Guyana times 8 april 2018

LOOK INSIDE !

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

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Issue No. 3527

Sunday, April 8, 2018

PRICE

Islamic Bank US$900M

$120 vat included

WHAT'S INSIDE:

Jagdeo slams Govt's plan to borrow billions …Finance Ministry backpedals on existence of loan

US sanctions on Russian tycoon

Rusal Guyana monitoring situation P7

Page 3

Cuyuni River murder/robbery

Hunt intensifies for bandits as more Police flown to scene Page 17

Venezuelan Govt suspends Copa Airlines' operation …passengers to be reimbursed

P17

Linden to clamp down on heavyduty trucks using bridges, roadways P15

500 food hampers distributed to dismissed Berbice sugar workers People's Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Member of Parliament Adrian Anamayah distributing food hampers on Saturday at Skeldon, Corriverton, Berbice, to dismissed sugar workers. The initiative, which was organised by the PPP, was done in collaboration with civil society along with donations from several major religious organisations to work together to assist the fired sugar workers

10-year-old raped during kite flying outing Page 9

Thieves raid New Amsterdam Page church 11

World Health Day 2018

Focus placed on achieving universal health care Page 2

Local media undergo P10 training on parliamentary reporting

Banks DIH commissions new vehicle workshop P13 …aims at providing 100 jobs

Corentyne rice farmers seek P14 assistance after investing $148M

2

news

SUnDAY, april 8, 2018 guyanatimesGY.com

World Health Day 2018

Focus placed on achieving universal health care T he Pan-American Health Organization/ World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO), in collaboration with the Public Health Ministry (MoPH), hosted a massive health fair at D’Urban Park in commemoration of World Health Day 2018.

World Health Day is observed on April 7 annually, to coincide with the anniversary of the establishment of the World Health Organization. This year, it was observed under the theme “Universal Health: Everyone, Everywhere”.

At the opening ceremony of the health fair, PAHO-WHO Country Representative Dr William Adu-Krow said the main goal of World Health Day 2018 celebration is to increase awareness of the need for universal health coverage and access. He added that universal health could be achieved only when political will is strong, and he

PAHO/WHO hopes to increase awareness of the need for universal health coverage and access, and the benefits that these can bring through ensuring that people could access quality health services where and when they need it, without the financial burden. He noted that health is a fundamental human right, and explained that no one should have to choose between paying for health care and buying food. He added

that 2.5 billion people in the world had no access to health care.

“Universal health coverage is key to people and nations’ health and wellbeing. Universal health coverage is feasible. Some countries have made progress.

Guyana has made great strides along that line.

Everywhere in Guyana you can access health and not pay a dime. There are some challenges that we need to

upgrade these facilities and offer more services to ensure the health and wellbeing of all,” Lawrence said.

Meanwhile, United Nations Resident Coordinator, Mikiko Tanaka, said the UN has been actively involved in promoting and protecting good health worldwide. She added that it is that organisation’s aim to inspire, motivate, and guide stakeholders to make commitments towards universal

Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence watches as a representative from the Guyana Responsible Parenthood Association demonstrates how to correctly use a female condom

urged world leaders to live up to the pledges they made when they agreed to the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015.

“For over 70 years now, health for all has been the guiding vision for World Health Organisation, yet at least half of the world population is still without access to

the health service they need, forcing millions into poverty as they struggle to pay for their health bills. Health for all is the driving force behind the PAHO/WHO intitative to support Guyana and countries across the world in their move towards universal health,” he noted.

Dr Adu-Krow said the

Some of the attendees at the opening ceremony

think about…the challenges to maintain coverage to meet people’s expectations…,” Dr Adu-Krow noted.

While delivering the feature address, Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence called on everyone to take concerted actions to raise awareness, and commit to practising sounder health habits for the advancement of a healthy Guyana.

She urged persons to be conscious of their bodies, adding that the MoPH is committed to providing quality health services. She revealed that the MoPH plans to establish wellness centres throughout Guyana, so that persons can engage in physical exercises.

“I cannot emphasise enough how important it is for our citizens to make use of our primary facilities.

These facilities are manned (by) doctors, nurses, midwives with whom I urge you to interact. They are there for the express purpose of counselling you and helping you to maintain a body that is healthy, resilient and fit.

The ministry will continue to

health through highlighting the power of policy makers to transform the health of their nation.

“We should commit to concrete steps to advance health for all. This means ensuring that everyone everywhere can access essential and quality health services without facing financial hardships. Access to essential quality care and financial protection not only enhances people’s health and life expectancy, but also protects countries from epidemics, reduces poverty and the risk of hunger, creates jobs, drives economic growth, and enhances gender equality,” Tanaka noted.

At the health fair, persons were able to access onsite HIV, blood pressure and blood sugar testing; get an oral checkup, see an optometrist, and donate blood. There were also attractions for the children, while the adults were able to access education on various health habits.

Throughout the day, there were health talks by various professionals.

(Lakhram Bhagirat)

news

BRIDGE OPENINGS The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Sunday, April 8 – 10:30h-12:00h and Monday, April 9 – 11:30h-13:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Sunday, April 8 – 10:05h-11:35h and Monday, April 9 – 11:35h-13:05h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY Light cloudy skies can be expected throughout the day, with partly cloudy skies in the evening. Temperatures are expected to range between 21 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius.

Winds: East North-easterly to North-easterly between 1.78 metres and 6.25 metres.

High Tide: 09:40h and 22:35h reaching maximum heights of 2.14 metres and 2.03 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 03:11h and 15:54h reaching minimum heights of 1.15 metres and 1.08 metres respectively.

SATURDAY, April 7, 2018

LOTTERY NUMBERS A

12 14 15

23 25 28

18 Bonus Ball

FREE TICKET

DAILY MILLIONS 02 06 07 09 13 LUCKY 3 9 5 4

3

Afternoon Draw DRAW DE LINE

01

06

07

12

6

9

Evening Draw

15 20 21

DISCLAIMER: WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY ERRORS IN PUBLICATION. PLEASE CALL THE HOTLINE FOR CONFIRMATION - TEL: 225-8902

3

SunDAY, april 8, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Islamic Bank US$900M

Jagdeo slams Govt’s plan to borrow billions …Finance Ministry backpedals on existence of loan

B

orrowing from multi-national partners has been a way of strategic economic development in Guyana for quite some time. But previous loans pale in comparison to recent plans to borrow approximately US$900 million and observers are worried.

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo on Saturday expressed much concern over the development. The trained economist and former President referred to the plan as a failed approach to national economic management and pointed out that the sum is almost equivalent to Guyana’s total external debt of G$236 billion by 2015.

“The shocking revelation… is serious cause for concern,” he stated. “We had however predicted this.

The massive growth in the size of the national budgets, primarily on consumption, could not be financed by the hefty increase in taxation; so this hopelessly misguided [A Partnership for National Unity] APNU Government had to resort to large-scale borrowing.”

He added that this failed approach to national economic management was tried in the past and it led to a bankrupt country and resulted in devastating consequences for Guyanese.

“I am sure everyone would recall that the external debt was over 900 per cent of [Gross Domestic Product] GDP in 1992, which was reduced to 36 per cent of GDP in 2015. They plan to double it again within five years.”

According to Jagdeo, borrowing monies without feasibility studies, vision or plan will not solve Guyana’s economic woes. Instead, however, he expressed fears that this will have a long-term effect on the wellbeing of current and future generations of Guyanese.

It was announced that the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) has, for the period 2018 to 2020, committed to providing Guyana with financial and technical assis-

a number of key strategic approaches for the economic well-being of our country.

These include: strengthening national planning; building a robust oil and gas industry; and consolidating the macroeconomic fundamentals,” he had said. “But importantly also, the aim is to foster economic diversification and strengthen Private Sector capacity, among other (things).

Backpedalling

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo

tance to the tune of US$900 million. This, it was made known, would be directed into the country’s key development areas to assist with its plans for continued social and economic development.

This disclosure was made by Finance Minister Winston Jordan during his address at the 43rd Annual Meeting of the IsDB Group in Tunisia. According to the Minister, this money will aid Government’s plans in a meaningful way, as it would give direct support to several Government programmes in many developmental areas.

“The Bank fielded a programming mission in December 2017, where a work programme for the three-year period 2018-2020 was formalised. Financing and technical assistance of about US$900 million will be directed to key development areas; including economic infrastructure, rural development, human development, and trade and competitiveness,” the Minister explained.

Jordan claimed that Government has been steadfast in its resolve to ensure growth in the economy. That resolve, according to him, resulted in economic growth averaging about three per cent between 2015 and 2017. The Finance Minister noted that this growth was achieved at a time when many of Guyana’s neighbours were facing low or negative growth rates and reduced standards of living.

“My Government has and continues to concentrate on

Shortly after, the Opposition Leader slammed Government over excessive borrowing. The Finance Ministry, through its Public Relations Officer Wanita Huburn, said Government has actually not received a loan but rather is being given access to a fund through which they can access monies.

According to Huburn, the sum of US$900 million is “potentially available”.

“The Ministry of Finance notes the conclusion reached by some media houses that Guyana is a recipient of a US$900 million loan from the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and wishes to clarify that contrary to that conclusion, the IsDB has a resource envelope of US$900 million that is potentially available from which the Government of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana can borrow,” she stated.

According to Huburn, during the period November 27-29, 2017, the IsDB mounted a mission to Guyana to develop a medium-term work

Finance Minister Winston Jordan

plan for the period 2018-2022.

That work plan outlines a pipeline of projects that the Bank can support over the next five years.”

She noted that the potential areas of collaboration between the Bank and the Government of Guyana include the agriculture, energy, banking and finance sectors.

In addition, the monies can be used for human and rural development.

“The current package of potential projects, consisting of proposed grant and loan operations is valued at approximately US$900 million. The Government is currently in the process of designing projects to commence accessing some portions of the IsDB resources,” she stated.

However, in a previous interview with this publication, Huburn had stated that 99 per cent of the US$900 million would be in the form of loans.

4

guyanatimesgy.com

SunDAY, april 8, 2018

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

Editorial

Trust and rapprochement

I

t is not hard to discern that trust is a commodity that is in very short supply among our people, after almost three years under the PNC-led APNU/AFC coalition.

While one could not speak of a “groundswell”, there was certainly enough trust engendered to have squeaked past the PPPC, even though the long incumbency of the latter might have been the overriding factor. However, since then, the trust has evaporated like fine mist exposed to sunshine, after a series of unfortunate actions, ranging from their immediate 50 per cent raise for ministers to the unilateral closure of half of the sugar industry, which threw 7000 workers onto the breadlines.

The lack of trust between the people and Government was most recently manifested when the long-feuding branches of the labour movement, FITUG and TUC, took a common position to resist hints that control of GuySuCo may revert to the Minister of Agriculture.

With such personalisation of mistrust, we are in danger of it becoming ingrained in our national psyche after the dyspeptic and dystopian policies practised by the Government. But this eventuality does not bode well for the development of a more secure and harmonious society all Guyanese so strongly desire. Trust is the cement that holds together any agglomeration of humanity. The very notion of “social” implies a recognition of predictability in the actions of people that has to be undergirded by trust. Absent this crucial element, we revert to the law of the jungle.

The Swedish-born philosopher and ethicist Sissela Bok wrote, “Trust is a social good to be protected just as much as the air we breathe or the water we drink. When it is damaged, the community as a whole suffers; and when it is destroyed, societies falter and collapse.”

As far as the life of nations go, ours is still in its infancy. But surely we must, as a people, recognise it is not only our interests, but our fates that are interwoven and intertwined. Whatever we may value – be it material, cultural or spiritual goods – we inevitably have to fall back on others to secure it, or at least not to frustrate its acquisition. And this is where trust comes into the picture.

This is not to acknowledge there is a certain element of risk in the matter of trust, defined as: “an individual’s belief in, and willingness to act on the basis of, the words, actions, and decisions of another.”

As people go through life, a history of previous social interactions would have alerted them to the extent to which others can be relied on to keep their word, and which experience may guide them in new, ambiguous situations.

All of which leads to the formation of heuristics that facilitate dealing with the reality in front of us without having to go through convoluted analyses, which most of us are incapable of, to begin with. In Guyana today, the Government has eroded the “benefit of the doubt” given to them initially, and which is de rigueur in the realm of the public arena.

Today, a wide swathe of Guyanese automatically assume the Government is prevaricating. We expect the worst and take pre-emptive, “defensive” steps. Quite frequently, and not too surprisingly, our expectations have a self-fulfilling effect, as the others respond in kind.

And the trust deficit increases.

What we are suggesting is that while this dour (and sour) attitude is certainly not good for our health – by making us more frustrated in the Hobbesian, dog-eatdog world – it is up to the Government to change this condition by keeping its campaign promises. The PNC can begin by treating its coalition partners – first within APNU and then with the AFC -- with greater fidelity to what was negotiated explicitly and implicitly. By now, most Guyanese accept that there has to be a rapprochement between the two major political forces, which can only become reality if greater trust is engendered first and foremost by the actions of the incumbent PNC.

These young ladies displaying their creative hats at the Inner Wheel Club of Georgetown annual hat show on Promenade Gardens, Georgetown. The event saw a flurry of colourful and thematic hats as patrons enjoyed tea on the lawns in a breezy atmosphere

Representatives exist to give effect to the will of the people

Dear Editor, Our Constitution makes it unambiguously clear that supreme power, or sovereignty, or authority to make decisions which affect their lives, belongs to the people, and the elected representatives exist to give effect to the will of the people.

As an RDC councillor, when I took the oath, I swore to discharge my duties without fear or favour, affection or ill-will. I intended to do just that. In addition, at every RDC meeting, the prayer is read by the Clerk of Council, who exhorts everyone to invoke ‘divine guidance’ in all our deliberations, so that we could be able to serve our region. I have never taken this prayer lightly as well.

I have written many missives on corruption with the intention of opening the ‘eyes’ of the relevant authorities, so that our citizens can have value for money.

When in opposition, this Government made ‘corruption and transparency’ their mantra on the political plat-

form. Now that they are in Government, the corruption chant suddenly died, and those who highlight corrupt practices are being attacked and threatened to keep their mouths shut.

I wish to make it clear that I was expelled from the AFC because I dared to expose corruption and cronyism within the AFC. Today the same evil practices are in existence, but have been multiplied exponentially.

In one of my letters, I wrote about corruption in Region 6, and I made reference to the ‘junk’ bulldozer issue.

The REO wrote a strong letter to the Chairman, which was circulated to all the RDC councilors, demanding that I recant what I had written. She claimed that I implied that no bond was in existence when what I stated was that I queried the existence of the bond.

In that letter, she claimed that a bond is in existence.

However, at the last RDC statutory meeting, it was discovered that no such

bond was in existence. In fact, bond dated 13th March, 2018 was for an entirely new contract for the supply of a D3 angle blade bulldozer.

In another part of the said letter, I wrote what the fishermen at #43 Village told me with regards to the work which was done on the #43 Canal and the excavation work which was supposed to commence on the clearing and excavation of the channel.

What I did was to relate their grievance, so that it can be heard. I bore no malice towards anyone, especially the contractor, whom I did not name when I reported the fishermen’s conversation with me. I bear absolutely no ill-will or malice, and I do unreservedly apologize if he feels that way!

It is my understanding that, as a councillor, I need to communicate and collaborate widely, and I need to engage citizens in my region, listen, and highlight their grievances and advocate for them. In the case of the #43 fishermen’s plight, the situa-

tion had reached crisis point with no resolution in sight.

They were losing money and they were frustrated. I had to make known their grievances, so that their lives can be returned to normal.

My intention is to represent those people, and to make a difference to the quality of their lives, which have seen more than a month’s deterioration.

At the last RDC meeting, an APNU councillor took offence to the fact that I was highlighting alleged practices of cronyism and corruption. Mr Fraser, in addressing the Council, demanded that I stop writing negative things in the press, and that I should highlight the progress. What progress he is referring to I am still in a quandary to fathom. He fully supported the REO, even though it was evidenced that no bond existed on the junk bulldozer.

Yours sincerely, Haseef Yusuf RDC Councillor -Region Six

Playing politics with our security will not protect our borders (Pt 1) Dear Editor, Two ludicrous news items appeared in the Guyana Times on April 6th. One bears the headline “Joint Services adequately resourced to protect Guyana’s border – Harmon”, and the other, “GPL will become world-class utility company – CEO”.

Unless the Guyana Power & Light (GPL) is given full control of the Amaila Falls

Hydroelectric Plant after it is built by the PPP/C when we return to office in 2020, GPL will always remain incompetent, unreliable, and be a major liability on the financial resources of the country.

But this letter is not about GPL, it is about the ludicrous statement made by the Minister of State, Joseph Harmon. If the article is correct, Minister Harmon was quoted as saying, “I would

say that the disciplined forces there – the Police and the Army – they have the resources to respond quickly to these reports.” Of course he was referring to the “growing concerns about the safety and security of citizens living and working along the border communities, who complain of increasing attacks, particularly from the Venezuela-based Sindicato gang members.”

As I’ve written earlier, the Parliamentary Oversight Committee for the Security Services, headed by Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan, just returned from a fact-finding mission to Region One, where we inspected Police stations at Moruca, Matthew’s Ridge, Port Kaituma and Mabaruma. continued on page 5

guyanatimesgy.com

5

SunDAY, april 8, 2018

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

New CEO of GPL Footballing the was upfront sugar industry and straight Dear Editor, I compliment the new Guyana Power and Light (GPL) Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Albert Gordon, for being upfront and straight with the Guyanese people about the company’s drive to upgrade its capacity and service.

As an expatriate professional contracted to enhance GPL’s service and build up consumers’ confidence, Gordon boldly stated that this will take time, so no one should have unrealistic expectations. It was an honest and proper way to start.

The new CEO seems well qualified and talented, and he has hit the ground running. All Guyanese should give him a chance to improve GPL and transform the nation’s power-generation sector, which is vitally important to our economy, our income, and our future.

I am sure he and the GPL Board are contemplating a new system of power generation that uses fuel or petroleum by-products from Guyana’s new oil and gas sector. I am no specialist in oil and gas, and I know there will be costs and other challenges, but nothing is impossible; where there’s a will there’s a way.

GPL and Guyana must invest with the future in mind. I hope GPL’s plan of action under Gordon is to bring us more local inputs for power generation, especially Guyana’s oil or gas

or petroleum by-products when they become available, which should be directly accessible and below world market prices.

As a patriot who loves Guyana, I encourage the new CEO to be strong and steadfast in guiding GPL to new heights using more local inputs. As they usually do, many will try to break the CEO’s heart and willpower, but I trust that he will withstand the pressure.

To him I say: stay strong, brother! Help the people of Guyana to get high quality power-generation service. I know your difficulties, corruption being the main challenge; but I know also that among GPL’s workers, managers and administrators, there are great people who will help you achieve your goals.

However, please be aware of, and be on the lookout for, some employees and contractors who are dishonest, a situation that exists on a massive scale in this country.

Anything can happen, but the first public pronouncements by GPL’s new CEO caused me to think that the company’s management is in good hands. I expect nothing less than a new approach and significantly improved service during his tenure.

Sincerely, Roshan Khan Snr

Dear Editor, Reports in the media (7/4/18) about FITUG and GTUC wrangling over which minister (Agriculture or Finance) should have oversight responsibility for Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), Guyana’s number one industry, is indeed a sad reflection of a major flaw in which this premier industry has been floundering for far too long.

There is no doubt that the sugar industry has had too long a spell of depressing performance, about which there has been a number of diagnoses and remedies proposed by numerous ‘politicians’, ‘pundits’, ‘professionals’ and ‘pragmatists’ among us.

‘Privatisation’ vs ‘Nationalisation’ vs ‘Outsourcing of the Management’ of the industry have been among the several plasters prescribed for the sore and sorry plight of the industry, and these have all been given a fair chance to prove their worth (or worthlessness!). (In similar vein, the Governmentappointed CoI into the sugar industry has also made its recommendations, upon which we are still to see any

action).

Now, out of the blue -- as the saying goes -- we have a debate about which ‘minister’, not which ‘ministry’, should take control of this industry. At this rate, we may soon have the Minister of Cohesion being proposed as the most appropriate person to oversee the industry, since it appears that ‘personal’ or ‘personality’ wrangling is at the core of this poor industry’s plight!

My good friend and professional colleague, Mr E.B. John, in another section of the media, identified the need for good old “team work” in the industry. It is now palpably clear that we also, or moreso, need a strong dose of decisive leadership from the very top.

Mr President, may I respectfully beg for your necessarily decisive intervention? I do not have to tell you, sir, that there is too much at stake at the national level to allow this apparently ‘boyish’ wrangling to go on and for the industry to continue in an apparently rudderless mode.

Sincerely, Nowrang Persaud

Is the GDF harbouring ‘ticking time bombs’?

Dear Editor, My respect to the bereaved of the late Ms Reona Payne, who was gruesomely gunned down in public, and I would also like to include the kids of the accused, Captain Orwain Sandy; I am sorry that you are feeling the consequences.

I dare say that the deceased and accused were two selfish and irresponsible humans, playing Russian roulette and not thinking of the damages that the kids from both sides will encounter.

I have been following the press reports and social media forums, and though I am no expert on matters relating to the Guyana Defence Force, I am left to wonder about quite a lot.

Doesn't the GDF offer the service of 'Psychological Evaluation' of its officers/ ranks?

Didn't anyone within the GDF ever see signals or signs of abnormal behaviour

from Captain Sandy?

Even if it is accurate that the accused was seeing/visiting private doctors for the past two years because of mental issues, did the GDF know of his condition?

If they did, why was Captain Sandy still in possession of his firearm, knowing he was a threat to the general public?

Did the GDF/State fail Captain Sandy and other ranks currently serving by not providing the necessary services for their personal safety and that of the general public?

I am now left thinking that the Guyana Defence Force is filled with mentally dysfunctional and ‘ticking time bomb’ personnel.

Where do we go from here, and how do we fix the situation?

Yours faithfully, T Pemberton

Playing politics with...

The overall report card reflects the concerns of senior Police ranks on these very issues, and the willingness to get the job done. But without clear policy guidelines; adequate manpower; proper weapons, vehicles, boats; and more secure holding cells, it would be impossible for them to contain and deter criminal activities in the area.

Sending more Police and soldiers to the region would further complicate matters, as accommodation is limited and inadequate even for those now

from page 4

living there. Where would Minister Harmon put these additional Police and troops? Did he not consult with his colleague, Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan, before making such a statement? Playing politics with our security will not protect our borders, but will condemn our disciplined forces to a failed mission if proper planning is neglected.

Sincerely, Harry Gill PPP/C Member of Parliament

6

SunDAY, april 8, 2018

Page

guyanatimesgy.com

Foundation

Unconventional Screen time vs reading: essay answers Ashley Anthony

I

n everything we do, there’s a certain amount of risk. Some things have more risk than others: for example crossing the road without looking versus trying a new type of cheese.

We, of course will evaluate the pros and cons of taking each risk and then decide if we want to proceed.

The biggest risk I have taken in awhile is the way I chose to answer some of my essay questions. I chose to take the risk of answering my questions unconventionally because I felt as though I needed to do something to stand out.

In a sea of about twenty to fifty thousand applicants, there are bound to be people with stellar grades and amazing extra-curricular activities.

At selective schools, those are essentially prerequisite. The difference in decisions, therefore, comes down to the type of person that admission officers adjudge you to be. Essays are one of the few places in an application where you are able to make a personal appeal. You have the chance to present a little bit of yourself to the admissions committee. The problem is, the questions can seem extremely mundane. How do you provide a unique answer to the question “Why Yale?” What can you say that fifty thousand people can’t? Of course, you could play it safe and talk about the academics, the

extra curricular activities, the prestige and location, but who doesn’t know those things? How does that show the admissions officer the type of person you are?

Personally, I chose to write that essay in the form of a letter, in which I proposed that I had applied to Yale because I felt like I was the type of student they needed. Another prompt from Yale asked me to discuss something that I love learning about. I could have used that prompt as an opportunity to talk about my dedication to the sciences, but that was already reflect-

ed in my extra-curricular activities. Numerous science fairs, science club, volunteer work, and teaching – it was pretty clear that I loved the sciences. So how could I answer this question in an interesting way? I wrote about how I loved to buy gifts for people. I described that for me, buying the perfect gift for someone meant that I had to learn about him or her inside and out. I then explained that whilst at the moment I use my love for learning about people to buy gifts, in the future I hope to be able to apply this principle to seamlessly integrate new technology into soci-

ety. And I’m not alone, a fellow student, also admitted to Yale, Deon Ababio, said in response to the prompt “Talk about something you haven’t mentioned on your application”, he replied with a spiel about his 17 hair brushes, all of which he names. At the end of the essay, Ababio attached an image of his favourite brush, Diane, and signed his essay with best regards from the both of them.

Speaking to Fatima Karim (admitted to Princeton and Stanford), Karim expressed that her most unconventional essay was a letter to her future Stanford roommate, in which she decided to be true to herself (self-described as weird and quirky), and spoke about her love for Kpop, manga, and pizza. Making sure to make a big deal of asking if her roommate liked Hawaiian pizza, because as far as she’s concerned, pineapple on pizza is the devil’s doing. Karim mentioned that in all honesty, she didn’t believe that she was the best candidate in terms of grades, but that it was her personality that gave her an edge over forty-five thousand other applicants. And where else can we show our personalities other than our essays?

Obviously we have to strike a balance, and like everything writing an unconventional essay poses a risk, but it also presents an opportunity to transform your application into a memorable one; to make you more than just numbers; and possibly to get you admitted into top schools.

BY ROBERT MYERS, PHD

A

recent study conducted by researchers at the Cincinnati Children’s Research Foundation looked at differences in brain activity comparing the times children spent on screens (TV, smartphones, tablets, laptops and desktop computers) versus reading a book.

They used MRI scanning to look at the functional brain connectivity patterns between the two activities. They found that brain connectivity is increased by the time children spend reading and decreased by the length of exposure to

screen-based media. Their bottom line conclusion was that the findings of t h e study “underscore the importance

of children reading to support healthy brain development and literacy and limiting screen time.

These findings support the importance of setting limits on screen time expressed by such organizations as the American Paediatric Association and the American Psychological Association.

Some children spend as much as five to eight hours devoted to screen time. While making digital media available to children, parents should also provide interesting reading material as well.

Furthermore, parents are encouraged to spend time reading with their children as well as discussing what they read together.

Parents should also work with their children to set up goals for reading time and track them and re-

ward them with praise for their accomplishments.

Simply limiting a child’s time spent on an activity does not always lead to engaging in activities that stimulate the brain, promote development, academic achievement and creativity. Parent’s need to provide alternatives and encourage participation. Reducing screen time without promoting positive alternatives most likely result in children saying they are bored and there is nothing fun to do.

Kids need time with their parents to grow and develop intellectually, physically and socially. Excessive screen times erode the time available for fun, positive, and en-

richi n g p a r ent/ child

interactions.

The key to reducing screen time is to work on a balance of activity for children and parents. In addition to increasing time spent reading and discussing what is read, physical activity, creative play and family fun time should be in the mix. Time spent discussing the day among all members of the family is also important to encourage connectivity. In The Well-balanced Family, I discuss these alternatives and more as well as provide suggestions and tools you can use to begin moving toward a balance of activities for all family members that will strengthen family ties, reduce conflicts in the home as well as reduce stress and improve psychological and physical health for all family members. (childdevelopmentinfo.com)

news

7

SunDAY, april 8, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

US sanctions on Russian tycoon

Rusal Guyana monitoring situation – company official

T

op management of the Rusal-owned Bauxite Company of Guyana Incorporated (BCGI/ RUSAL) are continuously monitoring the situation globally after United States imposed blacklisting sanctions on a number of Russian businessmen and officials.

Among those sanctioned by the US is Russian business tycoon Oleg Deripaska, main owner of the EN+ conglomerate, co-owner of Rusal.

A management official at level of Rusal’s operations here told Guyana Times yesterday that the company is now awaiting word from the Moscow office. The official noted that it is too early to ascertain whether or what impact the sanction could have on the company’s operations here.

“These are early times.

We’ve all heard of it, but this (is) the weekend and so we don’t know for sure what’s going on, until maybe in the new week. At this time, everybody just have their ears open, listening to see what we can pick up. Our head office is shut in Moscow, so we don’t know what is happening at this time,” the official noted.

Asked whether there has been any meeting among top management at the company locally since news of the sanc-

destabilizing activities,” the US statement added.

The Treasury Department warned that US entities would be “generally prohibited” from dealings with the persons and firms on the sanctions list, while added that

Rusal operations in Linden

tions broke, the manager explained that there is usually a managers’ review meeting in the mornings to discuss operations in the past 24 hours. The official added that nothing on the sanctions or from Moscow was formally brought up.

The company official went on to say that since the news broke on Friday, there has not been any change to operations here. However, while reiterating that it is still too early to make an assessment, the official noted that, over the past three weeks or so, the company has being making “huge investments” in equipment to improve operations in Guyana.

“We have lots of forks, excavators and everything that are coming in. As a matter of fact, as we speak right now, there’re three huge trucks

that came in, and they’ve just been launched and put into operation. This would have been so sudden, so abrupt… and I don’t think anybody could have estimated that something like this would’ve happened, but it would be too early to speculate what could happen,” the official asserted.

The US Treasury Department, in a statement on Friday, announced the sanctions against seven Russian oligarchs, 12 companies they either own or control, and 17 senior Government officials who Washington said were profiting from the Russian Government’s engagement in “a range of malign activities” around the world.

“Russian oligarchs and elites who profit from this corrupt system will no longer be insulated from the consequences of their government’s

companies outside the United States could face sanctions for “knowingly facilitating significant transactions for, or on behalf of,” the sanctioned entities.

A report published by Reuters on Friday said that

the US Government’s decision to include Deripaska on its sanctions blacklist will reverberate around the world, because his business empire has a global footprint and counts major multinationals as partners.

Turn to page 15

8 news

SunDAY, april 8, 2018 | guyanatimesGY.com

Extradition case

Motion filed to have matter transferred to High Court

A

ttorneys for Troy Anthony Thomas, the man who is wanted in the United States for murder, are seeking to have the High Court hear the extrication petition that is currently being pursued at the Magistrate’s Court level.

Nigel Hughes and Bernard Da Silva, who are representing Thomas, on Friday filed a motion in the High Court to stop proceedings in the extradition matter at the Magistrate’s Court and have it transferred to the High Court.

According the defence attorneys, the Magistrate’s Court does not have the jurisdiction to hear the case, which is filed under the Fugitive Offenders Act. These actions came after the matter was called before Acting Chief Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus last month.

Attorney DaSilva during his preliminary submission, told the court his client was being deprived of his liberty

Murder accused: Troy Anthony Thomas

for the purpose of extradition to the USA, contrary to the prohibitive provision of the Fugitive Offenders Act 1998.

DaSilva further added that Thomas’ detention was unlawful and unconstitutional, since the 1993 Extradition Treaty made between the UK and USA, to which Guyana succeeded on its attainment of independence in 1966, contains no provision of the Fugitive

Offenders Act 1998.

He added that the treaty must contain: (a) provision for securing a fugitive offender, (b) once extradited to the requesting state, in this case the USA, will not be extradited to a third country without the consent of the Minister of the requested state.

Additionally, representative of the Government of the United States of America, Stacy Gooding, has request-

ed time from the court to produce statement bundles.

The issue of judication of the court will be heard in the High Court on April 13 before Justice Jo-Ann Barlow.

Thomas was arrested after an intelligence-led operation by ranks of the Guyana Police Force, which commenced on January 31, 2018, after an arrest warrant was issued by US law enforcement for him.

Thomas was being hunted by the New York Police Department, and a wanted bulletin was issued for him in connection with the 2011 murder of 20-year-old Keith Frank during an altercation outside a South Richmond Hill party.

It was then disclosed by US law enforcement agents that Thomas had fled the country to Canada within hours of his alleged crime.

Shortly after, the man reportedly travelled to Guyana before the wanted bulletin which was issued by the US had reached Interpol.

Gold miner walks free from trespassing charge

A

gold miner was on Friday freed of a trespassing charge that was filed against him.

Joseph Calistro appeared in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan. The 24-year-old of Port Kaituma, Region One (Barima-Waini), pleaded guilty when the charge was read to him.

He told the court that he

had an explanation for the guilty plea.

The prosecution contended that on April 3, 2018, Calistro, while in the vicinity of Coomaka Water Front, was found scaling the fence which secures the property of Virtual Complainant (VC) Cynthia Khan. The VC subsequently called the Police and the miner was arrested.

In his defence, Calistro

told the court the on the day in question, he was waiting for transportation under a shed in the said area when he was approached by four men who asked him what he was doing there.

He said that he replied saying, “who is yall to ask me that”? He related that the men then armed themselves with pieces of wood that were nearby and were about to beat him.

“I had nowhere to run.

I only had two options; either to go left or right and that how I ended up just over she fence to run away from them, I had no intentions to jump the fence,” Calistro explained.

Following his explanation, the Magistrate reprimanded the defendant then discharged the case against him.

Poetry…

E

…and prose

ven though March 21 was officially, “World Poetry Day”, the Social Cohesion Ministry commemorated it last Friday night at the Umana Yana. Your Eyewitness wondered whether it was an effort to correct an oversight or an afterthought. Since the evening was hosted by Minister Norton and was dedicated to the late Guyanese writer and poet Wilson Harris, under the theme “Heart of the Forest”, maybe it was a matter of seeking roots??

But your Eyewitness was disappointed that even though (according to the Chronic) “The event was hosted by the Ministry of Social Cohesion’s Department of Culture, Youth and Sport, and produced by the National School of Theatre Arts and Drama and the National Drama Company” there wasn’t more than two dozen bodies present – including the folks roped in from the embassies to give an “international” flavour.

What does this say about us Guyanese? That we’re just a bunch of Philistines or yahoos, who have no time for the deeper things of life? Or is it by picking someone like Wilson Harris – who made being ‘arcane” into his special oeuvre and is from another century, to boot – to exemplify “poetry” the organisers just made the evening irrelevant? How about if they’d brought someone to expose us to, say, Dub Poetry, which came out of the gullies of Jamaica after the revolution spawned by the expulsion of our own Dr Walter Rodney? He’d scratched the scabs off the sores of colonialism kept alive by our “own” politicians??

But then again, here in Guyana those who’ve claimed the legacy of Walter Rodney have sold their souls to those who have sworn to uphold the legacy of his assassinator!! One would’ve hoped someone would have put into poetry that ultimate act of betrayal of the poor and the powerless. Surely, we’ve moved past the time when Martin Carter’s poems of resistance were dismissed in as too “political”. What’s poetry if it doesn’t speak truth to power??

And that’s why poetry is irrelevant to most of the Guyanese people! We enter our “institutions of earning” and still have to “cram” poetry that have absolutely nothing to do with our lives. Poetry is supposed to offer a path for us to directly apprehend – not comprehend, which is the task of prose – truths that can offer us liberation out of the miasma in which we’re trapped.

But then most governments – and especially THIS Government – wouldn’t want the scales to drop from our eyes, would they? Revolution time!!

Burnham once gave Martin Carter ‘wuk” as “Minister of Information”. He soon quit and composed his even more relevant: “The mouth is muzzled by the hands that feed it”. It still is!

…and parking

And talking about “deeper truths”, your Eyewitness hopes poetry isn’t necessary to apprehend what’s going on between the central government and City Hall on the parking metre abomination. You did hear the former say they don’t want to “interfere” with the lower level of government, didn’t you?? Didn’t bother them when they stopped that RDC flag-raising ceremony over in Corriverton, though…did it?

It’s all about protecting their “own”. Patricia Chase Green and Royston King are family who’re tasked with keeping the capital faithful in the PNC corral. They knows while the excesses of the two and the big ones on the City Council may seem outrageous and egregious to outsiders, real PNCites makes no apologies for their leaders living “high off the hog”. They live vicariously in their offal!!

Big money had to’ve passed under the table for Smart City to get that sweetheart contract. That the Government’s accepting it’s illegal signing – which makes it “void ab initio” – shows they’re in the deal.

One for all and all for one!! …and Police harassment What’s an AFC MP to do to get some respect from the Police. Charandass Persaud complained he was harassed because, being Indian, the Cops assumed he was PPP. Would it have helped if, like Nagamootoo, he’d said he wasn’t Indian?

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

news

9

SunDAY, april 8, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Corentyne rice farmers seek assistance after investing $148M

One of the blocked canals which the rice farmers are seeking to have Government clear

A

griculture Minister Noel Holder; Junior Finance Minister Jaipaul Sharma; Chief Executive Officer of the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA), Fredrick Flatts; and other officials from the Agriculture and Finance ministries, along with Prime Ministerial Regional Representative Gobin Harbhajan, on Friday visited a farming co-op located 14 miles inland the Central Corentyne Coast, where 30 farmers have pooled their resources and invested some $148 million to develop 3000 acres of rice

land, but are able to cultivate only one crop of rice per year as a result of poor drainage and irrigation that obtains.

Because of a shortage of land in the front areas of the Corentyne Coast, the farmers, belonging to the Corentyne Youth Farmers Co-op Society, have made this investment in the backlands, but they cannot get water when it is most needed.

The area they occupy, which was under rich cultivation from the 1960s up to the early 1970s, was occupied by the co-op ten years ago, but cultivation commenced in 2011.

Vice Chairman of the Corentyne Youth Farmers Co-op Society, Ahmad Rajab, during this visit from the ministries, revealed that it cost each member about $5 million to develop the area.

“That is millions out of people’s own pockets (with) no help from the Government. We are only getting one crop (of rice) per year, so we are asking for some help to dig out a canal. It is a lot of money we invested, and when we lose a crop it is very hard; so we are asking (for) help, and (assistance to) dig a canal so that we can get better drainage,” Rajan explained.

Rajab told the media that the farmers’ goal is to be able to cultivate two crops per year. “We only get the spring crop, they call that the big crop. The May/ June crop, we always miss it because it is, like, too much rainfall.”

He noted that all that is needed for the co-op to be able to plant two crops is drainage. “Our co-op is fully functional, and every piece of land is noticeably under cultivation. Lack of proper drainage is the main element stopping us from achieving two crops per year.”

Following a tour of the

Thieves raid businesses in Kalyan Mall

T

The Kalyan Shopping Plaza

wo businesses were on Friday evening raided by suspected bandits following a break-and-enter at the Kalyan Shopping Mall located on Lamaha Street, Georgetown.

The discovery was reportedly made at about 08:00h on Saturday, when employees of the store turned up for work and realised that the His and Hers Clothing Store on the second floor and the Euphoria Beauty Salon on the lower

The window through which the thieves gained entry

flat had been burglarised.

The superintendent of the building said the robbers gained entry into the shopping plaza via a window which leads to the clothing store, which was found open.

This newspaper understands that surveillance footage obtained from a neighbouring building showed a man leaving the premises of the mall with a black bag which is suspected to contain the stolen

10-year-old raped during kite flying outing

A

ten-year-old girl was allegedly raped on Easter Monday while out kite flying with friends at Hampton Court, Essequibo Coast, in Region Two. According to reports, the Grade Five student went home complaining of feeling unwell, and her father took her to the Suddie Public Hospital. Following a medical examination, it was dis-

covered that the child was sexually penetrated. As such, the Police were called in, and a report was made by the child’s father.

Guyana Times understands the child gave the Police a statement about the incident, which occurred in her home village. She has since been hospitalized as investigations continue.

items.

Owner of the His and Hers Clothing Store, Priya Sookram, told Guyana Times on Saturday that while a full assessment of her losses has not been conducted, it is estimated that over $1 million in goods were stolen, which include clothes, shoes and fragrances.

The matter was reported to the Brickdam Police Station and an investigation has been launched, but no one has been arrested.

Ministers Jaipaul Sharma and Noel Holder speaking with some of the rice farmers

cultivated area, the NDIA CEO, Fredrick Flatts, said drainage works will commence shortly. Flatts, who had previously visited the cultivation, said the work of digging a canal from the coop lands to the outflow channel is likely to commence in June.

“In 2016, myself and another engineer visited the area to see how best we can assist farmers with drainage. A proposal was submitted, and I am happy to say that we are now in the pro-

curement stage. Once things remain on schedule, works are expected to commence within the next two months,” Flatts assured.

Agriculture Minister Noel Holder noted that climate change is affecting Guyana, and a number of drainage pumps are being installed across the Guyana coast. He explained that this is being done to maintain production, and not to increase production.

Minister Holder also spoke of efforts being made

by the Agriculture Ministry to make more lands available to farmers with the aim of expanding production and productivity. Nevertheless, he commended the co-op on the initiative.

Expansion of rice cultivation comes in light of new markets secured by the Guyana Rice Development Board over the last year.

Junior Finance Minister Jaipaul Sharma said he was pleased to see a co-op functioning so effectively.

(Andrew Carmichael)

10 news

SunDAY, april 8, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Local media undergo training on parliamentary reporting

T

he Parliament Office has teamed up with the Canadian High Commission, the Guyana Press Association (GPA) as well as the Caribbean Association of Media Workers (ACM) to host a training workshop for local journalists to sharpen their reporting skills of parliamentary affairs.

The two-day media

The two-day media training on parliamentary coverage is being held in Parliament Chambers

At the head table: GPA President Nazima Raghubir; ACM Executive Member Wesley Gibbings; Canadian High Commissioner Lilian Chatterjee; and House Speaker, Dr Barton Scotland at the opening of the media training on Saturday

training commenced on Saturday and aims to improve the media’s knowledge of parliamentary practices and procedures, improve the media’s understanding of its role in an evolving democracy and consider the tenets of journalistic ethics vis-à-vis parliamentary coverage.

Speaking at the opening of the workshop, President of the GPA Nazima

Raghubir, recognised the training as necessary, critical and important for paving the way for the media to be a responsible force in a growing democracy.

“We the media have a major role to play in the development of this country as well as ensuring that the democratic processes and channels are intact. To do that, to play our role, to do our jobs we must be informed, we

must be knowledgeable and most importantly, we must be responsible. I see this training, over the next two days, the beginning of a long overdue conversation and a critical conversation that we, the media and the Parliament including Members of the Parliament, needed to have,” she posited.

Raghubir went on to say that this training opportunity should be used to understand respective roles and also to listen to each other so that the average citizens would benefit in the long run. The GPA President encouraged the participants to engage and have frank discussions during the workshop.

Among the facilitators of the training session is Executive Member and former President of the (ACM), Wesley Gibbings,

who underscored the importance of the Parliament and the media in a democracy. He noted that these two institutions are indispensible to the democratic process. “…We have these two institutions of Parliament and of the media because their chief functionaries comprising essentially journalists and politicians are two groups of people who love to hate each other. So we have these two groups of people who are in a perpetual station of contestation for different things. And the impact on democracy is that tensions between these two groups of people ought to be creative tensions that would lead us to a path of democracy and because of that democracy, on a path of a development,” the ACM Executive noted.

Also joining Gibbings on the facilitator panel is Editor-in-Chief of Trinidad’s Newsday and former parliamentary journalist, Judy Raymond.

Meanwhile, Canadian High Commissioner Lilian Chatterjee too highlighted the importance of such a training session, while reiterating her country’s commitment to supporting such initiatives. turn to page 17

Policing SOPs

S

atiricus was livid. On one hand, his hard-working leader Nagga Man had returned from his medical sojourn in the States and from his vaunted position in the top echelons in Government was sure to bring Guyanese hospitals to First World standards.

Already the British had been so ashamed Nagga Man had to go to the Yanks for medical treatment, they’d already pumped in funds to boost four hospitals.

“But look at the way the Police treated my MP Chandra Rass!” he exploded to the fellas at the Back Street Bar, where he’d arrived.

“Tek am easy, Sato!” advised Cappo, pushing a beer towards Satiricus. “De Police only bin a do dem jaab!”

“Job!?! Job!?!” Satiricus almost screamed. “The man is a Member of Parliament!!”

“Budday!! Four big man a drive wan 4x4 middle a de nite,” Bungi said, “wha’ yuh waan de Police fuh t’ink?”

“That’s ‘profiling’!” said Satiricus exasperatedly.

“They can’t do that!”

“But the Police told Charan Rass their vehicle was driving all over the road,” pointed out Hari mildly. “And we know they had come back from a Parika to Bartica excursion!!”

“An’ dem na tek dem wife!?” said Cappo. “Me know wha’ guh laang deh!!”

“Charan Rass only piss de Police aff w’en ‘e tell dem ‘da a wan ole Police line’!” advised Bungi solemnly. “’E shoulda aks fuh de rum-breat’ tes’,” “That’s the problem,” said Satiricus who was still upset. “They took him to the station because they didn’t have a breath-analyser with them!”

“You should complain to your leader Rum Jhaat,” said Hari. “How he expect the Police to enforce his curfew?”

“An’ wha’ mek ‘e shout a de Police dat ‘e a wan MP?” asked Cappo. “Me wou’da t’row ‘e rass in jail!”

“Well, he did say he’ll complain to Public Security Minister Rum Jhaat and the Police Commish – and even Prezzie,” said Satiricus. “That’ll teach the Police to disrespect a KFC MP!!”

“My friend, the Police only following suit,” said Hari softly. “The KFC disrespected themselves after they allowed the Pee-an’-See to treat them like doormats.”

news

11

SunDAY, april 8, 2018 | guyanatimesGY.com

Thieves raid New Amsterdam church Heroic Winnie Mandela

By Ryhaan Shah

T

he world lost a hero this week in Winnie MadikizelaMandela. She died age 81. She was a major campaigner against the injustices of the apartheid system in South Africa and, in an article for the British newspaper “The Guardian”, journalist Afua Hirsch wrote that the charges that had been brought against her for the murder of the teenager Stompie Moeketsi had been an attempt by the apartheid regime to smear her and her followers.

Hirsch went on to write about Winnie Mandela: “She was, as the world’s media have had to be repeatedly reminded this week, not an ‘activist’: she was a leader in a liberation struggle. She survived – during more than 35 years of apartheid – surveillance, threats, harassment, arrest and imprisonment, 491 days in solitary confinement and eight years in exile. The methods of torture used against her included, according to one account, denying her sanitary products so that she was found, in detention, covered in her own menstrual blood.”

Some of the press coverage on her death referred to her as a “bully” and as “controversial”. But others saw her, as Hirsch did, as heroic. A woman whose husband had been unjustly imprisoned and was left to bring up the family alone was, perhaps, expected to while away her years quietly and with womanly patience. That Winnie Mandela never did. There was too much at stake and there are a few places that you can hear her speak of her experiences in her own words.

One such is in VS Naipaul’s travel book The Masque of Africa published in 1988. Naipaul’s travels took him through central and southern Africa and he wrote about his experiences and about the people he met along the way.

When he reached Soweto, South Africa, he sought an interview with Winnie Mandela. “You have no idea what the name Mandela meant,” she told Naipaul. “It meant imprisonment and interrogation. This was a period where people vanished or were killed by the security forces for being members of the [African National Congress] ANC. The greatest danger was the leadership would perish in prison, and that people would get disheartened and lose faith. So I exposed myself, and did it quite deliberately. I had by then lost all fear. When you undergo every possible humiliation or torture, there is nothing left. You lose all fear. One night they just came and threw all my things in a van, and I was banished to a desolate place for nine years.”

About her husband, Nelson Mandela, who divorced her on his release from prison amidst the scandal of her involvement in Stompie’s murder, she said, “You must remember that the Mandela who went in” – went in: went to jail – “was a revolutionary, and the Mandela who came out was preaching peace and compromise …. The way to dilute a person is to commercialise him, and they have.

The man who went to prison would not have allowed this commercialisation ….”

Of South Africa’s freedom, she told Naipaul that it was a “compromised freedom” and a “white confidence measure” that “took malleable blacks and made them partners. But those who had struggled and had given blood were left with nothing ….”

This past week, I was a panellist on a forum arranged by the University of Guyana on “Race, Reality and Reconciliation in Guyana” where everyone spoke positively about the idea of a reconciliation process. Winnie Mandela had a very different take on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa. She was scornful, Naipaul wrote, and thought “it was especially hard for black people, who had suffered so much, to appear before that Commission and condemn themselves for resisting.”

“It should be an individual process and not forced on a society,” she said. “I think it is a terrible insult to women and men who sacrificed their lives for removing apartheid.

They had to go and account for their actions. Not many people know what it was like living under that regime day in and day out. What they forget is that for over four decades black people had lived as non-people. The abnormality of racism had become a normal reality for them. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission was not a realistic idea. It opened up wounds that could not heal …. I was not the least bit sorry for what I did.”

Naipaul wrote that he was astonished by the passion in her reply when he asked her how much had survived in her of her tribal Xhosa culture. “I am defined by my culture,” Winnie Mandela said.

May she rest in peace.

The damaged door Church of Christ in New Amsterdam

T

hieves broke into the Church of Christ in New Amsterdam and escaped with over $2 million in valuables from the place of worship.

Reports are the incident took place sometime early Friday morning. Speaking with Guyana Times, Minister of the church, Samuel Singh said at about 20:30h on Thursday evening, the building, which is located at Republic Road and St

Magdalene Street, was secured. However, when a member of the church turned up at about 05:00h to turn off the lights at the facility, he discovered that the building was burglarised.

He said when he got there the entire building was ransacked. A window leading to the male washroom was ripped opened. The perpetrators used an old grill as a ladder to gain access to the win-

dow. They then removed the grill to that window.

He said when they went into the building and visited the upper flat, a steel door which secures a storeroom was prised open and items valuing almost $2.5 million were taken.

Among the articles listed as stolen were microwaves, blenders, silver wear, crystals and a number of other dining utensils along with kitchen utensils. Inflated mattresses,

clothing, and shoes are just a fraction of the list of items removed from the church.

“The Church of Christ has a feeding programme for schools and a hot meal programme for pensioners. Our brothers in the US have made contributions to our kitchen. We had breakages in the past and they have emptied our kitchen so recently we received eight barrels that were all filled with wears and microwaves and all the different things that aid us in our feeding programme and more so when we have church fellowship within ourselves and when we host other member congregations we have the facility; that is what the upstairs is for,” Singh explained.

A next-door neighbour reportedly saw when the burglars were breaking into the building but was too terrified to report it to the Police.

The Police have reviewed the surveillance footage taken and are on the hunt for two suspects.

12 news

SunDAY, april 8, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Addressing drug shortages

MoPH modernising delivery systems – Lawrence …as Linden Hospital receives critical supplies

J

ust over a day after nurses at the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC) staged a sit in after repeatedly complaining of drug shortages, Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence said the Ministry is modernising delivery systems to address the sore point.

Over the years, the health sector have been plagued by drug shortages and to address that, Lawrence noted that the Ministry has hired a consultant who has worked with The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to develop a plan for the retrofitting of Guyana’s medicine and medical supplies distri-

bution system.

“That consultant is presently doing a mapping in terms of where we need to send drugs directly instead of it going through the region. So, we are looking at those areas that are locked in like Upper Mazaruni, Paramakatoi, Orella so that we can be able to develop a response so that those drugs do not go to the regional health facility,” she explained.

“We have already started to ensure that a few of them, their drugs are going directly like Paramakatoi and Kato because it is easier for us to send from Georgetown to those places instead of sending it to Mahdia Hospital

and then they disburse it.

We find that is more cheaper and more effective. We are working on the other locations now,” Lawrence added.

She further stated that they have started extending the Diamond Drug Bond and is currently constructing a new bond at Kingston, since the old one is non-functional. She noted that once completed, it would see the installation of an electronic system so that they will be able to readily have access to information to ensure that “transparency and accountability are more centred.”

Additionally, she explained that they are also clamping down on staff-

ers who are found stealing drugs.

Just last year, Lawrence blamed a conspiracy among some drug suppliers and Public Health Ministry staff for the crisis in the sector.

She said she unearthed a combination of collusion, deliberate breaching of established sector protocols by public health staff, manipulation of the system by some importers with the support of employees and a fabrication of records including evidence of bogus receipts.

“We have had to call in the Police to deal with staff who are selling drugs to private pharmacies,” Lawrence disclosed shortly after taking up the post as Public Health Minister.

Meanwhile, the Linden Hospital has received its critical drug supplies, an issue which caused its nursing staff to stage a three-hour sit in at the medical institution on Thursday last. According to the hospital’s Public Relations Officer (PRO), Toshanna Alicock, the much-needed medical supplies were received by the hospital on Thursday evening and the issue is settled for the time being.

Alicock noted that a decision was made to temporarily acquire critical drug supplies after the hospital’s management had teleconferenced with Minister Lawrence and Director of Regional Health Services, Dr Kay Shako to address

Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence

the issue. It was then decided that the LHC will be acquiring supplies through the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) temporarily, and later, representatives were sent to Georgetown to uplift the first set of these supplies from the GPHC. She noted, however, that this is only a “temporary fix” until the previous system of acquiring drugs is straightened out with the Materials Management Unit (MMU) bond. She added that the drugs, which were being acquired under the temporary arrangement fall under the critical drugs, pharmaceuticals and medical and surgical supplies heading.

Additionally, Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU)

Regional Representative Maurice Butters, who met with the protesting staff, said they related frustration over the lack of work materials and facilities and therefore decided to conduct the sit in. He said the staff, in speaking to the hospital’s CEO on Thursday last, would have raised concerns over these issues which they explained have been affecting them for months.

However, the Public Health Ministry said it was currently investigating the circumstances and addressing the issues which resulted in the LHC recording a shortage of medical supplies.

According to a statement issued by the Public Health Ministry, during the period of March 6 to March 21, medical supplies were ordered by the Linden Hospital Complex from the MMU. On March 6, 16 of the 24 items requested were delivered, and on March 18, 91 of the 171 items ordered were received. While it is normal procedure for the Linden Hospital to purchase drugs and other medical supplies whenever there was a shortage, the Public Health Ministry notes, as a result of poor forecasting, all the money the Hospital possessed had already been spent during the first quarter of the year. As such, the Ministry has commenced the implementation of necessary measures to correct this situation.

news

13

SunDAY, april 8, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Banks DIH commissions new vehicle workshop …aims at providing 100 jobs

Who speaks for whom?

R

ecently, Tacuma Ogunseye of ACDA and the WPA made a rather startling claim in his letter, “I concentrate on the African community, so it can develop progressive politics based on power-sharing” (SN 4-4-2018): “I recall in the run-up to the historic 1992 General and Regional Elections with the arrival of Ravi Dev and his ROAR party, Dev introduced the doctrine (sic) that Africans cannot speak for Indians and that the WPA was promoting political deception by making the claim that it is a multiracial party… The 1992 elections resulted in victory for the PPP/C and demonstrated that the Dev doctrine worked to the advantage of that party.”

I recall the facts quite differently. Firstly, Rise, Organise And Rally (ROAR) – against crime – was not even formed until January 17, 1999, following the brutal attacks on Indians in Georgetown on January 12, 1998.

Secondly, Ogunseye is confusing the point we made to the political parties then Ravi Dev about “what is” and what they thought “ought to be” on voting preferences which came almost a decade before.

Since returning in 1989, I found the political parties making all sorts of claims about their political support.

The WPA had an inflated estimation of their support and this played a great part in the break-up of the “Patriotic Coalition for Democracy” (PCD). This had been formed by Opposition parties opposing the illegal PNC regime, and which most had hoped would contest the elections on a single slate.

In August 1991, some individuals, ,including Baytoram Ramharack, who was completing his PhD dissertation from NYU, and myself, conducted what we believe to be the first poll checking political preferences in Guyana. The poll, conducted under the name “Turkeyen Research and Polling Institute” (TRPI) was published in the SN. Expressed as a per cent of the total electorate of 384,000, and comparing the results to the 1992 elections shows:

The WPA, however, were still convinced they could win the elections with their “real” multi-racial support. A month after the poll, in an SN interview of 9-15-91, WPA’s presidential candidate, Dr Clive Thomas declared, “I really do feel that the WPA will do exceptionally well in this election…even me who is considered the most pessimistic of the leadership in the party about our prospects.” In a December 1991 SN article, a WPA executive on the PCD vehemently rejected the TRPI numbers. Speculating on the influence of race (declining), the youth factor (increasing), new Indian leaders, crowd attendance etc, he declared conclusively: “I would put the PNC a considerable distance behind the WPA…Frankly I believe it (PNC support) to be around 10-12 per cent.”

On September 30, 1992, five days before the elections, I repeated this point in a letter to SN and said, “October 5 will test our hypothesis” (not “doctrine) about voting preferences. The hypothesis was vindicated.

What brought about the colloquy between the WPA and myself and Baytoram Ramharack was the publication of SN report on a September 15 WPA Kitty launch of its manifesto captioned, “WPA says PPP is predominantly an Indian racial party” where Clive Thomas was quoted as saying those words. I said (SN September 19, 1992) that “The WPA was playing a dangerous game” since, as the party claiming ownership of the “multi-racial” space, it chose to only attack the PPP for its Indian support base and not the PNC for its African support base.

I pointed out, “In their constant drumbeat of an “Indian party” winning political power; of Indians controlling economic power and having strong cultural institutions and Africans losing it all…they are repeating the campaign of New Nation 1960-61 which created a mindset in African Guyanese leading directly to the riots of 1962.”

A

new vehicle workshop has been commissioned by Banks DIH (D’Aguiar’s Industries and Holdings) Limited on Saturday.

The workshop, which is located at Caribanks, opposite Thirst Park, was launched in the company of Minister of State Joseph Harmon; Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson; along with representatives of the diplomatic corps.

Speaking at the event, Minister Harmon explained that this initiative will aid in the in the development of the ties between Guyana and its Private Sector.

“I’m happy to note that the majority of the Private Sector are out there, doing things and taking advantage of these glorious opportunities which now present themselves,” he stated.

He further added that

The newly commissioned vehicle workshop facility

the investments in Guyana are increased with such projects. The introduction of this workshop is expected to provide employment for some 100 persons. As such, Harmon requested that jobs be given to young qualified Guyanese.

Meanwhile, Marketing Director of Banks DIH, George Mc Donald, gave a brief insight on the project which took approximately

two years to complete.

“We expect to see optimised fleets of availability and the provision of the best possible building services and environmental control support in this location. This new facility has been given the task of providing technical support for our fleet of over 200 vehicles,” said Mc Donald.

He added that this is “just the beginning” and Guyana will see much more

in the future. Along with the new workshop, the facilities feature a power generation plant, a waste water treatment plant and a waste plastics facility which was created to engage in clean enterprises of manufacturing. The company is also considering investing further in the expansion of the facilities which has outgrown the large-scale manufacturing plant.

14 news

sunDAY, april 8, 2018| guyanatimesgy.com

Venezuelan Govt suspends Copa Airlines' operation

…passengers to be reimbursed

W

ith the suspension of the economic, commercial and financial relationship by Venezuela with the Republic of Panama, flights by Copa Airlines, which is a Panamabased carrier, was also suspended by the Venezuelan Government.

This was revealed on Saturday by the airline which stated that the suspension is expected to last for 90 days.

As such, those persons who are scheduled to fly to Venezuela within this period of time, will be fully reimbursed, the airlines said.

In a statement issued to the media, Copa Airlines said they have offered a reimbursement option without penalties, for the total value of unused airlines tickets.

Guyanese passengers, who may have commenced their flight, are also eligible to receive reimbursement without penalties for the unused route.

In addition, passengers who wish to change their final destination are allowed to do so without any extra charges by April 20.

However, they must travel before July 4, 2018.

According to the airline, there are also some criteria, which must be considered.

This includes that passengers who are flying between North America and Mexico and Venezuela may change any of Copa Airlines final destinations in Panama, Central America, the Caribbean, Guyana, Colombia, Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia.

Passengers flying between Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Chile and Venezuela can change the final destination of their flight to any of the airline’s destination in Panama, Central America, the Caribbean, Guyana, Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia and Miami.

Persons who are travelling between Central America, Panama, the

Caribbean, Guyana, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia and Venezuela are allowed to change their flight’s destination to the airline’s destination in Panama, Central America, the Caribbean, Guyana, Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia and Miami.

While noting that there are a large number of passengers who will be affected by this implementation, the process by which persons are compensated will take longer than the usual time by which it is normally done. These steps are furthermore taken to reaffirm its commitment to the safety of its customers.

Recently, flights were suspended between Panama and Venezuela

by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro after Panama placed Maduro

along with some 50 Venezuelan nationals on a list, which contained persons who are considered a high risk for money laundering.

Conversely, the Panamanian President, Juan Carlos Varela re-

sponded by highlighting the fact that the suspension will affect Venezuelans much more since they rely on Panama for the provision of medical and food supply to tackle the shortages which they face.

The country is current-

ly in a serious crisis following hyperinflation and shortages in food and medicine which resulted in many leaving the country to seek refuge in other places, a prominent one being its neighbour, Guyana.

Sod turned for new Lands and Surveys office in Berbice

Minister Joseph Harmon, Commissioner of the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GLSC) Trevor Benn, Region Six Chairman David Armogan, New Amsterdam Mayor Winifred Heywood, and Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the GLSC, Paulette Henry turned the sod for the construction of a GLSC office

M

inister of State Joseph Harmon r e i t e r a t e d Government’s intention to decentralise Government services, as he turned the sod for the construction of the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission’s (GLSC) new office in New Amsterdam, in Region Six (East BerbiceCorentyne).

At a simple ceremony held at the location secured for the projected $30.8 million con-

struction project, Minister Harmon said Government has a responsibility to ensure that all services of the State are available to all the people of Guyana, regardless of geographic location, political affiliation or any other factor.

Minister Harmon also addressed the staff of the Commission present, noting that the new building should not be about the office space for the staff and convenience but more importantly, it

should represent the quality of service, which the people of Guyana have a right to expect from the public service.

With the construction of the new building in New Amsterdam, the Commission expects that the Board of Directors will now be able to take its meetings to the various locations to interact more with the residents of the areas. turn to page 17

news

15

SunDAY, april 8, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Linden to clamp down on heavy-duty trucks using bridges, roadways Foreign experts in oil and gas fiscal management and the strategic vision not necessary (Part II) - international consultants in other technical areas of oil and gas operations are deemed necessary

I

n the previous column, this author contended that the Government’s engagement of high-level international experts in oil and gas is not absolutely necessary – and in fact – this practice is one in which huge amounts of the nation’s financial resources are wasted to pay these experts. This contention was premised on the fact that these experts simply came into this country and regurgitated the same things that this author and many other Guyanese finance professionals and economists, already envisage as regards the fiscal framework for the petroleum industry, local content and the likely lifespan of this new industry.

In other words, it is a waste of time, money, and other crucial resources to hire foreign experts in certain professional fields of expertise that we already have locally at our disposal and in the Diaspora. However, this columnist is not entirely against the need for the Government to solicit the service of international experts and/or consultants; in fact we do need this level of professional service as it relates to the embryonic petroleum sector. In this regard, in the concluding section of this article, suggestions will be made with respect to what aspects of the oil and gas operations we do need some independent international experts and these are critical areas which the Government seemingly have not thought necessary to engage such experts to properly advice and guide the country, or perhaps, it has not occurred to them as yet. This article therefore seeks to stimulate their thinking at the cabinet level, to consider these suggestions.

As indicated last week, this week’s article is dedicated to continue the comparison of the quality of advice provided by these experts, particularly the Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) as against those that were previously provided by this author not too long ago – in a series of seven articles under this column (the sole intent of doing so is to simply lend validity and credibility of the contentions made herein). In this regard, the Chilean Sovereign Wealth Fund specialist, Eric Parrado says the Guyana Government needs to find an ideal balance in spending and saving its oil revenues. He went on to state that, “the Government should invest the oil revenues up to a certain point then save your money”. He also posited that Government needs to decide what will be the spending priorities whether it will be infrastructure, education or health. He further stated that the Government need to decide what will be the cap on spending per sector in those priority areas (Newsroom, March 23, 2018).

On January 14, 21 and 28 – February 4, 11, 18 and 25, 2018, a series of articles were featured under this column on a proposed framework for a SWF for Guyana. In the concluding edition of that series, this author posited that Guyana does not need a SWF at the onset of oil production. Instead, a Stabilisation Fund would be more appropriate – such that a greater portion of the oil revenues could or should be utilised to advance massive infrastructural developments among other crucial aspects of national development, which the country badly needs. In a developing economy, the merit of maximising current spending from resource revenues is that it provides an opportunity to increase the consumption of a poor population. It also relaxes potential borrowing constraints, and thereby enables increasing investment in domestic capital, with high rates of return.

Therefore, constraining spending, inter alia SWF, with restrictive spending rule may involve welfare loss; such a situation existed in Uganda (Hassler et al, 2015). Essentially, a Sovereign Wealth Fund is a savings fund for a country that has large surplus funds, and it is used to invest in various financial instruments in the global capital markets. In other words: if Guyana earns $100 billion in oil revenues, and it is then locked away for investment in an SWF in which those investments are going to earn, say, five or 10 per cent return on investment, would this model be of any direct economic benefit to the people of Guyana? The answer is no. Unfortunately, this may practically not happen. Guyana, has a Consolidated Fund that is almost always in deficit, and so is the national budget, which is almost always a deficit budget; which means that the country borrows heavily to fund budget spending. This is coupled with the fact that the country is a Third World country, and therefore needs massive investments in infrastructure, health care, education, information and communication technology etc. (Excerpts from the SWF series previously written by this author).

A critical area in which Guyana do needs international independent consultants, is to advice on the measures the multinational oil companies claimed have in place to respond to an oil spillage. Next week and the following week, the author shall examine this in greater depth.

The Author is the holder of a MSc. Degree in Business Management, with concentration in Global Finance, Financial Markets, Institutions & Banking from a UK university of international standing.

(For comments, questions and responses on articles featured in this column, readers can reach the author at jbinsights@outlook.com).

T

he administration of the Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) Democratic Council (RDC) has again decided to clamp down on defaulting timber and lumber trucks utilizing the Mackenzie-Wismar Bridge and internal roads in the Linden community.

The administration is particularly concerned about trucks which are not operating under standard regulation when using the roads and bridges, an issue recently highlighted by several members of the Council.

With Linden being a major link to interior locations, scores of these trucks pass through the community on a daily basis.

Councillor Douglas Gittens has registered particular concerns about overweight timber trucks utilising the bridge.

“Some of these guys have not been weighing or saying to us how much lumber they’re carrying. There’re big trees that are just tied with small chains that come across that bridge... Some of these trucks do not have a Road Service licence.

How are they fit to travel on the highways?” Gittens stressed.

Regional Chairman Renis Morian said these trucks should not be driving through populated areas of the community, but instead should utilise designated roads. He stressed that a system has never been given to the RDC as it relates to the rules concerning these trucks and the use of roads. The Regional Chairman said he has sent letters to the Guyana Forestry Commission and

Rusal Guyana monitoring...

from page 7

Deripaska, estimated by Forbes magazine to have a net worth of $6.7 billion, is the main owner of the conglomerate EN+, co-owner of some of the world’s biggest metals producers, Rusal and Nornickel.

According to the international news agency, Deripaska’s inclusion on the U.S. sanctions list could potentially create complications for companies with which he does business.

They include German car giant Volkswagen and commodities trader Glencore.

Rusal, Reuters reported, had said it regretted its inclusion on the U.S. sanctions list, adding that its advisors were studying the situation.

Hong Kong-listed Rusal is one of the world’s biggest aluminium producers. It says exports to the United States account for over 10 percent of its output.

Rusal owns assets in Italy, Ireland, Sweden, Nigeria, Guyana, Guinea. It owns a stake in Australian QAL, the world’s top alumina refinery.

The Mackenzie-Wismar Bridge

the Natural Resources Ministry seeking information on the regulations for these trucks, and is presently awaiting a response.

In the meantime, he said, the administration will be putting its own system in place at the bridge, in collaboration with Police and security personnel.

“If next week comes and we don’t get a response, we’re going to go with the rules we know would save lives,” Morian declared.

“This is what I’m saying on behalf of the residents of Region 10,” Morian declared.

Normally, during peak hours in the morning, the trucks would be allowed to pass, but residents have

been asking that they be made to park just where the scale is until the peak hours (end), and then they’ll be allowed to pass.

This system mandating that the trucks must not be on the road within certain hours commenced, and was also changed, under the previous administration, Morian said. He added that he wants this to be a standard procedure while the administration awaits a response.

He also shared his concern that some trucks do not carry cones which are utilized in the case of a breakdown, despite this being a legal requirement. Morian noted that the administration will seek to enforce this

in collaboration with the Police.

“If within three weeks these matters aren’t solved, I’m going to move with Council, we will go on the road and we will stop the trucks...and divert them where they’re supposed to go,” the Regional Chairman said.

Councillor Gordon Callender also pointed out that some truck drivers are not tying red cloth on their lumber as a signal to warn oncoming traffic, while Councillor Charles Sampson pointed out that, in some cases, overweight trucks are allowed to cross the bridge.

He said the section of the bridge on the Wismar side appears to be sinking as a result.

“One of these days, if we don’t control the weight on that bridge, the whole bridge will collapse, or it will go further down,” Sampson said, as he stressed that the diversion road needs to be properly surfaced at Block 22. In this regard, the Regional Chairman said letters were sent to relevant authorities for works to be done. (Utamu Belle)

16

news

SunDAY, april 8, 2018 | guyanatimesGY.com

US$460M pre-contract cost

Disaggregate, audit every cent before paying – financial consultant

T

he US$460 million which has been quoted as pre-contract sums the Guyana Government has to pay to ExxonMobil should be thoroughly disaggregated and audited before being paid to the oil giant.

This is the view of financial consultant John Seeram, who, in a recent interview with this publication, noted the importance of Guyana knowing exactly what it is paying for under the heading ‘pre-contract cost’.

“The latest I have read is that there is an invoice for US$460 million. And it is obvious that before the Government of Guyana makes any payment those accounts should be audited. That is where the role of the internal auditor comes in, and it is a very important role,” he said.

He noted: “Because you have to be very much aware of what you are auditing, and

Financial Consultant John Seeram

what is acceptable in the accounts and what is not acceptable by the Guyana Government in the determination of the $460 million. We have to audit that account, and I would personally advise: ‘do not pay until it is fully audited and a dollar amount determined’.”

Seeram, Chairman of the Institute of Internal Auditors

(IIA) Guyana chapter, also noted that it is important to get the disaggregated sums before any payment can be made. This, he noted, would provide detailed quotations, and persons would be able to judge whether the sums incurred should be paid by the Guyana Government, and not Exxon.

In a report done on the oil sector last year, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had urged the Guyana Government to start, as soon as possible, auditing all exploration and development costs being racked up by the oil company.

When he presented the 2018 budget last year, Finance Minister Winston Jordan had alluded to the impending establishment of an Oil and Gas Unit at the GRA. The IMF had said establishment of this unit should become a priority of the Government.

The pre-contract costs contained in the Production Sharing Agreement

“It will be important for this unit to start verifying and undertaking audits of costs incurred during the exploration and development phase, which is getting underway now. It would be advantageous to establish close working relations between the GRA and the sector regulators, to ensure that the limited petroleum sector expertise in Government is applied most efficiently,” the IMF had stated in its report.

The Stabroek Block is 6.6 million acres. Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited is the opera-

tor, and holds a 45 per cent interest in the Stabroek Block.

Hess Guyana Exploration Ltd holds a 30 per cent interest, and CNOOC Nexen Petroleum Guyana Limited holds a 25 per cent interest.

Since ExxonMobil’s 2015 oil find in Guyana, the country has attracted international attention, and this has precipitated intense sensitization exercises.

In May 2015, Exxon confirmed that more than 295 feet of high-quality, oil-bearing sandstone reservoirs were encountered at its Liza 1 explo-

ration well.

To give an idea of the company’s total investment, Exxon has put the Liza Phase 1 project costs at over US$4 billion.

It is estimated that the lease capitalization cost alone for the Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel is US$1.2 billion.

The company subsequently found oil in the Liza 2, Liza 3, Payara, Turbot 1 and Ranger 1 wells. It has also started drilling in its Pacora well, with additional drilling planned for this year.

Guyana will have to audit and verify cost oil claims Exxon will make on its revenue. Exxon is expected to use revenue from its production in order to recoup its capital investment. Whatever remains of this is the ‘profit oil’ Guyana will have to split with the oil company and its associates.

According to Annex C of the Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) Guyana signed with Exxon, pre-contract cost “shall include four hundred and sixty million, two hundred and thirty-seven thousand and nine hundred and eighteen United States Dollars (USS 460,237,918) in respect of all such costs incurred under the 1999 Petroleum Agreement prior to the year ended 2015.”

news

17

SunDAY, april 8, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Former Brazilian President Lula surrenders to Police

Cuyuni River murder/robbery

Hunt intensifies for bandits B as more Police flown to scene

A

s investigations continue into the murder of a Dominican Republic national and the subsequent robbery at a mining camp at Black Water, Cuyuni River, the Police have intensified their efforts to apprehend the three perpetrators.

The Guyana Police Force confirmed that the owner of the mining camp has provided the much-needed aerial support and as such, members of the Tactical Service Unit (TSU) and the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) were flown into the area.

Commander, Senior Superintendent Kevin

Adonis when contacted on Saturday, told Guyana Times that as of late Saturday afternoon, none of the masked and armed men were arrested but the Police ranks were combing the area. He is optimistic that the men will be apprehended and brought to justice.

Fifty-five-year-old Pedro Pablo Rosario was shot and killed on Friday morning after a group of armed, masked bandits invaded the mining camp.

According to information received, Rosario was at a location while four other workers, who were on duty. were some distance away.

Rosario was reportedly re-

laxing in a hammock when one of the bandits confronted him and discharged a round fatally shooting him.

The three suspects then went to the dredge area where they held the other workers at gunpoint and relieved them of two gold mats containing 100 ounces of gold from the sluice box after which they made good their escape.

The body of the dead man was air-lifted to Georgetown and is presently at the Lyken’s Funeral Home awaiting a post-mortem examination. The man’s relatives are expected to arrive in Guyana today.

Local media undergo...

“In our democracies, the media is a fundamental part of political life.

Their role is to investigate and examine facts to ensure that power is checked and that decision-makers are held accountable. The Parliament is the pinnacle of democracy and the me-

dia is the channel through, which the deliberations and the legislator are communicated to the people… Today, our task here is to improve the links that bond the people’s House with the people,” Chatterjee stated.

On the other hand, House Speaker, Dr Barton

from page 10

Scotland in brief remarks expressed appreciation to media operatives for participating in what he describes as forum to strengthen the relationship between the Parliament and the media.

The training will conclude today.

razil's former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has surrendered to police to begin serving a 12year sentence for corruption.

It follows a two-day standoff that saw him take refuge in a steelworkers' union building after missing a court deadline to hand himself in.

The 72-year-old walked out of the office in his hometown, near Sao Paolo, and was taken away by police cars.

Scores of supporters had earlier blocked his car from leaving the scene.

Lula had said he would comply with the arrest war-

Lula has left the steelworkers 'union in Sao Bernardo do Campo to give himself up to police

rant against him, but insists he is innocent.

Footage on Brazil’s

GloboNews showed Lula and his bodyguards pushing through the crowd outside the union building, in the town of Sao Bernardo do Campo.

He will now be taken by police to a cell in the southern city of Curitiba. Lula was the frontrunner for October’s presidential election but his jailing leaves the race wide open.

The former metalworker and trade union activist is an iconic figure for the left in Latin America. He was the first left-wing leader to make it to the Brazilian presidency in nearly half a century.(BBC)

Sod turned for new Lands...

Meanwhile, Regional Chairman, David Armogan, in brief comments, said the event marks a very important development in the region, especially since the region has a number of issues that have to be dealt with by that Commission.

“There is need now because as we all know there are very many issues relating to land in this region and records and so has to be kept properly. So I’m very happy that this building

From page 14

is about to go up. This is a nice spot here I believe and that this I’m sure is not too far away from what is the busy area in New Amsterdam.

So I await the completion of the building, so that better services could be provided to the people of Region Six,” Armogan noted.

After the sod turning exercise, Minister Harmon planted a Poui tree, which he said, is hoped to be the first of many to be planted there.

18 news

sunday, april 8, 2018 | guyanatimesGY.com

Biennial STEAM fair finals concluded …Region 10 dominates winning categories

Students of the New Guyana School receiving their award at the conclusion of the fair

T

he three-day Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) fair which featured a number of participants from schools across the length and breadth of Guyana concluded on Friday, and was considered a success.

This is according to Assistant Chief Education Officer Patrick Chenadu, who shared these sentiments at the finals of the event, which were held at the St Joseph High School. He noted that this year’s exhibition featured the introduction of art, newly implemented to highlight the works of students pursuing art studies.

Also speaking at the event was Chief Judge of the fair, Phillip Da Silva, who praised the extraordinary quality of work being displayed by the competitors, and revealed that every project indeed embraced the theme “Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics, paving the way for a green and sustainable society”.

Emphasis was also placed on the “Reduce, Reuse and Recycle” element being showcased, which upped the creativity of the executed plans.

Participants were judged based on physical display, oral presentation, and a prepared booklet.

While explaining how im-

portant this enterprise is in improving the various fields that STEAM represents, Da Silva noted that this will also aid the students in development of their communication and social skills.

Meanwhile, across the stretch of 24 categories, the winners were announced during the last hours of the fair. Most of them were from Region Ten (Upper Demerara/ Berbice). Among the schools which emerged victorious in the competition were New Market Primary, Annandale Primary, Novar Secondary, Uitvlugt Secondary, Mackenzie High School, the New Guyana School, Christianburg Secondary, Skeldon Line Path Secondary, Berbice High School, Linden Foundation Secondary, Mahdia Secondary, St Ignatius Secondary, New Silver City Secondary, St Stanislaus College and Mahaicony Secondary.

Over the past months, the various institutions, ranging from primary to tertiary, competed in regional competitions, in which the winners were chosen to showcase their creations in the finals.

While some students used the platform to highlight key issues which affect their com-

munities and country, others emphasized the importance nutrition and diet plays in the lives of individuals. In this way, those who visited the exhibition were giv-

en exposure on these areas, as well as knowledge on how they can be resolved.

Given the success of this event, it has been revealed that the Brazilian counter-

part has requested Guyana to be a part of that country’s science fair, which is scheduled for September of this year.

(Rupadai Seenaraine)

UG shows support for World Autism Month

…lights up Registry building in blue

Students from the University of Guyana and students from the Foundation for Autism and Special Education as they light it up blue to raise awareness

T

he University of Guyana joined the rest of the world in support of World Autism Month as they hosted their “light it up blue” campaign to raise awareness for persons living with autism. As such, the University lit up its Registry building to show support.

This symbolic gesture was intended to “unite the world to shine a light on autism and increase greater understanding and acceptance for children, individuals and families across the

globe.

According to founder of Sorsha Williams Foundation for Autism and Special Education, Karen Williams, persons living with this developmental disorder are often placed under an umbrella.

Being a mother herself to an autistic child, Williams further explained that the demands of living with a child with autism are great, and families frequently experience high levels of stress.

“Parents have to deal

with behaviours and pursue treatments while also planning for the future; siblings might feel embarrassed or overlooked; and it’s important for the whole family to stay involved in the community. Recognising and preparing for the challenges in store will make a tremendous difference to everyone involved, including parents, siblings, grandparents, extended family and friends,” Williams emphasised.

The 9th annual World Autism Awareness Day was observed on April 2, 2018.

Every year, autism organisations around the world celebrate the day with unique fundraising and awareness-raising events.

This year, #LIUB is being used to share experiences across social media and help light the world up blue this April.

Autism is a pervasive developmental disorder that involves abnormal development and function of the brain. People with autism show decreased social communication skills and restricted or repetitive patterns of behaviours or interests.

sunDAY, april 8, 2018

19

Super Kings stun Indians in dramatic IPL opener

C

hennai Super Kings sealed a dramatic one-wicket win over defending champions Mumbai Indians in their return to the Indian Premier League.

The Indians had looked set for a reasonably comfortable victory in the season opener as they set a target of 166, until Dwayne Bravo came to the crease for the visitors.

West Indies international Bravo hit a stunning 68 from just 30 balls to bring the Super Kings back into contention and then, after their star man had gone, Kedar Jadhav was able to get Chennai over the line from the penultimate delivery.

A thrilling finale sees the Super Kings return to the competition in style, having been suspended for the last two seasons on corruption charges.

Lewis out early as drs debuts

Evin Lewis was hot property at the 2018 auction, but his debut did not go to plan as the Indians opener was out for a duck.

Facing just his second ball,

ternational Pat Cummins, they initially bowled well, as 20-year-old debutant Mayank Markande (3-23) impressed alongside Hardik Pandya (3-24).

Brilliant Bravo mounts comeback

Dwayne Bravo of Chennai Super Kings in action against Mumbai Indians at Wankhede

the West Indies big-hitter was trapped lbw by Deepak Chahar before opting for a review - the first use of the system in IPL history.

The on-field decision was upheld and captain Rohit Sharma soon followed as he slogged hopelessly straight up in the air from Shane Watson, presenting Ambati Rayudu with a simple catch.

Indians put up a fight

Mumbai

did

not

col-

lapse when their skipper went, though, teenager Ishan Kishan turning in a fine knock of 40, while Suryakumar Yadav reached 43 - both from 29 balls.

And then came the Pandya brothers, Hardik and Krunal, who tallied unbeaten scores of 22 and 41 respectively, with the latter passing 500 IPL runs in the process.

Although the Indians were without Australia in-

The Super Kings looked well short of victory when Bravo arrived in the middle at 75-5 from 12 overs, but he set about a fightback that turned the game completely.

Seven sixes would follow from the 34-year-old, who also contributed three fours.

Bravo's departure from

the final ball of the penultimate over still left Chennai needing seven, however, and it appeared as though they might spectacularly fall short when there were no return from the first three balls of the last.

But Jadhav finally found his range, a six over deep fine-leg and a four through the covers secured a stunning win. (Sportsmax)

20

guyanatimesGY.com

sunDAY, april 8, 2018

BCB/New York Business Group Under-19 Inter-Club

Swammy double-century headlines prolific weekend T

he Berbice Cricket Board (BCB)/ New York Business Group Under-19 Cricket Tournament bowled off last weekend with matches across the Ancient County.

The Opening round of matches was highlighted by a superb 215 not out by Tucber Park opener Leon Swammy. Swammy’s maiden double-century featured 26 boundaries and three sixes. Centuries were also recorded by Garfield Benjamin, Alex Algu, Kevin Sinclair, Steve Deonarine, Nickel Fraser and Torend Shiwambar.

Round one Scores: Tucber Park defeated Rose Hall, Canje on first innings at Canje.

Tucber Park 415 for 1, Leon Swammy 215 not out, Garfield Benjamin 130 not out, and Brandon Corlette 58.

Rose Hall, Canje 45 all out, Reuben Latcha 7 for 11 and Joshua Singh 2 for 13. Tucber Park 113 for 1, Abdul Ramsammy 50 not out, Marlon Mickle 60.

Young Warriors gained first innings point from Kendall’s Union at No. 19.

Young Warriors 228 all out. Alex Algoo 118, Trevon Stanislaus 52, H. Harris 3 for 43, Sadiek Khalil 2 for 30, and A. Harris 2 for 40.

Kendall’s Union 156 all out.

Mark Barker 34, Guerel Hitnarine 45, Alex Algoo 2 for 46, J. Anderson 2 for 33, and Trevon Stanislaus 4 for 34. Young Warriors 106

without loss. Alex Algoo 94.

Tucber Park obtained first innings points from Kendall’s Union at No. 19.

Kendall’s Union 110 all out.

Sakiek Khalil 39, Avinash Ramnarine 37, Leon Swammy 4 for 32, Rueben Latcha 2 for 8.

Tucber Park 282 for 3 declared. Steve Deonarine 153 not out, Brandon Corlette 38 not out, Mark Barker 2 for 63. Kendall’s Union 38 for 3 at close of play. Avinash Ramnarine 21 not out.

Paradise Challengers crush Bush Lot Rising Star by an inning and 140 runs at Paradise.

Paradise Challengers 219 for 3 in 50 overs.

Windell Fordyce 42, Nickel Fraser 112, V. Budhoo 2 for 41. Bush Lot Rising Star 34 all out. Q. Aulder 3 for 8, D. Bharrat 3 for 2, and D. Ramoutar 2 for 2. Batting a second time, 45 all out.

Q. Aulder 4 for 26 and L. Ramkissoon 3 for 8.

Upper Corentyne defeated No. 48 Challengers by an inning and 115 runs at No. 48. Upper Corentyne 254. Torend Shiwambar 110, Shakeel Jordan 35.

N. Nauthsingh 2 for 47, B. Malchand 2 for 48, and R. Dayaram 2 for 4.

No. 48 Challengers 20 all out. Kameshwar Chaterpal 5 for 5, Shakeel Jordan 4 for 14. Batting a second time, 110 all out, T. Dayaram 32 and K. Persaud 24, Kameshwar Chaterpal 5 for 17, to end with match figures of 10 wickets for 22

Garfield Benjamin (left) and Leon Swammy

runs.

Upper Corentyne eased past Albion ‘B’ by an inning and 58 runs at Skeldon.

Upper Corentyne 192 all out. Afseer Husain 46 not out, Torend Shiwambar 83. Ravendra Ganesh 6 for 52. Albion ‘B’ 81 all out.

Hermendra Gurdyal 16 and Gourav Ramesh 18 not out.

Shakeel Jordan 2 for 10, Torend Shiwambar 2 for 16, Afseer Husain 2 for 10.

Batting a second time after the follow-on, Albion ‘B’ were dismissed for 53.

Gourav Ramesh 20. Afseer Husain 6 for 14.

Port Mourant defeated

Albion ‘B’ by an inning and 72 runs at Port Mourant.

Albion ‘B’ 62 all out. L. Cecil 24, Mahendra Charran 7 for 15, and Cheddi Boodhoo 2 for 18. Port Mourant 203.

M. Charran 29, Surendra Budhu 41. Gourav Ramesh

4 for 85 and P. Ganesh 4 for 42.

Albion ‘B’ 69 all out Surendra Ramcharitar 39.

M. Charran 3 for 23, A. Tahag 3 for 13, and Cheddi Boodhoo 2 for 8.

Rose Hall Town Pepsi ‘A’ defeated Tamarind Root by an inning and 101 runs at Hampshire.

Tamarind Root 78 all out.

Rico Ramsammy 26, Keith Simpson 7 for 21, Kevin Sinclair 3 for 43. Rose Hall Town Pepsi ‘A’ 305 for 5.

Kevin Sinclair 113, Kevlon Anderson 40, Chanderpaul Govindan 56 not out, David Orahalad 61. Jai Tiko 2 for 82. Tamarind Root 126 all out. Rico Ramsammy 51, Jai Tiko 36, Kevin Rupert 30. Vijjay Gopilall 3 for 14, Kevin Sinclair 2 for 34.

Rose Hall Town Pepsi ‘A’ defeated Rose Hall Town Pepsi ‘B’ by an inning and 127 runs at the Area ‘H’ Ground.

Rose Hall Town Pepsi ‘B’ 47 all out. Simon Naidu 21.

Keith Simpson 5 for 15, and Kevin Sinclair 5 for 12. Rose Hall Town Pepsi ‘A’ 229 for 6.

Kevlon Anderson 50, Kevin Sinclair 76, and Nicholas 46.

Matthew Pattaya 2 for 28 and Simon Naidu 2 for 42.

Rose Hall Town Pepsi ‘B’ 55 all out. Angelino Ramdihal 21, Nicholas 4 for 7, and Lucas Arthur 2 for 10.

Rose Hall Town Pepsi ‘B’ defeated Big Star by 144 runs.

Rose Hall Town Pepsi ‘B’ 190 all out. Angelino Ramdihal 42, Tagwah Ross 30, Jonathan De Veira 37, J. Brusch 4 for 53, and K. Hooper 3 for 56.

Big Star 53 all out.

Christopher Deroop 3 for 08, Tagwah Ross 2 for 12, Simon Naidu 2 for 10, and Matthew Pattaya 2 for 6.

Rose Hall Town Pepsi ‘B’ 64 for 4. Tagwah Ross 30 not out. Big Star 57 all out. B. Dowra 23. Simon Naidu 6 for 13.

The tournament, sponsored by a group of New York-based Guyanese businessmen, is one of several junior cricket tournaments being organised by the Berbice Cricket Board for 2018. The sponsorship for the tournament was organised by Mr. Orvin Mangru of the Albion Community Centre Cricket Club.

sports

CLASSIFIED ADS

Future of bodybuilding takes centre stage

sunDAY, APRIL 8, 2018 | www. guyanatimesgy.com

ACCOMMODATIONS COSMETOLOGY – FULL COURSE $100,000. TECHNICIAN $40,000.

Aracari Salon & Spa, WBD 264-3312, 600-3927 Conferences & Retreats – Full Service: Hotel, Catering & Facilities. Aracari Resort WBD – 264-2946 Alex Wayne Weddings & Anniversaries: Rental or Full Service: Banquet Hall & Catering.

Aracari Resort WBD – 264-2946 Alex Wayne Aracari Hotel, WBD (Near Harbor Bridge) – All Modern Amenities – Rates from $25. Phone 264-2946-8

Driving School Shalom Enterprise. Lot 2 Croal Street, Stabroek. Obtain an international driving permit covering 131 countries. Tel: 227-3835644-2052. Join us on Facebook

EDUCATION Electronic classes beginning 6th March. Register early, limited spaces. Abdul Electronics. Tel: 226-6551/ 225-0391.

JOB OPENING Administrative Assistant for Pro business Builders, we are looking for a highly motivated person to assist a corporate executive and be a part of our team. Your spoken and written English are superb. Send resume to jannessa. kalloo@probusinessbuilders.com

property for sale Lot 15 Public Road, #2 Village, West Coast Berbice. 49ft x 10,314ft Length. $20M Neg. Contact: 6487109 or 686-4818 2-flat bedroom wodden building situated at 154 “B” Shell Road Kitty.

2 Lots east of Kitty Market. Tel: 6979418/6702653/2269548

SERVICES GUYANA TRANING COLLEGE FOR INTERNATIONAL SKILLS. TELEPHONE 227-4881 DAY&EVENING CLASS. *Train to live & work in CANADA / CAREGIVER *Care for Elderly *Care for Children.

A reputable businessman requests the sum of 5million dollars for the period of 6mths.better interest than the bank guarateed..safe and trustworthy..call or text 641-7074

spirituality & ASTROLOGY Spiritual healing: remove blockages, voodoo, excurse, black magic, spell, business, upliftment, pregnancy, love & marriage problems, clearance, etc.

Contact: 694-9569 or 683-5228 Sri Guru Raghavendra Astrology.

Master: VEERA BHADRA. Specialized in: PALM, FACE, PATRA READING & HOROSCOPE BOOK OPENING. An expert in clearing negativity in life by using ancient prayer methods. Gives complete solution to your problems like: love, children, finance, job, marriage, finance and education. Meet him once to get guidance. All religions are welcome. Private and confidential. Tel: 695-9805 & 652-6427.

Tailoring Jimmy and Sons Tailor Shop ( Herstelling). We specialize in sewing of Gents Pants, ladies suit etc. We also do quality alternations (Jeans, Zip, Dresses, Skirts, blouses, etc.) Contact us on Telephone: 265-5033

taxi services GR Taxi, 24 hours. Phone: 225-7878, 219-5000 or 227-2100

TO LET 1 and 3 bedroom apartments in gated community Versailles West Bank Demerara. Tel: 2642946

tRAINING Private Customs Brokerage Training Course From 7th May 2018 Register now Space limited Call 694-8322/ 690-4225

Classified Ads $5+VAT per word

223-7230 Ext 50

21

S

ix-

packs’ and biceps will be on grand display at the National Cultural Centre this evening as local novices compete for the top spot of best male and female bodybuilder in an event organized by the Guyana Amateur Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation (GABBFF) with the assistance of Fitness Express.

Electrifying action is expected at the Cultural Centre similar to what had obtained in last year’s competition at

the Theatre Guild.

Beginning at 7pm sharp, novices will flex their muscles in a battle for supremacy in the men’s physique, women’s bikini, and bodybuilding categories. The bodybuilding contest will be staged in the following categories: bantamweight, lightweight, welterweight, light middle and heavyweight.

President of the GABBFF, Coel Marks, noted that the

contestants, who are journeying from different regions of the nation, are eagerly anticipating the competition. Winners will be rewarded with trophies and other prizes, besides bragging rights. The Trophy Stall and Gandhi’s Ltd are among the other sponsors.

In last year’s competition, Nolan Smith put on a dominant performance to walk away with three titles, inclusive of the middleweight and under- 21 categories, while Roscoe Blair was crowned the men’s physique champion. In the women’s category, Natasha Chung, coming all the way from the Tej Mahal Gym in Berbice, was adjudged the contestant with the best bikini body.

Nolan Smith as he walked away with last year’s prizes

Guyana DCC brush aside MSC to win GCA/GDA U-17 finals finishes 5th D at CARIFTA Chess

G

uyana for the first time sent a national junior team to the recently concluded 7th Carifta Chess Championships that was held in Paramaribo, Suriname from March 29 – April 3. This event was for strictly junior chess players and saw participants from Suriname, Barbados, Jamaica, Aruba, Guyana, Bermuda and South Africa.

Guyana was the second smallest contingent, with only eight chess players; while host Suriname had 104 participants; Barbados 48; and Jamacia 32.

Representing Guyana were Ronan Lee (Under 12 Absolute), Chelsea Juma (Under 14 Women), Ethan Lee, Ghansham Allijohn and Jaden Taylor (Under 16 Absolute), Sasha Shariff (Under 16 Women), Nellisha Johnson (Under 20 Women) and Joshua Gopaul (Under 20 Absolute).

The team was accompanied by three parents who acted as team managers.

The team was endorsed by Guyana Chess Federation President James Bond and planning of the trip was assisted by GCF Irshad Mohammed.

With 21 points, Guyana finished in 6th position ahead of Bermuda and South Africa.

However, they finished with better averages per round that Aruba and Suriname averaging 3 points per round to Suriname 1 – 2 points per round.

The performance ratings for all players are Nellisha Johnson 1037, Joshua Gopaul 1219, Chelsea Juma 928, Ronnie Lee 959, Sasha Shariff 802, Ghansham Allijohn 1158, Jaden Taylor 1095 and Ethan Lee 1193.

These players will be added to Guyana’s international list of rated players by June month end.

Special thanks would like to be given to the National Sports Commission, Gervy C Harry, Guyana Chess Federation, Ricardos Dos Ramos and the Suriname Chess Federation, Loris Nathoo of Red Cherry, and parents and guardians and National Coach, Wendell Meusa.

emerara Cricket Club (DCC) defeated Malteenoes Sports Club (MSC) by 95 runs in Thursday’s final of the Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA)/Guyana Diabetic Association (GDA) Under-17 tourney.

It was a one-sided affair played under lights at the DCC Ground on Thursday evening, as the home team took their momentum from the preliminary rounds into the finals, winning comfortably at home as they completed a successful title defence.

Tameshwar Permaul led the way with 45 with a

Sachin Singh played another winning hand for DCC

pair of fours and four sixes while Brandon Jaikaran 30 (2x4), national youth opener and skipper Sachin Singh 30 (4x4) and Garrick Persaud 24 (1x4, 2x6) chipped in with useful runs, taking DCC to 153-3 in their 20 overs.

Bowling for Malteenoes, Kester Macalister, Mervin Permaul, Wayne Bollers and Chad Shivertan had a wicket each; however, in the end, their team was kept to a paltry 58 all out thanks to deadly spells from the DCC pair of Ezekiel Wilson (4-4) and Daniel Mootoo (4-9) who accounted for most of the wickets that fell.

GFF Kool Kidz Grassroots Programme begins

Flashback: The Guyana Football Federation (GFF) launches its ‘Kool Kidz’ Grassroots football programme

T

he Guyana Football Federation (GFF) will begin the first in a series of “Kool Kidz” Grassroots Outreach Programmes today at Parade Ground, Georgetown.

The programme, launched on February 24

in partnership with the Guyana Beverages Inc., will see the GFF hosting bi-weekly sessions and targeting children of vulnerable communities.

While children of Tiger Bay and surrounding areas will be targeted this week,

the schedule for additional sessions is as follows: * April 22, Roxanne Burnham Gardens – East Ruimveldt * May 6, St. Phillips – Leopold Street * May 20, Tarmac, Punt Trench – Albouystown

22

guyanatimesgy.com

sunDAY, april 8, 2018

Guyana preps for Int’l GFF opens Women’s encounters position for Men’s – International Women’s Programme re-booted

T

Members of the GFF International Supporters Group. From (L-R) - Dimple Willabus (Media manager), Paul Beresford, Rebecca Vaughn, Gavin Fredericks

E

ven as the Guyanabased national women’s team continues their weekly training in preparation for the CFU Women’s Challenge Series in April and CONCACAF Women’s Qualifiers in May, the team will be bolstered by the addition of some players from the international pool.

This was made possible due to the relaunch of the International Senior Women’s Programme on March 17 in Toronto, Canada, and through the efforts of a Guyana Football Federation

(GFF) International Supporters Group (ISG).

The objectives of the group, according to International Women’s Coordinator Paul Beresford, is to promote the GFF’s initiatives and conduct fundraising drives: “The International Supporters Group” is a group of like-minded volunteers whose primary responsibility is to promote the GFF’s initiatives to the diaspora, and support those initiatives by raising funds through multiple fundraising efforts.

Other programmes would include, but would not be limited to, sponsorship of Guyana-based national team players; working with players in Guyana to provide college opportunities in the US and Canada; and hosting players during international camps and other such activities. All funds will provide much-needed support to the women’s programme, from the Lady Jags down to the grassroots programnes for girls that were launched by the GFF since the current leadership group took office.

President Wayne Forde offered remarks, via skype, to the US and Canada-based parents and players who were present at the launch.

He outlined the relationship between the GFF and ISG, and how this will develop the overall national programme.

He also answered questions posed.

To increase Guyana’s competitiveness at the upcoming tournaments, players from this pool will be evaluated for inclusion by Beresford and the newly-appointed Head Coach, Dr. Ivan Joseph.

“Player assessment and training is part of my responsibility as the International Team Coordinator,” said Beresford. “I will be working with the newly-appointed Head Coach Dr. Ivan Joseph, as well as other international programme coaches, to evaluate and assess players on a continuous basis utilizing identification camps, mini camps, scrimmages, testing, as well as watching them play with their clubs to ensure they are meeting the requirements to be considered for call-up.”

head coach

he Guyana Football Federation (GFF) has advertised for a new head coach of the National Senior Men’s team, a position which will fall under the Technical Department.

The position, as outlined in the Terms of Reference (ToR), states that the person will provide leadership “in all aspects of Senior National Team programme planning, training and development to improve the ranking and performance of the Men’s Senior National Team in line with the GFF’s Technical Development programme as prescribed by the Technical Director.”

According to President Wayne Forde, the scope of the position has been expanded to align with the national coaching philosophy: “The Executive Committee has made significant amendments to the ToR for the Senior Men’s head coach position. We believe that it is absolutely necessary to synergise the nation’s football development programme with the national teams’ coaching strategy.” The Federation has outlined established targets for the senior men’s team for the applicant’s consideration including increasing Guyana’s FIFA ranking to the top 100 within two years and CFU ranking to the top five within a three to four-year period respectively, Gold Cup qualification in 2019 and building the

foundation for World Cup qualification in 2026.

Among the general responsibilities of the post are the following: To implement, develop, deliver the GFF National Playing and Coaching Philosophy with the Men’s Senior National Team; to prepare the foundation for the Men’s National Team to meet the initial targets of the Guyana Football Federation; to improve the performance and ranking of the Senior Men’s National Team; to effectively develop the tracking and monitoring of both local and overseas-based players in a robust manner; to manage the GFF Player Pool via the Three Tier System; to support national youth teams through development programmes, including assisting with managing talent identification processes as instructed by the Technical Director and perform additional duties and responsibilities as reasonably instructed by the GFF from time to time.

guyanatimesgy.com

sunDAY, april 8, 2018

23

GCA’s NYTS 50-over U-19

MSC, DCC

face-off in final showdown A fter a number of intense matches, the champs of the Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA) GCA’s New York Tri-State (NYTS) 50 U-19 Tournament will be decided when Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) and Malteenoes Sports Club (MSC) battle in Sunday’s final. The finals will bowl off from 09:30h where the home team will look to carry their momentum from Friday’s 47-run drubbing of NYTS at Bourda. The big player’s expected to be on show Sunday for DCC are the same players who secured their spot in the finals.

National U-19 spinning all-rounder, Sagar Hertheramani set up DCC’s win with 60 not out and could likely play a key role with both bat and ball come Sunday. At one point, DCC were 60-5 chasing 206-8 but Brandon Jaikarran (38),

West Indies youth pacer Qumar Torrington (34) and Nkosi Beaton (29) kept their team’s hopes alive.

With West Indies youth batsman and DCC skipper Sachin Singh unavailable due to National U-17 encampment, DCC will rely heavily on their performers from the semi-final match as those players are likely to maintain their form.

Also, class youth players like Joshua Persaud and Alphius Bookie who missed out in the semis could come to the party.

MSC will have one huge threat apart from Torrington in Windies U-19 left-arm spinner Ashmead Nedd, who bagged three on Friday and will play a huge role in the finals.

MSC on the other hand have had a decent tournament and with the batting form of Wayne McPherson, Tuen Hicks and Dwayne

Bollers coupled with their variety of bowlers; should

MSC’s Wayne McPherson and DCC’s Ashmead Nedd could play crucial roles in Sunday’s final

U-16 boxers to face off today

Y

oung boxers from across the country will meet at the National Gymnasium this evening as they battle it out for bragging rights as the best boxers and gyms in the nation. The Pepsi Mike Parris Under 16 is an annual event which is sponsored

by Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL), and is now in its sixth installment. It allows young and upcoming boxers to showcase the progress they have made over the year.

The 20 card affair

GBA President Steve Ninvalle

was initially slated for the Andrew “Six head” Lewis gym but was removed from that venue to offer accommodation to a larger crowd. “We were looking at viewing with comfort, that’s why we shifted it to the Gymnasium,” President of the Guyana Boxing Association (GBA) Steve Ninvalle stated.

Attendance is guaranteed from the usual suspects, such as Pocket Rocket, Harpy Eagles, Young Achievers, Rodehall Jammers, Carryl Gym, Vergenoegen (formerly Essequibo gym) and Forgotten Youth Foundation. Additionally, two new gyms that have been developed over the past six months are expected to grace the rings. Savannah Boxing Gym from Region Nine (Upper TakutuUpper Essequibo) and the Moruca Power hailing from Region One (Barima-Waini) will make the journey to Georgetown to participate in their first bout.

The first of 20 fights will begin at 17:00h sharp and admission is set at just $500.

pose a huge threat to the star-studded DCC team.

GFF Elite League III…

Kings, Cougars

in winner’s row

T

h e Guyana Football Federation (GFF) Elite League III continued on Friday at the Georgetown Football Club Ground, where Victoria Kings and

Cougars United recorded wins.

In the opening match, Cougars prevailed in a closely fought match against Buxton United which finished 2–1.

Mark Wronge led the way for the eventual victors with a double, scoring in the 29th and 77th minutes, while Timothy Abert’s 30th minute goal for Buxton kept the game levelled until Wronge found the decider.

Points Standing # 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Team Western Tigers FC Fruta Conquerors FC Victoria Kings FC Guyana Defence Force FC Den Amstel FC Buxton United FC Milerock FC Cougars FC NA United FC Ann’s Grove United FC

GP 8 8 9 8 7 8 8 9 8 7

W 6 6 5 4 4 3 3 2 1 1

D 2 1 1 3 1 1 0 0 0 1

L 0 1 3 1 2 4 5 7 7 5

GF 16 20 14 13 14 8 9 7 3 2

GA 5 3 9 4 7 11 11 29 15 11

GD +11 +17 +5 +9 +7 -3 -2 -22 -12 -9

Later in the night, Ann’s Grove found themselves in a familiar position after losing to Victoria Kings in the feature match.

Kings finished the first half trailing, following Dwight Peters’ goal which was scored on the brink of half-time.

However, Alden Lawrence found the equaliser eight minutes later then Aubrey Gibson gave his side the upper hand in the 72nd minute when he found the back of the net.

The League continues on Sunday Points 20 at the Den Amstel 19 Ground as Buxton 16 meets Fruta 15 Conquerors at 13 14:00h then Den 10 Amstel takes on 9 tournament leaders, 6 Western Tigers at 3 1 16:00h.

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

SUNDAY, APRIL 8, 2018

guyanatimesgy.com

Pg 22

Guyana preps for Int’l Women’s encounters

– International Women’s Programme re-booted Lady Jags International players and coaches

Pg 19

Super Kings

stun Indians in dramatic IPL opener

Chennai Super Kings celebrate after their Indian Premier League opener against defending champions Mumbai Indians

GUYANA TIMES - www.guyanatimesgy.com, email: news@guyanatimesgy.com, News Hotliine: 231-8063 Editorial: 231-0544, 223-7230,223-7231,231-0544, 225-7761 Sport: sport@guyanatimesgy.com Marketing: 231-8064 Accounts: 225-6707 SALES AND MARKETING - lezas@guyanatimesgy.com - PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY GUYANA TIMES INC.

April 8, 2018

Star Times Hollywood:

Lynda Carter, the original Page 14 Wonder Woman, finally got a Hollywood Walk of Fame Star FREE DISTRIBUTION

2 Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

APRIL 8, 2018

Feature

and Iwokrama among many others.

In addition, he also explained that the event has been moved from the Egbert Benjamin Conference Centre to the Linden Technical Institute Ground , which is a more, central, open and outdoor venue.

The Linden Town Week will be staged under the theme “Celebrating our culture, talents, and creativity in a clean, green 2018.”

This year, Linden will also be celebrating 48 years as a town and 22 years since the founding of Linden Town Week. At the annual event, patrons will be able to glimpse snippets of the town’s history and they will also learn about existing

A local Exhibitor displaying her products

Local products are showcased at the annual event

T

he much-anticipated Linden Expo 2018 is expected to be bigger this year. The Linden Chamber of Industry, Commerce and Development (LCICD) in collaboration the Linden Mayor and Town Council (LM&TC), the Small Business Bureau and other entities has begun prepara-

tions for the eighth Annual Trade Fair and Exposition, in anticipation that it will be bigger and more attractive than before The Linden Expo 2018 will be staged from April 27th to April 29th in the mining town, Region Ten (Upper Demerara/Upper Berbice) at the Linden

Technical Institute Ground , as part of the Linden Town Week observance scheduled for the last week in April.

Participating companies spawning from wholesale, distribution, manufacturing, financial, business development, tourism and educational services and arts and craft, among others, are expected to take part in the three-day event which is excepted to attract a large number of visitors including foreigners.

During an interview with the Guyana Times Sunday Magazine, the Secretary of the LCICD, Mr. Staydon Payne expressed his optimism that this year’s event will see greater participation and turnout. He explained, “We are very encouraged by the number of exhibitors, so far we have 50 confirmed.”

Among those businesses which have already signaled their participation are the American Embassy, Linden Technical Institute, Small Business Bureau, Go- Invest

Leather craft on exhibition at a previous Expo

Mayor and Town Council (LM&TC) has been moving ahead with their plans to make Linden Town Week 2018 an unprecedented event that would leave ‘a footprint on the town’.

There are plans to establish a ‘Visitors Park,’ at the Kara-Kara Dyke, which is to be completed with bench-

promote tourism locally as one of its initiatives.

The very first successful expo in 2010 attracted the participation of forty-eight companies, and there is currently increased interest by companies to exhibit at Linden Expo 2018 with expected participation of companies from diverse sectors.

One of the booths at the Linden Trade and Investment Fair and Exposition which was held in 2017

tourism and entrepreneurial opportunities in the mining town. The week’s activities will include the return of the Miss Linden Pageant after a three-year absence. It will also feature sports, essay writing and spelling bee competitions, a youth village, tours to Rockstone and Coomacka, among others.

Meanwhile, the Linden

es, pathway, and all the other recreational amenities, along with a three dimensional “I Love Linden” signboard to greet visitors. The latter is expected to be a 3D structure hoisted on a solid concrete base. This is in keeping with a 2016 Local Government campaign promise by the Council, after recognizing the need to

Over the years, Linden has been viewed as a hub for a number of economic activities and businesses and residents have been encouraged to position themselves to capitalise on the existing opportunities; the exposition is seen an opportunity for them to catapult forward and realise their potential.

guyanatimesgy.com

APRIL 8, 2018

Sunday Times Magazine

3

Feature

- the best all natural peanut butter in Guyana Sonia Sears of the Society, holds an award which the group won in 2012. That year the group was awarded the Tourism Ministry award for most outstanding community project.

Ms. Maxine Parris Aaron “Aranaputa is in full production and have been supplying markets in Georgetown,” she revealed.

She said too that all of the ladies who are part of the Women’s Agro-Processors Development Network (WADN), of which IICA is a partner, have been experiencing increases in the market with the help from local groups.

“For Tapacuma the CDP Project there has been able to open up more markets and through the participation in Exhibitions, they have widened their market scope,” Ms. Parris Aaron said while she added that one of the challenges that remains is the lack of “local buy in” for the various products.

Cassavs Bread is also produced by the APFS

T

he Aranaputa Processors Friendly Society (APFS) is located in the North Rupununi ; the Aranaputa Processors Peanut Butter Factory makes the best all natural peanut butter in Guyana. The factory buys the raw peanuts from the local farmers and roasting, shelling and processing are all done at the factory. Those at the factory are very enthusiastic to share with tourists the process and allow them to participate.

Fresh peanut butter on cassava bread is served daily to the school children in Aranaputa and across the North Rupununi as a snack. The peanut butter can be purchased directly from the factory Monday to Friday during their operating hours and in various stores in the North Rupununi.

Persons can also visit the various agriculture plots locals cultivate as part of their daily livelihood. They can also tour the experimental agro-forestry plot in Aranaputa.

It is a 20-acre savannah land that has been in existence for the past eight years, and is used for experimenting growing various species of trees.

The Aranaputa Processors Friendly Society in the North Rupununi was established by a group of women in 2005, when farmers in Aranaputa were struggling to find markets for purchase their peanuts.

In March 2010, residents participated in

the formal opening of the modern peanut processing factory in the village. The project was successfully completed by the Government of Canada in collaboration with the Government of Guyana, through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) at the time.

At the time that the cultivation of peanuts was the main source of income in the village and that the electrically-driven factory served as a major asset for the economic development of the community.

The plant, capable of producing 100 pounds of peanut butter per day, has been managed by members of a Council under the umbrella of the Aranaputa Processors Friendly Society Peanut Butter Factory.

Since its establishment, the schoolfeeding programme in the Region was the main market for the peanut butter, and the Village Council had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Ministry of Education with respect to the quantities required and the price at the time.

After some difficulties with contracts and non -payment The Aranaputa Processors Friendly Society have managed to clear their finances and are now running at optimum capabilities. This is according to the Agriculture Health Specialist at the InterAmerican Institute for Cooperation (IICA), Peanuts stored in the factory

4

Sunday Times Magazine

APRIL 8, 2018

guyanatimesgy.com

Feature

Essequibo is blessed with rich Agriculture lands

W

ith the aim of promoting local businesses, attracting new investments and harnessing new technologies and skills, the Essequibo Chamber is preparing to host the second annual Agro Fair in the Region.

According to the Public Relation Officer Mr. Ravi D. Mohan, the Region has the potential to be self-sustainable and has the capacity to feed the Nation with surplus to export.

“It’s like a sleeping giant, all we need to do is to wake him up,” he asserted. The two day event will be held on the 20th and 21st of this month at the Anna Regina Community Centre Ground.

Mr. Mohan further explained that, this year, the Chamber is working assiduously to encourage more businesses to come on board. “Agriculture is the backbone of the Region, with cooperation and good planning we can do it,” he said. He also reminded that, at one time, the Pomeroon was considered the bread basket of the Caribbean, however, owing to poor management and lack of markets many farmers left to seek greener pastures.

Alluding to the success of this year’s activity, he said, “With the demand for water and dried coconuts farmers are now returning to their farms in the Pomeroon; the Chamber feels it can make a difference with the full cooperation of all stakeholders.”

During the inaugural event last year, the Head of State dubbed Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam), as the most productive area in the country, and hailed its vast agricultural potential. This is even as the Region grappled with the deteriorating rice industry. President Granger also noted that the region contributes significantly to Guyana’s food securi-

said the regional economy can be made more resilient through diversification into areas such as agro-processing and manufacturing.

The two-day event featured value-added products, including rice and other agro-processed items produced in the region. The New Guyana Marketing Corporation (NGMC) and the Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest) were among the supporting Government agencies that set up stalls at the event.

According to the Exhibitors in the inaugural event, they participated with the aim of showcasing their products to the Essequibo population. A

ty.

H e said that while the region is still beset with many challenges, there is great potential for economic development to take place there. He maintained that the Region’s economic activities not only generate wealth, but create jobs for Guyanese. Noting that the region has historically done well with the production of primary agricultural products, President Granger Patrons at a previous event

farmer who was excited to showcase his shade house project said he was pleased to present his project to the population. Newly-established business Barakat Timbers Ltd, located at Charity, Pomeroon River, was also on board. Other participating agencies included Sol, Comfort Sleep, University of Guyana, Big Birds, Natram Ramanand Juice Centre, Red Square Vodka, Travel Span, Amazon Coconut Water, Roosters Coconut Water, Forestry, Massey Limited, Tom Misir, and Samaroo Investment, among others.

A variety of products on display

guyanatimesgy.com

APRIL 8, 2018

Sunday Times Magazine 5

Feature

W

aini Naturals is the name of the company that manufactures Waini Secrets products, soaps, oil and cream made mainly from crabwood oil and gradually finding its way on the local market. Gail-Ann Gouveia has been making the crabwood oil ever since she was a girl, gathering the crabwood seeds from the forest floor twice a year, cutting, then scooping the pulp and then mixing it with a base of coconut oil to produce the crabwood oil. As a healing agent Amerindians swear by the product. The Crabwood Oil can be used as an insect repellent and the Crabwood Cream can be used to protect the skin from external damages.

The commercial venture really started in 2006. Gail-Ann, in a previous interview, recalls that she would make the Crabwood oil and set out for the Kumaka Market by boat to sell the product. She still journeys to the Kumaka Market to take her farm produce, coconuts and ground provision.

In 2007 a building erected with the support of the German Development Bank was pressed into service as a factory. According to Ms. Gouveia, much of the project’ success is owed to the support of Mangrove Project Director Annette Arjoon, Dr. Maxine Parris

Processors Development Network (WADN), of which IICA is a partner.

Alluding to the existing challenges, the IICA representative revealed that there are difficulties in accessing raw materials at the required quantities. “Her major challenge is to widen her scope and to have reliable sources of raw material. She only requires a small quantity of stabiliser which she has to purchase with foreign currency; that can be a challenge, as well as the fact the suppliers prefer to sell in bulk. ” she explained. Another challenge the Business hopes to overcome is the lack of local interest and support.

Nevertheless, she noted that these circumstances have not daunted the entrepreneur, who keeps forging ahead with the business. “She keeps on producing and working,” Ms. Aaron added.

Meanwhile, Dr Parris Aaron disclosed that they have attracted some interest from businesses in China, after a trip there. The success of tapping into this market, she underscore, is the ability to ensure a sustainable supply. Waini Naturals products are produced in the Waini.

of IICA and the Voluntary Service Overseas. Her key diversification from oil to soap was facilitated by a visit here in 2006 by a technician from a UK-based hand-made soap company.

Additionally, the packaging and marketing of Waini Natural’s products is due to the support of Sterling Products Limited. The company has been instrumental in supporting the design of the packaging and labeling and has been key to the local distribution process.

When contacted by the Guyana Times Sunday Magazine, Agriculture Health Specialist at the Inter- American Institute for Cooperation (IICA), Dr Maxine Parris Aaron that explained that while there have been challenges in tapping into to International Market, Ms. Gouveia has managed to break into the regional sphere.

She said, “She does have some access to overseas markets, although not every month. The product is sold in Trinidad and there is also marketing happening there.” Waini Naturals is a member of the Women’s Agro- Waini Secrets soap on sale in a Trinidadian Shop

6 Sunday Times Magazine

APRIL 8, 2018

guyanatimesgy.com

Literary Corner

by

Krishna Nand Prasad

T

he small boat with five children, three boys and two girls, ranging in age from ten years to thirteen years, left the school landing for the opposite bank of the Demerara River. Two boys were paddling enjoying the slight rise and fall of the bow of the craft and keeping the boat on course.

The scene was Upper Demerara River, Clemwood where the river was not too wide. Then, in the morning when the water was calm a person on one bank of the river can engage another on the other bank in conversation.

The boat crossed the river and continued its journey staying as close as possible to the thick mangroves.

All seemed well until it happened.

The first child, a girl screamed and pointed. All eyes on board followed the pointing trembling finger of the screaming girl and then they saw it.

Hairy hands with long claws gripped the side of the boat pulling it downwards to water level. The boys paddling rushed to reach the hands and they hit them hard with the paddles so that the hands released their grip on the boat and their owner made a splashy upward movement with upraised hands from the water allowing the children a brief view of its face and chest, All the children gazed in horror and shock as they momentarily saw the thing. Its head was that of a huge cat with fiery eyes, long blackish hair and protruding teeth; its palms were human in appearance, hairless; its chest thick with black hair.

The thing went under.

The children struggled to compose themselves as the boat continued its journey faster well away from the bank with heart throbbing fear of another encounter with this beast.

There was not a second attack.

Later they reported that what they saw had never been

by

seen by them before on their water journey to and from school.

Some adults suggested what the children saw was the water monster of Guyana interior waters known as the MASSACOORAMAN, capable to overturn small boats and devour the hearts of their occupants after ripping apart the chests.

(This account is based on a real life experience of some children around the late 1920s. My mother was one of the children in the boat)

The massacooraman is a huge, hairy, man-like creature that lives in rivers in the interior of Guyana. The massacooramaan allegedly capsizes small boats and eats the occupants.

Amerindians and miners who work in the interior of Guyana often speak of the massacooramaan. It is much taller and bigger than a man, and has sharp teeth. It is unknown whether or not the massacooramaan lives in the river or dwells on land, but it is certain that it can swim very well and attacks boats in the river at whatever chance it gets.

Petamber Persaud

The Burgeoning Jonestown Bookshelf (E

xtract of a conversation with Laura Johnston Kohl and Jordan Vilchez, Guyana, March 2018, both are back in Guyana on the 40th anniversary of the Jonestown episode. Kohl has already published one book on Jonestown with another forthcoming while Vilchez is preparing two books for young adults.)

PP: No one book can account for a people’s history. Parts of our history are still stored in diaries and memoires and in foreign archives. However, sometimes we are fortunate to have people who are still alive and in our midst and to whom we can turn to fill in the gaps. So it is with great satisfaction to meet both of you who are survivors of Jonestown.

Much of what we know about Jonestown came to us in various formats – books, films, social media. But there are missing pieces. I was not there, you were…let’s talk about the healing process.

LJK: I lived in Guyana for about two years – one year in Georgetown and I loved every minute of it and then I moved to Jonestown. I travelled back and forth when I moved into Jonestown and I was one of the people who thought I would always live in Guyana – I loved it. I remember once when driving a car on what we called the wrong side of the road and I remember thinking that I would not have to remember to drive on the other side because I was never going back to the United States so I can forget all that training; thinking I would live here forever and have a long life.

Jonestown was like a utopia for me – a community of mixed races, there were young and old, black, white, brown, Asian and everything and I wanted that part of me to continue. And when Jim Jones started spiralling down and falling apart and becoming mental ill and drug addicted and all the other things going on with him, I still did not think the community was at risk, so after everything happened when 918 people died that day, I went back to the United States traumatized. And it took me twenty years to come out from under that rock – I said something happened on my watch, what was that. I also found out recently that people who were part of the Holocaust after WWII, many of them took twenty years to come out and say we have to be vocal so that it doesn’t happen again. And so at twenty years, I reconnected with the survivors and then I wrote my own book, my autobiography Jonestown Survivor: An Insider’s Look PP: When was that published?

LJK: 2010.

I wrote about my whole process. I think what I know today, if you are traumatised, first you have to take care of yourself to get on steady ground. Then you try to include your commu-

Without words, we spoke.

nity and then you look at the greater community. And now on the 40th anniversary, as I look at it, I realise that I have not heard the Guyanese voice, enough, in the whole review of what happened in the People’s Temple because the kindness of Guyana allowed us to be supercharged and build this enormous community in just three years. So I came back to Guyana to reconnect with the Guyanese voices – answer questions and maybe talk about some of the rumours; discuss it more fully – I am a teacher, I teach six-graders so when I find a student who has a question, I love to follow their curiosity. So that’s one of the things we are doing by coming back – we are finding out about the curiosity and reflections from the people of Guyana who were involved with the People’s Temple so intimately especially out in the North West District by Port Kaituma.

Sat in the bus He sat in the seat before mine Near to a wise man.

“My son died,” he said sadly Replied the wise “ All of us will die someday.”

“He was my only son,” he grief stricken Whispered, piercing my heart, Replied the wise “All of us have to die,” He bowed his head in grief And I invited him to sit by me.

The bus pulled off And I said not a word He was weeping within And I wept with him from within.

And that’s it, without words He spoke to me And I without words He from his pains I from mine.

Krishna Nand Prasad

Part 1

guyanatimesgy.com

APRIL 8, 2018

Sunday Times Magazine 7

Feature

A

ccording to Kamau Bobb who is a national authority in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education programme which was recently introduced to students in Guyana, the programme is designed to equip students and communities in the process and policy structure necessary to improve education and instruction in those fields.

Bobb who recently visited Guyana said Kamau Bobb the development of a STEM Education Programme in Guyana is the right thing to do. Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education is a critical component of national development for any nation.

“In order for countries to be able to participate fully in a global economy that is knowledge-based and driven by technology in every industrial sector, the development of a robust STEM education system is necessary for national survival”.

In the Caribbean region national economies have been based primarily on natural resource extraction and tourism.

The unprecedented ferocity of the hurricanes and storms in this time of global climate change highlights the fragility of sea and sand tourism economies.

Focusing narrowly on national resource extraction is equally fragile. The inability to benefit from all segments of the extraction and production process leads to economic dependency. Due to the lack of technological capacity, resources are extracted then exported to be transformed into valuable commodities and then sold back to the very countries from which the original materials came. Breaking that cycle of dependency is precisely the reason that STEM education is so important.

Strong national systems of STEM education is the first step. Exposing students to STEM related activities early and often is essential to developing their interest in these fields.

Having strong mathematics and science skills in school is not enough for students to fully appreciate the array of possibilities available to them. When hands-on robotics, computing, science and engineering activities are woven into young people’s educational experiences they build a foundation for students’ curiosity. These skills give students a new lens through which to look at the world and consider solutions to problems that they see in new ways.

A national STEM programme has to continue through post-secondary education. Student exposure and engagement in primary and secondary school are insufficient for developing the skills necessary to participate at a level that can change national trajectory. Post-secondary education is required. Public sector investment in higher education institutions has to reflect a national emphasis that is tied to economic priorities. Reforming the institutional capacity of both the traditional university and the array of alternative postsecondary institutions has to be a part of a national STEM Programme.

With oil on the horizon in Guyana, intentional focus on STEM education is essential. The economic future of the nation faces a potential dramatic disruption that will be felt across all sectors. The nation’s ability to take advantage of the shift in the economy will depend on the population’s preparation to seize that advantage. It is entirely possible for the main beneficiaries of an oil boom to be high-end engineers, technologists and scientists from abroad. Guyana could play host to a boom that does not include Guyanese people.

Risks are a certainty that come with living. Confronting them is an indication of courage. This moment is a tremendous opportunity for Guyana. The development of the Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology, for example, is an indication of commitment of the government to build the capacity for new and innovative means of delivering education, communication, and electronic transactions – the cornerstones of a robust STEM programme. turn to page 13

8 Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

APRIL 8, 2018

Travel and Tourism

Rewa River by Lesley de Souza

G

uyana’s fresh waters are bursting with fishes. Often called the “Land of Many Waters” or the “Big River Country” Guyana’s rivers are still unspoilt as it awaits your first cast. Sport Fishing is a new area of tourism attraction in Guyana with many unchartered river terrains virgin to man. There are essentially two fresh water fishing seasons in the country; the first fishing season starts from mid February to late April, while the second season begins from late August till late November. During this time, the rains would have stopped and the water receded from the savannas and forest floors. By the middle of the dry season, the rivers usually become narrow as the water recedes. This makes fishing more exciting as less water means less space per fish and more competition to feed and to survive predators of the river.

Rapidly becoming one of the hottest Sport Fishing Destination’s in South America, Guyana was featured on river monsters with host Jeremy Wade ending season 4 in Guyana. During that episode he called the Araparima he caught (and subsequently released), the biggest fish of his South American fishing career!

Boasting nearly 2,000 species of fish in the Amazon River, Guyana is a paradise for incredible fishing. Species include the Arapaima (not for trapping), Piraiba/ Lau Lau, Peacock Bass (considered to be the most popular Fresh Water Game Fish in the world by professional anglers worldwide), Golden Dorado, Payara, Redtail Catfish, Jau Catfish, Flat Whisker Catfish, Surubim, Sunfish, Himara, Arawana, Sword Fish, to name a few.

Game fish species in Guyana

Peacock Bass at Rewa

A Giant Catfish caught near King Williams

Guyana shares with Falls in the Essequibo River the Amazon River over 1800 fish species. Among those are several Game Fish Species such as the Payara, Arowana, Himara, and what is considered by professional anglers worldwide as the worlds most popular Fresh Water Game Fish, the Peacock Bass (Lukanani). Can you reel a thirty pound bass? Let’s find out next fish season! The country’s prime fishing locations are up the Essequibo River and along its tributaries below river rapids and water falls such as Rockstone and the Gluck Island, the New River Area, Kurupukari River and the Rupununi Burro Burro River.

Most of Guyana’s rivers and ponds have remained unexplored. This is a staggering fact when you consider that 15% of the world’s fresh water comes from Guyana.

A giant fish caught in Guyana's waters

Rockstone Fishing Grounds

guyanatimesgy.com

april 8, 2018

Sunday Times Magazine 9

10 Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

APRIL 8, 2018

Fashion

Mini backpacks

B

ack-to-school season is upon us, conjuring up fond memories of shopping trips— not only for basic binders and loose-leaf paper, but also for the cutest backpacks, cool school supplies and first-day accessories.

Mini Back packs are in for girls

Recently, Instagram-beloved celebs (Selena Gomez, Kylie Jenner, Bella Hadid, and the like) made the Louis Vuitton mini logo backpack a thing all over again, initiating a trickle-down effect that saw these super-small silhouettes popping up at retailer both high and low. As the back to school season approaches, these mini backpacks are trending

Laptop Bag

What do college students and CEOs have in common? The need for a laptop bag to protect their computer from point A to B .

Laptop Bags

The Chelsea Boot

Classics are for every guy. These iconic ankle boots are a staple in any guy’s wardrobe. Look for these easy pull-on designs with elastic goring on the sides. Black or brown leather pairs perfectly with uniforms or sharper outfits.

Backpacks for Boys

Expect to find packs you can trash to bits during your day-to-day routine, that don’t compromise on style.

Remember, even though it will be used for school, the backpack is also a practical bag. Look out for things like key clips, laptop pockets and air mesh straps. Details make all the difference.

Footwear

Boots: Sun or rain, boots can do no wrong. Stock weatherproof rain boots to protect little feet from getting wet and cold. You’ll also want to make sure they have tall zip-up boots or ankle booties to wear all year long.

Trusty athletic shoes are also essential. The little ones need sneaks that will keep them comfy and stand up to everyday wear.

From polished boots to smart school shoes, send your daughters back to school in style.

guyanatimesgy.com

APRIL 8, 2018

Sunday Times Magazine 11

Home & Cooking

Recipe

Ingredients 2 cups puffed rice cereal (unsweetened) 2 cups old fashioned oats 1⁄4 cup roasted almonds, chopped 1⁄4 cup roasted sunflower seeds

1⁄2 cup shredded coconut 1⁄2 cup dried fruit, chopped 1⁄2 cup peanut butter 1⁄2 syrup or 1⁄2 cup honey 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup mini chocolate chip (optional)

Get the Best Gear

Start the kids off on the right foot with a school shopping list. . Remember to check with teachers and the school for any special requests or restrictions. When compiled, just print them out, pin them for later or order it all online.

Directions

Combine cereal, oats, nuts, seeds, coconut and fruit in a large mixing bowl.

Heat the peanut butter, syrup, and vanilla in a small sauce pan until warm. Do not boil.

Pour the peanut butter mixture over the cereal mixture. Mix well while syrup is still warm. Use your hands as they are the best tool for this mixing job!

Pour mixture into a 9x13 pan.

Pack the mixture down firmly with moist fingers or the bottom of another 9x13 pan sprayed with cooking spray.

The chocolate lover should sprinkle on the mini chocolate chips at this point and press them in firmly.

Cover with plastic wrap.

Cool completely.

Cut into 24 bars.

Wrap individually and store in fridge.

You can keep these in the fridge for 2 weeks and they still taste fabulous! (http://www.

Get them out the door faster

Late on the first day? Not a good look. Keep stragglers in line by setting an alarm clock or timer to ring at strategic intervals, like 10 minutes before you are ready to leave.

geniuskitchen.com)

Tips

Equip the Car

Breezing through the drop-off line is easy when kids can grab tissues or (let's face it) on-the-go breakfast from a backseat stash

Repurposing Everyday Items for a More Organized Home

G

ive your old household items a new purpose, while decluttering and organizing your home at the same time.

Start a self-serve station

Clear a pantry shelf that's low enough for your kids to reach. That way everyone can help themselves to granola bars, dried fruit, nuts and other healthy treats. Keep small snacks corralled in plastic compartments so that you can quickly see what's stored inside.

Ladder Drying Rack

• Laundry can take over your entire house.

This problem can be solved by hanging an old ladder from the ceiling, allowing your clothes to dryin once place rather than scattered throughout the house.

Binder-Clip Cord Organizer

• With so many new gadgets these days, wires can make your home office desk look cluttered. To keep them at bay, attach binder clips to the edge of your desk, and place the cords through the clips. This will also make it easy to plug in your electronics.

Cleaning Supplies Holder

• With so many types of cleaning supplies, your kitchen and bathroom cabinet can fill up fast. To keep things more organized, make use of every inch of space by hanging household cleaners from a tension rod, saving space on the shelves for other everyday items.

File Everything

Create a "home file," either a file box or a cabinet drawer, with a slot for each subject; colourcode the tabs to match up with each class.

Not only does this system give kids a place to unload past assignments, but it also helps them organize reference materials (e.g., a periodic table of elements) as the term changes.

Dish-Rack Coloring Station

• Organize your craft supply in a dish drying rack. Coloring books stay put in the grates, while the silverware tray stores crafting tools, such as colored pencils and scissors.

Hair Accessories Storage

• Large kitchen canisters are perfect for storing hair accessories. The clear containers make it easy to pinpoint exactly what you need when you're rushing to get ready.

Create a Supply Stash

You know the feeling — it's 9 p.m. and you're out of posterboard for your daughter's project that's due at 8 a.m. Prevent late-night freak-outs with a supply stash: markers, index cards and so on. Save cash by buying products in bulk.

12 Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

APRIL 8, 2018

Puzzles

Crossword

1

5

10

16

21

22

23

24 25

26

27

28 29

31 33

35

36

37

40

41 42 45

46

48

50

52 54

55

57

58

59

60

62

66

67 69

71

72

74 76

78

79

80

83

85

88

89

90

93

95

97

98

100

101

106

108

110

112

113

115

116

117

ACROSS

118 Prefix for "recent" Laundry batch

120 Liver secretion List of candidates

122 Sandals' lack Piano exercises

123 City near Monte Alban Like summer clouds

124 Roof supports Soprano -- Gluck

128 Bern's river Like mosaics

129 NASA destination End a journey

130 Visa and passport Clay-based rock

131 "-- Jude" Bearing

132 Whiffenpoofs Wild West show

133 List ender Mole run

135 Brown songbird Wouldn't hurt -- - 137 Less than Delay

139 Two-base hit (abbr.)

Unit of conductance

140 Reef maker Illustrious

142 Everest or K2 Brown of big bands

144 Early mornings Ms. Barkin of films 148 Championship Santa -- (hot winds)

150 Apollo's priestess Spike TV, formerly

153 Windy City airport Splinter group

155 Cheerful tone Modicum

156 Keep -- -- out for Totality

157 Roaches, to us 9-digit ID

158 Knight's gloves Litter member

159 Gouda cousin Gas guzzlers

160 Al and Tipper Watch sites

161 Swirled around Pawn

162 Loses hair Fjord port 163 Soup-can flaw

Put away

Slacken off DOWN "The Mammoth Hunters" heroine 1 Desk furnishing Faint trace 2 Mishmash Dodge, as taxes

3 Iowa town Tot's taboo (hyph.)

4 Beatrice's admirer Weapons cache

5 Leisurely walks Slices

6 A Barrymore One-named singer

7 Colonial suitor Rumor source

8 Jeans go-with Hawaiian guitar

9 Moab neighbor

51 Mobilize

10 Name in stationery 53 Stock on hand

11 Play about Capote 54 Earth, poetically

12 Coffee server

56 Ms. del Rio

13 Fender nick

59 Gander (hyph.)

14 Goolagong rival

61 J. -- Hoover

15 Moon goddess

63 Track prelims

16 Exam for jrs.

64 React to a sneeze

17 Antenna type

65 Multiplied by 3

18 Like some arches 67 Foul the air 19 Swindle

68 Crusty cheese

20 Brewers' buys 69 Spokes' center

30 Shallow dish

70 Twilled fabric

32 Yarn measure

73 Dory's need

34 Ms. Paquin

75 Prelude to a kiss?

38 PFC mail drop

77 Sheik's cartel

39 Raw-fish delicacy 81 Offshore platform (2 wds.)

41 Kitchen strainer

82 Turned into

42 Pluck a banjo

84 We, in Le Havre

43 Shady place

85 Four-door model

44 Artemis, to Cato

86 Warrant off.

46 Flew alone

87 Cultured fellow

47 Dueler's pride

91 Graceful seabirds

49 Gripping tool

Word Maze

Onetime telecom giant Makeshift Choir rendition "The Raven" opener Libretto feature Duck or hue Licorice flavoring Units of force Icicle locales Hail, to Caesar Holiday burner (2 wds.)

Worry B'way sign of yore Countesses' husbands Eucalyptus eater It merged with Exxon Melodrama shout PST minus 3 Soft tissue Cultural values Fruit with a stone Jeered at Want-ad letters

92 Small amount

93 Xerxes ruled here

94 Quiz-show hosts

95 Cellar, briefly 96 I-90

99 Whipped-cream serving

102 McKellen and Holm

103 Rabbi's reading

104 Pound division

105 Long-answer exam 107 Jargons

109 Wife's dad (hyph.)

111 Psyche parts

114 Born as

117 Stun gun

119 Popular cookie

121 Foul up

122 Windshield option

123 Unusual quality

124 Mark down (2 wds.)

125 Pink-eyed rat

126 Aquarium purifier

127 Tried hard 130 Hardened

134 Gave a darn

136 Fix a manuscript 137 Custom 138 Peeved

140 Average grades

141 Frying medium

143 Eggy drinks

145 Half a beef 146 Vivacity

147 Bill, briefly

149 Drain cleaner

151 Livy's 901

152 Embroider, maybe

154 Nasty laugh See Solution on Pg 13

KATHLEEN SAXE

WORD GAME TODAY'S WORD -- MARMOSET (MAR-muh-set: A small, clawed monkey of the American tropics.)

Average mark 45 words Time limit 60 minutes Can you find 64 or more words in MARMOSET? maestro mare marmot mart maser mast master mate meat memo mesa metro moat more mores most

mote arms arose aster atom rase rate ream rest roam roast rose rote oast orate same

sate seam sear seat smart smear smote soar some sora sore sort star stare stammer steam

stem store storm stream east tame tamer tare taro team tear term tome tore tram tsar

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" are not allowed, but "bake" and "baking" are admissible. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

guyanatimesgy.com

APRIL 8, 2018

Sunday Times Magazine 13

Tech

Virgin Hyperloop One shows off new, futuristic travel pod T

he Richard Bransonled company has seen some recent boardroom drama, but continues to pitch its revolutionary speedy-transport mode around the world.

It's an interesting time for Virgin Hyperloop One, which saw one of its board members arrested on fraud and embezzlement charg-

es in Russia last week and three other high-profile directors departing the board, according to Bloomberg.

But that hasn't stopped the futuristic-transport startup from showing off its latest pod prototype, first for the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia and now for the rest of us. Virgin founder Richard Branson remains

AI researchers oppose university's work on autonomous weapons

at the top of the company as chair of the board, and he was on hand to show off the company's latest Hyperloop pod design this week to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz.

Saudi Arabia is one of a number of locales exploring the feasibility of installing a Hyperloop system with the help of Virgin or competitor

Hyperloop Transportation Technologies.

The company claims a route from Riyadh to Jeddah could reduce the travel time from 10 hours to 76 minutes, while extending beyond national borders to Abu Dhabi could turn an 8.5 hour trip

to just 48 minutes.

Hyperloop as a concept was brought into the public consciousness by SpaceX and Tesla founder Elon Musk, who open-sourced a white paper on the nearsupersonic tube transport back in 2013. He continues

Apple has an iPad gesture dilemma

Researchers are worried about killer robots

A

group of researchers have concerns over the development of military weapons outfitted with AI. A group of artificial intelligence researchers and engineers from the Centre on Impact of AI and Robotics released a letter Wednesday taking issue with a South Korean university for working with defense company Hanwha Systems on artificial intelligence for military weapons.

The letter described autonomous weapons a "Pandora's box" and called for a boycott of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST).

"They will permit war to be fought faster and at a scale greater than ever before. They have the potential to be weapons of terror.

Despots and terrorists could

use them against innocent populations, removing any ethical restraints," the letter, which has about 50 signatures, reads. Meanwhile, KAIST's president SungChul Shin said in a statement, "I would like to reaffirm that KAIST does not have any intention to engage in development of lethal autonomous weapons systems and killer robots."

KAIST, Hanwha and the Centre for Impact on AI and Robotics did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Smartest Stuff: Innovators are thinking up new ways to make you, and the things around you, smarter. 'Alexa, be more human': Inside Amazon's effort to make its voice assistant smarter, chattier and more like you. (CNET)

Crossword Solution

to work on the technology through the efforts of Tesla and his tunnel-digging startup, The Boring Company. So far we've seen the company achieve speeds of 240 miles per hour in tests, or roughly a third of the speed it hopes to eventually achieve. (CNET)

U

sing an iPhone X and iPad Pro is getting confusing. At its launch back in 2010, the iPad was heavily criticized for being a big iPhone. iOS 11 and the iPad Pro proved that wasn’t the case. Things further diverged with the introduction of the iPhone X, which has led to some confusion for anyone who regularly uses an iPad. If you have been using an iPhone

X and iPad Pro together for some time you may feel lost when moving back and forth between the devices — one with a physical home button, the other with webOSlike gestures. The result is a vastly different user experience, even though they run the same version of iOS on large rectangles of glass.

Now, Apple is rumored to be ditching the home button on the iPad Pro in favor

of Face ID. It’s a move that makes sense, and it will present Apple with an opportunity to more closely align its tablet with the iPhone X gestures or to further differentiate the iPad as an entirely different computing platform (one that’s wholly separate from the iPhone, in the same way that the iPhone is distinct from the Mac, Apple TV, and Apple Watch).

Either way, Apple is facing

an iPad gesture dilemma.

Let’s look at the home gesture, for example. For the longest time, pressing the home button on an iPad or iPhone was the fail-safe way to take you back to Apple’s grid of iOS apps. That changed with the all-screen iPhone X. A swipe up from the bottom is the new home gesture (which also unlocks the device) on Apple’s flagship phone, but that same gesture brings up the dock on the iPad. Apple is positioning the iPad as the future of personal computing. The company further cemented the idea by featuring the iPad — not the MacBook — at its education event. Nevertheless, Apple is falling behind both Google and Microsoft in US classrooms, and most schools are using Chromebook laptops instead of tablets. The iPad Pro has already become more laptop-like, thanks to keyboard and stylus support. But Apple has refused to implement mouse support, forcing users to move their hands from the keyboard to the touchscreen to navigate.

That has led some to question who the iPad Pro is for as Apple continues to push the device as a computer replacement. (the Verge)

Access to STEM education is... from page 7

60 percent of the national population is less than 35 years old. The future of the nation rests on the skills and ambitions of young people.

Our responsibility as policy makers, elders and educators is to open the doors for them as widely as possible. With students educated to have a commitment to Guyana and a sense of protection of its future, STEM education is the foundation of nation building.

The founding Senior Director of the Constellations Center for Equity in Computing at Georgia Tech noted that “STEM is important because it pervades every part of our lives and by exposing students to STEM and giving them opportu-

nities to explore STEMrelated concepts, they will develop a passion for it and hopefully pursue a job in a STEM field”.

Access to STEM education is access to power.

Power is the ability to write the national narrative. It is the distinction between the author and the subject.

“Being an author of the American story is a far more important propositions that merely gaining access to a career in the technology sector. Captains of the technical sector are reshaping the very mechanisms by which American and global cultures exist. The ability to reinvent basic human transactions – with each other and with an evolving array of in-

telligent systems – is power.

Access to power is critical in the 21st century”.

Bobb worked at the highest levels of the federal government to help shape the national research agenda for effective means of delivering equitable and quality computational education to all students.

Bobb brings to STEM education a fierce commitment to equity as an indicator of justice. He has addressed and advised numerous leading tech sector companies, universities and k-12 schools. His writing on STEM education and culture has been featured in The Atlantic, Black Enterprise, The Root, Edutopia and on the Obama White House

Blog. His national and state leadership have contributed to a STEM education agenda that is more honest and reflective of contemporary social and cultural realities.

Bobb was the Director of the STEM Initiative for the University System of Georgia, a collaborative effort with the governor’s office to improve STEM education across the 30 public institutions serving approximately 325,000 students in the state.

He holds a Ph.D. in Science and Technology Policy from Georgia Tech and M.S. and B.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley.

14 Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

APRIL 8, 2018

Bollywood/Hollywood

W

onder Woman is finally getting the accolade she deserves.

Lynda Carter, who famously portrayed the DC superhero in the 1970s Wonder Woman television series, is the latest recipient of a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. As reported by Variety, numerous collaborators and peers of Carter's were present to celebrate her star at Tuesday's ceremony—including 2017's Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins—and the actress herself was more than

happy to strike some power poses on the red carpet for photographers.

"It seems impossible that I've been in the entertainment industry for 50 years.

But I love this business— I love the creative process, the work, the performing… all of it," Carter wrote on Instagram after the ceremony. "But today, as I am honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, I want to say a big THANK YOU to my FANS, who have encouraged and cheered me

P

riyanka Chopra's is on a roll when it comes to Hollywood - not only is she set to reprise her role in the third season of the television series 'Quantico', but her second Hollywood film, 'A Kid Like Jake' has also been selected to premiere at the upcoming Sarasota Film Festival 2018, which takes off on April 13.

The film is turning out to be a festival favourite already, as it has also featured at Sundance Film Festival in January. Starring Octavia Spencer, Jim Parsons and Claire Danes in pivotal roles, 'A Kid...' is a story of a family coming to terms with

the gender identity of their kid.

When the film was selected to screen at Sundance, Priyanka had tweeted, “When I read the script of 'A Kid Like Jake', I knew

A

fter nearly nine years of marriage, Channing Tatum and wife Jenna Dewan Tatum say they have decided to “lovingly separate as a couple.” The couple broke the news in a joint Twitter post on Monday night, saying there are no salacious details behind the split. They say they are best friends who have decided their relationship has run its course.

“We have lovingly chosen to separate as a couple,” they wrote in a joint statement released on Tuesday. “We fell deeply in love so many years ago and have had a magical journey together. Absolutely nothing has changed about how much we love one another, but love is a beautiful adventure that is taking us on different paths for now.”

“There are no secrets nor salacious events at the root of our decision — just two bestfriends realizing it’s time to take some space and help each other live the most joyous, fulfilled lives as possible,” the statement continued.

on all of these years. I want you to know how much I appreciate having you in my corner - I never take you for granted. Thank you again to everyone who made this possible. This is a day I will never forget."

Interviewed by Variety before the ceremony, Jenkins explained how much of an influence Carter's portrayal of the superhero was in crafting her 2017 film adaptation.

"It’s quite incredible to become a part of the story with someone I admire as much as I do Lynda.

Gal Gadot, who played Wonder Woman in Jenkins' film, wasn't on hand to attend the ceremony, and instead showed her support with a tweet. After concluding her famous Wonder Woman role in the late seventies, Carter has continued to act on TV and film. She's currently (and fittingly) portraying the U.S. president in the CW's Supergirl. (Glamour)

immediately that this was a story I had to be a part of. A story that needed to be told and seen. And now it’s been selected for Sundance Film Festival!”

Talking about her international film assignments in Hollywood, the actress had reportedly said that 'A Kid Like Jake' and 'Isn’t It Romantic' are not ' Priyanka Chopra movies'. Calling them 'quick films' which she did before the start of 'Quantico season 3', she elaborated that they are not lengthy roles, but these are just 'very interesting parts' in 'amazing films with some wonderful actors'. (Times of India)

The two had met on the set of the 2006 dance movie Step Up and married three years later. They have a 4-year-old daughter named Everly. “We are still a family and will always be loving dedicated parents to Everly.

We won’t be commenting beyond this, and we thank you all in advance for respecting our family’s privacy. Sending lots of love to everyone, Chan & Jenna.” they added in their statement.

Tatum has starred in box office hits like Magic Mike and 21 Jump Street. (The Independent)

Bollywood celebs visit Salman Khan's family after blackbuck case verdict

O

n Thursday, Salman Khan was convicted in the 1998 blackbuck poaching case and sentenced to five years' imprisonment by a Sessions Court in Jodhpur. The sentence has not only shocked his fans, but also taken members of the film fraternity by surprise. While many celebs took to social media and extended their support to Salman and his family, there were others who visited the superstar's house, Galaxy Apartments in Bandra, to meet his family.

Salman's 'Dabangg' co-star Sonakshi Sinha was seen arriving at his residence sometime in the evening. Her parents Shatrughan Sinha and Poonam Sinha, too, were spotted outside the Khan house. Actress Sneha Ullal, who made her Bollywood debut opposite Salman in the

2005 film 'Lucky: No Time For Love' paid the family a visit.

Family members like Arbaaz Khan, his ex-wife Malaika Arora Khan, her younger sister Amrita Arora and Arpita Khan Sharma's husband Aayush

Sharma (who will make his debut in Salman's production, 'Loveratri' soon) were also seen at Galaxy Apartments. Here's a look at all the stars snapped outside Salman's house. (Times of India)

Surprise! Kate Hudson Is Pregnant

I

f you've been wondering what Kate Hudson's been up to, wonder no more. On Friday, the actress and Fabletics co-founder announced that she's expecting a little girl.

Taking to her Instagram, Hudson uploaded a lengthy explanation for her social media silence along with a reveal video of the baby's sex. In the video, she stands in a backyard with her friends and family, who hold up three huge balloons covered in question marks.

On the count of three, they stabbed the balloons with knives, unleashing a torrent of pink confetti and pink balloons.

"SURPRISE!!!," she wrote in the caption. "If you’ve wondered why I’ve been so absent on my social channels it’s because I have never been more sick! It’s

C

ardi B, everyone's favorite regular, degular, shmegular girl from the Bronx, has a ton to celebrate today: Her highly anticipated debut album, Invasion of Privacy, is finally out, and it was just announced that her single “Bartier Cardi,” which features 21 Savage, went platinum.

That means the record-breaking rapper now has four platinum hits to her name, including her "Finesse" remix with Bruno Mars, "No Limit" with G-Eazy and A$AP Rocky, and her smash anthem, "Bodak Yellow."

Cardi's success is massive, considering the fact that she exploded onto the music scene just a short time ago.

She reacted to the news of “Bartier Cardi" with standard Cardi adorableness, writing on Twitter, "Foreal

was the most sick first trimester of all my children. Boomerangs have made me nauseous,

yaaaaayyyyy!!"Made my day," and included a string of shocked emoji.

“Bartier Cardi” came out at the end of December, capping off a breakout year for the rapper. She made history with “Bodak Yellow,” which beat out Lauryn Hill’s “Doo Wop (That Thing)” as the longest-running solo number one by a woman rapper, according to Billboard.

She also became the first rapp e r — and the third artist—

Superzoom is an easy way to have my head in the toilet, food instagrams make me queezy and thinking too much about insta stories made me even more exhausted than I already had been. If you’ve seen me out and about smiling and pretending like everything is amazing...I was lying! BUT! I have broken through on the other end of that and rediscovering the joys of insta/snap. We have been trying to keep this pregnancy under the radar for as long as possible but I’m a poppin now!

And it’s too darn challenging to hide, and frankly hiding is more exhausting then just coming out with it! My kids, Danny, myself and the entire family are crazy excited! A little girl on the way." (Glamour)

ever to have three Billboard Hot 100 singles in the top 10 all at once.

Now, with a full album out, there's no telling what new heights her career will reach. Fans are already going nuts on Twitter while listening to Invasion of Privacy, which features collaborations with Chance the Rapper, R&B darling SZA, Puerto Rican trap star Bad Bunny, reggaeton juggernaut J Balvin, and Migos, the Atlanta hip-hop trio that includes her fiancé, Offset.

She went on Instagram late last night to thank everyone for all the support they've given the album so far. "I want to thank everybody that's listening Invasion of Privacy, I want to thank everybody that was included in the process," she said before launching into a long list of people who helped her out. (Glamour)

guyanatimesgy.com

APRIL 8, 2018

Sunday Times Magazine 15

16 Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

APRIL 8, 2018

Fun Times

Archie

You have more options than you realize. Open up to (March 21- someone who can offer you a April 19) different perspective regarding the changes you face or the decisions you must make.

ARIES

Socialize, get together TAURUS with friends or relatives, or (April 20- pitch in and volunteer your May 20) help. Your dedication and determination will draw attention and boost your popularity. Romance is featured.

A change of plans will GEMINI cause a problem. If some(MAY 28- one backs out of a deal, make June 20) sure you aren’t left paying for him or her. Be blunt and collect what’s owed to you.

Consider how to best spend your time. Helping (June 21outsiders is admirable, but July 22) you should first take care of any work that needs to be done closer to home.

CANCER

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Dilbert

Peanuts

Personal changes can be made, but don’t try to alter what someone else does. If you want the freedom to do as you please, you must offer the same in return.

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

Attend functions that will add to your knowledge and experience. Expanding an interest and sharing it with a loved one will bring you closer together. Physical improvements can be made.

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Impulse will be your downfall. Acting on an emotional whim or getting entrenched in someone else’s melodrama will bring you down and cost you emotionally and financially.

Emotional outbursts must SCORPIO (Oct. 24- be kept to a minimum. Veer Nov. 22) away from anyone displaying erratic behavior. Put your heart into something that will add to your stability.

You may need to make SAGITTARIUS some financial adjustments (Nov. 23if you want to maintain your Dec. 21) standard of living. Think twice before you spend money on something you don’t need.

Calvin and Hobbes

Concentrate on your perCAPRICORN sonal relationships and make (Dec. 22- an effort to improve your livJan. 19) ing arrangements. Stick close to home and the people you love. Hard work will result in personal gain.

Someone will withhold AQUARIUS information that can make (Jan. 20- a difference to your earning Feb. 19) potential or finances. Don’t count on anyone else to handle your affairs.

PISCES You’ll be subject to scru(Feb. 20- tiny if you are wishy-washy Mar. 20) when explaining your position. Take matters seriously and be clear about your intentions before you commit to anything.