Guyana Times - Monday, April 8, 2024

New $12M well to benefit over 260 Quarrie, Reg 9 residents

Ramadan Village raises

$72.5M to support Palestine

5 additional GEN sets installed, contributing to grid – GPL Head

…remaining generators from US$27M deal will be set up this week

…Pres Ali says genocide in Gaza must stop Miner drowns while attempting to swim across Cuyuni River

Spraying

Hinterland housing programme

“My living condition will be much better” – new homeowner

Bath canals with weedicide for overgrowth destroys millions in crops

…livestock also dying, farmers call for compensation

Pensioner homeless after arsonist torches Linden home Govt issues order to acquire EBD land for new Demerara River Bridge connecting roads

Caricom condemns Ecuador’s storming of Mexican Embassy …urges adherence to int’l law, rules of diplomatic engagement

Guyana earned $126.3B in oil revenue in 1st quarter of 2024

Labourer shot during robbery

Teen dies 3 weeks after Police chase ends in crash

Tide: 10:08 and 22:25h reaching minimum heights of 0.29 metre and 0.37 metre.

Ramadan Village raises $72.5M to support Palestine

…Pres Ali says genocide in Gaza must stop

President Dr Irfaan Ali has sounded renewed calls for a ceasefire in Gaza, where he said the “first publicly-televised genocide” is taking place before the world.

He made these remarks on Saturday evening at the “Qiyaam Lailatul Qadr” event held at Ramadan Village –a month-long exhibition being hosted at the Muslim Youth Organisation Ground in Georgetown, where some $72.5 million in donations were raised to provide immediate humanitarian relief for the people in Gaza and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

The night’s activities, held under the theme “A Night of Prayer for Global Peace, Guyana and Palestine”, included several prayer sessions, a special Islamic programme and an on-the-ground donation for Palestinians displaced and affected by the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

During the event held on the 27th night of Ramadan, President Ali spoke of the importance of charity on Laylat Al Qadr, which is the holiest night of Ramadan. It is described as the Night of Power, since it is believed to be the night when the first verses of the Quran were revealed.

“This is a historic night for Guyana and Guyanese… These resources were raised from every single community across our country. They were raised in small numbers and in large numbers, but they were raised with love and charity. They were raised with the Guyanese spirit,” he posited.

The Head of State went on to reiterate calls for a ceasefire in Gaza – something which

Community (Caricom), where President Ali is currently serving as the Chairman.

“This is genocide! It is the first publicly-televised genocide in the world. It is nothing short of genocide and it must stop. It must stop without conditions.

“In our government, at the UN, would always have a paragraph to speak about Palestine and injustice in other places in the world… As a government, our charity is not only in what we do to advance humanity, our charity is in our policies, our charity is in our words, our charity is in our speech and this is what Islam teaches… Guyana and the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic Government has always been principled on matters like these,” the President stated.

he had done on several international stages, including at the United Nations and the UN Security Council (UNSC) as well as the Caribbean

In addition to calling for a ceasefire, the Guyana Government back in February had pledged US$150,000 towards the United Nations

Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), in support of Palestinians displaced and affected by the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

Sunday marked six months since the October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas on Israel, which has retaliated with an onslaught of violence that has persisted since thus leading to the senseless loss of civilian lives, destruction of property, and displacement of persons in Gaza.

Based on international reports coming out of Gaza, approximately 33,175 Palestinians have been killed and another 75,886 wounded – including some 13,000 children.

Support

Meanwhile, the $72.5 million raised on Saturday evening, which did not include donations made directly into the bank account that was set up, was handed over to the UNRWA, which is the primary humanitarian agency in Gaza, with several million people depending on it for their daily survival.

The symbolic cheque was handed over to UN Resident Coordinator Yeşim Oruç, who received the donations on behalf of UNRWA at the Ramadan Village.

Speaking at the event, Oruç said: “I am humbled to be able to join you in making my own personal Zakaat al fitrah [charitable donation] on this night of reflection and prayer. And I am further honoured to have been asked by His Excellency the President, and Sheikh Moeen

al-Hack, Director of CIOG (Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana), to facilitate this generous donation to UNRWA, from the people of Guyana, to help alleviate the appalling human suffering now occurring in Gaza.

“UNRWA was established by a UN General Assembly Resolution. It is the backbone of the humanitarian operation in Gaza. No other entity has the capacity to deliver assistance at the scale and breadth that the people of Gaza urgently need. Professional humanitarian workers at UNRWA provide food, water, medicine and shelter to Palestinian people, and the organisation’s work now is more essential than ever.”

Ramadan Village

The inaugural National Ramadan Village was organised by the CIOG, the Guyana Islamic Trust (GIT), the Muslim Youth Organisation of Guyana (MYO), and the Government of Guyana.

Saturday’s hosting of “Qiyaam Lailatul Qadr” – A Night of Prayer for Global Peace, Guyana and Palestine” – was held on the final weekend for the National Ramadan Village

Lailatul Qadr is the night when Muslims believe the Quran was first sent down from heaven to the world and also the night when the first verses of the Quran were revealed to the Holy Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him). It is described as better than a thousand months of worshipping. (G8)

The symbolic cheque of $72.5 million raised at the Ramadan Village was handed over to the UN Resident Coordinator to Guyana, Yeşim Oruç, who received the donation on behalf of UNRWA

A section of the gathering at Saturday’s event at the Ramadan Village

Societal continuity and change

The commemoration of the foundation of the Arya Samaj movement by Swami Dayanand on April 10, 1875 is a reminder not only of the continuous changes that all social groups undergo, but also that some of those changes are the result of directed action. The Hindus – 86% of indentureds from India between 1838 and 1917 – were snatched from an environment that had sustained their way of life within allencompassing institutions.

On Guyana’s sugar plantations, the structure of logies/ ranges/barracks catered for nuclear families rather than their familiar extended families; women worked in the fields and earned wages just as the men; communication now had to be in a new language, English – with all that implied for introducing new (and subverting old) concepts; with only one day off from work (Sunday), the familiar round of daily observances of the Hindu calendar had to be squeezed into that day; the congregational worship pattern of the Christians became the norm; the elaborate jati/caste work specialisation was undermined, now that everyone laboured in the fields.

But as the community gradually re-established itself when more than three-quarters of the immigrants chose to remain in Guyana, there were inevitable forces that buffeted the system they left. While the overall caste system was definitely destabilised, the strong pressures to observe the obligatory lifecycle rituals – especially marriage and death – in addition to the traditional worship of Deities, ensured the survival of the “priest”/purohit. Since those from the Brahmin caste generally had knowledge (fragmentary as it might often be) of the sacred invocations (mantras) for these rituals, the hereditary aspect of this function quickly re-established itself. The dearth of women occasioned by the planters’ calculations on productive labour assisted in the perpetuation of child marriage – even as it ensured widow re-marriage. The need for labour also facilitated the reluctance of Hindu parents to (mis)educate their children in general and their daughters in particular.

Back in India, reacting to British/Christian criticism of the Hindu way of life, Swami Dayanand had launched the Arya Samaj – in North India, from where most of the immigrants to Guyana originated. He reformulated Hinduism stressing one book (the Vedas), one God (formless); no hereditary caste; no idol worship; etc. But critically, he stressed 10 principles of social innovations that addressed the grim reality into which India had plunged. They also unveiled India’s long and glorious history and that much of the social degradations had been caused by foreign – especially British – invasions. The Swami was one of the first to demand “Swaraj” – Independence of India from British rule, and this stance characterised the early leadership of the Samaj.

The visit of a prominent Arya Samajist, Indian freedom fighter Bhai Parmanand in 1910 sparked interest in the reforms here – especially in the small group of educated Indians. He was followed in 1929 by Mehta Jaimini, but the work was carried to its zenith under the sustained efforts of another youthful and vigorous missionary, Professor Bhaskaranand, MA, LLB, between 1936 and 1945.

In retrospect, the Samaj’s greatest contribution was to precipitate a great debate in the wider Hindu society about the fundamentals of its religious and social practices. The social and political awareness fostered by the Arya Samaj movement ensured that its members were in the forefront of the modern political struggle in Guyana, which was initiated in the late forties. The strongest early Arya groups were located on the East Coast of Demerara and it was from this district that Dr Cheddi Jagan was to secure some of his staunchest second tier of leadership. Pandit Sama Persaud from Buxton in 1953 was made a PPP Senator for his leadership. Dr Jagan also acknowledged the contributions of the youthful Balram Singh Rai towards his election to Parliament in 1947. There were numerous other Samajists in the PPP, such as Pt Ramlall, who was imprisoned at Sibley Hall in the 60s.

Today as Guyana, like every other society, faces the challenge posed by “modernity”, it is our hope that the Arya Samaj will continue to perform its vanguard role.

When the right to die becomes the duty to die, who will step in to save those most at risk?

By Sonia Sodha

It’s rare to get a politician who openly admits they are torn on an issue, but in recent days there have been two striking examples. First, Wes Streeting, Labour’s shadow health secretary, admitted that though he voted to legalise assisted dying a few years ago, he feels conflicted. Then Nicola Sturgeon, former Scottish first minister, wrote a piece saying that, with new Scottish legislation on the table, the reservations she expected to subside are becoming stronger.

I wrote last year about my own trajectory in relation to proposals to legalise doctor-assisted suicide for the terminally-ill. A decade ago, I would have supported assisted dying out of a respect for personal autonomy and a desire to alleviate suffering. Today, I understand these objectives are not standalone, but need to be weighed against the impact on those for whom an abstract liberal notion like autonomy is highly simplistic, and the State-sanctioned wrongful deaths that seem to me impossible to avoid.

The first prompt for my reappraisal has been my evolving understanding of the complexity of relationships. We are not all autonomous islands floating in a sea of humanity; we are highly influenced by each other and by cultural norms. Writing about domestic abuse has opened my eyes to the extent that coercively controlling relationships drive people to do things, because others want them to. Of course, there will be women who get a terminal diagnosis, whose partners have been emotionally abusive to them for years – telling them their life isn’t worth living – who will come under intolerable pressure to opt for assisted dying. How can we ignore that around a third of female suicides are thought

to be related to intimate partner abuse? Or that some men who violently kill their sick wives rely on defences such as “mercy killing” and “suicide pacts”, sometimes very effectively? Even the fact that men are much more likely than women to leave their partners after a terminal diagnosis feels salient to understanding the gendered implications.

The risk of coercion goes beyond intimate partners in a society riven with ageism and anti-disability prejudice; what happened to older people in care homes during COVID is just one example. More than a fifth of people over 65 have experienced physical, emotional, financial or sexual abuse. There are relatives who will find ways – perhaps quite subtly, even unintentionally – of hinting to people with a terminal diagnosis who need round-the-clock care that they should opt for assisted dying. How would that make you feel? Almost half of people who chose assisted death in Oregon in 2022 cited concern about being a burden. Then there is the internal pressure that arises from some feeling that they ought to do it to save relatives difficulty and financial consequences: where the right to die becomes the duty to die. That message will be reinforced at a societal level; Times columnist Matthew Parris recently argued in a widely-condemned column that assisted dying could help address the cost of an ageing population; that there are those willing to be honest about this should give serious pause for thought. Moreover, palliative care doctors talk about how the wish to die is not stable, and often abates in terminally-ill patients in the wake of an initial diagnosis, and can be affected by depression, which is hard to diagnose. The second factor that’s changed my mind is the international evidence that,

once you cautiously nudge the door on assisted suicide, it is very difficult to stop it swinging wide open.

The most cited example is Canada, where a limited form of medical assistance in dying (MAiD) was legalised in 2016 for people with “grievous and irremediable medical conditions” with assurances about its narrow scope. Today, that definition has been interpreted to include a person with severe sensitivities to chemicals unable to access appropriate housing from the state, and there have been reports of officials promoting assisted dying to people with disabilities applying for Government assistance and medical professionals trying to coerce people into it. A parliamentary committee has recommended MAiD should be extended to some sick children and it is set to be expanded to people with chronic mental illness. In the Netherlands, euthanasia is an option for people who are autistic and lonely and is about to be extended to children of all ages. In Oregon, where the law has remained more stable, terminal conditions today include arthritis and anorexia.

Proponents argue adequate safeguards are possible; the latest House of Lords bill proposed certification by two doctors that someone has the capacity to decide to end their own life and has done so without coercion or duress, signed off by a High Court Family Judge. But this dissolves on scrutiny. Medical professionals are not trained in or necessarily any good at detecting coercive control; Judges will have limited evidence to make their own call. In the family courts, Judges can fail to detect coercive control even when confronted with detailed evidence about intra-familial relationships. Narcissistic abusers can be highly adept at fooling professionals. What level of outside influence is considered

too much, how is it measured, and how sure must a Judge be, given life and death is at stake, surely rendering the balance of probability evidentiary threshold usually applied in the family courts inappropriate?

In the House of Lords debate, there was a marked failure to engage with these detailed concerns. Some claimed there is no evidence of problems abroad, as if coercively-influenced wrongful deaths would magically reveal themselves after the fact. One only need look at the fight to reveal the true number of hidden homicides of women by their abusers to understand the naivety in that and, in somewhere like Oregon, the system is simply not set up to catch wrongful deaths. With brutal utilitarian honesty, former Supreme Court President Lord Neuberger acknowledged there would be abuses, but argued the benefits for those acting autonomously would outweigh them.

We live in a social media-driven world characterised by excessive moral certainty, in which powerful individual stories that invoke strong emotions can dominate the discourse to the detriment of the voiceless. There is a real risk that a law gets passed without any of these devastating concerns being addressed. Assisted dying is not a right-left issue, but it garners more support from MPs on the left, including Keir Starmer, and a Labour Government might feel under pressure to introduce big reforms that don’t cost money given its self-imposed fiscal constraints. That is why voices like Streeting’s and Sturgeon’s are so important; we desperately need politicians willing to acknowledge that assisted dying is one of the most complex and fraught ethical questions they will ever be asked to confront. (The Guardian)

(Sonia Sodha is an Observer columnist)

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony was at a fitness session following the Annual Kidney Awareness Run and Walk on Sunday, which commenced at the Bank of Guyana and concluded at the Kingston Seawall bandstand (Health Ministry photo)

Extension services critical for achieving food security, increasing productivity

Dear Editor, The Ministry of Agriculture in Guyana plays a crucial role in supporting and promoting the country's agricultural sector. One of the key initiatives undertaken by the Ministry is the provision of agriculture extension services. These services are essential for smallholder farmers as they provide them with the necessary knowledge, skills, and resources to improve their agricultural practices and increase productivity.

Agriculture extension services involve the dissemination of information, training, and technical assistance to farmers to help them adopt modern and sustainable farming techniques. These can include guidance on proper crop and livestock management, soil conservation methods, pest and disease control, market access, and financial management.

The importance of agriculture extension services to farmers cannot be overstated. These services enable farmers to enhance their knowledge and skills, leading to increased yields and improved agricultural practices. By adopting modern techniques and technologies, farmers can boost their productivity, enhance the quality of their products, and ultimately increase their income.

Furthermore, agriculture extension services play a crucial role in promoting sustainable farming practices. By educating farmers on environmentally friendly methods, such as organic farming and proper soil conservation techniques, extension services help farmers to protect the natural resources on which their livelihoods depend.

In addition, agriculture extension services play a vital role in promoting food

security and rural development. By empowering farmers with the necessary tools and knowledge, extension services help to increase food production, reduce food insecurity, and improve the livelihoods of rural communities.

Overall, it is a key component of agricultural development in Guyana. By providing farmers with the information, training, and resources they need, extension services help to improve agricultural productivity, promote sustainable farming practices, and enhance food security and rural development. The Ministry of Agriculture in Guyana continues to invest in and support farmers through these services to ensure the continued growth and success of the country's agricultural sector.

Sincerely,

Fawaz A Harry

Subsidise solar power

Dear Editor,

A letter writer suggested that homeowners should be offered grants to transition to solar power rather than remain on the GPL grid that cannot meet capacity. I am in agreement, since more homeowners moving away from GPL will reduce demand and end blackouts.

Solar power seems cheaper than GPL. A large consumer business on the Corentyne switched to solar almost a decade ago. The owner informed me that his electricity expenses have been halved since he came off GPL. To install solar, the initial cost is high and maybe prohibitive for low-income and middle-class homeowners. But with a government subsidy, it can be made affordable. Solar may generate enough power for home use. Any surplus can be injected into the grid to generate income for the homeowners. In the USA, many

Guyanese have switched to solar with Government assistance; local and state governments offer subsidies and tax breaks for homeowners who install solar units. Homeowners are able generate income by selling surplus electricity to the power grid. Since our Government faces serious challenges to meet demand for electricity that leads to blackouts, it should consider encouraging homeowners and businesses to try solar. Subsidies or grants should be offered to those willing to experiment with solar.

The international community, including Guyana, pledged last year in Dubai, to reduce carbon emissions produced from use of petroleum products and coal. Solar power is clean energy; it does not pollute as in the generation of power by GPL burning diesel or other pollutants that add to global warming.

The country will acquire anti-global warming credits and maybe even funds from oil giants. Rather than continue to subsidise GPL, which has not been able to meet public demands, Government should now give subsidies to homeowners interested in generating power from solar energy.

Yours truly,

Vishnu Bisram

The entire Caribbean, South America and the world at large should be and are extremely elated and proud that a young, self-less, honest, courageous, hard-working and dedicated leader has emerged in our dear land – a Guyanese leader who is not only dedicated to foster and promote the socio-economic development of his own country, Guyana, but the Caribbean as well. This salient fact has merited His Excellency, Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali yet another prestigious international award, the Caribbean Global Awards which followed closely after he was honoured with the highly-acclaimed Global Africa Leadership Award and the Order of Freedom of Barbados Award. His exceptional and superb leadership has now transcended beyond our borders. The prognostication is clear that he is a world-class leader who is unafraid to stand for the truth and to defend that truth.

This is just the fourth year in his first term in office as President, and he has already surpassed all expectations and proved to the naysayers that he has all the qualities which have already elevated him to the calibre of Dr Jagan and Dr Bharrat Jagdeo – the best Presidents this country has ever seen. His recent BBC interview speaks volumes of his oratorical ability and competence to rapidly and fearlessly deliver his message and to defend his country – a delivery which is unmatched. It

must be recalled that last year he staunchly defended the need for reparations on ITV’s Good Morning Britain. He was never at loss for words and has never failed to match his actions with those words and that is a rare combination in this world which is replete with hypocritical and dishonest leaders. It must be recalled that in his inauguration speech, Dr Ali promised to work for all Guyanese regardless of colour, class, or creed, and he has kept that promise unlike the PNC and AFC leaders who used the opportunity in Government for self-aggrandisement. They lied, deceived and impoverished the Guyanese people – the leopard cannot change its spots. Where was the UNHRC then?

Our President is a man of the people and for the people and his quest for a ONE GUYANA in nurturing unity of the races, inclusivity and sharing the prosperity and his achievement so far have surpassed what others in the PNC who was in Government for 33 years failed to achieve. In fact, the PNC and the AFC have never intended for the unification of the races, their violent and

bloody street protests will forever be ingrained and indelibly etched in our memories. Today, President Ali has wended his way into all the Afro-Guyanese villages and into their hearts. The PNC simply tore the races apart, especially the Indo and Afro-Guyanese. I wonder why the UNHRC was silent on these atrocities, the massive corruption and the glaring and well-documented attempts to rig the 2020 General Elections. These do not matter apparently.

The indications are clear and conclusive that President Ali will take and is taking Guyana to an unparalleled height of development, but at the same time he will not allow our Caribbean sister nations to be left behind and even those farther afield. Our poverty-stricken experiences during the harsh and unliveable conditions under the PNC have taught us the art of sharing, and President Ali will leave no stone unturned to ensure this. No Guyanese will suffer from hunger unless it is by choice. Long live our President.

Yours sincerely, Haseef Yusuf

Page Foundation

Solid figures

A solid figure is a figure that has 3 dimensions. These are some common solid figures:

Example:

Look at the solid figures on this page.

A cube and a rectangular solid have 6 faces each. Any of the faces can be the base.

A square pyramid has five faces. The base is square and the other 4 faces are rectangular.

A cone has a circular base and 1 vertex. A cylinder has 2 circular faces and no vertex.

A triangular pyramid has a triangular base, 4 vertices, 4 faces and 6 edges.

A sphere has no base, vertices, faces or edges. It is a figure with a curved surface; all points on the surface are equal distance from the centre.

This sound and volume vibrations science experiment can be done while enjoying a variety of music! It’s a fun and easy learning activity.

Materials:

Radio or CD player with music

Large glass bowl

Plastic wrap

Rubber band

Pieces of tissue paper

Here are some terms that are used to describe solid figures:

Face: The flat surface of a solid figure. Each face looks like a 2-dimensional figure.

Edge: The line where two faces meet. Vertex of a solid: A specific point at which more than two faces meet, or a point where a curve begins.

Base: The face on the bottom of a solid figure.

Exercises:

Identify the correct solid

Directions:

NB: Please be advised this is a very loud experiment.

1. Place a piece of plastic wrap on the top of a glass bowl and straighten as best as possible. Wrap a rubber band around the plastic wrap to hold it in place. Gently pull on the plastic wrap under the rubber band to make a very tight fit onto the bowl.

2. Crumble up a few small pieces of tissue paper and set

them onto the plastic wrap.

3. Place the bowl next to a speaker and play music. Is the paper moving? Turn up the volume: Now what happens? Try another type of music: What level of volume makes the tissue paper move?

4. Take it one step further! Line up tissue paper balls and guess which will fall off first.

Concepts demonstrated: Sound vibrates air. The

sound from the speakers makes the air vibrate which makes the plastic wrap on the bowl vibrate. This makes the light pieces of tissue paper bounce around.

Since music is so different, no two songs sound the same or make the food wrap vibrate at the same volume. Which songs/musical genres make the most vibrations? (Excerpt from premeditatedleftovers.com)

By Walt Whitman

CONTINUED FROM SATURDAY

14

Now while I sat in the day and look’d forth, In the close of the day with its light and the fields of spring, and the farmers preparing their crops, In the large unconscious scenery of my land with its lakes and forests, In the heavenly aerial beauty, (after the perturb’d winds and the storms,)

Under the arching heavens of the afternoon swift passing, and the voices of children and women, The many-moving sea-tides, and I saw the ships how they sail’d, And the summer approaching with richness, and the fields all busy with labor, And the infinite separate houses, how they all went on, each with its meals and minutia of daily usages, And the streets how their throbbings throbb’d, and the cities pent—lo, then and there, Falling upon them all and among them all, enveloping me with the rest, Appear’d the cloud, appear’d the long black trail, And I knew death, its thought, and the sacred knowledge of death. Then with the knowledge of death as walking one side of me, And the thought of death closewalking the other side of me, And I in the middle as with companions, and as holding the hands of companions, I fled forth to the hiding receiving night that talks not, Down to the shores of the water, the path by the swamp in the dimness, To the solemn shadowy cedars and ghostly pines so still.

TO BE CONTINUED

WORD SEARCH

Govt issues order to acquire EBD land for new Demerara River bridge connecting roads

…GL&SC report, plan for land being acquired already completed

The Government has issued an order to acquire land needed for the new US$260 million Demerara River bridge, which will stretch from Nandy Park, East Bank Demerara (EBD) to La Grange on the West Bank of Demerara (WBD).

According to the gazette dated April 4, 2024 and signed by Public Works Minister Juan Edghill, an order to acquire land for public purposes was issued on February 10, 2024. That order is intended to make land between Peters Hall and Providence available for the Government to build connecting roads for the new Demerara River Crossing.

It was explained that the Commissioner of Lands and Surveys, together with his “agents, servants or workmen” have already been authorised to enter unto the land and survey it. A report and plan encompassing the buildings and other erections has already been submitted to the Minister.

The land being acquired was listed as parcels 47 to 57, lots 80 to 88 and a portion of Block U and Mudlot E. Meanwhile, the order is legally listed as the Acquisition of Lands for Public Purposes (New Demerara River Crossing and Connecting Road) (No. 2) Order 2024.

On the cards for decades, the new Demerara River bridge will replace the ageing floating

Demerara Harbour Bridge (DHB), which has outlived its lifespan by several decades. At 1.25 miles (2.01 kilometres), the current Demerara Harbour Bridge is a strategic link between the East and West Banks of Demerara, facilitating the daily movement of thousands of vehicles, people, and cargo.

Specifically, it will provide better connectivity to the East Bank of Demerara (EBD) road, the Diamondto-Ogle bypass road on the eastern side of the river, as well as the West Bank of Demerara (WBD) roads, including the Parika-toSchoonord road on the western side of the river.

The US$260 million contract for the bridge was awarded to the joint venture of China Railway Construction Corporation (International) Limited; China Railway Construction (Caribbean) Co Ltd and China Railway Construction Bridge Engineering Bureau Group Co Ltd.

The contractors are part of a joint venture led by China Railway and Construction Corporation Limited to construct the new bridge, which will land aback Nandy Park and at La Grange.

Back in 2022, $21.1 billion was allocated towards work on the bridge. The China Railway and Construction Corporation (International) Limitedled joint venture outbid four other prequalified in-

ternational companies that submitted proposals for the project. In the months prior to the contract being awarded, the Guyana Government, through a team of specialists – legal and engineering – was in negotiations with the Chinese company to finalise the terms of the contract.

The new bridge will be a fixed 2.65-kilometre, four-lane, high-span, cable-stayed structure across the Demerara River, with the width of the driving surface being about 23.6 metres. The bridge will also have a lifespan of about 100 years.

The bridge, which features a bicycle lane, will bring an end to closures to vehicular traffic with a 50-metre fixed high span to cater for the free, uninterrupted flow of vessels. The river will be dredged along a 13.5-kilometre stretch to accommodate large vessels.

Back in February 2023, Housing and Water Minister Collin Croal had met with residents of Peters Hall on the EBD to begin the process of relocating 20 structures in the path of the alignment.

With $5.2 billion set aside in last year’s budget to advance works on the new Demerara River bridge, Public Works Minister Edghill had revealed in 2023 that all the persons who were residing along the pathway of this massive infrastructural

development have agreed to relocate without any resistance.

The new bridge is a critical component of the Government’s drive to expand and modernise Guyana’s transport infra -

structure and will address the challenges faced by users of the current bridge by providing safe, efficient, and effective crossing.

Upon completion, the traffic woes will be addressed significantly. It also births other economic opportunities for Regions Three and Four, including agricultural development, tourism, construction, housing and commerce.

Works that were being done on the bridge last year

Map showing location of the bridge and access roads

Teen dies 3 weeks after Police chase ends in crash

Nineteen-year-old

Ramesh Hariprasad of Non Pariel, East Coast Demerara (ECD) who was involved in an accident while being pursued by police on March 12, along the Enterprise Access Road, ECD succumbed to his injuries in the wee hours of Sunday morning.

According to Hariparsad’s family, after the accident, he remained in a critical condition and never regained consciousness until his demise on Sunday morning. Also injured in the accident was Hemraj Mohamed, 17, also of Non Pariel, ECD who police said was in serious condition.

According to police reports, the teens, Mohamed,

who was driving motorcycle, CL 7572, and Hariprasad, who was driving motorcycle, CK 2959, initially evaded two police officers on motorcycle patrol duties in the Enterprise area by riding in the area without lights.

Upon noticing the police, the two motorcyclists rode onto the access road which is under construction, and which leads into the Enterprise backlands where a new housing scheme is being developed.

At the time, the bikers were proceeding in an easterly direction at a fast rate, and one of them rode into a pile of ‘crushed stones’ that

was in the centre of the road.

Both bikers lost control of their bikes, and sustained injuries to their bodies when they fell on the roadway.

Police ranks reported that they had lost sight of the bikers, and were proceeding in the direction that the bikers had sped off in when they heard a call for help and responded.

Based on the ranks’ observations, an ambulance was summoned, and both motorcyclists were taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital, where they were admitted as patients in serious conditions. (G9)

Labourer shot during robbery

A35-year-old man is now hospitalised with a gunshot injury to his leg after he was shot during a robbery on Sunday morning on Charlotte

Street, Georgetown. Injured is Wesson Hinds, a 35-year-old labourer, who

was reportedly targeted by two men wearing face masks.

Police said that the incident occurred at about 09:40h and one of the assailants, armed with a handgun, was the pillion rider on a motorcycle.

According to Police, Hinds was standing on Charlotte Street, opposite the Truth, Power, Glory, and Sanctuary Church, facing north when the suspects approached from the south on the motorcycle.

The pillion rider disembarked, demanded belongings from Hinds – asking “if he get anything” and without delay, discharged a round from a handgun, hitting him in his left upper thigh. The suspects then fled on the motorcycle. The man was taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital where he was admitted a patient.

Police are continuing their investigation. (G9)

…for power

No one can accuse Aubrey Norton of being coy about his ambitions for power. “Aubrey” was a Germanic king of the elves and we know from “Lord of the Rings”, those elves were real bruisers – as is our Aubrey! With the newly-anointed Senior Counsel – courtesy of David Granger – Roysdale Forde openly declaring his intention to challenge Aubrey for his crown, it wasn’t no surprise that the latter would come out swinging to defend his turf!! The second challenger – another lawyer, Amanza Desir – however, was coy when asked about her plans: she claims because of her “humility”, she’d wait for the delegates at Congress to call on her!!

This weekend Aubrey declared pugnaciously, “In 2021, I was elected by the members of the party in a landslide victory and the members felt I was best suited. When I was elected, it was on the promise to engage them across the country… They thought then I was the most experienced and best suited. I can list more, but it is on that basis, I will be re-elected…You are also looking at a possible presidential candidate who has to know national and international politics. I don’t think there is anyone in the party who is more qualified than me to deal with national and international politics.” Well, that’s throwing down the gauntlet, innit?

And Forde – donning his lawyer’s hat – came right back to quote the PNC’s constitution, Article 15, Section I, which speaks to the authority vested in the Biennial Delegates Congress, specifically Section 4 which gives the Congress the authority to elect a party leader and the Central Executive Committee. In other words, he was telling Aubrey this wasn’t like the old days when Founder Leader Burnham was beyond challenge and selected himself for life!!

And that wasn’t all. Forde – who appears desperately trying to channel Burnham but hasn’t gotten past the goatee – actually launched what has to be his manifesto for his assault on the leadership summit. Echoing Obama’s 2008 successful run for the US Presidency, Forde felt that the Guyanese people needed to be given “hope” at this critical juncture. To engender this, he promised to motivate Guyanese to show “unity, strength, collectivism, integrity and patriotism.” Back to 1953?? And to achieve this, he announced, “we must regroup, refocus and rebuild.” Quite a mouthful of Burnhamite alliterations, innit??

Aubrey came right back. He one-upped Forde by pointing to concrete “accomplishments” since he became PNC leader! Sadly these weren’t that impressive after three years at the helm: engaging the international community; starting to rebuild Congress Place and canvassing the country. Signalling his outreach to nontraditional voters, he let drop he was visiting Black Bush Polder!!

The battle has been joined!!

…for modernity

Looks like the government has finally conceded that with all its beautifying projects from Albouystown to the Seawall, Georgetown’s a lost cause!! After all, aside from the projections that the city will be beyond drainage in a decade because of rising seas…it’s clear that the good burghers of the once Garden City are quite satisfied to live in filth!! So we look at the launch of Silica City up on the hills of the Linden highway where an ancient sea had once lapped and left its pristine white sands as evidence.

We’re told they’re starting with the first one hundred homes for Young Professionals. Now your Eyewitness doesn’t see professionals taking up residence at a location that simply adds more than an hour commute to join the horror of the East Bank traffic to Georgetown. So he figures the Government’s gonna have to guarantee employment to the said Young Professionals. And that can only be guaranteed if they start relocating its governmental offices!!

Bye, bye, GT!! Hello, Silica City!!

…with California

NY and California are always competing -- but this is ridiculous. New York claims they

Dead: Ramesh Hariprasad

Deadly boat mishap

GDF Chief of Staff visits boat accident victims’ families

Chief of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF), Brigadier Omar Khan along with Regional Chairman of Region One (Barima-Waini), Brentnol Ashley, visited the families of two teachers who lost their lives following a collision between an army boat and another at Moruca on Friday.

Adrian Thomas, 18, a former teacher of St Bedes Primary School on Kumaka Road in Santa Rosa, and Helen Raybai of

in

place at 06:30h on Friday, and one of the boats involved was Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Coast Guard radar craft RC 17, which was under the command of a sergeant, assisted by two other ranks, and was en route to Santa Rosa. The other boat, powered by a 75HP outboard engine and captained by Thomas, had four occupants, including Raybai, her child and Thomas, and was on its way to Charity. The collision reportedly occurred as the GDF boat was negotiating a turn.

Waikrebi Village

the Moruca SubRegion, are the two teachers who lost their lives

Based on reports received, the accident took

Following the collision, Raybai and Thomas lost their lives while the baby and the other occupant of

the boat were taken for medical attention at the Charity Regional Hospital.

Chief of Staff, Brigadier Omar Khan, along with the Regional Chairman, visiting the grieving families

Bruster’s Ice Cream cold storage malfunctions, “prolonged erratic” power supply blamed

…all outlets temporarily closed; significant losses recorded

All Bruster’s Ice Cream locations in Guyana have been temporarily closed as the company experiences a cold storage malfunction.

In a public notice, the company said that due to a cold storage malfunction all of the outlets will be temporarily closed until further notice.

The notice stated that the company, recently encountered a critical issue with their cold storage facilities that compromised their perishable inventory. The suspected cause of this malfunction was said to be a result of the prolonged erratic power supply in the area, which most likely damaged the cold storage equipment resulting in significant losses.

According to the notice, the company said it is taking immediate actions to repair damaged equipment and replace the discarded inventory. The company said that it is aiming to resume service on April 20.

Impact on local businesses

Speaking with Guyana Times on Sunday about the impact of the current Guyana Power and Light woes is having on local businesses, President of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), Kester Hutson, said that businesses are “coping even in the challenges right now. There

The Bruster’s Ice Cream franchise has been in operation in Guyana for the past 12 years following the opening of its doors on May 12, 2012 offering over 200 ice cream flavours and has been expanding their menu ever since, providing Guyanese with a plethora of ice cream flavours.

is nothing that can be done. Some companies have backup generators and they trying with that, I know the costs will increase because they have to purchase more fuel now.”

He said that in general there are some businesses that are not operating at 100 per cent capacity because the electricity supply has not been 100 per cent efficient.

It is for this reason, Hutson added, that the GGCI, has been very sup -

portive of the government and pushing for the gas to energy project.

“…because we recognized that we need reliable and efficient generate a higher demand… Guyana growing very fast, both commercial and residential areas, so the supply is much greater and we want cheaper electricity,” Hutson said, adding that there have been power issues since November 2023 because of mechanical challenges with the current generators and the increasing demand.

“So the government had

recognised that there is an issue, the government with the Chamber had the address, the chamber that had invited Public Works, and its team to come and present what is happening with reliability or inefficiency and that they would have explained fully what was happening, what the challenges were and what the plan was to resolve it. Those plans were pretty much to procure and install generators. That process has begun, not all have been installed…what is happening right now is the

existing generators are giving mechanical problems, so while installing new generators the existing generators are giving issues. So, the frequency of maintenance has increased,” Hutson added.

He said that there are no “heavy complaint because we try to sensitise our members as much as possible. So, nobody comes around and say that they didn't know. We do a lot of advocacy work, as information come from the government we inform our members.”

Pensioner homeless after arsonist torches Linden home

The fire that destroyed the house in Linden

Aman is now homeless after a late-night fire destroyed the house in which he lived at Linden, Region 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice) on Saturday.

The Guyana Fire Service (GFS) on Sunday said that the Lot 63 Ariwa Oval, Retrieve, McKenzie, Linden house was owned by the late Deryl Joseph and occupied by 77-year-old Douglas Joseph.

Reports are that the fire

started at about 22:36h on Saturday and four firefighters along with a water bowser was dispatched to the scene.

The fire service reported that firefighters found a two-storey concrete structure with corrugated metal sheeting engulfed in flames.

On Sunday, the fire service said that the house sustained irreparable damage, resulting in the complete destruction of the building and

its contents, leaving its lone occupant homeless.

Importantly, the GFS said that the fire is suspected to be the result of malicious intent.

The incident remains under investigation as fire prevention officials collaborate with the Police.

Anyone with information that could help identify the perpetrator(s) is encouraged to contact the nearest police station. (G9)

Bruster’s locations at Amazonia Mall and MovieTowne

Caricom condemns Ecuador’s storming of Mexican Embassy

…urges adherence to int’l law, rules of diplomatic engagement

Ecuador’s decision to storm the Mexican Embassy in its capital of Quito, all so it could arrest controversial former Vice President Jorge Glas, continues to attract condemnation – this time from the Caribbean Community (Caricom), under the chairmanship of President Dr Irfaan Ali.

In a statement on Sunday, Caricom expressed deep concern over Ecuador’s actions, which has resulted in international and regional condemnation and Mexico’s decision to sever diplomatic ties with Ecuador.

“The Member States of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) reaffirm the importance of adherence to the principles of international law and rules of diplomatic engagement enshrined in the Vienna Convention which codifies the inviolability of diplomatic missions and consular offices,” Caricom said.

“Caricom is therefore deeply concerned that the Republic of Ecuador has recently taken actions that have violated the premises of the Embassy of Mexico in Quito,” the regional bloc further said.

Meanwhile, Caricom expressed optimism that

both Ecuador and Mexico would work to resolve the current matter “through dialogue and access to relevant multilateral process with a view to ensuring that our Region remains one of peace.”

As reported by CNN, Ecuador’s security forces stormed the Mexican embassy in Quito on Friday evening to arrest former Vice President Glas, who is accused of corruption and up until then had been seeking asylum in the embassy. Glas, who has alleged he’s being politically persecuted, has since been transferred to a maximum-security prison in Guayaquil known as La Roca.

Following his arrest, the United Nations (UN), as well as a number of

Latin American countries – including Brazil and Argentina – have supported Mexico and condemned Ecuador. Several have pointed out that Ecuador’s actions are a violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the international treaty that regulates relations between countries.

According to Article 22 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the premises of diplomatic missions are inviolable –barring any right of entry by law enforcement officers of the receiving State and imposing on the receiving State a special duty to protect the premises against intrusion, damage, disturbance of the peace or infringement of dignity.

Even in response to

abuse of this inviolability or emergency, the premises may not be entered without the consent of the head of mission. Article 24 ensures the inviolability of mission archives and documents – even outside mission premises – so that the receiving State may not seize or inspect them or permit their use in legal proceedings.

Soon after the arrest, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador had ordered the immediate suspension of diplomat -

ic ties with Ecuador. In a social media post, Obrador had said that the arrest was a “flagrant violation of international law and the sovereignty of Mexico.”

For its part, Ecuador has defended its actions. At a news conference Saturday, Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Gabriela Sommerfeld claimed that the raid was carried out “in the face of a real risk of imminent escape.”

Sommerfeld also accused Mexico of violating the principle of non-in -

tervention by letting Glas stay in the embassy and evade an order to appear regularly before authorities in a corruption probe.

She had also dismissed Mexico’s claim that Glas was being politically persecuted, saying: “For Ecuador, no criminal can be considered a politically-persecuted person when he has been convicted with an enforceable sentence and with an arrest warrant issued by the judicial authorities.”

Guyana earned $126.3B in oil revenue in 1st quarter of 2024

Asum of $126.3 billion (US$604.3 million) has been earned by Guyana in the first quarter of 2024, based on the receipt of oil payments into the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) which shows that the majority of this money came from oil profits.

These payments would also mark the first full quarter to include payments from the Prosperity Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel, Guyana’s third FPSO, which only started up production in November of last year.

According to a gazette notice, the first profit oil payment of the year (January 2, 2024), came from the lift of 1 million barrels of oil from the Liza Unity FPSO in December 2023. This payment amounted to $15.3 Billion (US$73.5 million).

The second payment, recorded on January 29, 2024, was a royalty payment of US$63.5 million that is related to oil production in the last quarter of 2023. A February 2 profit oil payment amounting to US$76.5 million was also

recorded, this time from the Liza Destiny FPSO.

The Prosperity FPSO meanwhile accounts for two profit oil paymentsa February 2, 2024 payment of US$73.1 Million and a March 8 payment of US$78.3 Million. Meanwhile, the Liza Destiny FPSO would account for only one other payment, a March 25, 2024 payment of US$82.1 Million.

The Liza Unity, which started up production in 2022 and has since ramped up production to 250,000 barrels of oil per day, on its part, accounted for two other lifts- a February 15 transaction that amounted to US$75.3 million and a March 6 transaction for US$81.6 million.

Back in December 2021, the Government amended the NRF Act to bring greater transparency and accountability in the management of Guyana’s oil resources, including the requirement that Government seek annual parliamentary approval for withdrawals from the NRF as stated in Section 19 of the NRF Act 2021.

The funds in the NRF, which are being held in an account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, have their origins in the oil-rich Stabroek Block offshore Guyana, where US oil major ExxonMobil and its partners – Hess Corporation and CNOOC – are producing light sweet crude using the Liza Destiny, Liza Unity, and more recently, the Prosperity FPSO vessels.

In February, the Guyana Government tabled a bill that sought to

significantly increase the withdrawal amounts from the NRF.

Senior Minister with responsibility for Finance, Dr Ashni Singh presented the Fiscal Enactments (Amendment) Bill 2024 –a bill that intitules an act to amend the NRF Act, among other legislation.

Under the new withdrawal formula in the proposed legislation, the Government plans to draw down 100 per cent of the first US$1 billion deposited into the Fund in the

immediately preceding fiscal year; then 95 per cent of the second US$1 billion; followed by 90 per cent of the third US$1 billion; and 85 per cent of the fourth US$1 billion.

This proposed withdrawal formula is significantly higher than the figures that were catered for in the current 2021 NRF Bill. That NRF formula allows the withdrawal of 100 per cent for the first US$500 million; 75 per cent for the second US$500 million; 50 per cent for

the third US500 million; 25 per cent for the fourth US$500 million; 5 per cent for the fifth US$500 million; and 3 per cent on the excess for the first US$2.5 billion.

Earlier this year, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo had assured that Government would continue to invest the oil revenues in areas which develop the productive capacity of the country and its people, and once there is stabilisation, monies would be funnelled into savings.

He was responding to a recent CNBC documentary, drawing contentions that the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) was not enough to keep the resource curse at bay.

However, Jagdeo had pointed out that it was contradictory to save the country’s oil money in the early days of production while the population was suffering from inequalities that could be remedied with investments. It was also affirmed that Guyana’s NRF was not a slush fund, but a formula-based mechanism to determine how much is spent.

A scene from the raid

Former Vice President Jorge Glas after being arrested

The Prosperity FPSO

Scenes from MYO’s "A Night Peace, Guyana and Palestine"

Night of Prayer for Global Palestine" on Saturday

Spraying Bath canals with weedicide for overgrowth destroys millions in crops

…livestock also dying, farmers call for compensation

Some cash crop farmers at Bath Settlement, West Coast Berbice, Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice) are counting their losses after using water contaminated with weedicide to water their crops.

Additionally, some livestock farmers have lost some of their animals after being fed grass that was sprayed with a deadly weedicide and in some cases the animals drank the contaminated water.

The farmers are claiming that the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) Blairmont Estate would have used a weedicide to kill the vegetation growing in one of its canals running through Bath Settlement. Cash crop farmers use the water from the canal to water their crops.

Other farmers of the same community claim that the Bath-Woodpark Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) would have undertaken a similar exercise.

This is despite repeated calls by Government officials, including Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha, for contractors to desist from spraying waterways with chemicals

trench; they come and they spray the trench,” the woman claimed.

The woman said she reached out to the NDC but no help was forthcoming.

“They tell me that the chairman said that I have to call the sanitary. I want to know what the sanitary has to do with this?” the angered woman asked.

“No one has come as yet since I called them three weeks ago; this is what I depend on,” she pointed out.

that two weeks ago she had eschalot at different stages. “The whole garden was

She said she depends solely on her crops and not only has she lost what she

and stick to manual cleaning of those areas.

Kamani Balkarran 51, is a cash crop farmer and together with her husband, they cultivated about a quarter acre with eschalot and eggplants.

She told this publication

sheer shallot and me use the water that they spray the trench and water the shallot and the garden wipe down,” Balkarran explained. “The NDC sent the workers to weed the trench and they didn’t weed the

had growing but the soil is now contaminated rendering it useless currently.

“When I reap my whole garden and sell it, I does make a million dollars from it,” she said.

Meanwhile, several animal farmers have lost

sheep and goats.

Mahindranauth Sucree, who lives at Waterloo, Bath Settlement, is both a cash crop and livestock farmer who gets grass from a canal, he claims is maintained by GuySuCo for his animals.

According to him, on March 27, he asked someone to cut a bag of grass for him.

“He did not observe that the guys going and spray and he go and cut the grass and he bring it and give me and I give the big ram the grass. Nobody know that they spray the trench. The next morning somebody tell him not to cut the grass, because the trench spray. Then he come and ask me what I did with the grass. Ah tell him that I

water their crops said that they are feeling the brunt of the contaminated wa-

ing limestone and manure on the beds with the hope that he will be able to re-

ter as they are losing large amount of income.

Mahesh Jagdeo, who has just over one acre under cultivation at Plantation

plant soon. Jagdeo said the National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI) has intervened and taken soil

give the sheep. When I run to the pen, the ram on his last lap; I can’t do nothing to save him,” the man said.

Sucree said about six sheep died and he believes that they would have drunk water from the canal, which is customary.

“All I am asking is if they can give me something to buy back one, because I will have to go and purchase one,” Sucree related. Other cash crop farmers who utilise the canal to

Hope, Railway Line is one such farmer.

He cultivates eschalot, celery and tomatoes.

“Apparently, GuySuCo spray the irrigation canal and we pump the water into our fields and the chemical got in contact with the plants and they are dying. The tomato, eschalot and celery.”

He explained that to get back to the land he has started to remove the contaminated plants, and plac-

samples and also water samples. He said they are awaiting the soil test results.

He and other farmers had gone to GuySuCo Blairmont Estate with the aim of meeting with the field manager but after waiting for more than one and a half hours, he told them he was busy and could not have met with them. The farmers are also calling to the Agriculture Ministry to intervene. (G4)

Kamani Balkarran

Tomato plants after being watered with water from the canal

Mahindranauth Sucree

Mahesh Jagdeo

The situation being faced by farmers

5 additionally GEN sets installed, contributing to grid – GPL Head …remaining

generators from US$27M deal will be set up this week

With the hopes of alleviating its heightened power outage woes, the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) has successfully installed five containerised electricity generators over the weekend to enhance the capacity of the national grid.

Back in December, 17 generator sets were purchased to the tune of US$27 million to enhance power generation during the Christmas holiday. Procured from Apan Energy Service, these sets were expected to contribute an additional 28.9 megawatts to the national grid, but there have been shipment delays and technical issues in setting them up, and it has been reported that only nine of these gen sets have been installed.

Five of the eight remaining gen sets were connected on Saturday night and according to Chief Executive Officer of GPL, Kesh Nandlall, there had been no issues up to Sunday evening.

“They are up and running since [Saturday] night… They are up and running and they are contributing to the grid,” Nandlall told the Guyana Times on Sunday.

He added that the remaining three generation sets will be installed during the course of this week.

Nandlall had previously told this newspaper that when these eight generators are all connected, approximately 10 megawatts would be added to the national grid.

For the past week, Guyana has been enduring a heightened spate of blackouts following what the GPL had described as engine failures at different locations.

At least two engines are currently down.

With its current challenges, GPL is now generating some 165 megawatts of power. However, the current peak demand for electricity is at 180 megawatts.

Government has blamed the issues at the state-owned power company to a number of issues ranging from aged infrastructure and systems to lack of maintenance, to human resource gap, and to the growing demand for electricity coupled with public destruction of the entity’s transmission utilities.

In fact, Vice President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, at his weekly press conference on Thursday, acknowledged that the state of affairs at the power company is “bad” but assured that the Government is seeking to purchase an additional 40 to 80 megawatts of power in order to offset increasing demands.

“The situation is bad, there is no sugarcoating this… We are not going to say people are not justified in the harsh comments they make, because we feel it ourselves. Because we live here and we are consumers too.”

“Yes, the performance of GPL is atrocious in many

cases, but also, we are dealing with a real fact: growth demand and old equipment… Now, anyone here in Guyana would understand the growth in demand. You just look at the housing schemes: more houses, air-conditioned houses, more people are getting more money and they’re putting in AC. You have a number of businesses opening up, oil and gas projects, hotels, etc., and they are utilising significantly more power. So, our demand has grown, but we are still limping along with (some) old equipment,” Jagdeo explained.

To address the issue in the short term, VP Jagdeo said, efforts are underway to purchase 40 to 80 megawatts of power for a period of two years, until the Gasto-Energy project comes on stream. In the meantime, he noted, solar panels are also being used in the hinterland and other areas to increase the generation of electricity in those areas.

The PPP/C Government’s model Gas-to-Energy project includes a 300-megawatt power plant using natural gas that would be piped from the oil-rich Stabroek Block’s Liza field, offshore Guyana, to an integrated gas processing facility at Wales on the West Bank of Demerara. The project is set to come on stream next year.

Issues interconnected

Meanwhile, President Dr Irfaan Ali told reporters on the sidelines of an event last Wednesday that the issues affecting GPL’s operations are multifaceted and interconnected. He said while Government is looking to

Miner drowns while attempting to swim across Cuyuni River

Aminer drowned on Sunday afternoon while attempting to swim across the Cuyuni River in Region Seven (CuyuniMazaruni).

Dead is Carlos Gomes. Guyana Times was informed that Gomes, originally from Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Essequibo), was employed at a mining camp in Region Seven.

At about 15:00h on Sunday, he embarked on a swim from one camp to another, but unfortunately encountered difficulties and submerged in the water near Makapa Hills.

Dead: Carlos Gomes

Upon noticing Gomes's disappearance, fellow miners in the vicinity initiated a search and ultimately recovered his lifeless body from the river. This comes more than a week after three children of Massara, North Rupununi, Region Nine (Upper TakutuUpper Essequibo) drowned.

The three girls, Michelle Jefferys, Alicia Dorrick, and Nia Jefferys, aged five, six, and eight drowned in the ‘Razor Grass’ pond in Massara Village, North Rupununi.

It was reported that the girls left their parents’ home to go for a swim. Their parents later started a search after they did not see them in the house. The girls were found floating in the pond by villagers who had joined the search. The Toshao of the village subsequently notified the Annai Police of the incident. (G9)

immediately bring in additional power, while there is a massive need for technical capacity at GPL.

That support, according to the Head of State, could be imported since efforts to fill the human resource gap within the electricity sector has not been fruitful.

“We have to get more engineers, more technicians and more linesmen urgently, because of the demand in the system. Because of the use of the system and the expansion of the system, there

will be tremendous technical support that will come.

Right now, as I speak to you, I’ve expressed my disappointment (at GPL’s operations, but) the system needs technical people. There are a number of vacancies. They’ve been trying to recruit, but they’re not getting the people. So, they’re (going) out once more, and if they don’t get, then we’ll have to bring in that technical support,” the Guyanese Leader noted.

The Head of State

said Dominican Republicbased energy company InterEnergy Group (IEG) is one of the partners that the Guyana Government would be working with.

Moreover, the Guyana Government has approached the United Kingdom Export Finance (UKEF) for financing to upgrade the aged transmission system and distribution network. According to Ali, this could be a “sizeable” amount, given the need of the power company. (G8)

GPL CEO Kesh Nandlall

Hinterland housing programme

“My

living condition

will be much better” – new homeowner …as Yarakinta, Nappi residents get new homes

The livelihoods of 20 families from the communities of Yarakinta and Nappi in Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) have been significantly uplifted, as they received keys to their new homes through the Hinterland Housing Programme.

As part of the hinterland initiative, the government has committed to building 400 houses in Regions One, Seven,

million each, and were built utilising materials and labour sourced from the area. The homes are constructed at no cost to the beneficiaries. The Ministry collaborated with the Village Council to select the families.

Eight, and Nine to provide sustainable housing to vulnerable families. The 20 by 25 feet houses cost approximately $3

During his outreach to Region Nine, Housing and Water Minister, Collin Croal officially handed over the homes to 10 families in both communities, on Saturday.

One of the beneficiaries of Nappi, Winston

Marcello expressed immense gratitude for being provided with a new house. He told the Department of Public Information (DPI) that the gift means a lot to his family.

“I want to thank the government for bringing this housing programme to the region, especially in Nappi for the first time,” Marcello expressed.

Also, from Nappi, Grace Melville is overjoyed since her children will be comfortably accommodated in their new home.

“My living condition will be much better than before,” Melville added.

Meanwhile, Croal emphasised that close to $700 million is currently being spent on the hinterland housing programme.

He indicated that a total of 120 of these houses are currently under construction in Region Nine.

The blocks and other building materials were sourced directly from the community and Lethem.

Another beneficiary, Regina Jonas now finds relief in her new home, given that her previous living conditions were unsatisfactory.

The residents were also enlightened about the government’s extensive plans for enhanced development in the region.

Nappi is among the communities that will soon receive cassava to improve production in the Rupununi area, following the recent commitment made by President Dr Irfaan Ali.

The first ten houses were handed over to flood-affected families in Kokerite Hill in Region One last November.

GDF Chief of Staff visits...

Police have said that the Coast Guard vessel was damaged, and is currently at the Base in the Pomeroon River. The GDF, in a statement after the tragic accident, said an investigation is underway, none of its ranks were injured, but are extremely saddened at the passing of two occupants of the civilian boat.

The Chief of Defence Staff, Brigadier Omar Khan, together with officers and ranks of the Guyana Defence Force, has since extended their condolences to the families and loved ones affected by this tragic incident.

Along with the Chief of Staff, Parliamentary Secretary, Sarah BrowneShadeek and Regional Vice Chairperson of the Region, Annansha Peters also visited the grieving families.

When contacted, Dawn Torres, a cousin of Thomas,

told Guyana Times during a telephone conversation that relatives had received initial information about the accident, and later in the morning received news that two persons had died.

She noted that her cousin and other passengers were heading to Charity.

Thomas had attended the Santa Rosa Secondary School, and after writing

CSEC, had applied for a teaching job at St Bedes in the Barama area. Torres described him as a very jovial and funny person who always lighted up a crowd. She recalled meeting him on Easter Monday during a family gathering, and said she was fortunate to have been taken on a ride in his boat. (G9)

Some of the beneficiaries of the new homes in Yarakinta and Nappi, Region Nine

New $12M well to benefit over 260 Quarrie, Region 9 residents

F or the first time, some 262 residents in the village of Quarrie will have access to clean and safe water, following the commissioning of a $12 million well.

The new well was officially commissioned in the small Amerindian village, located in Central Rupununi, Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo), by Housing and Water Minister Collin Croal on Sunday morning, a Department of Public Information (DPI) report stated.

The water supply system was recently rehabilitated to achieve 60 per cent coverage there.

Prior to these works, residents heavily relied on a hand-dug well, which suffered severe depletion as a result of the prolonged dry season.

It was then decided that two new wells would be drilled by Guyana Water Inc (GWI), with community participation, to provide reliable service.

The drilling of the second well will be done within the next two months to

service 20 more households with first-time access, increasing the overall coverage to 95 per cent.

The sum of $20 million is being spent on the two new wells and a new distribution system.

Croal highlighted that from 2020 to date, access to potable water has increased from 60 per cent to 94 per cent in Region Nine.

“So now, our emphasis, therefore, is to ensure that every household, those that are spread out, can have access too…That is the type of investment we are mak-

Record floodwaters rise in Russia's Urals, forcing thousands to evacuate

Floodwaters were rising in two cities in Russia's Ural mountains on Sunday after Europe's third-longest river burst through a dam, flooding at least 10,000 homes and forcing thousands of people to flee with just their pets and a few belongings.

Some of the worst floods in decades have hit a string of Russian regions in the Ural Mountains and Siberia, alongside parts of neighbouring Kazakhstan in recent days.

The Ural River, which rises in the Ural Mountains and flows into the Caspian Sea, swelled several metres in just hours on Friday due to melt water, bursting through a dam embankment in the city of Orsk, 1800 kilometres (1100 miles) east of Moscow.

The Mayor of Orsk, Vasily Kozupitsa, was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying a second river in the town, the Yelshanka, had also burst

Rescuers drive in a flooded residential area in the city of Orsk, Russia, April 6, 2024, in this still image taken from video (Russian Emergencies Ministry/Handout via Reuters)

its banks. Measures were being undertaken to evacuate residents from affected areas.

More than 6100 persons have already been evacuated from the city of 230,000, according to local authorities. Fifteen of 40 schools in the school had been flooded.

Footage published by the Emergencies Ministry showed

people making their way through neck-high waters, rescuing stranded dogs and travelling along flooded roads in boats and canoes.

State news agency TASS reported that six adults and three children had been hospitalised in Orsk, but their condition was not life-threatening. (Excerpt from Reuters)

ing. By the time we are finished with 2024, we will see over 30 completed wells in Region Nine,” Croal was

quoted by DPI as saying.

Meanwhile, Senior Councillor of Quarrie, Martin Anthony empha-

sised that residents would no longer have to worry about water shortage since the well will be a permanent source.

“For a very long time, we were struggling with our water system and now it is here. This is such a great initiative for us here in Quarrie,” the councillor expressed.

A meeting was also held at the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) hub where various issues were raised by the residents.

Five households that are not within the vicinity of the well will be provided with tanks to store water.

The Minister was joined by Regional Chairman, Bryan Allicock; GWI’s Hinterland Services Director, Ramchand Jailall, and other technical staff.

Climate-warming gases being smuggled into Europe, investigation says

Large amounts of climate-warming refrigerant gases from China and Turkey are being smuggled illegally into Europe, undermining a global pact to phase them out, a report by the London-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) said on Monday.

The gases are hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), a range of chemicals used mostly for cooling in industry and retail, which do not damage the ozone layer like other banned refrigerants, but as greenhouse gases can be several thousand times more potent than carbon dioxide.

Despite commitments to

reduce HFC use, law enforcement agencies across the European Union are struggling to keep track of illicit shipments entering via Turkey, Russia or Ukraine, with smugglers resorting to increasingly sophisticated tactics to evade detection, the EIA said following a two-year undercover investigation.

"It's still pretty easy to find illegal HFCs in the European market," said Fin Walravens, a senior EIA campaigner. "There are signs that traders are adapting their methods, that they are getting a bit of savvy trying to evade authorities."

"If you can sneak in the most polluting, nastiest gas,

you're basically getting the biggest buck."

As part of the 2016 Kigali amendment to the Montreal Protocol, European and other industrial countries are committed to slash HFC use by 85 per cent from 2012 to 2036. To make the phasedown happen, authorised HFC producers and consumers are assigned quotas that are reduced gradually.

But with demand still strong, the phase-downs have driven up prices, creating incentives for smugglers – many of whom are also licensed traders – to make more supply available, the report showed. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Two young Quarrie villagers drinking water sourced from the new water system (DPI photo)

Regional

Guatemalan President fires Minister in bid to avoid doubts on Administration's integrity

Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo on Sunday dismissed his Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, fewer than 100 days into his term, to "avoid any doubt" over the integrity of his Government, a statement said.

Arevalo won the presidential elections in August by a landslide after a campaign that focused heavily on increasing transparency and fighting rampant corruption in Central America's most populous nation.

The dismissal was the first of his term and came after Maria Jose Iturbide acknowledged that her 28-year-old daughter had not followed protocols in the use of vehicles and security meant for the Ministry. The Secretary General of the presidency in a statement said that Arevalo made the decision to dismiss

Iturbide "to avoid any doubt about his Administration's commitment and zero tolerance for misuse of State resources and corruption".

(Reuters)

Barbados Government may have to bail out cash-strapped SOEs

Barbados Government may have to allocate millions of dollars to continue bailing out some cash-strapped State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs).

A new Fiscal Risk Statement from the Finance Ministry says there is evidence that a number of SOEs, including the Barbados Agricultural Development Marketing Inc (BADMC) and the Transport Board are likely to be short of cash and other liquid resources needed to pay their debts this year.

The authorities say

this means that “given the traditional reliance on Government to settle arrears of the SOEs in times where they have been cash-strapped, there is a high risk that these entities may require unbudgeted subventions during fiscal year 2024/25”.

In recent supplementaries approved by Parliament before the last financial year ended on March 31, Bds$4 million was allocated to settle outstanding arrears of the Transport Board among others.

In the 2024 Fiscal Risk Statement, which is a requirement of the Public

Finance Management Act of 2019, the Finance Ministry said “weak revenue growth for most commercial enterprises and a high reliance on Government subventions to meet operating expenses have meant consolidated net losses of commercial public enterprises before subventions”.

“A number of SOEs have been deemed insolvent as current assets are unable to cover liabilities. Additionally, some commercial entities’ revenues have not fully rebounded post peak pandemic,” it reported. (Excerpt from Nation News)

Respected jurist, former NAR Senator Amrika Tiwary-Reddy dies

Former Senator in the National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR) Government and respected jurist, Justice Amrika Tiwary-Reddy, whose career spanned over four decades, has died.

Tiwary-Reddy, a 2012 Chaconia Medal (Gold) recipient, died on the afternoon of April 6 at the Eric Williams Medical Centre, Mt Hope.

There are no details at the moment as to the cause of her death.

She had an illustrious career, starting with her admission to the bar in England in 1968 and, in Trinidad and Tobago, in 1969. She was appointed as a Judge in 1998 until 2011, when she retired.

Having migrated to British Columbia, Canada in 1994, after marrying a Canadian national, Tiwary-Reddy also practised at the Canadian Bar. She was a strong advocate for reform of the laws governing the inability of Judges to continue to practise in the courts for 10 years after retirement and, improvement of their pension benefits.

Dr Devant Maharaj, adjunct professor, University of TT, and a former Government Minister, said TiwaryReddy also served as Chair of the Family Court and the Fair-Trade Commission.

Secretary General of the Maha Sabha Vijay

Maharaj said TiwaryReddy had the distinction of being the first principal of the Lakshmi Girls Hindu College.

Two former leaders of the NAR, Winston Dookeran and Carolyn Seepersad-Bachan, have expressed sadness at her passing.

In a statement issued late on April 6, President Christine Carla Kangaloo said she too was deeply saddened by the death of the retired Judge.

Kangaloo recalled that Tiwary-Reddy also acted as Attorney General on several occasions between 1989 and 1991, becoming the first woman to do so.

(Excerpt from Trinidad Newsday)

Brazilian Judge opens inquiry into Musk for obstruction involving social media company X

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes on Sunday opened an inquiry into Elon Musk for obstruction of justice involving social media company X, according to a court document.

Musk is challenging a decision by Moraes order-

ing his social media platform X to block certain accounts.

Musk earlier on Sunday posted that X will lift the restrictions, because they were unconstitutional.

In his decision, Moraes said, "X shall refrain from disobeying any court order already issued, includ-

ing performing any profile reactivation that has been blocked by this Supreme Court."

If X fails to comply with the order to block certain accounts, the company will be fined 100,000 reais (US$19,740) per day, the judge said.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Mexico welcomes home Ecuador Embassy staff after armed raid

Mexico welcomed the return of its Ecuador Embassy personnel on Sunday, two days after Police raided the facility in an act that triggered an abrupt diplomatic break while provoking global shock and condemnation of the South American nation.

Ecuadorean Police and soldiers forced their way into Mexico's Embassy in Quito late Friday night to arrest former Vice President Jorge Glas, who had for months taken refuge there, after Mexican officials offered him formal asylum protection earlier in the day.

Ecuador argued it was unlawful to grant asylum to Glas, who had been convicted twice on graft charges.

Glas, 54, who had a preventive arrest warrant out on another corruption case, had been holed up in the Embassy in Quito since seeking political asylum in December.

At the Mexican capital's main airport, Foreign Minister Alicia Barcena hailed the solidarity shown with Mexico from 18 Latin

American Governments –nearly the entire region and spanning its ideological divides - in addition to 10 European nations, plus the United States and Canada.

While welcoming about a couple dozen embassy personnel who were flown back to Mexico, the diplomat also lashed out at Ecuador's "physical aggression" on the Embassy. She also reiterated plans to seek further international rebukes for the Government of President Daniel Noboa over the incident.

Earlier on Sunday, Britain became the lat-

est country to condemn Ecuador's incursion into the Embassy, according to a foreign office statement.

Mexico's Ambassador to Ecuador, Raquel Serur, flanked Barcena at the ceremony.

"President Noboa made a mistake by taking a decision that didn't just break with all established international conventions, but it also showed ignorance of the reality of his country," said Serur, adding that the President "doesn't understand" that individuals can be provided with asylum protections without judging their innocence or guilt.

(Excerpt from

Voter apathy a threat to Jamaica’s democracy – Patterson

ormer Jamaican

FPrime Minister PJ Patterson is calling for a close look at measures which can be implemented to deal with the apathy which has greeted recent national elections as it is posing a threat to the country’s democracy.

“It must be of concern when we see declining voter turnout. It should be something of concern to both [major] political parties, and indeed to the entire country, because we are failing to convert into actual meaning something

[universal adult suffrage] that is so fundamental to our progress as a country,” Patterson told the Jamaica Observer in a recent exclusive interview.

According to Patterson, the closing of the ideological divide between the People’s National Party (PNP) and the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) could be a factor in the loss of interest for people to vote in national elections, but there are other issues to be addressed.

“More and more people feel it doesn’t matter how I

vote, my life is not going to change and there is a level of individual materialism that no matter what, no matter which Government is in power, I’m going to be alright,” added Patterson.

He charged that too many Jamaicans do not understand that the fight for universal adult suffrage, which was granted in November 1944, meant that for the first time every adult in Jamaica would be able to participate in the choice of Government.

(Excerpt from Jamaica Observer)

Reuters)

Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo gestures during an interview with Reuters at the National Palace of Culture, in Guatemala City, Guatemala, February 8, 2024 (Reuters/Cristina Chiquin photo)

This handout picture released by the Ecuadorean Police shows former Ecuadorean Vice President Jorge Glas (centre) being escorted by members of the Police prior to his transfer to the maximum security prison La Roca in Guayaquil at the Mariscal Sucre International Airport in Quito on April 6, 2024 (Photo: AFP)

Around the World OIL NEWS

Conflicts could put West Africa's oil supply at risk

African and Western officials are concerned that the conflicts and coups in the Sahel region could spill over to the coast of West Africa, which hosts several major oil production projects and export terminals.

Since 2020, there have been military coups in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, while violence from Islamist insurgents has spiked in recent months. Anxiety has grown over potential spillovers of extremist violence into the coastal countries in West Africa, including Benin, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, and Togo, all west of Nigeria, Africa's top crude oil producer.

Cote d'Ivoire has recently seen a major new oil project startup and a large new offshore discovery, courtesy of Italian major Eni. Benin is expected to soon begin oil exports from landlocked Niger via a new pipeline, Togo aims to introduce energy reforms to boost resource development, while Ghana has a major offshore producing field, Jubilee.

Last year, General Abdourahamane Tiani, the commander of Niger's presidential guard, was appointed Head of State by a governing council set up by military forces that ousted President Mohammed Bazoum. A group of military commanders overthrew the Niger Government and the country's army declared its support for the coup.

In Mali, the notorious Russian mercenary Wagner Group has capitalised on the absence of foreign involvement to expand its influence, according to the Center for Preventive Action (CPA) programme.

Extremist violence has surged across the Sahel, with at least 7800 civilian deaths in the first seven months of 2023, a significant increase from 2022, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED).

"Since 2020, the Sahel has experienced seven irregular transfers of power, because leaders have failed to address poor governance and public grievances or adequately resourced their militaries to achieve their missions. This turmoil raises the likelihood that these crises will metastasise and spill over to neighbouring countries in Coastal West Africa in 2024," the US intelligence community said in its unclassified annual threat assessment report in February.

"A spread of Sahel-type instability to the hugely morepopulous littoral states — 368 million people from Senegal to Nigeria — would present a new order of threat to US and international security, trade routes and economies," the United States Institute of Peace said last month.

US Vice President Kamala Harris announced last year a decade-long US commitment of US$100 million "to help address the threats of violent extremism and instability" in the coastal countries of Benin, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, and Togo.

The EU, for its part, confirmed Europe's commitment to the Gulf of Guinea, and pledged continued support to counter the spillover of insecurity from the Sahel. The EU handed over 105 armoured vehicles to the Ghana Armed Forces, part of a larger funding package from the European Peace Facility, aimed at enhancing "the country's capacity to respond effectively to potential threats, strengthen intelligence gathering, reinforce border surveillance, and maintain stability in the wider region" .

Potential spillover of conflicts to the coastal West African countries could endanger some oil projects and deter foreign investment.

In the region, the Jubilee oilfield offshore Ghana saw oil production in the fourth quarter average around 92,400 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd), one of the minority partners in the field, Kosmos Energy, said in February. Production is expected to rise through this year with additional wells coming online.

Offshore Côte d'Ivoire, Italy's Eni started production of oil and gas from the Baleine Field in August 2023, less than two years after the field discovery in September 2021. Eni says this is the first Scope 1 and 2 emissions-free production project in Africa. With the start-up of Phase 2 by the end of 2024, field production would rise to around 50,000 barrels per day (bpd) of oil and approximately 70 million standard cubic feet per day (Mscf/d) of associated gas.

Then this year, the President of Côte d'Ivoire, Alassane Ouattara, and Eni's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Claudio Descalzi announced a major new oil discovery named Calao. The discovery is now the second largest offshore Côte d'Ivoire, following the Baleine field.

In Benin, a new pipeline from Niger, with a capacity of 110,000 bpd, has been completed, paving the way for higher oil production in Niger and exports from the Benin port of Seme. The first crude lift from Benin is expected later in April or early May. (Oilprice. com)

Mozambique ferry disaster kills more than 90 – officials

More than 90 persons have died after a ferry sank off the north coast of Mozambique, local authorities say.

Officials in Nampula province said five people had been rescued of the around 130 believed to have been on board.

They were fleeing a cholera outbreak, Nampula Secretary of State, Jaime Neto said. Many children were among the dead, he added.

"Because the boat was overcrowded and unsuited to carry passengers, it ended up sinking," Neto said.

Unverified video posted

on social media purported to show dozens of bodies lying on a beach.

The boat was apparently travelling from Lunga to Mozambique Island, off the coast of Nampula.

Nampula province has been one of the worst-affected by the cholera outbreak which has spread over several countries in southern Africa since January last year.

According to UNICEF, the current outbreak is the worst in 25 years. Since October 2023, Mozambique has reported 13,700 confirmed cases and 30 deaths.

An Islamist insurgency in

Ukraine war: UN body urges restraint after Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant hit

A new drone attack on Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia power plant has raised the risk of a "major nuclear accident", the United Nations’ atomic watchdog has warned.

Russia said Ukraine was behind the attack, which it said injured three persons. Ukraine has denied involvement.

The giant Russian-held nuclear plant, with six reactors, is on the frontline of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The UN's International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has repeatedly warned against such attacks.

IAEA Head Rafael Grossi said Sunday's drone strike was "reckless" and "a major escalation of the nuclear safety and security dangers" facing the plant.

The Zaporizhzhia plant, in southern Ukraine, is the largest in Europe. Russian forces seized it shortly after launching their February 2022 full-scale invasion and have occupied it ever since.

The IAEA, which has a team of experts at Zaporizhzhia, confirmed "physical impact of drone attacks" at the plant, including at one of the reactors. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Rwanda's President leads genocide commemoration 30 years on

Rwanda's President on Sunday led commemorations to mark 30 years since the 1994 genocide that killed more than one million people and said the conditions that led to the slaughter would never be allowed to exist again in his country's politics.

Over 100 days, starting on April 7, 1994, Tutsis and moderate Hutus were systematically massacred by Hutu extremists, led by the Rwandan army and a militia known as the Interahamwe.

Rwanda's President Paul Kagame and his wife led 37 visiting leaders at a wreath-laying ceremony at a genocide memorial in the capital Kigali that contains the remains of some 250,000 persons.

"Genocide is populism

in its pure form, because the causes are political the remedies must be as well. For that reason our politics are not organised on the basis of ethnicity or religion and never will be again," Kagame said at a separate ceremony at a Kigali sports arena.

"Our people will never be left for dead again."

The International

Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, which was set up in Tanzania in late 1994 to try the masterminds of the genocide, closed in 2015 after convicting 61 suspects.

More prominent suspects have since been caught after decades on the run, and Rwanda's own internal justice system has handled another nearly two million cases. (Excerpt from Reuters)

neighbouring Cabo Delgado province has claimed the lives of at least 4000 persons and displaced nearly one million others since it began over six years ago.

For nearly 400 years, Mozambique Island was the

capital of Portuguese East Africa, when the region was under colonial rule. The island is a UNESCO world heritage site for its colonial architecture and rich history as a trading post. (BBC News)

Israel reduces troops in south Gaza, Egypt to host new talks

Israel said on Sunday it had withdrawn more soldiers from southern Gaza, leaving just one brigade, as it and Hamas sent teams to Egypt for fresh talks on a potential ceasefire in the six-month conflict.

Israel has been reducing numbers in Gaza since the start of the year to relieve reservists and is under growing pressure from its ally Washington to improve the humanitarian situation, especially after last week's killing of seven aid workers.

The military spokesperson did not give details on reasons for withdrawing soldiers or numbers involved. But Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said the troops will be preparing for future operations in Gaza.

Both Israel and Hamas, the Islamist movement that controls Gaza, confirmed they were sending delegations to Egypt.

Hamas wants any deal to bring about an end to the war and withdrawal

of Israeli forces. Israel has said that, after any truce, it would topple Hamas, which is sworn to its destruction.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there would be no deal without a hostage release and that he would not cave to international pressure. Hamas says an agreement must include freedom of movement of residents across the Gaza Strip.

More than 250 hostages were seized and some 1200 persons killed during Hamas' October 7 attack, according to Israeli tallies. More than 33,100 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli offensive, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza.

Around 130 hostages are still being held in Gaza. Asked about troop withdrawals from the enclave, Israel's Chief of the General Staff Herzi Halevi told reporters that the military was adapting its methods to what has been and will be a long war (Excerpt from Reuters)

Fishermen on Mozambique Island (file photo)

Israeli soldiers prepare to enter Gaza, April 7, 2024 (Reuters/Amir Cohen photo)

(March 21-April 19)

(April 20-May 20)

(May 21-June 20)

(June 21-July 22)

(July 23-Aug. 22)

(Aug. 23-Sept. 22)

(Sept. 23-Oct. 23)

(Oct. 24-Nov. 22)

(Nov. 23-Dec. 21)

Avoid taking a physical, emotional or financial risk. Add stability to your life and avoid stress due to uncertainty and misinformation. Create opportunities and follow through.

Keep your money, possessions and ideas safe. Someone will be eager to take your money or mislead you. If you look for opportunities, something positive will develop. You must take the first step.

Be careful; someone will be eager to lead you astray or take advantage of you. Keep personal information to yourself and be observant when dealing with partners or people who make impossible offers.

Don’t offer too much information or embellish the facts. You should stick to the truth and use your insight and intuition to make your dream a reality. Call on those you know you can count on to help.

Use physical, emotional and intellectual tactics to give an all-round vision of the possibilities. Don’t fall short by letting someone interfere with your plans.

Put things you can’t change on hold and get back to improving what you can. Get involved in events and pastimes that will broaden your awareness and help you see what’s possible.

Keep an eye on expenditures. Money will slip through your fingers if you aren’t paying attention. Don’t let anger ruin your day or your relationship with someone important.

It’s time to shake things up and change your life. Consider what stabilizes you and start to do what’s necessary to make the changes you desire. Make your own opportunities.

Be happy and live life your way. Refuse to let anyone limit or control you. A career change looks inviting. Before you agree to a deal, hash out the details and get what you want in writing.

(Dec. 22-Jan. 19)

Find alternatives that offer household efficiency. Lowering your overhead will help you balance your life. The more hands-on you are, the more money you will save.

(Jan. 20-Feb. 19)

Take a moment to reflect and reconnect with kindred spirits. An attitude adjustment will lead to a lifestyle improvement. Don’t’ be tempted to follow others. Seek personal happiness.

Check out possible roadblocks before you begin your journey. Educate yourself and prepare for your next venture. The time and effort you put in will ward off unnecessary setbacks.

PEANUTS

CALVIN AND HOBBES

Lucknow Super Giants claimed their third win in a row, and first over Gujarat Titans in five attempts, with a fighting defence of 163 in Lucknow. Marcus Stoinis' first half-century of the season provided the ballast after the home side had chosen to bat first and, although Titans started well in their run chase, Yash Thakur claimed a maiden five-for to help demolish the innings.

The LSG batting effort was rarely fluent, captain KL Rahul and Stoinis opting for accumulation after Umesh Yadav had struck twice with the new ball. Both fell when looking to up the ante and it needed flashes of power from Nicholas Pooran plus a cameo from Ayush Badoni to get them up to a respectable score.

In their favour was the fact LSG had never been beaten defending a target of 160-plus. Titans looked set to threaten that record after racing to 54 without loss inside the powerplay, only for a stunning collapse of 8 for 48 to make it 13 from 13 for LSG. After Yash skidded one through Shubman Gill, Ravi Bishnoi's spectacular caughtand-bowled dismissal of Kane

Noor Ahmad 4-0-22-0

Darshan Nalkande 2-0-21-2

Gujarat Titans (T: 164 runs from 20 ovs)

Sai Sudharsan c Ravi Bishnoi

b Pandya 31

Shubman Gill (c)

b Yash Thakur 19

Williamson provided the spark, while Krunal Pandya raced through his four-over allocation for figures of 3 for 11 as Titans imploded. That they managed such a comfortable defence was even more remarkable given LSG lost the services of their new pace sensation, Mayank Yadav, after just a single over due to a side strain - the one sour note as Rahul's team moved to six points and third in the table.

Kane Williamson c & b Ravi Bishnoi 1

BR Sharath †c Badoni

b Pandya 2

Vijay Shankar c †Rahul

b Yash Thakur 17

Darshan Nalkande c Yash Thakur

b Pandya 12

Rahul Tewatia c Pooran

b Yash Thakur 30

Rashid Khan c sub (DJ Hooda)

b Yash Thakur 0

Umesh Yadav c de Kock

b Naveen-ul-Haq 2

Spencer Johnson not out 0

Noor Ahmad c de Kock

b Yash

Titans start strong then stumble Chasing what seemed a middling target, Titans eased out of the blocks with a fifty opening stand inside the pow-

a sweep to deep backward square. Titans had shipped four wickets for seven runs in the space of 18 balls and suddenly had it all to do.

erplay. Sai Sudharsan was all poise and wrists, hitting four early boundaries - including two off Mayank in his only over, during which the LSG fast man barely breached 140kph - while Shubman Gill looked to play himself in. With Mayank having to leave the field and M Siddharth struggling with front-foot no-balls, Titans looked to be cruising.

However, the dismissal of Gill from the final ball of the sixth over sparked an extraordinary collapse. Krunal whizzed through a tidy over, before Ravi Bishnoi struck with his second ball, leaping to hold a brilliant one-handed return catch off Kane Williamson, Titans' impact sub. Sudharsan then holed out to deep square leg from the first ball of Krunal's second over, which was followed by BR Sharath top-edging

survive the over, however, an attempted repeat resulting in a big top edge to deep third. With Devdutt Padikkal notching a fourth single-figure score in a row for his new franchise, Lucknow were 18 for 2 in the third over and looking vulnerable.

Rahul is the perfect man for a rebuild, though, and he helped resurrect the innings in the company of Stoinis.

to grass the chance running in from long-off. Noor bowled his four overs off the reel for just 22 runsconceding a single boundary - and although Stoinis broke the shackles to pump Nalkande twice over longon for a 40-ball half-century, he fell trying to target the same bowler, top-edging a skier to the keeper.

With two new batters

After taking three boundaries off Spencer Johnson's second over, the pair batted watchfully through the middle of the innings, until what almost appeared to be Rahul's first shot in anger, in the 13th over, as the LSG captain attempted to hit Darshan Nalkande over long-on only to hole out. The partnership

at the crease going into the death overs, and Rashid still with two up his sleeve, LSG was facing an uphill struggle. Rashid conceded five singles off the 17th, but Pooran and Ayush Badoni released some pressure by taking Mohit Shah for three boundaries in the next. Although Badoni

Yash we can!

Titans' chase never recovered. Krunal claimed a third wicket as the asking rate rose towards 12 an over, with the canny Yash returning to dismiss Vijay Shankar and Rashid Khan in the space of four balls to leave the score 93 for 7. Rahul Tewatia presented the only danger of an upset, twice clearing the ropes in 30 off 25 balls, but he picked out deep square leg before Yash wrapped up the innings for career-best T20 figures.

Rahul's slow-and-steady rebuild

LSG were after a fast start against the new ball, with Quinton de Kock marking his 100th IPL appearance by clattering Umesh Yadav into the stands second ball. He didn't

was worth 73 from 62 balls but ended just when LSG was hoping to push on.

Spinners squeeze, but Pooran finishes

Stonis should have been dismissed in the following over, mishitting Noor Ahmed straight up only for Rashid

holed out looking to take on Rashid, Pooran carted the legspinner over midwicket for the only boundary of his allocation, with another six in the final over - in which Johnson conceded just eight - taking LSG beyond the magic 160 mark. (ESPNcricinfo)

Darshan Nalkande finished with figures of 2-0-21-2

Marcus Stoinis hit 58 off 43 balls

Yash Thakur's strikes pushed Gujarat Titans back

Ravi Bishnoi performs magic with this effort

Shepherd, David and Bumrah help Mumbai get off the mark

Having lost the first three games, Mumbai Indians finally opened their account in IPL 2024 as they beat Delhi Capitals by 29 runs at the Wankhede Stadium, in Mumbai.

After being sent in, Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan gave Mumbai a start of 80 in seven overs. Capitals staged a comeback in the middle overs but Tim David (45* off 21) and Romario Shepherd (39* off 10) muscled 96 in the last five overs - Shepherd hit Anrich Nortje for 32 in the 20th - to lift Mumbai to a daunting 234 for 5.

Prithvi Shaw kept Capitals in the contest with 66 off 40 balls. After he got out, Tristan Stubbs took over and ransacked an unbeaten 71 off 25 balls. But that Nortje over proved to be the difference in the end as Capitals fell short by 29 runs.

Rohit gives Mumbai a blazing start

Given a flat pitch and small boundaries at the Wankhede, Mumbai knew they needed to score big, and Rohit and Kishan laid the perfect foundation.

Kishan started by hitting Khaleel Ahmed for three fours in the seamer's first two overs. From the other end, Rohit hit Ishant Sharma for two successive fours. He took it a notch higher against Jhye Richardson by launching him for two back-to-back sixes.

Seeing the fast bowlers leaking runs, Rishabh Pant turned to his spinners. But Rohit was into overdrive by now. In the next nine balls, he hit four fours and a six against Axar Patel and Lalit Yadav. At the end of six overs, he had moved to 49 off 23 balls and Mumbai to 75 for no loss.

Capitals pull it back

Once the field restrictions were relaxed, Capitals staged a comeback with Axar dismissing Rohit. On the last ball of the seventh over, Rohit stepped out of his crease but Axar bowled

Marian Academy wins Nations’ Inter-School...

With the essential backing of the Guyana Chess Federation, the School of the Nations rolled out the royal treatment, enlisting the expertise of National Arbiter Odit Rodrigues to assist their very own chess teacher, Oluwadare Oyeyipo, in orchestrating this grand event.

Oyeyipo invited local chess royalty – Women's Champion Jessica Callender, Junior Champion Keron Sandiford, and former Junior Champion Ricardo Narine to supervise and ensure fair play throughout the compe-

tition as official arbiters. But the School of the Nations have more than just victory on their minds. By integrating chess into their primary curriculum, they've become trailblazers in Guyana, offering their students a clear path to success from an early age. It's a move that will hopefully shake up the academic scene favouring the growth of chess.

As the chess pieces advance across the board and with new alliances formed, one thing is certain: the world of chess is reaching a boiling point in Guyana,

which is sure to produce many more competitions and subsequent champions on the chessboard of Guyana’s future.

The Guyana Chess Federation is delighted with the initiative of School of the Nations as the tournament was organised by the young people within the federation. Federation President Anand Raghunauth lauded the success of the tournament and encouraged similar events which will promote a competitive chess environment among beginners of the game.

it short and fast to beat the batter and rattle his stumps.

In the next over, Nortje spoiled Suryakumar Yadav's return. Nortje welcomed him to the crease with a searing yorker before having him caught at mid-on for a twoball duck.

Thanks to their quick start, Mumbai reached 100 in the tenth over before Axar hurt them again. Having hit a six off the previous ball, Ishan Kishan smashed the next to the left of Axar who stretched out his hand to

4, 4 off successive deliveries.

With a pulled four off Gerald Coetzee, he brought up his half-century, off 31 balls.

Along with Abishek Porel, Shaw took Capitals past 100 in the 11th over but Bumrah ended his innings on 66 by uprooting the leg stump with a searing yorker.

Stubbs' blitz goes in vain

Stubbs wasted no time to

get going. Facing his third ball, he heaved Chawla over deep midwicket for a six and repeated the dose three balls later. Bumrah dismissed Porel for 41 off 31, and Pant fell cheaply, but Stubbs kept going.

He hit Akash Madhwal for two fours and a six on the first three balls of the 17th over and brought up his half-century - his second in

pull off a stunning return catch.

With Hardik Pandya taking his time - he was on 19 off 20 balls at one pointMumbai could manage only 63 runs in the nine overs after the powerplay.

The David-Shepherd show Mumbai were 138 for 4 after 15 overs. At that stage, Capitals must have harboured hopes of restricting them to under 200. David and Shepherd, though, had other plans.

David started the 16th over by smashing Richardson for a six. In the next two overs, he hit two more sixes and Hardik also chipped in with one but it was Shepherd who made the bigger dent. In the 20th over, he bludgeoned Nortje for 4, 6, 6, 6, 4, 6 to crush Capitals' morale.

Shaw keeps Capitals' hopes alive Shepherd was not done hurting Capitals. In the fourth over, he had David Warner holing out to mid-on with a wide slower ball. Shaw was slow to start. After four overs, he was on 13 off 15 but soon found his range. In the eighth over, he hit Piyush Chawla for 6,

Lalit Yadav 1-0-15-0

Anrich Nortje 4-0-65-2

two games - off just 19 balls. His hitting meant Capitals reached 172 for 4 after 17 overs, five runs ahead of Mumbai at the same stage. But Bumrah conceded only eight in the next to make it 55 needed from two overs.

Stubbs hit two sixes off Shepherd at the start of the 19th and ended it with another six. But with little support from the other end, Capitals were left needing 34 from six balls. Coetzee conceded only four and also picked up three wickets as Stubbs got stuck at the non-striker's end. (ESPNcricinfo)

Delhi Capitals (T: 235 runs from 20 ovs)

Prithvi Shaw

b Bumrah 66

David Warner c Pandya

b Shepherd 10

Abishek Porel c

Romario Shepherd blasted 32 off the final over

First with the bat, now with the ball: Romario Shepherd had an impressive day on the field

Ishan Kishan made a 23-ball 42 against Delhi Capitals

Hardik Pandya walks back after a 33-ball 39

The participants in the recently-concluded Nations’ Inter-School Invitational

More than 40 youths benefit from Sir Curtly Ambrose/BCB fast-bowling clinic

The Berbice Cricket Board (BCB), in collaboration with Dr Frank Denbow, hosted its second fast-bowling clinic with cricket legend Sir Curtly Ambrose.

More than 40 cricketers walked away with knowledge at a three-day clinic, which was held at Jai Hind Ground in Albion. Ambrose visited Berbice two years ago and conducted a similar camp at Albion, and that camp included a then-unknown Shamar Joseph, who is now a West Indies Test bowler. Isai Thorne, who is now a Guyana Harpy Eagles fast bowler, was also a graduate of the clinic.

“When I came here two years ago, I did not know what to expect. I always have an open mind and it was nice to be back in Berbice. Giving back to cricketers means a lot to me, it gives me great satisfaction,” Sir Curtly said.

Sir Curtly also gave credit where it was due, noting that he was not the only person responsible for Joseph’s success. Ambrose, however, is hoping that more fast bowlers can follow in the footsteps of Joseph.

Meanwhile, overseas-based Guyanese Dr Denbow, who is the mastermind of this bowling clinic, hailed the first clinic as a success and saw the need for a second clinic.

“This idea (of having Sir Curtly in Berbice) came about when I was watching the West Indies Under-19 vs England Under-19 in September 2021. I saw Isai Thorne, at that time he was 16 years old, and he was the fastest bowler. He was destined for greatness, so

Marian Academy wins Nations’ Inter-School Chess Invitational

Marian Academy emerged victorious at the National Chess Interschool Invitational, hosted by the School of the Nations on March 26, 2024.

The tournament, which attracted 50 participants, aimed to ignite a passion for chess among beginners and intermediate players.

In a surprising outcome, Queen's College secured second place, tying with the host school. However, the individual champion title belonged to Queen's College's Mahir Rajkumar, who dominated the field with six wins and a single draw. Marian Academy

dominated the remaining top spots, with 12-yearold Alek Ubaldo Singh and 14-year-old Micaiah Enoe taking the second and third places in the male division.

The top female players were all from Marian Academy –Chelsea Harrison (10 years old); Kristen Xavier (14 years old), and Tharisha Montes DeOca.

Marian Academy's chess team's success highlights the school's enduring commitment to chess development, particularly among beginners and intermediates. Their strong performance begs the question: who will be the next chess prodigy to emerge?

The tournament also awarded top finishers in each age category. Jaden Jagoo claimed the Under-18 title, while Samuel Barkoye and Tremusa Marshall secured first and second place in the Under-16 category. Omar Shariff and Tejasvarun Kandavel emerged victorious in the Under-14 division, with Julian Mohabir and Javier Davenand taking the top spots for Under-12 players.

Beyond competition, the event fostered connections between established chess powerhouses and young bloods in the community.

I made contact via a friend who knew the then BCB President, Hilbert Foster, and I pitched the idea to him, to have Sir Curtly doing a three-day camp in Berbice.”

“I said I wanted Sir Curtly because I found him to be the most disciplined fast bowler. He has the best economy rate among fast bowlers who took more than 200 wickets. Mr Foster made it come true in 2022, and it was a success. Several players in that group went on to play for Guyana, and one played for the West Indies,” Dr Denbow explained.

Dr Denbow added:

“There is another fast bowler who will play for the West Indies within 18 months. After the success in 2022, we went ahead to have the second camp.”

BCB President, Dr Cecil Beharry also thanked Dr Denbow and Sir Curtly on

another historic visit. He advised the youngsters to return to the club and continue to work on their games.

“What you learnt from Sir Curtly is not for you to do when he is here alone, but you need to develop it with your coaches at your club. That is the hope we at the BCB have for you, so you can do better, and do well for Berbice, Guyana and the West Indies,” President Beharry said.

The 40+ youngsters that were present expressed gratitude to Sir Curtly for sharing his knowledge. Guyana Under-15 fast bowler Arif Khan and national captain Adrian Hetmyer were among those present at the camp. Some of the Berbice Under-19 female cricketers were also present on day two. The clinic started on Friday, April 5 and concluded on Sunday, April 7.

KFC Elite League…

Law enforcement clash ends in victory for GDF

Guyana Defence Force FC dealt a resounding blow to their local rivals Guyana Police Force FC by clinching a commanding 5-2 victory on Saturday at the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) National Training Centre in Providence, East Bank Demerara.

The loss on April 6 served as the first stumble for Guyana Police Force FC, who entered the match as table toppers with six consecutive wins and 18 points since the February 25 start of the KFC Elite League Season Six.

The win has propelled the defending champions to a four-game winning streak, securing their position as third on the points table with 12 points. They trail behind Slingerz FC, who maintain a flawless record with five wins out of five matches, accumulating a total of 15 points.

Saturday’s eagerly-awaited encounter between the two Georgetown sides lived up to its hype, captivating football fans with a display of skill and intensity. In a dramatic turn of events, Kevin Layne opened the scoring for Guyana Police Force FC in the first minute, but their joy was short-lived as rival striker Chris Macey swiftly equalised in the 23rd minute.

The army team then took control with goals from Olvis Mitchell in the 33rd minute

and Ian Dooker in the 44th minute, establishing a lead against their opponents.

Police striker Neron Barrow made an effort with a goal in the 54th minute, signalling a potential comeback.

However, GDF's Ryan Hackett and Macey extinguished any hopes of a reversal, clinching victory for their team with goals in the 72nd and 90+1 minutes respectively.

Ten top-tier clubs are competing for the first-place prize of $2,000,000, while cash rewards of $1,200,000, $800,000, and $500,000 are up for grabs for the second, third, and fourth positions, respectively.

This week has seen several teams make moves on the points table. In fourth position sit Western Tigers FC, boasting three victories and two losses, accumulating a total of nine points. Their recent slip in the standings marks the second time this week, following GDF FC's

triumph on Saturday.

Following closely behind, Fruta Conquerors FC jumped one spot to the fifth slot with three wins and four losses, also totalling nine points. Den Amstel FC have made a notable jump of two spots, securing seven points from two wins, one draw, and two losses.

Moving down the table, Santos FC occupy the seventh position, with two wins and four losses, amassing six points. Ann’s Grove United FC trail closely with one win, one draw, and three losses, earning four points.

Bringing up the rear are Buxton United FC and Monedderlust FC, both enduring defeats in all five of their matches.

The KFC Elite League will continue on April 9, with Ann’s Grove United FC taking on Buxton United FC in an all-East Coast clash at 18:00h, followed by Monedderlust FC facing off against GDF FC at 21:00h, both at the NTC.

Sir Curtly Ambrose sharing his knowledge with some promising fast bowlers

A look at the prize winners after the Nations’ Inter-School Invitational

A scene from the GDF v Police clash on Saturday last

More than 40 youths benefit from Sir Curtly Ambrose/BCB fast-bowling clinic

clash ends in victory for GDF

dominate GUMDAC Easter tournament

The reigning champions Akili Haynes and Priyanna Ramdhani successfully defended their mixed doubles titles and also claimed victory in the men’s doubles and women’s doubles alongside respective partners

Tyrese Jeffrey and Mishka

Beharry, when the GUMDAC Easter Badminton tournament wrapped up on Friday evening at the National Gymnasium, Mandela Avenue.

Their consistent success across multiple categories demonstrates their skill and versatility in badminton. The men's doubles final between the older duo of Marlon Chung and Wenyuan Chen and the younger, more seasoned Haynes and Jeffrey was a thrilling match, going to a three-setter. Matches like these often showcase the intense competition and skill level in badminton, providing excitement for fans and spectators alike. It's always fascinating to see the dynamics between experience and youth play out on the court.

Persaud

The overall winners are as follows:

MIXED DOUBLES

3rd - Wen Yuan Chen/Shivannie

Persaud

Beharry

In the mixed doubles finals, the pair of Haynes and Ramdhani downed Jeffrey and Ambika Ramraj in a comfortable two-set win, 21-14, 21-10.

Over in the women’s doubles finale, Ramdhani teamed up with promising young star Beharry to overcome Ayanna Watson and Shivannie Persaud, 21-16, 21-13.

The aforementioned three-set men’s doubles final saw Haynes and Jeffrey scoring 2119, 18-21, 21-14 to defeat Chung and Chen.

Avinash Odit/Mishka

2nd - Tyrese Jeffrey/Ambika

Ramraj

1st - Akili Haynes/Priyanna

Ramdhani

WOMEN’S DOUBLES

3rd - Naveah Eastman/Malia

Haley

Eastman

Alimah Eastman/Asiyah

2nd - Ayanna Watson/Shivannie

1st - Priyanna Ramdhani/ Mishka Beharry

MEN’S DOUBLES

3rd - Nkosi Beaton/Frank Waddell

Avinash Odit/Javid

Rahaman

2nd - Marlon Chung/Wenyuan

Chen 1st - Akili Haynes/Tyrese Jeffrey

Meanwhile, the Guyana Badminton Association (GBA) has expressed gratitude towards Darrell Carpenay for his continued sponsorship of the tournament. Sponsorship plays a crucial role in the success and sustainability of sporting events, and Carpenay's support is undoubtedly in-

valuable. Additionally, the GBA said it would like to acknowledge the players, parents, spectators, and fans whose involvement and support was vital in making the event a success.

Moreover, it would like to acknowledge the Director of Sports and the staff of the National Sports Commission for availing the usage of the facility, the National Gymnasium. Having access to appropriate facilities is essential for hosting successful tournaments and facilitating the growth of badminton in Guyana. Their support ensures that players have a suitable venue to showcase their skills and compete at their best. The collaboration between the Guyana Badminton Association and the National Sports Commission underscores the importance of partnerships in promoting sports development and fostering a vibrant sporting culture within the country.

Akili Haynes and Priyanna Ramdhani clinched gold in all three categories, while Tyrese Jeffrey (left) and Mishka Beharry (right) did the same in the men’s and women’s doubles.

The prize winners following the GUMDAC Easter tournament