Guyana Times - Tuesday, January 12, 2021

No ban implemented on UK travel – Minister Anthony Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

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THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Issue No. 4526

TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021

Canada joins US in rejecting Venezuela’s claims to Guyana’s territory – says border controversy must be settled in ICJ Page 13

Joint Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee meets to discuss Venezuela’s “illegal” decree

...as Guyana’s Foreign Minister strongly objects to Venezuela’s new claims

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WHAT'S INSIDE:

Police yet to return file to DPP on teen P9 accused of fatally shooting best friend

Construction on $327M farmto-market road project kicks off in Region 5 P12

Region 4 man is Guyana’s 170th COVID-19 fatality …active cases drop to 378

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Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Minister Hugh Todd met with Chargé d'Affaires, Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Moses Chavez on Monday and strongly objected to Venezuela’s new claims (See story on page 3)

Private Sector’s long- Groundwork being term vision integral in laid to strengthen crafting Government Guyana’s electoral policies – President Ali Page 11

system – AG

– impressed with ongoing development of Pritipaul Singh Investment Inc Page 7

…wants life sentence for election riggers

Chase leads Police to gun in apartment P10 Ex-soldiers on death row for murder

Appeal Court sets March 15 to hear arguments on lawfulness of capital P8 punishment

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

NEWS

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS OPENINGS BRIDGE

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Tuesday, January 12 – 03:00h – 04:30h and Wednesday, January 13 – 03:30h – 05:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Tuesday, January 12 – 15:50h – 17:20h and Wednesday, January 13 – 16:35h – 18:05h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY

Sunny intervals will prevail during the day.

There will be partly cloudy skies during the night. Temperatures should range between 22 degrees Celsius and 29 degrees Celsius.

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

High Tide: 16:00h reaching a maximum height of 2.66 metres.

Low Tide: 09:32h and 22:05h reaching minimum heights of 0.74 metre and 0.54 metre.

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– as Guyana’s Foreign Minister strongly objects to Venezuela’s new claims

G

uyana’s bi-partisan Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on Foreign Relations met on Monday, where members were briefed by the Government on Venezuela’s most recent decree which irrationally laid claim to Guyana’s Essequibo region and maritime space.

The Foreign Relations Committee, which is composed of members from both sides of the political divide, met at the National Assembly’s committee room.

During the meeting, the Committee’s Vice Chairman and Foreign Affairs Minister Hugh Todd briefed members on Venezuela’s recent decree.

Committee members include Minister within the Prime Minister’s Office Kwame McCoy, Minister within the Housing Ministry Susan Rodrigues and Members of Parliament Jennifer Westford, Bhagmattie Veerasammy, Tabitha Sarabo-Halley, Ronald Cox and Devin Sears.

Besides the regular members of the Foreign Committee, which is chaired

by Member of Parliament Raphael Trotman, Prime Minister Mark Phillips and Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance Gail Teixeira also attended Monday’s meeting. According to a statement released by the Foreign Ministry, Todd briefed members of the committee and also fielded several questions.

The Ministry noted that the Committee was unanimous in denouncing Venezuela’s actions. Additionally, the need for continued vigilance to safeguard Guyana’s territory was also reiterated.

“The Committee demonstrated unanimity in the strong condemnation of the implementation of any law

by Venezuela with extraterritorial application in contravention of international law and the rights of Guyana. The Committee further reiterated national sentiments for continued vigilance in safeguarding the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Guyana,” the Ministry said in its statement.

Meeting

DRAW DE LINE

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Joint Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee meets to discuss Venezuela’s “illegal” decree

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This publication had previously reported that Minister Todd had summoned the head of the Venezuelan mission in Guyana to a meeting.

In addition to his engagement with the Foreign Relations Committee on Monday, Minister Todd met with Chargé d’ Affaires, Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Moses Chavez, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs During the meeting, Minister Todd registered the strong objection of the Government of Guyana over events that are developing in Caracas related to the attempts by Venezuela to assume jurisdiction over marine and terrestrial areas, solely based on unilateral action without due regard for international law and the rights of

The Parliamentary Foreign Relations Committee being briefed by Foreign Minister Hugh Todd

Guyana.

“The Honourable Hugh Todd, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation today met with Moses Chavez, Chargé d’ Affaires, Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to register the strong objection of the Government of Guyana over events that are developing in Caracas related to the attempts by Venezuela to assume jurisdiction over marine and submarine areas, solely based on unilateral action without due regard for international law and the rights of Guyana,” the statement said.

On Thursday last, Maduro issued a presidential decree reinforcing his country’s illegal claim to Guyana’s Essequibo region. Additionally, the Venezuelan President announced that he has written to Secretary General of the United Nations (UN) Antonio Guterres, to lead direct negotiations between the two countries, as opposed to the binding judgement of the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

That option has been exhausted, however, as the UN tried to mediate discussions between Guyana and Venezuela for years as part of an ultimately futile good offices process until Guyana

activated its right to take Venezuela to the ICJ in 2018 to get a final ruling on the border issue.

Condemnation

In the wake of Maduro’s decree, condemnation has flowed from President Dr Irfaan Ali, Opposition Leader Joseph Harmon and even the United States (US).

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

According to Ali, Guyana has chosen to have the issue resolved within international law. He, therefore, described the Maduro Government’s latest statements as “deeply disturbing” but made it clear that they would not deter Guyana from seeking a final, binding

resolution at the ICJ. In a statement issued on Sunday, Harmon, meanwhile, announced that he was joining all right-thinking Guyanese in rejecting Venezuela’s “fallacious claims” to Essequibo and also affirming Guyana’s defence of its sovereignty.

That same day, US Ambassador to Guyana Sarah-Ann Lynch reiterated the need for a peaceful resolution to Guyana’s border controversy. She also shared a post from Assistant Secretary for the US’s Western Affairs Bureau, Michael Kozak, in which he condemned Maduro’s decree.

In his tweet, Ambassador Kozak reiterated that the US supports the ICJ’s December 18, 2020 ruling that it has jurisdiction in the GuyanaVenezuela territorial border controversy case, which he contended is the “legal and peaceful way forward.”

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guyanatimesgy.com

TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021

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

Domestic violence

D

omestic violence has been described as “… behaviour which causes one partner in a relationship to be afraid of the other. Domestic violence can take the form of physical or sexual abuse and forced social isolation away from friends and family members.” However, domestic violence has many victims besides spousal partners.

The laws of Guyana prescribe one’s rights regarding this issue which are laid out in the Domestic Violence Act as “recognised under the law and law enforcement agencies, such as the courts”, and stipulate that the Guyana Police Force must help to enforce the rights of, and offer protection to, any man, woman, or child who may be experiencing domestic violence.

Some signs of domestic violence are described as persistent verbal abuse such as quarrelling and cursing (one can add to that derogating one’s character and making unjustifiable insulting remarks about one’s self and one’s loved ones); threatening the person with physical violence (threatening to hit the person with hands or objects) as well as actually hitting the person; damaging the property of a person (such as breaking a person’s cellphone, tearing or burning a person’s clothing, among other things); following a person from place to place, even though that person does not want to be followed; hiding clothing or property used by the person (for example, hiding a person’s cellphone, their clothing, their identification card, their passport, and even their money); making persistent and/or unwelcome contact with the person (such as calling the person on their cellphone or home phone many times per day, watching the person’s house, waiting for the person to leave work or place of study, following the person from home or work, even though that person does not want to be followed or watched); and using abusive language to a person, or behaving towards a person in such a way that could result in that person being ill-treated. For example, cursing and quarrelling with a person in front of others, and then encouraging others to do the same.

A Government initiative to deal with the scourge of domestic violence suggested actions one should take to protect oneself (and possibly others) from domestic violence, and to provide a descriptive analysis of a Protection Order. One of the suggestions made is to make a report to the nearest Police station, and therein lies a conundrum.

Those whom are supposed “to protect and serve” most often have provided the catalyst for a tragedy to occur by their attitude and attention – or lack thereof, when a complainant drums up the requisite courage (most often with great difficulty) and lodges a complaint.

Guyanese have stopped being our brother’s (and sister’s) keepers, because, in many communities, neighbours witnessing a continuum of, and escalating instances of, abuse refuse to become involved. They prefer to enjoy the enfolding tragedy, even adding to it with malicious rumour-mongering and strifemaking, because the titillation of feuds and wars within families find a corresponding resonance in the dark nuances resident in every soul, and the average person refuses to rise above their more decadent equivalencies to achieve a higher plane of thought and action, enough to maybe intercede – and probably save, a family from ultimate destruction.

And one wonders what part the church bodies and religious leaders play in melding communities into units cohesive enough to fashion strategies for interventions within families and the general society in efforts to divert energies into more productive and peaceful approaches to conflict resolution – even to the point of empowerment.

The acceleration in violence-prone conflicts within families and societies is spiralling out of control, to the extent where many lives have been lost, with many more dislocated, and there seems to be no end in sight.

Unless there is a holistic, proactive approach, where all stakeholders in the nation are made aware that this cause and this fight is a national one, every effort made – valiant and committed as they may be, will prove woefully inadequate, because domestic violence is a national tradition entrenched in the Guyanese psyche.

Persons within communities most often do not think it is their business to report instances of abuse, and many women and children have suffered violations, and even been murdered, when a timely intervention could have saved someone’s life.

Evil can only perpetuate if good people think it is not their business; so unless we return to the era when each of us was our sister’s or brother’s keeper, there will be many more victims who would suffer even more tragic outcomes to their lives.

President Irfaan Ali posed with staff members of the Pritipaul Singh Investment Inc. The President made a visit to two locations of the company – Providence, EBD and Mc Doom, Greater Georgetown on Monday (Office of the President photo)

Sam Hinds helped to rescue the economy for all Guyanese Dear Editor, In another media, a PNC strongman queried Mr Sam Hinds, former President and Prime Minister, to explain what he (Hinds) did to lift up Guyanese.

I am sure Hinds will respond with a list of items he delivered to the nation that benefited all Guyanese irrespective of race. When Hinds delivered goods and services, he did not think of one “race”, he thought of Guyana and of all races. Sam Hinds did much for Africans that could hardly be surpassed by any African leader. Hinds was a true Guyanese nationalist and patriot. He was not an ethno-nationalist like Green, Burnham, Hoyte, and other African leaders.

After he became PM in October 1992, Hinds helped to rescue the national economy after two decades of economic malaise and deep distress. The turnaround of the economy subsequent to 1992 benefited Africans and other ethnic groups tremendously. While PNC leaders, including Green, hurled Blacks and the nation into destitution, Hinds helped to pull Africans out of poverty. He transformed their lives, reducing poverty from 80 per cent under the PNC, to under 40 per cent at the ends of the first term of the PPP Government.

He eliminated starvation that was prevalent prior to 1992; the country once again became self-sufficient in food production under Jagan/Hinds leadership.

Clive Thomas concluded in a study that it was un-

der the PPP Government that Sam Hinds served (October 1992 to May 2015) that Africans made the greatest economic strides. In contrast, under the PNC Government, December 1964 to October 1992), of which Green was a Minister almost all of that time, the standard of living of Africans and other Guyanese drastically declined to a fifth of what it was when Jagan was ousted from office in December 1964. It was the Jagan, Hinds, Janet, Jagdeo, and Ramotar presidencies that improved the lives of Africans and the rest of the nation.

Hinds also taught Africans to respect democratic governance and accept the outcome of elections, something Green and PNC leaders opposed.

Hinds is no electoral criminal, no murderer, no thug, and no racist, unlike several other African leaders who rigged elections and who ordered the murder of Africans like Rodney, Koama, and Dublin, and who sent thugs to terrorise opponents.

Prominent individuals of other ethnic groups, Portuguese and Indians, were also killed by Burnham’s thugs. Green should know about the killings and thuggery. Hinds condemned electoral fraud; other African leaders are yet to condemn fraud. And obviously, that angers Green, who has been linked to electoral fraud since the 1950s. Was he also linked to political murders? Hinds

is a role model, an exemplar on qualities such as character, integrity, honesty, and professionalism, and good governance.

Green asked Hinds whether he is qualified to speak on behalf of Africans.

The same question can be directed to Green – can he speak on behalf of Afro Guyanese? Hinds is far more qualified because of his life of morality and decency. No one can accuse Hinds of murdering anyone or unleashing thugs on political opponents or using food and sports equipment as a political weapon. Hinds has credibility; can anyone say the same for Green?

Green said one needs to understand what happened in Guyana from the 1960s as a consequence of the cold war. Does the cold war justify rigging of elections and murdering of political opponents? Does it justify apartheid or racist or minority rule in Guyana?

How can the White Man be condemned for racist rule in South Africa and Rhodesia and at the same time Green justifies rigging and racism in Guyana because of the cold war?

Green asked what Hinds did for Afro Guyanese? The same question can be posed to Green, who held the second-highest position in the country, Prime Minister, though neither he nor the PNC was ever elected to office (on its own). What productive measures did Green put in place for Africans?

Green claimed that Hinds did not speak out when, as he claims, hun-

dreds of Africans were killed in Guyana. SN did a study that disputes the number of Africans who were killed. The paper also stated that almost all of those killed were “criminals” or “wanted” or had links with the “underworld”. A similar question can be posed to Green – What did he do when these alleged killings took place? (He was Mayor). Could Green explain his role with the Rabbi Washington terrorist group? What role did Green play in the 1964 Wismar massacre of Indians? What was his role in the X-13 plan? What was his role in the Sun Chapman incident?

Green accused Hinds of telling Africans to forget the history of slavery in response to others who sought reparations from the White Man. That is not correct. What Hinds said was it would be almost impossible to get reparations from the White Man, and therefore, Africans should not depend or wait on reparations in order to rebuild their lives. Indians, Chinese, Portuguese, and Amerindians are not tying their future to reparations; they have rebuilt their lives wherever they are found.

Also, most Africans have moved on from slavery and don’t condition their future on reparations.

The nation has some pertinent questions for Green that can help to bring closure to some unsolved crimes.

Yours truly, Dr Vishnu Bisram

guyanatimesgy.com

TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021

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I congratulate the Ali Administration Dear Editor, I have read wonderful news today in the final paragraph in your newspaper, Monday, January 11, 2021, edition article “US throws support behind Guyana over Venezuela's new border claim”, on page 2, that US Admiral Craig Faller is in Guyana for 2 days discussing US and Guyana security partnership.

I welcome this news personally, as I myself, was a former military officer (lieutenant) in the Canadian Armed Forces regular force component, for a ten-year period (July 1985 to Sep 1995), and having studied and passed the National and International Studies Course, 1 of 5 mandatory courses taken through the Canadian Armed Forces Officer Professional

Development Program (OPDP), and had gotten quite familiar with Canada's Defense Strategy as they were in relation to its (and NATO's) international obligations in this hemisphere, wherein Guyana lies, and to be put at ease by the choice of the US Administration in deploying Mr Craig Faller, as opposed to any other Commander, since he is one that is most fit

and proper for that job, in my humble opinion, and I must make special mention of him in my letter to you, Editor.

I strongly believe he was ideally chosen due to his background, as he has a Master’s in National Security Affairs (Strategic Planning), and had commanded two very important Operations when he had deployed to the Middle East supporting Operation New

Dawn in Iraq, to strengthen democracy there, and in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, which were great successes in the annals of US military history, and is very seasoned. Guyana is indeed very fortunate to have such an outstanding US Officer “visit” its shore on January 11, 2021.

I congratulate the Ali Administration, and in particular Mr Carl Greenidge, in

taking the Venezuelan threat to such an escalating position, and to commence getting into the relevant mode, and undertaking grappling discussions with such a “Military Yankee” and strongman Admiral Faller.

It is great news for me to have learned that our Commander of the GDF is so pro-active.

Dear Editor, The APNU/AFC are of the ludicrous belief that with the instalment of the Biden Administration, there will be an ouster of the PPP/C Government from office. It is a widely circulated nonsense that has gripped the Opposition forces by storm that they are literally praying for that day to come when they will be put back into office.

This latest fantasy of theirs took hold of them after they would have realised that their attempt at regaining power through the rigging route shamefully failed, even though there is a pending election petition. However, fictitious imagery still exists that somehow, somewhere, things can work out for them.

Now, that being said, there are few questions I would like to ask before that dream world of theirs dissipates. In the first place, if America is to barely consider their request then it logically means that they would have to overturn all election results and endorse rigging as a solution to the electoral process. It means that the number of votes cast in favour of the winner - in this case Biden - would have to be thrown out and victory be ascribed to Trump, exactly the theory the PNC has embarked on here in Guyana.

Granger, like his compatriot

Trump, is living in a delusional dream that he has won the election when clearly, he has lost. So, in that dream world, he is looking every which way where he can eke out a win for himself. Sorry, but that is not going to happen!

Trump was even more dramatic about it, that he demanded of the Georgia Governor to find 11,400 votes so that he could rig his way through. When that didn't work, he violently stormed Capitol Hill. The situation in Guyana was a carbon copy of Trump's insanity, where Mingo began his assault on the figures followed by Lowenfield, if this is not living in a delusional world of rigging then tell me what is?

This is the PNC’s logic that has energised them up until now and a strategy they want us to accept.

So, if America is to buy into that foolishness it means that the entire democratic process as it pertains to elections have to be done away with and rigging would become the order of the day. The USA would be shooting itself in the foot if that rigging nonsense succeeds. I am saying that is not going to happen, so it is useless toying around with the idea.

Faithfully yours, M Shabeer Zafar

Trump and Granger have become the Living a delusion world's greatest laughing stocks

Dear Editor, Irresponsible enablers let “Trump be Trump” and as such, Wednesday, January 6, 2021, was sadly allowed by pro-Trumpers to manifest as one of America’s darkest days of retribution, regret and reprehension. America and the world were appalled, apoplectic and apprehensive at the deadly, disastrous and dangerous effects from the cowardly and dastardly attack on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. As a result, five people died, many were injured including people and Police, there was a trail of damages and wreckages and now, a slew of charges, arrests and prosecutions. As the assault materialised after being instigated by an inciteful speech

by President Trump, he returned to the safety and security in the White House to the warmth and comfort of his family and colleagues.

He did not care that he had endangered the lives of members of the House and Senate as they tirelessly and fearlessly performed their national duties to carry out the work of the nation. He was unconcerned about the safety and security of the nation as people and law officers were exposed to facing death at the hands of a frenzied mob, encouraged and influenced by his words, deeds and actions.

He watched entertained and satisfied with his handwork, as a nation was hot on fire on a cold day.

Was Guyanese President Granger during his tenure, allowed to be Granger, or was he a jumping puppet, dancing to the tune of a rogue gang?

His placement in the party was handpicked and his presidential candidacy was also secured via strategic manipu-

lation. Did he execute any autonomy or were his decisions and announcements a relay transmission from a decisive body and not his own?

He only faced the media on a few, handpicked occasions, always spoon-fed, dodged questions with “I said what I said,” for an answer and quickly ushered out after his brief appearances. The roving and raging media operators were always kept at bay by his watchdogs. Most of the times he was kept out of sight and his lieutenants were the serving force, ready, willing and able to prevent him from taking any initiative and executing the business of the nation. The aftermath from him vacating his office would reveal that he was unaware (acclaimed) of what was happening pervasively, and if he knew, then, he had no choice but to flow with the tide.

Claiming to be a self-righteous and religious person, he would have condemned all those corruptions which his Administration was responsible for, rather than condone them in collusion. Perhaps, he could have stamped his authority and put his foot down (not in his mouth,) and prevent any malfeasance. Being a spiritual servant of the Lord who loved to kneel and bow in the church, not to repent or confess but to sing His praise and bequest His guidance to do only the right thing for the people and by the people were his (Granger’s) lies, deceits and dishonesty of his own making or the direction from dictators of the APNU/ AFC? An obedient devotee of the Lord will not commit any sin, will do no wrong and only speak the truth.

Whatever Granger did, he would have had to seek

the Lord’s permission or the blessings of Satan? Was Granger acting (?) under duress while he kept the nation undermined in siege during the election period in March 2020, or, was he performing an inglorious act when the APNU/AFC held Guyanese at ransom and refused to abide with the result of the No-Confidence Motion (NCM) back in December 2018? Did his conscience not prick him when on assuming office, he immediately approved exorbitant salaries for his boys and girls despite the fact that the rest of the nation was in abeyance and anxiously waiting in suspense?

Perhaps, he became a devil’s advocate onwards and was hypnotised to perform at the will of an evil force masquerading as APNU/AFC! Did the sacred Granger advocate the abuse and harassment of the foreign dignitaries as they rightfully and peacefully observed the election, or, was it a man of violence and passion who institutionalised the vulgar behaviour by lawless party members?

Was it a believer who swears by the Book of God to petition all those legal proceedings all the way to the CCJ, or, was it a worshipper of illegality who recommended to travel the path of sinners?

Was the virtuous Granger in his right frame of mind when he invoked the wrath of the Berbicians by insinuating racial incitement and creating mayhem as a result, or, was it a malefactor who preached immorality to directly perpetrate violence and caucus?

Granger is no longer a decorated soldier with honour and bravery, but, a timid sailor sailing at sea without a paddle and a rudderless canoe in

the middle of a turmoil ocean.

Is Granger not the brash and brazen commander to face the bullets at the helm of the front line, or, is he the weak and meek to pelt a brick in the dark and then hide behind the enclosed walls of security and protection? He always shunned from his promised duty to uphold the law and defend the people of this nation.

What he admonished was recklessness and heartlessness, use and abuse of power, disrespect for the Constitution and the court, ethnic and racial division, victimisation and discrimination and disregard for rules and regulations and ignoring law and order. As such, Trump and Granger became a platform for truism, lost the touch of reality and secluded themselves in a frantic and horrific ideology which represents questionable sanity, judgemental incapacitation and selfish leadership. Former US White House Chief of Staff, John Kelly said, “he’s (Trump) a laughing stock and someone needs to manage him…you don’t survive by telling him the truth.” The truth hurts where it pains the most and both Trump and Granger find the inconvenience of truth as unacceptable and uncomfortable because they cannot handle the truth. It is uncharacteristic of them and it is not in their mantra to speak or uphold the truth. Trump and Granger have become international spectacular figures for the world to poke fun at, ridicule and laugh at. Both of them can never again look squarely eye to eye to the public without a guilty feeling.

Respectfully, Jai Lall

Venezuela's renewed efforts to take Essequibo Dear Editor, Venezuela's recent unanimous announcement to defend its rights to Essequibo by its Government in the presence of its military commanders should be a rallying cry for all Guyanese to be united against this threat. It is time that we also take the necessary preventative actions to protect the patrimony of our citizens and their families during this heightened period of tension between neighbouring nations.

The infiltration of Venezuelans into Guyana via prostitution, illegal immigration and drug trafficking points clearly to part of their

strategy to accomplish their covert efforts. Over a million Venezuelans are part of their national militia and as a result, they can easily pose as distressed immigrants in need of aid.

The large presence of Venezuelans in prostitution and drug trafficking is a clear attack on the morality of our society and has led to the weakening of our law and order. This allows for easier penetration of our borders and easier integration into a lawless society where money is valued more than patriotism.

It is imperative that our Parliament takes unified ac-

tion to rescind the homestead in Essequibo that was recently allotted to Venezuelan immigrants under the previous Administration. In addition, the establishment of a joint military base with the USA on our half of Ankoko Island would be prudent.

The removal of Venezuelan immigrants from within Guyana and their peaceful return back to Venezuela needs to also commence as soon as possible. We are on the verge of major military and covert effort by the Venezuelan Parliament to retake a significant part of our territory.

There must be no delay in our joint efforts to prevent this

from occurring.

No Venezuelan should be allowed to hold a political office or any high office in our society during this period.

President Maduro and the leaders of Venezuela have made it clear that their position is against the sovereignty of our nation. Guyana continues to belong only to the Guyanese people and we must protect it better than we have done in the past while the International Court of Justice decides definitively on the future of Essequibo.

"Not a Blade of Grass."

Best regards, Jamil Changlee

Respectfully, Neil Adams

B

orn in society, brought up in society, educated by society and d e r i v i n g countless benefits from society, what are you doing for society?

Social service should be regarded as an expression of gratitude to society for what it has done to us. Without society, we cannot survive.

Women should treat even their daily chores as a form of concentrated work. If they are unable to attend a satsang (spiritual congregation) on account of household duties, they should not feel miserable on that account.

Discharge of duties at home is as sacred as attending a satsang. Only if you do your duties at home properly will you be able to render proper service outside. In whatever work you do at home, whether sweeping the floor or making chapatis (Indian flatbread), convert it into a form of spiritual exercise. Infuse every action with love of the Divine and dedicate it to God. (Divine Discourse, Mar 23, 1989)

Shri Sathya Sai Baba Organisation

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021

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Foundation ◄

W

FOR CHILDREN

Sets

hat is a set? Well, simply put, it's a collection.

First, we specify a common property among "things" and then we gather up all the "things" that have this common property.

Set of clothes: For example, the items you wear: hat, shirt, jacket, pants, and so on.

I'm sure you could come up with at least a hundred.

This is known as a set.

Or another example is types of fingers.

This set includes index, middle, ring, and pinky.

So it is just things grouped together with a certain property in common.

Notation There is a fairly simple notation for sets. We simply list each element (or "member") separated by a comma, and then put some curly brackets around the whole thing:

Æsop’s Fables

The curly brackets { } are sometimes called "set brackets" or "braces".

This is the notation for the two previous examples: {socks, shoes, watches, shirts, ...} {index, middle, ring, pinky} Notice how the first example has the "..." (three dots together).

The three dots ... are called an ellipsis, and mean "continue on".

So that means the first example continues on ... for infinity.

(Just imagine there were an infinite variety of things you could wear) So: The first set {socks, shoes, watches, shirts, ...} we call an infinite set; the second set {index, middle, ring, pinky} we call a finite set.

But sometimes the "..." can be used in the middle to save writing long lists: Example: the set of letters: {a, b, c, ..., x, y, z} In this case it is a finite set (there are only 26 letters in the alphabet, right?) (mathsisfun.com)

Space Jell-O Why are we experimenting with Jell-O, fruit, nuts, and candy? It’s not just because they’re delicious! In this activity, imagine that the bowl of Jell-O is space and the pieces of fruit, nuts, and candy are planets, stars, and other objects in the universe. Just like matter in space, the fruit, nuts, and candy come in different sizes and masses. Once you’ve selected your fruit, nuts, and candy, separate the ones you think have very little mass from the ones that have a lot of mass. Are the biggest “stars” and “planets” always the ones with the most mass?

Space is the stuff that surrounds all matter. It may be invisible, but there’s space surrounding you, all the things around you, and everything in the universe.

Did you know that space can bend? Albert Einstein proved that space bends around anything that has mass – planets, stars, even you. The more mass an object has, the more space bends around it.

To see Einstein’s theory for yourself, make your very own

edible space out of Jell-O. Of course, space isn’t exactly like Jell-O, but you will be able to see how invisible space bends around different kinds of matter.

Materials 2 (3 oz.) boxes of light-coloured Jell-O (The experiment works better with light colours used in flavours like peach, lime, and lemon.)

A variety of seasonal fruits and nuts in different sizes (see suggestions) A variety of round or ovalshaped candies in different sizes (see suggestions)

1 glass bowl

Measuring cup

Mixing spoon Suggestions for Fruit, Nuts, and Candy Here are a few suggested fruits, nuts, and candies to use in this activity. You don’t have to buy all of these, but try to choose ones that come in a variety of shapes and sizes.

1 walnut (in the shell) 1 Brazil nut 1 grape 1 apple 1 plum 1 large marshmallow 1 green or blue peanut

M&M 1 licorice jelly bean 1 Skittle 1 Whopper 1 Milk Dud 1 gumball What to do Prepare the jello Boil two cups of water on the stove. (REMEMBER: Always have an adult present when using the stove and when handling hot liquids.)

Empty the two boxes of JELL-O powder mix into a clear glass bowl.

Add the boiling water to the JELL-O mix.

Stir until the powder is dissolved.

Refrigerate the JELL-O for four hours until firm.

Experiment With “Space” Place the bowl of JELL-O on a table.

One at a time, place the different fruits, nuts, and candies on top of the Jell-O. Each time you place a different object onto the JELL-O, watch through the side of the bowl. Observe how the JELL-O “space” bends around each “star” and “planet.”

Cut the pieces of fruit in half

a n d place them on the JELL-O. Notice how the JELL-O responds differently.

Try rolling a few objects across the Jell-O. Record your observations.

Be sure to answer the following questions: Which object caused your JELL-O space to bend the most?

Which caused the least amount of bending?

Did the larger objects always cause the JELL-O to bend the most?

What happened when you rolled an object across the JELL-O? You’ve just witnessed a scaled-down version of bending space. Einstein would be proud!

Reward yourself by digging into your edible space.

Big doesn’t always bend more space Remember, the amount of mass an object has doesn’t always depend on its size. Even though a marshmallow is larger than a peanut M&M, the marshmallow has less mass or less stuff inside of it. (amnh.org)

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long time ago, the lion, the fox, the jackal, and the wolf agreed to go hunting together, sharing with each other whatever they found.

One day the wolf ran down a Stag and immediately called his comrades to divide the spoil.

Without being asked, the lion placed himself at the head of the feast to do the carving, and, with a great show of fairness, began to count the guests.

"One," he said, counting on his claws, "that is myself the lion. Two, that's the wolf, three, is the jackal, and the fox makes four."

He then very carefully divided the stag into four equal parts.

"I am King Lion," he said, when he had finished, "so of course I get the first part. This next part falls to me because I am the strongest; and this is mine because I am the bravest."

He now began to glare at the others very savagely.

"If any of you have any claim to the part that is left," he growled, stretching his claws meaningly, "now is the time to speak up."

WORD SEARCH

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Private Sector’s long-term vision integral in crafting Government policies – President Ali – impressed with ongoing development of Pritipaul Singh Investment Inc experience today. And I’m very happy that I visited.”

Accompanying President Ali were PSI’s Chief Executive Officer, Pritipaul Singh Snr, Pritipaul Singh Jr and other representatives of the company.

According to the CEO,

solidate the business and maximise our efficiency,” Singh stated.

He added that the move will also create additional jobs.

Singh also expressed his appreciated to President Ali for his vision of expand-

at Providence has the capacity to take up the challenges of the sector.

He said that his company will also be instrumental in marketing, production and exporting.

“At the end of the day the people of Guyana must ben-

President Irfaan Ali during a tour of Pritipaul Investment Inc on Monday

H

is Excellency Dr Irfaan Ali on Monday said that it is imperative that Government understands the long-term goals and visions of the Private Sector in order to craft policies and implement programmes that will facilitate the necessary growth of the country.

The Head of State said that the relationship between the two bodies is synergetic and extremely important to the overall development of the country.

These sentiments were echoed when he visited Pritipaul Singh Investment Inc, Providence, East Bank Demerara (EBD), and McDoom, Greater Georgetown, on Monday.

The visit stemmed from the President’s drive to di-

versify Guyana’s economy.

Since taking office, the Head of State has been adamant that all sectors, including fishery, would be bolstered.

During Monday’s visit, the President and his team were given a tour of the two locations where he was able to see firsthand the stages of operations in the shrimp and fish processing plants.

“I thought it necessary to come out and to visit one of our largest production facilities in terms of our fishery sector and the products they export. It was a delight and a great pleasure to visit Pritipaul Investments.

What I’ve learned is the magnitude of this investment, the size of the sector itself and opportunities that lies within the sector.”

President Ali noted too

that it was imperative that he visited the facility to gain a better understanding of its processes and functions.

“I think that is necessary to appreciate what happens in the sector. I’m also very happy to hear of the long-term plans of Pritipaul Singh Investment, not only in wild catch, but looking at aquaculture. The number of persons employed here is enormous, his contribution to the economy definitely is very enormous without a doubt.”

The President further stated that over the next few weeks, he will be visiting more processing facilities so that the Government will be better informed to craft programmes and policies to respond to the needs of operators. “It was a learning

The ongoing expansion works at the Providence location is value in excess of US$75 million

the ongoing expansion works at the Providence location is in excess of US$75 million and will see the addition of a state-of-the-art facility with greater capacity.

“What’s happening at Providence, we have to consolidate Pritipaul Singh Investments; we are moving our operations as we have two locations. Instead of having two locations, we are consolidating the business.

Because what is happening in the world environment, because of economic situation, and to become more profitable it is wiser to con-

ing aquaculture in Guyana while noting that the facility he is currently constructing

efit from what we are doing here, I am happy to be on board with the President.”

8 NEWS

TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Ex-soldiers on death row for murder

Appeal Court sets March 15 to hear arguments on lawfulness of capital punishment

Who does the crime...

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T

hree Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Coast Guards who were convicted of murder since 2013 and are waiting on death row for execution have moved to the Guyana Court of Appeal challenging the lawfulness of the capital punishment.

The murder convicts – Sherwin Hart, Devon Gordon and Deon Greenidge – were in 2013 found guilty of the August 20, 2009 murder of Bartica gold miner Dwieve Kant Ramdass.

They were subsequently sentenced to death by hanging by High Court Judge Franklin Holder.

Following a Case Management Conference (CMC) on Monday, Chancellor of the Judiciary Justice Yonette Cummings-Edwards and Justices of Appeal Dawn Gregory-Barnes and Rishi Persaud announced that they would commence hearing full arguments in the case on March 15, 2021.

Initially, the Appeal Court had fixed Monday, January 11, 2021, to commence hearing the matter but the lawyers for the

Murdered: Dwieve Kant Ramdass

murder convicts requested additional time to file further submissions. Among them will be arguments on the lawfulness of the death penalty.

Appearing for the appellants are Attorneys-at-Law Nigel Hughes, Latchmie Rahamat and Ronald Daniels.

Also, Hughes has informed the court that he will be leading fresh evidence on this issue and will be calling two witnesses – a professor at the Middlesex University and a Professor from the Columbia Law School.

Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Dionne McCammon will lead the case for the State.

It was reported that on the day in question, at Caiman Hole in the Essequibo River, the trio forced Ramdass into their boat and relieved him of $17 million, which he was carrying in a box for his employer.

They then dumped Ramdass overboard.

During the trial, the prosecution called 16 witnesses during the three-month-long trial. The court admitted caution statements given by the

former GDF Coast Guards.

Based on a previous report, Gordon in his statement said that he had only been a soldier for about a year and a half. He said that he was stationed at the Coast Guard section and was doing patrol work, which was mainly the “stop and search of vessels”.

It was between 13:00h and 14:00h on August 20, 2009, that Gordon, Hart and Greenidge were on patrol. Gordon said that they were doing searches with the Coast Guard boat.

He had stated that Hart drove the boat to Parika. He said he observed Hart speaking to an East Indian man while at Parika. The man later joined them on the Coast Guard boat and they moved off from Parika.

It was noted in Gordon’s statement that the man was carrying a “brown box”.

Gordon also said when they were in the middle of the river; Hart stopped the boat and told them the man had “nuff money” in the box. Gordon in his statement said that all three of them decided to “kill the man” and “tek de money”.

Gordon also said that he did not see who threw Ramdass’ body overboard, but just heard a splash in the water. He said that they divided the money and he called his sister to come and collect his portion. Gordon said that he gave a “canter man” the money to give his sister.

However, soon after they were all arrested, including his sister.

Meanwhile, Greenidge in his statement said that it was Hart who pushed Ramdass overboard. He said that after Hart pushed Ramdass overboard, he (Hart) gave him along with Gordon several million dollars to “shut up”.

At the trial stage, defence counsel brought up challenges to the voluntariness of the caution statements. Counsel had submitted that their clients were beaten while in Police custody. All of the Police witnesses denied those claims. The men in their defence all said that they did not write the caution statements and that the documents were written by Police detectives.

Man contesting rape conviction to know fate today

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28-year-old man who is challenging his conviction and subsequent 23 years’ jail sentence for raping a woman will know his fate today when the Guyana Court of Appeal delivers its ruling.

Calvin Ramcharran was on November 16, 2015, sentenced by Justice Jo-Ann Barlow after a jury found him guilty of the crime.

Subsequently, the rapist

moved to the Court of Appeal contending that his conviction cannot stand, and as such, is asking that same, along with the prison sentence, be set aside.

At the commencement of his trial at the High Court in Demerara, Ramcharran had denied the charge which stated that on July 23, 2012, he engaged in sexual penetration with the young woman without her consent at

Soesdyke on the East Bank Demerara (EBD).

Further, he was convicted and sentenced to jail on another charge, which detailed that during the rape, he assaulted the woman, causing her grievously bodily harm.

According to the evidence in the case, on the day in question, the woman went to a party with some friends and was making her way to the washroom when Ramcharran

Convicted rapist: Calvin Ramcharran

followed her and asked her if she was “doing business,” but she said “no.”

He, nevertheless, grabbed her hands and a fight ensued between them, during which Ramcharran hit her several times with a bottle to her head and then dragged her to the back of the building.

Whilst there, he choked and punched the victim, after which he sexually assaulted her. After committing the heinous act, he offered the woman $65,000 and left.

The victim alerted her friends, who immediately took her to seek medical attention. The matter was reported and Ramcharran was arrested and charged.

...must do the time here was an interesting letter to the press from former President Ramotar. He observed the immediate punitive actions taken by the US authorities to the “insurrectionary” attack on Capitol Hill. And asked simply why that hasn’t happened here in Guyana. The attackers are being identified from the voluminous video streaming they narcissistically indulged in – plus, of course, the CC cameras in the building.

Individuals from across the US are now being charged – including an extraordinary number of folks with military and armed forces background. Some of the Police guarding the Capitol enabled the insurrectionists and they’ll also have to walk the plank. The Head of Police has resigned. And most importantly, there are moves afoot to punish the man who incited the whole shameful episode in American history – the lame-duck President Donald Trump. He might either be forced to resign or be impeached.

These official American actions demonstrate that while they’re not perfect as a democracy – and this will always be so ‘cause “men aren’t angels” – they do enforce the laws of the land to punish those who break the laws to subvert it. And that’s the only way to secure all our institutions – including democracy. The law can’t be seen like “Christmas blow blow”!

Which is the case in Guyana when the PNC doesn’t get its way.

We don’t have to take a walk down memory lane to count the ways in which the PNC traduced the law to keep itself in power or try to grab power – let’s just go back to the “protests” on W Berbice following the murders of the Henry cousins. Just as with the videos of Trump inciting his supporters to their extreme action, we have videos of PNC leaders Granger and Harmon making even more inflammatory and inciting statements.

The protests had been initiated by local PNC activists after the bodies were discovered. And when Granger and Harmon went the next day to visit, rather than advising the gathered crowd to facilitate the Police investigation, without a shred of evidence, Granger implied that the murders were politically instigated, and told them to organise “selfdefence”! He encouraged further protest actions by insisting “we’re not going to put up with this nonsense”! Granger and Harmon must be brought to justice: those who incite must bear responsibility.

And just as with the Capitol Hill insurrectionists, we have numerous videos circulating of men who heeded Granger’s call, beating, molesting, robbing and humiliating perceived supporters of the PPP. There was one egregious instance where one fella walked up to a bus that had pulled over and repeatedly punched the driver in his face!

They must be punished for democracy here to survive. ...must be brought to heel Your Eyewitness has commented on Maduro’s provocative “decree” on our Essequibo border – as if he’s that Pope of yore who could arbitrarily draw a line on a globe to divide the world between Spain and Portugal! As soon as he takes office in just over a week, President Biden will have to demonstrate that just as America will not back down from doing what it takes to defend democracy within its borders, it will also defend it outside – at least in this hemisphere.

The overreach by Maduro over in Venezuela is a direct thumbing of his nose at the Americans since he is once again threatening a major US corporation – Exxon – just as his predecessor Chávez did. Biden would know that Maduro is aided and abetted by the Chinese, who’ve bankrolled him as the economy imploded. The rivers of refugees have already challenged the social services of Venezuela’s neighbours and is a destabilising force in the region.

President Biden must protect the underbelly of his country! ...on women are slime A symptom of our sickness as a society is the seeming inexorable increase in violence against women by their “intimate” partners. No matter what the individual circumstance, this is simply the consequence of seeing women as property.

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

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Police yet to return file to DPP on teen accused of fatally shooting best friend

Amrita Panday

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he Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had advised the Police to urgently conduct further investigations before deciding on whether to charge

a 16-year-old boy accused of fatally shooting his best friend, 15-year-old Rockey Sawh.

The Police were given this advice since November 2020 and also instructed to

have a probation report prepared and submitted on the alleged shooter. But almost two months later, the Police are still to return the file to the DPP for further legal advice.

Sawh was shot dead by his best friend during a sleepover on November 17, 2020, at a Sandy Babb Street, Kitty, Georgetown house. Sawh, a Cummings Lodge Secondary School student, resided at Lot 45 David Street, Kitty, Georgetown.

Police investigations revealed that the 16-yearold suspect invited Sawh over to his home and the two friends had a meal at about 18:00h. After eating,

the teen suspect reportedly breached the lock of a locked wardrobe where a licensed .32 Taurus pistol owned by his father was secured.

Police said that after retrieving the gun, the teen then showed it to Sawh and accidentally pulled the trigger. As a result, Sawh was shot to the right side of his head and fell to the ground. He was taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital, where he was admitted in serious condition; he died.

Dead: Rockey Sawh

According to Police, at the time of the accident, the suspect’s parents were not at home. A .32 Taurus pistol along with seven live matching rounds, a spent shell and 149 .32 rounds were retrieved from the scene, Police said.

The dead boy’s family, especially his grieving mother, Amrita Panday, has called out the Police for slothfulness in the investigations. In the meantime, the alleged shooter remains on $100,000 station bail.

10 NEWS

TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Chase leads Police to gun in apartment

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Police chase on Sunday in the vicinity of D’Urban and

Cross Streets, Werk-en-Rust, Georgetown has led to the discovery of a pistol with sev-

eral matching rounds of ammunition in an apartment.

Based on information re-

ceived, Police went into the community during which they observed a man running away.

As such, a chase ensued and the individual was eventually apprehended in an apartment. Police conducted a search of his person, but nothing was found.

However, when the ranks searched the apartment, a .32 Taurus millennium pistol and four live rounds of matching ammunition were discovered. The serial number on the weapon was re-

portedly filed off.

The suspect was arrested and placed in custody pending charges.

Just a few days ago, ranks were on patrol at Aubrey Barker Road, South Ruimveldt, Georgetown when they heard an explosion suspected to be a gunshot and went to investigate.

As they made their way into Penny Lane, they observed a silver-grey Fielder Wagon motor car that two men were exiting. One of them was reportedly armed with a black

hand gun.

Upon seeing the ranks, the driver of the vehicle hurriedly drove off while the two men ran into a nearby yard. As such, the Police ranks gave chase, but the two men jumped a concrete fence and made good their escape.

As they scaled the fence, the aforementioned gun and ammunition were disposed of. These were retrieved by the ranks and subsequently lodged at the Police Station.

No arrests were made.

Dolphin washes up on Essequibo foreshore

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dolphin washing ashore in Guyana is quite unusual, but that was the case on the Essequibo Coast, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) on Sunday.

The animal was observed by residents and passersby at the Perth foreshore, Essequibo Coast. There was blood visible on the mammal along with marks along the mouth, indicating that it had been trapped in a fishing net. The creature measured several feet in length.

The last report of a strange aquatic animal washing up on Guyana’s shores dates back to 2018, when a dead young male sperm whale washed up along the Essequibo Islands region.

In December 2014, a 30ton whale was also found dead at the Georgetown

The dolphin after it was spotted at Perth foreshore

foreshore after it was spotted two days before off Mahaicony. According to reports, the whale had been caught in the net of a fisherman out in the Atlantic and the man towed it closer to shore to get help to release the animal.

However, the gigantic sea creature put up a fight

and to prevent his vessel from capsizing, the fisherman had to cut the seine and let the marine mammal go. The relevant authorities were informed and the following day, a search was launched, but the animal was not found until the next morning when it washed up at the Kitty seawall.

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Groundwork being laid to strengthen Guyana’s electoral system – AG …wants life sentence for election riggers

Attorney General Anil Nandlall

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he Dr Irfaan Ali-led Government is keeping true to its promise to ensure that Guyana has free and fair elections given attempts by agents of the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) to rig the March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections.

In this regard, the Attorney General’s Chambers has commenced the groundwork for the strengthening of the country’s electoral system, which will close major loopholes in the process.

This was recently revealed by Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall during an interview on Kaieteur Radio.

According to the Attorney General, a small unit has already been set up within the drafting department to

gather the requisite pieces of legislation for review.

“The world called upon us, Guyana called upon us and we promised that when we got into Government, we would do wide-ranging reforms at the level of the legislation to ensure that we, as far as possible, bridge the gaps, close the loopholes, strengthen the weaknesses, which the miscreants exploited and nearly succeeded in stealing Government,” the AG said during the radio broadcast.

Government will be seeking changes including establishing that Statements of Poll (SoPs) be used as the only basis for the tabulation of results, instead of spreadsheets. The Administration also wants SoPs to be posted online by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) and contesting political parties within 24 hours of receiving them.

Life sentence

The Attorney General pointed out that there are very few offences in Guyana’s laws which speaks to electoral officials and their role in trying to rig the elections. “The law in its current form makes offences in relation to the elector. So, if you attempt to vote twice you commit an offence. If you attempt to impersonate another person you commit an offence.”

District Four Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo

Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield

PNCR Chairperson Volda Lawrence

However, according to Nandlall, there is not a reciprocal list of offences concerning election officers.

“And the election officers are the errant ones, not the electors,” he underscored.

Against this backdrop, he said that the Government will ensure the creation of offences to imprison for life, election officials who attempt to compromise the electoral machinery and process at any stage and that the higher the office the official holds, the greater the penalty to be imposed upon him.

“So, that is a fundamental cornerstone of our agenda in Government. We know because of our track record, because of our performance, because of our competence, we will not

lose free and fair elections in Guyana. It is in our interest to protect this democracy. And we know other political parties, because of their track record, because of their incompetence, because of their corruption; they can only win by fraud.

We have to strengthen our system to ensure that the fraud does not succeed,” he asserted.

Nandlall explained that these are not constitutional changes, but rather amendments to the electoral laws, such as the Representation of People Act. Concerning the report that has to be prepared by the Chief Elections Officer, the Attorney General noted that the law must clarify what this report must contain. He added that the language must be clear that no

Chief Elections Officer can reasonably or unreasonably prepare a report of his own.

“We must state in the law that invalidity of votes can only be determined at an election petition and no [Chief Elections Officer] or political party can determine whether or not a ballot is invalid, outside of the established spoiled vote.”

Additional biometrics, if possible, will be introduced into the law, he noted, adding that, “We have to clarify and clear up whether if you have a cyclical registration system, if you can stop that registration midway and start a House-to-House Registration.”

Several high-level officials of GECOM and APNU/AFC are facing criminal charges, in what the Government said were

attempts to subvert the will of the Guyanese people. The former APNU/AFC Government has also been accused of attempts to undermine democracy.

It was reported that Chief Elections Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Keith Lowenfield reported in his last declaration that the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) coalition garnered 171,825 votes while the PPP/C gained 166,343 votes.

How the CEO arrived at those figures is unknown, since the certified results from the legally conducted recount exercise supervised

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

The recount exercise also proved that District Four Returning Officer, Clairmont Mingo heavily inflated the figures in Region Four – Guyana’s largest voting District – in favour of the then caretaker coalition regime.

Several other top officials of the elections body were also hauled before the courts including People’s National Congress Chairperson, Volda Lawrence.

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Construction on $327M farm-to-market road project kicks off in Region 5 T o commemorate the commencement of the $327 million farm-to-market road at Onverwagt, West Coast Berbice, Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice), a sod-turning ceremony was hosted on Saturday.

Present at the ceremony were the Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha, Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh, the contractor and officials of the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) among others.

The project was awarded through the NDIA to a Region Five contractor, who is also a farmer. The successful bidder, Romel Jagroop of Romel Jagroop Construction Services, has been tasked with the completion of the 5km asphaltic concrete road.

The Agriculture Minister was pleased that his Government is fulfilling its promises from its campaign manifesto.

Minister Mustapha stated that it is important to make investments in infrastructure in order to benefit the agriculture sector and farmers. He further stated

From left: Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh; Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha and Romel Jagroop of Romel Jagroop Construction Services turning the sod

that this is one of the three farmto-market roads that will be constructed in Region Five.

The Minister added that the completion of this road will cause

reductions in the cost of production and length of travel for farmers to their lands and the markets. In relation to machinery, the Minister related that the farmers

can now expect less wear and tear of their equipment since it will be traversing the solid asphaltic concrete road.

According to Mustapha, 30,000

acres of rice can now be planted as access will become easier to the lands.

The contractor, Jagroop, in his brief remarks at the ceremony highlighted that he is pleased to be a part of the project and intends on completing the road according to the Ministry’s specifications.

He estimated that the project will be completed in eight months. Engineers from the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) will be supervising the project.

However, the Minister also urged residents to liaise with NDIA officials to monitor the project to ensure value for the monies invested into the project.

Meanwhile, Mustapha added that when he took office in August 2020, he was bombarded by complaints from residents of the Mahaica-Mahaicony and Abary (MMA) Scheme ranging from clogged canals to impassible dams. To remedy this, he had requested emergency fund to begin works.

MoH to focus on prevention, awareness of cervical cancer

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ervical cancer is the second most common type of the disease in women across Guyana, and the Health Ministry is aiming to change these statistics by spreading awareness on prevention throughout the month of January.

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony on Monday stated that the month of January has been dedicated to improving the landscape to eliminate cervical cancer.

The most important aspect to note is that this type of cancer is preventable.

“The reason why we

have dedicated January as Cervical Cancer Awareness Month is to really bring focus on cervical cancer. This is the second most prevalent cancer among women in Guyana, the first being breast cancer. But this is a cancer that is preventable. I don’t think a lot of people realise that. If we do the right things, we can prevent and eliminate cervical cancer from Guyana. That is why we want to heighten the awareness,” Dr Anthony noted.

In Guyana, there is a three-tier framework for preventing cervical cancer;

namely primary, secondary and tertiary. The primary stage is a simple human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine which prevents the development of the disease.

Presently, the vaccination rate for the first dose stands just over 30 per cent and the second round at about 13 per cent. The Minister noted that the immunisation programme had commenced under the last PPP Administration but was not sustained. As such, a plan is underway to improve these statistics in the coming year.

“There is an HPV vaccine

that is very effective and if we can immunise girls between the ages of nine to 14 and we do this across the country, then over time we’ll be able to eliminate the cancer. Once they receive this vaccine, it would prevent them from developing the cancer in later life… One of the things that we will be doing over the next couple of years is really improve the uptake of these vaccines because around the world, they have been shown to be very effective against prevention of cervical cancer.”

Throughout this month, the Ministry is planning on enabling the citizenry to understand the benefits of this primary prevention and why it needs to be done.

The second level prevention surrounds a visual ex-

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony

amination of older women as they visit the health unit, since persons who have contracted Sexually Transmitted Infections are at a higher risk of developing cervical cancer. While this initiative is in place, not

many women utilise the services.

“Unfortunately, not many women use the opportunity to go and check themselves to ensure that they don’t have cancer. This is another area that we want to ensure that women come forward for this type of screening. We’re able to offer VIA (direct visual inspection) and we’re also able to offer pap smears and if we detected any abnormalities, then we can provide the right treatment at that point in time,” the Minister shared.

The last stage is if these signs are missed and a surgery is required to treat the patient – a procedure which hospitals are equipped to perform. However, Dr Anthony said the Ministry is looking at early detections.

He added, “The focus is to shift now to primary prevention using vaccination.

While we are doing that, there will still be people that we’ll have to keep working on.”

The focus is to look at strong programmes to address breast, cervical and prostate cancers – which account for the majority of detections in Guyana.

NEWS

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Canada joins US in rejecting Venezuela’s claims to Guyana’s territory ...says border controversy must be settled in ICJ

Canada, led by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, has joined in the condemnation of Venezuela’s decree

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anada has become the latest country to join in rejecting Venezuela’s recently renewed claims to Essequibo and its maritime space, reminding the Spanishspeaking country that the border controversy has to be settled at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), where the case currently rests.

According to a statement on Monday from Canada’s Embassy in Guyana, Venezuela’s recent claims which are contained in a decree issued by their President, Nicolás Maduro, are concerning.

“Venezuela’s recent claim that it has sovereignty over the area adjacent to Guyana’s Essequibo coast is concerning. The decision is in the hands of the International Court of Justice and this judicial process must be respected,” the Canada embassy said.

It was only on Sunday that United States (US) Ambassador to Guyana Sarah-Ann Lynch made a statement on the issue in which she reiterated the need for a peaceful resolution to Guyana’s border controversy.

“The United States has

long called for a legal peaceful resolution to Guyana’s border controversy with Venezuela and we reiterate that call today,” the diplomat had tweeted, also sharing a post from Assistant Secretary for the US’s Western Affairs Bureau, Michael Kozak, in which he condemned Maduro’s decree.

In his tweet, Ambassador Kozak reiterated that the US supports the ICJ’s December 18, 2020 ruling that it has jurisdiction in the Guyana-Venezuela territorial border controversy case, which he contended is the “legal and peaceful way forward.”

“The U.S. supports the ICJ’s 12/18 ruling that it has jurisdiction in the GuyanaVenezuela territorial border issue, which is the legal and peaceful way forward.

Maduro’s aggressive claims don’t change this, they only show the world his disregard for his neighbors and intl. law,” the State Department official had posited.

The new decree issued

by President Maduro on Thursday came days before the world court is scheduled to hold a case management hearing on Guyana’s application for a final and binding settlement of the border controversy with Venezuela.

Condemnation

However, President Dr Irfaan Ali on Saturday declared that while this latest move by the Spanishspeaking nation is “deeply disturbing”, it will not deter Guyana’s resolve to seek a final and binding resolution at the ICJ. “We have always chosen a path of peaceful resolution of the Venezuelan issue within international law… I remind that sovereignty over this coast, and the land territory to which it is attached, were awarded to Guyana

President Irfaan Ali

(then British Guiana) in the 1899 Arbitral Award, whose validity and legally binding character Guyana is confident the International Court of Justice (ICJ) will uphold unequivocally,” President Ali asserted during an address to the nation.

According to the Head of State, Venezuela has violated at least two fundament principles of international law, that is, no State can unilaterally determine its international boundaries and the fundamental principle that “the land dominates the sea”, meaning that sovereignty over the sea and seabed emanate from title to the land that forms the coast to which those seas and seabed are adjacent.

To this end, the Guyanese leader said that Venezuela’s new border claim is a “legal nullity” that will not be recognised by Guyana or any other State in the world. Meanwhile, President Ali also disclosed during Saturday’s address to the nation that Venezuela’s Head of Mission in Guyana would be summoned to the Foreign Affairs Ministry over the decree.

Parliamentary meeting

However, Parliamentary

the Sectoral

GDF Corporal successfully delivers baby in Kaikan

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healthy baby boy was this weekend delivered in the remote community of Tshau Creek, Kaikan in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) by a corporal attached to the Guyana Defence Force (GDF).

Acting Corporal (CPL) Dominique Gonsalves Sabola of the Medical Corps safely delivered the child on Saturday to 35-year-old Yancelis Diaz.

According to the Force in a statement, both the mother and baby are healthy and doing well. Sabola is a Grade II Medical Assistant who enlisted in the GDF in April of 2013.

He successfully completed the Grade III Medical Assistant Course in 2014, and in 2018, the Junior Leaders’ Course.

In 2019, he completed a Grade II Medical Assistant

Corporal Sabola poses with Yancelis Diaz and her newborn

Course. He is one of the Force’s frontline medical personnel serving in the interior of Guyana. After recording a successful deliv-

ery, he expressed gratitude for having been offered the opportunity to serve in the GDF, particularly the Medical Corps.

Committee on Foreign Relations was provided with an update on recent developments concerning the Guyana-Venezuela issue by Minister Hugh Todd.

“The Committee takes note of the latest aggressive actions by the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in furtherance of its spurious claim to Guyana’s territory and joins the Government of Guyana in condemning in the strongest possible terms, the implementation of any law by Venezuela with extraterritorial application and which seeks to give jurisdiction to Venezuela over marine and submarine areas solely on the basis of unilateral action, in contravention of international law and without due regard for the rights of Guyana.”

In a statement to the media after the meeting, it stated that the Committee supports the efforts of

Government of Guyana to take all necessary actions to safeguard the national interests of Guyana and reiterates the sentiments already echoed that Guyana stands united and resolute in the protection of our sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Venezuela’s decreeing of sovereign rights to maritime border off of Guyana’s Essequibo Coast came the same day the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) announced that its Coast Guard and the United States Coast Guard would commence the first of a series of joint exercises off the coast of Guyana.

This is part of the operationalisation of the Shiprider Agreement ratified by Guyana and the US back in September 2020 during the visit of US Secretary of State, Michael Pompeo. The exercise will take place off the coast of Guyana and will

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro

focus mainly on illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. It will be conducted in collaboration with the US Coast Guard Cutter STONE vessel, which is currently in the region for a multi-country tour.

GDF says current fleet of vehicles inadequate

– while being grilled on maintenance costs; $8M spent to repair 1 truck So, it is indeed a fact that we have been spending a lot on the maintenance of our fleet.

Burnette claimed that the Force has not been replacing vehicles in a timely manner. When replacements are done, the quantity is also an issue. As a consequence, he noted that the force has been stuck with ve-

Additionally, the $8.5 million repair bill was paid in monthly instalments throughout 2016. Burnette was able to tell the PAC, however, that work was done on the truck’s engine.

The PAC also heard that the Force has 232 terrestrial vehicles in its fleet, with five of them engaged in sen-

hicles needing regular maintenance.

“We haven’t been replacing those vehicles in a timely manner and in the quantities we would like, that would enable us to get rid of these (old) vehicles.

That is a concern to us,” the Commander said.

However, Burnette’s explanations for why one truck cost $8.5 million to repair did not satisfy PAC members, who questioned the scope of works executed on the truck and what brand and year it was. The Commander was initially unable to answer the PAC’s inquiries, causing the Committee’s Chairman, David Patterson, to question why the GDF was so unprepared.

It was subsequently disclosed before the PAC that the truck is a Bedford 4 tonne tipper truck, which had been assigned to the 4th Engineering Battalion.

sitive, intelligence operations. For 2016 alone, which is currently being dealt with by the PAC, the GDF spent some $371 million on vehicle maintenance.

Besides the Bedford 4 tonne Tipper truck, there were two other Bedford Model MTCV trucks that cost $4.473 million and $2.803 million, respectively, to maintain in 2016. There was also a Toyota Hilux 7th Generation D/Cab that cost $6.345 million to maintain and a Nissan Frontier D/ Cab that cost $4.994 million.

The GDF’s continued inability to answer questions posed to them by members of the PAC, however, saw the committee eventually deciding to send Burnette and his officers away. According to Patterson, they will be expected to return at a later date to continue the examination of the GDF’s finances for the year 2016.

Commander Vernon Burnette during the PAC sitting

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he Public Accounts Committee (PAC) got underway on Monday with the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) being grilled over its spending on vehicles and the head of the budget agency admitting that even now, the Force’s fleet of 232 vehicles is inadequate.

During the sitting of the PAC, Coast Guard Commander Vernon Burnette represented the GDF. He was grilled on the Force’s spending on vehicles, including the sum of $8.5 million spent to repair one Bedford truck in 2016.

It was during his response that Burnette spoke of how strapped the GDF was for vehicles.

“The high cost of maintenance for vehicles is a concern to us. Most of our fleet is pretty old. But we don’t have enough vehicles to conduct the operations we are required to. As we speak, because of COVID, many of our Commanders and senior staff officers are out of vehicles,” Burnette said.

“All of their vehicles have been taken away and have been provided for operational duties on the borders. And even on the coast.

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Region 4 man is Guyana’s 170th COVID-19 fatality …active cases drop to 378

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65-year-old man from Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) is Guyana’s latest COVID-19 fatality, thus bringing the total to 170.

This follows on the heels of the death of a 58-yearold from Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) and a 39-year-old from Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) on Sunday. The men died while receiving care at medical facilities.

Before Sunday’s double fatalities, Guyana recorded its 167th COVID-19 death on Tuesday, January 5, 2021, when an 85-yearold male from Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) succumbed.

However, a total of 13 new cases were recorded during a 24-hour period, taking the confirmed cases to 6588. There are three patients in the Intensive Care Unit, 52 persons in institutional isolation, 323 in home isolation and 30 in institutional quarantine.

From the 3398 males and 3190 females that contracted the virus, 6040 have recovered completely. To date, health officials have tested 41,741 but only 278 cases are active.

New cases were reported across three administrative regions, with one in Region Three (Essequibo IslandsWest Demerara), eight in Region Four (DemeraraMahaica) and two in Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice).

There are 976 cases in Region One (Barima-Waini), 204 in Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam), 313 in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), 549 in Region Seven (CuyuniMazaruni), 216 in Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), 403 in Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) and 532 in Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice).

During Monday’s COVID-19 update, businesses and the general population were urged yet again to ensure that they comply with the established regulations. Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony said he is hoping for collaboration between these stakeholders to prevent a surge in cases.

Recently, it was announced that the COVID-19 Task Force would be ramping up compliance with the guidelines, and several businesses have already been notified of their respective violations.

“We have been sending

out warnings [to] several businesses across the country and the Task Force would be ramping up its operations.

People need to be vigilant. Businesses need to comply with these regulations because they are there for a reason and that reason is to prevent the spread of the disease in Guyana.

If everybody assists us and if we work collaboratively, we can all protect each other’s health,” Dr Anthony shared.

Amid claims that some businesses been given a free pass when they breached the regulations, he indicated that all which were identified have been warned. He suggested that those in question should be reported to the Task Force for actions to be taken.

“We have written to everybody and if there are any institution that people are aware of that were given a free pass to, then I’ll suggest that they contact the Task Force Secretariat and bring that to our notice because nobody is

above the law.”

The Minister also expounded on the dangers of indoor dining, especially since it entails not wearing a mask. If a person partakes

in these activities and is asymptomatically carrying the virus, they can unknowingly infect scores of people in close proximity.

It was advised,

“Transmission does not only happen because of droplets.

Transmission would also occur because of aerosols and in an enclosed environment where there isn’t much circulation happening. If you are going there for drinking and dining, obviously you don’t have on a mask and without a mask, if you are asymptomatic, you are shedding the virus.”

On the aspect of the new variant of the virus, he said discussions are continuing through the Caribbean Public Health Agency. During the first meeting, there were no suggestions or orders to shut down borders or transport arrangements.

As such, countries were to decide if they were pursuing that route.

“Since we’re not doing genetic sequencing, it is going to be very difficult to unearth whether or not we have that strain in the Caribbean. It is only if we have a proactive programme of surveillance using genetic sequencing that we’ll be [able to] detect this. That is how the UK was able to detect this type of mutation,” he said.

Inaugural Mr Guyana-India launched T he Miss Guyana-India franchise will, for the first time, host the Mr Guyana-India contest that will feature young

Guyanese Indian cultured men. For this inaugural contest, the franchise has selected ten young men to vie for the title.

The event is slated for later on in the year but preparations are underway for one of the most anticipated events where the guys will

have a chance to impress the public on their various platforms and community outreaches.

Each delegate brings their

unique flavour to the table but at the end of it all, only one will earn the space to represent Guyana in India for the international pageant.

Name: Mario Moonsammy

Name: Moses Ally

Meet the guys:

Name: Avishkar Jaikaran

Name: Kumar Sukhu Age: 18 Occupation: Clerk Academic Pursuit: Aeronautical Engineering

Name: Lakeram Lall Age: 20 Occupation: Network Marketer Academic Pursuit: Finance & Creative Arts

Age: 23 Occupation: Group Sales Manager Academic Pursuit: Business Management

Age: 20 Occupation: Bartender/Accountant Academic Pursuit: Accounting

Name: Paul Andrew Dwarka

Name: Randy Madray

Name: Ranjeet Bramnarain

Name: Sharaz Aswin

Name: Shazam Somwar

Age: 25 Occupation: Teacher Academic Pursuit: Bachelor’s Degree in Education

Age: 23 Occupation: Accounts Clerk Academic Pursuit: Business Management

Age: 27 Occupation: Fashion Designer Academic Pursuit: Fashion Design & Merchandise

Age: 23 Occupation: Accountant Academic Pursuit: Finance & Creative Arts

Photography by: Saajid Husani

Age: 21 Occupation: Operations Supervisor Academic Pursuit: Travel, Tourism & Hospitality Management

Outfits by: Colours of India

Age: 24 Occupation: Student Academic Pursuit: Medicine

NEWS

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

No ban implemented on UK travel – Minister Anthony

Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony

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ealth Minister Dr Frank Anthony on Monday related that the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) has not recommended a restriction on travel to and from the United Kingdom, despite the discovery of a new variant of COVID in that country.

Dr Anthony said while Jamaica has implemented a travel ban to the UK, CARPHA continues to provide guidance to the region.

Further, he noted that individual member states can take decisions on the matter that best suit their in-

terests and needs.

“CARPHA has been working with all the member states to discuss this variant and the very first meeting after the UK announced it, CARPHA explained what was the latest information they had and what steps should be taken.

That advice did not include shutting down any kind of transportation arrangement between the UK, and other countries,” he said.

Minister Anthony said since Guyana lacks the capability to conduct genetic sequencing needed to diagnose the presence of the

variant here, it will continue to rely on the guidance from CARPHA. He explained that the UK developed a proactive programme where 10 per cent of the samples were analysed, leading to the discovery of the new strain.

“They automatically take those samples and do genetic sequencing on them to look at the mutations that is happening with the virus. In the Caribbean, we have not established such surveillance programme using genetic sequencing and until we do that it is going to be very difficult to analyse what strains we have circulating in the region.”

Currently, the Government of Guyana has an arrangement in place with CARPHA to conduct genetic sequencing on a quantity of samples.

Countries can send 10 samples per month to be analysed.

With regard to media reports that a local laboratory is conducting tests to identify the new strain, Dr Anthony noted that the Ministry has requested that the entity provide a report on its findings. To date, no report has been submitted.

LHC recognises New Year’s babies, mothers

Region 10 officials urge public transporters to return to original fares

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n light of Government’s decision for vehicles to carry the prescribed number of passengers that they are licensed to, the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) of Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) has urged public transporters to return to original fares.

Several public transportation services had increased fares, due to a reduction in the number of passengers they were allowed to transport under a gazetted order to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

In Linden, drivers had doubled their fares and increases were also registered with some vehicles travelling from Linden to Georgetown. However, in a recent statement issued by the Council, operators were urged to reduce their fares.

“The Regional Democratic Council has noted the provisions outlined by Government in the Official Gazette of December 30th, 2020, where it is ordered that: “any person who provides public transportation within Guyana, whether by land, water or air may car-

CEO of the Linden Hospital Complex Rudy Small and acting Administrator Michelle Bollers posed with the proud mothers and their babies on Monday

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number of mothers of newborn babies born at the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC) in Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) on New Year’s Day were recognised by the healthcare institution on Monday.

The hospital’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Rudy Small handed over hampers to the mothers during a simple ceremony hosted at his office. In presenting the hampers, the CEO said the aim was to give babies a good start, as he admonished parents to continue to partner with the hospital to continue to en-

sure the good health of their babies.

“What we want to do is give them a good start in life, and we have partnered with some of the members of the local business community who have donated these lovely hampers to our new mothers,” Small stated.

“I would like our mothers to have a long and ongoing relationship with the Linden Hospital Complex.

Please ensure that you bring babies back so that they can get vaccination. We want them to remain healthy. and we’re here to support you mothers and the babies...So if there’s anything health-

wise that the babies would need, please feel free to let me know and I would do my utmost to ensure they have a good and healthy life going forward,” the CEO continued.

Acting Administrator Michelle Bollers also uttered similar sentiments as she noted that the hospital plans to execute a similar initiative on Mother’s Day. They also expressed gratitude to the business community for their support in the initiative.

The babies welcomed by the hospital for 2021 were earlier rewarded by Republic Bank.

223-7230-1 (Ext 55)

ry the number of passengers which the motor vehicle is licensed to carry and shall comply with the measures under paragraph 12” (which states that each passenger must wear a face mask).

The Council further stated that it noted that operators of hire cars and buses had raised their fares in the face of having to carry a reduced number of passengers.

“Our nurses, teachers, students and indeed all residents have borne these increased charges for many months now, and since the Government has decided to allow public transportation providers to return their operations to normal, it is only fair that the transportation charges are returned to normal as well. As such, the

Council urges those persons providing public transportation to return to the original transportation charges immediately,” the Council stated.

The RDC also urged residents to continue to practice social distancing where possible, to wear a face mask correctly if this is not possible as well as to wash or sanitise their hands frequently, while respecting all COVID-19 guidelines as established by the Ministry of Health.

The increase in fares in the community had also engaged the attention of the Linden Mayor and Town Council (LM&TC). Senior citizens, in particular, were impacted and had complained about the steep increase in fares in Linden.

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Govt to examine Pegasus Hotel expansion plans

Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill examines development plans for the Pegasus Suites and Corporate Centre in the presence of the Chinese contractors, proprietor of Pegasus Hotel Guyana Robert Badal and Chief Works Officer (ag) within the Ministry of Public Works Ron Rahaman

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he Ministry of Public Works is set to dispatch a team of sur-

veyors and engineers to examine aspects of the development plans for

the Pegasus Suites and Corporate Centre project that is under construction.

Installation of streetlights commences in Region 2

Local Government and Regional Development Minister Nigel Dharamlall with residents in Region Two over the weekend

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he Local Government and Regional Development Ministry has handed over 190 solar streetlights valued $7 million to five Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) in Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam).

The installation of 140 lamps commenced over the weekend, while 50 lights were given to the Anna Regina township for instal-

lation.

The project commenced at the Charity/ Urasara, Evergreen/ Paradise, Aberdeen/Zorgen-Vlygt, Annandale/ Riverstown, Good Hope/ Pomona NDCs. Each NDC was provided with 28 lights.

Subject Minister, Nigel Dharamlall told residents that this is one aspect of the realisation of the Government’s programme to

enhance their lives by creating safe communities.

“Over the weekend, our team was in the Region installing in various Neighbourhood Democratic Council areas. Residents have already contacted us to say how happy they are as a result of these new measures,” the Minister told DPI on Monday.

The installation process started following discussions with residents about the areas in need of this intervention.

“I would like to say to those residents that more support will be coming their way. We also provided 50 streetlights to the township of Anna Regina several weeks ago and those have also been installed.”

To this end, Minister Dharamlall said the Ministry intends to provide more assistance to further develop the Region.

In November, residents benefitted from the installation of 58 solar streetlights undertaken by the Community Infrastructure Improvement Project (CIIP) through the Ministry. The initiative is the first phase of a much wider programme managed by CIIP.

This was revealed by subject Minister Juan Edghill during a walkabout of the ongoing project in Kingston on Friday.

“Mr Badal, the owner of this enterprise has made an application to the Ministry of Public Works for certain permits. Those permits have been delayed in being addressed.”

The permits sought by Pegasus seek the State’s permission to enhance the front of the new building on Seawall Road, establish water connectivity and parking.

“Within one week we will have a decision so that the Government will be comfortable and the private investor will also be comfortable to get on with his investment so that we can

see the modernisation of Guyana,” Minister Edghill stated.

The Minister underscored the Government’s interest in enabling the growth and expansion of businesses to drive the nation’s economy.

Bishop Edghill added, “the vision and view of the Dr Irfaan Ali Administration is facilitating investment and not being obstructionists.”

Since taking office, the PPP/C Government has made it clear that Guyana is open for business and investment from both local and foreign investors.

It is for this reason that a raft of measures under the 2020 emergency measures was passed to cushion the economic impact of

COVID-19 on businesses and the average Guyanese.

Some of the most notable measures saw the removal of VAT on electricity, water, materials in the building and construction industry as well as on agricultural and mining equipment.

To further encourage investment, a decision was made early into the Administration for the Office of the President to have direct oversight of GOInvest. This would ensure that investments remain on the front burner for the Government. In the hotel and hospitality sector, investments are set to see an uptick with renowned hotels such as Sheraton, Best Western, Delta Marriott, among others, slated to begin construction.

Electricity at Matthews Ridge restored after interruption last week

A section of Matthews Ridge

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he generator at Matthews Ridge, North West District (NWD), which encountered some mechanical glitches last week has been restored to normal operations, bringing relief to hundreds of residents.

Chief Executive Officer of the Hinterland Electrification Company Incorporated (HECI), Horace Williams said the problem has been rectified.

“We had a few shutdowns on low frequency and when we investigated, it was based on the quality of fuel that was delivered to the location at the time,” Williams told the Department of Public Information (DPI).

The HECI Head said the fuel used in the generator had sediments which resulted in blockages and the subsequent power interruptions.

He added that the power company will use additional fuel filtration systems to eliminate both sediments and water from procured fuel to prevent a recurrence.

“Before the end of the week [we] expect to have those systems in place,” he said.

The generator is reported to have functioned

throughout the weekend without fault. On December 23, 2020, the $6 million generator was installed to increase stable power supply in the community.

Between April and August of 2020, residents of Matthews Ridge were without electricity due to dysfunctional generators.

Minister of Public Works, Juan Edghill had raised this issue during the discussions of Financial Paper No 2 of 2019 in Committee of Supply last month.

“When we arrived at the Ministry, the seven areas that are being served by generated power in the Hinterland Electricity Programme, those generators have not been adequately maintained and serviced and there was an immediate request for $281 million, almost $282 million, to carry out much-needed repairs on these generators.

“When we took office, Matthews Ridge was without power for months. Port Kaituma was suffering.

Mabaruma was suffering.

Kwakwani was having power four, five hours a day,” Minister Edghill had stated.

Since taking office, the PPP/C Administration

rolled out its plans to transform the electricity sector.

Concerning off-grid locations like Matthews Ridge, Prime Minister Brigadier (ret’d) Mark Phillips, in October, said power stations would be built which are powered by renewable energy sources.

These stations would be for hinterland communities that are not connected to GPL’s grid and would include the flagship Amaila Falls Hydropower Project and similar renewable energy stations in Kato Village, Region Eight, and at Kumu Falls, Region Nine.

Aside from the construction of solar farms, some $2 billion has already been allocated for the purchase of solar panels for Amerindian communities.

The Prime Minister has said that the use of solar, wind and hydroelectricity sources are critical to the energy mix the Government is working to establish.

The PPP/C during the 2020 elections campaign pledged to improve the quality of life for all citizens through the provision of cheaper and more reliable electricity as is stated on page 25 of the party’s manifesto.

NEWS

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Cash-strapped Corentyne cane farmers owe billions to banks

Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh

P

rivate cane farmers on the Corentyne owe in excess of $5 billion dollars to commercial banks and cannot service their loans.

The loans were taken following a tripartite agreement with the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) as the guarantor and it is expected that these farmers will provide 34 per cent of the cane needed by the Skeldon factory when grinding commences in a year’s time.

The aggrieved farmers met with Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh on Saturday to vent their frustration and to find a solution.

During the meeting, former Member of Parliament Adrian Anamaya explained that due to the rundown

fields, there is need for a substantial amount of funding to make them operable.

He told the Minister that banks will not lend money to the farmers. Prakash Singh, who has been in the industry for more than three decades, explained that GuySuCo did not fulfil its part of the tripartite agreement hence the farmers are in the present dilemma.

However, Krischan Jaichand, Corentyne Chamber of Commerce (CCC), noted that farmers need cash to get back into business.

However, Minister Singh noted that Government would have been instrumental in the initial stages of the design of the agreement which involves GuySuCo,

the cane farmers and the financial institutions.

He said the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government is not in the business of making unrealistic promises. “I cannot promise you that we will take over the loads because we can’t,” he told the farmers.

Speaking with the media after the meeting, Minister Singh explained that he will be meeting with the Bankers Associations with the aim of having the loans restructured and put in a way that they can be serviced and beneficial to all stakeholders.

He noted that there is a clause in the tripartite agreement that says that Government may at some point in time consider the provision of tax relief on the interest payable on these loans.

“We have said publicly that we will activate that clause which should trigger a process of restructuring the loans. So, in the first instance what we are going to do is to activate that clause that relates to tax relief in relation to the loans that were granted on this specific facility. Having taken that action we will then engage with the banks to see what can be done with respect to these loans because we want to see these farmers come back into active production,” Minister Singh said.

The farmers left the

Sugarcane grown by private farmers on the Upper Corentyne

meeting quite unsatisfied since they were hoping that they would have a commitment from Government as it relates to those loans.

Meanwhile, the tripartite agreement was signed when the new Skeldon factory was being developed since it was anticipated that the private cane farmers would play an integral part in its functioning.

“There were a variety of terms in this agreement.

Essentially it was a facility under which the banks agreed to lend private cane farmers monies to develop their private cane farms with undertakings accept-

ed by all parties,” Minister Singh explained.

As it relates to the closure of the Skeldon Estate, he said the closure of the sugar industry is one of the biggest economic disasters.

“If you look across the economic history of this country, the decision by the APNU/AFC Government to close sugar was one of the most disastrous decisions taken with respect to its implications on the economy. We have seen the effects of the decision to close sugar, as a result of the closure of the sugar industry the entire economy in all sugar-producing areas in-

cluding the whole of the Corentyne, West Demerara and places like Enmore and LBI, the implications of being truly devastating.”

The current Administration, he added, recognises that the importance of sugar is to the overall economy.

“And we have recognised this for a long time. We have been investing in the industry for a long time and it is our intention to make sure that we are able to resuscitate the industry and bring it back to a point where it is able to operate in a viable manner,” the Finance Minister noted.

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021

Regional

Trump returns Cuba to US list of State sponsors of terrorism

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he Trump Administration on Monday announced it was returning Cuba to the US list of State sponsors of terrorism, a move that could complicate any efforts by the incoming Biden Administration to revive the Obama-era detente with Havana.

Just nine days before Republican President Donald Trump leaves office, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Cuba was being listed for “repeatedly providing support for acts of international terrorism” by harbouring US fugitives and Colombian rebel leaders.

Pompeo also cited Communist-ruled Cuba’s security support for Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, which he said had allowed the socialist leader to maintain his grip on power and create “a permissive environment for international terrorists to live and thrive within Venezuela”.

“With this action, we will once again hold Cuba’s Government accountable and send a clear message: the Castro regime must end

lost the election to Biden, who was Obama’s Vice President.

Biden said during the election campaign he would promptly reverse Trump policies on Cuba that “have inflicted harm on the Cuban

people and done nothing to advance democracy and human rights”.

“We condemn the US announced hypocritical and cynical designation of #Cuba as a State sponsoring terrorism,” Cuban

Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said on Twitter.

“The US political opportunism is recognised by those who are honestly concerned about the scourge of terrorism and its victims.”

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Ford ends decades of Brazil manufacturing US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo (file photo)

its support for international terrorism and subversion of US justice,” Pompeo said in a statement.

Returning Cuba to the list is a further rollback of the detente that former Democratic President Barack Obama orchestrated between the old Cold War foes. Obama’s decision to formally remove Cuba from the terrorism list in 2015 was an important step toward restoring diplomatic ties that year.

The terrorism list decision followed months of legal review, with some Administration experts questioning whether it was justified, a person famil-

iar with the matter told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.

It would require further lengthy legal deliberations for Democratic Presidentelect Joe Biden to reverse the designation.

Trump has clamped down on Cuba since coming to power in 2017, tightening restrictions on US travel and remittances to Cuba, and imposing sanctions on shipments of Venezuelan oil to the island.

Trump’s policy was popular among the large Cuban-American population in South Florida, helping him win the state in November though he

F

ord has said it is closing its last three factories in Brazil, putting an end to decades of manufacturing presence in the country.

The US carmaker blamed the pandemic, which it said had amplified years of poor sales and “significant losses” in the Region.

About 5000 people, mostly in Brazil, are expected to lose their jobs.

The decision is part of a global restructuring by Ford as it tries to improve its financial performance.

“With more than a century in South America and

Brazil, we know these are very difficult, but necessary, actions to create a healthy and sustainable business,” said Ford chief executive Jim Farley.

Before the COVID-19 outbreak, Ford had announced plans to scale back in several markets, with closures in countries that included Brazil, the United

Kingdom, France, Germany and Russia.

It cut hundreds more jobs last year amid a downturn in car sales owing to the pandemic.

On Monday, Ford said it planned to stop operations at its Camaçari and Taubaté plants immediately, though some production of parts will continue for a few months to support inventories.

The Taubaté factory, which opened in 1974 near São Paulo, made engines, while Camcari, which opened in 2001, produced cars such as the Ka Hatch.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

Uruguay registers record T&T hospital probes breach, suspends number of new COVID-19 cases tech leaking PM's medical info

P

atient confidentiality is a golden rule that ought not to be breached.

So said Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the T&T Medical Association, Dr Keegan Baggan as West Shore Private Hospital in Cocorite has temporarily suspended one of its technicians after he posted details of Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley’s condition on Facebook.

Contacted Sunday on the matter, Dr Baggan

said, “Regardless of this person not being a member of the association, we generally feel that patient health information, patient confidentiality is a golden rule to be adhered to at all times and we would not condone such breaches in patient confidentiality especially from our members. Ideally, we would hope that others will hold to similar standards.”

West Shore has also launched a full-scale investigation into the mat-

ter.

Dr Rowley had checked himself into the facility on Friday after complaining of feeling “discomfort”.

He has since had tests followed by a procedure to clear blocked arteries. The Prime Minister was discharged Sunday morning.

In response to the posts on Facebook, West Shore said that it has a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to breaching patient confidentiality.

(Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

Caribbean diplomat named to London University Committee

V

eteran Caribbean diplomat, Sir Ronald Sanders has been named to a 10-person committee to conduct an inquiry into the future of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London, the educational institution’s Vice Chancellor, Professor Wendy Thompson announced Monday.

The Committee will hold its first meeting on January 21 under the chairmanship of Sir Malcolm Rifkind, a former defence, foreign and Commonwealth Secretary of the British Government. It is expected to take evidence from across the Commonwealth and submit its report and recommendations

by June 2021.

“I am delighted to serve on this important Committee,” said Sir Ronald. “The Commonwealth has been a significant actor in world politics – for instance in ending Apartheid in South Africa. Because of its diverse membership, it has the capacity to help the world negotiate solutions to global problems. Therefore, Commonwealth studies are important to University teaching and research.”

Sir Ronald, who is Antigua and Barbuda’s

T

here were 1215 new confirmed cases of coronavirus in Uruguay on Sunday, a new record for the nation of 3.4 million people.

The figure is 28 per cent higher than the previous daily record on January 6.

Uruguay, which had a very low number of infections early on and had been praised by global health officials for its handling of the pandemic, has seen cases rise steeply since December.

There are currently almost 7000 active cases, more than at any other time during the pandemic.

Montevideo is the worst affected province with more than 4000 active cases.

Owing to the rise in new cases, the Government announced last week that it would extend its border closure by 20 days to January 30.

While Uruguay has fared much better than its neighbours Brazil and Argentina, the trend is worrying officials

However, some theatres will be allowed to reopen from Monday to smaller audiences.

Bars and restaurants will also be allowed to stay open two more hours per day. President Luis Lacalle Pou explained the decision by saying “that almost

all the infections had been within families”.

Heath officials in the capital, Montevideo, are worried cases there may rise rapidly in the coming weeks as holiday-makers return from the country’s beaches after their New Year’s break. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Venezuela women’s groups halt abortion services after activist arrest

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Sir Ronald Sanders

Ambassador to the United States and the Organisation of American States (OAS), has been involved in Commonwealth matters in various capacities since 1982.

His scholarly work on the Commonwealth has been widely published and he was the Rapporteur of the Eminent Persons Group, created by Heads of Government to make recommendations on reform of the Commonwealth in 2011. (Excerpt from CMC)

omen’s activists in Venezuela have largely halted unofficial abortion services after the arrest of a university professor who helped a 13-year-old girl to end a pregnancy, according to 10 women’s rights advocates interviewed by Reuters.

Police in October raided the home of Vannesa Rosales in the north-western state of Merida and arrested her. Her lawyer says she will likely be charged with inducing an abortion and conspiring to com-

mit a crime for her role in helping the girl terminate a pregnancy after being raped.

Rosales was held behind bars for more than three months without being formally charged, but was released from prison on Monday and is now under house arrest, according to her lawyer, Venus Faddull.

Chief Prosecutor Tarek Saab tweeted Sunday night that a man had been indicted for raping the teenager.

Venezuela has one of the strictest abortion laws

in South America, allowing the practice only to save the mother’s life – but a number of individuals, organisations and informal networks around the country nevertheless counsel women on terminations.

In addition to providing emotional and physical support, they may connect the women with doctors or with people who sell abortion-inducing drugs such as misoprostol, or even sometimes provide the drug themselves. (Excerpt from Reuters)

guyanatimesgy.com

TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021

19

Around the World

OILNEWS OIL NEWS Rapid oil price rise divides fund managers

H

edge fund managers are starting to diverge over the likelihood of further oil price increases as Brent futures surge above US$50 per barrel and global coronavirus infections accelerate.

Hedge funds and other money managers purchased the equivalent of 14 million barrels of futures and options in the six most important contracts in the week ending Jan 5.

Last week’s buying takes total purchases to almost 400 million barrels in the nine weeks since the first successful coronavirus vaccine trials were announced in early November.

But the rate of buying has slowed as prices have climbed and the balance of short-term price risks has progressively shifted from the upside through neutral to the downside.

In the most recent week, fund managers added 43 million barrels of bullish long positions, but also 30 million barrels of bearish short ones, the largest increase for two months.

The total ratio of long to short positions fell to 4.73:1, down from 5.30:1 the previous week, and the first decline since early November.

Position changes last week were small across all contracts, with minor buying in Brent (+12 million barrels), NYMEX and ICE WTI (+3 million), US gasoline (+2 million) and European gasoil (+2 million) but selling in US diesel (-6 million).

From both a positioning perspective and a fundamental one, it is no longer obvious prices will extend their recent blistering rally rather than pull back temporarily.

The rapid escalation in prices above US$50 from less than US$40 two months ago has increased the risk of a short-term reversal, as has the emergence of a concentration of hedge fund positions on the bullish side of the market.

From a fundamental perspective, rising prices are already encouraging more shale drilling, with the number of active rigs up by more than 100 in the last five months, which will boost US output in the second half of 2021.

Price rises are undermining the commitment to restrict output among OPEC+ and divisions are resurfacing between Russia and Saudi Arabia over whether to focus on boosting prices or protect market share.

And the new wave of COVID in North America and Europe, as well as vaccination delays, threaten to delay the resumption of air travel and normal business activity, crimping consumption for longer.

Most fund managers remain bullish, but the changing risk profile has sapped the rally of its earlier buying momentum and caused a minority to start anticipating a short-term correction.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Lebanon tightens lockdown, imposes 24-hour curfew, as hospitals buckle

L

ebanon announced a tightening of its lockdown on Monday, introducing a 24-hour curfew from Thursday as COVID-19 infections overwhelm its medical system.

The new all-day curfew starts at 5 am (0300 GMT) on Thursday and ends at 5 am on Jan 25, a statement by the Supreme Defense Council said.

Lebanon last week ordered a three-week lockdown until Feb 2 that included a nighttime curfew from 6 pm to 5 am.

But tighter measures were now necessary as hospitals run out of capacity to treat critically ill patients, President Michel Aoun said in the statement.

The new measures also include stricter procedures at the airport for passengers arriving from Cairo, Addis Ababa, Baghdad, Istanbul and Adana.

Travellers arriving from these destinations will have to quarantine for seven days at a hotel while all others

will quarantine up to 72 hours.

Overall air traffic at the airport will also be cut to 20 per cent from normal operating levels and supermarkets will be limited to delivery services.

Anticipation of stricter measures on Monday had driven many Lebanese to wait in long queues in front of supermarkets and empty shelves.

Lebanon registered 3743 new infections on Sunday, bringing its total to 219,296 cases and 1606 deaths since Feb 21.

Adherence to social distancing and other preventive measures has been lax prompting Government fears of a significant rise in cases after the Christmas and New Year holidays.

Daily infections reached an all-time high of 5440 on Friday.

The lockdown faces resistance amid concerns over soaring unemployment, inflation and poverty. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Trump impeachment move: Democrats start push to oust US President

D

emocrats have introduced an article of impeachment against US President Donald Trump for his role in last week's deadly invasion of the Capitol.

The article filed in the House on Monday accuses Trump of "incitement of insurrection".

Democrats say a vote on the article will go ahead in the House on Wednesday unless Vice-President Mike Pence invokes constitutional powers to remove Trump from office.

Pence is said to oppose the idea.

"The President represents an imminent threat to our Constitution, our country and the American people, and he must be re-

moved from office immediately," Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said.

Calls for Trump's resignation, removal from office or impeachment have grown among Democrats and some Republicans in the days following the riots in Congress in which five people died.

The impeachment resolu-

tion accuses the President of encouraging his supporters to storm the Capitol building at a rally in which Trump alleged, without evidence, that November's presidential election was "stolen" from him.

The White House has dismissed the impeachment threat as "politically motivated", but Trump has

made no public statements since he was banned from several social media platforms - including Twitter on Friday.

He is due to leave office on January 20, when Democrat Joe Biden will be sworn in as president.

Trump has said he will not attend Biden's swearing-in ceremony.

This is the second time Democrats have pursued impeachment against President Trump in the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of Congress.

However, the prospect of an impeachment conviction is unlikely because of Trump's broad Republican support in the Senate.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

public viewing of bodies and the tradition of having a corpse stay overnight in the family’s home before burial.

“Police will only clear body movements for burial straight from a funeral parlour/hospital mortuary to the burial site,” Police spokesman Paul Nyathi was quoted as saying in the State-run Herald newspaper.

Zimbabwe, like many other African countries, initial-

ly recorded low numbers of COVID-19, but has recently experienced a spike in cases.

There are fears that a new, more infectious variant of the coronavirus arrived from South Africa when thousands of Zimbabweans living there returned home for the festive season.

“The strain has been imported into Zimbabwe but we are in the process of conducting genetic sequencing

to confirm this,” Director of Epidemiology and Disease Control Portia Manangazira said.

Zimbabwe tightened its coronavirus restrictions earlier in the month.

It recorded 21,477 cases and 507 deaths on January 10, up from the slightly more than 10,000 cases and 277 deaths at the beginning of December, according to Government figures.

(Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said President Trump "represents an imminent threat"

Zimbabwe bans traditional funerals after spike in COVID cases

Z

imbabwe has banned families from transporting their dead relatives between cities, a custom where families take the dead to their areas of birth for burial rituals and ceremonies.

Monday’s announcement is part of new measures to stop traditional funeral rites that are believed to be increasing the spread of the coronavirus in the country.

Police have also banned

Yemen’s Houthis condemn US move to brand them terrorists

A

leader of Yemen’s Houthi movement said on Monday the Iran-aligned group reserved the right to respond to any US move to blacklist it after the Trump Administration announced its intent to designate it as a foreign terrorist organisation.

“The policy of the Trump Administration and its behaviour is terrorist,” Mohammed Ali al-Houthi said in a Twitter post. “We reserve the right to respond to any designation issued by the Trump Administration or any Administration.”

“The Yemeni people don’t care about any designation from [US President Donald] Trump’s Administration as it is a partner in killing Yemenis and starving them,” he added.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman also denounced the move, saying blacklisting the Houthis, like the designation of Iran-aligned Iraqi Popular Mobilisation Committee Chairman Falih al-Fayyadh last week, is “doomed to fail”.

The Norwegian Refugee Council, one of the main humanitarian agencies active in Yemen, said the designation and Pompeo’s planned sanctions on the Houthis “will hamstring the ability of aid agencies to re-

spond” to the humanitarian needs of millions of Yemenis.

Relief organisations have long warned that sanctions could prove catastrophic for efforts to help starving Yemeni civilians caught in the conflict between the Houthis and the Yemeni Government, backed by a Saudi-Emirati-led coalition that has waged war against the rebels.

Yemen, a country on the tip of the Arabian Peninsula,

Relief organisations have long warned sanctions could prove catastrophic for efforts to help starving Yemeni civilians

is the stage of the world’s worst humanitarian disaster after more than six years of a grinding conflict that

has left most of its nearly 30 million people in need of humanitarian aid. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

China says WHO team to probe COVID-19 origins will arrive Thursday

A

World Health Organisation (WHO) team of international experts tasked with investigating the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic will arrive in China on Jan 14, Chinese authorities said on Monday.

Lack of authorisation from Beijing had delayed the arrival of the 10-strong team on a long-awaited mission to investigate early infections, in what China’s Foreign Ministry called a “misunderstanding”.

The National Health Commission, which announced the arrival date, delayed from its early January schedule, did not detail the team’s itinerary, however.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus welcomed the news and said that studies would begin in the central city of Wuhan where the first human cases were identified.

China has been accused of a cover-up that delayed its initial response, allowing the virus to spread since it first emerged in the central city of Wuhan late in 2019.

Ahead of the trip, Beijing has been seeking to shape the narrative about when and where the pandemic began, with senior diplomat Wang Yi saying “more and more studies” showed it emerged in multiple regions.

A health expert affiliated with the WHO said expec-

tations should be “very low” that the team will reach a conclusion from their trip to China.

While other countries continue to struggle with infection surges, China has aggressively doused flare-ups.

Sunday’s 103 new cases were mainland China’s biggest daily increase in more than five months, as new infections rise in the province of Hebei, surrounding the capital, Beijing.

Shijiazhuang, capital of Hebei, went into lockdown and Hebei closed down some sections of highways in the province to curb the spread of the virus. (Excerpt from Reuters)

20

TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021

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(March 21April 19)

TAURUS (April 20May 20)

DILBERT

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CANCER (June 21July 22)

PEANUTS

CALVIN AND HOBBES

Keep an open mind, size up situations and make decisions based on facts.

Personal improvements, growth and unique friendships will develop if you use social media to your advantage. Be direct.

Gather information.

Trusting someone to take care of your business will set you back. Question everything and everyone before you agree to make a change.

A change someone suggests will be useful for you emotionally, but not financially. Think twice before you let someone push you in a bad direction.

Concentrate on creativity, romance and personal happiness.

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

You’ll have plenty of ideas, but consider your motives before you leap into action. A change will lead to uncertainty if you haven’t thought matters through sufficiently. Be smart and take your time.

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Jump at the chance to learn something new or to use your skills differently.

The more you know and have to offer, the greater the reward. Look at the trends, and be as versatile as possible.

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Don’t let your desire for change lead you down a rabbit hole. Don’t trade one negative situation for another. Baby steps will help you incorporate a promising strategy.

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Let your intuition be your guide. Stay focused on knowledge and facts. Use your imagination to outmaneuver anyone who tries to get in your way. Romance is favored.

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SUDOKU

You’ll have to rely on your connections to help you get ahead. A competitive individual will try to make you look bad. Preparation, intelligence and strategy will help you come out on top.

Let go of negative baggage. Prepare to move forSAGITTARIUS ward with optimism, intel(Nov. 23ligence and a disciplined Dec. 21) attitude. Giving anyone the chance to speak on your behalf or take care of your responsibilities will result in disappointment.

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It’s OK to do things differently. Don’t feel bound to tradition or to what someone wants you to do. A change will lift your spirits and encourage you to be more active.

You will meet with opposition if you show signs of insecurity or confusion. Stand tall and be clear about what you want. Look for an opportunity, and follow through with a plan.

You’ll get the opportunity to explore something you want to pursue. How you represent yourself will make a difference. Direct your energy where it will be most effective.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021

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21

R Ashwin and Hanuma Vihari's epic stand seals remarkable SCG draw

bruised and battered India line-up could not run between the wickets for more than a session. They had a player with a fractured thumb waiting to bat next. They were without their original captain and best batsman. They copped one blow after another off short-pitched bowling, against one of the best bowling attacks. And yet, against all odds, India produced one

the end of the day. Nathan Lyon bowled 46 relentless overs; Pat Cummins pounded the pitch throughout the day and Josh Hazlewood found reverse swing, but only to see an unfazed batting pair that defended almost everything that came their way. Unable to run, Vihari finished unbeaten on 23 off 161 after batting for just under three hours, and Ashwin's vigil saw him score

left to survive. But their determined approach was not deterred either by the challenging task at hand, the opposition, the injuries, or the chatter around the stumps.

Initially, Ashwin was at the receiving end of hostile bowling when Cummins started the last session with bouncers, a strategy also used by Hazlewood. Ashwin took blows on his arms, shoulders, chest and abdo-

Ashwin had plenty of pressure to absorb on day five at the SCG

of the most dramatic displays of patient batting and exemplary fighting spirit to pull off a draw that hardly anyone saw coming when the fifth day started.

With 97 overs to survive in the day and eight wickets in hand, India scraped through under immense pressure led by the partnership between Hanuma Vihari and R Ashwin that lasted 42.4 overs for 62 runs, to keep the series level on 1-1.

Even though Rishabh Pant and Cheteshwar Pujara had set up India's fight early in the day with a century stand that even gave the team a chance of a win initially, the highest praise will be kept for Vihari and Ashwin for the character they showed. The two came together against the second new ball when there were more than 40 overs left in the day, an under-pressure Vihari had already hurt his hamstring, and Ashwin was welcomed by a barrage of short balls that dented his body.

The two made the Australia bowlers toil under sun with a blockathon to draw some frustrations from the hosts towards

39 runs for his 128-ball stay.

Australia will also rue the four catches they dropped on the day, three of them

by Captain Tim Paine that included two off Pant and

men, and was even given out caught behind the second ball after tea before replays showed there was no glove or bat. Ashwin was also lucky his edges fell

Rishabh Pant shows his frustration while walking back after an exhilarating 97

one off Vihari at the end of the day, and one by substitute fielder Sean Abbott, off Ashwin.

Given Australia's fullstrength attack, it all looked lost for India when Ashwin joined Vihari in the 89th over with more than a session

safe and when he attacked a short ball with a rare pull on 15, Abbott dropped him at square leg. The immediate respite Ashwin received was when Lyon replaced Hazlewood at the other end.

Unable to change strike, both Ashwin and Vihari put

a prize on their wicket like never before against accurate bowling towards the stumps that made them play almost everything with as many as five fielders around the bat at times.

Eventually, Cummins was also replaced in the attack, but Mitchell Starc could not sustain the same kind of pressure and Ashwin started to collect boundaries off Lyon. When 24 overs were remaining, Ashwin had reached 24 with four fours, but Vihari was still on 6 off 82 balls as the duo played out six maidens in a row.

With more than 40 overs under his belt, Lyon started the final hour and now both batsmen started to collect runs a bit more freely.

Vihari reached double-figures with two fours in an over off Cummins only to be dropped two overs later off Starc around the wicket

by Paine, who leaped to his right and got a glove for the outside edge, but could not hold on. Five more maidens followed in a row that saw some edges fall short, some land wide, and as everything went India's way, the two teams shook hands with an over to spare.

It was the third-longest sixth-wicket stand for India in the fourth innings, and the first time since 1979 that India had batted for over 132 overs in the fourth innings of a Test.

That Ashwin and Vihari could think of salvaging a draw was down to the 148run partnership between Pujara and Pant, after Ajinkya Rahane was caught at short leg for Lyon's first wicket of the match. Pant was promoted to number five, perhaps to counterattack, and he started it with an assault against Lyon in his scintillating knock of 97.

Pant's domination of the bowlers and the partnership with Pujara was so impactful that Australia had to change their bowlers regularly and Pujara marched on with his natural game while also picking up boundaries. Pant started slow though, crawling to 5 off 33, as India were 102 for 3 in the first session when he joined Pujara. He cashed in after getting a life on 3, when he edged Lyon behind, but Paine put him down.

Job done: R Ashwin and Hanuma Vihari walk off

Pant, already batting with an injured elbow, also took a few blows on his body from Cummins on the thumb and once on the helmet, before he tore into Lyon.

With mid-on in the circle, he danced down and lofted the spinner for a four and a six off successive deliveries, before collecting two more fours in the next over to overtake Pujara. Lyon changed ends soon, but that did not stop Pant. On 37, he charged down even with a long-on and long-off in place for two consecutive sixes in the V down the ground.

Lyon would have had Pant on 56 too for an outside edge when Pant poked outside off, but Paine put him down again. Pant also unleashed a few punchy drives and pulls off the fast bowlers, and went after Lyon again after lunch with audacious hitting down the ground to race into the nineties. But Lyon pitched one wide of

Pant when he stepped out for another heave and the batsman got a leading edge to a diving backward point.

Pujara, meanwhile, reached his 27th Test fifty and crossed 6000 runs in the format, almost replicating Pant with three successive fours off Cummins once the second new ball was taken. He used his feet often against Lyon to either get to the pitch of the ball or cut off the back foot, and saw through Hazlewood's spell of reverse swing carefully until the fast bowler got the new ball and got one to hold its line to rattle Pujara's stumps for 77.

It was still Pujara's longest stay on the pitch in the fourth innings of a Test, and with the kind of role it played in an exhilarating day of Test cricket to save India the match, it was a fitting tribute for Rahul Dravid's 48th birthday.

(ESPNcricinfo)

SCOREBOARD INDIA 2ND INNINGS (TARGET: 407 RUNS) Rohit Sharma c Starc b Cummins 52 Shubman Gill c †Paine b Hazlewood 31 Cheteshwar Pujara b Hazlewood 77 Ajinkya Rahane (c) c Wade b Lyon 4 Rishabh Pant †c Cummins b Lyon 97 Hanuma Vihari not out 23 Ravichandran Ashwin not out 39 Extras (lb 3, nb 6, w 2) 11 TOTAL (131 Ov, RR: 2.55) 334/5

Did not bat: Ravindra Jadeja, Navdeep Saini, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj Fall of wickets: 1-71 (Shubman Gill, 22.1 ov), 2-92 (Rohit Sharma, 30.2 ov), 3-102 (Ajinkya Rahane, 35.4 ov), 4-250 (Rishabh Pant, 79.1 ov), 5-272 (Cheteshwar Pujara, 88.2 ov) BOWLING Mitchell Starc 22-6-66-0 Josh Hazlewood 26-12-39-2 Pat Cummins 26-6-72-1 Nathan Lyon 46-17-114-2 Cameron Green 7-0-31-0 Marnus Labuschagne 4-2-9-0

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Berbice cricket: Former players Chattergoon and Gordon come on board

…UCCA to launch 40-over tournament …Government MP to sponsor 20/20 cup in West Berbice

ver the years, one of the main problems affecting the development of Berbice cricket was the lack of support the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) received from former cricketers, who after finishing their careers in the game that made them famous simply turned their backs on it.

Those days seem to be in the past now as the Hilbert Foster-led Administration is convincing them to come on board and be part of the rapid development taking place in the game in the Ancient County. Former cricketers like Clayton Lambert, Leslaine Lambert, Ray Joseph, Jerry Angus, Kevin Darlington, Troy Halley, Narsingh Deonarine, Vishal Nagamootoo, and Mahendra Nagamootoo have recently

Hemnarine Chattergoon

Jeremy Gordon

contributed to the development of the game while present players like Shimron Hetmyer, Kevin Sinclair, and Romario Shepherd have become sponsors of cricket tournaments.

Two more former players Hemnarine Chattergoon and Jeremy Gordon have joined the growing list as Foster spearheads a massive

marketing drive to attract sponsorship for cricket tournaments and developmental programmes.

Chattergoon, a former Guyana and West Indies Under-19 batting star, who also represented Canada at the First-Class level, would be sponsoring a oneday three-team 20/20 tournament in his home village of Fyrish. The home team, Courtland, and Kilcoy will face off to win the Chattergoon Brothers

NBA: LA Lakers and LA Clippers win, Boston Celtics v Miami Heat called off

Anthony Davis was traded to the LA Lakers in 2019

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GUYANATIMESGY.COM

TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2021

he Los Angeles Celtics themselves only had Lakers continued eight. their unbeaten run on Denver Nuggets claimed the road with a comfortable a 114-89 win over New victory over the Houston York Knicks, and Golden Rockets.

State Warriors beat Toronto Anthony Davis scored 27 Raptors 106-105 despite points on his return from ina poor shooting perjury to help the Lakers to a formance from 120-102 victory.

Stephen Curry.

Defending champions Curry made two Lakers have won all five shots from 16 of their away games attempts – this season. his worst Elsewhere, perforKawhi Leonard surmance passed 10,000 in his c a r e e r career points as – before the Los Damion Angeles Lee seClippers cured vicbeat the tory with Chicago Bulls. four secLeonard scored 21 onds repoints in the third maining. quarter as the Shai Kawhi Leonard surpassed Clippers rallied to Gilgeous10,000 career points win 130-127.

The Boston Celtics' game Alexander scored a seaagainst Miami Heat was son-high 31 points for postponed over coronavirus Oklahoma City Thunder as safety measures. they beat the Brooklyn Nets Miami did not have the 129-116, while Utah Jazz required minimum of eight beat the Detroit Pistons 96available players, while 86. (BBC Sport)

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Challenge Cup and a winners-take-all prize. Gordon, who still plays the game in Canada, for which he played at the international level, will be sponsoring another one-day, three-team tournament at the Edinburgh Ground. The teams will be Edinburgh, Tucber Park, and Guymine. The winner will take home the Gordon Cup. Foster stated that the main objectives of the oneday tournaments are to take cricket to areas where the passion for the game has declined, to attract youths to the game and to inspire clubs to be more organised.

The BCB is hoping to run off at least eight of these one-day tournaments in late February under very strict COVID-19 rules, including no spectators.

Meanwhile, the Upper Corentyne Cricket Association (UCCA) has

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Faizal Jafferally, MP

been able to attract sponsorship for the hosting of a round-robin 40-over tournament. A total of 28 teams within the sub-association will be playing in the tournament. The BCB has also confirmed a sponsorship deal with Government Member of Parliament, Faizal Jafferally to host a knockout 20/20 Cup for 11 teams in the West Berbice Sub-Association. Both of these tournaments will be launched shortly.

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No COVID worries for Estwick on upcoming tour

est Indies Assistant Coach Roddy Estwick says he has no concerns about touring Bangladesh amid the COVID-19 pandemic despite 10 players opting out of the upcoming series.

Test skipper Jason Holder, white-ball Captain Kieron Pollard, along with Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, Roston Chase, Sheldon Cottrell, Evin Lewis, Shai Hope and Shimron Hetmyer, all declined selection owing to “COVID-19-related concerns or personal fears”.

Estwick, who left the island on Friday evening with the last group of West Indies players, said he always felt safe in the bio-secure bubble established on respective tours. “[I have no fears] whatsoever. The biggest fear for me is going through the airports and on the planes,” Estwick told media prior to the departure.

“Once I get into Bangladesh and you’re in a bio-secure system, that doesn’t faze me at all. The biggest fear is in the airports and on the flights.”

West Indies have been the most active internation-

West Indies Assistant Coach Roddy Estwick

al side since the global lockdown of cricket was lifted last July, following the outbreak of the pandemic which silenced most sports five months prior.

In July, the Caribbean side toured England for three Tests, spending two months in the bio-secure bubble, where they were based at hotels at the respective venues and were prohibited from contact with the general population.

West Indies also spent another six weeks in New Zealand starting last November, playing three Twenty20 Internationals and two Tests.

The upcoming tour to Bangladesh comprises three One-Day Internationals and two Tests, and will see the Windies spending from

January 10 to February 15 in the south Asian country.

And even though players in the past have complained about the mental struggle in the isolated bio-secure bubble, Estwick said he had endured no such challenges.

“It’s difficult for some people, but it’s not too difficult for me,” the Barbadian explained.

“I tend not to go on the streets in Bangladesh, so that’s not going to affect me whatsoever. I’ve got everything I need to entertain myself. I’ve got plenty of books, so I will read. It’s no problem to me whatsoever.”

Bangladesh reported a further 692 positive COVID-19 cases on Saturday along with 22 deaths, bringing the total number of infections since the start of the pandemic to 521,382.

The death count stands at 7756.

Cricket West Indies agreed to the tour after Dr Akshai Mansingh of its medical advisory committee, travelled to Bangladesh last November to carry out a review of the health protocols being implemented for the series, and provided a favourable report. (CMC)

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Hero CPL delivers record exposure for Destination Guyana

uring the 2020 tournament the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) and the Guyana Amazon Warriors partnered with the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) to showcase Guyana as one of the premier destinations for eco and adventure tourism.

This partnership generated a record sponsorship value of US$41 million with a focus on some of the great places to visit in Guyana, such as the world-famous Kaieteur Falls and the other natural wonders that the country has to offer.

The partnership included branding on the team

Hero CPL COO Pete Russell

kit and within the stadium alongside bespoke footage of the country that was integrated into the live broad-

cast and shown throughout the tournament. The independent report created by YouGov Sport confirmed that Guyana received 352 hours of brand exposure across the tournament – a significant year-on-year increase.

The 2020 tournament was played behind closed doors in Trinidad as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Amazon Warriors and Hero CPL used the TV broadcast and social media channels to highlight Guyana as a must-visit destination. With record viewership of 523 million, a 67 per cent increase on 2019, there was a huge au-

GBA President Gokarn Ramdhani gives instruction to St Rose’s students

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Air Badminton Programme gets going at St Rose’s

ollowing its official launch two weeks ago, the Guyana Badminton Association’s “Air Badminton – The New Outdoor Game” Programme has reached out to its first school.

The GBA donated a number of rackets, shuttlecocks, and nets to the St Rose’s High School, Georgetown, to help in the running of this programme.

“I am pleased that St Rose’s Sports Coordinator, Mr Alque Stanley came on board with helping us to promote the Air Badminton and also help the students of St Rose’s High School to have an interest in badminton,” GBA President Gokarn Ramdhani stated in a release on Monday.

“We will continue to be with them through the process of getting the players to a better level and to introduce the Air Badminton to a higher level.”

Ramdhani also expressed the intent to get more schools involved in the new version of the sport and in doing so, abiding by the COVID-19 guidelines.

St Rose’s Sports Coordinator Stanley expressed his gratitude to the GBA, describing the donation as a light in the darkness, in preparation for the Physical Education aspect of the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations.

“On behalf of St Rose’s High School and the students, we’d like to thank you for your generous donation,

which came in a timely manner,” Stanley said.

He added, “Because the COVID-19 has restricted us to playing indoors, Air Badminton has come as a light in the darkness. And it also helps some CSEC students that are writing exams this year, so they can continue playing badminton.”

The donation was made in the school’s compound, after which the students were given instruction on how to play the sport.

The project was initially launched at the National Park, Georgetown on December 29.

The GBA President shared at that event, “We are very happy to have gotten this project off especially during this pandemic situation which caused our sport to be on hold since April 2020. This new outdoor game was implemented by the World Badminton Federation and it's a great way to keep the players active and motivated until we can restart our normal training.”

“Air Badminton – The New Outdoor Game” is here: The Badminton World Federation (BWF) and HSBC jointly launched the new outdoor game, Air Badminton, and a new outdoor shuttlecock, the Air Shuttle, at a global launch ceremony outside the Tianhe Gymnasium in Guangzhou, China. Air Badminton is an ambitious new development project in partnership

with HSBC, BWF’s Global Development Partner, designed to create opportunities for people of all ages and ability to play badminton on hard, grass and sand surfaces in parks, gardens, streets, playgrounds and beaches around the world. The project has been five years in the making, starting with a vision to develop a new outdoor shuttlecock with increased durability, stability, and wind resistance to allow people to have a more positive experience of badminton outdoors. BWF President and Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games men’s singles gold medallist Poul-Erik Høyer officiated at the launch and said Air Badminton provides a pathway for increased global participation in the sport, while opening up doors for a new, highly attractive form of competitive badminton.

“This is a momentous occasion for badminton. Strat egically, Air Badminton wi ll allow to fulfil our overall objective of putting a badminton racket in the hands of as many people as possible,” he said. “Given that most people’s first experience with badminton comes in an outdoor environment, we are now making it easier for everyone to access the sport through a new outdoor game and new shuttlecock, the Air Shuttle.

“In the future, we see Air Badminton as an exciting, new, energetic version of the sport. Overall, the aim is to inspire more people to play more badminton in more places.”

GTA Director Carla James

dience watching CPL, who enjoyed seeing and hearing all about what Guyana has to offer.

Hero CPL Chief Operating Officer (COO) Pete Russell said: “There are few countries as vibrant and fascinating as Guyana and it was a great pleasure to use the platform of the Hero CPL to showcase what it has to offer to our viewers around the world. The success of the 2020 Hero CPL showed the world that the Caribbean is open for business and represents one of

the most interesting and diverse places to visit. We are delighted that so many people got to see Guyana in the best possible light.”

GTA Director Carla James shared: “It was really great to see the support by the Hero CPL organisation and the fans. Although the event was highly virtual this year, the reach and excitement was exceptional.

We look forward to the 2021 season and hope to continue to showcase Guyana’s beauty on this platform to inspire travel.”

Golden Jaguars undergo fitness tests before return of training

T

he Guyana senior men’s national team moved a step closer to the full resumption of training on Sunday with the first wave of physical evaluations of players taking place at the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) National Training Centre at Providence, East Bank Demerara.

The fitness tests provide important information for the coaching staff

and will inform individual and squad training regimes in the run-up to the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in March. The evaluations, conducted over two days with different cohorts of players, follow testing of the locally-based squad and backroom staff for COVID-19 as part of protocols put in place under the UEFA Assist 100-day “Bounceback” programme.

T h e N a t i o n a l COVID-19 Task Force has granted permission for training to resume as long as strict measures are in place to defend against the spread of the virus.

“Today’s rigorous tests give our coaches a clear idea of the fitness levels of individual players and what we need to work on to ensure the squad is in peak condition

come March,” said GFF President Wayne Forde. “Considering the lack of competition over the past year, we are pleased to report that the squad is already looking in good shape thanks in part to the individual training plans they were given by the GFF technical team during the lockdown.”

“Going forward, we will be taking every precaution necessary to ensure that the squad and staff remain safe and well during this time, including regular testing for COVID-19. We look forward to the full resumption of training in the coming days, as long as conditions allow, and remain ready to take any action required if the pandemic enters another difficult phase.”

GFF Fitness Coach Wilson Toledo and Golden Jaguars Assistant Coach Charles Pollard oversaw the fitness evaluations on Sunday, with a total of 25 players going through their paces.

Guyana have been drawn in Group F with Trinidad and Tobago, St Kitts and Nevis, Puerto Rico and The Bahamas for the CONCACAF regional qualifiers for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which takes place in Qatar. The Golden Jaguars will kick off their delayed campaign away against Trinidad and Tobago on March 25. The winner of the group will proceed to the second of three qualification rounds.

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Air Badminton Programme gets going at St Rose’s

Priyanna Ramdhani presents some equipment to St Rose’s Sports Coordinator Alque Stanley

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