Guyana Times - Sunday January 10, 2021

Clampdown on P21 firecrackers needed to shield animals – ARAPS …lobbies for use of silent fireworks Nationwide coverage coverage from from the the best best news news team team in in Guyana Guyana Nationwide Issue No. 4524 guyanatimesgy.com

THE BEACON BEACON OF OF TRUTH TRUTH THE

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021

Venezuela’s attempt to unilaterally fix boundaries a legal nullity ...Guyana conveys diplomatic rejection of Maduro’s decree - President Irfan Ali See story on page 3

...alerts int’l community of Venezuela’s threat to peace and security

Private sector a partner in development - Finance Minister See story on page 7

…days of APNU/AFC treating business community sector as enemies over

PRICE

$120 VAT INCLUDED

WHAT'S INSIDE:

PPP/C Central P12 Committee member Majeed Hussain dies …recognised as a “true patriot”

“Nothing being left to chance”Edghill, following visit to CJIA P2 project …says expansion to be done simultaneously with airport operations

Essequibo Coast pensioner drowns P10

P22 31 new coronavirus cases recorded

Professionals, single parents priorities in P9 housing plans

Guyana Defence Force ranks and the US Coast Guards on Saturday patrolling off the coast of Guyana. This is the first of a series of joint exercises as part of the operationalisation of the Shiprider Agreement ratified by the two countries in 2020 to focus mainly on illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (GDF and US Embassy photos)

From being homeless to owning Bartica’s most popular bakery – Richard Yarde tells his story Page 14

Pedal cyclist, motorcyclist killed in P8 separate accidents

2 NEWS

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

“Nothing being left to chance”– Edghill, following visit to CJIA project …says expansion to be done simultaneously with airport operations

I

t is clear that government is keeping close tabs on China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC), as Public Works Minister Juan Edghill made it palicid following another visit to the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) expansion project that nothing will be left to chance.

In an interview with this

“(The visit was) to ensure they’re in compliance, because we’re not leaving anything to chance. There were 34 items that should have been completed by the 31st of December. But only 13 were completed.”

“They got to get it done.

Which means other than them completing these things alone, they got to do

on 34 out of 71 items in the expansion project by December 31. Instead, they completed only 13 of those items as of Thursday last.

At the meeting, CHEC was given a deadline of January 31 to submit a Resource Allocation Plan that will provide a guide for their workplan.

“We should have the pre-

Public Works Minister Juan Edghill during the meeting at CJIA

publication on Saturday, Minister Edghill explained the purpose of his meeting with the contractor, which has a record of missing deadlines on the CJIA expansion project.

this plus other things simultaneously. Because we’re not going to allow for slippage of time,” the Minister further explained.

Previously, CHEC was supposed to complete works

liminary drawings for the additional works that they have to do by another two weeks, so that we can be able to confirm that by the end of March all the designs for the additional works,

will be done and we’ll be into construction,” Edghill said, adding that works should be able to be done simultaneously with the regular airport operations.

Back in December 2020, the government had brokered an agreement with CHEC so that the company would undertake $1.8 Billion in works at CJIA, at no additional cost to the state. This agreement, which included additional boarding bridges and an extended terminal building, brought Guyana closer to getting its originally promised scope of works.

The new agreement, which was pegged at a cost of some US$9 million, was signed by the Public Works Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Vladim Persaud and CHEC’s Project Manager, Liu Keliang.

The new works would have also involved an extension of the Airport’s boarding corridor in order to accommodate two more passenger boarding bridges, providing the Airport with a total of six boarding bridges capable of servicing aircraft such as the Boeing 777, Dreamliner, the AirBus

and similar trans-Atlantic aircraft.

It should have also seen the terminal building being extended to provide accommodation for additional commercial space such as food courts and duty-free shops. The extended building will feature a modern airport façade covering the full length of the departure terminal.

The CJIA expansion project was supposed to have been completed since December 31, 2018 under the former A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government, but has now been taken over by the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) Government, in an incomplete and downgraded state.

In fact, the David Granger-led APNU/AFC Administration had settled for a denigrated design while paying more than the allocated US$150 million. When the coalition Government came into power in 2015, the project was put on hold, but after discussions between former Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson and CHEC,

it was later announced that the project would be continued, but a number of downgrades were done to the design.

Some US$138 million of the allocated costs was funded by the EXIM (Export-Import) Bank of China, while US$12 million was spent by the Guyana Government. It was not expected to surpass that sum, but Guyana had to stand additional expenses.

The CJIA, in its downgraded design expansion, has four less air passenger boarding bridges for arrivals and departures than the initial eight; a 450-seat departure area; escalators and elevators in addition to an incomplete extended runway, which was supposed to measure 400 and 690 metres at the respective ends.

An old terminal building that was marked for cargo was revamped, and only one of the new sections was built. Meanwhile, a new apron that was supposed to support the additional four air bridges is non-existent. There is also no space for enough duty-free shops, restaurants, car rentals, and other facilities. (G3)

NEWS

3

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS

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

Sunday, January 10 – 02:00h – 03:30h and 13:30h – 15:00h and Monday, January 11 – 02:30h – 04:00h and 13:30h – 15:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Sunday, January 10 – 14:15h – 15:45h and Monday, January 11 – 15:00h – 16:30h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

Parika and Supenaam departure times – 05:00h, 11:00h and 16:00h daily

WEATHER TODAY Light cloud will prevail during the day. There will be clear skies during the night. Temperatures should range between 21 degrees Celsius and 28 degrees Celsius.

Winds: East North-Easterly to North-Easterly between 1.78 metres and 4.91 metres.

High Tide: 14:11h reaching a maximum height of 2.55 metres.

Low Tide: 07:49h and 20:26h reaching minimum heights of 0.83 metre and 0.63 metre.

Venezuela’s attempt to unilaterally fix boundaries a legal nullity ...Guyana conveys diplomatic rejection of Maduro’s decree – President Irfaan Ali ...alerts int’l community of Venezuela’s threat to peace and security

D

ays before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) holds a case management hearing on Guyana’s application for a final and binding settlement of the border controversy with Venezuela, the Nicholas Maduro Government on January 7, 2021, issued a new decree to claim for itself, the land and seabed west of the Essequibo Coast.

In a special address to the nation on Saturday afternoon, President Dr Irfaan Ali staunchly rejected this new claim by Venezuela, calling it a “legal nullity” that will not be recognised by Guyana or any State in the world.

According to Ali, Guyana has always chosen to have the issue resolved with-

President Irfaan Ali

from title to the land that forms the coast to which those seas and seabed are adjacent.”

“Since Guyana is sovereign over the coast west

The International Court of Justice

SATURDAY, JANUARY 9, 2020

LOTTERY NUMBERS L

03 09 14

16 17 27

FREE TICKET

11 Bonus Ball

DAILY MILLIONS

01 09 15 18 24 LUCKY 3

7

8

7

7

Afternoon Draw

7

0

Evening Draw

DRAW DE LINE

04

05

07

08

13 14 19

PAY DAY

SUPER PAY DAY FRIDAY, JANUARY 8, 2020

05 06 11 14 16

09 13 14 15 18

DISCLAIMER: WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY ERRORS IN PUBLICATION. PLEASE CALL THE HOTLINE FOR CONFIRMATION - TEL: 225-8902

COMMODITIES Indicators

US$

Change %

Crude Oil

$55.99/barrel

+2.88

Rough Rice

$228.33/ton

-0.12

London Sugar

$434.70/ton

+0.44

Live Spot Gold

USD Per Ounce

Bid/Ask

$1850.00

$1851.00

Low/High

$1828.20

$1912.20

Change

0.00

0.00%

in international law. He, therefore, described the Maduro Government’s latest statements as “deeply disturbing” but made it clear that they would not deter Guyana from seeking a final, binding resolution at the ICJ. “I find it deeply disturbing that on January 7, the President of Venezuela issued a decree claiming for Venezuela’s sovereignty an exclusive sovereign right to the waters and seabed adjacent to Guyana’s coast west of the Essequibo River,” Ali said.

“I remind that sovereignty over this coast and the land it is attached to was awarded to Guyana, then British Guiana, in the 1899 Arbitral Award, whose validity Guyana is confident the ICJ will uphold unequivocally.”

Ali explained that Venezuela’s decree breaches fundamental principles of international law, including the fact that no nation can unilaterally determine its own boundaries, except through an agreement with its neighbours or a judgement from the international court.

“The second violation of fundamental international law is based on the fact that, under well-established rules of international law, there is a fundamental principle that “the land dominates the sea”. This means that sovereignty, and sovereign rights in the sea and seabed, emanate

of the Essequibo River, as far as Punta Playa, it follows, consequently, that only Guyana can enjoy sovereignty and exclusive sovereign rights over the adjacent sea and seabed,” President Ali explained.

ICJ

The President expressed

confidence that the ICJ will ultimately settle not only the land dispute in Guyana’s favour but also the maritime space. According to him, Venezuela will have no choice but to accept the ruling, whether it partakes in the border case or not.

“The United Nations Charter obligates all Member States to comply with their obligations under international law, including as determined by the ICJ. In this connection, Venezuela does not have the ‘right’ to ‘reject’ the court’s binding decision.

What is more, its legal advisers would know that to do so, is a flagrant breach of its legal obligations, and will not be accepted by the ICJ, the United Nations or any other body that upholds international law, and its norms and practices.”

“As President of Guyana, I express the hope that the Venezuelan Government will reconsider its position and will decide to participate in the remainder of the proceedings before the ICJ, as the court decides upon the validity and binding character of the 1899 Arbitral Award and the international boundary that it created,” the President said.

But Ali noted that even if Venezuela chooses to boycott the ICJ proceedings, this will not deter or delay the case. According to him, the rules of the court ensure that one party’s absence will not prevent the case from being decided. ty

International communi-

Venezuela’s President Nicholas Maduro

Over the past few years, Venezuela has been increasingly isolated as Maduro maintained his grip on power despite elections the international community denounced as fraudulent, international sanctions and crippling economic stagnation.

In his address to the nation, Ali called the international community’s attention to the Venezuelan President’s decree. According to him, Venezuela’s continued unjust claims to Essequibo are a danger to international peace and security.

“We are alerting the international community, including our sister States in the Caribbean Community (Caricom) and in the Americas of the danger to international peace and security that is being threatened by last Thursday’s Venezuela decree which violates fundamental principles of international law.”

TURN TO PAGE 10

4

guyanatimesgy.com

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021

Views Editor: Tusika Martin News Hotline: 231-8063 Editorial: 231-0544 223-7230,223-7231,231-0544, 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

Insurrectionary politics

T

he world watched in shock and awe as the scenes of the insurrection, defined as “a violent uprising against an authority or government”, played out at the US Capitol Building last Wednesday. The mob of extreme right-wing supporters of President Donald Trump, armed with bats and guns, were determined to block the declaration of Joe Biden as the President-elect of the US. They had been encouraged by Trump in a long harangue to them.

Five persons were killed before order was restored and the Electoral College count resumed to its inevitable denouement.

Still insisting that the Elections were fraudulent, Trump finally conceded, but broke over 150 years of precedent by announcing he would not attend Biden’s inauguration. Several US leaders, including former President George Bush, denounced the insurrectionary action as typical of “Banana Republics” and the “Third World”. They were comparing America’s comparatively orderly elections over the last century, where the centrality of democratic elections to legitimise the governors by the governed had never been questioned.

Some in Guyana, especially supporters of the PNC, questioned the operations of the American electoral system, and claimed that the comparison was unfair. But was it? We had been under direct British colonial rule for a century and a half, which they had justified by claiming that we were not ready for the responsibilities of democratic governance, and we had to be “tutored” into its minutiae. Elections to choose leaders and the responsibility of those leaders to observe democratic norms were central to the British argument.

In Britain, those norms had been imbibed organically, and enlarged in the centuries following the promulgation of the Magna Carta in 1215, in which King John granted a Charter of Liberties to his subjects following demands by Barons and clerics. In 1832, not coincidentally the year before the Emancipation Act was mooted, Britain introduced its Elections Reform Act, which was gradually expanded until 1928, when women could vote with men who were 21 years old. In Guyana, we lagged as we were “tutored” and, in 1953, experienced our first democratic elections under universal suffrage.

This was followed by the betrayal of democracy and the introduction of insurrectionary politics by the PNC, launched by Forbes Burnham when he refused to allow internal democratic principles to operate to choose the leader of the PPP, of which he had been Chairman and Cheddi Jagan Leader. Losing elections in 1957 and 1961 to the latter, he connived with foreign elements to launch protests, arson and “sit-ins” of Government buildings to prevent the democratically elected Government to function.

In one of the latter actions in front of Parliament Buildings, Cheddi Jagan, in his vehicle, was viciously attacked by a mob of PNC supporters. This was the introduction of insurrectionary politics in Guyana in pursuit of Burnham’s “leader or nothing” demand, which resulted in him being installed into office in 1964, after a virtual civil war in the country.

Rigging elections for the next 28 years, with an enlarged military behind him, kept the PNC illegally in office until the free and fair elections of 1992. However, in a move reminiscent of the insurrectionary raid on Capitol Hill, PNC mobs invaded the Elections HQ with President Jimmy Carter inside. He and democracy in Guyana were saved from the insurrection by a call from sitting President Bush. Five years later, protesting the results of the 1997 elections, PNC goons reacted to a ruling by Justice Bernard on the swearing in of Janet Jagan by attacking and mauling hundreds of Indian-Guyanese, deemed to be PPP supporters. Another insurrection.

The violence continued for a decade, escalating into armed attacks by gunmen calling themselves “African Freedom Fighters” who were associated with elements of the PPP. In 2003, PNC protestors attacked the Presidential Office, resulting in several persons killed in the PNC “slow fyaah, mo’ fyaah” insurrectionary strategy.

The PNC has again disputed the results of the 2020 elections, and insurrectionary rhetoric is flying fast and furious.

Forewarned is forearmed about PNC insurrectionary politics.

APNU/AFC opposition should recognise PPP Govt and join in rejecting Maduro’s decree Dear Editor, I have read, with grave concern, news reports of the issuance of a decree by the President of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, with the support of Venezuela’s National Assembly, which seeks to reinforce Venezuela’s baseless claim to Guyana’s Essequibo Region and its attendant maritime space.

All Guyana must vehemently condemn and reject this reckless action on the part of Venezuela. The Government and people of Venezuela must act responsibly, as well as respect international law and international agreements.

Venezuela’s contention, that the Arbitral Award of 1899 which established the legal boundaries between the two countries is

not valid, is currently engaging the attention of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), having been referred to that Court by the United Nations Secretary General in keeping with the provisions of the 1966 Geneva Agreement.

Article IV (2) of the Geneva Agreement empowers the Secretary General to choose any of the means articulated in Article 33 of the UN Charter to resolve the controversy peacefully.

Both parties must let the ICJ process take its course. Venezuela must respect the ICJ process and desist from any statement and action that can serve to heighten tensions between our two countries. I am sure that as has been the position of successive governments, Guyana remains

committed to mutually respectful, cordial relations with Venezuela, and open to bilateral and multilateral discussions with its western neighbour that would serve to strengthen relations, except for the issue of the controversy, which is now before a competent court of law.

With global attention focused on current events in Washington, DC, it should not be lost on anyone that Maduro has conveniently chosen his timing to issue his decree. But this strategy will not succeed.

Guyanese must be united on this issue, and it is time for the Opposition in Guyana to end its non-recognition of the Government and begin serious and meaningful engagement.

That would be a responsi-

ble and nationalistic move on its part at this time.

Its hope that the Biden Administration would seek to have the PPP/C Government removed from office is wishful and naive thinking. That will not happen. The Opposition can, however, continue to robustly pursue its election petition now before the court.

We have a country to defend and build. Guyana must also mount a unified effort to bolster international support for the maintenance of its territorial integrity, including military support should Venezuela be emboldened to exercise the military option.

Regards, Wesley Kirton

Are Granger and Trump on the same journey?

Dear Editor, Let us not rejoice over the assault on Capitol Hill on Wednesday (1/6/21) because the bastion of democracy has been over-run by a mob instigated by a sitting President, who was supposed to be the Leader of the free world! The “insurrection” exploded like a volcano while Congressional Representatives, Senators and staff ran for shelter, as rioters scaled the building with reckless abandon and destroyed property in their path, with one of them nonchalantly taking over the seat of the Speaker. It took several hours to get the situation under control.

The temporary reign of anarchy has been rightly condemned by all lovers of freedom and adherents of democracy, including major world leaders, who have been calling for a peaceful transition of power, something for which the US has distinguished itself.

America has had worst challenges in the past (like 9/11) and has been able to bounce back with fortitude. It is expected that the Biden administration will quickly rise to the occasion and restore the country’s lost glory.

The assault on the impregnable symbol of democracy, Capitol Hill, incapacitated Congress but only for a few hours. The members and their staff returned to their chambers to continue the people's business when they certified the election of Joe Biden as President-elect and Kamala Harris as VicePresident-elect.

Guyanese have been

watching the situation very carefully and some have been quick to repudiate America for duplicity about their position on elections and democracy. For example, they blame America for the role they had played in the 2020 Guyana elections.

They even claim that their party (PNCR) was robbed out of power because of American interference. They hold the mistaken view that with the Democratic party coming into power in the US, they might have a good chance of reversing the 2020 election results.

They believe that history may be on their side. When Proportional Representation (PR) was imposed to remove the PPP from power in 1964, it was the US Democratic administration at the helm; but it was during a Republican administration that democracy was restored in Guyana in 1992. A couple of decades later, when the PPPC lost power at the 2015 elections to the PNCR+AFC, it was the Democratic administration in power. The US Charges D'Affaires Bryan Hunt played a significant role in steering the election results in the PNCR's favor. It was good then for America to actively support the PNCR+AFC to capture political power in 2015, but not good for America to play a role, equally along with other nations (UK, Canada, EU, OAS, CARICOM, Commonwealth) in ensuring the integrity of Guyana's 2020 elections process!

Notwithstanding, the most fascinating thing about the storming of

Capitol Hill is the striking similarities in position and values that pop up between President Donald Trump and President David Granger. Because of space constraints, I will tabulate these. (i) Both Trump and Granger have launched a brutal assault on democracy. They have polarized their societies further. (ii) Both men have challenged the election results in courts. (iii) Both Trump and Granger were denounced

by World leaders for their post-election gymnastics. (iv) Trump and Granger have strong authoritarian credentials with a propensity to flout the constitution and the rule of law. (v) Both men have undermined their country’s international relations.

Trump America left the WHO and the Paris Climate Agreement, while Granger alienated the entire international community with his election's charade. (vi) Trump will not attend Joe Biden and Kamala Harris' inauguration.

Likewise, Granger did not attend President Irfaan Ali's inauguration. (vii) Trump and Granger have been distorting reality by pedaling a surfeit of lies to their supporters. (viii) Despite losing, both Trump and Granger have claimed victory. (ix) Trump took no action to stop the assault on Capitol Hill, neither did Granger take any action to stop social upheavals at the Ashmin's Building in Georgetown as well as at the WCB mayhem. (x) Neither Trump nor Granger could cause the

democratic foundation to falter.

The main differences are reflected in the application of political principles.

(I) Trump has lost many of his staunchest supporters, allies, and aides, who spoke out eloquently against his lies, incitement, and violence. With Granger, all his supporters and allies, except Dominic Gaskin, remained silent and refused to condemn electoral rigging or violence. (ii) In Trump America, the election results were publicized by independent bodies. In Granger Guyana, the election results, as captured in SOPs (Statements of Polls), have never been made public by the PNCR nor the so-called independent GECOM. (iii) In America, Trump has no power to control the election machinery. In Guyana, Granger had control through his unilateral appointment of the Gecom Chair. In bewilderment, Granger's party is defending Gecom staffers in Court on election fraud charges. (iv) Trump’s successor Joe Biden will be installed on the constitutional due date of January 20, 2020, while Guyana's new President Dr Irfaan Ali was installed on 8/2/2020, 5 months after the constitutional due date.

Donald Trump and David Granger have many things in common. Are they on the same journey? Are the similar attributes of both men characteristic of authoritarian leaders who view power as an end in itself?

Sincerely, Dr Tara Singh

guyanatimesgy.com

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 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

Free, fair elections must be crystal clear and unconditional in democratic societies

Dear Editor, Please permit me the space to emphasise that the meaning of “free and fair elections” must be crystal clear and unconditional in a democratic society. The Guyana Constitution is grounded in this framework. The indifference to this establishment, therefore, has undermined the acceptable, revered principles on which our nation is built, and with whom we share relationships.

Following successful passage of the December 2018 No-Confidence Motion, the PNC, along with operatives at the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), did everything to avoid going to the polls. It was indeed a Herculean task to get the APNU/AFC Government to dissolve the Parliament and announce the Elections date.

After the Elections on March 02, 2020, the nation had to endure five months of frustration as the PNC and the GECOM riggers tried desperately to avoid the inevitable in an obvious move to stifle the democratic right of our nation, realising a situation of total international rejection.

Without a doubt, the re-

cent troubling attacks on democracy at home and in several places around the world dictate the need for strengthening policies and actions to deter all undesirable threats.

We watched in awe at the eruption of some of the most atrocious and abominable challenges to democratic electoral principles which recently took place in the United States of America.

The strongest condemnation is warranted from the outlook of things, and it is therefore welcoming to witness the strong words of principle emanating from Our Attorney General, given Guyana’s experience at home.

As a global leader, after which many countries have patterned their political standards and foundation, one must be flabbergasted to observe domestic terrorism of this nature. An attempted “coup” has not occurred in America in over 200 years, and there is some measure of certainty that the swiftest and most condign actions would be taken against those involved, to ensure that it never happens again.

Observably, the American internal verification system stands strong against the in-

surgent behaviour, unlike the drawn-out, attenuated one of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), which must now face an almost total overhaul. Against the backdrop of decades of underhand business by officials involved at GECOM, this time it took, among other things, the sacrifice of many freedom fighters willing to face injury and death in their watchful protection of the nation’s cast ballots. Those in control at the GECOM Secretariat level openly showed that they had no problem throwing away decency and transparency which ought to have been the central pillar of that constitutional institution. Rather, they openly displayed a status quo that ensured Guyana maintained the terrible, undesirable stigma of ‘Rigged Elections’, which Guyanese people are fully aware is the hallmark of PNC architecture and planning. We can no longer go forward in this setting of pretense and trumpedup false security.

In 2015, the PNC riggers mysteriously introduced the fake spreadsheet instead of following the legally instructive method of using the

statements of poll in the verification process. Possibly, an unsuspecting PPPC was caught napping and in search of recounts that were denied by the sudden unavailability of GECOM staff. Worst of all is the fact that the Chief Elections Officer of GECOM, Mr. Keith Lowenfield, then told the Commission meeting that there were ‘fake statements of poll’, and he would not be able to declare the election’s results. Also of note, the Former Chairman of GECOM, Dr. Steve Surujbally, said the ‘fake statements of poll were not used’ in the tabulation of the marginal victory handed to PNC-led APNU/AFC contesting party. It meant that the votes in 32 electoral divisions were not counted, and the election petition filed to address the humongous anomalies still cannot be heard up to today.

The obvious question is: From where did those fake statements of poll originate?

There was no declaration from GECOM regarding the divisions affected by these fake statements of poll, and the CEO did not think it relevant for voters to know if and why their votes were not

Dear Editor, Please permit me the opportunity to comment on Mr Lincoln Lewis’s latest letter, published in another section of the media on January 07,2021 under the caption, "Let Sam Hinds show this nation what he has done for the African communities."

A good leader has a clear picture of future results, and aligns organisational strategy with that vision.

A leader must be intimately familiar with the end destination — something that Stephen Covey refers to as “Keep the End in".

I was shocked by this statement, which drove curiosity and interest in the truth. It is fortunate that I had the opportunity to work with PM Sam Hinds while at the Aluminum plant and the Steam Power Plant, and it is surprising that Mr Lewis would say, "Let Sam Hinds show this nation what he has done for the African communities”.

We are all Guyanese, Mr Lewis; and as a Guyanese living in Linden in the 80s, one would have a clear understanding of the discrimination that Mr Sam Hinds went through under the hands of the PNC and the leadership of Guymine because he stepped out from the norm of blindly supporting and following the PNC. Many employees will remember that even his privileged vehicle was taken away from him, leaving him to walk from home to work. However, he stood his ground and showed the many workers that he was truly a leader.

Calling Mr Hinds a "rub-

ber stamp" is distasteful. If there is one thing I learnt about leadership, it is that there is no leader without at least one follower; that’s obvious. In reality, the distinctions among followers in groups and organisations are every bit as consequential as those among leaders.

As Mr Hinds continued to serve the bauxite industry as a chemical engineer with responsibility for the Alum plant, by the way, "Alum" (aluminum sulfate) is a nontoxic liquid that is commonly used in water treatment plants to clarify drinking water. This was a product of Mr Sam Hinds’s research in the 80s, and was used to reduce the amount of phosphorus in the water at most of the water treatment plants throughout Guyana.

Sam Hinds, a frontline activist of the Civic Group, was considered a spear of the PNC by many Lindeners, but that never detoured him from forming an alliance with the People's Progressive Party, which showed strength.

The facts always tell a different story.

His leadership style and approach were the more striking, as of course are the connections that can be drawn between his political reputation and historical legacy, including the remarkable charisma that unites them. Sam Hinds has embodied that quality of “individual personality…set apart from ordinary men,” defined as the charisma of a great leader. He was keenly aware, from the beginning of his leadership, that his good guidance could help found,

consolidate, and safeguard traditions of democracy for our country. At the same time, he saw that he could represent important sources of inspiration and legitimisation for our Region 10 communities and other communities. Moreover, perceiving this, He was open to moulding his own symbol status or iconicity — he was always keen to play to the ways in which his own life or biography could be seen to underpin Guyana’s long road to development under the PPP/C. As Prime Minister, Mr Sam Hinds shared a keen sense of the power of the word and the symbol of verbal advocacy and defence, which had derived strength and inspiration from his African ancestry, and it was often recognised that he had so accepted his black identity as fundamental to his makeup that he was able to step forward as a representative and leader of all races. The pride in his background and traditions, instilled in him through his upbringing, was essential for the resilience he showed in withstanding the political turmoil he went through at the bauxite company under leadership of the PNC in the early 80s, feeling that he could speak for all Guyanese; therefore, not merely his African descent, but how he embraced it were key catalysts in the mix of character, charisma, and achievement that underpinned his leadership.

Here was a Prime Minister and President-in-waiting announcing himself both to the world and to his strifetorn countrymen as a man proceeding with caution, yet

filled with hope. His leadership will stand as a lasting example of good governance, tolerance and solidarity. We can therefore state that the socio-cultural and economic-political relevance and legacy of Sam Hinds is a great lesson for all Guyanese sons and daughters.

Therefore, one cannot assume that the PPP/C policies will proportionately serve all of Guyana if all of Guyana is not involved.

To keep Guyana’s democracy healthy, the PPP/C has prioritised an active push towards national reconciliation, where Guyanese citizen themselves and all political parties must be proactive in addressing this situation over the country’s political divisions. This means that both the PPP/C and the APNU+AFC coalition need to not only extend offerings to work with each other, but they must also incorporate the smaller parties and civil society actors to take part in the process of fostering a national dialogue. This was demonstrated by our President, Dr Ali, when he invited the former APNU-AFC President, Mr David Granger, to a working lunch, which the latter declined. This could have been instrumental in producing policies that are beneficial for all Guyanese.

So one must not ask what the other has done for a "Division of the population". Any Prime Minister of Guyana must have every Guyanese citizen's interest at heart.

counted?

The introduction of the spreadsheet instead of the statements of poll caused a big furor, following which Returning Officer Melanie Marshall halted the counting process with the promise that she would continue shortly, after persistent objections.

The continuation of the verification process never saw the light of day, as GECOM suddenly declared there were enough votes in favour of the Opposition to announce a result. With an entire process sabotaged largely with assistance from the clandestine actions of GECOM operatives, the APNU/AFC was catapulted into office. This, of course, could never be considered free or fair, with the possibility of the election petition turning out to be of non-materialistic value. It never saw the light of day.

Guyanese are now asking if there were ever any fake statements of poll, and these matters must be cleared.

The officials at GECOM are shrouded in overwhelming uncertainty, which does not

auger well for the administration of processes representing the nation. What we have is a conundrum, whereby persons in the GECOM system have been allowed to circumvent their expected responsibilities and then allowed space and latitude to clean up the evidence against their dirty work.

The foregoing is neither acceptable nor fair, and the Commission needs to take the strongest actions in eradicating the filth. Citizens are of the view that the PNC are fully aware of the fact that they can never win a free and fair election in Guyana, and they were hell-bent on derailing all elections. There must be no further accommodation of the tainted measures and myopic lenses from the PNC to visualise these important matters.

We demand the immediate implementation of systems that would realise free, fair and acceptable elections’ results.

Sincerely, Neil Kumar

When will there be an open, honest national discussion Some people require vision and clarity of focus (Part 1) on identity, citizenship?

Sincerely, David Adams

Dear Editor, I note a current public discussion among African Guyanese with two – Messrs Lincoln Lewis and Hamilton Green – asking of another prominent African Guyanese who is former Prime Minister and President Samuel Hinds what he had done to uplift their fellow African Guyanese during his political career.

In the context of a prevailing school of thought, which is supported by some who have access to the media and to shaping public policy, that we are all Guyanese citizens only and should ignore the Guyana Constitution and its guarantee of support and protection for our ethnic, cultural, and religious rights, is this discussion racist? Or is it a most welcomed discourse among members of one of our ethnic communities?

There has been no objection from anyone thus far, so: if an Indian Guyanese were to warn his or her fellow Indian Guyanese to protect themselves during a period of open violence on them, is that racist? Or is it a welcomed and legitimate concern for the safety of fellow members of one of our ethnic communities which should be echoed by every decent citizen?

In his letter to the press that sparked this current exchange, Mr Hinds wrote about the way he saw Indian Guyanese being perceived by fellow African Guyanese as not being fully legitimate citizens of Guyana and who should therefore not be allowed to hold political pow-

er. That perception still prevails and has sparked such remarks as uttered by the late UWI Professor Rex Nettleford that “Indians in the Caribbean have to learn to be West Indian”.

Learning to be West Indian would mean erasing or discarding our Indian history and heritage and replacing it with whatever is decided for us by those who see themselves as the “legitimate” citizenry and who, as noted, can speak openly and without fear of being denounced as racist when they use their double-barrelled ethnic and citizenship identity which is their - as well as every other citizen’s - constitutional right.

However, if, say, I were to publicly ask, as an Indian Guyanese, of another Indian Guyanese what he or she has done to uplift our Indian Guyanese community how many denunciations of being racist and divisive would I receive? And, even more interestingly, from whom and from how many quarters?

When will there be an open and honest national discussion on identity and citizenship in this country that will address the prevailing and accepted hypocrisies, double standards, dishonesty, and prejudices that persist against whole groups of Guyanese citizens and which, ironically, continue to further those self-same prejudices and perceptions that Mr Hinds observed decades ago?

Sincerely, Ryhaan Shah

6

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021

Page

Foundation

5 Surprising Ways Gratitude Improves Your Health

How to develop gratitude—and manage pain more effectively—when times are hard By: Evan Parks PsyD

W

hen life knocks you down, drains you of energy, and weakens your resolve, the last thing on your mind is gratitude. It’s hardly surprising; after all, gratitude is an emotional response of appreciation for what we have. When we feel depleted it can feel impossible to draw from an empty reservoir.

And yet, developing gratitude during hard times is precisely what fills the void.

What’s more, gratitude is the key to preventing emotional and physical breakdowns during times of stress.

The difficult circumstances we find ourselves in are not the only challenge to practicing gratitude. While it’s certainly true that gratitude can be an automatic emotional response to many of our life events, it rarely is. Rather, what’s more true is that gratitude is an internal perspective—a lens we view the world through— and one that we in fact control. The struggle to find gratitude comes from expecting life to be a certain way (and being disappointed and angry when it is not).

Evaluate Your Perspective

Maybe you have not thought about this before—what do you expect life to be like?

Take the year 2020, for example—were you expecting a global pandemic? Probably not!

But really, when have we ever known what is going to happen? Over this past year, many good people developed cancer; many kind souls lost a loved one to a drunk driver; many hopeful new parents had a child born with birth defects. They weren’t expecting these life-changing events to occur, but nevertheless, they did. When our perspective of life is limited by the belief that life “should” be a certain way, we will find gratitude difficult to express.

Gratitude is only possible when we realise that all that we have is a gift.

Having worked and travelled in

many countries around the world, here is my impression about differing cultures— the more we have, the less we express gratitude for it. In other words, excess leads to a feeling of entitlement. However, the opposite is true for those who live in extreme poverty: people who live in the poorest countries in the world tend to express tremendous appreciation for what they have.

Moreover, they are not dissatisfied, anxiously waiting for the next good thing to come their way.

Life as a Gift

There is nothing like sharing a simple meal of bread and tea in the home of a person of modest means; indeed, the experience is humbling. Instead of a sense of anger, bitterness, or irritation for what they lack, they express gratitude for the things they do have—the ability to walk and breathe, to survive; they take note of the beautiful sky at night and the richness that friends and family provide them.

Even in their poverty they willingly give away what they have to others in need.

Here’s a simple exercise to try. The next time you are stuck in traffic, frustrated that you “should” be arriving at your destination on time, try to change your focus and see what it does for your mood. A

simple yet startlingly effective way to do this? Follow your senses: feel the warmth of the sun coming through the window (or perhaps your car’s heater); smell the cup of coffee sitting at arm’s reach in your cup holder; take a sip, perhaps marvelling at the insulated mug that keeps it warm long past the pot; listen to a favourite song on the radio; look at your fellow travellers and allow curiosity to fill in the blanks of where they all might be headed to. Like you, they are people with hopes, dreams, and disappointment. Taking a break from focusing on your current stress will allow a brief reprieve by shifting your perspective to these small gifts in life, (and maybe even seeing all of life as the gift that it is).

The Benefits of Gratitude

When we get a hold of the idea that everything we have is a gift—and we express appreciation for the gift of life itself—we shift our perspective away from what we don’t have to what we do have. In appreciating what we have, we invite important changes to take place in our brain and body. Indeed, expressing gratitude on a daily basis provides many benefits—here are five that might surprise you.

1. Reduction in physical and mental symptoms of distress. Based on a study

of 200 chronic pain sufferers, those who expressed gratitude for the good things in their lives reported less depression, anxiety, fatigue, inflammation, and insomnia.

2. Creation of positive changes in your brain. When we feel—and express—gratitude, we can increase the volume of grey matter in the right inferior temporal gyrus of the brain; this helps us to regulate our emotions more effectively. It also enhances dopamine and serotonin and changes the hormones that regulate fear and anxiety.

3. Enhanced connection with others. When we express gratitude to others, we not only realise their importance to us, but we build stronger connections and feel more supported by those around us. And social support is a well-documented key factor in developing resilience in hard times.

4. When we keep a daily journal of our blessings, we are likely to experience less pain and be more willing to engage in physical activities that help us move toward health and away from dysfunction.

5. Regulation of stress. Gratitude helps us regulate the stress hormone cortisol.

Keeping our cortisol levels in check, in turn, improves our cardiac function when we are under stress and increases our ability to stay balanced.

Plant the Seeds of Gratitude

Think of gratitude as a garden you plant. When you start incorporating gratitude practices into your activities of daily living, at first you won’t see any immediate change in your outlook on life. Lasting improvements in your emotional and physical health take time, but they will come if you are diligent. In fact, setting the intention to “plant a gratitude garden” in and of itself speaks to your capacity for hope and a more fulfilled life. And when the fruits of gratitude do show up? It will have been well worth the effort. (Excerpt from Psychology Today)

7 Private Sector a partner in development - Finance Minister NEWS

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

…days of APNU/AFC treating business sector as enemies over

S

enior Minister in the Office of the President, with responsibility for Finance, Dr Ashni Singh, has made it clear that Government sees the Private Sector as an important partner in national development and economic growth.

In a recent interview with US-based radio announcer Farook Juman, Singh spoke of the importance the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Government attaches to the Private Sector. In fact, he pointed out that one of President Dr. Irfaan Ali’s first acts as President was

meeting with members of the business community.

“This Government considers job creation and Private Sector growth as the primary source of economic growth and wellbeing in the country. This is probably best manifested by President Ali’s invitation on the first working day as President, (when) he invited the leaders of the Private Sector to a meeting,” Dr Singh detailed.

“This conveys the level of attention we attach to developing a close working engagement with the Private Sector in Guyana, and ensur-

ing that we do everything to foster Private Sector involvement, confidence, growth and expansion. So, a lot of this is about restoring confidence in the Private Sector.”

According to Dr Singh, this stands in sharp contrast with the former A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government’s antagonistic approach to the private sector. He explained that the PPP Government immediately set that approach aside when it entered office.

“The Private Sector is not

Forensic audit looms for Regions 2, 4, 5 spending

L

ocal Government and Regional D e v e l o p m e n t Ministry is currently working on the modalities for a forensic investigation to recover money invested on some projects undertaken by three administrative regions. This decision was taken following the findings of the 2019 Auditor General Report which revealed that Regions Two (PomeroonSupenaam); Five (MahaicaBerbice) and Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) had failed to achieve the goals of their respective projects.

Speaking with DPI, Minister Nigel Dharamlall said the ministry will soon write to the Auditor General to request an investigation as soon as possible.

“There are some projects

which we believe were mishandled and mismanaged, for want of a better description. There was massive corruption in some of these projects. One that comes very quickly to mind is the land utilisation project in Region Five between the period of 2016 to 2019; over $90 million was spent on it, but less than $1.8 million in return.”

In 2018, Region Five established a model farm to boost its economy with training opportunities through work study programmes for high school students.

The Regional Administration intended to introduce the model farm in three phases over a 13-year period as finances were provided.

Since its establishment on leased state lands at Naarstigheid, West Coast Berbice, Minister Dharamlall said the farm has provided agro-supplies to schools and hospitals. It also sold its products through various ventures.

However, he added that it is unclear how the administration operated the farm at a loss, when it also employed 28 persons.

“There has to be an investigation to find out what exactly happened to the monies given. So, wherever the chips fall, I think we will pursue those culpable,” he said.

Moving forward, the Ministry will put systems in place to ensure accountability and transparency.

our enemy, in contrast to our predecessors in office, who clearly viewed the Private Sector as their enemy. The Private Sector is not in competition with us. In contrast, just like the Government, the Private Sector is in the business of growing the economy and developing the country. So, we have sent the signal that we are a business-friendly Government,” he explained.

Singh noted that the new, business-friendly atmosphere is evident in a number of ways, including the PPP Government’s tax policies. The former APNU/ AFC’s many punitive tax measures were relaxed by the new Government.

“They (APNU/AFC) do not understand the role that the Private Sector plays in investment and in creating jobs and in generating incomes for people, and so they do not see the adverse effects that taxing the Private Sector out of business will have on people’s lives,” the Minister said.

“We’ve immediately reversed a lot of the punitive tax measures. Budget 2020 did that right away, not only on businesses, but on households. And when you reverse punitive tax measures on consumers, you’re putting disposable income in the hands of consumers, who then go and spend that disposable income in the marketplace.”

Investment-friendly

In calling attention to Guyana’s status as an investment-friendly country,

Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh

President Ali had previously pointed to the country’s attractive investment regime, which is being refashioned to become more investment-friendly. For instance, there are a number of measures included in National Emergency Budget 2020 which the President has said are aimed at improving the ease of doing business, increasing competitiveness, and reducing investment and production costs. In this regard, several key budget measures have been implemented, including tax concessions on agro-processing, cold storage and packaging; the removal of Value Added Tax (VAT) on exports; and allowing exporters, including those in the fishing, rice and timber industries, to reclaim input VAT. Measures to reduce investment and production costs include the removal of VAT on building and construction materials, electricity and water; the removal of VAT on fertilisers, agro-chemicals, pesticides, and key inputs into the poul-

try sector; and the zero-rating of the poultry industry.

At the Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association’s (GMSA’s) 25th Annual Awards Ceremony last month, Ali had said the impending expansion of Guyana’s economy with the oil and gas sector would open the floodgates to business opportunities as well as enlarge the country’s fiscal space to better address deficiencies in the productive sectors.

On this note, he said Government would promulgate policies to expand, strengthen and diversify manufacturing and services.

According to Ali, manufacturing and services will become mainstays of the ‘new economy’.

In the same breath, however, he had said the traditional sectors would not be neglected. Despite the problems which confront these sectors, the President contends, they still collectively continue to be a lifeline for tens of thousands of Guyanese. (G3)

8 NEWS

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Pedal cyclist, motorcyclist killed in separate accidents

T

wo men are now dead after they were killed on Friday in separate accidents on the SoesdykeLinden Highway and Herstelling Public Road, East Bank Demerara (EBD).

Dead are 36-year-old Dayle Jordan, an employee of Massy Stores and resident of La Retraite, WCD, and Adiraj Persaud of Herstelling, EBD. Reports are Jordan was involved in an accident that occurred at about 23:30h on Friday, at the Yarrowkabra Public Road, SoesdkyeLinden Highway.

Police said that a motor pick-up driven by a

51-year-old resident of Bath Settlement, West Coast Berbice, was proceeding north along the western side of the Highway when the motorcycle driven by Jordan, along with a pillion rider, allegedly overtook a car and ended up in the path of the truck, causing a collision.

The motorcyclist along with the pillion rider, who has been identified as Jordan’s 29-year-old fiancé Shavon Salmon, also of La Retraite, were taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) where Jordan was pronounced dead on arrival. Salmon

Dead: Dayle Jordan

was admitted as a patient.

A breathalyser test was conducted on the driver of the truck and he was found to be above the legal limit of alcohol.

He is presently in custody assisting with investigations. Meanwhile, also on Friday, 33-year-old Adiraj Persaud of Herstelling, EBD, was struck down and killed by a minibus at Herstelling, East Bank Demerara.

Based on reports, the minibus was proceeding

north on the western carriage of the Herstelling Public Road at about 14:00h when it collided with the now dead man, who was crossing the road on his bicycle at the time.

After hitting Persaud, the bus collided with a motor lorry that was parked in the corner of the said road.

As a result of the collision, Persaud was flung on to the road’s surface where he received injuries and was subsequently picked up in an unconscious condition by public-spirited citizens and taken to the GPHC. The injured man was admitted a patient with a fractured right hand and skull. He later died while receiving treatment.

Following the accident, a breathalyser test was conducted on the driver who is a 34-year-old resident of East Ruimveldt, Georgetown, and no trace of alcohol was found. Investigations are ongoing. (G9)

(PNC) Pot calling…

S

…(Trump) pot black ome people really have no shame. And in Guyana right now, a whole lotta those people can be found in the PNC leadership following the insurrectionary attack on their Capitol Hill, home of their House of Representatives and Senate, by right wing extremists following Donald Trump. These yahoos, of course, were following Trump’s line that he was “cheated, not defeated” in their November elections.

Now, dear readers, is this reminiscent of anything that happened to us here in our dear old mudland? Not just right now, but ever since 1992! In case you’ve forgotten - or more likely repressed, because it was so ugly - just refer to your Eyewitness’s piece from yesterday. Well, some PNC leaders gave their take on the American insurrection in which five persons have died.

Joe Harmon, “Leader of the Opposition” - who accepts that title and, more to the point, its perks, but not the PPP Government! - declared unctuously: “The APNU+AFC is of the view that the United States of America will have to act in a manner consistent with the global leadership role it has exercised in decades past, and it must do so quickly.”

Well, how did the US act most recently with what went down here after our March 2 elections, to demonstrate its “global leadership role” as far as democracy was concerned? After all, the US had explicitly declared that the promotion of democracy was one of its explicit foreign policy goals. It served its interests, because democratic countries are less prone to acting irrationally in the global arena since democracy insists on deliberation before action. So, what Harmon should also have said was that the US acted in its best traditions when it rejected Granger’s clinging to power when he was clearly defeated in the elections. That Trump was the US head of state when that happened and he later tried to subvert the rule in his country doesn’t vitiate the rule!!

Then came Ramjattan, who had saved democracy here by expelling several Russian spies. He clearly blamed Trump for his ejection from power. “This is seditious behaviour by the American President, and not only those mobsters that went into Capitol Building. The President and the Constitution has it that if you behave mischievously and you do misconduct for what they call misdemeanours and felonies in office, after you come off in twelve days, fourteen days from now, they should hold him, line him up and put him in what you call the orange jacket.”

So, the question for Ramjattan is: What should be done to Granger and Harmon for inciting folks in W. Berbice to riot against "Guyanese" perceived to be PPP/C supporters following the murder of the Henry cousins?

Orange jumpsuit anyone? …its acolytes Your Eyewitness has been looking for a silver lining after the black cloud of the PNC’s rearguard action to cling on to power by hook or by crook - mostly the latter! He found one in the ripping away of the mask of hypocrisy from a large number of persons who were “PNC to the bone”, but tried to pass as neutral. One of those is Lincoln Lewis, the erstwhile head of the TUC, an umbrella trade union body that’s supposed to represent all workers based on ILO principles.

Lewis has allowed his racial affinity to overwhelm all notions of fairness and justice. Now, there’s nothing wrong in being proud of one’s ethnic or racial group. But what’s wrong is when Lewis - who identifies as “African” - not only refuses to acknowledge PPP’s cross-ethnic initiatives in our multiracial/multiethnic country, but dubs “African” Sam Hinds as “racist” for not doing so.

So, what would Lewis say about Hinds’s PPP retaining the annual $2 billion Sugar Levy while maintaining the $2 billion electricity subsidy to Linden? …for divisions Your Eyewitness isn’t surprised that the PNC’s downplaying the PPP’s magnanimous treatment of the Public Servants with the bonus awarded.

But to do so by comparing it with efforts to resuscitate the sugar industry is contemptible.

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

NEWS

9

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Professionals, single parents a priority in housing plans

H

ousing and Water Minister, Collin Croal has said the Ministry is pushing ahead with its work programme, and housing for professionals and single parents is high on the Government’s agenda.

The Ministry anticipates about $15 billion in invest-

ments in new housing areas alone and it is focused on ensuring that persons in all income brackets benefit.

However, it is advancing the initiative to ensure that members of the Disciplined Services are among the first to be served, Minister Croal said during a live interview with Farook Juman

on Thursday. This is to fulfil a commitment made by President Dr Irfaan Ali in December to improve the lives of these personnel through adequate housing.

“We have a commitment that we are going to be signing with the Disciplined Services for a percentage for the Disciplined Services.

We also have the professionals in the medical profession, single parents,” Croal is quoted as saying.

He reassured that “all will be served” in keeping with the PPP/C manifesto promise to provide sustainable housing for the nation.

Croal also said most of the applications submitted

Stranded Linden family

Slight possibility of a flight from Cuba soon – Foreign Affairs official …as Guyana’s embassy in Cuba seeking to help family

E

fforts are presently being made to secure seats on a flight back to Guyana for the Jacobis family of Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice), who were stranded in Cuba due to airport closure and flight suspensions. Orville and Latoya Jacobis had travelled to the location to facilitate their two-year-old son’s urgent heart surgery, which has since been successful.

The family has since been in contact with Guyana’s embassy in Cuba and officials have indicated that Orville Jacobis would have reached out and time was spent trying to get him a flight out of Cuba. Orville Jacobis was initially slated to travel back home two Saturdays ago, while his wife and son were expected to travel last Saturday.

“But the plain fact is that there are no CAL flights currently - and COPA has reduced its 21 flights to Cuba to three per week.

COPA’s focus is to get the passengers that travelled with their airline back to their country of origin,” the Foreign Affairs official told

Orville and Latoya Jacobis along with their now recovering twoyear-old son

this publication.

The official noted too that the Foreign Affairs Ministry would have been notified about the facts surrounding the Jacobis family’s plight in Cuba. The official added that they were told, upon enquiring, that

the child was not formally discharged from the hospital as yet and that he would officially be discharged on Monday, January 11.

However, the child’s mother informed this publication on Friday that her son has been discharged. She not-

ed that the official was not yet informed of this development. She promised to do so at the soonest.

The official had further indicated that on Friday, enquiries were made from CAL and COPA Airlines regarding the possibility of getting the family out of Cuba, but noted that the response was that this was not possible at the time.

“The CAL representative explained that there is a very slight possibility that there could be a flight from Havana during next week (this week). COPA pointed out that a flight is expected out of Cuba on January 19 and possibly on January 26, 2021,” the official said, as they noted that this was communicated with a representative from the Foreign Affairs Ministry.

Meanwhile, the couple has indicated that their major priority is to get back home to the rest of their children. The family had initially raised the $5 million cost for the surgery, through the help of public and other donations which they have since expressed gratitude for.

to the Central Housing and Planning Authority are for low-income housing and focus will continue to be given to this category. They will be among those considered for allocation in the new schemes being developed.

“This year in our sector alone, we’re talking about investments about probably $15 billion investments alone in new housing areas and that is only the start of our allocation exercise,” he said.

This investment includes ongoing works and will feature land preparation and infrastructure works in many areas.

Further, there are several plans for the construction of homes in the 2021 work programme.

“The CH&PA technical teams are finalising with the contractors… They are

Housing and Water Minister, Collin Croal

down to the wire now and they are now about that stage to start that construction for a number of houses,” Croal said.

Some provisions will be made for public servants to benefit.

10 NEWS

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Essequibo Coast pensioner drowns

T

he family of 74-yearold Deodat (only name given), known as “John”, a pensioner of Devonshire Castle, Essequibo Coast, was left in shock after they received news on Saturday that he was found floating face down in a trench in Hampton Court, Essequibo Coast, Region Two, (Pomeroon-Supenaam).

Police are now treating the incident as a case of drowning, since it was disclosed by the man’s daughter Sabitree Deodat, that

her father was an alcoholic.

According to reports, the incident occurred sometime between Wednesday and Saturday. The dead man’s daughter said she last saw her father alive at about 17:15h on Wednesday at her home.

She said at the time, he appeared to be under

the influence of alcohol.

Sabitree said that after spending some time, her father left to go home.

The woman said knowing the condition her father left in, she called to enquire if he had reached home safety but she was told that he did not arrive home.

This led to his fami-

ly members becoming worried, and a search party was created to search for him.

Police said on Saturday about 06:30h the man’s family members found him floating in the Hampton Court trench.

An alarm was raised and the body was fished out

Venezuela’s attempt to...

Dead: Deodat, also known as “John”

“My fellow citizens, we will continue our bipartisan and national approach to this matter, secure in the knowledge that the right and law are on our side. Be assured that my Government – and I personally – will continue to keep you informed as any further developments take place in this matter,” Ali said.

The President also revealed that he instructed Foreign Minister Hugh Todd to summon the Head of Venezuela’s Mission in Guyana, to the Foreign Ministry. According to Ali, the Head of Mission has been told of Guyana’s concerns with Maduro’s decree and that it has entirely

rejected Venezuela’s renewed claims to Essequibo.

“The Officer-in-Charge has been told to convey to the Venezuelan authorities in Caracas, that, in accordance with international law, and its assertion of its sovereignty and territorial integrity, Guyana rejects entirely the decree issued by President Maduro.”

“Guyana will continue on the path of peaceful resolution of this matter in keeping with international law and the jurisdiction of the ICJ. We urge our neighbour Venezuela to do the same,” Ali explained.

Meanwhile, this publication made contact with Minister Todd, who

and positively identified.

The pensioner was then escorted to the Suddie Public Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

His body was further escorted to the Suddie Mortuary where it awaits a post-mortem examination.

Investigations are ongoing.

FROM PAGE 3

revealed that he had a conversation with the Head of Mission, who is Ambassador Luis Edgardo Diaz Monclus, and will further have a face-to-face discussion with the Head of Mission on Monday.

And while President Ali has expressed hope of bipartisan unity on the issue, this publication was unable to make contact with Opposition Leader Joseph Harmon for a comment nor was a statement issued by his party up to press time.

When contacted, People’s National Congress (PNC) General Secretary Amna Ally declined to comment.

On Thursday last, Maduro issued a presidential decree reinforcing

his country’s illegal claim to Guyana’s Essequibo region. Additionally, the Venezuelan President announced that he has written to Secretary General of the United Nations (UN) Antonio Guterres, to lead direct negotiations between the two countries, as opposed to the binding judgement of the ICJ. That option has been exhausted, however, as the UN tried to mediate discussions between Guyana and Venezuela for years as part of an ultimately futile good offices process until Guyana activated its right to take Venezuela to the ICJ in 2018 to get a final ruling on the border issue. (G3)

NEWS

11

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Asphalt Plant probe

Culpable employees to face DHB Board before formal actions – Minister Granger’s vision for Guyana

(Granger vowed to fulfil Burnham’s legacy. This is that 7-point legacy.)

F

irst: a single mass party, led by a dictator. While Burnham allowed other parties to exist during his electoral-rigging era, those parties never threatened the PNC’s rule. Guyana became a de-facto one-party state. That is, while other parties were permitted to exist, they were never allowed to compete effectively with the PNC. They merely served to legitimise the PNC's monopoly of power in the eyes of the international community by providing an opposition. If they ever posed a real threat to the regime, as the WPA did briefly by 1979, then the totalitarian "sharper steel", in the words of Burnham, was bared, as with Rodney’s assassination. In the same 1980 (not coincidentally), a new Constitution confirmed Burnham’s absolute control over Guyana.

Second: A system of terroristic control.

The House of Israel, "Kick down Ravi Dev the door" bandits, arbitrary Police searches and seizures, Police informers in every neighbourhood, assassinations, ostentatious marches by the army through opposition strongholds, etc. kept the opposition under control, and the population, especially Indian-Guyanese, in terror. According to Ashton Chase, “Among the new recruits (to the Police Force) were persons with criminal records – supposed to give preference to loyalty. It was this element, as well as some ‘rotten eggs’ from this Guyana Defence Force, who were to become “kick down the door” bandits.” Indians responded to the pressure by mass migration. Soon, half the country was abroad.

Third: a near monopoly control over mass communication and education. The Government’s nationalisation of church schools, the national radio and newspapers, and establishment of the GPSA, in tandem with harassment of the opposition newspapers through libel suits and bans on newsprint, consummated this imperative to impose a PNC hegemony over the population.

Organisations such as the Cuffy Ideological Institute and the Guyana National Service were created to explicitly mould the "new" Guyanese.

Fourth: a near monopoly control over the "coercive" apparatus of the state. The Guyana Disciplined Forces - Army, Police Force, Fire Service, National Service, People's Militia and National Guard Service - were expanded exponentially, staffed with a ninety percent African membership, and placed under the command of a Burnham loyalist in 1979. All officers swore personal loyalty to the leader of the PNC, to provide, along with the similarly constituted Police Force, the coercive basis for the PNC's rule. PNC members were militarised through the formation of numerous loyal paramilitary organisations such as its youth arm – the Young Socialist Movement - and its Women’s arm.

Fifth: the central control and direction of the economy. By the PNC's boast, it nationalised eighty percent of the economy by 1976. The middle-class PNC elite became the managers, and the PNC obtained a powerful device to keep dissent in line. The “party card” and support for the “party line” became prerequisites for obtaining and keeping a job. In Burnham's words, those who were fired stayed fired.

The co-operative, supposedly the cornerstone of the economy, was the vehicle for rewarding the lower-class AfricanGuyanese supporters. However, when the economy faltered in the late seventies, the co-op concept was the first to be jettisoned, and these African-Guyanese also became peripheralised. They now joined the exodus to “foreign”. For those who remained, corruption was institutionalised and became the avenue of relating to, and dealing with, the system. Corruption was power, and absolute corruption became absolute power.

Sixth: a near monopoly over all civil organisations. Trade unions, religious organisations, schools, cultural organisations and social bodies were all either subverted or controlled by the PNC’s intimidation, by buying off compliant leadership, or by the creation of paper organisations which were given governmental recognition and a place at the Government's trough. IndianGuyanese organisations were co-opted through the opportunism of their leadership to rubber stamp the PNC's policies. These leaders were placed in highly visible but essentially powerless positions to create a façade of a “non-racial” Government. Those organisations that refused to "cooperate" were denied similar privileges, and ultimately were miniaturised or became paper organisations with sycophantic PNC shell "executives".

Seventh: an official ideology. The PNC announced in 1974 that it was a Marxist-Leninist party, and was reorganised as the vanguard of the masses. Marxism-Leninism gave the PNC an appropriate vocabulary and methodical postulate for its “innovations” and excesses, and to checkmate the Marxist PPP.

A

fter a probe into the asphalt plant racket would have unearthed several damning findings, the Board of Directors of the Demerara Harbour Bridge will have a “face-off interview” with culpable employees before formal actions are taken.

Public Works Minister Juan Edghill said the Board has deliberated on the findings of the investigation, in which a decision was made to hold persons responsible for their actions. In the coming week, the interviews will be facilitated and formal actions will be announced thereafter.

“The Board deliberated on the report which I submitted to them. They have made certain findings and part of those findings is that persons who have found in their opinion to be culpable, the HR sub-committee of the Board is to meet with them and interview them before formal actions is taken.”

He further stated, “The Chairman of the Board is arranging for those interviews early next week and then from there, we will make public pronouncements. The Board has found that particular operatives must be held accountable for the mismanagement and some of the breaches that took place and, in their deliberation, they found that they need to have a face-off interview.”

The investigation confirmed that asphalt was being given on credit to major companies, some with their own asphalt plants and thus, in competition with the DHBC. Additionally,

Public Works Minister Juan Edghill

more than $9.8 million was paid to a non-existent Trinidadian company back in 2015 – one year before the company was incorporated. Meanwhile, Managing Director, Rawlston Adams would have spent $897,000 from the public funds to purchase a bracelet for himself.

Last week, Edghill disclosed that the former APNU/AFC Government spent a whopping $488 million to procure parts for and then constructed the modern Eco 2000 Batch Mix Asphalt Plant but it is still non-operational.

On Friday, he called out his predecessor, David Patterson for announcing that the plant was producing asphalt, when in reality, several aspects need to be fixed. The asphalt being produced presently is sourced completely from the older plant.

“This is the white elephant that has to be fixed and has to be addressed… Since we got into Government, we discovered that parts were not in place to make it function-

al. That is why I cannot understand the level of honesty of David Patterson…

We’re all physically present and the plant never turn a tonne of asphalt. It cannot.

Every[thing] that needs to be there to make it functional is not so no amount of propaganda and spinning things in the public will make a non-functional asphalt plant, function.”

Government is mobilising to ensure the plant is operationalised, since it is

critical in the developmental agenda which has been planned for the next five years. The Minister shared that a special probe will be conducted by the Audit Office of Guyana, to determine why the plant is non-operational and if funds were used wisely.

He noted, “We have a very robust developmental agenda. This plant and its capacity to produce asphalt on a daily basis if required and needed. Up until now, it can’t be operational and functional. I don’t know if it will ever be and what cost. This one will require a special investigation to find out how it was procured, if it was the best deal we got, why it’s not functioning, what needs to be done to make sure it functions and how could we start using it to get greater efficiency.”

A team of technical personnel is being arranged to inspect the state of affairs and determine the next steps to fix the faulty components. (G12)

12 NEWS

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

PPP/C Central Committee member Majeed Hussain dies …recognised as a “true patriot”

O

utpouring condolences were expressed on Saturday morning, upon news that People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Central Committee member, Majeed Hussain passed away.

In a statement, the party announced his death while recognising the various roles he played in serving the public throughout the years. Hussain, who was a member of the Central Committee, was described as a “true patriot” and “humble leader” especially during the months of struggle after the March 2020 General and Regional Elections.

“He was a true patriot who was integrally involved in the struggle to resist the attempt by the

APNU/AFC to subvert the will of the Guyanese people through the rigging of the March 2nd 2020 General and Regional Elections. The party expresses its deepest condolences to the family and relatives of Majeed Hussain and the members of the PPP family who knew and loved this friendly and humble leader,” the PPP/C expressed.

Sentiments of his passing resonated with Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo, who labelled the news as a significant loss for the party and Guyana.

Jagdeo said, “he was a comrade, a friend, and a dedicated worker who was committed to the cause of the upliftment of the Guyanese people. He played a sub-

stantial role during our 2020 elections campaign and later during the five-month period in which attempts were made to subvert our democracy. Guyana has lost a true son of the soil with his passing.”

Meanwhile, Attorney General Anil Nandlall also penned his condolences on social media, and lauded him as an unsung hero for his dedication towards ensuring that democracy prevailed.

“He was your proverbial ‘work horse’; he was an outstanding political ‘foot soldier’; he was a leader. During that five months alone, not only was he a leader of the group who guarded the containers with the ballot boxes, 24 hours per day, but he was

PPP/C Central Committee member Majeed Hussain

the Commissioner of Oaths to Affidavits and Justice of Peace who sat with me, sometimes all night and into daylight hours, to swear the numerous Affidavits which had to be filed in the series of litigation which permeated that period. He was always ready upon call, without excuse or hesitation, despite the hour,” the AG recognised.

Among the scores of sympathies were photographs and snippets of him in the fields, visiting communities and listening to the concerns of the public. Some were shared by Education Minister, Priya Manickchand as she recognised his service to the country.

“He committed himself to, believed in and fought for

democracy. In the months after the No-Confidence Motion and particularly in those months when there was a real threat to what had become our democratic norms, Majeed did what he has always done: he stood up and faced down that threat. Morning, noon and night. And he did so pleasantly, always willing to impart his knowledge and going way beyond. The PPP/C lost a true fighter today.

Guyana lost a patriot.”

Meanwhile, Deputy Speaker, Lennox Shuman described Hussain as a friend who overlooked political affiliations as he shared, “He didn’t care what party you were from. He worked dedicatedly for his and his family. He was an excellent and passionate friend and didn’t mind much where you met nor the circumstances under which you were there, he was simply happy to see you.” (G12)

13

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

14 FEATURE

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

From being homeless to owning Bartica’s most popular bakery

By Lakhram Bhagirat

R

ichard Yarde’s story is one that encompasses elements that seem to be plucked from a Hollywood film. It is one that many consider to be the quintessential rags to riches story but if you ask the subject himself, he will tell you that it is far from that.

Rather, he would say that his story represents the struggles of a man looking for his purpose in this world. He would say that his story represents the struggles of many Guyanese who are shaping their own destinies.

Yarde along with his wife Monica Yarde owns and operates the R&M Bakery in Second Avenue, Bartica – dubbed the most popular bakery in the gold mining town. He is perhaps one of the most well-known persons in the mining community of Bartica because of something as simple as bread.

However, his story is what makes his achievements even more fulfilling.

The father of two, originally from South Ruimveldt in Georgetown, would have moved to Bartica just about 6 years ago to “clear” his

head. The mother of his children passed away as a result of leukaemia and he was raising his two sons as a single father.

He was doing very well for himself as a taxi driver and prior to moving to

Yarde was encouraged to venture to Bartica as an escape by a friend he met while doing taxi work in the city and since he had never visited the town, he chose to do so. Having no idea how to get to Bartica or any money

Bartica, he became involved in another relationship.

However, that did not pan out and he needed a change of space.

“I came here (to Bartica) owing to that relationship.

It was a struggling situation and at the end of it, I had nothing. Before coming here I had no idea about the place because I never been here but one day I told my mother to look at my two sons and that I was coming here to clear my head,” he related.

in his pocket, he decided to approach his mother for “gas money” for his car and then drove to the Parika Stelling.

There, he was informed that he would have to wait for a few days before the next ferry to Bartica – since he wanted to take his car with him – or he had the option of venturing with a speedboat while leaving the car behind. He chose the former.

“I came up here to ease my head and I started to like

the place and I would say I actually lived in my car because that was my home.

Yeah, I used to live in my car for a long time before I could get a place of my own,” Yarde explained.

When he made the trip to Bartica, and being a stranger to the community, Yarde had difficulties in getting a place to rent. He immediately began working taxi from the Bartica Stelling to various parts and people started to get to know him.

However, he was still homeless and would spend the nights in his car parked on the Bartica beach.

He would wake up at 5 am every morning and take a dip in the river and then get ready for his day’s work. When it was laundry day, he would wash at the beach and ask the residents there to allow him to sun dry his clothes on their lines.

His experience alone would have been enough to force him back into the city but Yarde persisted.

“I met a girl with two children and at first she was not ready for a relationship and I showed her that I am different. I don’t drink

or smoke or party and then after a while, we entered into a relationship. After that, I started to work taxi from Itaballi to Puruni because is $10,000 to carry in a passenger and you will go with 4-5 and it is $50,000 and when you coming out is another $50,000. So, sometimes in a day it is $100,000 and once I started that and I start to make money, I saw the opportunity to start my business,” he said.

The couple then opened a joint bank account where they began saving for a business.

He always knew that the bakery business was the one for him because of his talent in that arena. Prior to becoming a taxi driver, Yarde worked in almost all of the city’s commercial bakeries – Graham’s, Humphrey’s, Bakewell, Pearl’s and Banks DIH – Golden Harvest.

Yarde was one of the sought-after bakers because of his talent.

“After I passed through all the bakeries I said I don’t need to work in another bakery and when I came up here I saw that Bartica only have two small bakeries and most of the bread comes from Georgetown. I tell myself that Bartica need people better quality in their homes and if I started a bakery it would dominate. When it comes to flour and water it is a gift from God that I have these hands,” he said.

Slowly, Yarde began ordering items online for his bakery and when all of that came into play, he then started scouting locations. He came across their current location at Second Avenue and decided it was there that he wanted to operate.

Things started to fall into place and over two years ago he first opened his doors to Barticians.

The first day he opened not to sell but to introduce potential customers to his products and to say it was a hit would be a gross understatement. The need for quality homestyle bread led Barticians to flock R&M Bakery on the second day and ever since the rush never diminished.

“The business wasn’t slow. I was surprised because from the very next day the rush was there. I didn’t have hands to sell bread,” he said.

However, operating R&M Bakery is nothing less

than

a challenge for Yarde and his wife. He explained that Monica would take care of supply management and the financial aspect of the business while he works in the bakery. He is currently the only bread maker and employs at least 8 staff to make pastries, clean and prep.

His regular day commences at 2 am every morning and he would be in the bakery mixing and baking well into the night just to meet the demands of his customers.

“One problem is worker up here is a big problem.

I have about 8 workers but in order for my business to move from where it is, I need workers. Because every day I finish work most of the people don’t get bread and they does row with me a lot because they are demanding that I provide bread for them.

“I does work extra hard in my bakery. I am not like a bossman, I see myself as a worker. I does come down at 2 am in the morning and I does mix, mek and bake and I have people to sell, bag off and making pastries and clean. If I could only get another baker willing to learn because I will teach them to make while I mix and mek the bread because I need to protect my recipe which is the success of the business,” the businessman said.

For now, Yarde continues to serve the needs of the people of Bartica and plans to extend his business as soon as he can find the right people to train.

FEATURE

15

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Christine Persaud and her family

By Lakhram Bhagirat

T

aking risks and putting herself out there for others to criticise has never been a part of Christine Persaud’s modus operandi but her love for the creating experiences and items have ultimately pushed her out of her comfort zone.

Through her brand Christine’s Meraki, she has been providing her clients with more than just products and services. She has been providing the ultimate experience.

The 24-year-old mother of two boys has a knack for balancing family life and building her empire but credited it all to her supportive family – mainly her father who is her “hero”.

She grew up seeing her father work hard and had a childhood where her mother balanced taking care of the family and building her life even when Christine’s father was absent. Her father worked on the sea so there would be times when he would be out of the picture for weeks without any contact but her mother w o u l d never allow his absence to be felt.

It is that same strength t h a t Christine now draws from as she rears her own family and balances building the Meraki brand.

Meraki encompasses all the products and services Christine offers and it is a wide variety which includes craft, henna designs and decorating.

She lives up to her slo-

gan: “Show me what you want and I will make it.”

However, as indicated earlier, Christine never had the confidence to put herself out there and explained that while a student, she was forced to delve deeper into her creative side because of their lack of financial resources. She has always

been quite reserved.

“Being a small business owner actually took me by surprise. I had no plans for starting up a business because I was always afraid of new ventures until now where I challenge myself daily. All thanks to social media, I got encouraged by friends (online) to pursue

my talents,” she said.

Growing up, Christine always had a knack for creativity and art. She remembered taking markers and drawing on her hands, creat-

ing designs similar to henna patterns.

While she thought that no one was noticing, her first exposure came as a result of her doodling on her hands. “ O n e day, I decided to try the henna cone itself and posted the results on Facebook. A friend of mine saw the post and asked for me to do hers for Eid. I told her I have zero experience and hardly any knowledge. But she still insisted that I was capable enough to do it. So, I gave it a shot.

“She was very pleased with my work and decided to recommend me to a relative which is when I did my very first bridal henna. After that, recommendations and constant practice led me to become a professional henna artist. It was fun to start from scratch and get a beautiful creation as the result,” she related.

That led to her foray into crafting and it started off with something as simple as a desk organiser then moved on to paper flowers and further into cake toppers and so much more.

She said that being a fulltime mother of two boys and a wife makes it challenging to leave home every day to work so the option of being at home and earning is one that proved to be attractive to her.

It is no doubt that building a brand is a tough task, and there have been and continue to be challenges in Christine’s development of the Meraki brand.

At first, the biggest challenge was that of finding the money for investments and though her husband was always there to back her up, there were times when she believed failure was imminent and wanted to give up. Also, when she started doing henna designs, she

was four months pregnant at the time so having to sit for hours doing extravagant bridal henna designs really took a toll on her.

“I have some moments where I just want to quit it all but my love for what I do has been my fuel to keep going and keep pursuing the goals because there are people who are inspired by me and also people who I hope to make very proud one day.

“The local market response has been phenomenal. My products and services have travelled to most parts of Guyana because of the outstanding support from so many persons who have the trust and faith in me. Also, I have a huge appreciation for my social media followers who might not purchase anything but still drop a like and share or some kind and encouraging words on my posts. There are some true gems as well who would privately message me to share some constructive criticism that really helps to make me better at my job and fix my mistakes,” she said.

Christine offers henna designs for all occasions and would make home visits. She does décor and event planning for any event.

For the crafting aspect, if you can envision it then she can try to execute it. The bestsellers are currently customised items, whether it is keychains, wine glasses, pillows, T-shirts, wooden letters. There is also a wide selection of fashion items depending on the occasion such as floral crowns, floral headpieces, corsages,

and a new line of jewellery items has been recently added. The best part is that she makes almost everything she provides.

“My henna cones are usually handmade and filled on the said day of usage simply because it's more freshly mixed and achieve better results. Most of the materials for the other aspects of my business aren't readily available in Guyana.

This can be a

struggle at times.

These items would have to be shipped from other countries, making production time delayed occasionally.

At the moment, I have no

employee, so it basically means that I do everything from designing, cutting, assembling, and packaging. This m a k e s production even slower hence the reason why there can only be smaller amounts of orders

per day.”

In the next five years, Christine hopes to be leading a team of talented individuals and building her brand.

“Your dreams may seem weird or menial. Some persons may even tell you that you are never going to make it or that you should stick to a 9-5 job. But keep believing in yourself. Experiment and practice as much as you can. No matter how many times you fail, once you have a love and passion for what you do then it will shine through and also remember it's not going to be easy but it will be your greatest accomplishment,” she advised.

If you wish to contact Christine then you can do so on 692-0443 or visit her Facebook page, Christine’s Meraki.

16 FEATURE

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

HEALTH TIPS GALLSTONES

Dr Tariq Jagnarine Family Medicine, Endocrinology and Diabetes

G

allstones are stones or lumps that develop in the gallbladder or bile duct when certain substances harden. The gallbladder is a small sac located on the right-hand side of the body, on the underside of the liver. Some of the chemicals that exist in the gallbladder can solidify into either one large stone or several small ones.

A study revealed that the prevalence of gallstones in adults in industrialized countries is around 10 percent and appears to be rising.

RISK FACTORS

People at risk include: * Women who have been pregnant * Previous family members with a history of gallstones * People who have recently lost lots of weight * Intentionally losing weight rapidly and then regaining it may increase men’s risk for gallstones later in life * Women taking oral contraceptives * Being sedentary * Women undergoing high-dose oestrogen therapy * People whose intake of dietary fat is high

* Twice as many women get gallstones than men * People over 60 years of age * People who take cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins * People with diabetes Additionally, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for women during the menopause is linked to a higher risk of gallbladder problems. A study found that HRT administered by skin patches or gels poses a smaller risk than HRT given orally.

CAUSES

Gallstones may form when the chemicals in the gallbladder are out of balance, such as cholesterol, calcium bilirubinate, and calcium carbonate.

There are two main types of gallstones: * Cholesterol gallstones: These may form if there is too much cholesterol in the bile. They are the main type of gallstones. * Pigment gallstones: These form when the bile has too much bilirubin.

They are more common among people with liver disease, infected bile tubes, or blood disorders, such as sickle-cell anaemia.

Experts are not completely sure why some people develop the chemical imbalance in their gallbladder that causes gallstones, while others do not.

However, it is known that gallstones are more common among people with obesity, especially women. In fact, a recent study revealed that a bulging mid tummy almost doubles a woman’s chances of developing gallstones and the need for surgery to remove them.

SYMPTOMS

The majority of people with gallstones experience no symptoms at all. This is

because the stones stay in the gallbladder and cause no problems. * Sometimes, however, gallstones may lead to cholecystitis, or an inflamed gallbladder. * Symptoms of gallstones may include pain on the right-hand side of the body suddenly and quickly which can worsen with time.

Back pain between the shoulder blades * Pain in the right shoulder * Nausea * Vomiting * Sweating * Restlessness

DIAGNOSIS

In many cases, gallstones are discovered by accident when an individual is being treated for a different condition. A doctor may suspect gallstones after a cholesterol test, an ultrasound scan, a blood test, or even an X-ray. Blood tests may be used to look for signs of infection, obstruction, pancreatitis, or jaundice including: * Cholangiography * CT scan * Cholescintigraphy (HIDA scan) TREATMENT Gallstones are only treated if they have caused gallbladder inflammation, blockage of the bile ducts, or if they have moved from the bile ducts into the intestines. * Ursodeoxycholic aciddissolves gallstones made from cholesterol over a 12-month period. * Surgeries: Cholecystectomy - means the surgical removal of the gallbladder. * Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatolography- removal of the stones using a camera and tube through the mouth. * Lithotripsy – shock

waves to break up the stones and allow them to better pass out in stool.

Top of Form Bottom of Form

COMPLICATIONS

If gallstones block the bile duct or duodenum, the flow of digestive juices to the pancreas may be blocked. This can cause jaundice and acute pancreatitis. Treatment usually involves the surgical removal of the gallbladder.

It is common for people who have had their gallbladder removed to experience feelings of bloating and indigestion, especially when they have a high-fat meal. Some may pass stools more often than before. * Biliary colic: When a stone is stuck in the opening of the gallbladder and will not easily pass through, the contraction of the gallbladder may cause severe pain. When this happens, an individual may experience a painful condition called biliary colic. The pain is felt in the upper part of the abdomen, but can also exist in the centre or to the right of the abdomen. Pain is more common about an hour after eating, especially if an individual has had a high-fat meal. The pain will be constant and last a few hours, and then subside. Some people will experience non-stop pain for 24 hours, while others may experience waves of pain. * Infection: If the gallstones have caused a gallbladder infection, the per-

son with the condition may have a fever and experience shivering. In the majority of gallstone infection cases, people will be hospitalized for the removal of the gallstone. * Jaundice: If the gallstone leaves the gallbladder and is stuck in the bile duct, it may block the passage of bile into the intestine. The bile will then seep into the bloodstream, causing signs of jaundice. In most cases, this complication will require the surgical removal of the gallstone. For some people, the gallstone eventually passes into the intestine. * Pancreatitis: If a small gallstone passes through the bile duct and blocks the pancreatic duct, or causes a reflux of liquids and bile into the duct, an individual may develop pancreatitis.

A person can survive without a gallbladder. The liver produces enough bile to digest a normal diet. A small proportion of people who have had their gallbladder removed will experience softer and more frequent stools for a while because their bile flows into the small intestine more often.

PREVENTION

Some factors that increase the risk of developing gallstones, such as age, sex, and ethnic origin, cannot be altered. * However, it is possible that following a vegetarian diet will reduce the risk

of developing gallstones.

Vegetarians have a significantly lower risk of developing gallstones, compared with people who eat meat. * Many experts say that a diet low in fat and high in fruit and vegetables, including plenty of dietary fibre, may help protect people from developing gallstones. * Controlling body weight may also help prevent the formation of gallstones. However, crash dieting and rapid weight loss increase the risk of developing gallstones. * Moderation of weight and diet is important.

Diet It used to be the case that people with gallstones who were not yet ready for surgery would be prescribed an extremely low-fat diet to prevent gallstone growth.

This has recently been shown to be less helpful than previously thought, as rapid weight loss can cause gallstones. A balanced diet with regular meals is recommended. This will not cure gallstones, but it can have a positive impact on any symptoms and pain experienced.

Avoiding foods high in saturated fats can help to reduce the risk of gallstones developing, such as butter, hard cheese, cakes, and biscuits. Cholesterol is thought to have a role in forming gallstones. Dietary steps can be taken to help prevent the condition, such as eating more nuts and consuming small amounts of alcohol.

FEATURE

17

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Acute Kidney Injury: protein or blood in urine

Dr. Haimchand Barran MMSc Internal Medicine/ Infectious Diseases Fellowship -- Nephrology Nephrology Department – GPHC

A

s mentioned in previous articles, some patients with COVID-19 have displayed kidney damage through acute kidney injury (AKI), mild proteinuria (protein in the urine), hematuria (blood in the urine), or slight elevation in creatinine (blood marker testing for kidney function). Today, we will cover protein and blood in the urine in our continuing series.

Protein in urine

People with proteinuria have unusually high amounts of protein in their urine. The condition is often a sign of kidney disease.

Your kidneys are filters that don’t usually let a lot of protein pass through. When the kidney is damaged, then proteins such as albumin may leak from your blood into your urine. You can also have proteinuria when your

body makes too much protein.

Kidney disease often has no early symptoms. Protein in your urine might be one of the first signs. Your doctor may spot proteinuria on a urine test during a routine physical. Over time, as it gets worse, you might have symptoms including foamy or bubbly urine; swelling (edema) in your hands, feet, belly and face; urinating more often; shortness of breath; fatigue; loss of appetite; upset stomach and vomiting; and muscle cramps at night.

Some common things can cause proteinuria include dehydration, inflammation, low blood pressure, fever, intense activity, high stress, kidney stones, taking aspirin every day, and very low temperatures.

Conditions that damage your kidneys can also make you have too much protein in your urine. The two most common are diabetes and high blood pressure.

Other serious conditions that can cause proteinuria include immune disorders such as lupus, kidney inflammation (glomerulonephritis), a blood cancer called multiple myeloma, preeclampsia (which affects pregnant women), a buildup of protein in your organs (amyloidosis), cardiovascular disease, intravascular hemolysis, a condition in which red blood cells are destroyed, kidney cancer, and heart failure.

Things that might make you more likely to have protein in your urine include obesity, being aged over 65, a family history of kidney dis-

ease, and being of African American/ Native American/ Hispanic/or Pacific Islander descent.

Some people get more protein into their urine while standing than while lying down. This condition is called orthostatic proteinuria. A urine test, called a urinalysis, can tell whether you have too much protein in your urine.

Blood in urine

Having blood in your urine can be a sign that something is wrong with your kidneys or another part of your urinary tract.

The medical name for blood in your urine is hematuria.

There are two types of hematuria: if you can see the blood in your urine, it is called gross hematuria; and if you cannot see the blood in your urine without looking at it under a microscope, it is called microscopic hematuria.

Anyone can have hematuria, but you might be more likely to have it if you have a family history of kidney disease; have an enlarged prostate (in men); have a history of getting kidney stones; are taking certain medicines, such as pain relievers, blood thinners and antibiotics; participate in strenuous (difficult) exercise; or have, or recently had, an infection.

There are many reasons that you might have blood in your urine. Having blood

in your urine does not necessarily mean you have kidney disease. Some common causes are menstruation; strenuous (difficult) exercise; sexual activity; and having a virus, injury or infection, such as a urinary tract infection (UTI).

Other more serious problems can also cause you to have blood in your urine.

Some of these problems include kidney or bladder cancer; irritation or swelling in your kidneys, prostate (in men) or another part of your urinary tract; polycystic kidney disease; blood clots or diseases that cause problems with blood clotting; and sickle cell disease

You may not notice any symptoms if you have microscopic hematuria. If you have gross hematuria, you may notice that your urine is pink, red or brown. This happens because the blood in your urine makes it a different color. If you have gross hematuria, you may also get blood clots in your urine, which can be painful.

If you notice that your urine is a different colour than normal, or if you are having pain when you urinate, tell your healthcare provider. He or she can do some tests to figure out why you have blood in your urine or what is causing the pain and what treatment would

be best for you.

The treatment for having blood in your urine depends on what is causing the problem. For example, if you have blood in your urine because of an infection, your doctor might tell you to take an antibiotic medicine. If you have blood in your urine for another reason, you might need a different kind of treatment.

To find out why you have blood in your urine, your doctor might ask you for a urine sample. The urine sample can be used to test for signs of an infection, kidney disease or other problems. Your doctor will use the results of the urine test to decide if you need more tests or if you can start a treatment.

Article submitted as part of the Ministry of Health’s COVID-19 public information and education programme. For questions, email ministersecretaryhealth@gmail.com.

18

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

19

FEATURE

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Bringing in a brand new year with positivity

By Dr Shivannie Persaud

P

ositivity is a character trait, an attitude which sets the tone for our outlook in life. It is the single most valuable characteristic we possess as human beings in response to life’s nature of high and low sequences and while we know that our lives have not been smooth, especially with the pandem-

ic, adopting a positive attitude helps us to build character, to cope, gives us strength and motivates us to keep going; to weather the storms and maintain enthusiasm, hope and light during our setbacks.

Positive people are more energetic, highly motivated, remain focused on their goals, they possess resilience and are able to manage stress more effectively.

We won’t ever have complete control of what takes place in our life, however, the attitude we opt for when facing life’s troubles is absolutely inside our control and so as Charles Brown sang, “I got my resolution made, gonna ride above the stars. I’ll be bringing in a brand new year”.

Let us enter 2021 with, smiles, a desire to assist others without expectation, contentment and above all, a positive mindset.

Here are a few ways in which

we can learn to unlearn negative attitudes and embrace a positive one this year: Filter: evaluate your thinking whether it’s how you feel about yourself, someone else, work, an illness or any situation, identify the negatives and put a positive spin on them. For example; I may be hypertensive but with modifying my lifestyle through diet, exercise and some medication to keep it controlled I will be

able to live a full normal life, doing all the things I love to do and avoiding life-threatening complications.

Do not automatically blame yourself when something bad occurs, do not anticipate the worse and try not to see things as either good or bad.

Practice self-care and mindfulness: be kind and encouraging to yourself. When you experience negative thoughts, evaluate

them rationally and respond in a positive way. Think about all your good traits, what makes you a good person and be thankful for your life.

Surround yourself with supportive people who you can depend on to give reassurance and positive advice.

Breathe: practice for approximately 3 minutes every day; taking long slow deep breaths, extending your exhales longer each time than your inhales. This helps you to relax and can reset your outlook in a different direction, especially during times of high stress and anxiety.

Be open to humour: smile, laugh and find humour in everyday happenings.

Practice positive thinking every day through self-talk, less self-criticism and self-acceptance.

Dr Shivannie Vanada Persaud is a bi-lingual, Cubatrained Medical Doctor who recently started her very own clinical practice.

20 FEATURE

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

I

t is only fair that since we have gone into some detail explaining the symptoms, cures and preventions associated with major ailments in dogs, against which vaccines exist and are available, we should (must) do the same for cats which are pets in many, many households.

F E L I N E PANLEUKOPENIA (FPL), also called Feline Infections Enteritis.

Q: How serious and contagious is this feline disease? Is it caused by a virus?

A: FPL is an extremely infectious and, and globally widespread viral disease. The virus also attacks wild cats – whether those whose habitat is the savannahs or the jungle.

Unvaccinated kittens are especially susceptible. The mortality rate is high. My own experience is that when a “wave” of FPL is coursing through Guyana and the Caribbean, we vets, exchanging reports, know very well that FPL is surging; and, of course, we advise our clients, who may have lapsed in the vaccination schedules to

immediately bring their feline wards in for inoculation. Over recent years, vets have not experienced huge outbreaks of this disease – perhaps because of the efficiency of our vaccination programmes.

N.B. As an aside, I should mention that many people call FPL: “Feline Distemper”.

FPL is in no way connected with the virus causing Canine Distemper.

Q: How is the disease transmitted?

A: (i) By actual contact with an infected cat or its excretion/secretions. (ii) Exposure to contaminated food utensils and litter boxes, even through clothes and hands of Clinic and household personnel. (iii) Via bites from fleas and other external parasites. (iv) The disease can infect the kittens, even when they are still in their mother’s womb. (v) To a lesser degree, this virus can be air borne.

Q: What are the symptoms?

A: (i) Often the virus is in the cat long before the

COMMENCING DISCUSSIONS ON CAT DISEASES AGAINST WHICH LIFE-SAVING VACCINES CAN BE ADMINISTERED symptoms begin to be exhibited. (ii) Signs of illness appear 2-10 days after exposure/contamination. (iii) The first sign tends to be inappetence (loss of appetite). (iv) Fever (as high as 105°F/38°C). (v) Listlessness. (vi) Repeated vomiting (frothy, yellow – stained). (vii) Thirst – but seems to be unable to drink even water. (viii) Exhibition of pain (crying) even as the cat is at its food/water bowl. Usually, the expression of pain is exhibited if the abdomen of the cat is touched, however gentle. (ix) Diarrhoea which may usually develop later (but sometimes even at the beginning of the disease). Sometimes there are bloody streaks in the soft/ watery stool.

N.B. • Sometimes the onset of the FPL disease is so sudden that the caregiver does not even recognize that the cat/kitten is ill.

Q: Treatment?

A: This is one disease where it is better for you NOT to err on the side of caution.

Most clients think that the cat/ kitten has ingested poison – but actually the listlessness and vomiting is being caused by the FPL virus. Consult your vet immediately. The vet will introduce intensive care, namely: (i) Fluid Replacement (drip) with B – Vitamins in the infusion. (ii) Antibiotics (against secondary bacterial infection). (iii) Therapy geared to improve the vitality and strength of the weakened cat/kitten. The have to feed vet might special concoctions with appropriate nutritive value, via a stomach tube.

N.B. • In spite of the vet’s therapeutic intervention, many cats will die.

• Kittens recovering from the FPL infections may have brain damage, which causes an incoordination of movement (wobbly gait).

• Cats recovering may be permanently/partially blind.

Q: How effective is the

prevention A: One aspect of the prevention is to keep the immediate environment as clear as possible. Please note that the FPL virus is hardy and robust and resistant to fluctuations in temperature. Also, it can exist for a long time in dried fecal matter in the outside environment and also (within the house) in carpets, chair cushions, floor cracks and crevices – for as long as one year.

I always suggest as a preventative undertaking that – once you have decided to own and care for your companion animals – you clean the cat’s immediate surrounding and feeding bowls and grooming equipment with 1:30 solution of household bleach (6% solution of hypochlorite), or a 4% formalin solution for about 10 minutes. During the cleaning, keep the cat in its cage. The simple sweet-smelling disinfectants are really not good at killing viruses in a kennel or cattery.

Also, keep your cats free from external parasites. Your vet will advise you what to use.

The second option, by far the

most viable option, is to vaccinate your cats/kittens. At a later date, we will discuss the Vaccination Schedule).

Inactivated and modified – live virus vaccines, which vets use, have proven to be particularly good, and provide long-lasting immunity. The multi-purpose vaccine also covers other feline diseases as well.

N.B. • Prior to vaccination, you must tell your vet that your cat may possibly be in the early stages of pregnancy. He/she will palpate the cat and decide not to vaccinate because if the to be pregcat is found nant, the cat will highly likely abort the kittens soon after the vaccination.

The cat could and should be vaccinated before she is bred.

• It has been reported to me that after vaccination against the FPL virus, the cat may exhibit partial blindness. The manufacturers of the feline vaccines have not included this warning in their accompanying leaflets; nor have I ever seen this condition in cats after vaccination.

Stay Safe.

NEWS

21

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

B

HEALTHY HABITS, Clampdown on firecrackers HEALTHY to shield animals – ARAPS ENVIRONMENT …lobbies for use of silent fireworks

y now you would have already cemented your New Year’s resolutions, but make room for a few more if those do not include eco-friendly living. It's imperative that we rethink our culture, in order to help mitigate the devastating effects of climate change; but, where to start? The changes that need to be made can seem overwhelming, but with some simple adjustments, you can help do your part for the environment.

Here are a few old habits to leave in 2020: Time to be done with single-use plastics At the rate we are polluting the ocean, with around 12.7 million tonnes of plastics a year, the damage we are doing to marine life and our ecosystem is becoming irreparable. Our actions over the next 10 years will determine the state of the ocean for the next 10,000 years.

It’s long past time to ditch single-use plastics and opt for reusable items instead. Options are becoming more affordable, and stylish to boot, from bamboo straws to customised metal water bottles, and mason jars as mugs for that cup of coffee at the office.

Beauty in the environment As of recent, global beauty and clothing brands are becoming more eco-conscious. Before making your next makeup and clothing purchases, check to see if your favourite brand is making an effort to be friendly to the Earth.

Oh, and skip the face washes with micro-beads. If you haven’t heard the news yet, microbeads are tiny pieces of plastic frequently used in cosmetic and cleansing products. They are less than 5mm in diameter, and are found in toothpastes, shower gels, defoliants, body-washes, face scrubs, detergents, cleansing agents, sun-screens, scouring agents, and synthetic fibres in clothing.

There are about 100,000 microbeads in a face-wash product; a single shower can result in 100,000 plastic particles entering the ocean. According to one estimate, the number that gets washed down plugholes in the United States alone every day has been calculated at about 808 trillion. They get eaten by tiny plankton, and work their way up the food chain, where they have been found in the stomachs of large fish and fish-eating birds.

In addition to this, you should opt for reusable, washable facecloths, instead of the cotton pads.

Food and the environment The production, transport, storage and other processes associated with food have a massive impact on the environment, affecting water, climate, land and people. While governments and corporations have their roles to play in creating a more sustainable and equitable society, when it comes to food, you, as an individual, have your role to play.

Here are a few simple things you can do in the new year (this list is not exhaustive): * Do your best to source locally-grown foods, and choose fruits and vegetables that are in season. * Make a shopping list before going to the market or supermarket, to avoid buying unnecessary items. * Store fruits and vegetables separately, as the gas ether, which is released by ripening fruits, can cause vegetables to rot faster. * Cook only what you need, and don’t be afraid to use those leftovers. * Compost kitchen and yard waste, and * Opt for more vegetarian and vegan meals.

Practise the Rs of waste management According to the 5Rs, four actions should be taken, if possible, prior to 'recycling’: refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose, and then recycle. Incorporating this methodology into your daily routine would minimise your carbon footprint.

Refuse: the first element of the 5Rs hierarchy Learning to refuse waste can take some practice, but practising this step is the most effective way to minimise waste. Refuse to buy wasteful or non-recyclable products. When working with vendors, refuse unnecessary product packaging and request reusable or returnable containers.

Reduce the use of harmful, wasteful, and non-recyclable products.

Reducing dependency on these kinds of products results in less waste materials ending up in the landfill, and reduction of the associated negative environmental impacts. We recommend always using the minimum amount required, to avoid unnecessary waste.

Single-use plastics have created a "throw-away" culture by normalising consumer behaviour of using materials once and then throwing them away. The rate at which we consume plastics has become unimaginable, and the plastic crisis has become one of the world's greatest environmental challenges (see above). Replace all of the singleuse eating utensils, Styrofoam cups, water bottles and paper plates with compostable or reusable alternatives (once you’ve used them, of course).

For every item that can't be refused, reduced, or reused, try REPURPOSING it. This method is often referred to as upcycling.

Sometimes it requires using some creativity, but the possibilities are endless.

Last, but definitely not least, RECYCLE. Once you've gone through all of the other Rs, recycling is the most environmentally-friendly waste disposal method.

Sources https://mymodernmet.com/green-living-tips-reducewastenow/?f bclid=IwAR2ZWOC471dh8GZmMGk4JGrLuH_AbtUZRwVX6ajtLcxsg9G_ sOMKz8x3WGI https://www.condorferries.co.uk/plastic-in-the-ocean-statistics h t t p s : / / w w w. i r i s h t i m e s . c o m / n e w s / e n v i r o n m e n t / m i c ro b e a d s - t h e - fa c t s - t h e - fe a rs - a n d - t h e - f i g h t- h av e - t h e m banned-1.3112511#:~:text=How%20prevalent%20are%20 they%3F,calculated%20at%20about%20808%20trillion. https://www.roadrunnerwm.com/blog /the-5-rs-of-wasterecycling#:~:text=According%20to%20the%205%20R's,program%20 to%20the%20next%20level.

You can share your ideas and questions by sending letters to: “Our Earth, Our Environment”, C/O Communications Department, Environmental Protection Agency, Ganges Street, Sophia, GEORGETOWN, or email us at: eit.epaguyana@gmail.com, follow us on Facebook and Instagram, and subscribe to our YouTube channel.

needed

than 20,000 vibrations per second (20,000 hertz).

This represents one-third of the capacity of dogs making them more sensitive due to the longer ear canal.

Fireworks, on the other hand, can emit sounds of up to 190 decibels.

Squibs and other pyrotechnics which are illegal “It causes in Guyana being sold openly in Georgetown them to stress.

Sometimes no matescaped but we would have rather ter how much you try to contain them, it doesn’t work. If none at all. On the front of the owners, you put them on a leash, they can try to they put extra care this year.”

ARAPS President Shari Rodrigues DaSilva Birds are also affected by fireworks strangle themselves out of fear. If you through tachycardia (heart rate over

By Rupa Seenaraine put them in a kennel that they were 100 beats per minute) and even death housed in consistently, all of a sudden, by fright.

This year, hundreds of birds nxiety, confusion and a tem- they can even eat through the kennel died reportedly after fireworks were porary state of panic are some to escape. You might put measures in set off in the Italian capital of Rome of the after-effects of firecrack- place but fear might compel them to do on New Year’s Eve. ers on domestic and wildlife animals, the impossible or the unexpected,” the Dubbed as a “massacre” by animal as these loud sounds cause distress to activist pointed out. rights groups, the lifeless bodies of their acute sense of hearing.

Upon escaping, many pets are not mostly starlings littered the ground.

The suffering of these animals is in a balanced mental state, and can clear when they try to claw their way prove hazardous to themselves and Crackdown out from these environments to escape humans by abruptly running out of The organisation is calling for a the unpredictable loud noises, despite nowhere and into the path of vehicles. crackdown on the occurrence, especialbeing comforted by their owners. On Leading up to the holidays, from ly since it is sold loosely on the streets. the other hand, strays would immedi- Diwali to the New Year, ARAPS would These items are illegal in Guyana.

Moreover, parents were urged to ensure that their children do not deliberately throw these explosives at animals.

“They’re selling these crackers out of cars, walking and selling; and even going into neighbourhoods. So, they’re freely selling firecrackers and it just goes back to enforcement of these laws that are in place. I have seen children display this behaviour of throwing it towards the animals, causing it to burn them. Sometimes, it causes them grave injuries. Sometimes these animals are strays on the road so humans wouldn’t be able to notice that they’re injured,” she voiced.

The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) is the only agency authorised to import firecrackers and other explosives.

The sale and purchase of such explosives are illegal under the Customs Act Hundreds of birds found dead in Rome this year post fireworks display amended by Act No 1 of 2005.

DaSilva stressed that the enforceately sprint away but this does little to have strengthened their awareness ment should “start at the top” and alleviate the inevitable damage that on the topic, and provided tips to pet lobbied for the use of silent fireworks manifests later in the form of hearing owners on how to minimise the effects during celebrations.

She responded to loss among other effects. of deafening firecrackers. opposition from some sections of soThe use of firecrackers and fire“Leading up to holidays, we would ciety regarding its use elsewhere, asworks is undoubtedly illegal in have been bringing awareness to perserting that the situations in develGuyana. Yet, they are loosely used sons to lock up their animals, keep oped countries do not pose harm to without any serious crackdown from them contained and play a little music animals as it does in Guyana. authorities. In fact, the recent New not only to drown out the sounds but “I think that it has to start from Year celebrations would have corrob- calm them. This also applies for Diwali the top. I would like to see authororated this occurrence. and the actual Christmas season and ities set an example by using the siPresident of the Animal Rescue and New Year again. We were saying to lent firecrackers. Certain countries Protection Society (ARAPS) – Tails of play soothing music and to keep the have started already. Persons would Hope, Shari Rodrigues DaSilva spoke animal calm. We were placing a lot of also say ‘Well what do you say about with <<<Guyana Times>>> on the focus on fireworks and it did seem a North America using firecrackers?’. detriments of these actions and the bit more effective this year.”

Remember they might go to a safe need to steer away from such practicDaSilva expounded that due to space or a stadium or somewhere isoes, especially with the considerable owners’ adherence to the advice, there lated from the animals.

We need to presence of strays. weren’t as many reports of animals estake into account that they don’t have She shared that many owners caping from home. On the other hand, the situation of stray animals like would try to contain their animals the use of firecrackers and squibs reus or the animal would be indoors. throughout this time, in order to pre- mained unchanged. vent them from escaping. However, The Tails of Hope President indi- Whereas in Guyana, most animals are some animals would try all means of cated, “We did not experience that outdoors,” the animal activist pointed evading the explosives. In some cases, number of animals going missing be- out.

ARAPS is primarily focused on aneven strangling themselves with their cause people were more aware. I did imal health awareness, rescuing efleash. see it minimise a bit this year because, forts, preventing animal cruelty and Dogs, particularly, are able to hear on the owner’s part, they were more creating a safe space for those that up to 60,000 hertz, while humans can- aware. What we noticed was a bit betneed support. not hear sounds that vibrate greater ter this year is not as many animals

A

22 NEWS 31 new coronavirus cases recorded G SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

uyana’s COVID-19 cases have increased to 6541, with the detection of 31 new positives on Saturday. Active cases are now at 355.

The Health Ministry’s daily dashboard showed deaths at 167 with 6019 recoveries. To date, 3375 males and 3166 females have contracted the virus.

There are five persons in the Intensive Care Unit, 46 persons in institutional isolation, 304 in home isolation and 36 in institutional quarantine.

New cases were detected in six regions, and a breakdown confirmed six new cases in Region One (BarimaWaini), 19 in Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica), one in Region Five (MahaicaBerbice), one in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), two in Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo)

and one in Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice).

The cases in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam), Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) and Eight (Potaro-Siparuni) remained at 202, 462, 548 and 526 respectively.

On Friday, Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony disclosed that 30 students, 11 teachers and 13 auxiliary staffers tested positive for COVID-19 after schools reopened. These cases were spread across Regions One, Two, Four, Five, Seven, Eight, Nine and 10.

“We are expecting some of the students in the faroff areas to come to those dorms and when they come, they will be tested. So, these numbers might go up. I think the education system is expecting over

the weekend that they will have students coming in,” he added.

In recent time, the Ministry has been able to introduce rapid antigen tests, reinforcing the COVID-19

fight in hinterland communities.

Meanwhile, GeneXpert machines have also been deployed in the hinterland communities to provide additional support and testing in these areas.

Dr Anthony had shared earlier that they were expecting a spike in cases of the coronavirus, following the Christmas season activities where many persons would have failed to adhere to the national measures.

In light of this, he said increased testing is planned along with the preparation of hospitals for an increased number of positive patients. The latter is in the event that anyone requires hospitalization; it should be readily available.

The public is reminded of the need for correct and consistent use of a face mask when leaving home; maintaining the six feet physical distance from others and good hand hygiene to help reduce the spread of COVID-19.

If anyone is displaying any of the symptoms associated with COVID-19, or

need any additional information, kindly contact the COVID-19 Hotline 2311166, 226-7480 or 624-6674 immediately or visit www. health.gov.gy. (G12)

Karanambu, Piraiba lodges granted conditional approval to reopen

T

he Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) has announced that Karanambu Lodge and Piraiba Lodge, both located in Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo), have been inspected and granted conditional approval, thereby allowing them to reopen their services to travellers.

This brings the total up to 13 tourism enterprises which have been given the green light to reopen, having been marked safe for travel.

Director of the GTA, Carla James expressed her satisfaction at the consistent pace that businesses have been granted their conditional approvals, as it represents a rebound from COVID-19.

“Our team has been working assiduously with

Piraiba Lodge located about 32 kilometres (20 miles) south of Iwokrama River Lodge, Region Nine

these businesses to ensure that they have all the necessary measures in place to safely reopen, and we will continue to monitor their adherence to all of the stipulated protocols as outlined by the Ministry of Health.

2020 redefined the landscape for travel, creating a new normal, and in 2021 with the advent of a vaccine, we will welcome the opportunity for travellers to visit a safer Guyana,” James noted.

James is projecting that 2021 will be a year of tremendous growth for Guyana’s tourism sector as it prepares to significantly bounce back. Businesses that receive conditional approval are reminded to maintain the protocols as outlined by the Guyana Tourism Authority and the national gazetted safety measures.

Failure to adhere to these measures will result in the revocation of the conditional approval tied to the COVID-19 measures.

Domestic and international travellers are recommended to use only GTA-approved tourism businesses to book and plan their tour activities.

Other approved businesses include Rewa Eco-Lodge, Wanderlust Adventures, Baganara

Karanambu Lodge, North Rupununi, Region Nine (Upper TakutuUpper Essequibo)

Island Resort, Hurakabra River Resort, Rock View Lodge, Waikin Ranch, Elite Kayaking & Nature Tours, Atta Rainforest Lodge, Iwokrama River Lodge, Sloth Island Nature Resort

and Arrowpoint Nature Resort.

Guyana’s tourism industry has seen its worst year yet, with the COVID-19 pandemic causing the loss of thousands of jobs, billions in revenue for the economy and zero commercial flights for several months.

However, the Authority has several plans in the pipeline to facilitate a rebound in 2021, as businesses start to reopen.

Negative impacts to the sector would have included a 98 per cent decline in arrivals due to closure of airports, while 4600 employees were placed on the breadline – an average of 65 per cent of the total workforce.

With businesses recording 42 per cent lower revenue between March and September when compared to 2019, the economy saw an overall loss of 38.2 billion from the sector.

With these setbacks, there were a few notable wins. This came in the form of a survey to determine the impact, training for tourism operators and a sanitisation and hygiene protocol being implemented in businesses. It primarily focused on transportation, cleanliness and general operation protocols. Support packages were distributed to Indigenous community-based tourism locations.

(G12)

NEWS

23

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Region 5 RDC to upgrade several farm-to-market roads Response to Tom Sanzillo, Director of Financial Analysis at IEEFA (Pt 2)

T

om Sanzillo provided a response to this column’s edition that was featured last week, which was a direct response to Tom’s analysis on several issues on the Guyana’s oil and gas sector. This columnist is extremely pleased and elated that Tom Sanzillo responded to an open public debate on these issues.

In his response, Tom basically regurgitated his analysis that is already in the public domain and which this author briefly touched on last week. This is not only unfortunate but also disappointing on the part of Tom as he failed to offer any new and in-depth analysis – thus warranting his analysis inherently weak and unscholarly.

To summarize Tom’s response, he is basically contending that failing markets and weak revenues will result in anything but small benefits for Guyana and that revenue outlook is dim owing to declining markets for crude. However, he failed to provide and substantiate the underlying assumptions for this and the time frame in which one can expect an oil market crash – based on his analysis.

He is also contending that Guyana will saddle itself with burdensome debt by virtue of pursing ambitious development projects – that the country badly needs; which will position the country for bankruptcy. Not only did he not substantiate his absurd assumptions which are all speculatory – he did not fail to validate and prove the insanity contained in his baseless ramblings which leaves much to be desired.

While Tom is correct, however, on one point only – that the global oil market is diminishing though he did not forecast by what timeframe one can expect an oil price crash, this author in March 2018 would have argued that the global oil market has safely another 20 years before oil price becomes unsustainable.

This is attributed to the notion that the world economy is moving towards adopting climate change policies and alternative sources of energy.

This obviously will not occur over night of course and it is for this reason in the said referenced article by this column wherein it was contended that Exxon will need to increase production capacity to as much as 1 million barrels per day by the end of the first decade. See link here for ease of reference: https:// guyanatimesgy.com/the-changing-dynamics-of-global-oil-economics-part-3/. Notably, Exxon appears to be well in line to achieve these targets based on its disclosed projections for increased levels of production capacity – reaching over 500,000 barrels per day by the end of the first five years.

More so, the Organization for the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in its 2019 World Oil Outlook 2040 report, provided a forecast that is consistent with those of this author with respect to global demand for oil and gas in the global energy mix. To this end, the report noted that total primary energy demand is expected to increase by 25% between 2018 and 2040 with renewables leading the way in terms of growth, but oil and gas are still forecast to meet more than 50% of the world’s energy needs by the end of the forecast period (2040 / 20 years’ time). (see link to report here: https://www.energy-tomorrow.eu/wpcontent/uploads/sites/15/2019/11/world-oil-outlook_executive-summary_2019.pdf).

The report cited as well that these trends can also be viewed in similar forecasts from other reputable organizations with long-term energy outlook. Hence, it is rather safe to conclude that oil price, though volatile will remain sustainable between US$40 – US$50 per barrel until the end of the next two decades while noting that oil will remain profitable above US$35 per barrel.

He further went on to say that Exxon is stumbling with the global market, but be that as it may it is not just the declining market that has been a contributory factor to Exxon’s poor financial performance.

Other factors that led to Exxon’s poor financial performance include expenditure incurred owing oil spills globally – which amounts to over 300 oil spills from the period 2005 to 2018. Another important factor to consider includes the highly regulated industry in other markets which increases the cost imposed upon Exxon to operate in those countries.

In the case of Guyana on the other hand, Exxon has benefited from a favorable fiscal regime in addition to the fact that Guyana has a lighter and sweeter crude which is less costly to refine. These favorable conditions coupled with the need to rapidly increase production capacity are what makes the Guyana petroleum industry an attractive one against all the odds highlighted earlier with respect to the changing dynamics of the global energy market. So, here again Tom is wrong and does not fully understand the market dynamics globally and in the case of Guyana.

For these reasons, Guyana has to be wary of the pretentious lords in developed countries who want to stymie developing countries from prosperity so that they can lord over us. We, Guyanese, must not allow this to happen and must not allow so-called foreign experts to insult our intelligence.

The manner in which the IEEFA puts forward its contentions gives one the impression that for Guyana to become prosperous it is solely dependent on the oil and gas industry and that it seems Guyana is solely reliant on natural gas to solve its energy problems. This view by the IEEFA suggests that the IEEFA truly does not understand anything about the Guyana economy. Guyana is not dependent on oil, oil and gas is just a bonus. Guyana is rich in natural resources and has a relatively diverse economy to build upon which the Government is committed to so do.

In fact, in a previous response some months ago during the elections period, this author would have responded to the former Minister of Finance positing that we need not get excited about oil and gas as it is merely a premium. For Tom’s and the IEEFA’s benefit this article can be accessed here for my full analysis therein https://jbconsultancy.info/we-need-not-get-excited-about-oil-and-gas-as-it-is-merely-apremium/.

The IEEFA concludes that Guyana will not earn much and that the earnings will not be sufficient to offset budget deficits. Now, let’s look at some analysis using Liza Phase 1 project alone. Liza phase 1 has a production capacity of 120,000 barrels per day and comprise of 450 MMbl.

About the Author: JC. Bhagwandin is an economic and financial analyst, lecturer and business & financial consultant. The views expressed are exclusively his own and do not necessarily represent those of this newspaper and the institutions he represents. For comments, send to jbbankingadvice@gmail.com.

File photo: One of the farm-to-market roads in the Abary community in Region Five

T

he Region Five Regional Democratic Council has included the upgrading of several farm-to-market roads in its 2021 work programme, in keeping with the Government’s goal of increasing agricultural production.

The Region plans to rehabilitate the Mahaica New Branch Road, Mahaicony Branch Road, the Burma Access Road, and a section of the Number 27 Road.

Speaking with DPI, Regional Chairman Vickchand Ramphal said enhancing these roads would reduce commuting time and increase farmers’ overall production.

“Knowing that Region Five is the largest rice-producing region in the country, it was imperative to address some areas to push the development of the sector, and so we identified several farm-to-market roads to be rehabilitated, since they were in a dilapidated state over the past years,” Ramphal explained.

He added that the administration also in-

Regional Chairman Vickchand Ramphal

tends to rehabilitate the Mahaica-Mahaicony-Abary/ Agricultural Development Authority scheme to improve its infrastructure.

“We would have seen several dams be graded and shaved as well as the canals and trenches within the cultivation area being cleared and cleaned, which has led to better irrigation in the farming areas. This, of course, is a great boost for our region and our farmers,” the Regional Chairman said.

The Government’s goal is

to restore Guyana to the status of being the ‘breadbasket of the Caribbean’ by making the necessary investments, and providing technical, financial and other support to the agriculture sector.

In December, Minister of Agriculture, Hon. Zulfikar Mustapha, told Region Five farmers that the administration intends to develop more lands to double rice production in the next five years. To this end, the Ministry has installed several drainage pumps which have already started to reduce the level of flooding due to seasonal rains.

Ramphal said this measure is exactly what the Region needs, to push the sector’s development while reducing the adversity farmers and residents face.

In the 2020 Budget, the Ministry made allocations for the installation of a new pump at Trafalgar, which will enable the operationalisation of four pumps at the station, in keeping with its design. Provisions were also made for 12 high-capacity drainage pumps to be installed in the region.

24 NEWS

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

More Capitol rioters in viral posts arrested federal charges including violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

Media reports said he had often been seen at rallies supporting President Donald Trump. Efforts by Reuters on Saturday to reach his relatives were unsuccessful, as were attempts to contact Johnson’s family.

The Miami Herald reported that on Johnson’s social media pages, which have been taken down, he boasted of being in Washington ahead of the riots.

Some of the Capitol Hill rioters

F

ederal agents arrested two more Capitol Hill rioters whose images had gone viral, of one carrying off the House Speaker’s lectern and another who wore horns and a fur pelt, while a top Democratic lawmaker called on mobile carriers to preserve social media content related to the carnage.

Dozens of people have been charged following the storming of the Capitol on Wednesday, with the FBI asking the public to help identify participants, given the proliferation of images of the riots on the internet.

Five people have died, including a police officer.

Jacob Anthony Chansley, who featured prominently on social media wearing horns, a fur pelt, face paint and brandishing a spear adorned with the U.S. flag, turned himself in to police, the Department of Justice said.

Chansley, also known as Jake Angeli, called the

FBI’s Washington office on Thursday and voluntarily spoke to law enforcement, the DOJ said.

“Chansley said that he came as part of a group effort with other ‘patriots’ from Arizona, at the request of the President that all ‘patriots’ come to D.C. on January 6, 2021,” the DOJ said in a release. Federal agents also arrested Adam Christian Johnson, whose photo as he smiled and waved as he carried off House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s lectern had also gone viral. Johnson, of Parrish, Florida, also streamed live video on Facebook of himself as he walked the halls of the Capitol, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

The video has been removed from online platforms and all his pages have been taken down.

On Saturday US Senator Mark Warner, a Democrat who is the incoming Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee,

urged mobile carriers to preserve content and associated meta-data connected to the riot, which erupted as lawmakers gathered to certify the election of President-elect Joe Biden.

He sent letters to AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, Apple, Facebook, Gab, Google, Parler, Signal, Telegram and Twitter. Warner, in his letters to the companies, emphasized how the rioters took time to document the event and post them via social media and text messages “to celebrate their disdain for our democratic process.”

Before his arrest, NBC network reported, Chansley gloated about how the crowd infiltrated the Capitol, forcing lawmakers to flee.

“The fact that we had a bunch of traitors in office, hunkered down, put on gas masks and retreat to their underground bunker, I consider that a win,” he said to NBC News.

Chansley faces several

It was unclear where Chansley was being held Saturday, or whether he or Johnson had legal representation.

Johnson, who has a first appearance in federal court on Monday, is being charged out of Washington.

There were at least 13 people facing criminal charges in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in connection to the riot, and at least another 40 people faced lesser charges in the District of Columbia Superior Court, a local venue.

Many of them were arraigned on Thursday and released, with an order from the judge to not return to Washington unless for court appearances or meetings with their attorneys.

They included Richard Barnett, the Gravette, Arkansas, man who was photographed sitting at Pelosi’s desk.

Among those arrested Friday for participating in the riot was West Virginia House of Delegates member Derrick Evans, who announced his resignation on Saturday. (Reuters)

Biden urged to renounce sole control of US nuclear weapons

A

former US defence secretary has called on President-elect Joe Biden to reform the system that gives sole control of the nation's nuclear arsenal to the president, calling it "outdated, unnecessary and extremely dangerous".

The call from William Perry came the same day US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke with the nation's top military leader about ensuring that an "unhinged" President Donald Trump not be able to launch a nuclear

attack in his final days in office.

"Once in office, Biden should announce he would share authority to use nuclear weapons with a select group in Congress," said

President-elect Joe Biden speaks at The Queen theatre in Wilmington, Delaware

Perry, who served under President Bill Clinton.

He was writing in Politico magazine with Tom Collina of the Ploughshares Fund, which advocates for stronger nuclear controls.

They said Biden, who takes office January 20,

should also declare that the United States will never start a nuclear war and would use the bomb only in retaliation.

The piece argues that the current system gives the president — any president — "the godlike power to deliver global destruction in an instant," an approach the authors call "undemocratic, outdated, unnecessary and extremely dangerous".

Perry, who was defence minister from 1994 to 1997, calls Trump "unhinged" and adds, "Do we really think that Trump is responsible enough to trust him with the power to end the world?"

American presidents are accompanied at all times by a military aide who carries a briefcase known as "the football" which contains the secret codes and information needed to launch a nuclear strike.

Perry and Collina warn that presidents possess the "absolute authority to start a nuclear war”.

"Within minutes, Trump can unleash hundreds of atomic bombs, or just one. He does not need a second opinion. The defence secretary has no say. Congress has no role."

They then ask: "Why are we taking this risk?"

Such vast presidential authority, the article notes, dates from the waning days of World War II, when president Harry Truman decided, after the nuclear horror unleashed by the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan, that the power to order the use of atomic weapons should not be left in the hands of the military — that it should be up to the president alone. (AFP)

guyanatimesgy.com

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021

25

Regional Cuba to collaborate with Iran on coronavirus vaccine

C

ommunist-run Cuba said late on Friday it had signed an accord with Iran to transfer the technology for its most advanced coronavirus vaccine candidate and carry out last-stage clinical trials of the shot in the Islamic Republic.

The allies are both under fierce US sanctions that exempt medicine yet often put foreign pharmaceutical companies off trading with them and as such, they seek to be self-reliant. Both are also strapped for cash.

Iran launched human trials of its first domestic COVID-19 vaccine candidate late last month, while Cuba has four candidates currently in human trials.

Once its most advanced candidate, Soberana (Sovereign) 2, has completed Phase II trials which started on Dec 22, it will be tested in Phase III trials in around 150,000 people in Havana, officials have said.

Yet the Caribbean country will need to conduct more late-stage trials abroad too, given it does not have a high infection rate due to its successful management of its outbreak, they said. Iran, meanwhile, has been the worst-hit country in the Middle East.

Cuba’s Finlay Vaccine Institute said late on Friday it has signed an accord with Iran’s Pasteur Institute to collaborate on testing of Soberana 2.

Iran Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said he was “impressed” by the biotech achievements of its old ally Cuba in the fight against COVID-19 during a visit to Havana on a Latin American tour last November.

In addition to developing its own vaccine, Iran is participating in the COVAX scheme which aims to secure fair access to COVID-19 vaccines for poorer countries. Yet its Supreme Leader on Friday banned the government from importing COVID-19 vaccines from the United States and Britain, labelling the Western powers “untrustworthy.” (Excerpt from Reuters)

COVID-19 vaccination to be available in The Bahamas in 1st quarter of 2021

C

hief Medical Officer Dr Pearl McMillan said that a COVID-19 vaccination will be available in the country during the first quarter of this year.

Speaking during a press conference on Friday, she could not give a definitive timeline for a vaccine's arrival or significant details about the vaccination protocol.

McMillan said healthcare workers, frontline workers, people who are high risk for catching the virus or succumbing to the disease, are prioritised for the vaccination first.

She added that a phased approach will ensure that high-risk groups are immunised, then other groups.

Earlier Friday, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis — who is a medical doc-

Bahama's Chief Medical Officer Dr Pearl McMillan

tor, said ongoing mitigation measures will be required to combat effects of new variants of COVID-19 if they are found in The Bahamas.

“The virus is more infectious, not necessarily more devastating in terms of the degree of the illness that it might cause, so one has to

Chile threatens legal action to get Albemarle to disclose lithium reserves 6 Venezuelans, 1

C

hilean regulators have threatened Albemarle Corp with legal action, demanding that by week´s end the world´s top lithium miner present a plan for turning over data on its reserves of the ultralight battery metal, according to filings obtained by Reuters.

In 2016, Chile gave Albemarle approval to hike production from the lithium-rich Atacama salt flat on condition the miner prove its reserves could sustain the increased output.

Chilean nuclear agency CCHEN, which also licenses lithium exports, said Albemarle had failed to provide adequate reserves data more than a year after the regulator requested it, according to a Jan 4 letter obtained by Reuters under Chile’s Transparency Act. Albemarle sought to keep parts of that data confidential but the regulator has until now rejected its arguments.

Market watchers, meanwhile, have obsessed over how much lithium is available to miners because the flat is crucial to

Trinidadian held in Penal

S

Brine pools from a lithium mine that belongs to US-based Albemarle Corp is seen on the Atacama salt flat in the Atacama desert, Chile, August 16, 2018

satisfying a predicted boom in global demand for the electric vehicle battery metal.

“To date, your representatives have not complied with the delivery of the information requested,” CCHEN wrote to Ellen LennyPessagno, Albemarle’s country manager in Chile. The letter gives the US-based miner five days from Jan 4 to deliver the information, or explain how and why it should remain confidential.

“CCHEN reserves the

right to exercise its legal powers...in the event that the information is not delivered in a timely manner,” the agency said in the letter.

CCHEN Head Jaime Salas told Reuters by email that such actions included any available to the agency under Chilean law.

Albemarle told Reuters in a statement that there was no conflict with CCHEN, and said it planned to issue a prompt reply. (Excerpt from Reuters)

South African coronavirus variant detected in reinfection case in Brazil

B

razilian researchers have identified the concerning new coronavirus variant first discovered in South Africa in a woman who contracted COVID-19 for the second time, and said it was the first such case reported in the world.

There have been other cases of reinfection in Brazil and the South African variant had previously been detected, but reinfection with this mutation of the virus is believed to be a first, researchers said.

The case involved a 45-year-old woman from the northeastern state of

follow the same mitigation processes in terms of facial masks, social distancing and sanitation,” he told reporters.

“I think once we follow that we will be okay. We will monitor the situation.”

“We just came out of the Thanksgiving festival. We watched and expected an increase. The increase was marginal but manageable, it did not cause any serious issues. We came out of the Christmas, I think we are coming out of that now, the 14-day (incubation period) and therefore we expected an increase. It's manageable. We will be watching to see what happens between now and Wednesday because that will be the time we will see the effects,” the Prime Minister said. (Excerpt from Jamaica Observer)

Bahia, researchers from the D’Or Research and Teaching Institute (IDOR) said, after carrying out a genetic sequencing of her viral infection.

The study findings are awaiting peer-review and expected to be published in The Lancet medical journal.

Researchers said the woman, who lived in the city of Salvador, was infected twice: first on May 20, and then again on Oct 26. Her symptoms were more powerful the second time, researchers reported.

Brazil is suffering the world’s second-deadliest coronavirus outbreak af-

ter the United States, with more than 200,000 dead and 8 million confirmed cases.

Right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro, who has minimised the gravity of the highly contagious illness, is facing criticism for being slow to respond to the health crisis.

The evolution of the coronavirus has raised concern that certain mutations could allow the virus to evade immunity from prior infections or vaccines.

Cases of reinfection are believed to occur because people have insufficient immune protection left over from the first infection. (Excerpt from Reuters)

ix Venezuelans whom Police suspect entered the country illegally, and one Trinidadian man, were detained in Penal during an anti-crime exercise conducted in the South Western Division.

According to official Police reports, Police officers received information which led them to Bunsee Trace Extension, Penal, where they intercepted a gold-co-

loured Nissan Prairie.

The driver, a 36-year-old Trinidadian from Balmain, Couva, was detained. The vehicle’s occupants, two female and four male Venezuelans ranging in age from 18 to 39 years, also were detained.

It is believed that they entered the country illegally.

They were medically examined at the Siparia Health Facility and are be-

ing held pending further enquiries.

The exercise, which was conducted between the hours of 9 pm on Friday and 1 am on Saturday, was coordinated by Snr Supt Neil Brandon-John, Supt Singh, Insp Simon, supervised by Sgt Crawford and included members of the South Western Division Task Force (SWDTF). (Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

Migrant caravan will not be allowed to pass, says US border official

T

he United States, its Central American allies and Mexico will not allow a group of migrants that is readying a trip north from Honduras to travel to the U..border, a senior US border official said on Friday.

Hondurans have taken to WhatsApp and Facebook groups, some of which have thousands of subscribers, to organise another caravan scheduled to leave from the country’s northern city San Pedro Sula on Jan 15, despite the coronavirus pandemic.

“Do not waste your time and money, and do not risk your safety and health,” Mark Morgan, acting commissioner at the US Customs and Border Protection, said in a statement.

“Migrant caravan groups will not be allowed to make their way north in violation of the sovereignty, standing public health orders, and immigration laws of the respective nations throughout the region.”

Many Hondurans still live on the streets after their homes were devastated by hurricanes Eta and Iota.

Honduran migrants trying to reach the US hold a Honduran flag while standing in front of Guatemalan soldiers blocking a road to stop migrants from reaching Mexico's border, in San Pedro Cadenas, Izabal, Guatemala October 2, 2020

Restrictions put in place to curb the spread of the pandemic in the poor Central American country are making it even more difficult for many to get back on their feet.

In one Facebook group that boasts more than 5500 members, people exchange advice on how to reach “paradise”, how to protect themselves against fraudsters and the coronavirus on their trip north, and share prayers.

It would be the second such caravan leaving Honduras since the hurri-

canes. In December, a caravan got to Guatemala but was dispersed by authorities before reaching Mexico.

Border arrests reached the highest level in nearly two years in December.

On Dec 19, the team of President-elect Joe Biden said he and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador vowed in a phone call to hone a “new approach” to migration issues that “offers alternatives to undertaking the dangerous journey to the United States.” (Excerpt from Reuters)

26

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2020

guyanatimesgy.com

Around the World

Indonesia Boeing 737 passenger plane crash site found, Navy says

I

ndonesian authorities say they have found the location where they believe a Boeing 737 passenger plane crashed into the sea shortly after take-off from the country’s capital Jakarta on Saturday.

The Sriwijaya Air jet was carrying 62 people when it disappeared from radars four minutes into its journey to Pontianak in West Kalimantan province.

Investigators are analysing items they believe to be wreckage.

The aircraft is not a 737 Max, the Boeing model that was grounded from March 2019 until last December following two deadly crashes.

The Sriwijaya Air passenger plane departed Jakarta airport at 14:36 local time (07:36 GMT) on

Indonesian investigators inspect an item they believe could belong to the missing plane

Saturday.

Minutes later, at 14:40, the last contact with the plane was recorded, with the call sign SJY182, according to the Transport Ministry.

The aircraft did not send a distress signal, according to the head of na-

tional search and rescue agency Air Marshal Bagus Puruhito.

It is thought to have dropped more than 3000m (10,000ft) in less than a minute, according to flight-tracking website Flightradar24. com.

There were thought to be 50 passengers - including seven children and three babies - and 12 crew on board, though the plane has a capacity of 130.

According to registration details, the plane was a 26-year-old Boeing 737-500.

It was in good condition, Sriwijaya Air chief executive Jefferson Irwin Jauwena told reporters. Take-off had been delayed for 30 minutes due to heavy rain, he said.

The plane went missing about 20km (12 miles) north of the capital Jakarta, not far from where another flight crashed in October 2018.

A total of 189 died when an Indonesian Lion Air flight plunged into the sea about 12 minutes after takeoff from the city. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Kim Jong-un pledges to Australia on high alert after expand North Korea’s overseas travellers bring new COVID-19 strains nuclear arsenal

N

orth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has said the US is his country’s “biggest enemy” and that he does not expect Washington to change its policy toward Pyongyang - whoever is President.

Addressing a rare congress of his ruling Workers’ Party, Kim also pledged to expand North Korea’s nuclear weapons arsenal and military potential.

He said that plans for a nuclear submarine were almost complete.

His comments come as US President-elect Joe Biden prepares to take office.

Analysts suggest Kim’s remarks are an effort to apply pressure on the incoming Government, with Biden set to be sworn in on January 20.

Kim enjoyed a warm rapport with outgoing US President Donald Trump, even if little concrete prog-

ress was made on negotiations over North Korea’s nuclear programme.

In his latest address to the Workers’ Party - only the eighth congress in its history - Kim said Pyongyang did not intend to use its nuclear weapons unless “hostile forces” were planning to use them against North Korea first.

He said the US was his country’s “biggest obstacle for our revolution and our biggest enemy... no matter who is in power, the true nature of its policy against North Korea will never change,” state news agency KCNA reported.

North Korea has managed to significantly advance its arsenal despite being subject to strict economic sanctions.

Earlier this week, Kim admitted that his five-year economic plan for the isolated country failed to meet its targets in “almost every sector”.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

A

ustralia’s health officials said on Saturday they are on high alert after cases of highly transmissible new variants of the coronavirus, discovered in Britain and South Africa, have made it into the country.

Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, on Saturday went into a three-day strict lockdown after the discovery of a virulent strain of the virus that causes COVID-19, linked to Britain. A variant that emerged in South Africa was found in Sydney, Australia’s largest city, in a hotel quarantine.

Australia has been more successful than most advanced economies in managing the pandemic, with total infections at around 28,600 and 909 deaths, while each state has at some point recorded zero COVID-19 transmissions.

But given the new variants, the Government on

Friday cut the number of travellers from overseas, and required negative COVID-19 tests from those boarding planes and more testing at local quarantine facilities.

Australia closed its borders in March but has been allowing a limited number of Australians to return, putting them into a two-week mandatory hotel quarantine upon arrival.

New South Wales, the largest state, reported one new community transmitted case on Saturday, as a threeweek lockdown is set to end for about a quarter million of people in Sydney’s north after an outbreak there in December.

Queensland, where a case of the Britain-linked variant was recorded last week, reported no new cases. But officials said that they could not rule out extending the three-day lockdown if more cases emerge. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Fire at India hospital ward kills 10 babies

T

The cause of the fire is not yet known

en babies, some them days old, have been killed in a fire at a hospital in India as members of staff rushed to evacuate the ward early on Saturday.

Seven infants were rescued from the blaze before

firefighters arrived at the Bhandara District Hospital in the western state of Maharashtra.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the incident as a “heart-wrenching tragedy”.

The cause of the fire is

not yet known and an investigation is underway.

State Health Minister Rajesh Tope said initial evidence suggested it might have been caused by a short circuit.

The fire started at about 02:00 local time (20:30 GMT Friday), according to hospital officials.

Rescue efforts were hampered by continuous blasts inside the ward, local media report. One nurse on duty said she alerted the authorities after seeing smoke streaming out of the hospital’s Newborn Care Unit.

“Hospital authorities have rescued seven babies but 10 have died in an unfortunate incident,” district civil surgeon Pramod

Khandate told reporters.

Some of the babies were only a few days old, and the oldest three months.

In a tweet, Modi said his thoughts were with the bereaved families.

India’s Home Affairs Minister, Amit Shah, said he was “pained beyond words” over the “irreparable loss”.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said he was “deeply saddened” by the deaths, adding: “My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families.”

Bhandara is 62km (39 miles) from the north-eastern city of Nagpur - one of the largest cities of Maharashtra. (Excerpt from BBC News)

OILNEWS OIL NEWS Oil and gas dealmaking peaks in Q4 as pandemic spurs consolidation – Enverus

D

eal making among oil and gas producers was at its highest for the year in the fourth quarter of 2020 as the pandemicdriven fallout in commodity prices spurred a wave of consolidation between explorers looking to scale up and drive down costs, a report from analytics firm Enverus said.

Oil and gas producers made deals worth US$27.1 billion in the quarter, up from US$21 billion in the third, helped by three multibillion dollar acquisitions in the prolific Permian basin of West Texas and New Mexico.

ConocoPhillips acquired Concho Resources for US$13.3 billion, the biggest pure shale acquisition by any company since 2011, topping the list. It was followed by Pioneer Natural Resources’ deal to buy Parsley Energy for US$7.6 billion.

Diamondback Energy also took over publicly-traded QEP Resources and private equity-backed Guidon Operating for just over US$3 billion.

Data from Enverus also showed deal flow, or the number of deals announced, was only 140 in 2020. It was the lowest since at least 2006, as a number of buyers focused on preserving cash to pay down debt or returning capital to shareholders.

According to Enverus, corporate consolidation, especially among small and mid-size companies that require scale, and noncore asset divestments could be seen in 2021.

“The limiting factor for consolidation in 2021 will be the number of attractive merger partners left at the end of a very active year,” Enverus M&A analyst Andrew Dittmar said.

Companies that went through a Chapter 11 restructuring in 2020 could also emerge as potential merger partners now that debt loads are right-sized, Enverus added. (Excerpt from Reuters)

6 dead, nearly 50,000 evacuated in Malaysia floods

Adding to the complexity of rescue efforts, Malaysia is seeing a surge in coronavirus cases, reporting its biggest daily rise on Thursday

A

t least six people have died and nearly 50,000 evacuated in Malaysia after monsoon rains pounded the country’s east coast, authorities said, causing what residents described as the worst flooding in half a century.

Authorities have stepped up rescue operations after locals complained they had to fend for themselves earlier this week.

Heavy rains continued to batter the region on Friday, swelling the number of people abandoning their homes to more than 47,000, officials said.

“I have lost everything.

The water has covered my roof,” 59-year-old factory worker Tan Kong Leng told AFP news agency, tears filling his eyes.

The region experiences flooding and mass evacuations during the rainy season every year, but those in the affected areas said this year is the worst in decades.

Many roads, including the main expressway that links

the east coast states, have been closed.

“We are very concerned for the safety and wellbeing of more than 50,000 people who have been evacuated and swamped by these terrible floods in the middle of a worsening COVID-19 pandemic. These floods are getting worse by the hour, turning large areas into inland seas,” said Malaysian Red Crescent Honorary Secretary General Haji Hakim Hamzah in a statement.

In a Pahang village cut off by floods, residents were evacuated in an excavator on Wednesday, while others were forced to swim through deep waters.

In one of the heavily affected districts in Pahang, residents complained that narrow and rubbish-filled drains exacerbated the flooding.

Adding to the complexity of rescue efforts, Malaysia has seen a surge in coronavirus cases, reporting its biggest daily rise on Thursday.

(Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

27

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

28

guyanatimesgy.com

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021

ARIES (March 21April 19)

You can create an opportunity within the framework of something you are already doing. Expand your mind and use the experience you gain to advance.

TAURUS Be careful what you say and do. Consider the conse(April 20May 20) quences of making a snap decision. You are better off doing your own thing and avoiding joint ventures.

Expand your mind. Search for GEMINI opportunities that will allow you (MAY 28to use your skills, knowledge and June 20)

experience. Look at the fine print, go over details, make adjustments and proceed with confidence.

CANCER Make personal progress, (June 21- health and fitness priorities.

July 22) Refuse to let emotional situations ruin your day. Look for opportunities that will encourage positive adjustments to your living space.

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

VIRGO

Dilbert

(Aug. 23Sept. 22)

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

SCORPIO (Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Peanuts

Avoid interacting with people who don’t share your beliefs or opinions. You’re better off avoiding a futile argument.

Concentrate on saving money. Invest time and energy in something that offers excellent financial stability.

Keep an open mind, but don’t trust someone to tell you the whole truth. Put more thought into making lifestyle adjustments that encourage fitness and good health.

Romance is on the rise.

Make changes at home conducive to the lifestyle you want to live. Move things around, clear a space for a project you wish to pursue or make plans to spend time with someone who brings out the best in you.

Choose your words wisely. An unexpected change will leave you in a precarious position. Look for the positive in all things. Charm and diplomacy will help you get your way.

Personal and physical imSAGITTARIUS provements are favored. Make (Nov. 23an effort to get in shape, imDec. 21)

prove your diet and look your best. The compliments and attention you get will boost your ego.

CAPRICORN Don’t share your inten(Dec. 22tions anyone. Change is headJan. 19) ing your way, and preparing for success will give you the edge you need to reach your destination.

Calvin and Hobbes

Think before you act. Don’t AQUARIUS jeopardize your position, sta(Jan. 20tus or reputation.

Think for Feb. 19) yourself to avoid sticky situations. Focus on health and fitness, not on anger.

PISCES Mixed emotions can lead (Feb. 20- to poor judgment and regret.

Mar. 20) Listen to what others have

to say, but don’t be gullible.

Consider what’s in your best interest before you commit to something.

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021

29

GABF seeks to run off in 2021 competitions not held in 2020 P

atience is a virtue that everyone involved in basketball in Guyana had needed in 2020. The Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation (GABF) and Guyana’s basketball stars saw their season cancelled a week prior to its start.

Patience has also been mandatory in quarantine situations.

Some talents were still able to play, like Anthony Moe, who was still able to play in the Nicaraguan league – Liga Superior de Baloncesto (LSB) - where he averaged 20.7 points, 10.7 rebounds and 2.1 assists for the UNAN Leon basketball club, which finished third in the LSB. National standout Stanton Rose made his debut in the NCAA, after transferring to St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Texas, USA along with Kevon Wiggins, who transferred to Lamar College in Lamar, Colorado, USA. The patience of local players was tested as the pandemic cancelled seasons at all levels. With the absence of play, the GABF took advantage of the opportunity to network and collaborate with peers and partners in multiple virtual meetings, clinics, and workshops. Members of the Guyana basketball fraternity attended virtual clinics and workshops offered by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), the Central America and Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CONCENCABA) and the

Stanton Rose was signed to play at St Mary’s

Guyana Olympic Association.

Several topics were presented by experts across the world, with focus on national federation development.

Topics included media and marketing, coaches and game officials’ fundamentals, events management, sports psychology, anti-doping awareness, Women in Basketball, digital assets, local government partnership and community relations, to name a few.

As part of a “Stay Ready” campaign, the GABF completed three virtual activities; namely, the National Skills Challenge, Tricks for Kicks – Trick Shot Challenge, and the Uniform Design Challenge.

The Guyana U17 men’s and women’s national teams received a special invitation to compete in the virtual FIBA World U17 Skills Challenge, but had to withdraw from the challenge due to COVID-19

shutdown.

The winning team from the Antilles 3×3 National Qualifier attended the IBF Antilles 3×3 Hoops Final from February 28 to March 2, 2020 in Guadeloupe. The event comprised a youth leadership and life skills workshop and a 3×3 mixed nations basketball tournament. Participants were able to learn about the IBF’s “Basketball for Good” mindset, and were encouraged to think about how basketball could be used as a tool to influence positive change in their lives and communities.

Guyana’s Timothy Richmond received the male ‘Basketball for Good’ award.

The GABF signed a fiveyear partnership with Genius Sports. Genius Sports will provide a digital platform, including FIBA LiveStats, FIBA Organizer, Game Center, FIBA LiveStats Widget, and

access to the FIBA Statistician Network.

The partnership is valAnthony Moe was still able to play in ued at US$182,000.

Guyana received its Superior de Baloncesto (LSB) FIBA Basketball World hosted, with topics such Cup 2023 Qualifier ticket, as Youth Development by and the senior men’s nation- Dawn Smyth, NBA; Officials al team is awaiting an appeal Development by Nadine decision from the National Crowley, Canadian Sports COVID-19 Task Force to re- Board; Women in Leadership start training in 2021. The by Cynthis Marshall, Dallas first FIBA Basketball World Mavericks’ CEO; Marketing Cup 2023 Qualifier is sched- your Project by Andrea Perez, ule for 17-21 February 2021 VP Jordan Brand; and How in El Salvador. to be an Effective Sports The GABF also qualified Leader by Andreas Zagklis, for the FIBA 3×3 AmeriCup, FIBA Secretary General, with the first qualifier sched- to name a few. During the uled for April 2021. break, Sileena was placed in Sileena Arjune was ac- a cohort with colleagues from cepted to the FIBA Americas Aruba, Dominican Republic Adelante Forum for Women and Guatemala, with similar in Basketball. The Women’s interest in 3×3 development.

Forum comprises female The first virtual AGM participants from 38 na- was held with focus on impletional federations from the menting its new strategy, priAmericas. Workshops were oritising the empowerment

the Nicaraguan league – Liga

of sub-associations, Women in Basketball, and Enlarging the GABF Family.

With 2021 being in its early phase, the GABF intends to execute all 2020 cancelled events with focus on 3×3, youth and women’s basketball. 2021 FIBA events include the FIBA Basketball World Cup Pre-Qualifiers, FIBA 3×3 AmeriCup Qualifier – CBC, FIBA 3×3 Nations League, Centrobasket U15 and U17 Championships, and the CBC U14 and U16 Championships.

Non-qualifying regional events include the InterGuiana Games, South American Games (3×3), Caribbean Games (3×3), and the IBF Antilles 3×3 Finals.

Full-strength sides expected for home tours, says CWI

B

RIDGETOWN, Barbados – Cricket West Indies (CWI) does not anticipate this year’s home tours being hit by players’ withdrawals due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is contended that the decision by 10 first team players to opt out of the upcoming Bangladesh series was based on “unusual circumstances”.

Describing as “temporary” the current policy wherein players were allowed to decline selection in light of the potential risks posed by the coronavirus, CWI Chief Executive Johnny Grave said he expected selectors to have the full slate of players to choose from, following the Bangladesh tour.

West Indies are scheduled to host tours by Sri Lanka, South Africa,

CWI Chief Executive Johnny Grave

Australia and Pakistan, following the Regional Super50 Cup in February.

“We all have to accept that we’re all operating, working, living in very different times, under very different circumstances,” Grave said.

“We made it very clear to the public, the fans and players that during this unprecedented time, playing in these unusual cir-

cumstances, we would give the players the opportunity - if they didn’t feel safe, didn’t want to leave their families, or they had reservations - that we would support their decision not to tour.

“We’ve had players do that in the case of the England tour, both in the men’s and the women’s (teams). We’ve had players pull out of New Zealand [and] we’ve clearly had more players [pull out of] Bangladesh, but that in part is because we’ve had such a long period of playing cricket in these bio-secure environments, that are very different and very unusual for players, especially when we’re expecting them to go out in front of the world and perform at their best.”

He continued: “This

isn’t something that’s restricted to West Indies Cricket, and also it is a temporary policy. It’s not something that we anticipate lasting forever. It’s purely to do with the unusual circumstances, particularly playing away from home. We don’t expect this policy to continue after the Bangladesh tour, because we’ve got four home tours that follow it, and we would expect all players to be available to play within the region.”

West Indies have been the most active international side since the global lockdown of the sport ended last July, making history with a three-Test tour of England that same month in cricket’s first-ever bio-secure bubble. the women’s side have since toured England

for five Twenty20 Internationals while the men travelled to New Zealand for three T20Is and two Tests spanning November and December.

The tour of Bangladesh, which will see a depleted unit featuring in three One-Day Internationals and two Tests during January and February, will mark the third tour for the men’s side amid the ongoing pandemic.

And with Test captain Jason Holder – one of the players to opt out of the Bangladesh tour – alluding to “bubble fatigue” following the New Zealand series, Grave said CWI had gone to great lengths to provide the requisite psychological support for both players and support staff.

“It’s taxing on every-

one’s mental health, so we’re very aware of that, and that’s why we’ve put in these types of supportive policies and put in more people to support the team,” Grave told Starcom Radio’s Mason and Guest radio programme, adding that a security and compliance officer had been added to the touring party for Bangladesh.

“That is to do everything we can to ensure the players are safe, and by default it means they are going to be less worried about it (safety) if we can give them more support and security while they’re there,” Grave said.

The West Indies contingent have begun leaving the region for the upcoming tour, and are expected to arrive in Bangladesh by Sunday(today). (CMC)

30

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021

Nexgen Global identifies 3 locations to build golf courses

– to support CSEC school golf programme

O

ver the past week, the plans to implement golf in secondary schools across the country under the auspices of the Unit of Allied Arts’ division of the Ministry of Education and the Guyana Golf Association got off to a fantastic start, as the programme was rolled out in Berbice, Georgetown, Linden and Essequibo, prompting the head of Nexgen Global Group of Companies, Aleem Hussain, to announce plans for the third of a series of golf courses his company plans to build this year as he continues to expand the game around the country.

“During the visit to the Anna Regina Secondary School to donate equipment and meet with Education officials, we identified the location on the Essequibo Coast, and expect that with the revolutionary design and layout of the course, we can have the facility fully functional before the end of this year,” Hussain has said.

“This is in addition to the two other golf facilities we plan to build in Linden and Berbice,” he explained.

The Guyana Golf Association’s goal to have as many as 6,000 new players in the coming years is realistic, considering that Guyana has approximately 100,000 students in the school system (57,000 in secondary schools alone); and with parental involvement, the game has the potential to reach great heights, thereby creating the demand for more playing facilities and courses.

Hussain has said he plans to build at least 8 golf facilities, since his unique design for the new golf courses require less than 15 acres of land, thereby allowing them to be built closer to densely populated areas.

Maintenance and upkeep costs will be drastically reduced, and, as such, the game will be more affordable and accessible to anyone who has an interest in learning and playing golf.

Administrator of the Unit of Allied Arts, Ms. Lorraine BarkerKing, has said she is tremendously excited that Guyana will make history when our kids will, for the first time, be able to utilise golf as a sporting option in the Physical Education and Sport syllabi for CSEC and CAPE. “This opens up a world of opportunity for our children, especially in light of the impact COVID has had on sports, and Mr. Fraser is showing excellent initiative in ensuring that we come up with viable alternatives for them in sports.

“This partnership with Mr. Hussain and the Guyana Golf Association is definitely one that

will change the way our country looks at the sport, and we will do everything possible to ensure its success.” Ms. Barker-King has said.

The current pilot programme will see six schools selected by the Ministry of Education: Anna Regina Secondary; Richard Ishmael Secondary; Queen’s College; President’s College; Berbice Educational Institute, and Wisburg Secondary, begin teaching Golf immediately, and in August, the remaining CSEC schools will roll out the programme nationally, to ensure that as many students as possible have the opportunity to learn the game.

The aim is to train the PE teachers of these schools to become master trainers of golf instructors in all the other schools.

Nicholas Fraser, head of the Physical Education Allied Arts Unit, holds an MBA specialising in Sports Management, and is no stranger to implementing new programmes, having held many senior positions, including Assistant Director of Sports at the National Sports Commission, among others. He has said, “Golf has the potential of becoming a dominant sport in the school programme based on the reaction from both teachers and students so far, and the fact that it is a COVID-19-compliant sport.

Many activities are planned for the school golf programme, with competitions for inter-classroom, inter-school, inter-region and national championships scheduled for 2021.”

Despite the personal challenges he faced many years ago, Hussain has been the driving force behind the development of golf in Guyana, and has proven that adversity does bring out

the best in everyone, especially when one has the desire to succeed.

As President of the Guyana Golf Association and Nexgen Golf Academy, Hussain is also ranked as one of the top golf players in the country. He has performed well in tournaments in Barbados, Trinidad, Suriname and Costa Rica, and aims to use his skills and determination to ensure that a national team is created to participate in international events leading up to the Olympics.

So far everyone, ranging from the CEO of Education to the Regional District Education Officers, Head Teachers, Physical Education teachers, and especially the students, have reacted well to the inclusion of the sport in the schools’ curriculum, as evidenced by the smiles and reactions from

CLASSIFIED ADS FOR SALE Fresh Organic Ginger for Sale Tel. #6884264 New Pulp Egg Tray for Sale. Tel# 6884264

PUPPIES FOR SALE Mix Breed Puppies For sale Contact : 253-3114/692-0126

Wisburg Head Mistress and Deputy Head Master stand alongside Hussain and Fraser

Nicholas Fraser, Aleem Hussain and Lorraine Barker-King

Wisburg Secondary School DHM Cordel Sealey; HM Ms. Micheal; Anna Regina Secondary School

HM Laljeet Ruplall, and DHM Raghunaught Doodnaught; Region 2 Regional Education

Officer Nichola Matthews, and Region 2 District Education Officer (in charge of Secondary schools) Deodat Singh, when they met with Hussain and Fraser during the roll-out.

Head Coach Courtney Walsh ready to get started at West Indies Women’s Camp

S

T JOHN’S, Antigua — Twenty-Four (24) leading West Indies Women cricketers will gather in Antigua from this weekend, for a training camp which bowls off on Sunday at The Coolidge Cricket Ground (CCG). The camp will be the first face-to-face assignment with the players for new Head Coach Courtney Walsh and his technical support team, who will conduct a three-week high-performance program for a mixture of senior players and new faces.

Cricket West Indies (CWI) has been working closely with the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Sport in Antigua & Barbuda to orchestrate logistics and agree the safety protocols for the commencement and duration of the camp. All players and support staff were tested twice with negative COVID-19 results before their arrival into Antigua. The players and support staff will train and live in a biosecure bubble for the duration of the camp, during which they will have four more tests conducted.

The preparation camp, running from January 9 to February 1, kickstarts the year’s activities for the Women’s team, a feature of which will be the International Cricket Council (ICC) Women’s World Cup Qualifiers, due to talk place in Sri Lanka in July.

Walsh said: “It’s very gratifying that the camp can take place during this challenging COVID-19 period, as the players are excited about getting down to work. We have a good mixture of youth and experience coming into the camp and I’m especially looking forward to working with some of the younger talent we have coming through.”

Coach Walsh will be joined by an experienced team of qualified coaches, including former West

223-7230-1 (Ext 55)

NOW! Indies players Robert Samuels and Corey Collymore, and the camp will also be overseen by High Performance Manager Graeme West.

Walsh added, “Also on the coaching side, we have Samantha Lynch joining us, and she did her Level 3 coaching certification training at the same time as me, so I know her very well. This camp will be a good experience for her, and I expect her to quickly become an asset to the team. Also, we have Steve Liburd who went to England with the team last September to help with the fielding, and Ryan Austin to focus on our spinners.

I think we have a good blend of players and coaches, and I’m looking forward to a great camp.”

Among the 24 players called up for the camp are some world-class performers: Stafanie Taylor, Deandra Dottin, Hayley Matthews, Anisa Mohammed and Shakera Selman.

Japhina Joseph a righthanded batter from St. Vincent and the Grenadines, is the newest member to be invited to the training camp. She impressed the selectors during the CWI Under-19 tournament in 2019.

All-rounder Qiana Joseph

from Windward Islands makes a return to the training squad along with teenager Steffi Soogrim from Trinidad and Tobago.

FULL SQUAD: Aaliyah Alleyne, Reniece Boyce, Shemaine Campbelle, Shamilia Connell, Britney Cooper, Deandra Dottin, Afy Fletcher, Cherry-Ann Fraser, Shabika Gajnabi, Sheneta Grimmond, Shawnisha Hector, Chinelle Henry, Qiana Joseph, Japhina Joseph, Kyshona Knight, Hayley Matthews, Natasha McLean, Anisa Mohammed, Chedean Nation, Karishma Ramharack, Kaysia Schultz, Shakera Selman, Steffi Soogrim, Stafanie Taylor

TEAM MANAGEMENT UNIT: Courtney Walsh – head coach; Robert Samuels – assistant coach; Corey Collymore – assistant coach; Ryan Austin – assistant coach; Steve Liburd – assistant coach; Samantha Lynch – assistant coach; Neil Barry – physiotherapist; Shayne Cooper – S&C coach; Amanda Johnson – mental skills coach; Gary Belle – team analyst; Sheena Gooding – team manager; Naasira Mohammed – media and content officer.

223-7230-1 (Ext 55)

31

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 2021

Former cricketers, executives on board in support of Berbice Cricket development

– Nagamootoo brothers, Troy Halley, Narsingh Deonarine are the latest

T

he outstanding work of the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) continues to attract the attention of sponsors and former cricketers as the board strives to fulfill its commitment to return the game to the highest level of attraction after the COVID-19 pandemic is brought under control.

Over the last three years under the Presidency of Hilbert Foster, the very vibrant board has developed a reputation of attracting sponsorships from across the country, the Caribbean and North America for tournaments and a wide range of developmental programmes. One of the most pleasing aspects of the BCB marketing effort is its ability to have former players come on board to sponsor events and tournaments.

Current players like Shimron Hetmyer, Kevin Sinclair and Romario Shepherd are sponsors of tournaments, while former

Vishal Nagamootoo

West Indies opener Clayton Lambert recently spearheaded a $1.5M gears’ project which attracted support from former national players Ray Joseph, Leslaine Lambert, Kevin Darlington and Demerara-born Nolan McKenzie.

Former national captain Jerry Angus also contributed to the joint BCB/ RHTY&SC Basil Butcher gears’ project.

Others, like Anthony Bramble, Veersammy Permaul, Devendra Bishoo, Esaun

Crandon, Ishwar Singh and Gudakesh Motie, have also assisted in support of the BCB’s work programme.

One of the new BCB initiatives for 2021 is to host several one-day cricket tournaments at venues where clubs may be struggling to attract youths to join, and where the passion for the game has been subsiding.

Another objective of the tournaments would be to give clubs which are struggling opportunity to compete against more established clubs, like the RHTY&SC and the Albion Cricket Club, so they might get opportunity to win a BCB tournament. The BCB hopes to organise these tournaments at venues such as Whim, Bush Lot Farm, Port Mourant, Skeldon, Chesney, Rose Hall Canje, Edinburgh and Bush Lot on the Berbice West Coast.

Former West Indies player Mahendra Nagamootoo and his younger brother

Mahendra Nagamootoo

Vishal, who have both played for Guyana, have agreed to sponsor the tournament in their home village of Whim.

Whim, Port Mourant and Belvedere would clash for the Nagamootoo Brothers Trophy.

The West Berbice-born Troy Halley, who played for several teams in that area, contacted the BCB and offered to sponsor another tournament at the Bush Lot Ground. Four teams: Bush Lot United, Bush Lot Rising Stars, Achievers,

and D’Edward, would play in that tournament.

Former Guyana captain and West Indies player Narsingh Deonarine would be the sponsor of the Deonarine Cup, to be played between Chesney, Fyrish and Courtland at the Chesney Ground.

Deonarine, who played in 18 Tests for the West Indies, was born in Chesney.

Meanwhile, former BCB Executive Lloyd Simpson, at the request of the BCB President, would shortly be handing over an office photo copier to the board, as efforts continues to reduce the BCB’s overall operating costs.

Foster has hailed the cooperation of the former cricketers who are now living overseas for remembering their roots and paying it forward. He said the players were very impressed with the current state of Berbice Cricket and, most importantly, have confidence in its leadership.

Troy Halley

He expressed gratitude to them, and reassured that 2021 would see unmatched development in the county.

Several other former players are in discussion with the BCB, and more tournaments would shortly be unveiled.

West Indies confident as they depart for Tests and ODIS in Bangladesh

B

RIDGETOWN, Barbados — West Indies squad members have departed the Caribbean during the course of this past Thursday and Friday for the upcoming tour

of Bangladesh. The final group left from Barbados on Friday night, including newly-appointed Test Captain Kraigg Brathwaite.

The experie n c e d Test opener e x pressed confidence that the team w i l l perform well in Bangladesh’s home condi-

Kraigg Brathwaite

tions.

“We are all up for the challenge…it will be a tough series in Bangladesh, but we have confidence and we have belief that we will do very well,” Brathwaite said.

“We have some members of the squad who will be playing there for the first time, so it will be something new to them, but they know they have the talent and are capable of performing at this level.”

Brathwaite has scored three of his eight Test centuries against Bangladesh. He made a career-best 212 in 2014 and had scores of 121 and 110 in the twomatch rubber three years ago.

“It’s about being very clear in our plans,

whether when we’re batting or when we’re bowling. We have to know how we want to play…how we are going to score our runs, and how we are going to look for our wickets.

Patience will be the key.

It’s always very important in the Test format, and especially on the pitches in Bangladesh,” he said.

The tour comprises two Test matches, as part of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC’s) World Test

Championship, and three One-Day Internationals (ODI) as part of the ICC’s Cricket World Cup Super League. The ODIs present the first opportunity for the West Indies to earn Super League points which count towards the pre-qualifica-

Full Tour Schedule January 10: West Indies arrive January 18: One-day warm-up match, BKSP, Savar January 20 1st ODI, SBNCS, Dhaka January 22: 2nd ODI, SBNCS, Dhaka January 25: 3rd ODI, ZACS,

Chattogram January 28-31: Four-day warm-up, M.A. Aziz Stadium, Chattogram February 3-7: 1st Test Match, ZACS, Chattogram February 11-15: 2nd Test Match, SBNCS, Dhaka

tion for the ICC Cricket World Cup in 2023.

All squad members returned their second negative COVID-19 PCR tests as part of the established medical protocols, and have been cleared for travel to Bangladesh.

The full squad is scheduled to arrive in Dhaka on Sunday (today).

West Indies ODI Squad: Jason Mohammed (captain), Sunil Ambris (vice-captain), Nkrumah Bonner, Joshua Da Silva, Keon Harding, Jahmar Hamilton, Chemar Holder, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Andre McCarthy, Kjorn Ottley, Rovman Powell, Raymon Reifer, Hayden Walsh jr.

West

Indies

Test

Jason Mohammed

Squad: Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Jermaine Blackwood (vice-captain), Nkrumah Bonner, John Campbell, Rahkeem Cornwall, Joshua Da Silva, Shannon Gabriel, Kavem Hodge, Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Shayne Moseley, Veerasammy Permaul, Kemar Roach, Raymon Reifer, Jomel Warrican.

T e a m Management: Phil Simmons (Head Coach), Rawl Lewis (Team Manager), Roddy Estwick (Assistant Coach), Monty Desai (Assistant Coach), Rayon Griffith (Assistant Coach), Denis Byam (Physiotherapist), Dr Praimanand Singh (Team Doctor), Ronald Rogers (Strength & Conditioning Coach), Sharon Coppin (Massage Therapist), Simeon Christophe (Massage Therapist), Donald LeGuerre (Mental Skills Coach), Dario Barthley (Media & Content Officer), Paul Slowe (Security & Compliance Officer), A.R Srikkanth (Team Analyst)

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

SUNDAY, JANAURY 10, 2021

guyanatimesgy.com

Former cricketers, executives on board in support of Berbice West Indies confident Cricket development See story on page 31 as they depart for Tests – Nagamootoo brothers, Troy Halley, Narsingh Deonarine are the latest

Nexgen Global identifies 3 locations to build golf courses

– to support CSEC school golf programme

See story on page 30

Page 31

and ODIS in Bangladesh

Page 29

GABF seeks to run off in 2021 competitions GABF seeks tonotrunheld off inin 2020 2021 competitions not held in 2020

GUYANA TIMES - www.guyanatimesgy.com, email: news@guyanatimesgy.com, NEWS HOTLINE: 231-8063 EDITORIAL: 223-7230, 223-7231, 231-0544, 225-7761 SPORT: sport@guyanatimesgy.com SALES AND MARKETING: 231-8064 - lezas@guyanatimesgy.com - PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY GUYANA TIMES INC.