Guyana Times Daily August 15 2017

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

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Tuesday, August 15, 2017

Issue No. 3302

PRICE

No confirmed buyer for Skeldon Sugar Factory – Jordan

$80 vat included

WHAT'S INSIDE:

Herstelling man stabbed to death by friend P9 – at West Berbice Bar-B-Que event

Page 2

Aircraft seized at another illegal airstrip in Rupununi

Page 7

Modernised waterfront recreational areas in the P12 works

House lot payment fraud

CH&PA not in favour of compensating fraud victim(s) – Saul P10

Corentyne robbery P13 suspects remanded The illegal plane that was found at the illegal airstrip on Sunday evening

Nothing unusual Sugar workers “in the about ExxonMobil left wilderness” trip – Jordan Wales closure

Fish depot robber remanded for illegal firearm, P8 ammo

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Page 11

– as High Court still to hear severance matter ... defends ‛the quintet’ ministerial team City Hall at war over garbage

Councillor instructs Town Clerk to ‘shut up’, apologises later

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Impassable Lethem road P7

Regular traffic flow by weekend – Chairman

2 news

TuesDAY, august 15, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

No confirmed buyer for Skeldon Sugar Factory – Jordan

By Samuel Sukhnandan

F

inance Minister Winston Jordan has refuted claims that a buyer has been identified for the Skeldon Sugar Factory by stating that that information is simply not true.

“There is no confirmed buyer as such,” he said. “This

Finance Minister Winston Jordan

(sale) has to be done in a very transparent process, because this Government prides itself on accountability and transparency.”

Jordan told a media conference on Monday that he has heard about a lot of unsolicited interest in the sugar factory, but he reiterated that there are no confirmed buyers as yet.

“Those people would be formally invited to submit bids after we would have put

(in the public domain) our adverts for the (sale of the) Skeldon Factory. We would have to assess the things and put out a request for proposals,” the Finance Minister explained.

He said the same approach would be used for the entertainment complex of the Marriott Hotel in Kingston, Georgetown.

The Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) recently claimed that a purchaser may have already been identified for the Skeldon Sugar Factory.

GAWU President Komal Chand told Guyana Times earlier this month that he has information that a buyer has already been identified, despite there being a procedure to be followed in respect to sale of this national asset.

Chand had reminded that a Special Purpose Unit was created within the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) to handle the sale of the Skeldon factory.

During consideration of the first Financial Paper for 2017 — in early July — Government had requested the supplementary sum of $130 million to subsidise creation of this Special Purpose Unit. The Financial Paper had detailed that the amount requested included provision for employment costs, utilities, professional and legal fees, advertisements, operat-

The Skeldon Sugar Factory

ing supplies, furniture and equipment.

The GAWU head had said that although this (finding a buyer) was expected,

the mere request for a financial sum to create this special unit had caused him to hope that a fairer system would have been employed in dis-

posing of the Skeldon Estate — one that would see the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) getting the best deal possible.

While admitting that the Skeldon Sugar Factory had not performed as anticipated in its initial stages of operation, the Opposition People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) had expressed its belief that it is an unwise decision to put the factory up for sale, as it has shown some signs of improving performance.

The Opposition has said that performance at the factory had significantly improved in 2015, and the factory had met all its targets. The decline in recent performance at the factory has been blamed

on the lack of investment on the part of the coalition APNU/AFC Government.

It was revealed in January that a close relative of Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo, Guyana’s First Vice President, was reportedly working to bring in investors for the cash-strapped sugar industry.

Tony Joseph, Managing Director of Sunrise Holdings and son-in-law of Nagamootoo, led a team of Indian investors to dialogue with Government on potential investments in GuySuCo. The Skeldon Sugar Factory alone, located on the Estate, is worth US$200 million, and the total value of the Estate would amount to billions of Guyana dollars.

Man fined for assaulting Constable, wounding friend

W

est Coast Demerara resident Kasim Ali was on Monday arraigned before Leonora Magistrate Rochelle Liverpool, charged with wounding Mohammed Nazir so as to cause him actual bodily harm, and assaulting Police Constable Kalliram as the constable was in the process of executing his duties.

Both offences are alleged to have been committed on Sunday, August 6, 2017.

The court heard that the defendant (Ali) and the vir-

tual complainant (Nazir) have known each other for the past ten years; and on the day of the wounding, Nazir, under the influence of alcohol, was allegedly verbally abusing Ali and his family. Ali called on Constable Kalliram to caution Nazir, and he did so; but as the constable was about to leave, Ali armed himself with a cutlass and dealt Nazir several blows to his body, inflicting injuries on his person.

The constable reportedly tried to restrain Ali, but was

pushed away; hence Ali was arrested and charged with the present offences.

Unrepresented by legal counsel, the 50-year-old Kasim Ali pleaded guilty to both offences, and told the court he was defending himself, as Nazir had approached him with the cutlass. However, Constable Kalliram refuted Ali’s claims, and told the court that Nazir had continued to verbally abuse Ali even after he was told to desist; thus, angered, Ali had taken up the cutlass and committed

the act.

Magistrate Liverpool told Ali that even though he had been provoked, he should not have taken the law into his own hands, as there are other places for him to lodge his complaints if he were not satisfied with the constable’s intervention.

Kasim Ali was fined $20,000 for his offences, default of paying which would earn him one month’s imprisonment. He was also bonded to keep the peace for a year.

news

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tuesDAY, august 15, 2017 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Tuesday, August 15 – 10:30h-12:00h and Wednesday, August 16 – 12:00h (noon)-13:30h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Tuesday, August 15 – 09:55h-11:25h and Wednesday, August 16 – 11:20h-15:50h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

Wales closure

Sugar workers left “in the wilderness”

– as High Court still to hear severance matter

WEATHER TODAY

Weather: Thundery to heavy rain showers can be expected throughout the day, with sunny intervals in the afternoon. Clear skies are expected in the evening, with temperatures ranging between 25 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Ranging from Easterly to East South-easterly and East North-easterly between 1.78 metre to 3.57 metres.

High Tide: 10:11h and 22:39h reaching maximum heights of 2.36 metres and 2.39 metre respectively.

Low Tide: 03:38h and 16:06h reaching minimum heights of 0.76 metre and 0.90 metre respectively.

Ashton Chase, SC

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MONDAY, AUGUST 14, 2017

DAILY MILLIONS 05 09 15 18 19 LUCKY 3 0 9 0 Afternoon Draw

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ome four months have passed since counsel for the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU), Ashton Chase, SC, compiled and filed documents for the matter regarding the non-payment of severance packages to hundreds of sugar workers to be called up at the High Court. While the reasons for the delay in the commencement of court proceedings remain unclear, GAWU General Secretary Seepaul Narine feels many of the workers who were attached to the Wales Sugar Estate are left to face life with depleted finances.

Narine told Guyana Times earlier this week that the Union has yet to receive word from the courts pertaining to the delay. “We are waiting on the Judge to affix a date for the hearing. It’s a few months now and we are disappointed that the court is taking such a long time.

We have no indication as to why it’s taking so long and why the matter is not up for hearing as yet and people are there, they’re not having work. They’re just wondering; they’re in the wilderness,” observed the GAWU General Secretary.

Over the years, GAWU has filed a number of court actions but according to the Union representative, it is not a usual occurrence that cases take such lengthy periods of time before it’s called up for hearings, whether at the preliminary stage or for full trials.

“It is not normal for matters to take so long; we don’t know what is the reason. We would all like [the case to be heard] immediately. Workers are being affected and it’s in the interest of all to get it called,” the GAWU General Secretary pointed out.

GAWU President Komal Chand had told Guyana

Times in May that many workers were at that time, depending on the outstanding payments to make investments for their future.

“It’s bothersome as the people are depending on their money to see how they could work on their future endeavours,” Chand highlighted on May 21.

While several workers had their service transferred to Uitvlugt Sugar Estate, the remaining workers were promised severance payments, some since December 2016 and others by February 2017.

However, it was at a community-level meeting between Wales residents and several Government Ministers, including Agriculture Minister Noel Holder, that Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan told the gathering that Government had no money to pay the severance to which the workers are entitled. Some former workers informed this publication on Saturday that senior officials at the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) are reportedly still operating out of their offices at the Wales Estate. However, much of the equipment, including the cane gantry has been reportedly transferred to the Uitvlugt Estate.

The Wales Estate Closure was rationalised by Government as a cost-saving measure due to billions of

GAWU General Secretary, Seepaul Narine

dollars that was allocated to the declining sugar industry.

Since then, the scaling down of other estates across the country has been announced.

Many stakeholders had however called for social impact studies to be carried out to assess how communities across the sugar belt would be affected with sure closures.

Some estimates have pegged a figure of some 10,000 sugar workers being directly affected by estate closures, in addition to their family members and the local economies that depend on the sugar industry. (Samuel Sukhnandan)

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tuesDAY, august 15, 2017

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

The toll of war

T

he Syrian civil war, which continues to make daily headlines internationally, is no doubt the worst humanitarian crisis the world has ever seen. Guyanese are shocked to see daily on their TV screens images of the ravaging effects of war on the Syrian population. To date, more than 465,000 Syrians have been killed in the fighting, more than a million have been injured, and over 12 million have been displaced from their homes.

According to the United Nations, since March 2011, an estimated 5 million Syrians have fled the country; we have seen thousands of them (Syrian refugees) crossing borders into neighbouring countries with the hope of finding comfort and opportunity.

In 2011, the Arab Spring revolts toppled Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Not long after, protests erupted in Syria as well, after 15 boys were detained and tortured for having written graffiti in support of the Arab Spring. The Syrian Government, led by President Bashar al-Assad, responded to the protests by allegedly killing hundreds of demonstrators and imprisoning many more.

Initially, lack of freedoms and the economic hardships facing citizens fuelled resentment of the Syrian Government, and public anger was inflamed by the harsh crackdown on protesters. Successful uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt energised and gave hope to Syrian pro-democracy activists. Although the initial protests in 2011 were mostly non-sectarian, armed conflict led to the emergence of starker sectarian divisions.

At present, there are still regular bombings in crowded cities, resulting in deaths and injuries beyond imagination.

Horrific human rights’ violations are widespread, extremist elements are capitalising on the level of instability to take hold of certain areas, and many persons are dying from diseases, malnutrition, and the negative impacts of displacement in general.

A recent report published by the World Bank estimates that, as of early 2017, the conflict has damaged or destroyed about a third of the housing stock and about half of medical and education facilities, and led to significant economic losses.

‘The Toll of War: The Economic and Social Consequences of the Conflict in Syria’ provides a detailed analysis of the physical damage caused by the war, the impact of casualties and the forced displacement of the population, the effect on the economy, and the overall condition of the Syrian people.

According to the World Bank, a key finding of the report is that the breakdown of the systems that organise both the economy and society, along with the trust that binds people together, has had a greater economic impact than the destruction of physical infrastructure.

According to the report, on average, about 538,000 jobs were destroyed annually during the first four years of the conflict, and young people now facing an unemployment rate of 78 percent have few options for survival.

Additionally, by comparing current circumstances with a projection of how Syria would have developed in the absence of conflict, the report calculates that the war has caused a loss in Gross Domestic Product of US$226 billion, or four times the GDP in 2010. The report further finds that, the longer the conflict continues, the more persistent will be the impact, making recovery and reconstruction even harder.

The UN Special Envoy for Syria, Mr Staffan de Mistura, is working tirelessly to bring the parties to the negotiating table in order to bring an end to the war. As mandated by a Security Council Resolution, the talks focus on governance, a schedule and process to draft a new constitution, and the holding of elections as the basis for a Syrian-led, Syrianowned process to end the conflict. Discussions also include counter-terrorism strategies.

It is well accepted that the long-term strategic objective remains a political solution to the crisis. However, to achieve this, there must be political will among the various players, and a strong desire to work towards a nationwide ceasefire; and, more importantly, lasting peace and development of the country.

While one may want to be optimistic, from the way it looks, a solution to the crisis, even though possible, is not very close. What is certain is that, with much of the country in ruins and a population deeply affected by war in every way, rebuilding Syria after the war ends will be a very difficult and painstaking process.

A brief experience of what Guyana will be showcasing at Carifesta XIII in Barbados on Sunday evening at the National Cultural Centre.

One hour of cultural presentations were showcased in dances, reenactments, drumming and steel pan music among others (Carl Croker photo)

Education Ministry’s intervention needed Dear Editor, The only thing worse than being blind is to have an eyesight without a vision. Professionally speaking, this philosophical trend is negatively mirrored by some of the officers that functioned under the Ministry of Education’s umbrella.

Remember that the Honourable Minister of Finance, Mr Winston Jordon, in his last budget speech, made earlier this year, referred to the results of CSEC Mathematics and English Language, and particularly the Grade Six Assessment results, as “depressing”. He even emphasized this phenomenon statistically by mentioning that Math was 14% and English Language was 50%.

What were the variables that led to this kind of behaviour? Have the officials done a feasibility study to determine the quality of teaching delivered, the lack of text books, the condition of the schools, parental lack in education, absentee teachers, the extra lesson syndrome, disciplinary structure, or any

other related observations and factors?

Well, if such a research were carried out in Region Two, a correlation would certainly be found via poor education administration – precisely, the Department of Education, Region Two and NCERD Literacy Officer. For in the most subjective or personified manners, they determined, or rather chose blindly, whom they wanted to run the Literacy Programme.

Very reflective and appropriate is the saying “Not everything that lives in water is fish”.

Does the Honourable Minister of Education know what is happening?

To begin with, how can they take off all the professional and experienced nursery teachers on the Literacy team? Then to negatively complicate this situation, any average Guyanese would entertain an ethnic prejudice view -one of the Literacy trainers, being the only East Indian who possessed a degree in Education, having passed with honours at the noble University of Guyana, and has been a qualified head

teacher for years, was taken off the Literacy Primary team. No explanation was tendered. Isn’t this rude and impertinent?

One trained, seasoned Literacy Trainer on the team challenged the decision, to no avail; and felt convicted for her colleague on the decision taken and resigned with immediate effect.

I, as an Afro-Guyanese and a strong believer in racial harmony, strongly condemn this approach. We are Guyanese and should be seen as “One People”.

Almost all teachers were frustrated last August term, 2017, because the so-called Literacy team was supposed to give on time every school and each teacher a copy of the Comprehension passages for the various grades.

Such competency is celebrated by NCERD and the Department of Education.

Schools received them just in the nick of time.

If there stems a sense of favouritism by a particular officer at NCERD level and a fear of job security at Department of Education, the Minister of Education

should be impartial; intervene, and let the nation know that she still honours her obligation to us in regard to the ‘good life’ promise. It is our prescriptive and democratic right, as Guyanese, to know how our money is spent, and what investment is made in our children’s education.

We as teachers felt, and are still feeling, robbed.

I openly challenge the Ministry of Education to do a valid research to determine the needs of schools and the criteria (qualifications, experience, input, output etc.) used to choose the head of the Literacy Team as well as some Literacy trainers on the team in Region Two. When it comes to our tax payers’ money, we work hard to earn a decent living, and it is never going to be fair for others to get fat on it!

I quite agree with the quote by Aristotle, “The World is not evil, but those who stand around and allow evil to take precedence.”

Yours respectfully, Simone Huggins

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

Caribbean Voice applauded Government should for social work be transparent Dear Editor, I write to applaud The Caribbean Voice (TCV) for its social welfare, activism, and educational programmes that benefit all Guyanese. Without its social programmes, Guyana would be worse off today. TCV has done very much to educate Guyanese about social ills and combat problems affecting the population.

Among its programmes are: • The Youth and Student Workshop to mostly private schools and youth groups.

This workshop is endorsed by the Ministry of Education (MoE), which also indicated that it would be made part of the Health and Family Life Education curriculum in schools. Public schools are not being serviced by this workshop, because permission is needed from the Ministry of Education, although a number of public schools have requested it.

• A Teacher Training Workshop, to provide teachers with skills and the capacity to develop their own mental toughness, to be able to deal with emotional and psychological problems their students face, and to arm their students with positive self-esteem and coping skills.

This, too, has been endorsed by the Ministry of Education, which has offered to collaborate and get schools’ welfare workers involved in its implementation.

•

A Train-the-Trainer Workshop, which trains others to become trainers for gatekeepers and to turnkey their training to their various communities and the entities with which they are associated.

• An Employee Mental Health Workshop, which helps workers at various companies to be able to deal with stress and challenges, and emotional and psychological issues.

• A Community Outreach, launched in 2014 at Black Bush Polder and since taken to a number of communities, often in collaboration with other NGOs, community-based organizations and/or faith-based organizations.

TCV has media advocacy and information dissemination campaigns on combating various social ills ongoing. In addition to constant letters and articles published both in the local and

diaspora media, TCV has had meetings with some of the media houses in Guyana.

TCV’s messages are able to reach Guyanese in all three counties via both radio and TV. Caribbean Voice lobbying efforts are also ongoing as it strives to achieve the following: to persuade the Government to place counsellors in all schools in Guyana; to integrate mental health care into the current physical health care system; to establish psych wards in all public hospitals throughout Guyana; to station clinical counsellors at every hospital; to engage in widespread sensitivity training for police officers with respect to suicide and abuse – child, sexual and gender-based, as well as mental health issues in general; to raise the age of consent from 16 years to 18 years; to decriminalize attempted suicide; to widely and continually publicize and promote the suicide hotline, and to include Hindu and Muslim priests in the roster that

handle calls and follow-up; to set up a support network for women who want to opt out of abusive relationships; piggy back self-esteem and coping skills in all training programmes across Guyana; move collaboration with all stakeholders from rhetoric to concrete practice; implement the Shri Lanka Hazard Reduction Model (or something similar) to tackle pesticide suicide; give teeth to the Sexual Offences Act. The Voice currently has an online petition calling for Government to establish a registry of sex offenders. The petition can be accessed at https://www.change.org/p/ president-of-the-republic-ofguyana-establish-a-registryfor-all-sex-offenders.

TCV is appealing to the media to help publicize the petition, and to Guyanese to support it by logging online, signing and sharing.

Printed signatures are also being sought.

Yours truly, Vishnu Bisram

Dear Editor, In an article which appeared in the media on August 13, it was reported that senior ministers in the APNU/AFC Government are on an official visit to the ExxonMobil Headquarters in Texas, USA -- apparently to familiarize themselves with oil and gas matters as they relate to the development of oil fields off Guyana’s coast.

The ministers’ visit was treated as a state secret, as Guyanese are usually informed prior to any overseas visit of Govt. officials, and the reasons therefor. By design, however, no prior information was given to the public on this occasion.

This visit by a large contingent of Government ministers to the headquarters of ExxonMobil, a company with which the Government is conducting business, raises a number of troubling issues. Firstly, Guyanese would like to know who is picking up the expense tab for this costly group trip of Government officials?

Secondly, no technical professional accompanied the delegation to

discuss such topics as production schedule, gas disposal, waste disposal after the crude is separated, etc; as much of this information is not incorporated in the contract agreement between the Government and ExxonMobil, which continues to be a state secret.

The APNU/AFC Government should be transparent and inform the people as to the reasons for this visit by its most senior ministers to ExxonMobil Headquarters in the USA; the topics which were discussed, and the agreements which were made, if any.

This will assure Guyanese in no uncertain way that the Government is not “hand in glove” with ExxonMobil, a company which will soon be a large generator of much of Government’s revenues.

After all, Guyanese should be conscious of the sharing and disappearance of oil extraction revenues by large overseas companies operating in Nigeria, Angola, Sudan and elsewhere in the world.

Yours truly, Charles Sohan

Digicel responds to GTT Dear Editor, Digicel notes with disappointment the statement most recently made to the press by GTT, in which the company claimed that as a result of ‘programming issues’ on Digicel’s network, GTT’s customers were unable to receive text messages from Digicel.

Digicel categorically denies this claim. In truth, the respective technical teams of both Digicel and GTT have been in continu-

ous discussion in relation to this issue, and both teams continue to work to find a solution.

Gregory Dean, CEO of Digicel Guyana, commented, “Digicel’s only interest is in having a fully functioning service. We firmly believe that in the interests of customers, our joint efforts

should be focused on finding an effective solution within the shortest time possible.”

The timing of this latest outburst by GTT strategically coincides with the July deadline for the ending of the telecommunications monopoly in Guyana; a deadline which has already passed. Most stakehold-

ers in Guyana, including Digicel, are eagerly awaiting the overdue liberalisation of the sector, so we would question who or what could possibly be causing the delay?

Digicel remains committed to ensuring that consumers benefit from all that liberalisation has to offer, and looks forward to the

opportunity to be able to serve customers with a full suite of innovative and value-packed communications services.

Vidya Sanichara Communications Manager Digicel Guyana

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Foundation

How to raise a child of character P

arents often ask how to raise a child with good character and values, in the context of a culture that often seems to reward the opposite. The simplest answer is that children learn what they live, so if you live your values, your children are likely to as well.

It’s also true that talking explicitly about our values helps children to develop them, especially in the face of teachings from the media or their peers that might go against what you believe.

Finally, there are definitely ways that you can encourage your child to be thoughtful, generous, responsible, and courageous – a person of character. To read more about encouraging the development of specific traits in your child, click below.

Courage

Courage doesn’t mean not being afraid. In fact, in many situations that might qualify as stupidity. Courage means being afraid and doing the right thing anyway.

Will your second grader have the courage to admit she trampled the neighbour’s prize lilies? Will your fourth grader have the courage to stand up for a smaller child against the playground bully?

Will your sixth grader have the courage to listen to jazz when the other children are into rap?

Will your eighth grader have the courage to refuse to cheat on the test, even though the other children are all doing so

guyanatimesgy.com

and his score will look worse by comparison?

Will your tenth grader have the courage to refuse the sexual advances of an intimidating teacher?

Will your 12th grader insist that the drunk driver stop the car and let him out, despite the taunts and dares of his friends?

Parents of toddlers and pre-schoolers often worry about their children’s fears of thunderstorms or merrygo-rounds, but in our culture, courage is usually moral, rather than physical, and our children are tested constantly.

Of course, there are times when children need your help to summon up their physical courage: when your toddler is frightened of riding the ferris wheel with you, or your five year old is afraid of the dark, or your seven year old doesn’t want to get on a horse, or your nine year old doesn’t feel ready for sleepovers. But handling these frightening situations is pretty straight-forward: 1. Don’t push children to take risks they don’t feel ready for.

They can learn to horseback ride next year.

2. Stay calm yourself, and empathize with her feelings.

3. Communicate that you will keep her safe.

4. Help your child to problem solve.

Would it help if he knew he could call you from the sleepover? Could he start getting to know the horse at first by grooming it, rather than climbing up into the saddle?

5. Encourage your child to

turn his fear into excitement.

Scientists – and thrill seekers – tell us they’re related.

Moral courage is more complicated. Luckily, it isn’t something we’re born with.

Courage is something we can develop, cultivate, learn how to summon up, by trial and error, by facing scary situations, choosing what’s right, and finding out it works.

Generosity

We all want our children to be generous. There are some people, in fact, who believe that our purpose on earth is to grow by giving to each other, an idea I find inspiring and beautiful.

But forcing someone to be generous just makes him resentful. Worse yet, it internalises the sense that he must be a very bad boy indeed if he doesn’t want to share like a good boy.

Generosity starts with a feeling of having plenty, and develops as we have experiences of making others happy by giving to them. Our job as parents is to help our children to have those experiences. How? 1. Model generosity.

Give to the panhandler, bake pies for the elderly at Thanksgiving. Share your ice cream with your toddler. Donate to a worthy cause in honor of a special occasion. Make giving a part of your daily life.

2. Make sure your child’s normal needs to be seen, appreciated, and adored are met.

We can only give when we’re full inside.

3. Give your child the

opportunity to experience how his actions can create joy in others.

This usually begins with parents; you give him the gift of seeing you respond to a gift of his – such as a card he’s made you – by letting him see the tears in your eyes as you read it.

4. Don’t force them to share before they’re ready.

Insisting that a two year old share before she’s ready is likely to backfire. My friend John points out that asking his two year old daughter to share her favorite toys is like asking him to share his treasured violin with friends who visit. Be particularly careful about insisting that siblings share, which can undermine their relationship.

For more on Sharing, see Social Intelligence for Toddlers.

5. Every child deserves the pleasure of giving her own money to a worthy cause.

Try giving a little extra weekly allowance that goes in a special “charity” jar, and letting her give it away every year on her birthday.

6. Have a Charity night.

You could call it something with more resonance for your children, like Gift for the World Night, or Tzedakah Night (the Jewish equivalent that means restoring Justice). Let your children make a “Wish List” of all the ways they’d like to make the world a better place.

Then let each person in the family choose one thing to do to address one of those issues.

For instance, you might make a donation to Hurricane Relief, plan to volunteer at a soup kitchen together, and make a

commitment to reduce your carbon emissions by buying more efficient light bulbs.

7. Volunteer as a family.

My children and I volunteer at a local soup kitchen, and my children love feeling like they’re making a difference in these folks’ lives. It also helps them feel better when they see a homeless person, to know that person can go get a hot meal at “our” soup kitchen. What can children do? Sort food at a food bank. Help you deliver Meals on Wheels. Organize a book drive and ship the books off to Reader to Reader.

8. Start while your children

are young, so your children take community involvement for granted.

As they get into their teen years, they’ll find worthy causes of their own.

9. Share the idea that giving to others is one of the reasons we’re alive.

And one of the ways we can all make the world a better place.

Eventually, if your child is lucky, she will learn from experience that making someone else happy by giving to them is truly more rewarding to her than receiving a gift herself.

(ahaparenting.com)

TO BE CONTINUED

Positive thinking: How to foster in your child (Continued from Monday)

BY NIRA DATTA

Positive thinkers are more resilient

When it is nurtured, positive thinking is a powerful coping tool and helps foster resilience. A child learns to better manage life’s inevitable disappointments: not making a sports team, rejection from a university programme, or failing a test. Studies show older children trained to think optimistically are less likely to develop depression later in life. Consequently, a positive-thinking child becomes a more resilient one.

How can parents foster positive thinking?

Be a model The more optimistic a parent, the better a child understands the principles of positive thinking. Interpret things in your own life positively. Express it openly and in conversation with your child. For example, before the first day of class, ask, “Tomorrow is your first day of school. What are all the good things you are looking forward to?” If your child feels anxious, help her

reframe her thoughts: “If you feel worried about starting a new school year, it is just going to make you feel worse. Why don’t we think about the positive things that can happen today at school?” The earlier a child learns to apply this technique, the more effective they become at using it.

Acknowledge when something bad happens Positive thinking does not mean dismissing the negative. If your child is recovering from a broken arm, for instance, acknowledge the pain: “It hurts and I understand it makes you feel upset.” Then demonstrate how you can reframe the negative situation by saying, “If we dwell on the fact your arm hurts, it is going to make us miserable. Why don’t we think of all the cool things we can do with the cast?” This reframing technique helps foster resilience in a child.

Key points • Positive thinking is a mental attitude that perceives situations in a constructive way.

• Children as young as five are able to grasp the principles of positive thinking.

• Children get better at understanding positive thinking as they get older.

• When it is nurtured, positive thinking is a powerful coping tool and helps builds resilience in child.

• Parents can encourage positive thinking by modelling it in their own life.

• Always acknowledge a negative situation or feeling. Then help your child see it in a way that is positive and productive. (aboutkidshealth.ca)

news

7

tuesDAY, August 15, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Aircraft seized at another illegal airstrip in Rupununi

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The illegal plane that was found at the illegal airstrip on Sunday evening

lmost two weeks after an illegal airstrip was discovered at Santa Fe North Rupununi, Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo); the Police on Sunday evening intercepted an illegal aircraft minutes after it landed.

Prior to the discovery of the aircraft, members of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) have been monitoring events after a foreign aircraft was seen frequenting the Santa Fe area.

However, on Sunday evening, Police ranks went to the area and conducted a search during which over a dozen 10-gallon jars were found hidden in the bushes.

The party also observed that a long strip of land measuring one mile in length and about 50 feet in width was cleared. In addition, as the team was leav-

ing the area, it observed an aircraft circling and immediately went back to the location.

There, they saw three men running from the landed aircraft. While the men escaped, the aircraft was secured by the Police.

Sometime later, F Division (Interior locations) Commander, Ravindradat Budhram arrived at the location and a search was conducted on the aircraft. The search unearthed a quantity of dry ration, medical supplies, gents clothing and footwear, two hand-held radios, flashlights, cellular phones and an identification card amongst other items.

The Guyana Civil Aviation Authority has been notified and a team was deployed to the area to conduct further investigations.

Just two weeks ago, an illegal airstrip was unearthed about five kilometres West of Santa Fe, Rupununi, Region Nine, by members of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) who were patrolling the area.

The ranks were conducting a reconnaissance mission when they stumbled upon the seeming newly built airstrip. Following a closer inspection of the perimeter of the airstrip, several dug out trenches were found. They were covered with black plastic and dried branches.

Upon removing the plastic and branches, several items were found concealed in the holes including a chainsaw and fuel drums.

In addition, a ¼ drum of aviation fuel was also found at the site.

At least 12 abandoned

Impassable Lethem road

camps were also found in close proximity of the airstrip. These camps were reportedly used by farmers over a period of time.

In September 2016, a Joint Services patrol discovered an illegal aircraft hidden just off of the Yupukari Airstrip, Rupununi with United States registration N-767-Z. Subsequently, a team of investigators from the GDF, GPF, Customs AntiNarcotics Unit and the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority was deployed from Georgetown to the area to conduct investigations and were able to determine that the registration number was bogus.

Moreover, investigators had discovered during interviews with nearby residents that the aircraft had been sighted circling the area on numerous occasions in the past.

Additionally, a number of residents shared information they deemed as “suspicious activity”, including the presence of motorcycles or ATVs frequenting the area at midnight.

It was reported that a leak was discovered in the fuel tank of the aircraft.

This, investigators believe, may have caused the air-

fisherman was granted bail on Monday after he appeared at the Leonora Magistrate’s Court charged for chopping another man.

Forty-nine-year-old Randolph Anfermee of Parika Junction, East Bank Essequibo, made his appearance before Magistrate Rochelle Liverpool at the Leonora Magistrate’s Court.

He initially pleaded guilty to the charge which alleged that while at Parika

C

The once impassable Lethem road

age caused a major loss of revenue for the region, since vehicle owners were forced to go over to neighbouring Brazil to fuel up. Fuel was however, able to reach the region on Friday.

The burden increased on vehicle owners, since they are forced to pay some $125 more per litre over the border in Brazil than what they would have paid locally.

This newspaper understands that regional contractor, JR Ranch, commenced

remedial works on the ‘Hunt Oil’ stretch of road on Friday afternoon, and was expected to fully complete the works

by Monday latest. It had been reported that in the meanwhile, the contractor had rendered assistance to some of the stranded commuters plying the route.

Guyana Times was told that up to Saturday midday, the contractor was able to partially repair the road and make it passable, but only to light vehicles.

craft to land in Guyana.

However, it has been reported that one of the local law enforcement agencies was aware of the aircraft at least three weeks before the disclosure was made. It was reported that the security officials were monitoring the aircraft to see if anyone would return to salvage it.

Meanwhile, President David Granger has established a one-man Commission of Inquiry (CoI) to probe the discovery of the illegal aircraft and appointed retired Brigadier Edward Collins to investigate, examine, advice and

report on all aspects under which the foreign aircraft had entered the country.

During the CoI, public meetings were held in several villages including Katoka, Kaicumbay, Yupukari and other villages. The CoI proved that the aircraft entered Guyana illegally.

The illegal twin-engine Cessna aircraft was subsequently flown from Yupukari to Lethem initially, before it was flown to the Cheddi Jagan International Airport where it remains to date. (Bhisham Mohamed)

Fisherman granted bail after chopping man

Regular traffic flow by A weekend – Chairman hairman of Region Nine (Upper TakutuUpper Essequibo) Brian Allicock said that with the way things are fanning out, there should be a free flow of traffic on the access road leading to the region by the end of the week.

He said however, that vehicles are already able to pass, as the work completed so far by the contractor has been satisfactory. Currently, workers are in the process of ‘capping and compacting’ the road.

Work on the deplorable road began over the weekend after much cries from residents and fuel shortage in the region.

The stretch of road at an area known as ‘Hunt Oil’ in the vicinity of the LethemKurupukari roadway in North Rupununi had been flooded and rendered impassable, resulting in several heavy-duty vehicles such as fuel trucks being stranded, causing Lethem to face a shortage of gasoline.

Guyana Times was told that the Macedo and Lammy fuel stations had been without gasoline for several days, while the Takutu Gas Station had sold its last bit of fuel on Friday. This short-

The illegal airstrip that was stumbled upon earlier in the month

on July 2, 2017, he inflicted grievous bodily harm on Wazim Subhan.

The accused told the court that he was first attacked by the Virtual Complainant (VC) with a fork and only took up a cutlass to defend himself.

He told Magistrate Liverpool that he did not intend to chop the VC but stated that it was an accident for which he is sorry.

Following his explanation, a not guilty plea was en-

tered on his behalf.

Police Prosecutor Sherwin Matthews however objected to bail being granted to the accused as he failed to provide a fixed address to the court. He also objected on the grounds that the defendant was brought to court on an arrest warrant.

Magistrate Liverpool initially remanded the defendant to prison but later granted him bail in the sum of $120,000.

8 news

tuesDAY, august 15, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

IN THE COURTS

Fish depot robber remanded for illegal firearm, ammo

J

ust a few months after he was released on bail pending the “Wild Caught Fresh Fish Depot” robbery trial, Marvin Blackman found himself yet again before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts for illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition, on Monday morning.

City Magistrate Judy Latchman read that on August 8, 2017, at South Ruimveldt Georgetown, Blackman was found to be in possession of seven live 9mm ammunition and one 9mm pistol without being the holder of a firearm licence.

Defence counsel in a failed submission for bail related that Blackman is 25-years of age, permanently residing in North Ruimveldt, Georgetown and is expecting a child from a common-law union.

The court further heard that the accused has armed robbery charges pending in Court Five of the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts and as such, Police Prosecutor Shawn Gonsalves, objected to bail on the grounds that no special reasons were advanced by defense counsel as he

Flashback: Marvin Blackman is seen moments after he was apprehended while hiding in the ceiling following the robbery at Wild Caught Fresh Fish Depot in 2016

further revealed that the accused had allegedly committed the said fel-

ony while on bail pending the robbery trial; adding weight to his argument. Bail was refused and the accused was remanded to prison until August 28 when the matter will be called again before Magistrate Latchman.

Blackman was late last year charged along with two others – Jason Brotherson and Neesan Benny – for allegedly robbing Shane Robin of $560,000 in cash and fishing equipment, a total value of $2,560,000 on December 2, 2016, at Meadow Bank, East Bank Demerara.

According to media reports, on the day in question, one bandit was shot

by Police while another was apprehended and a third made good his escape following the burglary.

The injured bandit was shot to both of his legs by Police ranks who responded to the report of a robbery at the fish depot at about 00:45h.

Blackman was apprehended at the site and according to reports, he was found hiding in the ceiling by ranks of the Guyana Police Force. (Paula Gomes)

Gambler on bail for damaging SUPERBET property

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23-year-old youth of Norton Street, Lodge, Georgetown was released on $80,000 bail after he pleaded not guilty to unlawfully damaging one HP computer at Durban Street, Georgetown, valued at $179,000, property of SUPERBET, on July 31, 2017.

Mandani Bhoodoo appeared in a rumpled state before Magistrate Judy Latchman on Monday morn-

ing and initially admitted to the offence as he explained that on the day of the incident, he was gambling at SUPERBET when he had indicated to the cashier that she had given him the wrong bet.

A fight would soon ensue between himself and another patron during which they reportedly knocked over a computer monitor. The defendant claimed he thought the matter was resolved af-

ter the parties agreed to split the damage costs in half at the Police Station.

After hearing this explanation, the court entered a not guilty plea on behalf of the defendant. According to the accused, he operates a horse cart and has no previous or pending matters before the courts.

Police Prosecutor Shawn Gonsalves disclosed that on the day of the incident, around 21:45h, Bhoodoo ar-

rived at SUPERBET and an argument ensued between the accused and another party shortly after.

Gonsalves related that the defendant started to throw bricks; one of which hit the monitor, damaging it. The accused was subsequently arrested and charged with the present offence.

Magistrate Latchman instructed Bhoodoo to return to court on August 28 for statements.

Conniving…

S …on Marriott

ome folks were puzzled the Muckraker’s still tearing down the Marriott investment even though the PPP Government that built it, has been out of office for two and a half years. Hellooooo!!!

If AHI owns the hotel and NICIL owns AHI and the Government owns NICIL, doesn’t the present PNC-led Government own the Marriott? But you see where this is heading, don’t you, dear reader?

Most recently, they’ve been harping on the US$27 million debt to Republic Bank that the Government recently started servicing. If the Government hadn’t started servicing the loan – which is like a mortgage, (to all you homeowners out there) – then Republic would’ve been able to sell off the Marriott to recoup its US$27 million. But as you homeowners know, the property, in this case the Marriott, is worth MUCH MORE that the mortgage/loan. The Government doesn’t just have the debt – IT HAS THE PROPERTY!!!

So what the Muckraker was angling for was for one of friends pick up this prime piece of real estate dirt cheap!

In their latest salvo, the Muckraker revealed as much when they griped that the contract to obtain the Marriott brand by AHI forbid the sale of the hotel to any competing brand!! And we know who wants to pick up the brand, don’t we? Think of that AFC financier who was on the FUCOP committee (Fund for United Candidate for Opposition Presidency) with the Muckraker. And who owns a hotel. Wink…wink…

But while the Government hates the PPP guts, it has its own connivers. Even right now, without the critical Entertainment Complex – the Marriott’s clearing its operational expenses. With the Exxon investment coming on stream and investors flocking to Guyana like flies to exposed honey, the Marriott’s worth at least THREE times that US$27 million right now. Quick now… if you were a foreign visitor with big bucks and forced to choose between the Marriott and all the other hotels to rest your head, which one would you choose?

So, to the consternation of the Muckraker, the Government’s looking for a PPP arrangement (Public Private Partnership NOT People’s Progressive Party!!) to complete the Entertainment Complex. As predicted by the PPP when they went out on a limb to complete the Marriott – this will generate much more revenues than needed to service the Republic bank loan. As one director was quoted as saying, the Marriott will then become a CASH COW!!

…on corruption

One owner of a security firm just complained about corruption in contracts being awarded in his sector – in addition to infrastructural projects. He’s not alone – pick a sector, ANY SECTOR, scratch the surface and you’ll see rampant, corruption oozing out. What do you call appointing geriatrics to run (run down?) GuySuCo when in their BEST years, they merely pencil pushers?

Let’s not even mention procurement in pharmaceuticals or pharmaceutical warehouses!!

The PNC dominated City Council of course, has set such new lows for conniving and corruption it’ll take a most adept limbo dancer to beat them!! The English statesman Lord Acton once famously observed that “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

What this government has done in only two and a half years is to turn Acton on his head by proving that “corruption is power and absolute corruption is absolute power”.

But then the PNC had 28 years of practice during their first stint in office, didn’t they?

…on scholarships

After the outcry following two sitting Ministers (with their mega-salaries) and all kinds of insiders being awarded Government scholarships, a named panel was established to screen online applicants. But not who’ll make the final cut.

Could we at least get the names of new 500+ scholarships awardees?

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

News

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tuesDAY, august 15, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Herstelling man Councillor instructs Town Clerk stabbed to death to ‘shut up’, apologises later by friend City Hall at war over garbage

… comprehensive solid waste management policy needed

By Lakhram Baghirat

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ity Hall was temporarily converted into a battlefield when Town Clerk Royston King was ordered to ‘shut up’ by Councillor Gregory Fraser who was at the time addressing the Mayor and City Council of Georgetown (M&CC) Statutory Meeting on Monday. However, he was later forced to apologise but did so only after King threatened to walk out of

less than a month after being owed over $300 million.

The companies decided to withdraw their services to City Hall, as the lack of payment to the companies continues despite promises to be paid.

Following the companies withdrawal of services, the Town Clerk wrote to both companies.

“I however, write on behalf of the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown to inform you

Councillor Gregory Fraser during the intense argument

A smiling Royston King during all the commotion subsequent to being told to ‘shut up’

the meeting along with his officers.

Earlier in the meeting, King told the Council that contrary to reports in certain sections of the media, the contract with Cevons Waste Management and Puran Brothers Disposal has not been terminated on the part of City Hall; rather it was on the part of the contractors.

Councillor Ivelaw Henry chaired the meeting since both the Mayor and Deputy Mayor were said to be out of the jurisdiction on official business and medical emergencies, respectively.

Garbage contractors Cevons Waste Management and Puran Brothers Disposal pulled their services for the second time in

that the recent actions by your company to withdraw garbage collection services (from July 7-11) and the intended action to do so with effect from the 6th August, 2017, is viewed by the Council as a termination of the current contract, since there is no provision within the current contract between the Mayor and City Council and your corporation for the suspension of garbage collection services,” King said in his correspondence.

At Monday’s meeting, he maintained that and while trying to address the situation, Councillor Fraser referred to the termination as City Hall’s move and lost all cool when King intervened to correct his statement.

“Mister Chairman, I have to discuss the termination of the contract of Puran and Cevons,” Fraser stated.

“Mr Chairman I want to make the point again that perhaps the Councillor missed the point I made,” King interrupted.

“Mr Chairman I am not speaking to the Town Clerk.

Mr Town Clerk I am not finished speaking. Mr Town Clerk I suggest you wait until I am finished speaking before you rebut, you don’t know what I am going to say,” Fraser fired back amidst chatter from the Town Clerk.

“Mr Chairman I am not rebutting,” King continued.

“Mr Town Clerk you don’t know what I am going to say, you need to shut up!”

Fraser exclaimed.

“I am here to guide this meeting. I am saying the Councillor used the wrong word ‘termination’ and I am saying that the word has been incorrectly used. We have not terminated the contract of Cevons or Purans,” King continued.

At this, most of the

Councillors and administrative officers began raising their voices demanding an apology and withdrawal of the statement. In an effort to calm the situation, Councillor Henry withdrew the statement but that did not go down well with the other Councillors.

However, after approximately 10 minutes of back and forth between Councillors, Chairman Henry ordered Fraser to apologise and withdraw his statement, which he subsequently did.

When the commotion died down, former Deputy Mayor Sherod Duncan, tabled a motion calling for a comprehensive and coherent, modern policy of the city’s solid waste management. In defending the motion, Duncan said the policy will be timely and in keeping with the transformation of Georgetown into a modern city.

The motion was carried by the Council and the Markets Committee is now going to be tasked with crafting the policy.

– at West Berbice Bar-B-Que event

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n electrician was in the wee hours of Monday morning stabbed to death by a friend after he intervened in an argument at Number 42 Village, West Coast Berbice.

The dead man has been identified as 50-yearold Sylvan Stoll of Plot ‘B’ Herstelling, East Bank Demerara.

The suspect, a 32-year-old labourer of Onderneeming, West Bank Demerara, was arrested and is being questioned.

Based on reports received, the now dead man and the suspect along with other persons travelled from Georgetown to attend a Bar-B-Que event at the Number 42 Community Centre Ground.

Whilst there, an argument erupted between the suspect and a friend and the victim intervened. The suspect, who was armed with a knife dealt Stoll one blow to the left side of his neck, causing him to collapse.

He was picked up and rushed to the Mahaicony Hospital, East Coast

Demerara where he later succumbed to his injury. It is believed that both men were under the influence of alcohol at the time of the stabbing.

This stabbing came two days after 53-yearold Mohabeer Gangadeen Kooblall of GAC Old Road, Timehri, East Bank Demerara, was mercilessly beaten with a spade at the Potaro Backdam, Region Eight during an argument with a friend.

Based on reports received, the now dead man and the suspect were imbibing with a colleague when an argument ensued between them but this quickly escalated into a scuffle. It was during this time that the suspect, a 35-year-old man, picked up a spade and dealt Kooblall several blows to his head and about his body.

The victim died almost immediately.

The Police were summoned to the area thus leading to the arrest of the suspect. He is expected to be charged before the end of the week.

10 news

tuesdAY, august 15, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

House lot payment fraud

CH&PA not in favour of compensating fraud victim(s) – Saul … citizens urged to report all corrupt practices

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he Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) said in light of the recent house lot payment fraud in Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam), which resulted in the Regional Housing Officer being sent on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation, the Authority is not in favour of compen-

sating those affected.

“I think first we must establish what has happened and I won’t want to argue that the Regional Housing Officer was not acting on behalf of CH&PA when he engaged in such activity and I would not be favourable to compensating anyone who was defrauded by the accused,” Chief Executive Officer of the CH&PA, Lelon Saul said.

According to reports, earlier in the year, Region Two’s Regional Housing Officer Omesh Sasenarine allegedly collected the sum of $50,000 as payment for a house lot but issued a persona receipt instead of an official one, converting the money to his own use.

The woman, he sold the land, visited the Regional Democratic Office for an update on the progress of her transaction only to be told that there were no records and the receipt she had in her possession is fake. She then ventured to office of the Central Housing and Planning Authority at Brickdam, Georgetown and it was revealed that there were no

Chief Executive Officer of CH&PA, Lelon Saul

records of the transaction.

An investigation was launched into the incident.

Saul told a press conference on Monday that the issue is engaging the attention of the Police and investigations are ongoing.

He added that they are also investigating to determine whether this was an isolated incident or part of a pattern of corruption.

“During last week, we received a report which seems to suggest that the Regional Housing Officer at Region number Two unlawfully collected $50,000 and issued a forged receipt for a house lot. Police was called and the accused was arrested.

Investigation is ongoing to establish whether or not this is an isolated incident or a patterned corrupt practice,” he said.

Sasenarine have since been sent on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation and if found culpable, he would be immediately dismissed.

Except for the CH&PA office in Georgetown and Linden, all payments for

house lots must be made at the Regional Democratic Offices in Regions Two, Three (Essequibo IslandsWest Demerara), Five (Mahaica-Berbice), Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) and Nine (Upper TakutuUpper Essequibo). Given this report, ongoing investigations are being carried out at all those offices.

He informed that the Authority is currently conducting audits of all their offices and would ensure that their regional offices are much more closely monitored. He added that there would be regular audits by the Regional Audit Departments and at least one managerial visit per month. “Given this report I therefore request of members of the public who may be adversely affected or aggrieved by indiscretion of any employee of the Central Housing and Planning Authority to immediately report such cases to the CEO office or any manager of the agency,” Saul said.

“Further, I advise citizens not to enable corruption by offering inducements to the employees of the CH&PA. Moreover, you’re welcome to report cases when employees demand payment or favour.

Our employees are paid by the State and you do not need to pay them. Let me assure you all cases of corruption will be thoroughly investigated and those found wanting will be ferret out and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” he added.

The CH&PA is also advising persons to be more observant when making payments for house lots at the Regional Offices.

From kicking down doors to jumping through windows: we have hit a new low

T

he aforesaid title is neither a gimmick nor a satire, and it certainly is not part of the lyrics of a calypso or chutney song, although the words might very well be insofar as they can serve as an outlet for defenseless people to cope with unnecessary trauma on their lives.

The title is based on real life situations. However, if you carry a last name that sounds like Granger, Nagamootoo, Ramjattan, Broomes, and so on, you need not worry about these real life situations. These individuals have been jumping from one posh office to the other, jumping from one secured environment to the other, and jumping from one salary increase to the other.

May I recall the $500,000 per month rent for Broomes paid by taxpayers?

In contrast, the real life situations reveal how people in the Upper Corentyne, and by extension the entire nation, have been living since this regime wormed itself into power two years ago. We have now Dr Lomarsh Roopnarine become accustomed to read how Corentyne residents -- including a pregnant woman -- have been jumping out of their windows to escape marauding, gun-toting bandits.

We will soon read how a family has had to plunge from a roof top to escape encroaching bandits when it was a family member visiting from the back door. The perception now is to jump if you hear suspect noise or see suspect action. What a way to live! I am currently practising my jumping skills. The regime has catapulted the entire nation and diaspora into a jumping motion as if we were competing in the World Championships. We, as a nation, have become the jumping hop-scotch of the Caribbean.

The above anxiety is going on precisely when criminals have been playing a “catch me if you can” game, mocking the organizing and governing principles and skills of this defunct regime.

The buzz word is to fire Kemraj Ramjattan, but who will replace him will result in another round of Rupert Roopnaraine fiasco.

We need no more of this spectacle; spare the nation, please. Our laughter has been stifled by heartless blows from this regime.

Last week, while innocent people were jumping out of windows to protect their lives, the PNC’s past was coincidentally being resurrected at the Botanical Garden. What do you expect?

Are you surprised that Moses Nagamootoo was there, leading from the front? This is not a phantom of the opera but a pantomime of a politician. The message there, if you did not get it, is to challenge the gerrymandering and moribund memory of the PNC and to champion a positive past. Expect more of this every passing year, and what will emerge, I argue, is a confused battle against the narrative of memory among the younger and future generations of this country.

It has already happened. If you doubt me, please examine the narrative of columnists, letter writers, commentators in Guyana’s tabloids, the post-Hitler Germany, post-Stalin Soviet Union, and so on. I urge readers to get hold of these books: The Art of Dominance and perhaps the Weapon of the Weak by James Scott.

I am very much aware of what goes on in the villages from No. 52 to No. 74 and beyond. These are peaceful villages, and when the word gets around that someone has jumped from a window, that action is related to eloping and loving, not fleeing for your life. Look how things are changing. The people in these villages are generally amicably-oriented, not anxiety-ridden. They rely on their village customs and hard work to cohere and coexist. Look how that is changing.

Some say that these unwanted changes sweeping across the country are a result of mistakes from this regime. They have chosen a careful label. I argue that the tsunami of mistakes cannot be merely mistakes. Absolutely not! They are consequences of bombastic and barbaric persona, bereft of sound leadership and trapped in ethnic esotericism, supported by blind loyalty and tabloid tassa writers in the op-ed pages. Instead of spending more resources in security for out-reaching areas, the regime has poured millions of dollars in SARU, a semi-independent crime-fighting organization made-up of a hit squad of political operatives and supporters from the current regime, designed to go after the previous government.

As I have stated, SARU has become a problem to the solution.

The regime is pushing SARU for results, even if that means witchhunting, because it believes it is running out of time before the 2020 general election.

Paradoxically, the regime is applying its own aspersion. The million-dollar question is: would this regime exit from power peacefully if the people voted them out in 2020? This question is also directed at the ABC countries, known for a habit of disinformation. My intention is not to publicize Broomes anymore, but she has received the TIP (Trafficking in Persons) Hero award from the U.S. Please! This is not the time to giggle and jiggle.

There is a message here, resonating from the victims and villains: nip in the bud this jumping out of the window problem now, before it becomes a culture of nightmare so experienced during the kick-down-door banditry under the then PNC in the 70s and 80s. I am sure that Ramjattan does not forget how his village at No. 47 was terrorized for decades by the technique of kick-downdoor banditry.

The regime does not need a one-hour programme in the media to address this scourge. It needs will power and action, irrespective of if the people in this region voted or will not vote for the PNCled Coalition in the future. Is this asking too much? (lomarsh. roopnarine@jsums.edu)

news

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tuesDAY, august 15, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Nothing unusual about ExxonMobil trip – Jordan ... defends ‛the quintet’ ministerial team

T

he recent trip of a batch of senior ministers to the ExxonMobil Headquarters in Houston, Texas has been defended with the statement that nothing was unusual about the visit, as there will be annual engagements of a comprehensive nature in preparation for ‘first oil’ in 2020.

Senior Finance Minister

these engagements are ongoing. What we would like to do is move them from informality to formality, so they would occur as they should, or (as) circumstances warrant,” Jordan explained.

Jordan said these visits should take place twice annually, and Government has suggested that one

made…,” he continued.

Jordan said that in the two-day visit -- from August 10 to 11 -- the meetings and discussions were intense, and the team from Guyana had opportunity to get firsthand experience of how the

in the Liza field in 2023 and beyond.

Contracts have been awarded for the floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, and

the post-2020 period.

Both sides expressed confidence and satisfac-

Finance Minister Winston Jordan Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson Business Minister Dominic Gaskin Presidential Advisor Dr Jan Mangal

Winston Jordan told the media on Monday that the visit was made by a sub-committee created by Cabinet and dubbed ‘the quintet-plusone’. That sub-committee comprised himself, as Senior Finance Minister; Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman; Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge; Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson; Business Minister Dominic Gaskin, and Presidential Advisor Dr. Jan Mangal.

“Essentially we are mandated to have engagements with Exxon going forward as it relates to petroleum exploration and revenues; so

trip should be made to ExxonMobil Headquarters and the second meeting would take place right here in Guyana.

“It’s not that we are spying on each other, but we must keep our friends close,” he explained.

Asked to disclose what was discussed at the meeting, Jordan did not go into specifics, but gave a general explanation. “It was oil and gas matters. Come on!

I mean, it’s in the interest of the nation, where oil and gas matters with everything to do with production and making sure we are on target (was discussed). The level of investment being

oil and gas sector operates.

“So it wasn’t any deal-making, (nor was there) any need to have technical officers and so on. This was ‘the quintet-plus-one’. When technical officers are required, we will have technical officers there.”

A more detailed press statement from the Natural Resources Ministry on Monday said the team was updated on developments with the Liza Phases 1 and 2. The Liza Phase 1 is scheduled to commence production in 2020, and will hope to recover approximately 500 million barrels of oil at a rate of 120,000 barrels per day (bpd); while the Liza Phase 2 is expected to recover the remaining resource

the sub-sea infrastructure and connections necessary for production in deep sea.

The Ministers were also briefed on, and engaged in, discussions on the advancements of the proposed project to utilise available natural gas for energy generation by the Guyana Power and Light, and scrutinised the various financial and fiscal models that would emerge from oil revenues in

tion in the process, and undertook to have follow-up discussions on the natural gas project within two months.

Several Ministers had attended similar briefings in 2016, and it was decided then to have annual engagements of a comprehensive nature in preparation for ‘first oil’ in 2020 and beyond.

These meetings follow closely on the Government of Guyana awarding, in June 2017, a Production Licence for development of Phase 1 of the Lisa Field

to ExxonMobil and partners; Hess’ and CNOOC Nexen’s subsequent Final Investment Decision (FID), and the quantification of petroleum in the Payara well in July 2017.

Both sides expressed confidence and satisfaction in the process, and undertook to have follow-up discussions on the natural gas project within two months.

Government is a 50 per cent partner with ExxonMobil, Hess and CNOOC Nexen for the development of the off-shore Stabroek Block in which petroleum has been discovered.

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tuesDAY, august 15, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Modernised waterfront recreational areas in the works

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he Ministry of Public Infrastructure (MPI) is in the process of undertaking environmental, social and economic impact assessments preparatory to commencing creation, restoration and modernisation of several waterfront recreational areas.

Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson has said that after identifying and addressing those issues, the MPI would issue tenders for the projects, and work is expected to start immediately thereafter.

Some preliminary designs for the creation and restoration of modern waterfront recreational areas between

Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson

Kingston in Georgetown and Ogle, ECD; Stabroek Market on the eastern coast of the Demerara River and Vreed-

en-Hoop on the western coast thereof, were completed last year, Patterson disclosed.

He added that tenders for the consultancy have been evaluated by the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB), and will shortly be awarded.

Guyana has obtained a grant worth £53.2 million from the United Kingdom’s Caribbean Infrastructure Fund (UK CIF). It is intended to improve or create new infrastructure to drive economic growth and development. Minister Patterson explained that the MPI was initially expected to fund this waterfront improvement

infrastructure to drive economic growth and development, and that entity’s input would enable Government to do more in this regard.

He said there is no delay, but a process has to be followed.

“The implementation phase is to follow the guide-

that contracts for the technical design and feasibility study for this project have been awarded. The expected duration for the studies is approximately nine months.

The UK CIF funding also allows for the acquisition of a dredge; rehabilitation and/or upgrade of the

British High Commissioner to Guyana, Gregg Quinn

project, but the UK CIF invited Government to submit proposals for projects that would improve or create new The proposed Waterfront Stabroek Market Recreational Area

lines of the DFID/CDB as opposed to our own funds; so it’s not really a delay, but a rescheduling of where the funds are coming from. We can do much more with the UK CIF/CDB funding; it’s larger than what we can fund internally, so that is the only delay,” the Department of Public Infrastructure has quoted Minister Patterson as saying.

British High Commissioner to Guyana, Gregg Quinn, announced at a recent press conference

Linden-to-Mabura Road; and construction of a bridge across the Kurupukari River (Kurupukari Crossing).

Minister Patterson has disclosed that the contract for the Linden-to-Mabura Road is also due to be out for tender this year.

The Caribbean Development Bank will be responsible for overseeing these projects, and a team from the Bank will be in Guyana in December to formalise the agreement on the projects.

Rice shipment to Cuba departs next month

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Paddy being loaded for export to Mexico

he Cuban rice market has now been made available to Guyana after a series of negotiations over the past months. As a result, the first shipment of rice to Cuba is expected to be exported during the latter part of September.

General Manager of the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB), Allison Peters said this is just one of the new export markets which will be added to the list of Guyana’s growing export markets.

“There is also a shipment off to Cuba and we are going to start that off in the third week of September,” Peters is quoted as saying via the Department of Public Information (DPI).

Peters added that, “We have started sending paddy to Panama for this year; we started in … early July.”

The disclosure comes after Guyana had recently

commenced exports of paddy to Mexico. US$17.7 million (GY$3.8 billion) worth of paddy is to be exported to Mexico. “Well so far to Mexico more than one shipment has been sent, I think three shipments have been sent so far totalling over 35,000 tonnes and more shipments are expected to go,” she disclosed.

Peters added that another contract is expected to be signed within the next few weeks for the exportation of paddy to Panama. She said since the country is now securing more rice markets, the product must be increased to meet these new demands.

Paddy production for the first crop of 2017 was recorded at 518,667 metric tonnes. It was projected that rice production will increase by 1.3 per cent in 2017 at the beginning of the year.

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tuesDAY, august 15, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

President’s directive to halt Police promotions

Nandlall threatens legal action if directive not withdrawn …cites constitutional violation and former Chief Justice 2015 ruling

By Lakhram Bhagirat

I

respectfully demand that you withdraw, in writing, your letter dated 2017-07-26, addressed to Marvalyn Stephens, Secretary, Police Service Commission, Waterloo Street, Georgetown, within two (2) days of the date hereof. If you fail to do so, I will have no alternative but to institute legal proceedings in relation thereto,” former Attorney General Anil Nandlall penned in a letter directed and delivered to Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, on Monday.

Minister Harmon had, in a letter dated July 27th, written to the Police Service Commission (PSC), informing that the President had directed that there be no consideration of promotion for members of the Guyana Police Force until further notice, and his letter had directed that this no-consideration should be implemented immediately.

Nandlall’s letter to Harmon, however, argues that the President’s directive violates both the letter and spirit of Article 226(1) of the Constitution of Guyana, the relevant part of which reads, “…in the exercise of its functions under this Constitution, a Commission shall not be subject to the di-

Former Attorney General Anil Nandlall

rection or control of any other person or authority.”

Further, Article 226(7) states, “In this article… the expression ‘commission’ means the Elections Commission, the Judicial Service Commission, the Public Service Commission, the Teaching Service Commission, (and) the Police Service Commission.”

Shortly after assuming office in May 2015, then Junior Social Protection Minister Simona Broomes had written to the Public Service Commission, instructing that “all interviews and meetings of the Commission are to cease forthwith until further (notice), as instructed by His Excellency, the President, David Arthur

Granger’s notice.”

In June, Attorney-at-law Euclin Gomes had, through Nandlall, filed legal proceedings against the Attorney General, claiming that the Constitution had similarly been violated. Then Chief Justice Ian Chang had heard the matter and ruled that the Public Service Commission, a Commission established by the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, shall, in the exercise of its functions, not be subject to the direction or control of any other person or authority.

“IT IS BY CONSENT FURTHER ORDERED AND DECLARED that a letter dated the 28th of May, 2015, directed to the Secretary of the Public Service Commission, a Commission established by the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, by Ms. Simona Broomes, A Minister and a member of the Executive, advising that “all interviews and meetings of the Commission are to cease forthwith until further (sic) as instructed by His Excellency, the President, David Arthur Granger’s notice”, is in violation of Article 226 of the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana; is unlawful, null, void and of no legal effect…,” Chang added.

President David Granger

“As an Attorney-at-Law, I have no doubt that you appreciate that the Police Service Commission and the Public Service Commission form part of the same constitutional genus, and therefore, the Order of Chief Justice Chang will apply with equal force to your letter to the Police Service Commission, mutatis mutandis. Indeed, I express shock that you would author such a letter in the first place,” Nandlall said in his letter to Harmon.

Chairman of the PSC, Omesh Satyanand, told this publication that this is the first time that the constitutional body had received such a directive from a sitting President. “We are not

sure about the reason for the President to give such a directive; there was no clarity, and personally, as the Chairman, I would want to see some clarity or some justification why he would arrive at a decision like that,” he added.

Asked whether he thinks the move is linked to the ongoing Commission of Inquiry into the effectiveness of the Guyana Police Force in investigating the alleged assassination plot against the President, Satyanand said if it is, then it should have been clearly stated on the correspondence sent to the PSC. Meanwhile, former Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee has said that the recent directive shows that the Government has its own plans, and the witch-hunting phase is being set in motion.

The instruction to put all Police promotions on hold until further notice took a new twist on Saturday, when a copy of the list was leaked to the media. The list revealed that several senior officers who were hauled before the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the alleged plot to assassinate the President are on that list. Assistant Police Commissioner Clifton Hicken was tipped to be promoted to Deputy Commissioner of Police; while current Crime Chief, Senior Superintendent

Wendell Blanhum, had been lined up for Assistant Commissioner.

Head of Special Branch, Brian Eastman, was also listed to become a Senior Superintendent of Police; while Head of the Major Crimes Unit, Assistant Superintendent Mitchell Caesar, had been recommended for Deputy Superintendent.

A report in the State media had alleged that the list had contained officers who were unfit for promotion.

This had been used as an excuse for the President’s move. But in the wake of the revelation that officers currently under pressure at the CoI are actually part of this “unfit” list, questions are being raised whether a plot is afoot.

President Granger has a history of making decisions without giving reasons. One of those decisions is the rejection of two successive list of nominees for the post of Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission.

That decision was challenged in the court, and acting Chief Justice Roxane George has ruled that the President must give reasons for his decision. However, the President has said he would continue to be guided by his interpretation of the Constitution.

Corentyne robbery suspects remanded

By Andrew Carmichael

F

ive of the suspects who allegedly invaded an Upper Corentyne fisherman’s home and carried away $1.7 million in jewellery, $100,000 in cash, and miscellaneous other items were on Monday arraigned before Springlands Magistrate Rabindranauth Singh, before whom they were not required to plead to a slew of indictable charges, and were all remanded until August 24, when the prosecution would be expected to present a progress report.

The five detained suspects are: 19-year-old Styovan Bhowan of Number 70 Village, Corentyne, said to be the mastermind of the invasion; 23-year-old Rabindra Kumar of Number 73 Village, the alleged driver of the getaway car. He was reportedly found with illegal drugs, a firearm and ammunition not far from the crime scene, and has already been placed before the court for those offences. Thirty-four-year-old Heresh Kuman Rai, called ‘Ryan,’ a security guard and resident of Number 73 Village, Corentyne; 33-yearold Mahindra Singh, also called ‘Sunil’, an unemployed resident of Number 72 Village; and 27-year-old Khemraj Singh, a fisherman of Number 69 Village,

Corentyne.

The court was told that, on August 5, 2017, at Lot 100 Number 69 Village, Upper Corentyne, seven armed men stormed the home of Sachin Ramrattan.

After ransacking the house, they took away a large quantity of jewelley and cash, a tablet and a cellular phone.

Ramrattan, his wife Vidya Gopaul, 26, and their 4-yearold son had retired to bed at 22:30 hrs on the day in question.

The pregnant woman, who was not asleep, reportedly heard a loud noise and voices, and immediately awoke her husband. Fearful, the husband jumped off their bed and switched on the lights, and the family then realised that bandits had entered their home. He had switched on the lights to ward off the men, while his pregnant wife bolted the bedroom door.

The men were already in the house and banging on the bedroom door when Ramrattan, his wife and son exited the home via the bedroom window and landed on the neighbour’s shed. By then some of the men had entered the room after the Ramrattan family had exited same, and they fired two shots as the family ran for safety.

Although the alleged suspects have been apprehended, the victim of this home

Sachin Ramrattan and his pregnant wife, Vidya Gopaul, had to flee their home in face of an armed bandit invasion

invasion has said he does not feel safe, and is calling on the Guyana Police Force (GPF) to put in place systems that would enable quicker response to persons under duress.

The fisherman said the police responded two hours after their initially being informed that a gang of heavily armed criminals was attacking and invading his home.

Ramrattan was a part of a group which met with Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan and Police ‘B’ Division Commander, Assistant Commissioner Paul Williams, on Sunday at the Number 66 Village Fisherman’s Co-op Complex.

He detailed to these functionaries that he had telephoned the New Amsterdam and Whim Police Stations in a bid to get a quicker response

from the Springlands Police Station.

Also included in that group was former President of the Upper Corentyne Chamber of Commerce, Kumar Doodnauth, who said the chamber is very concerned about what has been happening along the Upper Corentyne.

“We, the members of the business community, are the ones who suffer the most,” he related as he appealed for quicker police response time to persons under duress.

Police Commander Williams, however, noted that the officers had responded quickly, which was why they were able to apprehend the driver. Williams explained that on many occasions, when the police are responding to a robbery, they do not go straight to the actual site, but

comb the area and position themselves at strategic places in an attempt to apprehend the perpetrators.

He noted that, at Number 72 Village, the police were able to apprehend the driver even before he was able to get back to the pre-arranged location for a rendezvous with the robbers. Minister Ramjattan had earlier said there is a shortage of vehicles in the Guyana Police Force.

He said there is not enough money to purchase vehicles.

However, he noted that $111 million have been set aside

to purchase vehicles for the Police Force this year. Some of those vehicles will be sent to Berbice, while Linden and Essequibo will also be getting some. He explained that the money had been allocated since January, but bureaucracy in the tendering process had delayed purchase of the vehicles, which should arrive before the end of the year.

Meanwhile, the Chinese Government has also promised to supply two hundred vehicles to the local police.

Those are also expected before the end of the year.

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tuesDAY, august 15, 2017

News Digicel rejects ANSA McAL rewards top GTT’s “programming issues” claim 15 NGSA performers ‒ receive $100,000 bursary awards

The top performers from this year’s NGSA receiving their bursary awards. Also in photo are Education Minister (ag) Nicolette Henry and ANSA McAL officials

T

he students who secured the top 15 spots at the 2017 National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) were honoured

by ANSA McAL for their outstanding performances. The Caribbean-based company held its bursary awards for the top NGSA students who were awarded cheques of $100,000 each at the Kingston, Georgetown, headquarters of the National Centre for Educational Resource Development (NCERD) on Monday.

As 13 of the 15 top performers who were present grinned from ear to ear upon

receiving their monetary awards, acting Education Minister Nicolette Henry encouraged the recipients to put aside at least 80 per cent of the money towards their education.

“Learning is going to be a constant throughout your life from primary school days to university. It is a starting point because life is one big learning curve,” she noted.

The Minister also stressed that this year’s NGSA results were indeed encouraging, making reference to the increases in passes of over 50 per cent in subjects countrywide.

Minister Henry however cautioned that more still needs to be done to address the lower performances that were recorded in the interior regions.

“There is still a lot of room for improvement and lot of work to be done across the country, more particularly in our hinterland region,” Minister Henry stressed.

ANSA McAL’s Non-alcoholic Brand Coordinator, Sean Abel, revealed that from 2018, the bursary programme will see hinterland students also receiving awards for

‒ for disruption in SMS services

their performances.

“Often times those students’ parents would like their kids to come out to attend Queen’s College but they cannot afford it because of distance; so it is our hope that from next year we will extend our bursary award to achieve that goal,” Abel indicated.

School of the Nations student Saskia Twahir was this year’s top performer with 524 marks out of the possible 529. Other students securing top places at Queen’s College were Clifton Bacchus of Maes Schools, Gabriella Roberts of Success Elementary, Xiana Chabilall of Graham’s Hall Primary, and Amelia Sugrim and Antonia Dey of the Academy of Excellence. The Education Ministry collaborated with the multinational entity to distribute the awards. At this year’s NGSA, a total of the 29 students gained spaces in the top 10 ranking schools throughout the country.

Eight of these pupils belonged to public schools, while the remaining 21 emanated from private educational institutions. This total comprised students belonging to three regions, the majority of which are from Georgetown.

D

igicel Guyana Inc. has refuted claims made by the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company Limited (GTT) that Digicel “programming issues” are responsible for GTT customers not receivi n g Digicel t e x t messages.

T h e GTT related that it first became aware of the issue from feedback received from its customers, and having determined that the Digicel network was responsible for the problem, its technical team has been providing assistance to the Digicel team to have the issues on that company’s network resolved.

But Digicel is claiming that this issue is ongoing, and as such, the respective technical teams of both Digicel and GTT have been in continuous discussions in relation to this issue, and more so in relation to continuing work to find a solution to the problem.

The Chief Executive Officer of Digicel Guyana, Mr Gregory Dean, has said that “Digicel’s only interest”

is in having a fully functioning service.

“We firmly believe that, in the interest of customers, our joint efforts should be focused on finding an effective solution (to this problem) within the shortest time possible,” Dean has declared.

In a statement, Digicel also noted that the timing

of this latest GTT outburst strategically coincides with the July deadline for the ending of the telecommunications monopoly in Guyana; and that company has noted that the deadline has already passed.

“Nevertheless, Digicel remains committed to ensuring that consumers benefit from all that liberalisation has to offer, and looks forward to the opportunity to be able to serve them with a full suite of innovative and value-packed communications services”, Digicel has said.

Improved infrastructure, hospitality training needed to boost Essequibo’s tourism

Sweepers-cleaners fiasco to be discussed at Cabinet P F inance Minister Winston Jordan on Monday said Cabinet is currently discussing matters regarding the state of affairs of sweepers-cleaners, who have over the last few days, been picketing several Government Ministries.

The picketing exercises began last week Tuesday, after the close to 100 workers collected their salaries and found that they had been slashed.

According to Jordan, the issues of the sweepers-cleaners existed before the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) took office in 2015. However, he said Cabinet members are seeking to address them.

“The sweeper cleaner issue predates us and we had substantially increased the rates in the 2015 Budget for the cleaners. More issues are being brought up, but I don’t want to discuss it. The issues are still at the Cabinet level essentially,” Jordan told journalists at

his office.

He said the issues are in fact “easy” issues and have to be addressed. Jordan said some kind of solutions will have to be brought forward, but refrained from pre-judging what that will be.

He maintained, however that following Government’s ascension to office the salaries of the sweepers-cleaners had been increased.

The Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) had been calling for the implementation of some decisions made during a 2013 Cabinet meeting under the previous People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Administration.

GPSU’s first Vice President Mortimer Livan said neither of the two Governments have implemented the decisions which included that the wages of the sweepers-cleaners be set in accordance with the minimum wages order and timely payment. He said the matter was brought up again with President David Granger but even with his directives, nothing has been done.

Sweepers-cleaners fiasco to be discussed at Cabinet

“These workers go to work every day and perform exceptionally despite the economic challenges that they face... Our call today is to pay them what is deserving, that is, value for their unconditional service. This is an unfortunate development of unmentionable proportions being meted out to sweepers-cleaners in this country,” he said, noting that the union condemns “this uncaring and unkind posture of the authorities and demands that the con-

ditions under which this category of workers toil be remedied forthwith,” Livan had told a news conference recently.

The workers headed to the streets in protest last week and promised to continue this week until someone listens to their plea.

They are seeking improved wages for their work and to be placed with the “permanent staff” bracket. That, they said, would see them receiving the much needed benefits when they retire.

resident of the Essequibo Chamber of Commerce Deleep Singh has said that infrastructural development and training in hospitality services are needed to boost the tourism sector in Essequibo.

He made these comments on the sidelines of this year’s hosting of the annual Regatta and stage show at Lake Mainstay, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam).

Chief among the infrastructural changes, the Chamber of Commerce President remarked, is the need for an overhaul of the Good Hope/Supenaam Ferry Stelling. He added that there is also need for infrastructural improvements to the many tourist destinations located in Essequibo. “The Essequibo Chamber of Commerce is working this year to develop the tourism sector in this region [as] there is a lot of potential for tourism,” he highlighted. Singh, a hotel owner and businessman, further highlighted that there is need for much more training for persons living and working in the area on dealing with an influx of tourists and locals to enhance and grow the industry.

Essequibo Chamber of Commerce President Deleep Singh speaking at Lake Mainstay on Sunday

“We need to train our boat operators, taxi drivers and every single one that is involved in handling tourists… because tourists need to be handled with respect,” he added, referencing the advancements in the Caribbean’s tourist sector.

Singh added that his organisation will be working with the relevant authorities on erecting road signs, improving road shoulders and removing stray animals. One of the upcoming highlights in Region Two is the development of a biodiversity park which is slated to attract hikers and birdwatchers.

15 Social Protection Ministry launches developmental programme in underserved communities T news

monDAY, august 14, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

he Social Protection Ministry during the past week embarked on a series of development initiatives targeting rural-based underserved communities across Guyana. This undertaking, which seeks to provide capacity-building and employment opportunities for residents of farfetched areas, was dubbed the Sustainable Livelihood and Entrepreneurship Development (SLED) programme and has been implemented in two communities thus far.

Leading the way was Social Protection Minister Amna Ally, as representatives of her Ministry journeyed to Hiawa Village, Region Nine (PomeroonSupenaam) on Wednesday last and then to Moco Moco – within the same region – on Thursday to kick start this initiative.

During the first day of her visit, the Minister met with residents and potential beneficiaries in the Hiawa Village so as to iron out details as it relates to the execution and management of a sheep rearing project

Minister Amna Ally during her visit to Hiawa Village for the launch of the sheep rearing project under the SLED programme

which was launched as part of the SLED programme.

This project – valued at approximately $6.3 million – represents the first of its kind in the region and will not only provide the means of sustenance for the dwellers but also makes way for a much needed source of income for families within this area. This project was made possible through collabora-

tion between the Guyana Livestock Development Authority (GLDA), the Regional Democratic organs, the Agriculture Ministry and the Social Protection Ministry; all of which will be providing support throughout the duration of the project.

Present during the launch on Wednesday was Andray Pearson, veterinary

“Grey Boy” in hiding

officer of the GLDA, who will be offering technical guidance to the residents and certify the viability of the land which will sustain the rearing of sheep.

Danmattie Sahoy, head of the SLED project, was also in attendance at the meeting to give guidance on the Cooperatives Act. The SLED sheep rearing project was a welcomed

addition to the community and, as such, residents were elated and committed their full support to the efficiency and sustained commitment to the initiative.

Meanwhile, when the SLED programme made its way to Moco Moco on the following day, the village benefited from the installation of a block-making machine which carries a price tag of about $3 million.

While meeting with the residents on Thursday, Minister Ally outlined the goals of the SLED project which aim to provide an avenue for the economic development of groups and communities and zoomed in on ways in which the block-making apparatus will benefit Moco Moco. On that note, she highlighted that the block-making operation is anticipated to provide an opportunity for the development of building skills of residents as well as a means of income for those residing within the community as well.

The residents were tasked with the responsibility of constructing a shed to house the block-making op-

erations as they await the arrival of the machine.

Welcoming the initiative was the Toshao of Moco Moco, George James who complemented the Minister for her efforts to assist the community.

The SLED programme, which is being implemented through the Social Protection Ministry, is a programme which gives grants to cooperatives and friendly societies to equip them to engage in sustainable, entrepreneurial ventures.

While in both of the communities, Minister Ally encouraged the beneficiaries to acknowledge the importance of their role in ensuring the success of the newly established SLED project and pledged commitment on behalf of her Ministry to the continued development of the villages and those who reside within the areas.

This marks the first phase of the Social Protection Ministry’s SLED initiative which has paved the way for similar projects to materialise in other underserved communities.

Liberalisation of telecoms sector

Police hunting former murder Telecoms authority to manage new industry accused for death threats G to Crum-Ewing’s mother

Donna Harcourt, Mother of slain activist Courtney Crum-Ewing

P

olice investigators are trying to locate Regan “Grey Boy” Rodrigues, the former suspect implicated in the murder of political activist Courtney Crum-Ewing, because he has allegedly been making death threats to the Donna Harcourt, mother of Crum-Ewing.

She recently lodged with Police a complaint that Rodrigues had, last Saturday morning, threatened to “wipe her out”, expressing anger that she had implicated him in the killing of her son.

A senior “A” Division Police official revealed on Sunday that ranks are actively pursuing the suspect because of the nature of the remarks that were allegedly uttered. “We are sill searching, because a report was made; we have to investigate all sides of the story,” the senior Police source indicated.

Rodrigues was, up to Sunday evening, still elusive. According to reports in the media, Harcourt was plying her trade at her stall at Regent and Wellington Streets when she re-

Wanted for questioning: Regan “Grey Boy” Rodrigues

portedly heard Rodrigues saying if he had the will, “I would wipe you out!”

City Magistrate Judy Latchman had in early June not found sufficient evidence to commit Rodrigues to stand trial for Crum-Ewing’s murder, and had discharged the case against him. In her ruling, Magistrate Latchman had said that after she had considered all the facts presented to her, she was unable to conclude that Rodrigues had pulled the trigger of the weapon that had killed Crum-Ewing.

Crum-Ewing was gunned down as he was in the process of urging residents of Diamond Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara to cast their ballots in the May 2015 General Election.

Rodrigues was arrested and charged with the murder, but was freed in September 2016. However, in April 2017, he was rearrested after the Director of Public Prosecutions had ordered that the case be reopened.

overnment continues on a mission to fully liberalise the telecommunication sector, announcing plans to set up a telecommunications authority to monitor this new industry in keeping with legislative requirements and regulations.

The Finance Ministry’s Mid-Year Report recently stated that negotiations with the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GTT) are expected to be completed by the end of the year, and thereafter the authority would be established.

The report also relayed that the requisite regulations have been published for comments.

During installation of the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) in June this year, Public Communications Minister (MPC) Cathy Hughes had said that the liberalisation of the sector was a top priority of that Ministry.

Hughes had said the legislation which was assented to by President David Granger last year had a number of new requirements that the MPC was working through. Coupled with that, she had said, negotiations were ongoing between GTT and Atlantic Telecommunication Network (ATN), covering two tracks at the same time.

The Telecommunications Bill was first introduced in 2011.

However, it was revised in 2013 before being sent to a Parliamentary Special Select Committee in the 10th Parliament, and was near conclusion when that Parliament was prorogued in 2014 by then President Donald Ramotar.

When Government took the legislation before the National Assembly, the Opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) had called for the Bill to be sent to

Public Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes

a Special Select Committee for further consideration, but Minister Hughes had argued that the Bill had been long promised and was overdue.

The Mid-Year Report has stated that, as Government continues to develop capacity to catalyse the development of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector, work has moved forward on the Centre of Excellence in Information Technology, which is expected to be completed during the second half of 2017.

The implementing agency in India – the Centre for the Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) – will by December of this year procure and deliver the necessary ICT infrastructure and course materials.

To ensure that efforts to develop the ICT sector are sustainable and effective, public engagement initiatives will be heightened in the second half of the year, the report disclosed. To this end, two Hackathons are slated to take place – one Hackathon will be a four-week competition and the

other a 48-hour competition.

In addition, Government will be hosting an Internet Week, wherein a series of workshops will be held on topics focusing on the “back-end” aspects of ICT, and will be facilitated by industry professionals.

Between 150 and 200 persons are expected to benefit. In order to bridge the ICT gap between the hinterland and the coastland, and ensure equitable provision of services, a project designed for ICT access and eservices for hinterland, poor and remote communities is expected to be funded under the Guyana-Norway Agreement.

The project proposal describing this US$17 million, five-year intervention was formally submitted to the GRIF Secretariat in the second quarter, and is expected to bolster the existing connectivity drive. During the first half, 42 additional government and educational institutions were connected to the eGovernment network.

To ensure that ICT penetrates all facets of the economy in the support of development, the National Data Management Authority (NDMA) is fashioning Smart Guyana. This initiative would facilitate comprehensive integration of information systems and electronic services to improve the efficacy of all levels of government.

According to the report, this would result in smart classrooms and eLibraries for distance education and eLearning; eHealth solutions to provide remote health care for hinterland regions; CCTV and Safe City solutions to improve public security; and virtual desktop infrastructure to provide for greater e-security, better access, and lower costs for Government information systems.

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tuesDAY, august 15, 2017

Regional

promises Venezuela's Maduro orders military Bahamas to maintain strong drill after Trump comments relationship with China T V enezuela’s President has ordered the armed forces to hold exercises following US President Donald Trump comments about military intervention.

In a televised speech, Nicolás Maduro said Venezuelans had to be prepared to defend the country against “the imperialist boot”.

The “civic-military” exercises are due to take place on August 26-27. Trump warned last Friday that the US was looking at all options on Venezuela “including a possible military option”.

His comments were condemned by other Latin American countries and by the Venezuelan Opposition.

Venezuela faces a worsening political crisis and more than 120 people have been killed in anti-Government protests since April.

“The land of Venezuela is

sacred and should never be touched by the Yankee imperialist boot,” Maduro told government supporters following a rally in the capital Caracas.

“Let’s prepare ourselves to defend the peace with tanks, planes and guns. Let the traitors to the country listen well, I have given the order, I have given the order to the superior chief of staff of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces to start the preparations for a civic-military exercise”.

Thousands of Venezuelans heeded President Maduro’s call to take to the streets to show Opposition to the US on Monday. Many waved banners saying “Stop Trump”.

In a further show of defiance, Venezuelan Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino appeared on television with battle-ready troops behind

President Maduro railed against Donald Trump at a rally in Caracas

him at an army base.

He warned the US not to steal Venezuela’s oil reserves and warned the Opposition not to be ambivalent.

“This is a time for reflection, you are either a Venezuelan patriot, or pro-Yankee,” he said. (Excerpt from BBC News)

he Bahamas says it will do its utmost to maintain and promote Sino-Bahamian relations as it marked the 20th anniversary of diplomatic relations with China.

Foreign Minister Darren Henfield, speaking at a ceremony over the last weekend to mark the occasion, said that the two countries have been able to develop a mutually respectful and beneficial relationship in the 20 years since establishing diplomatic relations on May 23, 1997.

“China has proven to be a good friend and development partner to the people of The Bahamas. To this end, my government will do its utmost to maintain and promote Sino-Bahamian relations through on-going dialogue between our capitals, and our business and cultural communities, for the benefit of both our nations and

our peoples,” Henfield said.

He said there have been many exchanges of high-level delegations between the two countries “as we deepened and strengthened our knowledge, understanding and appreciation of one another's cultures, priorities, commitments and needs.

“To be sure, much has happened between us. It is the people-to-people exchanges that have demonstrated to us the face of the relationship, and which help to provide mutual benefits and understanding.”

Henfield said that the relationship between the two countries “has been a particularly harmonious” one that has been “guided and solidified, in the first instance, through the will and effort of our two nations to develop that relationship into a friendship”. (Excerpt from Jamaica Observer)

Brazilian Police Acapulco: 4 Jamaican parliamentarian question suspect killed in popular over shooting of Mexico resort dies suddenly

The late representative for St Mary South East, Dr Winston Green

J

amaica’s Opposition People’s National Party (PNP) is in shock over the death of one of its Parliamentarians on Monday morning.

Representative for St Mary South East, Dr

Winston Green, died shortly after 05:00h after collapsing at his home.

The PNP issued a statement in which it said that Jamaica had lost “a great son”.

“Dr Green committed his life professionally and politically to serving the Jamaican people. He was a dedicated servant of the people and a man faithful to his commitment to his family, his profession, his constituents and his party,” PNP leader Dr Peter Phillips said.

Dr Green has represented the constituency of St Mary South East since the February 2016 General Election.

Initially, the Jamaica Labour Party’s Norman Dunn was declared the winner. But Dr Green eventually won the seat by five votes after a magisterial recount.

(Caribbean360)

British tourist

B

razilian police have arrested a man suspected of involvement in the shooting of a British tourist, Eloise Dixon, during an operation in which two other men were killed.

Dixon, 46, was shot twice on 6 August when her family’s hire car failed to stop for drug gang members in Água Santa, a low-income community near the tourist port of Angra dos Reis, a three-hour drive from Rio de Janeiro.

Police named the suspect as Jackson Ferreira Lima, also known as JK, and said he was arrested on Saturday after a gunfight during a police operation in Sapinhatuba 3, a low-income community in Angra.

The two men who were killed have not been named.

Colonel Castro, the com-

mander of the Angra military police battalion, said officers went to the community looking for possible suspects and were “received with gunfire”.

A kilo of crack cocaine, three pistols, ammunition and marijuana were seized in the operation, Police said.

Dixon was hit in the thorax and abdomen after the car her husband, Maxwell, was driving entered Água Santa when the family were looking for refreshments.

Neither he nor the couple’s three daughters were injured, and Dixon has since been released from hospital.

The case has sent shockwaves along Brazil’s Green Coast, a popular tourist destination, putting pressure on police to capture those responsible. (Excerpt from The Guardian)

Chile sect: German court jails fugitive doctor over child sex abuse

A

German court has sentenced a doctor who fled Chile to five years in prison for involvement in child sex abuse at a commune called Colonia Dignidad.

The court upheld a Chilean prison sentence for Hartmut Hopp, a German citizen in his seventies.

Hopp worked with Paul

Schäfer, a former Nazi soldier who founded the commune in southern Chile 1961.

Residents were indoctrinated and kept as virtual slaves for more than 30 years. Hopp's lawyer says he will appeal against the sentence.

Schäfer also collaborated with the government of Augusto Pinochet whose secret police used the colony

around 350km (215 miles) south of the capital, Santiago, as a place of torture and to "disappear" his opponents.

Germany last year said it would declassify its files on the sect, and the foreign minister at the time, FrankWalter Steinmeier, admitted that the diplomatic service had failed to stop the abuses.

The scale of the abuses only

came to light after Schäfer faced a series of lawsuits in 1997.

He fled Chile and was arrested in Argentina in 2005.

He was convicted in Chile of sexual abuse of children, weapons possession and human rights violations.

He died in a Chilean jail in 2010 at the age of 88. (BBC News)

More than 400 people were murdered in Acapulco in the first six months of 2017 (file picture)

A

t least four people were shot dead in the Mexican resort of Acapulco on Sunday.

According to official figures for the first half of 2017, the city's murder rate is second only to that of Tijuana.

Despite the high levels of violence, Acapulco tourism officials say the port is seeing "a major renaissance in its cruise ship arrivals" with 32 cruise ships expected to call this year.

The latest murders were due to fights between rival gangs, officials say.

Public security officials said that between January and June of this year, 714 people had been murdered in Tijuana and 412 in Acapulco.

Tijuana, on the MexicoUS border, has long had

a reputation for being extremely violent as drug dealers and human traffickers ply their trade but Acapulco too has seen a rise in violence.

Mexican daily Milenio recently reported that between 1,800 and 2,000 businesses closed in the resort over the past three years due to high levels of extortion and violence.

Despite this, tourism bosses say Acapulco's beaches, nature, nightlife and cliff divers continue to be a major draw. There has been a nationwide rise in murders in Mexico, with government data suggesting that 2,234 people were killed in June 2017 - the deadliest month in Mexico in at least 20 years. (Excerpt from BBC News)

tuesDAY, August 15, 2017

guyanatimesgy.com

17

Around the World

Sierra Leone mudslide kills at Trump bows to pressure, least 200 as houses are buried calls neo-Nazis and

A

t least 200 people have been killed in a mudslide near Sierra Leone's capital, Freetown, the Red Cross says. A hillside in the Regent area collapsed early on Monday following heavy rains, leaving many houses covered in mud.

A BBC reporter at the scene said that many people may have been asleep when the mudslide occurred.

Sierra Leone's Vice President Victor Bockarie Foh said it was "likely that hundreds are lying dead".

The number of casualties is expected to rise. Foh told Reuters news agency that the disaster was "so serious that I myself feel broken".

He said that the area had to be cordoned off as people were evacuated, with many still feared trapped in their

KKK criminals

U People may have been asleep when the mudslide occurred. At right, people in Regent were wading through streets waist-deep in muddy water

homes.

Locals were reportedly trying to recover bodies from the rubble and mud with their bare hands. The worst-hit area is thought to be the Regent district on the outskirts of Freetown, where dozens of houses were submerged when the hillside collapsed at about 06:00

GMT. A Red Cross spokesperson said that at least 205 bodies had been taken to the central morgue in Freetown, Reuters reports.

Another spokesman for the Red Cross, Abubakarr Tarawallie, told the BBC that the organisation's volunteers and staff had been

involved in search and rescue operations and that people affected were in immediate need of shelter and blankets.

He added that at least 100 properties had been submerged and that some had collapsed after a section of Sugar Loaf mountain came down before sunrise.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

Millions affected as monsoon floods ravage Nepal, India

A

t least 175 people have died, and thousands have fled their homes as monsoon floods swept across Nepal, India and Bangladesh.

Three days of relentless downpours sparked flash floods and landslides that have killed at least 80 people in Nepal, 73 across northern and eastern India and 22 in Bangladesh.

Al Jazeera's Subina Shreshtha, reporting from

Janakpur in Nepal, said that at least six million people were affected by the floods in the country's southern plains known as Terai.

More than 48,000 homes have been submerged by rising waters in Nepal, the Police said. In the eastern Indian state of Bihar bordering Nepal, several districts have been submerged by the overflowing rivers, affecting at least two million people, the IANS news agency re-

ported.

Al Jazeera's correspondent said that Terai is Nepal's most fertile region and the economic toll is expected to be severe. "Some 80 per cent of the crops have been damaged. It's going to have a huge impact in the long run for the country."

This year's flooding has been exacerbated by dams built on the India-Nepal border, she said.

"A lot of water that used to

go to India has been blocked.

So a lot of this damage has been man made." In the worst-hit areas of the southern plains, highway bridges have collapsed, and roads were blocked by landslides and floods, leaving thousands of travellers stranded, according to local media. The Nepal Red Cross warned that shortages of drinking water and food could create a humanitarian crisis in the country of 29 million. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Burkina Faso gun attack kills 18 people at cafe

G

unmen have shot dead 18 people and injured others at a cafe in the centre of of the capital of Burkina Faso, Ouagadougou, the government says. At least eight foreigners and seven locals were among those killed in Sunday's evening attack on the Aziz Istanbul cafe, the government added.

The gunmen, thought to be jihadists, fired on cus-

tomers on the terrace before making their way inside.

Two attackers were killed in a siege which lasted into the morning.

President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré condemned the "cowardly terror attack", saying the people of Burkina Faso would not give in to terrorism. The foreigners killed include two Kuwaitis, and one each from Canada, France, Lebanon,

Nigeria, Senegal and Turkey, Burkina Faso's Foreign Minister Alpha Barry said.

However, Canada's foreign minister said two Canadians had died.

Three victims have not yet been identified, Mr Barry said. A jihadist attack on a nearby cafe in January of last year killed 30 people.

There are fears that the latest attack is the work of one of the affiliates of al-Qae-

da that are active in the Sahel region, the BBC's Alex Duval Smith reports.

The shooting began shortly after 21:00 (21:00 GMT) at the cafe, popular with expatriates, on Ouagadougou's busy Kwame Nkrumah Avenue.

Security forces launched a counter-assault at 22:15 and the shooting ended at about 05:00 on Monday. (Excerpt

U

Ukrainian Security and Defence Council, Oleksandr Turchynov, said Ukraine "has never supplied rocket engines or any kind of missile technology to North Korea."

State-owned Yuzhmash said it had not produced military-grade ballistic missiles since independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. "In the years of independence, Yuzhmash has not produced, and is not producing, missiles and military missile systems," it said in a statement published on their company's website.

President Donald Trump

Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine Oleksandr Turchynov

Trump: "Racism is evil, and those who cause violence in its name are criminals and thugs"

"We condemn in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence," he said.

A 20-year-old man said to have harbured Nazi sympathies as a teenager was facing charges he ploughed his car into protesters opposing the white nationalists, killing Heather Heyer and injuring 19 people. The accused, James Alex Fields, was denied bail at an initial court hearing on Monday.

Trump said anyone who engaged in criminal behaviour during the rally would be held accountable.

"Justice will be delivered," the Republican President said. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Yemen cholera epidemic: Cases exceed 500,000 in 4 months

T

he number of suspected cases of cholera resulting from an epidemic in war-torn Yemen has reached 500,000, the World Health Organization (WHO) says.

At least 1975 people have died since the waterborne disease began to spread rapidly at the end of April.

tion caused by ingestion of food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholera.

Most of those infected will have no or mild symptoms but, in severe cases, the disease can kill within hours if left untreated. More than a quarter of those who have died and 41per cent of those

from BBC News)

Ukraine denies selling missile technology to North Korea kraine denied on Monday that it had ever supplied defense technology to North Korea, responding to an article in the New York Times that said North Korea may have purchased rocket engines from Ukrainian factory Yuzhmash.

Concern that North Korea is close to achieving its goal of putting the mainland United States within range of a nuclear weapon has raised global tensions in recent weeks.

The United States is a key backer of Ukraine.

The secretary of the

S President Donald Trump denounced neo-Nazis and the Ku Klux Klan as criminals and thugs on Monday, bowing to mounting political pressure to condemn such groups explicitly after a white-nationalist rally turned deadly in Virginia.

Trump had been assailed from across the political spectrum for failing to respond more forcefully to Saturday's violence in Charlottesville, in which a woman was killed when a man crashed his car into a group of counter-protesters.

Critics said Trump waited too long to address the bloodshed and slammed him for initially saying that "many sides" were involved, instead of singling out the white supremacists widely seen as sparking the melee.

"Racism is evil and those who cause violence in its name are criminals and thugs, including the KKK, neo-Nazis, white supremacists and other hate groups that are repugnant to everything we hold dear as Americans," the president said in a statement to reporters at the White House on Monday.

warned at the weekend that the US military was "locked and loaded" if North Korea acted unwisely after threatening last week to land missiles near the US Pacific territory of Guam.

North Korean officials in turn have accused the US leader of driving the Korean peninsula to the brink of nuclear war. On Sunday, the head of the US Central Intelligence Agency said he would not be surprised if North Korea tested another missile, after it conducted two tests in July. (Excerpt from Reuters)

More than 99 per cent of people infected who can access health services are surviving

The WHO said the overall caseload had declined since July, but that 5000 people a day were still being infected. The disease spread due to deteriorating hygiene and sanitation conditions and disruptions to the water supply.

More than 14 million people are cut off from regular access to clean water and sanitation in Yemen, and waste collection has ceased in major cities. Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal infec-

who have been infected have been children, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Yemen's health service has struggled to cope with the cholera epidemic – currently the largest in the world – with more than half of all medical facilities closed due to damage sustained during more than two years of conflict between pro-government forces and the rebel Houthi movement.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

18

guyanatimesgy.com

tuesDAY, august 15, 2017

ARCHIE

Ask questions if you feel you aren’t getting all the in(March 21- formation required to assess a April 19) personal situation. Your relationship with others must be built on truth and equality.

ARIES

You’ll be given information

TAURUS that isn’t accurate. Before tak(April 20- ing action, find out exactly who May 20) did what. It’s better to have

dilbert

your facts straight and to act appropriately. Intelligence will overrule brute force.

Problems at home must GEMINI (May 21- not be allowed to affect your June 20) ability to take care of responsibilities. Keep busy plugging away at what needs to be done if you want to avoid discord.

CANCER (June 21July 22)

Peanuts

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Calvin and Hobbes

It’s OK to be selfish once in a while. Refuse to let someone take advantage of you.

Concentrate on what you enjoy doing and on the ones you love.

Stay on top of your responsibilities. Don’t be afraid to do things differently. Having an innovative approach to an old method will capture interest from someone in a key position.

You’ll be at odds when it VIRGO comes to emotional confronta(Aug. 23- tions. Arguing will not solve Sept. 22) whatever dilemma surfac-

es, but listening and showing consideration for others will.

Personal improvements are encouraged.

Ease into any decision, beLIBRA ginning or commitment. Back (Sept. 23away from anyone putting Oct. 23) pressure on you. Consider the best way to excel professionally or personally without feeling beholden to anyone.

WORD GAME

SUDOKU

Lending or borrowing will SCORPIO lead to trouble. A possessive (Oct. 24attitude is not conducive to Nov. 22) exploring discovery. Choose to use intelligence over force.

Be careful from where SAGITTARIUS you get your information.

(Nov. 23- Someone will use emotional Dec. 21) tactics to confuse you. If uncertainty sets in, go back to the beginning and start over.

Check your facts.

solution for Last Published Puzzle

Live and learn. An emoCAPRICORN tional experience will lead (Dec. 22- to uncertainty and confusion Jan. 19) about the best way to move forward. Time is on your side.

Don’t act in haste. Romance is encouraged.

Concentrate on your AQUARIUS home, loved ones and what (Jan. 20- you can do to make your life Feb. 19) better. Don’t let disillusionment or emotional confusion take charge. Honesty will be required.

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

Copyright 2015, Distributed by Universal Uclick for UFS

Share your intentions.

PISCES Find out the facts if you are (Feb. 20March 20) suspicious or confused about a certain relationship. Physical changes are encouraged, as long as you don’t overspend.

tuesDAY, august 15, 2017

19

Ronaldo hit Coleman sees future Bolt-Gatlin with 5-match style rivalry with De Grasse ban after A shoving referee

Cristiano Ronaldo collected a yellow card for taking his shirt off during a goal celebration before being shown a second for diving

C

ristiano Ronaldo was banned for five matches for pushing the referee after he was shown a red card against Barcelona in Real Madrid’s 3-1 Spanish Super Cup first leg victory on Sunday, the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) said on Monday.

Ronaldo was sent off in bizarre fashion, collecting a yellow card for taking his shirt off during a goal celebration before being shown a second for diving Upset by referee Ricardo De Burgos Bengoetxea’s decision to dismiss him, Ronaldo shoved the official, which landed him in further hot water. RFEF issued

Ronaldo with a 3,005 euro ($3,543.20) fine and a fourmatch suspension in addition to the automatic onegame ban the player was due to serve for his red card.

Ronaldo, who struck a spectacular second goal for a dominant Madrid, will miss the Super Cup second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday and the club’s first four La Liga matches.

Having featured in the Confederations Cup for Portugal, the striker only returned to training earlier this month. He came on as a substitute in the UEFA Super Cup win over Manchester United on Aug. 8. (Reuters)

ndre De Grasse and Christian Coleman are expected to be the new stars of sprinting, and the latter wants an amicable rivalry.

Christian Coleman hopes to form a sprinting rivalry with Andre De Grasse akin to that established between Usain Bolt and Justin Gatlin.

Bolt was the dominant sprinter for close to a decade, claiming eight Olympic golds and 14 IAAF World Championship medals before a hamstring injury saw his career end in distressing circumstances as he failed to finish Saturday’s 4x100m relay final.

In his last individual event, the Jamaican had to settle for 100m bronze as Gatlin - cast as the villainous foil for Bolt due to his two doping bans - finally got the better of his sprinting adversary in a global final,

Andre De Grasse (right) and Christian Coleman

with 21-year-old Coleman taking the silver in his first appearance on the stage.

De Grasse, 22, collected 100m bronze and 200m silver medals at Rio 2016 and was expected to add to his haul in London until a hamstring injury forced him to withdraw.

Bolt and Gatlin spoke at the Worlds about their am-

icable relationship despite years of facing each other on the track, and Coleman who plans to add the 200m to his repertoire in Qatar in two years - hopes to have similar competition with De Grasse when they seek to stake their claim for dominance over the coming years.

Coleman told Omnisport: “[De Grasse] is a great com-

petitor. He’s a great guy as well. I would have liked to compete with him but, unfortunately, he had an injury. I’m sure he’ll be in contention for years to come and I’m looking forward to it.

“Maybe [there will be a rivalry], just because we are two guys who people are saying will be in contention to win medals in the future and just like Gatlin and Bolt, they compete against each other year after year, they have a great rivalry and they’re still friends.

“I think we can maybe develop something like that, but you’ve still got to take it one year at a time, one race at a time, and put the work in and don’t take anything for granted.

“You’ve just got to continue to work and let the media worry about stuff like that.”

Taylor’s all-round brilliance hands Storm win T

AUNTON, England (CMC) — West Indies Captain Stafanie Taylor was brilliant with both bat and ball as she fired Western Storm to a comfortable five-wicket victory over Loughborough Lightning in the Women’s Super League here yesterday.

Opting to bowl first, Storm’s attack was spearheaded by Taylor’s off-spin which earned her superb figures of four wickets for five runs from four overs, as

Lightning crumbled to 108 for nine off their 20 overs.

Australian Ellyse Perry top-scored with 25, anchoring a 30-run opening stand with Amy Jones (21) and a 24-run second-wicket partnership with Paige Scholfield (15) to get Lightning up to 54 for one in the eighth over.

But Taylor intervened, snatching three wickets in one over — the 10th of the innings — as Lightning slumped to 59 for five and never really recovered.

In reply, Western Storm reached their modest target in the final over with Taylor top-scoring with 34 off 32 deliveries, captain Heather Knight getting 24, and Georgia Hennessy, 23.

They lost Rachel Priest for a ‘duck’ to the fourth ball of the innings without a run on the board, but Knight and Hennessy added 41 for the second wicket to put the run chase back on course.

Once Knight departed, Taylor shepherded the in-

nings, putting on 21 for the third wicket with Hennessy and a further 30 for the fifth wicket with Sophie Luff, who was unbeaten on 18 at the end.

Thomas wins PGA Championship for 1st major title CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Reuters) - Justin Thomas capped off a major season that belonged to an aggressive new breed of fearless young Americans when he stormed to a twostroke victory at the PGA Championship on Sunday.

At 24, he followed in the footsteps of then-23-yearold Jordan Spieth’s British Open triumph and the U.S. Open victory by 27-year-old Brooks Koepka, suggesting a bright future for American golf.

Thomas, one of the longest drivers on tour, started the final major of the year ranked 14th in the world, not one of the favorites after recent poor form, but came through by executing under pressure as many of his rivals withered.

“I just had an unbeliev-

able calmness throughout the week, throughout the day,” Thomas said after lifting the Wanamaker Trophy.

“I really truly felt I was going to win. I was just very confident. I didn’t get flustered.

“I was a lot more calm than I thought I would be.

I thought I would be very shaky. At one point I looked at my hand it was a little shaky but that’s why you play.”

The serenity served Thomas well after a slow start, as he bided his time before vaulting to the front with four birdies in a sizzling seven-hole stretch mid-round.

He then held firm over the dangerous final water-lined three holes, known as the ‘Green Mile’, hoisting a seven-iron to 15-foot at the

Justin Thomas

par-three 17th before sinking the putt to all but secure victory, a bogey at the last academic as he carded 68 to finish at eight-under 276.

“That was probably one of the best shots I’ve ever had to a pin that was really brutal,” Thomas said of his tee shot at 17.

“I needed to make par.

I’ll never forget that vision in my head (and) to make a birdie there was beyond a bonus.”

Thomas was one of five players tied for the lead early on the back nine, before he broke clear with an unlikely 40-foot chip-in birdie at the par-three 13th.

He celebrated wildly,

pumping his fists, perhaps sensing it was a pivotal moment.

“That chip-in on 13 was probably the most berserk I’ve ever been on the golf course,” he said.

As Thomas celebrated, others wondered what might have been, as fellow American Patrick Reed (67) bogeyed the last to finish equal second with Italian Francesco Molinari (67) and South African Louis Oosthuizen (70).

Hideki Matsuyama, seeking to become the first man from Japan to win a major, held the lead briefly mid-round before fading with three consecutive bogeys from the 11th.

He carded 72 and finished three shots behind with American Rickie Fowler (67).

Overnight leader Kevin Kisner (74) finished four shots back.

Thomas, after sinking a 35-foot birdie at the ninth, picked up another shot to tie for the lead at the parfive 10th, where his eightfoot putt stopped on the lip of the cup.

Almost apoplectic with frustration, he wisely took his time walking to the ball, which after remaining stationary for 12 seconds toppled in.

“I acted like a child and threw a little tantrum and then it went in so I didn’t look so bad,” Thomas said.

“I did a little fit and gravity took over.”

Two hours later he was celebrating victory.

“Major champion will never be taken away from my name,” he said.

20

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

tuesdAY, AUGUST 15, 2017

Bolt vows

Federer’s pullout from Cincinnati

‘never again’

‒ hands number one spot to Nadal

after emotional London farewell R

L

ONDON (Reuters) Usain Bolt took an emotional final bow on the track at the end of the World Championships in London on Sunday before declaring that, definitely and definitively, there was no way he would ever return to sprinting.

After embarking on a special lap of honor so slow that you could not believe that we were saying farewell to the world’s fastest man, Bolt was asked by reporters already missing him whether he might ever change his mind.

“No, I’ve seen too many people come back and make things worse and shame themselves. I won’t be one of those people who come back,” Bolt said firmly.

Twenty four hours earlier, the 30-year-old Jamaican’s matchless sprint career had ended painfully on the last leg of the 4 x 100 meters relay final as he crumpled to the ground in the London Stadium with a hamstring injury.

Bolt, who admitted that it had been a terrible end of a “stressful” championship for him after also losing his 100 meters crown, said he had felt consoled on Sunday when someone told him “Muhammad Ali lost his last fight too -- so don’t be too stressed about it”.

Already he was looking forward to an exciting future, he said, with his management camp talking to IAAF President Sebastian Coe,

about what he might be able to do for the sport in an ambassadorial capacity.

He also revealed that his coach Glen Mills, the sage of Jamaican athletics, wanted him to become his coaching assistant.

“So we’ll see how that goes,” Bolt smiled about the man who has put him through a lifetime of pain.

And the great man even had reporters laughing when he gave them a vision of what a 50-year-old Usain Bolt might end up doing.

“I’ve no idea. Hopefully, with three kids, married, still in track and field, trying to help the sport, watching it grow,” he said.

“I don’t know if I’d take my kids to the track, though.

I won’t be one of those parents who force their kids into things they don’t want to do.”

Wonderful night

It was a wonderful night of celebration for athletics’ greatest entertainer with Bolt honored one last time at the stadium where he achieved the second of his three Olympic sprint doubles.

Coe and the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, presented him with a piece of the 2012 track as a memento before he embarked on his celebration lap, slowly soaking up all the non-stop cheers from the 56,000 full house - all to a Bob Marley soundtrack.

He went over to the 200 meters and 100 meters start lines, knelt down and crossed

himself.

“I was saying goodbye to my fans but to my events also,” he said, admitting he had been close to tears.

And after taking rather longer than the 9.63 seconds it took him to win the 100 meters crown here in 2012, he eventually stopped at the finish line and gave everyone his trademark lightning bolt impression.

Before he had set off on the lap, he had told the crowd he just wanted to entertain and put on a show.

He did just that before also getting a rare round of applause in the press room from “some of you guys who wrote bad things about me”.

Asked what he hoped his legacy would be, he paused for a moment before saying: “I’ve proved with hard work anything is possible. I personally think this is a good message to the kids. ‘Push on, be strong, be as good as you can be’ - that’s a good legacy to leave’.”

He was also adamant that he would “preach” to youngsters about avoiding the evil of performance-enhancing drugs.

“The sport hit rock bottom last year and the year before and now we’re on the way back up,” he said.

And his immediate aims?

In typical Bolt fashion, he just smiled and declared: “The first thing I’m going to do is have some fun. Have a party and have a drink. I need to chill.”

Atkinson does breaststroke double in Holland

J

amaica’s Alia Atkinson continued to rack up gold medals on the FINA/Airweave World Cup tour on Friday, winning the 50-metre breaststroke swim in Eindhoven Netherlands leg of the tour.

It was the second gold medal she won on the day

Alia Atkinson

as she also won the 100m breaststroke in 1:02.67 seconds.

The standout Jamaican won the 50-metre swim in 28.84. Atkinson was so dominant that she won by almost a second over Lithuania’s Ruta Meilutyte,

who was timed in 29.57seconds. Denmark’s Rikke Pederson was much farther back in 30.25.

It was the second gold medal she won on the day.

Earlier she won the 100m breaststroke in 1:02.67 seconds. (SportsMax)

oger Federer has pulled out of the Cincinnati Open with a back injury, meaning Rafa Nadal will be the new world number one in next week’s rankings.

Federer, who has participated in the Ohio warmup tournament for the U.S. Open on seven occasions, said he had picked up the in-

jury in Montreal, where he lost to Germany’s Alexander Zverev in the final.

“I am very sorry to pull out of the Western and Southern Open as I always enjoy playing here,” Federer said in a statement issued by the tournament.

“Cincinnati has some of the best fans in the world and I am sorry I will miss them.

Unfortunately, I tweaked my back in Montreal and I need to rest this week.”Federer’s withdrawal assures that Nadal will be top of the rankings when they are issued on Aug. 21. The Spaniard will return to the top spot for the first time since July 6, 2014. (Reuters)

"Worst series loss of my career" – Chandimal I

n a year of woe for Sri Lanka, another captain has labeled another series loss the worst of his career. Dinesh Chandimal, in only his second series at the helm, lamented the 0-3 beating at India’s hands. Barely a month ago, Angelo Mathews had said the ODI series loss to Zimbabwe had been “one of the lowest points” of his own career, and not long after he ended up stepping down.

Chandimal’s despair is understandable, because never before have Sri Lanka lost 0-3 at home to India. Two of India’s victories came by an innings, and the other - in Galle - was their biggest victory in terms of runs. And where India tallied a whopping 1949 across four innings at an average of 60.90 per wicket, Sri Lanka managed 1421 in six innings at an average of 24.92.

All four of the highest wicket-takers, and three of the top four run-scorers, were also from the visiting side. It was, in short, an almighty hiding.

“This was the toughest series in eight years playing international cricket, no doubt,” Chandimal said. “The reason is that we were not able to take the games to five days.

The previous two were fourday Tests, and this was a three-day Test. Since I’ve been in this team, this is the worst series loss I’ve experienced.”

The series has seen paltry crowds, especially in Galle and Colombo, perhaps due to the one-sided nature of the contest. Attendance was slightly better in Pallekele, but the ground was still mostly empty. Where fan support and satisfaction had been extremely high at the end of the 3-0 Test victory over Australia last year, it has diminished alarmingly over the past eight months, in which Sri Lanka were defeated badly in South Africa, lost a Test to Bangladesh, and crashed out of the Champions Trophy. Chandimal apologised for the team’s perfor-

Dinesh Chandimal

mance this series.

“I want to convey our disappointment to all of our fans,” he said. “To all Sri Lankan fans here and away from home, we are very disappointed about our performance. As captain, I would like to take the responsibility. The fans have always supported us. They encourage us always. Today we saw that although we were losing, people were still applauding us.

That is what the team needs now. We cannot let the players be mentally down. We are getting the process right. We might not get results soon, but we are confident that the future looks good.”

Chandimal did, however, cite injuries as a possible reason for the defeat. Sri Lanka lost batting allrounder Asela Gunaratne in the first session of the series, then had seamer Nuwan Pradeep break down towards the end of the first day at the SSC. Suranga Lakmal was ruled out from the second Test onwards, and Rangana Herath sat out the dead rubber with a stiff back.

“I would say what has especially gone wrong is injuries,” Chandimal said. “When we played the Australia series didn’t have any injuries.

Everyone did their best. When we came to this series there are so many injuries - Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal, Rangana Herath. They played some really good cricket in the

last six months. That’s the main issue. You can’t give excuses. As youngsters you have to stand up and perform.”

Sri Lanka’s pace attack had, in fact, been laid low by injury during that Australia series too. Lakmal had been ruled out before the first Test, and Pradeep only played one game, and Dushmantha Chameera - who was the third seamer in line at the time - was also out of contention with a stress fracture.

Elsewhere, another worrying sign for Sri Lanka, was the failure of their senior batsmen. Upul Tharanga and Angelo Mathews hit only one half-century apiece across six innings - both of those on the flattest track of the series.

Chandimal himself managed only a high score of 48 and an average of 24 in four innings (though in mitigation, he had suffered from pneumonia the week before the SSC Test).

“Consistency has been a huge issue this series,” Chandimal said. “Some players cannot perform well in every series. As seniors, you have to do well, and then the youngsters will follow.

“Angelo and I couldn’t get amidst the runs, and we take a lot of blame for that. But we were trying very hard in the middle - even today - and we’ve been training very hard.

I have lot of faith the seniors will come back strongly when we take on Pakistan.” (Cricinfo)

sports

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21

CAREBACO 2017

Guyana snatch 3 golds

T

he Guyana Badminton Team has won three gold, two silver and three 3 bronze medals at the Caribbean Regional Badminton Championships 2017 which concluded on Monday. The tournament was being played at the National Racket Centre in Tacarigua, Trinidad from August 10-14.

Playing on the final day of the championships in theUnder-17 Girls Singles Finals, Guyana’s Priyanna Ramdhani lost to Suriname’s Imani Mangroe in their Gold medal clash in a three setter by scores of 2-21, 21-12 and 21-13.

Meanwhile Ramdhani later teamed up with her rival Mangroe in the Under-17 Girls Doubles Finals and together they defeated Suriname’s Faith Sariman and Chaista Soemodipoero in two sets of 21-11and 2113.

Featuring yet again in the Under-17 Mixed Doubles

Semi-Finals; Ramdhani paired with compatriot Tyrese Jeffrey to win Gold as they beat Jair Naipal and Imani Mangroe in straight sets of 21-12 and 21-14.

In the Under-19 Girls Doubles Finals Guyana’s Ambika Ramraj and Suriname’s Shemara Linveld lost to Dominicans Nairobi Jimenez and Bermary Polanco in sets of 21-4 and 21-9.

In a release to the media, the Guyana Badminton Association applauded the performance of the Junior Team coached by Senior Player Narayan Ramdhani.

The Guyanese contingent immediately started playing in the Under-19 Team Tournament which started on Monday (August 14, 2017).

Medaling for Guyana was: Priyanna Ramdhani: Silver in U-17 Singles Priyanna Ramdhani & Tyrese Jeffrey: Gold in U-17

The Guyanese CAREBACO contingent

Mix Doubles Priyanna Ramdhani : Gold in U-17 Doubles Tyrese Jeffrey & Akili

Haynes: Bronze in U-17 Doubles Ambika Ramraj: Silver in U-19 Doubles

Jonathan Mangra: Bronze in U-19 Doubles

Vera’s Finally takes Guyana Cup 2017

T

he highly anticipated Guyana Cup 2017 did not disappoint as a packed race card at the Rising Sun Turf Club featured nine thoroughbred races.

The highlight of the day was the feature D ‘1’ and Lower event (Race 7) which featured the cream of the crop of Guyana’s racehorses.

With a p a c k e d and buzzing crowd cheering on, newly imported chestnut mare Vera’s Finally announced her arrival as the country’s top sprinter winning the event by at least three quarters of a length ahead of a field of 11.

Apprentice and champion jockey, Colin Ross had one of his better days in a saddle as he held off a late surge to win comfortably.

Racing out of Champion stable Jumbo Jet Racing Stables, the newcomer Vera’s Finally seemed to be out of contention for a top spot for the first 1200 metres. However, she but showed quality after being asked in the final turn of the 1600 metres race, to pass early race leader, Just Call Me Boss.

It was straight victory from that point as Ross guided his charge over the finish line for a well-de-

served win ahead of Just Call Me Boss.

The Jumbo Jet Racing Stables took the top prize of $2 million and the Banks DIH champion’s trophy.

Results for the other races are as follows: Race 1: I2 and Lower: Miss Olympic, Party Time, Liquid Lion and Red Jet. Race 2: L and Lower: Supreme Cat, Irish Boy, Angel Eye, Little Star and Not This

Time.

R a c e 3: E2 and L o w e r : Release the Beast, Red Rockets and Strom Bird.

Race 4: H2 and Lower: Quite Dance, Got To Go, Isn’t She Charming.

Race 5: Three-yearold Guyana Bred: Seven Dust, Fresh Dancer, Miss Olympic, King Stanley and Born To Dance.

Race 6: Two-year-old Guyana Bred: The Final Line, Release The Heat, Touch Gold and Princess Showan.

Race 8: G2 and Lower: Keep On Swinging, Mid Night Blues, Red Rocket and Isn’t She Charming.

Race 9: K and Lower: Slim Shady, Ready To Romance, Red Region, De Rocket and Confusion.

Jumbo Jet Racing Stable representatives and Minister of State Joseph Harmon with the Guyana Cup

CONCACAF U-15 Boys Championship

U-15 Jaguars, St Kitts draw in Florida T

he Junior Jaguars got their CONCACAF U-15 Boys Championship campaign to a shaky start on Monday when they drew their first Group F game at the IMG Academy, Florida, USA, against St Kitts 1-1.

In a match that was dictated by goals in the first half, Guyanese forward Ronaldo Rodrigues struck with the event just two minutes old to hand his side the early lead.

Thereafter, it was a midfield battle between the two

sides as they shared possession with both having chances which they failed to convert.

Shawn Hamilton in the 33rd minute would equalize for St Kitts for what was the final goal of the see-saw encounter.

The second half produced more of the same and when the final whistle was blown, the two sides walked away with a point each.

Guyana’s next game will be played against South American neighbours Suriname today at 09:00hrs.

Guyana’s lone goal scorer Ronaldo Rodrigues

22

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

tuesdAY, AUGUST 15, 2017

Senior Caribbean Squash Championships

G

uyana’s females had a strong showing on the first day of the 2017 Senior Caribbean Squash Championships.

Leading the charge was women’s team captain Ashley Khalil who advanced with a straight set win over her Bermudian opponent.

Also advancing was Larissa Wiltshire who had to fight hard to overcome Alexandra Yearwood of Trinidad in five close games.

Mary Fung-A-Fat and Taylor Fernandes also advanced to the quarterfinals. Khalil and FungA-Fat are the seeded fourth on the Women’s side. Khalil will take on

Jason Khalil

Ashley Khalil

Charlotte Knaggs(TT) while Fernandes will take on reigning Caribbean Champion, Meagan Best

(Barbados). Fung-A-Fat and Wiltshire will play each other thereby guaranteeing a Guyanese in tomorrow’s

semi-final.

On the Men’s side, Guyana sole quarter-finalist is Jason Khalil overcame a strong Kevin Bailey (OECS) challenge to advance to his first Caribbean senior men’s quarter-final. He will take on Joe Chapman(OECS) for a place in tomorrow night’s semi-final. The other three members of the Men’s team playing in the event, lost out in the main draw but are in the consolation rounds.

Nyron Joseph is in the 9-16 consolation while Shomari Wiltshire and Jean Claude Jeffery have advanced to the quarterfinals of the consolation round.

Van Lange, Sahadeo attending Caribbean Hopes Table Tennis Camp J

onathan Van Lange and Krystian Sahadeo departed these shores on Sunday to Participate in Caribbean Hopes Table Tennis Training and Selection Camp from 14th -19th of August 2017 at the National Arena Kingston Jamaica.

The two players were selected by the Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA) amongst a group of other talented players to lead Guyana’s charge at the 2017 Caribbean Mini and Pre cadet table tennis Championships will par-

ticipate in the Caribbean Hopes training camp.

The competition takes on an added dimension with the hosting of a training camp being conducted under the auspices of the Latin American Table Tennis Union for the 11 years and under participants from August 14th to 19th 2017 which will see the best two (2 ) 11 years and under Boys and Girls being selected from the Caribbean to participate in the Latin American World Hopes Training Camp that will be held from September

Krystian Sahadeo

The Flash: Clint Gonsalves was simply too fast for his opponents

in the six-lap affair but his moments of joy where shortlived since Neil Gonsalves blazed pass on the second turn to take the lead.

It then became a cat and mouse affair with the two aggressive driving.

Tragedy struck in the penultimate lap when Neil’s boat capsized.

Though he came out un-hurt he was not able to participate in the restart-

ed race which carried a first place purse of $100,000.

Second eventually went to Jardine ($80,0000) and third Danny Benjamin ($60,000).

In category B, Clint disposed easily of his nearest rivals winning the 40 HP and 90 HP events and the Orin Belle Memorial.

The novelty event such as the open water swimming was won by National

Guyana’s golden keeper

M

any youngsters in Guyana between the ages of 1217 while being involved in some sport or the other; cannot boast of having won a National Championship in their respective disciplines.

Sese Norville did it twice in consecutive years.

Norville, this week’s Future Star, is a footballer tasked with preventing goals with both hands and

when is arguably the best in his age group in Guyana.

The `magician’ between the uprights at times flies like a 747 in order to make a save and just the mention of his name brings a broad smile to the face of Chase Academy Principal Henry Chase.

Norville now plays for the Georgetown Football Club (GFC). He is the club’s first choice goalkeeper in a

18 to 23,2017 in Asunción, Paraguay for a position on the world Hopes team for possible qualification as a World Hopes prospect .

Competition will be amongst countries such as Puerto Rico, Barbados, Aruba, Jamaica, St Lucia Trinidad and Tobago, Dominican Republic and French Guiana among others. The other members of Guyana’s delegation will travel to Jamaica to Join Van Lange and Sahadeo for the championships slated for 21st to 28th August 2017.

Scott, Gonsalves sizzle at Lake Mainstay Regatta S peedsters Dave Scott and Clint Gonsalves thrilled the hundreds of fans who attended the annual Lake Mainstay Regatta on Sunday.

Both daredevils were simply a step above their opponents pushing their machines to the max in the bid to secure lucrative cash prizes and the yearlong bragging rights.

In category A Scott’s high-powered boat, nicknamed Jaguar suffered a defeat to Pomeroon’s Neil Gonsalves in the first open race but the Bartician rebounded strongly in his other races winning both fivelap 200HP events.

He passed the finish line some distances ahead of his opponents to win the $70,000 prize. Gonsalves came second while Jose Jardine finished in third to win $50,000 and $40, 000 respectively.

The final open race of the day was arguably the one that brought goose bumps to the fans since it contained both life threatening accidents and fantastic racing. Scott took the lead

Sese Norville

swimmer Doris Williams, followed by Lloyd Ward and Sanjeev Ramdeen in second and third place respectively.

After the races, fans were treated to a stage show with several local and regional artistes. Organisers have hailed the success of the event and are planning to have a bigger and better version in 2018. (Akeem Greene)

Sese Norville (left) and his sister Ladisha Reynolds

feet, and sometimes his head.

The 17-year-old Chase Academy student plays in the dreaded position of Goalkeeper and can brag of winning back to back Digicel Schools Football titles in 2016 and 2017 with his school team. Sese began plying his trade since “It looked like fun. While goal keeping is not the most attractive of positions on the field young Norville was in love at first sight and makes it look easy.

The young custodian first started playing around the age of 11 with Black Peal Football Club and since then , has improved with each passing year to the point

young squad that is quickly establishing itself as a team to be reckoned with, based on recent performances in the Corona Beer Invitational tournament.

Aside from his domestic achievements for club and school, Norville is a national U-17 player and is currently encamped as the Guyana prepare for the Inter Guiana Games to be held in Suriname later this month.

In next week’s column we will feature Norville’s younger sister Ladisha Reynolds who is also a goal keeper for the Georgetown Football Club and is a member of Guyana’s Nationa U-17 squad.

guyanatimesgy.com

tuesDAY, august 15, 2017

23

...we have to play consistent cricket – Harper

By Akeem Greene

T

he Guyana Amazon Warriors returned home Monday afternoon to a joyful welcome at the Marriott Hotel in Kingston after securing their first win in the 2017 Hero Caribbean Premier League.

The Warriors defeated host St Lucia Stars by six wickets on Sunday evening.

It was their first win in four matches and after the smiles and congratulatory handshakes were given, Head coach Roger Harper addressed the media and emphasised the point that the team needs to play more consistent cricket.

“We have to play consistent cricket. We have to play smart cricket and utilise the knowledge of the conditions at home as best as possible”, he firmly declared.

While the bowling has been commendable, the batting of the three-time finalist in the five years of the league has been quite in-consistent with some of the top batsmen getting starts but failing to

(L-R) Babar Azam, Sohail Tanveer, Rashid Khan and Keon Joseph at the Marriott Hotel after arriving on Monday ( Akeem Greene photo)

convert into match defining innings.

Harper acknowledged this a concern. “Collectively we have not clicked with the batting. It has gotten better with each game and we hope to build on it and to play like how we know we can play”.

He further contended that “it has been a tough start. We had a few close games and they were games that the Warriors would usually manage to pull off. We made a

few errors and we ended up on the wrong end but I think coming back to Guyana with a win is great. We can use the momentum and build on it and get into the flow of playing Warriors’ cricket,” Harper added.

Commenting on the possibility of losing the service of the Pakistani duo of Sohail Tanveer and Babar Azam due to the Pakistan cricket Board (PCB) recalling their players for National

duty preparation, the coach disclosed the team management is fully aware and will be making a decision soon on the matter.

The successful coach was in high praise of local Gajanand Singh who has played two crucial knocks for the team, one resulting in them winning their first match. In his first game he grafted 28 before falling in a close finish against the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in

Florida then stroked 35 not out against Stars.

“He played well in Florida and yesterday [Sunday] played a brilliant innings to lead us home and we hope he continues to build on it”, the coach stated.

Warriors’ first home match at the National Stadium Providence will be on Thursday against the Jamaica Tallawahs from `18:00 hrs. They will then clash with Trinbago Knight Riders from 12 noon on Saturday followed

by Barbados Tridents on Sunday from 18:00 hrs. Their final match will be against Stars on Tuesday from 18:00 hrs.

Fans can purchase their tickets between 08:30h and 18:00h Monday to Friday and 09:00h to 13:00h on Saturday and Sunday. Corporate companies/ organizations wishing to purchase tickets can contact the ticketing office at Ticketing Office and Merchandise Store, located at 238 Camp and Quamina Streets, Georgetown for further details on how to do so.

The costs per ticket for this year’s CPL games are as follows: RED AND GREEN STANDS, Gy$5,000; ORANGE STAND, Gy$3,000; GRASS MOUND, Gy$2,500.

Car passes for inside the stadium are being sold for $1500, while car passes for parking between the stadium and the Ramada Princess Hotel cost $500 each.

Guyana Amazon Warriors Squad: Martin Guptill (captain), Rayad Emrit, Sohail Tanveer, Chadwick Walton, Babar Azam, Rashid Khan, Jason Mohammed, Steven Taylor, Veerasammy Permaul, Roshon Primus, Gajanand Singh, Assad Fudadin, Steven Jacobs, Keon Joseph, Steven Katwaroo, Keemo Paul, Muhammad Ali Khan.

Remember the name Gajanand Singh!

‒Warriors batsman bringing A-game for home fans

By Akeem Greene

I

f you are a fan of watching sumptuous cricket shots, especially crisp cover drives, flashy cuts and cheeky sweeps, Guyana Amazon Warriors batsman Gajanand Singh is one who ticks all of those boxes.

Singh who recently returned to competitive cricket, has been one of the core figures in his team’s middle for the fifth edition of the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL).

Though he just has played three matches to date, two of his performances were of significant value. The left-hander in his first match brought the team within a whisker of victory against the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots, scoring 28.

He then stroked a masterful and match winning 35 notout to lead the team to their first win Sunday evening against host St Lucia Stars.

Singh’s debut match in Florida was one filled with nerves. In the last over, with Guyana needing five run from three balls, he attempted a lap-shot over fine leg but was bowled by Carlos Braithwaite. Some termed it injudicious but to the batsman it was risk worth taking.

“I had three options, go against the wind, and go straight. He was not bowling

Ramdin spearheads Knight Riders win over Patriots Dwayne Bravo (L) and Sunil Narine (R) of Trinbago Knight Riders celebrate the dismissal of Chris Gayle of St Kitts & Nevis Patriots during Match 13

SCOREBOARD

“A little bit more bat under that [ball] and it could have been glory on that day. Sometimes it goes your way sometimes it does not”

that length and I was thinking I could use the pace since I know where he was bowling. Unfortunately I got an inside edged and he bowled me. A little bit more bat under that and it could have been glory on that day. Sometimes it goes your way sometime it does not”, Singh rationalised.

Commenting on his match-winning knock he stated, “ the though process is simple, as it comes, play your role, take your responsibility and take the team across the finish much as you can”.

He added, “It is always a good feeling being around these great players and sharing dressing rooms with

them. You always learn and you want to keep this feeling and if you keep wanting to do good you will have success”.

The 29 year-old contended the team must play positive cricket and win all of their four home matches which commence on Thursday against the Jamaica Tallawahs at the National Stadium Providence from `18:00 hrs “Coming home now a lot is depending us to win our home games . St Lucia lost their home matches and that is something we cannot do. We started with a victory there [ in St Lucia] and hopefully we can continue doing it at home”, he confidently stated.

The Berbician also assured that he will be bringing his A-game for his home fans.

“I will give a 150% I will leave everything on the field.

Whatever role I play I will do my best and try to bring joy to the fans and make them feel happy”.

After playing the Tallawahs on Thursday the Warriors clash with Trinbago Knight Riders from 12 noon on Saturday followed

by Barbados Tridents on Sunday from 18:00 hrs. Their final match will be against Stars on Tuesday from 18:00 hrs.

St Kitts & Nevis Patriots - 158/7(20.0 overs) S Brooks b Khan 37 C Gayle * c DJ Bravo b Narine 4 M Hafeez run out (Searles / Cooper) 13 B King c DJ Bravo b Narine 9 J Carter run out (DJ Bravo) 31 C Brathwaite c Phillip b Cooper 19 M Nabi c Searles b DJ Bravo17 D Thomas † Not out 3 H Ali Not out 9 Extras (11 wd,1 lb,4 B) 16 Total (7 wickets, 20 overs) 158 Did not bat : S Badree, T Shamsi Fall of wickets : 1-14 (C Gayle,2.6), 2-52 (M Hafeez,8.3), 3-75 (B King,10.1), 4-95 (S Brooks,13.2), 5-122 (C Brathwaite,16.1), 6-140 (J Carter,18.2), 7-147 (M Nabi,18.6) BOWLING: A Phillip (3.0, 0, 26, 0) R Beaton (4.0,0 ,31 ,0) S Narine (4.0, 0, 26, 2) K Cooper (4.0, 0, 21, 1) S Khan (4.0, 0, 42, 1) DJ Bravo (1.0, 0, 7, 1)

Trinbago Knight Riders - 161/6(19.3 overs) B McCullum c Hafeez b Nabi 16 S Narine c Nabi b Brathwaite 5 C Munro c Ali b Badree 36 DM Bravo c Hafeez b Nabi 1 D Ramdin † Not out 59 S Khan b Badree 3 DJ Bravo *run out (Ali) 20 J Searles Not out 12 Extras (6 wd,3 lb,) 9 Total (6 wickets, 19.3 overs) 161 Did not bat : K Cooper, A Phillip, R Beaton Fall of wickets : 1-11 (S Narine,1.4), 2-38 (B McCullum,4.5), 3-42 (DM Bravo,6.5), 4-72 (C Munro,11.5), 5-89 (S Khan,13.5), 6-130 (DJ Bravo,17.4) Bowling: M Hafeez (4.0, 0, 29,0) C Brathwaite (4.0, 0, 44, 1) M Nabi (3.0, 1, 12, 2) H Ali (3.3, 0, 29, 0) T Shamsi (3.0, 0, 30, 0) S Badree (2.0, 0, 14, 2)

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

TUESDAY, AUGUST 15, 2017

guyanatimesgy.com

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Determined Warriors return home...wefocused on winning have to play consistent cricket – Harper Ramdin spearheads Knight Riders win over Patriots

Remember the name Gajanand Singh!

‒ Warriors batsman bringing A-game for home fans Denesh Ramdin of Trinbago Knight Riders hits 6 during Match 13

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