Guyana Times - Monday, August 8, 2022

Education Ministry will ensure all parents receive “Because We Care” cash grants – Minister P11 Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Issue No. 5094

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022

“The list is not the problem”— Pres Ali on Norton’s “no elections” threat …says Opposition only has a problem with electoral list when it loses elections Page 3

New trafficking routes, secret airstrips among challenges – CANU report …says corruption within agencies hindering anti-narcotic efforts

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WHAT'S INSIDE:

Region 4 man is latest COVID-19 P11 death Berbice youth killed after P2 losing control of motorcycle

See story on page 7

PPP/C Govt committed to development of Indigenous communities – Ali Page 12

Guyana Fire P2 Service welcomes 44 new recruits

3 bus touts P8 arrested during Police exercise Gov’t focused on reviving P16 sugar industry ─ to meet with GuySuCo’s management this week President Dr Irfaan Ali greeting female footballers on Sunday at the Upper Mazaruni 23rd Annual District Games in Kako, Upper Mazaruni

LCDS 2030, Hemp Leonora smart Bill among hospital to be landmark matters on commissioned parliamentary agenda today this week Body of missing farmer found floating in Essequibo River on birthday See story on page 10

Page 14

See story on page 9

Former Senator, nephew killed, bodies burned as Haiti gang P18 violence escalates

2 NEWS

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Berbice youth killed after Guyana Fire Service welcomes losing control of motorcycle 44 new recruits

The motorcycle that Lindie was riding at the time of the accident

A

motorcyclist who was said to have been under the influence of alcohol met his demise in the wee hours of Sunday after losing control of the motorcycle he was riding.

Distillers Limited and of Lot 1554 Glasgow New Housing Scheme, Greater New Amsterdam, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne).

The incident occurred in Providence, Greater New

Lindie’s sister, Cathria Lindie

Dead is Clifton John Lindie, 25, a sales representative attached to Demerara

Amsterdam.

“He was riding coming home and he was drunk, and

Chief Fire Officer (ag) Gregory Wickham speaking to the recruits

F

Clifton John Lindie

the front wheel of the bike blew out and he lost control and ended up in the trench,” his sister, Cathria Lindie told Guyana Times.

The incident occurred in the vicinity of a fuel company terminal and according to Lindie, a security guard heard a sound but did not venture forth to investigate.

It was not until the sky started to lighten, that a Police patrol saw the lifeless body of the man lying in the trench. He was pulled from the trench and taken to the New Amsterdam Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

“This morning someone came and told us that they pulled him out of the trench and he is at the hospital. And when we went there, they said that he is at Arokium Funeral Parlour,” his sister revealed.

The now dead man report-

edly left home on Saturday afternoon to spend time with friends. His sister explained that they were hanging out in front of his place of employment at Main and Chapel Streets.

“He has had a motorcycle for years - since about 19; from the time he left school because my father had a motorcycle so he has always been riding a motorcycle. Mostly when he drinks, he would stay at his friend’s house but last night he did not stay. They were drinking beers so he wasn’t really drunk that is why he said he was coming home; he had enough and he is coming home.”

The woman described her brother as being a very quiet person. Lindie played cricket for Bermine Cricket Club and also Berbice Police. He leaves to mourn his mother, sister and grandmother.

or the next three months, 44 new recruits of the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) will be undergoing extensive firefighting training.

They are currently being trained to respond to fires, hazardous materials incidents, vehicular crashes and extrications, and swift water rescue, and upon graduation, will officially become professional firefighters.

Chief Fire Officer (ag) Gregory Wickham on Friday met with the recruits during a visit to the Leonora Training School.

Wickham, in addressing the recruits, encouraged them to be mentally, physically, and spiritually strong to endure the training and be successful.

He emphasised the importance of maintaining discipline and unity within the Service, noting that there is no room for racism or favouritism at the train-

ing facility.

The new batch of recruits comprises 38 males and six females from various parts of the country.

The training commenced on Monday and was scheduled to be completed within the next three months.

This is the first batch of trainee firefighters recruited since the pandemic began in 2020. In May of 2020, 40 trainee firefighters tested for COVID-19 before starting a 12-week training at the Guyana Fire Service Training School in Leonora. Upon completion of the programme, the recruits served at the fire stations in Lethem, Mabaruma, and Mahdia, which were commissioned in 2021. Those firefighters were trained in the correct use of hoses and hydrants, rescuing skills, construction of buildings, teamwork, and other basic techniques.

3 “The list is not the problem” – Pres Ali on Norton’s “no elections” threat NEWS

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS OPENINGS BRIDGE

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

Monday, Aug 8 – No retraction and Tuesday, Aug 9 – 01:00h – 02:30h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Monday, Aug 8 – 13:00h – 14:30h and Tuesday, Aug 9 – 14:15h – 15:45h.

…says Opposition only has a problem with electoral list when it loses elections

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY

There will be sunshine during the day. Expect clear skies at night. Temperatures should range between 22 degrees Celsius and 31 degrees Celsius.

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

High Tide: 13:23h reaching a maximum height of 2.27 metres.

Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton

Low Tide: 18:47h and 19:12h reaching minimum heights of 0.81 metre and 0.96 metre.

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President Dr Irfaan Ali

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resident Dr Irfaan Ali has poured cold water on Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton’s threat that there would be “no elections” if the list of electors is not clean, pointing out that the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) only has a problem with the list when it does not win the elections.

During an interview on the sidelines of a recent event in Buxton, the President pointed out the trend. He noted that there was no outcry from the Opposition A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC), of which the PNCR is a major part, about a dirty list when it won the elections in 2015.

“First of all, I don’t know what he is referring to as a dirty list. This is the list that went to the elections in 2015, the list that brought him to Government. That’s the list that went to the 2011

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elections that saw a minority Government. That’s the list that went to the 2020 election that saw a majority Government.”

“So, apparently this list is only a problem when you don’t win the elections. The list is not the problem… his inability to recognise democracy and… his inability to respect the will of the people is the problem. And he needs to fix that,” President Ali said.

During a recent rally with his supporters, Norton had said that the party would not participate in an

election where the list was not clean. He had also repeated a call he has previously made for the removal of Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Chair, Retired Justice Claudette Singh.

“We have to have a clean election list… every observer team that came here said we need a new list. We need a clean voters’ list… as part of this clean list campaign, we have to make it clear that Claudette Singh must go,” Norton told the crowd.

According to Norton, if his party does not get its way with a “clean” voters’ list, then it will do all in its power to prevent elections with a dirty list.

GECOM has already conducted a Continuous Registration Exercise in or-

der to update the List of Electors and pave the way for the hosting of Local Government Elections (LGE). GECOM has said that this registration exercise is of crucial importance for first-time applicants – those persons who were 14 to 18 years old when they were registered during the 2019 House-to-House exercise.

It is also understood that GECOM is looking to have an updated voters’ list in place by October, in order for the Local Government Elections (LGE) to be held.

The last time GECOM conducted Continuous Registration was in 2019, in preparation for the March 2020 General and Regional Elections.

TURN TO PAGE 8

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guyanatimesgy.com

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022

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

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Inflation

he Bank of Guyana (BoG) offers a useful explanation of “inflation”, which we should appreciate since it appears that this will remain the gravest challenge facing both the Government and the populace for an extended period.

We are told that “Inflation is the sustained increase in the general price level of goods and services in an economy over a period of time. The rate of inflation is traditionally measured by the percentage change in a selected basket of consumer goods and services.” While an IMF report claims our inflation rate is around 1.7 per cent, other more realistic estimates claim it has been hovering around the five per cent rate.

Meaning that every quarter, prices have been rising five per cent over the previous quarter. We should appreciate that the effect is compounded and by the end of the year, we may have suffered double-digit inflation.

The BoG informs us that there are two “types” of inflation – “Demand-Pull Inflation” and “Cost-Push Inflation’. The first has been pithily described as “too much money chasing too few goods”. This occurs when countries increase the amount of money circulating in their economies, to deal with shocks in the economy, without any commensurate increase of production in the desired goods – such as foodstuffs. In the present situation, the COVID-19 pandemic precipitated a precipitous drop in production across the globe accompanied by an increase in unemployment and income.

From 2020 the Governments of the advanced economies – with the US in the lead – pumped an extraordinary amount of money into their economies in line with the classic Keynesian interventionary doctrine to stimulate demand. By the time vaccines became available, G7 economies alone had poured US$9 TRILLION (“Quantitative Easing”) into their economies towards that goal. In a globalised world this easy money policy inevitably seeped into all economies as witnessed by lower rates of interest by central and commercial banks.

In the meantime, the second type of inflation – cost push – also kicked in as supply chain shortages became endemic and suppliers raised their prices to compensate for their increased costs. The war in Ukraine affected the supply of wheat and fertilisers. Even with some goods like locally produced vegetables, costs increased because of increased prices of inputs like fertilisers and pesticides, etc. As usual, it is the consumers who were hit by this double whammy as they scrambled, unsuccessfully, to keep their heads above water. It is of little comfort to be told that inflation is a global phenomenon.

Referring to the “consequences of inflation”, the BoG advises that “Inflation decreases the real value of money and income. This prompts those affected to want to protect their future investments and returns. Consequently, it is of primary importance to implement economic policy to ensure price stability. As such, the primary purpose of the Bank of Guyana is to formulate and implement monetary policy so as to achieve and maintain price stability.”

It would appear that the US has taken this standard advice after it had increased its balance sheet (debt) to US$9 trillion when it reversed its Quantitative Easing to Quantitative Tightening (QT) by raising interest rates after the first quarter, in a frantic effort to lower inflation which had reached its highest level in 40 years. The rest of the world in which most trade is still denominated in US dollars is reeling from this policy since it will adversely affect global trade that still hasn’t recovered. Small, open economies like ours will be hardest hit as we will again be paying for the excesses of the developed world.

The Bank of Guyana declares “it is of primary importance to implement economic policy to ensure price stability (control inflation). As such, the primary purpose of the Bank of Guyana is to formulate and implement monetary policy so as to achieve and maintain price stability”. However, the bottom line is that while economic outcomes are determined by policy choices and expectations, we have a very limited repertoire to counter the powerful global forces. Unfortunately, inflation will persist for a while. As the aphorism advises, “the strong do what they can while the weak suffer what they must.”

President Dr Irfaan Ali and a family were all cheer as they posed for a photograph at the Upper Mazaruni 23rd Annual District Games in Kako, Upper Mazaruni on Sunday

The fate of Alex Jones is a small battle won in the war against alternative facts …the Sandy Hook conspiracy peddler’s courtroom rout shows truth can triumph, but there is no guarantee it always will

By Tom Chatfield

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he trial of Alex Jones, the far-right conspiracy theorist, who for years propagated the lie that the Sandy Hook school shooting was a hoax, has produced some remarkable moments over the past week, not least when Jones was told that his own Attorney had accidentally released two years’ worth of Jones’s text messages to his legal adversaries. For sheer schadenfreude, however, it’s hard to beat an exchange between Jones and Judge Maya Guerra Gamble in which she reminded him that “you must tell the truth while you testify”.

“I believe what I said was true,” Jones answered. The Judge’s riposte has since been shared hundreds of thousands of times: “You believe everything you say is true, but it isn’t. Your beliefs do not make something true. That is what we’re doing here. Just because you claim to think something is true does not make it true.”

This was life as scripted

by Aaron Sorkin: a self-serving liar being told, to his face, that the reality-denials from which he has built a staggeringly lucrative empire have no force in the courtroom (one of the messages handed over

by Jones’s Attorney revealed that his Infowars website had been making as much as US$800,000 a day from its online store). Who hasn’t fantasised about the truth finally catching up with those trading in alternative facts: the scammers, bullshitters, fanatics and demagogues for whom the 21st century often seems a paradise of shameless self-gratification?

Although Jones has since claimed that the trial was a “victory”, albeit one whose current bill runs at more than US$49 million, even he was forced during its course to admit that the Sandy Hook attack was “one hundred per cent real”. For the millions who followed these humiliations on social media – not to mention the bereaved parents who have suffered years of appalling threats and abuse thanks to the conspiracies Jones promotes – this was a painfully overdue vindication of the hope that truth can defeat deceit. How far, though, does the resounding declaration that “your beliefs do not make something true” suggest some kind of precedent is also being set?

The world isn’t short of fantastic, harmful untruths.

From the spectre of climate change denial to the ugly idiocy of Trump’s “stop the steal” and the attempted insurrection of January 6, 2021, it has never been easier to mobilise mass sentiment around rival realities. Yet truth retains at least one advantage: that reality itself can be counted on to support it. In contrast, every lie requires further lies to stay alive. If I falsely claim that (say) I never received a particular text message, I need to shield this claim from every scrap of contradictory evidence. If I were telling the truth, an honest investigation would vindicate me. However, preserving a fiction means weaving further fictions around inconvenient facts.

Unfortunately, although all of this is beautifully applicable when it comes to empirical inquiry, it has little to do with how and why most people arrive at beliefs in the

first place. “I believe what I said was true,” Jones told Gamble. Her response, that this doesn’t make anything true, was magnificently correct. But it also contained an implicit counterpoint. Truths cannot, by themselves, make people believe anything. And in order to grasp what does, we need to look beyond bare facts towards the claims of value, purpose and identity that mobilise these into stories about what matters – and why.

There’s something brutally precise about the name “Infowars” in this context.

Browsing its headlines on the day of the verdict, I learned that Jones was the victim of a “show trial”, that the prosecuting lawyer told the jury to “take him out” and that problems with global supply chains will persist because “the system is being sabotaged”. It’s a heady mix of paranoia, selective quotation, and counter-narrative.

But it’s also an amplified exemplum of the ways in which, to some degree, all of us make sense of the world: by seeking patterns and connections amid overwhelming complexity; by following the guidance of others who give form and focus to our frustrations; by becoming part of communities that promise to defend “us” against an alien, malevolent “them”. You may nod at this description, but the newspaper you’re reading, right now, does a version of this very thing. And while you and I may feel certain we are on the right side, it’s an uncomfortable truth that we hold this belief for reasons that are as much tribal and cultural as rational.

None of this diminish-

es the ethical or practical importance of disinterested truth-seeking, but it does suggest that, for all its force, it is also an exercise that can only take place after certain norms, practices and boundaries have been accepted by all involved. This is precisely why we have courtrooms, Judges, lawyers and juries in the first place and why it’s vital that their sifting of truth from belief remains a last recourse. If the kind of common ground that enables us to engage with reality can be defended only by legal coercion, we are in a dangerous place.

Like millions of my tribe, I watched Jones’s humbling with relish and relief. At last, righteous justice was not only being done, but being dignified by the drama and rhetoric it deserved! When it comes to the larger scheme of things, however, I worry that the most important lesson is precisely the opposite of what I might wish it to be.

Belief is a battleground and conspiracies thrive not so much upon irrationality as upon division, condescension and the sheer profitability of unaccountable untruth. As is painfully true of our planetary context, the lessons we most urgently need to learn are ecological rather than argumentative, systematic rather than self-righteous.

They’re about the incentives embedded in information systems and the divisions and mistrust that these feed on. In the grander scheme of things, the last thing any of us can afford is to believe that simply being right will save us. (The Guardian) Tom Chatfield is an author and philosopher. His latest book is How to Think

guyanatimesgy.com

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022

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

Ramjattan will continue to expose true nature of AFC Dear Editor, In an interview with the AFC’s Leader Khemraj Ramjattan: Coalition Politics, the Political and Economic situation in Guyana and the Future of the AFC and then again, I read his Press release in which he again reiterated that the Coalition made the right decision to close the sugar estates in 2017, saving billions of dollars from going down a ‘black hole’.

Wales Estate was closed in December 2016.

I do feel compelled to remind Ramjattan that in 2015 on the campaign trail he made a promise to sugar workers at Whim that no sugar estate will be closed and that sugar workers will get a 20% wage increase.

The AFC also circulated a pamphlet to that effect.

Pretending to seek resolution to the problems facing GuySuCo, in that same year when the Coalition assumed Office, a multimillion-dollar Commission of Inquiry was conducted by several ‘sugar experts’ and one of the recommendations was that no sugar estate will be closed since the Industry can be made viable by 2025. But in December 2016, Wales went under

the guillotine. Then in May 2017, the Coalition presented the White Paper on ‘State Paper on the Future of the Sugar Industry’ in Parliament which recommended that the industry be ‘right sized’ to ‘ensure a viable future’ according to the then Agriculture, Noel Holder. By the end of 2017, three other estates, Skeldon, Rose Hall and Enmore were guillotined as recommended by the ‘State Paper’. The Coalition claimed that the ‘right sized’ industry comprising of 3 estates will produce 147,000 tons of sugar annually. This never materialized and Ramjattan should have ventured to explain why this did not happen.

Maybe Ramjattan would like to explain what happened to the $30 billion bond which the Former Minister of Finance proudly stated that it was to be used to revitalize and ‘rescue’ GuySuCo. According to a DPI Report in July 2018, ‘The SPU has said that GuySuCo needs $30Billion, over a four-year period, to provide a much-needed capital injection, support infrastructure maintenance and upgrades at the Albion, Blairmont, and Uitvlugt

estates, which the state is keeping, and to develop new co-generation capacity to support estate operations and sell to the national power grid’. Did any of these were achieved? The monies were simply squandered as Guysuco plunged deeper and deeper into crisis as sugar production continued to fall. The PPP/C in its manifesto in 2015 had said that an allocation of $20 billion would have brought back the industry to viability at that time.

But after the piecemeal destruction of the operating estates and the complete annihilation of the closed ones it would take billions more to now revitalize GuySuCo. Mr Ramjattan needs to know that the then Minister of Finance Mr Jordan had said that all the closed estates will not be ‘mothballed’ but will be in operable conditions to attract investors.

This never happened even though millions were paid to PricewaterhouseCoopers to revalue the assets and to receive ‘expressions of interests.’ It was reported that some 70 of these ‘expressions’ were received but not one bore fruit since

the estates were in an advanced state of deterioration. Even today investors are shying away from investing in any of the closed estates because of the same reason. Today, Ramjattan has the temerity to boast about the AFC’s ‘legacy’ to partner with the PNC to destroy assets worth in excess $100 billion, many of these assets are unsalvageable. Not only the fixed assets but the human assets were strewn along the wayside with no form of sustainable livelihood offered or available to them. Yet Mr Nagamootooo had the gumption to shamelessly state in Parliament that he will ‘light a candle for the dismissed sugar workers.

This is the AFC’s legacy.

It must be recalled that in 2019, in order to appease sugar workers, Ramjattan told them that with oil money there was no need for the sugar industry.

According to him, the citizenry would ‘become filthy rich in the near future with the booming oil sector coming on stream’. Therefore, this is an implication that the Coalition’s future plan was to completely do away with the entire sugar industry.

Government’s solar plans most commendable

Dear Editor, I am very pleased with Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance, Dr Ashni Singh, who stated that “30,000 households (are going) to soon benefit from solar energy”.

This disclosure was made at the Fourth Regional Committee Meeting for the Latin America and Caribbean Region of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) that was held at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC) a few days ago. Fantastic!

This kind of talk reflects reality and development and points to a rapidly evolving Guyana. The Minister explained, quite rightly that “Solar energy, is playing an important role in achieving energy inclusivity, particularly through the deployment of solar solutions in hinterland and remote communities ... as Guyana has an off-the-grid population with these persons residing in hinterland and outlying areas.”

Now, for a few comments on this most important project, as I think that a lot of people are still not quite au fait with this kind of drive worldwide, For one, distributed solar energy is on the global rise, generating enough electricity to power mil-

lions of homes each year, and resulting in annual carbon dioxide emission reductions equivalent to taking some 4.4 million passenger vehicles off the road. So, in terms of public policy, Guyana is right on track, playing its part in driving the growth of solar energy, as it is recognising the enormous benefits that solar power can provide both today and in the future.

I add further that rooftop solar power generally adds value to the electric grid. It not only reduces the need for generation from and investment in central power plants, but over the long lifetime of solar energy systems, it also can increase price stability and grid reliability, and reduce environmental compliance costs. Therefore, one must compliment the pioneers and pushers of this kind of mindset.

A second factor, rooted in scientific data mind you, is that for each 1kW of solar installed, home value could increase up to 3-4 per cent. For example, if a property is worth $300,000, that means an increase of anywhere between $9000 to $12,000.

Do the math and see what is the value for a non-solar 5 million house? So, at the personal level, solar consideration is the way

to go. How about thinking on some overall benefits?

Here are a few - positive impact on the environment; reduction of energy bill; energy production during peak hours; solar energy is applicable everywhere; less electricity lost during long-distance transport; improvement to grid security; and job creation.

A closing caveat is in order, as many may want to criticiser this move, which is in its incipient stages. The Minister noted that “with the support of the Indian Exim (ExportImport) Bank, we have already concluded a project to procure and deploy 30,000 household solar units to bring solar electricity to 30,000 homes.”

He detailed that “Even

though our energy transition might not comprise solar as the bulk producer to the grid, solar energy is playing a tremendous role in achieving energy inclusivity because even though it is at a small level, at the community level, from that one project, 30,000 households which did not have electricity will now have electricity.” As we all know, many households are far away from the grid to be able to connect but it is good to know that 30,000 households are now going to get electricity for the first time ever and similar solutions can be deployed for other remote areas.

For many like me, it is a win-win situation.

Yours truly, H Singh

This was highlighted

by Ramjattan again in the Globespan interview where he boldly and proudly proclaimed that the AFC’s legacy to the future generation is: the closure of the sugar estates and the Production Sharing Agreement with Exxon. This is unbelievable as it is ludicrous.

Mr Ramjattan seemed to relish any opportunity to attack former AFC Executive member, Mr Sasenarine Singh who is now the CEO of Guysuco. I would like Mr Ramjattan to recall what factors he said were responsible for the current state of GuySuCo. Though he did not admit to the failure of the Coalition to recapitalize the industry, the gross and deliberate destruction of the assets, and the mismanagement, he did admitted that the EU price cuts, the world market price for sugar, the high production costs and the shortage of labor and the floods due to climate change, reeked havoc to the sugar industry.

If Mr Ramjattan had done an iota of investigation he would have known that Guysuco is embarking on a mechanization program as directed by the President himself which will see Guysuco fully mechanized by 2025 thereby bridging the labor availability gap. This will also see a huge contraction in the unit cost of production.

At the same time the CEO has recognized the need to change the sales mix and for some time now the sale of packaged sugar has overtaken the sale of bulk and bagged sugar, In fact this has increased the revenue

of GuySuCo by more than $1.7 billion. GuySuCo has already recognized that packaged sugar is the future and will bring in revenue of over $750 US per ton.

Ramjattan admitted and this is where the Corporation is heading.

This will have the immediate effect of not only achieving the break-even point but will push the Corporation back to profitability. In addition, Mr Ramjattan is ignorant of the fact that GuySuCo workers are not limited to ‘cutlass and punt trajectory’. This is an insult to GuySuCo workers.

Many of these workers are skilled tradesmen and who supplement their incomes by doing skilled jobs in the Factory and outside of the industry during the out-ofcrop periods.

I saw once again read that Ramjattan is calling for the CEO to be replaced and I wonder loudly whether he is serious about the future of the Sugar Industry or he just wants to get even with Mr Sasenarine Singh who resigned from the AFC in 2014. Ramjattan should have backed calls for the Coalition’s Minister of Agriculture to resign or be fired since he failed the entire Sector but he did not.

This is utter hypocrisy.

Mr Ramjattan will continue to expose the true nature of the AFC which is merely to secure power at any and all costs. They will coalesce once again with the APNU, they just want a better ‘deal’.

Yours sincerely, Haseef Yusuf

Monday, August 8, 2022 06:00 06:30 07:00 07:30 08:00 08:30 09:00 10:00 11:00 11:30 12:00 14:30 15:00 16:00 16:30 17:00 18:00 Stress 19:00

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The Evening News

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MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022

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Foundation

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Problem-solving with proportions There are many kinds of proportion problems that you may run across in the real life. Just remember the basic steps:

Exercises: Solve

1) Rihanna wants to expand her grass-cutting business. She currently cuts 12 yards with 3 workers. How many workers will she need if she plans to cut a total of 100 yards?

2) If a bus can travel 100 kilometres on 5 litres of diesel, how far can it travel on 8 litres?

3) John studies 2 hours each week day for 4 subjects, how many hours would he need to study if he took 6 subjects?

4) Each cashew tree in Farmer Rodrigues’ farm bears 20 kilograms of fruit each harvest. If there are 20 trees, how many kilograms will he expect each harvest?

5) It takes John five minutes to inflate the wheels of the 2 bicycles belonging to his brothers. How long will it take to inflate the wheels of 70 bicycles?

6) Seema plans to save the money her mother gives her to take the bus to and from home every day, to buy a bicycle. If the bicycle costs $20,000 and Seema gets $200 in bus fare per day, how long will it take her to save the money needed?

CONTINUED FROM SATURDAY

The dog liked this plan very well; and accordingly so it was managed. The wolf ran with the child a little way; the shepherd and his wife screamed out; but Sultan soon overtook him, and carried the poor little thing back to his master and mistress. Then the shepherd patted him on the head, and said, ‘Old Sultan has saved our child from the wolf, and therefore he shall live and be well taken care of, and have plenty to eat. Wife, go home, and give him a good dinner, and let him have my old cushion to sleep on as long as he lives.’ So from this time

By

the

Brothers Grimm

forward Sultan had all that he could wish for.

Soon afterwards the wolf came and wished him joy, and said, “Now, my good fellow, you must tell no tales, but turn your head the other way when I want to taste one of the old shepherd’s fine fat sheep.”

“No,” said the Sultan; ‘I will be true to my master.” However, the wolf thought he was in joke, and came one night to get a dainty morsel.

But Sultan had told his master what the wolf meant to do; so he laid in wait for him behind the barn door, and when the wolf was busy looking

out for a good fat sheep, he had a stout cudgel laid about his back, that combed his locks for him finely.

Then the wolf was very angry, and called Sultan “an old rogue”, and swore he would have his revenge.

So the next morning the wolf sent the boar to challenge Sultan to come into the wood to fight the matter. Now Sultan had nobody he could ask to be his second but the shepherd’s old three-legged cat; so he took her with him, and as the poor thing limped along with some trouble, she stuck up her tail straight in the air.

WORD SEARCH

NEWS

7

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

New trafficking routes, secret airstrips among challenges – CANU report …says corruption within agencies hindering anti-narcotic efforts

A

s it continues to strengthen its efforts to clamp down on narcotics trafficking in Guyana, the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) will be focusing on tackling challenges such as new trafficking routes and secret airstrips with the hopes of minimising trafficking activities and reducing the amount of illicit drugs on the market.

In its 2022 Second Quarter Report, the Unit highlighted a series of new and existing challenges that confront it and ways in which it is working to have these addressed.

With regards to new and emerging routes of trafficking narcotics to evade law enforcement, CANU said it is collaborating with other agencies in response.

“The Unit has discovered new trends in the routes used by illicit drug traffickers through extensive observation and analysis of the points of seizures. Though some of the routes are speculative, CANU intends to collaborate with sister law enforcement agencies to intercept drugs trafficked along these routes, as well as deter narcotics trafficking and cultivation within specific areas.”

Additionally, the anti-narcotics agency also highlighted that clandestine airports, especially in the hinterland regions, are another area of concern.

In fact, it was noted that throughout 2021 and in the first quarter of this year, there were numerous reports of abandoned aircraft being discovered at such locations.

“The Unit plans to create tools to pinpoint the locations of any potential sites for clandestine airstrips, which are thought to be one of the means by which the drug trade is facilitated. The Unit is dedicated to increasing its ability to meet this challenge.”

CANU also pointed to corruption within agencies as a deterrent to anti-nar-

cotic efforts. It outlined that like many other countries, Guyana is no exception to corruption and illegal drug trafficking.

“There have been numerous reports of drug traffickers using their financial clout to influence officials working within the system in order to allow the free flow of their illicit activities.

In the face of this dangerous and illegal practice, the Unit continues to strive unyieldingly to expose and root out this ill within agencies, identifying officials who facilitate these illegal activities.”

Meanwhile, the rapid advancement of new technologies also jeopardises the effectiveness of law enforcement efforts, the Unit said in the report.

According to CANU, the internet's global reach as a platform for communication and coordination among traffickers has an impact on the movement of illicit drugs as well as the facilitation of money-laundering activities.

“Drug traffickers can use new technologies to commit traditional crimes in novel ways, such as concealing information about the shipment of illicit drug consignments via encrypted messages or laundering drug-related funds via electronic transfer. Drug traffickers now use platforms such as the dark web, WhatsApp, and Telegram to conduct illegal business.”

In addition, the anti-narcotic agency went on to state that with the detection of in-

creased presence of drugs in schools, it is working with the Education Ministry to come up with a framework to address drug use and drug possession in schools.

In fact, it was noted that the Unit has begun the process of developing a proactive framework, which is currently in its early stages.

“CANU in collaboration with the Ministry of Education has begun conducting awareness campaign exercises in schools, which would not only focus on students, but also assist teachers in identifying the various types of drugs and determining if a student is using illicit drugs. These exercises will also help the Unit understand the current situation and determine the source of supply so that proper strategies can be implemented to address and reduce this phenomenon.”

Further, the report detailed that in the months of May and June, CANU placed significant emphasis on tackling micro trafficking, recognising that the domestic trade is a major problem with a growing presence in schools.

Nevertheless, despite the challenges, the Unit will continue to pursue its mandate in the hopes of minimising such activities and reducing the amount of illicit drugs on the market.

In its Second Quarter Report, CANU reported that it seized some 161.21 kilograms of cannabis, 40.37kg of cocaine and 0.150 grams of ecstasy between April and June. These narcotics

amounted to approximately $206 million worth of illicit drugs taken off the streets.

However, it was disclosed that CANU recorded a reduction in narcotics seized during this period in comparison to last year.

Meanwhile, during this three-month period, a total of seven persons were convicted and 23 new cases were filed. At the end of the second quarter, 83 cases were pending in the courts, while there were 15 convictions thus far this year which stemmed from matters occurring in 2021 and 2022.

CANU further stated that it has accomplished more convictions, arrests, and charges during this year’s second quarter when compared to the same period in 2021. The Unit credited this “successful quarter” to its dedicated officers in various departments working in a coordinating manner to execute operations as well as cooperation with other agencies.

On the other hand, the Unit continues to engage in a number of operations

CANU Head James Singh

with other agencies including the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), Guyana Police Force as well as regional and international agencies. It was noted that through these joint operations, the law enforcement agencies combine their resources to support the goals of breaking down drug trafficking organisations, reducing crime, sav-

ing lives, and advancing the National Drug Control Strategy.

Additionally, the Unit continues to place emphasis on developing its officers' capacities in a variety of areas through trainings and exchange programmes that are beneficial to the Unit's operations and professional competence.

8 NEWS

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

3 bus touts arrested during Police exercise

The three touts arrested by Police

R

anks of the Guyana Police Force’s Traffic Department in Regional Division Three (Essequibo IslandsWest Coast Demerara) on Saturday arrested three minibus touts in Vreed-enHoop, West Coast Demerara (WCD).

According to the Police, an exercise was conducted between 15:00h and 15:30h to eradicate touts from the various minibus parks in the district.

The three men were arrested by the ranks for soliciting passengers and re-

main in custody, pending charges.

“This will be a continuous exercise to maintain law and order giving passengers the right to choose without being pressured/solicited,” the Police release said.

It was only last year that the Police Force restarted its campaign aimed at ridding the bus parks of touts to restore order and civility.

In May of last year, more than 30 bus touts in Georgetown were arrested at various minibus parks and charged for soliciting

passengers.

Over the years, uncontrolled minibus touting has become a common practice at minibus parks throughout Guyana, especially in Georgetown.

It has become such a norm that many young adults make it their daily task to earn some income.

However, such an act is illegal within the constraints of Guyana’s laws and is often viewed as a public nuisance.

In 2019, amid a Police campaign to get rid of touts from all bus parks, those affected begged the authorities not to take bread out of their mouths while promising to act in a more professional manner.

According to the touts, it is unfair for Guyanese who are attempting to make an honest living in a country with a high rate of unemployment to be prosecuted for doing so.

However, the touts admitted that some of them can get too aggressive with passengers, and had vowed to adjust their behaviour.

“The list is not...

FROM PAGE 8

More than $750 million has been set aside in Budget 2022 for the preparations to be undertaken by GECOM for the hosting of LGE this year. This money is part of an overall $4.1 bil-

lion allocation to GECOM’s in Budget 2022, and was examined and approved by the National Assembly during its consideration of the 2022 Budget Estimates.

Included in the $783 million for LGE is a morethan-$300 million increase in “other goods and services purchased”, which jumped from $250.8 million in 2021 to $575.9 million in the 2022 budget.

LGE are constitutionally due every two years in Guyana and were last held in 2018. However, given the fiasco that played out following the 2020 General and Regional Elections, the Local Government polls were deferred to 2021.

At the last LGE in November 2018, the then People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) Opposition had secured 52 of the 80 Local Authority Areas (LAAs). This followed the holding of the LGE in 2016, during which the PPP/C also claimed the majority of the LAAs.

Burnham…

B

…in Rodney’s words

urnham died on August 6, 1985. The PNC – not surprisingly – fulsomely lauded their “founder leader” on his death anniversary. Our preeminent historian, Walter Rodney, however, offered a more honest assessment. The official CoI, which Granger tried to block, concluded that Burnham conspired to assassinate him. While Rodney mocked Burnham – as “King Kong”, “Fat Boy” and “Kabaka”, he was actually assassinated for stripping away Burnham’s mystique: Read his words!

“The Burnham dictatorship has masked and camouflaged itself. It would prefer that its vices be hidden from the public. Why is this? Men in the past have boasted of being dictators….like Idi Amin. (But) The world has come to shun racist regimes…and all dictatorial governments. This climate of international opinion offers the first explanation as to why the Burnham dictatorship prefers to remain disguised.

“The Burnham dictatorship presents itself as its own opposite…as a democracy….(like) Hitler who subverted German bourgeois democracy in the 1930s. Burnham has taken a similar road to power – subverting the democratic system of which he was part in 1953. Hitler had a mad wish to rule the world. For this reason, he is generally described as a megalomaniac. Hitler’s megalomania was backed by the powerful German economy and the might of the German army. Burnham’s megalomania is closer to comedy and farce. It takes the form of wearing a General’s uniform and hoping that the army will conquer his own people.

“Like all classic dictatorships, that which exists in Guyana has fostered the cult of the personality. The minority PNC regime has used all manner of tricks and gimmicks to make the “Comrade Leader” appear to be a demi-god. (Like) on the exercise books of school children, the face of the reigning English Monarch was simply replaced by that of the Prime Minister. (There is also) the highly personalised nature of the dictatorship.

The dictator and his cronies make it their business to hire and fire….(via) the state control over the economy was the main weapon used to keep people in line. (or) who to prosecute in the courts…

“Burnham encourages around himself individuals who are weak or corrupt, because he then exercises vicious control over them….On the international scene, Burnham could never be a powerful force. But he has proved crafty and cunning in achieving his ends within Guyana. An old woman at Bourda shouted at a recent political meeting that “Burnham mek Satan cry!”

“The Burnham dictatorship crept up upon Guyanese people like a thief in the night. His violations of human rights were frequent, but they were sufficiently gradual that many persons did not realise what was going on until it was too late.”

People’s Power; No Dictator!! …and his Dictatorship “We have said before that the Burnham dictatorship would prefer to hide under the disguise of being a democracy. Elections have not been abolished; instead they have been rigged in such a way as to become a complete mockery of the most fundamental of rights – the right to self-determination and free choice of one’s government. The rigged elections of 1968 and 1973 and the amazing referendum fraud of July 1978 all indicate that Guyanese people have not chosen the PNC clique.

The regime holds power by armed force. Guyanese are finding from their own experience that the dictatorship hates to be reminded that it is a dictatorship. To expose the dictatorship, the first step is to denounce the government as illegal and illegitimate.”

“Psychologically, the domination of the dictator has to be rejected. The population must learn to despise the falsehoods which surround the man; they must refuse to accept that he has any halo of greatness around him.”

“They must remove any confusion in their own minds and see the dictator clearly for what he is: a villain and a monster, the principal enemy of the people.” …and his “touch” “Our language (describing Burnham) must express not only ridicule but anger and disgust. Guyana has seen the “Burnham Touch” – anything he touches turns to shit!”

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

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

NEWS

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MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Body of missing farmer found floating in Essequibo River on birthday – head was bagged, feet tied to engine

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Dead: Romeo Randolph

n a day when family members were supposed to be celebrating his life, the body of a Hog Island farmer who was reported missing since Thursday was found floating in the Essequibo River on Sunday morning.

The remains of 36-yearold Romeo Randolph, also known as “Fine Boy”, were found at about 08:00h on Sunday, August 8 – his birthday.

When Guyana Times called the now dead man’s family for an interview on Sunday, his sister-in-law

said that based on what they were told, when Randolph was found, his head was in a bag which had been tapped to his neck.

She said she was also told that his body was tied to his boat engine, which was at the bottom of the river. It is still unclear how the man’s body resurfaced.

The woman said Randolph was last heard from on Thursday around 15:00h. She said he had left his Tuschen, West Coast Demerara (WCD) home on Thursday morning and travelled to Hog Island to conduct business but never returned.

She added that on Thursday night when he was supposed to have returned home, efforts to contact him proved futile.

“On Friday morning we got a call that a fisherman saw his boat somewhere in the river floating. After that, his wife and my husband went to Hog Island to see if they would find his body,” she said.

Upon arriving at the area, Randolph was not seen, according to his family. Two days later, the family was informed that his body was found

floating in the Essequibo River.

She said so far, the family is of the belief that the man, who was the father of 18-month-old and 10-year-old girls, might have been murdered.

His sister-in-law said if that was truly the case, family members would be baffled since based on their knowledge, the now

deceased had no issue with anyone.

“Romeo was a very nice and quiet person. Since I joined this family, I can’t remember hearing him in any problem. He and nobody don’t have problems. He comes his way straight, and go his way straight…,” she said.

The woman said Randolph’s death was

truly affecting the family, and they hope to get closure on what really led to his demise.

“This is affecting from the littlest child to the biggest person in our family, it is really affecting us a lot,” she expressed.

She further added that Randolph was the breadwinner for his family, and his wife was unable to

fathom that he was gone.

“His wife can’t even take it. She can’t even believe it. She is taking it really hard.”

Investigators had launched a probe into the man’s initial disappearance and are now digging deeper to find out what led to his demise.

10 NEWS

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

LCDS 2030, Hemp Bill among landmark matters on parliamentary agenda today – Finance Minister hopeful Opposition will turn up to fulfil its duty a motion (on that). That, as you know, is a very important national strategy.

It addresses the climate services that our country is providing, through our standing forests, the global community; and how those

be monetised. And then in turn, how that remuneration can be deployed to advance economic development,” Dr Singh said.

“I would have liked and I’m still hopeful, that the Opposition will come and

the opportunity to be in Parliament,” he said.

And the Minister noted that there were other important Bills on the order paper, such as the AntiMoney Laundering and Countering the Financing

housing programme since its return to office, moving swiftly to address the backlog of housing applications its inherited. According to the Finance Minister, a lot of progress has been made in reducing the backlog.

Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh

T

he National Assembly will have its 49th sitting today, with a number of transformative measures on the order paper. But with the threat of an Opposition boycott looming, the Government may well be laying its Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) 2030 Bill and discussing its request for supplementary funding in a half-empty chamber.

In a recent sit-down with the State media, Senior Minister with Responsibility for

Finance in the Office of the President, Dr Ashni Singh spoke about the importance of these motions and also the participation of the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC).

That participation seems unlikely, as Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton recently signalled that the coalition parliamentarians would boycott today’s sitting over the suspension of eight of their own.

“There’s the Low Carbon Development Strategy.

We’re going to be debating

It is yet to be seen if any member of the Opposition will show up in the National Assembly today

climate services are being provided by our standing forests, how they can

will add their voices to the debate of the LCDS. I’m hopeful that they will see the merit in the strategy.

But we want their participation to the debate. We want to hear their perspective. There will inevitably be things we may not agree with and we want an opportunity to hear what perspectives they offer and to answer them. Because that’s how Parliament works.”

The Finance Minister noted that LCDS 2030 was particularly important in the context of COP26.

Hemp Bill

According to the Minister, the Hemp Bill is another important Bill on the order paper. He noted the economic importance of hemp and its use in various industries.

“We had said we would go the route of establishing a hemp industry. We’ve already spoken of regions where we anticipate that hemp cultivation can take place in a commercially-viable manner. And we’re looking to advance hemp, which will help a lot of farmers.

“The industrial Hemp Bill outlines the legal framework within which the hemp industry can emerge. This is extremely important and I would have thought they would have wanted to add their voice to such an important issue. Here again, it would be most unfortunate if they don’t avail themselves of

of Terrorism (Amendment) Bill and the Mental Health Protection and Promotion Bill 2022.

Supplementary funding

Additionally, there is the $44.794 billion in supplementary funding being sought by the Government for a number of programmes. As Singh put it, the funding will include $21 billion for the Housing and Water Ministry. The Minister noted that by withholding support from the various programmes designed to help Guyanese, the Opposition was sending a clear message about its priorities.

“If one were to go beyond the $44.8 billion and one were to look at the composition of the $44.8 billion, you would see in there a number of extremely important allocations, allocations that go to the core of improving lives of the Guyanese people,” Minister Singh said.

“Perhaps the lion’s share of the $44.8 billion is going to the housing and water sector. And there’s two main components in that allocation: housing and water together, if my memory serves me correctly, will be getting $21 billion. Almost $16 billion of that will be going to housing development.

And about $5 billion will be going to water.”

Singh noted that the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) Government has resumed the national

“We have distributed, to date, in excess of 10,000 house lots. We have resumed the “Dream Realised” programme.

We’ve had a number of house lot allocation activities. We’re not only allocating house lots, but we’re doing all that comes with ensuring that that allocation letter translates to actual homeownership,” Singh explained.

“We have accelerated the identification, preparation and infrastructure development of new housing areas. So, there are a vast range of housing areas being developed, that were previously not developed. Here I’m speaking of things like Little Diamond, Greater Diamond, Cummings Lodge, LBI, and that whole area, south of the East Coast or east of the East Bank, where we are developing this entire new corridor of commercial, industrial and residential developments.”

And as the Finance Minister put it, this is just in Region Four. He said that similar developments are taking place in other regions too. Meanwhile, other funds listed in the Financial Paper include $50 million for the Office of the Prime Minister; $40.5 million for the Finance Ministry as well as another $6 billion current estimates which include $4 billion to pay electricity arrears to Guyana Power and Light Incorporated (GPL).

NEWS

11

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Region 4 man is latest COVID-19 death Education Ministry will ensure all GUYANA COVID-19 DASHBOARD G parents receive “Because We Care” cash grants – Minister

Education Minister Priya Manickchand

T

he Education Ministry is committed to ensuring that all parents receive the $30,000 “Because We Care” cash grants and uniform allowances.

This is according to Education Minister Priya Manickchand speaking as the distribution exercise wrapped up. She stated that the Ministry would seek to address the issue of late registration and those parents who did not receive, owing to other reasons.

“We’ve had parents coming to say that they registered late and parents coming to say, particularly from private schools, that their names were not on the register for one reason or the other, so we’re going to have to look at what we have remaining and whether we can serve all of those persons still in a second go-around,” the Education Minister explained.

“So, there is to be two second tranches to be done, the first one being people who are legitimately on the list, but could not get here for whatever reason… they’re at work, they’re in the hospital, whatever and we’ll announce those dates shortly and then the second one, we’ll look to see whether the people who were not registered on time didn’t do what we asked them to do, if we have enough in our budget to serve them.

“I want people to remember that the budget was arrived at based on the register, so if you weren’t on the register, we would [not] have catered for you, but we may still be able to do something, so we’ll have a look at that,” she added.

The Minister highlighted that the rollout of the grant was very smooth and noted that this was the first time the Government had rolled a cash grant of this of magnitude.

“The Ministry of Education rolled out a really good programme, of

course with assistance from the Guyana Police Force and the Auditor General’s office and so we’ve had not only a programme that was smooth and efficient, but one that was really accountable and very transparent and I’m very glad about that. I want you all to pause for one second and think about the fact that we just served a 190,000-something children in four days, distributing probably more than $5 billion. Of course, the numbers are now coming in. That has never been done in this country before,” she said.

Minister Manickchand assured that the Government would continue the distribution of the cash grants next year and keep its promise of increasing it each year.

“To all the parents, please know that this is going to be a continuous grant, we said that from the moment we started in 2014 that it was going to raise incrementally until it became at least $50,000 and we have stayed true to that promise, so next year and the years following this will continue and even increase. Please spend this wisely, this is supposed to be help for you to get your children prepared for school and gives us great pleasure being in your service,” she related.

The Government of Guyana initially aimed to distribute a total of 193,679 “Because We Care” cash grants and school uniform allowances this year.

This was estimated to be at a cost of over $5.8 billion.

Each child in the public and private school system would receive $30,000 – $25,000 as the grant and $5000 as an allowance for school uniform.

uyana’s COVID-19 death toll has gone up to 1272 after another person who tested positive for the novel coronavirus died.

According to the Health Ministry on Sunday, the latest fatality is an 87-yearold male from Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica), who succumbed on Saturday, August 6.

This is the first COVID-19 death recorded for the month of August.

Meanwhile, another 26 persons tested positive for COVID-19 within the previous 24-hour period.

The total number of confirmed cases in the country is now 70,152, but only 495 of these are currently active cases, including one person who is in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and the remaining persons in isolation – 480 in home isolation and the other 14 in institutional isolation.

Another five persons are currently in institutional quarantine.

To date, some 68,385 persons have recovered from the life-threatening virus.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in the Guyana, a total 679,491 tests were conducted of which 32,134 males and 38,018 females tested positive.

A breakdown of the new infections shows three cases for Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam), two for Region Three (Essequibo IslandsWest Demerara), 14 for Demerara-Mahaica, one for Region Five (MahaicaBerbice), five for Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) and one for Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice).

There were no increases in the other four regions across the country.

The most recent vaccination numbers show that so far, 445,168 or 86.8 per cent of adults have taken a first dose, while 344,803 or 67.2 per cent of persons 18 years and over are fully vaccinated.

For adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17, 35,435 or 48.6 per cent have received a first dose. Second doses stand at 25,925 or 35.5 per cent.

Vaccines are also available for children with-

AUGUST 7, 2022 UPDATE

NUMBER OF NEW CASES

26

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN INSTITUTIONAL ISOLATION

14

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN HOME ISOLATION

480

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN COVID-19 ICU

1

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN INSTITUTIONAL QUARANTINE

5

TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES BY GENDER (FEMALES)

38,018

TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES BY GENDER (MALES)

32,134

TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES IN GUYANA SINCE 2020

70,152

NUMBER OF RECOVERED CASES

68,385

REGION 1

2682

REGION 2

3099

REGION 3

8630

REGION 4

34,943

REGION 5

2546

REGION 6

6731

REGION 7

2620

REGION 8

888

REGION 9

4321

REGION 10

3692

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

TOTAL 1st DOSE VACCINATED

445,168

FULLY IMMUNISED

344,803

TOTAL NUMBER OF DEATHS

DISTRIBUTION OF TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES SINCE MARCH 2020

1272

Keep a physical distance of at least 6 feet.

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

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

in five to 11 years, whereby 6964 persons or 6.8 per cent have taken a first dose.

Additionally, 2061 or two per cent have received a second jab.

Meanwhile, in excess of 71,000 persons have returned for their first booster dose. Booster doses have been made available for the adolescent age group, as

well as second booster doses for the adult population.

Persons are encouraged to take these shots before their immunity wanes.

In the Region of the Americas, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases are pegged at over 169 million with a death toll of 2.7 million. Globally, the confirmed positives stand at

over 571 million with more than 6.3 million reported deaths.

If anyone is displaying any of the symptoms associated with COVID-19 or needs any additional information, they are asked to contact the COVID-19 Hotline 231-1166, 226-7480 or 624-6674 immediately or visit www.health.gov.gy.

12 NEWS PPP/C Govt committed to development of Indigenous communities – Ali MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

– donates $1.5M to Kako district games; winning team to get shade house

P

resident Dr Irfaan Ali on Sunday recommitted his Government to the cause of developing Indigenous communities at the Upper Mazaruni 23rd Annual District Games in Kako, Upper Mazaruni.

In delivering the keynote address, the President committed to working with Indigenous communities in areas ranging from agriculture to sport. He also donated $1.5 million to the event and announced that the Government would work with the winning community to develop a shade house to advance its food security agenda.

“In addition to this, the President also announced that the Government is working on developing a “One Guyana” football

President Dr Irfaan Ali delivering the feature address at the games

tournament that will see participants from every administrative region,” a statement from the Office of the President said.

The 12 participating teams are from Jawalla (defending champions); Philippi; Imbaimadai; Chinoweing; Wax Creek; Paruima; Waramadong;

Quebanang; Kaikan; Arau; Kamarang and Kako.

Amerindian Affairs Minister Pauline Sukhai; National Security Advisor Captain Gerry Gouveia, Guyana Football Federation (GFF) President Wayne Forde and other officials were at the event.

The Guyana Government has been on an aggressive campaign to dismantle regional barriers to agricultural trade and to increase food production. President Ali has said that in the next four years, with the assistance of more diversified crops, Guyana would aim to reduce Caricom’s food import bill by 25 per cent.

communities so that residents could independently maintain their food security. The machinery could also be used in other sectors to push economic growth.

At the time, Amerindian Affairs Minister Sukhai had outlined some of the projects on stream for villages, especially those that have

the pandemic. In so doing, we have invested in the procurement of 112 tractors, which will go to the Amerindian villages that do not have tractors.

These machineries will be used in the agriculture sector, forestry sector, and the transport sector; enhancing and embracing the development of these sectors in the various hin-

Months after assuming office, President Ali had charged the Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Ministry to assess and address the hurdles related to exporting food and agricultural products to markets within the Region.

been gravely impacted by the coronavirus. She had explained that these initiatives were aimed at strengthening the food security in Amerindian villages with new investments in the agriculture sector.

“The food security of the Amerindian communities will be supported and sustained during the long challenge that we are facing with respect to

terland and Amerindian communities,” Sukhai had told a group of Toshaos.

The Minister had also indicated that upon assuming office in 2020, resources were immediately deployed by the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government to North Pakaraimas and other areas, owing to shortages. Since then, several other regions have benefited.

Strengthening food security

Last year, some 112 tractors were procured for distribution in Indigenous

13

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

President Dr Irfaan Ali on Sunday delivered the keynote address at the launch of the Upper Mazaruni 23rd Annual District Games in Kako, Upper Mazaruni, and he and all the other attendees, including Amerindian Affairs Minister Pauline Sukhai, seemed to enjoy the day of sport

14 NEWS

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Leonora smart hospital to be commissioned this week T

he Leonora Diagnostic and Treatment Centre will officially be commissioned as a “smart hospital” this week.

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony in making the announcement during a recent COVID-19 update said that that the construction work at the Leonora Diagnostic and Treatment Centre has been completed and that it will be handed over on Tuesday, August 9.

“We’ve finished the construction at Leonora, so this is going to handed over on Tuesday,” the Minister said.

The Smart Hospital concept comes under an $835 million fund by the former United Kingdom Department for International Development and implemented by the Pan American Health Organisation’s Department

ing a whopping $73 billion into the healthcare sector.

There are several larger projects on the President Dr Irfaan Aliled Administration’s agenda, geared at decentralising healthcare and enabling easier access for Guyanese. A major initiative is the construction of a new $2 billion multi-specialty hospital at Suddie, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam).

Other hospitals

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony

upgraded under the project.

Next week, Leonora will follow suit, leaving Mabaruma and Paramakatoi. The project addresses the negative footprints that contribute to climate change by simply modifying operations.

obstetrics, gynaecology, surgeries, paediatrics, orthopaedics, pharmacy, and laboratory services among others.

The building has been redesigned to use less electricity and water, along with other retrofitting to reduce

Leonora Diagnostic and Treatment Centre

of Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Relief with the Health Ministry.

Hospitals in Diamond and Lethem have already been

In April, works at the Diamond Diagnostic facility were completed to the tune of US$984,439 and can now cater to emergency services,

disaster vulnerabilities. The other hospitals will see similar upgrades.

For the year 2022, Government plans on inject-

Funded through a grant from the Indian Government, upgrades to the West Demerara Regional Hospital in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), Suddie Hospital in Region Two, and Bartica Hospital in Region Seven will also materialise.

On Guyana’s 56th Independence anniversary, the President announced his slew of plans for the health system, a project, which will cover six modernised regional facilities, as part of a US$180 million project.

“In advancing the health and well-being of our population, we have promised to deliver a world-class health system. We have embarked on this journey with great vigour to design and implement a plan that will deliver such results. We have already put in place several projects that will improve access to quality health-care for the people of our country,” the Head of State had said in an address on Independence Day. Just recently, President Ali joined officials for the sod-turning ceremony of a specialised €149 million Paediatric and Maternal Hospital that will be constructed at Goedverwagting, East Coast Demerara.

The Specialised Paediatric and Maternal Hospital was birthed from a Memorandum of Understanding between Guyana and Austria. The contract was signed just last month with Vamed for a Design, Finance, Build (DFB) model.

The facility, which will be financed by the United Kingdom’s export credit agency – UK Export Finance (UKEF), will be built and equipped in two years’ time

by Austria-based Vamed Engineering. The company, which is partially owned by the Austrian Government, is a global provider for hospitals and other facilities in the healthcare sector.

The low-rise Paediatric and Maternal Hospital will have 256 beds and will be a referral centre for women and children. It will specialise in maternal, neonatal, and paediatric care with a huge imaging suite for services such as CT scans and MRIs, a modern laboratory, and surgical suites.

The specialised hospital will be equipped with high-quality equipment sourced from the United Kingdom.

H

THE MANAGEMENT OF MINING IN GUYANA

ello readers, The beginning of August in Guyana signals the start of Mining Week activities – a series of events coordinated by the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission. In this article, we will be telling you about the EPA’s role in managing the mining sector.

According to the Ministry of Finance’s Budget 2021 report, the mining and quarrying sector’s contribution to GDP was 8.4 percent in 2020. Known as “El Dorado” for its gold, Guyana also exports bauxite and diamonds.

Guyana’s mineral heritage includes deposits of semiprecious stones, kaolin, silica sand, soapstone, kyanite, feldspar, mica, ilmenite, laterite, manganese radioactive minerals, copper, molybdenum, tungsten, iron, and nickel, among others. The mining sector accounts for a significant amount of the country’s GDP, but mining has a devastating effect on the environment.

However, concerned agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) continuously work together to alleviate the effects.

The mining industry in Guyana is principally governed by the Mining Act No. 20 of 1989 (the Mining Act), enacted in 1991. The implementation of the Mining Act is supported by Mining Regulations (1979) which outline provisions related to the prospecting for, and mining of, metals, minerals and precious stones, and the regulation of their transport.

Mining in Guyana is managed by the Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) under the Mining Act of 1989, and this entity is responsible for the development and implementation of all regulations related to mining in Guyana. The Mining Act has been amended several times since its enactment, with the most recent amendment occurring in 2005.

The Environmental Protection Act provides for the assessment and regulation of the impact of economic developmental activities on the environment, and promotes the sustainable use of natural resources.

Types of mining operations authorised by the EPA: * Sand/loam mining; * Stone quarrying; * Medium- and large-scale gold mining operations (surface and underground); * Bauxite mining; * Manganese; and * Other (precious minerals).

The Agency manages the mining sector through: * The Authorisation process; * Compliance checks; * Investigation of complaints; and * Sensitisation of miners.

In addition to the work of the Mining, Communications, and Complaints Program Areas, the Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) Department of the EPA oversees Guyana’s obligations to the Convention on Biological Diversity and projects related to mining, including strengthening the enabling framework for biodiversity mainstreaming and mercury reduction in small-scale gold mining (MBIM phase II), and Mainstreaming Biodiversity into Economic Sectors Project (BIODEV 2030).

Remember: “The Environment is everybody’s business”. Yes! even miners too!

Sources https://nre.gov.gy/guyana-geology-and-mines/ https://www.trade.gov/country-commercial-guides/ guyana-mining-and-minerals-sector You can share your ideas and questions by sending letters to: “Our Earth, Our Environment”, C/O Communications, Environmental Protection Agency, Ganges Street, Sophia, GEORGETOWN, or email us at: eit.epaguyana@gmail.com. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram and subscribe to our YouTube channel.

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

FEATURE

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MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

HEALTH TIPS

DYSPAREUNIA – (PAINFUL SEXUAL INTERCOURSE) * Vaginismus, or a spontaneous tightening of the muscles of the vaginal wall * Endometriosis * Cystitis * Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) * Uterine fibroids * Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) * Radiation and chemotherapy

RISK FACTORS

D r. T ariq Jagnarine F amily M edicine, Endocrinology/D iabetes

D

yspareunia is the medical term for recurring pain in the genital area or within the pelvis during sexual intercourse. The pain can be sharp, or intense, and can occur before, during, or after sexual intercourse.

Dyspareunia is more common in women than men.

It has many possible causes, but it can be treated.

Factors that reduce sexual desire or affect a person’s ability to become aroused can also cause dyspareunia. These factors include: * Stress, which can result in tightened muscles

* After pain-free intercourse * Only with specific partners or circumstances * With tampon use * Along with burning, itching, or aching * With a feeling of stabbing pain, similar to menstrual cramps

RISK GROUPS

Both women and men can experience dyspareunia, but the condition is more common in women.

Dyspareunia is one of the most common problems of postmenopausal women. Around 75 percent of women have painful intercourse at some time, according to the American

CAUSES

Several conditions can cause dyspareunia. For some women, it’s a sign of a physical problem. Other women may experience pain as a result of emotional factors. Common physical causes of dyspareunia include: * Vaginal dryness from menopause, childbirth, breastfeeding, medica-

of the pelvic floor * Fear, guilt, or shame related to sex * Self-image or body issues * Medications such as birth control pills * Relationship problems

College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).

They are at an increased risk if they: * Take medications that cause vaginal dryness * Have a viral or bacterial infection * Are postmenopausal

pain as well, and need help? * Are there other conditions that may be contributing to the pain? * A pelvic examination is also common in diagnosis. During this procedure, doctors would look at the external and internal pelvic area for signs of: o Dryness o Inflammation or infection o Anatomical problems o Genital warts o Scarring o Abnormal masses o Endometriosis o Tenderness The internal examination would require a speculum, a device used to view the vagina during a Pap test. A cotton swab may also be used to apply slight pressure to different areas of the vagina. This would help determine the location of the pain. The initial examination may lead doctors to request other tests, such as: * Pelvic ultrasound * Culture test to check for bacteria or yeast infection * Urine test * Allergy test e.g., latex or lubricant gels, which is often common in many women * Counselling to determine the presence of emotional causes

TREATMENT

tions, or too little arousal before intercourse * Skin disorders that cause ulcers, cracks, itching, or burning * Infections, such as yeast or urinary tract infections (UTIs) * Injury or trauma from childbirth, an accident, an episiotomy, a hysterectomy, or pelvic surgery * Vulvodynia, or pain centred in the vulva area * Vaginitis, or inflammation of the vagina

* Conditions such as cancer, arthritis, diabetes, and thyroid disease * History of sexual abuse or rape

SYMPTOMS

Dyspareunia pain can vary. Pain may occur: * In the vagina, urethra, or bladder * During penetration * During or after intercourse * Deep in the pelvis during intercourse

DIAGNOSIS

Several tests help doctors identify and diagnose dyspareunia. Doctors would start by creating a complete medical and sexual history. Possible questions asked may include: * When and where does the pain occur? * Which partners or positions cause pain? * Do any other activities cause pain? * Does partner(s) feel

* Medications Dyspareunia treatments are based on the cause of the condition. If the pain is caused by an underlying infection or condition, doctors may treat it with: * Antibiotics * Antifungal medicines * Topical or injectable corticosteroids If a long-term medication is causing vaginal dryness, the physician may change the prescription.

Trying alternative medications may restore natural lubrication and reduce

pain.

Low estrogen levels cause dyspareunia in some women. A prescription tablet, cream, or flexible ring can deliver a small, regular dose of estrogen to the vagina.

An estrogen-free drug called ospemifene (Osphena) acts like estrogen on vaginal tissues. It’s effective in making the tissues thicker and less fragile. This can reduce the amount of pain a woman experiences during sexual intercourse.

therapy. Desensitisation therapy teaches vaginal relaxation techniques, such as Kegel exercises, which can decrease pain.

In sex therapy, people can learn how to re-establish intimacy and improve communication with their partners.

* HOME CARE These home remedies can also reduce dyspareunia symptoms: * Use water-soluble lubricants. * Have sex when both partners are relaxed. * Communicate openly with one’s partner about the pain and the experience. * Empty the bladder before sex. * Take a warm bath before sex. * Take an over-thecounter pain reliever before sex. Find a selection of pain relievers online. * Apply an ice pack to the vulva to calm the burning after sex. Shop for ice packs.

at least six weeks before resuming sexual intercourse. * Use a water-soluble lubricant when vaginal dryness is an issue. * Use proper hygiene. * Get proper routine medical care. * Prevent sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) by using condoms or other barriers. * Encourage natural vaginal lubrication with enough time for foreplay and stimulation.

Alternatives to sexual intercourse may be useful until underlying conditions are treated. Partners can use other techniques for intimacy until penetration is more comfortable.

Sensual massage, kissing, oral sex, and mutual masturbation may be satisfying alternatives.

ALTERNATIVE THERAPIES

This can include desensitisation therapy or sex

PREVENTING DYSPAREUNIA

There’s no specific prevention for dyspareunia, but persons can do the following to reduce the risk of pain during intercourse: * After childbirth, wait

16 NEWS

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Govt focused on reviving sugar industry - to meet with GuySuCo’s management this week

P

resident Dr Irfaan Ali has reiterated that his Administration is working to revive Guyana’s sugar industry, adding that they will be meeting with the management of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) during the course of this week to address the major issues.

“My focus is on ensuring that we work to revive GuySuCo, making it viable, making it economically and financially feasible, and that is why I say it is not only about financial feasibility, it is about economic feasibility, how it is integrated in the entire community, so that is the focus,” the President told

journalists on the sidelines of an event in Buxton on Saturday, the Department of Public Information (DPI) reported.

Recent internal issues among the management and members of the Board led to the resignation of the Board of GuySuCo’s Vice Chairman, Anthony Vieira. President Ali said

17 plant operators graduate – as GWI embarks on treated water expansion project

GWI Chief Executive Officer Shaik Baksh poses with the graduates and other water company officials

I

n light of massive plans to improve to water quality across the coast via the establishment of 13 new water treatment plants and 10 in-line treatment systems, the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) will be embarking on an apprenticeship programme.

This was announced

by GWI’s Chief Executive Officer, Shaik Baksh, who was at the time addressing graduates of the company’s Plant Operators Level II Training Programme, the Department of Public Information (DPI) reported.

Baksh explained that the on-the-job training for the operators would eventually lead to upward mobility, thus contributing to human resources development at all levels within the company.

The apprenticeship programme, on the other hand, will aid in knowledge sharing and the filling of new positions that will become available.

The CEO also acknowledged that there is a plea

for water free of high iron content on the coast. To this end, he posited that Government’s investment in the realisation of these new water treatment plants would help to significantly improve the quality of water citizens receive.

He told the graduates that their role as plant operators was important in ensuring the functionality of the plants and distribution of clean water to residents.

He noted too that GWI was conducting a study that entailed the use of surface water and less chemicals to treat it. The sources are the East Demerara Water Conservancy, Boerasirie Conservancy, Five Miles in Bartica and the Dakoura Creek in Linden. The utility is also eyeing 27 springs in Linden to be put to use.

GWI Director Wendell Jeffery told the graduates that the training they have received was as a result of the foresight of the Board and management of the company.

He highlighted that as

operators working at the sole water utility in the country, they had an important role to play towards the development of Guyana’s water sector. He reminded them that citizens across the coast were depending on them for a safe, clean and timely water supply.

He dubbed the training programme part of history in the making, as the company moves towards expansion.

Meanwhile, Head of Water Quality Avinash Parsram, one of the facilitators of the programme, advised the operators to not only understand what they were doing in their line of duty, but also understand why they were doing it and how it would help to improve efficiency.

He encouraged them to be accountable and committed to their job.

A second batch of plant operators were expected to commence training later this month and the programme is slated to last for a period of six months.

he intended to meet all parties this week to have a dialogue.

“There seems to be a strained relationship between some Board members and the management.

The management has a position, the directors have a position. I intend to bring the parties together in the new week and to have a conversation,” he said.

Since taking office, Government has heavily invested in making the sugar industry economically viable after it was neglected by the previous Administration.

Under the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) regime, several sugar estates were closed and thousands of sugar workers placed on the breadline.

However, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government, upon returning to office, has been working to reopen the estates and have begun rehiring worker who were made redundant. Sugar

workers who were laid off also received $250,000 from Government in 2021.

In the PPP/C’s manifesto, a commitment was made to “work to solve the problems of the industry as a whole, by firstly bringing

the industry to breakeven status and then to profitability by ensuring better management and greater efficiency through retooling, mechanisation, product diversification and private participation.”

Mega-drought, extreme rainfall & deforestation having major impacts on Latin America and Caribbean

E

xtreme weather and climate change impacts including mega-drought, extreme rainfall, land and marine heatwaves and glacier melt are affecting the Latin America and the Caribbean region, from the Amazon to the Andes and from Pacific and Atlantic Ocean waters to the snowy depths of Patagonia.

The World M e t e o r o l o g i c a l Organisation (WMO) report, “State of the Climate in Latin America and the Caribbean 2021” highlighted the far-reaching repercussions for ecosystems, food and water security, human health, and poverty.

Deforestation rates were the highest since 2009, in a blow for both the environment and climate change mitigation.

Andean glaciers have lost

more than 30 per cent of their area in less than 50 years. The “Central Chile Mega drought” is the longest in at least 1000 years.

“The report shows that hydrometeorological hazards, including droughts, heatwaves, cold waves, tropical cyclones and floods, have unfortunately led to the loss of hundreds of lives, severe damages to crop production and infrastructure and human displacement,” said WMO Secretary General Professor Petteri Taalas.

“Increasing sea-level rise and ocean warming are expected to continue to affect coastal livelihoods, tourism, health, food, energy, and water security, particularly in small islands and Central American countries. For many Andean cities, melting glaciers represent the loss of a significant source

of freshwater currently used for domestic use, irrigation, and hydroelectric power. In South America, the continued degradation of the Amazon rain forest is still being highlighted as a major concern for the region but also for global climate, considering the role of the forest in the carbon cycle,” said Professor Taalas in the report released last month.

“Worsening climate change and the compounding effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have not only impacted the biodiversity of the Region, but have also stalled decades of progress against poverty, food insecurity and the reduction of inequality in the region,” said Dr Mario Cimoli of Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).

(Excerpt from ECLAC)

NEWS

17

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Agribusiness in LAC benefit from 4 more grain ships leave as hopes grow integration into global value chain Ukraine for export stability

The success stories in agribusiness in the study do not focus on commodities, but on strategies to differentiate and add value

A

gribusiness in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) could benefit from a productive transformation that facilitates its insertion in global value chains, according to a study by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and IDB Invest.

Competing in Agribusiness: Business Strategies and Public Policies for the Challenges of the 21st Century – part of the IDB's series of microeconomic reports – analyses the challenges facing agribusiness, such as the need for innovation and modernisation and including environmental challenges in its business strategy. The study details public policies that can facilitate investment and expansion of agribusiness.

The book – produced jointly by researchers from the IDB and IDB Invest – looks at more than 30 case studies

of international insertion in agri-food markets, from large vertically-integrated companies to cooperatives and socalled “magnet companies,” which enable small producers to integrate into global agrifood chains.

“Traditionally, our agricultural exports have reflected our abundance of natural resources, such as the water in the pampas and the land fertility in the Andean valleys,” said IDB President Mauricio Claver-Carone. "The new trends in modern agrifood markets open up an opportunity for our agribusiness producers to show their entrepreneurial ingenuity, their ability to incorporate technology, and their care for the environment."

"The study shows how agribusiness can be an engine for development and job creation," he added. “I am also pleased to note that several

of the cases discussed in the book involving small farmers have been supported IDB Lab or IDB Invest. The IDB Group will be a close partner to foster a sustainable agribusiness transformation.”

To integrate into modern agri-food value chains, producers must meet quality standards and comply with the commercial conditions demanded by international buyers. Consumers, for their part, increasingly want more information about the social and environmental impact of the products they consume. Inserting more Latin American firms, particularly small and midsized enterprises, in global value chains is one of the priority action areas under the IDB’s Vision 2025 roadmap to foster an economic recovery in the region.

The success stories in agribusiness in the study do not

US Senate approves bill to fight climate change, cut drug costs in win for Biden

U

S Senate on Sunday passed a sweeping US$430 billion bill intended to fight climate change, lower drug prices and raise some corporate taxes, a major victory for President Joe Biden that Democrats hope will aid their chances of keeping control of Congress in this year's elections.

After a marathon, 27hour weekend session of debate and Republican efforts to derail the package, the Senate approved the legislation known as the Inflation Reduction Act by a 51-50 party line vote. Vice President Kamala Harris cast the tie-breaking ballot.

The action sends the measure to the House of Representatives for a vote,

likely Friday when representatives plan to reconvene briefly during a summer recess. They are expected to pass it, which would then send the bill to the White House for Biden's signature.

In a statement, Biden said he looked forward to signing the bill into law.

"The Senate is making history," an elated Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said, after pumping his fists in the air as Democrats cheered and their staff members responded to the vote with a standing ovation.

"To Americans who’ve lost faith that Congress can do big things, this bill is for you," he said. "This bill is going to change America for decades."

Schumer said the legislation contains "the boldest clean energy package in American history" to fight climate change while reducing consumer costs for energy and some medicines.

Democrats have drawn harsh attacks from Republicans over the legislation's US$430 billion in new spending and roughly US$740 billion in new revenue.

The legislation is aimed at reducing carbon emissions and shifting consumers to green energy, while cutting prescription drug costs for the elderly and tightening enforcement on taxes for corporations and the wealthy. (Excerpt from Reuters)

focus on commodities, but on strategies to differentiate and add value, ranging from taking advantage of the off season in the northern hemisphere to adopting environmental and social certifications and the search for attributes such as better flavour and size, or longer shelf life. In a context in which certain inputs – such as fuel and fertiliser – have seen significant price increases due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, these differentiation strategies have become even more important.

Producer companies that have managed to integrate successfully into agribusiness value chains organise themselves in a variety of ways.

Some are large, vertically integrated firms that are on the technological cutting edge in their respective sectors. But an important and attractive element of the agribusiness sector is its ability to integrate small producers into modern value chains, many of them from Indigenous communities or campesino family farming, the report finds.

These producers would have a hard time integrating on their own. Instead, they either group themselves into cooperatives or associations of small producers, or work with larger firms that provide them with technical assistance and financing and help them connect with the opportunities offered by a globalised world. Examples in the book range from organic honey produced under fair trade arrangements by cooperative beekeepers in the Gran Chaco ecoregion of Argentina to small organic mango farmers in Nicaragua.

F

our more ships carrying grain and sunflower oil have left Ukraine ports via a safe maritime corridor.

Millions of tonnes of grain have been stuck in Ukraine due to Russian blockades, leading to shortages and higher food prices in other countries.

But last week the first ship left Ukraine's ports since February.

The latest ships to set sail are bound for Turkey where they'll be inspected as part of a deal reached with Russia and the United Nations.

They left on Sunday from the ports of Odesa and Chornomorsk, and will all travel through the Bosphorus strait.

After the inspections, two are then scheduled to dock in Turkey, while the others are headed for Italy and China.

Another empty ship arrived in Chornomorsk on Sunday afternoon, ready to be loaded with grain for export.

Under a deal brokered

by Turkey and the United Nations last month, Russia agreed not to target ships which were in transit, while Ukraine said it would guide vessels through mined waters.

The deal, set to last 120 days, can be renewed if both sides agree.

The complex arrangement seems to be working, at least for now.

The success of this deal, a rare diplomatic break-

through in this five-monthold conflict, is vital for Ukraine – and the rest of the world.

Twenty million tonnes of grain are stuck in the country, as a result of the blockade imposed by Russia on Ukrainian ports. If the deal holds, Ukraine expects to export up to three million tonnes of grain per month.

Ukrainian authorities say there are good signs that the grain exports are safe, and have urged companies to return to the country's ports. The hope is that the exports will help ease the global food crisis while bringing in much needed foreign currency.

But fears persist.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the resumption of exports, but said security concerns remained.

The first ship to leave Ukraine last week – the Razoni – departed Odesa carrying 27,000 tonnes of corn bound for the Lebanese port of Tripoli.

However, officials said it did not dock in Tripoli on Sunday as planned.

The Ukrainian Embassy in Lebanon told Reuters news agency on Sunday that the ship was "delayed", with no details on the cause or an updated arrival date.

A Joint Coordination Centre which was set up to oversee the exports said the Razoni's voyage would be a trial run, with its experience used to fine-tune procedures for the following voyages.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

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MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022

guyanatimesgy.com

Regional

Former Senator, nephew killed, bodies German Consul arrested in Brazil burned as Haiti gang violence escalates over partner's death

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former Haitian Senator who worked for Haiti’s Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour was assassinated in an upscale neighbourhood near the country’s capital and his body set on fire along with his nephew.

According to Government Commissioner Jacques Lafontant, the bodies of Yvon Buissereth and his unidentified nephew were found on Saturday afternoon in the community of Laboule.

Laboule is in close vicinity to the town of Pelerin, where President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated in July last year.

Buissereth, director of Haiti’s Public Company for the Promotion of Social Housing, and his neph-

Yvon Buissereth

ew were travelling in a Government-issued vehicle and were found inside the charred car.

According to Lafontant, a gang that is trying to control the area is likely to blame.

The Ti Makak gang, which means “Little Macaques”, is fighting with the Toto gang over control of the space.

Gangs in the capital of Port-au-Prince and beyond have become more powerful and have waged violent turf wars since Moïse was assassinated.

Prime Minister Ariel Henry condemned Buissereth’s killing as a “barbaric act” by armed gangs in Laboule.

“His assassins, as well as all the other criminals who sow mourning in the country, will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law and must respond for their ignominious acts before justice,” the Prime Minister said.

(CMC News)

A

German diplomat in Rio de Janeiro, Uwe Herbert Hahn, was arrested on Saturday night in connection with the death of his Belgian husband, Walter Biot, Police said.

Hahn said that Biot had died on Friday when he fell from their apartment in the Ipanema neighbourhood after suffering a sudden illness.

But Police arrested him on suspicion of murder after

their forensics found bloodstains in the apartment and the autopsy of Biot's body showed multiple wounds.

Television images showed Police taking Hahn away in a police car.

"The circumstances of the death are evident. We realised there was a violent death from the traces of injury in different parts of the body," Police investigator Camila Lourenco told reporters.

The Foreign Ministry in Berlin said its Embassy in Brazilia and consulate in Rio de Janeiro were in close contact with the Brazilian authorities investigating the case. It declined to give any further details owing to ongoing investigations and to protect individuals' privacy.

According to Brazilian news portal G1, Hahn and Biot had been together for 23 years. Biot was 52. (Reuters)

Leftist Petro takes office in Colombia amid economic, social challenges

Ganja valued at TT$72M seized in inter-island drug bust

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Colombian national was arrested and marijuana with a street value of TT$72.04 million (One TT$ = US$0.37) was seized following months of surveillance, intelligence gathering, and collaboration with regional law enforcement agencies.

It followed the culmination of an investigation that started in June 2020, when officers of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) began investigations into a person of interest who was suspect-

ed of controlling a drug ring based in central Trinidad with regional and international links, according to a TTPS statement.

According to the statement, when the suspect and another man boarded a flight to Barbados in late June 2022, Barbados law enforcement was notified, and their assistance was requested.

“The TTPS continued gathering intelligence and maintained relations with Barbados law enforcement, and as a result discovered

that on July 29, a shipment of drugs landed in Barbados.

“This intelligence was further developed and on August 2, Barbados law enforcement breached the “stash house” in Barbados where they found and seized 481 kilograms of marijuana with a street value of TT$72,063,420,” the statement said.

One Colombian national was also arrested at the house.

Investigations are continuing. (CMC)

Several firefighters missing after blaze in Cuban oil facility

Flames and smoke rise from the Matanzas Supertanker Base as firefighters and specialists work to quell the blaze [Yander Zamora/ Anadolu Agency]

A

fire set off by a lightning strike at an oil storage facility raged uncontrolled in the city of Matanzas, where four explosions and flames injured 121 people and left 17 firefighters missing, Cuban authorities said.

Firefighters and other specialists were still trying to quell the blaze at the Matanzas Supertanker Base, where the fire began during a thunderstorm on Friday night, the Energy

and Mines Ministry tweeted.

Authorities said about 800 people were evacuated from the Dubrocq neighbourhood, closest to the fire.

The Government said it had asked for help from international experts in “friendly countries” with experience in the oil sector.

Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernández de Cossío said the US Government had offered technical help to quell the blaze. On his

Twitter account, he said the “proposal is in the hands of specialists for the due coordination”.

Minutes later, President Miguel Díaz-Canel thanked Mexico, Venezuela, Russia, Nicaragua, Argentina and Chile for their offers of help.

The first support flights from Mexico and Venezuela were expected to arrive at Matanzas’ airport Saturday night.

A lightning strike on Friday ignited one of eight storage tanks at the Matazanas supertanker port 60 miles east of Havana. A second tank caught fire on Saturday, catching firefighters and others at the scene by surprise.

Cuba’s health minister reported late on Saturday that 121 people were injured, with five of them in critical condition. There were no deaths. The presidency of the republic said the 17 people missing were “firefighters who were in the nearest area trying to prevent the spread”. (Excerpts from Al Jazeera and Reuters)

Colombia's President-elect, Gustavo Petro along with his wife Veronica Alcocer Garcia arrives for his swearing-in ceremony at Plaza Bolivar, in Bogota, Colombia, August 7, 2022 (Reuters/Luisa Gonzalez)

G

ustavo Petro on Sunday became Colombia's first leftist President, elected by voters who hope he can carry out ambitious social and economic reforms meant to reduce violence and deep inequality in the polarised Andean country.

Petro, a former member of the M-19 guerrillas, was inaugurated in Bogota's Bolivar Plaza on Sunday afternoon.

Thousands of supporters gathered in central Bogota and at large screens set up in public places around the country.

"I didn't believe I would live to see this finally happen," said Nelson Molina, a 56-year-old plumber who was sporting a Petro t-shirt and hat as he attended celebrations some 10 blocks from the plaza. "I know we won't change from one day to the next, this is just the beginning."

Senate President Roy Barreras swore in Petro in front of some 100,000 invitees, including Spanish King Felipe VI, at least nine Latin American Presidents and Colombians invited by Petro.

Groups of people were

also celebrating on both sides of the ColombiaVenezuela border, with dozens gathered on either side of a crossing point on the Simon Bolivar bridge outside of Cucuta.

Petro has promised to reopen diplomatic relations with Venezuela, allowing trade between the two countries and consular services to resume.

New Vice President Francia Marquez, an environmental activist and former housekeeper, will be the first Afro-Colombian woman to hold her post. (Excerpt from Reuters)

“Time against us” in bid to rescue 10 Mexican miners after 3 days underground

L

arge pumps sucked water from a flooded coal mine in Mexico on Saturday as authorities weighed whether to send divers to try to save 10 miners who have been trapped underground for more than three days.

The miners became trapped at a mine in the northern border state of Coahuila on Wednesday afternoon when their excavation work caused a tunnel wall to collapse, triggering flooding in three wells.

President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Saturday would be "decisive" in determining wheth-

er divers could safely enter the mine. But by afternoon, Coahuila Governor Miguel Riquelme said water levels were still too high.

"Time is against us," he told families at the site, Mexican media reported.

Relatives keeping vigil outside said they were pinning their hopes on the possibility the miners had found a pocket of air.

"We're tired, we're desperate, but with a little bit (of) hope," said Cecilia Cruz, adding that she had heard about mining accidents in her native Coahuila for decades before the incident that trapped

her nephew, 42-year-old Sergio Cruz.

The possibility of mudfilled tunnels and underground collapses could make it impossible for rescue teams to search for the miners, even if enough water is extracted, she noted.

"Do they want to risk more lives? It would be an even bigger tragedy," she said.

Six divers from Mexican Special Forces were sent to aid the effort at the mine, where three wells, each 60 metres (200 feet) deep, were initially more than half-flooded. (Excerpt from Reuters)

guyanatimesgy.com

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022

19

Around the World

OILNEWS OIL NEWS Russian crude prices recover on strong India, China demand

S

pot prices for Russia's key export crude grade ESPO Blend to Asia have rebounded from all-time lows amid strong demand from top buyers India and China and easing concerns about possible sanctions, several traders said.

The crude exported from the Pacific port of Kozmino saw its spot differentials dive from premiums to a record discount of more than US$20 a barrel in March as western sanctions were slapped on Russian financial and energy companies following the country's invasion to Ukraine.

Ukraine power plant shelled again, Zelenskiy rails at Russian “nuclear terror”

U

kraine said on Sunday that renewed Russian shelling had damaged three radiation sensors and hurt a worker at the Zaporizhzhia power plant, in the second hit in consecutive days on Europe's largest nuclear facility.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called Saturday night's shelling "Russian nuclear terror" that warranted more international sanctions, this time on Moscow's nuclear sector.

Kyiv said Russia hit a power line at the plant on Friday.

However, the Russianinstalled authority of the area said Ukraine hit the site with a multiple rocket launcher, damaging administrative buildings and an area near a storage facility.

Reuters could not verify

A serviceman with a Russian flag on his uniform stands guard near the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict outside the Russian-controlled city of Enerhodar in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, August 4, 2022

either side's version.

Events at the Zaporizhzhia site have alarmed the world. "(It) underlines the very real risk of a nuclear disas-

ter," International Atomic Energy Agency head Rafael Mariano Grossi warned on Saturday.

Elsewhere, a deal to unblock Ukraine's food exports

and ease global shortages gathered pace as another four ships sailed out of Ukrainian Black Sea ports while the first cargo vessel since Russia's Feb 24 invasion docked.

The four outgoing ships had almost 170,000 tonnes of corn and other food. They were sailing under a deal brokered by the United Nations and Turkey to try to help ease soaring global food prices that have resulted from the war.

Before Moscow's Feb 24 invasion, which Russian President Vladimir Putin calls a "special military operation", Russia and Ukraine together accounted for nearly a third of global wheat exports. The disruption since then has threatened famine in some parts of the world.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Sanya: COVID lockdown strands tourists on “China's Hawaii”

M However, the European Union tweaked sanctions on Russia that came into force last month, easing payment restrictions for oil shipments from state-owned firms Rosneft and Gazpromneft - major suppliers of ESPO crude.

Prices have rebounded with at least two cargoes loading between end-September and early October sold at parity against Middle East benchmark Dubai, the sources said.

Indian and Chinese independent refiners find the cargoes far more cheaply priced than Middle East oil of similar quality, they said.

In contrast, Abu Dhabi's Murban crude for September loading sold at premiums of US$12-US$13 a barrel.

"Russian oil is very popular among Asian refiners and at these prices it's a great value," one of the sources told Reuters. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity due to sensitivity to the matter.

Though prices have recovered, the cheaper supplies have helped to boost Asian refinery margins and price pressures could persist ahead of Europe's oil embargo later this year and possibly more sanctions on Russia.

Similarly, spot prices for Russian Urals crude typically exported to Europe are gradually recovering.

India overtook China to become the biggest buyer of Russian oil in July based on seaborne volumes. The world's No 3 crude importer lifted a record 29.5 million barrels, Refinitiv Eikon data showed. This included 3.4 million barrels of ESPO crude.

India will continue to buy ESPO Blend oil in October, according to two of the sources.

The world's top crude importer China loaded 18.1 million barrels of seaborne ESPO crude in July, 27 per cent down from an all-time high in June, as major buyer Sinopec Corp cut purchases. Oil supplies loaded from the Russian ports dropped to 21.3 million barrels in July, the lowest since February.

The ESPO crude benchmark has traditionally been priced on FOB Kozmino basis. More trades, however, are now conducted via middlemen who resell the cargoes on delivered ex-ship (DES) basis that include other costs such as shipping, insurance and financing to end users in China and India.

For example, the price of a cargo that arrived in India last month included US$2 million in freight costs even though it was already priced at a wide discount of more than US$7 a barrel to Dubai quotes, another source said.

Prices of ESPO crude delivered to China have also improved, traders said. Last week, cargoes for September delivery were sold at parity to ICE Brent DES basis, rebounding from a discount of US$5 a barrel in March.

The European Union sanctions banning seaborne imports of Russian crude and oil products will take effect on Dec 5.

"Given European concerns about surging energy prices, we think there could be some reticence to go all in on these punitive measures that could potentially take several million Russian barrels off the market," RBC Capital's Helima Croft said in a note. (Reuters)

ore than 80,000 tourists have been left stranded in a popular resort in China after a coronavirus outbreak sparked a lockdown.

Authorities cancelled all flights and trains from Sanya, known as "China's Hawaii", on Saturday, a day after 263 positive cases were confirmed.

Travellers must now present five negative PCR tests over seven days before being allowed to leave.

China is the only major economy to still follow a "zero COVID" policy.

The country has recorded fewer than 15,000 deaths since the pandemic began, according to Johns Hopkins University. However, there

Israel-Gaza: Hopes as militants announce ceasefire in Gaza

have been concerns about the impact of the strict rules, including mass testing and local lockdowns, on the economy.

The restrictions on Sanya, a city on the southern Hainan Island and a popular surfing destination, come during the peak tourist season.

Essential services such as supermarkets and pharmacies remain open, but entertainment venues have been closed since last week, AFP news agency reports.

Authorities have said

they will ask hotels to offer a 50 per cent discount until restrictions are lifted.

Sanya is not the only city to have gone into lockdown in recent months. Around a million people in a suburb of Wuhan, the city in central China where COVID-19 was first recorded, faced fresh curbs last month after four asymptomatic cases were confirmed.

In June, meanwhile, Shanghai's 25 million residents finally emerged from a strict two-month lockdown.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

Horniman Museum to return 72 artefacts to Nigeria People attend the funeral ceremony of Palestinians, who lost their lives in Israel's attacks, in Rafah, Gaza on August 7, 2022

H

opes are high that a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militants will come into effect after three days of violence left at least 43 people dead.

Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) militants said the truce began at 23:30 local time (20:30 GMT) on Sunday, after talks moderated by Egyptian mediators.

Israel is yet to confirm the ceasefire, expected to be announced from Cairo.

Earlier, rockets fired from Gaza reached Jerusalem for the first time since May last year.

The Israeli military said it began its attack on sites in the Gaza Strip in response to threats from a militant group. It followed days of tensions after Israel arrested a senior PIJ member in the occupied West Bank.

This latest violence is the most serious flare-up between Israel and Gaza since

an 11-day conflict in May 2021 left more than 200 Palestinians and a dozen Israelis dead.

However, the violence has so far been more limited as Hamas - the Islamist group that rules the Gaza Strip and which often coordinates with PIJ - has refrained from joining attacks against Israel. Israel says the PIJ has fired hundreds of rockets in recent days, most of which have been intercepted. No injuries have so far been reported in Israel.

There are no reports of Israeli air strikes targeting Hamas, which would mark an escalation in the violence.

Reports of a potential ceasefire deal come amid concerns over the humanitarian situation in Gaza, as health officials warned that hospitals only had enough fuel to run generators for another two days. (Excerpt from BBC News)

A

London museum said it has agreed to return to Nigeria artefacts looted in the 19th Century from the Kingdom of Benin.

The Horniman Museum said ownership of 72 objects would be transferred to the Nigerian Government.

Items include 12 brass plaques, known as Benin Bronzes, a brass cockerel and a key to the king's palace.

It follows a request by Nigeria's National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) in January.

The museum, in southeast London, said it has consulted with community members, visitors, schoolchildren, academics, heritage professionals and artists based in Nigeria and the UK. "All of their views on the future of the Benin objects were considered, alongside the provenance of the objects," the museum explained.

The museum's chair said it was "moral and appropriate" to return them.

In recent years, there has been increased political pressure on European

Governments and museums to hand back looted artefacts.

These include ivory carvings and metal sculptures known as the Benin Bronzes.

The items from the Horniman's collection are just some of the artefacts returned to Nigeria in the last few months from museums in the west.

Last month, Jesus College in Cambridge and the Aberdeen University gave back a cockerel sculpture and the head of an oba (king).

German authorities also returned more than 1100 artefacts to the west African country.

NCMM said some of the priceless sculptures will be stored in the national museum in Benin once it's been expanded and others will be stored at the museum in Lagos.

The British Museum holds the world's largest collection of Benin bronzes.

It says it is prevented from permanently returning items by the British Museum Act of 1963 and the National Heritage Act of 1983. (Excerpt from BBC News)

20

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022

guyanatimesgy.com

DAILY HOROSCOPES

ARCHIE

Put your cash in a safe place. Don't make promises you can't keep, and don't lead someone astray to get your way.

Focus on responsibilities, gaining respect and getting what you want.

(March 21-April 19) Keep spending at a minimum and pay attention to detail. A change will disrupt a relationship with someone counting on you for support. Honesty is the best approach.

DILBERT

(April 20-May 20)

(May 21-June 20)

Listen to the input offered before making a decision. You don't have to bend the rules or change your beliefs because someone takes a different path.

Focus on what's important, and give others the same privilege.

Take time to consider what's in your best interest before letting anyone take advantage of your soft heart and friendly nature. Your memory will help you make the right decision.

PEANUTS (June 21-July 22)

Gather information and decide what's best for you. Don't let the changes others make hold you back. A high-energy approach to whatever you do will attract like-minded people.

(July 23-Aug. 22) Money and emotions will clash. Use intelligence and sort through your feelings before you make promises you'll live to regret. Concentrate on self-improvement, not trying to change others.

CALVIN AND HOBBES

(Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Take care of responsibilities before you move on to enjoyable pastimes. You may want to spend time with someone you are enamored with, but don't let your duties suffer.

(Sept. 23-Oct. 23) Don't hesitate; jump in and take control. You stand a better chance of coming out on top if you are part of the solution.

Let your actions speak for you, and you'll make a statement.

SUDOKU (Oct. 24-Nov. 22)

Too much of anything will be your downfall. Keep your emotions hidden until you know what others think or plan to do next. Make personal growth and health your priorities.

(Nov. 23-Dec. 21) Fixing up your surroundings to please yourself and your loved ones will make a difference in how you feel and how others respond to you. Romance is on the rise.

SOLUTION FOR LAST PUBLISHED PUZZLE

(Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Refuse to let what others do upset your day. Focus on what's important to you, and take responsibility for your actions. Offer kind words and good luck to others, and go about your business.

(Jan. 20-Feb. 19)

(Feb. 20-March 20)

Look at your choices and change what benefits you financially or raises your profile. Let someone you care about know how you feel with words and actions. Commitment and romance are favored.

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022

21

Mooney, Gardner and Schutt lead Australia to gold in pulsating final A

ustralia gave yet another lesson in closing out games under pressure and crushed India's dreams to clinch gold at the Commonwealth Games 2022.

With India needing 44 off 30 with seven wickets in hand, Ashleigh Gardner produced an incredible plot twist by dismissing Pooja Vastrakar and the half-centurion Harmanpreet Kaur off successive deliveries.

With a foot in the door, Australia barged it open by choking the lower middle order to clinch victory by nine runs as India lost their last eight wickets for just 34 runs. A crestfallen Harmanpreet, whose 43-ball 65 had lifted India into a matchwinning position, sat motionless in the dugout, as did the rest of the team, who had to settle for the silver medal.

Meanwhile, Australia, holders of the 50-overs and T20 World Cups, added the only accolade they lacked - a gold medal at a multi-sports event - to reaffirm their status as the best team in the world.

Renuka delivers key breakthrough India gave Alyssa Healy an early let-off two years ago in the T20 World Cup final, and saw her pummel a match-winning 39-ball 75. They may have briefly wondered if Healy would make them pay here too, when a thick edge off Renuka Singh flew just wide of where a regulation slip would be in the first over of the match.

Fortunately for them, Renuka sent Healy back in her next over, aided by an excellent DRS call from Harmanpreet.

Ball-tracking suggested that Renuka's nip-backer, which Healy played all around, would have crashed into middle and leg stumps. It wasn't until the final over of the powerplay that Australia began to shift gears as Meg Lanning muscled Renuka

down the ground for six in a 13run over that took Australia to 43 for 1.

Lanning and Mooney push on Despite the early loss and a few quiet overs, Lanning and Beth Mooney exuded a sense of calm, knowing the kind of damage they could inflict once set. Both batters targeted the short straight boundary effectively off the spinners, and raised their half-century stand off just 37 balls. Australia picked off six boundaries in the ninth and tenth overs, including four in a single Harmanpreet over, to set themselves up superbly at 83 for 1 at the halfway stage.

Radha changes the mood After a tight first over in which she conceded just three tuns, Radha Yadav left her mark on the game in the 11th over when she showed terrific gamesmarts to run Lanning out at the non-striker's end. Having stopped a straight hit from Mooney, she quickly reverseflicked the ball between her legs and onto the stumps with Lanning's bat in the air when the stumps were disturbed.

In the next over, her prowling presence at point resulted in a stunning catch as she threw herself full-stretch to dismiss Tahlia McGrath, who played the game despite testing positive for Covid-19.

Australia's lower order goes big Gardner offset any pressure Australia may have felt with some typically aggressive hits to pocket a quick 25 before she was stumped off Sneh Rana. Despite wickets falling around her, Mooney carried on, raising a half-century off just 36 deliveries. Australia didn't allow the succession of wickets to stall their momentum, even as India's fielders kept pulling off stunners, including a onehanded back-pedaling catch

Australia are gold medalists at the Commonwealth Games

from Deepti Sharma to dismiss Mooney, and Meghna Singh's catch running back from mid-on to remove the dangerous Grace Harris. Rachael Haynes muscled an unbeaten 10-ball 18 to push Australia past 160.

India make nervy start India lost both openers inside the first three overs. Smriti Mandhana was bowled behind her legs while looking to swing one into the leg side, ending an innings that had begun promisingly with scorching offside strokes, while Shafali Verma slogged and holed out two balls after she was reprieved at cover

by Megan Schutt.

Five years after her knock for the ages in the 50-overs World Cup semi-final against Australia, Harmanpreet threatened to produce the T20 version of that epic 171* against the same opponents.

Coming in with India 23 for 2 in the fourth over, Harmanpreet revived their innings with her drives and lofted hits, including a foray down the pitch for a six over wide long-on off Jess Jonassen in the tenth over. She began employing the sweep frequently too, as Australia's spinners tried a leg-stump line against her. At the other end, the bat-slapping and fist-pumping Jemimah Rodrigues overcame a slow start - she was 1 off 7 at one

point - to take some pressure off Harmanpreet by picking up regular boundaries in a run-aball 33. Their 96-run partnership had brought the equation down to a gettable 44 off 34 when Rodrigues was bowled looking to heave Schutt across the line.

second, in order to keep the strike, resulting in Meghna's run-out at the danger end.

With India now needing 10 off four balls, Yastika was out lbw

Gardner applies the choke Australia's relief turned into full-blown ecstasy when Gardner delivered a stunning second over, in which she removed the promoted Vastrakar and Harmanpreet off consecutive deliveries. While Vastrakar mistimed a hoick to deep midwicket, Harmanpreet fell attempting a paddle, the ball lobbing off her helmet to be caught behind by Healy. At that stage, Gardner's figures were a magical 2-0-5-3.

As India lost wickets, the pressure caught up on them as batter after batter committed hara-kiri. Rana and Radha were run out, and Deepti, seemingly India's last hope with them needing 13 off 10, was out lbw to Schutt.

It boiled down to India needing 11 off the final over, with Yastika Bhatia, who had come on as a concussion substitute for wicketkeeper Taniya Bhatia, on strike to Jonassen. After turning down a single first ball, she ran an improbable second run off the

Australia Innings Alyssa Healy †lbw b Renuka Singh 7 Beth Mooney c Sharma b Rana 61 Meg Lanning (c)run out (Yadav) 36 Tahlia McGrath c Yadav b Sharma 2 Ashleigh Gardner st †T Bhatia b Rana 25 Grace Harris c Meghna Singh b Renuka Singh 2 Rachael Haynes not out 18 Alana King c Meghna Singh b Yadav 1 Jess Jonassen run out (Mandhana) 1 Megan Schutt not out 1 Extras (b 4, w 3) 7 TOTAL 20 Ov (RR: 8.05) 161-8 Fall of wickets: 1-9 (Alyssa Healy, 2.2 ov), 2-83 (Meg Lanning, 10.1 ov), 3-87 (Tahlia McGrath, 11.1 ov), 4-125 (Ashleigh Gardner, 15.1 ov), 5-133 (Grace Harris, 16.2 ov), 6-142 (Beth Mooney, 17.2 ov), 7-150 (Alana King, 18.3 ov), 8-157 (Jess Jonassen, 19.2 ov) BOWLING O-M-R-W Renuka Singh 4-0-25-2 Meghna Singh 2-0-11-0 Deepti Sharma 4-0-30-1 Radha Yadav 4-0-24-1 Sneh Rana 4-0-38-2 Pooja Vastrakar 1-0-12-0 Harmanpreet Kaur 1-0-17-0

attempting a reverse sweep.

And just like that, just like 2017, India had fallen agonisingly short in a global final. (ESPNcricinfo)

SCOREBOARD INDIA WOMEN INNINGS (Target: 162 runs from 20 overs) Shafali Verma c McGrath b Gardner 11 Smriti Mandhana b Brown 6 Jemimah Rodrigues b Schutt 33 Harmanpreet Kaur (c) c †Healy b Gardner 65 Pooja Vastrakar c Mooney b Gardner 1 Deepti Sharma lbw b Schutt 13 Sneh Rana run out (Brown/Gardner) 8 Radha Yadav run out (Harris) 1 Yastika Bhatia lbw b Jonassen 2 Meghna Singh run out (King/ Jonassen) 1 Renuka Singh not out 0 Extras (b 5, w 6) 11 TOTAL 19.3 Ov (RR: 7.79) 152 Fall of wickets: 1-16 (Smriti Mandhana, 1.5 ov), 2-22 (Shafali Verma, 2.4 ov), 3-118 (Jemimah Rodrigues, 14.3 ov), 4-121 (Pooja Vastrakar, 15.4 ov), 5-121 (Harmanpreet Kaur, 15.5 ov), 6-139 (Sneh Rana, 17.3 ov), 7-145 (Radha Yadav, 18.1 ov), 8-149 (Deepti Sharma, 18.3 ov), 9-152 (Meghna Singh, 19.2 ov), 10-152 (Yastika Bhatia, 19.3 ov) BOWLING O-M-R-W Megan Schutt 4-0-27-2 Darcie Brown 3-0-19-1 Ashleigh Gardner 3-0-16-3 Jess Jonassen 3.3-0-21-1 Alana King 4-0-40-0 Tahlia McGrath 2-0-24-0

Guyana Under-19 team off to St. Vincent and the Grenadines

Guyana U19-team upon departure

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uyana Under-19 team took off on Sunday morning for St. Vincent and the Grenadines where this years CWI Rising Stars Regional Under-19 three-day tournament will be held.

Alvin Mohabir who led the

Guyana Under-17 team in the recently concluded Regional Under-17 will have the distinct privilege of being captain for two national teams within a given year. He will be supported

by Vice-Captain Jonathan Rampersaud.

West Indies Under-19 express fast bowler Isai Thorne is expected to lead the bowling department along with pacer Bruce Vincent, fast bowling allrounder Rivaldo Phillips, leftarm-spinner Jeremy Sandia, offspinner Jonathan Rampersaud

and skipper Mohabir (off-spin).

Rampertab Ramnauth, who struck an unbeaten century against Trinidad and Tobago in the Regional Under-17, is expected to lead the batting department with support from the talented Mavendra Dindyal,

Zachary Jodah, Tomanni Caesar and Mahendra Gopilall. The team will be coached by former National Senior team player Andre Percival while Budhesh Chatterpaul will serve as the Manager.

Guyana opens the tournament on August 9 vs Trinidad and Tobago at Park Hill then play Leeward Islands at Park Hill on Aug 14-16. The third and final preliminary match before the playoffs will see Guyana taking on Jamaica at Arnos Vale on Aug 19-21.

On Aug 24-26, Round 4 will see the 1st and 2nd Place game between 1st Place team in Group A Vs 1st Place in Group B at Arnos Vale, 2nd and 3rd Place

game between 2nd Place in Group A vs 2nd Place in Group B at Park Hill while the 5th and 6th Place game between the 3rd Place in Group A and Group B will be played at Cumberland.

On August 27, CWI will host a presentation ceremony then the teams depart on August 28.

The full squad reads Rampertab Ramnauth, Tomanni Caesar, Mavendra Dindyal, Alvin Mohabir (Captain), Jonathan Rampersaud (Vice-Captain), Zachary Jodah, Mahendra Gopilall, Sachin Balgobin, Zeynul Ramsammy, Shamar Yearwood (W/K), Jeremy Sandia, Bruce Vincent, Rivaldo Phillips and Isai Thorne.

22

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022

West Indies name women's squad to face USA U-19s in Florida – Guyana’s Munisar to captain team

Browne-John added:

T

The West Indies Women are in Florida

he Cricket West Indies (CWI) Women’s Selection Panel on Sunday announced the West Indies Women’s U-19 squad for their upcoming fivematch T20 International (T20I) Series against USA Women’s U-19. The two teams will meet at the Broward County Stadium in Florida from August 8 to 14.

The 12-member squad will be led by Ashmini Munisar with Shalini Samaroo as the vice captain. The selectors originally named 15 players, but three were unable to secure visas to make

the tour. Munisar is a right-handed batter and off-spinner, while Samaroo is a left-handed batter and off-spinner.

The team have a number of other exciting all-rounders, including Djenada Joseph, who was the leading run-maker in the CWI Rising Stars U19 T20 tournament played last month. The most experienced player is Zaida James, the left-handed batter, who was a travelling reserve for the West Indies Women’s senior team earlier this year. Last year, she represented West Indies Women’s “A” Team against Pakistan “A” Team.

The Head Coach is Steve Liburd, the former Leeward Islands batsman and West Indies Men’s U19s Assistant Coach; with Merissa Aguilleira, the former West Indies women’s captain, as the Team Manager. Both teams have qualified for the inaugural ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup taking place in South Africa in January 2023 and this upcoming series will be ideal preparation for the global event.

Ann Browne-John, Lead Selector for West Indies Women, said: “History has been created with the selection of this West Indies

Under-19 team. No cricket tournaments were played during the pandemic, and it was, therefore, not only important but also an eye-opener to view the girls in the recent U19 tournament. The selectors were extremely pleased with the quality of skill shown by these young players. The team has a good mix of batting and bowling including some left-handers.”

“There are a few players including the Captain Ashmini Munisar and Djenaba Joseph who recently played major roles for their senior teams in the regional tournament in Guyana. This series as well as a few other planned upcoming events would help the players in their development thrust as they prepare for the ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup in January.”

The first two games will be held under floodlights with 6:30pm starts today, Monday, August 8 and Tuesday, August 9. The remaining three matches in the series will all be daylight games with 10:30am starts on Thursday, August 11 and Friday, August 12 before the fifth and final match of the series on Sunday, August 14.

FULL SQUAD: Ashmini Munisar (Captain), Shalini Samaroo (Vice Captain), Asabi Callender, Najanni Cumberbatch, Realeanna Grimmond, Zaida James, Djenaba Joseph, KD-Jazz

Mitchell, Ashley Ramnath, Samara Ramnath, Shunelle Sawh, Kate Wilmot Team Management Steve Liburd (Head Coach) Merissa Aguilleira (Team Manager) Samantha Lynch (Assistant Coach) Jamal Smith (Assistant Coach) Asia Joseph (Strength & Conditioning Coach) Tori-Ann Grant (Physiotherapist) MATCH SCHEDULE – at Broward County Stadium 8 August: 1st Women’s U19 T20I – 6:30pm (5:30pm Jamaica) 9 August: 2nd Women’s U19 T20I – 6:30pm (5:30pm Jamaica) 11 August: 3rd Women’s U19 T20I – 10:30am (9:30am Jamaica) 12 August: 4th Women’s U19 T20I – 10:30am (9:30am Jamaica) 14 August: 5th Women’s U19 T20I – 10:30am (9:30am Jamaica)

Callendar & Shariff earn conditional Women Candidate Master titles

Commonwealth Games...

Sprint relay silver and bronze for Trinidad and Jamaica respectively, 4th place finish for Guyana

G

uyana missed out on a podium finish in the Men's 4X100m Relay at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England.

Guyana finished 4th, running 40.05s, in the race won by England, Trinidad and Tobago and Nigeria.

This was the first time since the Games started in 1930 that Guyana had competed in the relays.

The Guyanese athletes that finished fourth were Arizine Chance, Nolex Holder, Akeem Stewart and Emanuel Archibald.

Despite the absence of 200m champion Jereem Richards, Trinidad and Tobago’s team of Jerod Elcock, Eric Harrison Jr, Kion Benjamin Hislop and Kyle Greaux raced to a season-best 38.70 to claim second place behind England that ran a season-best 38.35 for the gold medal.

Nigeria ran 38.81 for the bronze.

Meanwhile, Jamaica’s

Jessica Callender

G

Kyle Greaux

women owe a debt of gratitude to sprint-double champion Elaine ThompsonHerah for their bronze medal as Kemba Nelson, Remona Burchell and Natalliah Whyte were unable to put Jamaica in contention for a medal over the first three legs.

However, at the final exchange with Jamaica in fifth, the fastest wom-

an alive, stormed down the home stretch to snatch the bronze medal from Australia.

Jamaica clocked a relatively pedestrian 43.08, well behind England who ran a season-best 42.41 for the silver and winners Nigeria, who stormed to a new area record of 42.10.

Australia clocked 43.16 for fourth.

uyana's top chess players continue to earn victories at the ongoing FIDE Chess Olympiad in Chennai, India.

With only three rounds remaining in the tournament contested by more than 2000 chess players around the world, two players on Guyana's Women’s team have earned their first titles.

Jessica Callender earned her Conditional WCM title after Round 7 on August 5th while Sasha Shariff earned hers after

Sasha Shariff

Round 8 on August 6th.

Both players gained 4 wins out of 7 games.

Chess players are bestowed titles by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) based on their performance and are referred to by the titles before their name based on their ratings.

It is a metric of a chess player's rank. The WCM title will be added to their names once they achieve rating points over 1800.

These titles have been earned for life and cannot be lost. Sasha Shariff is

currently rated 1183 and Jessica is rated at 1295.C.

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MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022

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23

India spinners bulldoze West Indies in final T20I to clinch series 4-1 award. Leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi, who finished off the match, had 4-16 in 2.4 overs.

Hetmyer reached his fastest T20I fifty in 28 balls, an innings that included four sixes and five fours. He was eventual-

Hayden Walsh Jr returned and picked up a wicket

Odean Smith claimed three wickets for West Indies (AP Images)

Brian Lara with some Indian fans after the match (Brandon Corlette photo)

By Brandon Corlette in Florida

I

ndia spinners claimed all ten wickets in the final T20I at the Broward County Stadium in Florida, USA as West Indies lost by 88 runs. India posted 188-7 in 20 overs riding on Shreyas Iyer's classy half-century while Shimron Hetmyer's 56 was the only bright spark for West Indies, who folded for 100 all out in 15.4 overs as the mighty Indians took the series 4-1.

ly caught at long-off by Iyer off Bishnoi, and that was all she wrote for West Indies.

Iyer shows class

India spinners dominate West Indies

Jason Holder was shockingly promoted to open the batting with Shamarh Brooks. West Indies were in early trouble, losing three wickets for 38 runs in the power play. Holder was bowled by Axar Patel attempting to sweep, Brooks ran past one and Thomas

Shimron Hetmyer blazed his fastest T20I fifty

SCOREBOARD India Innings Ishan Kishan c Pooran b Drakes 11 Shreyas Iyer c & b Holder 64 Deepak Hooda c Brooks b Walsh 38 Sanju Samson b Smith 15 Hardik Pandya (c) run out (Smith) 28 Dinesh Karthik †lbw b Smith 12 Axar Patel c Pooran b Smith 9 Kuldeep Yadav not out 0 Avesh Khan not out 1 Extras (nb 3, w 7) 10 TOTAL 20 Ov (RR: 9.40) 188/7 Fall of wickets: 1-38 (Ishan Kishan, 4.3 ov), 2-114 (Deepak Hooda, 11.4 ov), 3-122 (Shreyas Iyer, 12.6 ov), 4-142 (Sanju Samson, 15.2 ov), 5-158 (Dinesh Karthik, 17.2 ov), 6-181 (Hardik Pandya, 19.1 ov), 7-187 (Axar Patel, 19.4 ov) BOWLING O-M-R-W Jason Holder 4-0-38-1 Obed McCoy 2-0-27-0 Dominic Drakes 3-0-24-1 Keemo Paul 2-0-24-0 Hayden Walsh 4-0-33-1 Odean Smith 4-0-33-3 Rovman Powell 1-0-9-0 West Indies Innings Jason Holder b Patel 0 Shamarh Brooks st †Karthik b Patel 13

two sixes.

India continued to score but the quick Smith stood in their way to claim wickets.

Devon Thomas †b Patel 10 Shimron Hetmyer c Iyer b Ravi Bishnoi 56 Nicholas Pooran (c)lbw b Kuldeep Yadav 3 Rovman Powell lbw b Ravi Bishnoi 9 Keemo Paul lbw b Ravi Bishnoi 0 Dominic Drakes b Kuldeep Yadav 1 Odean Smith c Pandya b Kuldeep Yadav 0 Hayden Walsh not out 0 Obed McCoy c Hooda b Ravi Bishnoi 0 Extras (w 8) 8 TOTAL 15.4 Ov (RR: 6.38) 100 Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Jason Holder, 0.3 ov), 2-24 (Shamarh Brooks, 4.2 ov), 3-33 (Devon Thomas, 4.6 ov), 4-50 (Nicholas Pooran, 7.5 ov), 5-83 (Rovman Powell, 11.3 ov), 6-88 (Keemo Paul, 11.4 ov), 7-89 (Dominic Drakes, 12.1 ov), 8-89 (Odean Smith, 12.4 ov), 9-100 (Shimron Hetmyer, 15.1 ov), 10-100 (Obed McCoy, 15.4 ov) BOWLING O-M-R-W Axar Patel 3-1-15-3 Arshdeep Singh 2-0-18-0 Avesh Khan 2-0-20-0 Hardik Pandya 2-0-19-0 Kuldeep Yadav 4-1-12-3 Ravi Bishnoi 2.4-0-16-4

played back and was bowled by the same bowler.

Batting at number four, Hetmyer came and hit the power button immediately. He struck boundaries and looked a class apart from his teammates.

Kuldeep Y a d a v then trapped Nicholas Pooran (03) in front at 50-4 in 7.5 overs and India were in firm control.

Rovman Powell continued to find it difficult to score at his free flowing best. The lower-middle order also looked clueless as all ten of West Indies wickets went to spinners. Patel, who claimed three early wickets and also bowled a maiden, ended with 3-15 to earn the player of the match

Earlier, India won the toss and opted to bat first.

India rested some big guns and Hardik Pandya returned to lead the team in the absence of Rohit Sharma. West Indies made four changes, with Keemo Paul, Shamarh Brooks, Hayden Walsh and Odean Smith returning while Kyle Mayers, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph and Brandon King missed out.

India got off to a blazing start despite losing the wicket of Ishan Kishan (11) at 38-1 in 4.3 overs.

It was

Dominic Drakes who removed the southpaw. India kept pressing on and at the power play, and raced away to 53-1 with Iyer and Hooda dominating the bowling in good batting conditions.

Iyer reached his half-century with some innovative and breathtaking shots. At the half-way stage, India reached 95-1, eyeing up a total beyond 200 runs.

According to Pooran, Walsh was not included in the starting XI in St Kitts because of the small outfield.

He came and removed the promising Deepak Hooda at 114-2 in 11.4 overs. Hooda made 38 from 25 balls, but was caught at mid-wicket after striking three fours and

Compliments of

Shreyas Iyer opened the batting and scored a fine half-century

Holder removed the danger man Iyer for 64, who offered a simple return catch after slamming eight fours and two sixes in his 40-ball knock.

At 135-3 after 14.3 overs, the players left the field with lightning around the venue, despite the sun peeking out. Upon the return, captain Pandya (28) looked to threaten as well as the finisher Dinesh Karthik (12).

Smith who sent the stumps of Sanju Samson for a walk in the park, pulled India back to 188-7 in 20 overs. Smith, ended with 3-33 in four overs.

West Indies will now shift focus to the New Zealand T20I three-match series starting on August 10 in Jamaica.

MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2022

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

India spinners bulldoze West Indies in final T20I to clinch series 4-1 Page 23

Patel and his fellow spinners dominated West Indies

Page 22

The Guyanese team finsihed fourth

Commonwalth Games...

Sprint-relay silver and Page bronze for Trinidad and 22 Jamaica respectively, fourth place finish for Guyana

West Indies name Women's squad to face USA U-19s in Florida - Guyanese Munisar to captain team Ashmini Munisar

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