Guyana Times - Monday May 31, 2021

P15

Over 1000 hampers distributed to Pomeroon residents Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

Issue No. 4664

THE BEACON OF TRUTH MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021

PRICE

Floods 2021

Regions 6, 10 worst hit as all regions experience intense downpours − CDC intensifies response, RDRMS activated

$80 VAT INCLUDED

WHAT'S INSIDE:

3 homes P10 destroyed by falling tree in Laing Avenue

See story on page 3

Rose Hall P2 man busted with ganja at roadblock Former national footballer P2 robbed at gunpoint during home invasion

Black Bush Polder, Region 6

Kwakwani, Region 10

Guyana now equipped 150,000 J&J vaccines with expertise to Page 7 being sourced through African Union – Jagdeo measure crude lifts − after GNBS inspectors receive int’l certification

...says Govt making every effort to ...says secure more vaccines for Guyanese

2 manslaughter P8 convicts sentenced to 10, 3 years in jail

Page 11

City Hall accused of sabotaging, neglecting pumps & sluices

Armed bandits terrorise, P15 rob Parfaite Harmonie family

Page 9

− leading to citywide flooding; Edghill says Mayor missing

2 in custody for Linden double P11 murder

2 NEWS

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Former national footballer robbed at gunpoint during home invasion

F

ormer national footballer and youth coach, Vurlon Mills was on Friday robbed at gunpoint during an invasion at his Lamaha Springs, Georgetown apartment.

When contacted, Mills explained that he was awakened at about 04:00h by movements in his bedroom. This prompted him to make checks during which he was confronted by two men who immediately held him at gunpoint and tied him up. They also blindfolded him.

“I tried to move at the time but they came and they held me down, tied up my hand and my feet, and they put gun to my head. The one with the gun told the other one to tie me up so they did that,” he said.

Mills said shortly after,

Mills’ home that was ransacked by the bandits

the two unidentified men began ransacking his home.

“I couldn’t see anything, I was just hearing and hoping that they didn’t do anything stupid like shooting me.

They took everything from

my home. My TV, laptop, phone … stuff that I usually bring to sell, box sets, bathroom mats… I recently bought some Academy gears, all of them are branded with my Academy logo,

they took all of that as well.”

Mills further stated that the men also escaped with $100,000 in cash. He explained that the bandits packed the stolen items in his Nissan Juke vehicle which they used to make good their escape.

“They leave the car abandoned in Sophia on the Eastern Road. The Police recovered it and they called me and I got it back.

They took over a million dollars in stuff,” he said.

The national footballer said he is not suspicious of anyone since many houses in the area were robbed in the past. He believes he is one of the unfortunate ones.

Former national football player and national youth coach Vurlon Mills

“I don’t have any problem with anybody and nobody don’t have any problem with me. A lot of houses get jump in this neighbourhood… this is something that is unexpected and I was surprised that it even happened,” he explained.

In 2020, Mills retired from the international game, and has taken up the role as an active youth coach with the Guyana Football Federation. He also has an academy called the Vurlon Mills Football Academy.

Rose Hall man busted with ganja at roadblock

A

The ganja that was found in the suspect’s haversack

23-year-old man’s luck ran out on Saturday after he was busted with 4500 grams of marijuana on the Weldaad Public Road, Region Six (East BerbiceCorentyne).

The victim, who was identified as Vickey Doodnauth of Rose Hall, Berbice, was arrested with the marijuana

by Police at around 12:30h on Saturday on the Weldaad Public Road.

Based on reports received, Police were conducting a roadblock exercise during which they stopped a minibus in which Doodnauth was an occupant. As such, Police requested to conduct a search during which five wrapped parcels containing the ganja were found in a black haversack Doodnauth was carrying at the time.

Doodnauth was told of

the offence, arrested and cautioned. He admitted ownership of the said suspected cannabis. Investigations are ongoing.

One day ago, Police had arrested a 40-year-old woman of Angoy’s Avenue, New Amsterdam, with 9525.4 grams of cannabis.

It was reported that ranks were conducting a roadblock exercise when they stopped a hire car and conducted a search. At the time, there were two passengers in the vehicle, which included the woman.

According to Police, further searches on the vehicle unearthed a multi-coloured shopping bag that was in the trunk. Upon investigating, two wrapped parcels containing the marijuana were found. The woman was arrested and is in Police custody as investigation continues.

NEWS

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MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS OPENINGS BRIDGE

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

Monday, May 31 – 09:00h – 10:30h and Tuesday, June 1 – 09:30h – 11:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Monday, May 31 – 07:55h – 09:25h and Tuesday, June 1 – 09:05h – 10:35h.

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

WEATHER TODAY

Expect thundery showers during the day. There will be light rain showers at night. Temperatures should range between 22 degrees Celsius and 28 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Easterly to East North-Easterly to NorthEasterly between 1.78 metres and 4.47 metres.

High Tide: 07:58h and 20:42h reaching maximum heights of 2.42 metres and 2.23 metres.

Low Tide: 14:09h reaching a minimum height of 0.81 metre.

Floods 2021

Regions 6, 10 worst hit as all regions experience intense downpours − CDC intensifies response, RDRMS activated

A

s torrential rain persists across Guyana, all 10 Administrative Regions have been hit by floods but according to the Civil Defence Commission, Regions Six (East BerbiceCorentyne) and 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) are experiencing the most severe flooding.

This was revealed by Director General of the CDC, Lieutenant Colonel Kester Craig during an update on Sunday.

Craig, who had accompanied President Dr Irfaan Ali to these two worst-hit regions on Saturday, said that the CDC is working with

Farmers in Black Bush Polder receiving feed as promised by the Head of State

Additional relief hampers arrived in Kwakwani on Sunday

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the Regional Democratic Councils (RDCs) in the various regions to ascertain the needs there.

He explained that they are looking to establish at least two shelters in the Region 10 community of Kwakwani, which is currently under several inches of water in some areas, almost meeting the second/upper flat of houses and even almost covering a motor car in others. The floods there are affecting more than 700 households.

“We were just there yesterday (Saturday) and based on the necessary assessment, we would have to set up a shelter or more than one shelters to house approximately 75 to 100 persons based on the level of the water,” the CDC Head noted.

However, Lt Col Craig explained that even when a shelter is established, there must be adequate food – 3 square meals – available for the occupants.

Only Saturday, relief supplies were sent to the region and distributed in Kwakwani and other affected communities there.

Then on Sunday, another 1000 food hampers and 1000 cleaning hampers were dispatched specially for Kwakwani. Four trucks with the hampers arrived in Kwakwani mid-afternoon on Sunday and Public Works Minister Juan Edghill travelled there to oversee the distribution of the relief items.

Meanwhile, in the other severely-hit Region, East

Berbice-Corentyne, the Black Bush Polder area is heavily impacted by the floods. There, hundreds of cattle and other livestock are trapped in floodwaters with limited dry space to

graze on.

As such, President Ali on Saturday gave instructions for steps to be taken to evacuate the livestock that are stranded in the mud. Government handed over feed to farmers to take into Cookrite Savannah.

Additionally, fuel will be provided for the farmers’ tractors so that they can transport them in.

In addition, a team of officers from the Guyana Livestock Development Authority (GLDA) will be visiting the savannahs today to provide whatever medical aid is required to ensure that sick animals survive.

On Sunday, Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha and Region Six Chairman, David Armogran also visit-

ed other flood-hit communities on the Corentyne. This was the second consecutive day Mustapha visited the region.

Regional response

Nevertheless, the CDC Director said that the response continues across the country in flood-affected areas.

TURN TO PAGE 5

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guyanatimesgy.com

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021

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

New economic paradigms needed

F

rom the moment he acceded to office, President Irfaan Ali has followed decades-long Guyanese attempts to get Caricom to accept a coordinated effort to satisfy our common food security and general development challenges.

Over the years, we have had several other economic strategies suggested to us by the global financial organisations, ranging from the vent for surplus and capital deficit through the import substitution programme and finally, the one we are finally enmeshed within – neoliberalism. Unless we factor in the impact of the ideological premises of these strategies, our local efforts can be subverted to our cost.

The crisis in the developed economies since 2008, which crippled the Caribbean tourism industry, is rooted in the neoliberal economic paradigm that has guided economic policy since the late seventies. Before this, after WWII, the economies of the US, Western Europe, Japan, and Brazil, etc were characterised by a “virtuous circle” Keynesian model built on full employment and wage growth tied to productivity growth. Productivity growth drove wage growth, which in turn fuelled demand growth and created full employment. That provided an incentive for investment, which drove further productivity growth and supported higher wages. Guyana, of course, under the People’s National Congress (PNC), chose to buck the above economic model that was followed by most of the Caribbean countries and devised the disastrous "cooperative socialist" model.

After 1980, the virtuous circle Keynesian model was replaced by a neoliberal growth model that severed the link between wages and productivity growth and created a new economic financialisation dynamic. Before 1980, wages were the engine of US demand growth. After 1980, debt and asset price inflation became the engine.

The new model was rooted in neoliberal economics and can be described as a neoliberal policy box that fences workers in and pressures them from all sides. Corporate globalisation put workers in international competition via global production networks supported by free trade agreements and capital mobility. The “small” government agenda attacked the legitimacy of Government and pushed for deregulation regardless of dangers. The labour market flexibility agenda abandoned the goal of full employment and consequently created employment insecurity.

This model was implemented on a global basis, in both North and South, which multiplied its impact. The Washington Consensus was enforced in Latin America, including Guyana (1989), Africa and former Communist countries by the International Monetary Fund and World Bank by making financial assistance conditional on adopting neoliberal policies.

The new model created a growing “demand gap” by gradually undermining the income and demand generation process. The role of finance was to fill that gap. Within the US, deregulation, financial innovation, and speculation enabled finance to fill the demand gap by lending to consumers and spurring asset price inflation. US consumers in turn filled the global demand gap.

Luckily, this has not fully developed in the Caribbean as yet, with some notable exceptions.

The policymakers in Guyana and the Caribbean have to be very careful as to what their policy response to the different perspectives will be. They could take the strong neoliberal position and further deregulate financial and labour markets; deepen central bank independence and the commitment to low inflation; and further limit Government via fiscal austerity. A watered-down response might be to tighten financial regulation but continue with all other aspects of the existing neoliberal policy paradigm. That means continued support for corporate globalisation, labour market flexibility, low inflation targeting, and fiscal austerity.

A more radical approach would be to jettison the failed neoliberal paradigm and replace it with a “structural Keynesian” paradigm that repacks the policy box and restores the link between wage and productivity growth. The goal would be to ensure that corporations and financial markets are regulated so that they are made to serve the broader societal goals.

That requires replacing corporate globalisation with managed globalisation, such as capital controls, restoring commitment to full employment, replacing the neoliberal anti-government agenda with a social democratic Government agenda; and following a solidarity-based labour market agenda that is appropriate to our underdeveloped labour realities.

This Latchman Singh photo shows an aerial view of the Blue Water Lake in Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) and its environs

Citizens and the effects of flooding

Dear Editor, News reading is very bleak these last few days: “Flood-affected Black Bush residents appeal for help-May 27, 2021”; “High tide, heavy rainfall flood Pomeroon farmlands-May 27, 2021” and I can go on and on.

So, it is most daunting indeed to learn about what excessive rainfall is doing across Guyana. We are daily reading and hearing that a number of regions in the country have been severely affected by flood waters.

The ongoing inclement weather has been brutal in Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo), Bartica in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni); Black Bush Polder in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne); Mahaicony Creek in Region Five (MahaicaBerbice) and several areas across Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara).

The residents in these inundated areas are indeed in a state of discomfort, having suffered the loss of livestock and crops.

However, they have proved themselves to be resilient, and coupled with governmental intervention; these courageous folks have been most positive and hopeful.

In this vein, Mayor of Bartica, Gifford Marshall explained “Hours long heavy rainfall had resulted in extensive flooding in low-lying and other areas…” but that flood waters

had receded… and so encouraged residents to take all necessary measures to secure property in anticipation of the spring tides.

In Region Three, Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand; Regional Chairman, Inshan Ayube; Regional Health Officer (RHO), Dr Erica Forte and other officials visited the affected areas to conduct an assessment.

Then on Wednesday night, Minister within the Ministry of Public Works, Deodat Indar informed Guyanese that the Government had already deployed 10 excavators to clear trenches, culverts and the main drainage arteries, so that there could be effective drainage in flooded areas across Region Three. The word is that “Many more were deployed across the country to respond to flooding in communities.”

Over in Region Five, Member of Parliament Faizal Jaffarally and other stakeholders visited Mahaicony Creek to assess the situation as a result of flash floods. It was noted that “Reports are still coming in of other areas which are inundated.”

The idea is that there are urgent plans to continue taking relief to all the residents who are being affected. When we think that the forecast is quite dismal, it is indeed commendable that all the relevant authorities are on board,

in order to mitigate the situation.

In fact, in Black Bush Polder (BBP), Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips, and Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha after led a high-level visit, made a commitment to send hampers which will be distributed by the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) in collaboration with the Regional and Neighbourhood Democratic Councils. He

stressed that this process will commence as early as Saturday since he recognises the urgent need for relief.

I do share in the grief and loss that so many people are experiencing. I am also happy there is a concerted effort from the Government to really respond promptly and not only in terms of relief, but infrastructure.

Yours faithfully, Attiya Baksh

Electoral reform Dear Editor, I read with interest an article by Mr Ralph Ramkarran on Election Legislation Reform. While most of what he has suggested makes sense, the one proposal on including Guyanese resident overseas on the voters’ list is questionable.

It can open a lot of room for corrupt practices if not properly managed, and our experience shows that most things are not appropriately and/or adequately managed in Guyana.

There is one practice that begs attention. We duplicate the way our Parliament is constituted in the choosing of members of boards and other bodies, such as the Elections Commission, the ERC, etc. It is not difficult to notice the partisanship and divisiveness that infest the functioning of these institutions.

Therefore, it seems more prudent to choose members who are more technically equipped on the various subject matters and who are not closely politically affiliated or perceived to be politically affiliated to any of the two major political parties. Proposals for membership to these institutions can come from any source, but these criteria must be met.

Parliament can uitilise the services of its various sectoral and other committees to examine the list of candidates and approve the final list of members.

Sincerely, A Adler

guyanatimesgy.com

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021

5

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

Mayor must obey the law of the land Dear Editor, President Dr Irfaan Ali summed it up well. He emphatically stated that even though his Government is committed to the development of the city, it will not allow itself to be used as a “scapegoat” by the Mayor and City Council of Georgetown for mismanagement of the city.

The majority of citizens of Guyana know full well the history of PNC/APNU/AFC stewardship Georgetown. It is a history of mismanagement and corruption, one that is devoid of proper accountability. So now that a sense of a ‘change of culture’ is impending, Mayor Ubraj Narine is most upset.

This Mayor of Georgetown is actually accusing the Local Government Ministry of seeking to micromanage the Georgetown

City Council. Why? This blast came after “…it asked that status reports, including information on finances, be submitted on a monthly basis…” to the Ministry of Local Government. It seems to me as though the Mayor is fearful of transparency and accountability.

According to President Ali, the city is vital in Guyana’s development. He was very clear, saying that “…this Government cares tremendously about our city, but we will not allow ourselves to be used as a scapegoat in the city not fulfilling its responsibility and mandate or in the city converting everything into political opportunism or a political football.” This was in response to Ubraj Narine’s accusation that “…the President and Government are starving the M&CC of resources.”

Let me add that what Minister Nigel Dharamlall and the President are calling for is most legal. Anyone can visit Section 177 of Chapter 28:01 of the Laws of Guyana. The relevant Section states that “…the Council is required to prepare accounts yearly and submit same for audit, no later than four months after the end of the year.” This kind of culture was never a part of the Mayor and City Councillors of Georgetown, so now their ‘game’ is up, and they are upset, and hence their attack.

Recent history of the M&CC’s financial records leaves a whole lot to be desired.

Back in 2004, in the last audited financial statement, a ‘disclaimer of opinion’ was issued by the Auditor General, that means that

“…the information submitted could not stand up to scrutiny…” this was also the case in 2005.

From 2006 to 2011, it was even worse, as no financial statements were submitted; during the period of 2012 to 2015, financial statements were submitted but the information required could not have allowed auditors to express an opinion; and no financial statements were submitted for the period 2016 to 2020. Then In 2021, a special audit into M&CC revealed similar discrepancies. So, this must stop.

I can go on to issues of taxes, pension schemes etc, where financial inappropriateness was very abundant. But suffice me, like the President and Minister Dharamlall, to say that “All of these were issues highlighted, where transpar-

The Bourda Cemetery has not been cleaned since 2019

Dear Editor, As a resident of Charlotte Street, Georgetown, I am concerned that the Bourda Cemetery has not been cleaned and cleared since 2019 by the Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC). Located in the heart of Georgetown –

on Regent Street, between Bourda Street and Orange Walk, the Bourda Cemetery has become an eyesore.

It is left unattended as a dumpsite for market waste and a breeding ground for mosquitoes and other parasites, which can

have deleterious effects on the health and well-being of residents.

While I acknowledge the financial constraints of the M&CC, the city’s administration must explain why the cemetery has not been cleaned in approximately two years, and

when and how it intends to fully deliver on its mandate to maintain public spaces in the city.

The residents of Bourda deserve better. Georgetown deserves better.

Yours faithfully, Kobe Smith, LLB

Regions 6, 10 worst hit as all...

“We have a number of needs as it relates to responding to the current flood situation. These needs are based on what is coming from the regions which include food supplies, cleaning and sanitation hampers, mattresses, things to stock shelters and other dietary supplies,” Craig explained.

He added that they are also determining what additional needs are coming in from the various regions since their response is dependent on the needs of the regions and from the affected communities.

In a subsequent statement on Sunday evening, it was noted that the various RDCs have activated the Regional Disaster Risk Management System (RDRMS) to ensure timely assessment and response in communities affected by flooding.

The RDRMS is a component of the National Disaster Risk Management (DRM) system which is designed to eliminate fragmentation through integration, decentralise risk governance and common understanding of DRM roles and responsibilities. Under this system, each region was able to develop its own Disaster Risk Management System in keeping with the wider national mechanism.

The CDC said it is working with the National Drainage and Irrigation

Authority (NDIA), Ministry of Agriculture (MOA), Regional Democratic Councils (RDCs), Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) and Community Development Councils (CDCs) to conduct rapid assessments and verifications of flood reports across the country.

Thus far, thousands of food and cleaning hampers have been distributed in Regions Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), Four (Demerara-Mahaica), Five (Mahaica-Berbice), Six, Seven, (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) and 10. The hampers being distributed include personal and feminine hygiene items, sanitation supplies, water purification tablets, cement and temporary accommodation equipment. Through the RDCs, additional hampers were distributed to flood-affected residents in Regions Five, Six and 10, while residents of Mahaicony Creek, Region Five, also received livestock feed.

Additionally, the CDC has also established shelters to accommodate affected residents in Lethem, Region Nine, as well as other affected communities along the Berbice River.

Meanwhile, Mid Atlantic Oil & Gas Inc on Sunday donated $10 million to the CDC to support flood relief efforts across Guyana.

Corporate Secretary, Glenn Low-A-Chee handed over the cheque to Director Craig at the Commission’s Headquarters. He explained that this was in recognition of the company’s corporate responsibility and its desire to help bring relief to flood-affected persons.

The CDC Director told reporters that these funds will be mostly directed towards the transportation of relief supplies to be distributed across the country as well as for the transportation of teams to conduct assessments in any other areas that require support.

Georgetown floods

Also on Sunday morning, several areas in Georgetown were under water following heavy rainfall which begun in the wee hours accompanied by strong winds.

Lt Col Craig joined Mayor of Georgetown Ubraj Narine and Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) Chairman Daniel Seeram to inspect the flood situation in the city on Sunday. They visited Albouystown and other surrounding communities that were under water.

Other areas in Georgetown that were flooded included: Central Georgetown, Alberttown, South Ruimveldt, East Ruimveldt, Alexander Village, Mandela Avenue, Home Stretch and Cuffy

FROM PAGE 3

Square, Front Road, Leopold Street and a few others. Bourda and Stabroek Markets were also flooded.

“What I find most in the communities, garbage and bottles and bags are piling up at the mouth of the drains. So those are things that we have to try to remove and currently, the drainage section of the [M&CC] Engineer Department is on the ground doing such,” Mayor Narine told reporters.

Moreover, Minister Edghill also visited the several pump stations and sluices to ensure everything is in order to allow the flood waters to be drained off the land. Labour Minister Joseph Hamilton also went into several areas in South Georgetown to assess the flood situation and make interventions.

Similarly, several other Government Ministers including Prime Minister Mark Phillips have also fanned out across the country to provide the necessary support for those affected by the floods. They too have been meeting with residents in the different regions across the country and assisting with the distribution of relief items to affected areas.

Persons affected by flooding are asked to contact the Civil Defence Commission on telephone number 226-1027 or 600-7500 (WhatsApp).

ency, accountability and clear violations and breaches were found, yet, Central Government continues to transfer resources to the city.” It is these factors that demand a change on how things will be done from now.

As for how the Government stands as regards the city, I have a few remarks. We must remember that for too long Mayors and his and City Councils have been failing the people of the city, and when exposed, “… try to pass the buck on or pass the burden on…”

I note that Central Government is desirous of “nothing short of an excellent relationship” with the M&CC; however, “that relationship must not be tainted with the M&CC blam-

ing the Central Government for the M&CC mismanagement of the city and one where Central Government must disregard the M&CC discrepancies and breach of laws, over the years.”

President Ali stated that “I just want to make it very, very clear, that we want a partnership for the development of the City, but we cannot allow the City Council to continue to blatantly disregard what is out there in terms of its reporting responsibility and in terms of its fiduciary responsibility.”

I appeal to the M&CC to get on the ‘legal bandwagon’ and cooperate with the Central Government, so that Georgetown can reclaim the title of the Garden City.

Respectfully, Todd A Morgan

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MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021

Page

Foundation ◄

Question 1

Friday’s answers

By Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Continued Part VII

WORD SEARCH

This Hermit good lives in that wood Which slopes down to the sea.

How loudly his sweet voice he rears!

He loves to talk with marineres That come from a far countree.

He kneels at morn, and noon, and eve— He hath a cushion plump: It is the moss that wholly hides The rotted old oak-stump.

The skiff-boat neared: I heard them talk, 'Why, this is strange, I trow!

Where are those lights so many and fair, That signal made but now?'

C

an you think of people who you think are heroes for standing up for what's right and helping their communities. This can be a friend, a family member, a spiritual community leader, a teacher ... it could also be someone well-known like an elected official or an activist or children's author who has had a positive impact on you and others.

Here are some things to think about: • What kind of work does your hero do?

• What qualities or strengths does your hero have?

• How does your hero help make the community (or the country or the world) a better place?

• How has your hero affected your life?

• What would you like to say to your hero?

• Do you have a question you'd like to ask your hero?

• Do you want to share an example of something you've done to make your community stronger?

• How can you express thanks to your hero?

Then write a personal letter to your hero. Check the Internet or with an adult on how to format the letter. (Adapted from startwithabook.org)

'Strange, by my faith!' the Hermit said— 'And they answered not our cheer!

The planks looked warped! and see those sails, How thin they are and sere!

I never saw aught like to them, Unless perchance it were Brown skeletons of leaves that lag My forest-brook along; When the ivy-tod is heavy with snow, And the owlet whoops to the wolf below, That eats the she-wolf's young.'

'Dear Lord! it hath a fiendish look— (The Pilot made reply) I am a-feared'—'Push on, push on!'

Said the Hermit cheerily.

The boat came closer to the ship, But I nor spake nor stirred; The boat came close beneath the ship, And straight a sound was heard.

Under the water it rumbled on, Still louder and more dread: It reached the ship, it split the bay; The ship went down like lead.

Stunned by that loud and dreadful sound, Which sky and ocean smote, Like one that hath been seven days drowned My body lay afloat; But swift as dreams, myself I found Within the Pilot's boat.

Upon the whirl, where sank the ship, The boat spun round and round; And all was still, save that the hill Was telling of the sound.

I moved my lips—the Pilot shrieked And fell down in a fit; The holy Hermit raised his eyes, And prayed where he did sit.

I took the oars: the Pilot's boy, Who now doth crazy go, Laughed loud and long, and all the while His eyes went to and fro.

'Ha! ha!' quoth he, 'full plain I see, The Devil knows how to row.'

TO BE CONTINUED

NEWS

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MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Guyana now equipped with expertise to measure crude lifts – after GNBS inspectors receive int’l certification

T

he Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) now has the capacity necessary to independently measure and certify crude oil lifts from offshore Guyana, where oil is currently being produced by oil giant ExxonMobil in the Liza-1 field.

According to information supplied by the GNBS to the Caribbean Regional Organisation for Standards and Quality (CROSQ), the Bureau’s inspectors received their training from the Measurement Service Division of Bureau Veritas of North America.

It noted that the inspectors received training in accordance with the American Petroleum Institute’s (API) Petroleum Measurement Standards. GNBS also assured that the relevant API standards will be adopted as National Standards and will be used for verification of the metering system on the Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel.

“This milestone comes pursuant of Article 6 of the Petroleum Agreement, where the GNBS has

been delegated to perform the functions of the Minister as set out under Regulation 12 of the Petroleum (Exploration and Production) Regulations.

This very significant role now ensures accurate measurements during the lifting of crude from the FPSO vessel(s),” GNBS said.

“Another important facet of the GNBS is the expansion of its calibration services in the areas of mass, temperature, pressure, volume and length to industry especially those which are directly involved in the oil and gas sector. Many companies now demand traceable measurements as they aim to ensure that their process is correctly measured, temperature parameters are maintained, and dimensions are accurate.”

According to the GNBS, it will soon begin testing crude oil in five parameters: basic sediment, water content, sulphur, viscosity and salt in crude. GNBS will also have the ability to test Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO), medium oils such as kerosene, gasoline, and diesel.

“The direct and indi-

rect business opportunities driven by the oil and gas industry are significant.

Guyanese businesses project to experience significant growth as our petroleum industry starts to mature,” GNBS said.

“This is driven with new opportunities to directly service and supply the industry as well as indirect opportunities, such as in education, technology, infrastructure, housing, marketing and food and beverage.

Many local businesses in Guyana are determined to up their standards to meet the requirements of becoming key suppliers in the petroleum sector.”

According to the Bureau, there are a number of areas in which businesses must improve over the coming years. These include in safety and health; environmental and regulatory compliance; quality; cost competitiveness; ethical business practices and the ability to meet schedules.

“The GNBS has been providing technical assistance to companies and business in Guyana over the years to bring up to

scratch to certification and accreditation ready towards various quality management systems.”

“One of the most popular and important one is the ISO 9001:2015 standard.

Over the years, GNBS has worked with several companies in Guyana towards ISO certification/accreditation,” GNBS said.

Already, ExxonMobil has established an ambitious oil exploration plan for 2021 offshore Guyana.

Over the past few months, Exxon, the only company to have found and started producing oil in local waters, has been drilling simultaneous deep-water wells

in both the Stabroek and Canje Blocks.

In March 2021, ExxonMobil secured a sixth drillship, the Noble Sam Croft, for exploration and evaluation drilling activities offshore Guyana. A fourth project, Yellowtail, has been identified within the block with an anticipated start-up in late 2025 pending Government approvals and project sanctioning.

This project will develop the Yellowtail and Redtail fields, which are located about 19 miles (30 kilometres) southeast of the Liza developments. With the Liza Phase 2 and Payara developments on track for their scheduled completion and the Liza Phase 1 development averaging 120,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd), Guyana’s oil production is likely to exceed 500,000 bpd by 2024.

8 NEWS

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

2 manslaughter convicts sentenced to 10, 3 years in jail

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wo men who were recently convicted of manslaughter were slapped with a 10 and threeyear sentence by Justice Gino Persaud at the High Court in Essequibo.

Almost five years after he was charged for killing a man, 50-year-old Alvin Calder has been found guilty of the crime and sentenced to 10 years and 11 months’ imprisonment.

Police stated that on April 12, 2007, at White Water Landing, Mahdia, Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), Calder also known as “Cheebu” and “CD”, formerly of Great Diamond, East Bank Demerara, unlawfully killed Joseph Willy called “Jeff-man”.

Calder had initially pleaded not guilty to the charge.

It was reported that on the day in question, the two men were involved in a drug deal that went bad.

Moreover, Willy had allegedly owed Calder $150,000 for

Convicted killer: Alvin Calder

Convicted killer: Tony Rampersaud

goods he had taken from his shop and had refused to pay him despite several requests.

Calder reportedly saw a relative of the now dead man and confronted her over the monies he had owed.

After Willy learnt of the confrontation, he reportedly approached Calder armed with a cutlass. At that point, it was reported that Calder shot him twice, and

then made good his escape.

Calder was only arrested in 2016 after he was on the run for several years.

In another case before Justice Persaud, 25-yearold Tony Rampersaud who stabbed his drinking buddy to death was sentenced to three years, five months, and 22 days’ imprisonment for the crime. Initially indicted for murder, Rampersaud was found guilty on the less-

er count of manslaughter by a jury.

On November 19, 2016, in the county of Essequibo, Rampersaud unlawfully killed Henry Mendonca, a Venezuelan national. Upon his arraignment before the Judge, Rampersaud, formerly of Eteringbang, Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), had pleaded not guilty to the murder indictment.

According to the facts, Rampersaud and Mendonca, who both resided in Venezuela, came to Guyana on the day in question and were drinking at the Eteringbang Landing.

However, an argument ensued between the two, and Rampersaud broke a bottle and stabbed Mendonca to his abdomen. The injured man was taken to San Martin Hospital in Venezuela, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

The case for the prosecution in both matters was presented by State Counsel Lisa Cave.

Closing...

W

...the Gates ell, well, well! To paraphrase the verse from Samuel: “The beauty of (Microsoft) is slain upon thy high places: how are the mighty fallen!"

As you would know, Dear Readers, your Eyewitness isn’t given to pandering to gossip – salacious or otherwise – nor to wallowing in schadenfreude over the misfortunes of the high and mighty. But the fall from grace of Bill Gates demands comment since it holds meaning far beyond his weakness of the flesh.

We were all bedazzled by the wunderkind who dropped out of Harvard to found Microsoft that went on to become one of the biggest corporations on planet earth. And, not so incidentally, making him one of the richest people in the world. His nerdy glasses, vacuous smile, and philanthropic activities cemented his image as a well-meaning do-gooder and blunted the usual “ressentiment” that erupts in most of us at such outrageous success. Why not me?!

But after his sudden and dramatic divorce from his wife Melinda – who we all knew from being paired in “The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation” that spent billions on HIV, malaria and vaccine research, etc – the dirt started to be spilled. Turned out he wasn’t the loving and caring hand-holding husband that was projected in the news.

He’d been using his position in Microsoft to harass young female employees for decades and was even ejected from the Board of Microsoft for those indiscretions! He had a squeeze on the side that predated even his marriage and he insisted on spending one week with her every year – with the acceptance of Melinda!? And imagine we never knew!! That’s the power of money that can buy PR! But enough of the details – of which your Eyewitness knows we haven’t heard the half of yet! Melinda hasn’t yet revealed why she finally filed for divorce. Maybe it’s for the sake of the Foundation which continues to sustain so many projects in the Third World. The fascinating question to your Eyewitness is “Why Bill?” You’d think that with his mega profile, Bill would’ve been worried that his peccadillos would be revealed, wouldn’t you?

Well, not really. And it’s not just because of his highpriced PR flunkeys – it goes much deeper and it’s from here that Bill’s denouement has relevance for us. You see, Dear Reader, from the beginning of human communities, the powerful (which is now a synonym for “rich”) have felt that the rules that govern societies don’t apply to them! In modern times being “in-Government” – which is also seen as the road to riches – also generates this hauteur!

So, while we wallow in Bill’s excesses, let’s keep our eyes open for the newly-appointed Little Caesars amongst us!! Lechery! ...GWI’s feather bedding “Feather bedding” is a quaint term that connotes being pampered – sleeping on down mattresses while most folks slept on floors! It entered the labour world to describe situations where more workers are hired than necessary to perform the tasks at hand. Obviously, with more workers than work, most employees would be “throwing back” on the job. And most Guyanese would probably agree, this has always been the default situation with Government employment!

It would appear that GWI has taken the practice to new depths! Imagine that in the five PNC years between 2015 and 2020, the corporation hired over 600 workers with the payroll ballooning from $96 million to over $240 million!!

Now, as the Minister pointed out, in the industry, there are standard ratios as to how many workers per customers served – and Guyana is way above the regional standard.

Unfortunately, your Eyewitness believes that the featherbedding at GWI is simply the usual “jobs for the boys” practice of PNC regimes.

Remember Volda’s “I only hire PNC friends”? ...or opening the crime door?

There’s always the suspicion that our criminal justice system is a “revolving door for criminals”. That bail was granted by a City Magistrate to four individuals for gun possession just confirms the suspicions.

Take them on, AG! Readers are invited to send their comments by email to eye@guyanatimesgy.com

NEWS

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MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

City Hall accused of sabotaging, neglecting pumps & sluices

– leading to citywide flooding; Edghill says Mayor missing

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ccusations of neglect and sabotage have been levelled against the Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC), as the absence of workers from sluices and pumps has led to flooding throughout the city after a night of heavy rainfall.

According to Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha, the M&CC’s neglect of these pumps and sluices was such that as the Minister, he had to step in and order the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) to monitor these infrastructures.

“Around three this morning I received a report that almost all the sluices and pumps in Georgetown were inoperable because the City Council failed to get the operators to put on these pumps and open the sluices. And it seems this is a deliberate ploy to get the city flooded, because over the last two weeks we have seen high intensity of rainfall and we had minimal flooding in the city.”

“It seems they want to cause problems in the city.

We know for a fact that the City Council has been neglecting the supervision of these infrastructure in the city. So much so that I had to get NDIA to go around and monitor these pumps and these sluices, to see where they are operable,” Mustapha said in an interview while inspecting the situation in the city.

According to Mustapha, the situation is very concerning and he is disappointed in the lack of commitment displayed by the City Council

The pump at the Kitty pump station

in preventing flooding at a time when heavy rainfall is expected with the May-June rainy season.

“This is a deliberate ploy to flood out the city. And the City Council must take full responsibility for it. Because as I’m speaking here, many areas in Georgetown are under water. And this is as a direct result of the non-operation of this infrastructure.”

“The pumps and the sluices. I’m hoping we can get a fast drainage of the city.

Because we, from the NDIA and Cabinet Ministers, are fully monitoring the situation in Georgetown,” Mustapha explained.

Meanwhile, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill was also on the ground monitoring the situation. He claimed that his personal attempts to contact Mayor of Georgetown, Ubraj Narine, as well as the Chief City

Engineer, have been futile.

“It is a fact that we had heavy rainfall overnight, but we’ve had heavy rainfall last week. But a check from our Cabinet Task Force found that most the pump attendants were not in place to have the pumps running.

They slept away,” Edghill revealed.

“And this morning (Sunday), I’m assessing what happened to households and personally checking to ensure all the pumps and sluices are up and running so that the water can get off the land… the tide has now turned and we should have all the sluices up and flowing, but the pumps should have been running while the sluice doors were closed. And that did not happen.”

According to Edghill, this is neglect on the part of the M&CC. However, he made

it clear that the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Government will do its utmost to have the water in the capital city drained as fast as possible.

“We are a Government that takes care of the people.

So, when you have this situation, politics is not the issue. Humanity is the issue.

People are suffering and we’re going to go into South to get a first-hand assessment of what is happening in South. Because they’re heavily flooded. But we have to get the water off. That’s the priority now.”

Guyana is faced with severe rainfall in several parts of the country and according to information from the Hydrometeorological

Public Works Minister Juan Edghill inspecting the flooding

Service, heavy rainfall will likely continue over the next few days. A number of communities in Guyana, espe-

cially those in low-lying and riverine areas, are currently flooded, due to heavy rainfall.

10 NEWS

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

3 homes destroyed by falling tree in Laing Avenue

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total of 15 persons from three households are seeking alternative living arrangements after a tree collapsed and destroyed their homes in Laing Avenue, Georgetown.

The incident occurred on Sunday at around 08:00h

The houses that were destroyed by the tree

during a heavy downpour of rain which was accompanied by heavy winds.

When Guyana Times visited the area on Sunday, an occupant of one of the destroyed homes, Matthew Fraser, explained that he was in his bed when he heard a crashing sound.

Upon investigating, the man realised that the tree had fallen and that the branches had gone through the house.

“We were playing games on our phones and all we hear is the noise, and when we come out side all we see is the disaster in the yard,”

he said.

One of the homes was completely destroyed by the fallen tree, while the other two received damages to the front and back sections.

“We lost everything; we were not able to save anything. Everything was broken up, we had to put all

the damaged things including our TV, everything, outside,” one occupant said.

Fraser related that the tree had been in the yard for over 40 years and he was surprised that it came crashing down on Sunday morning.

The families are seeking

the public’s assistance, especially at this time.

Meanwhile, following the incident, the families were visited by Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn and Georgetown Mayor Ubraj Narine, who promised to render assistance to the affected families.

August 3 set for report in Roxanne Myers electoral fraud cases

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he electoral fraud cases against Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Deputy Chief Elections Officer Roxanne Myers will continue on August 3, 2021, when the matters are set to be called for reports before Senior Magistrate Leron Daly at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

In February last, Magistrate Daly ruled that a Preliminary Inquiry (PI) would be conducted into the two counts of misconduct in public office against Myers.

This means that the presiding Magistrate will now conduct a PI to determine whether there is sufficient

evidence to commit Myers to stand trial at the High Court.

It is alleged that between March 4 and 14, 2020, at High and Cowan Streets, Kingston, Georgetown, while being a public officer, that is to say, the Deputy Chief Elections Officer of the GECOM, Myers wilfully misconducted herself together with Region Four Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo and others, to declare a fraudulent account of votes for the Regional and General Elections of the March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections, the said misconduct amounting to a breach of the public’s trust in the office of the said Returning

Deputy Chief Elections Officer Roxanne Myers

Officer for District Four of GECOM, without any reasonable excuse or justification.

Myers has not been required to plead to the indict-

able charges. She was released on $300,000 bail.

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has hired a team of special prosecutors to prosecute the elector-

al fraud cases against Chief Elections Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield, DCEO Myers, Mingo, GECOM clerks Denise Bob-Cummings and Michelle Miller, GECOM Elections Officer Shefern February and Information Technology Officer Enrique Livan, APNU/AFC activist Carol Joseph, and People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) Chairperson and former Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence.

The more than 25 matters are currently before three Magistrates – Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan and Magistrates Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus and Leron Daly.

Lowenfield’s report

claimed that the APNU/AFC coalition garnered 171,825 votes while the PPP/C gained 166,343 votes.

How he arrived at those figures is still unknown. The certified results from the recount exercise supervised

by GECOM and a high-level team from the Caribbean Community (Caricom) pellucidly showed that the PPP/C won with 233,336 votes while the coalition garnered 217,920.

The recount exercise also proved that Mingo heavily inflated the figures in Region Four – Guyana’s largest voting District – in favour of the then caretaker APNU/AFC regime.

NEWS

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MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021| GUYANATIMESGY.COM

150,000 J&J vaccines being sourced through African Union – Jagdeo

...says Govt making every effort to secure more vaccines for Guyanese

V

ice President Bharrat Jagdeo has assured that the Government is making every effort to procure as many vaccines as possible for the population and has in fact placed an order for over 100,000 Johnson & Johnson single shot vaccines that will be sourced through the African Union (AU).

During an interview with social commentator Mikhail Rodrigues, Jagdeo noted that Guyana has been scouring suppliers for the vaccines. However, vaccines are becoming increasingly hard for the developing world to source, leading to what leaders have called a “vaccine apartheid.”

“I want to assure Guyanese that we are taking all steps to get people vaccinated. We need to vaccinate 500,000 of our adult Guyanese. We can’t wait.

Our people are just as important,” he said.

“We’ve just paid US$36,000 as a down payment to the African Union.

They said they can secure about 150,000 of the Johnson & Johnson single shot vaccines for us. We’re hoping that can come through.”

He also noted that the Government is working with

have pre-purchased millions of doses of COVID-19 vaccines. When it comes to Canada, Jagdeo noted that they purchased ten times more than its population.

According to him, manufacturers must first satisfy those pre-ordered vaccines before moving to other countries.

Guyana had managed to secure 400,000 doses of vaccines from the Middle East.

However, only 140,000 of the first dose and 40,000 of the second dose were delivered. Currently, 60,000 first

chinery can fall short in procuring vaccines.

Another three deaths, all from Region Four, have been recorded as of Sunday, taking the total count of COVID-19 related fatalities to 385. It was noted that these patients were admitted with COVID-19 like symptoms but died while receiving care at medical institutions.

Samples were taken at the time of admission which subsequently returned positive tests. Meanwhile, another 88 persons have tested

Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo taking his second jab on Sunday

2 in custody for Linden double murder

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wo persons are now in Police custody in relation to a double murder that occurred at Coomacka Mines, Region 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice), on Saturday afternoon.

This information was confirmed by Regional Commander Hugh Winter, who said the men were arrested and are currently being questioned by detectives.

Guyana Times understands that a relative of the dead men is one of the persons who is in custody.

Fifty-eight-year-old Leonard Reece of Three Friends, Coomacka Mines,

and his nephew, 36-year-old Ronald Wong, who is said to be of unsound mind, were allegedly in a bloody fight sometime between 01:15h and 03:00h on Saturday.

In a report, Police stated that Wong was released from prison in April last after serving time for attempted murder and he moved in with his uncle, Reece, who would usually cook for him on a daily basis.

However, on the day in question, the Chairman of Three Friends, Coomacka Mines, who lives about two houses away from Reece, reported that at about 01:15h on Saturday morning, she was awakened by sounds

emanating from Reece’s house.

She told Police that she immediately went out on her verandah where she saw Reece’s 25-year-old son jump through the eastern window of the house shouting “murder, murder”.

The woman immediately raised an alarm and other neighbours went over to the house where Reece’s body was seen with several wounds on the ground.

Police reports further stated that Wong’s body was later found lying face down in a paddleboat in the river with several chops.

The Police are continuing their investigations.

The J&J vaccines large pharmaceutical companies in Europe and they are exploring acquiring more Russian made Sputnik vaccines.

Additionally, Jagdeo revealed that the Chinese manufacturers of the Sinopharm vaccine have contacted the Government and they are presently in discussions.

According to the VP, developed countries like the United States of America, Canada and those in Europe

doses and 160,000 second doses are outstanding.

“We have had a hard time getting it transported to Guyana. The vaccines have to be stored at -19 degrees and therefore, a lot of the carriers don’t want to take the risk,” he said, noting that the Caribbean region, African nations and other developing countries who used the COVAX mechanism to secure vaccines have seen that even this ma-

positive for COVID-19 in the last 24 hours.

Guyana’s confirmed COVID-19 cases have now gone up to 16,910. But only 2122 of these are currently active including 23 patients in the COVID-19 ICU, and the remaining 2099 persons in both home and institutional isolation.

To date, some 14,506 persons have recovered from the life-threatening virus in the country.

Scenes of flooding i

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021 |

Corentyne Berbice, Region 6

Mandela Avenue, Georgetown

Karawab, Pomeroon River

Cumming Street, Georgetown

Corentyne Berbice, Region 6

Charity, Region 2

East La Penitence, Georgetown

in Regions 2,3,4&6

| GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Corentyne Berbice, Region 6 No 57 Village, Berbice

Lower Pomeroon River

Berbice, Region 6

Corentyne Berbice, Region 6

Karawab, Pomeroon River

Vreed-en-Hoop, WBD

14 NEWS

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Govt distributes over 600 hampers, sanitisation supplies to flood-hit communities across Region 10

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he Government on Saturday distributed over 600 food hampers and sanitisation supplies to communities across Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) which have been severely affected by flooding.

The team which was led

by Prime Minister Mark Phillips, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill and Amerindian Affairs Minister Pauline Sukhai visited several communities including Coomacka, Three Friends, Yaribo and Coomacka Mines; Rockstone, Linden, Old England/Siberian and Nottinghamshire.

Saturday's exercises also coincided with a visit

by President Irfaan Ali to the flood-hit riverine community of Kwakwani.

Prime Minister Mark Phillips distributing hampers on Saturday in Region 10

of issues which may have caused by flooding. Over at Three Friends Mines, resi-

point, a road was cut off from a section of the community due to intense flood-

Hampers being discharged in Linden

During the visit to the Mines communities, which was spearheaded by the Prime Minister, residents pointed to a number

dents noted that farmlands, gardens and livestock were affected.

Several homes were also still underwater and at one

ing.

Speaking to residents of Coomacka Mines, the Prime Minister said while the hampers were not suffi-

cient for everyone, the aim was to ensure that those who are adversely affected receive assistance.

"From Government's side, we recognise this as a disaster, because a lot of people are affected, not only in Coomacka, but throughout communities across Region 10...We are working to bring relief to those who are affected in every community throughout Guyana, because this is not a flood that has affected Region 10 alone... this is a flood that has affected every community in Guyana... This is an exercise that we've embarked on throughout this rainy season, because it is our intention as a Government to go into every community that is affected by the floods - do an assessment and to manage the whole situation by bringing relief /supplies to

you...", he told residents.

The Prime Minister said Government has seen firsthand, the effects caused by flooding throughout the country and will continue to work to bring relief.

"The focus, as a priority is for those who are actually affected by the flooding... We have seen a lot of people that live especially along the edge of the river, they're basically under water right now and we hope that they can be the ones who will get the hampers those who are severely affected...This is an annual flooding, I'm told, however, this year it is unusual,” the Prime Minister added.

He stated that additional hampers will be sent in to the communities in a timely manner.

Prime Minister Phillips continued that Government is also aware that commu-

nities are presently affected by COVID-19 and will put additional systems in place for assistance in this regard.

"That is the commitment of the Government, first of all to deal with those who are affected immediately by the flooding and also afterwards to bring in some more hampers to everybody because we recognise that everybody is affected by COVID-19," he assured.

The Prime Minister noted also that Kwakwani was hard hit by the flooding and noted that some residents presently have to move to shelters.

Chairman of the Coomacka Community Development Council (CDC) Dexter Harding told Guyana Times that the largest number of hampers were distributed to Coomacka residents.

During the exercise, residents also pointed to the deplorable state of sections of the main roads leading to these communities and outlined other issues which they would like to see addressed.

This included regular dredging of the creeks and rivers and regular maintenance of bridges and drainage systems. The Prime Minister assured that these issues will be addressed as he liaisons with Regional Executive Officer (REO) Dwight John who was also part of the team.

He said a similar exercise was done in Region Nine, which has also been adversely affected.

NEWS

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MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Housing Minister hands over $13.5M in LED street lights to Kokerite renamed Kokerital Hill.

According to Minister Croal, “On June 6, the gazetting period, the onemonth notification will be completed and then we will have final processing for the legal ownership un-

der the Central Housing and Planning Authority.”

Following that process, the areas will be fully regularised and residents would be able to access titles for their lands in that area.

Meanwhile, Ashley ex-

pressed gratitude to the Ministry for its continued support to the enhancement of communities across the region, through the provision of streetlights and adequate water, among other amenities.

Armed bandits terrorise, rob Parfaite Harmonie family

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Housing and Water Minister Collin Croal handing over the lights to Regional Chairman Bretnol Ashley

H

ousing and Water Minister Collin Croal on Friday handed over 15 LED street lights valued at $13.5 million to the Region One (BarimaWaini) Regional Democratic Council (RDC), to enhance security in Kokerite Hill and its environs in the Mabaruma sub-district.

Minister Croal presented the lights to Regional Chairman Bretnol Ashley during an outreach to the region. During the simple

ceremony, the Minister said several Kokerite Hill residents would receive electricity for the first time, following the investment by the Government.

The electrical network has been completed and the residents in the scheme will have access to 110/220 voltage electricity to their homes. The network consists of the installation of 4 - 25 kVA transformers with approximately 1500 metres of secondary network (low

voltage network) and approximately 600 metres of primary network (high voltage network).

Minister Croal said the electrical networking has been handed over to the Mabaruma Power and Light.

The scheme, which now falls under the purview of the Housing and Water Ministry – Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA), is in the process of being gazetted and will be

Over 1000 hampers distributed to Pomeroon residents

One of the farmlands with over four feet of water

T

he regional administration of Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam) on Sunday distributed over 1000 hampers to flood-affected communities along the

told Guyana Times that the entire Pomeroon is severely affected by the flooding while adding that the water is receding very slowly. He noted that those areas that are affected have about four-

The compound of one of the schools in the Lower Pomeroon

Lower Pomeroon area. In addition, the team assessed the impact of the present flooding in the region.

Regional Executive Officer Devanand Ramdatt

five feet of water.

“It is a challenging period for the residents, especially the elders who grow up in the Lower Pomeroon and are old as seventy-plus years…

scores of residents and cash crops farmers are currently submerged and the floodwaters are not receding. Elders said to me that during their 30 to 60 years of living in the Pomeroon, they have never before witnessed such a high level of water on their land,” Ramdatt explained.

Meanwhile, the Regional Health Officer, Dr Ranjeev Singh, explained that residents are at risk of contracting diseases such as skin infections, leptospirosis, diarrhoea and other water-borne diseases.

He noted that a follow-up team from the Environmental Health Office will be dispatched into communities to educate affected residents on safe practices.

The region has experienced high-intensity rainfall since May 25. Several acres of land were inundated with floodwaters in the Pomeroon and at Charity.

La Parfait Harmonie, West Bank Demerara (WBD) businessman and his family were on Sunday morning terrorised and robbed by five heavily armed bandits.

The robbery occurred sometime between 03:45h and 04:00h by men armed with handguns and cutlasses.

According to the Police, the businessman and his family usually leave home around 03:30h to conduct business on Sundays at the La Penitence Market.

However, as he came downstairs to start his vehicle, he observed muddied footprints in his yard and became suspicious. As he attempted to rush back into the house, he was accosted by one of the bandits who pointed a gun at him and ordered him to remain silent.

Shortly after, he saw more men under his house.

Two of them reportedly tied him up, while the others went into the upper flat where they also tied up his wife and two daughters.

The businessman was also taken to the upper flat where the suspects demanded money and jewellery from the family and in the process, he was beaten to the head with a gun. His

One of the wardrobes that was ransacked by the armed bandits

wife was also assaulted.

The five bandits managed to get their hands on $710,000 in Guyanese currency; US$500; 6 mobile phones; one Lenovo laptop; 2 Samsung tablets; one portable DVD player; one Playstation3 with control and games; 1 laptop speaker box; 2 speaker boxes; five wristwatches; one wedding band; four pairs of gold ear-

rings; two silver foot chains; three silver rings; 3 silver bands; 1 gold chain with pendant, and 13 pieces of raw diamond.

After committing the robbery, the perpetrators made good their escape.

The family subsequently raised an alarm and the Police were summoned.

An investigation is underway.

16 NEWS

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

3 more die from COVID in Region 4; 88 new cases recorded – emergency measures extended to June 30

G

u y a n a ’ s COVID-19 death toll has gone up to 385 after three more persons who tested positive for the novel coronavirus died.

According to the Ministry of Health on Sunday, these latest fatalities were all recorded in Region Four (DemeraraMahaica) last week.

They include a 58-year-old woman who died on Thursday, while the other two persons – a 65-year-old male and a 71-yearold female – died on Friday.

The Ministry said these patients were admitted with COVID-19 like symptoms but died while receiving care at medical institutions. Samples were taken at the time of admission which subsequently returned positive tests.

Only Saturday, two other COVID-19 deaths were reported. However, with these three more fatalities reported on Sunday, the COVID-19 death toll for May has gone up to 81 – the deadliest month since the outbreak of the virus here last year. April recorded the second highest deaths thus far with 66.

Meanwhile, another 88 persons have tested positive for the novel coronavirus in the last 24 hours in Guyana.

According to new statistics provided by the Health

Ministry on Sunday, the total number of confirmed cases in the country has now increased to 16,910.

However, only 2122 of these are currently active cases. This includes 23 patients in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and the remaining 2099 persons in isolation, that is, 103 in institutional isolation and the other 1996 in home isolation.

There are also five more persons in institutional quarantine.

Some 14,506 persons have since recovered from the life-threatening virus in Guyana to date – 38 more

recoveries than the figure recorded the previous day.

Additionally, a total of 153,633 persons have been tested for the novel coronavirus in Guyana over the past year, of which 8386 males and 8524 females were found to be positive.

Of the 88 new COVID-19 cases detected on Sunday, one was in Region One (Barima-Waini); six cases in Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam); 15 in Region Three (Essequibo IslandsWest Demerara); a whopping 33 cases in the Demerara-Mahaica region; four in Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice); 11 cases

in Region Six (East BerbiceCorentyne); another four in Region Seven (CuyuniMazaruni) and 14 cases in Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo).

No new cases were recorded in the other two regions, Eight (PotaroSiparuni) and 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice), in the last 24 hours.

In order to protect citizens and move towards achieving herd immunity, the Guyana Government has been aggressively rolling out the COVID-19 vaccination campaign and pleading with persons to get immunised against the deadly virus.

To date, more than 194,700 persons have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in Guyana, of which over 65,500 persons are now fully immunised. These numbers are expected to rise

as the vaccination exercise continues to be rolled across the country.

Emergency measures extended

In the meantime, Health authorities have extended the COVID-19 Emergency Measures for another month without any changes. The extended measures were published in the Official Gazette and will take effect from June 1 until June 30, 2021.

Nevertheless, persons are being urged to observe the protocols of the COVID-19 Emergency Measures (No 18). This order imposes a 22:30h (10:30 pm) to 04:00h (4 am) national curfew, which the National COVID-19 Taskforce has been working to enforce by prosecuting persons who are in breach of the measures.

It also emphasises, among other things, the need for correct and consistent use of a face mask when leaving

your home; the importance of maintaining the six feet physical distance from others, and the need for good hand hygiene to help reduce the spread of COVID-19.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), as of Sunday, some 169,597,415 confirmed cases were reported globally along with 3,530,582 deaths.

The WHO also reported on Sunday that in the Region of the Americas, that is, Latin America and the Caribbean, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has increased to 67,178,933 while the death toll in the region has gone up to 1,646,407.

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

Aeronautical instructors benefit from TVET training

(From left) Head of Training Rabindra Ramoutar; Nalini Chanderban; Krishn Sharma; Senior Instructor − Avionics, Richard Cumberbatch and Workshop Manager and Instructor, Kenesha Bacchus

I

nstructors at the Art Williams and Harry Wendt Aeronautical Engineering School recently benefitted from a twoday refresher course on instructor training conducted by Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Officer, Krishn Sharma.

Accountable Manager and General Manager of the institution, Nalini Chanderban explained that the refresher training is a legal requirement while noting that the training was beneficial because it reacquainted the school’s instructors with the training methods they learnt before and also brought them up-to-date with new instruction techniques, particularly those developed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Other companies grab

a lot of our students, so the demand is there. Training helps to ensure the quality of our instructors and graduates. It’s a way of building our brand,” Chanderban pointed out.

In acknowledging the Council for TVET’s role in the process, Chanderban related that, “we didn’t have to partner with the Council for TVET, but we saw the advantages in the process.”

Director of the Council for TVET, Floyd Scott indicated that this arrangement with the Art Williams and Harry Wendt Aeronautical Engineering School brings into focus the need to work with, as well as train TVET practitioners and specialised institutions, in the understanding of competency-based education which provides a holistic approach to developing and accessing

skills, jobs and competencies as technical and vocational education is a tool to be used to bring about desirable change in one’s economic, sociological, and personal condition.

The Art Williams and Harry Wendt Aeronautical Engineering School is currently the only accredited training institution in Guyana. The school offers a Level 6 – Associate Degree in Aircraft Maintenance Engineering and a Completion Certificate for Licence Application for aspiring aircraft maintenance engineers.

It is also one of the many private institutions in Guyana seeking accreditation as an approved TVET training organisation, through the CTVET, to have CVQ recognised and awarded programmes for Guyanese.

NEWS

17

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

CXC analysing COVID-19 impact on exam candidates T

he Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) will give further consideration to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic's impact on students sitting external exams, during the grading process.

This is according to the CXC Registrar and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Dr Wayne Wesley, who was addressing a recent CXC virtual media briefing on the administration of this year's regional external examinations.

Dr Wesley said CXC would take into account “the likely psycho-social impact [of the pandemic] on students' performance to ensure that they are not disenfranchised”.

This will be done in addition to other concessions which the Council has already put in place in light of COVID-19.

Dr Wesley said efforts would continue in terms of working with the Government of St Vincent and the Grenadines to ensure that their candidates were not disenfranchised as a result of the volcanic eruption in that country.

He added that certain challenges being experienced in other countries would also be taken into consideration.

Consequent on the pandemic, the strategy for the 2021 regional examinations has been revised to include delaying the start of the Caribbean Advanced

CXC Registrar and CEO, Dr Wayne Wesley

Proficiency Examination (CAPE) and Caribbean

Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examina-

tions, which will now begin on June 28.

Further, all components of the exams — Paper One and Paper Two, and Paper Three for private candidates — will be administered; students have until today, May 31 to defer sitting the 2021 examinations; and the deadline to submit all SchoolBased Assessments has been extended to June 30.

Dr Wesley informed that these decisions were agreed on during a special Council meeting on May 25, following consultative engagements with Governments and other regional stakeholders.

He said this was done to garner wide-ranging inputs to ensure there was proper planning for the region-

al examination “that will redound to the benefit of the majority, if not all, within the Region”.

“The Council believes that these decisions are made in the best interest of our stakeholders across the Region, [including] our teachers, our parents, our students and our Ministries,” Dr Wesley stated.

Additionally, he said CXC would continue to engage and collaborate with all stakeholders “to ensure that there is equity and fairness for all candidates, that the integrity of the regional examinations remains intact, and that the health and well-being of our stakeholders remain paramount”.

(Jamaica Observer)

Gunmen kidnap students in Niger state Climate change: World at risk of

N

igerian officials say gunmen have kidnapped many students from an Islamic school in Nigeria – the latest in a series of such attacks on schools.

Authorities in Niger state confirmed to the BBC that gunmen had seized an unknown number of students from the school in the town of Tegina on Sunday.

A teacher told the BBC that 150 students were missing, while other reports put the figure at approximately 200.

Abductions carried out for ransom are increasingly common in northern states.

In February, nearly 300 girls were taken by armed men from a boarding school in Jangebe, Zamfara state.

Most were later freed.

In the latest incident, witnesses quoted by This Day news website said gunmen riding on motorcycles stormed the town and opened fire indiscriminately. As people fled, the attackers went to the Islamic school and seized the children. The school is attended by boys and girls, aged six to 18.

Authorities said two people were shot during the attack and one had since died.

A number of people travelling in a car were also reportedly kidnapped.

BBC Nigeria correspondent Mayeni Jones says kidnapping for ransom has become more common across Nigeria in recent months.

The attack in Tegina

comes a day after 14 people kidnapped from a university in the neighbouring state of Kaduna were released.

Tegina is also not far from the town of Kagara, where 27 students were abducted in February.

There have been at least six kidnappings of students in north-west and central Nigeria since December, and more than 800 students and staff have been abducted.

The 2014 kidnap of 276 schoolgirls in the north-eastern town of Chibok by Islamist militants Boko Haram brought global attention to the scourge of raids on schools in Nigeria, but more recent attacks are suspected to be the work of criminal gangs. (Excerpt from BBC News)

NSA spying row: Denmark helped US gather data on European officials, says report

D

enmark's secret service helped the US spy on European politicians, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel from 2012 to 2014, Danish media report.

The Defence Intelligence Service (FE) collaborated with the US National Security Agency (NSA) to gather information, according to a report by Danish broadcaster Danmarks Radio.

Intelligence was collected on other officials from Germany, France, Sweden and Norway, according to the report.

Similar allegations emerged in 2013.

Then, secrets leaked by US whistle-blower Edward Snowden alleged tapping of the German Chancellor's phone by the NSA. When those allegations were made, the White House gave no outright denial, but said Merkel's phone was not being bugged at the time and would not be in future.

In a new report shared with several European news agencies, the NSA is said to

hitting temperature limit soon

I

t's becoming more likely that a key global temperature limit will be reached in one of the next five years.

A major study says by 2025 there's a 40 per cent chance of at least one year being 1.5 Celsius hotter than the pre-industrial level.

That's the lower of two temperature limits set by the Paris Agreement on climate change.

The conclusion comes in a report published by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).

The analysis is based on modelling by the UK Met Office and climate researchers in 10 countries including the US and China.

In the last decade, it was estimated that the chance of any one year reaching the 1.5C threshold was only 20 per cent.

This new assessment

puts that risk at 40 per cent.

Leon Hermanson, a senior Met Office scientist, told BBC News that comparing projected temperatures with those of 18501900 shows a clear rise.

"What it means is that we're approaching 1.5C – we're not there yet but we're getting close," he said.

"Time is running out for the strong action which we need now." (Excerpt from BBC News)

North Korea slams end to US guidelines limiting South Korea missile range Angela Merkel was allegedly targeted by US intelligence

have accessed text messages and the phone conversations of a number of prominent individuals by tapping in to Danish Internet cables in cooperation with the FE. The alleged set-up, said in the report to have been codenamed "Operation Dunhammer", allowed the NSA to obtain data using the telephone numbers of politicians as search parameters, according to Danmarks Radio.

The report follows an investigation by the broadcaster involving interviews with nine sources, all of whom were said to have had access to classified information held

by the FE. Along with Merkel, then German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Opposition Leader at the time, Peer Steinbruck were also reportedly targeted.

Neither Denmark's Defence Ministry nor representatives for the FE have yet commented on the latest reports.

Following news of the report on Sunday, Snowden accused US President Joe Biden of being "deeply involved in this scandal the first time around". Biden was US Vice President at the time when the surveillance took place.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

N

orth Korea's State media on Monday criticised the recent termination of a pact between the United States and South Korea that capped the development of South Korea's ballistic missiles, calling it a sign of Washington's "shameful double-dealing".

South Korean President Moon Jae-in announced the abolishment of the joint missile guidelines that had limited the country's development of ballistic missiles to a range of 800 kilometres (500 miles) after his first summit with US President Joe Biden earlier

this month.

North Korea's official KCNA news agency carried an article by Kim Myong Chol, who it described as an "international affairs critic", to accuse the United States of applying a double standard as it sought to ban Pyongyang from developing ballistic missiles.

The United States is "engrossed in confrontation despite its lip-service to dialogue," Kim said. "The termination step is a stark reminder of the US hostile policy toward the DPRK and its shameful double-dealing."

The Democratic People's

Republic of Korea (DPRK) is North Korea's official name.

North Korea's target is the United States, not South Korea's military, and it will counter the States on "the principle of strength for strength", Kim said.

Kim also criticised Moon for welcoming the termination of the guidelines, calling it "disgusting, indecent".

"Now that the US and the South Korean authorities made clear their ambition of aggression, they are left with no reasons whatsoever to fault the DPRK bolstering its capabilities for self-defence," Kim added.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

18

guyanatimesgy.com

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021

Regional

UN rights chief urges Grenada donates 10,000 vaccines independent probe into T deaths in Colombia

T

he UN rights chief voiced alarm on Sunday at deadly clashes in the Colombian city of Cali, calling for an independent investigation and accountability for the violence.

Pointing to reports that 14 people had died since Friday amid huge anti-Government protests in Colombia’s third-largest city, Michelle Bachelet said a swift investigation and resumption of dialogue was needed.

“It is essential that all those who are reportedly involved in causing injury or death, including State officials, are subject to prompt, effective, independent, impartial and transparent investigations and that those responsible are held accountable,” the UN High Commissioner said in a statement.

Her comments came after the Colombian army on Saturday tightened its control over Cali, a city of 2.2 million, after clashes pitted Police against armed civilians.

The country is in the second month of protests against the Government of President Ivan Duque [Juan B Diaz/Reuters]

The country is in the second month of protests against the Government of President Ivan Duque.

Officials have said the month of protests has left at least 59 people dead, and more than 2300 civilians and uniformed personnel have been injured.

The Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) Human Rights Watch cited “credible reports” of at least 63 deaths nationwide, and called the situation in Cali “very seri-

ous”.

Bachelet’s office cited reports that 14 people had been killed in Cali since Friday and 98 had been injured, including 54 by firearms.

The dead in Cali included an off-duty employee of the prosecutor’s office who had fired his gun at two protesters blocking a street, killing one of them. Video on social media shows a crowd then pouncing on the attacker and lynching him. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

rinidad and Tobago received on Sunday 10,000 doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines, a donation from the Grenada Government, a statement from the Foreign and Caricom Affairs Ministry confirmed.

Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister, Dr Amery Browne accompanied by Ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago to the Caribbean Community, Frances Seignoret and Principal Pharmacist (ag) at the Ministry of Health Anesa Doodnath-Siboo, received the vaccines at Piarco International Airport.

The vaccines were transported to this country by the Trinidad and Tobago Air Guard.

“The Minister of Foreign and Caricom Affairs thanks the Minister of National Security and the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force for again responding swiftly to our need for transpor-

Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister, Dr Amery Browne accompanied by Ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago to the Caribbean Community, Frances Seignoret and Principal Pharmacist (ag) Anesa Doodnath-Siboo receiving the vaccines.

Also in photo are members of the aircrew

tation of COVID-19 vaccines from within the Region to Trinidad and Tobago,” the statement said.

It added that the Government extended its “profound appreciation to the Government of Grenada for this timely donation

Cayman Islands tourism association hosts vaccination raffle

T&T records 637 new COVID-19 cases, 9 more deaths on Sunday

T

rinidad and Tobago has recorded 637 new cases and nine more deaths on Sunday.

In the Health Ministry’s daily update, active cases have increased to 9607 with 8331 patients in home self-quarantine, 458 in hospital receiving treatment, and 181 patients in step-down facilities waiting to be discharged.

As of Sunday afternoon,

the country has recorded 23,638 COVID-19 cases since the first infection on March 12, 2020. From this total, 13,552 people have recovered.

The recent deaths have brought the toll to 479. There are also 122 people in State quarantine.

The Government through its national vaccination programme has administered nearly 100,000 first doses of

the COVID-19 vaccine.

Almost three months into the programme 93,293 people got their first shot and 1179 received their second dose and are fully vaccinated.

In total, 181,098 samples have been sent to the Caribbean Public Health Agency, the Tobago Regional Health Authority, UWI, and other local testing sites.

(Trinidad Newsday)

Brazil COVID-19 deaths at 461,931 as total cases hit 16.5 million

Protests took place across Brazil over the management of the COVID-19 crisis

B

razil registered 43,520 new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, reaching a total of 16.5 million cases.

The country, which has the world’s second largest number of COVID-19 deaths, registered 874 new deaths, raising the total to 461,931.

On Saturday, protests took place across Brazil over the management of the COVID-19 crisis by the Government of President Jair Bolsonaro, the BBC re-

ported.

In the capital, Brasilia, thousands gathered in front of Congress calling for the President’s impeachment, and demanding more vaccines.

Demonstrations took place in other major cities, including Rio de Janeiro.

Saturday’s protests piled further pressure on Bolsonaro as Brazil’s Senate holds an inquiry into his Government’s handling of the pandemic and the slow

roll-out of the vaccine programme.

Opposition parties, trade unions and social movements accuse Bolsonaro of stalling the programme and disregarding the consequences.

The high number of cases has brought the country’s health system to the verge of collapse.

The far-right leader has consistently opposed lockdown measures, arguing that the damage to the economy would be worse than the effects of the coronavirus itself.

He has also told Brazilians to “stop whining” about the situation.

In Brasilia, protesters marched alongside a giant plastic doll of the President.

Placards demanded his impeachment and called for more vaccines and emergency financial aid. There were also calls to better protect Indigenous people and to stop deforestation of the Amazon. (Excerpt from Reuters and BBC News)

of vaccines, which will assist in advancing Trinidad and Tobago’s vaccination programme at this critical juncture in its management of the COVID-19 outbreak locally”. (Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

T

he Cayman Islands Tourism Association (CITA) has offered the population a chance to win US$10,000, as well as 280 other prizes worth a total of US$15,000, as part of an initiative to encourage people to get vaccinated for COVID-19.

The CITA, along with the charity R3 Cayman Foundation, announced the prizes during a recent meeting of its members.

CITA President Marc Langevin said it was vital

for the territory to reach its target of vaccinating 70 per cent or more of its population, so that the borders can reopen safely to tourists, and the tourism sector had a part to play in that by encouraging its employees to get inoculated as soon as possible.

Langevin said CITA has been asking its members to provide weekly updates on how many of their staff have been vaccinated, and that “right now, as an industry, we are at 75 per cent”.

He added that certain sectors within the industry had higher percentages than that, like restaurants, which are showing a 90 per cent vaccination rate.

“It is your leadership that is creating those numbers. You have been leading by example.”

In a statement, the R3 Cayman Foundation said: “As part of our recovery mandate, we want to help our local tourism industry to recover from the tremendous job losses that have been caused by the pandemic so that those affected can regain employment and thereby provide for themselves and for their families.

The prize draw is separate from the Government’s “Vaccination Challenge” version, which is also offering a wide variety of prizes for people who get their first vaccinations by June 9.

(Excerpt from CMC)

Mexico accuses Zara, Anthropologie and Patowl of cultural appropriation

M

exico has accused international fashion brands Zara, Anthropologie, and Patowl of cultural appropriation, saying they used patterns from Indigenous Mexican groups in their designs without any benefit to the communities.

Mexico’s Culture Ministry said in a statement Friday that it had sent letters signed by Mexico’s Culture Minister Alejandra Frausto to all three global companies, asking each for a “public explanation on what basis it could privatise col-

lective property”.

The Culture Ministry says Zara, owned by Inditex, the world’s largest clothing retailer, used a pattern distinctive to the Indigenous Mixteca community of San Juan Colorado in the southern state of Oaxaca.

Anthropologie, owned by URBN, used a design developed by the Indigenous Mixe community of Santa Maria Tlahuitoltepec, while Patowl copied a pattern from the Indigenous Zapoteco community in San Antonino Castillo Velasco, both in the state of Oaxaca, according to

the Ministry of Culture.

URBN, Inditex, and Patowl could not be immediately reached for comment.

The extent to which fashion designers have profited from incorporating cultural designs without acknowledging their origins or fairly compensating communities has been a point of contention in recent years.

In 2019, the Mexican Government accused fashion house Carolina Herrera of cultural appropriation of Indigenous patterns and textiles from Mexico in its collection. (Reuters)

guyanatimesgy.com

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021

19

Around the World

OILNEWS OIL NEWS This time is different: Outside OPEC, oil firms aren't raising production

“T

his time is different” may be the most dangerous words in business: billions of dollars have been lost betting that history won’t repeat itself. And yet now, in the oil world, it looks like this time really will be.

For the first time in decades, oil companies aren’t rushing to increase production to chase rising oil prices as Brent crude approaches US$70. Even in the Permian, the prolific shale basin at the centre of the US energy boom, drillers are resisting their traditional boom-and-bust cycle of spending.

The oil industry is on the ropes, constrained by Wall Street investors demanding that companies spend less on drilling and instead return more money to shareholders, and climate change activists pushing against fossil fuels. Exxon Mobil Corp is paradigmatic of the trend, after its humiliating defeat at the hands of a tiny activist elbowing itself onto the board.

The dramatic events in the industry last week only add to what is emerging as an opportunity for the producers of OPEC+, giving the coalition led by Saudi Arabia and Russia more room for manoeuvre to bring back their own production. As nonOPEC output fails to rebound as fast as many expected -- or feared based on past experience -- the cartel is likely to continue adding more supply when it meets on June 1.

Shareholders are asking Exxon to drill less and focus on returning money to investors. “They have been throwing money down the drill hole like crazy,” Christopher Ailman, chief investment officer for CalSTRS. “We really saw that company just heading down the hole, not surviving into the future, unless they change and adapt. And now they have to.”

Exxon is unlikely to be alone. Royal Dutch Shell Plc lost a landmark legal battle last week when a Dutch court told it to cut emissions significantly by 2030 -- something that would require less oil production. Many in the industry fear a wave of lawsuits elsewhere, with western oil majors more immediate targets than the state-owned oil companies that make up much of OPEC production.

“We see a shift from stigmatisation toward criminalisation of investing in higher oil production,” said Bob McNally, president of consultant Rapidan Energy Group and a former White House official.

While it’s true that non-OPEC+ output is creeping back from the crash of 2020 -- and the ultra-depressed levels of April and May last year -- it’s far from a full recovery. Overall, non-OPEC+ output will grow this year by 620,000 barrels a day, less than half the 1.3 million barrels a day it fell in 2020. The supply growth forecast through the rest of this year “comes nowhere close to matching” the expected increase in demand, according to the International Energy Agency.

Beyond 2021, oil output is likely to rise in a handful of nations, including the US, Brazil, Canada and new oil-producer Guyana. But production will decline elsewhere, from the UK to Colombia, Malaysia and Argentina.

As non-OPEC+ production increases less than global oil demand, the cartel will be in control of the market, executives and traders said. It’s a major break with the past, when oil companies responded to higher prices by rushing to invest again, boosting non-OPEC output and leaving the ministers led by Saudi Arabia’s Abdulaziz bin Salman with a much more difficult balancing act. (Excerpt from Business Standard)

Florida shooting: 2 dead, more than 20 wounded in Hialeah

A

t least two people have died and more than 20 were wounded in a shooting outside a concert hall in Florida.

The shooting took place between 24:00-01:00 local time (04:00-05:00 GMT) in Hialeah, a city north of Miami.

Three people climbed out of a white car "with assault rifles and handguns and started firing indiscriminately into the crowd," Police Director Alfredo Ramirez III told reporters.

At least one of the wounded

is in a critical condition, Police said.

"These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately into a crowd and we will seek justice," Ramirez tweeted.

Between 20 and 25 victims have been taken to nearby hospitals, local media report.

The Associated Press news agency reported the shooting took place outside the El Mula Banquet Hall, which had been rented out for a concert. The suspects fled the scene shortly after the shooting.

Netanyahu's grip on power loosens as rival moves to unseat him

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Likud party headquarters in Jerusalem, March 24, 2021

F

ar-right party leader Naftali Bennett threw his crucial support on Sunday behind a "unity government" in Israel to unseat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in what would be the end of a political era.

Bennett's decision, which he announced in a televised address, could enable opposition chief Yair Lapid to put together a coalition of right-wing, centrist and leftist parties and hand Netanyahu his first election defeat since 1999.

Lapid, head of the centrist Yesh Atid party that fin-

ished second to Netanyahu's right-wing Likud in an inconclusive March 23 national ballot, faces a Wednesday deadline from Israel's President to announce a new Government.

Lapid's chances of success have rested largely with Bennett, a former defence chief and a high-tech millionaire whose Yamina party's six seats in the 120-member Parliament are enough to give him the status of kingmaker.

Under a prospective power-sharing deal, Bennett would replace Netanyahu, the 71-year-old head of the Likud party, as Prime Minister and later give way to centrist Lapid in a rotation agreement.

Responding on television to Bennett's announcement, Netanyahu accused him of perpetrating "the fraud of the century", citing past public promises Bennett made not to join up with Lapid. He said a right-wing Government was still a possibility.

Israel has held four elections since April 2019 that ended with no clear winner and left Netanyahu and his rivals short of a parliamentary majority, with the veteran leader remaining in office as head of a caretaker Government. (Excerpt from Reuters)

As yet there have been no arrests.

Ramirez called the shooting "a despicable act of gun violence, a cowardly act".

"This type of gun violence has to stop. Every weekend, it's the same thing. This is targeted. This is definitely not random," he told reporters.

It comes just days after an employee at a train yard killed nine people on the other side of the country in California.

Thousands of people are killed by guns in the US every year. In April President Joe Biden announced new actions to tackle gun violence.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

Ethiopians denounce US at pro-Government rally in Addis Ababa

Ethiopian pro-Government demonstrators attend a rally in Addis Ababa to protest the US action over alleged human rights abuses during the conflict in the Tigray region [Tiksa Negeri/Reuters]

E

thiopian pro-Government demonstrators have denounced the United States for imposing restrictions on aid over the Tigray conflict, at a huge rally organised by the authorities to show support for their positions.

More than 10,000 people attended the rally on Sunday, some carrying banners written in English, Arabic and Amharic. “Ethiopia does not need (a) caretaker,” declared one banner at Addis Ababa Stadium, while others denounced “western intervention”.

The demonstration was larger than typical pro-Government rallies, and the public criticism of the US was rare.

Ethiopia is facing increasing international pressure over the conflict in its northern Tigray region, where it and neighbouring Eritrea sent troops last year to overthrow the regional authorities.

A week ago, the United

States imposed restrictions on economic and security assistance to Ethiopia over the conflict. Washington also said it would bar current or former Ethiopian or Eritrean officials it deems responsible for the crisis.

The crisis began in November after Ethiopia accused former leaders of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) of ordering an attack on an Ethiopian army base in the region.

Troops sent by Ethiopia’s leader, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, quickly overthrew the TPLF from major cities and towns, but fighting is still reported across Tigray.

Atrocities including gang rapes, extrajudicial killings and expulsions have been part of the violence in Tigray, according to victims, witnesses, local authorities and aid groups. Thousands of people are estimated to have died.

More than 2 million people have been displaced by the war. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Barcelona: Homophobic attacks spark outcry New Zealand backs Australia in trade spat

A

gay rights group in the Catalonia region of north-eastern Spain has warned of increasing incidents of homophobia following attacks in Barcelona over the weekend.

The Observatory Against Homophobia (OCH) said five gay men had been injured in three separate attacks.

In the most serious incident, a man needed facial surgery after he and his friends were attacked on a beach.

Police are investigating but have not made any arrests, local media reported.

Local politicians took to social media to condemn the at-

tacks.

"We will never normalise this situation," tweeted the city council's head of citizenship rights, Marc Serra Solé.

OCH President Eugeni Rodríguez said the incident on Barcelona's Somorrostro Beach involved two gay couples who were set upon by three men.

The men approached them and insulted them and then attacked them after checking no police officers were in the area, Rodríguez said, according to the Spanish EFE news agency.

The most seriously injured victim underwent surgery on Sunday.

Rodríguez called the incident "barbaric" and said the number of homophobic attacks was rising.

The OCH has registered 76 such attacks in Catalonia so far this year.

The other homophobic attacks in Barcelona over the weekend took place in the district of Gràcia on Saturday morning and another later in the day near the city's auditorium, OCH said.

Catalonia's Equality Minister, Tània Verge, also condemned the violence and tweeted that fighting homophobia was a high priority for her department.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

with China ahead of Ardern-Morrison meeting

A

ustralia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison arrived in New Zealand on Sunday for high-level talks hours after the country's Government chose to support Canberra in its dispute with China on barley tariffs, signalling good will to work on differences in how to approach Beijing.

Quarantine-free travel between Australia and New Zealand began last month after both nations controlled the spread of COVID-19, allowing Morrison and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to meet face to face for the first time in 15 months.

The talks were likely to be

challenged by differences over China, the biggest trading partner of both countries, with Australia at loggerheads with Beijing and New Zealand taking a more accommodating approach.

China has in recent months moved to restrict imports of Australian products such as barley, wine and beef, with the World Trade Organisation saying on Friday it would establish a dispute settlement panel to resolve the barley row.

Ahead of Morrison's visit, New Zealand Trade Minister Damien O'Connor said his Government was backing Canberra in the spat.

Australia's ties with China have sunk to their lowest point in decades in the past 18 months after Morrison led calls for a global enquiry into the origins of COVID-19 and Australia barred Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies Co from its 5G network.

New Zealand's economic ties with China have been strengthening, with the two countries this year upgrading their free trade agreement.

Formal talks between Ardern and Morrison, expected to be dominated by China and its growing influence in the region, are to take place today. (Excerpt from Reuters)

20

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021

guyanatimesgy.com

ARCHIE

ARIES (March 21April 19)

Rely on lessons from the past to help you sort out what to do next. An opportunity will be revealed through conversation with a like-minded peer. An indepth discussion will lead to an unusual offer.

Listen, and you'll decipher TAURUS what's best for you. Don't fol(April 20- low someone if it risks your May 20) position or security. Follow the path that leads to a better future. Trust in your judgment.

DILBERT

Concentrate on what you are trying to achieve and for(May 21- go what's going on around you.

June 20) Distractions will hold you back.

Put more emphasis on using your knowledge and skills to achieve personal growth.

GEMINI

CANCER (June 21July 22)

PEANUTS

Spend only what's necessary. Impulsive purchases will not live up to your expectations. Helping out someone who leans on you will lead to ongoing expenses. Honesty is the best policy.

You'll be drawn to people LEO and organizations that share (July 23your sentiments. Be clear reAug. 22) garding what you can contribute; it will help you avoid being pressured to overspend or overdo it.

CALVIN AND HOBBES

SUDOKU

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

Consider what's best for you before you make a move.

An opportunity will have unexpected circumstances attached. Take the time to go over every detail before you take on something new.

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

You'll pick up valuable information if you sit back and let others talk. Grab on to something that resonates with you, and verify the information before you proceed. Romance is in the stars.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Make your money go further. Search for entertaining ways to use your attributes to help you get ahead. Don't let a domestic or lifestyle change put a damper on your day.

Open up about the way SAGITTARIUS you feel, what you want and (Nov. 23how you plan to get ahead.

Dec. 21) Keep life simple and your conscience clear. Be truthful, and speak out when deception is apparent.

Offer

suggestions,

but

CAPRICORN don't promise or commit to (Dec. 22something you don't want to Jan. 19) pursue. Your energy is best SATURDAY'S WORD - EPITASIS

spent on accomplishments that will help you get ahead.

Treat partners with respect.

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

Keep your emotions hidden until you gather the facts.

It's important to be well-informed before you take on a situation that can change your relationship with a friend or relative.

Watch how others handle matters; it will give you an (Feb. 20idea how you will be treated March 20) when in a similar situation.

Observation is in your best interest, along with secrecy and independence.

PISCES

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021

21

Dave West Indian Imports becomes an official sponsor of RHTY&SC − Narine inducts as Honorary Member and receives Dolphin Award of Excellence

RHTY&SC Assistant Secretary/ CEO Simon Naidu receives the sponsorship from Dave Narine

O

verseas-based Guyanese businessman Dave Narine was on Friday inducted as an honorary member of the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTY&SC) MS during a simple ceremony at the St Francis Community Centre Training Hall.

Narine is the owner/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the popular Dave West Indian Imports, located on Liberty Avenue in New York, USA. Narine, a Berbician by birth, also received the Club’s highest award, the Dolphin Award of Excellence.

RHTY&SC Secretary/ CEO Hilbert Foster not-

ed that Narine and the Club have established a close working relationship and the businessman was excited to be on board with Guyana’s leading youth and sport organisation.

Former national female youth player Oma Matadin inducted Narine as the 203rd honorary member of the club while national youth player Jeremy Sandia handed over the Dolphin Award to the clearly-delighted businessman.

Foster, in a well-received feature address, traced the history of the RHTY&SC, informing the gathering of the remarkable achievements over the past 31 years. Noting that the club struggled for the

first two years of its existence, Foster stated that its fortunes changed in 1992 when the second-division team won the Sydney Sabsook 40 Overs title, organised by the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB).

This resulted in more respect for the club and sponsors started to come on board.

The RHTY&SC, the Secretary stated, now hosts over 700 activities per year under a wide list of sub-headings including education, charity, youth development, community development, social and religious, coaching and awards.

Additionally, the Club has won five Guyana Cricket Board Club of the Year Awards; 101 cricket tournaments at all levels, including three national championships and produced a combined 107 cricketers for Berbice, Guyana and the West Indies.

Foster hailed Narine as a positive role model for members of the club as he rose from a humble beginning to become a highly-successful businessman against great odds in the world’s most powerful country.

Narine, after being inducted, officially handed over a sponsorship cheque worth $350,000 to the Assistant Secretary/CEO of the Club, Simon Naidu. The cheque

Dave Narine poses with junior cricketers of the Club after the ceremony

represents support for the 2021 edition of the RHTY&SC Annual Youth Magazine and full sponsorship for the eighth edition of the very popular Region Six Sports Awards.

The magazine is currently been prepared for publication in July while five awards would be shared under the Dave West Indian Imports Sports Awards. The awards to be handed over would be Sportsman of the Year, Sportswoman of the Year, Sports Personality of the Year, Lifetime Achievement Award and Sports Association of the Year. Each of the awardees

would carry home a trophy, plaque, medal of excellence, framed certificate, and a collection of gifts.

A very emotional Narine stated that he felt very humbled to be inducted as an honorary member of a club that he has always admired for its service to humanity and guidance to youths. He stated that he was very impressed with the RHTY&SC’s commitment to making sure that all youths have a fair chance to fulfil their talent on and off the cricket field, especially in the classroom. Narine, who was accompanied by fellow

overseas businessman Abdul Wahab of Wahab Trading, advised the youth cricketers in attendance to remain humble at all times and also to develop a culture of hard work and discipline.

The 68th recipient of the Dolphin Award of Excellence also expressed his willingness to work alongside the management of the club to promote the importance of education and sports. National players Jonathan Rampersaud and Matthew Pottaya handed a RHTY&SC 31st anniversary cap and special gift to Narine on behalf of their colleagues.

Deborah McNichol is 1st female President of MSC

Deborah McNichol is the first female President of a local cricket club

H

istory was created on Friday evening at the Malteenoes Sports Club (MSC) elections when Deborah McNichol was elected unopposed as the first female President of the 119-year-old Thomas Lands Club, which was founded in 1902 by Barbadian tailor Ferdinand Archer.

McNichol, who has been an Executive member of the Club for eight years and a member for 18 years, is also the only woman at the helm of any cricket club in the Guyana.

McNichol, who served as First Vice President in the past Executive, has for her First Vice President, Shawn Holder with the Second Vice President being Steven Jacobs.

The other Executive Members are: Adrian Smith (Secretary); Denzel Alleyne (Treasurer); Shaquille Mosley (Assistant Secretary/Treasurer) and Sean Devers (Public Relations Officer) while former President Winton Semple and former national youth pacer and Coach Quason Nedd are the Committee Members.

McNichol, who has worked as a Public Servant for 43 years, said she was honoured to be elected as the first female cricket club President and emphasised that only with hard work and unity could success be achieved at Malteenoes.

“Our biggest challenge to bringing back MSC to its best days is funding and a decreased membership, but I am confident that this executive, elected in the middle of the pandemic, will work to promote the club as somewhere people would want to join and spend their

McNichol is flanked by her VPs while the rest of the executive stand behind her just after the elections

afternoons once this COVID goes away,” the mother of three said.

McNichol noted that her brothers played football and cricket while two of her sisters played hockey and the other one was into boxing and cricket.

Rich history In 1987, MSC members Colwin Cort, Barrington Browne, Glen Robinson, Nigel Greaves, Shawn Holder,

Sean Devers and the late Neezam Hafiz, dubbed the “Magnificent Seven” were part of the National U-19 team to tour Jamaica for the regional youth series and their selection is still the record for the most players selected from one club to any national cricket team.

In July-August 1993, under the presidency of Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) Executive Claude Raphael, MSC held the first National Cricket Academy

for youths from all three of the counties in Guyana, with the out-of-town players being provided with accommodation at the club.

The club produced 27 national Under-19 players between 1975 and 2013, and 32 MSC players have played for the national senior team between 1909 and 2009.

The Thomas Road club has also produced eight West Indies players between 1930 and 2003, including

West Indies Women’s player Indomattie Goordial, who was the last Malteenoes player to make her Test debut.

Cuthbert Monchoir, the Manager of the 1986 MSC U-19 team which won every national youth tournament that year, became the first Malteenoes member to do radio commentary in a FirstClass match and write on cricket for the newspapers in the 1980s.

Devers followed in his footsteps becoming a Journalist and radio cricket commentator, and did the first of his 13 Test Matches at Bourda for CMC in 2001.

However, Malteenoes which held a scaled-down Academy in 2018, has not produced a national youth player since 2013 when leg-spinner Steven Sankar represented Guyana while Shemroy Barrington was the last MSC player to play FirstClass cricket in 2009.

Under this executive, MSC will be looking to fix this problem by sending scouts to schools and when it eventually re-opens, getting youngsters to join the club.

22

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021

The Anthony Sukra way of CLASSIFIED ADS excelling in education and sport NOTICE

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Dated 31st May, 2021.

TAXI SERVICE GR Taxi 227-1982,225-7878

WANTED 219-5000, 227-2100 Wanted: Contract Cars Tel: 614-6202 Tameshwar Mohabir, acting Head of Department of Industrial Technology (IT) at NAMS and Manager of Multi Royals cricket team

By Brandon Corlette

T

he key is not to prioritise what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.

Blairmont Community Centre Cricket Club player and former (New Amsterdam) Multi Royals Captain, Anthony Sukra has mastered this.

He is the best performing student across the Caribbean in the Technical Vocational area at the 2020 Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) exams.

Sukra achieved this award on the back of 11 Grade Ones in 11 subjects. Speaking to Guyana Times Sport, Sukra said this accomplishment was no easy task.

"I successfully did so with the help of God who did what he does best, my parents who were always a constant source of support and encouragement, and the teachers of the New Amsterdam (Multilateral) Secondary School (NAMS), who played a role in my success since the inception to the day of the examinations.

“Credit must be given to the teachers of the Industrial Technology Department, who, despite of all the criticisms, stood with me and all the other students of the Industrial Technology class of 2020 to the end and ensured our success," Sukra said.

The humble youngster, who is ranked number three in the

Caribbean for CSEC Industrial Technology (Building) and number one in Guyana, said his family left him no room for error when it came to education and having a good life.

"Growing up, in my family, there was no margin for error as my parents always ensured that I achieved the best in order to have a better life than they did. Securing a sound education was the key to unlocking this way of life. As such, they provided a very strong foundation for me at a very tender age. With them being constant sources of encouragement, they motivated me to achieve nothing else but success," he revealed.

After Sukra sat the National Grade Nine Examination in back

Guyanese duo set for Pan Am Junior Games

Priyanna Ramdhani and Akili Haynes

G

uyana’s highest-ranked female badminton player, Priyanna Ramdhani and

Guyana's second-ranked male player, Akili Haynes, who has been dominant on the local badminton

scene for the past few years, will head to Cali, Colombia, later this year for the Pan American 2021 Junior Games.

According to a missive from the Guyana Badminton Association (GBA), Guyana has qualified for the first Pan American Junior Games (Cali 2021), which is scheduled for November 25 to December 5, 2021, with Guyana being afforded one male and one female spot.

This qualification came directly as a result of Ramdhani and her older brother Narayan breaking into the world rankings only a few weeks ago.

However, as Narayan will be over the required Under-23 age limit by that time, Haynes will take the male spot. He is an upcoming national player who was a bronze medallist at the Caribbean Regional Badminton Confederation (CAREBACO) Juniors in 2018 and also attended the World Juniors in Canada, during the same year.

Ramdhani who is attending Olds College in Alberta, Canada on a badminton scholarship played at the Pan American Individual Championships in Guatemala early in May 2021 to help secure the spots.

The GBA is said to be pleased with the outcome of the qualification results once again and will be meeting with the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) and Culture, Youth and Sport Minister Charles Ramson Jr to finalise funding for their training leading up to the games.

in 2018, he made the decision to pursue studies for the remainder of his high-school years in the Industrial Technology stream. He noted that this decision came because of his curiosity on how machines work.

"I was always amazed by the way they made our work easier and it was always a desire of mine to be a part of this new era, where technology is changing the lives of many. Making this decision was an easy one, but it came with a lot of criticism from those around. I was constantly asked the question: Why are you so talented but choose to pursue studies in the technology stream. Why not science?"

Sukra came to the realisation that many people looked down upon his chosen area of study. He disclosed that this area required more than just being talented. "It takes hard work, commitment, and dedication to be successful in this area of study, since the syllabus is structured in such a way which required the same amount of work to be done in both the theory and practical areas."

Outside academics

Sukra started playing 'street cricket' at the tender age of five.

He then joined the Blairmont Community Centre Cricket Club at age 12, and remains a member to this day. "I can clearly remember when I was in First Form playing the popular 'cafeteria cricket' when Sir Tameshwar Mohabir saw me and asked why I never requested to join the school's cricket team (Multi Royals). I was a member of the school's cricket team for four years, two of which I was appointed captain," Sukra shared.

The right-hander said balancing cricket and academics required a lot of commitment and more importantly, time management.

"Whenever we had inter-school games to play, organised by the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB), and I had a test to write on the same day, I would go to school as early as 07:15h to complete the test/ examination before going to play," he revealed.

He expressed gratitude to the teachers of NAMS who were able to adjust and allow him the opportunity to excel in both areas.

"My participation in club cricket cannot go unmentioned. I had to sacrifice a few practice sessions in order to go to extra lessons and vice versa. After school I would go out to practice, come home after the session was over, complete School-Based Assessments and try to get a session of studying. This would carry me to early hours in

the mornings and I still had to get up to go to school the same day (since it was already the next day) and complete practical as well as theoretical work."

Leading up to CSEC 2020, the coronavirus became a pandemic and halted cricket and much of life in the country. Sukra looked on the positive aspect and said that was a win for him since it allowed him more time to fully prepare for the examinations. He also credited the President and Coach of the Blairmont Community Centre Cricket Club, Shabeer Baksh, who played the role of a mentor, both on and off the field of play. Sukra is aiming to pursue a career in engineering.

Sir Tameshwar on Sukra's journey

Acting Industrial Technology (IT) Head of Department (HoD) at NAMS and Multi Royals Cricket Club Manager, Tameshwar Mohabir recognised greatness in Sukra since the inception.

"I knew he was special and an extremely gifted student, one who had what it takes to develop into the perfect all-round student.

He just knew how to maintain the perfect balance between his school work and his academics and he progressed smoothly through his high school life. His passion for the field of engineering is what drove him to pursue studies within the Industrial Technology stream at the completion of Grade Nine."

Known by many as Sir Tamesh, the hardworking manager and acting IT HoD, said Sukra has a highly-creative mind and a high level of reasoning, and he was also extremely gifted with his hands.

This, coupled with his excellent work ethic and high self-discipline, has enabled him to ace both the theoretical and practical aspects of the subjects in his course of study in Grades 10-11 and subsequently, at the CSEC 2020 examinations.

According to Sir Tamesh, Sukra has great leadership abilities and always took the lead during practical sessions and class activities. Besides cricket, where he was appointed Captain and enjoyed great success as a batting all-rounder, Sukra was a key member of the school’s athletics and basketball teams..

Overall, Sukra is a well-rounded and highly-gifted student, and he is the perfect example for student athletes out there who may feel that it is impossible to do both sports and academics well.

Balancing and excelling in both is certainly possible and Anthony Sukra is testimony to that.

223-7230-1 (Ext 55)

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(Ext 55)

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MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

23

Walter Grant-Stuart RHTY&SC honours crowned national masters Hilbert Foster in surprise cycling champion − Hamilton, Newton victorious in female, junior categories respectively

National female champion Suzanne Hamilton

W

alter Grant-Stuart was in attack mode as he cruised to a comfortable win, conquering the roads under cool conditions to emerge as the national cycling masters champion for 2021, clocking in at two hours 29 minutes and 32 seconds.

Top female cyclist Suzanne

National junior champion Aaron Newton

National masters champion Walter Grant-Stuart

Mr Linden Classic…

Khan, Wong, Sampson bag GBBFF 2021 Novices Bodybuilding and Fitness titles

Yusuf Khan (Emmerson Campbell Photos)

T

he Guyana Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation (GBBFF) hosted its 2021 Novices Bodybuilding and Fitness Competition and Mr Linden Classic on May 29, at Lichas Hall, Linden. The virtual event was live-streamed on all popular social media networks.

Emerging victorious were Yusuf Khan, Aliya Wong and Michael Sampson in their respective categories.

On the night of the competition, there were about 25 athletes competing in the three different segments – Bodybuilding, Bikini and Men’s Physique – of the first contest, the Novices Bodybuilding and Fitness

Competition.

In the Men’s Physique category, the showdown was mainly between Unity Gym and V Fitness. Khan, of Unity Gym, emerged the winner ahead of his competitors, Denroy Ross and Quamie July of V Fitness.

In the highly-anticipated Bikini category, Wong was definitely the one to watch as she offered everything the judges were looking for. While the competition was keen in the form of Gail Karim and Alejandra Vieira, Wong in the end managed to pip her opponents as all her hard work finally paid off. The 20-year-old will now have her sights set on whatever else 2021 holds for her.

In the Bodybuilding category, Sampson flexed his way to the title as he gave the judges just what they needed. Clad in black posing trunks, he out-flexed and out-posed the competition and copped the Novices Bodybuilding Champion 2021 crown.

Sampson, a member of Pro-Fit Boot Camp, was the standout athlete in the over 176-lbs class.

Sampson then returned to the posedown in a showdown with the other category champions, Alexander Correia (under 143 lbs); Joel Caldeira (under 154 lbs) and Shaquan Caleb (under 165 lbs) and smashed his opponents to smithereens, as they had Aliya nothing on him and he was Wong practically untouchable.

Next on the calendar for the GBBFF is the Intermediate Championships, proposed for some time in the third quarter of 2021, while it was announced that the National Senior Championships is set for December.

The GBBFF collaborated with Fitness Express and the Culture, Youth and Sport Ministry to present the hardworking athletes, the bodybuilding and fitness fraternity, and the entire Guyana with its first bodybuilding and fitness competition for 2021. The competition celebrated life, health, and fitness while promoting healthy lifestyles and healthy living.

All COVID-19 protocols were followed.

Hamilton clinched the female crown while Aaron Newton topped the junior category. The cyclists weathered early-morning showers as they battled for supremacy. The females rode 25 miles while juniors and masters rode for 50 miles around a circuit that is 6.25 miles long, pedalling off from KK Gas Station up New Road and down Old Road in Mahaica before returning for the finish at the point of origin.

In the masters category, Junior Nyles rode in second while Jaikarran Sukhai came third. Team Evolutions' Steve Fernandes took fourth place while Johan Burrowes came in fifth. Pre-race masters favourite Alex Mendes, who is topping the Guyana Cycling Federation (GCF) points classifications, fell in the race while attempting a turn.

Hamilton, who won the Culture, Youth and Sport Ministry’s Independence ThreeStage event earlier this month and the time trials, completed a clean sweep. After the race, she said it was a challenging one as a result of the route and the wet conditions. She also indicated that she was hoping that she was considered to represent Guyana at the Caribbean championship in the near future.

Meanwhile, junior champion Newton described the race as a difficult one, but he held his nerve to come out on top. He said he was sitting in the peloton, but he got away in the third lap and rode solo from there on. The 16-year-old rider is a rider from the We Stand United Cycle Club that continues to produce top riders in Guyana. Alex Leung was the top Under-16 junior.

ceremony

Hilbert Foster in the presence of his family and friends, Bissoondyal Singh and Anil Beharry

I

t is a norm for Hilbert Foster to honour and recognise outstanding individuals. On this occasion though, Foster was the outstanding man of the occasion.

The Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTY&SC), MS, honoured the Cricket West Indies (CWI) Director and Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) Vice President in a simple but significant ceremony at the St Francis Community Developers Training Hall.

Under strict COVID-19 guidelines, Foster, the long-time Chief Executive Officer (CEO)/Secretary of the Club, received warm words from all those individuals who look up to him as a role model and those for whom he played a significant role in their lives. His brother, Alex Foster, was also presented with the RHTY&SC Dolphin Award, the club’s highest award, which has been awarded to 68 other respectable and outstanding persons.

Among the distinguished guests and cricket personnel present at the ceremony were GCB President and fellow CWI Director, Bissoondyal Singh, GCB's Anil Beharry, Colin Stuart, Coach Julian Moore, and a host of national cricketers.

The ceremony, which was a surprise to GCB Vice President Foster, included family members, a few friends, and sponsors of the RHTY&SC. In addition to his recent achievements at CWI and GCB, Foster is the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) President, a recipient of the Medal of Service Award in 2019, a former Director of the Guyana Chronicle, and the National Sports Personality for 2011 among other accomplishments.

Foster, who has decades of experience in cricket administration, has continued to lead the way in cricket administration making a positive difference in the lives of youths. With his recent appointment to CWI, he will be aiming to extend his greatness across the Caribbean. (Brandon Corlette)

G

uyana Amateur Boxing Association (GBA) President Steve Ninvalle is Guyana’s new Director of Sport, after almost a year of the position being vacant.

It was reported that the recently-appointed National Sports Commission (NSC) Board had its first meeting, in which the six-member body unanimously agreed, following consultation with Culture, Youth and Sport Minister Charles Ramson Jr, that Ninvalle was the best man for the job.

Ninvalle has long been one of the front-runners for the position, owing to his vast experience in sport administration.

Aside from his elected post at the helm of the GBA, Ninvalle has been a part of the Caribbean Boxing Steering Committee, of which he was Chairman, before resigning from the post in October 2020. He was elected to that post in 2019.

On the international stage, Ninvalle was the first Caribbean Executive Committee Member of the International Boxing Association (AIBA), elected in 2014. In 2017, he elevated to the Executive Bureau of that same entity, before ascending to the position of Chairman of AIBA’s Youth Commission in February

Steve Ninvalle is Guyana’s new Director of Sport

2019. During the same period of time, Ninvalle was elected as the Vice President of the Americas Boxing Confederation (AMBC).

On the local front, Ninvalle garnered his Government knowledge as a former Member of Parliament and Parliamentary Secretary for the Culture, Youth and Sport Ministry. In addition, he was further employed as a Sport Journalist and later Sport Editor. He was re-elected as the President of the GBA in 2016.

“I would like to thank the Honourable Minister

Charles Ramson Jr and the commissioners of the National Sports Commission for appointing me to this post and for having the confidence in me,” Ninvalle candidly stated during an invited comment with Guyana Times Sport.

“And I understand that to further develop sport in Guyana, it will need a team effort so this will be a team effort to take sport to the next level,” the new Director of Sport said, as he shared his intentions for his time in office.

MONDAY, MAY 31, 2021

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

Page 23 See story on page 23

− Hamilton, Newton victorious in female, junior categories respectively

Mr Linden Classic…

Khan, Wong, Sampson bag GBBFF 2021 Novices Bodybuilding and Fitness titles Page 23

Dave West Indian Imports becomes an official sponsor of RHTY&SC Page 21

− Narine inducted as honorary member, receives Dolphin Award of Excellence

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