Guyana times 26 august, 2017

P15

14 Guyanese awarded Chevening scholarships THE BEACON OF TRUTH

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

Saturday, August 26, 2017

Issue No. 3313

PRICE

GECOM chairmanship

WHAT'S INSIDE:

Opposition Leader submits 3rd list of nominees Page 3

Guyanese craft producer dies at Carifesta Page 7

$80 vat included

GPL promises deliverance from outages by today Page 9

Tint law is P14 not for some but for all

– Top Cop warns officers

Potable water projects

GWI hands over cheque for P11 Paramakatoi water project

… Mabaruma to get potable water for the first time

Consultations on regional flags in limbo

… as citizens show disinterest, reject idea

P11

Power outages

US Embassy donates 200 bicycles to GPF/ PagePage 14 9 City Hall

GPL willing to compensate customers for damages P10

US Ambassador Perry Holloway along with members of the Guyana Police Force take a test ride on the donated bicycles at the handing over ceremony at TSU Square, Police Headquarters, Eve Leary, Georgetown on Friday

Unemployment: Cevons to lay off 45 workers Page 10

… unfortunate but City Hall is financially strapped – Mayor

"Grey Boy" charged for threatening Crum-Ewing’s mother P8

2 News

saturDAY, august 26, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

GGDMA boycotting Mining Week 2017 … accuses Govt of failing industry

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he Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA), along with the National Mining Syndicate, is accusing Government of failing the mining industry.

Accordingly, they have decided to boycott Mining Week 2017 activities.

The two organisations, in a statement, accused the Government of only taking from the miners, without developing infrastructure or providing adequate services in return.

“The spirit of the thousands of miners and their

workers are at the utmost low. Many miners are demotivated and wanting to close their operations, while others are not reinvesting and are simply going through the motion to pay their bills. This is what this Government has done to the Gold and Diamond Mining Sector,” the statement read.

They highlighted that Mining Week is a time for reflection and recognition of the accomplishments within the mining industry. It is a time for both public and private sectors to together celebrate the progress made, but

there is no unity within the industry.

“Instead, the local mining industry has suffered the ire of more taxation, more fees, false promises, and the deliberate and continued withholding of cost-saving policies traditionally enjoyed by miners. There is no reason

to celebrate. The Association and the National Mining Syndicates (has chosen) not to be a part of a week of activities that is more for the purpose of public relations than for the benefit of individuals involved or interested in getting involved in the sector,” the statement added.

The GGDMA accused the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) of irregularities and insubordination. They are also calling on the Government to identify their National Mining Policy, stating that the miners are doing their part and the Government should do its part.

They chastised the GGMC for the reintroduction of the six months’ notice for the conversion of a prospecting permit to a mining permit.

“The GGDMA finds this policy as outrageous and

unacceptable. We therefore ask the question: is the GGMC and the Government of Guyana serious about business, serious about local investors, serious about Foreign Direct Investment?

It does not seem so from their policies,” the GGDMA said.

The call for better infrastructure and more lands for the mining syndicates were reiterated while the bodies continued expressing disappointment in the way the industry is managed.

Mining week 2017 commenced on August 20 and will conclude today.

news

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saturDAY, august 26, 2017 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Saturday, August 26 – 05:30h-07:00h and Sunday, August 27 – 08:30h-10:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Saturday, August 26 – 06:50h-08:20h and Sunday, August 27 – 07:25h-08:55h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY Weather: Thundery to heavy rain showers with sunny intervals can be expected throughout the day, with clear skies in the evening. Temperatures are expected to range between 25 degrees Celsius and 29 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Easterly to South-easterly and East Southeasterly between 1.78 metres and 3.12 metres.

High Tide: 07:17h and 19:33h reaching maximum heights of 2.59 metres and 2.55 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 00:50h and 13:09h reaching minimum heights of 0.58 metre and 0.68 metre respectively.

WednesDAY, AUGUST 23, 2017

LOTTERY NUMBERS J

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21 Bonus Ball

FREE TICKET

FRIDAY, AUGUST 25, 2017

DAILY MILLIONS 03 14 16 18 24 LUCKY 3 5 5 7 Afternoon Draw

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Gecom chairmanship

Opposition Leader submits third list of nominees

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pposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has presented to President David Granger an additional six names from which to consider filling the post of chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).

The Opposition Leader has expressed hope that this list of names he has submitted to the Head of State represents the final time he would have to engage in this exercise, and the way would now be cleared to allow for the soon appointment of a chairman of the Elections Commission.

The Opposition Leader has also said he is hopeful that the President would take into consideration the ruling of the acting Chief Justice (CJ) in regard to the constitutional stipulation governing the appointment of a chairman for the GECOM. This list of nominees for the GECOM Chairmanship includes Major General (retired) Joseph ‘Joe’ Singh; Teni Housty; Sanjeev Datadin; Annette ArjuneMartins; Onesi La Fleur and Krishnadatt Persaud.

In the letter to the President accompanying the list, Jagdeo said arriving at the six names was not an easy task. He said that regarding the antecedents in relation to the matter and a subsequent meeting with the President at State House back in June, he continued elaborate and protracted consultations with various stakeholders in an exercise that lasted for several weeks.

During that process, he said, he solicited their views and sought nominations in efforts to ensure that six names were presented to the President that satisfy the requirements contemplated by Article 161(2) of the Constitution Regarding the nominees, Jagdeo explained that one is a former chairman of GECOM, while two are attorneys-at-law with over 10 years of “good standing” at the Guyana Bar, and both

Former GECOM Chairman, retired Major General Joe Singh

Attorney-at-Law Teni Housty

Educator and religious leader Onesi LaFleur

Attorney-at-law Sanjeev Datadin

are qualified to be appointed as judges of a court having unlimited jurisdiction in civil and criminal matters in Guyana.

Another of the nominees, he explained, is an attorney-at-law with over 40 years of good standing, and is a former magistrate who served in that capacity for over 20 years; another nominee is a business executive in the local airline industry, and has received national and international acclaim for her work in protecting Guyana's biodiversity; while the other person has distinguished himself as an agriculturalist, and has made a sterling contribution in Guyana and the Caribbean in the area of Education and Religion.

At a press conference on Friday, Jagdeo lamented

Annette Arjune-Martins

the absence of a chairman at the helm of the Elections Commission, particularly since the country has to begin preparations for first the Local government elections next year.

“I believe that the absence of a chairman of the commission is an untenable position. The work there in GEOCM is totally stalled.

They are on remote, on automatic mode, and many of the pressing issues that have to be resolved, not only for local Government elections, but national elections coming in a short period, those issues cannot be addressed”, Jagdeo stated.

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saturDAY, august 26, 2017

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

Oil agreements

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here has been much debate as to the real reason/s behind the administration’s refusal to make public the terms of the Production Sharing Agreement (PSA).

In fact, over the past few months several commentators, stakeholders and concerned Guyanese writers have upped the calls for the Government to release the agreement so that Guyanese would have a better understanding of what exactly has been agreed to in the PSA. On its part, the Government has maintained that the contract could not be made public, as it could breach several safeguards. In March of this year, Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman was quoted in the media as saying that with regard to “full disclosure at this point in time, I think government is of the view that full disclosure would not be to the best of the national benefit or national interest”.

This is, of course coming from a Government which, during the 2015 Elections campaign had promised to run a lean and clean Government; one which would tackle corruption frontally and be open and transparent with its undertakings. Many view the Government’s position on this matter as an attempt to withhold critical information from the Guyanese public in the name of “security concerns”.

Like many other stakeholders, we are convinced that it is in Guyana’s best interest to release the contract as citizens need to know exactly what will be Guyana’s benefits.

One stakeholder writer has pointed to the fact that there are many qualified Guyanese around the world who are willing and able to assist and/or verify the “accuracy of the economic modelling, sensitivity analysis and simulations” but refusing to release the contract severely circumscribes that possibility.

Managing wealth derived from natural resources is not an easy task; in fact it is fraught with difficulties; and if not done well, can adversely impact macroeconomic performance in the short and long terms. Research has shown that quite a few of these oil rich countries are home to some of the world’s poorest people. Africa, in particular is a perfect example of how corruption and mismanagement of natural resources could stifle development. For example, millions of people in oil-rich Nigeria still live in poverty. Although oil is said to account for 75 per cent of the Nigerian economy, no-one knows how much the country actually produces or refines because hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil are stolen every day, at each level of the supply chain. A similar situation exists in Angola, Chad, Libya, Equatorial Guinea etc where inspite of the massive oil wealth, the actual benefits are not trickled down to the average citizen.

According to Transparency International (TI) in one of its analysis on corruption in oil producing countries, too often, wealth stays in the hands of politicians and industry insiders. Revenues don’t get published. Payments made to governments to exploit resources remain secret and bribery and embezzlement go unchecked.

Now that Guyana has found massive amounts of oil and production is expected to begin in 2020, the same concerns are being expressed. Hence, knowing Guyana’s take will allow all stakeholders, including ordinary citizens to track the monies received from the oil and gas sector so that it does not end up being unaccounted for. Without such information, it would be difficult to hold the government accountable.

It must be mentioned that Guyana is still hoping to — by year end — join, the EITI: an international standard that seeks to provide consolidated information on a country’s extractive sector; reconcile key revenue flows paid by companies with those received by Government; and assesses how the revenues are expended on behalf of the people. Membership of EITI means that Guyana will have to voluntarily adhere to the 12 principles of the EITI standards, which endorse corporate social responsibility, encourage sharing of information, reveal beneficial ownership, and promote revenue transparency.

The various stakeholders – oil and gas watchdogs, media, civil society, Parliament, private sector and citizens as a whole must continue to be vigilant in order to ensure that Guyana avoids the resource curse. All Guyanese, regardless of which party they support, if they are serious about transparency and accountability in the oil and gas sector must continue to lobby the Government to release the contract. There is no need for this level of secrecy.

Paratroopers of the Guyana Defence Force participated in the final attack of Exercise IRONWEED, on Friday at the Colonel John Clarke Military School, Tacama, Region Ten (Upper Demerara-Berbice)

Controversial lands CoI straying from gazetted Terms of Reference Dear Editor, The controversial Commission on Lands has commenced public hearings, and it is not surprising that it seems to have strayed from its gazetted Terms of Reference.

The objective of the Commission, as gazetted on March 11, 2017, is: “To examine and make recommendations to resolve all issues and uncertainties surrounding the claims of Amerindian Land titling; the individual, joint or communal ownership of lands acquired by freed Africans; and any other matters relative to land titling in Guyana.”

“AND WHEREAS the status of lands that were purchased by the freed Africans around and after 1839 and formed the first villages in Guyana have not been accessible to their descendants for various reasons. Lands, which were acquired by freed Africans and were the subject of joint or communal ownership or of individual owner-

ship are now subject to much uncertainty.

“AND WHEREAS other matters relative to land titling have arisen and are unresolved...”

Under what rationale is the Head of S.O.C.U. appearing before this Commission?

This is the body that is mandated to work with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) to address money laundering and the financing of terrorism. What has this got to do with Amerindian and lands purchased by freed Africans, or any other matters relating to land titling?

One expected to see many of the African non-governmental organizations lining up to appear before the Commission with regard to the issues concerning land purchased over 170 years ago. More especially, as the 1980 statute enacted (after the 1980 Constitution) under the PNC government took away the communal lands in those villages and

put them under the control of the Regional Democratic Councils, and not under either the Village Councils or the Neighbourhood Democratic Councils. Instead, we have seen the Head of S.O.C.U being the “piece de resistance” before the Commission, waving audit reports!

Clearly, the emerging objective of the CoI is to go on a “red herring fishing” expedition to validate the Government’s witch-hunting agenda. The focus of this CoI appears to be “Pradoville 2” (this name is non-existent on any land record). Having failed so far to go after former President Jagdeo, the Commission is now being used as the conduit for yet another such foray into misinformation and disinformation.

Since the Commission appears to be going on such a “fishing expedition”, l would like to propose that it investigate the lands and properties acquired between 1965 and 1992 under the PNC govern-

ment. Let us have full disclosure and examination of the lands and properties that that Government and its party officials acquired, for example, the huge piece of land allocated to the PNC Headquarters in Sophia; the land for the former Vice-President and widow of Forbes Burnham in Durban Backlands; the Government-owned property sold for a song to a PNC Minister in Bel Air Gardens; the land that the former Minister and later former Leader of the Opposition and executive member of the PNC owns on the Demerara River; and several other large tracts of land acquired by leading members of the PNC in the areas of Region 10, etc. – just to name some key ones.

And the Commission may also look at lands and properties now being acquired by members of this present Government.

Sincerely, Gail Teixeira, MP

The suicide rate reduction is real

Dear Editor, The Caribbean Voice wonders why Ms Annie Balliram (whose letter was recently published in the local media) is casting doubt on the 2015 suicide rate for Guyana, which shows a reduction from 44.2 to 30.6 per 1000,000, and not all or any other previous rates. After all, it is the same global organisation, WHO, that has been putting out these rates annually using the same yardsticks, processes and methodologies et al. According to Ms. Balliram, “a significant reduction in suicide can come about only by addressing the abnormally high levels of stress arising out of the catastrophic social, economic and political conditions. Stress mechanistically drives suicide directly or indirectly by disrupting brain functions, thereby unleash-

ing mental illness (e.g. depression, schizophrenia, etc.) or substance abuse (e.g. alcoholism), or both. Stress basically hijacks the brain in eliciting suicidal behaviours.”

This limited characterisation by Ms Balliram runs counter to the complete picture, which, in the context of Guyana, indicates the following: Prone to copycatting, a practice referred to as the Werther Effect, suicide ideation is the result of depression and/or anxiety triggered by helplessness, hopelessness, powerlessness and loneliness. These triggers are catalyzed by low levels of self-acceptance and/or feelings of inadequacy/low self-esteem, as a result of abusive and dysfunctional relationships; lack of empathetic communication, teenage affairs and pregnancy; rape and

incest; an inability to deal with problems (lack of coping skills) and/or unbearable pain – physical or emotional – poverty, unemployment and substance abuse (and to a significantly lesser degree psychosis, bipolar disorder and some other mental illnesses).

If Ms Balliram had taken the time to get the facts, rather than merely speculate, she would have learnt about the work done by NGOs like The Caribbean Voice (in August alone: three mental health outreaches and three workshops in three different regions, costing over $150,000; two feature articles and six letters in the local media based on researched data; suicide prevention messages daily on radio and TV in all three counties; extensive - tens of thousands of views and thousands of interac-

tions - social media information dissemination and advocacy; twelve counselling cases handled, and a number of meetings to explore collaboration and plan upcoming activism; Monique’s Helping Hands, Guyana Foundation, the Mibicuri Community Developers, the Counselling Center at Corriverton established by ex-magistrate Krishnadat Persaud, the St. Francis Community Developers, Prevention of Teen Suicide (POTS), Help & Shelter, Red Thread, Crossroads Counselling & Mental Health Services and a host of others who give their time, efforts, skills and resources, many on a voluntary and all on an ongoing basis, to address all the triggers their cause and result in suicide ideation and suicide). turn to page 5

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

Another witch-hunting exercise Dear Editor, The front page of last Thursday’s Guyana Chronicle screamed the headlines “PRADOVILLE LAND IN DISPUTE” with the tagline just as prominent in reverse text, reading, “Plaisance resident says land was bought by slaves” and “SOCU points to massive discrepancies in transfer”.

This article begins with the following quote: “The Special Organized Crimes Unit (SOCU) has found a number of discrepancies in the transfer of lands by an order signed by Former President Bharrat Jagdeo for the Pradoville Two housing scheme at Sparendaam on the East Coast of Demerara.

And a resident of Plaisance has come forward with claims that the land was bought by slaves in the early 1800s.”

By linking the two in the same paragraph, the writer gives readers the distinct impression that the land known as Pradoville Two “was bought by slaves”, hence the so-called “massive discrepancies” discovered by the Special Organized Crimes Unit (SOCU). This statement is not only misleading, but may even be libellous. Because, much later in the same article, the Head of SOCU, Assistant Commissioner Sydney James, reported that, during an investigation, “SOCU spoke to one Fitzoy McKenzie, a resident of Plaisance, who produced documents purporting to show that the area encompassing Goedverwagting/Plaisance was acquired by slaves in the early 1800s. He told the com-

mission that based on examinations of the documents, McKenzie had obtained the papers from the National Archives, and SOCU was not able to conclusively state whether the areas mentioned by the man pertained to the same area subject to investigations.”

My point is: since the Head of SOCU, Assistant Commissioner Sydney James, admitted that “based on examinations of the documents” shown to him by this resident of Plaisance, Fitzoy McKenzie, “SOCU was not able to conclusively state whether the areas mentioned by the man pertained to the same area subject to investigations,” meaning Pradoville Two. Why was it necessary for the Guyana Chronicle to sensationalize the front page with this misleading headline? Editor, not everyone has the time or interest in reading a complete article in the newspapers. Most may simply form an opinion after reading just the headline. I believe this is a deliberate, devious and mischievous attempt to deceive Afro-Guyanese into believing that the former President, Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, is now living on African ancestral lands paid for by freed slaves.

This comes at a critical time -- when an increasing number of PNC/APNU supporters are seeking out the Leader of the Opposition, looking at the PPP/C for relief.

But what is most astonishing about this Commission of Inquiry is the way Pradoville Two has gained so much at-

tention during the opening salvo, when the Terms of Reference deal specifically with the ownership of ancestral lands.

To date, no one from the APNU+AFC Coalition has ever mentioned the 25 acres of State land in Sophia that the Jagdeo Administration gave to the PNC/APNU for free, and on which the PNC Headquarters, Congress Place, now stands; and the five acres of prime real estate that the PPP government generously gave to the family of the late PNC dictator, LFS Burnham, again for free. And there is no mention either by the State Assets Recovery Agency (SARA), to launch an investigation into these “sweetheart land deals” given away during the Jagdeo reign to the PNC. But the Government is determined to go after the Red House lease, and land at Pradoville Two that were paid for. Because of this vindictiveness, the Granger Administration spends more time and money on a political witch-hunt, than it does running the affairs of the country.

But like those before, this CoI is another waste of taxpayers’ money, paid to friends and supporters of the APNU/ AFC in search of evidence to persecute former PPP/C ministers. Another day, another CoI, another witch-hunting exercise.

An Executive Member of the African Cultural & Development Association (ACDA), Ms Violet JeanBaptiste, told the commission that, in 2007, the ACDA wrote to then President,

Bharrat Jagdeo, requesting that the Government set up a commission to address the issue of African ancestral lands, and that, “Our pleadings fell on deaf ears.” But why did she wait until 2007 to do so? If there was ever a time in our nation’s history that was perfect for this injustice to have been settled, it was during those 28 years when the leaders they supported and idolized had full control of Government, sometimes as much as a twothirds Parliamentary majority, compliments of the ballot-box thieving GDF. Why did the ACDA not make this request from the two black leaders, His Excellencies LFS Burnham and Desmond Hoyte, whose Government ruled Guyana for 28 years?

Let there be no doubt: the PPP/C has done more for Afro-Guyanese than during the entire 28 years of the PNC and the life of this Government put together! One only has to look at the new housing scheme in Linden’s Amelia’s Ward and Block 22 as samples of this evidence. But there seems to be a more sinister plan to cause division between blacks and Amerindians, and between blacks and Indians.

This was the modus operandi of our colonial masters.

But the People’s Progressive Party will not sit idly by and allow this to ever happen again.

Sincerely, Harry Gill PPP/C Member of Parliament

The suicide rate reduction...

The work of these suicide prevention entities is holistic, comprising counselling and follow-up, training of first responders and gatekeepers (to foster the community support through proactive interventions and follow-up), information dissemination and awareness building (including safe use and storage of pesticides), advocacy and lobbying (that led to the establishment of the suicide helpline, and that is focusing on a range of other measures, including counsellors in schools), a lot of it through stakeholders’ collaboration. In effect, interventions are neither a ‘band aid’ approach nor are they ‘marginal’; and they certainly do not result in merely ‘transient gains’.

While we agree that a lot more needs to be done, we are confident that, in total, the impact of the work of these NGOs and activists, combined with the incremental work done by Government, especially by the Ministry of Indigenous People’s Affairs in the hinterland areas and the Ministry of Public Health through the MPH/GAP training and other measures, would certainly justify the suicide rate reduction from 44.2 to 30.6

per 100,000. Besides, both a content analysis of the media and empirical and anecdotal data garnered by The Caribbean Voice and other stakeholders do actually support this level of reduction.

The Caribbean Voice does agree with Ms Balliram that genetics has a role in suicide. However, that is still to be clearly defined. Besides, there are differences regarding this in the scientific world, with some dubbing it a controversial issue, stating that because of the complexity of suicide, more studies, data and replication are needed. In effect, the tests to identify potential risks in order to develop treatment modalities are still a long way off, and thus cannot impact suicide prevention anywhere in the world anytime soon.

Meanwhile, we are happy that Ms. Balliran has taken such a keen interest in suicide prevention in Guyana.

Now The Caribbean Voice invites her to walk with us on this journey to save lives and empower people, so her passion can take concrete manifestation and so she would become aware of the reality on the ground, and not ignore, disregard and/or negate the tremendous work of suicide prevention organi-

zations and activists, which will not only continue, but expand in time.

from page 4

Sincerely, The Caribbean Voice

What City Hall needs is better management

Dear Editor, The Town Clerk of Georgetown’s announcement of new and special rates for the collection and disposal of waste from businesses in the city, and the charging of a tax that he is calling a haulage fee on private contractors providing collection and disposal services to these businesses, is nothing short of financial terrorism and extortion.

The Private Sector and Chamber of Commerce needs to take the matter to court to stop its implementation for a number of reasons, including the following: 1. It is not a decision of full Council, as he is alleging.

Could he produce the agenda for, and the minutes of, the meeting of Full Council that approved this proposal?

2. It is illegal and constitutes double taxation, as the Council, a number of years ago, hiked the percentage charged for property rates on businesses to a whopping 250% (quite a substantial difference than that which is paid for residential property rates, which is 40%). And the justification they used for that hike was to cover the cost of collecting and disposing of commercial waste. They can’t now charge another fee for the same purpose. The objective of collecting property rates includes for the provision of refuse collection and disposal services.

3. There was not sufficient consultation on the matter. Could he provide evidence of the extensive consultations and discussions with different stakeholders, including members of the local private sector and non-governmental organizations and community-based groups, as he alleges?

4. What methodology is he using for determining which is a small business that would have to pay City Hall Gy$5,000 per month; a medium business Gy$8,000 per month and a large business Gy$12,000 per month?

5. The City Council is not the GRA, nor is it a licensing authority, and therefore the decision to charge a percentage earned by private contractors who are hauling industrial and commercial waste through Georgetown is just punitive and spiteful.

These contractors are helping the Council, as it is the Council’s responsibility to provide this service for the rates they collect. And how will the Town Clerk monitor and implement it? By putting drones overhead to follow the private garbage collectors around?

This tax is reminiscent of the illegal container tax that he attempted to implement, and the move is considered vindictive against the two contractors who have had to withdraw their services.

City Council say they cannot afford the 50 million dollars per month being paid for garbage collection, but can they afford the more than 100 million dollars they dole out each month in salaries? Why are they not talking about that also?

The culture of private garbage collection was created by them when they abandoned their own system of garbage collection. Why did they change it? Who benefited from this change? City Hall is like a dog chasing its own tail.

What is needed there is not increased revenue, but better management of the Council?

Sincerely, Amber Valentine

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s children all over the country trudge back to school after at least six weeks off, it’s probably as much of a shock to system for the parents as it is them.

To ensure it’s not a total disaster, then, we’ve spoken to a series of experts to ensure you get an A* for your parenting work. It needn’t be this hard all year, we promise.

Resist the urge to do their work Whether it’s making a flag that defines your families’ values or creating a tin can sculpture out of things they’ve eaten that holiday (both real examples) it seems that the simple, “What did you do over your summer holidays?” essays of yore have been replaced by challenges dreamed up by sadists in the staffroom.

“Don’t do them,” explains Lee, who has taught at a primary school in Bristol for several years. “By that, I mean don’t you, the parents, do them. We always get parents who are flustered by what they should have done, but really if you read the notes this is a challenge for the children.

“If you can stop caring about what others think about you, you’d realise how crazy it is that you’re doing your child’s homework. So what if it looks a bit ramshackle? It often has more imagination than the things that the “children” do.”

Recreate the classroom at home If it’s true that talent

Foundation

imitates but genius steals, you have to wonder why parents don’t pinch more from the classroom. Not that we’re suggesting that you should come home with your pockets crammed full of chalk (it’s all digital chalk these days anyway).

Instead we should be using the fact that classrooms are designed to get the most out of children and steal some of the ideas for the home.

“People are always surprised when they see school furniture in a home environment but it really makes a lot of sense,” explains furniture guru Bob Robinson from Furniture @ Work.

“After all, children are used to using these pieces of equipment so why not use that training in the home? One of the simplest ways of doing this is to get something like the classroom cupboards or desk trays that are designed to be at child level and that allow them to be responsible for clearing away.

“It also allows them direct and easy access to a range of different projects and saves you some tidying.”

Create sub-routines As all parents will testify, school mornings mostly consist of reminding your children to do 5000 different things which anyone in their right mind would see as completely obvious – honestly, what sort of person needs reminding to put their shoes on before they leave the house?

Fortunately, web developer and father-oftwo John Ossoway, who runs RAGINGtrifle, says that subroutines are the way forward.

“One of the more elegant things that programming languages do is to gather together a number of actions into one group.

“We try to use the same logic on our children. Rather than reminding them to clean their teeth, put on their shoes, check their bags and eat their breakfast, we collect all of these individual events into a routine, so we can tell them to remember their checklist, which they know contains all of those events.

“If nothing else it stops you getting sick of hearing yourself saying, “Have you cleaned your teeth yet?”

Be realistic about the school run Perhaps one of the most loathed parts of the back to school experience is the return of the school run. Amazingly, despite the majority of children living within one mile of their schools, fewer than half walk to school. In fact, the average family spends £340 a year on fuel just for taking their children to school.

“If you’re going back to school in the car there are two things you need to be aware of,” explains insurance expert Fergal Lynch from www.chill.ie.

“The first is that although there’s a perception that the school run is a prime time for

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accidents and bumps.

“Approximately 80 per cent of collisions involving children are during the school holidays. The other is that regulations around child seats have been reviewed and now backless booster seats will only be approved for children more than 125cm or 22kg. Or you can avoid the legislation entirely and walk!”

Hold off the new shoes With four million children in the UK wearing the wrongsized shoes you’d think that part of the back to school ritual was to take your children and get them kitted up with the latest kicks. Not so, says “Beverley” who has remained anonymous as she’d really rather keep her job at the high street shoe shop.

“September is a terrible time to buy as we reduce prices for children’s shoes into November, so if you can hold on then you’ll not only make a big saving but also don’t have to jostle with four million other children all getting fitted at the same time.

“If you’re wondering if your children’s shoes are too small then they probably are – you need 14mm gap between the big toe and the end of the shoe. If it’s less than 8mm then it’s too small.

“Also buying items too big so they can grow into them works for coats but will just see them walking awkwardly and costing you more in therapy when they develop a gait like a penguin.” (telegraph.co.uk)

for successful school mornings

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ave you ever noticed an inverse relationship between the behaviour of parents and their children in the early hours of school mornings?

As parents become increasingly frazzled and hectic, active

upon discovering an empty drawer. * If your gas tank is getting low, don’t wait until you drive carpool to fill up.

There’s never time to spare on the way to school. * Do your shoes seem to go for a stroll in the middle

children tend to downshift and reduce speed.

Be proud and take a bow if you’re not familiar with this phenomenon! Yet for the vast majority of parents, this scene will ring true. The following tips can help you to break this unproductive routine, and to develop a new strategy to triumph over the trials of school mornings.

of the night? The case of the disappearing shoe is common. Always set shoes in a prominent and natural place, such as next to the front door or on the floor of your closet. * Go to bed on time. In order to have energy and patience for the upcoming day, both children and adults require enough hours of shut-eye.

Early morning is too late If you’re seeking to start the day off on the right foot, don’t wait until the wee hours of dawn to take your first step. The night before is the most appropriate, efficient time to launch a new day. * Make lunch ahead of time. To avoid soggy sandwiches, you can prepare the fillings and toppings in advance and then assemble it all in the morning. Fruit slices and veggie sticks can be packed in airtight containers beforehand. *School bags should be fully packed before going to bed, including all homework and signed permission slips. *Arrange and match all clothing, including socks or hairbands, the night before. This habit prevents last-minute panic attacks

Be alarmed!

No matter how reliable you feel your internal clock is, alarm clocks are still essential. * Purchase a personal alarm clock for all family members and set it for the same minute. Whether it’s a digital display with purple glitter or a vintage stainless steel bell, allowing children to select their preference can encourage them to react positively when the alarm sounds. * Let your family democratically debate and decide the ideal wake-up time. This magic hour must be written in stone and not snoozable! Remember to allocate more time than you may expect, for there are always unpredictable delays. (childdevelopmentinfo.com)

TO BE CONTINUED

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saturDAY, august 26, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Jagdeo calls for release of oil contract O

pposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has called out Government for hiding behind secrecy, saying the Administration should take up its role as the “guardian of transparency.”

Jagdeo took another jab at the ruling Administration, which is already receiving criticisms from many sides over its handling of the emerging oil and gas sector.

On Friday, the Opposition Leader said Government has been putting forward very weak arguments about the reasons for the non-release of the details of the Production Sharing Agreement (PSA), stating that it has the freedom and responsibility to do so.

Jagdeo admitted that the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) while in Government had allowed the insertion of the confidentiality clause in the initial contract between the then Government and US oil and gas giant ExxonMobil.

However, he said the ruling Administration now has a responsibility to exude transparency. He said most contracts have confidentiality clauses that govern the negotiating period.

“I am saying now our position is… they are saying the PPP was deficient, it was not tabling all these contracts. You are the guardians of transparency. Imagine they are defending this more than we are. They were supposed to be different,” the Opposition Leader said.

dress the core issues surrounding the oil and gas sector. These include the Production Agreement itself and transparency surrounding the agreement. He said too that the architecture for managing and regulating the industry and its resources have been trodden upon.

Jagdeo further posited that Government’s first attempt to define the sector’s architecture can be found in the Petroleum Bill that was taken to the National Assembly. According to him,

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo

Jagdeo said Government while in Opposition, had forcefully campaigned for transparency but has now seemingly backpedalled on its position.

Regarding to 1999 contract signed under the PPP Administration, Jagdeo noted that at that time, there was nothing in the country.

“We were putting people to explore. We were not getting exploration dollars flowing in the sector,” he told journalists. He said without exploration dollars, oil could not be found and reminded of the issue with Canadian oil and gas exploration company CGX and the demarcation problems involving neighbouring Suriname. According to him, Guyana had lost some 10 years of exploration after that.

He said Government is seeking to mislead the public when Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman

said the Administration inherited the contract from the previous Government. He said he could not understand Government’s explanation regarding the reasons why it cannot release the details of the contract.

“You have to honour the content, not the secrecy. I believe that when you generally negotiate, you should have a period of secrecy. Once the contract has come to an end, then the agreement can be made public by the Government,” Jagdeo noted, continuing that in light of all that has been said, he has already asked Government to release everything it said the PPP Government was not transparent about. That includes both the original and revised airport contracts along with the Marriott contract.

Meanwhile, the Opposition Leader said Government is failing to ad-

Opposition Leader submits...

He said a sense of urgency exists, and it will affect preparations.

Asked about his options should President Granger again reject his proposal, Jagdeo said, “ I don’t want to speculate, but I hope that in light of the Chief Justice’s ruling, the Government will select someone from this list… we are hoping that, first of all, we wouldn’t need to get to that”.

Jagdeo, however, said it would be problematic if the President maintains his position on his interpretation of the constitution.

“That would be a problem

if the President believes that he is the ultimate arbiter in interpreting the constitution; because that would be a big issue,” Jagdeo said.

When local businessman Marcel Gaskin moved to the court to seek clarity on the constitutional requirement for the appointment of GECOM Chairman, acting Chief Justice Roxane George ruled against President Granger’s interpretation of the Constitution, saying there was no preference for judicial persons.

Last month, President Granger had maintained -regarding the appointment

from page 3

of a chairman for GECOM -that he would continue to act in accordance with his interpretation of the Constitution.

Giving his reaction to the ruling handed down in the High Court, the President had said he would not appoint anyone whom he believed was unfit for the post.

Justice George had argued that there was no validity to arguments that the person should be a judge, former judge, or person eligible to be a judge, rather than merely being any other fit and proper person; and that persons from each category are equally eligible for the post.

what was shown there gives little or no reason to believe that there will be transparency by the Government and that it would be able to manage the resources in a technical manner.

“We saw and heard in the debate, the Minister can appoint the Board; the Minister can fire the Board; if the Board is not appointed, the Minister is the Board; the Minister can appoint the Chairman and fire the Chairman, and the Minister can become the Chairman if there is no

Chairman”, Jagdeo said, noting that the Commission is a technical body and should be staffed with technical people.

He said Government has portrayed a pattern and intends to have political hands on the oil resources.

Jagdeo reined in too the issue of local content legislation which was promised to be placed before Parliament.

He said with all the broken promises, Guyana is no way closer to having public debates on a model government was hoping to pursue.

Guyanese craft producer dies at Carifesta

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fter journeying to Barbados to participate in Carifesta XIII, a self-sponsored Guyanese crafter fell ill and succumbed while receiving treatment at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital on Friday.

The dead woman has been identified as Petal Frank, who was attached to the Guyana Arts and Craft Producers Association (GACPA).

Reports by the Education Ministry revealed that

Frank, shortly after arriving on the island, came down with a sudden aliment and was admitted to the hospital on Wednesday. However, despite the best efforts of medical practitioners, the woman’s condition worsened, resulting in her subsequent death.

Even though the crafter was not an official member of the Guyanese contingent, the Ministry acknowledged her participation as a significant representation of

Guyana at the regional showcase.

As such, the Government of Guyana through the Education Ministry’s Department of Culture, Youth and Sport has pledge commitment in supporting the preparations for her funeral.

President David Granger and Education Minister Nicolette Henry have extended condolences to the relatives and loved ones of Frank.

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saturDAY, august 26, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

IN THE COURTS

“Grey Boy” charged for threatening Crum-Ewing’s mother

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egan “Grey Boy” Rodriguez appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Friday and declared that he is trusting in God through the singing of gospels after being charged again, this time with threatening Donna Harcourt, the mother of Courtney Crum-Ewing.

The 39-year-old, who was just a few months ago found not guilty of the execution-style killing of CrumEwing by City Magistrate Judy Latchman, denied that he committed the act of threatening language.

Magistrate Dylan Best read the charge to him, which stated that on August 12, 2017, at Regent and Wellington Streets, Georgetown, he made use of threatening language against Harcourt.

The father of two lamented his frustration stating

that many reports have been made against him by the family of Crum-Ewing following his release however; it was only until reports were made to a “certain officer close to the family” was he arrested and charged.

Police Prosecutor Christopher Morris had no bail objections but asked that the defendant be placed on a bond to keep the peace until the completion of the matter.

Before granting the defendant bail, Magistrate Best warmed Rodriguez to trust in the court system and to exhibit self-control if it a case where he is being provoked.

He was ordered to keep the peace and released on $10,000 bail. The case will continue on September 15.

Rodriguez was released on September 14, 2016, owing to insufficient evidence

Regan “Grey Boy” Rodriguez

as the prosecution failed to establish a case against him for murder.

Subsequently, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) ordered the case reopened one month ago. The sole purpose of this

remit, according to the DPP’s chambers, is to take further evidence from Police witnesses and to rule on the voluntariness of all oral statements of the accused.

Attorney Nigel Hughes was appointed as a Special Prosecutor in the case.

However, on June 5, 2017, Magistrate Latchman set Rodriguez free again stating that no actual evidence was presented to the court to prove that Rodrigues pulled the trigger.

The following day however, he was again before the court after the DPP ordered that he be committed for the murder. Magistrate Latchman did not comply and set Rodriguez free.

Crum-Ewing was gunned down as he was urging residents of Diamond on the East Bank of Demerara to cast their ballots in the May 2015 General Elections.

2 Laing Avenue residents charged for theft

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wo Laing Avenue, Georgetown residents were on Friday morning before Magistrate Judy Latchman at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, charged for stealing a car engine along with other items.

David George, 18, of Laing Avenue Squatting Area; and Seon Nedd, 27, of Lot 189 Laing Avenue, Georgetown,

both denied the allegation made against them.

The charge read that on August 15, 2017, at Lot 65 East Ruimveldt, Georgetown they stole one car engine valued $150,000, four car shocks valued $40,000 and one AC Unit and compressor valued $60,000; a total value of $250,000 and the property of Jermaine Davidson.

The facts of the matter revealed that the Virtual Complainant (VC) was involved in and accident at Alexander Street, Kitty, and the following day was forced to park his car at the address from where the items were stolen.

The aforementioned items were reportedly left in the car.

However, when checks were

made on August 21, 2017, the items were missing. As such, the matter was reported and the defendants were both arrested and charged.

Police Prosecutor Shawn Gonsalves had no bail objections and this was granted in the sum of $100,000.

Both men are required to reappear in court on September 15.

2 NOC escapees jailed for robbery

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wo escapees from the New Opportunity Corps (NOC) on the Essequibo Coast were on Thursday sentence to three years imprisonment each for robbery with aggravation. They both made their first appearance be-

fore Magistrate Ester Sam at the Suddie Magistrate's Court.

A 16-year-old and 17-year-old – both residents of NOC – admitted to the charge.

The prosecution is contending that the duo was

arrested on August 23, 2017 and was later charged with robbery with aggravation committed on Ivelaw Lynch.

Lynch is the second officer in charge of NOC. She was robbed of one BLU cellphone value $5000 and one

bunch keys value $40,000.

The robbery occurred on August 20, 2017.

The 16-year-old was placed at the Juvenile Holding Centre until he turns 17 in September after which he will transferred to prison.

The good life…

Y

…and land rights

our Eyewitness is enjoying these Land CoI hearings. It’s our closest equivalent to those American reality shows that prove real life is always stranger than fiction. Are we going to have our own dashing Kardashians?!

And the claims!! From what he’s hearing, your Eyewitness is now certain this land of ours is actually the “Holy Land”.

The language stirs Sunday school memories of the promise God made to His people in unequivocal language: “for all the land which you see, I will give it to you and to your descendants forever.” And just because He knows the human eye can’t see very far because of the curvature of the Earth and all that, God offered some even more explicit instructions on the right to land: “Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.”

But evidently to hedge their bets against those who may not have heard the booming voice from on high, it would appear some of the claimants to land are using Karl Marx’s “labour theory of value”.

Meaning those who provide labour to produce something should actually own those things. So one fella said if Africans cleared and “made ready” 15,000 square miles of Guyana, they automatically own that much land. Sweat equity?

Now your Eyewitness can just hear those whites from up north say what about all their capital and managerial expertise; and marketing and such-like was also labour. How much of Guyana should they claim? But on the application of the labour theory of value approach, your eyewitness has some questions on some of the figures thrown out. Like the “2,176 miles of sea and river defence” claimed to’ve been constructed.

Isn’t this stretching matters a tad? After all, even though he didn’t pay too much attention to all that knowledge doled out in primary school, isn’t the entire Atlantic Coast - from Charity to, say, 64 Village, where the Corentyne begins, around 200 miles?

So were there then almost 2000 MILES of RIVER defences? And here your Eyewitness thought the Dutch originally established their sugar plantations up river because the land there was already high and not in need of “defences”, as with the mangroved coast.

Your Eyewitness is also wondering about that figure of 473,000 Africans dying to clear 15,000 sq. miles of bush so that all of us could live the good life we’re enjoying presently. He understands this is the number arrived at when the 100,000 slaves at Emancipation is subtracted from total slaves shipped in.

But wouldn’t they have died in any case - albeit not so quickly?

…with healthcare

Our Ministers are obviously working themselves to the bone and it’s taking a terrible toll on them.

But they aren’t ones to give up, are they? Not our worthies!! You remember they took a tremendous cut in salary when they chose to get into public service and that AFTER their 100% salary increase - don’t you?

Those heavily tinted new SUVs, outriders to clear their way through traffic, gardeners, $500,000 monthly rentals, haven’t been able to lessen the toll of frequently being forced to jet off in first class to Texas, or Europe etc. But some bellyachers refuse to appreciate the sacrifices made by our stalwarts in Government. Take this ex-Minister Ramsammy, who balked at some Minister jetting off to Ireland to get medical treatment!

Where else but Ireland - which had a decade of stress induced by their murderous IRA - could a stressed out Guyanese Minister be treated? GHPC? Ha!! No Valium there!!

And, of course, the Ministers are paying a portion of their new health insurance like the rest of us!!

…for female security guards?

Did your Eyewitness hear right? No more geriatrics for “guard” service? No more females for night service?

Increase the princely minimum wage of $2040/daily?

Who do these guards think they are? Ministers?

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

News

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saturDAY, august 26, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

GPL promises deliverance from outages by today G uyanese have been grappling with a spate of power outages occurring countrywide, and the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) has promised to bring an end to the phenomenon of chronic blackout by today.

This assurance was given by GPL Public Relations Officer Shevion Sears during a press conference held on Friday.

Acknowledging the frequency of these power outages, Sears noted that a number of planned and unplanned maintenance exercises were having an adverse effect on the Demerara/ Berbice Interconnected System (DBIS).

“It’s a generation shortfall, and it’s alternating; so it wouldn’t be one person (suffering all the time).

We’re doing it by areas.

So, sometimes during the day, certain customers may experience outages, and in the night, another set (would have that experience). So it’s rotating (the) load-shedding.

“Everything will return to normalcy on Saturday (today), because we expect to finish the Number Two engine on Saturday; that will bring our generation capacity up,” Sears told media operatives.

Sears said that when the Skeldon Wartsila units and the Co-Generator plant are fully functional, the available generating capacity is

GPL PRO Shevion Sears

137 megawatts. She noted that the total generating capacity in the DBIS is currently 106 megawatts.

“Which means we are operating with a generation shortfall of approximately 3 megawatts during the day peak, and 6 megawatts during the night peak,” she explained.

Giving a breakdown of the planned and unplanned maintenance work, Sears said that three engines at Garden of Eden were down for maintenance overhaul work. One of these engines constitutes 5.5 megawatts, while the other two are 6.9 megawatts.

SEI

Sears noted that unplanned maintenance work is also being done by Skeldon Energy Incorporation (SEI) on its Wartsila engines at the Skeldon, Berbice sugar

estate.

Back in February 2017, SEI had informed the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) that the co-generation plant was unsafe to operate. It had advised that the First Crop 2017 should no longer take place, since approximately seven months were required to address the problem.

According to GuySuCo, the co-generation plant has been deteriorating over the years. The corporation has said the plant has become progressively unreliable, adversely affecting the operations of the sugar factory, and causing reduced sugar production.

The corporation had said that overtures were being made to external engineers and boiler manufacturers, to determine the extent of repairs required -- and the concomitant cost -- to sustain the efficiency and safety of the boiler operations.

The estate in total costs some US$200M. The Skeldon co-generation plant in its own right reportedly has the capacity to produce 40 megawatts of electricity. It is outfitted with Wartsila engines and a steam plant powered by bagasse, and provides power to the national grid.

The unavailability of power from SEI is compounded by the 2.3 megawatts GPL has lost as a result of a fire that occurred at the Onverwagt

The power plant at Skeldon

Power Station, West Coast Berbice on Thursday at about 21:42hrs, when a failed connecting rod on the No. 5 Unit allegedly punctured a block.

“The quick response of the Guyana Fire Service averted major damage to equipment housed at the station,’ a release from the company has stated. “GPL is currently assessing the damage and an investigation will be conducted.”

It isn’t the first time that a fire and accident would have struck at GPL. Last month, after much outcry from citizens due to power outages, the company had stated that “a botched tree trimming exercise and a burnt jumper” were among the reasons for the electricity woes.

GPL’s Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Renford Homer, also ex-

Fraud lands father of 3 in court

J

ohn Medford of Lot 41 Second Street, Grove, East Bank Demerara (EBD) was on Friday arraigned before Georgetown Magistrate Judy Latchman on a charge detailing that on July 26, at

Robb Street Georgetown, with intent to defraud, he obtained $240,000 in cash from DeManie Bailey by falsely pretending that he was in a position to purchase a motorcar, knowing same to be false.

The 31-year-old father of three pleaded not guilty to the charge, and because Police Prosecutor Shawn Gonsalves had no objection, was placed on bail in the sum of $60,000. This case will continue on September 15.

plained that shutdown of the Demerara-Berbice Interconnected System (DBIS) had resulted in a generation shortfall occasioned by reduced generation reserve.

Homer also explained that when the demand was

about 84 megawatts, there were 87 megawatts available for generation, which left only three megawatts of reserve capacity, instead of the normal 20 megawatts.

Moreover, the machines at Skeldon and Garden of Eden had also been cited.

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saturDAY, august 26, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Unemployment: Cevons to lay off 45 workers

… unfortunate, but City Hall is financially strapped – Mayor

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uthorities at Cevons Waste Management have said the entity is forced to lay off approximately 45 of its workers with effect from September 1, because City Hall is yet to begin paying in excess of $100 million that is owed the entity.

tain a state of normalcy was due to loyalty to its employees, and vice versa. “There is, however, a point beyond which we are unable to go.

It is therefore with considerable regret that we announce that, with effect from September 1st, Cevons Waste

vices signals voluntary termination of services. Three smaller contractors have been hired to perform the task of the two companies.

City Hall reportedly owes Cevons Waste Management approximately $198 million, and Puran Brothers $174 million. The companies have indicated that they may be forced to take legal action against the municipality if they are not paid their respective money.

The M&CC has, for quite some time, been described as cash-strapped, and on multiple occasions, work around the city has had to be halt-

A worker on duty on a Cevons Waste Management truck

Georgetown Mayor, Patricia Chase Green, has said it is unfortunate that the situation at Cevons has deteriorated to this situation, but the Georgetown municipality is still strapped for cash, and cannot honour its obligation to pay the garbage disposal companies.

Cevons Waste Management and Puran Brothers Disposal pulled their garbage disposal services after being owed more than $300 million by City Hall, and not receiving any payment despite promises being made in this regard.

According to Mayor Chase Green, negotiations are still ongoing with these garbage disposal companies, but she is not in a position to say when the M&CC would be able to begin making payments.

The Cevons management has said its decision to main-

Management must discontinue the employment of 45 employees. We deeply regret this eventuality, and commit ourselves to restoring the jobs of the displaced workers as soon as the situation normalises,” the company has said.

“In the face of the amounts owing to Cevons by City Hall, we have continued to shoulder all of the responsibilities associated with the delivery of the service, including crucially the costs associated with workers’ wages and salaries and the maintenance of inventory. This, given the extent of the outstanding City Hall debt, has become unsustainable,” Cevons explained.

Having failed to pay the companies more than $300 million for services provided from 2015 to 2017, Town Clerk Royston King wrote to the companies, indicating that their withdrawal of ser-

Georgetown Mayor Patricia Chase Green

ed, since the municipality was unable to pay workers.

Earlier this year, it was reported that the Council and its partners (the contractors) had reached an agreement which in substance said the City Treasurer would focus on paying the current accounts while working to find an arrangement to settle the outstanding debts for 2016, even as service disruption was being avoided.

Power outages

GPL willing to compensate customers for damages

I

n recognition of the fact that power outages put customer appliances in jeopardy and cause financial losses, the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) is urging customers to use the mechanisms in place to claim for damages.

During a press conference on Friday, GPL Public Relations Officer Shevion Sears was asked about provisions for those with the most to lose – the customers. She explained the procedure for customers to make claims and noted that those claims will have to be investigated by the utility company.

“Even though there are planned and unplanned outages, there are some areas to which customers experience outages but it’s not because of the planned or unplanned but rather localised faults.

Localised faults might be a tree falling on the network or there’s a trip in the network in that area.”

She noted that the company has encouraged customers to report all issues they are having the GPL service.

“So what we (encourage) our customers to do is to report those faults, because we may not always know about those outages. So if you report it, we will be able to say, look we checked our systems and it is not as a result of an outage but rather a localised fault.”

She noted that there is a process which customers must go through in order to claim, including filling up a form and when the form is submitted, an investigator is sent to the location in order

to determine whether it was GPL’s fault.

“If you feel GPL would have been the cause of your appliance being burnt, you come in, you access one of the claim forms, you fill that form out and then you submit it,” Sears explained. “If it was GPL’s fault, then we compen-

form of rebates and in the form of credits to the account for GPL not meeting the service standards.”

She noted that they have been able to garner $1.2 million for customers, inclusive of complaints that were pending from last year.

She also encouraged cus-

sate those customers. If the findings are analysed and it’s not GPL’s fault, then we inform the customer.”

tomers who have been under siege from poor utility service and lack of resolution to escalate the matter to the PUC’s attention. Bourne emphasised that the process was actually a simple one.

“The procedure is quite simple. If you have a problem with one of the utility (companies) your first step is to visit the utility and make a complaint in relation to your problem. That is giving the utility the first option to deal with whatever issue you have.”

“If you are not satisfied with how they dealt with the problem of the resolution, then you can seek redress from the PUC. If the complaint has merit, we will follow that complaint up with the utility. If we notice that the utility would have made the correct decision based on the matter in front of us, we will advise you on that.”

Complaints

It is understood that as of March 2017, there were 29 complaints from GPL customers at the level of the Public Utility Commission (PUC).

PUC’s Complaints Manager, Destra Bourne, in explaining the work the Commission does in these instances, stated that the PUC would arrange rebates for customers who would have been paying for a service that was not working for a period of time.

“Once the service has been restored, they’re entitled to some amount of rebate for the period the service would not have been working,” she had said in an interview with this publication. “In the case of GPL customers it’s in the

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saturDAY, august 26, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Consultations on regional Potable water projects GWI hands over cheque for flags in limbo Paramakatoi water project … as citizens show disinterest, reject idea

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Specimens of the proposed regional flags

everal Regional Democratic Councils (RDC) are still finding it difficult to carry out consultations on the proposed regional flags and emblems, as many stakeholders are still in objection.

While some regions have outrightly denounced any such move, those that have embraced it are finding its challenging to get the project off the ground.

Back in 2015, Government through the Communities Ministry proposed the introduction of regional flags, positing that it depicted a representation of independence.

On Thursday, several regional officials indicated to Guyana Times that they are not interested in the exercise and have not been holding consultations.

In Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam), officials there said the region has always been against the proposal and has not been dwelling on it. Regional Vice Chairman Nandranie Conjah said there has not been any consultation on Government’s proposal.

Over at Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), officials said they are not aware of any such consultation. At least nothing has been held at

the level of the Council.

Similar sentiments have been expressed by the Regional Vice Chairman of Region Five (MahaicaBerbice).

Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) Regional Vice Chairman Denis DeRoop said the region is completely against flags. According to him, the concession is that the idea is promoting federalism, something that the region does not embrace. He said the proposal was sent to the Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDC) which have all indicated they do no need regional flags.

In Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), Chairman Gordon Bradford said consultations have commenced and things have been going favourably well. He said the region has already identified its emblem, but is experiencing some small challenges as members of Amerindian communities are requesting that something more be added.

In Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice), Vice Chairman Elroy Adolphus said the consultations are ongoing with no known hiccups.

The proposed regional flags and emblems were

presented at the inaugural meeting of the National Regional Development Consultative Committee (NRDCC).

Communities Minister Ronald Bulkan had said that the intention was to start displaying the flags and emblems at Government buildings across the regions for public discourse and feedback.

He said that consultations with stakeholders in the regions will discuss the flags, emblems and renaming the regions. He had pointed out that the decision would either be yes, no or later but, the RDCs would be expected to make a decision and they would have the opportunity out of a consultative process to identify what would be the desire of the region.

The regional emblems along with the renaming of the 10 administrative regions are part of the Government’s efforts to foster regional empowerment and pride.

The Minister reiterated that the flags presented are “not cast in stone” but are meant as specimens that may or may not be changed depending on the need arising from the discussions that would take place in the communities.

All the colours of the regional flags are from the National Flag. The symbol on each regional flag denotes something that is famous to the respective region.

The parliamentary Opposition People’s Progressive Party had rejected Government’s proposal, noting that the Golden Arrowhead is the constitutional flag of Guyana and any other flag imposed on the country is contrary to the Constitution of the Republic of Guyana.

… Mabaruma to get potable water for the first time

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recent meeting between the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) and villagers of Paramakatoi, Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), led to the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for better water systems in the hinterland village. As part of the MoU, GWI Managing Director, Dr Richard Van West-Charles handed over a cheque for $4,236,380 on Thursday to the Village Toshao for the first phase of the project.

During the meeting, Toshao of the community, Gideon John, and a team presented a community-de-

The cheque being handed over to the Toshao of Paramakatoi

signed plan for the drilling of wells at various feasible locations. The community currently depends on a reservoir of spring water that is

deemed insufficient and the villagers have complained about droughts during the period of January to March. turn to page 14

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saturDAY, august 26, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

US Embassy donates 200 Miss World Guyana hosts bicycles to GPF/City Hall health fair, fitness walk

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he Guyana Police Force (GPF) and the City Constabulary (M&CC) on Friday received 200 pedal cycles and accessories donated by the US Embassy as part of its Big Brother Mission commitment.

This donation, worth US$145,000, has been made in support of Guyana’s Community Outreach Program, and is intended to aid in those respective agencies’ efforts to protect the nation.

Of the 200 pedal cycles donated, 170 were directed to the Guyana Police Force and 30 to the Georgetown City Constabulary.

Speaking at the handing over ceremony, held at the TSU Square at Police Headquarters, Eve Leary, US Ambassador Perry Holloway pledged, on his country’s behalf continued commitment to the safety and develop-

US Ambassador Perry Holloway handing over the pedal cycles to Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan

ment of Guyana.

The ambassador outlined the basis of this significant contribution: underscoring the United States’ ongoing commitment to promoting community policing in Guyana.

“The United States Department of State, through the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL), assists countries around the world in strengthening the capacity of their law enforcement, and supports their efforts to promote the rule of law,” he detailed.

The US diplomat indicated that 12 officers were trained in the safe use and efficiency of these bicycles, and they accordingly now possess the knowledge to train other ranks.

Moreover, Ambassador Holloway highlighted that the donation of pedal cy-

cles rather than motor vehicles aligns with President Granger’s vision of a Green State.

Also addressing the gathering at the ceremony on Friday was Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan, who referred to the many US investments in Guyana, and highlighted some of the key areas in which Guyana has benefited from US investments.

Georgetown Mayor, Patricia Chase-Green, in accepting the 30 cycles donated to City Hall, extended gratitude for the support. With Georgetown being the nation’s capital city, Green reiterated the significance of this boost in public security.

Shortly after this exercise, the Guyana Police Force received a donation of 200 chairs from the Essential Supplies Incorporated.

Miss World Guyana, Veena Mookram, leading the fitness walk on Friday

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iss World Guyana, Veena Mookram, on Friday hosted in Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam) a health fair and fitness walk that attracted a wide cross section of persons from various communities within the region.

The fitness walk preceding the start of the health fair was held from the Anna Regina Market to the Anna Regina Car Park, and it was led by Regional Vice Chairperson Nandranie Coonjah and Mookram.

During the walk, the Queen used the opportunity to spread awareness on her platform, "Prevention of

Diabetes through Fitness and Exercise".

According to coordinator of the walk, Joe Mookram, the exercise was sponsored by the National Milling Company of Guyana (Namilco) and the Region Two RDC; and the health fair was focused on spreading awareness of the chronic disease of Diabetes through talks and various programmes. Persons were also tested for hypertension.

In an interview, the Queen extended her gratitude to the Region Two RDC, Namilco, and all those who made the walk successful. She said her next aware-

ness walk would be staged in Berbice.

She disclosed that her aim is to establish a fitness park within the Diamond/ Grove area. That park would be built by Mookram and later handed over to the NDC for community use.

Presently conducting training in public speaking, Miss Mookram said she is confident she would make Guyana proud. Veena Mookram was crowned Miss World Guyana on June 25, and is expected to leave for China on October 14. The Miss World pageant will be held on November 18.

(Indrawattie Natram)

GWI hands over...

A plan to source water at the top of a mountain and distribute it to the community was also discussed as a possible solution to the existing situation. Additionally, Dr Van West-Charles spoke to the need for multiple water sources, pointing to rainwater harvesting and springs as alternatives.

Satisfied with their proposal and knowledge of the community, GWI entered into an official agreement with the Paramakatoi Village Council to develop the ideal water system that would allow for an adequate supply for domestic and economic purposes.

The agreement will see community members assisting with preparatory works for drilling. This includes excavating the proposed water source to facilitate test pumping by GWI and submitting a proposal for the maintenance of the water system among other things.

The cheque was handed over to the village leader on Thursday at the National Toshaos Council, which comes to an end today.

“There is the Paramakatoi project and in collaboration with the Village Council we are in phase one of construction of a reservoir to make wa-

from page 11

ter available. The water will be treated water. We are now constructing the catchment, storage; we are installing a pumping system and distributing network, standpipes and treatment system at Paramakatoi so that moves us to a different level of development within that village,” Dr Van WestCharles said.

“We are also for the first time, in a few weeks, going to have treated water in the town of Mabaruma. We commenced distributing a series of special filters, which removes all the bacteria, viruses and fungi from the water.

We have some large filters, which have been installed at Kamarang Hospital, Kako Primary School, Barakara School and at the Mabaruma Hospital. We are placing a series of small labs in the hinterland so that the water can be tested,” he added.

He noted that they have recently established an office in Lethem, Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) and are working with the various Village Councils to ensure they access potable water in every village. He said this is in keeping with their mission to deliver safe, adequate and affordable water access in every region.

news

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saturDAY, august 26, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

14 Guyanese awarded Chevening scholarships A

total of 14 Guyanese will soon embark on their journey to achieving a Master’s Degree after being awarded a Chevening Scholarship Programme offered at a number of universities throughout the United Kingdom.

British High Commissioner to Guyana, Gregory Quinn on Thursday evening bid farewell to this year’s awardees, urging them to make the best of their journey as Chevening scholars.

While highlighting that this scholarship is testimony to her Majesty’s commitment to education and continuous investment in Guyana, Quinn outlined the nature of the programme.

In doing so he pointed out that the scholars will be pursuing their degrees in a wide variety of areas, which include public policy, renewable energy, energy studies, global health, petroleum and energy economics, anthropology and environment, transport planning, innovation management, environ-

British High Commissioner Gregory Quinn joined by 13 of Chevening awardees during the farewell ceremony

mental engineering, development finance, agriculture and communications.

The UK diplomat went on to say that the Chevening programme is not only beneficial to the awardees but will have a positive impact on the country as well.

“After these scholars have

been awarded their degrees, we expect them to come back and work for the benefit of Guyana; that’s what we are spending our money on,” relayed the British High Commissioner, who continued by saying, “That is the purpose of Chevening, to give people the skills and

knowledge needed to develop their own country.”

Echoing the sentiments of the High Commissioner was a past recipient of the UK Government scholarship, Chuizka Harilal, who congratulated the 15 for being the recipients of this prestigious award.

In sharing her experience as a Chevening scholar, the alumnus encouraged the 2017 awardees to make the best of the opportunity.

Cashing in on the Chevening scholarship for 2017 are Kayla Defreitas, Sanasha Perreira, Jason Fraser, Rovin Sukhraj,

Tiffany Daniels, Darcy Waldron, Michael Fraser, Lidon Charles, Gopnauth Gossai, Tricia Teekah, Joel Joseph, Jacqueline Major, Dillon Clarke and Jonathan Melville.

Chevening is a renowned global scholarship programme that offers future leaders the unique opportunity to study in the UK, by affording students a fully-funded one year developmental programme.

The Chevening scholarships awarded to Guyanese students for the year 2017 carries a value of approximately $102 million.

This is the first time a total of 15 Guyanese were selected to participate in the programme, with the number of local scholars continuously increasing over the years.

The British High Commission is currently accepting applications for the 2018 Chevening Scholarship Programme, and is inviting Guyanese to apply while the process remains open until November 7.

Tint law is not for some, Guyana’s Steel Orchestra but for all sharing expertise in Barbados …Top Cop warns officers Carifesta XIII

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Guyanese award-winning steel pan player and music teacher, Hanani Ben Lewi leading a session during the steel pan training in Barbados

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hile participating in Carifesta XIII in Barbados, Guyana’s National Steel Orchesta shared their expertise with a group of Barbadian students, while conducting a training session at a local high school on Friday.

Students of the Belleville Grammar School, Kingston Terrace, St Michael, Barbados cashed in on a full day of steel pan classes as the Guyanese contingent embarked on a mission to keep the art-form alive on the island by offering practical insights and hands on experiences of how to play the steel pan.

Heading the team of Guyanese steel pan players was the National Music Director, Andrew Tyndall,

who expressed delight in the execution of the training sessions which allowed for the national orchestra to impart their knowledge and skills to students of the hosting nation.

In doing so, Tyndall outlined the objectives of the one-day initiative, stating that, “It’s just to offer the children further exposure to steel pan and to have them experience the splendour of music from the Guyana perspective.”

Adding to that, Nicole Dummett, a Co-director and instructor at the private institution, shared her thoughts on the mission and thanked Guyanese players for sharing, adding this event to their Carifesta schedule.

On that note, she re-

layed, “It is a great opportunity to work with Guyana and we are grateful for it.

We are excited and would appreciate any opportunity moving forward to work with Guyana and its National School of Music via the Ministry of Education to offer this course as part of our curriculum.”

Meanwhile, Guyanese Ramon Dummett, who migrated to Barbados, is currently on a mission to revive the local Steel Orchestra.

As such, Dummett welcomed the training session with the students and further noted, “We can consider this fun music workshop a new alliance between Guyana and Barbados where the sky is the limit in regard to Caribbean integration through music.”

olice Commissioner (ag) David Ramnarine has warned members of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) that unless they were granted a special exemption for tint on their private vehicles, they would equally be subject to what the law stipulates in regard to tint.

At a passing out parade, the (acting) Commissioner, known for his stern lectures to members of the Force, admonished Police officers for initially ignoring a message to remove tint from car windows.

“There is a law for tint.

The law is not for some. The only law I know is when the chief licensing authority grants an exemption, and in a few other cases,” he said. “Some three weeks ago, a message was circulated for tint to be removed from police patrol vehicles, but it was disregarded by some. And therefore, to (ensure) the compliance that we want, a combined course of action was taken. “(This) resulted in nine other vehicles (having their) tint removed, and 58 private vehicles owned by members of the Force (having their vehicles treated likewise). My question is: what do we have to hide behind dark windows? Is it our identity, our actions or both?”

He recounted a previous incident in which he was travelling in a taxi on the East Bank when he saw a uniformed Police Sergeant without a seat belt. He used this anecdote to urge offi-

Acting Police Commissioner David Ramnarine

cers to maintain the laws they enforce.

“We charge dozens of people every day for failure to wear seat belt. And here is a sergeant of police, in uniform, not wearing a seat belt. We had a constable who was on duty and left his rifle with a civilian, as he had something to do.

Supervisor visits, finds the rifle with the civilian...”

Last week, a total of 45 vehicles which are privately owned by ranks of the Guyana Police Force were removed. According to a statement from the Force, the Police Force also removed tint from nine police patrol vehicles, and the campaign is expected to be conducted in all police divisions.

It is understood that a record is being maintained of the vehicle and number, rank and name of the member of the Force, and

a warning has been given in the first instance. Ranks found to have breached the tint regulations would face disciplinary sanctions, Ramnarine pointed out.

Last year, Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan had noted that Government would be moving to review the existing policy regarding tint on motor vehicles, as one of the components of the National Crime Fighting Strategy.

It was announced that tint meters would be used to determine the density of the tint on vehicle windows.

Additionally, as it currently stands, only certain vehicles are permitted to have tints without the expressed permission of the Minister of Public Security.

These include diplomatic vehicles and those belonging to senior Government and high-ranking military officials.

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saturDAY, august 26, 2017

Regional

Kidnappers demand TT$350,000 OECS countries looking to standardise CBI programmes ransom for T&T cousins

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he men who abducted teenager Brandon Sam and Darryl Lutchman demanded a TT$350,000 ransom for their release by 10:00h on Friday. The kidnappers also warned the boys’ relatives that if their demand is not met by this time they would harm their loved ones.

The demand was sent by the kidnappers around 10:00h on Thursday via Sam’s cellphone. His grandmother felt happy when she saw Sam’s number come up on her cell phone, but the happiness turned to tears when an unfamiliar male voice came on the other end and made the ransom demand.

Sam, 14; and Lutchman, 16, both students at secondary schools in the East, along with relative Deokumar Lutchman, were kidnapped by two armed men on the North Oropouche Road near an estate on Wednesday night. Deokumar was released a few hours later in Freeport but Sam and Darryl remained in the hands of the kidnappers.

Police reports said around 20:30h on Wednesday, Sam and Darryl saw a manicou on a plum tree and decided to go after it. They were joined by Deokumar, 38, who was helping them search with a light, when a white Tiida pulled up and called out Brandon’s name. When the boy responded, the men got out the vehicle, one of them

D

Kidnapped: Brandon Sam

pulled out a gun and grabbed Sam’s hand, then ordered all three into the back seat, covered their faces and took them away.

It was reported that Deokumar Lutchman was later told by the kidnappers to tell relatives they should get TT$350,000 ready by Friday and he should not make any report to the Police, otherwise things would get “messy.” (Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

ominica’s Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit says the several countries of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) governments are examining the possibility of developing standardised legislation regarding the controversial Citizenship by Investment programme (CBI).

Skerrit, speaking to reporters prior to his departure for the United States on personal business, said countries that have already established CBIs in the sub region are holding discussions on the initiative.

Apart from Dominica, Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, St Lucia and St KittsNevis have all instituted CBI programmes through which foreign investors are granted citizenship in return for making a substantial investment in the socio-economic development of the countries.

St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister, Dr Ralph Gonsalves has in the past strenuously spoken out against the programme once describing it as a “race to the bottom”.

In May last year, Gonsalves told a private sector forum that the space is narrowing for economic citizenship programmes, adding, “and there is a race to the bottom in all of them and there are a lot of good prod-

Dominica’s Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit

ucts in this area in other countries where people from China and the Middle East are rushing to – Austria, Portugal, but, of course, they have different type of – better run regimes for these types of things. (Excerpt from Jamaica Observer)

Barbados, Chile strengthen ties Venezuela decries

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resident of the Republic of Chile, Her Excellency Michelle Bachelet, paid an official visit to Barbados on Thursday. During her brief stay, President Bachelet met with Acting Governor General of Barbados, Sir Philip Greaves in a courtesy call at Government House, after which she joined Prime Minister of Barbados, Freundel Stuart and senior Government officials at Ilaro Court for a working meeting.

During the bilateral discussions between Prime Minister Stuart and President Bachelet, the leaders highlighted the strong relationship between their nations, reflected in engagement at the highest political

Prime Minister of Barbados, Freundel Stuart and President of the Republic of Chile, Bachelet, as they exchanged copies of a Joint Declaration which the two leaders signed, outlining the areas of bilateral cooperation being pursued between Barbados and Chile

level and their commitment to strengthening the existing ties.

“The President of the Republic of Chile, Her Excellency Michelle Bachelet and I met today to discuss issues of bilater-

al interest to both our governments and our people.

We had a chance to assess the state of our bilateral relationship, which was formalised in 1967 when we established diplomatic relations,” Prime Minister

Stuart remarked during a press briefing.

A number of challenges facing both countries were also discussed. According to the Prime Minister, consideration was given to how the two countries could work together on international tax matters, especially in light of Barbados’ continued interest in concluding negotiations between the respective tax authorities for a double taxation agreement; to implement the Paris Agreement on climate change; to preserve and protect the oceans and seas for future generations and to increase and enhance trade with Chile, in the areas of goods in the first instance, and later trade in services.

(Excerpt from Barbados Advocate)

new US sanctions

V

enezuela has denounced new US sanctions against it, with its foreign minister saying the US was trying to promote a humanitarian crisis.

Jorge Arreaza also said his country was a victim of “fake news” that exaggerated its economic difficulties. The US accuses President Nicolás Maduro’s Government of violating human rights and subverting democracy.

President Trump’s order bans trade in Venezuelan debt and blocks its state oil firm from selling bonds in the US. Arreaza said that the sanctions and “threats”

amounted to “uncivilised politics”. President Maduro would not attend the UN General Assembly in New York next month, he said.

Announcing the new sanctions, the White House said the “Maduro dictatorship” was denying Venezuelans food and medicine.

It said the controversial new constituent assembly – which has voted to take powers from the Oppositionled Parliament – amounted to a “fundamental break in Venezuela’s legitimate constitutional order”.

Earlier this month, the US imposed sanctions on President Maduro and some of his closest aides. (Excerpt from

BBC News)

16 US staff in Cuba Court dismisses last lawsuit against UN hurt in 'acoustic attack' over Haiti cholera epidemic

A

t least 16 US Government employees were treated for symptoms after a possible acoustic attack targeting embassy staff in Cuba, the state department says.

US media reports say the symptoms range from hearing loss to "mild traumatic brain injury", which could include concussion or headaches.

A spokeswoman said the attacks seemed to have stopped. Cuba denied involvement and said it was investigating the reports.

The attacks were first reported earlier this month when the US expelled two Cuban diplomats from Washington. But it was not clear until Thursday how many US employees had been affected.

The Associated Press

reports that the sonic devices used may have been emitting inaudible sound waves that can cause deafness. "We can confirm that at least 16 US Government employees, members of our embassy community, have experienced some kind of symptoms," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said.

"We take the situation extremely seriously," she added. US embassy staff and at least one Canadian began to notice symptoms late last year. The victims, some of whom have been withdrawn from Cuba, have been treated in the US and by US doctors in Cuba.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has described the incident as a "health attack". (Excerpt from BBC News)

A

US federal judge has thrown out the last class-action lawsuit that had been filed against the United Nations (UN) over the 2010 cholera epidemic in Haiti.

The suit had contended that the UN should take responsibility for the outbreak because the illness was introduced by its peacekeepers from Nepal.

But in her ruling yesterday, Federal District Court in Brooklyn, Judge Sandra Townes said the UN could not be sued in US courts. On August 18, 2016, a federal appeals court in New Year also upheld that immunity argument in the other class-action lawsuit.

According to the New York Times, the lead lawyer for the Haitians who had filed the lawsuit, James Haggerty, said he was “certainly likely” to appeal.

A study by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention had indicated that UN peacekeepers from Nepal, where cholera is endemic, were the likely cause of the outbreak which killed more than 10,000 of the hundreds of thousands of Haitians who

Thousands of Haitians were infected during the 2010 cholera epidemic

were infected.

The disease had not been present in Haiti before the peacekeepers arrived from their homeland where an outbreak was underway. The UN has not legally accepted responsibility for

the outbreak, but last year, the then Secretary General Ban Ki-moon delivered a statement at the General Assembly in which he apologized for the UN’s role in the outbreak. (Excerpt from

Caribbean360)

saturDAY, august 26, 2017

guyanatimesgy.com

Around the World

Ram Rahim Singh's supporters riot after rape conviction

Singh (pictured left) denies the rape charges against him. Police fired tear gas and water cannons to disperse the protesters

A

t least 28 people have been killed in India as violent protests erupted after a court convicted a self-styled "godman" of raping two female followers. Friday's verdict angered thousands of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's supporters who said he was innocent.

Singh was found guilty

in a case dating back to 2002 at the headquarters of his Dera Sacha Sauda group in the northern town of Sirsa.

Supporters rampaged in response, setting fire to Government buildings, attacking railway stations, petrol stations and television vans in towns across the northern states of Punjab

Hurricane Harvey threatens record flooding, thousands in Texas flee

H

17

urricane Harvey moved closer to the Texas coast on Friday and residents were warned to take shelter from 125 mile-per-hour winds and 12-foot ocean surges when the most powerful storm in over a decade slams the mainland United States.

Harvey became a Category 3 hurricane, the third most powerful, the National Hurricane Centre said. The storm was expected to hit land near Corpus Christi, Texas, around 21:00h. CDT (0200 GMT) then stall and dump over three feet of rain in areas of the Texas coast and parts of Louisiana as it lingers for days.

“We may be looking at unprecedented and major to record flooding,” said forecaster John Tharp of Weather Decision Technologies, adding that flood warnings were

in effect for Louisiana and northern Mexico.

The storm stranded about 20,000 passengers on three cruise ships in the Gulf of Mexico. Two were rerouted to New Orleans and a third will remain in Cozumel, Mexico, after the Galveston, Texas, port closed on Friday.

Gasoline stations in the south Texas coast were running out of fuel as thousands of residents fled the region.

US gasoline prices spiked as the storm shut down 22 per cent, or 377,000 barrels per day (bpd) of Gulf of Mexico oil production and halted 4.4 per cent of US refinery output, according to the US government.

As a Category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale, Harvey could bring winds of up to 129 miles per hour (208 km/h), uproot trees, rip roofs off homes and disrupt utilities for days. (Excerpt from Reuters)

and Haryana soon after the verdict was announced, witnesses said.

Hundreds of Indian Police and soldiers patrolled Panchkula, the town where the court gave its verdict on Singh, as local officials feared an outbreak of violence.

Police fired tear gas and

water cannon to disperse the protesters.

The violence left at least 28 dead, including some with bullet wounds, and more than 250 injured, according to BS Sandhu, a top Haryana police official.

He said more than 1000 of the guru's supporters had been detained in Panchkula on charges of arson and destruction of public property.

A spokesman for the guru's sect, Dera Sacha Sauda, urged his supporters to remain calm. "I just want to request everyone to maintain peace at the moment," said Dilawar Insan. "We will explore what legal options are available to us."

Dozens of cars were burning in Panchkula town while a bloodied body lay in the middle of a road. (Excerpt from

Al Jazeera)

Brussels attack: Man shot after stabbing troops

A

man has been shot dead after attacking two soldiers with a machete in the centre of Brussels. The attacker, aged 30, was injured in the street but later died in hospital.

One of the soldiers suffered a wound to the face, the other has a hand injury.

Photographs showed the street cordoned off with Police and troops in the area.

Soldiers have become a familiar sight on the streets of the Belgian capital since terror attacks which killed more than 30 people last year.

Belgium's Federal Prosecutor's Office said the attacker was "not known for terrorist activities" but said that he had shouted "Allahu Akbar" ("God is greatest" in Arabic) during the assault.

The attack on Friday is being treated as terror-

ist incident, the prosecutor's office said. Witness Ryan MacDonald? wrote on Twitter that he heard the sound of a gunshot before seeing a "heavy Police presence outside".

Another witness said he heard "two loud bangs and a load of sirens".

The attack took place on Boulevard Emile Jacqmain in the centre of Brussels.

The presence of soldiers on the streets of Brussels is part of a large-scale security operation designed to reassure the public in the wake of terrorist attacks in the city in March 2016 in which 32 people were killed.

Troops on patrol in a busy district of shops and restaurants in the centre of the city appear to have been the target for this latest attack. (Excerpt from BBC News)

North Korea fires 'several projectiles' toward Sea of Japan

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un guides a target-striking contest of the special operation forces of the Korean People's Army (KPA) to occupy islands in this undated picture provided by KCNA in Pyongyang on August 25, 2017 (Reuters)

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orth Korea fired several shortrange projectiles into the sea off its east coast early on Saturday from its eastern Kangwon province, South Korea’s military said.

The South Korean office of the joint chiefs of staff said the projectiles flew in a northeasterly direction for about 250km (155 miles) before landing in the sea.

South Korea’s Yonhap news agency said a ballistic missile may have been fired, without citing a source. US and South Korean intelligence authorities were analysing the trajectories of the projectiles and other data to identify them.

“The military is keeping a tight surveillance over the North to cope with further provocations,” South Korean

officials added.

The North tends to test-fire ballistics missiles or other projectiles – including those from long-range multiple rocket launchers – in response to US-South Korea joint military exercises. Tens of thousands of South Korean and US troops are taking part in the Ulchi Freedom Guardian joint military drills, a largely computer-simulated exercise that runs for two weeks.

The launch comes weeks after North Korea created a tense standoff with the United States by threatening to lob some of its missiles toward Guam. It was the first by the North since it test-fired a missile on July 28 that could have been designed to reach 10,000km, putting parts of the US mainland within reach.

North Korea has carried out nuclear tests and dozens of missile launches despite continued UN sanctions that began after Pyongyang’s first nuclear test in 2006.

Concern is growing that with every new test, North Korea is edging towards developing a fully functioning ICBM that, in theory, could strike the US mainland. (The Guardian)

Yemen war: Children dead after Sanaa air strike South African farmers who forced black man into A coffin convicted t least nine people, including children, have been killed after an air strike hit a residential area of Yemen's capital, Sanaa.

Witnesses said two buildings in the south of the city, which is controlled

by Houthi rebels, had been destroyed.

Saudi-led forces have been fighting Shia Houthis – backed by Iran – for the last two years.

Thousands of civilians have died. The country is on the brink of famine and facing a cholera outbreak. The planes, thought to be from the Saudi-led Arab coalition which backs Yemen's

Local residents carried bodies from the rubble of the two destroyed buildings

Government, hit the buildings in the southern district of Faj Attan, according to AFP. Resident Mohammed Ahmad told the agency he had helped take nine bodies to the hospital.

"We extracted them one by one from under the rubble," he said. "Some of them were children from a single family."

The United Nations says 42 civilians were killed by Saudi-led coali-

tion strikes in the week up until Thursday.

They include the victims of a strike on a hotel in the Arhab district of Sanaa on Wednesday, which killed 33 people and injured many more, according to the UN. "We remind all parties to the conflict, including the Coalition, of their duty to ensure full respect for international humanitarian law," the UN said in a statement on the civilian deaths.

A further 16 civilians were killed by Houthi rebels or unknown assailants in the week to Thursday, the UN said.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

A

South African judge has found two white farmers guilty of attempted murder after they filmed themselves forcing a black man into a coffin and threatening to burn him alive.

Supporters of the victim celebrated in the courtroom after the judge, Segopotje Mphahlele, told the accused that “for attempted murder of Mr [Victor] Mlotshwa, I hereby find you both guilty.”

Willem Oosthuizen and Theo Martins Jackson were also found guilty of kidnap, intimidation and assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm.

They had pleaded not guilty

over the incident last year in the eastern province of Mpumalanga, saying they only intended to scare Mlotshwa after he allegedly stole copper cables from their farm.

Two clips of footage taken on their mobile phones showed the assailants shoving Mlotshwa down into the wooden coffin and pressing the lid closed with their boots as he begged for his life.

Rival activists from the ruling African National Congress, the main opposition Democratic Alliance and the radical Economic Freedom Fighters rallied outside court and attended each day of the trial. (Excerpt from The Guardian)

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guyanatimesgy.com

saturDAY, august 26, 2017

ARCHIE

ARIES

Avoid making a big deal

(March 21- out of something a loved one April 19) says or does. Arguing will

ruin your plans and could hurt an important relationship. Avoid impulsive indulgence.

Personal problems will TAURUS arise if you let your stubborn(April 20- ness kick in or you overreMay 20) act to certain situations. Put practicality into play and don’t make assumptions or speak in haste.

dilbert

You can make changes GEMINI (May 21- without overspending. A joint June 20) venture will leave you cashpoor. Channel your energy into home improvements that you can carry out yourself to cut your overhead.

CANCER (June 21July 22)

Peanuts

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Calvin and Hobbes

Don’t get caught up in someone else’s dilemma.

Offer suggestions, but don’t meddle or take on a fight that doesn’t belong to you. Steady your emotions and avoid reckless actions.

Learn from emotional experiences and use what you discover to help you better understand your personal relationships. A healthy sense of compromise will encourage peace of mind and greater harmony.

Don’t let love issues conVIRGO fuse you or cause you to make (Aug. 23a poor or impulsive decision.

Sept. 22) Be honest and proceed in a direction that feels best suited to reaching your goal.

Refuse to let romantic isLIBRA (Sept. 23- sues cloud your professional Oct. 23) vision. If you are attracted to someone you work with or you are being pursued by a colleague, be smart and protect your reputation.

WORD GAME

SUDOKU

Choose your words wisely SCORPIO and refrain from mixing busi(Oct. 24ness with pleasure. Put more Nov. 22) effort into creative endeavors or home improvements and less into an unstable situation or joint venture.

Take action by physically SAGITTARIUS carrying out changes at home (Nov. 23- that will make your life betDec. 21) ter. Learn from experience and don’t believe everything you hear. Rely on yourself and your capability.

Invest in yourself, your CAPRICORN future and your home. The (Dec. 22- changes you make based on Jan. 19) your perceptions will help you avoid a mistake. Protect your money and possessions.

solution for Last Published Puzzle Emotional spending will AQUARIUS cause problems with someone (Jan. 20- you love. Beware of throwing Feb. 19) money at unnecessary items or personal physical improvements. Products will not live up to your expectations.

RULES OF THE GAME: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. For example, if “bake” is used, “baked” or “bakes” is not allowed, but “bake” and “baking” are admissible. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed. To contact Word Game creator Kathleen Saxe, write to Word Game, Kathleen Saxe, Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.

Copyright 2015, Distributed by Universal Uclick for UFS

Be creative with your inPISCES (Feb. 20- vestments and planned purMarch 20) chases. Don’t go overboard trying to keep up with your peers. Do what works best for you and avoid added stress.

saturdAY, august 26, 2017

19

Hype meets reality as Mayweather, McGregor face off in Las Vegas

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ype will collide with reality here Saturday as boxing legend Floyd Mayweather takes on mixed martial arts superstar Conor McGregor in a battle of combat sport kings tipped to be the richest fight in history.

A little over two months after the fight was confirmed in June, Mayweather and McGregor will touch gloves at Las Vegas’s T-Mobile Arena in a 12-round boxing contest which will be beamed to more than 200 countries and territories.

Fight promoters have breathlessly talked about the bout surpassing the $600 million (508 million euros) generated by Mayweather’s 2015 fight with Manny Pacquiao, insisting that interest has been off chart.

“This is the biggest event that has ever happened in combat sports,” said Dana White, the chief executive of MMA’s Ultimate Fighting Championship.

“This fight will reach over a billion homes worldwide.”

Ringside seats were being offered on secondary ticket markets for an eye-watering $100,250 apiece as of Thursday, even though some 1,700 seats in

the 20,000-capacity venue remained unsold.

Millions of fans across the United States meanwhile are expected to shell out $99.95 to watch the fight on pay-per-view television, the most important economic engine of the spectacle.

- Freakshow or fight? The sense of anticipation has endured despite an unrelenting chorus of disparagement across the boxing world.

Farce.

Freakshow.

Circus. Mismatch. Rip-off.

Bad for boxing.

It has been impossible to follow the build-up to the fight without being made aware of the near-universal tide of derision.

A cursory glance at the tale of the tape explains the cynicism.

Mayweather, 40, is one of the most skilled boxers of his generation, a master of ringcraft who retired in 2015 after a glittering 21year career with a perfect 49-0 record.

McGregor, a two-time world champion in UFC, has never boxed professionally and has looked awkward and ungainly during training camp sparring sessions.

He has demonstrated punching power in the

Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor get it on outside of the ring. Tonight it will be inside the ring

UFC, but has never faced an opponent as elusive as Mayweather.

Anything other than a convincing Mayweather win will be regarded as a surprise; a McGregor victory a monumental upset.

Yet the millions who will gladly part with their cash to watch the fight in the arena or on television do not appear to be bothered by the possibility that they may be taken for an expensive ride.

- ‘Something incredible’ Stephen Espinoza, the head of cable network Showtime Sports which is

selling the fight on payper-view in the US, said many would tune in on the off-chance of witnessing “something incredible.”

“We did some focus group testing, and the casual fans were absolutely adamant,” Espinoza said.

“Their response almost universally was ‘We don’t care if it’s a mismatch. We don’t care if it’s non-competitive -- if there’s a .01 chance that something incredible could happen, we need to watch it.’

“And that’s why they’re going to watch it.”

Reggae Boyz clip T&T 2-1 T

rinidad and Tobago began their preparation for next month’s World Cup qualifiers with a stumble after suffering a 2-1 loss to rivals Jamaica at the Hasely Crawford Stadium on Thursday.

Michael Binns secured a win for the Reggae Boyz after netting from a 57th minute free kick, which may have been deflected en-route to beating the T&T custodian.

Jamaica midfielder Jamiel Hardware stunned the hosts early on after giving his team a surprise lead in the sixth min-

ute. The twin island republic responded six minutes later, however, when Kevon Villaroel found an equalizer to delight the home fans.

The match served as preparation for Trinidad and Tobago who will resume the World Cup qualifiers with a match against Honduras at the Ato Boldon Stadium on September 1st. The team currently occupy the bottom of the six-team standings after managing to secure a paltry one win in its first six games. (SportsMax)

Irrespective of the outcome, the two men at the centre of the action will be laughing all the way to the bank.

If pay-per-view targets are met, Mayweather could earn as much as $200 million, pushing his career earnings towards $1 billion.

McGregor, who four years ago was living off unemployment benefit in Dublin before his emergence as a star of MMA, could pocket $100 million.

A gaudy “Money Belt” is also up for grabs to the winner, comprising 3,360 diamonds, 600 sapphires, 300 emeralds mounted in 1.5

kilos of solid gold and set in alligator leather.

Both fighters engaged in a global publicity tour to drum up interest in the fight last month that was marked by a series of lurid verbal exchanges, ranging from expletives and homophobic slurs to allegations of racism.

Yet a final press conference between the two fighters on Wednesday saw something close to an outbreak of civility, with both men refraining from the trash-talking in a strangely subdued showdown.

McGregor insists that he is ready to stun the sceptics by knocking out Mayweather inside two rounds.

“I will go forward and put the pressure on and break this old man,” McGregor said.

“I don’t see him lasting two rounds. I think I could end him in one round if I want. Everyone is going to eat their words on Saturday.”

A relaxed-looking Mayweather was unfazed by McGregor’s warnings of impending calamity, instead reminding the Irishman that he had faced plenty of explosive punchers through his career -and emerged victorious. (AFP)

Tharanga banned for slow over-rate, Chandimal and Thirimanne called up

C

Upul Tharanga

hamara Kapugedera will skipper Sri Lanka in the next two ODIs against India in the absence of the suspended Upul Tharanga.

Tharanga will miss the next two one-day international matches against India after the Sri Lanka captain was

banned for a slow over-rate, while Dinesh Chandimal and Lahiru Thirimanne have been added to the squad.

Tharanga missed two ICC Champions Trophy matches in England due to a serious over-rate offence and has been hit with another suspension.

ICC match referee Andy Pycroft imposed his latest ban after Sri Lanka were three overs short of the required rate in Pallekele, where India won by three wickets on Thursday to take

a 2-0 lead.

The skipper is out of the third and fourth games of the series, but will be available to return for the final match in Colombo a week on Sunday.

Chamara Kapugedera will lead the side in Tharanga’s absence, while Test captain Chandimal and fellow-batsman Thirimanne come back into the squad.

Opening batsman Danushka Gunathilaka is unavailable after injuring his shoulder in the field in the second ODI. (SportsMax)

20

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

saturdAY, AUGUST 26, 2017

Joe Root slams 50, joins Real Madrid AB de Villiers in unique star Gareth Bale returns to Test world record

J

oe Root had a memorable homecoming during the second Test against West Indies in Leeds. The England skipper, playing in front of his home crowd for the first time since taking over as captain, notched up his 31st fifty to rescue his team from a precarious position.

Root’s fifty was his 12th consecutive fifty-plus score in Tests, equalling the Test record set by South Africa’s AB de Villiers.

The England skipper has been in tremendous form since the second Test against Bangladesh in Chittagong in October 2016.

In that Test, he managed scores of 56 and 1 as England suffered their first defeat against Bangladesh.

In the subsequent five-Test series against India, Root managed scores of 124 and 4 in Rajkot,53 and 25 in Vizag, 15 and 78 in Mohali, 21 and 77 in Mumbai, 88 and 6 in Chennai. Although he managed 491 runs in 10 innings, England lost the series 4-0.

In the four-Test South Africa series that followed at home in July 2017, Root smashed 190 and 5 at Lord’s,78 and 8 at Trent Bridge,29 and 50 at The Oval,52 and 49 at Edgbaston as England won 3-1.

In the first Test against West Indies in Birmingham, played with pink ball, Root blasted 136 and in the Leeds Test, he looked good for yet another ton but departed for 59 as he fell to Devendra Bishoo.

His feat is on par with South Africa’s star batsman AB de Villiers, who enjoyed a magnificent run of form from November 2012 till March 2014. Prior to the streak, de Villiers had not hit a fifty in nine innings but broke the jinx in remarkable style by blasting 169 off 184 balls against Australia in Perth to help South Africa to a 309-run win and a 1-0 series victory.

Following that Perth knock, de Villiers smashed 67 and 51 in the two Tests against New Zealand and followed it up with 31 and 103* in Johannesburg ,61 and 36 in Cape Town and 121 at Centurion in the three Tests against Pakistan. The right-hander continued to torment Pakistan in the UAE as he smashed 19 and 90 in the Abu Dhabi Test and 164 in Dubai.

When India visited South Africa for a series, de Villiers hit 13 and 103 in the Johannesburg Test and whacked 74 in the

Durban Test to give South Africa a series win. Against Australia in 2014, he continued to have a great time by smashing 91 and 48 in the Centurion Test followed by 116 and 29 in Port Elizabeth. His streak ended in Cape Town as he was dismissed for 14 and 43 to give Australia a 2-1 series win.

(HindustanTimes)

Joe Root

Wales squad W ales are set to be able to use Gareth Bale for the first time since March after the Real Madrid forward returned to the squad.

Bale has returned to the Wales squad ahead of matches against Austria and Moldova in World Cup qualifying.

Bale missed the 1-1 draw away to Serbia in June due to suspension, but returns to the squad for the crucial double-header after staying injury free during Madrid’s start to the season. The 28-yearold scored in his team’s win over Deportivo La Coruna to open their LaLiga title defence last week, as well as helping them to UEFA Super Cup and Supercopa de Espana silverware in the early weeks of the campaign.

That came after he suffered an injury interrupted 2016-17 season in Madrid, with Wales manager Chris Coleman pleased to be able to include his star man once again. “It’s nice to have Gareth back and also Neil Taylor for the Moldova game,” said Coleman.

“Gareth is a natural athlete, but at this stage of the season some players take a bit longer to find their best.

“Is he 100 per cent where he could be? We’ll see where he is when we get him.

“He looks good, he was disappointed to miss Serbia but there was noth-

ing we could do about that and of course he’s won the Champions League again this year.”

Wales are third in Group D after drawing five consecutive qualifiers.

Coleman also included 16-year- old Chelsea defender Ethan Ampadu a n d m i d fielder Joe Ledley, who is

Hamilton hungry for ‘blood’ ahead of 200th race

T

riple world champion Lewis Hamilton says he is hungrier than ever, and out for ’blood’, as the Mercedes driver prepares for his 200th race in Formula One this weekend.

The 32-year-old Briton is 14 points behind Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel with nine races remaining and has yet to take an outright lead in the championship against a formidable opponent.

But he expects to remedy that, starting in Belgium on Sunday.

“One thing for sure in this second part of the season... is that I’m here for blood. I’m here to win and I’m here to stay,” he said.

“It’s strange. When you’re racing for so long, it’s my 200th race, you would think that maybe your passion or your desire to win would fade. But it’s stronger than ever.

And that’s exciting for me.”

The most successful current racer, in terms of wins if not titles, Hamilton can also equal seven-times world champion Michael Schumacher’s all-time record of 68 pole positions at Spa on Saturday.

That would be a symbolic milestone to reach, with Spa also marking the 25th anniversary of Schumacher’s first grand prix win, but Hamilton’s thoughts were focused on the task at hand.

Reinvigorated by his August break, and smitten by his first visit to Cuba, Hamilton said he was ready for anything and determined to raise his game.

“I want the next nine (races) to all be 10s.

I want you guys to be standing there with those boards: 10, 10, 10,” he said.

“I’m going to be ahead of him (Vettel)

in every single race from now on, that’s my goal. No games. I’m here to win. I want it just as much if not more than anyone else this year.”

History

Hamilton made his debut with McLaren in 2007, missing the title by a single point but winning in 2008 - again by one point after making a crucial overtake on the last corner of the last lap in Brazil.

His move to Mercedes in 2013 brought two more championships - in 2014 and 2015 - but he missed out last year to now-retired German team mate Nico Rosberg.

He has won 57 of his 199 races, four this year, and could soon become the first Briton to win four titles - the same number Vettel has.

without a club, in his 25man selection.

Wales squad:

Wayne Hennessey (Crystal Palace), Danny Ward (Liverpool), Adam Davies (Barnsley); Ben Davies (Tottenham), James Chester (Aston Villa), Neil Taylor (Aston Villa), Chris Gunter (Reading), Jazz Richards (Cardiff), James Collins (West Ham), Tom Lockyer (Bristol Rovers), Ashley Williams (Everton), Ethan Ampadu (Chelsea); Joe Allen (Stoke City), David Edwards (Wolves), Andy King (Leicester), Lee Evans (Wolves), Joe Ledley (unattached), Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal), Jonathan Williams (Crystal Palace); Gareth Bale (Real Madrid), Marley Watkins (Norwich), Hal Robson-Kanu (West Brom), Sam Vokes (Burnley), Tom Lawrence (Derby County), Ben Woodburn (Liverpool).

Gareth Bale

Hamilton said he still felt young at heart, despite the ’crazy’ 200 race milestone, and also privileged and grateful.

Not that he could remember all of his races, or even select a favorite.

“My first grand prix was such a huge highlight. My first grand prix win, Silverstone grand prix win, Monaco grand prix win.

Winning the title in Brazil was a highlight.

It wasn’t actually a great experience but it was still a highlight in my career,” he said.

“I think a favorite would probably be a wet race... when you’ve come from 10th or fourth and you outsmart the guys ahead of you and exploit the car as no-one thought you could.

“When you come back and your engineers didn’t expect to see the speed you had, that’s an amazing feeling.” (Reuters)

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There will be hockey action this weekend

T

he GCC Hockey Team, in its effort to promote youth development in Field Hockey in Guyana, is hosting the ‘Igloo Hockey Festival’ this weekend at the Georgetown Cricket Club, Bourda.

The tournament will include competition for all ages including Under 10 (Mixed Categories), Under 14, Under 17 and Under 21 (Boys & Girls) and an Open Men and Women Category.

The tournament is the only one of its kind as it is played on a miniature artificial hockey surface with rebound bounds around the perimeter. Since there is no full-scale artificial hockey pitch in Guyana, the tournament features the ex-

citing 5 a side format being played on the miniature sized field.

This activity is the club’s feature hockey event for the year and provides one of the few opportunities for all ages to play competitively in the sport. The GCC Hockey Team ran off the inaugural event last July and hopes to repeat the success this year.

Several clubs have submitted teams from their development programs right through to senior sides. Apart from the host, the senior competition will feature, Hikers, Old Fort and Saints Matches begin at 10:00AM on both days and run until 10PM in the evening.

Football Title

he Hamilton Green Knockout Football tournament will continue on Wednesday, August 30 with a double header at the McKenzie Sports Club Ground in Linden.

After starting with 24 teams, the opening fixtures have seen the exit of 6 teams thus far with two more set to depart on Wednesday.

On Wednesday, Silver Shatters face off with Plaisance at 19:00hrs for a chance to progress to the next round, while Eagles United will try to claw their way past Kuru Kuru at 21:00hrs. Both games would being played at the McKenzie Sports Club Ground.

The second round will begin on Friday, September 1 at the same venue with local boys Winners Connection clashing with Georgetownbased side Riddim Squad at 19:00hrs.

After that matchup, Mile Rock will face Georgetown Football Club at 21:00hrs.

The teams are playing for total prize money of $1 Million with the winners pocketing $500,000 and

a Ministry of Citizenship Trophy while the runner-up will receive $250,000 and a Trophy from Busta.

Third and Fourth place will walk away with $150,000 and $100,000 respectively in addition to trophies.

Listed are fixtures for the 2nd round: Friday, September 1 MSC Ground Linden Winners Connection vs.

Riddim Squad 19:00hrs Mile Rock vs. GFC 21:00hrs

Sunday, September 3

Victoria Ground ECD Mahaica vs. Santos 19:00hrs Ann’s Grove vs. Buxton/ Bakewell 21:00hrs

Friday, September 8

MSC ground, Linden Police vs (Winner of Silver Shatters vs. Plaisance) 19:00hrs Western Tigers vs (Winner of Eagles United vs. Kuru Kuru) 21:00hrs

Sunday, September 10

Den Amstel Ground WCD Uitvlugt vs. Soesdyke 14:00hrs Den Amstel vs. Golden Grove 16:00hrs

Guinness Cage Futsal start marred by blackout, rescheduled for Tuesday

T

he highly anticipated opening night of the Guinness Indoor Cage Futsal tournament slated for Thursday night was postponed due to a prolonged power outage that plagued the National Gymnasium and surrounding areas.

Organisers of the tournament were forced to push back the opening night date to Tuesday, August 29.

The Guinness Cage Competition will see a change from the usual futsal rule where when the ball goes into touch on the sidelines a side is awarded a kick. In the Cage format, the ball is allowed to bounce off the wall and play continues.

It is the first time that the format will be played in Guyana and fans are being encouraged to come out and witness eight nights of thrilling action with bragging rights.

The teams scheduled to participate include Sparta Boss, the most successful team in the shorter format. However, the usually dominant team seems to have lost its “mojo” and will no doubt be looking to rebound after a couple of disappointing tournaments.

The Future Stars are the team to beat having recently won the Ballers in the Summer tournament on the West Coast of Demerara while their rivals for the top spot West Front Road ‘Gold is Money’ will be looking to dislodge them.

and Pawn Shop and the respective accolade from Trophy Stall.

The fixtures for opening night on Tuesday are:

Sophia vs MBK All-Stars-19:00hrs Broad Street vs Old School Ballers-19:15hrs Tucville vs Showstoppers-19:30hrs Dave and Celina vs Pike Street Sophia-19:45hrs Tiger Bay vs Silver Bullets-20:00hrs West Back Road vs Albouystown-B-20:15hrs Leopold Street vs Plaisance-20:30hrs North Ruimveldt vs Melanie-20:45hrs Bent Street vs Hustlers-21:00hrs The Future Stars will be strong contenders for the inaugural Guinness Cage Futsal Championship

With exciting teams such as Bent Street, Sophia, Albouystown, Tucville, Tiger Bay, Linden’s Dave & Celena All Star in the mix, the tournament will no doubt be full of intense and riveting encounters.

The other dates set for the tournament are August 31st, September 2nd, 5th, 7th, 9th and 16th.

The winning team will cart off $400,000 and the championship trophy, while the runner-up, third and

fourth placed teams will receive $200,000, $100,000 and $50,000 respectively and the corresponding trophies.

The sponsors on board are Trophy Stall, YK Investments & Pawn Shop, Star Party Rentals, Faye Joseph, Claude Geddes Recreational Sports Club and John Fernandes Ltd. On the individual side, the Most Valuable Player (MVP) will receive a gold chain from YK Investments

North East La Penitence vs Mocha-21:15hrs Champion Boys vs Channel-9 Warriors-21:30hrs Albouystown-A vs Alexander Village-21:45hrs Gold is Money vs Campbellville-22:00hrs Future Stars vs Agricola Gas Team-22:15hrs Back Circle vs New Market Street-22:30hrs Sparta vs Vryheid's Lust-22:45hrs

22

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

SATURdAY, AUGUST 26, 2017

Ben Stokes blasts 100, England out for 258 vs West Indies in Leeds Test A

battling century from Ben Stokes rescued England on the first day of the second test at Headingley but West Indies still dismissed Joe Root’s side for 258 on a much better day for the tourists.

Stokes was eventually dismissed for exactly 100 -- his sixth Test century -- with Kemar Roach (4-71) and Shannon Gabriel (4-51) the main wicket-takers as West Indies put their first-Test rout behind them.

The tourists’ batsmen then negotiated a tricky final 45 minutes to finish on 19-1, with Kraigg Brathwaite on 13 and nightwatchman Devendra Bishoo on one.

The day would have had an even better had they held their catches but Stokes was dropped twice, on nine and 98, and Root, who went on to score 59, also put down on eight.

England’s batsmen rode their luck and Root’s half-century was his 12th in successive Tests -- equalling the world record of South Africa’s AB de Villiers.

Even though their total could prove a

good score on a helpful pitch, it was hardly what Root would have imagined when he won the toss and chose to bat.

With the ball nipping around, England’s former captain Alastair Cook was the first to depart, edging Gabriel to Kyle Hope at third slip having made 11.

Tom Westley lasted only 11 balls, his innings ending when he was trapped plumb lbw by Roach, and England slumped to 37 for three shortly after the hour mark when Mark Stoneman was caught by wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich when his attempted drive off Roach found the inside edge.

This was a familiar England tale of top-order woe and worse followed after the interval when Dawid Malan was bowled off an inside edge by a delivery from Jason Holder.

It was left to Root and Stokes to stem their advance until England’s captain was dismissed, tickling an attempted sweep off Devendra Bishoo to Jermaine Blackwood at first slip.

England's New Zealand-born all-rounder Ben Stokes drives a ball to the boundary

The wicket swung the day back towards the visitors who were celebrating again when Jonny Bairstow was caught low down at second slip by Holder off Gabriel.

At the other end, Stokes motored on, adding 64 runs with Moeen Ali in 10 overs after tea before Moeen was caught slashing to cover.

If anything, England’s formidable middle order has been strengthened by the introduction of Chris Woakes and he added 23 to help Stokes through to his century off 122 balls.

Stokes did not add to that score and, in the same over he had been dropped on 98, was caught behind off Gabriel, who gave the batsman a verbal send-off.

England’s last three wickets fell for no runs off 10 balls, leaving West Indies, who had lost 19 wickets in a day in the first test,

to face England’s J i m m y Anderson and Stuart Broad in overcast conditions.

Backed up by a ring of close fielders, Anderson proved particularly challenging and had Kieran Powell snaffled at slip by Cook, his 150th test catch, for five. But West Indies held on to give provide themselves with a good platform on which to build on Saturday. England are one nil up in the three-Test series. (HindustanTimes)

Elaine second in 200m, anchors J'can relay team to victory Ramnauth all-round brilliance guides D BCB Under 13 Competition

Upper Corentyne to innings victory

T

he Berbice Cricket Board's under 13 competition commenced under brilliant sunshine at the Young Warriors Cricket Club in Cumberland, with an impressive performance by the lads of the Upper Corentyne Zone. They…….

Winning the toss and electing to bowl first, the Upper Corentyne bowlers managed to restrict the New Amsterdam / Canje batsmen to a meager 68 runs.

R. Dhanpat top scored with 20, while Justin Meghu supported with 13. All the other batsmen failed to reach double figures, and were all bowled out in 25 overs.

Bowling for Upper Corentyne, Skipper Rampertab Ramnauth was the pick of the bowlers, as he picked up 4 for 9 off his 6 overs. Pacer Dwayne Williams took 3 for 18 in his 6 overs while Matthew Pattaya took 2 for 8 in 5 overs. Christopher DeRoop took 1 for 13 in 5 overs.

In their reply, Upper Corentyne scored 122 in their allotted 30 overs, losing only four wickets. Captain of the Upper Corentyne team, Ramnauth, scored a brilliant 57 not out, which was decorated with five fours.

He received valuable support from opener Reyad Rahaman who was bowled by pacer Isia Thorne for 19.

Bowling for New Amsterdam Canje, Isia

Rampertab Ramnauth

Thorne took 1 for 26 in 5 overs, Justin Meghu 1 for 17 in 6, V. Cyril 1 for 16 in 3 and G. Kisten 1 for 4 in 2 overs In the second innings, the New Amsterdam/Canje lads failed to reach the surplus of 54 set by Upper Corentyne, as they only managed to score 51 in their allotted time span.

Again Upper Corentyne's skipper, Ramnauth, was excellent with the ball as he took 2 for 10.

The competition is played In a one day, two innings format among four zones: Upper Corentyne, Lower Corentyne, New Amsterdam/Canje and West Berbice.

ouble Olympic champion Elaine Thompson was the best-placed Jamaican in the Zurich Diamond League Finals yesterday finishing second in the 200m in 22.00 (+0.1 m/s).

She later returned and anchored Jamaica to win the women's 4x100 relay and showed what the country missed at the London World Championships with a splendid anchor leg that turned a five-metre deficit into gold.

Danielle Williams and Kimberly Williams were fourth in the 100m hurdles and triple jump, respectively, while Asafa Powell finished seventh in the men's 100m as did Simone Facey in the women's 200m.

Thompson, running out of lane six with World champion Dafne Schippers on her inside in lane five with Marie-Josee Ta Lou in lane four, came off the bend in third, but as soon as she turned on the afterburners and swept past both Schippers and Ta Lou, she could not withstand the late charge of Shaunae MillerUibo on her outside.

The Bahamian won in a national record of 21.88.

Thompson finished in 22.00, which was just outside her seasonal best of 21.98, while Ta Lou of the Ivory Coast was third in 22.09.

Dutchwoman Schippers was fourth in 22.36.

Thompson might have missed the Diamond League Trophy and US$50,000 prize money, but she walked away with US$20,000 (J$2.55m).

Facey was seventh and collected US$3,000 (J$384,000).

However, both Thompson and Facey teamed up with

Christania Williams and Jura Levy to win the 4x100m in 41.85, just ahead of Great Britain with 41.86. Germany finished third in 42.32 with a weakened American team back in fourth in 42.93.

After an even opening leg by Williams, Levy gave Jamaica the ascendancy with a brilliant backstretch, but by the time Thompson

Meanwhile, Powell's return to the track was an ordinary one as the former world record holder laboured to seventh in the 100m in 10.11 and walked away with US$3,000 (J$384,000).

In-form British runner Chijindu Ujah won in 9.97 and was crowned Diamond League champion.

Ben Youssef Meite of Ivory Coast

of the US was third with 12.67. Dawn Harper-Nelson, Jasmine Stowers and Kristi Castlin were sixth, seventh and eight, respectively.

Another Williams, this time Kimberley, grabbed US$6,000 (J$768,000) after finishing fourth in the women's triple jump with 14.41m.

Olga Rypakova of

Shaunae Miller-Uibo (left) wins the women's 200m followed by second place Elaine Thompson of Jamaica

collected the baton from Facey, she had work to do and that she did.

The Olympic champion showed her class with a peach of a run to overturn a five-metre deficit for victory after collecting the baton in third spot.

In fact, the British team went faster than they did to win silver in London ahead of Jamaica and it just showed how critical Thompson to Jamaica's team as she flew past firstly Germany then Great Britain to secure Jamaica's third consecutive win in the 4x100m relay in Zurich.

was second in 9.97 with American Ronnie Baker third in 10.01. Freshlyminted World champion Justin Gatlin was fourth in 10.04. Dethroned 100m hurdles World champion Danielle Williams was fourth in 12.73 (-0.3 m/s) and collected US$6,000 (J$768,000).

Williams wasn't the best away and never recovered quickly enough to challenge the winner Sally Pearson of Australia, who clocked 12.55, the same time as second-placed American Sharika Nelvis.

Christina Manning

Kazakhstan won with 14.55 ahead of World champion Yulimar Rojas of Venezuela with 14.52.

Caterine Ibarguen of Colombia was third with 14.48m.

Earlier in a non-Diamond League event, Christania Williams won the women's 100m timed final in 11.07 (-0.7 m/s) ahead Jura Levy in 11.18. Barbara Pierre of the US was third in 11.29. Great Britain's Bianca Williams took heat two in a season's best 11.30 (+1.0 m/s) but was fourth overall. Jamaica's Schillonie Calvert-Powell was ninth overall in 11.57.

(JamaicaObserever)

SATURDAY, august 26, 2017

“Expect good fight from Warriors”– Asst Coach

By Delvon McEwan

A

s Guyana Amazon Warriors prepare for their final two matches before the playoff stage commences, Assistant Coach Esuan Crandon is urg ing the fans to expect a g o o d showing from the local franchise as they seek qualification for the next round.

The Warriors are set to take on Barbados Tridents on Tuesday followed by Jamaica Tallawahs on Friday, September 1.

At this period the fans of the three time finalists are filled with anxiety and are eagerly awaiting the outcome of the next two matches.

However, Esuan Crandon, Assistant Coach of the team is urging the fan base to expect a good showing from the Warriors as they aim to

come out on top in their quest to win both matches.

“Expect good fight from the Warriors…we previously had two good games, which is good momentum for us to build on going forward.

We know it is not going to be e a s y neither would any team be willing to slack up at this stage.

It is just a manner of putting a good game together; play a little bit smarter, be more aware of situations and conditions.”

The Assistant Coach is optimistic of his team’s chances at qualification for the playoffs but insist that they must first get the basics done correctly.

Preparation ahead of these two matches is important and the Warriors unit has been putting in the lots over the past two days before they depart for Barbados on Sunday, according to Crandon.

Esuan Crandon

He also considers the absence of former skipper Martin Guptill a major hiccup to the team’s preparation but is optimistic that the other players and Guptill’s replacement, Luke Ronchi, are professionals, who could complete the job.

Mohammad Hafeez, who chipped in with a valuable 57 in the final of the Champions Trophy, has been overlooked for the series against the ICC World XI

year.

Head coach Mickey Arthur had specially called Sohail Khan for a fitness test to Lahore which he cleared to the satisfaction of the selectors and team management.

Pakistan squad Sarfaraz Ahmad (Capt), Fakhar Zaman, Ahmed Shehzad, Shoaib Malik, Babar Azam, Umar Amin, Imad Wasim, Muhammad Nawaz, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Hassan Ali, Aamir Yamin, Muhammad Aamir, Rumman Raees, Sohail Khan and Usman Shinwari

ubsequent to a lengthy break due to the rainy season the Georgetown Cricket Association will resume cricket action in the City to facilitate its 2017 calendar of activities.

Action will get underway with two day matches in as many tournaments in first and second division.

In the GISE, Star Party Rentals and Trophy Stall First Division Two- Day Competition on Saturday and Sunday, Georgetown Cricket Club will host Everest Cricket Club while Transport Sports Club (TSC) will tackle Gandhi Youth Organisation at Everest Cricket Club Ground.

Andre Hurry and Ryan Banwarie will officiate the GCC versus Everest clash

while Ravishwar Latif and Javed Persaud will do the other match.

Meanwhile, in the Noble House Seafood Second Division Two-Day Tournament, 2016/2017 runners up, TSC will play against Diplomats Sports Club at GYO ground at Woolford Avenue.

Umpires for that match are Flemroy Lambert and Moses Ramnarine.

All first division matches are scheduled to start at 9:30h while second division matches start time is set for 10:30h.

Top and emerging local youth and senior players will be on show in these matches.

Cricket lovers are allowed free entry to venues.

Pogba 'honoured'

by Europa League best player award M

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GCA activity resumes today

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Mohammad Hafeez dropped from Pakistan squad for ICC World XI series P

akistan has dropped experienced all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez and opener Kamran Akmal from the 16-member squad for the three-match Twenty20 series against a World XI side next month.

Besides the duo, the national selectors have also left out senior pacer Wahab Riaz for the coming series with chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq insisting that recent form and fitness was taken into consideration while finalising the squad.

“We have picked a blend of senior and young players based on their recent performances,” he said.

Inzamam also said that he was happy to see younger getting a chance to play in front of their home crowds.

The axing of Hafeez comes as a surprise as he has been a consistent playmaker for Pakistan in the ODI and T20 formats while Wahab would also have reason to complain as he enjoys a good strike rate in T20 matches.

The World XI led by South African Faf Du Plessis will be playing matches on September 12, 13 and 15 marking the return of international cricket to Pakistan.

Since March, 2009 no top Test team has toured Pakistan after militants attacked the Sri Lankan team in Lahore although Zimbabwe did play a short limited over series in May, 2015.

But the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) believes that the World XI tour which has the full backing of the International Cricket Council and other cricket boards will eventually pave the way for more international teams to come to Pakistan.

The Pakistan squad led by wicketkeeper Sarfaraz Ahmed contains no surprises although it sees the return of batsman Umar Amin and fast bowler Sohail Khan and the inclusion of all-rounder Aamir Yamin in the team.

Sohail has been ignored by the national selectors on fitness grounds this year even though he was the leading bowler in the Pakistan Super League held earlier this

guyanatimesgy.com

anchester United players claimed the top three spots in the Europa League Player of the Season award, with Paul Pogba first.

Pogba declared himself "honoured" to win the first Europa League Player of the Season award as Manchester United stars claimed the top three places.

France midfielder Pogba led the way ahead of team-mates Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Zlatan Ibrahimovic following United's triumph in the 2016-17 tournament, which secured the club a route back into the Champions League.

A voting jury consisting of the 48 coaches who led teams in last season's group stage, as well as 55 journalists, awarded Pogba 140 points, with Mkhitaryan claiming 129 and Ibrahimovic a further 20 back.

"I am very happy to be the first person to win the UEFA Europa League Player of the Season award," said Pogba, who scored the opening goal in the 2-0 final win over Ajax in May. "Hopefully, the new season will be as successful as the last one for both me and my club. Thank you so much."

In a tweet, the 24-year-old former Juventus player said he was "much honoured" by the award.

Pogba will hope to play a starring role again as United go in search of glory in the continent's elite competition, having landed a favourable Champions League draw on Thursday, when they were pitted against Benfica, Basel and CSKA.

SATURDAY, AUGUST 26, 2017

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