Guyana Times - Wednesday, March 13, 2019

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Public Health Ministry, PAHO meet to finalise medicines list Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

Issue No. 3862

THE BEACON OF TRUTH Wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019

PRICE

GECOM’s foot-dragging on elections

Criminal charges filed against Chairman, Govt Commissioners by Minister’s brother Page 3

PPP Commissioners walk out of GECOM meeting Page 7

…after commission puts house-to-house registration on agenda

Local tourism stakeholders celebrate eco-tourism award Page 11

$80 vat included

WHAT'S INSIDE: Firing of striking workers

Stalemate P2 ends as RUSAL agrees to recognise workers union

Venezuelan jailed, fined $7.3M P2 for ganja trafficking P12 Revoke licences of businesses involved in TIP – Minister

Police yet to nab farmer P13 who brutally attacked wife …family living in fear Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Sydney Allicock; Director of the Guyana Tourism Authority, Brian Mullis; Director General of the Department of Tourism in the Ministry of Business, Donald Sinclair and Minister of Business with responsibility for tourism, Dominic Gaskin

Page 7

Ramjattan defends “illegal” Sara Director

Hearing of appeal for Man escapes no-confidence motion during Police cases commences Page 9

escort

Page 8

…PPP lawyer points to waste of taxpayers’ money for Govt’s legal team …Guyana Times find him at home as Police hunt him

Police find shotgun while chasing men at Kwakwani

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2 news

wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Firing of striking workers

Stalemate ends as RUSAL agrees to recognise workers union

Representatives of RUSAL leaving the Labour Department during a previous meeting

R

ussian owned bauxite company, RUSAL, has agreed to recognise the Guyana Bauxite and General Workers Union (GBGWU) as the authorised and legitimate body that represents bauxite workers in Guyana.

This has now put an end to weeks of stalemate between the company, Government and the workers union. The agreement was made on Tuesday when the union and the company met with representatives of the Labour Department.

Following the meeting, the two sides agreed to meet again on Friday to discuss the way forward on the 90 employees that were dis-

missed from the company.

After the meeting, President of the GBGWU, Lincoln Lewis told the media that the two parties (RUSAL and the GBGWU) had decided that they need to meet bilaterally, and this process will commence on Friday.

“We have to work together in the interest of workers, in the interest of the company, in the interest of the nation. That’s where we are and just looking for a way forward, that’s it,” Lewis said.

He explained that the Union will submit to the company today; its list of items that it would like to form part of the agenda for discussion, while RUSAL will also submit to the GBGWU what

it considers to be important for the discussion.

“We believe that this exercise is going to be one where we start building of trust and confidence in our relationship because it is necessary that both sides work together. All that we are doing now is that we are going to talk about normalcy. How we will get back to normalcy…they are open to dialogue, not recommendation,” Lewis stated.

The GBGWU President noted that in the list that his Union will be submitting to the bauxite company, the topics for discussion include future negotiations between the two parties and the establishment of occupational health and safety committee.

Blocking of Berbice River

Meanwhile, in relation to the present situation where the dismissed workers and sympathisers who blocked off the access road and river to RUSAL’s operations in the Upper Demerara area, Lewis said that this form of protest by those affected continues.

“We have not discussed the issues one by one. We will supply the list of the issues that we do have by tomorrow (Wednesday) and we will meet to discuss. In the meantime, the strike continues.”

Meanwhile, in a joint statement by both the bauxite company and the

GBGWU President Lincoln Lewis

GBGWU, it was stated that the bilateral talks are scheduled to commence Friday.

These decisions were taken at a conciliation meeting under the chairmanship of Chief Labour Officer, Charles Ogle.

On March 4, the GBGWU and other major trade union representatives were met with grave disappointment when they turned up for a meeting with representatives of the Labour Department and aluminium company, RUSAL. Instead of being able to start discussions with the aim of resolving the issue of the 90 workers being dis-

missed by the company, the team of trade union leaders were met with the news that RUSAL had requested not to meet with them unless Lewis was absent from the meeting.

Sixty-one workers were fired by the Russian-owned company after they protested a one per cent salary increase, which they said was agreed to by Government.

Following a meeting with Government, RUSAL refused to reinstate the workers and subsequently dismissed 30 more persons from the department in order to temporarily close it as a result of the strike actions.

Venezuelan jailed, fined $7.3M for ganja trafficking

A

Venezuelan was on Tuesday jailed for four years and fined $7.3 million by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan after he admitted to a charge of trafficking in narcotics.

Ganesh Das admitted to having a quantity of 6.150 kilograms of cannabis in his possession while he was in the presence of his two brothers – both of whom were charged jointly with him.

However, after Das admitted ownership of the drugs, the charges against his brothers – Ruel Boodhoo

and Richie Boodhoo – were withdrawn.

Das admitted that on March 9, 2019, at Noval Hotel, Cummings and Robb Street, Georgetown, he had the drugs in his possession.

In court on Tuesday in a plea of mitigation, Das explained to the court that he “only tek a chance” to provide for his family.

“I am very sorry, but I only did it because it very hard back home in Venezuela.

That’s the only reason mek I do duh”.

Customs Anti-Narcotics

Unit (CANU) prosecutor, Konyo Sandiford informed the court that on Saturday last, CANU ranks, on a sting operation, conducted a search at the hotel where they unearthed the narcotics that was hidden in Das’ room.

As such, he was arrested which led to him giving several written and oral statements to the police.

Defense Attorney Keoma Griffith in asking for leniency, requested that the Chief Magistrate consider the economic crisis facing Das’ homeland.

news

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wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

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

Wednesday, March 13 – 09:00h-10:30h and Thursday, March 14 – 10:00h-11:30h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

GECOM’s foot-dragging on elections

Criminal charges filed against Chairman, Govt Commissioners by Minister’s brother

Wednesday, March 13 – 07:55h-09:25h and Thursday, March 14 – 09:00h-10:30h.

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

WEATHER TODAY Sunny intervals will prevail, followed by clear skies in the evening. Overall temperatures will range between 20 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Easterly to North-easterly between 2.23 metres and 4.49 metres.

High Tide: 08:45h and 21:24h reaching maximum heights of 2.45 metres and 2.30 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 14:51h reaching a minimum height of 0.77 metre.

GECOM Chairman, Retired Justice James Patterson

T

he brother of Business Minister Dominic Gaskin on Tuesday filed private criminal charges against the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Chairman and the three Government Commissioners for conspiracy to breach the Constitution of Guyana.

The charges were filed by complainant Marcel Gaskin against Retired Justice James Patterson, Vincent Alexander, Charles Corbin and Desmond Trotman. The charges, which were filed

by Attorney-at-Law Sanjeev Datadin on March 12, 2019, stated that the four defendants, during the period of December 22, 2018 and

election within three months, or such longer period as the National Assembly shall by resolution supported by not less than two-thirds of the votes of all the elected members of the National Assembly determine, and shall resign after the President takes the oath of office following the election.”

President David Granger and Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo had initially committed to following the provisions outlined in the Constitution, facilitating early elections and engaging in dialogue with the Leader of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo, but have since changed their position.

Since the passage of the motion, by a vote of 33-32, on December 21, 2018, however; persons aligned with the coalition have sought to question the motion’s validity even as the vote has already been certified.

The original proponent of the 34-vote argument is Attorney Nigel Hughes, a former AFC Chairman and the husband of sitting Minister Cathy Hughes, who told State media that half of 65 is 32.5, but when rounded to the nearest whole number, this

The Minister’s brother, Marcel Gaskin

Attorney-at-Law Sanjeev Datadin

would be 33 as there is no half member.

Following a challenge of this in the High Court, acting Chief Justice Roxane George ruled that 33 is the majority. The Government has since challenged the Chief Justice’s ruling in the Court of Appeal.

That case continues today at the Court of Appeal.

ety group urged President Granger to announce a date for the polls.

“The Constitution is the supreme law… There is the three-month clock, which is still ticking, it hasn’t been stayed yet…,” the United Kingdom envoy told Guyana Times during an exclusive interview at his Bel Air Gardens residence in Georgetown on Monday.

After March 21, 2019, the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) coalition Government effectively becomes illegal. The only way this can change is if the parliamentary Opposition – the PPP/C – votes for an extension of the life of the Government, but Opposition Leader Jagdeo says he will do so only if the Head of State announces a date for elections before the expiration of the current voters’ list on April 30, 2019.

However, President Granger is not keen on doing so, as he is pushing for houseto-house registration, a process which can conclude in November 2019.

Clock ticking

With nine days remaining before the constitutional deadline for holding elections expires, British High Commissioner to Guyana, Gregory Quinn on Monday reminded that the clock was ticking, even as a civil soci-

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Government Commissioners Desmond Trotman, Vincent Alexander and Charles Corbin

March 9, 2019 conspired to breach Article 106 of the Constitution of Guyana, which provided for the holding of General Elections in Guyana within three months from December 21, 2018.

The case comes up for hearing before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan on Friday.

Only on Tuesday, the Opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Commissioners walked out of the statutory meeting at GECOM after the issue of house-to-house registration was on the agenda instead of General and Regional Elections as mandated by the Constitution of Guyana.

Since the passage of the no-confidence motion on December 21, 2018, there has been much criticism about GECOM’s preparedness for the mandated General and Regional Elections.

With the Government’s defeat, the next steps are spelt out in the Constitution of Guyana. Clause 7 of Article 106 of the Constitution of Guyana states that, “Notwithstanding its defeat, the Government shall remain in office and shall hold an

Turn to page 9

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Wesesday, MARCH 13, 2019

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

Defending an upcoming illegality

N

ine days after today, the 90-day period to hold elections following the successful passage of the no-confidence motion on December 21, 2018 will come to an end. The elections, as mandated by the Constitution, will not be held by that time, and from what is currently playing out in the country’s political sphere, a constitutional crisis will take effect in just over a week. Its avoidance is through a parliamentary extension which must have the agreement of the Opposition. There may still be hope for that.

The Leader of the Opposition had indicated his Party’s willingness to support any necessary extension provided that the President was committed to holding the elections and implemented related mechanisms. That has not happened as the President has thrown the responsibility unto the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) – a move some have branded as an abdication of his constitutional responsibility.

That, coupled with his firm position of seeking a reversal of the vote by the court, has confirmed the belief that he and his government are only concerned with avoiding the elections in defiance of the Constitution. From all appearances, the Government seems bent on having the elections within its own set time frame with a seeming preference for 2020. In doing so, it is, by its own action, not just pushing the country into a constitutional crisis, but seems willing to expose all to its impact.

That will obviously take a toll on Guyana and Guyanese, and will exacerbate as it prolongs. How that will play out and the severity of its impact is anyone’s guess. It could be a case of hoping for the best, but bracing for the worst. What continues to be bothersome is the Government’s continual defence of its position in not accepting what the Constitution demands regarding a successful no-confidence vote.

All of its officials who have spoken publicly on the issue have sought to impose a seemingly alien interpretation at the expense of the rule of law.

Even more jarring is to see some from the legal fraternity manufacturing interpretations that have strayed from what is enshrined. Reportedly, the Attorney General suggested that the Constitution is wrong with regard to what it specifies in the circumstances of a no-confidence vote. It begs the obvious question: wasn’t it the same Constitution he sought shelter under to advise the Government when it was in Opposition and when it threatened a noconfidence motion against the Donald Ramotar Administration? If, according to the reports, the Constitution is wrong now, how come it wasn’t wrong then?

That, along with other scenarios which have played out, is an escapade of convenience to stay in Government. To therefore say these are mere attempts to hold on to power would be a gross understatement. That brings into focus a particular scenario that no one seems to want to talk about. In fairness, this entity alluded to it some time ago. It’s worth a reminder given the current political context.

It can be summed up in one question; what would have been the state of play had the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) taken the same position as the Government following a successful no-confidence vote? To some, it may seem a non-issue on the grounds that the Party would have had no option but to abide by the constitutionallymandated requirements. To others, the PPP dare not challenge what the said Constitution stipulates. For the latter, no efforts, as evident from history, would have been spared to ensure compliance.

In other words, the Government, given all it has done thus far to avoid complying with the Constitution, including appealing what the supreme law says, would have vehemently objected to same had the PPP been unwilling to comply. It would have made the country ungovernable as it did in the past.

The aftermath of the 1997 elections is a classic example of it creating an ungovernable environment despite the fact that it was not an issue of unconstitutionality but one of dissatisfaction over the results of that election. Eventually, Caricom intervened and fresh elections were held two years before they were due.

These are not manufactured scenarios but realities when the Government while in Opposition refused to accept electoral results.

During that period of politically- engineered instability and when the nation was on a rebuilding trajectory, innocent people were harmed, properties destroyed, business stagnated, and the economy took a hit as the country’s international image was tarnished. The then Opposition was adamant the Government should be removed and may have done all it could in that regard.

Having walked that road, having fought for what it believed to be right then, having ignored the Constitution now on the no-confidence vote and having led the nation to the precipice of a constitutional crisis, the Government seems unconcerned of the potential negative impacts its action could have on all.

That same lack of concern could be placed at its feet during the 1997 related period of instability. Many believe that its actions were wrong then and are wrong now. The Government continues to defend its position, a position that many see as defending an illegality which is what it will be after March 21 if no political resolution is found.

More than 70,000 people gathered at the city’s huge concrete arena known as the Sambadrome, where samba schools compete to be crowned carnival champions on Sunday and Monday (BBC photo)

Your Excellency: return to that first 24h after no-confidence resolution passage Dear Editor, Late as it is, hopeless as it now seems, I will not let be dashed, my hope in our Guyanese people and the better future we could be creating.

The unchartered waters of a constitutional crisis are truly on us.

Our Ministers are no longer claiming that they are meeting as a Cabinet.

First, themselves calling their meeting a caucus then soon after a plenary speaks loudly about the unchartered waters we are already in. We are already in confusion.

During a meeting with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) yesterday, it was indicated that their support would stand suspended after March 21, 2019: those sanctions with which Guyana was threatened in 2014 must once again be avoided.

Our Leader of the Opposition is not the one steering Guyana’s ship, he cannot avoid the constitutional crisis; he can only rail against it.

It is our President and Prime Minister, their advisers and supporters who can still steer us away from it. We must call on our President and Prime Minister to be valiant and

valorous.

Return themselves to their initial positions within the first 24 hours of the passage of the NCM. Prevail on our Prime Minister to return to his words: “We want our supporters in particular … to understand that we are going back to the polls….

Guyanese must understand that the democratic process is sometimes unpredictable. You may have results that are not planned for…. But the outcome has to be accepted…

It is like cricket in some sense, what happened here today, a game of glorious uncertainty.”

Prevail on our President to return to his statement issued the following morning: “We will do everything necessary to facilitate the smooth functioning of General and Regional Elections bearing in mind the need for normal governmental functions to continue uninterrupted.”

Our Leader of the Opposition approached the Honourable Minister of State, Joseph Harmon for an early meeting, the Government having fallen, to work things out in some harmony. Those initial responses gave hope that the

NCM needed not be a calamity, a disaster, but presented an opportunity for steps to a greater maturity in our politics; a perceived bad thing that might bring good results.

The reversed positions of our President and Prime Minister have not brought them any glory. The Speaker pushed, did not budge, and did reassert his ruling that the NCM stood; and our Chief Justice issued a judgment overwhelmingly judged sound. The Chief Justice’s NCM ruling seems to be slowly and grudgingly accepted by the Government.

According to the Guyana Chronicle of Tuesday, March 12, 2019, the Honourable Finance Minister, Winston Jordan had sought to assure the public that in keeping with the Chief Justice’s ruling, Cabinet has resigned but Government continues to function.

Perhaps it had to be this way, to provide examples that in this sixth or seventh decade of ethnopolitical insecurities, there be amongst us persons who would persevere in walking the straight path and we may trust ourselves to expectations of fair play.

And when we think and note that the conflagra-

tions that I feared would have followed after the passage of the NCM have not unfolded, we must wonder whether our people are not changing and whether there are not possibilities for us politicians to develop new approaches.

In his book on “Innovation and Entrepreneurship” the management guru, Peter Drucker, points out that the occurrence of unexpected things, whether failures or successes, must cause us to question our old assumptions: their period of validity is ending.

Discern and come to terms with the change!

Look for the new opportunities! Seize the opportunities! Innovate!

Mr President, let us go forward, name the date, let the campaigns begin, everyone campaigning on the basis of the next realistic steps they can and will take were they privileged to win, to grow and develop Guyanese and Guyana, without fear or favour, affection or ill will.

Yours truly, Samuel A A Hinds Former President and former Prime Minister

guyanatimesgy.com

wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019

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

GECOM has become the President’s trump card and lifeline

Dear Editor, The APNU/AFC coalition regime has not reached the stage of doctrinal dictatorship yet, at least when compared to the post-independence period from 1968 to 1992, the genealogical heart of the PNC. There seems to be little indication that this will happen given the successful No-Confidence Motion (NCM) inflicted upon it on December 21, 2018.

However, the regime’s grid of supervision and surveillance over Guyana’s affairs has dwindled, conceding some power to the opposition, PPP. What has happened since the NCM is that the regime has operated on the “logic” of restraint not onto itself but to the private-oriented institutions and the opposition while applying a tight confluence between sister-affiliated institutions in and out of Guyana.

In every nodal point of challenge, the regime is relying desperately on the Office of the Attorney General and GECOM, its twin horns, to reconfigure the basic meaning of the Constitution, mathematics, among others, under the rubric of “situational necessity” or something like that, in the courts.

The minutiae of bunkums - 34 is the majority of 65, the Constitution is wrong, GECOM is not ready – has been transmogrified into full-

blown national and regional comedies. Some in the APNU/ AFC regime have lampooned themselves in Guyana’s new encyclopedia of who’s who in constitutional semantics while some rue. It is sad to watch the entanglements of the once boastful and buzzed APNU/AFC coalition.

Despite threats of imminent doom, the regime has refused to acquiesce to any demands constitutionally placed on it, opting to maintain the spirit of grasping for power rather than upholding the letter of the law.

This stable and stubborn position has called in the entire edifice of the regime’s sincerity of good governance into question. What the hell do you mean by good governance? What the hell are your intentions? What is needed now is bureaucratic discretion, not bureaucratic donkeyism.

Noticeably, too, is that GECOM, like the regime, has begun to operate on the “logic” of restraint within the Commission rather than on the “logic” of facilitation as mandated. If you have not noticed, the self-styled, no paladin Chairman for anyone has voted according to the expectation of the regime: a delay of the general election until GECOM is ready.

Expect more voting to occur along these lines since no way in the world is GECOM

an independent institution, never was, never will be, unless there is some sort of reform. There are now four APNU/AFC and three PPP members respectively.

The latter is simply decorative, an empty shell. To declare that the Chairman of GCEOM is an independent thinker would be promoting ignorance and engaging a habit of exaggeration. The outcome of the recent meeting between teams Granger and Jagdeo tells it all.

Am I supposed to believe these declared sentiments by the President of Guyana: “Let me make one thing clear, GECOM is an autonomous, GECOM is an independent agency and there is no part of the Constitution which gives the President or the executive in general, authority to interfere, intervene or intrude in the work of the elections commission”.

The unilateral appointment of GECOM’s Chairman by the President against the wishes of the majority fills those vital lacunae and punctuates the morphology of thinking within this regime.

We will settle for nothing less but to stay in power. The Chairman of GECOM has become the President’s trump card and lifeline of the APNU/ AFC regime.

Sincerely, Lomarsh Roopnarine

Classic bullying tactics

by APNU/PNC/AFC Govt Dear Editor, I would like to respond to a libellous letter in the Guyana Chronicle which is under the caption “Annie Baliram’s missive on the unfortunate deaths at the GPHC” by Dr Mark Dervonish.

This letter largely contains libellous charges which aim to damage my reputation, hurt me, stifle me, punish me, bully me and undermine my human rights.

This is the classic bullying tactics by the APNU/PNC/ AFC Government. This Government is known for triangulating its supporters to engage in such dysfunction.

We all know that the Guyana Chronicle is politically controlled and is used as a weapon against Guyanese.

It is no secret that Guyana is a racially polarised nation. Human beings hurt because of overt racism and overt dysfunction in Guyana. I have been a victim of racism in Guyana like most Guyanese and these libellous charges are evidence of the level of racism the Indo-Guyanese people face at the brutal hands of the largely AfroGuyanese backed APNU/ PNC/AFC Government.

This is exactly how rac-

Fake news by Imran Khan Dear Editor, I would like to point out how Orwellian the APNU/ AFC Government is operating. In the most recent of their moves, we have the Department of Information (DPI), led by Imran Khan, emulating the ministry of truth.

His latest piece on March 10 is captioned “The current political situation – why we are here”. This piece was an epitome of fake news. Imran Khan stated: “We are here not because of democracy or any lack of confidence in

this coalition Government.”

First newspeak point, the Government lost a vote of confidence, which means the National Assembly voted that they have no confidence in the Government.

By our Constitution, the Government needs to call the election within three months of the successful passage of the motion. Bill 14 of 2000 when 106 was amended; clause five alters Article 106 to provide for “the resignation of the Cabinet and the President following the defeat of the Government in the

National Assembly on a vote of confidence. Although defeated, the Government shall remain in office for the purpose of holding an election.”

Imran Khan further went to speak about “putting the nation in jeopardy” and “holding Guyanese hostage.” He was trying to imply that these are the actions of the Leader of the Opposition Bharrat Jagdeo, however, Khan should realise the “party” has all the power. Big brother Granger can call an election at any time after the vote of no-con-

fidence.

Khan has a duty as the Head of the Department of Information (DPI) to only provide information. I didn’t realise his department is now the ministry of truth.

Guyana seems to be plunged into 1984. I won’t be surprised if we see billboards around town with these slogans, Editor: “war is peace,” “freedom is slavery,” “ignorance is strength” “dunce is smart”.

Yours truly, Nalinie Singh

ism perpetuates. Racism is learned. And such a situation needs to be addressed to move our country forward.

Moreover, the Guyana Chronicle needs to provide evidence to support the following charges about me: (1) Dr Devonish’s position: “she turned to the PPP-aligned Guyana Times to write garbage and lies about me supporting criminals at the 1763 Monument– a monument for Afro-Guyanese”.

(2) Dr Devonish’s position: “Mr Editor, this very Annie Baliram con-

tributes to [an] online blog titled Black Bullies. The stuff she writes about AfroGuyanese makes [for] painful reading and is downright disgusting.”

I will take legal actions if the Guyana Chronicle fails to provide any evidence. Also, I am demanding an apology and a retraction of Dr Devonish’s letter.

There are many more false charges about me in this letter. I will address them later.

Sincerely, Dr Annie Baliram (PhD)

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WEDNESday, march 13, 2019

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guyanatimesgy.com

Foundation and carbohydrates give you energy, just to name a few.

Now that you understand more about diets, you can tell

E

veryone has been on a diet.

Does that sound strange?

Well, it’s true. A diet is simply the collection of the foods you regularly eat. But the word “diet” also can mean an attempt to lose weight by limiting calories or types of food.

You may know some adults and kids who worry about their weight and say they’re going on a diet. You might wonder if you should be on a diet, too. But the majority of kids do not need to – and should not – diet this way.

Why? Let’s find out.

Dieting to lose weight All foods and many drinks contain calories, a kind of energy.

When someone diets to lose weight, the person is trying to eat fewer calories than the body uses.

By doing this, the person may lose body fat and decrease his or her weight. Likewise, if a person eats more calories than the body uses, the person may gain weight.

Kids usually do not need to diet in this way. Unlike adults, kids are still growing and developing. During this time, kids need a variety of healthy foods to keep their bodies growing properly. Some kids are overweight, but even overweight kids often can improve their health simply by eating nutritious foods and being more active.

Being overweight can cause health problems, but kids may hurt their health even more by doing something drastic, like skipping meals or deciding to eat only lettuce.

Who needs to diet?

Though some people may feel they weigh too much or too little, there is no perfect body shape.

Some people have larger frames (bigger bones) and will always look bigger and heavier than people with smaller frames.

Talk to your doctor if you have questions about your weight. Your

If you feel this way, talk to a parent or an adult you trust. You may need someone to help you understand these feelings and get a handle on whether your weight is a health concern.

The body changes that happen to kids during puberty include weight gain. This is normal, but it’s a good idea to talk with your doctor about it if you or your parents have questions.

doctor can examine you and check your body mass index (BMI). That’s a way of estimating how much body fat you have. If the doctor is concerned about your weight, he or she can recommend a couple of goals: for you to gain weight at a slower pace for you to maintain your current weight For some kids, the doctor may recommend losing some weight, but this should be done with the doctor’s help. Kids who need to lose weight may visit with a dietician who can explain how to reduce calories safely while still getting all the necessary nutrients.

Dangerous diets Diets that don’t include a variety of nutritious foods, or have too few calories, can be dangerous for kids. Some types of dangerous diets are called “fad diets”, because a fad means something that’s popular for a short while. Fad diets usually promise quick weight loss and require the person to follow a strict set of guidelines.

Some dangerous diets cut out entire categories of foods or require the person to eat just one thing, such as cabbage soup

– yuck! The truth is there is no quick fix when it comes to weight loss. So pills, special drinks, allliquid diets, and other gimmicks are poor choices, especially for kids. If someone offers you a diet pill or suggests you start having a magic milkshake that can make you thinner, tell them no! These diets can make people sick. They also usually end with the person regaining any weight that was lost.

Someone who is willing to take extreme steps to be thinner could have an eating disorder. These include anorexia nervosa (starving oneself) or bulimia nervosa (eating and then deliberately throwing up). They are serious conditions that need a doctor’s attention.

Help for a dangerous dieter If you a friend, brother, or sister is following a dangerous diet, you need to tell an adult. You could turn to a parent, a teacher, or another adult you trust. You could also tell the person yourself that their eating habits are unhealthy, but you probably will need to get an adult involved, too.

It’s not unusual for kids – or adults – to wish they were taller, or thinner, or that they could change something about their appearance.

What kids can do So if kids don’t need to diet, how can they stay a healthy weight? All kids can benefit from eating a balanced diet and getting plenty of physical activity.

Kids have a lot of choices when it comes to activity and exercise.

Some like to play on sports teams or dance in troupes. Others may prefer to be more casual, riding their bikes or shooting hoops at the park. Just helping your parents rake leaves or clean the house is a kind of physical activity, though not as much fun as something like swimming! And it’s a good idea to cut down on pastimes that aren’t very active – such as watching TV or playing computer games.

Kids can also try to eat a variety of healthy foods. A balanced diet means that you don’t eat the same thing every day and that you eat a mix of foods from different food groups. These include: fruits and vegetables milk and dairy products meat, nuts, and other proteinrich foods grains, especially whole-grain foods, such as whole-grain breads and cereals This kind of diet helps your body by giving it the right nutrients. For instance, protein helps build your muscles and other body structures. Calcium helps your growing bones. And you need vitamins and other nutrients to keep your body working as it should. Fibre prevents constipation

people you’re on a very special one – a balanced, healthy diet just right for a kid! (kidshealth.org)

Continued from TUESDAY

Treat your body well Making educated choices about food and exercise is part of developing a mind and life of your own. Healthy eating and exercise can also give you some control over how your body turns out. Plus, exercise is a mood booster. If your changing body has you feeling sad or confused, it may help to go for a walk, play with your dog, or throw a Frisbee with your friends.

About three quarters of all teens quit sports around the time their bodies develop. Often it’s because the changes in their bodies influence which sports they compete in.

Although you can still do any activity if you really are interested in it, some people prefer to switch to another activity. Wes put his strength and running skills to use playing football. And Nikki was able to combine her great figure with her love of dance when she discovered belly dancing in college.

Sometimes people quit playing organised sports in high school because schoolwork becomes more demanding, or because they have a more active social life that fills their time. Now is definitely not the time to stop exercising completely, though. Use this time of change to explore how your body feels doing different activities. Taking yoga, martial arts classes, or other activities that involve focusing on how the body stretches and moves can help you become familiar with your body.

Befriend your bod Feeling like you don’t know your body anymore? Just like a friendship that grows and evolves, keeping in touch with our bodies takes time. Like friends, our bodies can let us down at times. But with a little work and understanding, it’s possible to bounce back.

Just like we know our friends’ secrets, we know stuff about our own bodies that other people don’t. For example, you may think your stomach sticks out because you spend hours focusing on it in the mirror. But the truth is, other people won’t notice it like you do.

Walk tall – even if you’re not!

What people do notice is how you project your feelings about yourself. If you think you’re too tall, it will be more noticeable if you slump over and try to look smaller. If you’re self-conscious about your pimples, hiding behind your hair may cover the zit on your cheek – but you’ll look awkward and uncomfortable.

As your body changes, it can help to work on good posture and walk with a sense of confidence.

After doing this for a while, you’ll probably become more confident too.

There’s not much you can do

about your height or development, but you can focus on the things that you really like about yourself.

Maybe it’s your curly hair or the dimple you get when you smile.

Maybe it’s that you are a really thoughtful person or you are good at making people laugh.

Ultimately, when you think of the people in your life that you care about the most, what they look like probably has very little to do with how much you like them.

More curves ahead Just as you get used to your new shape, it will probably change again. The later teens and early twenties are (yet again) a time when the body and mind take another step in maturing and changing. For both girls and guys, this means filling out a little more so that they look more like adults and less like teens.

This is another time when it’s important to summon the powers of exercise and healthy eating: You’ve probably heard of the “freshman 15”, when girls and guys go off to college and most are in charge of feeding themselves for the first time. Many people who are on their own for the first time start by eating anything they want — usually junk food and high-fat snacks. Of course, most of them gain weight because they spend more time sitting and studying and less time being active. If you’ve already started focusing on what you eat and how you exercise, this will be less likely to happen to you.

If our bodies had owners’ manuals, they’d tell us to keep them clean, provide them with fuel, and offer them some stimulating activity. But our bodies are human, too, and they do best when they’re loved.

Learning to accept and appreciate ourselves helps build resilience. People who are resilient are better able to deal with problems and bounce back from disappointment than people who are not. Resilient people usually make good decisions and choices.

Accept and appreciate your body, no matter what it looks like right now, and – just like a good friend – it can do a lot for you in return! (Excerpt from kidshealth.org)

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wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Ramjattan defends “illegal” SARA Director

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ublic Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan on Tuesday defended what is considered to be an illegal occupancy of the position of Director of the State Assets Recovery Agency (SARA) by Professor Clive Thomas.

Ramjattan told this newspaper on the sidelines of an event at the Ramada Georgetown Princess Hotel that “he is there lawfully… he has been there for a couple of years now and all of a sudden people feel that he’s illegal? Apparently, this il-

legal viral is all over the place.”

Professor Thomas was Head of the State Assets Recovery Unit – which was the name of the organisation when it was operating without a legislative framework.

However, in 2017, the requisite legislation was passed, prompting SARU to be renamed SARA. The SARA Act stipulates that “Within a period of not more than four months from the date of commencement of this Act, the Parliamentary

SARA Director, Professor Clive Thomas

Committee on appointments on the notification by the Minister shall recommend to the National Assembly a person to be appointed as Director of the SARA”.

However, this was never done and Professor Thomas has remained as Head of SARA – which goes against the law.

Notably, Professor Thomas was politically appointed to that post and this raises concern about the credibility and integrity of the work of that agency which is empowered to seize

PPP Commissioners walk out of GECOM meeting …after Commission puts house-to-house registration on agenda

PPP GECOM Commissioner Sase Gunraj

PPP GECOM Commissioner Robeson Benn

he three PPP Commissioners at the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) walked out of a meeting held at the Commission on Tuesday after realising that the matters on the agenda for the statutory meeting had nothing to do with Regional and General Elections but rather, house-to-house registration.

Moments after walking out of the meeting, PPP Commissioner Sase Gunraj told the media that the houseto-house registration is a policy that was taken from time to time by GECOM while the requirement to hold general elections is mandated by the Constitution of Guyana.

“I say that to say that the necessity to hold elections obviously trumps the need for house-to-house registration and we are not being pushed in the direction that houseto-house registration has to be held before the holding of national elections as is mandated by law. No discussions, no discussions are being put forward at this Commission in relation to the holding of elections. All that is being spoken about is the conduct of some house-to-house registration and the Commission seems hell bent on pushing forward on that agenda,” Gunraj explained.

He stated that he, along with the other PPP Commissioners, could not “sit there and suborn the violation of the Constitution” by engaging in any discussion that does not countenance the holding of elections in the constitutionally mandated timeline.

“There is absolutely no discussion on that and as a consequence we are forced to take this step again because

we will not be held hostage to sit in these meetings and discuss anything that does not cater for the holding of elections as is contemplated by the Commission and instead to discuss something that is determined by policy that is now being trumped to the holding of elections,” he added.

Meanwhile, another PPP Commissioner at GECOM, Robeson Benn, stated that he requested that GECOM cease and desist from undertakings relating to houseto-house registration and to take account of the constitutional imperatives based on the no-confidence motion passed in the National Assembly on December 21, 2018.

“There were responses, or the main response from the other side, which only suggests that there is…a malignant spirit, and in GECOM, in certain places, which do not want us to follow the dictates of our Constitution. We could not sit there and allow the overriding purpose and intent of the Constitution [to] be completely ignored at GECOM. That is why we agreed to the position, we could not sit there at GECOM, which is subordinate to the Constitution

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that it will ignore or be made to ignore or force to ignore the dictates of Guyana’s Constitution,” Benn argued.

Additionally, he noted that the Chairman of GECOM, Justice James Patterson, has in his secretariat, skilled and knowledgeable persons as well as legal recourse that are able to advise him on this matter and that they need to reconsider the option of pursuing house-to-house registration instead of focusing on general elections.

“Here it is that the person (Justice Patterson) who has been appointed out of an interest in his legal background for whatever worth it is, is avoiding the interrogation and the following of the Constitution in a simple constitutional matter and duty of a constitutional agency. So there is no way we can sit down and be a party to that so we left,” Benn also said.

The PPP Commissioners stated that the only way of “going forward” would be to have all Commissioners at GECOM commence discussions on the pressing issue of Regional and General Elections in Guyana as is constitutionally mandated.

On December 21, 2018, the no-confidence motion brought by the parliamentary Opposition People’s Progressive Party (PPP/C) against the Government succeeded when former AFC Member of Parliament Charrandas Persaud broke ranks and made a conscience vote in favour of the motion.

Since its toppling, the David Granger Administration has not been moving with much urgency with regard to holding elections before the constitutional deadline of March 21.

GECOM Chairman, Retired Justice, James Patterson

Instead, their respective GECOM Commissioners, including the Chair, have been advocating for houseto-house registration to sanitise the voters’ list, a process which would go well beyond the constitutional deadline.

Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan

citizens’ assets.

In fact, according to the law, the Head of SARA will be answerable to no one.

One of the major concerns of stakeholders was that of SARA’s Head being bestowed with a seemingly unlimited amount of power, practically second to the President’s.

SARA recently filed lawsuits against several persons including former President Bharrat Jagdeo in relation to the sale of lands at Sparendaam, popularly known as “Pradoville 2”.

But Jagdeo said he is unbothered by this action since he believes it is just politics at play.

The Opposition Leader recently said that the Director and Deputy Director of SARA, Aubrey Heath-Retemyer are holding their respective posts illegally. He argued that the SARA Act provides very clearly that their appointments shall be made through a parliamentary process.

The Opposition has argued too that a transition provision in the Act allowed the Director, who operated in the agency before the Act came into force, to continue to act in that office for a limited period. They noted, however, that the period has long expired.

Jagdeo recalled that SARA had stated publicly that they are working on some high-profile cases, with recoveries above US$10 million and these cases would be filed by the third quarter of 2018, which they did not do. Instead, they have gone to the Pradoville issue.

Jagdeo had said that SARA is just another means for the Government to secure employment for retired citizens. “If you shut down SARA, you can hire 400 people. Where are these US$10 million cases that SARA was supposed to discover, (they said) that how many people had US$10 million and above abroad? What is happening with them? They are just wasting our money.”

After Guyana Times had published an article on the lavish salaries of the executives, the organisation later came out explaining the remunerations.

“Our monthly earnings are listed for the public to see… the basic salary for the Director is $1 million per month with added allowances, he moves up to $1,080,000. The Assistant is $700,000 and with some allowances he moves up to $780,000 per month,” Heath-Retmeyer said.

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Wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Man escapes during Police escort …Guyana Times find him at home as Police hunt him

Escapee: Dinesh Sookram

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man who allegedly escaped from the Whim Police Station lockups on Monday after being arraigned with a break and enter and larceny charge is holding out that he was never in the lockups.

The police stated that Dinesh Sookram of Friendship Village, Corentyne, Berbice, was placed in the lockups after he could not provide the $200,000 bail that was set by the Magistrate when he appeared at the Whim Magistrate’s Court on Monday.

The police stated that it was while in the lockups that he escaped by removing a

board from the walls but the man claimed that after he was taken out of the lockups on Monday to attend court, he was never placed back in the cell.

While the police were busy looking for the man, Guyana Times caught up with him at a relative’s home.

He recalled that while he was being transported by police ranks, he ran away.

“I just pull away from the police and run out the station…I was scared… I don’t want to go to jail,” he stated.

According to the man, who was not registered at birth and has no birth certificate, he was accused of stealing three silver chains, three silver finger rings along with two diamond rings after breaking into a Corentyne home.

“The police just look fo me and catch me and carry me,” the man cried. Sookram was living with his father and six siblings after their mother had moved out. In December 2017, his father was murdered after which his siblings had to fend for themselves.

He, however, lives with his grandmother, Sattie.

The 68-year-old woman said that Sookram has been

It’s all…

Whim Police Station

giving her problems in recent times.

“He nah stop do ting. Why he ah go out an trouble people ting and get me talking at this age. Is Government mining me now. All wah you ah talk to he, he nah stop,” the elderly woman stated.

Sookram admitted that he escaped from the police station because he does not want to go to jail or be shot by the police.

He, nevertheless, intends to return to the police station but not before his next court date which is March 25.

When contacted, Divisional Commander Paul Langevine told Guyana Times that the police are on the hunt for the prison escapee.

He also stated that an investigation has been launched into the circumstances surrounding the escape.

Liquor bar proprietor remanded for TIP

Remanded: Savita Persaud

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roprietor of Liquor Love Bar, Savita Persaud was on Tuesday remanded to prison by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan whom she stood before in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts to answer to four counts of Trafficking In Persons charges.

Persaud, of Station Street, Kitty, Georgetown, denied the charges which stated that during January 31 and March 8, 2019, she unlawfully recruited, transported and withheld the identification papers of two Venezuelans for sexual exploitation.

The defendant was also slapped with two counts of Trafficking In Persons during the same period. Additionally, she was charged with employing a child on a property that sells liquor.

Defense Attorney George Thomas in a bail submission told the court that his client rented the property to the Venezuelans and is innocent of the trafficking accusations.

However, the prosecutor opposed bail on the grounds of the serious nature, prevalence and the penalty that the offence attracts.

As such, the prosecution’s submission was upheld by the Chief Magistrate who remanded the woman to prison.

The matter will continue on March 15, 2019.

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… political hysteria now empers are getting frayed, aren’t they? Your Eyewitness knows why? Even with all the huffing and puffing and bluffing, the President and his Cabinet have resigned – what with admitting they’re meeting as a “plenary” or a “caucus”, take your pick!! And all the campaigning they did in the Rupununi by promising US$48M airports and handing out goodies in 28 villages like Father Christmas!!

And you know, on the political hustings, politicians will have to connect with their crowds.

Nobody complained when the PNC Ministers cussed out the PPP - -who, they claimed, did NOTHING for the hinterland in their 23 years!! But even before that, right after the PNC ignominiously lost the LGE, there was Party Chairman Volda Lawrence reminding the party faithful about her party’s position towards the PPP: “We don’t have to wait no three years, Comrades, there are mechanisms for us to go back to the polls. You see this long, long story, me ain’t able buse and cuss and waste me time; I lash you in you head and done the story. Done the story. …”

Can’t get more graphic with the PNC’s modus operandi, can you? “I lash you in you head and done the story!!” And this was just about LOSING THE LGE – imagine what’ll be their language come General Elections!! But the PPP didn’t complain about Volda’s incendiary exhortations, did they??

They didn’t whine and whinge to the authorities. Nah…they just went about their business and cut the legs out from under the PNC with their no-confidence motion!! Revenge is best served cold!!

So as the “Day of Constitutional Supremacy” – March 21 – draws nigh upon them, and they see no way out from their ejection from the seat of power, they’re running so scared they’ve become paranoid of their own shadows!

Imagine when the Opposition Leader – addressing a crowd in Berbice where the PNC unilaterally fired 3500 sugar workers and threw them onto the breadlines – advised them to “chase out” the sanctimonious Government Ministers who’ll come for their votes, the PNC scuttled to the ERC, screaming “the statement was “inciting!! It must be condemned as unacceptable, malicious and mischievous”!!

Now let’s have some sanity here…does the PNC REALLY want to go down that road with the elections date about to be set?? We all know the kind of language the PNC use on the hustings, don’t we? “Our steel is sharper?” “Make your will”??

Sure we all know they’ll delay the elections with their (geriatric) man in GECOM’s thumb on the scale!! But like old people say, “time longer than twine”.

And their ball of twine was never that fat to begin with!! …politics There’s this Guyanese doctor living in England who demonstrates in his prolix letters to the press, that he’s only too human. Almost daily, the fella zips off a letter defending the PNC and viciously attacking the PPP on matters non-medical that one wonders how he finds time for his patients. But then keeping patients waiting is one of the distinguishing features of the National Health System (NHS), isn’t it!! He blames his poor clinical grades at UG on “PPP doctors”!

Anyhow the fella did write an excellent analysis on the state of GPHC in the wake of the unfortunate deaths of those three children. While blaming it all on the “PPP doctors”, he did say, “This government should have shown leadership and courage in addressing the problems of the obviously failing health service”, but was intimidated by the fallout in fixing the sugar industry!!

Really?? Appointing a general as CEO; a novice to head the GPHC BOARD was reassurance? …tribal But why’d he ignore Volda’s policy on hiring at GPHC: “Well, I got news for you: The only friends I got is PNC, so the only people I could give work to is PNC. And, right now, I looking for a doctor who can talk Spanish or Portuguese and ah want one that is PNC”!!

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

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wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Hearing of appeal for no-confidence motion cases commences …PPP lawyer points to waste of taxpayers’ money for Govt’s legal team

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s the cases regarding the appeal for the no-confidence motion were brought up for hearing on Monday at the Court of Appeal, a battery of lawyers representing the Government regurgitated arguments used in the High Court matter that saw the acting Chief Justice Roxane George ruling against them.

Attorney General Basil Williams, along with former Attorney General of Grenada and now Senior Lecturer at the University of the West Indies Cave Hill, Barbados, Dr Francis Raphael Alexis, took the lead in making oral submissions to the court on behalf of Government.

During his arguments, Dr Alexis maintained that the vote regarding the no-confi-

Attorney-at-Law Anil Nandlall

dence motion was not properly taken, while putting to the court that there is a stark difference between a vote of confidence and a vote of no confidence.

“All of these are very weighty issues and Guyana is opening the eyes of the world, certainly the Commonwealth as to what issues can arise when a young country like Guyana is charting its own way constitutionally. This is one for the law reports to teach the rest of the world,” he told media operatives.

Williams believes that the Government team’s oral submissions were good, explaining that he was able to get over the point that the entire Constitution should be looked at and not just Article 106 (7) in isolation.

He said, “As I argued today (Monday) how you construed the Constitution and the importance of looking at everything in a whole. And the court has a duty where

Criminal charges filed against...

Constitutional crisis

Guyana has never been in such a situation before, and some experienced political analysts, including distinguished lawyers, have predicted that the country will head into a constitutional crisis.

Pressure has been mounting on the coalition Administration to adhere to the Constitution of Guyana, and for the President to call a date for elections soon.

President Granger has been insisting that he has to await guidance from GECOM before he executes his presidential responsibility.

However, the Civil Society Forum – an organisation comprising several Non-Governmental Organisations, as well as the Private Sector, trade unions and religious groups – argues that this position ad-

opted by the Head of State was “unacceptable”.

In a statement on Monday, the Group said: “Giving GECOM effective power to determine when elections will be held is a position for which no constitutional support exists.”

It said this “manoeuvre” revived the misgivings and insecurities generated by the controversial selection of the current Chair of GECOM, Justice Patterson, who now has the casting vote on when elections would be held.

In February, United Nations Resident Coordinator Mikiko Tanaka urged the State to demonstrate its integrity and respect Guyana’s Constitution.

“Recent political developments triggered by the no-confidence vote in the National Assembly are a test for Guyana’s strength and integrity with regard

From page 3

to the effectiveness of the rule of law and governance,” Tanaka said.

She lauded acting Chief Justice George for demonstrating the independence and integrity of the Judiciary when it comes to protecting the Constitution of Guyana.

The acting Chief Justice had ruled that the no-confidence motion was validly passed 33-32 in the National Assembly and the Cabinet has to resign in keeping with constitutional provisions of Article 106 (6) and 106 (7) respectively.

Consequent to the declaration that the 33-majority meant that the motion was carried, Justice George observed that the President and the Ministers could not, therefore, remain in Government in accordance with Article 106 (6) and 106 (7) of the Constitution after three months.

there is inconsistency and absurdity to use a purposive approach to construction and arrive at a construction that would not lead to chaos and dire consequences.”

Meanwhile, lead attorney representing the Opposition, Anil Nandlall said the constitutional provisions under review are very clear.

“The ruling of the Chief Justice was only an interpretation of the plain literal language of those provisions. Here you have lawyers standing up for hours and hours trying to distort the clear meaning of the language of the Constitution which we are all acquainted with,” he added.

Nandlall argued that a no-confidence motion is nothing new, because the parties comprising the coalition Government wanted to pass one in 2014, but now they were arguing that a no-confidence motion was not provided for in the Constitution.

“They were planning to use 33 votes to win the no-confidence motion in 2014, now you hearing that 33 votes can’t win a no-confidence vote anymore … they were planning to win the no-confidence motion in 2018 had Charrandas Persaud not voted the way he voted, now you’re hearing 32 votes can’t win.”

He believes that it’s all lawyers playing with words

Attorney General Basil Williams

and it’s all a political strategy.

Waste

Nandlall used the opportunity to declare that Government was wasting taxpayers’ money by hiring more lawyers, referring to Dr Alexis.

“Look at the amount of money they are spending on an exercise which in my mind is futile. We now have a distinguished lawyer from Grenada brought here and it is costing the taxpayers,” Nandlall said.

He pointed out that Dr Alexis’s submissions were based on the whole argument that 34 is not a majority of the 65-seat National Assembly of Guyana. “That was said in the High Court a million times,” he added.

“We are careening into a state of crisis and the Government is unconcerned and all they are doing is trying to find devices, mechanisms and methods to try to justify their position or delay elections.”

In a Notice of Appeal filed, the Government said that the acting Chief Justice erred and misdirected herself in law, when she ruled that the National Assembly of Guyana properly, validly and lawfully passed a motion on a vote of confidence provided for by Article 106 (6) of the Constitution by 33 votes and that the Government was defeated.

The Attorney General further contends that the CJ erred and misdirected herself in law, when she ruled that the passage of the motion of no confidence provided for by Article 106 (6) of the Constitution by the National Assembly on December 21, 2018, requires the immediate resignation of the President and Cabinet.

Presiding over the cases are acting Chancellor of the Judiciary, Yonette Cummings-Edwards and Justices of Appeal Rishi Persaud and Dawn Gregory.

The matter continues today when Nandlall and others representing the Opposition and Christopher Ram will make their oral submissions.

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wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Guyana gets $344M GPF takes awareness programmes to schools for feasibility study O from Kuwait

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he Government of Guyana has received a grant of Kuwaiti Dinars (KD) 500,000 (Equivalent to GY$344M) from the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development to undertake a Technical and Economic Feasibility Study for the Redesign of the Belfield to Rosignol Road Network.

The study will be carried out by the Public Infrastructure Ministry and will aim to solve the issues of deteriorating roads, poor drainage and road safety of Belfield to Rosignol.

According to the Department of Public Information (DPI), residents of more than twenty-seven villages along Belfield to

Rosignol will benefit from this road project upon completion.

The redesign of the network will ensure enhanced capacity of the roads, strengthen trade and economic development and facilitate new and improved interactions among farming communities. It will also reduce delays and increase user satisfaction.

The Fund, one of Guyana’s developmental partners, has over the years, assisted Government to undertake feasibility studies and designs for the upgrade of road networks within the country. A similar project was undertaken in 2011 for the upgrade of the Better Hope to Belfield road network.

n Monday last, ranks of A Division (Georgetown-East Bank Demerara) held lectures in two schools around Georgetown where they touched on several pressing issues currently involving young people.

At Bel Air Primary School, one hundred and seventy students and thirteen teachers were actively engaged in a lecture which focused on domestic violence, misconduct among youths as well as traffic regulations and stealing to name a few.

The team comprised of Woman Corporal Lovern Naughton, Lance Corporal Jayon Johnson and Rural Sergeant Mahendra Persaud.

The momentum cascaded as another team visited the Tutorial High School and dealt with issues such as

Commander of G Division Senior Superintendent Khali Pareshram inspects ranks on Tuesday

gangs, bus riding, teenage pregnancy and the use and selling of narcotics among other topics which were discussed.

The team, which consisted of Assistant Superintendent Kevin Das, Woman Inspector Alexis Alli, Inspector Gavin Boyce and Woman Corporal Wilson, spoke to a total of two hundred and twenty

students and fifteen teachers.

Meanwhile, Commander G Division (West Bank Demerara-East Bank Essequibo) Senior Superintendent Khali Pareshram on Tuesday held a muster at the Anna Regina Police Station compound, where eighty-one ranks from the various departments and sections

turned out on parade, neatly dressed for inspection.

During his address, the Commander sought to brief the ranks on several topics such as their nature of duty in the community, training, the Force’s reformation process, dealing with intoxicated persons in custody, the need for increased patrols, duties of subordinate officers, building trust and partnership with residents, promotional exams, tints on vehicles owned by members of the Force and domestic violence.

Nine ranks were awarded trophies for their outstanding turnout on parade, while 11 others were awarded days off.

The ranks were urged to remain vigilant and purposeful in their approach and to be good ambassadors of the Force and respect the human rights of members of the public.

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WEDNesday, MARCH 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Local tourism stakeholders celebrate eco-tourism award think it should inspire us to further work to achieve even greater heights for Guyana’s tourism industry.”

President of the Green Destinations Foundation, Albert Salman had said in an interview, that the Top 100 Awards jury was impressed by the dossier prepared by the Guyana Tourism Authority for the nomination and by the success stories submitted of Surama and Rewa. He noted that the eco-lodges have am-

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The certificate awarded

ocal tourism stakeholders on Monday evening gathered at the Cara Lodge, Quamina Street, to celebrate the award of Guyana being named the number one “Best of eco-tourism” destination in the world at the ITB Global Travel Trade Fair in Berlin, Germany.

Director of the Guyana Tourism Authority, Brian Mullis told the gathering that the award puts Guyana ahead of eco-tourism destinations like Sierra Gorda in Mexico, Tmatboey in Cambodia and the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador.

“The judges told us that we were recognised because of our holistic approach to sustainable management and development, our exemplary, now world-renowned, community-led and owned tourism enterprises, Rewa and Surama, and things like our national policy for pursuing a Green State Development Strategy,” Mullis said.

He noted that being distinguished as a leading sustainable destination “is both a great honour and a great responsibility. We cannot afford to rest on our laurels, we have to continue to significantly advance our efforts to

Business Minister Dominic Gaskin poses with other stakeholders

on the best”.

The GTA Director also acknowledged that there is room for improvement in areas of renewable energy and energy efficiency in the lodges, waste management across the country, managing wildlife trade and adopting alternative mining practices among others.

Business Minister with responsibility for Tourism, Dominic Gaskin commended those who worked hard over the years to develop the award-winning tourism product. “I think we need to build on this achievement. It is not the end of the road by any stretch of the imagination. I

bitious and admirable goals and successes, are community-owned and led, and aim at preserving Guyana’s ecosystems and indigenous traditions.

The jury was also impressed by Guyana’s policy of a “Green, Inclusive and Prosperous Guyana”.

The event was also attended by Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Minister, Sydney Allicock who noted that there were struggles finding markets for the tourism product, but that has now changed with the help of Brian Mullis.

Minister Allicock commended the tour operators and urged that policies be im-

plemented that will see the protection of Guyana’s forest and biodiversity to remain sustainable.

Guyana was also named one of the top ten sustainable destinations in the world and has the Best Destination Video. The second annual “Best of Top 100” awards is

a selection of the finest top 100 destinations selected by a panel of experts who review sustainability success stories submitted by destinations worldwide.

The ITB Berlin (Internationale TourismusBörse Berlin/ International Tourism Exchange Berlin) is

the world’s largest tourism trade fair. The companies represented at the fair include hotels, tourist boards, tour operators, system providers, airlines and car rental companies. The ITB Berlin takes place annually in March at the Messe Berlin.

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wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Revoke licences of businesses involved in TIP – Minister

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he Public Security Minister, Khemraj Ramjattan on Tuesday said he believes that business licences should be revoked from hotel owners who are found guilty of Trafficking In Persons (TIP).

He made the statement while addressing the opening ceremony of a three-day workshop to combat TIP. According to Ramjattan, countries with TIP suspects should share such information with other countries when those persons are travelling so as to ensure the receiving country is alert to detect any unlawful acts in this regard.

“Hitting the networks hard, getting the information as to who are some of the suspects, let’s say in Trinidad or Tobago that are the culprits, and forewarning us when they are coming to Guyana, red flagging, all of these are very important things that we would like to see happen so that we can nab them a nip in the bud, long before they start their operations in any country,” he said.

He added that an important aspect of combating TIP would be revoking licences from hotel owners when found guilty of condoning the act.

“We too must not only do damage to the profit-making, even if it comes to that taking away their hotel licences, when you get the evidence or not granting hotel

have 11 out of that 243. The suspects involved, if I may breach some confidentiality of the police here, you have 57 of them,” the Minister divulged during a previous event.

He stated that total charges for last year amounted to 36 and all of the other cases are present-

licences and business licences and so on,” he posited.

Ramjattan said that although persons may argue that those jobs and businesses create employment, the repugnance of that type of employment is important to the Government, which wants to be civil.

He noted that because TIP is such a large-scale business, a collaborative effort is needed to tackle the issue. “The profits are also utilised to corrupt law enforcement and also because of the vulnerabilities of systems not in place, sometimes even further afield prosecutorial, judicial, magisterial, all those and we have to start,” the Minister noted.

The three-day Regional Thematic Meeting which kicked off on Tuesday at the Princess Hotel will focus on Trafficking in Human Beings (THB) and Smuggling of Migrants (SoM) in the African, Caribbean and Pacific States (ACP).

In 2010, the ACP group of States and the European

Union (EU) launched the ACP-EU dialogue on migration and development.

The objective is to provide a dedicated platform for Caribbean stakeholders and beneficiaries to exchange information and experiences on policy implementation with regards to counter-trafficking and counter-smuggling of migrants and identify region-relevant practices among others.

At the conclusion of the meeting, a report on Trafficking in Human Beings and Smuggling of Migrants will be produced with the aim of providing an overview of the achievements of the action in the specific region.

Earlier this month it was revealed that some 243 persons were trafficked locally.

“There were 243 victims and on one occasion they [officials] went to a club…39 were found in small rooms, obviously the presumption [was] that they were being trafficked, and of course, alleged victims under 18, you

ly ongoing.

“Actual TIP charges as a result of those reports we have 23…the numbers of individuals charged for trafficking offences, of course there are some other offences like illegal entry into the country and so on, but actual TIP charges we had 10.

For the year 2018 too we had

two convictions for TIP; previous years we had zero and one.”

He explained that the regions where these cases were found are from Region Four, specifically Georgetown; Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) and Region Nine (Upper TakutuUpper Essequibo).

MoH initiates “Opt Out” process for HPV vaccine

P

arents who are hesitant for their children to be injected with the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine can now choose to opt out - a new provision offered by the Public Health Ministry.

Speaking on the sidelines at an event held at the Marriott Hotel on Tuesday, Chief Medical Officer, Shamdeo Persaud revealed that the Public Health Ministry, following recent discussions, has decided to implement the “opt out” process.

Parents can uplift the “opt out” forms from the school which their children attend.

The form will become available to schools once the HPV vaccine has been delivered.

“Initially we had started the process of having consent for the HPV. But an assessment of that when we revised the program a few years ago back, we found that receiving the consent was a challenge,” he noted.

He added that once the vaccine is to be delivered at a particular school, the health personnel will meet with the PTA and inform them of the

Chief Medical Officer Shamdeo Persaud

vaccine. After the explanation, they can choose to “opt out” Persaud explained.

However, if this form is not signed by a parent, then that would give the assumption that consent is given for the child to receive the HPV vaccine.

“So it is not a case where these [parents] have to give consent for the vaccine but you can decide in your best opinion or informed decision that you don’t want the child to have the vaccine, you will then sign off otherwise we will assume that you have agreed to have the child im-

munised against the HPV” Persaud explained.

The HPV is administered to children, both boys and girls between the ages of 9 to 16.

The immunisation of children is part of schools’ Immunisation Act of Parliament and as such, is mandatory.

However, previously, parents have complained about the adverse effects associated with the HPV vaccine and have since protested against same being administered to their children.

Just recently, several parents, who have opted out of the process have taken to their Facebook pages to allege that their children were forced to take the vaccine.

These claims were denied by Persaud who stated: “I have not had any reports of anyone else given a vaccine an HPV vaccine without proper procedures applied”.

Cervical cancer has been listed among the leading cancer deaths in this country, thus the Ministry’s desire to bolster its fight against cancer with the vaccination campaign.

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wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Police yet to apprehend farmer who brutally attacked wife …family living in fear

A

fter barely escaping the jaws of death, 22-year-old Vashti Mahase, who was brutally chopped on February 24 by her 35-year-old lover, Fazil Oosman, of Lima Dam, Mahaica, is still living in fear as police are yet to apprehend her attacker.

The woman, a mother of two, spends each day trying not to replay the incident in her head.

Police in C Division (East Coast Demerara) are making every effort to apprehend the farmer who lost his temper when the woman told him she wanted to end the relationship.

He reportedly carried out the brutal attack on the woman leaving her with broken bones and several chop indentations on her head and other parts of her body.

The Divisional Commander, Calvin Brutus, in a brief interview on Tuesday said that the police followed all the leads

they were given but were still unable to make an arrest.

“What we have done so far is since the discharge of the victim from the hospital we’ve been doing sporadic visits via our patrols to where they are living,” he assured.

The injured woman’s mother, Zorina Mahase, told this publication that her daughter was discharged from the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) on Thursday last.

Contrary to what the police had stated, Mahase told Guyana Times that since her daughter was

discharged, the police never visited her home but noted that the investigators have been calling to check up on her from time to time.

She complained that they feel threatened because ever since her child came home, the man has been trying to call her at ungodly hours.

Mahase explained that a relative of the man visited the injured young lady just recently.

The injured woman, Vashti Mahase, shows the wounds she sustained. In this picture, the woman shows her left hand which was fractured, right hand that was partially chopped off, her eyes which the cutlass barely missed and her head that had to be shaved to allow doctors to stitch chop wounds

The woman alleged that residents have been sharing information with the fugitive. Young Mahase is currently at her Good Hope, East Coast Demerara home recuperating from the injuries she sustained.

Guyana Times was told that she underwent surgery to repair the sliced bones in her hands. Her mother also expressed fear that she might not be able to move her right thumb again.

So far, a NonG o v e r n m e n t a l Organisation (NGO) has reached out to the family to offer assistance.

The abused woman’s mother recently said that she was scared for her own life and is contemplating fleeing the home she lived in for several years as the man has been threatening to “finish her off” before

turning himself in to the police.

Young Mahase was sent to the home of the suspect accompanied by a rural constable to issue a restraining order a few days after he had threatened to chop her head off.

Guyana Times was told that in the process of serving the restraining order, an argument ensued between the two and while Mahase’s back was turned, Oosman gruesomely attacked her with his cutlass, firing chops at her face, head, hands, back and other body parts.

The rural constable who was with her allegedly ran for cover, leaving the woman at the mercy of her attacker. The family is appealing for persons to make contact with the police if they see the farmer.

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wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Police find shotgun Public Health Ministry, PAHO meet to while chasing men finalise medicines list at Kwakwani T he Public Health Ministry and Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO) is expected to finalise the essential medicine list for Guyana during an ongoing three-day meeting with stakeholders at the Guyana Marriott Hotel, Kingston, Georgetown.

The medicine list is updated every 2-3 years via a lengthy process through a pharmaceutical team with the aid of a standard treatment guideline developed by the Public Health Ministry or in some instances, the

Dr Shamdeo Persaud explained that every year, newer and more effective agents are added and those that were found to be ineffective are removed.

“Each year we add the newer and more effective agents but we also remove medicines that we find are ineffective that they might be for resistance developed against some form of antibiotic and we have done that or that a drug have found not to be as effective as we did in the past,” Persaud noted.

Persaud further add-

PAHO/WHO Representative to Guyana, Dr William Adu-Krow

The gun that was disposed of by the two men

P

olice in E Division (Linden-Kwakwani) are on the hunt for two males after they reportedly disposed of an illegal shotgun upon seeing the police along the Unamico Road on Tuesday.

According to information received, at approximately 05:15h, ranks attached to the Kwakwani Police Station and Special Branch Unit acting on information received ventured out to the Unamico Road.

Upon arrival, they reportedly observed two males walking in the corner of the road with one alleged to have what appeared to be a shotgun in his hand.

It was noted that upon observing the police vehicle, the males reportedly ran into some bushes.

The ranks reportedly gave chase, however, they were unable to find the men amongst the thick vegetation. The ranks reportedly continued their search through the bushes where they discovered one Savage 12-gauge shotgun.

The police said the gun was taken to the Kwakwani Police Station where it was further examined for a serial number but none was found. The gun was reportedly sealed and lodged at the Kwakwani Police Station.

A section of the gathering

Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

The list is then supplied to the Permanent Secretary with the Ministry’s annual budget, as that being recommended for the Government to procure and make available for patients’ use.

Chief Medical Officer,

ed that the list contains generic items which have been recommended globally by the World Health Organisation.

“The medicines are in their true form, they are also categorised by strength and by the preparation type whether it is liquids or tablets, capsules, topical application so there might be one pharmaceutical agent but they might be available in 5-6 different forms so it’s quite a long list but we are trying to keep the items ge-

neric, that means that we look at the pharmaceutical active component and we recommend the generic items which WHO have been recommending globally rather than to go for brand.”

In his remarks, PAHO/ WHO representative to Guyana, Dr William AduKrow noted that essential medicines are critical to the functioning of any health system, especially in Guyana.

Dr Adu-Krow further

deemed the list as being among things that are of national priority.

“Essential medicines are intended to be available within the context of functioning health systems at all times, in adequate amounts, in appropriate dosage forms with assured quality and adequate information and at a price that the individual and the community can afford” the PAHO/WHO representative added.

Dr Adu-Krow added that “The implementation of the concept of essential medicines is intended to be flexible and adaptable to many different situations exactly which medicines are regarded as essential remains a national responsibility”.

Regional advisers and consultants of WHO are currently leading the discussion in the finalisation of the Essential Medicine List. Regional health officers of the administrative regions, pharmacists, doctors and staff of the Material Management Unit and the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation are among those participating in the three-day meeting.

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wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Ramsammy’s Ruminations ERC Commissioner wants Government Burnham-style rigging to implement daycare services returns, GECOM totally – initiative would be a “win-win” for all parties an APNU/AFC creature T

I

ndia announced this week it will hold general elections exactly one month from now, with more than 900 million people voting. Guyana has been under notice for a general election since the passage of the No-Confidence Motion (NCM) on December 21, 2018, for elections to be held within 90 days, by March 21, 2019, in accordance with the Constitution. David Granger and A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) are ensuring these mandated elections will not be anytime soon. Why is it that India can hold an election with more than 900 million voters in Dr Leslie Ramsammy just one month and Guyana cannot hold an election within three months, with less than 400,000 voters?

GECOM is supposed to be ready for an election at any time.

When Local Government Elections were announced, GECOM had less than three months to prepare and it efficiently did so. This was less than four months ago. What has happened in four months that now renders GECOM incapable of holding an election?

GECOM has been illegally given the power to set an election date. According to David Granger and APNU/AFC, an election cannot be held without GECOM establishing the date. But the Constitution is clear, setting the date is entirely the obligation of the President. The NCM, on December 21, obligated the President to set that date within 90 days or by March 21 or if he failed to do so, to set it with the agreement of the Leader of the Opposition through a two-thirds majority in Parliament.

For the President to defer to GECOM for the date is reckless and clearly a total violation of the Constitution. While the President can legitimately ask for GECOM’s advice on the date, that advice has to be within the constitutional deadline.

The consequence is that in about eight days, Guyana will have an illegal government and the President becomes a dictator. The Granger-led APNU/AFC has deliberately run down the clock. The President is not an innocent bystander as his coalition members play wicked games. The President, in fact, is the architect of a new era of dictatorship and rigged elections in Guyana. President Granger did warn us he aspired to bring back Burnhamism to Guyana. In 2015, in paying tribute to Forbes Burnham, President Granger vowed openly that his goal and his dreams are to ensure Burnhamism reigns in Guyana again.

His autocratic non-constitutional appointment of GECOM’s Chair was proof he was serious. It was clear then that President Granger was not only determined to bring back the PNC-era dictatorship to Guyana, but was determined to use the old PNC strategy to establish and sustain such a dictatorship. President Granger showed his hand when he arbitrarily hand-picked the GECOM Chair. Just like Burnham did, Granger wanted to ensure he had a hand-picked Chairman of the Commission to do his bidding. James Patterson in his short term of squatting as GECOM’s Chair, thus far, has shown total fealty to his boss.

Burnham’s dictatorship was built around rigged elections conducted by a corrupt elections commission, controlled by a Chairman specifically chosen by the President to do his bidding. In the Burnham years, that chairman was Judge Harold Bollers. He ensured all elections were so rigged, international organisations deemed them more warped than barbed wire.

Today, like Burnham did before, Granger has James Patterson as his Harold Bollers to ensure rigged elections. When Granger rejected 18 qualified and distinguished Guyanese nominated by the Leader of the Opposition, after broad national consultations, he signalled his intention for Burnham-era rigged elections. While the PPP objected strenuously, most people remained quiet, giving Granger a pass, thinking that rigged elections in this era are impossible.

APNU/AFC judicial shenanigans to avoid the election represent a distraction. It is GECOM that is being used, just like Burnham did, to stop the elections for now. GECOM is also being used to prepare a voters list that, like the Burnham years, was heavily padded. The new house-to-house registration is for GECOM, with the help of the Ministry of Citizenship, to pad the voters list and rig the elections, just like the PNC did before.

This is why most Guyanese are suspicious of the priority given to Haitian visas and the extension of their stay.

It was always the intention to rig elections with GECOM as the instrument. That was the purpose of the Patterson appointment. The arbitrary conferment for GECOM to set an election date, adding salt to the injury, is a brazen confirmation, Granger and APNU/AFC are not playing games, but solidifying a dictatorship. To those who were silent on the appointment of James Patterson, the struggle to stop dictatorship is now far more onerous. The Guyanese people are collateral damage again.

he cost of daycare facilities for children in Guyana continues to rise as parents, especially those who are employed, are finding it difficult to juggle between their workplaces and daycare centres.

In light of this, women’s representative on the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC), Ruth Howard while speaking about the roles that women play, explained that traditionally, women have been seen as nurturers at home but now, with their presence in the workforce, this proves to be quite a challenge.

She stated that there is a need for more workplac-

es to offer daycare services to women as part of ensuring that they can function effectively as a staff member and also as a parent. Such a move would be a “win-win situation” for all parties.

The Government agencies have a larger number of women in the workforce when compared to the Private Sector and it would make quite an impact on the lives of women who sometimes have to bring their

Ruth Howard

children to the office and keep them there until the work day comes to an end.

An initiative such as

this would also benefit men; those who are single parents and other male guardians that are responsible for collecting a child from school and taking them to their mothers.

In relation to the Private Sector, she noted that there needs to be more caring and understanding employers to allow employees with children to work flexible hours since there are cases where some employers these days have banned employees from bringing children into the workplace.

Night-care facilities for parents and/or guardians with night jobs or those who have to work a shift system

would be one solution in ensuring enhanced performance from their staff and females can be more family-oriented.

Ideally, the move for Government to establish daycare centres would be welcomed by the larger society since it would be cost effective to families and also negate situations where employers have to give time off to their workers so that they can care for their children properly.

This idea had been voiced on the campaign trail during the elections held in 2015 but to date it is yet to come to fruition.

GPHC employs Quality Improvement Manager

GPHC Quality Improvement Manager Leslyn Holder; Deputy Chief Medical Officer of the Public Health Ministry, Dr Karen GordonCampbell; GPHC Board Chairperson Kesaundra Alves; GPHC Chief Executive Officer, Retired Brigadier George Lewis; GPHC Director of Medical and Professional Services, Dr Fawcett Jeffrey and GPHC Head of Orthopaedics, Dr David Samaroo

T

he Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) has taken the step to ensure quality improvement becomes more of a reality with the appointment of a new manager for the Quality Improvement Unit.

Now heading that unit is Leslyn Holder, who has been employed at the Hospital since December 2018.

Holder replaces the previous manager, Yolanda Renville, who migrated.

This announcement was made by Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the institution, Retired Brigadier George Lewis during a recent media briefing, where the Hospital’s administration was addressing findings

surrounding a recent breach of protocol at the facility which resulted in the deaths of three children.

Core functions of this unit within the Corporation surround infection control, occupational safety and health, quality improve-

ment and data collection.

The quality improvement team will be overseeing improvements to the quality of services, health care and management at the GPHC and all its external facilities.

The GPHC, Guyana’s tertiary medical institu-

tion, is a premier health facility providing specialised care ranging from surgeries to services in the areas of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Orthopaedics, Paediatrics, and Accident and Emergency to name a few.

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guyanatimesgy.com

wednesday, march 13, 2019

Regional

US withdraws all Venezuela's Juan Guaidó faces Venezuela: staff from Caracas Embassy sabotage investigation T V enezuela's Chief Prosecutor Tarek Saab says he has asked the Supreme Court to investigate Opposition Leader Juan Guaidó for allegedly sabotaging the country's electrical system.

Much of Venezuela has been without power since Thursday afternoon.

President Nicolás Maduro has said that "US technology" was used to sabotage the electricity grid and has pointed the finger at the Opposition.

Guaidó says it is down to Government mismanagement.

Saab's announcement came just hours after President Maduro had said in a televised message to the nation that "the hour of justice has come" and that the "justice [system] will go after the person behind this criminal attack against the Venezuelan electricity system".

Separately, the US is preparing to impose "very significant" additional sanctions against Venezuelan financial institutions in the coming days, its

Juan Guaidó will be investigated by the Supreme Court for alleged sabotage

special envoy Elliott Abrams has said, without giving any further details.

The US has already imposed sanctions designed to curtail Venezuelan oil sales, and has targeted a growing list of individuals and companies linked to the Maduro government.

The move against Guaidó comes at a moment of high tension in the country, with he and Maduro each claiming to be the constitutional president of Venezuela.

The two men have been at loggerheads since Guaidó declared himself interim President on January 23, arguing that the election which returned Maduro to power for a second term last May was neither free nor fair.

Shortly after that move, his assets were frozen and the Supreme Court, which is dominated by government loyalists, placed a travel ban on Guaidó.

The 35-year-old Opposition Leader defied that ban last month when he toured Latin American countries to garner support.

He had been widely expected to be arrested upon his return, but when he flew into Caracas' main airport on March 24, he was "warmly welcomed" by immigration officers, according to his own account. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Bermuda's Premier confident of removal from EU tax haven blacklist

B

ermuda’s Premier David Burt on Tuesday called the European Union’s decision to put the British overseas territory on a list of global tax havens “a setback”, but said he was confident it would soon be reversed.

“The news from Brussels this morning is a setback for Bermuda,” a grave-faced Burt told local Journalists

at a news conference, flanked by business leaders.

“Bermuda is compliant and we are confident that within a matter of weeks that will be accepted by EU Member States and Bermuda will be removed from this list,” he added.

The 28-nation EU set up the socalled blacklist in December 2017 after revelations of widespread tax avoid-

ance schemes used by corporations and wealthy individuals to lower tax bills.

EU governments adopted a broadened blacklist of tax havens on Tuesday, adding 10 jurisdictions to the updated list. They are: Bermuda, the Dutch Caribbean island of Aruba, Barbados, Belize, Fiji, the Marshall Islands, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Vanuatu and Dominica.

he United States will withdraw all diplomatic staff from Venezuela this week due to the "deteriorating situation" there, the State Department has said.

In a tweet, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said having staff in Caracas had "become a constraint on US policy".

The US ordered all non-essential staff to leave Venezuela in January amid an ongoing diplomatic crisis.

Widespread power cuts and a worsening humanitarian crisis have sparked mass protests.

Amid the crisis, a wellknown Journalist was detained on Tuesday. Luis Carlos Diaz became the latest Journalist targeted by Venezuelan authorities, after he was accused by a radical pro-government TV programme of playing a role in the blackout.

The decision to vacate the Embassy came late on Monday and followed critical comments Pompeo made to reporters about Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

Relations between the two

countries have deteriorated in recent months.

On Tuesday, in a statement published on Twitter

by Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza, Venezuela's Government gave the remaining US diplomats in the country 72 hours to leave.

The US said the "former president" no longer had the authority to order them out.

US President Donald Trump backed Opposition Leader Juan Guaidó as president after Guaidó declared himself interim leader on January 23. Venezuela then broke off diplomatic relations in response.

"Nicolás Maduro promised Venezuelans a better life in a socialist paradise," Pompeo said on Monday. "He delivered on the socialism part... the paradise part? Not so much."

But in a televised address, Maduro blamed the continuing power cuts on foreign sabotage. "The United States' imperialist Government ordered this attack," he said, without offering evidence. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Peru names actor Salvador del Solar as PM amid Cabinet shakeup

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Marielle Franco murder: Two Rio ex-Police Officers held

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wo men have been arrested over the murder of Marielle Franco, an outspoken black councillor in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro.

The arrests come almost a year after Franco and her driver were shot dead, an incident which caused mass protests.

Franco had been highly critical of the deployment of federal security forces to Rio's poor neighbourhoods.

Police said both suspects were former members of the military police force.

Franco was returning from an event encourag-

Marielle Franco was 38 when she was shot dead

ing black women's empowerment in central Rio on March 14, 2018 when a car drew alongside hers and

nine shots rang out.

She was shot four times in the head, and three bullets hit her driver, Anderson

Gomes. Franco's press officer, who was sitting in the back seat of the car, was injured.

One of the suspects arrested on Tuesday is accused of being the gunman, the other of being the driver.

The killing shocked Brazilians, who took to the streets of Rio de Janeiro and other cities en masse in protest.

With the anniversary of her murder approaching, there was also criticism of the fact that no-one had been brought to justice for her murder. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Trini author in deal with Netflix

N

etflix has snapped up the television rights for the as-yetto-be published debut novel of T&T national Caroline MacKenzie, which tells the tale of a Venezuelan family living in this country illegally.

The publishing rights for MacKenzie’s novel “One Year of Ugly”, have been purchased by Borough Press for the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth excluding Canada, while 37 Ink has bought the publishing

rights for the novel in the United States.

Ann Bissell, publicity director at HarperCollins, acquired “One Year of Ugly” for Borough Press from Sue Armstrong at C&W Agency.

TV rights were immediately snapped up by Netflix, handled by Luke Speed at Curtis Brown, and US rights were acquired by Dawn Davis, VP and publisher at 37 INK, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, from Zoe Sandler at ICM Partners.

The business magazine of the book industry, The Bookseller, announced the three-way auction for MacKenzie’s novel in an article last week.

Hardcover publication of the book is scheduled for March 2020.

MacKenzie, a freelance translator living in T&T, has described the deal as “a dream come true”.

“Through my daily translation work, I’ve been noting the influx of Venezuelans in response to

the political and economic crisis for years, and have been both fascinated and disheartened by the local reaction to it,” MacKenzie is quoted as saying in The Bookseller.

“I knew there was a story to be told of the Venezuelan migrant experience in Trinidad, and I’m so happy I was able to tell it through Yola,” she said.

Yola Palacios is the protagonist and narrator of “One Year of Ugly”. (Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

Salvador del Solar (left) served as Culture Minister under the previous Government but is better known for his screen roles

P

[Guadalupe Pardo/Reuters]

eruvian President Martin Vizcarra has sworn in actor and former Culture Minister Salvador del Solar as his new Prime Minister in a Cabinet reshuffle aimed at shoring up his slipping approval ratings.

The move on Monday comes days after former Prime Minister Cesar Villanueva stepped down amid calls for a Government shakeup.

Vizcarra chose to keep Finance Minister Carlos Oliva and Energy and Mines Minister Francisco Ismodes in their posts, but changed eight other Ministers, including the Production and Agriculture Ministers.

Del Solar, 48, has degrees in law and international relations, but is best known for his roles in Spanish-language films and television series, including a turn as a priest in Netflix's drugs drama, “Narcos”.

He served as Peru's Culture Minister for about a

year under former President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, who resigned last March amid a region-wide corruption scandal.

Vizcarra, a former vice president, was sworn in as President shortly after.

Peruvian Presidents often reshuffle their Cabinets when approval ratings fall, though all recent Presidents have ended their terms widely unpopular.

Vizcarra's approval rating rose to a high of 66 per cent in January after he confronted the Opposition-controlled Congress to push for anti-corruption measures, which had passed easily in a national referendum in December.

Corruption is seen as rife in Peru, where the last five former Presidents have either been jailed on corruption charges or are currently under investigation for fraud.

Opposition Leader Keiko Fujimori is also embroiled in an ongoing corruption investigation. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

guyanatimesgy.com

wednesday, march 13, 2019

17

Around the World

India election 2019: Priyanka Gandhi Britain and Brexit in chaos: Parliament rejects takes on Modi in debut speech May's EU deal again

P

riyanka Gandhi, the charismatic younger sister of Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi, has made her first ever public speech, taking on the Prime Minister in his home State.

“Your vote is a weapon, your awakening is a weapon, your awareness is a weapon, so use it wisely because you are going to choose your future,” she told a cheering crowd.

She did not directly mention Narendra Modi, but the crowd was in no doubt as to who she was talking about when she said: “Those who make big promises... ask them what happened to their promises of creating 20 million jobs, putting money into

Priyanka Gandhi

your bank accounts and that they would look after women’s safety.”

She added that the country’s institutions were being

destroyed while hatred was being fomented.

People have been curious to see exactly what Priyanka Gandhi would be like as a ful-

ly-fledged politician, and this was her big moment.

For many in the Congress, she represents a breath of fresh air, with party workers billing her as the Gandhi that could potentially take on the charismatic Prime Minister.

Her speech was short but well received by the crowd.

Once she finished, they burst into chants of “long live Priyanka” and “Priyanka Gandhi - second Indira Gandhi” - a reference to her grandmother, a former Prime Minister of the country.

On social media, responses were mixed. Some said she had “said nothing new”, while others said she was a natural speaker who connected with her audience. (Excerpt from BBC News)

North Korea election turnout 99.99% – State media

T

urnout in North Korea’s single-candidate election was 99.99 per cent this year, up from 99.97 per cent the last time it was held, State media reported.

This year’s turnout fell just short of 100 per cent as those “abroad or working in oceans” were unable to take part, North Korea’s official KCNA news agency reported on Tuesday.

Millions of North Koreans voted in the national polls on Sunday. The election is held every five years to elect what is widely seen as a rubber-stamp legislature known as the Supreme People’s Assembly.

With only one approved name on each voting slip, the result is never in doubt.

But the list of 687 elected deputies reported by KCNA did not include Kim Jong Un,

raising speculation about the reason for his exclusion.

State media did not mention Kim’s candidate registration before or after the elections, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported before adding that the decision does not appear to suggest that his grip on power is slipping.

Sunday’s elections, like in 2014, saw results come 100 per cent in favour of all named candidates.

Critics say the North Korean election, with its total absence of electoral competition, is largely a political rite for enabling the authorities to claim a mandate from the people while reinforcing loyalty to the Government and social unity.

But State media said the turnout was “an expression of the absolute support and trust of all voters in the DPRK Government”. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Hundreds surrender as Islamic State nears defeat in last enclave

I

slamic State faced imminent defeat in its final enclave on Tuesday as hundreds of jihadist fighters and their families surrendered and the USbacked Syrian Democratic Forces said the battle was as good as over.

A Reuters journalist in Baghouz saw hundreds of people surrendering to the SDF, which launched its final attack to capture Baghouz on Sunday, backed by US-led international coalition air strikes and after weeks of siege.

The enclave is the last shred of territory held by the jihadists who have been driven from roughly one-third of Iraq and Syria over the past four years.

SDF official Mustafa Bali said that 1500 to 2000 Islamic State fighters and their families surrendered en masse on Tuesday.

“Once our forces confirm that everyone who wants to surrender has done so ... the clashes will resume,” he said. The jihadists’ defeat was very near, he said.

The coalition said in an email ear-

T

B

ritain’s Parliament rejected Prime Minister Theresa May’s deal to quit the European Union for a second time on Tuesday, deepening the country’s worst political crisis for generations, 17 days before the planned departure date.

MPs voted against May’s amended Brexit deal by 391 to 242 as her last-minute talks with EU chiefs on Monday to assuage her critics’ concerns ultimately proved fruitless.

The vote puts the world’s fifth largest economy in uncharted territory with no obvious way forward: exiting the EU without a deal, delaying the March 29 divorce date, a snap election, or even another referendum are all now possible.

MPs are now due to vote today on whether Britain should exit the world’s big-

gest trading bloc without a deal, a scenario that business leaders warn would bring chaos to markets and supply chains, and other critics say could cause shortages of food and medicines.

Supporters of Brexit argue that, while a “no-deal” divorce might bring some short-term instability, in the longer term it would allow the United Kingdom to thrive and forge beneficial trade deals across the world.

However, parliament is expected firmly to reject a “no-deal” Brexit as well, so on Thursday MPs would then vote on whether Government should request a delay to the leaving date to allow further talks.

Both May and the EU have already ruled out any other changes to the deal, struck after two-and-a-half years of tortuous negotiations. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Israeli Police assault worshippers, close Al-Aqsa compound A general view, purported to be in Baghouz, Islamic State's last enclave, in eastern Syria in this still image taken from a video obtained by Reuters

lier on Tuesday there were an estimated “few hundred” foreign Islamic State fighters remaining in Baghouz who had decided to fight to the end.

The Baghouz enclave was pounded overnight with barrages of rockets, and fires raged inside, but the situation was calm on Tuesday morning.

The SDF has laid siege to Baghouz for weeks but has repeatedly postponed its final assault to allow thousands of civilians, many of them wives and children of Islamic State fighters, to leave. It resumed the attack on Sunday.

Three SDF fighters have been killed, Bali said on Twitter. (Excerpt from Reuters)

EU suspends Boeing 737 MAX flights after Ethiopia crash he European Union’s aviation safety regulator on Tuesday suspended all flights in the bloc

by Boeing 737 MAX planes in the biggest setback yet for the US planemaker following a crash in Ethiopia that killed 157 people.

The move came after Britain, Germany and France joined a wave of suspensions of the aircraft in the wake of Sunday’s crash,

Tellers announce the results of the vote on British Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal in Parliament in London, Britain

and was swiftly followed by a similar decision by India, piling pressure on the United States to follow suit.

Boeing, the world’s biggest planemaker, which has seen billions of dollars wiped off its market value, said it understood the countries’ actions but retained “full confidence” in the 737 MAX and had safety as its priority.

It also said the US Federal Aviation Authority

(FAA) had not demanded any further action related to 737 MAX operations.

The cause of Sunday’s crash, which followed another disaster with a 737 MAX five months ago in Indonesia that killed 189 people, remains unknown.

There is no evidence yet whether the two crashes are linked.

In an unusual move, the European Union Aviation

Safety Agency (EASA) said it was suspending all flights in the bloc of Boeing’s 737 MAX 8 and 9 jets.

The decision by some states to ban not only arrivals and departures but flights crossing through their airspace surprised some regulatory sources even in regions banning the plane, since overflights are usually protected by international law. (Excerpt from Reuters)

I

sraeli forces have closed all entrances to occupied East Jerusalem’s flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque complex amid ongoing confrontation with Palestinian worshippers, a Palestinian official has said.

“Dozens of Israeli soldiers stormed the Al-Aqsa compound and assaulted several religious figures,” Firas al-Dibs, spokesperson for Jerusalem’s Religious Endowments Authority, a Jordan-run agency tasked with overseeing the city’s Muslim and Christian sites, said in a statement on Tuesday.

According to al-Dibs, Al-Aqsa Mosque’s Director Omar Kiswani and Sheikh Wasef al-Bakri, the acting supreme judge of Jerusalem’s Islamic Courts, were among those assaulted

by Israeli police.

He said baton-wielding police attacked dozens of Muslim worshippers near the Al-Aqsa compound’s Dome of the Rock.

According to Israeli police, “a Molotov cocktail

was thrown towards a police building inside the compound itself and that facility started to burn,” Al Jazeera’s Harry Fawcett reported from occupied East Jerusalem.

The Palestinian President has condemned the reported escalation at the flashpoint religious site.

He also called on the international community to intervene, accusing Israeli police and settlers of “consistently violating the sanctity of the mosque and provoking the sentiments of Muslims”.

Tension has mounted in occupied East Jerusalem since last month, when Israeli police briefly sealed the Al-Aqsa compound’s AlRahma Gate, located adjacent to the eastern wall of the Old City, sparking Palestinian demonstrations.

In the weeks since, Israeli authorities have banned dozens of Palestinians, including religious officials, from entering Al-Aqsa, which for Muslims represents the third holiest site in Islam.

(Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

18

guyanatimesgy.com

wednesday, March 13, 2019

ARCHIE

ARIES (March 21April 19)

dilbert

TAURUS (April 20May 20)

You’ll get all the help you need if you ask for it. Don’t be so stubborn that you miss out on something that can lead to excellent connections. Put your emotions on the sideline.

GEMINI (May 21June 20)

Focus on what you can do to achieve personal growth, inner strength and steady progress. Tamping down extravagant behavior is a good place to start.

CANCER

An interesting concept will encourage you to change the way you do things. Take a close look at your finances and contracts, and make some adjustments.

(June 21July 22)

Peanuts

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Calvin and Hobbes

WORD GAME

Look beyond what’s right in front of you to get a different perspective on what’s actually happening. Silence is golden and will help prevent an argument.

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

Interact with people who love to talk. Listen to what they say and assess what’s useable. A romantic gesture will help you establish better relations with a loved one.

Get involved in activities and events that are geared toward learning information that could be useful to you moving forward.

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Explore possibilities and sign up for talks or speak to an expert. The more you know, the easier it will be to assess situations and make better choices.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Dreams can come true if you work hard and do the right things. First of all, be reasonable, and secondly, take care of anything that might stand in your way before you begin.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23Dec. 21)

Your emotions will cloud your vision. Someone will tell you what you want to hear instead of being truthful. Do some soul-searching before you commit to anything or anyone.

SUDOKU

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

It’s time to make some changes that will improve your life. Try to find ways to spend more time working on projects that you enjoy.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 19)

Relaxing at home with a loved one or clearing a space to start a new project will give you the incentive to pursue a dream.

solution for LAST PUBLISHED puzzle

PISCES (Feb. 20March 20)

A former co-worker will give you a lead that looks promising. A change of attitude will open up doors that were closed in the past.

WEDNEsday, march 13, 2019

19

BCB/NBS 2nd Division 40-Over Cricket Tournament…

RHT Bakewell and D’Edward to clash for top honours on Sunday

Shemaine Campbelle

T

he historic Albion Community Centre on Sunday will come alive when it hosts the final of the 2018 Berbice Cricket Board

(BCB)/New Building Society (NBS) Ltd 40-Over SecondDivision Tournament.

Berbice powerhouse Rose Hall Town Bakewell will

clash with D’Edward Cricket Club of West Bank Berbice for the prestigious title and bragging rights as the best Second-Division team in the Ancient County.

The finale, which will bowl off at 11:00h, on is expected to be a close encounter with Rose Hall Town Bakewell being slight favourites on the Albion track, which usually favours spin bowling.

It will be a match of youth versus experience with Rose Hall Town Bakewell being an almost Under-21 team while D’Edward Cricket Club have a mature, experienced team. Rose Hall Town Bakewell have five Berbice Second-Division titles while D’Edward have two.

Guyana’s Under-19 player and Guyana Cricket Board Academy member Kevin

Sinclair will lead the Rose Hall Town Bakewell team.

He will receive support in the batting department from National Under-19 opening batsman Junior Sinclair, West Indies Under-19 selectee Kevlon Anderson, Surendra Kissoonlall, Guyana Under-15 batsmen Jonathan Rampersaud and Mahendra Gopilall. The talented Chanderpaul Govindan, all-rounder Keith Simpson and Sylus Tyndall are all capable of scoring runs in the strong batting line-up.

Their bowling will be spearheaded by the fiery Tyndall, the former Guyana Under-19 fast bowler. He will be supported by Anderson with his medium pace, Simpson with left-arm spin and the off-spin bowling of Junior and Kevin Sinclair

and Jonathan Rampersaud.

West Indies female players Shemaine Campbelle and Erva Giddings will miss the final on account of their national duties.

On the other hand, D’Edward Cricket Club on paper have a strong batting lineup with players like Keith Fraser, Jaipaul Heeralall, Lakeraj Sookra, Heeralall Bridgelall, Altaf Khan and Devendra Lalsa. D’Edward Cricket Club are well-known for power hitting and recently chased down 160 against Young Warriors Cricket Club in a semi-final in which they lost just one wicket in 19 overs on their small home ground.

The massive Albion Ground will test the strength of their power play.

Their bowling will revolve around the medium pace of

Fraser and Lalsa with support from Hemraj Harilall, Navin Rampersaud, Romesh Boodram and Bridgelall.

BCB President Hilbert Foster has hailed the tournament as a resounding success as it would be the first time that the tournament, which attracts some 85 to 90 teams, would be completed within a year after being launched.

Representatives of the NBS Ltd, including Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Anil Beharry and Berbice Regional Manager Rana Persaud, are expected to be present to hand over prizes and trophies after the final.

The winning team will take home $100,000 and the championship trophy while the runners-up will have to settle for $50,000 and a trophy.

Manchester City enjoy 7-goal stroll into last 8 against limp Schalke F or Manchester City it was an evening of spectacular superiority.

They have had a lot of those occasions at this stadium and for the latest it is probably fair to say VAR gave them more grief than Schalke. Even the referee looked apologetic at times, embarrassed perhaps, about the slightly awkward occasions when the crowd were not sure whether they could celebrate goals properly.

Not that it mattered too greatly on a night when City threatened to repeat the 9-0 that Burton Albion suffered here in the Carabao Cup (restricting themselves to the same margin of victory they had against Rotherham in the FA Cup) and waltzed into the quarter-finals. It felt almost like a trick of the mind that there was a point in the first leg when they were losing 2-1, down to 10 men and Pep Guardiola was looking anxious, to say the least.

This was a much more stress-free occasion, featuring a three-goal blitz in seven minutes towards the end of the first half and, as always with City, no sign that they are ever willing to ease up when a rout is on the cards. Sergio Agüero scored the first two, struck the post with another first-half effort and, if anything, might reflect on a good opportunity to get his fourth hat-trick of the season.

Leroy Sané added the third goal and then set up others for Raheem Sterling, Bernardo

Sergio Agüero opens the scoring from the spot for Manchester City against Schalke in their Champions League last-16 stroll

Silva and the substitute Phil Foden. Gabriel Jesus made it seven on the night and 10 on aggregate. Yes, Schalke were obliging opponents but the scoreline still felt like a reflection of City’s ambitions, having softened up their opponents in Gelsenkirchen three weeks ago.

To put it into context, this was the 28th occasion in the Champions League era when a team have scored three away goals or more in the first leg and not once has it resulted in anything other than that side qualifying for the next stage.

Schalke, Bundesliga runners-up last season, are four points above the relegation places and their slender hopes were obliterated when, first, Agüero demonstrated that he had been practising a panenka routine from the penalty spot

and then, three minutes later, the same player added City’s second goal.

Agüero has missed more penalties over the years than he would probably care to remember but this one was a beauty. A new technique, too, for someone who usually prefers to hit the ball hard and low. Guardiola has a curious habit of not watching when his team have a penalty, choosing to stare at the floor rather than observing the action, and therefore missed Agüero chipping the ball down the middle while the goalkeeper, Ralf Fährmann, dived at thin air.

The penalty had been awarded for Jeffrey Bruma’s challenge on Bernardo Silva and the VAR analysis seemed to take an age before the decision was relayed back to the referee that Schalke’s full-

back had, indeed, prevented his opponent from latching on to Ilkay Gundogan’s through ball.

When VAR is introduced to the Premier League next season it can only be hoped it is a speedier process because the length of delay here did little but irritate the crowd and affect the game’s momentum. The first wait felt unsatisfactory but it was an even more numbing delay when Agüero doubled the lead and, this time, the most infuriating part is that it looked relatively straightforward to decide that Raheem Sterling was onside in the buildup. With a clever backheel, Sterling found Agüero inside the penalty area. The striker held off Bruma before squeezing his shot past Fährmann at the near post and, finally, the goal

was confirmed via a message on the large screen. Modern football, indeed.

Nor was that the last time the referee was doing that now-familiar rectangular sign with his fingers. Sané had a goal disallowed for a marginal offside decision early in the second half and at least the officials were a little quicker with their verdict when Sterling scored his goal shortly afterwards. Again, it was an issue of whether the player was offside when he ran on to Sané’s cross and thumped in a splendid first-time shot. The video replays showed he had timed his run perfectly and the fourth VAR decision in 31 minutes went in City’s favour.

It was a strange subplot but for City only a minor irritation in the overall story. Sané, in particular, looked keen to impress against his former team and his goal stemmed from possibly the best passing move of the first half. David Silva set up the shooting chance and the German drove his shot emphatically into the bottom corner.

Sané’s cutback gave Bernardo Silva the chance to drive in the fifth goal and he was prominently involved again when Foden ran through to make it six. Jesus, another substitute, added the final goal with a right-foot finish and City, on this evidence, will take some stopping.

Ronaldo sends Juventus through Cristiano

Ronaldo

once

again underlined his worth in Europe’s elite competition as his hat-trick overturned a 2-0 first-leg deficit against Atletico Madrid to send Juventus into the Champions League last eight.

Ronaldo, looking for his sixth winners’ medal, was the focal point of many of Juve’s attacks as the Serie A champions looked to unlock one of Europe’s tightest defences.

The 34-year-old scored first in the 27th minute when he got in front of Juanfran to head in Federico Bernardeschi’s cross at the far post.

Four minutes after the break the former Real Madrid forward levelled the tie with another header. This was needed the video assistant referee to confirm it was a goal after keeper Jan Oblak initially appeared to have clawed the ball off the line.

With four minutes remaining the comeback was complete. Bernardeschi, who was exceptional throughout the match, made a lung-busting run from just inside the Atletico half before he was pushed over by Angel Correa in the area.

Referee Bjorn Kuipers pointed to the spot and Ronaldo smashed home the penalty. It was his 124th goal in the Champions League.

Juventus’ fans erupted on the final whistle and the players rushed to Ronaldo after he delivered one of the most memorable European nights in the club’s history. (The Guardian)

20

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

WEDNESday, march 13, 2019

College coaches among 50 indicted in college entrance exam scandal N

ine current or former college coaches are among the 50 people indicted in a nationwide college admissions scandal, according to court documents unsealed Tuesday in Boston.

The alleged scheme involved getting students admitted to some of the top schools in the country as recruited athletes — regardless of athletic ability — and helping those applicants cheat on their entrance exams, according to the documents.

U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Andrew

Lelling called it the “largest college admissions scam ever prosecuted by the department of justice.”

He said part of the charges were related to securing admission to elite colleges by bribing coaches under false pretenses.

“In return for bribes, these coaches agreed to pretend that certain applicants were recruited, competitive athletes, when, in fact, the applicants were not. As the coaches knew, the students’ athletic credentials had been fabricated.”

The documents unsealed

John Vandemoer arrives at the federal courthouse to face charges in a nationwide college admissions cheating scheme in Boston, Massachusetts, US

from the investigation — called Operation Varsity Blues — showed Tuesday that Yale women’s soccer coach Rudy Meredith is alleged to have helped non-recruits get into the prestigious Ivy League school by claiming they were recruits.

The charges involved 33 parents “who paid enormous sums to guarantee their children’s admissions to certain schools through the use of bribes and fake academic and athletic credentials,” Lelling said.

One of the schemes involved parents paying

William Singer, the founder of a college prep business, $15,000 to $75,000 to have someone take the SAT or ACT for their children. He was expected to plead guilty Tuesday afternoon, according to prosecutors at a press conference.

The schools involved — Stanford, UCLA, Wake Forest, Yale, Georgetown, University of Texas, University of San Diego, USC — are not believed to have taken part in wrongdoing. The indictment documents, for example, suggest Meredith accepted funds via

a charitable organization and did not report any of the details of the plot to Yale officials, including payments.

Other named in the indictment are current Texas tennis coach and former Kansas tennis coach Michael Center, Stanford sailing coach John Vandemoer, former Georgetown tennis coach Gordon Ernst, several USC coaches and UCLA men’s soccer coach Jorge Salcedo.

Actresses Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman are among the indicted, according to reports. (Reuters)

Osaka powers into 4th McGregor arrested in Miami for round at Indian Wells allegedly smashing fan’s phone

W

orld number one Naomi Osaka powered into the fourth round at Indian Wells on Monday after a 6-4 6-2 victory over Danielle Collins.

The 21-year-old Japanese had a shaky start when she was broken early in the first set but quickly found her groove and broke the American four times and struck 29 winners to advance.

T h e U.S. and Australian Open champion, who is also defending the title at Indian Wells, will next face Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic, who beat Ekaterina

Naomi Osaka

Alexandrova 6-4 6-2.

The duo were joined in the fourth round by seven-times Grand Slam champion Venus Williams, who defeated qualifier Christina McHale 6-2 7-5.

The 38-year-old Williams, who showed her mettle in the second round where she upset world number three Petra Kvitova, will meet unseeded German Mona Barthel in the fourth round.

“I feel definitely more comfortable going into that match than, for example, today,” Williams told reporters.

“I had never played (McHale) before, so you feel like you don’t really know what’s going to happen.

Earlier, Latvian 11th seed Anastasija Sevastova became the latest player to be stuck down with a viral illness at the tournament.

Sevastova was down 5-0 in the first set of her third

round match with Estonian 21st seed Anett Kontaveit when she retired.

Her departure came less than 24 hours after Serena Williams was unable to continue her match on Sunday, also citing a viral illness.

Men’s third seed Alexander Zverev also said on Monday after losing to fellow German Jan-Lennard Struff that he too had a virus.

Among those women still feeling healthy, threetimes grand slam champion Angelique Kerber battled back to beat Russian qualifier Natalia Vikhlyantseva 3-6 6-1 6-3.

Kerber took a while to warm to her task on a cool morning in the California desert.

“She was playing really fast and flat, so that was something I was not really expecting,” the German said of her opponent.

“I was trying to adjust, especially with my movement at the end of the first set and beginning of the second, and I think that was the key to coming back.”

Fifth seed Karolina Pliskova was not at her very best but still prevailed 6-3 6-2 over Ysaline Bonaventure.

“I felt somehow strange and the match was strange,” said Pliskova.

U

FC star Conor McGregor has been arrested in Miami for allegedly smashing a fan’s phone as they tried to take pictures.

The Irish fighter is being charged with strong-armed robbery and misdemeanour criminal mischief, police said.

The alleged incident took place as the 30-year-old left the Fontainebleau Miami Beach hotel at 05:20 local time.

A police report says he knocked the phone out of the fan’s hand, stamped on it then picked it up and left with it.

“The victim attempted to take a picture of the defendant with his cell phone.

The defendant slapped the victim’s phone out of his hand, causing it to fall to the floor,” the police report said.

“The defendant then stomped on the victim’s phone several times, damaging it. The defendant then picked up the victim’s phone and walked away with it, depriving him of it. The defendant was located and arrested.”

It added the alleged victim’s phone was valued at US$1,000 (£760).

In a post on social media following his release, McGregor said: “Patience in this world is a virtue I con-

Conor McGregor posted on Instagram after being released later on Monday in Miami

tinue to work on. I love my fans dearly. Thank you all.”

Last year, McGregor was ordered by a court to have anger management training and perform five days of community service in return for the dropping of criminal charges for attacking a bus containing rival UFC fighters.

The former two-weight champion has been in Florida preparing for his UFC comeback after los-

ing his last fight to Khabib Nurmagomedov of Russia in October 2018.

That came a year after McGregor lost a boxing match, thought to be the most lucrative in history, to multiple world champion Floyd Mayweather.

American Mayweather earned a reported US$100m (£76m) from the bout, with McGregor thought to have pocketed US$30m (£23m).

(BBC Sport)

BCB pays tribute to former President Roy Baijnauth

T

he President, Executives and members of the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) extended their profound and deepest sympathy to the family and friends of former President Roy Baijnauth, who died recently after a brief illness.

Known throughout the Ancient County as Uncle Roy, he served as President of the BCB for four years and for well over a decade as Head of the Upper Corentyne Cricket Association.

Baijnauth, despite being

Former BCB President Roy Baijnauth

a highly successful businessman, was well known for being a humble, approachable and simple individual.

Berbice cricket was able to maintain its high standards in the 1990s and early 2000s owing to the unselfish and outstanding contribution of Baijnauth and several others.

Under his leadership, the Upper Corentyne First Division Team, with Bhim George at the helm, were crowned national champions. Baijnauth’s love of the gentleman’s game also ex-

tended to sponsorship of tournaments, support of clubs and promising youth players while numerous cricket grounds received materials from his sawmill business.

Uncle Roy was highly respected for his calm advice and was never known to lose his temper under pressure.

The Board recognised his outstanding contributions to cricket and presented to him, two of its highest awards: “Tribute to Heroes” and “Life Membership”. As such, the Board wishes to

honour his memory in a special way, after holding consultation with his close relatives. It will be renaming one of the BCB Awards in his memory.

The Board would also like to extend sympathy to Vice President Albert Smith on the sudden passing of his beloved wife, Somanie.

It is their hope that God will bless and guide him during this difficult period.

guyanatimesgy.com

wednesday, MARCH 13, 2019

21

CONCACAF leads women’s football charge Y

ou can feel the passion for women’s football in Concacaf as much off the field as on the field. It’s a day before the celebration of International Women’s Day ... And Mexico, a country that wears the jersey proudly, rich in culture and a great fan of the most popular sport in the world, is hosting the FIFA- Concacaf Women’s Football Conference.

The atmosphere surrounding this historic women’s event, the first joint conference organized by FIFA and Concacaf within the region and hosted by the Mexican Football Federation (FMF), is contagious. You can feel the desire to see more players on the field ... and an interest in learning and exchanging the best strategies to develop and market the sport.

The conference, which

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From left: CONCACAF Head of Women’s Football, Karina LeBlanc, CONCACAF General Secretary Philippe Moggio, FIFA General Secretary Fatma Samoura and FIFA Chief Women’s Football Officer Sarai Bareman at the FIFA-CONCACAF Women’s Football Conference held in Mexico City, Mexico

featured welcome remarks

by FIFA General Secretary Fatma Samoura, FIFA Chief Women’s Football Officer Sarai Bareman, the President of the FMF, Yon de Luisa and Concacaf General Secretary, Philippe Moggio, provided an opportunity to review and discussFIFA’s Women’s Football Strategy.

Samoura highlighted the increase in women’s representation at the FIFA Council, Committee and FIFA staff level, and spoke with excitement of the expectations of the FIFA Women’s World Cup in France.

According to FIFA, since

1991, the FIFA Women’s World Cup has been played every four years. Throughout the past decades, the level of play has dramatically improved, media attention has increased exponentially, and the game has grown in popularity as confirmed by the fact that more than 750 million television viewers watched the 2015 edition of FIFA’s flagship women’s competition.

The tournament plays a key strategic role as part of FIFA’s efforts to double the number of female players to 60 million by 2026.

The victories are the re-

sult of solid leadership, commitment and ongoing teamwork, key aspects highlighted by panelists at the three-day conference, which brought together FIFA officials, Concacaf and delegates from Member Associations.

While there has been significant progress since the first FIFA Women’s World Cup in 1991, the future holds limitless opportunities.

“There is so much work to be done and there is so much opportunity,” said General Secretary Moggio in his speech, highlighting the success of Confederation women’s competitions in 2018, in

Thailand pulls out of 2020 Olympic weightlifting over doping

T

hailand has volunteered to ban itself from Tokyo Olympic Games weightlifting next year because of doping.

Sopita Tanasan of Thailand competes in the women’s 48kg weightlifting competition at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Thailand has volunteered to ban itself from Tokyo Olympic Games weightlifting next year because of doping.

Thailand

has volunteered to ban itself from T o k y o Olympic Games weightlifting next year because of doping, another blow to a sport whose place on the Olympic program is precarious.

The self-imposed ban also means Thailand will still stage the world championships in Pattaya in September but with no home competitors, the International Weightlifting Federation said on Friday.

The decisions follow eight failed drug tests for

the Thai team that competed at the last worlds in November, including doping cases against three women who won world titles.

Among the eight lifters facing bans are Sopita Tanasan and Sukanya Srisurat, who won Thailand’s two weightlifting gold medals at the 2016 Olympics, Rio de Janeiro.

Thailand is a traditional power in weightlifting, especially in the lighter classes, and the IWF says the cases have

Sopita Tanasan of Thailand competes in the women’s 48kg weightlifting competition at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

“potential consequences that seriously damage the integrity of the sport.”

All of the doping cases involve at least one substance of the banned adiol type, with some lifters testing positive for multiple drugs.

Thailand’s doping cases were a fresh embarrassment for weightlifting, which is under pressure from the International Olympic

C o m m i t t e e .

Weightlifting has only a provisional place on the program for the 2024 Paris Olympics on condition it cracks down on doping.

Dozens of weightlifters who competed at the last three Olympics have later tested positive. Russia and China were among nine countries banned from international competition for a year in 2017 after racking up numerous doping cases. (Sportsmax)

which nearly two thousand players participated.

“It takes all of us – a collective regional force – to fully commit to advancing women’s football. We must work together to move the needle and create the right strategic platforms that engages football leaders, governments, players, partners and fans in a movement that grows the women’s game in sustainable ways. We need everyone - a regional force - committed to developing women’s football,” added Moggio.

The conference also highlighted the importance for federations’ directors to take advantage of the potential of women’s football and to continue to identify opportunities and implement programs to grow the game from grassroots to professional levels.

“We need to be game changers... Empower, influence and change the lives of girls and young women through football,” said Concacaf Head of Women’s Football Karina LeBlanc, who presentedthe Confederation’s women’s platform, ConcacafW, which will be developed to educate and empower, grow the game, provide access and increase participation across the 41 Member Associations.

The Jamaican Football Federation (JFF) made its voice heard, after the historic victory of the Reggae Girlz in

the 2018 Concacaf Women’s Championship, where they became the first team in the Caribbean to qualify for a FIFA Women’s World Cup. The JFF Women’s Football Committee member, Elaine Walker-Brown, also inspired attendees to continue working alongside FIFA and Concacaf to grow the sport.

“You must love women’s football, now with the support of FIFA and Concacaf, it’s easier for our associations to develop the game ... The important thing is to continue developing young leaders in their countries,” said Walker-Brown, adding that the World Cup qualification has changed the perception of women’s football in their country.

Just as this Jamaican victory is creating a new era for women’s football, the FIFAConcacaf Women’s Football Conference has demonstrated the support, opportunity and desire to grow the women’s game, exposing the challenges, including changing the perception of governing bodies and communities, as well as encouraging the creation of structures for sustainable and profitable development.

“This special football event helps us advance our focus and our efforts and demonstrate the opportunity we all have behind women’s football,” concluded Moggio.

(Sportsmax)

SportsMax and Olympic Channel launch partnership in Caribbean

T

he Olympic Channel and SportsMax on Tuesday announced a new partnership featuring both linear and digital programming across 22 Caribbean territories in support of their objective to engage new audiences and younger generations with the Olympic Movement all year round.

Beginning on March 12, SportsMax will broadcast over 700 hours of Olympic-related content under the “Olympic Channel” brand on its channels as well as the SportsMax and Digicel apps and websites including embedded video.

Programming will feature year-round coverage including Olympic Channel original programming and live sporting events as well as additional Olympicrelated content that highlights locally relevant stories created by both parties.

“We are excited to partner with SportsMax to further grow the Olympic Channel brand within the Caribbean,” said Mark Parkman, General Manager of the IOC’s global Olympic Channel. “Our collaboration will provide viewers with even more op-

tions to discover, engage and share in the power of sport and the excitement of the Olympic Games all year round as we look ahead toward Tokyo 2020.”

Olly McIntosh, CEO of IMC and SportsMax, said “as the official Caribbean broadcast partners of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, SportsMax and Digicel are excited to bring our viewers closer to the Olympic movement and athletes as we build up to next year. This partnership with the Olympic Channel enables us to reach everyone, whether they’re at home or on-the-go through the SportsMax or Digicel apps for all Android or Apple users on any network.”

The agreement is complementary to the International Media Content Ltd., subsidiary of Digicel Group and parent company of SportsMax, media rights

agreement with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for the Olympic Games and Youth Olympic Games through 2020.

Territories reached through the new partnership include Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Commonwealth of the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Cooperative Republic of Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, St Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago and Turks and Caicos.

The new strategic distribution partnership with SportsMax complements the Olympic Channel digital platform expanding the Olympic Channel’s global linear presence to 158 countries and territories.

Through collaborations with the IOC’s rights-holding broadcast partners and National Olympic Committees, the Olympic Channel is continuing to develop localised versions leading to more personalised experiences for Olympic fans around the world.

(Sportsmax)

22 Beterverwagting, Carmel reign supreme in Cheddi Jagan Windball Tournament A wedesday, march 13, 2019

fter almost a week of riveting windball action between 15 participating schools, the curtains came down on the Cheddi Jagan Memorial Windball Tournament with Beterverwagting and Carmel Secondary emerging as champions.

Last Thursday, the National Gymnasium on Mandela Avenue was filled with over 200 students as they travelled from the West Coast, East Bank and East Coast of Demerara to participate in the Cheddi Jagan Memorial Tournament.

As explained by Director of Sport, Christopher Jones, such tournaments are a way of honouring past Presidents for their contributions.

The teams went through their paces over the following days, which led up to the

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Jamal Da Santos was adjudged the male MVP

final being staged on Sunday evening.

The semi-finals in the girls’ category saw two lopsided encounters with the teams chasing coming up short.

In the first match, Carmel Secondary posted 91-2 as Indira Amardeo carried the innings with a top score of 74. Amardeo later returned with the ball, her 2-20 helped restrict Tucville Secondary to 59-3 to take the win.

In the other semi, Camille’s Institute pulled off a convincing win after posting 130 without loss and then limiting Covent Garden to just 51-1 in their allotted overs.

The third-place play-off saw Covent Garden failing to reach Tucville’s total of 64. Kizan London top-scored

for Tucville with 29. N Agrippa’s 43 was not enough to get Covent Garden over the line as they slumped to 61.

On the other hand, Carmel outplayed Camille’s Institute in the final chasing down 82. Stacy Flores shined for Camille’s Institute with 32, but her shine was dimmed by Amardeo, who knocked 40 to get her team over the line and cop the Player of the Match accolade.

The male category was equally competitive, as Beterverwagting and Camille’s Institute outplayed Vreeden-Hoop Secondary and Carmel respectively to reach the final.

In the first semi-final, BV romped to 63-2, thanks to Kapil Dev Phagoo’s 28.

Vreed-en-Hoop were unable

to hit their target, finishing their allotted overs on 57-2.

The other semi-final contest saw Camille’s Institute racking up 100-1 from their overs, with John Pillay top-scoring with 68.

Although Jamal Da Santos hit a formidable 67, Carmel were unable to get over the line, finishing on 88-2.

Then Beterverwagting got the better of Camille’s, as eventual Player of the Match Kapil Dev Phagoo contributed 40 to the winning total of 64.

Carmel overpowered Vreed-en-Hoop in the thirdplace playoff to take those honours.

Posting 63-0, Carmel made light work of the total, reaching 68-1, owing to a solid batting performance from Player of the Match Jamal Da Santos.

David Fernandes re-elected Tick tock, tick tock: Tokyo Olympics clock hits 500-day mark as GSA President

The recently-elected executive body of the Guyana Squash Association

D

avid Fernandes will be the face of squash in Guyana for yet another year, as he was re-elected to the premier position of the Guyana Squash Association (GSA) once again.

Serving at the helm of the Squash Association since 2013, Fernandes is of the opinion that he still has what it takes to steer squash forward.

Fernandes’ election came at the Association’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the Georgetown Club over the weekend and will see him serving until 2020.

The post of Vice President will be taken up by Owen Verwey while Garfield Wiltshire takes up the position of Treasurer.

Meanwhile, Lorraine InceCarvalhal will return as Secretary of the Association while Annabelle Singh acts as Assistant Secretary/ Treasurer.

Juanita Fernandes will now take up the position of Chairperson of the Junior Affairs Committee and the Clubs Committee will be spearheaded by new Chairperson Robin Low. Tiffany Solomon will be the person in

charge of Competitions and Tournaments while Suzanne DeAbreu takes up the reins as Sub- Committee Chairperson for fundraising.

The incumbent President is looking forward to a successful 2019 for squash as the Women and Juniors prepare for international engagements in Trinidad and Tobago and Peru respectively, while the local shores will host the Senior Caribbean Championship in July.

In a statement released by the Association, the President expressed gratitude to players, their families and most importantly, the sponsors whose contributions have helped to keep squash alive and kicking. These entities include the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA); ExxonMobil; Bounty; Toucan; Woodpecker; Banks; ANSA McAL; Farfan and Mendes and the National Sports Commission (NSC).

For 2019, the GSA has already successfully completed the Bounty Handicap Tournament, with many other tournaments to follow in the remainder of the year.

Japanese athletes posed with Masaaki Hiromura

O

rganizers marked the milestone on Tuesday, unveiling the stylized pictogram figures for next year’s Tokyo Olympics. The pictogram system was first used extensively in 1964 when the Japanese capital lasted hosted the Summer Olympics — just 19 years after the end of World War II. A picture system to illustrate sports events was used in the 1936 Berlin Olympics, and 12 years later in London. Other Olympics sporadically used some drawings for the same purpose.

But the ‘64 Olympics

Hiromura designed 50 pictograms for 33 sports.

Some sports will use more than one pictogram when the Olympic open on July 24, 2020.

The ‘64 Tokyo Olympics came up with the pictograms, partly because the games were the first in Asia and held in a country where the language was inaccessible to many international visitors.

Unlike other recent the pictograms and their designer, Olympics, construction projects are largely on originated the standardized schedule.

The new National symbols that have become Stadium, the centrepiece of familiar in every Olympics the games, is to be completsince then.

Japanese athletes posed ed by the by the end of the with the pictograms and year at a cost estimated at their designer, Masaaki $1.25 billion.

That’s not to say these Hiromura. Organizers also Olympics are problem free. toured regions that will Costs continue to rise, host Olympic events, inalthough local organizers cluding the area north of and the IOC say they are Tokyo that was devastated cutting costs — or at least by a 2011 earthquake, tsuslowing the rise. nami, and resulting damage As an example, last to nearby nuclear reactors. month organizers said the “They are simple but yet cost of the opening and closdynamic,” Hiromura said, ing ceremonies had risen by explaining his designs to 40 percent compared with several hundred people. the forecast in 2013 when “These are pictograms that look like they are about to Tokyo was awarded the games. (Sportsmax) start moving.”

CONCACAF Nations League Qualifier….

Golden Jags gear up for practice match against Suriname

W

ith just 11 days before Guyana face one of their biggest matches ever and possibly enable themselves to qualify for the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the Guyana National Senior Men’s Team are set to play the Suriname Senior Men’s National Team on Saturday, March 16 at the Pierkhan Stadium, Nickerie, Suriname from 16:30h (15:30h local time).

The team, commonly known as the Golden Jaguars, will comprise 18 shortlisted Guyana- based players and are scheduled to depart for Suriname on Friday morning.

In an invited comment, Golden Jaguars Head Coach Michael Johnson, who re-

EBDFA brought fierce competition to the national team

turned to Guyana on Tuesday, said the match would seek to test the progress made with team preparation and some technical areas, as well as the team’s overall game understanding.

“The game against

Suriname will give the players a real stiff test and we will be able to see which players have improved in all areas of their development. The [Guyana Football Federation] GFF Training Centre is a solid base that allows us to get some

good work into the players, but you can’t be competitive without games. With both teams involved in the CONCACAF Nations League fixtures, this gives us the opportunity to try out player systems and develop their understanding without the scrutiny of the result being the main objective,” Johnson said.

A detailed list of the squad will be made available soon.

Meanwhile, the Guyanabased squad engaged the East Bank Demerara Football Association select team last Saturday in a training match at the GFF’s National Training Centre, Providence, East Bank Demerara. Guyanabased Assistant Coach Charles

Pollard, in an invited comment, said there were a lot of positives taken away.

“We were working on possession from the last game (against Fruta Conquerors FC) – from keeping possession to converting our chances. In the weekend game, the guys did well despite the opposition was not as strong as expected.

We looked at our moments, the decision making and converting the chances; those were a plus, we were spot on in that regard,” he said.

The training matches are part of the preparation for Guyana’s final CONCACAF Nations League qualifier against Belize on March 23 at the National Track and

Field Centre, Leonora, West Coast Demerara. Tickets for the match are being sold at $1500 at the following locations: Andrews Supermarket, Aubrey Barker Road, South Ruimveldt; the Guinness Bar, Durban Street, Georgetown; West Indian Sports Complex, Robb Street; Nice Restaurante, Status Hotel, Croal Street, Georgetown; Pegasus Hotel Guyana; KFC Outlets – Regent Street and Mandela Avenue; Dad’s Fish Shop, Den Amstel, West Coast Demerara and Patsy Food Court and Bar, Linden-Soesdyke Junction.

Fan jerseys are also available at the GFF Secretariat at a cost of $5000. Match time is set for 18:30h.

guyanatimesgy.com

WEDNESday, march 13, 2019

23

England 2019 T20I Series v West Indies review

Old results in newlook Windies set-up

– 7 series wins, 7 series losses since 2016 World T20

By Brandon Corlette

N

icholas Pooran’s fireworks in the first T20 International, Sheldon Cottrell’s four wickets in the series, and Devendra Bishoo’s wicket maiden in the final match were among the few positives shown by the men in maroon in the recently-concluded Sandals T20

International series.

The newly-appointed T20 Captain, Jason Holder stated that his team were not ashamed of their series performance.

England’s 2019 tour to the Caribbean was filled with unexpected events; from Windies claiming the Test series 2-1, levelling the One-Day International (ODI) series 2-2 and suffering a T20I whitewash 3-0. Since the 2016 International Cricket Council (ICC) World T20, West Indies played 14 T20 International series, winning seven and losing seven of those (includ-

Shimron Hetmyer had a poor series

ing World T20).

Post the Darren Sammyled Windies World T20 triumph in 2016, Windies played India in the United States of America in 2016 and won a two-match series 1-0. Windies then lost to Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Caribbean 3-0 and 3-1 in 2016/17 respectively.

After that double blow against Pakistan, Windies won three T20 International series on the bounce in the 2017 period. These series wins came against Afghanistan (3-0); India (1-0); and England (1-0).

The patchy performances continued with Windies experimenting with players, they then suffered 2-0 and 3-0 overseas losses against New Zealand and Pakistan respectively.

The most recent T20 series win for Windies came against Bangladesh in their 2018/19 overseas tour. It was the Carlos Brathwaite-led team that won the three-match series 2-1.

At the end of this T20 International series, England’s C h r i s Jordan w a s

awarded Player of the Series for his six wickets in three matches. Left-arm swing bowler David Willey ended the series with six wickets while the ever-consistent leg-spinner, Adil Rashid had five wickets in the series.

Reflecting on the batting performances in the series, England’s Jonny Bairstow finished as the leading run scorer with 117 runs at an average of 39, and a high score of 68. The only other batsman to cross the 100run mark was Sam Billings, who scored 105 runs in three matches with a high score of 87. Nicholas Pooran (70) and Joe Root (59) scored half-centuries this series.

Chris Gayle, who brought the “Gayle storm” to England in the ODI series, played two T20Is this se-

ries and scored 20 runs. The veteran batsman had played his role in the ODI series, but the likes of Shai Hope, Shimron Hetmyer, and Darren Bravo failed miserably with the bat.

After Hope’s magnificent 2018 in white-ball cricket, he lacked consistency. This T20I series may have raised questions about his position in the T20 team; he scored 13 runs in three matches batting at the top of the order. Bearing the tag of the most exciting batsman on the globe, Hetmyer had a poor showing with the bat and an ordinary time in the field. He scored 32 runs in this series at an average of 10.66 with a high score of 14, batting at number three.

The famous Ian Bishop line will forever live in the Caribbean: “Carlos Brathwaite remember the name, history for the

Chris Jordan was the star of the series

South Essequibo Cricket Committee Round Robin T20 Competition…

Latchman Rohit slams maiden century to light up latest round E xcitement filled the Essequibo county when high-profile T20 cricket bowled off. Last weekend saw two matches: Top Shatters outplayed United Warriors while Latchman Rohit’s Rising Stars humbled Jaguars SC by 171 runs.

Cloudy skies and threats of rain did not prevent play at the Pomona Cricket Ground on March 1, 2019.

In the encounter between Untied Warriors and Top Shatters, the latter took first strike on a good batting surface, but managed to score 110 from their allotted 20 overs. Tameshwar Deonarine top-scored with 38 while Sherkhank hit 21 and Nissan Khan made 12.

Bowling for United

Warriors, H Doobay grabbed 2-21 while Anil Williams and Shaun Boucher had one wicket each. In reply, United Warriors raced past 110 with overs to spare, it was Sindny Richards’ topscore of 39 that led the way; Shaun Boucher’s 19 and A Narine’s 15 were the other principal scores. Bowling for Top Shatters, Shazim Salim had 3-29, T Deonarine and N Khan had two wickets each.

In the second fixture, Rising Stars skipper Rohit won the toss and elected to bat on a flat track; he led from the front with the bat, blasting his maiden T20 century. Rohit stroked his way to a classy 106 that included 13 fours and three maximums.

The former nation-

al youth player, who once opened the batting and bowling for Guyana at the regional U-15 level, played some exquisite shots all around the ground, placing the cricket ball on both sides of the wicket.

He received support from all-rounder Neil Bristol, who made an unbeaten 45, hitting five fours and two sixes. Darmindra Lackhan rubbed salt into the Jaguars’ wounds with a quick-fire undefeated 27 inclusive of two fours and three sixes. Rising Stars posted a daunting 2414 from their 20 overs. Azeem Kamal had 2-27 while Carl Brounish and Shazad Ally had one wicket each in Jaguars’ ordinary bowling effort.

In reply, Jaguars were

blown away for 71, only Shivnarine Bassoon offered resistance with 24, hitting three fours in his lone hand.

Extras contributed significantly to the score; a total of 14 runs were extras.

Spearheading the victorious Rising Stars’ potent bowling attack was Neil Bristol, with 3-15 from his three overs. Ottis Roberts had 2-5 from his quota of four overs, Christopher Latchman had 2-10 from three overs while D Lackhan had 2-5 from two overs.

The competition will continue this weekend with matches at Pomona Ground: Aurora Knights Riders will meet GT Warriors while Jaguars SC and NOC Young Guns will clash. At Affiance Bacchus Ground, United

Latchman Rohit

Warriors will take on Crown XI. T h e ongoing competition consists of 10 teams which are placed in two groups; Group A consists of Top Shatters, United Warriors, Aurora Knights Riders, GT Warriors and Crown Xl. Group B comprises Rising Stars, Jaguars SC, NOC Young Guns, Hibernia SC, and Jaguars Over 40.

West Indies”. Post those monumental four sixes, Brathwaite continued to struggle. Brathwaite, who was stripped of his captaincy this series, scored 10 runs in three innings and grabbed two wickets for 66 runs in the eight overs he bowled in the series.

Darren Bravo, who is known as the clean striker of the ball in Caribbean Premier League (CPL), had similar numbers as Hetmyer this T20I series.

He scored 32 runs at an average of 10.66. The number one all-rounder in the longer formats of the game, Holder had an ordinary T20I series. Prior to this series, Holder has been struggling to make the T20 team and he was given the captaincy for his solid performances in the other two formats. This series loss may have raised eyebrows for Windies to rethink their T20 team selection in the future.

WEDNesday, march 13, 2019

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

guyanatimesgy.com

Beterverwagting, Carmel reign supreme in Cheddi Jagan Windball Tournament Page 22

The victorious male Beterverwagting team are presented with their trophy by Director of Sport, Christopher Jones

Page 22

EBDFA provided a much-needed push for the national team

Concacaf Nations League Qualifier….

Golden Jags gear up for practice match against Suriname

Carmel Secondary took top honours in the female category

England 2019 T20I Series v West Indies review

Old results in newlook Windies set-up

Page 23 Are we forgetting the name Carlos Brathwaite?

– 7 series wins, 7 series losses since 2016 World T20

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