Guyana Times - Tuesday August 24, 2021

2 Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Issue No. 4749

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021

PRICE

CGX spuds Kawa-1 exploration well offshore Guyana

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WHAT'S INSIDE:

story – CGX/Frontera eyes 2nd well onSeepage 3 – well one of the most exciting global prospects – CGX Co-Chair

Schools to reopen on September 6 – Education Ministry …teachers should be vaccinated or produce weekly negative COVID-19 tests – MoE See story on page 13

…urges parents to get eligible children vaccinated

Guyana gets 34,000 J&J vaccines, more Sputnik 2nd jabs

Govt to build 8-door sluices to prevent massive P14 flooding Man busted with ganja during raid for guns P10

Teen chopped to head during argument P2 – WBD man stabbed during drinking spree

Police issue wanted bulletin for murder suspect P2

Page 7

Life sentence for wife-beating husband who killed P8 peacemaker

…Pfizer jabs to arrive today …3 more COVID deaths, 36 new cases reported

Gas-to-energy Town Clerk walks out project will after Mayor refuses to significantly lower recognise her status – to set up committee to oversee spending of Council harmful emissions M&CC statutory meeting

See story on page 12

Page 9

NWD man P10 injured after car slams into tree

2 NEWS

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Teen chopped to head Police issue wanted bulletin for murder suspect during argument – WBD man stabbed during drinking spree

A

teenager was admitted a patient at the New Amsterdam Hospital after he was chopped to the forehead by another teen during an argument at Wallace Street Cumberland, East Canje, Berbice, on Saturday evening.

Police preliminary reports stated that on the day in question at about 20:30h, the now injured 15-year-old old boy went to a shop at Wallace Street Cumberland, East Canje, Berbice, and whilst there, he and the suspect had a heated argument.

However, the suspect reportedly left the shop and returned with a cutlass in his hands. He then dealt the victim one chop to his forehead.

The injured lad was subsequently taken to the New Amsterdam Public Hospital where he was treated and admitted a patient in a stable condition.

The matter was reported and as such, the suspect was contacted, told of the allegation and arrested. He is

assisting with investigations.

Meanwhile, a man of Sisters Village, West Bank Demerara (WBD), was stabbed about his body during a drinking spree at Belle West, WBD, on Sunday.

The Police stated that on the day in question at about 19:40h, the victim and suspect were consuming alcohol when an argument broke out between them.

During the argument, the suspect reportedly grabbed a glass bottle, broke it and stabbed the victim several times about his body after which he made good his escape.

The victim raised an alarm and he was taken to the West Demerara Regional Hospital where he was treated and referred to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation. There, he was further treated and admitted a patient in a stable condition. The suspect remains on the run.

T

he Guyana Police Force has issued a wanted bulletin for Shane Samaroo also called “Travis Cortis” for questioning in connection with the murder of Feroze Khan also called “Eggy”, who was beaten and stabbed to death at Bennet Dam, Rosignol, West Bank Berbice.

Samaroo, 27, who is also referred to as “Tanta Bai”, resided at Railway Line, Rosignol, West Bank Berbice. Khan was pronounced dead on arrival at the Fort Wellington Hospital on Thursday last.

Police have reported that the now wanted man was at a grocery shop located at Bennet Dam, where he purchased a bottle of water. He left the shop, picked up a piece of wood and ran towards Khan, who was walking on the said street, and dealt him several lashes about his body.

Khan reportedly fell to the ground when the suspect pulled out a knife from his pants waist and dealt the him a stab and subsequently fled the scene.

After the fatal stabbing, Khan’s wife, Sally Ishaak told reporters that on the day in question, there was a religious function next door to their home which she attended.

During that period, she related that her husband was disturbing the proceedings and she

Wanted: Shane Samaroo, also called “Tanta Bai”

Murdered: Feroze Khan, also called “Eggy”

advised him to visit his mother. She said Khan left and was seen entering a minibus and was again seen exiting the bus in the busy shopping area.

The mother of three related that it was only moments after speaking to her husband that she received reports of his demise and discarded it as a rumour until three men went to her a short while after, confirming that her husband was stabbed.

She said when she arrived on the scene, Khan appeared to have been dead already.

She said eyewitnesses told her that the suspect, after stabbing the victim, took the money

he had in his pockets and fled.

According to Ishaak, her husband had left home with $70,000.

He was expected to go back to sea one day after his demise.

Meanwhile, residents of Bennet Dam said the suspect was seen in the area on Thursday evening but was armed with a cutlass and knife. Contact was made with the Police but by the time they arrived, he had disappeared.

Anyone with information that may lead to the arrest of Samaroo is asked to contact the Police on telephone numbers 330-2222, 232-0313, 221-2296, 911 or the nearest Police station.

NEWS

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS OPENINGS BRIDGE

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

Tuesday, Aug 24 – 04:00h – 05:30h and Wednesday, Aug 25 – 04:00h – 05:30h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Tuesday, Aug 24 – 05:20h – 06:50h and Wednesday, Aug 25 – 06:00h – 07:30h.

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

WEATHER TODAY There will be sunshine during the day. Expect clear skies at night. Temperatures should range between 21 degrees Celsius and 33 degrees Celsius.

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

High Tide: 17:56h reaching a maximum height of 2.64 metres.

Low Tide: 11:32h and 23:46h reaching minimum heights of 0.54 and 0.55 metre.

SATURDAY, AUGUST 21, 2021

LOTTERY NUMBERS C

04 08 14 18 19 23

FREE TICKET

01 Bonus Ball

MONDAY, AUGUST 23, 2021

DAILY MILLIONS

13 14 16 19 22 LUCKY 3

0

8

1

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Afternoon Draw

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Evening Draw

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COMMODITIES Indicators

US$

Change %

Crude Oil

$68.75/barrel

+5.19

Rough Rice

$240.93 /ton $479.10/ton

0.00 -0.91

London Sugar

Live Spot Gold

USD Per Ounce

Bid/Ask

$1801.90

$1802.90

Low/High Change

$1784.20 -3.60

$1807.90 -0.20%

CGX spuds Kawa-1 exploration well offshore Guyana – CGX/Frontera eyes 2nd well – well one of the most exciting global prospects – CGX Co-Chair

T

he Kawa-1 well has officially been spudded in the Corentyne Block by Canadian company CGX Energy Incorporated and according to one CGX official, they will also be exercising their option drill a second well.

The news was shared by CGX’s co-venturer, Frontera Energy. In a statement, they revealed that Kawa1 was spudded on Sunday.

According to them, the well is expected to reach total depth by the first half of December. Additionally, CGX and Frontera will be drilling a second well using the Maersk Discoverer.

The statement quoted Frontera Chairman and CGX Co-Chairman Gabriel De Alba, who described the Kawa-1 well as one of the most exciting exploration wells in the world. He said a second well will be drilled offshore Guyana under similar terms and conditions.

“Today is an important day for Frontera and CGX as we continue to make substantial progress in realising the value of our investments in Guyana. The joint venture has spud the Kawa-1 well, which we believe is one of the most exciting exploration wells in the world. The joint venture has also exercised its option to drill a second well offshore Guyana under similar terms and conditions.”

“I am pleased with this major operational milestone for Frontera and CGX and appreciate the ongoing support of the Guyanese Government, our employees, and our other various partners as we work together to maximise benefits for all of our stakeholders,” De Alba said.

The Kawa-1 well, which is approximately 200 kilometres offshore Georgetown, is expected to de-risk multiple prospects in the Corentyne Block. Both the Corentyne and Demerara Blocks have been in CGX’s hand for some time without being drilled.

Last year November, CGX Energy had announced that the Government, following discussions on the drilling delays in the Corentyne oil block, had agreed to give CGX a one-year extension until November 27, 2021, by which time they are expected to commence drilling in the Corentyne Block.

Back in May 2019, the former Government had approved a Strategic Joint Venture between CGX Energy Inc and Frontera Energy Corporation to farm into two shallow-water offshore Petroleum

The Maersk Discoverer will be used by CGX for the second well

Prospecting Licences for the Corentyne and Demerara Blocks – both of which are adjacent to ExxonMobil’s Stabroek Block, where multiple discoveries have been made.

The farm-in joint venture allowed Frontera to acquire a 33.333 per cent working interest in the two blocks.

The agreement should have seen CGX’s Utakwaaka well in the Corentyne Block being drilled by November 27, 2019, with an additional ex-

ploration well being drilled

by November 27, 2022.

In the Demerara Block, an exploration well was supposed to have been drilled

by February 12, 2021, with a further exploration well being drilled by February 12, 2023. But with CGX not having started its drilling at the time, the Government had expressed concern over the situation. This is even as a number of new companies have expressed an interest in Guyana’s oil blocks.

Additionally, the company had also revealed its decision to relinquish 24.96 acres of land at the estuary of the Berbice River that was earmarked for its deep-water project, following negotiations with the Government of Guyana.

CGX and Frontera Energy had commissioned an independent report which had revealed that they are potentially sitting on 4.9 million Barrels of Oil Equivalent (BOE) in the Demerara and Corentyne, Guyana oil blocks under their control.

However, the report had hastened to add that there is no certainty that the company can recover the oil or that it is even commercially viable. According to the report, there are a total of 32 prospects in the two blocks, inclusive of 27 in the Corentyne Block and five in the Demerara Block.

These prospects potentially have 4.940 million BOE un-risked and 884 million BOE in them. An unrisked prospect, however, is one where the volume of oil is predicted on the basis that everything goes as planned and the oil is commercially viable and recoverable. The report makes it clear that it cannot give such certainty.

4

guyanatimesgy.com

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 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

The Dutch disease

T

he Dutch disease, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), refers to the harmful consequences emanating from the sudden increase of a nation’s income due to price or production of a natural resource which may cause its currency to appreciate and adversely affect other sectors of the economy.

It was coined by The Economist magazine following its analysis of the effects that the natural gas discoveries had on the Netherlands.

The Dutch disease can be occasioned by an increase in a tradable natural resource, eg oil, which can lead to the appreciation of a country’s real exchange rate. This will lead to an increase in the local currency, consequently making the country’s exports in other industries more expensive while imports become cheaper.

If not catered for, this can lead to performance in those non-booming sectors diminishing.

According to the IMF, in its article “Dutch Disease: Wealth Managed Unwisely” during the 1960s, the Netherlands experienced a vast increase in its wealth after discovering large natural gas deposits in the North Sea. “Unexpectedly, this ostensibly positive development had serious repercussions on important segments of the country’s economy as the Dutch guilder became stronger, making Dutch non-oil exports more expensive and, therefore, less competitive. This syndrome has been witnessed in many countries across the world, including but not limited to resource-rich commodity exporters. Although Dutch disease is generally associated with a natural resource discovery, it can occur from any development that results in a large inflow of foreign currency, including a sharp surge in natural resource prices, foreign assistance, and Foreign Direct Investment.”

Globalisation in the 21st century has taken on a more dynamic effect with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in April of 2020, resulting in countries that were hard hit by the coronavirus relying more heavily on the importation of goods, remittances, and Foreign Direct Investment benevolence. This state of affairs will invariably affect how countries give priority to their productive sectors and how they can cushion the shocks of their under-performing sectors against the volatility of the exchange rate.

In this pandemic, few countries can lay claim to positive growth to such an extent where the Dutch disease would become a factor worth considering.

Fortunately, Guyana ranks among the few with a growth rate of 26 per cent in 2020. Significant by normal standards and incredible during a pandemic.

With the discovery of tangible oil deposits in 2015 by ExxonMobil, Guyana has been placed on the radar as one of the countries expected to significantly increase its income-earning capacity.

Prudent management of Guyana’s economy, therefore, is integral in ensuring that it averts the Dutch disease phenomenon.

Stabilisation of the currency appreciation has been posited as one of the best ways to circumvent the effects of Dutch disease.

According to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), one of the best ways to ensure stability is by setting up a Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) that caters for the inflows of capital into the economy to prevent it from overheating and causing significant currency appreciation.

Excess revenues can then be spent on education or infrastructure that will help to diversify the economy.

Research suggests that of significant importance is a nation’s management of its human resources. Providing the requisite opportunities for training in the oil and gas sector for the population will aid significantly in providing resilience.

Diversification is also the mantra used to ensure that the Dutch Disease does not take hold. Prior to the introduction of oil, Guyana had traditionally been reliant on its agricultural and natural resources sectors such as rice, gold, and bauxite, etc, to earn.

Economic experts opine that policymakers must not allow the economy’s external competitiveness to decline. Meaning reliance has to be placed on enhancing agricultural productivity so that Guyana’s dependence on imported processed food items can be decreased. This will counteract the inflationary growth that can be precipitated when the exchange rate fluctuates and affects the purchasing power of the domestic currency.

Neighbouring Venezuela is a classic example of why diversification is important. Currently, in the midst of a crisis, Venezuela was a leading exporter of oil, which became its most significant earner. When the world demand for same reduced, Venezuela was not able to translate the economy’s wealth generated from its windfalls into sustainable economic growth and prosperity for its citizens. The country’s political ideology has also left it socially and economically cut off from the liberal First World countries, who tend to offer assistance and aid in times of a crisis.

To avoid the Dutch Disease, the Government needs to manage the structural changes that will flow from swift growth to ensure economic stability. Diversifying exports to reduce dependence on the booming oil sector will increase Guyana’s resilience to external shocks. Moreover, the policymakers must create an enabling environment for growth by partnering with the Private Sector and other stakeholders to ensure the provision of adequate education and training to equip and expand our human resource component.

Thankfully, the incumbent Administration seems to be putting mechanisms in place to avoid the aforementioned disease.

British-Belgian pilot Zara Rutherford, 19, poses before taking off for a round-the-world trip in a light aircraft, in bid to become the youngest woman to fly solo round-the-world in Wevelgem, Belgium (AFP)

Somalia is walking in Afghanistan’s footsteps ..the foreign-led nation-building experiment in Somalia will collapse, just like in Afghanistan, unless a different approach is taken

By Patrick Gathara

I

n his 2010 memoir Decision Points, former United States President George W Bush explained his rationale for the decision to invade Afghanistan in the following words: “Afghanistan was the ultimate nation-building mission.

We had liberated the country from a primitive dictatorship, and we had a moral obligation to leave behind something better. We also had a strategic interest in helping the Afghan people build a free society… because a democratic Afghanistan would be a hopeful alternative to the vision of the extremists.”

After two decades of Western occupation, however, there seems to be little sign of the “hopeful alternative” Bush predicted, at least judging from the desperate scenes at Kabul airport, where people have been scrambling to leave the country following the extraordinarily swift Taliban takeover of the country. This is despite the lives and treasure the West has poured into rebuilding Afghanistan’s institutions and economy, and into training and equipping the Afghan army and Police.

There are important lessons to be drawn from Afghanistan’s fate by those engaged in the fight against extremist groups in Somalia where a similar nation-building experiment is being carried out by the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM). For the past 14 years, African countries, with the support of the West, have deployed troops, drawn from Uganda, Burundi, Djibouti, Kenya and Ethiopia, to battle the al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorist group, al-Shabab, and to prop up Somalia’s feeble Government. AMISOM also has civilian and Police components aimed at helping rebuild civilian institutions.

Yet despite years-long efforts and the expenditure of some US$900 million annually, the Government in Mogadishu remains weak and

divided with little popular legitimacy. And though pushed out of most urban areas, the Islamist insurgency remains in control of much of the countryside and able to carry out devastating attacks in the capital at will.

Like Afghanistan, Somalia has seen some economic growth since al-Shabab was driven out of Mogadishu and many towns, with the World Bank estimating an annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate of 5-6 per cent in 2015 and 2016. But the growth has mainly been urban-based, consumption-driven, and fuelled by donor support and remittances from the Somali Diaspora.

Employment is concentrated in low-productivity agriculture with Private Sector development and diversification constrained by insecurity, political instability, weak institutions, inadequate infrastructure, widespread corruption and a difficult business environment. Last year, the country ranked at the very bottom of the 2020 Doing Business survey.

The similarities with Afghanistan do not end there.

In December 2006, following an ill-advised declaration of holy war against Ethiopia, the Union of Islamic Courts was driven from power by a USbacked Ethiopian invasion, bringing to an end what some called a six-month “golden era” during which Somalia caught a fleeting glimpse of tranquillity.

The UIC, a coalition of Islamic courts backed by the country’s business leaders, had previously kicked out the warlords notorious for indiscriminate violence and instituted a Taliban-like strict interpretation of Islamic law, banning music, cinema and sports, and pressuring women to wear veils. But they also brought some semblance of normality with fewer guns in the streets of Mogadishu and relatively free movement. The airport was reopened and basic needs were generally provided for.

However, this ended with the Ethiopian invasion, with the armed wing of the UIC morphing into the al-Shabab insurgency which, by the time the Ethiopian army withdrew in 2009, had swept across the country and restricted the internationally-backed Transitional Federal Government to a few blocks within the capital, protected by a few thousand Ugandan and Burundian troops.

In a recent op-ed for the Financial Times, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari stressed that the lesson for Africa from the Afghanistan debacle is that military force is not enough to defeat extremists or guarantee the transformation of societies. “Although sheer force can blunt terror,” he wrote, “its removal can cause the threat to return.”

He argued that what Africa needs in order to eliminate terror is “not swords but ploughshares”, economic partnerships that deliver real benefits, such as jobs, to the masses. “The boots we need on the ground are those of constructors, not the military”.

While there is profound truth in what he wrote, it is not the whole truth. Economic growth, even broad-based economic growth, and investments in building up the security infrastructure of troubled states may be necessary, but it is not sufficient. A fundamental component of what is lacking both in Afghanistan and Somalia is government legitimacy based on the population’s participation in Government creation and decision-making and the ability to hold it accountable for its failures – in short, real democracy.

“The Taliban are inheriting a different country than they left 20 years ago,” US Congressman Jake Auchincloss, a Marine veteran who led patrols through Afghanistan, said in a recent interview. “The literacy rate has doubled, the infant mortality rate has halved, access to electricity has tripled or qua-

drupled, there are ten times as many kids in school as there were 20 years ago, 40 per cent of whom are girls. The Taliban are inheriting a country in which real progress has been made.”

The question for Western policymakers should not just be whether, as Auchincloss asked, the Taliban will maintain this progress, but why, despite it, the country still fell.

The idea that populations can either be frightened into compliance by the prospect of a return to anarchy or their allegiance bought by economic growth and token participation in the form of voting in non-credible elections is the mainstay of international interventions which tend to appease, engage and empower corrupt elites, while doing little to deliver accountability. But this has been proven wrong in Afghanistan.

As detailed by former journalist Sarah Chayes in a scathing reflection on the US occupation, “Afghans could not be expected to take risks on behalf of a government that was as hostile to their interests as the Taliban were … For two decades, American leadership on the ground and in Washington proved unable to take in this simple message.” During that time “cronyism, rampant corruption, [and] a Ponzi scheme disguised as a banking system” flourished, she wrote.

The Faustian bargain which trades real investment in accountable institutions for pliable, properly Westernised individuals promising gains in security and the economy has a short shelf life. And when interventions install, tolerate and protect rulers who manipulate elections and build superficial regimes characterised by impunity, they entrench fragility rather than stability and become part of the problem rather than a vehicle for solutions.

That is the true lesson of Afghanistan. And it is one that those working to help Somalia should pay heed to. (Al Jazeera)

NEWS

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

To mask or not to mask? That shouldn’t be the question

By John Harris

E

ngland has now entered the strangest phase to date of its COVID experience. Though the Health Secretary insisted, in a tweet he eventually deleted, that we must not “cower from” the virus, the contradiction between the lifting of restrictions and most epidemiological wisdom sits in the midst of our national life like a dull headache. The same Prime Minister who promised his ideological soulmates a new dawn of liberty is now embracing vaccine passports, and reportedly facing the prospect of defeat in the House of Commons.

Meanwhile, references to “personal responsibility” have brought a new unease to everyday life, as the Government reverts to type and does what Tory administrations usually do, transferring risk from the State to individuals.

Wearing a mask now feels a bit like putting on a badge. On what the rightwing press rather laughably called “freedom day”, I did some shopping at my local Asda, observed a masked-to-umasked ratio of about 70:30, and sensed – or thought I sensed – the crackle of judgement and mistrust, passing between those who were sticking with face coverings and those who had decided to go without. Two days later, I was in Stokeon-Trent, where the ratio in a huge Tesco was more like 60:40 in favour of masking up. Despite announcements over the PA advising people to behave as if restrictions were still in place, the fact that some were sticking to the old rules while others were not felt like a matter of dull normality.

Only when I spoke to people did something more uneasy reveal itself: an apparent belief that things were now so messed up that whether individuals were taking precautions or not was really not that significant. One woman I met

worked in a care home, and said that she was going to carry on wearing a mask in enclosed spaces. But she had no faith that her behaviour, in tandem with vaccinations, was going to play a part in returning us to our pre-COVID state of innocence: “I don’t think we’re ever going to go back to normal,” she said, with a shrug.

Meanwhile, the versions of reality presented by the old and new media continue to explode with polarised fury. On the right, a loathing of the State has fused with hostility to vaccines, and everything is tied together by the belief that those who want restrictions to endure are not just killjoys but enemies of freedom.

Some on the left, by contrast, have seemed to want restrictions to go on for as long as possible: not just, perhaps, to keep the virus under control, but also because life in such conditions has ticked so many of their political and philosophical boxes: a huge expansion of the state, the primacy of “the science”, clear benefits for the environment, and an insistence on collective sacrifice. With all this has come often swingeing judgement of “Covidiots”, and the assumption that going maskless or being sceptical about getting jabbed puts you in the same category as irate callers to talk radio stations

and the dreaded Laurence Fox. Somewhere in between these two ideological camps are millions who are too easily forgotten: those for whom lockdowns and stringent restrictions have not been the subject of a gleeful ideological war, but a byword for misery and strife. Many of these people have had to leave home every day to work in dangerous circumstances. Some live in overcrowded conditions, and as part of dysfunctional and abusive families. Small business owners have either had their livelihoods shredded or live with the fear they are about to go under; for millions of young people, some of the most basic necessities of life have been put in hold for unbearably long stretches of time, with no sign of concern from the people at the top. In that context, even if some people are simply being irresponsible, I understand why others have quietly delighted

in binning their masks, and greeted the end of most restrictions in England with a sigh of relief.

A couple of months ago, I was in the Alum Rock area of Birmingham, where I met a twentysomething BritishAsian man who talked about his life and the shared experiences of his community before and during the pandemic. He emphasised the State’s neglect of local needs, and his awful experiences at the hands of the Police – and went from there to his antipathy to getting jabbed, even though the local COVID death toll had been grim.

He was, it seemed, a perfect example of another overlooked part of the population: those who have been sceptical about both restrictions and vaccination, not out of ideological zeal, but because they have an understandably cynical and fearful view of the State and its edicts, and making oneself known to the authorities.

Thinking of Government as essentially benign and well-intentioned is, perhaps, the preserve of a certain section of the middle class. If you have had any experience of the nastier aspects of policing, the benefits system or this country’s immigration regime, you too might balk at the idea of downloading the official COVID app, dutifully turning up for your injection or registering COVID tests.

The past 18 months have also shown that societies ridden with inequality and institutional prejudice cannot cope with any convulsive crisis. The basic point is almost banal, but it seems to elude far too many people: if too many are insecure and isolated, and successive governments have made a point of kicking them around, they will either not be able to do what they are told, or treat edicts from the top and disapproval from those living more privileged lives with the utmost cynicism. Given that the worst effects of COVID have been visited on our most marginalised com-

munities, such behaviour may look irrational, but that tension is hardly surprising.

There is a very persuasive school of thought that claims COVID will turn out to have been a dress rehearsal for the imminent worsening of the climate emergency. Both crises, after all, require us to follow instructions from the top, move in lockstep and engage in difficult acts of self-sacrifice. As things stand, some people can do those things, but others cannot. The danger is that, as one crisis follows another, amid the individualistic noise generated by social media and politicians happy to speak the language of blame, the noise of swingeing personal judgment will be much louder than any voices pointing out that our social model is now broken beyond repair.

Dysfunctional societies usually produce deeply dysfunctional outcomes: until we start to address that basic modern truth, sneering and finger-pointing will only make things immeasurably worse. (The Guardian)

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021

Page

Foundation

Star light, Star bright: H

ow does light intensity change with distance?

Have you ever looked up at the stars at night and wondered how fast they were moving or how far away they were? By studying how the brightness of a star changes with distance, you can answer those questions. In this astronomy science project, you'll create a model of starlight and use a sensor app with your smartphone to discover the key relationship between brightness and distance.

Objective

To determine how the light intensity of a point source of light, like a star, changes with distance from that source.

Materials

Bulb socket with cord and lightbulb (any wattage) or lamp with removable shade with a lightbulb (any wattage), detailed specifications can be found in the Procedure.

Measuring tape Room that can be darkened well and cleared of objects in a 6-foot by 6-foot area Material to align the phone with the light source.

This could be a ball of clay, an easel, a camera stand, etc.

Lab notebook Graph paper Smartphone with a sensor app such as Phyphox, available for free on Google Play for Android devices (version 4.0 or newer) or from the App Store for iOS devices (iOS 9.0 or newer).

Optional: Material to cover shiny objects. This could be black posterboard, dark coloured sheets, etc.

Note: Phyphox does not support the light sensor on iOS devices. If you need the light sensor, you have to use Android devices for your ex-

periment. Note that on some devices the light sensor is only updated when there is a coarse change of illuminance. This means that if the light intensity does not change or only changes slightly, the sensor appears to not record any data. The recording will continue once the light intensity changes again. If your experiments allows, it helps to wiggle the phone or the light source (e.g. flashlight) slightly to induce minimal reading fluctuations and keep the sensor active.

Setting up your experiment

Familiarise yourself with the sensor app and the light sensor.

Choose a light source.

Any type of light bulb where the light shines equally in all directions is fine as a light source. Note that if you choose a lamp, you might need to remove the lamp shade so that the bulb is exposed.

Find a place to take measurements. Find an area that is approximately two by three meters in a room that can be darkened (like a room without windows or one where you can close the window blinds if there are windows). For brighter bulbs, you might need a larger space.

Remove shiny items that can reflect light.

Be as far as possible from walls that might reflect light.

Cover the floor with dark poster board or a dark-coloured sheet if the chosen area has shiny or light-coloured floors.

Set up the light source, measuring tape, and phone.

Figure 5 shows an example of a setup.

Measuring

Create a table as follows in your lab notebook.

Light Intensity Measurements Distance from light source [cm.]

Trial 1 [lux] T r i a l 2 [ l u x ] Trial 3 [lux] Average of trials [lux]

Darken the room. Do your best to eliminate as many stray sources of light as possible. Then, turn on the light bulb.

If you are using the Phyphox app, open the light sensor and go to the 'Simple' tab. In this mode, the app will display the measured light intensity as a numeric value. Then, start by holding the sensor relatively close to the bulb. Remember the light sensor must always be level with the light source.

Move the phone away from the light source and determine a distance where the measurement is very low and changes minimally with changing distance. This will be your starting distance.

Hold the phone at the starting distance.

Write down the distance in your lab notebook, read

the lux measurement from your phone and record the measurement value in your table.

Move the phone 5 cm closer to the light source and repeat step b. Continue this until the light sensor is very close to the light source. To record higher-resolution data, reduce the distance between consecutive measurements from 5 to 2.5 cm.

Note: If your values start flickering, or you get unexplained low values, this could be due to interference between the sampling frequency of the sensor (how many data points it records per second) and the flickering of the light source, which might be flickering faster than your eye can see. If this happens, try one more time.

If the issue persists, switching to a different light source or a different phone usually solves the problem.

This finishes one trial. Repeat step 4 two more times for a total of three trials.

Calculate the average light intensity for each distance from the three trials and record your calculations in the last column of your data table.

Make a line graph that plots the distance (in cm) on the x-axis and the average light intensity (in lux) on the y-axis.

Looking at your graph, can you find a relationship between light intensity and distance to the light source?

Does light intensity increase or decrease with distance?

What happens when you get very far away from the light source? Does the law you discovered in previous steps still hold? If your law does not hold there, why could this be? Could you change your setup so the law governs a wider range of distances? (Kristin Strong and Sabine De Brabandere, PhD, Science Buddies)

By Jane Yolen The regal eagle sits alone upon a tree that serves as throne.

But sometimes when the eagle flies (though this might come as some surprise) a mob of crows may— wing to wing— together drive away that king.

Democracy in beak and claw finds regal eagle’s fatal flaw.

And is that legal? I don’t know.

You’ll have to ask a mobster crow.

WORD SEARCH

NEWS

7

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Guyana gets 34,000 J&J vaccines, more Sputnik 2nd jabs …Pfizer jabs to arrive today …3 more COVID deaths, 36 new cases reported

GUYANA COVID-19 DASHBOARD AUGUST 23 UPDATE

NUMBER OF NEW CASES

36

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN INSTITUTIONAL ISOLATION NUMBER OF PERSONS IN HOME ISOLATION NUMBER OF PERSONS IN COVID-19 ICU

G

Vaccines arriving at the CJIA on Monday

uyana has received a consignment of 34,000 USmanufactured Johnson and Johnson vaccines, which will be rolled out across the regions in the current vaccination campaign.

The Guyana Government had made a down payment for the acquisition of 150,000 single-dose Johnson and Johnson vaccine under a partnership agreement between the African Union and the Caribbean Community (Caricom).

Speaking on the arrival of these jabs, Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony stated, “It took us a while to get all the elements sorted out but I’m pleased to say that by today, we would be getting those vaccines. We will be able to roll it out into various communities.”

Government had said that the vaccines, which have an efficacy of about 66.3 per cent, would be used in hinterland and remote locations across the country

to immunise persons. This is since the ultra-cold chain requirements in other vaccines posed a challenge.

Meanwhile, the country also received a shipment of 5000 doses of the Russian Sputnik V component two vaccines, which arrived at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA). This will be used to immunise persons that are awaiting their second jabs and have almost expended the 12 weeks’ timeline.

Today, the much-anticipated Pfizer jabs are expected to land at the CJIA. A donation from the US Government, these jabs will be used in the immunisation of students 12 years and above. This will allow for the safe reopening of schools.

Since the start of the vaccination campaign, first dose uptake stands at 301,368 or 58.7 per cent of the adult population. Second doses are at 153,840 or 30 per cent.

New deaths and cases

As of Monday, a total of three persons died from the virus, raising the monthly death toll to 51 and an overall death toll to 597 to date.

The latest deaths are a 71-year-old man from Region Nine (Upper TakutuUpper Essequibo) who died on August 22; a 75-yearold man from Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) who died on August 21; and a 63-year-old woman from Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) who died on August 19.

Nineteen persons are seeking treatment in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

There are 100 persons in institutional isolation, 1247 in home isolation and six in institutional quarantine.

The country has seen 22,409 recoveries.

Meanwhile, Guyana has tested 254,847 persons thus far, with 11,825 males and 12,547 females reportedly positive.

100 1247 19

NUMBER OF PERSONS IN INSTITUTIONAL QUARANTINE

6

TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES BY GENDER (FEMALES)

12,547

TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES BY GENDER (MALES)

11,825

TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES IN GUYANA SINCE 2020

24,372

NUMBER OF RECOVERED CASES

22,409

TOTAL 1st DOSE VACCINATED

301,368

FULLY IMMUNISED

153,840

TOTAL NUMBER OF DEATHS

597

DISTRIBUTION OF TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES SINCE MARCH 2020 REGION 1

1349

REGION 2

720

REGION 3

2845

REGION 4

11,134

REGION 5

800

REGION 6

2008

REGION 7

1322

REGION 8

381

REGION 9

2217

REGION 10

1596

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

Keep a physical distance of at least 6 feet.

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

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

A breakdown showed that one new case was detected in Region One (Barima-Waini), six in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), 25 in Region Four (DemeraraMahaica), two in Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice), and two in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni).

There were no increases in Regions Two

(Pomeroon-Supenaam), Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) and 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice).

If anyone is displaying any of the symptoms associated with COVID-19 or needs any additional information, they are asked to contact the COVID-19 Hotline 231-1166, 226-7480 or 624-6674 imme-

diately or visit us at www. health.gov.gy Persons with comorbidities have been asked to continue taking their respective medications or treatment to control their condition. The preventative measures and guidelines to protect against the virus must be adhered to since this category of person is at a greater risk if they contract COVID-19.

8 NEWS Life sentence for wife-beating husband who killed peacemaker TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Jailed: Anthony Jones

A

miner was on Monday sentenced to life imprisonment by Justice Sandil Kissoon for killing a 19-year-old man for intervening in a row and stopping him from assaulting his reputed wife.

Known as “Pastry Man”, 41-year-old Anthony Jones was initially indicted for the October 13, 2018, murder of Nyron Vyphuis which occurred at Yarrowkabra on the Linden-Soesdyke Highway.

However, earlier this month, Jones upon his arraignment opted to plead guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter. Reports are that Jones and his common-law wife were at their liquor shop imbibing when a heated argument broke out between them during which he started to hit her.

Upon seeing this, Vyphuis intervened and stopped the

man from hitting his spouse.

As a result, an enraged Jones armed himself with an axe and went after the teen. Upon seeing this, another man who was also drinking at the shop disarmed Jones who left and went home.

But he subsequently returned with a knife and attacked Vyphuis, whom he stabbed to the chest. In a bid to escape his attacker, the injured man ran a short distance before collapsing into a clump of bushes. His relatives rushed him to the Georgetown Public Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

During a sentencing hearing on Monday, Probation Officer Carol Beresford told the court that Jones, who dropped out of school at age 14, has expressed remorse for his actions. She added that the man is asking the family of the deceased for forgiveness.

The probation officer also said that Jones is pleading with the court for a chance to redeem himself.

“I am asking for the family to forgive me for what I have done. I have accepted my fault. [Judge Kissoon] I am asking you to please be lenient in whatever decision you come to; please forgive me. I have already asked the Lord for forgiveness. Thank you, sir!” said Jones in his address to the court.

Meanwhile, Cassie Vyphuis, the dead man’s sister, expressed that her brother’s untimely demise has plunged their family

Dead: Nyron Vyphuis

into a deep state of mourning. Through a victim impact statement, the woman disclosed that her brother was killed a few months after their father passed away.

“I still cannot come to grips with not having my loving brother anymore.”

In his sentencing remarks, Justice Kissoon told Jones that “In a deliberate and unprovoked act of brutality and violence” he launched a ruthless and violent attack on Vyphuis, who was a mere youth. According to the High Court Judge, Jones’ actions on that day demonstrated scant regard for the sanctity of life.

“In carrying out this despicable deed, Anthony Jones armed himself with an axe and then a knife before sitting upon this unarmed youth whose acts and intervention perhaps saved the spouse of

Anthony Jones from further acts of abuse and violence…” said Justice Kissoon as he recounted the facts.

The Judge told the convict, “As a consequence of your criminal act, parents have lost a child, siblings have lost a brother. The community has been deprived of a fine, worthy, upstanding member whose attributes were just and righteous…”

The High Court Judge, in arriving at an appropriate sentence for him, considered the aggravating and mitigating factors. However, the Judge was keen to point out that the mitigating aspects cannot take away from the gravity of the offence committed.

On this note, Justice Kissoon said that the aggravating circumstances in this case were great. Speaking to the confessed killer, the Judge added, “You launched an attack on this unarmed youth; a peacemaker and you inflicted that fatal injury to his heart, killing him.”

In addition, the Judge pointed out that he also took note of the level of premeditation, in that, Jones, after being disarmed of the axe, went home, retrieved a knife, and attacked the now dead man.

Jones becomes eligible for parole after serving 20 years in prison. He was represented by Senior Counsel Stanley Moore, while the case for the prosecution was led by Senior State Counsel Lisa Cave.

This case was heard at the High Court in Demerara.

Woman among 4 arraigned for murder of Sophia youth

N

From left: Nicholas Hercules, called "Bucko"; Brenna Nurse; Devon Harry and Peter Lam

icholas Hercules called “Bucko”, Brenna Nurse, Devon Harry, and Peter Lam were jointly charged and remanded to prison for killing a man in an alleged triangular love affair when they appeared before Magistrate Alisha George at the Sparendaam Magistrates’ Courts.

They were not required to plead to the indictable charge which stated that on August 15, 2021, at ‘C’ Field, Sophia, Greater Georgetown, they murdered 24-year-old Keon McPherson. The murder accused will return to court on

Dead: Keon McPherson

September 17.

It was reported that Keon McPherson of ‘D’ Field Sophia was allegedly involved in a triangular love affair with a woman who was also intimate with another man of Broad and Lombard Streets, Georgetown. The woman at the centre of the triangular love affair resided at ‘C’.Field Sophia.

The now dead man’s brother, Keron McPherson had told investigators that his brother left home at about 23:50h on the day in question to go to his lover’s house.

However, at about 04:00h the next morning, a female

contacted the Command Centre of the Police Force and reported that Keon was seen lying motionless with what appeared to be blood on his body.

As a result, Police ranks went to the scene where they observed that the man was shot once to his left side chest, and right hand. He was transported to the Georgetown Public Hospital where he was pronounced dead. As a result, the Police arrested the other two lovers.

It was reported that Nurse is Keon McPherson’s mother-in-law, while her three co-accused are reportedly her son’s friends.

Looking ahead…

N

...after Afghanistan o matter how you cut it, slice it or dice it, America suffered a great loss of faith among her allies after their precipitate exit from Afghanistan. Now don’t get your Eyewitness wrong, he remains a firm supporter of the US as far as their support of democracy. But with one of the reasons it stayed on for 20 years after sending in troops in 2001 following the 9/11 disaster was to “bring democracy to Afghanistan”, there might be some lessons for us from what’s unfolding halfway across the world. We’re all connected, if not geographically, certainly geopolitically.

Afghanistan, we know is “the graveyard of empires” and the American withdrawal will certainly augment this reputation. But as with everything else in history, you never put your foot in the same river twice – Ole Man River keeps rolling along and inevitably changes at the spot you’re standing! This America had a vision of itself as the world policeman in what it dubbed “the American Century” after WWII – with the previous great power Britain prostate and exhausted. The torch had been passed.

The USSR was really no competitor since its military strength wasn’t supported with the economic wherewithal to give it “strategic depth”. Ironically, this hollowness was exposed when the USSR invaded Afghanistan in 1979 to support a Marxist regime, but had to retreat ignominiously a decade later. The Mujahideen, created and funded by the US and Pakistan, decimated the Soviets’ occupying army and their withdrawal led directly to the collapse and fissioning of the Soviet Union!

The Mujahideen started ruling Afghanistan, but provoked internal hostility that led to conservative Talibans (students of Islam) – funded and directed by the US via Pakistan – opposing and defeating them. The Taliban gave refuge to Al Qaida which provoked the US post 9/11 invasion in October 2001.

The US then proceeded to spend US$2 trillion in a war of attrition against the Taliban, they’re now conceding, was fruitless. The bottom line was that when America tries imparting democracy into these fractious states, they don’t give enough importance to the local sentiments. Some cultures just don’t give enough credence to the benefits of that form of social organisation and Govts, and it remains very superficial.

The Americans knew years ago they had to leave, but Biden’s decision to do so before the 20th anniversary of 9/11 might have been too sudden. He was warned about the repercussions of a sudden departure by veteran US diplomat Richard Holbrook. Biden replied, “F**k that, we don’t have to worry about that. We did it in Vietnam, Nixon and Kissinger got away with it.”

The question is what exactly is the “it” the US will retain!! …to China and Asia Pakistan, China and Russia are enjoying the schadenfreude of America’s discomfiture. They’re insisting that the latter’s allies shouldn’t trust them. India is understandably uncomfortable since the radical Islamic elements in the Taliban will most likely seek to unite themselves by focusing on a common enemy – namely India in Kashmir. That India’s friendly with most of the protesting anti-Taliban elements protesting their takeover doesn’t help.

Re American policymakers, the Commission that examined 9/11 concluded: “We believe the 9/11 attacks revealed four kinds of failures: in imagination, policy, capabilities, and management.” With 20-20 hindsight, we can see that the US failed in each of these areas in Afghanistan. They gotta have the imagination to predict how the Taliban’s gonna govern; create policies to counter them as far as they affect US interests in that area of the world - -like with its Quad alliance with India.

It must assess its capabilities and counter an emboldened China’s resurgence in its backyard.

And better manage its commitments to allies like Guyana. …at sugar With the heavens still opening up and disgorging heavy rainfall across the country in this month of August – traditionally one of our driest months – things are looking dread for meeting our sugar targets.

What now?

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

NEWS

9

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

M&CC statutory meeting

Town Clerk walks out after Mayor refuses to recognise her status – to set up committee to oversee spending of Council

Town Clerk Candace Nelson leaving the meeting

I

nterim Town Clerk, Candace Nelson on Monday walked out of City Hall’s Statutory Meeting after Georgetown Mayor Ubraj Narine indicated that the Council would not recognise or include her in the proceedings.

Nelson would have sought to share her input as the Mayor chaired the meeting, to which he responded, “I do not recognise you. Your words can’t be minuted here because the chair don’t recognise you. I don’t recognise you. You would not be recognised by the chair.”

Nelson was appointed by the Local Government Commission, and Sherry Jerrick who served as Town Clerk was reverted to her previous position. However, the Mayor has since filed legal proceedings before the Chief Justice, challenging her appointment.

With some Councillors holding placards and calling for Nelson’s removal, the interim Town Clerk

walked out of the meeting.

The Council then appointed Solid Waste Director Walter Narine to take her place for the remainder of the session.

Thereafter, the Council then moved to elect a committee to approve payments and finances for their operation. The Mayor instructed them to do so within 24 hours.

At a recent statutory meeting, workers of the Council protested at the Kitty Market in Georgetown, where a statutory meeting was scheduled to be held.

However, Councillors voted in favour of Mayor Narine having the meeting adjourned, as their attempts to remove Nelson were unsuccessful.

Before the meeting commenced, the Mayor and Councillors had said they did not recognise the appointment of Nelson and, as such, they asked her to “step down” to allow the meeting to be chaired by the Deputy Town Clerk, who was given

such duties in the past.

However, Nelson wrote to then acting Town Clerk Sherry Jerrick and instructed her to return to her substantive position of Assistant Town Clerk effective from July 28.

The Mayor told Nelson that legal proceedings have been filed before the Chief Justice, challenging her appointment, and he demanded that Nelson leave the meeting. Standing at their seats waving their placards, Councillors shouted at Nelson, “We do not recognise you!”

The interim Town Clerk then informed the meeting that she was not leaving, as her lawyers have advised her that there is no court order restraining her from participating in the meeting.

Chairman of the Local Government Commission, Julius Faerber had shared some insight into the matter a few weeks ago where he stated that the decision to remove Jerrick was a unanimous one.

“That decision was unanimously voted in favour of, and when I said unanimously, there were seven Commissioners who were present at that time, and all seven of them voted in favour of having Ms Jerrick return to her substantive position. That was the situation that occurred,” he had told a press conference.

Faerber had pointed out that the decision to appoint Nelson is in keeping with the authority vested in the Local Government Commission

Georgetown Mayor Ubraj Narine

under Sections 12 and 13 of the Local Government Commission Act. Section 13 (2) states thus: “The Commission shall have power to deal with all matters relating to staffing of Local Government organs, and in particular shall be responsible for employment, transfer, discipline and dismissal of staff.”

Edghill urges residents to report substandard works within communities

I

n order to ensure that contractors upkeep their end of the bargain to produce superlative projects, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill has called on Guyanese to report instances of substandard works within their communities.

Recently, rehabilitative road works valued at $26 million were commissioned in Corentyne, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne).

There, the Public Works Minister urged citizens to pay attention to various projects within their communities, and report instances of substandard works.

“If you are seeing substandard work, if you’re seeing work that is not of the proper quality as citizens, you have a right to speak out…Across the country, whether it’s a school, an administrative building, a health centre, a hospital, a road, a highway, a bridge; I want to ask Guyanese to pay attention to the developmental works that are taking place in your com-

Public Works Minister Juan Edghill

munities.”

This is among a series of measures so that the country gets its value for money. In fact, the Minister pointed out that one of the key issues spanning years has been overpayment to contractors – a situation Government is trying to remedy.

TURN TO PAGE 11

10 NEWS NWD man injured after Man busted with car slams into tree ganja during A raid for guns TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

North West District (NWD) resident is now injured after the car in which he was travelling slammed into a tree at Wanina Public Road, Mabaruma, Region One (Barima-Waini).

The injured man is 54-year-old Edgar Adams of Hosororo, NWD. The accident reportedly occurred on Sunday at about 13:00h and involved a motor car bearing registration number

PNN 1366 - owned and driven by a 37-year-old man of Hosororo, NWD. Police stated that that the motor car was proceeding along the Wanina Public Road when the driver - who was under the influence of alcohol - lost control of the vehicle, which ran off the roadway and slammed into a tree.

As a result of the collision, Edgar, who was an occupant of the car, received injuries to his head.

The 4 grams of ganja found on the man

The car which slammed into the tree

He was picked up in a conscious condition by Police and taken to the Mabaruma Regional Hospital where he was treated and admitted a patient suffering from head injuries.

His condition is listed as stable. The driver, who was behaving in a disorderly manner, was arrested and is assisting with investigations.

A

25-year-old man of Tuschen Housing Scheme, East Bank Essequibo (EBE), was on Sunday arrested after he was intercepted with four grams of marijuana in his possession.

The Police were at the time conducting a raid in search of guns, ammunition, drugs and stolen articles.

During the operation, ranks found a bulky transparent plastic containing a

quantity of leaves, seeds and stems suspected to be cannabis in a small store room at the back of the suspect’s yard.

The man was told of the offence committed and under caution he replied saying that, “Is just lil weed, please for a chance”.

The man was, nevertheless, arrested and escorted to the Leonora Police Station where he remains in custody pending charges.

11 Junior Housing Minister optimistic squatting can be eliminated by 2025 NEWS

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

– says enough house lots will be available to meet housing demand

S

quatting or illegal settlements, which is an age-old problem in Guyana, may be a thing of the past in the next few years. Minister within the Housing Ministry Susan Rodrigues is optimistic that the issue of squatting can be eliminated within her Government’s first term in office.

During a recent interview with the State-owned NCN, Rodrigues said that her Ministry’s housing development agenda will see enough house lots being made available to meet the current demand for housing

in Guyana. With this, she said there would be no need for squatting.

“We have our community development department that handles regularisation of informal settlements.

And while we strive to create new housing areas and house lots, we still have a duty towards those persons who are occupying illegally. And we don’t want to neglect that section of our population,” the Minister explained.

“We have made significant strides in that sector as well. And I want to be very clear about this. I am

convinced that as we continue to deliver on our housing programme, that by the end of our first term in office, there will be no need for Guyanese to occupy any portion of land illegally or to squat. Because there will be enough development and land readily available to service our population and meet the demands in the housing sector.”

Rodrigues acknowledged that it was the Government’s duty and responsibility to make land affordable and accessible to the people of Guyana.

According to the Minister,

Edghill urges residents...

“A lot of what the Auditor General has been talking about is overpayments; contractors getting paid for works that are not done. When you do the actual measurement, they get more money than work done. That was then. We’re in a new era and we want a collaborative effort at the community level to ensure we get value for money,” Edghill noted.

He added that on the Ministry’s end, scrutiny will be placed on engineers responsible for the monitoring and execution of these projects.

“We need conscientious engineers on my team who manage these projects. We don’t need engineers who hassling contractors and trying to get a raise from a contractor. We don’t need

engineers who are working and dealing with the contractor to siphon off money and sharing it. We need the savings. We need to ensure that we get the correct measurements so we want conscientious engineers.”

The Minister shared that citizens being the “eyes and ears” of the communities should not result in any hostile behaviour or confrontation when addressing issues of shoddy works.

Just last week at a similar event in the region, he had noted that Government is committed to ensuring that road improvement needs in all communities are addressed.

Edghill told residents of Angoy’s Avenue, New Amsterdam, “If we have not gotten to you as yet, yours will be the next or the next

FROM PAGE 9

after the next… one thing you know is that the PPP has a track record of keeping its promises and I am saying to you that we will be upgrading all of the roads in Angoy’s Avenue within the next four years… “People have to bear up with us, if you come and picket us all the time is not the way to get it done… so not everybody who run to my office and start misbehaving will get a response for the next day. It can’t happen.

Some people have to wait a little bit and have a bit of patience but we will try to help as much persons as possible.”

Minister within the Housing Ministry, Susan Rodrigues

squatting not only carries down property value in the community where it takes place, but also makes the installation of utilities difficult.

“So, I want to discourage people from feeling like they need to squat. Because informal settlements hamper development. It contributes negatively to the aesthetic value of the community. It lowers property value. And it leads to a haphazard occupation within schemes. So, it poses a challenge when we have to develop road and drainage networks. So, it’s difficult to take an informal settlement and really raise the bar, once people have occupied haphazardly,” she said.

Since coming to office, the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Government has made it clear that it is aiming to fulfil its manifesto promise of distributing 50,000 house lots over the next five years. The Ministry of Housing has also said it would work with other State agencies to make more land available for housing development.

These agencies include the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL); the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GLSC) and the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) to pursue land acquisition for housing developments.

This year, the housing sector received a total allo-

cation of $8.9 billion in the budget. Of this sum, $6 billion will go towards infrastructure and utility works in new and existing areas.

This will pave the way for the allocation of over 10,000 house lots and 7000 land titles to citizens.

The Government has also gone countrywide with its dream realised house lot distribution campaign… an exercise that has so far distributed over 4000 house lots and over 500 land transports. In the Government’s first four months in office, 3500 house lots were distributed… an amount that was half the amount of house lots distributed during the former Government’s five years in office.

12 NEWS

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Gas-to-energy project will significantly lower harmful emissions

EPA Senior Environmental Officer attached to the Technical Services programme Tashanna Redmond and Senior Environmental Officer with oversight for the Oil and Gas Department Joel Gravesande

T

he gas-to-energy project, when constructed and operationalised, will significantly reduce the emission of harmful gases into the atmosphere, thereby improving Guyana’s status as a good environmental steward.

This is the consensus shared among officials of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and a report published by the Government of Guyana.

This is also supported by the experiences of countries which have in the past moved to produce and use natural gas for power generation purposes, as they transitioned from the more polluting heavy fuel oil (HFO) and/or diesel-based systems.

With Ghana’s experience, when the country brought gas from its Sankofa gas field to shore, carbon emissions fell by 1.6 million tonnes, according to the World Bank.

In an interview with the Department of Public Information (DPI), two of the EPA’s Senior Environmental Officers, Tashanna Redmond and Joel Gravesande were asked about how the situation will play out in Guyana.

In response to the producer, Kemol King’s question, Redmond, who is attached to the EPA’s

Technical Services programme, which develops EPA guidelines and procedures, said Guyana’s current fossil fuel consumption has serious environmental implications.

“Records dating back to the state of the environment report in 2016 would have indicated that the electricity sector, the power generation sector is a primary consumer of fossil fuel and subsequently, is a great emitter.

“It contributes significantly to the emission of greenhouse gas, particularly carbon dioxide. So, a move toward natural gas will mean that those emissions, though there will still be greenhouse gas emissions, it will be reduced.”

Redmond also noted that the need to bring gas to shore would be more pronounced as the demand for energy grows. She said Guyana is already seeing a steady growth in the use of energy.

“You look at our lifestyles now, compared to 10, 20 years ago. The average home, and this pandemic has definitely increased that, you go into the average home, there are several digital devices that need to be powered.

“Though they run on battery, eventually, that battery dies and has to be re-

powered. You’re home, you need fans. You’re home, you need to heat up food and all of these things. So, energy consumption is definitely on the increase.”

Meanwhile, Senior Environmental Officer with oversight for the Oil and Gas Department, Gravesande shared similar views. His department is responsible for authorising all upstream oil and gas projects and the gas-to-energy project.

He noted that there has been much contention about the flaring of natural gas and that if gas is brought to shore, there would be much less gas to flare, if the unfortunate situation is to recur.

Redmond said when Guyana brings gas to shore for its electricity needs, it will be a win because there will be a reduction in the use of more harmful fossil fuels. She explained that studies have shown that the use of natural gas results in fewer emissions of greenhouse gases.

Earlier this year, the Government of Guyana released a series of reports which it relies on in its decision-making for the heavily touted gas-to-energy project. One of those reports was compiled by the internationally recognised finance and engineering advisory firm, K&M Advisors.

In its assessment, K&M sought to answer a number of questions, one of those being: What are the estimated emission reductions and climate benefits of a new power plant?

The June 2019 final report quantified the emission reduction and climate change benefits which would result from the operationalisation of the gas-to-energy project under different scenarios.

ExxonMobil has agreed to bring 50 million standard cubic feet of gas per day to shore.

In this regard, K&M estimated that there would be a reduction of 6.1 million

Man with severe bodily injuries found lying on roadway

A

The injured man found at Moleson Creek

yet to be identified man was on Monday found lying on the

main access road at Moleson Creek Corentyne, Berbice, with severe injuries to his

body. The discovery was made at about 08:00h.

Preliminary investigations revealed that on the day in question, the ranks at Springlands Police Station received a telephone call about a man lying on the roadway with injuries.

As a result, the ranks visited the area where they saw the man of East Indian descent lying in a conscious state. He is known in the community but has no fixed place of abode.

He was taken to the Skeldon Public Hospital, where he was treated and admitted a patient. An investigation has been launched into the matter.

Preliminary artist’s impression of natural gas plant (Source: EEPGL)

tonnes of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in a 12year period. These are the gases which contribute directly to global warming.

K&M also estimated that contaminant emissions which affect air quality would be reduced by approximately 200,000 tonnes in the same period.

Within these parameters, the firm further stated that the estimated economic benefit due to the reduction in emissions for the same period would be approximately US$150 million due to GHG reductions and approximately US$70 million due to contaminant reductions.

The gas-to-energy proj-

ect was initiated by the PPP/C Government on the basis that it will bring these and other benefits to the country. The project is also expected to reduce the cost of power by 50 per cent, put more disposable income into the pockets of ordinary families and improve the ease of doing business.

2 men facing separate robbery charges

Remanded: Emanuel Larry

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Nandy Park, East Bank Demerara (EBD) man accused of committing two robberies was granted $60,000 bail when he appeared in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Monday.

A brief court hearing for 21-year-old Shaquille Thomas was conducted

by Principal Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus. He is charged with two counts of robbery.

The first charge read that on August 21, at America Street, Georgetown, while in the company of others, he robbed Steven Deosorran of a computer bag worth $10,000, $1500 in books and pens, and $2500 in cash.

It was further alleged that on the same day at the

On bail: Shaquille Thomas

same location, he robbed Shamar Richards of one Samsung Galaxy A10 phone valued $41,000, one black handbag worth $2000, and $400 in books and pen. The accused pleaded not guilty to both charges after they were read to him by the Magistrate.

Bail for Jones was set at $30,000 on each of the two charges. The matter continues on September 6.

Meanwhile, in another case, a Market Street, East La Penitence resident was remanded to prison on a robbery under arms charge.

Emanuel Larry, 33, a vendor, also appeared before Magistrate Isaacs-Marcus.

The defendant denied the charge which stated that on August 16 at Regent

Street, Georgetown, while in the company of another, he robbed Anthony Boodram of a Samsung A20 phone valued at $51,000, $25,000 in cash, a gold chain with a pendant, and a wrist watch all totalling $106,400.

The Police prosecutor told the court that on the day in question, Boodram was walking down Regent Street, when Larry walked up to him, held him at gunpoint, and relieved him of the items mentioned in the charge. The prosecutor said that the defendant was positively identified by the virtual complainant.

However, Larry, during his address to the court, denied robbing the man. He too will return to court on September 6.

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Schools to reopen on September 6 – Education Ministry …teachers should be vaccinated or produce weekly negative COVID-19 tests – MoE …urges parents to get eligible children vaccinated

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he Education Ministry has announced that schools will be reopened from September 6, 2021, when the new academic year begins and it is standing firm and putting measures in place to protect both students and teachers.

In a statement, the Ministry said that despite measures geared towards the continuity of learning, it is a fact that they are not enough nor as effective as face-to-face learning.

“Our students are suffering. Learning at home is not as effective as students sitting in a classroom with their teacher in front of them teaching a lesson. This is the reality. With this in mind along with the desire of the majority of parents, the Ministry of Education will be reopening schools on September 6, 2021,” it noted in the statement.

The statement reminded that the Education Ministry has committed to reopen school based on individual assessments according to space and circumstances.

It advised that schools will be ready for reopening and parents along with teachers will be informed of the individualised reopening measures for the respective schools in the coming days.

The individualised plans are expected to be developed with input from teachers and the Parent-Teacher Associations of each school.

Explaining the reasoning behind its move to have schools reopened for the new school year, the Ministry said that it is a result of the feedback provided during answers on polls and surveys and consultations with stakeholders inclusive of teachers and parents.

It added that parents, particularly, have been consistent in their calls for the reopening of schools for all levels and teachers have been clear about the uncertainty of virtual engagements with students.

Schools in Guyana have been closed since March 2020 when the country began recording its first cases of the deadly coronavirus (COVID-19). Due to the closure of schools globally, international studies and local experience revealed that students suffered tremendous learning loss. Some students have also dropped out of school and the situation is expected to worsen if school doors remain closed longer, according to the Ministry’s statement.

Since the closure of

“Our teachers also stepped up and worked to ensure they kept those students under their charge engaged in learning online as much as possible. We thank them,” the Ministry said.

Get vaccinated or produce negative tests

Education Minister Priya Manickchand

schools, the Ministry has embarked on a number of initiatives to ensure that students remain engaged.

However, with disparities in the system, the outcome has been far from what would have been achieved by faceto-face learning.

Studies have also shown that the longer schools are closed, the greater our students will be affected.

The Education Ministry printed thousands of worksheets for each grade which corresponded with the curriculum and what each child should have been learning if they were in the classroom. The Guyana Learning Channel undertook the production of recorded lessons done by local teachers on the various topics outlined in the curriculum.

This content has been airing on the channel according to a timetabled schedule to ensure children across the grades are engaged. The videos were also uploaded to the GLC’s YouTube channel so that they can be streamed at any time.

The Ministry’s website has been zero-rated by the major internet providers so that parents and students do not have to pay or use their data when accessing all of the learning resources that are available on the platform.

To assist the Grade Six students to write this year’s National Grade Six Assessment, the Quiz Me Platform was developed to allow pupils to practice examination quality questions. Grade Six pupils also received study packages containing textbooks, notes and worksheets for each subject and a special television series dubbed the “NGSA Booster Programme” where a video was created for each and every topic in the consolidated curriculum, was aired.

One of the measures the Ministry is putting in place is the requirement for teachers to either be vaccinated or produce negative weekly PCR tests at their own expense.

“We take this opportunity to urge those teachers who have not yet taken a vaccine, to use this period, before the reopening of school to visit a vaccination site and be administered one of the available COVID-19 vaccines. The Ministry of Health currently has the AstraZeneca, Johnson and Johnson, Sinopharm and Sputnik V vaccines available for the adult population…Teachers who do not wish to be administered any of the above-mentioned vaccines will be required to submit a negative PCR test once a week. This test is to be done at an approved private facility,” the Ministry said in a statement late Monday afternoon.

The Ministry said that teachers who fail to report for duty will be marked absent and the measures also applies to ancillary staffers including cleaners and administrative staff. It added that the new requirements will be reflected in the September Gazetted Order in relation to the COVID-19 protocols.

Any teacher who has questions on vaccines or any related question, the Ministry of Education has solicited the assistance of three doctors to provide responses and they can be reached on telephone numbers: 650-2289 (Dr Farah December), 650-2308 (Dr Oneka Scott) and 650-2312 (Dr Ertenisa Hamilton).

This is to provide teachers with an opportunity to speak with medical professionals and have their concerns addressed.

The Ministry also acknowledged the fact that thousands of its teachers have been vaccinated against the virus which is likely to reduce the risk of dying or experiencing severe complications of COVID-19.

The Ministry of Education will provide to all teachers face masks, face shields, sanitising agents (Environ) and spray bottles to assist in ensuring they

are safe upon their return to the classroom.

Get your children vaccinated

With Guyana expected to receive the Pfizer vaccines today, the Ministry has reissued its call for parents to have their children inoculated against the deadly COVID-19 in order to facilitate the reopening of schools.

Important in the process to reopen schools is the vaccination programme for pupils 12 years and over.

On Monday, the United States’ Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave full approval for the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine. In May of this year, the FDA had expanded the emergency use authorisation for the

Pfizer BioNTech vaccine to children 12 years and over.

The shipment of Pfizer vaccines expected today is donated by the United States, and will be administered exclusively to children 12 years and over. Whilst vaccination of children will not be mandatory, the Ministry is urging parents to consider the benefits that this vaccine will provide to their children and consent to the vaccine being administered to their children.

Parental consent forms for this vaccine have been delivered to schools and can be downloaded from the Ministry’s website at: https://education.gov.gy/ covid-vaccine.

Parents can also fill an e-form which can be sub-

mitted to indicate their consent. This can be accessed at: https://education.gov.gy/ PfizerRegistration.

Also, if parents are unable to submit the physical copies, they can take a photograph of the completed form and submit it via WhatsApp to telephone number: 652-9144.

So far thousands of children have received their parents’ consent.

Parents who choose not to send their child to school on the days they are scheduled to attend will be enjoined with the responsibility of ensuring that child is continuously engaged at home and, to this end, will be able to access all of the Ministry’s materials on its website.

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021|| GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Govt to build 8-door sluices to prevent massive flooding tify the channels that will be connected to it, to design, to determine the optimal alignment, and to design the physical structure, do the engineering design. That work has already started, it is already ongoing.

“We can’t just rush and build a canal just like that.

We have to first of all determine what is the best location for the outfall, what are the optimal connections with the channels, what’s the optimal capacity to be built, both in relation to the outfall track, the channel, and as well the outfall, the

T

Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh

A flooded yard in Region Three in June

he People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) Government plans to build two eight-door outfall sluices to mitigate flooding in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) and Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne).

Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh said this is one of the long-term solutions the Government will be investing in, to prevent flooding.

“The technical work has already begun to identify optimal location to iden-

koker, the sluice capacity.

So, the engineering work is happening right now. Once that engineering work is completed the construction work will start.”

Minister Singh said the Government recognises that the country’s current drainage capacity on the coast is insufficient, as the above normal rainfall and high tide caused severe flooding from May-July.

When the major sluices are completed, the lands will be drained efficiently, preserving the agriculture sector, which is usually se-

A Region Six farmer signs to collect his flood relief cheque

verely affected.

Dr Singh said the outfall sluices will resemble the Hope Canal Project on the East Coast of Demerara.

That project was conceptualised by the PPP/C Government after repeated flooding in villages along the East Coast of Demerara, which wiped out many crops and livestock.

While this is the Government’s long-term solution to flooding, it has already begun rolling out the short-term solution, distributing flood relief grants to farmers who suffered

losses during the unprecedented flooding.

On Sunday, a team of Ministers visited Region Six, to oversee the distribution of over $970 million in cheques to farmers. The initiative is aimed at assisting the farmers to restart crop and livestock production.

More than $7 billion has been earmarked to be distributed to the flood-affected farmers. This is in addition to the almost 60,000 food and sanitation hampers distributed by the Civil Defence Commission.

Commerce Minister reiterates “Guyana is open for business” during tour of Regus

Tourism, Industry, and Commerce Minister Oneidge Walrond

“G

uyana is open for business” was the invitation given

by Tourism, Industry, and Commerce Minister Oneidge Waldron to investors as she spoke of the significant growth Guyana will receive from its booming oil sector.

Minister Waldron made this statement during a recent tour of Regus at 65 Waterloo Street, North Cummingsburg, Georgetown.

Regus which opened its first service centre in Guyana last year has an unparalleled global network of 3100 business centres in 1000 cities across 110 countries offering office space, co-working, meeting spaces, and memberships, helping over 2.5 million people have a great day at work.

All services offices are supplied with furniture, high-speed internet, and a

staffed reception, with additional services such as meeting rooms and business packages available. Each private office can be rented for long-term or short-term durations and can be upgraded to add more desks and services as required.

As she observed the facilities, Walrond said, “This is just one of the examples of the facilities that are going to be available to investors as they come, and they seek to do business here in Guyana. This is an important solution to start-up businesses and people who are coming to do their fact-find-

know the interest that is being placed in Guyana right now.”

Meanwhile, Regus’ Operations Director for the Caribbean, Stuart May said that the company started operations in Guyana not only because of the developments in the oil business but the mining and many other business areas that are seeing development.

May disclosed that the PPP/C Government has been supportive in the setting up of Regus. “We would surely urge companies to come to Guyana and explore the opportunities because

port and advice is being provided through the various Ministries and the Guyana Office for Investment (GOInvest).

“I am hoping that companies can come and support and not come in and monopolise the opportunities. You are going to find a highly educated workforce in Guyana that is on par or above many of those you experience elsewhere in the world. All that is needed is the right training.”

Talking about his experience in Guyana, May noted that everybody wants to train. “You don’t have to

Regus Caribbean Operations Director Stuart May

that Guyana can develop as a nation.”

At its opening last December, Natural Resources Minister Vickram Bharrat welcomed Regus to Guyana by saying “We are delighted to welcome the Regus brand into the Guyana market. As the oil and gas industry takes centre stage in our growing economy, offerings from serviced office providers such as Regus, are a great option for companies needing instant and professional workspaces.”

“We look forward to seeing the positive impact

Some of the workspaces offered by Regus

ing missions.”

According to the Minister, with Regus, investors will have a space that is professional and secure.

She added that she believes the facilities will be overrun by clients very soon “as we

Guyana is certainly opened for business,” he added.

He further added that the ease of doing business in Guyana is considerably better than in many other countries since the processes are streamlined and sup-

push someone to take an opportunity. They are taking it with two hands and exceeding the expectations you place on them.”

According to him, Guyana is a very interesting country. He, howev-

er, cautioned that it is not a country that you can just understand by “googling it”. “There are opportunities, but you have to come and meet with people,” he said while adding that legislation will be passed to encourage companies to partner with local businesses “so

these centres will have on our economy, as the products and services offered will definitely help improve the ease-of-doing-business in Guyana, not just for new entrants but for existing businesses too.”

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Govt has put $1.6B back into farmers’ pockets – Agri Minister – through removal of VAT, reduced land rental & DNI charges

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fter the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) took office in August last year, it set about rolling back many oppressive measures foisted on the backs of farmers by the former Government. In fact, the Government has so far saved farmers $1.6 billion based on these agriculture-friendly policies.

This assertion was made

by Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha, who recently recounted how the former A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government increased land rental fees and applied Value Added Tax (VAT) on a number of items used for agriculture, including machinery.

“Those measures were very harsh on the farmers.

So, when the farmers went to farm, they had to pay VAT for certain things. They had to pay increased land rentals and DNI charges. So, what we did, we recognised that for the farmers to improve their lot, we have to ensure that we put the sec-

The MMA-ADA office

tor in order,” he said.

“When we were in the Opposition, we said we would reduce the DNI and land rental charges from $7000 to $3000. We did that when we were in Parliament.

So, a farmer that farmed 15,000 acres and obtains $15,000 per acre, that farmer is today saving $11,500 per acre. The DNI charges and land rentals, we have put back into the pockets of the farmers $1.6 billion.

Then took out VAT and all those things.”

Mustapha gave as an example one farmer who im-

ported a tractor prior to the change of Government and was forced to pay $500,000 in VAT. Mustapha noted that if this was done after the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) tax measures, that VAT would have been avoided, since the tractor was for agricultural purposes.

“With the measures we have put in places, farmers will have more money that becomes disposable income in their pockets. So that is why we’re seeing an improvement, not only in the rice sector but other crops.”

“In the other crops we are

making more lands available, we are giving farmers help in terms of extension services. We are making them do farming in a smarter way, rather than a subsistence way. GMC (Guyana Marketing Corporation) is more responsive now to the needs of the farmer,” he said, noting that based on this year’s budgetary allocation for agriculture there will be nine agro processing facilities across the country.

For 2020, Guyana saw increases in various sub-sectors of the agriculture sector. While sugar produc-

tion fell, rice production increased. The rice-growing sector grew by 4.8 per cent, with paddy production reaching 1,057,580 tonnes in 2020. With respect to the production of other crops, despite excessive rainfall in November and December, this sector is estimated to have grown by 6.6 per cent in 2020.

The payment of drainage and irrigation charges by farmers to the MMAADA is a critical part of the operational capacity of the entity. Under the former A Partnership for National

Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government, these charges were hiked.

The situation was so dire under the former Government that farmers were unable to pay the increased charges for drainage and irrigation services were under the threat of legal action from the Mahaica Mahaicony AbaryAgricultural Development Authority (MMA-ADA).

When the PPP got into Government, it reduced those charges from $15,000 per acre to $3500. It was announced earlier this year that with these charges reduced, farmers have begun honouring their financial obligations to MMA. Despite the flooding at the time, which has been acknowledged as a national disaster as declared by President Dr Irfaan Ali, the MMA-ADA had reported in July that its rate collection from farmers for the first half of the year was at an all-time high – with 55 per cent of the year’s projected collection already received from farmers.

Over 200 Bartica residents benefit from spectacles distribution

Minister of Human Services and Social Security, Dr Vindhya Persaud hands over a walking aid to Elvis Seeram

O

ver 200 residents in Bartica, Region Seven, benefitted from the Human Services and Social Security Ministry’s spectacles distribution exercise in the community.

On Monday, subject Minister, Dr Vindhya

Persaud spearheaded an outreach where 237 residents received spectacles after previously being tested

by Optical Works, Revision Optical, and Miracle Optical.

During brief remarks, she noted that the Ministry has been working tirelessly with various entities to

ensure citizens across the country can access and benefit from basic services.

Additionally, the Minister presented a wheelchair along with walking aids and talking watches to persons living with disabilities.

Speaking to the resi-

dents, Minister Persaud highlighted the Ministry’s numerous projects and programmes which are designed to educate and empower citizens regardless of their backgrounds. She said the Government is committed to investing in its human capital.

“We’re investing in you, and we want you to invest in yourself using your skills, your talents, the training that you will receive, to innovate, and then when you were all in the programmes, wherever you are, you will network with each other at WIIN and from start to finish, commit, finish the programme so that when you’re finished, you can use this accredited certificate to be employed more than that, I want you to start thinking about owning your own businesses.”

The Human Services Minister further encouraged residents to take full advantage of the opportunities presented. She also urged them to network and form groups to support each other.

Several beneficiaries shared their thoughts on the initiative.

Yvonne Braithwaite received her new eyewear

Yvonne Braithwaite related that, “I cannot see to thread the needle and I have two other young lady in my group I have to ask them, sometime they doing something and I had to disturb them to please thread this thing so now I put on the glasses and I can see really good so I don’t have to bother anyone. So, I am thankful for this so I can see now to thread my sewing machine needle and to sew more accurate. So, thanks again for this.”

Another beneficiary, Joseph Gonsalves expressed similar sentiments.

“I am very happy to receive this gift that the Government is giving, I feel very happy about receiving it. I thank the Government for doing something like this for me because I really needed a glasses for a number of years now but I cannot afford to buy it.”

Minister Persaud also used the opportunity to engage citizens and listen to their concerns.

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Single market best option for developmental agenda – Guyana, Suriname Private Sector – say Business Council will take bilateral partnership to new level

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n the wake of recent activity between Guyana and Suriname aimed at strengthening bilateral ties, the private sectors of both neighbouring countries have made it clear they will pursue the establishment of a single market, the best option for the two countries development.

This was contained in a joint statement released by the Private Sector Commission (PSC) of Guyana and the Suriname Trade and Industry Association (VSB), in which they spoke of their plans to establish a GuyanaSuriname Private Sector Business Council.

According to the two chambers, they have borne witness to the significant steps being taken between Guyana’s President Dr Irfaan Ali and Suriname President Chandrikapersad Santokhi, towards the development of a joint market and strategic business partnerships.

“The PSC and VSB have recognised the intentions of both leaders to strength-

en the bilateral relationship between Suriname and Guyana, especially with the involvement of the private sector as the engine for growth and development in both countries.”

“By that fact, all parties have acknowledged that the ideal way of developing our countries is by working towards a single market through collaborative business relations while fulfilling our developmental agenda,” the joint statement said.

According to the two chambers, establishing a Guyana-Suriname Private Sector Business Council, consisting of key representatives of the private sector, will be a joint effort. And this chamber will be solely dedicated to strengthening economic ties and initiatives that concern their shared interests and creating a single market and economy.

“The two countries have always enjoyed excellent people-to-people and business relations. Notably, this initiative will birth a vibrant and improved level of partnership and cooper-

ation between Guyana and Suriname,” they also said.

President Santokhi and a Surinamese delegation arrived in Guyana last week for a four-day State visit to discuss issues including health, agriculture, and oil and gas. One of the outcomes of extensive discussions over the past four days is in the area of energy security and exploring the potential between the two countries. The Guyanese and

Surinamese leaders said they are looking to engage neighbouring partners on the matter.

Guyana is a party to a Memorandum of Understanding on the Northern Arc (Arco Norte) Interconnection Project which seeks to evaluate the feasibility of a possible collaboration on the energy transmission system for the electric interconnection of Guyana, Suriname, French

Guiana and the northern cities of Brazil.

The project had been in talks for several years. In fact, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) had conducted baseline and pre-feasibility studies in 2016 and 2017 on the “Arco Norte Electrical Interconnection” project.

Another outcome had been the decision to establish a Joint Working Group inclusive of the Ministers of

Finance from the two countries. According to President Ali, the group will determine the investment and concessions package that will accompany the expressions of interest seeking financing, building, operating, and ownership of the bridge.

Ali further related that the Working Group will be looking at the bridge model taking into consideration the strategic development that will take place on both sides. The Working Group will take into consideration the now preferred model of design, build, finance, own and upgrade and put it to the shortlisted firms and determine whether they qualify for the feasibility study contract.

In November 2020, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Guyana and Suriname to facilitate the joint bridging of the Corentyne River. It was reported last month that 38 bids were received and jointly reviewed by the two countries and eight bidders were eventually shortlisted.

Building roads is not about how much money is spent; it is about changing lives – Edghill responsibilities while noting that the quality of work that is being carried out around the country is where it ought to be.

“It is a celebration for the improvement of the lives of

some social activities in the villages are being been shut down due to the state of the street leading to homes.

“Some people don’t go out anymore because they have to take off their shoes

“The decision that we have made is not just to give people a ‘feel-good’ but we want to have what is called sustainable development.

We want to be able to have what is called resilient in-

Public Works Minister Juan Edghill assisting a resident to cut the ribbon to the new road

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lthough the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) Government has spent billions of dollars in constructing and rehabilitating roads since taking office last year, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill stated that the aim is to improve the lives of the citizens.

Since August last year, more than six hundred roads have been upgraded by the Government.

Speaking at a sim-

ple ribbon-cutting ceremony on Saturday at Kilturn, Corentyne, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), where the Eversham/Kilturn northern walkway was upgraded from earth to asphaltic concrete, Minister Edghill said the $28 million spent is expected to make access easier for the residents.

Asquith Hamilton, the contractor who undertook the project, explained that apart from the poor condi-

tion of the walkway, there were no road shoulders at the commencement of the project.

“It was a swamp and we had to create two road shoulders to get this done.”

According to Hamilton, he was able to overcome the many challenges which were presented by working in tandem with the regional engineer.

However, Edghill pointed out that engineers are paying more attention to their

The new road that was asphalted at Eversham/Kilturn

the citizens who live in this area. It is the small things that matter.”

He emphasised the need for road surfaces to be up to standards in the event of an emergency, vehicles will be able to access the homes of all citizens.

He also pointed out that

to walk in the mud to get out and when they get back and the place is dark they cannot walk through the mud...”

According to Minister Edghill, Government will continue to build and upgrade roads across the country to improve the lives of all Guyanese.

frastructure. We want to be able to have what is called value for money, so we are not just throwing crusher-run and grading it, we are building solid aliphatic concrete roads.”

Those roads, the Minister added, will be able to last for years.

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Latin America and the Caribbean G7 leaders plan to pledge unity on needs common position to Taliban recognition, face COVID crisis – ECLAC sanctions – sources L atin America and the Caribbean needs a common position to face the COVID-19 crisis, which has deepened the Region’s structural gaps, and to move towards renewed international cooperation that would take middle-income countries’ needs into account, representatives indicated during the inauguration of the “Extraordinary Meeting of the Committee on SouthSouth Cooperation: opportunities for renewed international development cooperation in Latin America and the Caribbean”.

The two-day virtual event, which began on Thursday, featured welcome remarks by Alicia Bárcena, Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), and Rodolfo Solano Quirós, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica – the country that is presiding over the Committee on South-South Cooperation of ECLAC. ”This meeting is taking place at a tragic time for us,” Bárcena said, in reference to the earthquake that struck

Haiti less than a week ago.

The senior official thanked the immediate demonstrations of solidarity made by numerous countries in the Region and indicated that ECLAC has put all its capacities at the disposal of Haiti’s authorities and its people. “Haiti needs us, all of us,” she stressed, especially at this time of severe health, economic, social and environmental crisis.

Bárcena recalled that

“Latin America and the Caribbean needs to have a common position to tackle global asymmetries,” which include those related to access to vaccines, the concentration of wealth, the fight against climate change, and financing for development,” she emphasised.

Agreements are needed at an international, regional and national level to address issues such as universal health care, climate

ECLAC Executive Secretary Alicia Bárcena

Latin America and the Caribbean represents 8.4 per cent of the global population, but accounts for 21 per cent of COVID-19 infections and 32.5 per cent of the deaths caused by this disease. It has also been one of the hardest-hit regions in socioeconomic terms, with a 6.8 per cent drop in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2020. Although growth is expected in 2021 (5.2 per cent) and 2022 (2.9 per cent), it will not be enough to recuperate the level of GDP from 2019 in the majority of countries, or the level of employment, especially that of women, she warned.

security and financial stability, she added.

“International development cooperation must evolve towards a multidimensional concept to address the challenges faced by middle-income countries especially,” Bárcena said. “The Committee on South-South Cooperation of ECLAC can take important proposals before multiple public and private actors as well as civil society.”

Foreign Minister Rodolfo Solano Quirós echoed the words of solidarity with Haiti and urged the international community to redefine the concept of coop-

eration and move towards a new measurement of development that would integrate all the factors that affect this process – not just the economic ones – and take into account countries’ distinct vulnerabilities.

“From ECLAC’s Presidency, Costa Rica has promoted strengthening our work on development cooperation. It is indispensable that we act in solidarity and that our Region speak with a single voice before a world that is undergoing a profound reconfiguration,” the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica said.

“This is an optimal time for us to reinvent ourselves, to be the protagonists of change,” the Minister said, in reference to the work of the Committee on South-South Cooperation of ECLAC. He anticipated that “we have convened you so that the mechanism can evolve and this Committee can be transformed into a Conference,” in pursuit of a green, inclusive and resilient recovery in the Region with a human face, in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”.

(Excerpt from ECLAC)

Brazil military Police commander fired after publicly supporting Bolsonaro, slamming rivals

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he Governor of Brazil’s São Paulo state on Monday fired a senior military Police Commander who publicly supported a march in favour of President Jair Bolsonaro and attacked rival politicians.

The firing of Aleksander Lacerda, who led a regional São Paulo force with some

5000 men under his command, highlights the widespread support Bolsonaro, a far-right former army captain, has among Brazil’s roughly 500,000 military Police.

Critics say Bolsonaro is seeking to marshal their support ahead of a highly contentious presidential

Israel bombs Hamas sites in Gaza over fire balloons – military

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sraeli warplanes bombed Hamas sites in Gaza in response to incendiary balloons launched from the Palestinian enclave that caused brush fires in southern Israel, its military said early on Tuesday.

There were no immediate reports of casualties in the air strikes that targeted what the military said was a weapons production facility and a rocket launch site belonging to Hamas, the Islamist group that rules Gaza.

Since an Egyptianmediated ceasefire halted 11 days of Israel-Hamas fighting in May, Gaza militants have sporadically sent balloons laden with incendiary material into Israel, drawing Israeli strikes on Hamas facilities.

Palestinians say the balloons aim to pressure Israel to ease restrictions on Gaza and permit aid to reach the territory. Balloons launched

Monday set off fires in Israeli fields along the Gaza border, Israel’s Fire and Rescue Service said.

Cross-border violence has spiked despite an Israeli announcement last week of a resumption of Qatari aid to Gaza, a move that had been seen as bolstering the fragile truce.

Confronting Gaza protesters burning tyres and throwing explosives along the border on Saturday, Israeli troops shot and wounded 41 Palestinians, critically injuring two, medics said. Palestinian gunfire seriously wounded an Israeli soldier, the military said.

Days before Saturday’s violence, Gaza militants launched a rocket towards Israel that was shot down by its Iron Dome anti-missile system, in the first such rocket attack since the May 21 ceasefire. (Excerpt from Reuters)

election next year.

Bolsonaro, who trails former leftist President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva in most polls, has cast doubts on the electoral process and attacked election authorities, sparking fears he may not accept a loss. If the country’s military Police were to support his claims, it would pose major democratic risks in Latin America’s biggest country, experts say.

Active-duty military

Police are prohibited from making political demonstrations.

According to the Estado de S Paulo newspaper, Lacerda posted on Facebook asking “friends” of the President to attend a September 7 march in support of Bolsonaro.

“Freedom is not gained, it is taken,” he wrote, according to the newspaper report. “On 7/9, I will go.”

(Excerpt from Reuters)

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas speaks on developments in Afghanistan, in Berlin, Germany, August 23, 2021

L

eaders of the G7 advanced economies are expected to pledge unity on whether or not to officially recognise or sanction the Taliban when they meet virtually to discuss Afghanistan today, according to two diplomatic sources.

US allies are still smarting from Washington’s delays in outreach after Kabul fell on August 15, and foreign diplomats in Washington said cooperation would be a key theme of the call.

“The G7 leaders will agree to coordinate on if or when to recognise the Taliban,” said one European diplomat. “And they will commit to continue to work closely together.”

The Taliban’s lightning-fast takeover of the country this month, after US troops started to withdraw and President Ashraf

Ghani fled, left foreign Governments scrambling and sparked a panicked mass exodus from the country.

Leaders of the United States, Britain, Italy, France, Germany, Canada, and Japan may use the possibility of unified official recognition, or renewed sanctions to push the Taliban to comply with pledges to respect women’s rights and international relations.

Recognition is a political act taken by sovereign states with important consequences, including allowing the Taliban access to the foreign aid relied upon by previous Afghan Governments.

A 2020 agreement signed by the former Trump Administration explicitly states that the group “is not recognised by the United States as a state”. (Excerpt from Reuters)

18

guyanatimesgy.com

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021

Regional

Bolivia: Former President stable after suicide attempt in jail

Bolivian interim President Jeanine Anez speaks during a news conference in La Paz [File: Ronaldo Schemidt/ AFP]

J

ailed former Bolivian President Jeanine Anez is in “stable” condition after she tried to take her own life after Prosecutors charged her with “genocide” over the deaths of protesters in 2019, an official has said.

“We can say, without a doubt, that her health is stable,” Juan Carlos Limpias, the Director of Prisons, told reporters on Sunday.

“At the moment, she is

with her family in the penitentiary. The family will be an important factor to help improve her state of mind,” he added.

Carolina Ribera, Anez’s daughter, said her mother made an attempt on her own life on Saturday due to “severe depression” because of her prolonged imprisonment.

Norma Cueller, Anez’s lawyer, told reporters on

Saturday that the former President’s actions were a “cry for help” and that “she feels very harassed”.

Anez, 54, was detained earlier this year over accusations that she participated in a coup to depose longtime former President Evo Morales in 2019. She has denied the allegations and says she is a victim of political persecution. She is in jail while awaiting trial.

On Friday, Attorney General Juan Lanchipa announced “genocide” charges against Anez over two incidents in November 2019 in which a total of 22 people died in clashes with the Police. The victims were supporters of Morales.

Lanchipa said he had presented documents against her in which the incidents were “provisionally classified as genocide, serious and minor injury and injury followed by death”.

Anez also faces charges of terrorism, sedition, and conspiracy. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Haiti quake survivors fear for children's future

M

any survivors of an earthquake that killed more than 2200 people in southern Haiti are worried about providing for their children, with more than half a million minors feared to be at risk from the fallout.

The August 14 quake hammered infrastructure, destroying or damaging some 130,000 homes, cutting off roads and pitching thousands of families in the Western Hemisphere’s poorest country into an uncertain future.

When the magnitude 7.2 quake struck, homemaker Lovely Jean was resting inside the general hospital of the southern city of Les Cayes, while her three-day-

old baby, Love Shaiska, was in the neonatal ward being treated for an infection.

Les Cayes was one of the areas worst hit by the quake, and as the hospital walls trembled, Jean sent her husband, Pierre Alexandre, to grab the infant while she fled the building.

“The earth was shaking and I was crying, so scared of what was happening,” the 24-year-old said, cradling her child on the porch of their damaged home in a tiny village outside the town of Camp-Perrin, northwest of Les Cayes.

The three survived, though the hospital suffered damage that forced

some of its departments, including the neonatal ward, to operate outside for days after the disaster.

But the problems were only beginning for Jean and her husband, a subsistence farmer.

Alexandre’s fields were buried by landslides during the earthquake and rain unleashed by Tropical Storm Grace, which pummelled Haiti last Tuesday. His entire potato and yuca crop was unreachable, leaving the family with barely any food to eat.

More than a dozen other parents who spoke to Reuters in the quake zone expressed similar concerns about how they would cope.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Take steps to fight pandemic, Skerrit tells Dominicans

P

rime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit has issued an appeal to Dominicans to take all the necessary steps to fight the pandemic that has to date, led to one death on the island.

In an address to the nation on Saturday, Skerrit said that citizens should use “simple, old common sense to fight its way out of the clutches of this disease and back to a position of normality in numbers”.

In stating that the pandemic could be around for some time, the Prime

Minister noted that his administration would be employing a programme of pragmatism.

“We have ensured an adequate supply of different vaccines in Dominica. We are now working feverishly to acquire the infrastructure to house and administer the highly acclaimed Pfizer vaccine, a donation from the US Government.

We will get all the vaccines to Dominica. I will go as far as to say, we will get all the vaccines within reach of every community in Dominica.

We will find the resources to

T&T PM lays out case for extending SoE, maintaining curfew hours

P

rime Minister Dr Keith Rowley has made a case for keeping the 9 pm to 5 am curfew and for extended the State of Emergency (SoE) by an additional three months.

Dr Rowley over the weekend defended the curfew period in a text exchange with Guardian Media, saying that it was necessary to reduce movement and congregating that could trigger a third wave of the COVID-19 virus.

“The curfew reduces mixing and congregation of people where it is not necessary to have such exposure 9:00 pm to 5:00 am,” he said.

Members of the business community, including the Chamber of Industry and Commerce, have asked for the curfew hours to be relaxed, with the Chamber suggesting that it begins at midnight instead of 9 pm.

“This approach is the most prudent in anticipa-

Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley

tion of the possibility and likelihood of facing a possible Delta virus challenge,” he said.

The Prime Minister said the curfew would also suppress the anticipated “freedom partying”.

“That is sure to follow any removal of the restrictions,” he said.

Dr Rowley also said that the extended curfew coupled with the continued vaccinations would give “us the best chance to support and sustain the gains we have made so far”.

O

edly blew on an oil line, resulting in the fire.

In addressing reports that staff had been injured in the blaze, Ebanks told the Jamaica Observer close to press time Sunday night that no such information had been received.

“I can’t confirm anything about how it started, because the fire is still going on. We presently have seven fire units and approximately 61 firefighters on scene. The fire is now contained and we are continuing the firefight,” Ebanks told the Observer.

Responding to senti-

ments

that

the

Jamaica

Fire Brigade team might not have been equipped to deal with a fire of that nature because it is reliant on using water, he said, “When we get to different aspects of the fire, then we will treat with whatever extinguishing medium is required. As it is right now, we are using water.”

As for an initial assessment of the damage, Ebanks said that would not be forthcoming in the short term.

(Excerpt from Jamaica Observer)

The House of Representatives will break from recess on Wednesday to debate the motion for the extension which the Prime Minister will pilot and which can be passed with a simple majority, not requiring Opposition support.

Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar had issued a media release Friday saying that without the requisite data to support the extension, the move would be “disastrous”.

(Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

Hurricane Grace: Mexican man buries wife and 5 children killed in mudslide

Major fire cripples operations at Jamaican bauxite plant

perations at bauxite outfit Jamalco in Hayes, Clarendon, were on Monday “at a standstill” following a “major fire” Sunday evening that took a cross-parish effort, which lasted well over six hours, of seven units from the Jamaica Fire Brigade and 61 fire personnel to contain the blaze.

According to public relations officer for the brigade, Emeleo Ebanks, the fire reportedly began sometime after 15:00h. He was, however, unable to confirm or dismiss reports that a flange report-

equip and staff centres with all that is needed to administer vaccinations to those who come forward for vaccinations.”

He said, however, that in the final analysis, “it is up to the people of Dominica to decide on what each of you wish not only for yourselves but for your families, neighbours, friends and work colleagues”.

Skerrit told the nation that he would not be going to the Parliament to pass a law to make it mandatory for anybody to take the vaccine.

(Excerpt from Nation News)

The youngest victim was a 15-day-old baby

T

he funeral has been held of a family of six who died when a landslide engulfed their home in the Mexican state of Veracruz on Saturday.

A mother and five of her six children – the youngest just two weeks old – were killed in the landslide triggered by Hurricane Grace in the city of Xalapa.

The woman’s husband has been telling local media

how he and his neighbours tried to free his family from the mud.

Rescuers eventually managed to pull a sevenyear-old boy out alive.

The man, named as Adán by local media, said he had run from their simple home on a hillside when he had heard a loud roar early in the morning on Saturday.

Fearing that the hill behind the house might be

about to collapse, he shouted at neighbours to help him get his family out.

“When I returned, I found my wife and children had already been buried under the mud,” he told newspaper El Sol de Orizaba.

The dead have been named as 27-year-old Dora Isabel and her children Kevin, 9; Cristofer, 5; Axel Jair, 4; Alexa, 3; and two-week-old baby María Fernanda.

Adán and his neighbours described how they heard one voice calling for help. Rescue workers with search dogs managed to locate his seven-yearold son, who was freed from the mud with only some minor injuries.

Nearby, a seven-year-old girl was also killed when a wall collapsed on top of her as the foundations of her home gave way. (Excerpt from BBC News)

guyanatimesgy.com

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021

19

Around the world

OILNEWS OIL NEWS Oil jumps 5% after 7 days of losses, boosted by weaker dollar

O

il prices rose more than 5 per cent on Monday, as a weaker dollar and strong global equities markets boosted crude futures after seven sessions of declines.

Brent crude climbed US$3.57, or 5.5 per cent, to end the session at US$68.75 a barrel after touching its lowest since May 21 at US$64.60 during the session.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for October delivery rose US$3.50, or 5.6 per cent, to settle at US$65.64.

Both benchmarks marked their biggest week of losses in more than nine months last week, with Brent sliding about 8 per cent and WTI about 9 per cent.

But a drop in the US dollar provided a boost on Monday, making crude less expensive for holders of other currencies.

“Although the oil complex has generally been able to shrug off strength in the stock market, the bullish combo of increased risk appetite and significant weakening in the US dollar indices represents a potent mix that oil has been forced to recognise,” said Jim Ritterbusch, President of Ritterbusch and Associates in Galena, Illinois.

The dollar index, which measures the currency against six peers, was down 0.4 per cent after hitting its highest level in more than nine months on Friday.

The MSCI world equity index, which tracks shares in 50 countries, was up, after having its biggest weekly fall since June last week.

Still, many nations are responding to the rising coronavirus infection rate by introducing new travel restrictions.

“We expect to see more adjustments this week, but the market sentiment will likely remain bearish, with growing concerns over slower fuel demand worldwide,” said Kazuhiko Saito, chief analyst at Fujitomi Securities.

China, the world’s largest oil importer, has imposed new restrictions, which is affecting shipping and global supply chains.

The United States and China have also imposed restrictions on flight capacity.

While the pandemic drags on fuel demand, supply is steadily increasing. US production rose and drilling companies added rigs for the third week in a row, services company Baker Hughes said.

“We anticipate that benchmark oil prices will remain, for now, stuck in a period of trendless rangebound volatility,” RBC Capital Markets analysts said in a note.

“Market participants may be compelled to buy the dip, but risk is not being forced and conviction levels remain low given the lack of visibility to near-term upside catalysts.”

Investors were also adjusting their positions before the US Federal Reserve’s annual Jackson Hole symposium in Wyoming on Friday.

“While the virus remains a threat to the short-term demand outlook, despite signs of an improving situation in China, this week’s Jackson Hole summit may give the market some ideas about the timing of tapering,” said Ole Hansen, Saxo Bank’s head of commodity strategy, referring to an expected reduction in monetary stimulus for the economy. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Poland to build fence, double troop numbers on Belarus border

P

oland will build a fence along its border with Belarus and double the number of troops there, the Defence Minister said on Monday, to halt a flow of migrants the European Union says is being driven by Minsk in retaliation for EU sanctions.

Poland and fellow EU states Lithuania and Latvia have reported sharp increases in migrants from countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan trying to cross their borders. The EU says Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is waging “hybrid warfare” with migrants to exert pressure on the bloc.

Polish Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said that a new 2.5-metre-(8.2foot)-high solid fence would be built on the border with Belarus.

At a press conference at the border Blaszczak also

said the military presence there would be increased.

“It is necessary to increase the number of soldiers. ... We will soon double the number of soldiers to 2000,” he said.

Poland’s Government has come under sharp criticism from human rights advocates over the plight of a group of migrants trapped for two weeks in the open between Polish and Belarusian border guards near the village of Usnarz Gorny.

Poland says allowing the migrants to enter Polish territory would encourage further illegal migration and would also play into Lukashenko’s hands.

“These are not refugees, they are economic migrants brought in by the Belarusian Government,” Deputy Foreign Minister Marcin Przydacz told reporters. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Taliban warns of “consequences” if US delays withdrawal

T

he Taliban will not agree to an extension of the evacuation mission from Afghanistan, and is “warning of consequences” if it is prolonged.

The move would mean “extending occupation” and that is “a red line”, Suhail Shaheen, a member of the Taliban delegation in Doha, the capital of Qatar, said on Monday.

United States President Joe Biden said on Sunday that the “hard and painful” airlift of Americans and tens of thousands of others from Afghanistan’s capital is accelerating, but he would not rule out extending it beyond the August

Kabul airport, Afghanistan

31 deadline he set before the Taliban’s swift takeover.

The airport has been the scene of chaos since the Taliban seized the Afghan capital on August 15 as

US and international forces try to evacuate citizens and vulnerable Afghans. A NATO official has said that at least 20 people have died in and around the airport in the past week.

An Afghan security guard has been killed in a firefight between unknown gunmen and Afghan forces at the north gate of Kabul airport, the German military said, as thousands thronged the airport, seeking to flee Taliban rule.

Three more people were injured in the gun battle on Monday morning that has also involved German and US forces, the German military said on Twitter.

The crowds outside Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport continue to grow with each passing day of Taliban rule. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Iran resumes fuel Ukraine’s President exports to neighbouring pledges to “return” Afghanistan Russia-annexed Crimea

I

ran resumed fuel exports to Afghanistan a few days ago following a request from the new Afghan Government, which feels empowered by the US withdrawal to buy the sanctioned nation's oil more openly, an Iranian official told Reuters.

The Sunni Muslim group seized power in Afghanistan last week as the United States and its allies withdrew troops after a 20-year war.

The price of gasoline in Afghanistan reached US$900 per tonne as many Afghans drove out of cities, fearing reprisals and a return to a harsh version of Islamic law the Taliban imposed when in power two decades ago.

To counter the price spike, the new Taliban asked Shi'ite Iran to keep the borders open for traders.

The Taliban sent messages to Iranian traders and to an Iranian chamber of commerce, which has close links to the Government.

As a result, the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA), which is a part of the Government, lifted a ban on fuel exports to Afghanistan, which had been in place since Aug 6 because of Iran's concerns about the safety of trading in the country.

Those concerns have been eased by the Taliban's attitude, Hosseini said.

He also cited the Taliban's decision to cut tariffs on imports of fuel from Iran and other neighbouring countries and shared with Reuters an official document issued by Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan - the name by which the Taliban refers to itself.

Iran sits on the world’s fourth-largest oil reserves, but the latest round of US sanctions imposed by former US President Donald Trump in 2018, has significantly reduced Iranian oil exports.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

U

kraine’s President V o l o d y m y r Zelenskyy has pledged to do all he can to recover the Russianannexed Crimean peninsula and urged international allies to support the effort.

Speaking on Monday at the Crimean Platform, a summit in Kyiv designed to keep international attention focused on Russia’s 2014 annexation, Zelenskyy said Ukraine would use “all possible political, legal and first and foremost diplomatic means” to pursue its goal.

Russia’s seizure of Crimea was denounced as illegal by most of the world and has sent Moscow’s relations with the West plummeting to post-Cold War lows in the years since.

“I will personally do everything possible to return Crimea so that it becomes part of Europe together with Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.

He told the forum that Kyiv needed “effective support at the international level” over the issue.

Top officials from 46 countries and blocs took part in the summit, including from the United States, the European Union and Turkey.

All 30 member states of the NATO transatlantic security alliance were represented.

Top Western officials relayed messages of support for Ukraine.

“Ukraine will never be alone in that Crimea is Ukraine,” EU Council President Charles Michel said.

“Unfortunately, Russia continues to act in ways that multiply the negative impact of the annexation,” he added.

“The continued militarisation of the peninsula heavily affects the security situation in the Black Sea region.”

But Moscow was quick to denounce the gathering, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissing it as an “anti-Russian event”.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Tennessee flash floods kill 22 with dozens missing

Many people in the town of Waverly are searching for missing friends and relatives

A

t least 22 people have been killed and dozens more are missing following flash floods in the US state of Tennessee.

Rescue crews are still searching for dozens of people in rural Humphreys County, which is west of

Nashville.

The record-breaking flooding began on Saturday, submerging entire roads and taking out telephone and power lines.

Emergency workers are searching door-to-door in the worst-hit areas, with

rescuers also combing through the debris of homes that were washed away.

The names of the missing have been listed on a notice board at an emergency centre in Humphreys County, with relatives left fearing the worst.

On the county’s Facebook page, people have been desperately seeking any information that could help locate their missing friends and relatives.

Most of the missing are from the town of Waverly.

The state’s Governor Bill Lee visited on Sunday.

“The loss of life and property damage is devastating,” he said. “Our hearts are with the many Tennesseans

experiencing loss and heartbreak.”

Thousands of people in Humphreys County have been left without power, while a reunification centre has been set up at a school.

People have been asked to donate items to help those displaced.

Emergency officials expect the death toll to rise in the coming days.

At least 17 inches (43cm) of rain fell in Humphreys County in less than 24 hours Saturday, breaking Tennessee’s one-day record.

It comes as another major weather event, Storm Henri, dumps heavy rain on the north-eastern US. (Excerpt from BBC News)

20

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021

guyanatimesgy.com

ARCHIE

ARIES (March 21April 19)

TAURUS

DILBERT

(April 20May 20)

GEMINI (May 21June 20)

CANCER (June 21July 22)

PEANUTS

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

CALVIN AND HOBBES

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

SUDOKU

Self-improvement projects will pay off. Focus on fitness, emotional and physical strength and what you can do to enjoy life. Romance is encouraged. Think about how to stabilize your life.

Make the changes that suit your needs. Don’t sit on the sidelines waiting for someone else to make the first move. Use your intelligence and turn your ideas into something concrete. Keep life simple.

Digest what’s going on around you and decide who is on your team and who opposes you. It’s OK to think big, but you are better off living within your means. Discipline and hard work will bring the best results.

Spend more time finding innovative ways to up your game or make your surroundings less stressful. Be creative, and consider changes that won’t break your budget.

Seek counsel from an experienced individual.

Uncertainty is a warning that you aren’t satisfied with a proposition or situation. Rethink your steps and consider the pros and cons.

Be resourceful and check out other opportunities.

Interact with experts.

Gather information, formulate a strategy and take on something that will help you achieve your dreams. Speak up, share your intentions and move forward with enthusiasm.

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Play to win, figure out what you want and negotiate with finesse. Do whatever it takes to stabilize your personal life. Make your space inviting and convenient. Rethink your spending habits.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Do something eccentric, adventurous or creative.

Become the topic of conversation and the go-to person when others need advice.

Explore new possibilities and stretch your mind.

Don’t lose sight of your SAGITTARIUS objective. Be suspicious of (Nov. 23anyone trying to take conDec. 21) trol. Information will be sketchy and may require verification before you pass it along.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19) Saturday's Word -- Morale

SOLUTION FOR LAST PUBLISHED PUZZLE

Take advantage of a moneymaking opportunity. A financial gain is apparent. You’ll know when to make your move. A positive change at home or to your assets is within reach.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 19)

Be secretive about financial, medical or contractual dealings. Pay more attention to your appearance.

Set trends instead of adopting what others are doing.

Romance is on the rise.

PISCES

You’ll gain respect if you follow through with your plans. Find a way to manage money more efficiently.

Update your skills and gather information. Now’s the time to get things done.

(Feb. 20March 20)

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021

21

Afridi, Abbas give Pakistan a shot at 1-1 scoreline

…West Indies start solidly in their steep chase as a thrilling final day looms

T

he weather on day two and the farce around a damp patch near the pitch on the following day brought out the worst of Test cricket. But on day four, chasing a game to salvage the series and precious World Test Championship points, Pakistan ensured we saw the best of the grand old format, too.

Shaheen Afridi, among the brightest stars in world cricket, lit up the contest with a careerbest six-wicket haul in the first innings, rolling West Indies over in a little more than a session.

It allowed Pakistan a lead of 152, and permission to put on their T20 boots as they hurtled to 176 in 27.3 overs, ensuring West Indies would bat for 18 overs. They must now prevent Pakistan from taking nine wickets today if they are to cling on to the series. West Indies, mind you, need 280 more runs for a clean sweep, but on the evidence of events on Monday, it seems a remote possibility.

The elements seemed to have conspired to lead this game down the cul-desac of a pointless draw, but emboldened by having nothing

Shaheen Afridi followed up two four-fours in the first Test with a six-for in the second

to lose, Pakistan made it an engrossing viewing. Afridi made short work of nightwatchman Alzarri Joseph in the morning, drawing a meaty outside edge that Babar Azam snaffled at third slip to further underscore Pakistan's dominance in the contest.

The spell that followed was perhaps Pakistan's most wayward, with Afridi, in particular, going too far down

SCOREBOARD WEST INDIES 1ST INNINGS Kraigg Brathwaite (c) b Shaheen Shah Afridi 4 Kieran Powell lbw b Shaheen Shah Afridi 5 Nkrumah Bonner c †Mohammad Rizwan b Mohammad Abbas 37 Roston Chase b Faheem Ashraf 10 Alzarri Joseph c Babar Azam b Shaheen Shah Afridi 4 Jermaine Blackwood c Fawad Alam b Shaheen Shah Afridi 33 Kyle Mayers c †Mohammad Rizwan b Mohammad Abbas 0 Jason Holder c †Mohammad Rizwan b Shaheen Shah Afridi 26 Joshua Da Silva † lbw b Mohammad Abbas 6 Kemar Roach c Babar Azam b Shaheen Shah Afridi 8 Jayden Seales not out 0 Extras (lb 10, nb 6, w 1) 17 TOTAL (51.3 Ov, RR: 2.91) 150 Fall of wickets: 1-8 (Kieran Powell, 3.5 ov), 2-9 (Kraigg Brathwaite, 5.3 ov), 3-34 (Roston Chase, 13.3 ov), 4-45 (Alzarri Joseph, 21.1 ov), 5-105 (Nkrumah Bonner, 38.5 ov), 6-105 (Kyle Mayers, 38.6 ov), 7-109 (Jermaine Blackwood, 39.6 ov), 8-116 (Joshua Da Silva, 44.5 ov), 9-143 (Jason Holder, 49.5 ov), 10-150 (Kemar Roach, 51.3 ov) BOWLING: Mohammad Abbas-18-6-44-3; Shaheen Shah Afridi-17.3-7-51-6; Hasan Ali--8-1-30-0; Faheem Ashraf-7-4-14-1; Nauman Ali--1-0-1-0.

PAKISTAN 2ND INNINGS Imran Butt c Bonner b Mayers Abid Ali c sub (SD Hope) b

37

Joseph 29 Azhar Ali c Blackwood b Brathwaite 22 Babar Azam (c) c Bonner b Joseph 33 Hasan Ali c †Da Silva b Holder 17 Faheem Ashraf lbw b Holder 9 Mohammad Rizwan † not out 10 Extras (b 5, lb 6, nb 1, w 7) 19 TOTAL (27.2 Ov, RR: 6.43 ) 176/6d Did not bat: Fawad Alam, Nauman Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Abbas Fall of wickets: 1-70 (Abid Ali, 9.3 ov), 2-90 (Imran Butt, 12.6 ov), 3-107 (Azhar Ali, 17.3 ov), 4-145 (Hasan Ali, 21.2 ov), 5-160 (Faheem Ashraf, 23.6 ov), 6-176 (Babar Azam, 27.2 ov) BOWLING: Kemar Roach--3-1-11-0; Jayden Seales--3-0-32-0; Jason Holder--6-0-27-2; Alzarri Joseph--4.2-0-24-2; Kyle Mayers--7-0-43-1; Kraigg Brathwaite-4-0-28-1.

WEST INDIES 2ND INNINGS (TARGET: 329 RUNS) Kraigg Brathwaite (c) not out 17 Kieran Powell run out (Shaheen Shah Afridi) 23 Alzarri Joseph not out 8 Extras (lb 1) 1 TOTAL (19 Ov, RR: 2.57) 49/1 Yet to bat: Nkrumah Bonner, Roston Chase, Jermaine Blackwood, Kyle Mayers, Jason Holder, Joshua Da Silva †, Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales Fall of wickets: 1-34 (Kieran Powell, 12.6 ov) BOWLING: Mohammad Abbas-5-1-18-0; Shaheen Shah Afridi-5-3-5-0; Hasan Ali--5-220-0; Faheem Ashraf-4-3-5-0.

the leg side as he tried to exploit the angle into the right-hander.

Abbas prowled and menaced, but through a combination of Blackwood's flamboyance and Nkrumah Bonner's steel, West Indies were finding a way of settling down.

Hasan Ali went after the stumps, too, perhaps to exploit Bonner's tendency to get out bowled or lbw, his mode of dismissal in six of his nine Test dismissals. But it gave away easy runs to fine leg and the pair soon brought up the 50-run partnership for the fifth wicket.

At that point, it appeared to be the hosts' session.

Abbas changed all that in two deliveries. Not exactly two, because he had worked on softening Bonner up with inswinging deliveries before moving one away that kissed the outside edge. Kyle Mayers, yet to score a run this series, saw his wait extended by

another innings after Abbas went around the wicket and induced him to poke at one.

West Indies were suddenly six down and Afridi was steaming in, enjoying a second wind. He went short to Blackwood, and even though the batter pulled him away for four once, he kept plugging away. A beast of a bouncer threatened to lodge up the batter's nostrils, and as Blackwood desperately fended it off, it flew up towards gully.

Fawad Alam took an excellent catch as he leapt to his right, and both set batters had departed.

Jason Holder’s exuberance saw Abbas targeted early after lunch, going for two fours and a six off his first seven deliveries.

But it was only a matter of time before Afridi got rid of him, the Bajan coaxed into playing a loose drive that only took a feather off his outside edge.

Azam held onto a sharp chance at midwicket to give Afridi his maiden Test six-wicket haul, and Pakistan sprinted out to bat with a spring in their step.

Abid Ali and Imran Butt have had difficult tours, but neither worried too much about their personal numbers in the manner they approached the innings. Recognising that time in this Test remains a precious commodity, they got Pakistan off to a flyer, with Abid setting the tone by smashing three boundaries off his first four balls. West Indies, until now impressively consistent with the ball, didn't help themselves either, allowing four byes and as many leg byes inside the first three overs as the run rate shot up to nine.

West Indies are at their best when attacking the batters, but Pakistan's fast start put them immediately in defensive mode.

Jayden Seales went for three more boundaries in his third over, and as negative, wide-line bowling seeped into the hosts' game, Pakistan continued to press the issue. The openers and Azhar Ali fell before lunch in pursuit of further quick runs, but it didn't stop Pakistan bringing up the hundred in the 17th over on the stroke of tea.

Not that the break offered the hosts any respite. Pakistan continued to go hell for leather as West Indies receded further into defensive, negative tactics.

It prompted the umpires to clamp down on wide bowling, but either way, the runs were flowing freely. Hasan Ali was sent up to bash a few, and Mohammad Rizwan and Faheem Ashraf all joined the fun. When the Captain Azam

holed out, though, he decided enough was enough, and gave West Indies the last 90 minutes of the day to survive.

West Indies' top-order resistance came to the party for the first time, seeing off the new ball. Abbas and Afridi weren't quite at their spellbinding first innings best, but Pakistan would still have wanted to break through into the middle order tonight.

But Kraigg Brathwaite left everything that wasn't on the stumps and kept out the rest, while Keiron Powell, fighting for his place in the side, took a cue from his Captain and turned out his most assured performance of the series.

He would survive for more than an hour in hostile conditions, but no one will ever really remember that for how it ended. A classy cover drive from Brathwaite meant an easy three was on, and while Brathwaite jogged through to the nonstriker's end, Powell was equally blasé at the end the ball was thrown to. Afridi's lob was headed directly for the stumps, and Rizwan, recognising that, let it go. Powell had never bothered to ground his bat, and a West Indies partnership Pakistan were struggling to break dissolved all by itself.

Unlike Sunday, however, there were no further wickets to fall. Nightwatchman Joseph ended the day as he started it, batting to keep his side in the game, and alongside his Captain, lived to fight another day. Another day is all that it'll take, but if Pakistan's pace bowlers are at their best, it'll feel like a rather long one.

(ESPNcricinfo)

Hero CPL launches merchandise range

H

ero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) is launching an online merchandise store which will make top- quality apparel and souvenirs available worldwide.

The store has been designed by Cube Partnership, an expert sports retail, e-commerce, licensing and merchandise business, which works with international sports events and brands, including The Rugby League World Cup 2021, Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, Aston Martin Cognizant Formula 1 team, and Solheim Cup 2023.

The range of merchandise will include items featuring the league and franchise branding and will be available for fans all over the world. In 2020, the Hero CPL had more than 500 million views with significant interest around the globe. Those Hero CPL fans in the Caribbean and around the rest of the world will have the chance to show their colours with this fantastic range of products.

The full range of products can be viewed at CPL’s online shop.

Hero CPL’s Head of Marketing, Chris Watson, said: “At the Hero CPL we are blessed with some of the best fans in the world and we are really excited that we are

able to launch this online store with the Cube Partnership. They have a fantastic track record of delivering exceptional products to customers all over the world.”

Cube International Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ed Boardman said: “We are delighted to partner with Hero CPL. Following our mandate of “Sport

Reimagined”, it is one of the most exciting and vibrant leagues in world cricket and we are looking forward to enhancing our partnership with Hero CPL and delivering a world-class merchandise programme to further elevate the brand and offer fans the world over a truly outstanding retail experience.” (CPL T20)

22

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021

Coaches voice their views as CPL 2021 set to kick off with a bang

Jamaica Tallawahs Head Coach Floyd Reifer

SKNP Head Coach Simon Hemlot

TKR Head Coach Imran Jan

By Timothy Jaikarran

such as Captain Kieron Pollard, Sunil Narine, and Colin Munro among others, and related that preparations for the TKR have been fantastic. He added that the team were in good spirits and were up for the challenge.

Jan went on to elaborate how his side would tackle the new venue. He stated that the TKR have catered for the wind factor and such as they would have bowlers bowling to specific ends of the ground, pulling back their lengths, etc, as the venue is a high-scoring one.

He also noted that the TKR camp was full of energy and personally as a coach, once he is able to motivate and inspire and make sure everyone brings their “A” game, only smooth sailing is expected from there.

good in the camp and we are just looking forward to getting out in the park and playing some good games,” Reifer said.

The Tallawahs will be without the services of Glenn Phillips and Mujeeb Ur Rahaman, who were the standout performers in the 2020 edition; however, Reifer has stated that the Tallawahs are focusing on playing as a unit rather than depending on one person. He noted that the unit was focused on team performance rather than one individual player.

Speaking of the experienced Guyanese spinner Veerasammy Permaul, Reifer said, “He is an experienced campaigner; he played his first game for the Jamaica Tallawahs last year and did a good, so it depends on the games we play and who we play against so his roles may vary.”

Reifer also added that the addition of Chris Green to the Tallawahs line-up has boosted the squad as he will be expecting a lot from Green, who had a good stint at the Warriors. He reiterated that the

T

he six coaches representing the various Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) teams spoke with the media virtually on Monday, August 23, as to what they expect from their teams, with just a couple days remaining before the commencement of the tournament. Here’s what they had to say: Trinbago Knight Riders – Imran Jan The Knight Riders will kick start their CPL campaign against the Guyana Amazon Warriors.

Head Coach of the TKR side, Imran Jan in a statement said, “Always excited to play against Guyana, it’s always been a rivalry that we look forward to. We had the better of them last year, but that’s done and dusted, it’s a new season and it’s going to be challenging as it pertains to a new venue and what It poses for us. But we are excited for it and the guys are up for the challenge.”

The TKR Coach noted the arrival of several big names

Jamaica Tallawahs – Floyd Reifer “Most of the players are here so we are awaiting two more players, but other than that, we have 96 per cent of our players on the ground. We have new faces, but we still have the core of the team; the vibes are

Tallawahs would be expecting a lot of him and was confident that he would bring a lot to the table on and off the field.

“Based on last year’s performance I wouldn’t judge the team, the pitches, bubble life, lack of preparation coming into the tournament, so a lot happened last year that the guys are not accustomed to, so I wouldn’t put a lot on last year. I think this year guys are better prepared and yes while the situation may be the same as in Trinidad, everyone that is coming in has had some form of cricket behind them,” Reifer added.

St Kitts and Nevis Patriots – Simon Hemlot “We are starting to get together and gel, it’s different during this COVID time, but it’s all for a good reason to play in the “Biggest Party in Sports”.

I’m looking forward to coaching the Patriots. Our expectation is to compete in the finals and have a push in the finals; we are pleased to pick up recruits such as Sherfane Rutherford, Ravi Bopara, etc. I am happy that we have players such as Dwayne Bravo, Chris Gayle and Rayad Emrit which will bring a blend of experience which is helpful in the T20 squad,” Hemlot said.

He went on to state that having the addition of Rutherford, a Guyanese, in the squad was a big boost to the middle order. “I think he will be strong in the middle order; he is versatile, he is all-round and can bowl. So, guys like Sherfane bring that X factor and they can complement the Patriots talent here. He didn’t have a good season at the Warriors last season, but I’m hoping he can have a really big season here at the Patriots.”

The Patriots Coach has

Lugard Mohan and Shanna Chester approved as FIBA Commissioners for Guyana

G

uyana’s Youth National Team Coach and former FIBA Referee Lugard Mohan and Guyana Basketball Federation (GABF) Table Official Shanna Chester became the first male and female Guyanese respectively to be approved by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) as Commissioners.

The sport's world governing body recently confirmed their approval after Mohan and Chester successfully completed a series of educational training and tests, with both passing with perfect scores. Guyana was awarded one FIBA Commissioner licence for the 2021-2023 period, and after the GABF General Secretary and FIBA 3x3 Commission member Patrick Haynes wrote to the FIBA Technical Commission requesting an additional allocation for a female Commissioner licence under one of FIBA's pillars --- "Women in Basketball" – the additional licence was awarded to Guyana and Chester was nominated by the GABF to complete the course.

In the official letter affirming their approval, the FIBA Technical Commission

Mohan Lugard

analysed the data provided by the GABF as part of the licensing of FIBA Commissioners for the period 2021-2023 along with their test scores, "We hereby inform you that the FIBA Technical Commission has decided to issue a FIBA Commissioner Licence to the candidates selected by the Guyana Basketball Federation.

“In accordance with the FIBA Internal Regulations, the FIBA licence will be valid for

Shanna Chester

two years, at as of September 1, 2021 and will expire on August 31, 2023 (subject to the indicated in Articles 3-173 and 3-227 of the FIBA Internal Regulations).”

As FIBA Commissioners, Mohan and Chester will represent and act on behalf of the GABF General Secretary to ensure that games are conducted in accordance with the spirit and the letter of the official basketball rules;

Ensure the full cooperation of the referees, game organisers and the teams; provide information to the referees if they are requested to do so during or after the game; and be primarily responsible for the smooth running of the scorers’ table, being seated between the timekeeper and the scorer.

FIBA Commissioners have full authority to resolve any problems that may arise between all parties involved.

In particular, they have the right to require adequate Police (or professional security service) presence to ensure the smooth and sportsmanlike running of game. Having completed their duties, FIBA Commissioners shall make a report on the competition and send it to the GABF within the given deadline, together with all required documents.

The GABF said it would like to thank both Mohan and Chester for their efforts made in completing and passing with distinction in attaining the FIBA Commissioner Licences, and that it looked forward to continuing to work together in the service of arbitration in Guyana and the Caribbean Region.

St Lucia Kings Head Coach Andy Flower

Barbados Royals Head Coach Daniel Vettori

noted that the addition of the fans this season would be a blessing. He added that while last season was different, he is confident that this season the team would be looking to make amends for their horrendous performance in 2020.

they want to win, but the Kings would be focusing on the first few games and not the end results.

St Lucia Kings – Andy Flower Head Coach Andy Flower has noted that it is going to be a short lead-in into the Kings’ first game, as the team have had limited sessions and no practice games. He related that while things were slightly disjointed in terms of the build-up from the first game, the team were excited. Flower added that he was looking forward to working with Kings Captain Faf du Plessis and was hopeful that he would turn out for their first match. Flower also boasted that the Kings have strengthened their seam attack with the addition of Obed McCoy, Kesrick Williams, Keemo Paul, Alzarri Joseph and Wahab Riaz. Also, in the spin department there are Usman Quadir, Roston Chase and a few local spinners. The Kings Coach has stated that he is confident in the squad and that it has an equal balance of talent, experience, and youth.

In terms of his expectations of Keemo Paul, Flower said, “The first time I saw Keemo was when I was touring the West Indies with the England Lions: he had a lot of energy, he can affect the game with bat, ball and fielding and that is exciting. I’ve yet to meet up with him and get an update on his fitness. He is going to play a part in the tournament and I expect him to play some match-turning games. But I do anticipate that he will play a part in our first game.”

He also relayed that the Kings were aware of the standards they have to meet if

Barbados Royals – Daniel Vettori The Barbados Royals are one of the few franchises in CPL to have a strong squad on paper. They have the likes of Mohammed Amir, Glenn Phillips, Johnson Charles, Kyle Mayers, and Hayden Walsh Jr among others. Head Coach Daniel Vettori has stated that he has enjoyed working thus far with the spinners – Hayden Walsh Jr, Ashley Nurse and even Glenn Phillips who many know as a wicketkeeper/batsman.

Vettori has noted that Oshane Thomas is looking fantastic and the Royals will need his bowling as he will be more effective as the pitch degrades over time.

“I’m excited to work with Jason Holder and he has been successful as you can see by his record. Like all tournaments it’s the domestic players that can lead you to victory so Johnson Charles, Kyle Mayers, Hayden Walsh Jr, so, I think we have a lot of things required to do.

In terms of Glenn Phillips’ addition to the squad – from a batting perspective, he can be successful, you see the energy he brings and he can bring the energy in the team. However, we want to tap into his bowling and once the conditions suit spin bowlers, the conditions will suit him and you can definitely see him putting in a few overs.”

Vettori has laid down the law as it pertains to the team’s marquee bowler, he reiterated that the way he works is to get into a routine with the bowler of what his best defensive and offensive ball is and he knows that the Royals have got experienced bowlers so the contribution would be more of a collective as a bowling unit.

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021

By Jemima Holmes

W

ith three days to go before Hero CPL 2021 begins, the Guyana Amazon Warriors (GAW) dropped a number of bombshells on Monday, inclusive of their captaincy announcement, coaching, team composition and general expectations.

Arguably one of the most successful teams in the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL), the GAW are pretty pumped up ahead of the ninth edition of the tournament.

On Monday morning, two announcements came out of the GAW Camp; the first

revealed that Nicholas Pooran was the new Captain of the Guyanese franchise, and the second that Rayon Griffith was named as the Lead Coach, while Clinton Jeremiah will retain his place as the team’s Strength and Conditioning Coach.

Captain, Coach & Composition Expounding on those updates during a press briefing, Team Manager Omar Khan shared his thoughts on Pooran’s appointment and why the team was cut down to 15 players.

“We have been very pleased

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

23

Knowing and playing our roles will deliver success – Hetmyer

to see the progress that Nicholas has made throughout the years he has been with us, here in Guyana. Of course, we all know he was the Captain of the West Indies T20 squad in the recent series against Australia and he has also been West Indies T20 Vice Captain over the last year or so. So, I think it’s a good progression in his career path and we want to give him full support,” he said on Pooran’s appointment.

On the other hand, Waqar Salamkheil will be missing from the franchise. However, Khan isn’t too worried about the team’s chances in his absence.

“Unfortunately, Waqar Salamkheil, the young

Afghanistan left-arm wrist spinner, was unable to make the trip, because first of all visa issues and then obviously the situation in Afghanistan. So, he’s out of the tournament,” Khan disclosed.

“We are down to 15 players and we have decided as a franchise that we will just remain with those 15 players, looking at the current situation with the pandemic and the challenges with getting players across to travel and all those things.”

The GAW Team Manager

assured, “We think we have a good squad and we could manage throughout the tournament with those 15 players.”

Another person who isn’t fazed about the squad missing two potential players is marquee batsman Shimron Hetmyer, who commented on the team’s ability to field replacements, owing to their variety.

“If we do have to make changes, it would be player for player, really. Although we don’t have the biggest of squads, yes, we have players that could fit into specific roles. In terms, if there’s one batsman, there’s a batsman on the bench and I think that would really help us to have our minds wrapped around the fact that we’re all here for one goal and one purpose and if you’re not playing, make sure you’re ready to play at any time,” Hetmyer shared on the topic.

Preparation and rivals for days As far as the Warriors’ preparations go, the team have been training daily since coming out of quarantine in St Kitts and Nevis, with two practice matches on the cards. The first was conducted on Saturday last and the second is expected to be played today.

“We just got to make use of the practice sessions, you know; the weather here in St Kitts has been good to us so far. Thank God for that, we’ve had good weather – sunshine and good breezy conditions, so we’re hoping that it maintains and we just utilise the sessions; we have to put in as much work as we can with the team,” the Team Manager stated.

While on this topic, Khan got around to the question about GAW and Trinbago Knight Riders’ long-lasting rivalry. Highlighting that this rivalry transcends the CPL, Khan posited that the GuyanaTrinidad game was a great way to start the 2021 tournament.

“We look forward to that opening game, it’s going to be exciting, it’s a good game to start the tournament. I think CPL has always identified the two teams – TKR and Guyana Amazon Warriors – as the two more exciting teams, not that the other teams are not exciting, but in terms of crowd support and the fan base we have.”

He added, “It’s always good to start up with that sort of high-profile fixture to start the tournament. So, it’s a good start;

we look forward to it. There’s a lot of chat going around and with Pooran being Captain, you know, there’s going to be added excitement.”

Hear Hetty out In hearing more from Guyanese sensation Shimron Hetmyer, during the media engagement, the batsman revealed what he believed was the key to the Amazon Warriors’ success this year.

“I think it’s everyone knowing their roles, really.

Because it was a big thing that we had as players in the West Indies team, with players knowing their specific roles and then not just knowing, going out and showcasing it. We had different players putting their hands up on different occasions,” the Berbician explained.

He added, “So, it’s really for us as a team, not just batsmen or bowlers, the team on a whole, to put our hand up in a specific area or specific part of the game, supporting whatever it is. It’s really important for us to stick together as one and go for the same goal.”

In a message to Guyanese fans who may be impatient to see their franchise lift the CPL trophy, all Hetmyer is asking is for them to continue to support the team, as he explained that the Warriors are coming into their own.

“My message is basically the same one that I give every year.

Just support your team, rep your flag, rep your team. It’s not easy going to so many finals. We are a pretty successful squad and a pretty successful team, it’s just that we haven’t crossed the line in terms of winning the finals,” Hetmyer candidly shared.

“We are a growing team as well; so it’s a lot of young guys in the team. If you would check in T20 cricket all around the world, it says the team that sticks together for the longest, in terms of their core players being together the longest, they would have lost year after year, they do eventually get better.

“So, it’s just for us to get to that stage and cross the line,” he concluded.

If emojis could be used in newspaper articles, it would be at this point that a googlyeyed emoji could be inserted in admiration, as Hetmyer talked about Pooran’s ascension to the captaincy role.

The 25-year-old said about his fellow batsman, “As a teammate, he’s very good to

be around actually, lends a lot of support and as a captain, he does the same as well. It’s always nice to have a captain that you could speak to, pass information and give some ideas.”

He said with a laugh, “Being with him for a few years now in the same team, he’s a really calm guy to go around and just give information to and then he relays information quite well, as we all know and we could see him. He’s very vocal behind the stumps.

“He was a captain in PSL, in West Indies and now here too, so as Omar said, it will only help him to be a better cricketer and show some leadership qualities.”

The Warriors will begin their CPL hunt this Thursday, in the first match of the 2021 season against Trinbago Knight Riders from 10:00h (10am) local time.

Their second game will be played on Saturday, August 28 against the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots at the same time.

Nicholas Pooran to captain GAW for 2021 CPL season

GAW’s new Captain, Nicholas Pooran

The Guyana Amazon Warriors (GAW) have appointed Nicholas Pooran as Captain for the 2021 Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) season, which gets underway on August 26 at Warner Park, St Kitts.

Pooran has been a part of the Amazon Warriors since 2018, scoring 437 runs at an average of 31.21. Pooran is also an integral part of the West Indies white-ball team and made his international captaincy debut in the series against Australia in July this year, which was won 4-1 by West Indies.

The Warriors will get their campaign underway against the Trinbago Knight Riders in the first match of the tournament on August 26,

2021.

Pooran said: “I am really excited to be taking on this new challenge with the Guyana Amazon Warriors and want to express my appreciation to the franchise for the confidence they have expressed in me. We have a great team unity going and we support each other fully. I am looking forward to getting our tournament off to a winning start.”

Omar Khan, GAW Team and Operations Manager, said: “We have enjoyed watching Nicholas grow as a cricketer and as a leader during his tenure with the Guyana Amazon Warriors Franchise and we are looking forward to seeing this journey continue in his role as leader of our team for CPL 2021.” (GAW)

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2021

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

Knowing and playing our roles will deliver success – Hetmyer Pg 23

Nicholas Pooran to captain GAW for 2021 CPL season Pg 23

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