april 6, 2014
When the dot.com boom crashed in 2001 and the easy money dried up, Guyana native Jonathan Brassington and two colleagues quit their venture capital-backed Philadelphia firm and set up their own small company: LiquidHub.
They designed it to be self-funding – with cash from clients, not bets from investors – and went to work upgrading Internet services for some of the region’s biggest companies.
Today, LiquidHub is big enough, profitable enough, and growing fast enough to welcome investment from around the world.
On Tuesday, it confirmed a US$53 million investment led by ChrysCapital, a multinational firm that has invested more than US$2 billion for Ivy League universities and other clients since 1999.
With 1400 employees –half in the U.S., at its Wayne
headquarters and in Boston and San Francisco satellite offices, the rest in India – and a client list including Vanguard Group, SEI Corp, Novartis, Independence Blue Cross, Subaru and Comcast, among others, Brassington’s company doubled annual sales in the last three years, to US$125 million.
LiquidHub’s engineers and programmers work side-by-side with clients’ information tech workers.
The goal is to adapt computer systems, so companies can assemble and analyse data for employees and customers, through smartphones and iPads and remote “cloud” servers.
Along with rival “digital integrators” such as Sapient, Accenture Digital and Globant, LiquidHub does not replace big business software systems built by such providers as SAP, Microsoft or IBM, but adapts them into handheld
devices and other everyday applications.
LiquidHub’s ability to hook companies into popular and “disruptive” technologies makes it a promising platform for global growth, ChrysCapital managing director Sanjay Kukreja said in a statement.
Excited
“We’re excited. We look at ourselves as helping to develop a vibrant technology economy in Philadelphia. We have a lot of opportunities ahead of us,” said Brassington, 39, on Tuesday, while on vacation in The Dominican Republic. He added that he and his family wanted “to experience the Caribbean culture I grew up with”.
His road from Guyana to Pennsylvania was traced by his father’s sister, a nun in the order of the Sisters of Mercy, who recommended Brassington to her Catholic order’s college, Misericordia
University in Dallas, Pa.
After finishing grad school at Penn, he went to work at the seminal digital advisory firm Broadreach Consulting from 19952001, then joined colleagues Robert Kelley and Leighton Yohannan to start LiquidHub.
“We never make a technology move without get-
ting his views,” said Richard Vague, the Centre Citybased marketing mogul who has recruited Brassington into his venture fund, Gabriel Investments. Vague said Brassington and his wife, a cancer survivor, in turn recruited Vague to underwrite cancer research at Penn.
“Jonathan’s brilliant, and very positive. He started this in a tough time, and his financial customers spent [the late 2000s] knee deep in tough times, but LiquidHub grew through it,” said Michael DiPiano, whose Radnor-based firm, NewSpring Capital, led an earlier $20 million investment in the firm in 2007, and has more than doubled its money as LiquidHub grew.
“Also, he’s a hell of an Eagles fan,” DiPiano added. Brent Celek, the Eagles tight end and an aspiring restaurateur (Prime Stache) and men’s accessories sup-
plier, has been an informal entrepreneur-in-residence at LiquidHub, while also helping to feed Brassington’s football appetite.
Football has been a switch for a guy who started out a cricket fanatic in his homeland, notes Professor Munir Mandviwalla, head of Temple University’s Institute for Business and Information Technology. But sports fanaticism is consistent with the drive and competitive energy Brassington pours into LiquidHub, Mandviwalla added.
“He gets the digital conversions that we are all facing – this notion that we are all moving toward an integrated future where digital media, analytics, branding, and the block-and-tackle of running basic services like online payroll, are all converging,” Mandviwalla explained. “What they’ve done better than most firms is stepping into the next big thing.” (philly.com)
The Experiment To Discover Hope Youth Group is currently one of the most talked about organisations in the Linden community. The 14-member, non-governmental organisation (NGO) is created and managed by youths.
The group is headed by members Natalia Jordan, Ronnel Gonsalves, Kerry Langhorne and Niossi Alsopp.
It was formed last March as part of an initiative by the Region 10, Democratic Council (RDC) and has since been making some meaningful contributions to the mining town.
President of the group, Natalia Jordan said, “We’re creating research centres
at pilot communities within Linden. We started with Christianburg, Victory Valley and Wisroc. We’re putting computers and tablets into a few buildings and children can come in the afternoons to have their assignments done. They can even have lessons in the afternoons because we have books and libraries. People will come in to teach the children how to read, how to write. Even class sessions where they can learn how to sew or learn to make different things with their hands.”
Last year, the group organised a successful youth forum, and according to Jordan, it is the hope to continue with another in August. They've also
planned a fashion show for the last quarter of the year, which is expected to include designers from Linden and Georgetown.
The fashion show will be aimed at showcasing the talents of Linden youths, Jordan said. The group is involved in fund-raising activities and is also seeking sponsorship for more educational initiatives.
The official launching of the group is expected to be later this month during the Linden Town Week activities. Jordan also stated that the aim of the group is to promote fun, educational and social initiatives for youths. Some of the plans executed by the group include the research centre and the youth forum.
Guyanese leaders have concertedly disagreed with the call made by former Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) President Clinton Urling for the privatisation of underperforming sugar estates.
Urling had said that the move would serve as a way forward in addressing some of the many problems facing
part of the development of the community under which it falls.
“Whenever the private sector takes over, it means that the Central Government will have to take up those responsibilities, including the looking after the pump station, the drainage, some of the community centres and health centres etc.”
the ailing sugar industry.
But while several Guyanese leaders admit that the industry is indeed standing on shaky ground, they have all agreed that privatisation would do more harm than good.
Agriculture Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy pointedly declared that the move would not just affect the industry, but the people and the environment. He noted that Guyana’s sugar industry was designed to play a
He continued that the subventions that are usually given by Government to the sugar corporation would then have to become permanent, the minister said.
Dr Ramsammy concluded that this is one of the many reasons such a recommendation cannot be accepted.
Urling had admitted that the $6 billion grant budgeted for GuySuCo was necessary, considering the industry’s current state; however,
he posited that the annual Government subsidies to the corporation are an unsustainable strategy.
According to Urling, the Agriculture Ministry needed to “get serious” with GuySuCo and initiate steps for it to become an effective agency.
Not a good option
Alliance for Change Leader Khemraj Ramjattan said the call “is not an option that we are going to accept at this stage as being the best for the industry”, since according to him, no one would want to buy such a “badly run and unprofitable sugar sector”.
He said a lot more can be done to make the industry profitable, by utilising the management expertise, training in the husbandry practices and mechanisation, along with better investment in people.
The AFC leader suggested that rather than privatising, Guysuco should instead ensure that workers have a proprietorship of the industry by “inputting their monies into it, so as to create... a public company where they can buy shares”.
He said the he was certain that with a proper management team, hundreds of millions of dollars would be brought in.
Sunday Times Editor: Tajeram Mohabir
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Tomorrow, which has already arrived in India, the first of more than 800 million eligible voters in that nation will cast their ballots at 930,000 polling stations in the first phase of an election that will extend for more than six weeks. But beyond the enormity of conducting an election in the world’s largest democracy, most analysts agree that it will be a game changer in more ways than one.
The two largest parties with all-national support are the incumbent Indian National Congress (referred to simply as “Congress”) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). They are accompanied by a host of regional parties that are characteristic of a nation with such diverse regional populations.
The latest polls on the eve of the election confirm the inexorable rise of the BJP on the back of its new charismatic Prime Ministerial candidate, Narendra Modi, and indicate that the party will secure at least 243 seats compared to a projected 123 for the Congress.
As such, it is proposed that since neither party would garner the 273-seat majority in the 545 seat Lok Sabha or Lower House, the BJP will form a coalition with one or more of the several regional parties, with which it has fraternal relations, to form a new government with Modi at its head.
In 1998, such a coalition with the BJP as its nucleus had unseated the Congress, which had ruled India continuously since Independence in 1947. Congress regained power in 2004, but corruption and recent signs of stuttering economic growth undermined its hold on power.
While politics cannot be reduced to individuals, the impact of the latter cannot be dismissed and in this election, the caveat has been most emphatic. While the 63 year-old Modi is from a party that has stressed nationalism centred on a cultural interpretation of Hinduism (“a way of life”, rather than a “religion” with a particular way of worship), his emphasis has been on economic development.
Dubbed the “Vikash Purush” or “Development Man”, he points to the accomplishments during his two terms as Chief Minister of the Indian state of Gujarat, as a harbinger of what India can expect with him at its helm.
In contrast, he is pitted against Rahul Gandhi, the 43-year-old heir to the political dynasty that has controlled the Congress starting at Independence with his greatgrandfather Jawarharlal Nehru. The “Gandhi” title is from his grandmother Indira, the Prime Minister, and not from the Mahatma, but its connotations have not hurt.
The Prime Minister for the last two terms, Manmohan Singh, was selected by Rahul’s Italian-born mother, who heads the Congress Party and was widely perceived as a placeholder for Rahul, while he “matured”. Rahul, however, has failed to excite any interest, because even though two decades younger than Modi, his outings over the last decade have been marred by faux pas and lassitude.
In the meantime, between 120-150 million first-time voters are eligible to vote in the polls and a great percentage of this are from the educated, young Indian middle class that are connected through social media as well as the mainstream media they digest. Modi has ironically been using the social media to overcome the inbuilt hostility of the English-medium media to his party and is most popular with “young India”.
But there is one other demographic, which, though numerically minuscule is very powerful: the industrialists class who are behind India’s rise as one of the world’s vibrant “emerging economies”. This group, views Modi as an honest and decisive administrator who has introduced policies that have encouraged development in his state and could be reproduced elsewhere if he were Prime Minister.
From all indications, within months, India will be headed by a new leader who will certainly shake up “India that is Bharat” and most likely guide it to its pinnacle as a global power.
Dear Editor, Regarding commentaries on the poll that was supposedly conducted by the Opposition last month to test support for various prospective candidates and that also matched Bharrat Jagdeo and Donald Ramotar against the Opposition, one should not dismiss the findings as they almost mirror those of a NACTA poll conducted two weeks earlier.
Also, it is not unusual for a poll to do a matchup between potential candidates. Such matchups are routine in developed societies. For example, Pollsters regularly carried matchups between potential Democratic candidates for the Presidential nomination. Ditto potential Republican candidates for the Republican nomination.
Also, in India, pollsters carried up matchups between Narendra Modi and Lal Kishan Advani (as well as others) against Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Manmohan Singh, among others.
One of the findings of the opposition poll was that Jagdeo is more popular than any of the Opposition candi-
dates and that he would lead the PPP/C to another victory over the Opposition if he were the candidate.
That is as indisputable as anyone who conducts a survey would quickly find that a majority of voters would prefer Jagdeo than the Opposition as they would also for Ramotar against any of the potential Opposition candidates (Granger, Greenidge, etc).
As I found in the NACTA poll in February as well as last year, Jagdeo remains enormously likeable though he is not at the height of his popularity as in 2006 or 2009. The former President saw a decline in his popularity in late 2011 because of errors he made in the election campaign.
But those errors were recognised and the former President apparently has been taking remedial action since then, visiting constituencies. Last year, for example, Jagdeo spoke about palpable racism and racial attacks on PPP/C supporters and received wide support.
Also, he has been visiting the PPP/C base to shore up support for the party, and he has been warmly received especially after the physical at-
tacks on PPP/C supporters by protesters affiliated with the Opposition.
It does not surprise me if the Opposition commissioned a poll and if the findings showed the PPP/C way ahead of the PNC or AFC. Both parties have been haemorrhaging because of their positions on previous budgets, the violence at Agricola and Linden, Opposition to financial assistance for sugar workers, their unwillingness to give similar national subsidies to the rest of the population to what they advocated for Linden, etc.
It is in the interest of the AFC and APNU to test their political support. They would want to know their strength especially that there was much talk about a snap election and whether they should vote against the budget to trigger early election; with the Opposition poll, if indeed one was conducted, showing the PPP/C would likely win a majority, it is unlikely the Opposition would vote against the budget to trigger an early election.
I note that a similar (Cadres) poll was commissioned by the AFC in 2010 and that party released the
findings to the media when it showed the AFC in a statistical dead heat with the PPP/C – the findings then showed the three parties at almost equal support – in sharp contrast with a poll I conducted that showed the PPP with a huge lead over the PNC.
The AFC had negligible support at that time, according to NACTA, a complete opposite finding to Cadres. In the 2011 election, the AFC got 39 per cent less support than the PPP and 30 per cent less than the PNC (APNU).
I also note that last year, propagandists claimed the PPP/C commissioned a poll by some American company, and it showed the Opposition winning the election with the AFC making huge gains. The PPP/C denied it commissioned a poll.
A NACTA poll conducted last year showed the PPP/C way ahead of the other two parties and the two Opposition parties losing support. The next election will determine whether the findings of both the Opposition and NACTA polls are credible.
Yours truly, Vishnu Bisram
Dear Editor,
Please allow space in your publictation for me to express on behalf of the fans in the horse racing fraternity the disappointment that the various organizers of horse racing events have eliminated the fans favourite horse, Score’s Even,
from competing.
The way they exclude this popular grey horse out of competition is that each horse has a grade coinciding with their racing performance history. Score’s Even has become the top horse in Guyana, thus, leading to an A grade. Races are written according to their grade.
Well, organizers have been writing the top feature race of the day grade C and lower. This eliminates Score’s Even from competitions.
Mind you, the connections surrounding this horse pay for the upkeep. They also spend their hard work and energy preparing this horse to race.
So I would call upon each organizer to please include an A and lower grade race on your racing dockets.
Sincerely
R Scott Ramnarine
Dear Editor
The long awaited Rodney inquiry must take into account the events that took place before and after Dr Walter Rodney was killed.
One important factor that must be taken into consideration by the Commission was the incarceration and torture to extract confessions of plotting treason to about 15 persons, mainly supporters of the WPA during the period May 30-June 6, 1980.
The 15 persons were from the villages of Zeeburg and De Willem on the West Coast Demerara and one from Good Hope, East Bank Essequibo.
On June 13, 1980, Dr Rodney was killed seven days after the incarceration and torture of the 15 persons. The question that arises here is – “was this one of the events that caused the powers that be to commit murder”?
Efforts must be made to contact all who were tortured to provide statements or testify at the inquiry. Most of these persons now reside
overseas, a few were granted asylum by Canada in the 1980s and quite a few are in Guyana.
During that period, about five persons were charged with treason. All from Zeeburg/De Willem with the exception of one person from East Bank Essequibo. It was known as the Ivan Sookram and others treason trial.
I heard a story from a former WPA member who was one of the 15 persons that they acted on behalf of the WPA to burn down a whole section of sugar canes at Uitvlugt Sugar Estate.
He was knowledgeable about the exact location as being the Uitvlugt East section. Perhaps, GuySuCo can check their records, this will probably be sometime between June 1979-May 1980. It leaves one to wonder how many acts of sabotage committed by the WPA on the sugar estates were blamed on the PPP and whether the powers knew of many more acts perpetrated by the WPA
and whether one of them was plotting to overthrow the then Government. After all one of the WPA leaders confessed that they were acquiring arms.
After Sookram and others were freed by the courts sometime in the early 1980s, the WPA sensing that the police were going to reinstitute the charge of treason, clandestinely moved all of the accused to a remote jungle location far up the Corentyne River and supported them and their families (back home) for a very long time
This letter is not intended to deride the WPA, but their actions before and after Rodney were killed demand answers. Maybe realising that their parliamentary seat might no longer be available for five votes their initial reactions to the inquiry was not good and is willing to bury Dr Rodney deeper.
Sincerely, Name withheld by request
Dear Editor,
I read an article in the Kaieteur News of the press on April 3 under the headline, “Allocation for Amaila Falls should be removed”. This article reflects the views of the Alliance For Change (AFC) Leader Khemraj Ramjattan on the 2014 Budget.
The AFC Leader is already contending that the budgetary allocation for Amaila Falls be removed under the pretext of “until all documentation is provided”. But isn’t this a sign of a deliberate budgetary cut again by the AFC for the Amaila Falls Hydro Electric Project?
However, not wasting time on budgetary cuts, Labour Minister, Dr Nanda Gopaul made it pellucidly and succinctly clear to the Parliamentary Opposition that if they cut the budget, they will cut their votes and seats.
This is so true because the Guyanese people are watching and waiting. Ramjattan knows fully well that all required documentation or information will be provided by Government when the House goes into the Committee of Supply.
In relation to the article, Ramjattan said that the Budget must include the balances and projected surpluses for 2014 of a set of state agencies including the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC), and the Amerindian Purposes Fund, etc.
The point to note here is that the Finance Minister’s Annual Budget presentations are always consistent with our National Constitution which the AFC leader is trying to deny.
But my advice to Ramjattan is to do a research on Budget presentations in relation to the relevant laws from 1993-2014 where the truth will reveal itself.
Guyana’s 2014 Budget therefore contains all the information Ramjattan claims that he wants. What Ramjattan can also do is to verify credible National Budgetary information by doing a comparative analysis between the Budgets presented by Carl Greenidge prior to 1992 and the Budgets presented by Dr Ashni Singh.
Assuming that Ramjattan undertakes this analysis, his conclusion if he is honest would definitely and clearly point out the reason or reasons why Guyana became socially and economically bankrupt prior to 1992.
Yours sincerely, Peter Persaud
Dear Editor,
I am certain that there are a great number of Guyanese who must be wondering why is it that the exchanges in our Parliament in any debate when a budget is being presented are so predictable in nature.
The Opposition is heard to object to almost everything that the government proposes, and the reason is mostly not about the efficacy of whatever is being debated at the time, but that they will agree if certain other projects which they are advocating are brought on board by the government.
We the people expect to hear compelling arguments on both sides of the house on the
validity of what initiatives are being proposed, and not the usual attempts of horse-trading that now seem to be the order of the day.
Then there are these other interruptions of the proceedings that clutter up the whole process, which seem to us as if we are witnessing a class of teenagers squabbling about some gripe they face in school.
Our Members of Parliament must realise that we have elected them to demonstrate more maturity and aptitude in crafting a joint budget that is geared towards the continued progress of our nation on all fronts, and there must of necessity be a spirit of give and take in their delib-
erations in this all-important annual process that will determine how and what to pursue to effect this.
This must not be seen as an occasion to gain political points, and I believe that they will be judged in this aspect more than what they actually accomplish.
As a result we continue to witness feasible and essential projects being shelved, with the final outcome being the stagnation and, in some cases, regression of all that have been achieved by those who worked with a more cooperative spirit in the past.
Yours sincerely, Roy Paul
Dear Editor,
Recently, our nation has been grappling to come to terms with a series of child related tragedies that have rocked the core of the Guyanese society, ranging from filicide (the murders of the children in Port Kaituma and Mahaicony), suicides, and rape of our innocent and vulnerable children.
The Government of Guyana cannot, and will not condone the continued abuse and destruction of our most valuable resource by the few aberrant minds that mingle among us daily.
Equally, the Ministry views with dismay recent irresponsible reporting on issues relating to children. The Ministry has zero tolerance for damaging media reports and images, and urges all media personnel to desist from publishing reports and images that are harmful to children and to at all times, report on issues relating to children in a responsible manner.
Children ought to feel safe with their families, in their communities and schools. It remains the responsibility of the adults who surround them, to ensure that this right to safety and freedom from harm
is maintained. The Labour, Human Services and Social Security Ministry has undertaken a number of responses to the need for Child Protection in Guyana.
The establishment of the Childcare and Protection Agency, the passage of the seven pieces of children legislation, the provision of a 24-hour Child Protection hotline service (227-0979) and the expansion of counselling and psychosocial support in every region of the country are among these measures.
One cannot deny that we face many challenges on a daily basis, in our lives. However, the overall well-being of each member of our society remains our Government’s top priority.
The Labour, Human Services and Social Security Ministry urges all Faith-Based Organisations, Non-Governmental Organisations and civil society, to join us in our efforts as partners, as we seek to find solutions for positive outcomes for the children of Guyana.
Once again, the Ministry stresses the need for media personnel to embrace the tenets of good journalism and be responsible in how they report issues and images that affect children. We have partnered with the media in the past to educate persons on the best practices of media reporting and children. We will continue this effort and ask our partners to join us in better preparing our media workers. Nevertheless, we beseech editors to use their position of influence for the betterment, rather than detriment of all children.
This in no way trivialises the responsibility of all citizens. Citizens need to stand up, protect and stop the abuse of vulnerable children who are dependent upon the love and support of all of us. We need to unite to ensure that those who need assistance access the professional services available. We must recognise the importance of being our brother and our sister’s keeper, and report every incident of abuse, without fear or favour. Child Protection is everyone’s business. We must stop this abuse, neglect and wanton destruction of young lives. We cannot afford to lose our children!
Ministry of Labour, Human Services and Social Security
Tuesday is Rama Navami – the day we celebrate the birth of Shri Ram, the avatar of Bhagwan Vishnu, that aspect of God that sustains the universes and their life forms. The day is particularly special in my family, because my father is a Ram Bhakta. The story of Shri Rami is told in the Ramayan, a book written in beautiful poetry.
Hindus hold that our earliest religious texts were apprehensions of a reality that transcended the limitations of a finite mind. So they generally chose poetry to convey their findings – since poetry, very properly, does not describe truth but seek to connote and invoke feelings so that the truth invoked is experienced at the deepest levels of the psyche.
Our philosophy does not concede explanations only to reason. For this reason, all of our ‘religious’ presentations are actually performances that involve, singing, chanting, sounds of bells and conches, the smells
“The function of poetry is religious invocation of the muse; its use is the experience of mixed exaltation and horror that her presence excites” – Robert Graves
of incense and the touch of all sorts of offerings to the deities. All the senses are involved – especially the sight of the Murtis – to supplement the direct apprehension of the truth embodied in the poetry.
At the more mundane level, do not all the texts of physics – the Queen of the sciences, that attempt to “describe” reality – echo that truth of that Plato that all we “see” are merely reflections of that reality as shadows on the walls of a cave?
Those writers that kept up the Samaatan Dharma are all called “kavis” – poets. Valmiki is called
the conceptualiser of the unit of poetry he wrote his text – the Ramayan. There is a very wonderful story attached to the latter circumstance. The “shloka”, as it is called, came to his mind spontaneously when he saw the grief of a bird whose mate was killed, and uttered his feelings in words.
The original Ramayan –written in Sanskrit – was retold numerous times in the following two millennia. The retelling that is most popular in Guyana is that of Sri Tulsidas – the Ram CharitManas – the exploits of Sri Rama – written almost five hundred years ago. He, of course, also set it to poetry but the language was that of the ordinary folks of among who he lived in North India –Avadhi.
The Ramayyan is an “Itihass” or “history” of individuals told to illustrate the eternal principles that should guide Hindus in their everyday life. Hindu ethics is “relational” rath-
er than the dominant western “absolutist” variety, in that judging concrete actions depends on the place, time and circumstances.
Many of Baba Tulsidas’s verses set in metres –chaupais, chandas, and even shlokas – are known to almost every Guyanese Hindu since they are used to illustrate almost every discourse by pandits. Certainly every Hindu should know the story of Sri Ram and his consort, Mother Sita.
The following is a sample of the poetry (Chand metre) of Tulsidas, describing the circumstances of the birth of Shri Ram. It sounds much more poetic when sung in the original Avadhi!
The sun was at its zenith/ The day was neither hot nor cold/ It was a holy time that gave repose to the whole world/ A cool, soft and fragrant breeze was blowing/ The gods were feeling exhilarated/ and the saints were bubbling with enthusiasm/ The woods were full of blossoms/ the mountains were resplendent with gems/ and every river flowed a stream of nectar.
BY RoBin Kevles-necowitz
EParenting is difficult
very day we face new parenting challenges. Our children test and push boundaries, and as parents, we have to maintain our cool in the face of frustration. Ultimately, the parenting decisions we make in these anxious situations are not nearly as important as the process of staying calm, responding thoughtfully and choosing the response consciously.
Here are some tips to help save your sanity in those “pull-your-hairout” moments:
1. Give your children some space. If they’re in a bad mood and they storm up to their room, leave them alone. If they have a falling-out with a friend who left them, let them be. If your toddler wants to pet a friendly dog, step back and let them without hovering. Children need space to grow. Often, our anxiety kicks in and convinces us that they need us to intervene. Most times, they don’t.
2. Silence is your friend. Silence is far more effective than yelling. For example, are you tired of the children fighting in the back seat of the car?
Try this approach: Say nothing! Pull over when it’s safe to do so. Take out a book, magazine or newspaper that you will be keeping under the driver’s seat for this purpose only. Start reading. Stay totally silent. When the children question why you have stopped, simply ask (in the calmest and least sarcastic voice you have), “Are you done fighting?” Once they are quiet, resume driving. If you have very stubborn children, it may require you to find a park so you can actually get out of the car and read on a bench. Average time to stop fighting is about 15 seconds to two minutes. Works 100 per cent of the time! If you do this a few times consistently (yes, it will be inconvenient and you may be late for something), you will abolish fighting in the backseat forever!
3. Stop the power struggle with “that’s OK.”
Parents are in never-ending power struggles with children. At the top of the list is homework.
Newsflash: homework is not your problem! We get so stressed because when our children forget their homework, don’t complete their homework or don’t take their homework seriously, somehow we believe this is our problem. Why? If they don’t want to do it, simply say, “That’s OK.” Because it is. They just can’t do anything else until they do. No TV, computer, playdates, dinner, soccer practise, dance class, etc. Take a peaceful “that’s OK, it’s your choice” attitude and be willing to follow through. This may mean that if homework isn’t done, they made the choice not to go to soccer that night.
That’s OK. Have them call the coach to explain why they can’t make it to the game (or the party or the practice or wherever). Let them take personal responsibility for their
choices and their consequences.
4. Clearly communicate expectations and consequences. Behaviour issues often arise because expectations and consequences aren’t clear. For example, are you having trouble getting your child to wake up in the morning and get downstairs on time? No worries. First, stop fighting with them. Fighting gets you BOTH off to a miserable start on an otherwise glorious day. Decide what you want from them. What time is reasonable for them to be downstairs and ready to go? After you get clear, let them know the new rule and the consequence if they break it. “Johnny, starting tomorrow, you are responsible for getting yourself up and downstairs in the morning. If you aren’t downstairs by 08:00h, that’s OK, but you won’t be able to go out after school. And if you miss the bus, that’s OK, but you won’t be able to watch TV or play on the computer. You will, however, get another chance tomorrow.” If you can simply follow through without lecturing or yelling, the behaviour will stop within a few days.
5. Use terms of endearment to lighten the load. When I am still in control, but on the verge of losing patience with my children, I bring myself back from the brink by ending requests with an endearing term of the day. My personal favourite, most fun, and most recent discovery is “Doll.” “I asked you five times to empty the dishwasher, Doll.” It may sound silly, but it works. It reminds us that the person we are angry with, and with whom we are about to lose control, is also our precious, dearest loved one. “I just tripped over your shoes that are in the middle of the floor, Hon. Can you pick them up now, Sweetheart?” The trick here is to not sound sarcastic, which is my personal challenge.
The reality is that many parents spend too much energy trying to manage the minute details of their children’s lives, striving for perfection but reluctant to provide their children with opportunities to make their own decisions and bear responsibility for their own choices. We want our children to become responsible, mature, decision-making adults and the only way to make that happen is to let them make their own choices while they are young and live with the consequences that follow.
Children are frequently told what to eat, what to wear, how to handle tough situations with friends or teachers, when to do their homework, etc. Parents are always doing things for them that they can do for themselves.
However, there is no other way to create mature adults who can make decisions than to let our children do so under our supervision. Let’s replace “I’ll take care of it” with an enthusiastic and encouraging “You can do this!” Your children will thank you (many years from now, of course). Be patient. (Huffington Post)
The Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) on Friday disclosed that it has seized in excess of $30 million in illegal goods during the first quarter of this year.
The regulatory agency made this disclosure in a statement in which it said that a large number of businesses continue to engage in smuggling activities.
The Law Enforcement and Investigation Division (LEID) officers, the GRA said is working diligently to address this challenge.
The GRA disclosed that as a result of a tip-off, several exercises were conducted around Georgetown, East Coast Demerara and Berbice areas during which goods such as cooking oil, cigarettes, foreign chicken, alcoholic and non-alcoholic energy drinks and mosquito coils were confiscated.
In addition, frequently smuggled items including electrical items, clothing, footwear and accessories, cellphones, digital cameras, wristwatches and heavy-duty machinery, among others, were also seized.
Evading duties
The agency further stated that the police had recently confiscated two boats which it suspected were evading duties. The vessels were subsequently handed over to GRA, which was able to recoup over $4 million in applicable Customs Duty and Taxes.
According to the authority, the Law Enforcement and Investigation Division will continue to work with the Task Force on Fuel Smuggling and Contraband in order to ensuring that such illegal activities are effectively addressed.
In February last, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by key law enforcement agencies for a floating patrol base to be operated
at the mouth of the Pomeroon River.
The MoU was signed by the former Guyana Police Force Commissioner Leroy Brumell; GDF Deputy Chief-of-Staff, Colonel Kemraj Persaud; Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit head James Singh; GRA Commissioner General Khurshid Sattaur; and Guyana Energy Agency head, Dr Mahender Sharma.
The floating patrol base will be under the command and control of the GDF and was mandated with detecting the smuggling and trafficking of drugs, firearms, and other contraband items, with each agency being given specific tasks in the process.
Meanwhile, GRA has pledged that it will continue to put systems in place to ensure its enforcement activities are enhanced.
“The Guyana Revenue Authority would continue to use all available resources to minimise smuggling activities at the ports of entry and other locations in Guyana,” the agency said.
However, the authority noted that it can only be effective in this aim only if the public fully cooperates as it relates to sharing information on incidents of corruption and illegal activities that are geared at depriving the state of revenue or results in unfair competition with the local manufacturing sector and legitimate importers.
On this note, persons with information can utilise the various methods of providing information to the GRA.
Persons with information can call the agency’s switchboard on telephone numbers 227-8222 or 227-6060, extensions 3201-3208 and request the relevant officials from the Law Enforcement and Investigation Division.
Uhas hailed the work of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) Programme and Peace Corps volunteers as it joins the rest of the world in celebrating World Health Day 2014.
The Ambassador in a release said the U.S. Embassy is pleased to be able to work in partnership with the Government and people of Guyana to strengthen the delivery of health services throughout the country. Working in partnership with the Health Ministry and a broad range of civil society organisations, U.S. Government agencies are supporting Guyana’s fight against HIV/ AIDS as part of the PEPFAR, delivering medical supplies and services to remote communities through the Humanitarian Assistance Programme, and strengthening community-based health programmes through the work of the Peace Corps volunteers.
The combined efforts of the Department of State, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Department of Defence, and Peace Corps have formed a robust and enduring partnership in the health sector with the Government and people of Guyana.
Globally, health care is central to President Obama’s development agenda and is closely linked to other key priorities, including economic growth, food security, and
climate change. The Obama administration is supporting efforts to create an AIDS-free generation, end preventable child and maternal deaths, and accelerate progress toward a world safe from infectious diseases.
“Our investments in health have helped boost economies, strengthen security, build the capacity of local supply and distribution chains, and enhance local health institutions,” the diplomat said.
Largest commitment
PEPFAR, which this year is celebrating 10 years of global efforts, is the largest commitment by any nation to combat a single disease internationally. PEPFAR investments to strengthen health systems also help alleviate suffering from other diseases across the global health spectrum.
“Over the past 10 years, our HIV/AIDS programmes have rapidly expanded access to antiretroviral therapy, and they now support 6.7 million people globally with quality life-saving drugs. A decade of PEPFAR support has significantly boosted the fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Guyana. PEPFAR provides the people of Guyana support in the areas of prevention, care, treatment and health system strengthening, focusing strongly on improving access and use of services among key populations, while ensuring sustainability. PEPFAR provides testing, counseling, care, and support ser-
vices to those afflicted with HIV/ AIDS. It also supports technical training, in areas as diverse as adherence to quality standards, TB/ HIV co-infection, nutrition, blood safety, supply management, surveillance, and laboratory systems and methods.
Beyond the Peace Corps’ work on HIV/AIDS education, many volunteers in Guyana work with health centres, local health non-governmental organisations, and schools in hinterland and coastal areas to promote preventive health practices that contribute to increased overall positive health outcomes. Such practices include promotion of exercise and healthy living, addressing childhood illnesses, building service provider capacity, preventing and mitigating non-communicable diseases, developing life skills, promoting youth sexual and reproductive health, and preventing substance use and abuse.
“The U.S. believes that a robust public health system with welltrained health workers able to fill critical public health roles provides the best foundation for meeting the challenges of both infectious and non-communicable diseases. By maintaining a strong focus on prevention, while taking advantage of advances in care and treatment, we will be able to work together to save more lives and reduce health care costs. The U.S. remains committed to working with all stakeholders to promote global health in Guyana and around the world,” he said.
The Guyana Police Force has refuted an article published in the Kaieteur News (KN) on Saturday 5, headlined “Police Force to undergo major reshuffling”.
The Police Force in a statement said it wishes to state that there is no major reshuffling as stated in the newspaper and is informing the public that the postings are merely to fill vacan-
cies that have occurred in the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and in A Division (Georgetown/East Bank Demerara).
These have been as a result of the appointment of Crime Chief Seelall Persaud, as acting Commissioner and the retirement of Assistant Commissioner George Vyphuis, who were in command of the CID and A Division, respectively.
“The filling of these two positions will obviously have consequential vacancies that will also have to be filled. In addition, there will be some postings that are related to a new project that the Guyana Police Force will be embarking on shortly. However, the number of postings will be far less than the 62 stated in the Kaieteur News,” the Police Force explained.
The force is concerned
about the continued publishing of misleading information about the organisation by the Kaieteur News.
This, it said, has the potential to create mischief, and is calling on those concerned to desist from this type of behaviour.
“The Guyana Police Force wishes to assure citizens that all the postings will be made public next Monday,” the release concluded.
By Tangerine Clarke
and lack of knowledge about HIV & AIDS” was the topic of a compelling presentation by University of Guyana(UG) ProChancellor, Professor Prem Misir, who launched his first health book in front of expatriates at the Consulate General of Guyana in New York City, recently.
The former associate public health epidemiologist of the Bureau of HIV/ AIDS Prevention and Control of NY City was motivated to write “HIV&AIDS Knowledge and Stigma in Guyana” after conducting interviews with NY residents where discrimination and stigma among all races were evident.
Misir, a Professor in Public Health at the University of Central Lancaster in England, said his interest in how the disease is transmitted and how stigma impacts awareness, peaked his interest and led him to publish this fundamental tool that will be used by health professionals, educators and policymakers throughout the Caribbean region.
An author of eight books, Misir who has written extensively in peer reviewed journals, and was instrumental in gaining a grant from the CDC to study the pandemic, did a cross-sectional look at 379 high school students in urban Guyana and assessed their knowledge of the disease, and stigmarelated attitudes.
“What is evident is that 40 per cent of the world’s incident rate is among adolescent,” said Misir, a former visiting Professor of the University of the West
Indies, St Augustine. His findings show that people graduate from HIV to AIDS status in their twenties and noted that Guyana was not isolated in this regard since studies around the world also show that the incubation period is eight to 10 years.
Critical
“This is the reason it is very critical for the youth in Guyana to be educated about the disease during their high school years – a period when they are sexually active,” said Misir.
The recently elected Fellow of the Royal Society for Public Health in England, named non-governmental organisations (NGOs) such as the National AIDS Programme Secretariat,
and the Global Fund that are working to stem the spread of the disease through education and services.
However, Misir, a consultant with Pan American Health Organisation/ World Health Organisation (PAHO/ WHO), pointed to stigma as a contributing factor and said the book aims to give agencies intervention knowledge to reduce the high rate of sexual behaviours among teens.
Because of the stigma aspect also, said Misir, a collaborative researcher with the University of Bern, Switzerland, and author of Journal of the International Association of Providers of AIDA Care and Health and Human Rights, an international journal, the Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT) programme is challenged because patients fear discrimination.
Artistes In Direct Support (A.I.D.S.), a theatre production directed by advocate Desiree Edghill has been effective in motivating citizens to express themselves to combat the pandemic through plays, but more has to be done to reduce the numbers said Misir.
Misir, a United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Consultant to the National Tripartite Committee on HIV/ AIDS, credits the free distribution of antiretroviral medications as a cause for the decrease in deaths.
“People could live a normal life and no one has to know they are affected with the disease if they take the drugs,” added Misir, who said despite the belief by some, there is no cure for AIDS.
...in the House
One normally refers to “sittings” of the Parliament. But on Friday, it was anything but that: it might very well’ve been called “jumpings”. First we had the Opposition’s reaction to an observation of the man from Buxton Odinga Lumumba, who’d originally been appointed by the PPP/C as Presidential Adviser on African Empowerment.
Now Lumumba’s remit had evidently been broadened subsequently, and we see him referred to, without any qualification, as Advisor on Empowerment.
Well on Friday, Lumumba, declaring he didn’t want to be “misunderstood”, cautioned the House that he was going to go down “a road that was covered with nails and broken bottles”. He might have been speaking to a stone wall: at least the subsequent echo would’ve had some semblance of resemblance to his words.
All the man said was that, in Guyana, if any party’s going to cut or award funding to any particular community, it stands the chance of being accused of “racism”, since our population generally votes along race.
He was referring to APNU’s obdurate stance that it wouldn’t pass the $6 billion subsidy earmarked for GuySuCo, with a workforce that’s predominantly Indian Guyanese. Could anyone dispute that or any other, analogous statement?
Wasn’t it that same APNU that had accused the PPP of racism when the latter proposed the electricity subsidy to Linden, dominated by African Guyanese, be GRADUALLY reduced?
Wasn’t it the same PNC – now the mainstay of APNU – that laid off Public Service workers in 1989-1992 but screamed “ethnic cleansing” when the incoming PPP/C Government merely tried to rationalise some positions –while SCRAPPING the PNC’s retrenchment programme?
But this is the hypocrisy that Guyanese politics has been reduced to: play the ethnic card at every opportunity but become indignant when the consequences –increased racial tensions – are merely pointed out.
Leader of the APNU, David Granger, jumped up like a jack-in-the-box to protest to his deputy party leader Basil Williams – occupying the Speaker’s chair. Feigning outrage, he demanded Lumumba “apologise”. Williams duly echoed his leader’s order.
In the back and forthing that followed Lumumba’s query on “what’s to apologise for?”, Guyanese can be assured there will be no change in the Opposition’s refusal to call a space a spade in Guyanese politics.
We mentioned Lumumba’s original remit because it is important to note the context in which he received it.
The PNC had rioted in the streets, claiming discrimination against African Guyanese and the PPP/C announced a 10-point programme in addition to the appointment.
He, more than anyone else, is qualified to speak of the pretentious and hypocrisy of the PNC/APNU/AFC on “race”.
...in the WPA
Tacuma Ogunseye, one of the four old men still identifying as “WPA” (but like David Hinds, who hedges his bets with Cuffy 250, Ogunseye’s a card-carrying member of ACDA) is disputing Sultan Mohamed’s claim that Rodney didn’t trust some of his erstwhile “comrades” in the WPA.
So we raise the same points he contends have been raised before – but which, unlike him – we don’t dismiss as “propaganda”.
First let’s accept the WPA’s position that Rodney wasn’t a madman who was knowingly taking a bomb to blow up the Camp Street prison. But rather was testing a purported “walkie-talkie” (given to him by PNC’s plant, Gregory Smith), behind the tall metal fence of the prison. Now if Rodney trusted his “friends”, why didn’t he have one of them test the “walkie talkie”. Since when would a man, intimately familiar with underground movements from his days in Africa, entrust the task to one of them?
Methinks thou protesth too much, Ogunseye... ...in APNU
APNU boasted it had 10 members. Well, CN’s chuffed his son Jaipaul, who defended his honour (?) in Parliament, wasn’t defended by APNU. So he’s pulled his JFAP out of APNU? Is it going to be a case of “take out the 1 from 10 and that leaves zero (0)?
The Cuban Foreign Ministry said the information offered in an article by press agency AP confirms the reiterated denunciations by the Cuban Government.
The Ministry in a release said the U.S. has once again demonstrated that it has not abandoned its subversive plans against Cuba, which have as objective to create situations of destabilisation in the country to provoke changes in its political order, and to which it continues dedicating millions in funds each year.
“The Government of the United States should comply with the international right and the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter and, therefore, cease with the illegal and covert actions against Cuba which are rejected by the Cuban people and the international public opinion,” the brief statement concluded.
The U.S. created a textmessage social network designed to foment unrest in Cuba, according to an investigation by the Associated Press news agency.
ZunZuneo, dubbed a “Cuban Twitter”, had 40,000 subscribers at its height in a country with limited web access.
The project reportedly lasted from 2009-12 when the grant money ran out.
Shell companies
The U.S. is said to have concealed its links to the network through a series of shell companies and by funnelling messages through other countries.
The scheme was reportedly operated by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), a federal international development organisation run under the aegis of the Department of State.
On Thursday, White House spokesman Jay Carney confirmed the U.S. Government’s involvement in the programme, saying it had
been debated by Congress and passed oversight controls.
He said: “These are the kinds of environments where a programme like this and its association with the U.S. Government can create problems for practitioners and members of the public.
“So appropriate discretion is engaged in for that reason, but not because it’s covert, not because it’s an intelligence programme, because it is neither covert nor an intelligence programme.”
Proud USAID spokesman Matt Herrick told the BBC the agency was proud of its work in Cuba and that it worked to help people everywhere to exercise their rights and connect
them with the outside world.
However, the report could undermine USAID’s longstanding claim that it does not take covert action in the countries where it operates aid programmes.
ZunZuneo, slang for a Cuban hummingbird’s tweet, was reportedly designed to attract a subscriber base with discussion initially about everyday topics such as sport and weather.
Recently, the Guyana Government pulled out of the 2012 United States Agency for International Development (USAID) project, as a consequence of the flaws in the agreement, Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon had said.
Dr Luncheon had said the project proposal presented to Guyana did not reflect the input of the Government, as well as that of USAID, and on that basis considerable reservations were expressed by the administration. He explained that the design was considered by Cabinet and both project and design were rejected.
Disrespectful
“The project that habitually and conventionally is an engagement between Guyana and its development partner USAID – this one in 2012 departed from that convention. Firstly, we were presented with an agreement to sign, over which we had zero contribution. Secondly, when we officially got the design, there was considerable objection, as far as the administration was concerned. This design would have never ever been provided for in any bilateral relationship, as a consequence it was rejected.”
The HPS added that the design allowed for the involvement of USAID in the national life and politics of Guyana. The US$13.1 million bilateral agreement was to advance development in health, economic growth, and democracy and governance, but many were of the view that the project could be used to push an ulterior agenda.
Satiricus was outraged. Here it was, he’d been sent to cover the goings on in Parliament about the “Budget Debate”. “That’s what it used to be,” sighed Satiricus, “but no more.”
He’d been told by his father that in the old days, there used to be quips thrown about, and wit displayed, by MPs like old man Boysie. Now they were all sourpusses like Boysie’s son Rolphie – just cussing out like fisherwomen.
But Satiricus dutifully turned up in Parliament. It was Friday, after all. And some of the $1.7 million in “refreshments” for the MPs at every sitting did trickle down to the reporters. It paid to have friends in high places.
So Satiricus was listening to the debate droning on, and was almost nodding off – like more than half of the members in the hallowed halls – when he was jerked back to reality.
Bolda Lawbench, from APANU, had been waxing feelingly about the horror experiences by victims of rape and sexual assault when Minister PanicChan heckled, “Ask Mitta Shamma!!!”
Satiricus was stunned. He knew that heckling was done quite spontaneously and people said whatever jumped into their minds. It was like those free-associations games where you completed people’s sentences.
But how the heck did such a thought cross PanicChan’s mind? Why! Mitta Shamma was one of the cleanest living citizens in the fair city of Georgetown!!! A paragon of virtue. Jeez, he’d down his eyes bashfully to the floor if voluptuous women passed by. But, they did have this charge against him for doing all sorts of vile things to several pre-pubescent girls.
“But by golly,” thought Satiricus, “Mitta Shamma, wasn’t convicted, was he?” He’d fainted every time at the trial and it had to be postponed.
Could a man, who was so sensitive that he couldn’t stand the smell of the Georgetown Courts, be so depraved to do the things they were accusing him of? “Naah!” concluded Satiricus.
Guyanese were such copy cats. Just because that talk show host from the BBC had been proven to be molesting underage girls for decades, this was why our law and order honchos wanted to convict local broadcaster Mitta Shamma.
“It was a sad, sad, situashan,” thought Satiricus. So Satiricus wasn’t surprised when young Master Shamma –“where had he been all these years”, wondered Satiricus –jumped up to defend his father’s honour.
Satiricus wasn’t sure whether Young Shamma had jumped up...he’d taken after his father and was height-challenged – but the Speaker recognised him and that meant he was standing. And this was what outraged Satiricus: nobody else from APANU jumped up to support the honour of Mitta Shamma!
“Why!! Just because Mitta Shamma wasn’t sitting in the House where everyone called each other “Honourable” meant he didn’t have honour?” fumed Satiricus. “Mitta Shamma had more honour than everyone in APANU.”
Mitta Shamma was right to pull out his Just Ice Party from APANU. No more free TV. Just look how fast APANU now jumping up to defend Mitta Shamma now!!! Honour was found.
Miss Guyana
Universe and Miss India Guyana 2013 Katherina Roshana said children suffering from autism are among the most beautiful in the world and need love as this is their best medicine.
Roshana is advocating for service and education for these children who are often misunderstood by family, friends and society in general.
According to a release, the beauty queen is particularly proud that she is able to highlight to the nation and the Caribbean that autism is merely a neurological disorder, which affects behaviour and creates a slow assimilation and processing of information.
“It saddens her that people; in Guyana, particularly the country areas, in which some families consider this as a mental disorder, and sometimes such children are chained to beds, or pens, sometimes beaten,
as some sectors of our society think that the children are possessed by evil, which
A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Vice Chairman, Dr Rupert Roopnaraine said the industry is poorly managed.
“I am not in favour of the privatisation of the industry. I know that this has been talked about.” He said it is no secret that the industry is in a “deep, deep crisis”, noting that the solution lies in having a competent board or management throughout the industry.
“I am not sure that the privatisation of the industry is what we need,” Dr Roopnaraine said.
Urling, during his declaration, had posited that GuySuCo should transfer a percentage of its human and capital resources toward the production of other value added products which would generate revenue and employment. According to him, underperforming estates can be sold or offered at concessionary rental to multinational firms looking to invest and set up their manufacturing and industrial operations here.
He, however, had cautioned that the sale or privatisation of sugar estates should not be done in an arbitrary or illogical manner, but one that is well strategised.
“It has to be done in a clear framework and strategy. If you can attract investors that can produce sugar at a cheaper and faster rate, then you privatise some of the estates or sell them to a private firm looking to invest in other things” he said.
Diversification
The call was also made for greater attention to be given to the production of energy, confectionaries, molasses and animal feed, among other byproducts of sugar
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cane. According to him, private investors would be able to produce sugar cheaper and at a faster rate. It was also suggested that other estates could be made available to be rented for other investments.
A Partnership for National Unity had called for the closure of the sugar industry, but subsequently back-pedalled following heated debates and criticism from all fractions of society.
Possible axing
There is also a brewing intention to axe the allocation for the corporation in this year’s budget, GuySuCo continues to play a leading role in the lives of thousands of Guyanese, not only those who are integrally involved in the production of sugar. The Government strongly believes that GuySuCo will overcome its many challenges and return to its former glory days.
The corporation spends about $15 billion annually on drainage and irrigation, which not only supports the cultivation of sugar cane, but rice also benefits in a major way.
The Agriculture Ministry remains optimistic that GuySuCo this year will begin a rapid progression towards the 300,000 tonnes of sugar goal. This trend is anticipated to continue with tonnage reaching a high of 450,000 by 2020
Currently, there are eight sugar estates with seven factories. The estates are Wales and Uitvlugt estates in Region Three; Enmore and LBI in Region Four; Blairmont in Region Five; and Rose Hall, Albion and Skeldon in Region Six. Of the eight, the Skeldon and Blairmont estates are experiencing serious problems.
needs to be beaten out.”
Katherina stresses that these children with the
neurological impairment, at times, their speech may not be as clear as others.
But when one gets close to them, and gives them the love and attention they deserve, they become positive and react with enormous affection. Love, she emphasised, is the cure for all illnesses.
Roshana is ambassador and spokesperson of the Step by Step School for autistic children, but she works for all children and persons who face this and other difficulties.
Special guest
Miss Guyana India 2013 was a special guest at the 2014 Miss India French Guyana Pageant held on Saturday.
Miss India Guyana delegates every year continue to be guests, judges and special invitees to different events and functions overseas.
Meanwhile, after an historic win in 2012 at the Miss India Worldwide Pageant, with Guyana’s delight-
ful Alana Seebarran taking top honours, coordinator and franchise holder of the Guyana leg, Chandani Rambalak is poised yet again with her sights set on bringing home another prestigious crown and title. With plans in the making for the hosting of a ‘selection’ for this year’s ambassador to the pageant, Rambalak will of course shortlist that special girl who must possess prior stage experience and that rare attribute that allows for ‘easy training’.
“Rambalak wishes to advise that due to time constraints, a pageant or auditions will not be hosted, but that the final delegate will be pinpointed from a panel of most distinguished and pageant-oriented judges.” Interested individuals are urged to send their names, contact numbers and other relevant particulars to the email address aspara_guyana@yahoo.com.
sunDAY, April 6, 2014 | guYAnAtimesgY.com
Staff at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex (EWMSC) are once again under scrutiny after 35-year-old Guyanese national Jeetindra Sookram died of a suspected heart attack an hour after he was denied treatment there because he was not a Trinidad and Tobago (TT) citizen.
Sookram was then rushed to the Charlieville Medical Centre Limited for treatment, but died in the back seat of a Nissan Navarra in the private clinic’s Caroni Savannah Road, Chaguanas car park on Thursday.
Doctors there said his symptoms suggested he suffered a massive heart attack, as he had complained about severe chest pains.
“I think it is negligence that caused him to not have a chance. I can’t understand how tourists can come into this country and get treated like this,” Sookram’s partner, Vidya Baichu, told the TT Guardian. Baichu and Sookram, a farmer from the Guyanese island of Wakenaam, had been on a two-week vacation in TT and was staying at their friend Melissa Deosaran’s Warren Road, Cunupia home.
Chairman of the North Central Regional Health Authority (RHA), Shehenaz Mohammed, has since instructed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Kumar Boodram to check
the roster to identify which workers were on duty when the incident occurred.
Mohammed said on Friday that Sookram’s family has been asked to provide the RHA with details of the incident, as an investigation has been launched. The incident comes weeks after baby Simeon Cottle’s death five hours after his mother, Quelly Ann Cottle, underwent a C-section at the Mount Hope Women’s Hospital.
Complaint
Telling of the tragedy while waiting outside the San Fernando mortuary, Baichu said they were talking at Deosaran’s Central workplace around 07.30h when he complained of a slight pain.
Deosaran had taken them there because she had to drop some-
thing off. Baichu said she gave Sookram two painkillers, believing he may have been tired from their travelling, but it did not help.
“He could not sit and he could not stand because the pain was getting to him more. It kept getting worse so we took him to the hospital (EWMSC),” Baichu said.
“When we got there, I went in with him and they took him straight to the place where they took blood and did tests. When I went to register him now, they asked for ID and I gave them his passport. They told me he is not a Trinidadian resident and
so all the services, we would have to pay for it.
“We asked them how much was the cost, they said they were not able to say, but whatever service they do we would have to pay for it.”
Baichu is now calling on TT Government to probe the incident, saying if Sookram had received help at the hospital, he might still be alive. She said even while Sookram was grimacing from the chest pains, EWMSC medical staff told him to take a seat while they tended to other patients.
Baichu said Sookram had no known heart condition and never experienced chest pains before.
“I just want the Government to look into it, because a lot of Guyanese come across here on vacation... and this could happen to anybody and the treatment that we got, I don’t want it for anybody else. I can’t understand how visitors can visit this country, go to the hospital and can’t get help. Maybe if they did not send us away, maybe there was a chance that he would still be alive,” she said.
Upset
She added: “I am upset because it is a public hospital. People go to Guyana and anybody could go to the hospital and get treatment. Nobody is charged. I can’t understand how in a public hospital in this coun-
try, you have to pay for a service and their negligence is what caused his death.”
Expressing her displeasure at the incident in a telephone interview, Mohammed said Sookram should have received medical attention at no cost, as there was no policy which restricts free healthcare to nationals alone.
“There is no policy that says that any non-national can be turned away from emergency care because they are unable to pay. Emergency care is available to all nationals and non-nationals. Under no circumstance can anyone be denied care,” she said.
“I have asked for the family to provide us with the details so that an immediate investigation can be launched into this. I am very disturbed that something like this has happened. Emergency care is anywhere. Even if you go to the United States, where you pay for care, if you go in with an emergency, it is free, so it is here too. It bewilders me how this happened and I am very angry that is has happened.”
Mohammed said the Health Ministry was yet to develop a policy with respect to healthcare for non-nationals for elective and emergency services. She said no fees have also been specified for services at hospitals, therefore all services should be free. (Trinadad and Tobago Guardian)
APartnership for National Unity (APNU) Member of Parliament (MP) Sidney Allicock said “Hand outs” by the ruling party are not enough, as he bemoaned underdevelopment in Region Nine and Amerindian villages across the country.
Addressing the House on Friday during the budget debates, Allicock launched an attack on the Government, accusing it of manipulation and favouritism.
According to Allicock, the Government is in the habit of consulting with Amerindian villages after initiating agreements with local and international companies on projects that can negatively affect their livelihoods.
The recent agreement with a Brazilian consortium QG and OAS for the conduct of pre-feasibility and feasibility studies on the possible generation of hydropower in the Upper and Middle Mazaruni was cited as an example. He argued that a better Guyana is a Guyana where all its citizens are
Incorporated.
He told the House that this cannot be all.
In the area of agriculture, the Regional Democratic Council of Region Nine has been requesting pertinent information in relation to the operations of the farm at Santa Fe.
“The information that was sent was irrelevant and when additional information was requested, the council was instructed to go to GoInvest,” he complained, telling the House that the con-
residents.
Alluding to the multimillion Sand Creek Secondary School, Allicock said residents were never told that a school would have been built in that area. According to the APNU MP, residents of South Central Rupununi were promised that the school would have been built in the Shulinab Village also known as Macushi Village.
The anxious residents had cleared a plot of land in anticipation but only to find out after the signing of the contract that the location had changed to Sand Creek. He is now contending that the area is unsuitable, explaining “that the school is built at the foot of a mountain that has some huge boulders on its slopes that can come loose due to erosion during the rainy season”. Additionally, there is no space for recreational activities.
According to the APNU MP, this is an indication that the Government has no
meaningfully consulted and included in the decisionmaking process.
But even during consultation, he said particular groups of people are targeted.
Human rights
“Mr Speaker, it is sad to see that daily our basic human rights are being violated, I see good monies spent to keep out young people under political control and division.”
Allicock, who hails from Region Nine, said the Government has been tooting its own horn as it often alludes to the mega farm at Santa Fe in the North Rupununi, the establishment of the Learning Channel, the construction of a $77.7 million Secondary School at Sand Creek in the South Central Rupununi and the recent purchase of two brand new FG Wilson 750 generators for the Lethem Power Company
cerns are legitimate.
It was explained that residents are concerned with the chemicals used on the farm, especially during the rainy season which often lead to flooding.
“Naturally, when the water starts to recede, it will flow into the nearby rivers, creeks and ponds. We have no way of knowing the effects those chemicals can have on the flora and fauna of the area, especially on the aquatic life.”
He is asking the question whether an Environment Impact Assessment was conducted.
Turning his attention to the education sector, Allicock reported that a survey conducted by a Region Nine Councillor indicated that less than 0.5 people in Central Rupununi watch the Learning Channel. According to him, the Government is spending hefty sums on programmes that are of no interest to the
vision, as he called on it to pay heed to Proverbs 29:18, which says: “Where there is no vision, the people perish; but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.”
In an effort to signal their disapproval, Allicock told the House that some villagers have refused to send their children to the Sand Creek Secondary School.
He said the situation was worse last year when some children attending the school were sent to a hostel for Christmas.
“A time when children ought to be with their family, these children were taken to the students’ hostel at St Ignatius and left there for the holidays, no mommy, no daddy, no brother, no sister and no relative. Is that how we intend to have our young people enjoy a better life?”
Government, he said has a far way to go before, the country can be described as a better “A better Guyana for all Guyanese”.
The idea of work-study at secondary schools is not new. The idea of internships in tertiary education is not new either. Both are very useful ideas. The basic idea is to give students some kind of experience in the workplace in order that their “book” learning be supplemented by hands-on or practical experience.
There is all kinds of wisdom in this, of course. University of the West Indies just finished some big survey that told them what everyone else already knows. No wonder the Germanic ranking system has them so shamefully low. UG, of course, is the lowest ranked of any national university in the world.
The first time I encountered our secondary school work-study programme in Guyana was in 2009, mere months after I returned home with all kinds of noble intentions to serve Guyana. The Education Minister was Shaik Baksh. The work-study programme still continues, to the credit of the Education Ministry under his successor.
They seem to have worked it out: students are placed during that nervewracking period between having written the CXC and getting the results. The work-study programme keeps these young people constructively occupied and exposes them to the world of work. Regular studies are not disrupted.
I do not know, however, if we have designed a system to measure the effectiveness of the placements. If we don’t have a system to measure the effectiveness of the workstudy programme, then we should have one designed. And if there is a system, it would be not a bad idea to let us know about it.
On the other hand, the University of Guyana is quite
another basket of rotting fish. In 2008, one month after I came back to Guyana, I showed how this idea of internship can work— and a lot more too (almost 200 pages of concrete, implementable ideas to bring UG up to snuff).
Regarding internships, the idea was that every single degree programme must have an internship element. This was free for Guyana! In the Sultanate of Oman (or many other places), I would have been paid a princely sum for this stuff. Not a word. Not even the suggestion of some action. In November 2008, I was ASKED to assume the position of Director of the Berbice Campus. I submitted again something called a Strategic Planning Engine. Nothing. Again, the point of internships is to give university students workplace experience. But at UG, it has become all perverted. In one course, students are commanded to go to this or that place for FOUR days for “internship”. They HAVE to spend 32 hours! Magical number that! Some students explained that they actually work for a living! And they are promptly told: “You do it or you fail!” “But what about my job?” some student asks. The lecktchuruh (or lecturer,
in English) responds: “Tell your employers that you are sick!” So here is the situation:
(i) I work for a living, but have to go for an internship in a single course that is meant to give me work experience.
(ii) The “internship” may or may not have anything to do with the course.
(iii) The “internship” goes for four days from 8-4, so I cannot go to my paid job that helps me pay my tuition and feed my family.
(iv) I have other courses which mostly start at 16:00h, so I will be more than an hour late for each of the other courses. So I could fail them (read MORE money and time!).
(v) But if I DON’T do as commanded, then I fail this course! Same buddup (vi) I am told to lie to my paid-job employers. Things are tough these days, so they could easily fire me for absenteeism. And they should fire me for being a liar (even though I was instructed to lie).
(vii) I pay tuition for this rubbish, and they will hike tuition I hear.
(viii) I come UG to lose guana and cutlass!
(ix) I have to pay even more than the $50,000 per month I pay now for travel.
(x) I can’t complain since I will be penalised and I will have to take time that I don’t have to make written complaints.
This stuff happens when the classroom becomes a territory in which teaching is replaced by bullying. And decency and ethics are locked outside the gates, thrown like garbage on the roadside.
I am confident that the “high authorities” at UG are clueless of any of this, of course. If they don’t know, why don’t they? Ah! Teaching and learning and scholarly excellence.
Global Technology is currently testing its satellite Internet service with the intentions of launching the initiative in a few weeks.
According to Chief Executive Officer (CEO) George Melvin, the company is set to officially launch the new service on April 28.
But for now, the company is testing the service with a small group of persons in order to ascertain the weaknesses the service might have when it becomes available to the wider public.
Global Technology CEO George Melvin
He said when the project becomes operational, persons will be able to access Internet speeds varying from 512MB to 8G, at com-
petitive prices.
As it relates to the efficiency of the service that would be provided, the CEO related that the iNet service would span the length and breadth of Guyana.
He noted that unlike the other service providers, the service that he intends to provide will have minimal disruptions.
While referring to a recent incident which saw the submarine cables being damaged at sea and a significant portion of the country being without Internet for a few days, Melvin related that with the new service,
this problem would not occur since the service is wireless.
Melvin pointed out that unlike the submarine fibre-optic cables; the system being implemented is not prone to damages.
Global Technology is the sole authorised distributor of Apple products, and according to the CEO, the company has already started receiving proposals from private sector companies, including a commercial bank.
He also said the company is in the process of opening a branch in Lethem, but is being affected by the poor Internet service there.
Robin Dinnanauth, a U.S.-based Guyanese native, is slated to receive a Golden Rule Award from Ambassador Clyde Rivers, representative for the Interfaith Peace-Building Initiative to the United Nations in New York and the African Union.
The nomination recognises Dinnanauth for his
compassion toward humankind and his active efforts to empower communities with trust, dignity and improved living conditions.
Dinnanauth has been inspiring lives both locally and internationally through humanitarian leadership and creative initiatives such as “Josiah’s House of Hope for Children”. His outreach has become
a model for impacting families and fostering successful community collaboration between corporate, government and non-profit organisations.
“I believe that we can help people from all walks of life realise their dreams and live to their full potential, regardless of background or current situation. Everyone has the capacity
Pto be more and go farther than they ever thought possible.”
The Golden Rule Awards will take place April 4 (The Golden Rule Day) at the Gerald R Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Dinnanauth will then join a list of other goodwill ambassadors and Golden Rule International Alumni whose proclamation has been submitted to the United Nations to implement the golden rule as a policy of peace.
Dinnanauth is an educator, mentor, leader, pastor, entrepreneur, author of several books, and sought-after conference speaker. His past is rich with many compelling life experiences which give him a platform to address critical issues that affect an individual’s social and spiritual development.
The Golden Rule International is affiliated with the Interfaith Peace-Building Initiative Organisation, Department of Public Information of United Nations, the African Union, the United Nations and the United Religions Initiative (URI).
It seeks out top achievers who live the Golden Rule in their everyday lives. This new global ethic has been embraced by 120 nations of the world and is being promoted globally by the leadership of the Golden Rule International Award, patron, current Ethiopian President Girma Wolde and Ambassador Mussie Hailu.
andemonium broke out in the Opposition ranks when the Guyana Times published the findings of a poll reportedly conducted by the PNCR AND THE AFC in secret, ahead of the 2011 elections.
The findings of this poll have left a bitter-sweet taste in the mouths of some in our society and rightly so.
Firstly, the spin doctors over at Kaieteur News immediately shifted the focus of the damning findings using just one part of their survey data to pit the supporters of President Donald Ramotar against those of Former President Bharrat Jagdeo. The spin doctors also saw an opportunity to mislead the country as to the levels of unity within the ruling PPP/C and amongst its membership.
The poll data also sent chills down the spines of some ex-PPP/C executives who are considered persons of easy morality. As expected, any thought of Jagdeo returning to the presidency (if this were even possible), would mean the end of their neo-political careers, and the end of the battle that they have long waged against their “alma mater” ever since exiting.
But, the pronouncements by the PPP/C’s General Secretary this past week have no doubt hit these provocateurs and their agents where it hurts the most. Clement Rohee has read the riot act while announcing that the former President will soon break his silence and will have “the last laugh” in light of the unprecedented attacks being levelled against him.
The attacks are led and engineered almost exclusively by two sections of the media and their two Opposition allies in the form of political parties. The always scandalous and often erroneous publications in these sections of the media have their owners laughing all the way to the bank even as they sanctimoniously speak of “democracy”.
Rohee’s response was masterful and just.
But what else did the poll reveal that some media outlets will not report? It said that under Ramotar’s leadership into any election, the PPP/C would still emerge victorious. It predicted that the Opposition APNU and AFC would lose their one-seat majority in the National Assembly.
It said the Opposition would perform creditably were there to be local government elections. It also confirmed that the APNU and AFC will be going into a pre-electoral coalition.
But most remarkably, it confirmed that there was severe infighting within the PNC/APNU grouping and that a consorted decision is being made to remove PNC/APNU Member Carl Greenidge’s name as a possible candidate for any elections.
It is no secret that since the PNCR primaries, Greenidge and David Granger have been at odds over how to manage the party and handle its affairs. It is no secret that there is a rift between the two, and their communications are less than favourable.
So far, Greenidge is the only face remaining and standing from the political battle to get control of the PNCR when Granger emerged.
The Granger camp is quietly preaching that Greenidge is an extremist and cannot be trusted with the leadership of the PNCR. It wants to lock him out from taking back the party from the paramilitary leader that is wearing it as another rank on his sleeve.
As a matter of fact, some believe that Granger has become a dictator and is unable to manage much less balance the many portfolios he holds.
Even more worrying, is the state that the PNCR has found itself in, ever since it sold its birthrights to the APNU.
The PNCR party was condemned to oblivion despite its contributions to the political forte of Guyana. Some are blaming Granger for the sidelining of PNCR stalwarts such as Dr Faith Harding, Dr Van West Charles, Aubrey Norton and the list goes on.
Where has the former leader disappeared? Robert Corbin says nothing about anything related to his term as Opposition Leader or the PNCR or its new arrangement with APNU.
All of these facts and more are enough reasons why the Opposition remains fearful of Jagdeo’s shadow and is now spewing their propaganda about Jagdeo trying to undermine Ramotar’s presidency and the party which he still serves.
The PNCR and APNU have never remained so tempered about something which they claim is false. Sources say another secret poll was done and soon, the Opposition camp will be dancing to the music. More dirty little shorts will come out.
AChinese ship searching for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane in the southern Indian Ocean has picked up a pulse signal, Chinese media say.
They say the signal has a frequency of 37.5kHz –the same as those emitted by the flight recorders. However, there is no evi-
dence so far that it is linked to MH370. Dozens of ships and planes have joined the search, with the operation moving into its most intensive phase before batteries on the data recorders fade.
On Saturday the Haixun 01 – one of two Chinese ships in the area – picked up the signal at about 25 degrees south latitude and
101 degrees east longitude, the state-run Xinhua news agency said.
“It is yet to be established whether it is related to the missing jet,” it cautioned. China’s Liberation Daily reported that three people on board had heard the signals, which were not recorded as they came suddenly. (BBC News)
Avolcano just south of Ecuador’s capital Quito has erupted, creating a spectacular plume of ash, 10km (six miles) high. The Tungurahua volcano created the huge cloud on Friday in an eruption that lasted just five minutes.
The volcano has been erupting since 1999, but has been particularly active in the last two months. Tungurahua is one of eight active volcanoes in Ecuador, which lies in the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire. (BBC News)
Haiti’s leadership announced a cabinet reshuffle this week to allow opponents to enter the Government in compliance with a recent historic agreement to facilitate the holding of crucial legislative and local elections and ease a crisis that threatened the Caribbean country’s stability.
On Wednesday, Haitian President Michel Martelly and Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe reshuffled the cabinet and allowed several representatives of moderate Opposition parties to become part of the current administration at different levels, as part of the political agreement clinched last month. “We are doing all that depends on us to facilitate the holding of credible elections, to strengthen our democracy and the rule of law,” Martelly told HCNN during a brief interview on
Friday.
“The election is a sine qua non and we want to create an environment in which all those who genuinely want to bring their contribution may have a chance to do it,” he said. Martelly, representatives of Parliament and more than 50 political parties signed, on March 14, a political deal in which parties agreed to facilitate the integration of opponents in the Government, the amendment of the existing electoral law, among other things.
Lamothe has also publicly committed to fulfil the responsibilities which lie with the Government in compliance with the agreement which is considered historic, in the sense that it was for the first time Haitian protagonists had resolved to sit together, without any foreign or international mediation, to solve differences. (Caribbean News Now)
Japan to intercept any North Korea missile deemed a threat
Japan will strike any North Korean ballistic missile that threatens to hit Japan in the coming weeks after Pyongyang recently fired medium-range missiles, a Government source said on Saturday. Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera issued the order, which took effect on Thursday and runs through April 25, the day that marks the founding of North Korea’s
army, the source told Reuters on condition of anonymity.
Following the order, meant “to prepare for any additional missile launches,” a destroyer was dispatched to the Sea of Japan and will fire if North Korea launches a missile that Tokyo deems in danger of striking or falling on Japanese territory, the source said. Tensions have been building between North
Korea and its neighbours since Pyongyang – in an apparent show of defiance –fired two Rodong missiles on March 26, just as the leaders of Japan, South Korea and the United States were sitting down to discuss containing the North Korean nuclear threat.
That first firing in four years of mid-range missiles that can hit Japan followed a series of short-range rocket launches over the past two months. The Rodong ballistic missiles fell into the sea after flying 650 km (400 miles), short of a maximum range thought to be some 1300 km, Japan said.
Since then, North Korea has rattled sabres by firing artillery rounds into South Korean waters, prompting the South to fire back; South Korea has test-fired a new ballistic missile with a range of 500 km; and Pyongyang has threatened an unspecified “new form” of nuclear test. (Excerpt from Reuters)
Former High Court judge and deputy chairman of the Integrity Commission, Sebastian Ventour, has accepted blame for his failure to tell President Anthony Carmona he had three outstanding court judgments before taking up the position on the commission. He said this was an oversight which he has regretted.
In February Ventour resigned, after serving for seven months on the commission, to be reappointed a judge for one day to deliver the judgments. He was lat-
er reappointed to the commission. In a three-page letter sent Friday, Ventour made the comment in response to an editorial in the TT Guardian which was published on March 30. The Guardian had been seeking comments from him since he stepped down and was reappointed.
“On reflection, I consider it was my responsibility to have brought the issue of the outstanding judgments to the attention of the President at the material time,” Ventour wrote. “That I did not was an oversight which I regret, but
given the long history of recall this did not appear to be a problem at the time. Later as a member of the commission I discovered that I had to resign from the commission and be reappointed as a judge in order to deliver the outstanding judgments.”
Ventour said for as many years as he could remember, judges had retired from the Judiciary and been reappointed by the President, on the advice of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission, for a very short period, sometimes for a day, to deliver outstanding judgments. (Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)
Agriculture Minister,
Dr Leslie Ramsammy has condemned what he called misrepresentation of the facts by a section of the media and politicians on the Skeldon Co-Generation Plant.
The Government has conceded that GuySuCo faces many difficulties and have performed below its targets for three straight years.
“We have in particular conceded that Skeldon Sugar Factory has not met our expectations. But we have also stated very clearly that we are making progress in resolving the problems we have encountered in the past several years. These problems resulted from several factors, includ-
ing the ongoing challenges of climate change and price volatility for sugar.”
He said in spite of the many challenges, GuySuCo has been able to address several of the problems and has made significant progress in addressing others.
“We see difficult times still ahead, but we are confident that 2014 will be a year in which we return to a more positive way forward. In this regards, I would like to dispel the misinformation being spread from several quarters, particularly by APNU and AFC. It relates to the co-generation of energy by the Skeldon factory. During the budget debate and at other times, representatives of both APNU and AFC have declared that
GuySuCo’s Co-Gen Plant at Skeldon has produced zero energy for GPL’s national grid.”
Four people were killed Friday night when a driver apparently lost control of a car and plunged into a creek in the Astoria section of Queens, police officials said.
The passengers, Jada Monique Butts, 19; Crystal Gravely, 19; Jaleel Furtado, 21; and Darius Fletcher, 21, were killed. The driver, identified as a 20-year-old man, survived the wreck,
police said. The victims were from the Elmhurst neighbourhood of Queens, officials said Saturday.
Police said the incident occurred around 22:30h when the driver of a 2009 Honda Accord was heading westbound on 19th Avenue near 37th Street.
A law-enforcement official said that while the driver was attempting to make a U-turn, the car began to slide, mounted the
curb and left the roadway. The vehicle careened down a bank and into a portion of the East River known as the Steinway Creek.
The official said the car overturned into the creek and filled with water.
The driver, whose name was not released, escaped the vehicle and was taken to Elmhurst Hospital, where he was listed in stable condition. The official said he took a blood-alcohol test, and alcohol was not found in his system.
Butts, Gravely and one of the men in the crash were taken to Elmhurst General Hospital, where they were pronounced dead, police said. The other victim was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was also pronounced dead. The driver is listed in stable condition at Elmhurst General Hospital, authorities said. (The Wall Street Journal)
The Minister said the Co-Generation Plant at Skeldon generates both energy through turbine (ba-
gasse-based) generation and diesel generation. The energy generated are used for operation at the Skeldon
Factory and is also fed into the national grid.
He said in March, as an example, the Skeldon CoGeneration Plant generated 9876 MWH energy. The bagasse-based generator through the turbine was 5350 MWH of this amount or 54.2 per cent of the total energy generated. The diesel-based energy produced was 4526 MWH for March or 45.8 per cent.
“The truth is that the Co-Gen Plant in Skeldon exported 5644 MWH energy to the GPL National Grid in March. Of this amount, 1410 MWH or 25 per cent was from the bagasse-based turbine generators. The rest, 4233 MWH was from the diesel-based generators,” he said.
Prominent New Yorkbased Guyanese pandit, Jagdesh Mohunlall, a Berbician who received his tertiary education in New York, has passed away.
Mohunlall died last Sunday from a massive heart attack. He was reportedly in his mid 50s.
He had an illustrativous career as a community advocate in New York, fighting for social justice and equality for all, joining other nationalities in lobbying for same.
He was a pillar of strength in the community and a group worker and community leader whose activities touched the lives of thousands.
Pandit Mohunlall served for five years as President of the Indo-Caribbean Federation (ICF) which has been organising the annual Indian Arrival Day celebrations at the Smokey Park in Richmond Hill since 1985, and also the annual cricket match between Guyana and Trinidad for the past 23 years.
Jagdesh, as he is fondly called, was a tax auditor for New York State for over 20 years. He was certified as an auditor against tax fraud. He also taught accounting briefly, as an Adjunct Professor at Manhattan Community College of CUNY.
Jagdesh had retired from his state job to manage his private accounting firm, maintaining two offices, one in Yonkers and the other in the Richmond Hill area. He also ran a driving school, a real estate school, and a travels service – all
servicing the needs of the community.
Although he had a lot of clients for his businesses, he is best known for his community work. And although he had withdrawn from leadership activities in recent years as a result of health issues, he remained as a director and was very supportive to the Indo-Caribbean Federation as well as other organisations. He used his office to encourage people to make donations to the federation that sponsored many activities beneficial to the Guyanese diaspora.
While serving as leader of the ICF, he was open to ideas that served the greater good of the community. Through lobbying, New York City Hindu and Muslim students were excused from school on Phagwah, Diwali and Eid. Mohunlall also joined the New York struggle during the late 1980s for the restoration of democracy in Guyana, attending protest marches and obtaining signatures in petition drives.
President Donald Ramotar reaffirmed his Government’s support to the development of the tourism sector at the Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG) annual awards ceremony on Friday evening.
The President said his Government will continue to work in the various areas to ensure the sustainability of the sector.
“We have to appreciate how far we have come,” he said, contending that Guyana is making significant strides; though some of the work being done by his Government is going unnoticed.
He maintained that the infrastructural aspect of the sector is still a work in progress and sooner rather than later, the industry will attain the level it aspires.
The President also pointed out that revenues gained from the tourism industry will go towards the development of the country to improve the lives of all Guyanese.
Meanwhile, acting Tourism Minister Irfaan Ali, who also addressed the occasion, said tourism is a new sector to Guyana and could become one of the vital organs of the economy.
He explained that a team from the Tourism Ministry and an independent economist recently estimated the local tourism
industry to be worth some US$214 million.
The Minister related that the sector is dynamic and unique as it cuts across all the other sectors of the country. On this point, he said, in order for tourism to be successful, the various sectors have to be functioning effectively.
“It cuts across every single sector, it touches every single aspect of national development…. and for tourism to be successful, all of it must click. It must click together, it must click in unity, that is the foundation for tourism to be successful,” the acting Tourism Minister said.
Amaila Falls
Buttressing his point, Ali said if the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project comes on stream, savings will be redirected to other sectors, including the tourism sector.
The Minister said too that some of the suggestions raised by Alliance For Change (AFC) Member of Parliament (MP) Cathy Hughes for the improvement of the sector are being considered.
These include extended tax holidays, and a reduction on VAT for local arts and crafts.
Meanwhile, THAG President Kit Nascimento also echoed the call for a reduction of VAT for business-
es in the tourism sector.
“Apart from the Rupununi, where VAT is waived for the sector, all of our tourism destinations and all of our hotels pay the standard VAT rate when in contrast, Caribbean destinations and hotels benefit from substantially reduced VAT rates.”
On a much lighter note, Nascimento lobbied for the President to confirm Ali as Tourism Minister.
“Mr President, you have appointed, and this is not intended as flattery, an energetic and dedicated Minister of Tourism to act. One of his fellow ministers has described him as “the energy bunny”. She’s right. But he must be given the legislative and financial support to move the industry forward. He cannot market Guyana to compete internationally on the budget given to tourism. He must also be confirmed as Minister of Tourism,” Nascimento urged.
The businesses and persons that were awarded with the President’s Award for outstanding service in the tourism sector were Rupununi Music and Arts Festival, Trans Guyana Airways, Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company, Wilderness Explorers, Adel’s Rainforest Resort, and Roraima Wedding Expo.
The Miss World Guyana (MWG) contestants Kelly-Ann Latchman and Jovan Wilson selected to represent Region Seven and Region 10 as regional beauty and goodwill ambassadors have withdrawn their participation in the pageant.
The MWG Committee in a release said it thank both
Latchman and Wilson for their participation and wish them the best in their future endeavours.
The Miss World Guyana pageant, slated for Independence Day – May 26, is a platform to enable personal and professional growth of contestants in addition to the promotion of community service, beauty,
The Maritime Administration Department said the explosion of the boat at Port Kaituma on Thursday was caused after a fuel pump malfunctioned and jets of diesel sprayed on the hot surface of the pump.
According to a release, a fire consequently ignited and engulfed the vessel.
The lone crew member, who was onboard, attempted to put out the fire, but the heat was too much, causing him to jump overboard. He swam ashore and was rushed to hospital for medical treatment.
Simultaneously, the fire spread to other boats and buildings nearby, destroying four buildings used as dwelling houses, shops and storages. Five boats are believed to have been destroyed.
“The blaze extended on top of the river as well, as the diesel leaked overboard onto some combustible garbage in the water,” the release said.
Residents formed a bucket brigade and were successful in stopping the fire from spreading to other buildings ashore.
The maritime authority said there was no fatality and the only reported casual-
ty was the crew member who sustained first degree burns to his back and feet. He is currently being treated at Port Kaituma Hospital.
Meanwhile, Public Works Minister Robeson Benn reiterated the need for persons to clear the waterfront area. He went on to state that the congestion is hampering much needed road works there.
Benn also noted that his Ministry is pursuing several measures to deal with maritime safety in the area and the issue regarding importation of illegal fuel.
fitness and talent.
Participation in the pageant affords young women the opportunity to raise awareness on issues and causes affecting their communities as they serve as regional beauty and goodwill ambassadors of the nation.
The Miss World Guyana pageant commenced in May 1966 and crowned its first title-holder, Umbilita Van Sluytman, who was also known as the Independence Queen and became Guyana’s first placement and semi-finalist in the Miss World 1966 pageant.
The Miss World Pageant is the first international pageant that Guyana achieved repeated successes.
As a result, Guyana is known for having one of the longest consecutive placements in the history of the Miss World Pageant. On May 26, 2013, Natasha Martindale was awarded the franchise from Miss World Chairwoman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Julia Morley.
(Dec. 22Jan. 19)
Someone will feel left out. Find out who, and do something to encourage his or her involvement. Express your feelings and show your devotion. A thoughtful gesture will make a big impact.
(Jan. 20Feb. 19)
(Feb.20March 20)
Unfinished business will cause a financial or legal strain. Take care of impending difficulties before things get out of hand. Make efforts to improve your diet and physical health. Keep an eye on your cash and your possessions. Work on projects that you’ve left unfinished. Don’t allow anyone to take advantage of you.
(March 21-April 19)
An unhappy past interaction with someone will repeat itself if you let that person back into your life. Keeping secrets from a friend will cause irreparable damage. Honesty is necessary.
(April 20May 20)
A change in scenery will do you good. Visit a place that you find relaxing to reduce your stress. Distance yourself from conflicts that you are facing at home or at work.
(May 21June 20)
You take great strides if you capitalise on your knowledge and skills. Your imaginative ideas can lead to financial gains and favourable recognition.
By Bernice Bede Osol
(June 21July 22)
Spending time alone will give you the opportunity to work on a project and bypass a petty disagreement. Don’t waste energy debating, when you should be keeping a low profile and avoiding unsavory situations.
(July 23Aug. 22)
Your job could be in jeopardy if you believe false information. Make sure you are aware of any details concerning your position. It’s up to you to keep abreast of matters.
(Aug. 23Sept. 22)
Your personal affairs are no one’s business. Don’t let comments or criticism from family members get to you. Do your usual thing and keep your personal thoughts a secret.
(Sept. 23Oct. 23)
Someone will take advantage of your good nature. If a colleague has been extremely demanding lately, explain politely that you need some time for your own devices. You have to look after your needs first.
(Oct. 24Nov. 22)
Don’t spread yourself too thin, or your mental, emotional and physical health will suffer. It’s OK to say no every now and then. You cannot be responsible for everybody’s problems.
(Nov. 23Dec. 21)
A joint venture will present difficulties. Get all the details and flush out any problems before you get involved. Don’t feel guilty about changing your mind or pulling out completely.
Dentures provided in 72 hours from as
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Available: Fresh long-stemmed roses, fresh dried and silk floral arrangements, gift items, bridal boutiques and wreaths. Nesha’s Flowerland. 78 Church Street (opposite St George’s Cathedral). Tel: 227-3553/225-3315
Agricultural tractors and machinery; single and 4-wheel drive: Massey Ferguson, Ford, John Deere, New Holland and Fiat. Also available spares parts for these machines. Phone: 6194483, 601-7883, 226-6325
Spare parts for 1-2-3-4 and 6 cylinder diesel engines for Lister, Pieter, Kobota, Perkins, Veutz, Fiat, John Deer, Case IH, Cummings, Bedford and Leyland Daf. Also all middles of diesel generators: super silence and open air from 3KVA600KVA. Contact Rams Auto Spares on telephone 226-6325, 227-1454, 6194483 and 685-3568 Cheap earth delivered to spot on ECD and EBD. Call 627-9977 &698-0182
Clean garden earth and builders waste; our services also includes Bobcat rental, excavating, clearing and leveling. Call 616-0617 or 663-3285
Sawmill complex designed to produce thousands of BM for export and local market, built on 25 acres of land. Phone: 684-5868.
USA refurbished laptops, Dell Latitude D620 & D630 for students, home or office use. Intel Core Duo 1.8.GHz, 24x CDRW/DVD, Dell Wireless 802.11 with Windows 7 for $39,000. We negotiate with students. Call 649-9941/2760574.
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Afather of four was on Saturday morning fished out of a trench at Graham Street, Plaisance, East Coast Demerara about 06:30h. He is suspected to have drowned after suffering a seizure.
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Bashidae “Basdeo” Rambissoon, 40, of Lot 207 Montrose, East Coast Demerara was discovered lying face down in the trench by passersby who immediately contacted the police at Sparendaam, East Coast Demerara.
He was found among purine leaves with his pair of slippers close to him while a bag with the leaves was next to his body.
According to information, the man suffered from epilepsy in the past and might have suffered a seizure on the morning he died.
At the time of his discovery, he was wearing a short checkered pants and a grey vest. There were no marks of violence about his body.
At the home of the dead man, his wife Neemah Sharma explained that her husband left home about
05:00h, claiming that he was going to cut some purine leaves for a man in the village who had a religious function.
The woman stated that at the time, she was preparing to go to work, but as normal, he picked the flowers for pooja and then he left. She said while at work, about 07:00h, she received a telephone call from her eldest son, informing her that his father had drowned.
The devastated woman added that she left her place of employment in a hurry
and went to the scene where she saw him in the trench.
He was eventually pulled out by undertakers and taken to the mortuary. Sharma posited that her husband frequently consumed alcohol, but she was certain he was not under the influence when he left home. She believes that he might have suffered a “fit” attack.
She said her husband was a good father, but they encountered marital problems when he started to follow his friends.
A sister of the dead man stated that she was at home when she received a telephone call and rushed to the area where her brother was found. The woman noted that as she arrived, the body of her brother was being taken away, but she managed to get a glimpse of him.
The man’s body was taken to the Lyken’s Funeral Home, and is awaiting a post-mortem examination. He leaves to mourn his wife, four children and his siblings.
An Enmore businessman whose name was given as “Sunil” was on Saturday evening kidnapped and the kidnappers are demanding a $50 million ransom for his safe return
According to information received, the businessman was on his way home when he was stopped
by a dark coloured vehicle and held hostage.
Police confirmed that they are investigating the alleged kidnapping and are aware that the kidnappers are demanding a $50 million for his safe return by midnight
Based on information received, the auto dealer might have been kid -
napped by his close associates.
Family members up to press time were scampering to raise the money to meet the kidnappers’ demand. The calls made to Sunil’s family were from unknown numbers.
Police are investigating the matter.
Natural Resources and Environment
Minister Robert Persaud has called on the Members of the National Assembly to use the subject of Budget 2014 to shape a new political culture that applies to the politics of togetherness in the House and in the country.
Addressing the National Assembly during the budget debates, the Natural Resources Minister pointed out that a troika of bitterness can be used to describe the interactions in the House during the 10th Parliament, but said for the House to do justice; its representatives must seek to convert this bitterness into a troika of togetherness. Budget 2014 is just the start needed to push this new political culture, he said.
The Minister hastened to point out as well that this new political culture must not be the burden of the Government side of this House alone as “building
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Robert Persaud
this new political culture requires all of us working together in terms of building cooperation”.
The Minister also pointed out that there is as well the issue of genuine trust that is necessary to facilitate this new genuine cooperation. He noted that APNU’s Member of Parliament (MP) Joseph Harmon in his budget presentation referred to the PPP/C as sometimes acting as the schoolyard bully, and of not doing enough,
with regards to cooperating with the Opposition. The Minister, however, noted that on several occasions, Government has reached out to the Opposition, and after seemingly fruitful cooperation, hopes were dashed after the Opposition, reverted to their old ways.
“There are members here who would recall the invitations by His Excellency... in fact the Head of Presidential Secretariat would in fact describe it as the Government undressing itself for the Opposition, doing and providing all the information and this happens from time to time,” the Minister said.
He pointed to Government providing to the Opposition all its notes and information on the Amalia Falls Hydropower Project, and further Public Works Minister Robeson Benn leading Harmon and others from the Opposition on a site visit of the project.
Romesh Kaluwitharana caught at third man.
Sanath Jayasuriya caught at third man too. Asanka Gurusinha is out soon. Eden Gardens has erupted. Aravinda de Silva comes out and silences them, and the spinners bury them. Heartbreak.
Mahela Jayawardene, Nuwan Kulasekara and Thisara Perera take 54 in the last four overs. Lasith Malinga follows it up with early wickets of Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar. Finally the final hoodoo is being broken. Gautam Gambhir and MS Dhoni, though, pull off a cool chase. Heartbreak returned.
Big matches between India and Sri Lanka have somehow left bigger scars than others. The semis and finals between these two have rarely been close. Think Eden Gardens 1996. Think Jayasuriya, Muttiah Muralitharan and
Chaminda Vaas demolishing the psyche of a whole generation of India cricketers over the next three years or so. Or the many times they have knocked India out of major tournaments, either by directly beating them or other teams. Think even the Asia Cup final in 2008.
The captain of that losing Indian team in 2008 was a cricketer unlike any other Indian before him. Those scars left no imprint on his psyche. Under him, in limited-overs cricket, India have paid no heed to things such as history and legacy.
Just keep doing your bit, the rest will take care of itself. In the process, they have overcome the shivers the sight of a Sri Lankan side in a big match used to send up the Indian spines.
Under him, India have never lost a semi-final, and have been even with Sri Lanka in the finals. The turning point was that World
Cup win in 2011, after which they have had it almost too easy against Sri Lanka in the really big matches.
Under that captain, India
have put behind them a torrid recent time out of Asia, not just in Tests but also in ODIs, and have bossed this tournament.
Dhoni has been the exact opposite of what he was before the break he took: fresh, backing his bowlers, trying to take wickets to slow runs down, making changes even to a winning combination to get the best XI on the field. India have responded superbly.
R Ashwin and Amit Mishra have made sure there hasn’t been a single horror day in the field. Led by Virat Kohli, the batsmen have risen up to every challenge. Now they are on the
brink of doing something that has never been done: go unbeaten through a World T20.
If India have been channeling this rare calm they have achieved despite the turmoil in the administration of their cricket, Sri Lanka have ridden mainly on emotion.
This could be the last final two of their greatest players ever play. It has almost been like some player or the other has been pulling them from the brink just for Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara. It hasn’t been smooth. They even have had to realise that their designated captain for the tournament doesn’t merit a place in this XI.
They have had to fight dew, they have come back from being bowled out for 119, they have had to drop their main spinner leading into the tournament. You almost feel it is meant to be with every such improbable comeback, but you have felt it often with Sri Lanka.
The pair of Jayawardene and Sangakkara have lost four world finals now. Last year, Sangakkara spoke of the pain eloquently in this interview. “We really need to talk about it being a final,” he said.
“The more you try to ignore it, the more you think about it. We need to find a way to deal with it.” Maybe if somehow, at a canter or through weather or an op-
position choke or through a great one over, just some how, if they can win one final, they will stop being so conscious about the match? Then again, they are against a team whose captain specialises in not being conscious of how big a match it is.
Team news It is unlikely India will make a change to their XI. Yuvraj Singh remains a question mark, but as he showed against Australia, he can still cause damage in a 10-ball spell, and you want such players on your side in big matches.
India (probable) 1 Rohit Sharma, 2 Ajinkya Rahane, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 Suresh Raina, 6 MS Dhoni (capt. & wk), 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Amit Mishra, 10 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 11 Mohit Sharma Sri Lanka are closer to finding their best XI, and it doesn’t include Dinesh Chandimal, their squad captain. However, you can’t be sure if they will keep Thisara Perera out again.
Sri Lanka (probable) 1 Kusal Perera, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Mahela Jayawardene, 4 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 5 Lahiru Thirimanne, 6 Angelo Mathews, 7 Seekkuge Prasanna/ Thisara Perera, 8 Nuwan Kulasekara, 9 Sachithra Senanayake, 10 Lasith Malinga (capt.), 11 Rangana Herath. (Cricinfo)
The weather, as well as Kyle Corbin and Windwards Under-19 batsman Kavem Hodge combined to stem the flow for the home team, but they made hay in between gloom to leave the CCC wobble on 55 for four.
Matthew had Corbin trapped lbw for 10 and Hodge paid for his petulance, when he mistimed a pull and was caught at square leg by a flying Alston Bobb off Sebastien for 12.
Veteran left-hander Floyd Reifer, not out on four, came to the crease and with Chadwick Walton, not out on 12, carried CCC through until the umpires offered them light with two overs remaining for the day.
Earlier, Windwards started the day on 17 without loss and surrendered four wickets – three to Austin – in the first hour and they never fully recovered.
Romel Currency tried to hold the seams together with a resolute, unbeaten top score of 36 and opener Tyrone Theophile made 23 and Keddy Lesporis got 22, but no other Windwards batsman reached 20.
Theophile broke the floodgates open, when he was caught at fine leg from a top-edged sweep off Austin
before newcomer Justin Greaves got Devon Smith caught at second slip for 10 from a delivery that bounced awkwardly.
Tottering at 35 for two, the Windwards were steadied by Lesporis and Sunil Ambris for just over halfhour. But Ambris was caught at leg-slip for 10 sweeping at Austin, who had Lesporis caught at slip from an ill-advised reverse sweep and Sebastien also caught at the same position for one from a sharply turn-
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ing, awkwardly bouncing delivery.
Windwards were 77 for five and were 120 for six at lunch, after Lindon James was caught at backward point for 12 from a topedged cut off left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican.
After the interval, Currency continued to apply himself, but none of the remaining batsman could match his example and wickets fell regularly, as Austin worked his way through the tail.
Guyana extended Leeward Islands’ misery, but then lost two wickets to concede some of their advantage, on the second day of their sixth round West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) Regional Four-day competition on Saturday.
The visitors sent the Leewards tumbling to 174 all out in their first innings, to take a lead of 66 runs in their game at the Sir Vivian Richards cricket ground in Antigua.
However, at the close, the Leewards had hit back strongly, reducing Guyana to 47 for two- an overall lead of 113 runs.
Leg-spinner Anthony Martin, with two for five from five overs, accounted for opener Tagenarine Chanderpaul for nine and Amir Khan without scoring.
Guyana had earlier added just two runs to their overnight 238 for nine, before being finally dismissed.
They then set about making inroads into the Leewards innings, mainly through Keon Joseph who snatched four for 53 and off-spinner Zaheer Mohamed Shadir who finished with three for 12.
The experienced Devon Thomas held up
their advance with a timely 71 while Tonito Willett got 27, but no other Leewards batsman passed 20.
Thomas faced 128 balls in just under 2-1/2 hours at the crease and stroked nine fours and a six, adding 68 for the fifth wicket with Willett who hit five fours in 66 balls and 80 minutes at the crease.
Their stand was required after the Leewards crashed to 64 for four. Captain Kieran Powell drove loosely and was bowled by Joseph for 17 while Javier Liburd nicked a drive off pacer Ronsford Beaton behind for five, to leave the hosts on 42 for lunch.
After the break, Orlando Peters edged left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul to slip to fall for for 14 before Jahmar Hamilton
was run out without scoring, attempting a run off a mis-field.
Willett and Thomas then resisted until just before tea, when Willett gave Shadir a return catch to leave the Leewards 139 for five at the break.
Thomas followed soon after the resumption with three runs added, lbw to Joseph.
Guyana 1sti nnings (overnight 238-9)
T Griffith lbw b Walters 0
T Chanderpaul lbw b Martin 19
A Fudadin c Martin b Tonge 13
*L Johnson c wkp Thomas
b Martin 110
C Hemraj c Powell b Leonard 7
+A Bramble c Powell
b Walters 28
Z Mohamed lbw b Leonard 17
V Permaul b Martin 15
A Khan not out 19
R Beaton c Powell b Martin 0
K. Joseph c Peters b Walters 7
Extras: (b-1, w-2) 3
TOTAL (all out, 93.2 overs) 240
Fall of wickets: 1-8, 2-27, 3-52, 4-64, 5-130, 6-188, 7-207, 8-212, 9-212, 10-240
Bowling: Walters 16.2-8-252, Powell 3-0-20-0, Martin
24-8-48-4, Tonge 23-8-44-2, Boatswain 8-0-35-0, Willett 8-1-16-0, Leonard 11-2-51-2
Leeward Islands 1st Innings
*K. Powell b Joseph 17
J. Liburd c wkpr Bramble
b Beaton 5
O. Peters c Johnson b Permaul 14
D. Thomas lbw b Joseph 71
+J. Hamilton run out 0 T. Willett c and b Shadir 27
G. Tonge c Johnson b Joseph 5
Y. Leonard b Shadir 4 K. Walters not out 13
A. Martin c Hemraj b Shadir 5 Q. Boatswain c Shadir b Joseph 4
Extras (b-4, lb-1, nb-4) 9
TOTAL (all out, 61.4 overs) 174
Fall of wickets: 1-21, 2-32, 3-48, 4-64, 5-132, 6-142, 7-143, 8-157, 9-165, 10-174
Bowling: Beaton 13-340-1, Joseph 15.4-3-534 (nb-4), Fudadin 2-1-4-0, Permaul 15-5-36-1, Khan
8-2-24-0, Shadir 8-1-12-3 Guyana 2nd Innings
T. Griffith not out 30
T. Chanderpaul c Hamilton b Martin 9
A. Khan lbw b Martin 0
Extras: (b-4, lb-1, w-2) 7
TOTAL :(2 wkts, 20 overs) 47
Fall of wickets: 1-42, 2-44
Bowling: Tonge 6-1-21-0, Boatswain 2-0-3-0 (w-2), Walters 3-2-2-0, Leonard 3-0-8-0, Martin 5-3-5-2, Powell 1-0-3-0
Trinidad and Tobago produced an incisive bowling display to rattle Jamaica and take control of their Regional Four-Day game on Saturday.
Playing on the second day of the sixth round contest, the hosts bundled out the Jamaicans for 180 and then coasted to 94 for one at the close, an overall lead of 158 runs heading into today’s penultimate day at Queen’s Park Oval.
Shannon Gabriel
Test batsman Darren Bravo ended a run of low scores to be 45 not out while the in-form Evin Lewis was nearing his second half-century of the game on 43 not out. Jamaica would have been disappointed with their batting performance after resuming the day on 24 without loss, in pursuit of T&T’s first innings total of 244.
Andre McCarthy hit 45 in
the middle order, opener JonRoss Campbell got 31 and Nikita Miller, 28 not out, but none of their main run-scorers showed up.
Fast bowler Shannon Gabriel finished with three for 48 while pacer Marlon Richards (2-32) and leg-spinner Imran Khan (2-41) collected two wickets apiece.
T&T found success early in the morning’s play
Grove Hi Tech played flawless football to emerge as the top team in the inaugural Trophy Stall sponsored East Bank Football Association (EBFA) Under-15 League, which concluded on Saturday at the Grove Playfield, East Bank Demerara.
The home team ended as the only unbeaten team of the two-round league with a 2-1 win over Herstelling, a much improved team that featured two female players.
Saturday’s other game saw Soesdyle Falcons overcoming Diamond to take the second place with a 4-2 win.
The Soesdyke lads were in a must-win situation going into the game and pulled out all the stops against Diamond which defeated them (0-1) when the two sides met in the first round.
The Timehri boys never allowed Diamond to settle into a rhythm as they established their intentions from as early as the seventh min-
ute joint top leading goal scorer Shane Meusa rocked the nets.
Diamond fired back five minutes later through Teon Forde to draw level. Kevin Marshall, who netted a double for Soesdyke, fired in his first in the 33rd minute to restore the advantage. He ensured that Diamond would not be a threat to their victo-
ry bid when he completed his double strike in the 39th minute.
Diamond, kept on plugging away in search of more goals and were rewarded in the 69th minute when Ixios Da Silva found the back of the nets to reduce the advantage, but on the stroke of full time Shakeem Billson restored Soesdyke’s two-goal cushion,
with a goal of his own. Grove were pushed by Herstelling which has improved leaps and bounds; it was the champions’ closest margin of victory against the least experienced team of the league.
Simeon Richardson handed the home team the lead 29 minutes into the encounter, but Herstelling drew lev-
el in the 46th minute, compliments of an Adrian Sattaur strike. Even as Grove strove for goals, Herstelling put on the biggest performance of the competition as they stood solid on defense.
It took the effort of the tournament’s joint leading goal scorer Threvon Pluck to guide his team to a hard fought win when he breached the Herstelling defense in the 67th minute to seal the win and maintain Grove’s unbeaten record.
The presentation of prizes to the teams and top individual performers will be done shortly. Trophies and medals will be awarded to the top three teams, while the fourth placed team will also be rewarded as will the highest goal scorers Threvon Pluck of Grove Hi Tech and Shane Meusa of Soesdyke Falcons who ended with seven goals each.
The Most Valuable Player, Best Goal Keeper and Best Coach will all be rewarded.
when John Campbell added just eight to his overnight ten before he was bowled by Gabriel to leave Jamaica on 39 for one.
Jamaica then lost four more wickets for 51 runs to slump to 95 for six, just after lunch, with Gabriel doing most of the damage. He bowled Jermaine Blackwood with one that nipped back and removed captain Tamar Lambert for a first ball ‘duck’, caught at first slip by Kieron Pollard.
Jamaica got a reprieve through a 42-run, seventh wicket stand between McCarthy and Miller, but once McCarthy edged to Bravo at slip, the innings declined quickly.
With a lead of 64 runs on first innings, T&T lost the outof-sorts Adrian Barath early when he missed a straight one from fast bowler Jerome Taylor and was lbw for two, at six for one.
However, Bravo and Lewis then combined to negate any further Jamaican success, posting 88 for the second wicket.
The left-handed Bravo has hit five fours and a six off 84 balls while Lewis has counted four boundaries in facing 112 deliveries.
By Avenash Ramzan
Asupremely fit Robin Persaud asserted himself from the rest of the starting pack, emerging as champion of the main event of the 10th annual Universal Auto and General Supplies (UA&GS) 11-race cycling programme at the inner circuit of the National Park on Saturday.
Competing among a field of 42 starters, Persaud rode brilliantly throughout the gruelling 35-lap School
Boys and Invitational race, keeping a presence in the leading pack, before breaking away during the latter stages to storm to victory.
In a four-way battle for the top spot, Persaud, Marlon Williams, Raynauth Jeffrey and Mario King started the final lap in a cluster and a sprint was the only means of determining the outcome.
However, Persaud left nothing to chance during the dying stages, pulling
away from the rest of the pack like a cheetah, blazing to a comfortable victory in one hour, 16 minutes, 17.18 seconds (01h: 16m: 17.18s).
The experienced Persaud seemed a man possessed, pushing his bike and his body to the maximum as he stormed to a masterful win.
Williams pipped Jeffrey for second spot, while King finished fourth. Albert Philander edged Michael Anthony for fifth position.
Interestingly enough, Persaud did not claim any of the eight prime prizes, which were shared amount Williams (two), Godfrey Pollydore (two), Jeffrey (two) and one each for Hamzah Eastman and Christopher Holder.
In the other races, Avish Ramlakhan won the 12-14 Boys and Girls race, while Stephen Fernandes (Under-50), Linden Blackman (Over-50) and Anthony Fariah (Over-60) were the veteran winners.
Cleveland King won the Juveniles race, while Clyde Jacobs took the Mountain Bike category and Sherwin Sampson the BMX 6-9 race. Sampson also repeated as champion of the BMX 9-12, while, Ammo Gomes and Daniel Vossey carted off the BMX 12-14 and BMX Open races respectively.
At the presentation ceremony which followed, national cycling coach Hassan Mohamed thanked Universal Auto and General Supplies and its
proprietor Shameer Baksh for sponsoring the event for the 10th year in succession. He also lauded the riders for coming out in their numbers and stated that a packed programme of activities is billed for the remainder of the year. Baksh, a veteran Under-50 rider, said he was very pleased to help promote the sport by way of sponsorship and committed to staging the event once again in 2015.
By Rajiv Bisnauth
Defending champions
Demerara and the President’s XI both took first innings points after commanding performances on day one of the third and final round of their Igloo Ice Cream Under-15, two-day cricket contest on Saturday.
At the Everest Cricket Club ground, Demerara closed at 106-6, batting a second time with an overall lead of 200 runs.
At stumps were Sagar Hithiramani on one and Reaz Ali, who is yet to score. Bhaskar Yadram (40) and Joshua Persaud (32) are the principal scorers so far in Demerara’s second innings.
After winning the toss and deciding to bat first, Demerara seized the early initiative as their batsmen scored fluently throughout their innings with Alphius Bookie hitting an unbeaten 64 in a total of 186-5.
Openers Yadram (24) and Persaud (23) were in total control from the outset, as they cantered to a 41-run partnership, before Yadram, who was in
his customary punishing mood, became the first casualty.
Persaud followed him soon after, before Bookie executed some exquisite drives, making batting look very easy. He first shared a 33-run partnership with Kurt Lovell (15), then added 38 runs with Paul Thomas (15) and a fifth wicket partnership with Ashmead Nedd (34).
Left-arm spinner Kris Ramnarine took 2-27, while medium pacer Junior Williams and Kevin Sinclair 1-22 and 1-51 respectively.
Despite a compact 55 from Kevin Sinclair, Berbice crumbled for 92 in 32.5 overs, eroded by leftarm spinner Nedd.
Nedd, the son of former Guyana off-spinner and Demerara Under-15 coach Gavin Nedd, continues to be Demerara’s most effective bowler, grabbing 4-25.
Anthony Antonio had 2-9, while Yadram and Hithiramani chipped in one wicket each.
With a first innings lead of 94 runs, Demerara batting a second time and by stumps were in total com -
mand with a lead of 200.
At the Demerara Cricket Club ground, the President’s XI capital -
ised on a strong first innings score and a disappointing batting effort from Essequibo to end the day’s
play in a commanding position.
Left-hander
Christopher Campbell continued his good run with the bat, scoring an unbeaten 106 from 107 deliveries, inclusive of 13 fours and a six, before the bowlers gave them a 72-run lead.
Asked to bat first, the President’s XI lost Mark Ramsammy (one) early. However, the innings then belonged to Campbell, who batted magnificently and shared in a century stand with Anil Singh (21) for the second wicket.
The GNIC batsman then shared two other meaningful partnerships by adding 27 and 40 runs respectively with Chandrat Veerasammy (11) and Khemchand Hardyal (7*) as the Presdent’s XI made 189.
Shamar Dusraj (2-21) and Leanardo Bennette (132) were Essequibo best bowlers on show. In reply Essequibo were bundled out for 115 in 37.4 overs with only Orlando Jailall (22) offering any resistance.
Stephon Wilson ripped through the Essequibo’s
line-up, snatching 4-15. Wilson was superbly supported by Junior Phillips, who bagged 2-24, while Khemchand Hardyal, Chandrat Veerasammy and Brandon Corlette shared a wicket apiece.
Batting a second time, the President’s X1 reached 74-1 with both Campbell and Mark Ramsammy on 25 each. Anil Singh was the batsman dismissed. The President’s XI have an overall lead of 148 runs going in today’s final day.
By Rajiv Bisnauth
Manager of the Guyana Amazon Warriors, Omar Khan, believes the squad selected for the upcoming second edition of the Limacol Caribbean Premier League is capable of facing the challenges ahead, adding that the squad is a wellbalanced unit comprising the maximum number of match-winners.
Speaking to this publication on Saturday from Trinidad and Tobago, Khan, who served in the same capacity in the inaugural tournament last year, said “I think the squad is well balanced, I think it’s a good squad in terms when you put it together, and it’s a squad capable of winning.”
He added, “What we are looking to do is to continue the team building, and I thought to have a squad that understand and appreciate each other and that is why we retained most of the players from last year so to have some continuity. What I was impressed last year with is the team unity, togetherness among the guys and everybody respected each other and they play as professionals.”
The former West Indies team manager also believes the team’s flexibility provided by the presence of batting and bowling allrounders will be a major asset in the tournament, singling out Corey Anderson as the foremost asset to the team.
“He is a fabulous young
player and a well established player as well, and he is willing to explore in the Caribbean,” Khan declared.
The hard-hitting Anderson, who is among New Zealand’s top bracket T20 players, also bowls left-arm seam. He rose to prominence on New Year’s Day 2014 when he blasted the fastest ODI hundred off 36 balls against West Indies.
Structure
Further, according to Khan, the structure this year is different, whereas the team to win its respective league will automatically reach the final.
“Unlike last year, we won our league but had to still play in the semi-final, so this time once you
win the league you reach straight to the final,” Khan said.
During the draft at Chris Gayle’s Triple Century Bar in Jamaica on Thursday, the Guyana Amazon Warriors re tained the ser vices of 10 play ers from last year’s tournament, namely Pakistan’s all-round er Mohammad Hafeez, New Zealander Martin Guptill, Trinidadians off-spinner Sunil Narine, opening batsman Lendl Simmons and wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin, Jamaican Krishmar Santokie and Guyanese Christopher
Barnwell, Steven Jacobs, Veerasammy Permaul and Trevon Griffith.
The newcomers are Guyanese Leon Johnson, Ronsford Beaton and Robin Bacchus and Trinidad and Tobago fast-bowling all-rounder, Navin Stewart.
Apart from the 15 players chosen by the six franchises at Thursday’s draft, four Under-19 players will be added to the squads and will be chosen by the respective territorial boards.
This year’s tournament will commence on July 5 and end on August 10.
Jamaica Tallawahs won the inaugural tournament when they defeated Guyana Amazon Warriors by seven wickets in the final in Trinidad and Tobago on August 24 last.
They will defend their title against the St Lucia Zouks, Trinidad and Tobago Red Steel, Antigua Hawksbills, Guyana Amazon Warriors and Barbados Tridents. Guyana Amazon Warriors comprises Sunil Narine, Mohammad Hafeez, Lendl Simmons, Denesh Ramdin, Martin Guptill, Krishmar Santokie, Christopher Barnwell, Veerasammy Permaul, Ronsford Beaton, Navin Stewart, Steven Jacobs, Leon Johnson, Robin Bacchus, Corey Anderson and Trevon Griffith.
Compatriots Mervin
Matthew and Liam Sebastien led a spirited Windward Islands fight-back, after a careerbest spell from Ryan Austin bowled Combined Campuses and Colleges into a favourable position in the Regional Four-Day Championship on Saturday.
Matthew ended with two for 10 from eight overs and Sebastien finished with two for 24 from 14 overs, as CCC reached 66 for four in their second innings at the close on the second day of the sixth round match for an overall lead of 134.
The two Dominicans failed to devalue Austin’s impact however, as the lanky off-spinner extracted turn and bounce from the hard, true Arnos Vale Multiplex pitch to grab eight for 64 from 29 overs and send the home team crashing to 157 all out to give CCC a first innings lead of 68.
Austin, a former Barbados tweaker, now has 298 career wickets in the Regional tournament and is set to become the third bowler behind Mahendra Nagamootoo, and injured Windwards and West Indies off-spinner Shane Shillingford to capture 300.
After the typical early fireworks from opener Shacaya Thomas, Matthew and Sebastien bowled in tandem in between three stoppages for rain to retrieve the situation for the Windwards.
Sebastien, the Windwards captain, made the breakthrough, when he had Shacaya Thomas lbw for 19, and Matthew struck three overs later, when lefthanded opener Paul Palmer was caught behind for seven playing defensively forward, leaving the visitors 32 for two. WICB Regional Four-day…
