Guyana Times - Thursday December 10, 2020

19-year-old Azam Ally is Guyana’s 1st locally-trained helicopter pilot Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

Issue No. 4495

P2

THE BEACON OF TRUTH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020

Region 2 to get over $5B in investments in coming weeks – President Ali

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WHAT'S INSIDE:

COVID-19 cash grant distribution begins in P15 Region 4

See stories on pages 3 & 9

…600 house lots to be developed, distributed on Essequibo Coast ...as Police called in to probe false receipts for sale of Govt lands Programme launched

8-year-old electrocuted while playing with drill

to build public trust, confidence in Judiciary P13 …initiative key to upholding good governance – outgoing Canadian envoy

Page 16

Dead: Dashaun Dorris

Bauxite barge slams into Demerara Harbour Bridge Page 15

Guyana votes to reject P12 “fraudulent” elections result in Venezuela New areas in P14 Region 6 to have bright Christmas …to get electricity for the first time

…toll waived for stranded passengers to cross faster

Guyana Corriverton makes Town Council submission for owes workers COVID-19 vaccine more than – Health Minister $8M – Councillor

DPP withdraws murder charge P8 against cops accused of shooting unarmed man

Page 11

Page 17

…32 new COVID-19 cases recorded …sends dismissal letters to striking workers

Mahaica man accused of killing neighbour to P14 know fate today

2 NEWS

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

19-year-old Azam Ally is Guyana’s 1st locallytrained helicopter pilot

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Captain Azam Ally

ineteen-year-old Azam Ally of Air Services Limited (ASL) is the country’s first locally-trained and certified helicopter pilot.

The young man was on Wednesday honoured and recognised by Public Works Minister Juan Edghill for his accomplishment.

Captain Ally hails from the Essequibo Coast, Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam). He was on Wednesday presented with his licence to operate helicopters by Minister Edghill.

The permit was certified by the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA). The teen was also presented with a personal letter of commendation from the Minister.

In the letter, Minister Edghill stated that Captain Ally was an inspiration to young Guyanese.

“Somebody might want to ask why are we making such a big fuss…when people do well, we must give them flowers while they can appreciate it,” the Minister added.

Ally was later presented with a plaque of appreciation.

In brief remarks, Ally reflected on his journey and expressed gratitude to his support system.

“I feel very honoured to receive this..., I want to say thank you to Captain

Mazahar Ally for giving me this opportunity; without him, I could have never accomplished what I did today … my brother was also an inspiration: seeing him as a captain made me think I want to do the same thing… I want to thank my mother for believing in me, and my grandmother, I want to give her thanks for the prayers ...,” he said.

In 2019, Ally began working in the aircraft maintenance department of ASL as a trainee aircraft mechanic, after which he was then assigned to the rotorcraft maintenance programme, which provided him with the foundational knowledge of rotorcraft maintenance.

In 2020, upon completion of one year in maintenance, he was given the opportunity to begin training as a helicopter pilot.

His training commenced on August 3, 2020, under the tutelage of Captain Buddy Chance, a veteran helicopter pilot and one of two approved helicopter flight instructors at ASL. Ally’s Initial Flight Training was done on the Robinson R-66 Helicopter, and on September 3, 2020, he did his first solo flight.

This was followed on December 8, 2020 by his private pilot check ride with Captain Chris Kirkcaldy of the GCAA which was successful. (G9)

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS OPENINGS BRIDGE

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Thursday, December 10 – 01:00h – 02:30h and 13:00h – 14:30h and Friday, December 11 – 01:30h – 03:00h and 13:00h – 14:30h.

Region 2 to get over $5B in investments in coming weeks – President Ali

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Thursday, December 10 – 13:00h – 14:30h and Friday, December 11 – 13:50h – 15:20h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY

Light rain showers followed by sunshine is expected during the day. There should be partly cloudy conditions at night. Temperatures should range between 21 degrees Celsius and 29 degrees Celsius.

Winds: North North-Easterly to North NorthWesterly between 1.34 metres and 4.02 metres.

High Tide: 12:59h reaching a maximum height of 2.50 metres.

Low Tide: 06:26h and 19:00h reaching minimum heights of 0.78 metre and 0.70 metre.

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President Irfaan Ali along with Cabinet Ministers and other Government officials meeting with Region Two residents during the outreach

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resident Dr Irfaan Ali has announced that Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) will be benefiting from more than $5 billion in investments before the end of this year.

The Head of State made this announcement during an outreach at the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) in Anna Regina on Wednesday.

During the exercise, residents were updated on major investments in the pipeline, which includes the construction of a water treatment plant, additional power generating capacity for the Region, the implementation of a $50 million road programme, the commencement of a $70 million sea defence programme, the distribution of more than 4500 cash grants, and the rehabilitation of 50 miles of drainage and irrigation infrastructure.

President Ali told Region Two residents that his Government stands committed to serving all Guyanese, in keeping with its mandate.

He noted that the outreach is aimed at enhancing the delivery of service to the region and fostering collaboration among various agencies to address concerns at the community level.

Throughout the day, scores of residents were given the opportunity to raise their issues with the high-level team during the outreach exercise.

The issues residents raised with the President ranged from access to electricity, water, land allocation concerns and drainage issues among oth-

er areas. President Ali was joined by a high-level team comprising Ministers and officials from various state entities during the outreach, with whom residents were able to interact to have their issues resolved.

Representatives from the Office of the President, the Ministry of Housing and Water, the Central Housing and Planning Authority, the Ministry of Foreign

Affairs and International Cooperation, Guyana Power and Light (GPL), National Insurance Scheme (NIS), National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA), the Ministry of Health, the Guyana Police Force, and Regional officials, among others, were present at the presidential outreach on Wednesday.

The Guyanese Leader also announced that a Rapid Response Team will be set up to address the concerns of the residents in the swiftest possible manner. He assured that there will be more such exercises as the Government will be moving forward in a spirit of collaboration and connection to the people.

TURN TO PAGE 7

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guyanatimesgy.com

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020

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

Finding the right balance

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here has been much public discourse recently about the need to raise the Private Sector minimum wage and to bring it in line with what obtains in the Public Service. In fact, for years now, many have been complaining that the wages and salaries being paid by private companies, especially in the retail sector, are way below par, and cannot sustain or meet the expenses of workers.

The Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU), in particular, recently issued a statement calling for a hike in the minimum wage, but did not take into consideration the challenges being faced by businesses in a COVID-19 environment.

Labour Minister Joseph Hamilton had announced that he would be issuing an order to increase the Private Sector minimum wage from $44,200 to $60,000 for a 40-hour week. At the time, the Labour Minister had explained that the stakeholders involved – including the Private Sector – had no objection to the increase.

Some have since expressed the view that the business community many not be able to facilitate such an increase at this time, considering the present state of the local economy.

It should be stated that no one has ever been opposed to the view that the Private Sector should raise wages and salaries. However, one has to take into consideration that some private businesses are barely managing to sustain themselves. Over the past few months, many of them were forced to close their doors due to poor sales etc. To make it mandatory at this time for such businesses to pay increased salaries would put an additional burden on them, and may even result in job losses, as businesses many be able only to keep a reduced number of employees.

On his part, Chairman of the Private Sector Commission (PSC), Nicholas Boyer, has acknowledged that the current Private Sector minimum wage is not a “livable wage”, but noted that the business community’s ability to facilitate an increase is a “question of timing”.

“It’s going to depend on a lot of factors…As long as we have the ability to pay increased minimum wages without having job losses, we definitely should increase the minimum wage,” Boyer was quoted by this newspaper as saying recently.

Boyer added, “My estimation of that would be in a postCOVID scenario once we’ve gotten vaccines distributed… once we’ve removed the lockdown orders due to COVID and we’re in a scenario where you have vaccine distribution and people no longer have to be concerned about COVID.” That said, a detailed study is needed to gather useful information on the impact of the virus on businesses, especially small and medium-scale, many of which were forced to cease operations. This would assist policy makers with the necessary guidance to design and implement certain measures to assist those affected. Almost every sector, including tourism, manufacturing, services, retail, financial etc, have been, and will continue to be, severely affected due to the pandemic. This level of uncertainty would be eased only once this country begins to administer the COVID-19 vaccine and persons feel safe to venture out again.

Also, an analysis is needed to determine the real impact of the pandemic on the employment sector; more particularly, to find out how many persons have become jobless, how many have had their hours of work reduced, and how all of this impacted households. Prior to COVID-19, we had already seen the laying off of thousands of workers in the sugar belt by the APNU/AFC Administration. Those workers were already facing extremely tough times, as there was no system put in place to cater for the accompanying economic and social problems due to the closure of the estates etc.

We share the view of the PSC that there is need for the Private Sector minimum wage to be increased, but this must be mandated only in a post-COVID-19 environment in which the business community is performing better. While workers are very much deserving of such an increase, it is crucial that the authorities work to find the right balance before such a move is made.

Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo on Wednesday engaged US Ambassador Sarah-Ann Lynch and Peace Corps (Guyana) Director Nadine Rogers (Office of the Vice President photo)

Credit must be given to PPP/C Administration

Dear Editor, Farmers of West Watooka, on Tuesday, Dec 8, 2020 complained about the severe canal flooding, infrastructure, lack of drainage and irrigation services in their communities.

These concerns were raised during an outreach to Region 10 communities

by Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha. The Minister visited West Watooka, Nottinghamshire and Bamia, during which he was told that many farmlands in the area are in terrible condition, making it almost impossible for farmers and residents to farm on the land.

“It has become frustrating when you have land but cannot farm. Farmers in Nottinghamshire expressing similar dilemma, that drainage is really bad and help is need in the communities. It has reached to a stage where farmers are concerned about their loss, which is causing distress in the community as well.

One cattle farmer from Christianburg said he too has suffered loss; he has no access to pasture land to graze his cattle, which resulted in loss of cattle through theft. This has been costly for him, since his cattle are left to roam the streets of Wismar.

However, Bamia and Moblissa had a different concern - the shortage of water in the area. Farmers and residents indicated to the Minister that water is

a critical input for agricultural production, and plays an important role in food security and irrigation.

Irrigated land is on average at least twice as productive as land that is not properly irrigated, allowing for more production intensification and crop diversification. Ensuring water supply for a secure and economically viable agriculture will be necessary in Bamia and Moblissa. New approaches must be developed in water management for agricultural purposes, and investments have to be made to develop existing irrigation system. Low-cost and small-scale option in water harvesting, irrigation and drainage are necessary for these small rural communities which may have to rely on manual power or solar operated treadle pump.

In addressing the farmers, Minister Mustapha said, “I want to assure you that we will support you, and we will work with you to ensure that we resolve these problems. I will come back here within a period of time to ensure that all the things that we are saying here are completed.

In relation to the complaints of the drainage and irrigation systems in the area, the Minister said a team from the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) would return to the community to assess the amount of work needed to be done in the community, during

which equipment will be sent to clear the canals.

Additionally, he told farmers that the Ministry is currently working to ensure that all agriculture stakeholders, especially farmers, receive the best services to spark more interest in the agriculture sector.

“Our focus, our objective, is to ensure that we now reignite people’s interest in agriculture. There is a saying around the country, “Since we have oil and gas, those will bring in lots of money,” but that will not be the case, because one day those resources will be exhausted, but agriculture is here to stay,” he said.

Minister Mustapha has said outreaches to farming communities countrywide have sparked a renewed interested in agriculture.

Since the PPP/C took office in August, Minister Mustapha has led a robust campaign to address the needs of farming communities, augment agriculture and drainage and irrigation services, and revamp programmes and policies to benefit the industries within his purview.

Minister Mustapha, while making the presentation, said Government will continue to support farmers in an effort to improve their production.

“As a Government, we will be working to improve the livelihood of the citizens of this country. If we are to take agriculture to the next level, we have to make re-

sources available to support farmers and farming activities. The Minister indicated to the farmers in Region 10 that we have seen a renewed interest over the last few months in agriculture.

Hinting that because of his agriculture team and meeting with farmers, along with the Government’s input in the agriculture sector in terms of reducing the cost of production, in putting more investment, he also indicated the provision in the emergency budget has also been a boon to all farmers.

The agriculture sector is on the verge of taking off, and taking off in a big way. Yes, Guyana have all of the natural resources in the world, but agriculture is here to stay, we must develop the agriculture sector.

The Government is also expected to provide incentives to farmer to ensure that this happens.

We are all aware of the major setback in the agri-sector under mismanagement by the previous APNU-AFC Government; however, credit must be given to the PPP/C Government of Guyana and the Minister of Agriculture in particular who have shown commitment and wisdom in making Guyana the bread basket of the Caribbean once more, as we look positively towards the future.

Sincerely, David Adams

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020

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

Khemraj Ramjattan DPP offers hope for justice to be served lacks relevance

Dear Editor, I watched with much consternation the rantings of Khemraj Ramjattan as he sought to issue a threat to the PPP/C and to Indians in Guyana as it relates to the PPP/C’s conduct in the termination of contracts of certain individuals of the previous Government.

He is making these threats on unsubstantiated claims that the PPP/C is on a witch-hunt to get rid of persons who in his consideration were made “career appointees” by the Coalition.

Mr Ramjattan is very passionate about his claims, to the point of being melodramatic about

it, leaving an open-ended statement at the end of it that if Indians in society do not heed his warnings, then something ominous is about to befall them. But lest I should take Khemraj seriously, let me direct him to terse comments made by a leading member of his coalition and the way she views him.

She, and by extension the APNU party, views him as an Indian who happens to find himself on their side of the fence. This is increasingly apparent as they see him being of little importance to the party. They see him as just another appendage or a vague tag-along to the Coalition.

When one lacks relevance the way Ramjattan does, then you get the real message behind his loud singing for his supper.

So, the melodrama continues to at least capture some attention, or gain some meaning within his party. But why Indians?

Why were they singled out above the other racial groups? Now, Indians have come in for dishonorable mention because they are the reason for the coalition’s downfall, so the more he heaps scorn on them, the better his political standing within the party. How much of a foothold he will get with that logic is left to be seen? So, in his quest

to be a part of the mainly Afro-centric Coalition, he forgot to mention that over 2,000 Amerindians were fired upon his party’s accession to office. The question is then put forth to him: Aren’t they Guyanese too?

My advice to Khemraj is: before he engages his mouth, he should engage his brain cells to do some critical thinking. Then and only then would he be of any relevance to society. Or he could do the other honourable thing, that is, to adopt the posture of his compatriot Moses Nagamootoo and fade into the shadows.

Respectfully, Neil Adams

Be responsible during Christmas season

Dear Editor, The COVID-19 cases currently stand at 5,665 at the time of penning this letter, but cases of persons who have recovered are 4,749, making this situation manageable, and not problematic for the authorities here.

They must be commended for successfully taming the beast, the pandemic that could become dreadful and deadly, killing thou-

sands if left untreated or allowed to spread throughout the country. This milestone was accomplished by prudent management, testing, and largely compliance with the curfews and the advice of the Government.

The central Government quickly managed to access funding and resources necessary to ensure Guyana was ready for the fight against this pandemic. The fight to stay alive

and healthy spills over until Guyana gets its vaccine, and even then, until everyone becomes vaccinated.

Therefore, please heed the curfew and stay away from large gatherings and crowds, where they can be avoided. Buy your liquor and drink at home, where it is possible among 4 persons that you know and keep six feet apart. You do not have to leave and go out to have fun for the hol-

idays. When the year 2021 comes, you’ll be here and ready to go through it, happy and safe.

Be responsible, and think twice about what you are doing this Christmas! I want to say special thanks to all the doctors and nurses that kept us safe and gave us the will to fight on.

All for your consideration, Baldeo Mathura

World Genocide Commemoration Day Dear Editor, December 9, 2020 is World Genocide Commemoration Day. It is a day set aside by the United Nations “to commemorate the victims of genocide, and highlight humanity’s responsibility to prevent future genocides.”

The UN document defines genocide as “the intentional and systematic eradication of an ethnic, racial, or religious group.”

The world has seen many such attempts at wiping out an entire people, such as the nearly 11 million people (some estimates indicate 15-20 million) systematically murdered by Germany during World War II. A more recent but no less horrifying genocidal atrocity was the Rwandan genocide, in which up to 1 million people were murdered in one of the bloodiest frenzies known in human history.

Of course, when we speak of genocide, what immediately comes to mind is the Holocaust, in which 6 million Jews were killed in German concentration camps and other pogroms across occupied territories. What is generally not talked about, however, is the genocide of the Romani (Gypsy) people of Europe be-

fore, during, and after the Second World War. Some estimates claim as many as 1 million being put to death during the war itself.

In January 2013, Zsolt Bayer, a founding member of Hungary’s ruling Fidesz Party, said, referring to the Romas, “Most Gypsies are not suitable for cohabitation.

They are not suitable for being among people. Most are animals and behave like animals. Animals should not exist.” The current leader of the Scottish Conservatives, Douglas Ross, when asked in 2017 what his “first priority” would be if he became PM, answered: “Tougher enforcement against Gypsies and travellers”.

But neither Ross’s nor Bayer’s xenophobia is new.

From their very advent into Europe from India about 1,500 years ago, Romas constituted one of the largest, if not the largest, ethnic groups in Europe, and have been subjected to one of the longest and most sustained ethnic persecutions in every European country in which they were found. And this persecution continues unabated up to the present time, despite the platitudes of the Council of Europe.

The worst horror against the Roma people, however, was systematically carried out by Germans during the war years, yet their story is not known. It is believed that Jews and Romas lost about the same percentage of their total number by 1945, but the fate of the Romas was not discussed at the Nuremberg War Crime Trials, and almost no reparation has been made to survivors since then. In fact, it was only in 1979 that the West German Federal Parliament identified the persecution of Romas as being racially motivated. By that time, only a handful who would have been eligible for any compensation was alive.

Once deemed “racially inferior”, German authorities under the leadership of Reinhard Heydrich and Heinrich Himmler commenced the extermination of the Romas in their tens of thousands in the German occupied territories of the former Soviet Union and present-day Serbia, and even greater numbers were killed in the camps at Auschwitz, Sobibor, and Treblinka.

Similar mass murders took place in Buchenwald, Dachau, Mauthausenm and Ravensbruck concentration

camps.

In 2001, Dr. Emil Schuka, President of the International Romani Union, poignantly declared, “I would like India to be the moral protector of the Romani people around the world.” This faith in India notwithstanding, India has done precious little to be such a moral voice for the Roma people, though Indian non-governmental agencies like the Antar Rashtriya Sahayog Parishad Bharat have been interacting with Romas for many years now.

Romas, however, still cherish a hope that someday India will eventually recognise them, as Jovan Damjanovic, the president of the World Roma Organisation Romanipen, in an interview with the Hindustan Times, said: “We are expecting, after all these years, India should recognise the Romas as Indian national minority. There is anthropological and physical evidence that we belong to India.

Indians could win at cultural, economic and political level by accepting the origins of these 12-15 million people.”

Sincerely, Swami Aksharananda

Dear Editor, I was happy and elated to hear that the Director of Public Prosecutions, Mrs Shalimar Ali-Hack, has given Gary Best notice of appeal for his part in the death of a cyclist.

How Gary Best managed to get off is foreign to me, and, in my opinion, if allowed, it could send a message to would-be-violators and violators of the law: that if you are well connected, then you are untouchable; and if you are poor and not connected, then you must pay and face full punishment. I am not pronouncing on whether or not Best is guilty, but I am of the firm view that there was some amount of negligence which occurred and influenced the outcome.

I am glad that the law will take a second look at this case, just to ease the minds of thousands both at home and abroad, who believe there was some skull-

duggery afoot when he was freed.

More importantly, the prosecution of high-profile cases should be treated with a certain amount of seriousness on the part of the relevant state agencies.

We need more training and resources for our prosecutors, and the Guyana Police Force must ensure that it is observing all the necessary safety and accuracy protocols, as well as requirements for equipment.

Justice must not only be done, but must be seen to be done. The scales of justice are balanced, but justice must be blind if it is to work to safeguard society. People want to have confidence in the law and the courts, or you will see persons taking matters into their own hands.

Regards, Attiya Baksh

COMMODITIES Indicators Crude Oil Rough Rice London Sugar

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020

Page

Foundation

FOR CHILDREN

◄

A

Æsop’s Fables

Triangles

2-dimensional figure with 3 sides is a triangle. A triangle has 3 angles that always add up to 1800. This is one way you can classify triangles.

A triangle with only acute angles – angles less than 900 – is called an acute triangle. A triangle with one right angle is called a right-angled triangle or right triangle. A triangle with one obtuse angle is called an obtuse triangle.

Since all angles in a triangle add up to 1800, a triangle can have at most only one right angle or one obtuse angle. Can you figure out why? Ask yourself: How many degrees are in two right angles? What is the smallest number of degrees that two obtuse angles could total?

W

ater from lakes, rivers, and groundwater that end up in your cup gets cleaned and ready to drink by filtration.

Supplies • Clear 2-litre plastic bottles cut into two pieces, about a 1/3 of the way down the bottle • Thick paper towels • Gravel • Sand • Dirt • Items to “pollute” water such as dirt, grass, twigs, bits of plastic, cooking oil, food colouring, etc • Water • Containers for mixing polluted water Let's get started!

What would you do if you turned on the faucet and no water came out? Where else could you find water? Is that water good to drink? What if you couldn’t buy bottled water or get water from a faucet? What would you do? What are water sources in your community? Do they look clean? Would you drink that water? Use it to cook or wash or brush your teeth? Even if it looks clean, is it

Exercises: Identify: Determine if the triangle is acute, right or obtuse.

1) 2) 3)

Wednesday’s answers

AOB and EOD, AOF and DOC, BOC and FOE are vertical angles A and 1000 and c and b are vertical angles Complementary angles

okay to drink it?

What does a filter do? Can you think of how a filter could help get water clean?

First, pour water into several containers and “pollute” it . Note what goes into each container.

Now that there is dirty water ready to be cleaned, it’s time to make a water filter! Turn the part of the 2-litre bottle with the neck upside down and fit it into the bottom half of the bottle.

Engineer your filter as you see fit, but start by putting a layer of paper towels into the bottle right above the neck. Layer gravel, sand, dirt, etc.

What do you think will happen when the polluted water is poured through these layers? Make predictions for each of the polluted waters you’ve created. Now test your predictions by pouring the water into the filter. To avoid flooding the filter – and to get a good look at the filtered water – empty the bottom of the bottle after each test.

Remember, even though water that has gone through the filter looks “clean”, it will still have invisible pollutants, such as bacteria or other contaminants, that need to be removed. An additional chemical process is necessary to remove those impurities. (Adapted from startwithabook.org)

A

bat blundered into the nest of a weasel, who ran up to catch and eat him. The bat begged for his life, but the weasel would not listen.

“You are a mouse,” he said, “and I am a sworn enemy of mice. Every mouse I catch, I am going to eat!”

“But I am not a mouse!” cried the bat. “Look at my wings. Can mice fly? Why, I am only a bird! Please let me go!”

The weasel had to admit that the bat was not a mouse, so he let him go. But a few days later, the foolish bat went blindly into the nest of another weasel. This weasel happened to be a bitter enemy of birds, and he soon had the bat under his claws, ready to eat him.

“You are a bird,” he said, “and I am going to eat you!”

“What,” cried the bat, “I, a bird! Why, all birds have feathers! I am nothing but a mouse. ‘Down with all cats,’ is my motto!”

And so the bat escaped with his life a second time.

WORD SEARCH

NEWS

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

President Ali tells NIS Head to “fix it now” as complaints pile up …helps Region 2 pensioners after multiple concerns raised during outreach

President Irfaan Ali meeting with pensioners at Wednesday’s outreach in Region Two

P

resident Dr Irfaan Ali has called on the National Insurance

Scheme to address the issues residents in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam)

are having with their payments remitted to NIS. During a presidential

Region 2 to get over...

FROM PAGE 3

Scores of Region Two residents visited the RDC on Wednesday to meet with President Irfaan Ali to voice their concerns

The Head of State said that the main aim of his visit was to resolve many of the issues faced by residents, which he noted are “resolvable.” In this regard, he pointed to the importance of the exercise and the potential impact it will have on the lives of the beneficiaries.

Last month, the Head of State held the first Presidential Outreach in Region Six (East BerbiceCorentyne) during which a number of issues raised by residents were addressed.

“After Region Six, residents are tremendously happy. Issues that were not resolved in years were resolved. What it tells us is that these issues are solvable, but sometimes the bureaucracy does not allow us to resolve them. That is why at these outreaches we want the head of every agency, so you can make an assessment as to what areas of improvement the agency requires,” the President told Region Two residents on Wednesday.

With Guyana expected to undergo unprecedented economic growth over the coming years, the Irfaan Ali-led

administration is pushing to have investments – both local and foreign – spread to the various regions across the country.

In fact, during a visit to the Pomeroon-Supenaam Region back in October, the Head of State had posited that his Government is for all of the people of Guyana, and committed to working tirelessly to ensure that everyone is included in the national development plans of the country.

He had assured residents of investments in other critical areas apart from agriculture, such as education and Information and Communications Technology (ICT).

“There are certain growth polls that we have to identify all across the country, which will have special incentives for persons who want to invest in those areas. We know there is great potential for agriculture for export purposes. This Government will be creating those incentives to motivate investment to come to this region, so that we can create jobs, and we can create jobs and better opportunities for people. We

know that the cost of electricity has inhibited growth and development, that is why we have started aggressively to work on a number of programmes. One such is the gas-to-shore project,” he had explained to the residents.

President Ali had also committed to investing resources to rehabilitate and maintain playground facilities at Leguan, Wakenaam and Suddie. He also allocated $3.5 million for the rehabilitation of the Leguan Post Office, which will significantly enhance the facility used by the pensioners there.

In Wakenaam, $3 million has been earmarked for improvements to be made to the G-Square Centre Ground, while an additional $2 million has been allocated for works along the Essequibo Coast.

“We realise that sports and physical education are an important part of community life,” the President stated.

Region Two residents were assured that the results of these initial investments would be evident before the end of the year. (G8)

outreach to Region Two on Wednesday, the Head of State heard multiple complaints about the National Insurance Scheme at the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) office in Anna Regina.

He then instructed NIS Head, Holly Greaves, who was among the high-level team that was at the public event, to “fix it now”.

The Head of State posited that all Guyanese should be treated fairly, and that all agencies and Government offices should be working to enhance the people’s lives and the services they provide.

In response, Greaves assured the President that the issues would be addressed forthwith, as she subsequently met with the aggrieved residents.

Meanwhile, with the intervention of President Ali, at least two pensioners were able to have their NIS woes resolved. One of those persons was Irving James, who left the RDC office a happy man after he was able to collect two months’ back pay of old age pension.

The pensioner had encountered difficulties with collecting the money from last year which was owed to him. He met with President Ali during the outreach and explained his plight. The Head of State immediately directed his team to resolve the issue.

“This uncle did not get his pension for two months, the Ministry sorted it out in two hours,” President Ali announced afterwards.

A total of $39,000 was presented to James by Shannielle Hoosein-Outar, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Social Services.

The pensioner was pleased with the outcome and thanked the President for his intervention, which he said was a relief.

Irving James receiving his payments

“After a runaround, it’s okay...this is very nice in this crisis,” James related.

Scores of residents met the President at Wednesday’s outreach, where they got the opportunity to raise pressing issues. Key among them were various challenges regarding housing, land titling, pensions and infrastructure.

While discussions between residents and the Government officials were initially held in the top flat of the building, President Ali shifted the meeting venue to the lower flat after being informed that there were several senior citizens and differently abled persons in the line.

The President said his Government is focused on making the lives of each and every Guyanese easier, and is hoping to use these outreaches to help solve some longstanding problems.

Wednesday’s outreach was aimed at reducing the bureaucracy, and saw the collaboration among various agencies to address concerns at the communi-

ty level.

In addition to NIS, representatives from the Office of the President, the Ministry of Housing and Water, the Central Housing and Planning Authority, the Ministry of Foreign affairs and International Cooperation, Guyana Power and Light (GPL), National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA), the Ministry of Health, the Guyana Police Force, and Regional Officials among others with the President at the Regional Democratic Council in Region Two were also at the outreach to address concerns raised by residents.

At a similar outreach in Region Six (East BerbiceCorentyne), issues relating to NIS had also taken centre stage, and the Head of State had ordered they be resolved.

NIS, which is tasked with paying benefits and collecting contributions, is among one of the most problematic entities, with scores of persons always having issues with their pension payments and/or contributions.

8 NEWS

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Linden “Blessing Circle” duo slapped with false pretence charges

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wo persons were on Wednesday released on $40,000 bail each after they were charged with obtaining monies under false pretence through a scheme called a “Blessing Circle.”

Forty-eight-year-old Claire Joseph, an accountant, and Dwayne Charles, 41, a bus driver, both of Amelia’s Ward, Linden, Region 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice) appeared before Magistrate Wanda Fortune at the Linden Magistrate’s Court. The duo denied the five charges against them.

Claire Joseph

Dwayne Charles

It is alleged that the duo obtained $25,000 each

from Gavin Munroe, Vernon Richmond, Leslie Jervis,

Odetta Hall, and Salome Henry.

They were released on $40,000 bail each for the first charge and self-bail on the other charges.

As a condition for bail, the two were ordered to lodge their passports with the court and report to the Police Station on the last Friday of every month until the hearing and determination of the case, Joseph and Charles are slated for another court appearance on January 12, 2021.

DPP withdraws murder charge against cops accused of shooting unarmed man

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Corporal Godwin Thomas and Constable Troy Munroe

he Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Shalimar Ali-Hack has withdrawn a joint murder charge against Police Constable Troy Munroe and Police Corporal Godwin Thomas, who were charged in August 2020 for fatally shooting an unarmed man during a Police operation at D’Urban Street, Georgetown.

Upon reviewing the case file, the DPP withdrew the charge against the Police ranks and advised that Constable Munroe alone be charged with manslaughter.

The Police were further ad-

vised to conduct investigations in relation to the ballistic evidence and return the file to the DPP for further advice on Corporal Thomas and another Police rank.

Contacted on Wednesday, Attorney-at-Law Patrice Henry, who is representing Constable Thomas and Corporal Munroe, confirmed that his clients were still on the job. He said that they have been released on $500,000 station bail each. According to Henry, Constable Munroe is still to be arraigned on the new charge. He said that it was more than likely that his

client would make a court appearance after the DPP provided her advice.

Corporal Munroe and Constable Thomas were previously charged with the murder of 39-year-old Cecil Sampat, a John Fernandes Limited employee, who was unarmed when he was shot four times on July 25, 2020

by Police ranks.

Guyana Times previously reported that on July 25, three Police Officers were on patrol when they observed a large gathering at the junction of Agricola Public Road on the East Bank Highway.

The ranks subsequently requested the crowd to disperse but in doing so, two men were seen punching each other. Soon after, one of them whipped out a gun and pointed it in the direction of the other as he attempted to enter a motor car with registration plates PYY 4432.

The motor car sped off the scene, but the Police reportedly went in pursuit. The car was finally intercepted at

Killed: Cecil Sampat

D’Urban Street and Mandela Avenue, Georgetown. The four men were reportedly placed to lie on the ground as other patrol vehicles arrived at the scene.

The Police did not report what led to the shooting, but 27-year-old Winston Fraser and Sampat were shot to their backs. They were escorted to the Georgetown Public Hospital, where Sampat succumbed to his injuries almost two weeks after. It was reported that no weapons were recovered from the occupants of the vehicle.

War break...

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…in the PNC efore the last elections campaign…things had gotten pretty heated after the war of attrition was launched by the PNC following their loss on the PPP’s no-confidence motion (NCM). For instance, Winston Jordan, whom everyone up to then knew as a backroom bureaucratic type from the Budget Office, shrieked to the PNC faithful in Bartica, “From today, comrades, it’s WAR BREAK!” But then again, competing with the AFC’s geriatric Moses Nagamootoo, who’d donned his olive army fatigues, might’ve spurred him on!!

Well, if the war did start (or “break” in our local parlance), it was clear that the PNC did lose it ignominiously after they barefacedly tried to rig the elections in front of the world!! And, like losers the world over, they’re trying to pin the blame on their leader - just like the Germans tried to do to Hitler after he chucked it in in WWII - and committed hara-kiri. The coalition’s DPI (and Nagamootoo’s protege) Imran “Eggball” Khan, came out with a vicious jeremiad against Granger - who’s evidently in Cuba getting his medical checkup.

“The post-election treatment meted out to Ms Volda Lawrence by her own PNC is unjust, unconscionable and wrong. There is no sugarcoating it. Ms Lawrence was shockingly and unceremoniously denied a seat in the National Assembly…Petty politics by an insecure, vindictive and fading caudillo adopting a sanctimonious posture must not ostracise and banish capable, competent and worthy leaders”! Granger, Khan insisted in his phillippic that was widely circulated by the PNC faithful, selected only “ineffective and docile Members of Parliament”.

Whew!! Quite a mouthful, wasn’t it? Now, like Hitler, there’s no question Granger bears a lot of responsibility for events after the NCM - especially the five months following the Mingoed March 3 elections. But what about all those worthies who were advising and facilitating him in his atrocities against the constitution and the Guyanese people?? Like, say, Jordan, Nagamootoo and their “war break”? Or the entire lot excepting Gaskin, who drank the “anomalies” cool aid and insisted the PPP rigged the elections?

Looking on as an outsider - but as a Guyanese who recognises that there needs to be a strong Opposition party for our parliamentary democracy to flourish - your Eyewitness feels that while it’s absolutely necessary Granger MUST go, it’s not SUFFICIENT for the survival of the PNC to perform its role as a “loyal opposition” and a “government in waiting”.

Your Eyewitness has a simple method for deciding who must be winnowed out from the leadership ranks. First are those provocateurs who’re stoking the flames of racial hatred from without and within. Bun dem!

Second are those whose visas were yanked by the Yanks!! Banish dem! …against uncontrolled immigration Your Eyewitness noted, with delight, the forthright remarks by our Honorable Attorney General on the almost 1000 Cubans waiting over in Suriname to cross into our country. No way, Jose! he said in so many words. Now, your Eyewitness appreciates the plight of the Cubans, who evidently want to use Guyana as a transit point to Brazil and further afield. Just as he appreciates the plight of the long-suffering Haitians who were apprehended a couple of weeks ago while trying to do the same thing.

But, to repeat the point he’s making, we have to take a stand on our border policy. In this increasingly globalised world, when capital flows are controlled for all sorts of reasons - like money laundering etc - Labour also has to be controlled. For reasons such as migrant or human trafficking etc.

With headlines across the world screaming about our “highest in the world” growth rates, all sorts of characters will be zooming in - literally. Notice the arrest of that Nigerian con-man!

Spell out and enforce, the conditions for entry! …NIS screw-ups Yes, your Eyewitness is aware of the scatological imputations of “screw-up”. But he can only cheer President Ali’s directive to the Reg 2 NIS official to fix their bumbling IMMEDIATELY! The times are a changin’!

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

NEWS

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

600 house lots to be developed, distributed on Essequibo Coast – President …as Police called in to probe false receipts for sale of Govt lands

President Irfaan Ali presenting Esann Garraway with his land title

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resident Dr Irfaan Ali has called on Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam) housing officials to immediately address the claims of false receipts having been issued to residents in the region for the sale of house lots.

This came about after more than 18 persons who paid for their land at the Anna Regina office complained that the former Regional Housing Officer had allegedly duplicated a number of receipts, but payments for the lands are not part of the official records of the department.

On Wednesday, residents raised their concerns with President Ali and a team of Government officials during an outreach at the Regional Democratic Council building

in Anna Regina.

Regional Housing Clerk Seewnarayan explained that she became aware of the matter when she joined the department in 2018.

“It was basically where the housing officers were allocating lots to persons and were collecting the monies. The lots in question are located primarily in the Lima Sands community,” Seewnarayan is quoted by the Office of the President’s Public Information and Press Services Unit as saying.

These payments, she noted, were not turned over to the RDC Accounts Department.

The present housing clerk explained that prior to Wednesday’s presidential outreach, nothing was done to address this issue.

After waiting for years under the APNU/AFC Government, Pratima Devi Sookdeo received her land title from President Irfaan Ali on Wednesday

“Nothing has been done… officers are still working on this old matter; and what’s happening now is (that) issues are being found out by persons questioning their transport,” she explained.

Meanwhile, in an invited comment to the President’s Public Information and Press Services Unit, CEO of the CH&PA, Sherwyn Greaves, who was also present at the outreach, stated that after the issue was brought to his attention, he terminated the employment of the previous regional housing officer.

“What the CH&PA is doing is strengthening our structure from two staff to four (in the region) because we recognise there are a lot of issues that need to be addressed. We will stop it im-

mediately, and will have to treat with those persons that were duped…they can’t be punished twice. We will have to accept the payments. As far as I know, the other staff involved are not working anymore,” Greaves is quoted as saying.

600 house lots

During the outreach, President Ali announced that an additional 600 house lots will be developed and distributed to residents in several Region Two communities.

The Head of State ex-

Mark Thomas receiving his land title from President Ali

plained that plans for the development of the 600 house lots will be completed within weeks, while the infrastructural work will be initiated by mid next year.

Additionally, Greaves further explained that the areas identified for the house lots are Charity and Lima Sands.

The addition of the house lots will benefit hundreds of families living in the region.

Also, during the outreach, three residents who were waiting for years for the titles for their house lots had the process fast-tracked by the President, and they re-

ceived the documents from him on Wednesday.

Those who received their titles were Mark Thomas, who has been waiting for four years; Pratima Devi Sookdeo, who applied in 2012; and Esann Garraway, who spent five years waiting for his title.

Among the agencies that were present during the presidential outreach were Guyana Power and Light (GPL), National Insurance Scheme (NIS), National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA), and the Guyana Police Force.

10 NEWS

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Extreme erosion of Linden road worries residents R

esidents of Region 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice) continue to appeal to the relevant authorities to repair an extremely eroded section of the main access road at Burnham Drive, MacKenzie, Linden, which they stress continues to worsen over time.

Parts of the road, which

is located in close proximity to the Christianburg and Blueberry Hill areas, have already disappeared. Residents continue to cover the degraded areas with pieces of wood and other items in an effort to warn motorists and pedestrians.

About a month ago, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice)

Vice Chairman Douglas Gittens had made calls for urgent intervention by the Public Works Ministry. Days after, a team of engineers and officials from the Civil Defence Commission and National Drainage and Irrigation Authority had assessed the eroded road; however, Gittens

A section of the eroded road at Burnham Drive, Linden

noted that there has since been no further action.

“The last time they had a problem there – was the culvert had collapsed, but they have a plastic one there now, but the point where they dug

up the road was not fixed properly. So, as a result of that ,it was undermined by the rain and subsequently that broke away and it is now a serious issue of erosion going on there.

It’s something that should be

considered emergency work...,” Gittens had indicated.

Residents say the situation gets worse when it rains.

As such, they are urging swift action to remedy the situation.

(G13)

NEWS

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Guyana makes submission for COVID-19 vaccine – Health Minister …32 new COVID-19 cases recorded

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony

H

ealth Minister Dr Frank Anthony has disclosed that Guyana has already commenced making submissions to COVAX as part of arrangements to secure COVID-19 vaccines.

Guyana has been identified as one of the countries eligible for coverage under COVAX, a body of organisations including the World Health Organization (WHO) that will ensure there is equal access to and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines when it becomes available on the market.

The United Kingdom is preparing to administer the coronavirus vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech this weekend, according to reports. The vaccine, which had undergone a gauntlet of clinical trials and is said to be 95 per cent effective against the coronavirus, is a two-dose injection.

Meanwhile, Pfizer/ BioNTech along with Moderna, which has also developed another coronavirus vaccine with a 94.1 per cent efficacy, have both filed for US emergency regulatory approval.

WHO, UNICEF, Gavi (the Vaccine Alliance) and other partners are currently working together to help prepare countries to be ready to introduce the COVID-19 vaccines, which it said is likely to become available for distribution in early to mid2021. WHO said adaptable guidance, tools, trainings, and advocacy materials are being developed to support countries in their preparations.

At Guyana’s end, work has commenced to prepare Guyana for vaccines. In fact, a National Vaccine Taskforce has been established to lead this process.

During his COVID-19 update on Wednesday, Dr Anthony said, “We have start working with COVAX to submit some of the things about possible vaccine candidates and our preferences. So those things have gone into COVAX about preferences we will have for vaccines.”

Previously, the Minister had announced that frontline workers and at-risks patients are among government’s priority in getting the COVID-19 vaccine whenever it becomes available.

Only earlier this week,

the Guyana Government signed the term of agreement to confirm its inclusion in the COVAX Facility.

The Health Minister is chairing the Taskforce, which he described as a diverse group of experts and specialists to led the preparation and ultimately the distribution of the vaccines locally. These persons are from both the public health sector as well as the private sector, the University of Guyana and the Joint Services among other key stakeholders.

Minister Anthony further posited on Wednesday that the National Vaccine Taskforce is already working on a draft plan to facilitate the vaccines.

“We’ve also started to look at our cold chain and the places where we’re going to store our vaccine. We are working on expanding some of the centres to ensure that we have adequate space and we have started the procurement process to get the type of refrigerators that would be necessary for the COVID-19 vaccine,” he stated.

According to Dr Anthony, the Taskforce has also started developing a training manual for the administration of the COVID-19 vaccines.

“So, these are all things that we are working out to ensure that once we have the vaccine in place that we can quickly roll it out,” the Health Minister noted.

Only last week, President Irfaan Ali had urged the United Nations to remain on the forefront of the rollout of the mass immunisation particularly to developing countries.

“This 31st Special Session [of the UN General Assembly] comes at a time when the world eagerly awaits the authorisation of vaccines which have been developed to help in the public health fight against the coronavirus. The United Nations must continue to be in the forefront – as it has been over the past eight months – in piloting the international rollout of mass immunisation for developing countries,” President Ali had stated.

The World Health Organization has said that the COVID-19 vaccines are likely to become available for distribution in early to mid2021.

Through COVAX, Guyana is set to receive 20 per cent of the COVID-19 vaccine with the first three per cent to be given to frontline workers and high-risk patients.

New cases

As of Wednesday, Guyana recorded 32 new novel coronavirus cases.

According to the Health Ministry’s updated COVID-19 Dashboard, the total number of confirmed cases in the country is now 5,732 – 2,961 males and 2,771 females Of these, however, only 690 are currently active cas-

es, that is, five patients in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and 685 persons in isolation – 47 in institutional isolation and the remaining 638 in home isolation.

There are also 32 persons in institutional quarantine.

Meanwhile, some 4,888 persons have since recovered from the life-threatening virus in Guyana.

To date, a total of 32,782 persons have been tested for the novel coronavirus in Guyana.

Of the 32 new cases recorded on Wednesday, one is from Region Two (Pomeroon-

Supenaam); two from Region Three (Essequibo IslandsWest Demerara); 11 cases from Region Four (DemeraraMahaica); a whopping 17 cases from Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) and one case from Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni).

The figures remained the same in Region One (Barima-Waini) with 878 cases; Region Five (MahaicaBerbice) with 42 cases; Region Seven (CuyuniMazaruni) with 516 cases; Region Nine (Upper TakutuEssequibo) 389 cases and Region 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice) with 319 cases. (G8)

12 NEWS

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Guyana votes to reject “fraudulent” elections result in Venezuela

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he Permanent Council of the Organisation of American States (OAS) held a vote to reject the results of the December 6 parliamentary elections in Venezuela which was passed with 21 votes.

Guyana was one of the 21 nations that voted for the resolution while two voted against, five abstained, and six were absent.

The resolution was approved with 21 votes in favour – The Bahamas, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St Lucia, Uruguay, The United States, and Venezuela; two against – Bolivia and Mexico; five abstentions

– Argentina, Barbados, Belize, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Suriname; and six absent – Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Nicaragua, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.

The motion called on OAS Member States to “reject the fraudulent elections held in Venezuela on December 6, 2020, and to not recognise its results, for

being neither free nor fair in accordance with the conditions established in international law; for lacking impartiality and transparency; for not having had the participation of all political actors and citizens; for not having released political prisoners; for the lack of independence of the electoral authority; and for not having an independent and credible international elec-

toral observation”.

It further condemned the consistent and deliberate strategy by the Maduro Administration to undermine the democratic system and the separation of powers. It called for the urgent protection of democratically elected members of the Venezuelan National Assembly and Opposition members who are in political exile.

“To reiterate the call to hold, as soon as possible, free, fair, transparent and legitimate presidential and parliamentary elections, with independent and credible international electoral observation, as part of a transition process that leads to the appointment of a democratically elected government in accordance with the will of the Venezuelan people and the Venezuelan Constitution…

To demand full access to the international community to allow the provision of assistance to the most vulnerable populations affected by the crisis in Venezuela, in accordance with generally-recognised humanitarian principles and international law,” the OAS’s resolution stated.

The US Embassy in Georgetown, in a tweet, said that it was time for a peaceful, democratic transition in Venezuela and added that the United States and the international community shared the obligation to demonstrate and provide support for the Venezuelan people.

Guyana was recently one of nine countries which abstained when the OAS passed a resolution to condemn the elections back in late October. The OAS at the time had noted that the elections would have failed

to meet the minimum conditions for the hosting of democratic elections according to international standards.

Back in October, that resolution said the OAS’s recognition of the elections for the National Assembly of Venezuela will depend on the existence of the necessary conditions of freedom, justice, impartiality, and transparency. It added that the participation of all political actors and citizens and the release of political prisoners, under reasonable deadlines for their organisation, and with independent and credible international electoral observation should be guaranteed.

It had also called for the rejection of interference in the functioning of political parties by the Maduro regime.

That resolution was approved with 21 votes in favour – the Bahamas, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, United States, Guatemala,

Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Dominican Republic, Saint Lucia, Uruguay, Venezuela; four against – Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Nicaragua, St Vincent and the Grenadines and nine abstentions – Argentina, Barbados, Belize, Grenada, Guyana, Mexico, St Kitts and Nevis, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago.

Venezuela is currently going through one of the most gruelling periods in its history. US imposed sanctions against the country and its Nicolás Maduro leadership have resulted in a massive economic and humanitarian crisis.

Scores of Venezuelans have fled their homes into neighbouring countries such as Guyana, Trinidad, and Colombia. The US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, during a visit to Guyana in August pledged US$5 million to the Guyanese Government to provide aid for the Venezuelan refugees. (G2)

NEWS

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Programme launched to build public trust, confidence in Judiciary

…initiative key to upholding good governance – outgoing Canadian envoy

Chief Justice (ag) Roxane George

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o build public trust and confidence in the judicial system, the Judiciary of Guyana on Wednesday held a virtual launch of its public education and engagement programme. Another objective of the programme is to assure the citizenry that the wheels of justice are turning despite the COVID-19 crisis, which has in many ways affected the functioning of the judiciary.

Like many countries, Guyana has introduced sweeping measures to prevent the spread of the disease, including lockdowns, restrictions on social gatherings, and closure of public facilities. But these measures have had unprecedented impacts on the judiciary, including court closures, delayed proceedings, and the increased use of online platforms to access justice.

However, even amid a public health crisis, the Judiciary had recognised that it must be able to fulfill essential services and provide justice, which includes the hearing of matters. In this regard, it developed practice directions which, among other things, detailed the operations of the courts and determined which matters are considered urgent.

Delivering remarks at the launch, Chief Justice Roxane George provided an overview of the initiative, stating that just before the pandemic hit, the Judiciary, the Guyana Bar Association, the Guyana Association of Women Lawyers, and the Canada-

funded Judicial Reform and Institutional Strengthening (JURIST) Project were working together on a public education and engaging working group.

She said that the working group, along with a consulting firm hired by the JURIST Project, was in the process of developing public education campaigns designed to build public trust and confidence in the judiciary.

The Chief Justice, however, noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has reordered the judiciary’s communication strategy. In light of this, she added, the judiciary commenced a campaign titled: “We Can Still Hear You”.

“This campaign helped us to assure citizens that, despite the pandemic, the judicial system continued to function, and there was access to justice as their matters could still be heard.

This campaign featured judicial officers delivering messages on social media and radio. This opened up a new dimension in our relationship with the citizenry, by having leaders in the judiciary speak directly to the public about the rule of law and access to justice,” Justice George explained.

The Chief Justice added that access to justice in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic is seeing continued expansion, as the Judiciary employs a range of technology and platforms for hearing matters. She said, too, that these new measures embrace flexibility about where judges, magistrates, claimants, defendants, prosecutors, the Police, complainants, and accused could be located at the time of a hearing or tri-

Outgoing Canadian High Commissioner to Guyana, Lilian Chatterjee

al.

Urgent cases

Speaking about the practice directions, Justice George noted, “I particularly highlight domestic violence application being in the category of urgent cases. These matters require special attention due to the risk to family members, especially women and children. I also highlight the recommencement of jury trials, as we seek to ensure that accused, especially those in custody, have their trials conducted within a reasonable time, as mandated by the Constitution of Guyana.”

She added that COVID-19 safety guidelines have resulted in restrictions of the opening hours of registries, court offices, and the enforcement of limits on how many persons can physically be in the courts and such registries and offices.

Justice George nevertheless noted that the overarching communication project to build public trust and confidence in the judiciary

The Judiciary of Guyana embarked on its “We Can Still Hear You Campaign” to assure citizens that despite the pandemic, the courts continue to function

remains a very important focus of the partnership with the JURIST Project. She added that as the judiciary returns to implementing its core communication strategy, it would build on the “We Can Still Hear You” campaign to educate the public about the judicial system.

Good governance

For her part, outgoing Canadian High Commissioner to Guyana, Lilian Chatterjee, noted that public trust and confidence in the judiciary is important in maintaining a democratic society and upholding good governance.

Chatterjee commended the judiciary for launching the timely initiative, and pledged her country’s support for the effort.

According to the Canadian envoy, “If the public does not understand the value of the judicial branch, they will not be will to support it through their taxes and other funding, or serve their roles on juries, or trust the decisions that come from the system. A lack of trust and support in the system has grave consequences.”

Chatterjee pointed out that educating the public about what courts, judges, and lawyers do needs to

start at an early age.

Chatterjee explained that the public education and engagement programme uses different tools and communication channels to ensure that the message of “We Can Still Hear You” be heard throughout all segments of the population.

“A strong judiciary is one that listens to those it serves. I am thrilled to see Guyana’s judiciary using different means to reach and serve the public more effectively. I am pleased that the judiciary has placed a strong emphasis on public education and engagement,” she noted.

14 NEWS New areas in Region Six Mahaica man accused of killing to have bright Christmas neighbour to know fate today THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

…to get electricity for the 1st time

Region Six Chairman David Armogan

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everal new areas in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) are soon to receive electricity for the first time.

The project is being undertaken by the Public Works Ministry and is expected to be completed in time for Christmas. This is according to Region Six Chairman David Armogan, who disclosed that the Canefield New Area was one of the areas that would get electricity for the first time.

“There is a new area in East Canje which is called Canefield New Area and there are fifty new houses there. Those lands were given out by GuySuCo [Guyana Sugar Corporation] and so electricity is not in that area. So, we are hoping to provide electricity in that area. I don’t want to make a commitment that it will be done before Christmas, but,

I know Minister [Deodat] Indar is trying to get that done before the holiday period,” Armogan said.

He was at the time speaking with reporters in New Amsterdam. He had earlier told the Region Six Regional Democratic Council (RDC) about the project.

Asked about the cost and the timeline of the project, the Chairman said that poles have already been planted in some of the areas.

He explained that there were also some parts of the Black Bush Polder which would be receiving electricity for the first time.

“But then there are some other areas too in various new areas like parts of some new housing schemes that do not have electricity, so we are also working with the Ministry to ensure that they get electricity. Electricity is a basic need for people and we have a duty to ensure

that we can bring some level of convenience to you. A lot of the homes have children that are going to school and they cannot study in the night, because they don’t have electricity, they can’t have computers, they can’t have TVs and so basic things in life people have to do without because there is no electricity,” he noted.

There are also some residents of Number 43 Village and Belvedere who are expected to benefit from the project.

The Chairman explained that in some of the communities the utility posts stopped a short distance away from new houses and residents had approached the Guyana Power and Light to get power to their homes.

However, those families are being asked to pay the cost for both the new poles and wire to make the connection.

“And that is because they live a little distance away from where the last post is,” Armogan explained.

The cost varies from $200,000 upwards.

“Those are some of the places we will be looking at.

There are places too in the Black Bush Polder that don’t have electricity because of the same problem.”

However, he noted that electricity could not be taken to persons who have been squatting on the Government’s reserve. (G4)

Murder accused: Forrester Gravesande

A

50-year-old Mahaica, East Coast Demerara (ECD) man, who is on trial for the murder of his neighbour will know his fate today when a 12-member jury returns from deliberations.

Following his arraignment before Justice Navindra Singh, Forrester Gravesande pleaded not guilty to the charge which stated that on April 9, 2017, he murdered 49-year-old Courtney Porter.

When his trial commenced on Monday at the Demerara High Court,

State Prosecutor Teriq Mohammed called four witnesses: Government Pathologist Dr Nehaul Singh and three Police ranks. Dr Singh gave Porter’s cause of death as brain haemorrhage due to blunt force trauma.

The three police ranks testified to their role in investigating the murder. One of them, Police Constable Daniel Singh testified that during March 2017, he was stationed at the Mahaica Police Station.

He said that he put an allegation to Forrester: “I told him while being armed with a piece of wood, he dealt Courtney Porter several lashes to his head causing him to receive injuries.”

Constable Singh said that Porter replied, “’I ain’t lash no man with no wood, boss’.”

Meanwhile, Police Constable Joel Chisholm said that he carried out duties as crime scene investigator, Police photographer and fingerprint technician.

Media reports are that Porter, a father of three, was reportedly beaten in the head with a piece of wood

Murdered: Courtney Porter

by Gravesande who had accused him of pulling his wife’s clothes. Following the incident, Porter was hospitalised and his attacker was charged with attempt to commit murder and released on bail.

Porter succumbed two weeks after the beating.

Gravesande subsequently fled the area, and was captured in another policing division. The charge against him was upgraded to murder. After a Preliminary Inquiry (PI), in the Magistrate’s Court, he was committed to stand trial for the capital offence.

Police probing murder of Baramita man

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anks in Region One (Barima-Waini) have launched an investigation into the murder of Dellon Alanzo of Moran Area, Baramita, North West District (NWD).

Police said the murder was committed by a male of the same community on Monday about 23:55h at Mona Area.

“The circumstances surrounding how the incident occurred are unknown,” the statement read, noting that investigations are ongoing.

Just recently, a miner was brutally murdered while protecting his reputed wife from a gang of men

at White Water Backdam, NWD. The dead man was identified as 26-year-old Kevin Allam of Tune Basin, Port Kaituma, NWD. Based on information received, about 17:30h on the day in question, the dead man’s reputed wife was at their shop when the three suspects approached her and held onto her hair.

Allam went to her assistance, but he was also attacked and dealt several lashes about his body with a piece of wood.

Following the incident, the man fell unconscious, and the three men dragged

him a short distance from the shop where one of them whipped out a knife and slit his throat.

After committing the act, the men reportedly left Allam in a pool of blood and returned to the shop where they relieved his spouse of a quantity of raw gold.

After the men left, the Police were contacted and upon arriving at the scene, they saw the motionless body of the miner.

Some days later, Police, acting on information received, travelled to the waterfront area where they arrested the three suspects.

NEWS

15

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

COVID-19 cash grant distribution begins in Region 4 M ore than 250,000 persons living in Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) will benefit from $25,000 before the Christmas season ends, as distribution of the Government’s COVID-19 cash grant kicked off in the Region on Tuesday.

With recent concerns surfacing in other regions that residents were not at home when the cash grants were distributed in their area, Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) Chairman Daniel Seeram assured that arrangements have been made for such persons to receive their cash grant at a later date.

The monies are expected to provide financial support to Guyanese, especially those who have been seriously affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the Region

Residents of Supply, Mahaica receiving their COVID-19 relief cash grant (DPI photos)

Four Chairman: “We are going to start at the far-stretching areas of the Region, and work our way in towards Georgetown.”

He said persons living in Georgetown will be dealt with directly by Central Government.

Just recently, Local Government and Regional

Development Minister Nigel Dharamlall had stated that the exercise would be completed before the end of the Christmas season.

The distribution exercise kicked off at 09:00h on Tuesday, which was some two hours after it was slated to commence. However, the Regional Chairman ex-

plained that besides that hiccup, the procedure has been good so far.

“We had some admin issues, and with the vehicles and so, but that has been sorted out. The money is ok, the securities are in place.

Persons were trained by Central Government, and those persons have been

sent out into the fields to do the distributions,” Seeram said.

President Dr Irfaan Ali had announced a series of relief measures, including a $25,000 per household cash transfer to cushion the effects of COVID-19 ahead of the emergency budget. The distribution exercise began

in Regions One and Nine on September 26, based on the President’s reports.

Region Four, which is the last to benefit, well see approximately $3.4 billion earmarked for distribution.

In relation to the concerns raised by citizens about them not being at home when the distribution occurred in their communities, Seeram reiterated: “If you are not at home, the persons will go into the areas and find out who lives there, and get whatever contact number they can have. They will contact them, and at a later date and time, they will be given the relief money.”

Prior to the distribution in Region Four, the Government had distributed the cash grants in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara).

Bauxite barge slams into Demerara Harbour Bridge …toll waived for stranded passengers to cross faster

A

tug and barge transporting bauxite slammed into the Demerara Harbour Bridge (DHB) on Wednesday afternoon, causing the high span of the bridge to shift out of alignment.

The Bridge has since been reopened to light traffic. Drivers of trucks and other heavy vehicles will be advised when they will be able to use the Bridge.

In a statement on Wednesday evening, the management of the DHB said that as a result of the situation, it waived the payment of tolls until

The tug and barge transporting bauxite which struck the Demerara Harbour Bridge (DHB) (Public Works Ministry photo)

19:00h to ensure stranded passengers can cross the

Bridge faster.

Following the incident

Public Works Minister Juan Edghill and Home

Affairs Minister Robeson Benn, along with DHB

Board Chairman Ravi Ramcharitar, General Manager Rawlston Adams and the technical staff were on-site to try to remedy the situation.

Additionally, the DHB management advices that Marine Vessels will not be allowed to transit under the High Span until further notice.

As a support measure, the Maritime Department had also issued instructions for water taxis plying the Georgetown-Vreed-enHoop route to continue to operate until repairs to the Bridge were completed.

16 NEWS

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

8-year-old $1.1M coconut nursery commissioned electrocuted while A playing with drill

A

n eight-year-old was electrocuted on Wednesday morning at his Bee Hive, East Coast Demerara home, allegedly while playing with an electric drill.

Dead is Dashaun Dorris of Lot 23 Company Dam, Bee Hive, ECD, a student of Clonbrook Primary School.

Police in a statement said that, at about 11:00h on Wednesday, the child was at home with his older sister when he left and went downstairs. However, about 15 minutes later, his sister called out for him but received no answer.

A few minutes later, a cousin went to informed the child’s sister that her brother was lying motionless in the yard with an electric drill in his right hand.

A white substance was observed coming from Dorris’s mouth.

The child’s sister told investigators that, following the discovery, she raised an alarm and her aunt along with neighbours went to her assistance. The sister said they placed the child in a taxi and rushed him to the Dr CC Nicholson Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

Dead: Dashaun Dorris

Police have said that the area where the child was found was muddy, and the mud was moist.

A drop-cord was also found next to the front step leading into the house; it was plugged into an electrical outlet. Upon examination, burn marks were found on the child’s right foot.

Following the incident, the electric drill and drop cord were seized and lodged at the Police station.

Investigations are in progress. (G9)

griculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha has commissioned a new coconut nursery at Kairuni, on the Linden/ Soesdyke Highway.

This is the first of two nurseries that will be commissioned before the end of 2020. The facilities are said to have the capacity to produce 25,000 additional seedlings per year.

The nursery at Kairuni, which was developed at a cost of $1.1M, is in keeping with Government’s plans to promote and boost coconut production in Guyana, and was commissioned on Tuesday.

While offering remarks at the commissioning, Minister Mustapha said the Ministry is working to ensure proper coconut planting material is easily accessible to farmers across the country.

“At the Ministry of Agriculture, we are on the verge of developing the coconut industry. We’ve been invited to be a member of the International Coconut Community. We are working to have those arrangements finalised so that we can benefit from that platform in the coming year,” the Minister is quoted as saying in a release from that Ministry.

“Coconut has potential to contribute heavily to the development of our economy.

Minister Zulfikar Mustapha examining one of the seedlings at the Kairuni Nursery in the presence of CARDI Country Rep Jhaman Kundun and HCI Ltd General Mana

That is why Government is putting the efforts, energy and resources into developing the industry. Over the next five years, we plan to decentralise the access of proper coconut planting materials. Today’s activity marks the first step in our decentralisation efforts,” the Minister added.

“Farmers on the East Bank and (in) Region 10 will no longer have to travel to the East Coast to purchase coconut plants. We will also be commissioning another nursery at Charity very soon. Next year I plan to establish a nursery in Berbice and, over time, move to other parts of the country, like

in the interior,” Minister Mustapha said.

The subject minister is also encouraging farmers to get involved in cultivating other varieties of coconuts that are available in Guyana.

“Based on the current demand, this nursery only carries the 18 months’ coconut variety at the moment, which is grown for the water. But I want to encourage you to also look at the other parts of the coconut, in terms of the nut, oil production and copra,” Mustapha added.

General Manager of the Hope Coconut Industries Limited, Ricky Roopchand,

while offering remarks, said the launch of the nursery marked an important day for Guyana’s coconut industry and the farmers of Regions Four and Ten. Coconut runs third in Guyana’s agriculture sector, after rice and sugar, and first in the country’s non-traditional sector in terms of earnings. It is also the third largest industry in Guyana, currently occupying about 25,000 acres.

Chief Executive Officer of the National Agriculture Research and Extension Institute, Dr Oudho Homenauth, is encouraging farmers to explore inter-cropping while they wait on their trees to bear.

“When you plant a coconut tree, whether it’s the 18 months, the three years or the five years variety, you don’t get anything from it immediately. That is why one of the activities we are involved in currently is doing intercropping, of course with commodities or crops that have a market.

That is what we’re promoting, and you will see a lot more of that in place,” Dr Homenauth said.

Caribbean Agriculture Research and Development Institute (CARDI) Country Representative Jhaman Kundun has said that, given the progress made in Guyana’s coconut industry thus far, CARDI would be extending its research and development works for another five years.

Budget 2020 saw a sum of $1.25 billion allocated to NAREI to aid the promotion of agricultural diversification with a focus on coconut and horticulture by NAREI and Hope Coconut Estate. In addition to the establishment of the two coconut nurseries at Charity and Kairuni, farmers will also receive training to establish their own nurseries.

NEWS

17

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Corriverton Town Council owes Trump asks Supreme Court workers more than $8M – Councillor to invalidate millions of …sends dismissal letters to striking workers

votes in battleground states

olice were called to cordon off an area in Corriverton on Wednesday as striking Corriverton Town Council workers and the mayor had a confrontation.

The workers are on strike for better working conditions and to receive minimum wage. The strike is being backed by the Guyana Labour Union, which represents the municipal workers.

The GLU had, on November 13, penned a letter to the municipality, seeking to have a list of grievances discussed, but received no response from the municipality, hence the industrial action.

Meanwhile, this publication was reliably informed that the letter from the Union was read to the Council during one of its statutory meetings.

As the strike hit day three on Wednesday, the town’s Mayor, Winston Roberts, reportedly drove his vehicle up to the protestors who were outside of the municipal office demonstrating as they chanted, “No money, no wuk! The Mayor must go!”

“He drive the vehicle right up to we and nearly knock one of dem girls. He stop the vehicle and come out, and he want fight we,”

resident Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court on Wednesday to block millions of votes from four battleground states that voted for President-elect Joe Biden.

Trump's request came in a filing with the court asking to intervene in a lawsuit brought by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton seeking to invalidate millions of votes cast in Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

The President is being represented by a new attorney, John Eastman, who is known for recently pushing a racist conspiracy theory questioning whether Vice President-elect Kamala Harris was eligible for the role because her parents were immigrants.

The move from Trump comes just a day after the high court denied a request from Pennsylvania Republicans to block certification of the commonwealth's election results.

The one-line order was issued with no noted dissents or comment from any of the nine justices.

The President for weeks has pushed increasingly desperate appeals and baseless conspiracy theories about his second term being stolen.

P

P

Corriverton municipal workers protesting

one of the protestors told this publication.

The Police were called, but subsequently left. This newspaper reached out to the mayor for a comment, but this proved futile.

Meanwhile, a document purporting to be a dismissal letter was sent to the home of the treasurer, who refused to accept it. A letter was similarly sent to the home of the senior bookkeeper, who also refused to accept it.

Reports are that there was a verbal exchange at the bookkeeper’s home.

According to a source at the Municipality, the letters were signed by the acting Town Clerk.

The Corriverton Town

Council had taken a decision to have the treasurer act as town clerk while the substantive town clerk proceeded on annual leave, but that decision was not implemented.

The Local Government Commission had also endorsed the decision taken by the Council to have the treasurer act as town clerk.

Meanwhile, one of the municipal Councillors, Anil Sugrim, told this publication that the municipality owes the workers in excess of $8M. “I would have personally asked the Council to write Central Government asking for their intervention in supporting financially so that we could have paid

CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19)

INFORMATION AND GUIDELINES HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF?

the workers; especially coming on to the Christmas season because of the difficulties that are encountering in their livelihood.”

Eight persons on retirement from the municipality are still to receive their service benefits.

Meanwhile, the Labour Ministry has arranged to meet with both the municipality and the union today with the hope of resolving the issue. The meeting is scheduled to take place at 14:00h. General Secretary of the Guyana Labour Union, Carville Duncan, has since said the Union has already contacted the other nine municipalities and asked for support if the matter is not resolved.

"Our Country is deeply divided in ways that it arguably has not been seen since the election of 1860," the petition states. "There is a high level of distrust between the opposing sides, compounded by the fact that, in the election just held, election officials in key swing states, for apparently partisan advantage, failed to conduct their state elections in compliance with state election law."

Echoing arguments made by Texas, Trump says the battleground states used the pandemic "as an excuse" and "ignored or suspended the operation of numerous state laws designed to protect the integrity of the ballot."

He asks the court to block the states from using "constitutionally infirm 2020 election results" unless the legislatures of the states "review the 2020 election results."

He stressed that if any of the states have "already appointed electors to the electoral college using the 2020 election results," the legislatures have the authority to appoint "a new set of electors."

Or the election could go to the House, where Trump would presumably win.

(CNN)

SYMPTOMS

People with COVID-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported – ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness.

Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. People with these symptoms or combinations of symptoms may have COVID-19:

Cough

Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing

Or at least two of these symptoms:

Fever People who think they may be affected by coronavirus need to call the Public Health Ministry hotline 227-4986/624-3067 for further advice. They should not go to their GP, A&E, pharmacy or hospital.

If you have come into contact with somebody who may be infected, you may be told to self-isolate. People needing to do so should take "common-sense" steps to avoid close contact with other people.

(Adapted from BBC News)

Headache

Chills

Sore throat

Repeated shaking with chills

Muscle pain

Children have similar symptoms to adults and generally have New loss of taste mild illness. or smell

18

guyanatimesgy.com

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020

Regional

Venezuela's Capriles calls on Opposition to shut down interim Government – report

T

wo-time Venezuelan Opposition presidential candidate Henrique Capriles called for end to an interim Government created in 2019 by congress chief Juan Guaidó with US backing, according to an interview published by the BBC on Wednesday.

Guaidó is recognized as the nation’s legitimate leader by dozens of countries that disavowed President Nicolás Maduro’s 2018 re-election.

Guaidó at the same time said the Constitution put him in line to assume power as he was Head of Parliament.

But the Socialist Party won a majority of votes in

plan has been exhausted and (it) cannot give continuity to the status quo: the interim Government,” the BBC quoted Capriles as saying.

Press advisers for Capriles did not respond to a request for comment. The US State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Capriles criticised the Venezuelan Opposition Leader Henrique Capriles is shown with supporters after voting in an election for new Governors in Caracas, Venezuela, October 15, 2017 (file photo)

the December 6 legislative election that was boycotted by the Opposition, undermining Guaidó’s claim to the presidency and fu-

elling doubt about the US plan to maintain the interim Government.

“The new Administration should understand that this

No child labour in Barbados, says Minister

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he Labour and Social Partnership Relations Ministry is maintaining Barbados’ position that there are no reported cases of child labour in the country.

This comes amid reports from a Multiple Indicator Cluster 2012 Survey conducted by UNICEF that points to a 2.3 per cent incident rate on the island.

However, Minister Colin Jordan, explained that what the data showed was that a significant number of children were involved in household chores.

He made these comments as he addressed the opening ceremony of a three-day National Child Labour Seminar hosted by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) via the Zoom platform on Tuesday.

“Let me make it absolutely clear that we have no concerns regarding children under the age of 16 who are permitted to age-appropriate work on weekends and

Minister Colin Jordan

during vacation time that does not affect their education and development,” he said.

The Minister told those present that it was traditional in Barbados for children to assist with household chores, and family-owned businesses, such as a shop or a bakery.

Noting that he himself was a product of such an upbringing, Jordan said such involvement served to allow children to gain discipline, hone interpersonal skills,

and build self-esteem as they developed their character.

However, he made it clear that such actions did not account for children working after school and being too tired to function in the classroom, or missing classes because of work.

The Minister credited the strides made in protecting children from child labour to the work of the Education Ministry and its enforcement of the Education Act. (Excerpt from Nation News)

T&T CoP invites more women to apply for gun licences

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olice Commissioner Gary Griffith is encouraging more women to apply for Firearm Users Licences (FUL) to protect themselves against criminal elements.

His call came on Tuesday in the wake of public outrage over violence against women, children and the murder of 18-year-old Ashanti Riley and the discovery of the body of missing mother Krystal PrimusEspinoza.

Speaking at a press

conference at the Police Administration Building in Port-of-Spain, Griffith said the public outcry had ignited an operational plan to deal with missing persons and violence against women and children.

“I want to inform all women in the country, there is nothing against women having a firearm, a fireman is something that can be an asset for you. There is no need to be fearful of a firearm. Firearms do not kill people, people kill people. A

firearm should not be something you feel so sensitive that you feel that you do not want it,” Griffith said.

However, the Commissioner said he was concerned that 95 per cent of the applicants were men.

Noting that he has increased the number of firearm licences issued annually from over 200 to 1500, Griffith said he has been pushing heavily to provide people with their right to bear arms. (Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

current plan, under which lawmakers would continue to describe themselves as legitimate parliamentarians even after their five-year term expires on January 5, the BBC reported.

“It’s a very complicated precedent for the future, because we open the door to Maduro saying that he will extend his government without holding an election,”

Capriles said, according to the BBC. Some Opposition legislators reiterated their support for Guaidó via social media.

“The Opposition does not have a boss, but it has a leader and his name is @ jguaido, he has put himself on the line for this and for us,” lawmaker Luis Florido wrote via Twitter. (Excerpt from Reuters)

COVID-19: Poor left behind as rich nations “hoarding vaccines”

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new report has found that as many as 90 per cent of the population in dozens of poorer countries will miss out on the coronavirus vaccine next year, because most of the supply has already been taken by rich nations.

The People’s Vaccine Alliance says that rich countries have hoarded enough doses to vaccinate their entire populations nearly three times over.

That leaves at least 67 poor countries with only enough to vaccinate one out of 10 people, unless Governments and the pharmaceutical industry take urgent action, the alliance, which includes Amnesty International and Oxfam, warned.

Five of the 67 – Kenya, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan and Ukraine – have reported nearly 1.5 million coronavirus cases between them.

In contrast, rich nations and economies that

are home to 14 per cent of the global population had bought 53 per cent of the total stock of the most-promising vaccines as of last month.

That includes the European Union, United States, Britain, Canada, Japan, Switzerland, Australia, Hong Kong, Macau, New Zealand, Israel and Kuwait.

“The hoarding of vaccines actively undermines global efforts to ensure that everyone, everywhere can be protected from COVID-19,” said Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International’s head of economic and social justice.

“Rich countries have clear human rights obligations not only to refrain from actions that could harm access to vaccines elsewhere, but also to cooperate and provide assistance to countries that need it.”

According to Oxfam, Canada has bought enough

doses to vaccinate its population five times over.

South Korea, another leading world economy, has bought sufficient vaccine for 88 per cent of its population of more than 50 million people.

Meanwhile, the Philippines, considered a developing country, has so far secured only 2.6 million doses for delivery next year.

That only covers 1.3 million people out of its total population of more than 100 million.

“No one should be blocked from getting a life-saving vaccine because of the country they live in, or the amount of money in their pocket,” Anna Marriott, Oxfam’s health policy chief, said.

“But unless something changes dramatically, billions of people around the world will not receive a safe and effective vaccine for COVID-19 for years to come.” (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Thousands of Cubans in South America planning caravans to the US border

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housands of Cubans have started to join other migrants in caravans heading for the US southern border to apply for political asylum, Cubans in Latin America have told el Nuevo Herald.

From Guyana to Paraguay and Chile, Cuban migrants are posting notes on social networks to join the caravans, which have already created problems in Suriname because of border closures due to the coronavirus. Nearly 500 Cuban migrants, including children and pregnant women, are stranded in campgrounds there.

“I came to this country three years ago with my two children and my husband. I came from Cuba to escape the misery, but we’re in the same situation here.

Without work and without assistance, living in a neighbourhood with drugs and vi-

An official statement from the Cuban Government, issued at its embassies in Suriname and Guyana, blamed the United States for the migration crisis

olence,” Janet Figueroa, one of the members of a caravan in Suriname, told el Nuevo Herald.

Suriname, like Guyana, allows Cubans from the island unrestricted entry, so in recent years the two countries have become jumping-off points for migrants heading for the United States or other countries with large Cuban communities, such as Chile and Uruguay.

Figueroa, 36, is traveling with her husband and two children. She is asking the Guyana Government for permission to move on “in search of the American dream”.

An official statement from the Cuban Government, issued at its embassies in Suriname and Guyana, blamed the United States for the migration crisis. (Excerpt from Miami Herald)

guyanatimesgy.com

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020

19

Around the World

OILNEWS OIL NEWS Oil plunges after EIA reports huge crude build

T

he Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported on Wednesday a massive crude oil inventory build of 15.189 million barrels for the week to December 4, after a modest draw of 700,000 barrels estimated for the previous week.

This week's rise in crude inventories came close to the largest crude build ever, which was recorded earlier this year for the week ending April 10, when the EIA reported a 19.25 million barrel inventory build.

A day earlier, the American Petroleum Institute had reported a crude oil stock build of just 1.1 million barrels along with much larger builds in gasoline and distillate fuels.

In fuels, the EIA reported an inventory build in gasoline and another build in distillate stocks for the week to December 4.

In gasoline, the authority estimated an inventory increase of 4.2 million barrels, compared with a sizeable build of 3.5 million barrels for the previous week. Gasoline production averaged 8.3 million bpd, compared with 8.6 million bpd a week earlier.

Oil prices have reversed their recent rally this week as worries about the continuing rise in COVID-19 infections globally began to displace enthusiasm from positive vaccine news from earlier this month. Even the start of vaccinations in the UK did not arrest the slide. (Excerpt from Oilprice.com)

Joe Biden's son says he is under investigation over taxes

COVID-19 vaccine: Allergy warning over new jab

P

eople with a history of significant allergic reactions should not have the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID jab, regulators say.

It came after two National Health Service (NHS) workers had allergic reactions on Tuesday.

The advice applies to those who have had reactions to medicines, food or vaccines, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said.

The two people had a reaction shortly after having the new jab, had treatment and are both fine now.

They are understood to have had an anaphylactoid reaction, which tends to involve a skin rash, breathlessness and sometimes a drop in blood pressure. This is not the same as anaphy-

Medical staff train to administer the vaccine in the COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic at University Hospital in Coventry, England [Steve Parsons/Pool Photo via AP]

laxis which can be fatal.

Both NHS workers have a history of serious allergies and carry adrenaline pens around with them.

Professor Stephen Powis, medical director for the

NHS in England, said both individuals were recovering well.

He said this was "common with new vaccines", describing it as a precautionary measure.

Ghana’s President wins re-election as 5 killed

G

hana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo won re-election with 51.59 per cent of the vote, results from the election commission showed on Wednesday, as deadly violence gripped the West African country.

The results follow a contentious poll that both candidates had said they were leading based on their camps’ tallies. Five people

were killed in election violence since Monday, Police said, marring what observers said was a well-organised vote.

The Ghanaian Police Service said it recorded more than 60 incidents at Monday’s vote, in which President Nana Akufo-Addo ran for re-election against his main rival, former President John Mahama, and 10 other candidates.

“Twenty-one of the incidents are true cases of electoral violence, six of which involve gunshots resulting in the death of five,” it said.

Independent observers this week congratulated Ghana for conducting largely peaceful polls, in line with its reputation as one of West Africa’s most stable democracies.

But tensions have risen as the camps of Mahama

U

S President-elect Joe Biden's son Hunter has said his tax affairs are under investigation.

The investigation is being conducted by federal Prosecutors in Delaware.

Hunter Biden said he took the case "very seriously", but was confident an "objective review" would show he had handled his affairs "legally and appropriately".

The Biden-Harris transition team said the Presidentelect was "deeply proud of his son".

A statement from the team said Hunter had "fought through difficult challenges, including the vicious personal attacks of recent months, only to emerge stronger".

Hunter said he learned of the investigation on Tuesday. He did not disclose any further details.

Hunter, 50, was a frequent target of Republican criticism during the 2020

election campaign.

His presence on the board of a Ukrainian energy firm while his father was Vice President came under scrutiny during the impeachment trial against Donald Trump earlier this year.

Trump was accused of pressing Ukraine to probe what the Bidens were doing in the country, and using military aid as a bargaining chip. He was impeached by the House, where the Democratic Party has a majority, but cleared by the Republican-dominated Senate.

The investigation into Hunter's tax affairs comes as the President-elect assembles his Cabinet. If the case is still ongoing when Biden is sworn into office next month, his pick for Attorney General could have oversight of the investigation, AP news agency noted.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

and Akufo-Addo said their tallies showed their candidate in the lead.

“There were issues on Election Day about the procedure of voting, then immediately after the voting there were complaints about the way the results were being sorted out,” Al Jazeera’s Ahmed Idris, reporting from the capital Accra, said. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Major lawsuits seek break up of Facebook

U US President-elect Joe Biden and his son, Hunter

Dr June Raine, head of the MHRA, said it was only right to take this step now that "we've had this experience".

Reactions like this are uncommon, but do happen with other vaccines, including the annual flu jab.

Several thousand people were vaccinated on Tuesday in hospital clinics on the first day of the United Kingdom rollout of the new COVID jab.

Professor Peter Openshaw, an expert in immunology at Imperial College London, said: "The fact that we know so soon about these two allergic reactions and that the regulator has acted on this to issue precautionary advice shows that this monitoring system is working well." (Excerpt from BBC News)

S federal regulators and more than 45 state Prosecutors have sued Facebook, accusing the social media company of taking illegal actions to buy up rivals and stifle competition.

The lawsuits are one of the most significant legal actions the US Government has taken against the firm.

Officials are asking the court to consider breaking up the company, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp. Facebook said the deals under scrutiny were approved by regulators years ago.

"The Government now wants a do-over, sending a chilling warning to American business that no sale is ever final," Facebook General Counsel Jennifer Newstead said.

She said the company had invest-

Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg

ed millions to make Instagram and WhatsApp successful and would defend itself "vigorously".

"Antitrust laws exist to protect consumers and promote innovation, not to punish successful businesses," Facebook said, describing the Government's arguments as "revisionist history".

The lawsuits filed by the states and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) focus on Facebook's 2012 acquisition of Instagram, 2014 purchase of WhatsApp and rules governing outside software developers.

Officials accused Facebook of taking a "buy or bury" approach to potential rivals, hurting competitors and users, who have lost control of their own data to support the firm's advertising revenue.

The legal filings cite internal messages from Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg, such as one 2008 email that said it was "better to buy than compete". (Excerpt from BBC News)

Britain, EU set Sunday deadline to clinch Brexit trade deal

B

ritish Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the European Union’s chief executive gave themselves until Sunday for last-ditch negotiations on a post-Brexit trade deal after failing to narrow differences during a “frank discussion” over dinner in Brussels.

“Very large gaps remain between the two sides and it is still unclear whether these can be bridged,” a senior

source in the British Prime Minister’s office said in a statement.

He said Johnson did not want to leave “any route to a possible deal untested”, and so he and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had agreed to further discussions over the next few days between their negotiating teams.

Von der Leyen echoed the

British comments on the meeting in a separate statement.

The two sides agreed that a decision on whether a deal is possible before Britain finally leaves the EU’s orbit on January 1 would be taken by the end of the weekend.

Fears are running high of a chaotic no-deal finale to the five-year Brexit crisis.

The EU and Britain had cast today’s meeting as a

chance to break an impasse in negotiations, but both acknowledged there was a danger that a trade deal would elude them.

Britain formally left the bloc in January, but has since been in a transition period during which it remains in the EU single market and customs union, meaning that rules on trade, travel and business have stayed the same. (Excerpt from Reuters)

20

THURSDAY DECEMBER 10, 2020

guyanatimesgy.com

ARIES (March 21April 19)

A lifestyle change may scare you, but doing nothing will lead to regret.

Believe in your ability to make things happen and to handle whatever comes your way.

Look over contracts, TAURUS negotiate and consid(April 20er your options. Don’t let May 20) someone’s uncertainty drag you down. Make decisions that are in your best interest. Romance will ease stress.

DILBERT

GEMINI (May 21June 20)

CANCER (June 21July 22)

PEANUTS

CALVIN AND HOBBES

SUDOKU

Don’t believe everything you hear or participate in events that go against your beliefs. Be true to yourself, honest about how you feel and determined to live life your way.

Handle shared expenses with care. Concentrate on personal improvement, health, fitness and looking your best. How you present yourself to the world will make a difference.

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Strive for perfection, be responsible and do your research before you make a move. A unique offer may tempt you, but you are better off doing your own thing.

Challenge your mind.

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

Look for a unique opportunity, and strive to do your very best. What you master today will lead to a new and exciting way to live your life. Romance looks promising.

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Walk away from adversity and toward intellectual stimulation and educational pursuits. A change of heart will help you realize what you want out of life and how to make it happen.

SCORPIO

A reserved approach to prospects, coupled with behind-the-scenes work to put everything in place, will lead to the success you crave.

(Oct. 24Nov. 22)

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23Dec. 21)

Look at your assets, what others expect of you and what you are capable of doing. Be honest with yourself and others, and offer only what’s reasonable. You don’t have to impress anyone.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

Stay focused on what you want to accomplish and building a strong, stable home environment that will soothe your soul. Don’t let matters concerning institutions escalate.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 19)

Be observant, but don’t let outside matters consume you. Be diligent when it comes to taking care of your responsibilities, and protect your reputation, position and status as you move forward.

SOLUTION FOR LAST PUBLISHED PUZZLE

PISCES (Feb. 20March 20)

Personal growth, improving your physical appearance and romance will alleviate stress and encourage happiness. Follow through with a creative endeavor that utilizes your skills.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020

21

Windies have to be prepared to fight – says Coach Estwick on eve of 2nd New Zealand Test

W

est Indies bowling coach Roddy Estwick has said the team has to be prepared to fight, and not roll over when they face New Zealand in the second and final Test at Wellington on Thursday (Wednesday night Caribbean time).

The West Indies were defeated by an innings and 134 runs last weekend at Hamilton in the first Test, which ended early on the fourth day.

Speaking on the eve of this second Test match, Estwick said the team had honest and frank discussions, but the time had come for the players to back themselves to deliver when it matters.

“The talking has to stop. We have to go out and stay in the contest, stay in the fight,” he said. “We have got to be ready. The game in Hamilton is gone, we have to look forward to this one in Wellington.

“We are representing

eight mill i o n people back in the Caribbean. They want to see us fight, and we have to be prepared to fight. We can’t just roll over and say New Zealand is a good side and we are not going to fight and we’re going to lay down an let them run all over us. Once we can stay in the contest, we have a chance.”

In the first Test, the West Indies, replying to New Zealand’s 519 for 7, got off to a solid start at 49 without loss, but as

has seemingly become the norm, collapsed to 138 for 9. Shane Dowrich was unable to bat because of a reported hand injury.

Following on, the team collapsed again to 89 for 6 before Jermaine Blackwood scored 104 and Alzarri Joseph scored a career best 86, in a 155-run seventh wicket partnership that took the West Indies to a more respectable 247.

Estwick has said the team has to improve in all areas when play begins in Wellington.

“We have to be prepared to work hard. The bowlers have to be prepared to bowl long spells, a lot of overs, the batsmen have to be prepared to bat for a very long time. This is Test cricket, this is one of the better teams in the world, and you have got to be prepared to do those things,” Estwick said.

“If you’re not prepared to do these things, then you’re going to play T20

Mbappe breaks Messi's Champions League record

K

ylian Mbappe broke a Champions League record held

by Lionel Messi as he netted Paris Saint-Germain's third goal against Istanbul Basaksehir.

A double from Neymar put PSG in command of a tie being completed on Wednesday, after it was abandoned in the 14th minute on Tuesday following accusations that a fourth official had racially abused Istanbul assistant Pierre Webo.

Mbappe made it 3-0 from the penalty spot after Neymar had been brought down, ending a wait for a Champions League goal that stretched back to December 11 last year.

The strike

also saw him become the youngest player to reach 20 goals in the competition at 21 years and 355 days, surpassing Messi, who reached the tally at the age of 22 years and 266 days.

Meanwhile, Neymar – who completed his hattrick in the second half – reached 40 Champions League goals with his second goal, doing so in 65 games.

Ruud van Nistelrooy (45 games), Messi and Robert Lewandowski (both 61 games) are the only players to do so in quicker time.

Mbappe doubled his tally after the visitors pulled one back, with PSG – who are already through to the last 16 following Manchester United's defeat to RB Leipzig on Tuesday – on course to top Group H. (Sportsmax)

cricket; but you have to be prepared to scrap and fight and battle and really represent. Put a price

B

ack in action after a 15-day COVID-19 layoff, Lamar Jackson directed a relentless rushing attack that the Baltimore Ravens hope will be the first big step in a run to the playoffs, but admitted he is still experiencing symptoms of the disease.

Jackson ran for 94 yards and a touchdown, and the Ravens returned from their COVID-19 outbreak to amass 294 yards rushing in a 34-17 rout of the Dallas Cowboys on Tuesday night.

Playing for the first time since 22 November following a pos-

itive test for the potentially deadly virus, Jackson carried 13 times and threw for two scores. He was one of 23 Ravens to spend time on the reserve/ COVID-19 list while four different strains of the virus swept through the organisation.

“I had a little flulike symptoms. I still can’t really taste or smell, but I’m good now,” Jackson said. “That’s an effect that comes (with

on your wicket! Put a price on every ball you bowl! Put a price on every ball you field! Put a price on every

ball you catch! There is no other way, there is no hiding place in Test cricket.”

(Sportsmax)

COVID-19). I guess my sense of taste and smell (is) going to come back sooner (rather) than later, but I’m good now. I wouldn’t wish that on anybody, though; it’s not good to have.”

Although the Ravens still have a half-dozen players on the COVID-19 list, the team felt complete for the first time in weeks.

“It’s like when you go on a family vacation and one of your family members (gets) sick and you can’t

bring them,” rookie linebacker Patrick Queen said. “You’re down in the dumps.”

The game was played on Tuesday night because Baltimore’s previous game against Pittsburgh last Wednesday was pushed back three times, while the Ravens had at least one player test positive for 10 consecutive days.

The game was supposed to feature Ravens receiver Dez Bryant going against his former team, but Bryant left during warmups and was scratched with what Baltimore termed “an illness.”

Bryant wrote on Twitter that he tested positive for COVID-19, and later posted: “Yea, I’m going to go ahead and call it a quit for the rest of the season…I can’t deal with this.”

He subsequently posted a series of tweets, including, “Yea, I’m coming back…I’m being smart.”

If Jackson was rusty or stale after missing a game, it was tough to tell by his performance. “The one thing you do know about Lamar: You’re going to get everything he’s got,” Harbaugh said. “That’s all you can ask for.” (The Guardian)

22

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020

GCB Inter-County U-19 tournament…

29 to continue training to possibly represent Berbice T

he Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) selectors have trimmed to 29 the squad which would continue training for possible selection to the final Berbice Under-19 team which would represent the county in the GCB InterCounty tournament.

Last Wednesday, the selectors released the names of those players who would engage in further trial matches. They are: Fawaz Gafoor, Rampertab Ramnauth, Ricardo Ramdihal, Marvan Prashad, Seon Glasgow, Shamar Angel, Chandrapaul Govindan, Nigel Deodat, Gourav Ramesh, Doorasammy Mahadeo, Gevon Shultz, Leon Swammy, Abdul Ramsammy, Tomani Caesar, Lloyd David, Akash Heeralall, Zeynul Ramsammy, Jermey Sandia, Inzam Shazam, Tyrese Sealey, Jonathan Rampersaud, Aaron Beharry, Isaiah Thorne, Reyad Karim, Sarwan Chaitnarine, Isiah Anderson, Christopher Deroop, Mahendra Gopilall and Collis Noble.

Over the last weekend,

the BCB held

two 50-over trial matches at the Albion Community Centre Cricket Club ground.

In the first match, former West Indies Under-15 batsman Rampertab Ramnauth of the Port Mourant club scored the lone fifty. In the second match, Gevon Schultz’s XI, batting first, scored 128 all out in 41 overs. Blairmont’s Fawaz Gafoor scored a breezy 47, Zeynul Ramsammy scored 19, and Lloyd David scored 12. Aaron Beharry claimed 3-17 in seven overs, and

Tyrese Sealy took 3-20 in five overs.

In reply, Seon Glasgow’s XI scored 129-9 in 40 overs. Batting at the top, Ramnauth stroked five fours in his top knock of 54, while Jermey Sandia and Sealy scored 11 and nine respectively.

In the first match played on Saturday, Marvan Prashad topscored with an attractive 41, while Shamar Angel made 25. Glasgow’s XI posted 155 all out in 49.2 overs. Seon Glasgow (21);

CAC Bodybuilding and Fitness Championships

Jamaica delivers solid performance

T

he Jamaica team finished fifth at the CAC Bodybuilding and Fitness Championships that were held in the Dominican Republic earlier this week.

Jamaica was the highest ranked team from the English-speaking Caribbean with 108 points.

The tournament was dominated by the home team, who amassed 551 points.

In the points standing, the Dominican Republic team was followed by Mexico, with 217 points; Guatemala, with 198 points; and El Salvador, with 191 points. Bahamas (43) and Antigua and Barbuda (24) were eighth and ninth respectively.

“We got five trophies: two first place and three

second place; and four other members (ended) with topsix finishes,” said Matthew Smith Barrett, the assistant treasurer of the Jamaica Bodybuilding and Fitness Association (JBBFA) of the 14-member team that travelled for the competition.

Asahane Gordon Morrison won the Women’s Physique Open Class, while Ricky James won the Men’s Physique (Short) over Christopher Murillo of Costa Rica and Wellington Wallace of the Bahamas, who were second and third respectively. James’s teammate Kemoy Maine was fourth.

Meanwhile, Rajae Grandison finished second in the Bodybuilding Juniors category won by Mexico’s Luis Manuel Molina

Calderon.

Juan Pablo Rivera from Costa Rica was third.

Akeem Messam-Hinds was the runner-up to Haiti’s Perkendy Kasimir, while Kaif Young of the Bahamas was third.

The outstanding Deidre Lewis, who won gold in 2019, was the silver medalist this time in the Women’s Bikini (Short) category won

by Febe Marinee Alonzo Moreno from Mexico. Clavel Navarro Cabrera of the Dominican Republic was third.

Kashane McFarlane was fifth in the Men’s Physique (Tall), a similar position to Daniel Haughton in the Men’s Physique (Middle Height). Dwight James finished sixth in Men’s Bodybuilding. (Sportsmax)

Abdul Ramsammy (21); Ricardo Ramdehol (18) and Leon

Swammy (17) were among

the runs. Shamar Angel, Jonathan Rampersaud, Gourav Ramesh, Akash Heeralall and Izam Shazam each took two wickets.

In reply, Schultz’s XI made 110-4 in 32 overs.

In addition to Prashad’s classy 41*and Angel’s 25, Fawaz Gafoor made 15 and Rampersaud contributed 10. Swammy, Isiah Anderson and Delshawn McDonald each took one wicket before rain ended the day’s play.

The final squad will have training sessions ahead of the proposed GCB Under-19 tournament, tentatively set for mid-January 2021.

Bishop wants WI to move up the rankings

F

ormer West Indies fast bowler, now cricket commentator, Ian Bishop, says West Indies cricket has questions to answer going into 2021.

Speaking to Guardian Media Sports in the build-up to the Twenty20 International (T20I) series against New Zealand last week, Bishop said he was “ambivalent” about the West Indies’ T20 World Cup chances next year, given the challenges which the pandemic has presented this year.

“There are a number of gaps that need to be filled; so, without being overly concerned or overly satisfied, I would say there needs to be the answer to some questions, going forward,” the Trinbagonian said from New Zealand, where he is currently commentating on the ongoing Test series.

The Caribbean side, skippered by Kieron Pollard, lost the three-match T20I series 2-0, after falling to a five-wicket defeat under the Duckworth/ Lewis/Stern Method in the first T20I at Eden Park in Auckland, then a 66-run defeat at the Bay Oval, the same venue where the final match was prevented due to rain, ending in a no-result.

Bishop also said that, given the curtailed cricket calendar in 2020 caused by COVID-19, it’s difficult to grade Phil Simmons on his first year since returning as coach. However, he warned that 2021 would be a pivotal one for the West Indies in all formats of the game.

The former regional fastbowler said, “It’s hard to draw any concrete conclusions (on Simmons’s first year), so I think this tour of New Zealand, if the West Indies go to Bangladesh when they host Sri Lanka and someone else next year, then we will get a better gauge; but Phil knows that (for the) T20 World Cup, they need to start moving upwards of that number nine position in the world rankings.”

While he did not downplay the size of the task West Indies face on this New Zealand tour, Bishop said he understood why the selectors may have chosen to drop Shai Hope altogether, as

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opposed to taking him with the West Indies A team.

He said, “Shai has had a long run. He has been a particular favourite of mine, but he hasn’t come up with the numbers that he should be expecting of himself. Shai has that time now to be away from the grind of watching his teammates play international cricket and to focus on getting some sessions in Barbados and really refresh his mind.”

Bishop also added his voice to the growing debate on whether Nicholas Pooran should be fast-tracked into the Test team, given his talent and success in the shortest format of the game.

“What I feel a lot of fans underestimate is how different T20 cricket is from Test match cricket. I don’t think people really understand the difference and the wide range of skills that (needs) to be applied,” Bishop, a former national standout, explained.

In supporting Pooran playing in the ongoing Four-Day Test matches with the West Indies A against New Zealand A, Bishop said, “The prudent thing is to let Pooran play some long-form cricket, learn about himself, learn about technique and learn about the mindset of batting long periods of time.”

He added that Pooran should not strive to be a player who averages just 30 in Test matches, but rather “be an exceptional player”.

In the first Four-Day “Test”, which ended on Sunday at the Bay Oval, Pooran had scores of 46 and 35 respectively. New Zealand A defeated West Indies A by an innings and 134 runs.

(TT Guardian)

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GUYANATIMESGY.COM

23

New Zealand aiming to clean sweep series – West Indies aiming for bounce-back win

I

n the first Test, there was daylight between the quality of the New Zealand and West Indies outfits in the home conditions of the Kiwis.

Windies can't blame preparation

Usually, with teams playing a lot of white ball cricket, when you suddenly have to shift into red-ball mode, it takes a lot of time and practice, which generally teams are not able to afford. This is why they don't start well in an overseas Test, especially in places like South Africa, New Zealand and England, where the ball swings around quite a lot.

However, West Indies can-

not give that excuse, as they spent a lot of time Down Under owing to their soft quarantine. They played two practice matches: a 3-day match from November 22 to November 24 and another 4-day practice match from November 26 to 29, before coming into the first Test match on December 3. The team can only blame itself.

As skipper Jason Holder said in the post-match press conference after West Indies' defeat by an innings and 134 runs in the first Test match, it is time for West Indies to stop talking and start delivering.

New Zealand too good in home conditions

For the last couple of

years, New Zealand have found the template to excel in their home conditions.

Whichever team has faced them, be it India or England, they have found it very hard to get the better of the Kiwis at home.

The nature of the pitches in New Zealand is unique, with them providing an unfair advantage to the team bowling first, as the wicket gets more and more flat as the match progresses. Their bowlers know the areas to pitch the ball in, and do it consistently.

Their batters have become adept at the art of weathering the storm, and then making the most of the scenario when the bowlers get tired, which is

exactly what they did in the opening Test match.

Kane Williamson shows his class

After West Indies dis-

NexGen Golf Academy delivers on promise to Hope Children’s Home D

uring a simple handover ceremony at the Hope Children's Home at Enmore, ECD, Golf Association President Aleem Hussain and Michelle Codrington fulfilled the Nexgen Golf Academy’s promise to deliver a better Christmas to that institution in 2020.

Director of the Home, Kenneth Finlayson, expressed his gratitude for the gift, and the children enthusiastically sang carols as they recalled the wonderful event held on Sunday.

Finlayson has said this donation would definitely give the children a much better hol-

iday than had previously been anticipated, and that he is looking forward to more support to complete the planned building expansion, which has

been stalled by a lack of both funds and materials.

“Persons or companies interested in making any contribution to the orphanage can

Benjamin’s Bakery supports final leg of GCF Time Trials in Berbice

T

he popular Benjamin's Bakery at Fyrish on the Corentyne Coast in East Berbice has thrown its full support behind the final leg of the Guyana Cycling Federation’s (GCF’s) Time Trials that are set to pedal off on Sunday, December 13 in Berbice.

These Time Trials will be held in memory of the late champion cyclist Wilbert Benjamin, whose demise was due to an accident that occurred earlier this year, and the ‘race’ is expected to pedal off at 9:00h from Palmyra and finish at Benjamin's Sport and Fitness Centre at Fyrish.

Last Tuesday, cycling coach and ‘race’ organiser Randolph Roberts received the sponsorship from Kevon Benjamin.

This event will witness three categories of contestants: the open, veterans and juveniles. Awards will be given to the first three top cyclists in the open category.

Additionally, the first three juveniles and veterans would also receive awards.

Roberts has expressed gratitude to the sponsors, and is hoping that the event

contact Aleem Hussain, who has agreed to do whatever it takes to help us complete the project", Finlayson has said.

The Guyana Golf Association and Nexgen Golf Academy have led the way in using sports to raise funds in the past few years, and Hussain has promised that greater things are in the works.

There are many opportunities for groups and individuals who wish to participate in the sport of golf, or use the Academy to create a safe, COVID-compliant activity just by stopping by, visiting the Academy’s Facebook page, or by calling 645-0944.

missed opener Will Young in the fourth over in the series opener, they must have seen an opening, but Kane Williamson ensured that New Zealand did not have any further hiccups, as he joined forces for a 150-plus partnership with Tom Latham and broke the spirit of the West Indies’ bowling attack.

Williamson started cautiously, but once he was past his half-century, he showed his true colours and smacked 251 off just 412 deliveries at a strike rate of 60.9, to register his third double-century in Test cricket, and his highest score to date.

Williamson smashed 34 boundaries and two sixes to take New Zealand to a dominant position, from where only one team could win.

Lack of application from visitors

The biggest reason for West Indies' downfall was the lack of application from their batters. Honestly, it was a bit of a surprise when Kraigg Brathwaite and John Campbell played out 26.5

overs without losing a wicket in their first innings.

However, it was only a matter of time, as once New Zealand made the first inroad, the West Indies innings fell like a pack of cards.

There was some resistance from Jermaine Blackwood and Jason Holder in the first innings, but the team was bowled out for just 138 and had to follow on. By the time the second innings arrived, West Indies had lost the match already in their mind, as no one could spend time at the crease.

Towards the end, Blackwood and Alzarri Joseph showed that the pitch did not have too many demons in it and that runs could be scored on it, given that you apply yourself, which is what the West Indies batting lacked.

Team changes

With Kemar Roach and Shane Dowrich unavailable, West Indies are expected to draft in Chemar Holder and Shimron Hetmyer in their place. The Kiwis will be unchanged.

Here's the probable playing XI of both teams: New Zealand: Tom Latham, Will Young, Kane Williamson (c), Ross Taylor, Henry Nicholls, Tom Blundell (wk), Daryl Mitchell, Kyle Jamieson, Tim Southee, Neil Wagner, Trent Boult.

West Indies: Kraigg Brathwaite, John Campbell, Darren Bravo, Shimron Hetmyer, Jermaine Blackwood, Shamarh Brooks (wk), Roston Chase, Jason Holder (c), Chemar Holder, Shannon Gabriel, Alzarri Joseph.(Cricket World)

Ramjattan proud of 4th edition of PM T20 Cup

– advocates for more teams and female league in 2021

By Timothy Jaikarran

I

Flying Ace cyclist Balram Narine, in the company of Randolph Roberts, received sponsorship from Kevon Benjamin, a representative of Benjamin Bakery

would successfully be held.

In the first two Time Trials, Marlon Williams and Briton John clocked the respective best times in the events held on the East Coast of Demerara, followed by the Linden leg.

The GCF had been granted permission by the relevant authorities to host these races. During the opening leg, all cyclists were required to un-

dergo a temperature test and wear a face mask, which had been made available. Socialdistancing protocols were also observed, and are expected to continue at these racing events.

Cyclists are asked to be prompt, and those interested in participating in this Berbice leg are invited to contact Randolph Roberts on 628-8211.

n 2019, the former Minister of Security, who was then acting Prime Minister, Khemraj Ramjattan, opened the 3rd edition of the Prime Minister’s T20 Cup tournament, which was deemed a success.

Despite not holding the same office in 2020, Ramjattan has noted that the 2020 edition of the tournament produced a higher quality of cricket from both batsmen and players.

Speaking with Guyana Times Sport, the former Minister of Security said, “Look, I find this tournament is having a higher quality of batsmanship and playership generally. I am very impressed; I feel that we should have a women’s tournament at the next go round. I don’t know why we weren’t able to have it, but I think that every year this tournament is evolving into a bigger and bigger event, with lots more skillset. Some of the guys

that made big runs gave me the analogy of a Russell on a softball field, and I am happy to see the turnout of so many young players.”

Ramjattan noted that softball cricket has a tremendous future in Guyana, and he said that with the level of play that was exhibited by the players in the PM Cup, the best is yet to come, as more investors would pour money into the tournament.

He also said that with COVID-19 present in Guyana, it was an excellent

gesture for PM Mark Phillips to attend the event.

Asked about his expectations for the PM Cup in 2021, Ramjattan replied, “I would like to see a lot more teams (participating), teams from the various parts of Guyana coming out. This tournament is regarded as the premiere league, but it needs a wider base; it’s not an apex we are talking about, but by the time we meet the apex, a lot of people at the bottom will be involved, and that is my expectation.”

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020

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

guyanatimesgy.com

New Zealand aiming to NexGen Golf Academy Deliver clean sweep series Promise to Hope Childrens Home Pg 23

Pg 23

– West Indies aiming for bounce-back win

GCB Inter-County U-19 tournament…

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