswoman for Guanajuato’s Government said investigations were ongoing and that no further details could be revealed for now.

The fight for control of access to pipelines has turned the once relatively peaceful state of Guanajuato, a centre of the

from CMC)

carmaking industry, into one of the most violent.

Between 2007 and last year, the annual murder tally in Guanajuato leapt more than ten-fold to over 2600.

Taking office in December, Lopez Obrador pledged to reduce the violence in Mexico. So far, murders are still rising.

A total of 969 murder investigations were opened in Guanajuato in the first four months of his administration, a jump of 50 per cent from the same period a year earlier, according to figures published by the Interior Ministry. (Reuters)

waiter who marched with his face concealed by a silver mask and waving a rainbow flag, was upset that Police had broken up the march.

"I don't believe this is right because we're doing nothing wrong," he told AFP. In a first for Cuba, where there is tight Government control, the march was organised on social media.

Cenesex is led by lawmaker Mariela Castro, the daughter of former President Raul Castro, who at the age of 87 is still first secretary of the island's ruling Communist Party.

(Excerpt from AFP)

Tobago homeowners call for meeting on airport terminal

Mexican union leader shot dead in troubled oil refining city nidentified gunmen shot dead a trade union leader in Mexico’s central city of Salamanca, authorities said on Sunday, the latest outbreak of violence in an area plagued by a murderous struggle between gangs over fuel theft.

Gilberto Munoz, a former federal lawmaker and the leader of the national chemical and petrochemical union, died after being shot on Saturday, the Government of Salamanca’s home state of Guanajuato said in a statement.

Salamanca is home to one of Mexico’s six oil refin-

I think it will end. We do have signs of fracture in the regime. I think they’ll run for the hills if they think there are real people with real weapons turning up.

They’re cowards. They’re bullies.”

Neumann, who grew up in Caracas and New York, said she wanted to see Britain treat the Maduro regime as “the transnational crime organisation that it is” and start seizing its assets, including three properties in London. Her hope is that the UK will boot Maduro’s ambassador, Rocio Maneiro, from the country. (Excerpt from NY Post)

A meeting was previously scheduled by NIDCO for May 1, but it was cancelled

R

esidents of Canaan/ Bon Accord and environs say they remain in a limbo and unease as there has been no official information on how badly they will be affected by the construction of the new ANR Robinson International Airport terminal and associated works, scheduled to begin in November.

Speaking on behalf of the residents on Friday,

Rhonda Hackett once again appealed to members of the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) and the National Infrastructure Development Company (NIDCO) to meet with the residents collectively to discuss the way forward.

A meeting was previously scheduled by NIDCO for May 1; however, it was cancelled.

Hackett said, residents

were subsequently informed that meetings would be arranged with the residents on a one-on-one basis, something that they are totally against. However, if people choose to attend these meetings, Hackett advised them to seek legal representation.

“You need those minds to represent you to ensure you get the best out of this situation. That is the whole rationale behind it. You with your layman self going to them (THA and NIDCO) is like a chicken going to a lion – you will be eaten alive.”

Residents have been told that they must be evacuated by November.

“The law can do so much, but agitation at a time like this is critical if we are to get the level of progress that we need. Time is ticking, it is moving rapidly around the corner into 2020. (Excerpt

from Trinidad Newsday)

guyanatimesgy.com

MONday, may 13, 2019

17

Around the World

US and China at impasse over trade, Burkina Faso church attack: Kudlow says new tariffs will remain Priest among 6 killed

US President Donald Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping

T

he United States and China appeared at a deadlock over trade negotiations on Sunday as Washington demanded promises of concrete changes to Chinese law and Beijing said it would not swallow any “bitter fruit” that harmed its interests.

The trade war between the world’s top two economies escalated on Friday, with the United States hik-

ing tariffs on US$200 billion worth of Chinese goods after President Donald Trump said Beijing ‘broke the deal’ by reneging on earlier commitments made during months of negotiations.

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow told Fox News on Sunday that the United States needs to see China agree to “very strong” enforcement provisions for an eventual deal

and said the sticking point was Beijing’s reluctance to put agreed changes into law.

He vowed the tariffs would remain in place while negotiations continue.

Beijing remained defiant, however. “At no time will China forfeit the country’s respect, and no one should expect China to swallow bitter fruit that harms its core interests,” said a commentary, due for Monday publication, in the ruling Communist Party’s People’s Daily.

It said Beijing’s doors were open to talks but it would not yield on important issues of principle.

However, the trade talks suffered a major setback last week when China proposed extensive revisions to a draft agreement. It wanted to delete prior commitments that Chinese laws would be changed to enact new policies on issues from intellectual property protection to forced technology transfers.

G

unmen have killed six people including a priest as Mass was being celebrated in a church in Dablo in northern Burkina Faso, officials say.

The attackers, said to number between 20 and 30, then burned down the church.

The town’s Mayor, Ousmane Zongo, said that there was panic as other buildings were burned down and a health centre looted.

Jihadist violence has flared in Burkina Faso since 2016, and this is the third attack on a church in five weeks.

It began at about 09:00 (GMT and local time), during Mass.

The Mayor of Dablo, Zongo, told the AFP news agency: “Armed individuals burst into the Catholic church... They started firing as the congregation tried to flee.

Security sources told AFP that reinforcements were being sent from Barsalogho, some 45km (30 miles) to the south.

Islamist groups have been blamed for a number of attacks in the West African nation in recent years.

Fighters affiliated to

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the group inflicted casualties on Indian army soldiers in the town of Amshipora in India-administered Kashmir’s Shopian district.

The ISIL statement corresponded with an Indian police statement on Friday that an armed rebel called Ishfaq Ahmad Sofi was killed in an encounter in Shopian, Reuters news agency reported on Saturday.

ISIL’s statement establishing the new province appeared to be designed to bolster its standing after the group was driven from its self-styled “caliphate” in Iraq and Syria in April, where at one point it con-

(Excerpt from Reuters)

trolled thousands of miles of territory.

ISIL has stepped up hit-and-run raids and suicide attacks, including taking responsibility for the Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka that killed at least 253 people.

Separatists have for decades fought an armed conflict against Indian rule in Muslim-majority Kashmir.

The majority of these groups want independence for Kashmir or to join India’s archrival Pakistan.

They have not, like ISIL, sought to establish an empire across the Muslim world. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

(Excerpt from BBC News)

Iran may attack Israel if US standoff escalates – Israeli Minister

ISIL claims ‘province’ in India, officials call it ‘propaganda’ he Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) has claimed for the first time that it has established a “province” in India, a claim that police in India-administered Kashmir have described as “pure propaganda”.

The ISIL claim followed a clash between armed rebels and security forces in the disputed Kashmir region in which a fighter with alleged ties to the group was killed on Friday.

Late on Friday, ISIL’s Amaq News Agency said in a statement that it called the new province “Wilayah of Hind”, and also claimed

al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group as well as the local Ansarul Islam have been active in the region.

Last month, attackers targeted a Protestant church in the town of Silgadji, killing at least six people And earlier in April, four people died when a Catholic church was attacked in a nearby village, the bishop of Dori in northern Burkina Faso told Vatican news agency Fides.

Burkina Faso is among countries in the vast Sahel region battling Islamist insurgencies in the region.

Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz

A

n Israeli Cabinet Minister warned on Sunday of possible direct or proxy Iranian attacks on Israel should the stand-off between Tehran and Washington escalate.

The United States has increased economic and military pressure on Iran, with President Donald Trump on Thursday urging its leaders to talk to him about giving up their nuclear programme and saying he could not rule out an armed confrontation.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Government, which supports Trump’s hard tack against its arch-foe, has largely been reticent about the spiralling tensions.

Parting with the silence, Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz said that, in the Gulf, “things are heating up”.

“If there’s some sort of conflagration between Iran and the United States, between Iran and its neigh-

bours, I’m not ruling out that they will activate Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad from Gaza, or even that they will try to fire missiles from Iran at the State of Israel,” Steinitz, a member of Netanyahu’s security Cabinet, told Israel’s Ynet TV. Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad are Iraniansponsored guerrilla groups on Israel’s borders, the former active in Syria as well as Lebanon and the latter in the Palestinian territories.

The Israeli military declined to comment when asked if it was making any preparations for possible threats linked to the IranUS standoff.

Israel has traded blows with Iranian forces in Syria, as well as with Hezbollah in Lebanon and Palestinian militants. But it has not fought an open war with Iran, a country on the other side of the Middle East.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

UAE says 4 ships subjected to South Africa’s ANC celebrates ‘sabotage’ off east coast election win with street party

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa addresses supporters of his ruling African National Congress (ANC) at an election victory rally in Johannesburg, South Africa, May 12, 2019

T

housands of supporters of South Africa’s African National Congress (ANC) took to the streets of downtown Johannesburg on Sunday to celebrate victory in last week’s election despite a

lower share of the vote.

The ANC won 57.5 per cent of the parliamentary vote and retained power in eight of nine provinces in President Cyril Ramaphosa’s first poll test since taking power in February 2018.

The result was the ANC’s worst performance in a parliamentary vote since the end of white minority rule in 1994, when it swept to power under Nelson Mandela.

But it was at least an improvement on its vote share in Local Government Elections in 2016.

To supporters of Ramaphosa, the victory was an endorsement of his anti-graft agenda after replacing Jacob Zuma.

Music blared from speakers and people waved party flags before Ramaphosa

and other officials addressed them.

Ramaphosa’s first full term as President should start later this month after his nomination by ANC lawmakers in the new Parliament.

He replaced Zuma as ANC leader in December 2017, after a decade in which the party’s image was tarnished by corruption scandals and weak economic growth. He became Head of State after persuading senior ANC officials to instruct Zuma to resign before Zuma’s presidential term was due to end.

Acknowledging that turnout at the election was lower than previous votes at around 65 per cent, he urged more people to cast ballots next time. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Fujairah’s port is located 140km from the Strait of Hormuz, the focus of increasing Iran-US tensions

T

he United Arab Emirates said four commercial ships were subjected to “sabotage operations” after false reports circulated in Lebanese and Iranian media outlets saying there had been explosions at one of the nation’s seaports.

Emirati officials declined to elaborate on the nature of the sabotage on Sunday, or say who might have been re-

sponsible.

“Four commercial, civilian trading vessels of various nationalities this morning suffered acts of sabotage” off the UAE’s eastern coast, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by the state-run WAM news agency.

“Subjecting commercial vessels to sabotage operations and threatening the lives of their crew is consid-

ered a dangerous development.”

The statement said the ships were near the country’s territorial waters in the Gulf of Oman, east of the port of Fujairah.

It said it was investigating the incident “in cooperation with local and international bodies”, adding there were “no injuries or fatalities on board the vessels” and “no spillage of harmful chemicals or fuel”.

The incident comes as the United States has warned ships that “Iran or its proxies” could be targeting maritime traffic in the region, and as the US deploys an aircraft carrier and B-52 bombers to the Gulf to counter alleged threats from Tehran.

The US navy’s Bahrainbased Fifth Fleet said it was aware of the report but referred queries to UAE authorities. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

18

guyanatimesgy.com

monday, MAY 13, 2019

ARCHIE

ARIES (March 21April 19)

TAURUS (April 20May 20)

dilbert

Trying to change others is futile. If you want to make your life better, look inward and consider how to use your skills and resources to be the best you can be.

CANCER

Stay focused on how to most effectively make a difference. Stay positive at all times. Your attitude and treatment of others will bring good results. Home improvements are favoured.

Don’t let what others do or say get to you. Listen, assess your situation and do whatever is in your best interest. Physical improvements and romance are highlighted.

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Calvin and Hobbes

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

SUDOKU

Ask questions and find out where you stand and who supports your ideas and plans. A heart-to-heart talk will motivate you to start your journey into the unknown.

GEMINI (May 21June 20)

(June 21July 22)

Peanuts

Live and learn. Participate in activities and events that will help you become more aware of your health, attributes and long-term goals.

Productivity and romance will enhance your life.

Just keep putting one foot in front of the other. The possibilities are endless, once you get started. Network with peers and express your thoughts and feelings to make things happen.

Learn from your experience. If you face turmoil or a disgruntled or demanding individual, retreat and do something geared toward self-improvement and a healthier lifestyle.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Reach out to people who share your beliefs and concerns. If you collaborate with someone, you’ll come up with solutions to problems that have been slowing you down.

A proposal should be looked at carefully.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23Dec. 21)

Deal with partnerships head-on. If you are evasive or fail to ask direct questions, little will be accomplished. Physical activity will do you good. A romantic gesture will improve an important relationship.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

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

PISCES (Feb. 20March 20)

Keep your distance if someone tries to pry into your personal affairs. Concentrate on your assets and home environment, and keep things running smoothly. An unexpected change will turn out better than anticipated.

Keep busy. Physical activity, helping others and personal improvements will be satisfying and will help you avoid getting stuck taking care of someone else’s responsibilities.

Make plans and execute them strategically. Don’t leave room for error or let anyone interfere. Walk away from excessive individuals or anyone who is emotionally manipulative.

monday, MAY 13, 2019

19

VIVO Indian Premier League – Edition 12…

Bumrah leads last-gasp Mumbai Indians to record 4th IPL title

I

n a deeply tactical and wildly chaotic final, Lasith Malinga turned around a horror night in an exceptional final over to hand Mumbai Indians their fourth IPL title.

The match went this way and that - both batting sides arguably underperformed, technology gave the third umpire a nightmare, catches went down and runouts were missed - before it came down to Chennai Super Kings needing nine to win off the final over.

Malinga - three overs for 42 until then, a dropped catch, ordinary fielding and a missed run-out to his name - turned up one final time with creaky joints to concede just seven. With two required off the last ball, he bowled the most magical slower-ball to win it for Mumbai when most bowlers would have been happy to bowl a slower wide ball to try to ensure the tie first.

On a night when experience came to the fore, Shane Watson nearly enjoyed a similar fairy-tale. Trusted through what can conventionally be seen as a horror run, Watson carried Super Kings in the final with 80 off 59, twice undoing Mumbai’s good work with his targeted assault of Mumbai bowlers, but his physical struggles got the better of him in the last over. With five required off three balls and with Malinga nailing his yorkers, Watson set off for a suicidal second, not only running himself out but also leaving Ravindra Jadeja stranded at the non-striker’s end. It was perhaps time for Jadeja to say no to that second.

If Chahar doesn’t get you, Thakur will

Winning the toss and deciding to bat because of the pressure of the final, Mumbai came out full of intent to not let Super Kings bowl Deepak Chahar for three straight overs in the Powerplay. Quinton de Kock went after Deepak in the third over, hitting him for three sixes, and MS Dhoni was forced to go to Shardul Thakur in the fifth

match-up against Watson was favourable for Mumbai.

Watson in response took apart Malinga. Krunal, though, got du Plessis stumped with a wide delivery. However, at 53 for 1 at the end of the Powerplay, Super Kings were favourites.

Raina gets stuck

Kieron Pollard lifts Lasith Malinga on his shoulders after victory

over. De Kock hit him for a six fourth ball of the over.

Now Mumbai were close to pushing Deepak and Super Kings out of their comfort zone; all they needed was to not lose a wicket in the next two balls.

De Kock didn’t pay much mind to this by-play, and went for another six, gloving the ball to Dhoni. This allowed Deepak to come back in the sixth over, and he responded beautifully with a knuckle ball that got the wicket of Rohit Sharma for 15. What’s more, he made that sixth over - usually the most difficult in the Powerplay - a maiden. From 45 for 0 in 4.4, Mumbai went to 45 for 2 at the end of the Powerplay.

Dhoni teams up with data

Well he might not have, but he did exactly what a data analyst might have asked him to do. He usually reserves Dwayne Bravo for the death, and bowls Harbhajan Singh and Imran Tahir through the middle. In this game, Bravo’s match-up against Hardik Pandya and Kieron Pollard was not suitable for Super Kings so Dhoni bowled two of his overs by the 10th over. You could excuse de Kock for not being aware of the by-play, but Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan were clearly guilty of letting Super Kings play the game they wanted to. They just played out three overs without much intent, dawdling to 58 for 2 in nine overs on a pitch that could not be termed slow.

Cat and mouse continues

The tactical contest continued with Tahir getting Suryakumar in his first over - the 12th - and Mumbai delaying the introduction of Hardik and Pollard. Out came Krunal Pandya, and Thakur came back to get him. Soon Tahir had Kishan for the fifth time in five innings they have come up against each other. It was now down to Pollard and Hardik against Super Kings’ death bowlers.

Pollard overcomes

Dhoni’s tactics continued to test Mumbai. He had picked six bowlers just for this reason: he wanted options if it got chaotic. Now he refused to give Bravo to Pollard and Hardik. Instead, Deepak and Thakur bowled. Even though Thakur went for 16 in the 18th over, Deepak pulled things back with a four-run 19th over that also got him two wickets.

Despite a 20-run over, he ended with 26 runs in his four overs. Hardik out of the way, Dhoni finally went to Bravo, who managed to get under Pollard’s skin thanks to pin-point field sets and a couple of lenient calls on the wide. Pollard, though, managed to get better of the frustration by hitting the last two balls for fours.

Watson, du Plessis put Mumbai under pressure

Mumbai, too, had bowling options at their disposal, but they were put under pressure. Faf du Plessis went after Krunal, whose

Suresh Raina, Super Kings’ second-biggest draw over the years, then got stuck against the bowling of Mitchell McClenaghan, Jasprit Bumrah and Rahul Chahar. He seemed helpless against the short ball bowled to a specific plan. He survived what everybody thought was a straightforward catch to the wicketkeeper, only for technology to disagree, but by the time he fell lbw to Rahul, Super Kings had let Mumbai claw their way back in.

Rohit immediately went to Bumrah, asking for a wicket, which was delivered. Dhoni seemed set to set this up for a late finish, but he was run out in a freakish manner, trying to take an overthrow and found short by the slightest of margins. Third umpire Nigel Llong could have made either call and it would have found critics and supporters; he chose the red button. Super Kings now needed 68 off 44.

Watson against Mumbai

With Bravo struggling against the bounce on the pitch, it was all down to Watson. At the start of the 16th over, Rohit had two overs each from Bumrah and Malinga. It looked like a straightforward call to bowl them from 16 through to 19, but something about Malinga had been off all night. It showed in the 16th over as Watson hit him for three straight fours to bring it down to 42 off four overs.

Bumrah was there to pull it back with a sensational 17th that went for just four.

Malinga was struggling physically. He had to be given a break. It was between the Pandya brothers now. Rohit went for the

3

SCOREBOARD

Mumbai Indians Innings (20 overs maximum) Q de Kock † c †Dhoni b Thakur 29 RG Sharma (c) c †Dhoni b Chahar 15 SA Yadav b Tahir 15 Ishan Kishan c Raina b Tahir 23 KH Pandya c & b Thakur 7 KA Pollard not out 41 HH Pandya lbw b Chahar 16 RD Chahar c du Plessis b Chahar 0 MJ McClenaghan run out (du Plessis/Bravo) 0 JJ Bumrah not out 0 Extras (w 3) 3 TOTAL (20 Overs, RR: 7.45) 149-8 Did not bat: SL Malinga Fall of wickets: 1-45 (Q de Kock, 4.5 ov), 2-45 (RG Sharma, 5.2 ov), 3-82 (SA Yadav, 11.2 ov), 4-89 (KH Pandya, 12.3 ov), 5-101 (Ishan Kishan, 14.4 ov), 6-140 (HH Pandya, 18.2 ov), 7-140 (RD Chahar, 18.4 ov), 8-141 (MJ McClenaghan, 19.4 ov) BOWLING DL Chahar (4-1-26-3) SN Thakur (4-0-37-2) H Singh (4-0-27-0) DJ Bravo (3-0-24-0) I Tahir (3-0-23-2) RA Jadeja (2-0-12-0)

spinner presumably because he had great numbers against Watson. However, these match-ups become null and void once the batsman is set. Watson showed that majestically by hitting three consecutive sixes. Bumrah again dragged Mumbai back, and despite a misfield to give them four byes off the last ball of the 19th over, Bumrah had kept them alive.

Had to be Malinga

There was no way anybody other than Malinga was going to bowl this last over. His experience had to be relied upon. First ball: yorker nailed from round the wicket to Watson. Now eight off five. Second ball, low full toss, should have been run out, concedes a single. Now seven off four.

Third ball: another yorker from round the wicket,

Chennai Super Kings Innings (target: 150 runs from 20 overs) F du Plessis st †de Kock b KH Pandya 26 SR Watson run out (Pandya/†de Kock) 80 SK Raina lbw b Chahar 8 AT Rayudu c †de Kock b Bumrah 1 MS Dhoni (c) † run out (Ishan Kishan) 2 DJ Bravo c †de Kock b Bumrah 15 RA Jadeja not out 5 SN Thakur lbw b Malinga 2 Extras (b 5, w 4) 9 TOTAL (20 Overs, RR: 7.4) 148-7 Yet to bat: DL Chahar, Harbhajan Singh, Imran Tahir Fall of wickets: 1-33 (F du Plessis, 3.6 ov), 2-70 (SK Raina, 9.2 ov), 3-73 (AT Rayudu, 10.3 ov), 4-82 (MS Dhoni, 12.4 ov), 5-133 (DJ Bravo, 18.2 ov), 6-146 (SR Watson, 19.4 ov), 7-148 (SN Thakur, 19.6 ov) BOWLING MJ McClenaghan (4-0-24-0) KH Pandya (3-0-39-1) SL Malinga (4-0-49-1) JJ Bumrah (4-0-14-2) RD Chahar (4-0-14-1) HH Pandya (1-0-3-0)

this time hit wide of longon for an easy two. Now five off three. Fourth ball: wide yorker, Watson takes the risk and de Kock makes up with a smart collection and flick back onto the stumps.

Now four off two.

To the new batsman, Malinga continues with the round-the-wicket angle, but Thakur gets enough bat on the low full toss to get two.

With two required off the last ball, long chats follow.

De Kock removes one glove.

Seemingly many plans are formed and discarded.

Finally we have a field that seems set for a slower ball outside off, but Malinga delivers with the beguiling dipping slower ball that traps Thakur right in front.

Pollard carried him on his shoulders. The baddest daddy in town had beaten Dad’s Army. (ESPNcricinfo)

UFC 237: Andrade dethrones Namajunas

U

ltimate Fighting Championship (UFC) made its presence known to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Saturday night for UFC 237.

In the main event, Strawweight queen Rose Namajunas finally made her return to the Octagon, looking to deny Jessica Andrade from giving her native Brazilian fans a new champion.

Elsewhere on the card, Anderson Silva made the walk for what could possibly be the final time, Jose Aldo looked to destroy another dangerous contender, and Bethe Correia somehow found her way to the main card yet again.

Andrade was crowned Strawweight queen last night in Rio de Janeiro, the first

Brazilian to win a UFC title in his/her home country in what seems like a very long time.

Though the night was overall pretty full of action, it was a miserable night for Brazilian fans. After a few hours of watching their favorite former champions and veterans get hammered and dominated by younger stars, Brazilian fans in attendance were not pleased.

The fight itself mirrored those fans’ situation.

Andrade pushed forward valiantly in the early goings, but Namajunas was on fire. “Thug Rose” tee’d off on her marching foe, cutting open her foe with straight punches and repeatedly nailing Andrade with her left hook counter. It wasn’t like Andrade’s past ti-

Jessica Andrade of Brazil slams Rose Namajunas, knocking her out, in their women’s strawweight championship bout

tle bid against Jedrzejczyk either, where Andrade marched through lots of punches with

seemingly no effect.

Namajunas was hurting Andrade, but she did not quit,

however. The Brazilian continued to push forward, finding a success to build from with low kicks. Andrade committed very heavily to the low kicks and body shots — anything to slow down the frustratingly effective footwork of the champion. It was slowly beginning to work when Andrade wrapped up another single leg takedown, prompting Namajunas to attempt to counter with a kimura.

Instead, Andrade popped her head to the high crotch, where the counter to the kimura is a massive lift and slam, which ultimately ended the contest. For those local fans, I don’t know if Andrade’s amazing knockout and championship win is enough to overcome the bitter taste of Silva’s leg disinte-

grating in the co-main event, but it’s far better than the alternative.

No Country for old men

From top-to-bottom, old lions were repeatedly savaged by their younger counter parts.

Quite a few well-established names walked to the Octagon last night. Names like Nogueira, Aldo, Alves, Silva, Penn — veteran names who once held championship belts or at least challenged for them. Names that deserve the utmost respect from mixed martial arts (MMA) fans. Unfortunately for these legends and their fans, their opponents showed no such respect. (MMA Junkie)

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monday, MAY 13, 2019

Manchester City pip Liverpool to title with crushing win at Brighton ly more trying over recent weeks when Liverpool simply would not let up, with a succession of slender wins keeping the holders marginally ahead, and there would be early pangs of anxiety here against opponents liberated from their fears of relegation.

Brighton were more adventurous than normal and Glenn Murray’s header, the striker reaching Pascal Gross’s corner ahead of a flailing Ederson, had represented City’s first deficit in a Premier League match since that loss at St James’ Park.

Perhaps uncertainty would have crept in had that advantage held a little longer. Maybe City would have wilted as they chased the contest, particularly City are the first team to win back-to-back Premier League titles since Manchester United 10 years ago with confirmation of Sadio Mané’s goal at Anfield having n the end, there was to be no denying Manchester City. rippled round the arena, through to the interval. In hindNo excruciating stress to endure as Brighton & Hove sight, neither of those felt remotely plausible. The worst Albion repelled the barrage whipped up by the visitors on the south coast, and no nail-biting finale as the vis- thing Brighton could have done was to provoke them. Where itors strained for a winner while news filtered through of the visitors had initially been rather laboured in their moLiverpool’s ascendancy on distant Merseyside. What tension nopoly of possession, prone to over-elaboration as they ran that existed here had been lanced a little over an hour in. aground on Albion’s resistance, the shock of shipping that Everything thereafter was a celebration of the champions’ opener shrugged them awake.

Suddenly, there was urgency. Instantly, there was inciexcellence. sion.

The hope that flared up on Merseyside was snuffed City know they have been challenged this year, stretched out in 83 seconds as Aymeric Laporte and David Silva, with wonderfully by Liverpool’s startling progress. The mind-boggling tally of points collected by Jürgen Klopp’s side would a flick Chris Hughton described as “sublime”, sent Sergio have been enough to claim the championship in all but Agüero into space within sight of goal. The striker slipped a three of the previous 119 campaigns based on three points crisp shot through the on-rushing Ryan and, in an instant, for a win, and yet it was still not enough to overhaul Pep the champions’ momentum had been restored. “The most important thing was this team went behind but came back Guardiola’s team.

They have won 198 points across two seasons, a stag- immediately,” said Raheem Sterling. “The manager here is gering haul. Their 95th top-flight goal of the campaign, a all about mentality: it’s about winning no matter what. I’m free-kick whipped sumptuously into the top corner by Ilkay just happy to be under his wing.”

There was an air of inevitability about so much that folGündogan, summed it all up. Mat Ryan sprang to his left lowed, with Brighton never likely to withstand the onslaught but could not lay a glove on it. Opponents have been trying that ensued.

Ryan may have done well to deny Bernardo and failing to do that with City all season.

Silva’s diving header, but there was pizzazz to City’s passNot for a decade has a side retained this title, but the form mustered in the run-in – 14 successive wins stretching ing again, and a far more upbeat tempo to their movement. back to a defeat at Newcastle in late January – represent- They smothered the life out of their hosts in what remained ed a blistering response to the challenge on their author- of the first half, swarming over panicked opponents.

Murray’s poor pass would present the ball to David Silva, ity being mustered from Anfield. Times had been slight-

I

Pep Guardiola is only the third manager after Sir Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho to win back-to-back Premier League titles

with Ryan doing well to deny Riyad Mahrez. Unperturbed, the Algerian swung over the corner and Laporte, having evaded Murray, thumped his header down and in from the edge of the six-yard box. The Frenchman has been a pillar of strength all season. It was fitting he should draw the focus on the league season’s final day.

If there was anxiety to endure thereafter, it was mainly born of Guardiola’s pursuit of perfection. Ederson would keep out Lewis Dunk’s free-kick, but the City manager expected something more resounding than mere narrow success. It was only after Mahrez, on only a fourth league start this calendar year, gathered and tormented Dunk, cutting back inside to leave the centre-half crumpled on the turf, before ripping a glorious right-footed finish into the top corner via a touch off Ryan’s glove that the City manager acknowledged the race had effectively been won. He joined those on the visitors’ bench, from coaching staff to substitutes, in spilling out on to the turf, the goalscorer lost in the mess of joyous bodies. They knew there would be no coming back for either Albion or Liverpool from this.

The rest, from Gündogan’s free-kick to Vincent Kompany being granted the ovation he deserves as he departed the fray five minutes from time, was a celebration. This is the Belgian’s fourth Premier League title. “And by far the hardest and most draining,” said the captain, whose winner against Leicester last week ended up feeling like the campaign’s defining moment. “The first one was one in the last minute of the season [with Agüero’s goal back in 2012], but this was constantly knowing you had to win and perform.

“We defeated one of the all-time great teams in England, too. But, from the first meeting we had this season, it’s all been about trying to get back-to-back titles, and, straight away, I knew we would achieve that.” Kompany and City have an FA Cup final to come next weekend as they attempt to secure an unprecedented domestic treble. It is hard to contemplate them being denied when they are as irresistible as this. (The Guardian)

Spanish GP: Hamilton beats Bottas in Mercedes’ domination

L

ewis Hamilton led Valtteri Bottas to the fifth consecutive Mercedes one-two at the start of this season after dominating the Spanish Grand Prix.

The world champion, who started second, passed Bottas into the first corner and eased away to an ultimately comfortable win, despite a late safety car.

A long way behind, Ferrari used team tactics yet again but lost out to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen for third.

But a disheartening performance for the Italian team on a weekend they hoped would make a step forward only emphasised the sense that Mercedes are in a league of their own this year and that the championship fight is already a private one between Hamilton and Bottas.

Hamilton, with three wins to the Finn’s two and a point for fastest lap from Spain to add to his tally, leads Bottas by seven points and their closest rival, Verstappen, is a massive 46 points behind, with Vettel a further two adrift, and Leclerc 10 behind him.

Mercedes’ lead is not far off two clear wins, at 25 points for a victory, and the size of the advantage at just about the quarter-way mark of a 21-race season underlines Mercedes’ superiority.

Mercedes in a world of their own

An aerodynamic upgrade to the world champions’ car for this race was said to be worth 0.4 seconds a lap and it more than compensated for both chassis and engine improvements by Ferrari.

Mercedes dominated the weekend, Bottas taking pole by 0.6secs after Hamilton had a messy qualifying session, and Hamilton controlling the race after making the better start, easing away in comfort.

The first corner was tense, with Hamilton, Bottas and Vettel three-wide on the entry, before Hamilton claimed the lead from the inside line and Vettel locked up on the outside and went into the run-off.

As the German rejoined, he ran team-mate Leclerc out of road, costing the Monegasque the third place he had just before claimed as Verstappen backed off to avoid running into the back of Bottas. Ferrari spent the rest of the race fighting a losing battle to reclaim that final podium place.

Tense at Ferrari

It set the stage for a tense fight at Ferrari. Vettel was struggling in the early stages with a flat-spotted tyre, damaged at the first corner, and Leclerc was pressuring him hard.

Sabastian Vettel very nearly took the lead off the start, but damaged a tyre under braking, which compromised his whole race

Ferrari eventually ordered their nominal team leader to let Leclerc by and then Vettel had to make an earlier than planned pit stop, forcing him on to a two-stop strategy.

Red Bull put Verstappen on the same, while Leclerc was on a one-stop, and the question was which would prevail.

Later on, Leclerc had to return the favour to Vettel, who was behind him on softer tyres mid-race, as Ferrari sought to maximise their drivers’ strategies.

The race was panning out to a climax with Verstappen and Vettel on fresher tyres fighting to pass Leclerc protecting third on older tyres in the closing laps.

But in the end, the safety car decided it. Lance Stroll’s Racing Point and Lando Norris’ McLaren tangled at the first corner, spreading debris all over the road.

Hamilton and Bottas came in for fresh tyres and behind them Leclerc had to follow suit, while Verstappen and

Vettel behind him stayed out, as they had just stopped a couple of laps before.

That dropped Leclerc down to fifth and they ran that way to the end of the race.

Plenty of action further down

The fight in the closing laps was all about the midfield, with some hectic and wheel-banging action deciding the final points positions.

The Haas drivers nearly tangled before Kevin Magnussen moved clear into seventh behind Pierre Gasly’s Red Bull, while his team-mate Romain Grosjean dropped back first behind McLaren’s Carlos Sainz and Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat before battling to hold off Kvyat’s team-mate Alexander Albon in the closing laps for the final point. (BBC Sport)

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MONday, may 13, 2019

Integrated Security Services Golf Tournament…

21

Mitchell snags overall title A

magnificent performance from Errin Mitchell of Exxon, playing in her first 18-hole tournament at the Lusignan Golf Course (LGC), led to her capturing top honours in her flight and winning the overall champion ‘gold’ cup in the Integrated Security Services Inc. (ISS) inaugural golf tournament on Saturday.

Playing in a group which included LGC President Aleem Hussain, Macorp CEO Guillermo Escarraga, and her Exxon colleague Kari Ehmling (who also turned in an amazing score, including her first eagle -- the only one in the tournament -- on the 11th hole), Errin attributed the so far best round of golf in her life to the encouraging and fun group she played with on Saturday.

The ISS staff share a moment with Club President Aleem Hussain and the winners. Standing from left: Hussain, Kari Ehmling, Kassim Khan, Maxim Mangra, Errin Mitchell, Ayube Subhan, Max Persaud and Troy Cadogan

In the 20-28 flight of the tournament, excitement came down to a count back for 2nd position as Ansa McAl’s Troy Cadogan edged

out Guillermo Escarraga.

Final scores in this flight were: 67/28 - Errin Mitchell, 1st and 71/26 - Troy Cadogan, 2nd. Close competing scores

were 71/21 – Guillermo Escarraga, and 73/92 Dr Philbert London.

In the 11-19 flight, Ayube Subhan was one stroke less than Parmanand ‘Max’ Persaud and two strokes ahead of Brian Glasford, resulting in the following scores for that flight: 67/15 - Ayube Subhan, 1st, and 68/12 – Max Persaud, 2nd.

Close scores were 69/17 Brian Glasford and 73/16 – Lekhnarine Shivraj.

In the 0 – 10 flight, Kassim Khan continued his winning ways by taking first in the flight as well as overall Best Gross honours. Second place was a tie between Aleem Hussain and former Guyana Open Champion Mike Mangal, with the second place conceded to Mike.

Tope scores in that flight were 69/9 – Kassim Khan, 1st, and 76/9 – Mike Mangal 2nd, followed by 76/10 Aleem Hussain.

Troy Cadogan was winner of the Longest Drive, while Maxim Mangra won the Nearest to the Pin. Meanwhile, it was very refreshing to note that this tournament saw participation from the largest field of women golfers in local tournaments for the last 2 years, with recent tournament winner Eureka Giddings as well as former Guyana Open female Champion Shanella Webster-London also participating, making a total of 5 females.

Located at 21 Peter Rose St., Queenstown, Georgetown, ISS provides

to hundreds of businesses, homes and individuals a complete list of security services, including baton and armed security officers; CCTV monitoring and response; alarm monitoring and response; protection of cash in transit; executive protection; 24-hour mobile patrol; maritime, aviation and cyber security; and domestic investigations.

Top management and members of the ISS, who were on hand for the presentation of prizes, expressed satisfaction at the participation and success of the golfers, and voiced their appreciation for developments taking place at the LGC, besides committing to being further involved with the LGC and golfing in Guyana.

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P

ure Racing’s young driver Justin Ten-Pow continues to dominate the junior Go-karting scene. He swept the accolades in the 60cc Kids Cup on Saturday evening at the Guyana Motor Racing and Sports Club’s track at Thomas Lands and Albert Streets, Georgetown.

Having showcased his skills across the Caribbean region in recent times, the youngster Part of the action on Saturday evening at the showed up and dominated the GMRSC’s Go-Kart track proceedings at the Georgetown Grand Prix, recording healthy leads in all of his races.

Ten-Pow drove a total of 3.48.707 in his first race, to take the 60cc Kids Cup Race 1 with a best lap of 34.481s. Nicholas Sawh was the next best driver, trailing but crossing the line twelve seconds after the victor, and recording a time of 4.00.042. Ben Phang came third, clocking 4.07.736s.

In Race 2 of the 60cc Kids Cup, Ten-Pow again cruised to victory in a time of 4.35.507, his best lap being 34.773s. As happened in the first race, Sawh finished second, while Ben Phang crossed the line third.

By the third Kids Cup race it was deja vue for the spectators, as Ten-Pow again dominated his small pool of challengers with a time of 3.43.367. The podium was again completed by Nicholas 60cc Baby Cup winners: (L-R) Nicholas Sawh, Sawh (3.55.222) and Ben Justin Ten-Pow and Benjamin Phang Phang (3.58.209).

Stephen Nobrega and Kristian Jeffrey dominated the 125cc Seniors x 30 race; while Zack Persaud, Nathan Rahaman and Rayden Persaud shared the podium positions in the 125cc x30 Junior races.

Delighted Djokovic wins 3rd Madrid Open

D

elighted world number one Novak Djokovic said he was back to his best after winning a third Madrid Open title on Sunday, defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3 6-4.

Djokovic’s victory was also a record-equaling 33rd Masters 1000 title for the Serbian, drawing him level with great rival Rafa Nadal at the top of the all-time list.

“I wasn’t playing my best tennis after the Australian Open so I was looking to regain momentum,” Djokovic told reporters.

“I played some of my best tennis here, it’s a big win obviously for me today and in this tournament. I’m really looking forward to continuing this streak in Rome (at the Italian Open).”

“He’s [Tsitsipas] very talented, he beat Rafa yesterday, he had a late night and he wasn’t as dynamic in his movement and that was probably

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic (right) claimed his third Madrid Open title with a win over Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas

due to his long match.”

The Greek eighth seed rarely threatened to re-produce the stunning display he had conjured up on Saturday when he knocked out home favorite Nadal, and 15-time Grand Slam winner Djokovic was in command throughout as he continued his impressive French Open preparations.

He had not dropped a service game all week in Madrid and raced into a 3-0 lead as he broke his opponent’s first service game under blue skies and soaring temperatures in the Spanish capital, with his trademark backhand down the line causing Tsitsipas problems throughout.

Tsitsipas, who is enjoying a breakthrough season, rallied in the second set with the backing of the crowd but Djokovic broke in the ninth game to go 5-4 up, before serving out the match. (Reuters)

Liverpool finish 2nd

― Tottenham reach Champions League final

L

iverpool’s bid for a first Premier League title and a first top-flight triumph in 29 years ended in failure despite a final-day victory over Wolves.

In the ‘as it stands’ table, the Reds were top for 21 first-half minutes, only for Manchester City to recover from falling behind at Brighton to record a convincing 4-1 victory.

Sadio Mane scored from close range after 17 minutes and again after 81 to join Liverpool teammate Mohamed Salah and Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as the Premier League’s top scorer on 22 goals.

Liverpool keeper Alisson was confirmed as the Golden Glove winner with 21 clean sheets.

The victory was Liverpool’s ninth in a row and their 30th overall in the league. They finished on 97 points, the third-highest topflight total in English foot-

Eric Dier reacted quickest to a corner to score his third goal of the season after three minutes

ball history - behind City’s title triumphs this season (98) and last season (100).

The arrival of the Liverpool team bus has become an event in itself.

Half an hour before it turned onto Anfield Road, thousands were on the street waiting for its arrival. Supporters in the hospitality areas at the top of the magnificent new main stand looked down onto a sea of

red, numerous flares going off as Jurgen Klopp and his side turned slowly left and drove into the stadium, the smoke clogging the air in unison with the songs being belted out.

Tottenham reach first Champions League final

Champions League finalists Tottenham sealed a fourth-place finish in the Premier League as they

ended their campaign with an entertaining draw with Everton.

Tottenham knew a point was enough to secure one of the Champions League places for a fourth successive season under manager Mauricio Pochettino, but Spurs missed the opportunity to record backto-back third-place finishes as Chelsea were held by Leicester.

Eric Dier capitalised on poor Everton defending to open the scoring after just three minutes as he was given ample time and space to convert Erik Lamela’s corner.

The visitors recovered well from their slow start but took until the 69th minute to level through Theo Walcott’s fine finish.

Cenk Tosun put Everton ahead three minutes later, but Christian Eriksen’s sublime free-kick after 75 minutes earned Spurs the point they required.

The result sees Everton match their eighth-place finish of the previous campaign in Marco Silva’s first season in charge.

A fourth consecutive topfour finish in the Premier League is Tottenham’s best run in the competition since 1964.

Add to that the possibility of European triumph and Mauricio Pochettino, manager of a club who spent no money on players this season, continues to achieve the miraculous.

Spurs players could have been forgiven on Sunday for being lost in “a dream” - the word used by Pochettino to describe the aftermath of his side’s semi-final comeback against Ajax courtesy of Lucas Moura’s hat-trick on Wednesday, completed in the 96th minute and delivering Tottenham’s first ever Champions League final. (BBC Sport)

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monday, MAY 13, 2019

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

Ireland Tri-Nation Series…

Windies seek to switch the odds - Bangladesh in excellent form

B

angladesh were excellent in all departments during their previous meeting against West Indies, and an encore should put them in the tri-series final, against the same opponents.

They were brilliant in their first game of the se-

Shai Hope

ries, shining in all departments to defeat West Indies by eight wickets. After the victory, and the sub-

the series, but only Hope looked the part against Bangladesh, scoring a valiant 109 as the rest of the order faltered.

Same with the bowlers, who bundled out Ireland for 185 in the series opener, but have since picked up just seven wick-

sequent washout against hosts Ireland, they're wellplaced on the points table, and a win will secure them a place in the final alongside West Indies.

Bangladesh's senior quartet, comprising Tamim Iqbal, Shakib Al Hasan, Mashrafe Mortaza and Mushfiqur Rahim, did very well collectively in that victory over West Indies. If Bangladesh are to do well at the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019, it is absolutely essential that these stalwarts stay

in good touch.

The Asian side will also be pleased with members outside that core unit doing well - Soumya Sarkar made a fluent 73 in that match, while Mohammad Saifuddin and Mustafizur Rahman shared four wickets between them.

For Windies, the challenge will be for their batsmen to keep up the same level of performance, but against a more potent attack. Shai Hope, Sunil Ambris and John Campbell have all scored centuries in

Tamin Iqbal

ets across two matches.

Shannon Gabriel sparkled in the last game against Ireland, taking 2-47 in ten overs, even as Windies collectively conceded 327-5.

They need more such performances.

Not only does Iqbal often lay a solid foundation, but he is also capable of accelerating when required. He did a bit of both in the first match against Windies, starting cautiously before working up a nice flow en route to 80 runs. If Windies get him out early, they can put Bangladesh on the backfoot early.

Though Gabriel was brought into the side to perform an enforcer's role in the middle overs, it shouldn't be forgotten that he can give batsmen a good working over with the new ball as well. He has picked up three of the seven wickets that Windies have taken in the last two games. Gabriel can trouble batsmen with steep bounce, and West Indies might even consider giving him the new ball to change things up.

The weather is expected to be cool, with little to

no cloud cover expected for the most part. Chances of rain are refreshingly slim.

The pitch has been a good one for batting, but accurate seam bowling can bring rewards too.

Squads West Indies: Jason Holder (c), Fabian Allen, Sunil Ambris, Darren Bravo, John Campbell, Jonathan Carter, Roston Chase, Sheldon Cottrell, Shane Dowrich, Shannon Gabriel, Shai Hope, Ashley Nurse, Raymon Reifer, Kemar Roach Bangladesh: Mashrafe Mortaza (c), Liton Das, Mohammad Mithun, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah, Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Mohammad Saifuddin, Abu Jayed Rahi, Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Sabbir Rahman, Mosaddek Hossain, Yasir Ali, Nayeem Hasan (ESPNcricinfo)

Linden Guinness “Greatest of the Streets” Competition

Amazings and High Rollers to contest final

A

new champion will be crowned in the Guinness 'Greatest of the Streets' Linden tournament as holders, Silver Bullets, went down to High Rollers in the semi-final round at the Mackenzie Market Tarmac.

A large crowd was on hand to witness the unlikely result, as the youthful High Rollers outfit, in the process of sealing their first ever appearance in the final, prevailed 1-0 on penalty kicks after regulation and extra time had ended with neither side affecting the score sheet.

Talisman Omar Brewley made the difference on that night, netting from a distance after both Silver Bullets players Robin Adams and Jermaine Samuels had missed from a distance, and his team mate Jonah Simon had also

failed to score.

With the win, High Rollers set up a meeting with fellow inaugural finalist Amazings, who also prevailed via the penalty shoot-out route.

Amazings were perfect from the distance, defeating Capital Storm 2-1 on penalty kicks after regulation and extra time had ended scoreless. The two losers will faceoff in the third-place playoff.

In the earlier quarterfinal round, High Rollers upset highly touted Swag Entertainment 2-1. First half goals from Jehu Regis and Shane Haynes in the fifth and eighth minutes respectively secured the win.

For the losing team, Colwyn Drakes had found the

back of the net in the 13th minute.

Amazings, also, had edged Coomacka 2-1 on penalty kicks after normal time had ended with the teams being nil-all.

Meanwhile, Silver Bullets had crushed Wisroc 4-0.

Damion Williams had recorded a hat-trick, opening his account in the 11th minute, before registering a ‘Guinness Goal’ [GG: a goal scored in the final three minutes, which counts as two] in the 20th minute. Assisting with a third-minute conversion was Jermaine Samuels.

And Capitol Storm had edged Quiet Storm 2-1. An 18th minute [GG] from Oral Peters had sealed the win.

For the loser, Kellon Adams netted in the sixth minute.

Corona Futsal Tournament…

Bent Street, Sparta Boss reign supreme as round robin begins

T

he first night of round robin action got off with a bang, with Tucville putting up a spirited fight against North East La Penitence in the ‘Group C’ opener.

Tucville was actually the first team to celebrate a goal, after Sunil Logan found the back of the net in the 4th minute. Shortly after, Jermine Beckles levelled the scores for North East; and a minute later, in the 7th, Shackolle Brown extended the lead.

The North East lead did not last much longer, as Nicholas Mc Arthur equalised the scores once again.

While Tucville matched pace with North East in the first half, a bout of lacklustre playing saw them allowing their opponents to get away with a few goals. Keifa Brandt, Marcus Wilson and Calvin Moore netted one goal each for North East, while Sunil Logan scored the lone second-half goal for Tucville, resulting in North East triumphing by a 5-3 margin.

Futsal experts Bent Street wasted no time in getting ahead in their Group in an encounter with Mocha.

It was just another day at the office for Bent Street, who took the usually domi-

nant Mocha to the cleaners in a 5-0 affair. Adrian Aaron in the 14th and 20th, and Sheldon Holder in the 3rd and 8th, both netted doubles, while Pernel Schultz topped it off with one for the winning result.

What began as an evenly matched encounter quickly went downhill for Leopold Street, who are now rethinking their second-half performance.

Eon Alleyne had two early goals for Leopold Street -in the 9th and 5th-- to put his team in a competitive position against Future Stars, who had three at the end of the half, thanks to Keran Saloman (4th), Jamal Lazier (3rd) and Randell Bowman (5th).

While Future Stars added two more to their tally in the second, Leopold Street could not match the pace, after squandering a few golden opportunities. Eon Alleyne, however, completed his hat trick in the 20th.

When regulation time was up, the scores were 5-3 in Future Stars’ favour.

Sparta Boss recorded yet another win, to contin-

ue their clean streak while leaving Beacons in the rearview. A hat trick from Ryan Hackett (2nd, 4th, 17th) and one each from Jermaine Junior (14th), Eusi Phillips (13th) and Kelsey Benjamin (10th), accounted for Sparta Boss’s six. On the other hand, Dorian Dickson (5th), and Wesley Greenidge (20th) were the only replies from Beacon in their 6-2 thrashing.

Game Five saw Tiger Bay narrowly edging past West Front Road in a last-minute thriller. Deon Alfred secured the first goal early, with a hopeful shot into the goal in the first minute of play. Four

minutes later, Jamal Pedro levelled the scores and ultimately plunged the game into tension.

Spectators in the National Gymnasium were on the edges of their seats as both sides missed opportunity after opportunity during the 20-minute game. When it seemed like it was all over and regulation time neared its end, Deon Alfred pulled off some heroics with a goal in the 20th for Tiger Bay’s win.

Another narrow game saw Back Circle topping California Square in the final encounter of the night.

Trayon Bobb had the first

goal celebration in the 6th, and his teammate Selwin Williams scored a minute later to give Back Circle a two-goal lead.

In the second half, an impressive showing from Mishack Barittla, who netted back-to-back goals in the 13th & 14th minutes, tied up the game. National Player Bobb pulled out all his tricks and skills, and was eventually rewarded in the 18th with Back Circle’s winning goal.

Petra-organized Corona action will continue tomorrow night, Tuesday May 14, with six more round robin games.

Tuesday’s Fixtures: 19:30 hrs - Tucville vs Tiger Bay 20:15 hrs - Leopold Street vs Mocha 21:00 hrs - Back Circle vs Beacons 21:45 hrs - Bent Street vs Future Stars 22:30 hrs - Sparta Boss vs California Square 23:15 hrs - West Front Road vs North East La Penitence

guyanatimesgy.com

monday, MAY 13, 2019

Hand-in-Hand 1-Day U-19 tournament…

23

Hand-in-Hand One-Day U-19 tournament bowls off today

– Albion in full prep mode

T

he longer format of cricket -- the Under-19 Three-Day Inter-County tournament -- having concluded with Berbice reigning supreme, the players will now shift their focus to the familiar One-Day/50 Overs format.

This tournament will be important because the Regional Under-19 tournament will play in this format. The two matches on for today, Monday May 13, will be played at the Albion Community Centre ground and the Everest Cricket Club ground respectively.

Defending one-day champions, Berbice, will

host Essequibo at the Albion ground, while Demerara will meet the Guyana Select U-17 Team at the Everest ground.

Visiting the Albion Community Centre ground on the eve of the clash, this reporter witnessed a well-prepared Albion pitch, to which Head curator Roger McDonald and his partner were in the process of adding the finishing markings. McDonald said that rain has not been constant in the ancient county, but extra covers have been prepared to cater for prospective showers.

The pitch looks dry, he

Kevlon Anderson and his Berbice teammates will play their first inter-county match at home

Albion Ground staffers were busy on the eve of the inter-county fixture (Brandon Corlette photos)

said, but there is a bit of moisture within that would give the bowlers something to work with.

This match will be a return of inter-county competition to Berbice; since Berbice, under the captaincy of Sharaz Ramcharran, and Demerara, under the captaincy of Brian Sattaur, had clashed at this same venue in 2013.

The current Berbice U-19 Team will be led by Kevlon Anderson, a West Indies U-19 selectee who is as excited as his team mates to play this maiden inter-county match at home. Anderson will be aiming to follow in the foot-

steps -- or even exceed the achievements -- of Kevin Sinclair’s team, which had won the double in 2018.

Essequibo, first opponent for Berbice in this oneday tournament, has been one of the weaker opponents in the three-day format, and has finished in fourth position. However, that team would be hoping that a change of format would lead to a change to positive results.

Berbice will rely on its star players: Kelvin Umrao, Kevlon Anderson, Alex Algoo, Junior Sinclair and Garfield Benjamin, among others.

The Essequibo lads will hope other players step

up to the forefront to join Orlando Jailall, Kevin Christian, Lance Roberts and Amit Persaud as standout performers.

Meanwhile, the Guyana Select U-17 Team is enjoying its preparation for the Regional Under-17 tournament, after finishing ahead of Essequibo. This team has also shown positive signs: bowling out Berbice and Demerara respectively for well below 200 runs in the three-day fixtures.

This One-Day format will be a different challenge for the Select U-17 Team, but its members are equipped and capable play-

ers. The star players Zeynul Ramsammy, Matthew Nandu, Chanderpaul Ramraj and Marvan Prashad will be aiming to upset the power-house Demerara.

After a poor batting display against Berbice in the final round of the three-day tournament, Demerara will reboot and rely on its senior players: Sachin Singh, Ashmead Nedd, Alphius Bookie, Robin Williams and Qumar Torrington, among others.

The ball will start rolling in both of these matches from 9:30h at the respective venues. (Brandon Corlette)

Ashmead Nedd will be in action against the Select U-17 at Everest

Anthony wins Arokium Memorial Cycling Road Race

By Brandon Corlette

L

inden’s Michael Anthony emerged victorious in the Phillip Arokium Memorial 50-Mile Cycling event held in Berbice on Sunday last by outsprinting Andrew Hicks in a tense finish.

The cycle race was staged in honour of late proprietor of the Arokium Funeral Establishment, Phillip Arokium, and was organised by the Randolph Roberts-led Flying Ace Cycling Club (FACC).

The race commenced at 10:00h local time at Alexander Street in New Amsterdam, and proceeded to the turning point, Nand Persaud Rice Mill at Number 36 Village, Corentyne, before finishing at its starting point at Alexander Street.

Anthony, who finished the race in two hours, 12 minutes and 11 seconds, battled with Hicks throughout, and these two ace riders deservingly copped first and second positions respectively.

One of the best riders in Berbice, Andre “Padlock” Greene, came in third position, followed by Balram Narine in fourth position.

The veteran Junior Niles continues to win

Outstanding cyclists stand with their cash prizes at the ceremony held at Arokium Funeral Parlour in Stanleytown (Brandon Corlette photos)

Marcus Keiler rode in fifth, Christopher Griffith sixth, Ajay Gopilall seventh, and Ralph Seenarine eighth. They comprised the top finishers in this major event.

The veteran Junior Niles won in his class (seniors), while Paul ChooWee-Nam placed second and Taikaran Sookhai placed third.

Mario Washington won the juveniles category, dethroning David Hicks and Steve Bhimsen.

Shemika Teixeira remains a dominant female rider, as she finished first in her class. Deancea Welch and Maria Carrington

Funeral Establishment for his sprinting at the conclusion. Sprint prizes were also given to Deoraj Goberdan (two), Andrew Hicks (three), Michael Anthony (three), Balram Narine (one) and Curtis Dey (one).

The organizers of the race were delighted with the outcome, and Managing Director of the establishment, Pearl Arokium, said she would continue her involvement in cycling.

She declared that, in December, she would be hosting a race from New Amsterdam to Rose Hall Town, and the first place prize will be $70,000.

After the race, champion rider Michael Anthony explained that he was comfortable in the earlier part of the race even though there were minor breaks. “I just decided to make a move and follow Hicks when we got away from the chasing pack”, Anthony disclosed.

The Linden Bauxite Flyers lad said he always enjoys riding in Berbice, since the road is of good quality. Peeking into the future, Anthony said his goal is to regain fitness and he would continue to get past some of the top riders in Guyana.

rode in second and third positions respectively, after riding from Alexander Street to Benjamin’s Sports Bar at Number One Road, Corentyne.

In the U-14 race, Aronraj Narine was the champion rider, followed

by Shazim Yakub and Malachi Devanand.

Flying Ace cyclists were given special prizes; Balram Narine, Ralph Seenarine and Clement Doris were the recipients.

The champion of the race, Michael Anthony, won a first prize of $50,000, but was given an additional $5,000 by Managing Director of Arokium Michael Anthony and Andrew Hicks battling for supremacy

MONday, MAY 13, 2019

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

guyanatimesgy.com

VIVO Indian Premier League – Edition 12…

Bumrah leads last-gasp Mumbai Indians to record 4th IPL title Page 19

Hand-in-Hand 1-Day U-19 tournament…

Anthony wins Arokium Memorial Cycling Hand-in-Hand One-Day U-19 tournament bowls off today Road Race – Albion in full prep mode Page 23

Page 23

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