Guyana Times International 22 March 2019

INTERNATIONAL

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THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Guyana plunges into ‘unchartered waters’

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ISSUE NO. 441

WEEK ENDING March 24, 2019

…as Govt refuses to abide by constitutional provisions after no-confidence vote …Opposition vows ‘no let up’ until President, Ministers demit office See stories inside

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

NEWS 3

Jagdeo claims House-to-House registration deliberate attempt to delay, rig upcoming polls

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pposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has restated his party’s position that after March 21, 2019, the Coalition Government will be deemed illegal and will be treated as such. He also accused the administration of conspiring with the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to rig the next general and regional elections which was constitutionally due by March 21 2019, following its defeat via a no-confidence vote last December.

According to Jagdeo, the move to replace the current voters’ list through House-to-House registration is the reason for his claims that there are plans to rig the upcoming polls.

The Opposition Leader told a press conference on Wednesday that his party has made several proposals to put certain safeguards in place. But he maintained that the current voters list which is due to expire on April 30 could be used for the next elections instead.

Jagdeo maintained that the call for Houseto-House registration will not ensure that more people are on the list and have a clean election; it is merely to delay election and to give more time to the APNU/AFC Government.

Making reference to the recent news that GECOM will only be able to hold elections in late November, Jagdeo said it points to anoth-

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo

er act of conspiracy between the Government and GECOM. However, the former Guyanese head of state has made a commitment to ensure that the PPP will continue to pile pressure on the David Granger-led administration, through peaceful protests.

President David Granger has claimed that he was “constrained” from naming a date for elections because GECOM has not provided adequate information about its readiness for holding elections.

Referring to recent meetings with GECOM Commissioners, Granger had said he did not receive the guidcontinued on page 5

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

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EDITORIAL

APNU/AFC’S tight grip on power

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hile there are some doubts as to whether Emperor Nero actually fiddled while Rome burned, when the history of Guyana is written, there is no question that David Granger will be known as the president who fiddled while Guyana burned. Being a historian, more than most, he is aware of the deep schisms in our society, which have been refracted by the political system to create a very volatile and incendiary condition whenever elections are in the air.

When that systemic condition in concatenated with the specific circumstances that have precipitated the constitutional crisis that has enveloped our country since Dec 21, 2018, then one can only conclude that the speech which he delivered last Friday was akin to pouring gasoline upon a smoldering fire.

Ever since his entry into overt politics since 2011 – he has boasted he was a member of the PNC since 1965 – Granger has carefully crafted and projected a churchgoing, avuncular and amiable image. But it was all a sham and pappy show which soon became evident – but polished over with the patina of anodyne ‘feel good’ expressions.

One example would suffice before we examine his inflammatory speech. On the hustings, he promised an “inclusive government” that would include even “elements” of the PPP — in addition to the AFC — with which he had negotiated a “power sharing”, Cummingsburg Accord. Their “joint” Manifesto included root and branch constitutional reform that would institutionalise a massive reduction of the President’s powers, which would then be transferred to the Prime Minister. But it was all smoke and mirrors, as even the one significant coalition partner within APNU, the WPA, complained bitterly and publicly of not being consulted by the PNC, which held all significant power. It was the AFC’s refusal to publicly criticise the PNC’s betrayal that allowed Granger’s ingratiating image to give him a Teflon-like cover for his insidious, divisive actions. Such as, even though the AFC had promised that “sugar was too big to fail”, unilaterally closing four sugar estates and throwing on the bread line 7000 workers, mainly from the Indian-Guyanese community, which they boasted the AFC had brought in to make their Government “uniquely multiracial”.

In his recorded speech to the nation, President Granger had a “plaster for every sore” that had burst out in the body politic after the successful No-Confidence Motion (NCM). The most critical sore, of course, was his and his Government’s refusal to follow up with their initial acceptance of the constitutional consequences of the NCM – for the President and Cabinet to resign and elections to be held in three months. He challenged this on a number of pathetically poor subterfuges in the judicial realm – which the President now insults the Guyanese people’s collective intelligence by claiming they were “a means of bringing clarity and certainty to the contentious issues which arose as a consequence of the no-confidence vote.”

Does President Granger really believe the Guyanese people believe him when he now claims, as a “contentious issue”, that 33 seats are not the majority in the 65-member National Assembly, when he accepted the votes of the identical 33 seats as a majority to pass any number of Acts, and then personally signed them into law? Does he not understand that even his own supporters see his volte face as a ploy to cling onto power for a few months longer, even as they cynically go along with the ploy, just as they had done with the PNC’s rigging of elections between 1968 and 1985?

What makes the ploy incendiary, however, is that most Guyanese believe that Granger is risking his political capital because he needs those “few months” to consummate his plans for rigging the elections, because the NCM caught him flat-footed.

The Opposition PPP has issued a response which refutes, point by point, Granger’s platitudinous utterances, and they must be commended for the measured tones in which they couched that response. The people, however, are quite insulted by the gap between Granger’s words and his actions. Will the sore explode?

HAPPY HOLI: U.S. Ambassador to Guyana, H.E Sarah-Ann Lynch was among the guests at the State House on Sunday for Phagwah Celebrations. (DPI photo)

Rejecting hate: Lessons from New Zealand T

he world, more particularly New Zealand, is trying to come to grips with the horror of last Friday’s (March 15) shooting that left 50 people dead and many others injured, some critically. Many watched in complete shock on social media as a lone gunman opened fire on the gatherings at two Mosques during the Friday prayers. It was an attack that was well planned in advance based on various now known facts most evident from the live-streaming.

From reports, the Australian-born gunman had earlier published a manifesto in which he strongly objected to immigration and multiculturalism. In that document, he reportedly showered praise on Anders Breivik, the Norwegian white supremacist who killed 77 people in Norway in 2011. That suggests that his deliberate and calculative actions were premised in hate for a particular group of people; from those targeted, Muslim immigrants and refugees.

He seemingly spared no effort in his planning to maximise casualties given the calibre and amount of weapons he had in his possession. The fact that he also spared no effort to have it streamed live meant he wanted a worldwide audience to see in real time his actions of triumphalism; actions that are seemingly becoming routine in various parts of the world as seen on March 18 when three persons were killed by a Turkish citizen in the Dutch city of Utrecht; actions that can only be blatant acts of terrorism.

Some of the victims would have fled their war-torn homelands in a gruelling search for peace and a place to be shielded from such atrocities. New Zealand in many ways offers such and was deemed and believed to be a safe country with its sanctuary city of Christchurch; now infamous for that shooting. While it was

another incident of spewing hate with deadly consequences, two things stood out in its aftermath; the coming together of the country and the announced intention of the political leadership to swiftly change existing gun laws.

The images of New Zealanders, especially those with visible Caucasian extraction, comforting surviving relatives and the Islamic community while at the same time forthrightly condemning the barbaric action, are not only comforting, but send a strong message of tolerance, peace and love. Common was the sentiment that the action of the gunman is not representative of the people of New Zealand.

Over time, many such despicable actions of hate crime targeting different groups have occurred and in every case, people from all backgrounds have rallied in support of the victims. It shows that people in the vast majority across the world want peace and tolerance to prevail. It also unfortunately shows that some will do their utmost to continue to create disharmony in propagation of their belief and which is not in keeping with the efforts of forging togetherness.

By rallying around each other, New Zealanders, like others in various parts of the world in the past, continue to send a very strong message rejecting those who perpetrate hate. There must be no place for hatred and all efforts to dispel it from society must be fully supported. Guyana has had incidents that resulted in many innocent ones being murdered.

The massacres at Lindo Creek, Lusignan and Bartica continue to haunt us all. Those tested resolve and stability, but in the end, despite the challenges posed, the actions of the perpetrators were and continue to be rejected.

The onus is upon all, especially those with influence, to continue to advocate for the

rejection of hate and for efforts designed to promote and strengthen tolerance and harmony to be supported. Come March 21, a constitutional crisis, which could have been avoided had the Government abided by the supreme law that governs the successful passage of a parliamentary no-confidence motion, would engulf the country.

It’s unchartered waters and could challenge the social fabric of togetherness.

With historical incidents that tested that resolve, especially with elections as a catalyst, the upcoming period will have to be traversed with a profound sense of responsibility in words and actions by all, including those who are prolific on social media.

Unfortunately, there will be those who will find it difficult to curb their tendencies to spew hate and disharmony. Again, they must be rejected and made to feel that what they advocate is not representative of the people of Guyana.

From all reports, the unity play staged by the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) was well received with members of the audience welcoming those bonds expressed at the grassroots but the Government at the top has acted to tear them asunder.

The Government’s actions in rejecting the Constitution has push the nation to the impending constitutional crisis.

That sends a strong message of disrespecting law and order which will naturally cause resentment in some quarters. It is therefore not helpful to the process of building harmony; a process which must be led by the government of the day.

A lesson can therefore be had from New Zealand as its Government is leading in the healing process and has demonstrated a willingness to take immediate action to help prevent a recurrence in an effort to safeguard the welfare of its citizens.

NEWS 5

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Closure of Sugar Estates

PPP/C Presidential Candidate promises to revive affected communities

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uring a meeting with residents of Belle Vue on the West Bank of Demerara, PPP/C Presidential Candidate Irfaan Ali said the Party is working to rejuvenate communities, especially those that were affected by the closed sugar estates.

Ali also reminded of some initiatives which were made possible under the previous administration.

The presidential candidate said his party is committed towards social justice for those who were affected by the closure of the sugar estates.

In 2017, 1851 workers were dismissed from the Skeldon Sugar Estate; 1181 from the Rose Hall Estate; 1480 from the East Demerara Sugar Estate, and 251 from the Wales Sugar Estate.

Since then, thousands of persons remain without jobs and some waited for almost two years before their severance payments were made available.

The Opposition has signaled that these estates will be reopened should the PPP/C return to power at the next general elections.

Jagdeo claims House-to-House... from page 3

ance he needs to proclaim a date for elections. According to the President, it would be “reckless” for him to announce a date for elections without being satisfied that the Commission can guarantee credible elections.

Granger has since called for collaboration, noting that he is prepared to do his part to ensure credible elections are held within “the shortest time possible” in 2019. But he made it clear that such decisions are not his alone.

M e a n w h i l e , when asked what would be the position with Government Ministers after March 21, 2019 Harmon said the Government remains in office and the Government is made up of the Ministers and as such you cannot have a Government without Ministers.

“Well I think we have made that very clear that the President (David Granger) remains the President until such time that

Minister of State, Mr. Joseph Harmon

there are new elections held and that the Government remains in office until such time that new elections are held. The March 21st matter is a constitutional matter which is being addressed. As you know the President has called upon the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to provide him with their work plan that

will determine when (or) what is the shortest possible date that they can deliver credible elections in Guyana.”

“I believe that yesterday (Tuesday) the (GECOM) Chairman wrote to the President pointing out certain things and I can give you the assurance that the President will act on that advice in a short

space of time,” he added.

According to Harmon, “Some people try to make a distinction and it is an improper distinction to make to say that the Ministers are no longer Ministers, they remain Ministers as well until such time that there is new elections and that they also will be replaced by persons who are identified on a list submitted by the winning (Political) party to the Parliament of Guyana and from that list is extracted new Ministers. It is these Ministers who will have to be working with the Permanent Secretaries who are there in the office that will have to give an account for their stewardship that will have to hand over to any new Ministers that actually come in”.

With regards to the meeting that US President Donald Trump is expected to have with Caribbean leaders on Friday, Harmon said he was not sure if Guyana has been invited.

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Guyanese at home and in the Diaspora welcome firm statements by foreign reps on political crisis Dear Editor, The Granger-led fallen APNU/AFC Coalition Government condescendingly attempts to treat the intelligence of Guyanese and that of the representatives of our associating states with an irrational lack of astuteness and deserving candor.

The reactions of these institutions and states have been through strong and definitive statements of intent regarding the grounds on which they are prepared to co-exist, and this is pivotal to the advancement of democracy.

I and hundreds of thousands of Guyanese at home and in the diaspora welcome the forthrightness and timely statements of the British High Commissioner and the new Ambassador of the United States of America, who have highlighted their country’s recognition of the supremacy of our Constitution, and the need for a framework establishing free and fair elections. We therefore applaud the eminence of many civil society groups who have joined the rallying call for David Granger to stop ‘pussy-footing’ and call Elections in adherence to the Guyana Constitution.

The recent meeting between President Granger and the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) is nothing but another set of shenanigans aimed at some elaborate pretence and bureaucratic time extensions. The partial revelations of a necessity for information regarding GECOM’s finances and programme is actually information in the domain of the President as he seeks to take Guyanese for another bureaucratic adventure.

It is a known fact that all constitutional agencies are required to provide the Cabinet with monthly reports regarding their plans and utilisation of appropriated funds, and this is accounted for via the IFMAS automated system of the Ministry of Finance.

GECOM’s own position of its role woefully exposes and contradicts President Granger’s abhorrent pronouncements

of his related responsibilities. Details publicly published on its website (http://www.gecom.org. gy/home/about_gecom) state: “GECOM is insulated from executive interference in the performance of its functions. By virtue of Article 226 of the Constitution, GECOM, like other constitutional Commissions, shall not be subject to the direction and control of any other person or authority. Schedules for the conduct of general, regional and local government elections are decided upon by the Commission once a date for the election is announced by the President”.

The situation therefore affirms that the Chairman and three APNU/AFC Commissioners are violently contradicting the role of the organisation, and playing games with the Guyanese people. A heightened lack of trust in President Granger and his APNU/AFC regime exists as a consequence of the volatile nature of responses, which have been most unpredictable.

Never before have there been so many instances of inconsistency by a Government — which are evidenced by public statements, then withdrawals and changes to pronounced positions. It begs answers regarding how one can reasonably make projections with any degree of certainty without having myriad backup plans.

President Granger’s glaring constitutional variances of convenient interpretation resulted in his unilateral appointment of James Patterson as GECOM Chairman. It highlights his intent to hold our country to ransom when necessary, and emphasises a concerted clandestine orchestration — along with his three Commissioners — to manipulate the institution towards the self-serving interest of the fallen coalition Government.

The politically appointed Chairman has proved beyond a shadow of a doubt his established untrustworthiness and that of the David Granger lot.

Sincerely, Neil Kumar

Credible elections a key element of democracy

Dear Editor, Electoral processes for Local Government, Regional and General Elections are constitutionally guaranteed by the Constitution of Guyana.

As such, the holding of elections is one of the key components in ensuring democracy, because it enhances citizens’ participation in governance, ensuring Government accountability and encouraging political competitiveness.

President David Granger recently announced that he would ensure that he “delivered free, fair and credible elections at the shortest possible time”.

This statement is trying to confuse Guyanese that without a house-to-house registration the elections would not be free, fair and credible; but what are the characteristics of a credible election?

Although there is no standard definition of a credible election, there are some aspects of a credible election, the first and foremost feature of which is that it must reflect the will of the people.

According to Article 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of Government; this shall be

expressed in periodic and genuine elections, which shall be by universal and equal suffrage, and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.

The present voters list is a reflection of the will of the people, because it was used to conduct the LGE on 12th November 2019, and is valid until April 30th 2019.

The second important criterion of a credible election is that it must facilitate participation by all qualified political parties. Ensuring fair competition among the political parties and candidates is another important attribute of credible elections.

The third fundamental ingredient of credible election is that it must have an impartial and neutral administration at the Guyana Elections Commission, in that the electoral process must be trusted by the citizens.

Building the public’s trust in the elections processes is of the utmost importance to any elections management body around the world. The credibility of elections largely depends on the actual and perceived integrity of the electoral process. More specifically, if citizens believe the electoral process is defective, dishonest, or less than free and fair, they may not accept

the outcome.

The Commonwealth places critical importance on strengthening election management bodies, because of the central role they play in ensuring that the right of citizens to elect their leaders through peaceful and credible processes with high integrity is safeguarded.

Some other vital characteristics of credible elections are as follows: the outcome of the elections, or counting of votes, must be accurate and legitimate; an effective legal framework must be in place; security of voters must be ensured before and after elections; there must be access to the media and elections observers in the elections process; and the present Government must be impartial.

When all the variables mentioned above are available in the process, conduct and outcome of elections, then those elections could be considered free, fair and credible.

Opposition Leader Dr Bharrat Jagdeo must be complimented for the cooperation and efforts he has shown during this period in order to save Guyana from becoming a FAILED STATE. Regards, Zamal Hussain

Any attempt by Govt to stay in power beyond March 21 can be deemed reckless Dear Editor, I am responding to this view that is emanating from the President and those on his bandwagon that he remains President until the next President is sworn in. Is President Granger seeking to preach that he will be President for life? Because he and his Government have not demonstrated any seriousness as it relates to the holding of elections.

Article 106 (6) and (7) says the following: a) the President and Cabinet shall resign upon the successful passage of a no-confidence vote. Their final day on the job is 90 days or three months after, in this case, March 21, 2019, since the no-confidence motion was passed on December 21, 2018. b) They remain in office purely for the purpose of holding an election. Article 106 (7) envisages an election in three months at which time the presidency shall be handed over to the newly-elected President.

To be defeated by a no-confidence vote and not hold elections within the constitutionally mandated timeframe of three months and in bravado style declare to people of Guyana “I remain the President until the new President is sworn in” is pure nonsense. The President’s henchmen are perfectly correct when they say that the “President should remain in office until the next President is sworn in.” However, what they omit that subject to Article 106 (7) of the Constitution and in keeping with the ruling of the Chief Justice, elections had to be held before March 21, 2019, and a new President sworn in by that date or shortly thereafter. Their perverse logic

seems to suggest that Granger can ignore the Constitution of Guyana, have or not have the election at his will and the people of Guyana must keep him as President. For example, the President can or not hold the election in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022 and we must accept him as President. We reject this.

Editor, this Guyanese will publicly declare for the President and his merry band that I will not sit idly by and allow this abuse of power and I encourage all decent, sane, right thinking and independent Guyanese to reject this nonsense and to see this action of the President as a misuse of the trust that was given to him by the people of Guyana in May 2015. President Granger and his Government lost their mandate on December 21, 2018. Their only reason for continuing in office was to facilitate the holding of elections and the maintenance of good order.

Bill Number 14 of 2000 Explanatory Memorandum Clause 5 alters Article 106 to provide for the resignation of the Cabinet and the President following the defeat of the Government in the National Assembly on the vote of confidence. Although defeated, the Government shall remain in office for the purpose of holding an election.

They have done everything to frustrate the holding of elections. The only business that this President and his Ministers should be engaged in, is ensuring elections are held, it’s not business as usual. Any attempt to stay in power beyond March 21 can be deemed a reckless and irresponsible action by this Government. This claim that

the doctrine of necessity kicks in can be deemed an absurdity and to date the most visible act of desperation. The Constitution never contemplated a defeated Government remaining in office beyond ninety days without a two-thirds majority of the National Assembly. That is to say, the opposition defeated you facilitating an extension beyond ninety days, because of some reasonable and rational ground. No such grounds exist; it is clear for all to see the intention of the APNU/ AFC coalition Government was not to have elections by March 21.

So whether it was the National Assembly, the courts or GECOM, they sought a refugee. GECOM with its unilaterally appointed Chairman and the three Government-sponsored commissioners have provided that much-needed smoke screen. We are not allowing this asinine behaviour from GECOM. For the purpose of all Guyanese, the Constitution envisages a GECOM on any of the three eventualities: a) a no-confidence vote b) the President at any time during the five-year term proclaiming a dissolution of the National Assembly on calling a national election and c) the end of the five-year cycle of the National Assembly. On every occasion, elections are to be held within three months. Stop the charade, the “mamaguying” and the bravado behaviour, call elections now.

On March 22 you are illegal, unlawful and unconstitutional; you will no longer be the President, Mr Granger.

Yours truly, Bishop Juan A Edghill

news 7

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

‘Chowtal Fiesta’ among New York Guyanese

By Vishnu Bisram

T

he Prem Bhakti Mandir in Queens, New York, was packed to capacity for the fifth annual chowtaal sameelan.

The event was hosted by the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha USA Praant. Some fifteen organizations and Mandirs participated in the chowtaal singing accompanied by drummers and the clinging of jaals (cymbals) and dantaals.

Each chowtaal group sang at the top of their voices. Each group had a minimum of ten participants with some as large as twenty. Every member of the Chowtaal group sang and beat jhals (cymbals) while some beat the drum (dholak) and the dantaal. Some in the audience took to the floor dancing.

The audience was jubilant cheering the performers. They had a fun time with some joining in the singing echoing the lyrics or verses of

Gods and Goddesses. It was introduced abroad by indentured (girmitya) immigrants who were taken to the colonies of the British, French and Dutch territories. It is still practiced in the Indian villages in Guyana and in north India. Chowtaal is a fast moving tempo of singing and voice modulation and musical beats.

In the Caribbean, it has captivated audiences of all ethnicities and religions some of whom also participate in chowtaal singing.

The Dharmic Sabha USA Praant has introduced the chowtaal in New York. The objective is to continue this tradition by hosting the gols from the mandirs in the Tri-State area.

The fifteen gols for this year’s event included the Prem Bhakti Mandir, Shiv Bholenauth Bhavan Mandir, Satya Sanatan Dharma Ramayan Gol, Shanti Bhavan Mandir, Ganesh Mandir, T & T Richmond Hill Chowtaal

Bhuvaneshwar Mandir Chowtaal Gol

Sabha the late Pandit Reepu Daman Persaud.

On Sunday March 24th at 2 PM, the USA Praant will host for the 1st time here in New York Holi Utsav which is another event that was started some years ago by the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha. This event will be held at the Maha

Queens Hindu Mandir Chowtaal Gol

Ganesh Mandir Chowtaal Gol

the fast tempo singing.

Many could be seen clapping and dancing or gyrating with the music.

Chowtaal is a very rich musical genre that originated in India among the Bhojpuri speaking belt in north India. It is sung only during the phagwah season, known as Holi, which is the Hindu festival of color and joy. This year Holi (Phagwah) is on Thursday March 21st but Holi activities have been held worldwide for the past two weeks now.

Chowtaal is a folk music of village life. It was transmitted to and institutionalized in the US and Canada by IndoCaribbbean immigrants.

The singing involves two competing groups of singers and musicians all seated. The groups assembled in two rows with the singers facing each other (semi-circle), with a “dholak” drummers at one or both end. The participants sing lines of Hindi or Bhojpuri text antiphonally. It involves loud repetitions of chants about life in the villages or political struggles and or on the Hindu

Group, Shiva Durga Mandir, Bhuvaneshwar Mandir, Sanatan Dharma Mandir of NY, Queens Hindu Mandir, Suriname Chautal Samaj, Shri Trimurti Bhavan Mandir, Maha Devi Saraswati Chowtaal Group, Rama Krishna Bhavan Mandir and the Shyama Shyam Dham Mandir.

Notably, there were three groups consisting of all young devotees -Queens Hindu Mandir under the leadership of Pandit Ravi Maharaj, the Shiva Durga Mandir of Newark, NJ (Pandit Hardatt) which had twenty-four young devotees and the Sanaatan Dharma Mandir of NY led by Bhai Harriram Thakoordeen.

The Bhuvaneshwar Mandir group consisted of 90% young devotees as well.

Each group was presented with a special gift (jaals) for their participation and the young devotee groups received trophies as well.

This year’s event featured special guest Trishala Simantini Persaud, younger daughter of the founder of the Guyana Hindu Dharmic

Lakshmi Mandir located at 121-15 101 Avenue in Richmond Hill, Queens. This is a free community event where attendees can enjoy holi songs, chowtaals, tassa, and complimentary Phagwah delicacies.

Prem Bhakti Mandir Chowtaal Gol

8 news

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

GECOM boss under fire T

…as November plans for elections rejected

he Guyana E l e c t i o n s Commission (GECOM) Chairman has advised the Executive that elections can be held no sooner than November 2019, earning him a sharp rebuke from the Opposition nominated Commissioners on GECOM, who condemned this position to hold elections outside of the constitutional timeframe.

Article 106 (6) of the Guyana Constitution states: “The Cabinet including the President shall resign if the Government is defeated by the vote of a majority of all the elected members of the National Assembly on a vote of confidence.”

106 (7) goes on to state that, “Notwithstanding its

Farmer who launched brutal cutlass attack on wife charged with attempted murder Injured: Vashti Mahase

The PPP Commissioners – from left: Bibi Shadick, Sase Gunraj and Robeson Benn

defeat, the Government shall remain in office and shall hold an election within three months, or such longer period as the National Assembly shall by resolution supported by not less than two-thirds of the votes of all the elected members of the National Assembly de-

A picture of the letter in question

termine, and shall resign after the President takes the oath of office following the election.”

So far, there has been no word on when a sitting of the National Assembly will be called.

Nor has the court granted a stay on the count down. When asked at a previous press confer-

ence, Minister of State Joseph Harmon had informed the media that there must be pressing issues for the National Assembly to be called.

When asked if elections were not a pressing matter, he then conceded that it was.

Even if such a sitting is called, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo made his position on the letter pellucid on his social media page on Tuesday evening.

According to a post on his page, “the PPP/C will never accept the November 2019 date for the holding of elections as is being put forward by the three A Partnership for National Unity/ Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) nominated Commissioners and the unilaterally appointed Chairman,” Jagdeo stated.

A Tuesday statutory meeting abruptly broke up after it was revealed that GECOM Chairman James Patterson wrote a letter to President David Granger advising him of this, without informing them.

The three People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Commissioners called a press conference soon after the botched meeting where Commissioner Robeson Benn said the Chairman’s advocacy for elections in November is an unconstitutional position.

“We on this side naturally walked out at that point. There (are) attempts to delay the elections. Any delay of elections founded in the no-confidence vote would be unconstitutional and illegal.

He noted that despite GECOM starting its preparations and holding meetings right after the no-confidence vote, the secretariat mysteriously abandoned those preparations and subsequently frittered away the time.

“The Guyana continued on page 24

T

he farmer who brutally attacked his reputed wife on February 24 2019, was on Wednesday, charged with attempted murder.

Fazal Osman, 39, of Mahaica, appeared before Magistrate Fabayo Azore at the Cove and John Magistrate’s Courts. He was not required to plea to the indictable offence.

Osman was remanded to prison and he will make his next appearance on March 5 at the Mahaica Magistrate’s Court.

Vashti Mahase, 22,

barely escaped with her life on the day of the attack.

She was accompanied by a Rural Constable to Osman’s home to serve him with a restraining order when he whipped out his cutlass and dealt her several chops to her face, hand, back and about the body. As the attack was launched on the woman, the Rural Constable reportedly ran away.

It took police several days after the incident before the suspect was found and arrested.

Double murder in Barbadian community Jamal Mayers was also shot dead.

T

he gun violence has hit too close to home for one St Philip community.

Around 8 p.m. on Sunday, 52-year-old Betty Mayers and her 32 year-old son, Jamal Mayers, were gunned down at their home in Rices.

Police public relations officer Acting Inspector Rodney Inniss told the media when a police team arrived at the house, they found Betty’s body at the front door and Jamal’s was discovered during the search.

They were responding

to a call to Operations Control which said there were two masked men in the area.

Yesterday afternoon, the family were still too distraught to speak and politely declined comment.

One member would only say: “We are grieving right now.”

Residents declined to give their names, but called for some action to be taken to stem the rising gunplay.

An elderly woman said she felt terrible about what transpired.

(Barbados Nation)

NEWS 9

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

‘One of Guyana’s worst constitutional transgressions’ -FITUG says of Govt’s refusal to abide by provisions of no-confidence vote

FITUG President Carvil Duncan

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he Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Guyana (FITUG) has spoken out against the move made by Government to ignore the constitutional provisions of a no-confidence motion describing it as one of the country’s worst constitutional transgressions.

The umbrella trade union body said it cannot ignore the many concerns being expressed at this time regarding what will be the state of play following the March 21, 2019 constitutional deadline regarding the legitimacy of the coalition Government.

“For its part, the Federation has seen Government’s attempts to quell the worries that have risen slowly to the brim over the last three months. Most recently, we have heard from no lesser than President David Granger who in an address to the nation

last Friday (March 15) sought to assure the populace that all will be well and that no crisis will be at hand,” FITUG said in a statement.

The Federation said it also recognises, as it were, that the Government has thrown the ball squarely in the court of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM). The discourses of that body have now gained public repute and it seems there is no haste on the part of the Commission to deliver elections in keeping with what is constitutionally prescribed.

“Undoubtedly, such conclusions were not hard to reach as we noted that the Commissioners who emanate from the President’s party are insisting on the conduct of a house-to-house registration exercise. It is our view, that the Commissioners making such calls are merely parroting their party’s position. The public is well aware of the protests and picketing exercises, led by the President’s party, calling for such an exercise,” it added Tuesday.

FITUG also made reference to a video which appeared on social media which revealed that at an activity organised by the President’s party – the People’s National Congress (PNC) – a

President David Granger and his Cabinet

call of war was sounded should the exercise not be pursued. “What war meant is obviously up for debate and could be best answered by those who sounded the proverbial horn.”

Further, it said the indecision at GECOM comes at the same time the President said he is committed to having credible elections in the shortest time frame.

But it noted that the President who expressed this desire after more than two-thirds of the timeline had expired has yet to define what he really means.

FITUG said, “We recognised notwithstanding the President’s call, his nominated Commissioners are vehement in their demand for house-to-house registration though the Chief Elections Officer, Keith

Trial to commence into Kitty businesswoman’s TIP matter

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he trial for the proprietor of a popular Georgetown liquor bar, Savita Persaud, who was charged with four counts of Trafficking In Persons is set to commence on March 29, 2019, before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan.

Persaud, of Station Street, Kitty, had pleaded not guilty to the charges when they were read to her at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Courts earlier in March Particulars of the first two charges stated that between January 31 and March 8, 2019, she unlawfully recruited, transported and withheld the identification papers of two Venezuelan nationals for sexual exploitation.

The defendant was also slapped with two counts of Trafficking In Persons charges during the same time.

She was also charged with employing a child on a property that sells liquor.

Defence Attorney George Thomas in a bail submission had told the court that his client rented the property to

Savita Persaud

the Venezuelans and is innocent of the trafficking accusations.

However, the police prosecutor opposed to bail being granted based on the serious nature, prevalence and the penalty that the offences attract.

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

Lowenfield, is quoted in the media to say that GECOM can work with the list.”

At this time too, FITUG said it is perplexed as it saw the President in his address saying that he is prepared to do his part to ensure credible elections within the shortest possible time this year. “Our obvious confusion is heightened, noting that

the house-to-house registration process, cannot, in all likelihood, be completed this year but the President is, apparently, adamant the elections must be held this year,” the trade union umbrella body added.

Taking the two contradictory objectives into account, FITUG said it cannot help but wonder whether the house-tohouse call is a pretext to

ensure that the current valid official list of electors expires on April 30, 2019. “If this is indeed the case, the rationale for such a ploy evades us, and we wonder whether it is a case of there being more in the mortar than the pestle. Given our nation’s history of electoral malpractices, this concern should not be treated lightly.”

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

High energy costs still a major challenge for manufacturers in Guyana – Private Sector

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irst oil is just around the corner but high energy costs remains a concern for the manufacturing sector; with a Private Sector Commission executive expressing the need for more measures to bring down the costs.

In an interview with this publication on the sidelines of a workshop on Monday, PSC Executive, Ramesh Dookhoo shared his thoughts on the budding oil and gas sector, noting that price fluctuations and the high cost of fuel prohibits Guyana from being competitive with other countries.

“We still have a huge challenge as a manufacturing country, with the cost for electricity. I would urge the

PSC executive Ramesh Dookhoo

the Government to try and adjust the duties.

Most of the diesel prices have gone up tremendously. What the previous Government did was adjust the duties so that the price could be sta-

of the oil and gas sector, Guyana may face a situation where there is a high demand for energy and as a consequence, oil prices will rise. At the same time, they have expressed concern over the higher than usual price being paid by consumers.

This observation was made by a representative of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), Carol Litwin, when she was in Guyana for a workshop in March of last year. Litwin had also observed that the price commercial and business class consumers pay for power in Guyana is an abnormal one, considering the unreliable supply of energy.

“I see a sector dependent on heavy fuel oil or diesel,” she related. “I

Energy costs are a burning issue for businesses in Guyana

Government to continue to look for sustainable supplies and initiatives in energy. Fluctuations that govern the price of oil affect us and put Guyana in a place where we’re not competitive to export and compete with countries that have cheaper energy,” Dookhoo told this publication.

Renewable energy

He expressed the need for renewable energy like hydropower to be integrated into the system so that costs can be lowered. He also cited the previous Government’s approach of adjusting the excise tax in order to stabilise prices for the consumers.

“The way I see it, we either do hydropower or set up other systems or we will be in the same position ten years from now. There is talk about getting some of the gas here. I don’t know how much it will cost.”

“There has been a call by manufacturers to

ble and predictable,” he said.

According to Dookhoo, this practice seems to be abandoned by the current Government.

Notwithstanding this, the executive was hopeful that other ways of reducing the cost of fuel will be pursued.

Oil and energy

Only Sunday, prominent Attorney-at-law Sanjeev Datadin gave a presentation in which he expressed concern about Guyana’s lack of preparedness for first oil.

This shows, according to Datadin, in the lack of new legislation to regulate the sector.

Many have expressed the need for clear measures to be articulated that would see ordinary Guyanese benefitting directly from the sector.

One such expectation has been cheaper electricity.

In addition, experts have previously projected that with the advent

see a sector that is not always able to provide quality of supply. You have been growing at about five per cent, but that’s going to change.

With oil and gas, it is quite likely that your demand is going to double over the next five to eight years.”

“At the same time, as the quality of supply is not always there for customers, the prices are extremely high. They can be as a much as 30 to 33 US cents for commercial and industrial consumers. This is considered as one of the higher end countries,” she had said.

In Guyana, the Guyana Power and Light’s (GPL) Demerara interconnected system is fed with power by the Power Producers and Distributors Inc (PPDI), which replaced Wärtsilä, a company from Finland which for two decades maintained over a dozen engines for the utility company.

GBTI officials cleared of contempt of court charges T

he Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Tuesday threw out contempt of court charges against eight top executives of the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry Limited (GBTI), saying the bank’s officials should not have been charged in the first place.

The matter was brought by the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) against GBTI and its Board of Directors.

This case stemmed from the matter in October 2017, when SOCU charged the bank’s directors with contempt based on the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

The contempt proceedings stemmed from the bank’s failure to comply with a production order made by acting Chief Justice GBTI officials leaving the Georgetown Magistrates’ Roxane George on Courts on Tuesday following the hearing August 29, 2017.

The bank had directed to the bank and not necessaricontended in its application for the varily its directors. However, SOCU is conation of the order granted by Justice tending that the bank failed or stalled George that countless efforts were made and gave all kinds of excuses, and even to gather all the documents requested destroyed pertinent records relating to but it was discovered that some were eiGRDB. ther destroyed or could not be found.

The bank had made an application The documents are pertinent to the before the acting Chief Justice to be reongoing US$500 million Guyana Rice lieved from the production of the docuDevelopment Board (GRDB) probe bements that were referred to in matter, ing conducted by SOCU. The bank’s on the grounds that they have either failure to hand over the documents has been destroyed by the applicant after assisted in stalling the probe and has the applicant’s retention period had exsince led to a clash between GBTI and pired, or they have been lost and canSOCU. not be found despite diligent efforts to On Tuesday, Magistrate Ann find them.

McLennan dismissed the case and a The bank is said to have an interno-case submission was upheld by the nal policy with regard to the retention court. The Magistrate ruled that the of documents for its customers, howprosecution failed on several counts, but ever, the Anti-Money Laundering and the critical points were that at the time Combating the Financing of Terrorism of the complaint there could not have (AML/CFT) legislation provides for been failure to comply with the producbanks and or financial institutions to tion order because the date for complimaintain records for their customers up ance had already been extended by the to a period of 10 years.

High Court, and that the prosecution In a statement following the decision, failed to tender all of the documents proGBTI said despite the ongoing public vided to SOCU by GBTI. war of words against it, which seemed The High Court had issued an order designed to “sully the esteemed reputainstructing the company to provide the tion of the distinguished members of the information. When the company failed Board and the financial institution they to do so immediately, SOCU filed the represent, the Bank is grateful that this contempt charges. malicious attack on its integrity and McLennan said that in her opinthat of staff has been brought to a preion, the directors should not have been dictable end in the court.” charged since the court had already It stated too that while this unwargranted them more time to provide inranted attack and abuse of power was formation based on a SOCU investiganot without severe and widespread contion. sequences to the sterling institutional During the initial hearing, Attorney image and that of the personal reputaNigel Hughes who represented the eight tion of distinguished directors and staff, accused, told the court that the move GBTI withstood the onslaught with custo the court was nothing more than an tomers rallying around in support. abuse of prosecutorial power. He stat“GBTI wishes to express its gratied that his clients were following the tude to so many customers and friends court’s order and had been granted an who expressed their support in so many extension by the Chief Justice to turn ways through this traumatic, shameful over all the relevant information to the charade. To the attorneys who distinSOCU. guished themselves by the highest stanFurther, Hughes stated that the ordards of legal representation possible der was handed over to SOCU, but the we are duty bound to publicly congratunit chose not to acknowledge it. He said ulate each of you.” the court order by the Chief Justice was

news 11

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

ERC probe finds Vishnu Persaud was most qualified candidate for DCEO position

By Devina Samaroo

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ome six months after he was overlooked for the position of Deputy Chief Elections Officer (DCEO) at the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), an investigation has found that Vishnu Persaud was in fact the most qualified person for the job.

“Mr Persaud was the first candidate in the history of GECOM who had obtained the highest score and had not been appointed,” stated the report on the findings of the probe, which was conducted by the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC).

The report was handed over to the complainants, the Opposition-nominated GECOM Commissioners on Monday.

Commissioners Robeson Benn, Bibi Shaddick and Sase Gunraj had accused GECOM of favouring one particular ethnic group in its hiring practices. The situation escalated when in June 2018, Persaud – who worked at GECOM for 12 years, including in the capacity of DCEO – was overlooked for that position, even though he emerged as the highest scored candidate, with a score of 76.

Roxanne Myers came in at second with 72.

Despite Persaud being the top-ranked candidate, the Government Commissioners voted for Myers to be ap-

Former DCEO Vishnu Persaud

pointed while the Opposition Commissioners voted for Persaud. Chairman, Retired Justice James Patterson used his deciding vote in favour of Myers.

“Shifty”

During an interview with investigators, Justice Patterson said he did not support the return of Persaud as DCEO because he was “shifty”.

In fact, Justice Patterson admitted that he had never met nor interacted with Persaud, but he had a feeling that the top-ranked candidate could not be trusted. “… he came over to me as shifty and unreliable, that is constant in my mind and I was not going to recommend him in place of somebody who I think was … I saw sufficient to raise a red flag or more than one red flag that this gentleman does not come up to basic standards

ERC Chairman, Dr John Oswald Smith

of character and honesty that I like to have working with me,” Justice Patterson is quoted as saying in the report.

He was asked to submit evidence to support his claims but failed to do so, despite reminders from the ERC investigators.

The investigation found that Justice Patterson’s “failure to produce the documentation on which he based his conclusion that Mr Persaud was an unsatisfactory candidate has grossly discredited his finding concerning Mr Persaud’s shiftiness, unreliability, and dishonesty”.

In fact, the ERC report expressed that “throughout the course of this investigation, the Sub-Committee found no evidence to suggest that Mr Persaud made any misrepresentation with re-

gard to his qualification to the Commission”.

Furthermore, the GECOM Chairman’s judgment of Persaud vastly differed from those expressed by individuals who actually worked with him.

Former GECOM Chairman, Dr Steve Surujbally described Persaud as a good character, who employed tact, prudence, wisdom, and honesty in the discharge of his duties.

The Chief Elections Officer (CEO), Keith Lowenfield also described Persaud as having good interpersonal relationships, good work performances, and undertook various responsibilities.

Qualifications

The Government Commissioners, Vincent Alexander, Charles Corbin and Desmond Trotman contended that Myers was better qualified than Persaud.

Corbin told the investigators that Myers had “superior qualifications and potential to perform”.

But documents contained in the report show that Myers had only a Masters of Arts in Gender and Peace Building from the University of Peace, Costa Rica (September 2003June 2004) and her only listed work experience is an association with the Media Monitoring Unit of the GECOM. On the other hand, Persaud possessed a Master of Business Administration – Anglia Ruskin from the United Kingdom (May 2014-

June 2017) as well as a Level 5 Certificate from the Institute of Management, UK, and a Diploma in Public Relations from the Institute of Public Relations, UK. For work experience, it was outlined that he was Public Relations Officer at GECOM from November 2001 to August 2014, then Personal Assistant to the Chairman, and then DCEO from August 2014 to August 2017.

Under the assessment of working knowledge, Persaud had good working knowledge of computers and is very familiar with the data requirements at GECOM while Myers had none.

Similarly, Persaud attended elections-related conferences in India and England, while Myers had no exposure to such conferences.

In fact, Myers has been openly supportive of the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) coalition on her Facebook page – a development which caused many to question her integrity to serve as DCEO. When this question was put to the GECOM Chair, he saw no problem with that, stating: “Roxanne Myers’ involvement in politics has no concern for me. It is her constitutional right to do so.”

Types of hiring

In addition to the matter continued on page 12

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

‘Work together to find a solution to current political crisis’ …British envoy urges Guyana’s politicians

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ritish High Commissioner to Guyana, Gregory Quinn on Monday reminded that the clock has never stopped ticking on the constitutionally-mandated elections which is due on March 21, 2019.

The High Commissioner reiterated his position that the Constitution is the supreme law of Guyana. He was at the time speaking at the 129th Annual General Meeting of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) at the Duke Lodge, Georgetown.

Speaking frankly on the subject of the NoConfidence Motion which was passed on December 21, 2018, Quinn said, “It is not, however, my role to interpret that Constitution. But what I will say is that the clock is ticking following the no-confidence vote in December. A legal process is ongoing, I recognise that, but that clock has not been stayed. I, therefore, urge, indeed implore, the political leadership of this country to get together and agree [on] a constitutional way forward”.

He added that it is imperative that this happens, pointing out that if

no way forward is found, then there will be a further and more harmful impact on business and investment in Guyana.

“All political parties have a responsibility to act honestly and truthfully and to act for the betterment of every citizen – not their own pockets or to their own narrow interests. Politicians need to put the people first,” the High Commissioner said.

He added that voters also have a responsibility to hold their elected officials to account for what they have done or are doing and not to “blindly follow one party because that has been what the family has always done. It is time to look to whomever has the best policies and best plans,” High Commissioner Quinn added.

On Wednesday, new US Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah-Ann Lynch also re-reiterated the need for free and fair polls.

In brief remarks after handing over her credentials to President David Granger on Wednesday morning at the Ministry of the Presidency, Ambassador Lynch, without making mention of the current political impasse, pointed to

British High Commissioner to Guyana, Gregory Quinn

the need for free and fair elections.

Abide and respect the Constitution

Since the December 21, 2018, passage of the motion of no-confidence against the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change coalition, calls have been made by various stakeholders including foreign diplo-

mats for the Government to abide and respect the Constitution and set a date for elections.

The foreign missions have been paying keen attention to the developments in Guyana since the Opposition People’s Progressive Party (PPP) filed the No-confidence Motion against the Government.

In February, the EU’s

local mission warned of the need for constitutional compliance, urging in a statement that democratic procedures and the rule of law be respected and upheld. The EU also called for free and fair elections to be held and for the Guyana Government to follow all requirements outlined in the Constitution of Guyana following the December 21, 2018, no-confidence vote.

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

“Recent political developments triggered by the no-confidence vote in the National Assembly are a test for Guyana’s strength and integrity with regard to the effectiveness of the rule of law and governance,” Tanaka said.

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

The acting Chief Justice had ruled on January 31, 2019, that the No-confidence Motion was validly passed 33-32

in the National Assembly and the Cabinet has to resign in keeping with constitutional provisions of Article 106 (6) and 106 (7) respectively.

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

H o w e v e r , the Granger-led Administration has insisted that there is no role for a “caretaker” Government and that they will continue to be in office until a new President is sworn in. In fact, the coalition has appealed the High Court’s rulings and those matters are currently being heard in the Court of Appeal.

But even as the coalition continues with its ‘business as usual’ approach, political commentator and Attorney Christopher Ram last week asked the High Court to stop the award and payments of contracts over G$15 million.

ERC Exxon recruits 24 more Guyanese; to depart for Canada for additional training probe...

from page 11

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The newly employed Guyanese contingent at ExxonMobil

wenty-four Guyanese were added to the ExxonMobil team as operations and maintenance technicians and will be assigned to the Liza Destiny Floating Production, Storage and Offloading Vessel.

The team of Guyanese, which includes two females, are expected to receive a one-week orientation exercise in Guyana after which they will depart for additional training at Cape Brenton University,

Canada, for 18 months.

ExxonMobil noted in a press statement on Tuesday that a significant portion of that time will be spent on Advanced Skills Training in four areas – Operations, Electrical, Instrumentation and Mechanical – as well as specific training for oil and gas production operations.

“ExxonMobil Guyana’s development model for operations and maintenance employees is designed for trainees to ad-

vance from Technician I to III over time.

The intent is to enhance their capacity to such a level that they are able to replace an experienced international worker,” the release added.

The technicians join the more than one thousand Guyanese already working on Liza Phase 1 project activities. The recruitment process of the next set of 50 technicians will commence in 2020 ahead of first oil.

with Persaud versus Myers, the ERC was asked to do a probe into the general hiring practices of the elections body.

GECOM utilises two different processes when it comes to hiring employees. Managerial employees are interviewed by four Commissioners (two from the Opposition and two from the Government). After interviewing and assessing their eligibility, the four Commissioners would present their findings to the full Commission, which would then vote. Non-managerial staffers are hired by the Human Resources Department.

However, the ERC was unable to assess the hiring practices as it relates to non-managerial staff, since there was no cooperation from the relevant authorities.

The investigation was conducted by Retired Justice Stanley Moore, who had served as Home Affairs Minister under late President LFS Burnham during the People’s National Congress (PNC) regime, along with former Deputy Commissioner of Police, Lloyd Smith and human resources consultant Jairam Petam.

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US President to meet with five Caribbean leaders

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President Donald Trump

s the United States’ continues to press for Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro to step down from office, President Donald Trump will meet with leaders of four Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and a fifth regional leader, whose countries earlier this year agreed not to recognize Maduro’s latest term in office.

In a statement issued yesterday, the White House said Trump would

The statement also noted that Trump would use the meeting as an opportunity to thank these countries for their support for peace and democracy in Venezuela.

The Bahamas, Haiti, Jamaica, St Lucia and the Dominican Republic voted with 15 other Organization of American States (OAS) members in supporting a resolution calling on member states “to not recognize the legitimacy of Nicolas Maduro’s new Jamaica PM Andrew Holness

meet with the leaders of The Bahamas, Haiti, Jamaica, St Lucia and the Dominican Republic at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

It said the meeting with the Caribbean leaders “will reaffirm our strong friendship with and commitment to these countries, and signal the importance of the Caribbean to the hemisphere”.

“The President will discuss his vision for our diverse relationships in the Caribbean and the potential opportunities for energy investment.

The President looks forward to working with countries in the region to strengthen our security cooperation and counter China’s predatory economic practices,” it added.

term” which began on January 10 this year.

Guyana was the only CARICOM nation voting in favour of the resolution that is not attending the meeting with Trump.

In the vote taken on the same day Maduro was sworn in for a second consecutive term, Dominica, St Vincent and the Grenadines and Suriname voted no. St Kitts and Nevis, Trinidad and Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados and Belize abstained, and Grenada was absent.

But CARICOM leaders have reiterated a policy of non-interference in Venezuela’s affairs, offering to mediate to help the South American nation resolve its own crisis. (Caribbean360.com)

NEWS 19

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Man freed of Berbice businessman’s murder

Accused: Ramnarine Jagmohan

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fter two brothers were indicted for the murder of a Hampshire, Corentyne, Berbice businessman and one of them was later killed during a prison brawl, the second was set free by Justice Brassington Reynolds.

Justice Brassington Reynolds upheld a no case submission made by Attorney-at-law Chandra Sohan and instructed the jury to return a formal verdict of not guilty.

On trial for the October 9, 2013, murder of Hampshire businessman, Devendra Deodat also called “Dave”, was Ramnarine Jagmohan.

The State’s case, which was presented by State Prosecutor Mondel Moore was that Deodat, 34, of Lot 72 Hampshire, Squatting Area, Corentyne, was shot to his chest, chopped to his neck and hands and one of his fingers was severed in the attack at his home.

According to the State, during the robbery, the now dead man’s fatherin-law, Rafeek Abdul, called “King”, 57, of Lot 63 Williamsburg, Corentyne, was shot twice to his shoulder and Deodat’s wife, Shaneeza, was chopped to

the head.

However, Defence Counsel Sohan argued that the accused was not charged with attempted murder for those injured.

He further noted that while the State claimed that Deodat’s wife, Shaneeza, was injured, and according to her, chopped in the head and received 90 stitches, the prosecution failed to produce a medical report to substantiate its claim.

During the trial, Surendra Oreall said he was sitting outside with Deodat’s son and daughter when the three bandits pounced on the family. However, Deodat’s wife said both of her children were inside the house when the bandits arrived.

She told the court that she was able to identify the two accused during an identification parade.

However, Sohan pointed out that there was no evidence that an identification parade was conducted.

During the trial, the defence had asked Deodat’s wife why she did not lock the door after the bandits had locked themselves in the shop.

She told the court that it was after the bandits had collected the jewellery and money and were leaving that she told her husband to fight back, resulting in him being shot. She also said that she took the bandits to a secret exit to get them out.

Initially, the accused and his younger brother Neshan were charged with the murder of Deodat. However, on June 21, 2017, he was killed during a brawl in the New Amsterdam Prison.

(Andrew Carmichael)

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

More work needed to UK not in support lift ban on greenheart of Sittlington’s – Minister admits return to Guyana A

Members of the delegation that made Guyana’s case last year, among some officials from the UK

By Jarryl Bryan

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he Guyana-European Voluntary Partnership Agreement signed a few months ago is being cited by the Government as the gateway to lifting restrictions on the export of timber to the United Kingdom – restrictions that have been estimated to have cost millions of dollars.

This was communicated by Foreign Affairs Minister and acting President Carl Greenidge on Monday. At the time, he was delivering feature remarks at a United Nations Conference on Trade and Development workshop at Cara Lodge.

Greenidge said that under the terms of this agreement, Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) certified timber would automatically enter the European Union (EU) market. According to the Minister, this not only means access to the United Kingdom but also to other premium markets.

“As it pertains to other matters of standardisation and trade facilitation, the Government of Guyana and particularly Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) have initialled an agreement with the EU in November, 2018 to commence implementation of a Voluntary Partnership Agreement. Under the terms of this agreement, products with FLEGT licences can automatically enter the EU market.

“This will allow for Guyana to potentially have access to a wider range of premium markets, especially those that require strong environmental and forest legality compliance. This also sets Guyana apart in a positive way from its counterparts in the timber market,” Greenidge said.

But with Brexit, the UK’s exit from the EU, scheduled for this month end, it is unclear how this will impact these plans. Greenidge did acknowledge, however, that much more work remains to be done. He noted that this was only a step toward removing the restrictions.

Millions loss

Among the attendees at the workshop was Executive member of the Private Sector Commission (PSC), Ramesh Dookhoo. Speaking to Guyana Times International in an exclusive interview afterwards, Dookhoo noted that the local Private Sector has been paying keen attention to the issue and was hopeful.

Dookhoo estimated that exporters of lumber lost millions of US dollars as a result of the ban. He noted, however, that such exporters were likely to have taken steps to ramp up exports to other

markets to alleviate their losses.

“The requirements are harsh. They are claiming environmental standards.

It’s really a barrier… hopefully, whichever way Brexit goes, England is going to follow that. Or we’re going to just have to keep working on resolving the matter.

“I think that we’ve lost about two or three million US in England, but I think also that is being made up by exporting greenheart to other countries that do not have that harsh requirement,” Dookhoo said.

Intercessions

As recent as November of last year, a Guyanese delegation in the UK went to the UK Environment Agency (EA) and Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to make Guyana’s case for the lifting of the greenheart import ban.

The delegation, which included GFC’s Chairman Joslyn Dow; EUFLEGT Secretariat Head, Kenny David; GFC Deputy Commissioner Andrew Mendez, of McVantahe Inc, made a combined presentation to Andy Powell of the EA and Clare Marsden of DEFRA. The presentation focused on the many accomplishments of Guyana with regard to sustainable forest practices, and the key impacts the restrictions have had on the industry and the country as a whole. It also focused on the current code of practice and the maintenance of Guyana’s biodiversity.

After the presentation, the delegation then sought clarification from the EA and DEFRA representatives on whether or not the FLEGT certification which will be given to Guyana in about five to six years will be accepted for Category B timber since the UK only accepted Category A Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) 100 per cent greenheart from Iwokrama as of 2016.

They also challenged the EA’s stance on offering support to the country in getting FSC certification, since only this is accepted but it is costly.

Further, they asked what could be done between now and the time FLEGT certification started, to restore trade between the two countries.

The greenheart restrictions were introduced by the EA in the UK in 2015. Then it was claimed that proof of sustainable sourcing of the forest product was inadequate, and this has since resulted in a drastic decrease in export of the product to the UK. In December 2016, the EA relaxed the restrictions on greenheart, but only began to accept Category A FSC 100 per cent greenheart from Iwokrama.

Government Minister has expressed an interest in having embattled former Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) adviser, Sam Sittlington return but according to the British High Commissioner to Guyana, Gregory Quinn, the David Granger-led Administration is on its own when it comes to such a move.

Sittlington was previously fired by the British Government after it emerged that he had business interests that could pose a conflict of interest. Quinn ruled out his Government having any role to play in bringing back Sittlington.

“If that happened, that would be an arrangement that comes from the Ministry of Public Security.

It wouldn’t be one that we would be involved in, in terms of funding for example,” Quinn told this publication when asked on the sidelines of an event at his official residence.

When it comes to finding a replacement for Sittlington, Quinn noted that the UK is presently reviewing what went wrong in the first place in order to guide its future assistance to SOCU. “We’re at that period of time where we’re looking at what happens next. What happened, happened. And we’re doing a bit of review internally to see what happens next. But that hasn’t been completed yet, so it’s too early to say what we’ll be doing going forward.”

Sittlington, an Irish consultant and fraud expert, was fired last month after it was discovered that he had established a local com-

Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan

pany. The move was considered a conflict of interest since the firm, dubbed the Fraud Company Limited, deals with much the same areas as SOCU. The fraud expert has since contended that he was wrongfully fired and has expressed intentions of suing the British Government.

Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan was quoted in sections of the media expressing an interest in Government rehiring the expert.

Questions were also raised about the integrity of the cases being investigated by SOCU following this and other developments – including the resignation of the Deputy, Sheronie James. Reports are that she resigned after a local magistrate disqualified her as an expert witness based on her lack of qualifications.

SOCU Head Sydney James had noted that he will have to seek legal advice on the matter.

“It might affect ongoing cases and I’ll have to

Sam Sittlington

get legal advice on that because as you know, if she was giving evidence or had done an investigation and it is before the courts that might be a challenge. But I think the legal people will give us advice,” he stated.

The embattled unit is currently being audited after it was alleged that senior officials at the entity were improperly spending funds allocated to the agency.

Political witch-hunting

Sittlington spent a 14-week stint in Guyana in 2017 where he worked with SOCU on the “Pradoville 2” case which saw former top Government officials being taken in for questioning; a move which has been described as a political witch-hunt.

In fact, the evening after the officials were questioned, Sittlington along with SOCU Head, Sydney James and Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan had converged at a popular night spot in the city to “sip wine”, in what was described as a “celebratory atmosphere”.

Sittlington had then returned to the UK but was contracted again by the British Government to provide consultancy service to SOCU. He returned in January 2018 where he served as an adviser until his contract was terminated early last month.

Questions were raised about the integrity of the cases being investigated by SOCU following this and other developments.

SOCU is currently being audited after it was alleged that senior officials at the entity improperly spent funds allocated to the agency.

22 NEWS

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

CDB warns Guyana about impact of political uncertainty on economy

By Jarryl Bryan

W

ith the prevailing uncertainty in Guyana regarding the elections date being fixed, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) is warning that political uncertainty can have a significant impact on Guyana’s preparations for first oil and the overall economy.

This warning is contained in the bank’s country economic review of Guyana for 2018, the year in which a Government toppled after the no-confidence vote was passed for the first time in Guyana’s history.

“Commercial production is due to commence in 2020.

This will increase economic growth and provide windfall revenues for the Government of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana,” the report states, adding that the proposed Natural Resources Fund (NRF) is expected to help manage the risks associated with the burgeoning oil and gas sector. The bank explained that this includes minimising negative impacts on other traditional sectors.

In the report, it notes that Guyana’s economy grew by 3.4 per cent for 2018. However, the banking institution warned of the risks to Guyana’s progress in preparing for the oil and gas sector and indeed, the overall macro-economic outlook if political uncertainty continues.

“Guyana is on the verge of a sharp increase in econom-

ic growth, but immediate prospects partly depend on ending political uncertainty,” the report states. “In the November 2018 budget speech, the Ministry of Finance was targeting 4.6 per cent (Gross Domestic Product) growth in 2019.”

“However, increased political uncertainty in early 2019 may dampen this momentum,” the bank added. “The National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited bond issue will push total public and publicly guaranteed debt above 60 per cent of GDP in 2019, but that ratio is projected to decline sharply after 2020.”

Reforms

The CDB also urged more reforms to the doing business environment. According to the bank, this is necessary to ensure that the traditional, nonoil industries can become more competitive.

“Business reforms are needed to improve competitiveness and facilitate inclusive growth. Although efforts are being made to increase linkages between the oil industry and the rest of the domestic economy, there is a risk that oil production could dominate exports and lead to exchange rate appreciation, which in turn could harm the competitiveness of other sectors.”

mits, getting credit and protecting minority investors.

The country was also commended for decreasing the time to transfer property by allocating higher resources and personnel and the adoption of a new code of civil procedure which the report notes make enforcing contracts easier by regulating time standards for key court events.

Political uncertainty

“The NRF can help to manage some of these risks,” the CDB continued. “But business sector reforms will also be necessary. Improvements are needed in reducing energy costs, the speed of getting construction permits and trading across borders.”

The World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Index is one of its most comprehensive studies. In its 2018 report, Guyana was shown to have dipped, placing 126th in the global rankings. In 2017, Guyana was ranked 124th, while in 2015 the nation ranked 140th.

Guyana saw an increase in the cost of starting a business, dropping seven places, from 92 to 99.

A drop of 13 places, from 123 to 136, was also recorded in the area of paying taxes. However, the country rose in the ranks in areas such as dealing with construction per-

Article 106 (6) of the Guyana Constitution states: “The Cabinet including the President shall resign if the Government is defeated by the vote of a majority of all the elected members of the National Assembly on a vote of confidence”.

106 (7) goes on to state that, “Notwithstanding its defeat, the Government shall remain in office and shall hold an election within three months, or such longer period as the National Assembly shall by resolution supported by not less than two-thirds of the votes of all the elected members of the National Assembly determine, and shall resign after the President takes the oath of office following the election”.

Government was defeated by such a motion on December 21 (though Government is disputing this in the Appeal Court, after that very de-

feat was upheld by the High Court). That three-month stipulation is expected to expire next week, but there has been no agreement by the National Assembly to extend the timeline for holding elections, something stipulated by the Constitution.

Since the passage of the no-confidence resolution on December 21, 2018, there have been calls from the international community and civil society for Government to respect the Constitution. This is something Government maintains it is doing but yet has not set a date for elections as is constitutionally mandated. President David Granger has claimed that he has to wait on the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to provide clarity on its readiness and timeline for holding elections, though he expressed a desire to have them held this year.

GECOM, on the other hand, is divided on this very issue.

On the one hand, Opposition nominated commissioners are pushing for a timeline where elections can be held by April 30, 2019, when the current voters’ list expires.

On the other hand, Government Commissioners on GECOM are insisting that house-to-house verification must be done – an exercise that is expected to delay already delayed elections by months.

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Guyana’s health sector regressing under APNU/AFC – Ramsammy

G

uyana’s health sector continues to be plagued with challenges and instead of it being developed under the A Partnership for National Unity/ Alliance For Change ( A P N U / A F C ) Government, it is actually regressing.

This was according to former People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) Health Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy, who in an exclusive interview with Guyana Times International on Sunday said that the present Administration has politicised the health sector since it took office and this has had a deleterious impact on the quality of health care offered in Guyana.

“In implementing a policy of favouring political activists and friends for appointment in the sector, APNU/AFC has sacrificed quality health

care for the Guyanese people for political expediency. The end result, however, is that everyone suffers. The recent preventable deaths of three children at the GPHC [Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation] because of inappropriate use of a very good and powerful medicine is one of the results of the poor management that unfortunately is endemic in the public health sector today,” he explained.

According to Dr Ramsammy, the deaths of the three children earlier this year at the GPHC were compounded by the “mismanagement of the investigation”.

“It abandoned all the standard protocols that were in place since I was Minister of Health. The timeline of more than six weeks for an investigation into these deaths demonstrates that the Hospital and

Former Health Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy

the Ministry of Health were more interested in spinning and placing blame somewhere, rather than finding the truth and ensuring systems to prevent reoccurrence.

The standard proto-

col for these investigations has always insisted on avoidance of conflict of interest, not protection of interest.”

He posited that the current GPHC investigation, with the to-

tal complicity of the Health Ministers and the Ministry, never was intended to find the truth and introduce systems to avoid a reoccurrence.

Meanwhile, in light of the recent report about the birth of premature twins and the wrapping of the babies as stillborns to be removed to the mortuary, the former Health Minister noted that that was another event that added to the loss of confidence in the health sector and the suspicion among citizens that the public health sector was dangerous.

“I am informed that the twins were premature, birthing at 25 weeks of pregnancy. It is true that such premature babies do have a difficult time surviving, but the automatic conclusion that they are not viable is reckless. When I was Minister, we had changed the viability from 28 weeks to 22,

I believe, consistent with the standards in other countries and in this case, the responsible persons assumed that since the babies were below the 28 weeks, they decided to discard the foetus.”

Dr Ramsammy elaborated that this was yet other example that all the standard protocols in the public health sector were either currently not being applied or poorly applied.

“This is the result of inexperienced and political appointees. It is not merely callous, it is reckless and an abrogation of responsibilities and a dereliction of duty by the Ministers. The truth is that APNU/ AFC deliberately abandoned many of the protocols in place and many of the quality programmes already in place for political reasons,” he added. (Kristen Macklingam)

24 news

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First Oil: Guyana’s legislative framework woefully inadequate – lawyer F irst oil is just around the corner, and according to one prominent lawyer, Guyana’s legislative framework is still woefully inadequate to regulate a sector that is expected to dwarf the traditional sectors in revenue.

During a Nations School of Business and Management- facilitated seminar on oil and gas on Sunday, Attorney-atLaw Sanjeev Datadin noted that Guyana is behind in its preparations to regulate the oil and gas sector compared to other countries.

This is a criticism the coalition Government has periodically faced.

Since oil was discovered

by ExxonMobil in the Stabroek block in 2015, just one piece of legislation specifically for the oil and gas sector has been completed and assented to; and that is the Natural Resources Fund Bill.

“Look at it this way,” Datadin explained.

“If we take England, England has had at least 3,000 pages of legislation. That was the basics. Then they had subsidiary legislation. That was probably another 10,000. At present, we have 60 pages.

“Now, I understand the whole argument of quality, quantity and all the rest. But we have a petroleum Act which is from the 1930s. And then we have the (1986) Act. The 1930s one was when

A section of the gathering at the seminar, which was held on Sunday

the first sort of exploration first took place,” Datadin explained.

According to Datadin, little has been done to regulate the sector until the passage of this Act. He noted the steps other countries have taken to protect their resources and people. For instance, in Trinidad, foreign oil companies are limited in their ownership of land.

“Nothing else has happened, until (1986) when we passed the Petroleum Act. Now, that Act really only provides for licensing, how you issue licences; it has nothing to do with the myriad of issues you have to deal with,” he explained.

“We have a ‘production agreement’. Now, these things have to be regulated.

Countries have put in their legislation what can and cannot be in the contract. They have put in the legislation everything you must

Pensioner charged for sharing nude photos of ex-lover

Godfrey Taylor denied the charge which was read to him by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan which stated that on December 15, 2018, while at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation, knowingly and without lawful excuse, he exposed nude photographs of Chendra Sewnarine.

While the prosGodfrey Taylor ecutor did not object to bail, it was 65-year-old man recommended that who allegedly a probation report into shared nude pho- the matter be submitted. tos of his ex-lover was The martial arts on Monday hauled be- trainer of Sandy fore the Chief Magistrate Babb Street, Kitty, at the Georgetown Georgetown, was reMagistrates’ Courts. leased on G$10,000 bail.

A

have and cannot have, and they have made it law,” he explained.

The attorney explained that this protects countries and individual Ministers from being corrupted, as there are legislative limits to what concessions they can agree to give to an oil company.

“If an oil company comes and has a oneon-one meeting with the Department of Energy or a Minister in charge, they can’t influence them to give them a better deal. Which means the opportunity for corruption is drastically reduced. I believe that’s the only way to protect fragile territories like ours,” he said.

“If we can’t agree to royalties (of) less than seven per cent, then two per cent would have never happened,” Datadin said as an example. “We like to say that every time there’s a bad deal

there’s usually a (saying) that someone was paid.

That may or may not be true, but these companies have budgets larger than our country, and you have to understand what economic pressure is.”

Regulation

After its 10th discovery of oil in the Stabroek Block, ExxonMobil estimated the recoverable resource in the block to be 5 billion oil equivalent barrels. At US$50 a barrel, that equates to well over US$200 billion.

Exxon has since found oil in two other wells. In addition, an independent assessment, or competent persons report, had found that 2.9 billion barrels of oil exist in the Orinduik block.

All of this will represent a monetary windfall for Guyana, which will be saved and invested through a Natural Resources Fund.

Previously, a green

paper on the fund was laid in the National Assembly. Government released the draft Natural Resources Fund Bill of 2018, which had, among other things, proposed the creation of a 22-member Public Accountability and Oversight Committee that would oversee the management of the fund and provide checks and balances.

President David Granger assented to this bill on January 23rd.

The Stabroek Block is 6.6 million acres (26,800 square kilometres). Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited is the operator, and holds a 45 per cent interest in the Stabroek Block. Hess Guyana Exploration Ltd. holds a 30 per cent interest, and CNOOC Nexen Petroleum Guyana Limited holds a 25 per cent interest.

A contract was

inked on October 7, 2016 between the coalition Government and ExxonMobil and its partners in the Stabroek block. In the renegotiated contract, Guyana agreed to a two per cent royalty for every barrel of oil, a 50 per cent share of profit oil, and a US$18 million signing bonus.

Out of the contract, Guyana also secured the company’s agreement to set up a fund for social and environmental projects. Exxon has to contribute US$300,000 per year to this fund. The sums roll over, and the company together with Government will determine which projects to fund.

The contract sets aside another US$300,000 per year to ensure Guyanese personnel are trained at local or overseas universities and conferences.

GECOM boss under...

Elections Commission, immediately after the passage of the no-confidence vote had started holding meetings in respect of the work plans for having those elections within the 90-day timeframe, was somehow forced to abandon its duties,“ the Commissioner said.

Benn, along with fellow Commissioners Sase Gunraj and Bibi Shadick, rejected the position adopted by the Chairman, on the grounds that it ignores the constitutional provision of three months to hold elections.

He also lambasted Chairman James Patterson for writing such a letter without discussing it with the Commission. As a consequence, he said GECOM is not functioning as it ought to, with the Chairman making decisions to the ex-

clusion of the PPP Commissioners. In fact, the Commissioner expressed doubts about the authorship of the letter, noting that the writing style differs from Patterson’s.

The Commissioner also defended his side against Justice Patterson’s insinuations that the PPP Commissioners have been walking out and frustrating discussions, reiterating that the PPP will not sit and violate the Constitution.

The letter

Patterson wrote President Granger, informing him that General and Regional Elections cannot be held before late November 2019, even though GECOM is constitutionally mandated to hold elections within three months of the passage of a no-confidence motion against the Government.

In the case of Guyana, that deadline expires on Thursday.

In the letter dispatched to the Head of State, the GECOM Chair explained that since the elections body is continuing with its normal work programme, that is, the holding of houseto-house registration, it will need some G$3.5 billion to host elections.

Patterson also claimed that GECOM would only be able to produce a new voters list with a qualifying date of October 31, 2019. He continued by urging the President to make the required additional resources available.

In this regard, the GECOM Chairman explained that “no election date should be contemplated less than five months after these funds are placed at the disposal of and under the control of GECOM.”

from page 8

“In consideration of all of the above, the fulfilment of the various conditions highlighted, the removal of the external impediments, and based on the advice I have been given by the Chief Elections Officer, I would proffer that the Commission would be in a position to conduct General and Regional Elections no earlier than late November 2019 with an official list of electors having a qualifying date of 31st October, 2019,” Patterson told Granger in the letter.

Pressure

Since the December 21, 2018 passage of the motion of no-confidence against the APNU/AFC coalition, calls have been made by various stakeholders including foreign diplomats for the Government to abide by the Constitution and set a date for elections.

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

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Minister of State, Mr. Joseph Harmon with the President, Executive Members and some of the other members of the Ex-GDF Officers Association of New York.

MotP photo

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Mash 2019 a massive success, says Director of Culture

T

he Department of Social Cohesion, Culture, Youth and Sport last Friday evening culminated the Mashramani activities 2019 with the annual awards ceremony which gave recognition to the tal-

chestrated to celebrate this milestone.

Meanwhile, Social Cohesion Minister, Dr George Norton said there were commitments to make this celebration better than the previous years and it was executed as

Junior Calypso Monarch Jamal Stewart collects his winning trophy from an official at the award ceremony on Friday evening

Alexi LaRose receiving an award from Social Cohesion Minister Dr George Norton

ents shared by outstanding participants.

In delivering her report for this year’s activities, Director of Culture Tameka Botswain noted that despite some challenges, Mash 2019 exceeded expectations.

“Mash 2019 exceeded expectations.

The Department of Culture with the determination to make Mashramani 2019 larger and louder, embarked on an intense campaign in the latter half of 2018 to redefine the way Guyanese see the festival…Mashramani is so much more than the costume and float parade,” she said.

According to her, there was an increased number of participants that outgrew traditional locations. Next year will bring the 50th anniversary of Republic Day and signature activities will be or-

planned while promoting inclusivity. He mentioned that this was demonstrated with the decentralisation of events to all administrative regions.

“Mashramani 2019 was a massive success.

Apart from a spectacular and incident free costume and float parade, the festival was executed in a manner that was all-inclusive. The mash route was crammed and D’Urban Park was packed to capacity. With much hard work from the members of committee and Mashramani Secretariat, we were able to ensure that every region across the beautiful land of Guyana was able to witness one or more of our major calendar events,” said the Minister.

The evening saw prizes being awarded to the Junior Soca Monarch, Jovinski Thorne; Junior Calypso Monarch, Jamal

Stuart; Chutney Monarch, Stephen Ramphal; Soca Monarch, Brandon Harding and Calypso Monarch, Kenroy Fraser.

Winners of the children’s float parade, dance and panorama were also rewarded. Smyth Street Nursery, Graham’s Hall Primary and Tucville Secondary won first place prizes for their contributions.

The winner of the regional presentation for the costume parade was Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica), followed by Regions Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) and 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice).

Region Three copped almost all the prizes for the costume and float parade categories, with the Best Designer Antonio Paul collecting several prizes.

Designer Nelson Nurse was also recognised for a number of bands which he created this year.

National Designer of the Year was presented to Trevor Alfred while Antonio Paul received the prize for Regional Designer of the Year.

Throughout the evening, the audience was en-

tertained by the Guyana Police Force band, Melissa “Vanilla” Roberts and steel

Allison Parker collects a trophy on behalf of the Business Ministry that copped the first place in the individual female costume competition and second in the full costume medium band contest

pan renditions.

Mashramani was celebrated

2019 under

the theme: “Celebrating 49 with victory in mind: Rediscovering El Dorado”.

Melissa “Vanilla” Roberts, seven-time Road March Queen, receives her trophy from Social Cohesion Minister, Dr George Norton

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False equivalence…

O

…on elections ne of the tropes deployed by the PNC-led coalition to cling to power beyond March 21 is to claim “the PPP used to do worse”! Never mind that even if the assertion were true – which is quite a stretch, considering their depravities in a mere 4 years!-they DID promise to do better in 2015, didn’t they??

But on the specific matter that’s precipitating the greatest constitutional crisis in our history – elections – what’s often at play is the “fallacy of false equivalence”. Which is folks claiming two situations are equivalent, but choose to close their eyes (or may be ignorant) to additional factors that’ll show the comparison to be completely off-base.

Take the PNC partisans’ retort to assertions that the PNC rigged elections between 1968 and 1994, and that their foot dragging that prevented constitutionally-mandated elections by Thursday, March 21 is to facilitate the same in the next year.

They yell: “The PPP did the same”! They point out that the elections of 1997 were ruled fatally flawed by the courts, and therefore the PPP ruled for 4 years illegally – just as the PNC “might” have done!

Well, let’s look at the “additional factors” the PNC partisans are ignoring to create their false equivalence: For one, the judge made the ruling in 2001 – when new elections had already been scheduled, as per the Herdmanston Accord. She also ruled that the “defect” – GECOM requiring that folks show their ID cards to vote – was a technical one, and didn’t change the actual results. When you compare this to the PNC actually using all sorts of fraudulent methods – including shooting citizens protecting ballot boxes from army seizure, and English horses counted as “overseas voters” — you, dear reader, should see through the false equivalence.

Inadvertence by GECOM on the import of IDs isn’t the same as PNC “rigging”!!

Then we hear about the PPP being awarded a seat in Linden that was supposedly the AFC’s in 2006.

But the PPP secured 36 seats, and even if that one were taken away, they’d be down to 35 – with the combined 4 Opposition parties having 30. Even with the cockamamie claims of dividing people in half, the PPP would’ve still had a majority, no?

But now another PNC partisan (even employed by the Govt!) took another tack with the false equivalence ploy. Art 162 (2) (a) says GECOM can “postpone the holding of the election to a day specified in the notice” and this makes their foot dragging on Art 106 (6) okay!! This just shows how desperate PNC folks are. You can’t POSTPONE something that’s not already scheduled!!!

Now, if Granger had scheduled elections for March 21??!! All smart flies…! …on wealth There’s a debate going on about the distribution of wealth in Guyana. One side claims one Guyanese ethnic group owns most of the wealth, and this causes other groups to feel “insecure”. And this inequality generates most of the tensions around election time.

Your Eyewitness wish it were so simple…but we know it ain’t.

Income, wealth and opportunity have been dubbed the “Trifecta of Inequality”, since if any group in a society is denied all three, that’s it for them.

What’s the situation in Guyana with the “trifecta”??

With income, most studies of household income and expenditure show that, in general, the coastal groups are roughly on par, but with hinterland folks – read Indigenous Peoples – waaaay behind. Urban folks also are on top on the coast. While there is some quibbling, in general there’s also “equality of opportunity” to all groups to education etc. So how come the claim of ethnic disparities in wealth??

No one wants to talk about the need for “equality of effort” to deliver the “equality of wealth”!! …on profits There’s a lot of noise being made about the declared profits of RUSAL on aluminium, and on their claim that they’ve made no profits in Guyana on bauxite mining.

So shouldn’t we be turning our bauxite into aluminium? Oh! It’s not that easy, is it?

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FEATURE 33

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O

ne of the foundational principles of Hindusim is good only begotten good and it is instilled in the minds of all Hindus from a young age. They are taught to do good deeds as a way of life. They are taught that one’s soul only attains Moksha (liberation in this life)

There was once a demon king by the name of King Hiranyakashyapu who won over the Kingdom of Earth through years of prayers.

He was the King of the demonic Asuras and according to the Bhagavata Purana he was granted a boon (wish) that he could

through good karma (deeds). Around this time, we are quite often reminded about the consequences of good karma with the celebration of Holi-the festival of colours.

Holi or Phagwah as we know it is the Spring Festival celebrated on the last full moon day of the lunar month Phalguna (Phalguna Purnima), which usually falls in the later part of February or March.

There are several legends, depending on the various areas you are living in. However, the most common legend is the story of young Prahlad and his evil aunt Holika signifying the triumph of good over evil.

be killed by neither a human being nor an animal, neither indoors nor outdoors, neither at day nor at night, neither by astra (projectile weapons) nor by any shastra (handheld weapons), and neither on land nor in water or air.

After he received his boon, Hiranyakashyapu became so egoistic that he commanded everybody in his kingdom to worship only him. But to his great disappointment, his son, Prahlad became an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu-the sustainer of the universe and refused to worship his father.

Hiranyakashyapu tried several ways to kill his son Prahlad but Lord Vishnu saved him every

The Legend

time. Finally, he asked his sister, Holika to enter a blazing fire with Prahlad in her lap. For, Hiranyakashyapu knew that Holika had a boon, whereby, she could enter the fire unscathed.

Treacherously, Holika coaxed young Prahlad to sit in her lap and she herself took her seat in a blazing fire. The legend has it that Holika had to pay the price of her sinister desire by her life. Holika was not aware that the boon worked only when she entered the fire alone.

Prahlad, who kept chanting the name of Lord Vishnu while in the fire with his aunt, came out unharmed, as the lord blessed him for his extreme devotion. Thus, Holi derives its name from Holika. And, is celebrated as a festival of victory of good over evil.

Holi is also celebrated as the triumph of a devotee. As the legend depicts that anybody, howsoever strong, cannot harm a true devotee and those who dare torture a true devotee of god shall be reduced to ashes.

After the fire destroyed the evil Holika, King Hiranyakashyapu became enraged and attempted to kill Prahlad himself.

However, Vishnu, the god who appears as an avatar (form) to restore Dharma in Hindu beliefs, took the form of Narasimha - half human and half lion, at dusk (when it was neither day nor night), took Hiranyakashyapu at a doorstep (which was neither indoors nor outdoors), placed him on his lap (which was neither land, water nor air), and then eviscerated and killed the king with his lion claws (which were neither a handheld weapon nor a launched weapon).

Holika Dahan

Holika Dahan or the burning of Holika will take place across Guyana

on the night before the Phagwah celebrations.

The festival of Holi gets its name from this very ritual of Holika Dahan.

The phrase Holika Dahan literally means burning Holika. The day when Holika is burnt is also known as Choti Holi or small Holi. The people create a bonfire on this day and celebrate the triumph of good over evil.

It is stated in the Vedas that one day before the Holikotsav a sacred fire was burnt and specific mantras to ward off evil were recited during the burning ritual.

The fire was burnt with the objective to destroy the demonic forces.

Some texts also mention a different version of

Holika Dahan. According the texts, the parched cereals and grains are collectively called 'Holka' in Sanskrit.

It is believed that the word Holi or Holika is derived from Holka or grains. These parched grains were used to perform 'hawana' or sacred fire.

The sacred ash obtained from this fire ritual was known as the Bhumi Hari. This ash was smeared on the forehead of the person participating in the ritual to keep away evil spirits.

Till date, this ritual of offering food grains to the bonfire is followed.

The preparations of Holika Dahan start 40 days before the festi-

val. People gather twigs, logs, dry leaves etc. Then on the night of Phalgun Purnima, the bonfire is set alight amidst chanting of the Rakshogana mantras which help to ward off evil spirits.

Next morning the ashes of the fire are collected and smeared on the body before taking a bath.

The burning of Holika signifies the triumph of good over evil and that the bad forces around you can never win if you have a strong will.

Holika represents the negative forces which get burnt against the strong will of human which is denoted by Prahlad.

(Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)

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very year we hear of how much the celebrations surrounding the Festival of Colours have changed and that some of the long-held traditions are dying. But what exactly has changed and how much it has changed is a question with a variety of answers since change is the only constant in our lives.

However, what has not changed is the spirit of the celebration.

The very core of what Phagwah is about is very much alive and well. The triumph of good over evil

enjoy being at peace with oneself and their surroundings.

Holi aayi re kanhai holi aayi re Holi aayi re kanhai Rag chhalake suna de zara basari Barse gulal rang more aaganva Apne hi rag me rang de mohe sajanva The holi festival is here, Lord Krishna Colours are overflowing everywhere Play a (sweet) tune on Your flute The colours are showering in my courtyard Colour me in your colours o my beloved Those lyrics are tak-

ues to be a highlight of the celebrations.

In conversation with a village elder, Auntie Golyn as she is popularly known, from Canal Number One on the West Bank of Demerara, I learnt that during the golden days the celebrations would start one week before the actual day and go on for about one week after. She tells me that it was a time when the villagers would come together and celebrate as one.

“Back then when I was a child we used to have plenty of fun. Every day when you come home you would hurry

still is the centre of the celebrations, though now it is observed more lavishly as a sign of it forever evolving.

To this day, the message of the music in observance of Phagwah remains the same. It takes the same old versions of the songs to get us in the mood, to get us to go out there and colour our friends and family and

en from a song from perhaps one of the most iconic movies emanating from Bollywood. The movie, Mother India, is a gripping the film on the struggles of a woman and the song “Holi Aye Re” is perhaps the most popular Phagwah song behind Rang Barse.

Since its release, the song has dominated holi celebrations and contin-

up and do your work and after that is a big game to see how much of your friends you can soak.

Sometimes we would all get wet up and when you go home soak skin is bare lash from mommy but we didn’t mind,” the 60-year-old said.

Back then the competition used to be which boy was strong enough to push the other one

By Lakhram Bhagirat

E

overboard without going behind him. It was a struggle that resulted in several friendly fights in the neighbourhood.

Growing up in the countryside, my earlier experiences somewhat mirrors what Auntie Golyn explained to me.

I remember, as a child in the 90s, rushing home from school hoping that you make it there before your friends because if you did not then you know what is waiting for you.

One of the advantages of living among extended family meant that around phagwah

nails to holes on the cover which would serve as our water pistols. We would also scour the garbage for old tins to “boil stainer (abeer)” since you would receive some good lashes if you used your mother’s pot.

The colours themselves are very significant in the celebration of the festival of colours.

The clouds of colours dancing in the wind carry the message of love and happiness across walls, neighbours, and hearts.

Brightly coloured powders are the mainstay of Holi, during which men, women,

brightest — blue, yellow, red, purple, pink, and green — there are colours that are conspicuously absent, traditionally. These include black and white.

Though white symbolizes a sense of purity, it is also a colour of mourning. Widows in India, unlike in their western counterparts, retire to a white-only dress code. And while black is considered ugly, evil, and undesirable, it is relied upon heavily to ward off evil, as is evident in the ceremony of putting a black dot on a new-born baby’s face to

time there were more people to surprise with a bucket of water. I also remember us saving up our money to buy the brightly coloured powders to colour our friends. There was a special fight to get the most purple and green ones since those were the ones which stained the most.

Back then, it was a privilege to be gifted a water pistol from your parents. We would get one-litre bottles and heat

and children carry powders and liquid colours to throw and smear on the clothes and faces of neighbours and relatives. While dry powder colours are called “gulal,” colours mixed with water are called “rang.”

There is a colour for almost every occasion, moment, or celebration.

Each colour symbolizes a force in life, and thus colour and life are inseparable. While the most popular colours are the

ward off the evil eye.

The ideologies behind the celebration remain the same however, now the celebration has evolved. People are now more inclined to gather at the various melas with the celebrations moving away from the homes of persons.

However, what has not changed is the variety of sweetmeats prepared in observance of this festival. (Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)

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By Lakhram Bhagirat

T

he planting of the symbolic Holika, 40 days before Phagwah signifies the commencement of a period of celebration.

One that allows us to overcome the evil within and around us and for many it signifies the start of a period of tracking back to our roots. The very roots that define us as people and connects us to the motherland of our ancestors.

When our ancestors were brought to Guyana in 1838 from their motherland-India, they brought with them a whole host of things other than material possessions. They brought with them their rich culture, traditions

tors who brought their folk singing from the Bhojpuri region (now Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh, India) with them.

While there is no central meaning for the word chowtal, it basically speaks to a format in which two sets of singers face each other in a straight line, armed with tier jhal (taals cym-

jati, rasiya, bhartal, and the farewell song sadaanand. Most chowtal melodies are simple and often similar to each other but the rhythm of the lyrics and song mist match perfectly and the beauty and exuberance are generated by the way the group moves skillfully through the intricate and exciting rhythmic changes with their alternations of climax and repose.�

Though Hindi is not spoken in Guyana, most of the lyrics to the chowtal songs are in the mother tongue but that proves to not be a challenge for the singers since it is like their second language.

Every song, sung during chowtal, tells a story associated with the legends of

and beliefs. Quite often culture, traditions and beliefs intertwine creating a unique situation that most are delighted to be a part of.

Phagwah is just one of the many opportunities for cultural intertwining and is one of my favourite festivals for a number of reasons. One of the main reasons I am so in love with the festival is that it means it is time for Chowtal singing.

With its roots deeply embedded in the rich history of our Bhojpuri ancestry, Chowtal singing is one of the many highlights of celebrating the festival of colours.

Though not popular in all of India, Chowtal singing is a tradition passed on by our ances-

bals) alternating their singing while perfectly synchronizing the sounds from the jhals.

In describing what exactly is chowtal singing, Guyanese Ramnarine Sasenarine said “the word" chowtal,� in a general sense, denotes the distinctive format in which two sets of singers (who also play jhal cymbals) alternate singing lines, taking the song (with the help of the dholak player) through a fixed set of complex rhythmic modulations, accelerations and decelerations. Chowtal in this sense is an umbrella term which collectively comprises a set of more specific substyles including that which itself called chowtal as well as ullara, dhamari, kabir, jogir, jhuma, baiswara,

Phagwah.

The songs speak of the naughty nature of Shree Krishna and his love for Radha or they either sing the praises of the other Hindu deities.

Though the practice is common and widely revered in places like Trinidad, Suriname, Fiji and the United States there are different variation in how it is performed. But ultimately the messages remain the same in keeping with the spirit of the spring festival.

The tradition is somewhat dying in the motherland but in Guyana, it is alive and well. In fact, the youngsters are taking up the mantle and

running with it while staying true to the roots.

There are now more chowtal samelans where chowtal gols from across the country can come together and display their talent.

The friendly competition is laced with youths bent on outdoing the others as they bang their jhals to the beat emanating from the dholaks.

If you have never been in the presence of chowtal singing then I strongly urge you to have the experience since it is one that will forever remain etched in your mind.

(Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)

36 NEWS

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Former Jamaican gangster says robberies were fun

A

n ex-member of the Uchence Wilson Gang yesterday told the Home Circuit Court that he had committed some of the robberies with the gang for fun.

The former gang member, who is testifying before the court via video link and whom this newspaper is referring to as Witness One because of a court order, was being cross-examined by attorney Christopher Townsend, who is representing his aunt, Judith Johnson, when he made the startling assertion.

“Are you a criminal?”

Townsend asked.

“No, I was a criminal,” Witness One replied.

He was then asked if he had engaged in criminal activities for a living, and he denied doing so.

“Did you do it for fun?” the lawyer then asked.

“Yes, no, sometimes,” the witness answered.

However, the witness’s disclosure is in stark contrast to his previous testimony before the court in which he claimed that his conscience was one of the reasons why he went to the police with information about the gang and why he was testifying in court because he was troubled about the fact that the gang was rob-

bing poor people.

The witness, who has testified about a series of robberies that the gang had allegedly committed and had also provided details about the gang’s operation and structure was, however, questioned at length about his involvement in criminal activities which he said started from when he was very young.

He denied stealing money from students at his school and a teacher while he was nine; instead, he admitted that he started stealing about 12.

According to Witness One, he had engaged in a lot of stealing and had told a lot of lies to cover his tracks while he was young.

But he denied that he was asked to leave two schools because of theft.

In the first instance, he said that he was asked to leave because he had injured a student, and in the other because he was wearing tight pants and shirt.

The witness, who also admitted to stealing from his aunt and injuring his father, who he claimed had abused him, accepted that he was a thief but not a liar.

But Townsend, while reminding him that he had earlier admitted to

telling lies to cover his tracks asked, “Have you stopped being a liar?”

“Long time,” he answered.

In earlier cross-examination conducted by attorneys Donald Bryan and Sasha-Gaye Shaw, he was accused of telling lies on their clients.

Bryan, who is representing Dayne Edwards, suggested to the witness that his client was not a member of the gang which is accused of a reign of terror in five parishes between 2015 to 2017, but the witness disagreed.

The attorney then asked Witness One if he was aware that Edwards had been in custody for most of 2015, and that in 2016 his client was hospitalised twice with a broken arm and was getting follow-up treatment at a clinic.

Witness One said he was not aware of that and did not recall Edwards being on crutches, but knew him as someone who was always going in and out of lock-ups.

“Him always inna trouble,” the witness said.

The witness main-

tained that he met Edwards in the gang and had known him for two years.

Shaw, who is representing Odeen Smith, whom Witness One said was instrumental in the robbery of a man in Kellits, Clarendon, after selecting him and bringing members of the gang to his house, suggested that Smith was not the spotter in that robbery and that he was not involved any at all.

She also suggested to Witness One that Smith was not a member of the gang, but he disagreed.

Reputed gang leader Uchence Wilson and 23 alleged gang members, including alleged deputy Fitzroy Scott, four women and Police Corporal Lloyd Knight, are facing charges for various offences under the Criminal Justice (Suppression of Criminal Organisations) Act, commonly referred to as the Anti-Gang Legislation, and also for offences under the Firearms Act. Witness One will continue to face more cross-examination today (Wednesday). (Jamaica Observer)

Trinidad fisherman escapes Venezuelan pirates, colleague missing D

es­per­ate to es­cape Venezue­lan pi­rates, two kid­napped fish­er­ men jumped off their ab­ duc­ tors’ boat on Mon­day night and took their chances in the sea. Un­for­tu­nate­ ly, on­ly one of them man­aged to make it home safe­ly.

Bruised and trau­ma­tised Key­on Alexan­der, 29, of La Union Road, Erin, ar­rived home around 3 pm yes­ter­day, less than 24 hours af­ter he was kid­ napped. He had spent the night swim­ ming des­per­ate­ly and scream­ing for help from pass­ing boats.

Wet and cold, he man­ aged to climb on­to an off­shore oil in­stal­la­tion where he rest­ed for a while be­fore be­ ing picked up by lo­cal fish­er­men in a pass­ing boat. How­ev­er, Alexan­der’s boat cap­tain An­ tho­ny George, 32, of Guayagua­yare, re­mained miss­ing up to late yes­ter­day. Coast Guard of­fi­cers con­tin­ued search­ing the seas with the hope of find­ing him.

Dur­ing an ex­clu­sive in­ter­view with Guardian Me­dia yes­ter­day, Alexan­ der’s sis­ ter Adan­ na Ahey said they were hap­py Alexan­der was safe.

“The in­side of his legs grate up be­ cause he had to climb up the plat­form.

His feet bruised and bloody. His clothes dirty but thank God he is alive. He said it not nice out there. These Venezue­lan men des­per­ate,” Ahey said.

Ahey said Alexan­der was not fond of go­ing to the sea af­ter they lost their broth­er Ed­mund Charles, who died in a boat crash last year, but she said he

Keyon Alexander

could not find work so out of des­per­a­ tion he de­cid­ed to fight it out at sea.

She said while the friends were fish­ing aboard a pirogue named Good One they were ac­cost­ed by a Venezue­ lan gun­ man who or­ dered them in­ to an­oth­er ves­sel. The pi­rates then con­ tact­ ed George and Alexan­ der’s fam­ i­ ly and de­mand­ed US$5,000 for George and $US10,000 for Alexan­ der. Ahey said she did not know why her broth­er was worth more. The call was made to a nephew and the fam­i­ly was told the fish­er­men would be killed if they did

not pay. The Venezue­lans al­so placed the men’s phones in a rice buck­et and sent a pho­to to the fam­i­ly as proof that they were cap­tured. But Ahey said they were not wealthy and could not af­ford a US$10,000 ran­som.

Key­ on’s wife, Abi­ gail Alex­ is, de­ clined to com­ment yes­ter­day, say­ing she did not have any de­tails to share.

Alexan­der, who has been fish­ing since he was 12, went to the Cap-de-Ville Po­ lice Sta­tion where he made a re­port to the po­lice.

In­ves­ti­ga­tions are un­der­way but a

se­nior po­lice source said they were pur­ su­ing an al­le­ga­tion that some­one from the men’s com­mu­ni­ty was li­ais­ing di­ rect­ ly with the Venezue­ lan pi­ rates in the kid­nap­ping. One of the biggest gangs of pi­rates op­er­ate from the Caño Man­amo Riv­er in Venezuela, which is a trib­u­tary of the Orinoco Riv­er.

The po­lice source claimed the riv­ er-based pi­rates were re­spon­si­ble for the kid­nap­ping of sev­er­al lo­cal fish­er­ men. The gang, whose leader is well known by In­ ter­ pol and the Guardia Na­cional, has re­cruit­ed large num­bers of des­per­ate, hun­gry Venezue­lans who are forced in­to ban­dit­ry be­cause of that coun­try’s dire so­cio-eco­nom­ic cri­sis.

Re­cent cas­es in­volv­ing Venezuela pi­rates: Jan­u­ary 12: Ken­rick Mor­gan, 17 and his cousin Kendell Singh, 24, were kid­napped while fish­ing off Gran Chemin, Moru­ga. The kid­nap­pers de­ mand­ed a ran­som of US$40,000 which was lat­er changed to US$20,000 and five iPhones. They were al­so re­leased.

Feb­ru­ary 8: Af­ter pay­ing a US$90,000 ran­ som, which in­ clud­ ed 10 cell­ phones, gold jew­ ellery and sev­er­al boat en­gines, fish­er­men Lyn­ ton Manohar, 35, Ja­ son O’Bri­ an, 38, Jagdesh Jude Jaikaran, 16, Bran­ don Ar­ joon, 28 and Ricky Ramb­ harose, 35, from Morne Di­ ab ­lo, Pe­ nal, re­ turned home af­ter be­ing held in cap­ tiv­i­ty for more than a week. (Trinidad Guardian)

FEATURE 37

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Y

ou know Phagwah is around the corner when you see brightly coloured powders for sale but nothing puts you in the mood better than hearing the distinctive voice of Bollywood legend Amithab Bachan singing “Rang barse bheege chunar wali, rang barse”.

The song from the movie Silsila is synonymous with Ohagwah celebrations in Guyana and even further afield. Basically translating to “colours are showering,” rang barse is perhaps the most well-known phagwah song among Guyanese despite their ethnic or religious background.

Phagwah is a community’s exuberant expression of joy to welcome the warmth of spring. In a reflection of nature’s abundance, Hindus celebrate with bursts of colour, camaraderie and shared abandon. It begins on Purnima, full moon day, in the Hindu month of Phalguna (February/ March) and lasts for as long as 16 days.

On the day of Holi, people celebrate by playing, dancing and running in the streets. Water pistols are filled with coloured water and squirted on family, friends and strangers alike. Dye powders and water balloons are a big part of the play. The wise wear old clothes, usually white, in anticipation of the mess! Virtually anything goes.

Etiquette on Holi requires that one accept all overtures with an open heart, burying grievances to begin relationships afresh. People of all walks of life mingle and greet, applying vermilion on each other’s foreheads in an uninhibited exchange of goodwill.

Love, positive values and goodness are celebrated on Holi. Their triumphs over divisiveness and negative forces have been reinforced in legends, such as that of Holika and her brother Prahlad. The famous king Hiranyakashipu had earned a boon that made him virtually indestructible.

Blinded by this power, he thought he was God, the only being worthy of worship. His young son Prahlad was devoted to Lord Vishnu and refused

to obey his father.

Infuriated, the king devised the cruellest punishments. In one attempt, Prahlad’s evil aunt Holika, who possessed the power to withstand fire, tricked him into climbing a burning pyre with her. Prahlad’s love for true Divinity protected him from the flames. Holika burned while Prahlad lived. The bonfire of Holi is symbolic of this victory of good over evil.

Coinciding with the advent of spring, the festival symbolises growth and fertility of the land for many Indians. Some Jains and Sikhs also partake in the festivities. The vibrant pigments used were traditionally made of ground vermillion, turmeric and neem, but synthetic pigments are common now.

Legend has it that Krishna noticed one day how much lighter Radha’s complexion was than His own. His mother playfully suggested that He smear Radha’s cheeks with colour to make Her look like Him, which Krishna did. The strong-willed Radha gleefully retaliated, and merry chaos ensued.

Another legend has it that Krishna celebrated this festival with His friends and the gopis. They danced and frolicked, filling the air with colour in a joyous welcome of spring.

In keeping with the essence of Phagwah, Guyanese across the spectrum take the time out to enjoy this festival. It is a time when the motto “One People One Nation One Destiny” is truly lived. Despite differences throughout the year, Phagwah day is one that would see Guyanese smearing each other with colours or dousing with water as they all celebrate the triumph of good over evil.

Evidence of the ability of Phagwah to break the ethnic barriers can be seen at the different melas, street corners and even in the homes. It is truly a Guyanese thing to see non-Hindus preparing sweetmeats and having a ball of a time as Hindus would. (Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)

38

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019 | guyanatimeSinternational.com Some participants at the Ministry of the Presidency's annual Phagwah celebrations held at the Baridi Benab, State House on Sunday.

MotP photo

NEWS 39

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Cameron says regional PMs can initiate CWI restructuring

K

I N G S T O N , Jamaica (CMC) Cricket West Indies (CWI) President Dave Cameron said Caribbean prime ministers had the power to restructure the regional governing body if they so desired, but it was not solely his responsibility to undertake reform of the organisation.

Speaking on SportsMax here, Cameron argued that any governance restructuring needed to be initiated by the territorial boards which comprised CWI, and pointed out that the regional prime ministers pushing for reform could “instruct” the domestic associations accordingly.

“The prime ministers believe that the structure needs to change — the structure is not Dave Cameron’s structure, the structure is West Indies cricket’s structure,” the often controversial CWI chief said ahead of this weekend’s elections here.

“For the structure to change, all the territorial boards would have to say ‘this is what we

CWI President Dave Cameron

want’, and these prime ministers are prime ministers of these countries. All they need to do is instruct their boards to change the structure accordingly. Why is that Dave Cameron’s problem?”

Cameron has come under pressure from Caricom in recent years to enact recommended CWI reforms, so as to ensure greater transparency and accountability

in the organisation.

Gonsalves, meanwhile, has in the past slammed Cameron’s management style as “extremely poor” and, ahead of the 2015 CWI elections, urged territorial boards to tell the incumbent to “take a break and come back at a later date — perhaps with more mature, renewed skills of leadership”.

Rowley, too, has been

Trinidad bread vendor shot dead, murder toll at 103 A

22-year-old man of San­ gre Grande was gunned down mo­m ents af­ ter leav­ ing the Kiss Bak­i ng Com­pa­ny at Gas­ ton Street in Ch­ agua­nas on Mon­day night.

Ac­ cord­ ing to a po­ lice re­ port, at about 7 pm Daniel Vil­ lafana and an­oth­er man were con­f ront­ed by gun­men who were ap­par­ent­ly wait­ing for them in the shad­ o ws close to the com­pa­ny’s main gate.

Po­lice said the gun­men opened fire hit­t ing Vil­ lafana sev­er­a l times be­ fore they fled the scene.

Po­ lice said Vil­ lafana died while un­ der­go­ing treat­m ent at the Ch­a gua­nas Dis­trict Health Cen­t re.

Speak­ ing with the me­ dia at the Foren­ sic Sci­ ence Cen­ t re on Tues­day, a rel­a­tive of Vil­ lafana, who re­ quest­e d not to be iden­ ti­f ied, said Vil­lafana sold bread and went to the com­pa­ny to drop off mon­ey.

Daniel Vil­lafana

“Them fel­las had to be wait­ing on him. He is a cool fel­la and don’t drink and smoke,” the rel­a­tive said.

Vil­lafana’s rel­a­tives called on the po­ lice to solve the case.

In an un­re­lat­ed in­ci­ dent, at about 6 am, a 30-year-old man iden­t i­ fied as An­dre Dou­g las,

of Pi­p ­io­ l Road in San­ ta Cruz was found dead in the dri­ v er’s seat of a car along Morne Co­ co Road in Pe­ t it Val­ ley. Po­lice said Dou­g las was shot sev­e r­a l times to the up­p er body.

The mur­ d er toll has now jumped to 103 for the year so far.

(Trinidad Guardian)

critical of the CWI leadership, saying West Indies cricket had been “hijacked by a small clique of people”.

Cameron, who has been defending his record in the run-up to the elections, said contrary to popular belief, he enjoys a very good relationship with Caricom prime ministers, and it was only “two or three” with whom he did not see eye to eye.

“It is not Caricom — and we keep saying Caricom. There are two or three prime ministers who have a view,” he contended.

“There are a number of other prime ministers who have a contrary view and, if you know prime ministers, they are not going to come out publicly and fight against each other, and prime ministers Gonsalves and Mitchell are elder statesmen within the Caricom setup.”

He continued: “But we have excellent relationships with Prime Minister [Allen] Chastanet [of St Lucia], Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit of Dominica — the Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister [Gaston Browne] has written me a note publicly supporting what we are doing. “[We have] relationships with the prime minister of Barbados (Mia Mottley)… as a matter of fact I have a personal relationship with Gonsalves and Prime Minister Mitchell as well. So again, we

have no personal issues.”

Cameron is being challenged in Sunday’s CWI elections by former St Kitts and Nevis Cabinet Minister Ricky Skerritt, while VicePresident Emmanuel Nanthan is up against Dr Kishore Shallow.

Cameron and Nanthan are bidding for a fourth-successive term, after being first elected in 2013 when they toppled former St Lucian diplomat Julian Hunte.

Three prime ministers — Dr Ralph Gonsalves of St Vincent and the Grenadines, Dr Keith Mitchell of Grenada, and Trinidad and Tobago’s Dr Keith Rowley — have been especially vocal in their criticisms of Cameron and the organisation.

Mitchell, in his previous role as chairman of Caricom’s subcommittee on cricket, has repeatedly questioned Cameron’s leadership, and only last month said he did not think the Jamaican’s “attitude and mindset will take West Indies cricket forward”.

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Escape to Rockstone…

Enterprising couple providing tour guide services Ray Peters and Ulandy Mark

T

he serene community of Rock Stone, in Linden, is filled with picturesque scenes and lots of outdoor activities to enjoy; perfect for a weekend getaway. It is also a major fishing and tourism hot spot.

Ray Peters, realised that this tourism potential should be exploited and has ingeniously transformed himself into a self-trained guide providing tour packages to the many visitors flocking the community on weekends.

He purchased a boat with financial support from his fiancée, Ulandy Marks who was a participant in the Hinterland Empowerment Youth Service (HEYS) programme. The duo rent the community’s boat engine and provide transportation and tour guide services to tourists and sports fishermen.

“I realised I could earn a living through this venture. They [visitors] would hire me to take them to Sand Beach, river fishing, bird watching such as the Harpy Eagle, they would go out to see the waterdogs and all of these things,” Peters explained. Some daily packages cost between G$30,000 to G$40,000 per day.

Peters is now seeking additional funding to expand his business. His plan is to purchase his own engine and eventually more boats with the aim of employing youths within the community to become tour guides.

He added, “I would also like to purchase

hammocks, tents and even construct some cabins for visitors to sleep because right now they stay at the village guest house and not everyone wants to stay indoors when they are in a community like this,” he reasoned.

According to the enterprising young man he has consulted with the Linden Enterprise Network (LEN) for a loan to expand his tourism businesses.

He will also commence training through the Department of Tourism, which will enable him to become an official tour guide.

Like Peters, several other youths of Rock Stone, have entered into various forms of businesses with funding from HEYs. Older residents have also adopted methods of diversification, especially in the areas of agriculture with apiculture and aquaculture taking priority.

This has caught the attention of the Linden Enterprise Network, has offered to provide loans for business expansion in these areas.

Recently, LEN officials visited the community and highlighted the requirements needed to benefit from business loans.

Toshao of Rock Stone Flagon Carter, who is involved in apiculture, has been in conversations with LEN, on how they can provide the needed assistance, to enable the community’s economy to be boosted in this regard.

LEN will also be providing technical support, for the entrepreneurs. (Reprinted from DPI)

FEATURE 41

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

NEWS 43

Fired bauxite workers reinstated; Berbice River to be cleared

R

USAL and the Bauxite Union have finally reached an agreement which will see the fired workers being reinstated and the clearing of the blockages in the Berbice River.

See excerpts of the statement from the Union: Strike ends and Terms of Resumption The workers’ struggle, which began on 22nd November 2009, has ended after approximately nine (9) years, three (3) months, and twenty-eight (28) days.

The recent industrial conflict from February 15th, one (1) month and four (4) days, has also ended today with the signing of Terms of Resumption (ToR) which includes reinstatement of all 61 dismissed workers and those laid off during the dispute; no victimisation or change of conditions for the reinstated workers; no compensation for time not worked during the dispute; return of the check-off system; and clearing of the Berbice River.

Both parties have further agreed to recognise the sovereignty, Constitution and Laws of Guyana and neither shall act in contravention thereof; promised to uphold the spirit and goodwill to which the ToR was negotiated and signed and will do nothing to circumvent same.

Subsequent meeting with be held within fourteen (14) days following the full resumption of work and the Guyana Bauxite & General Workers Union (GB&GWU) and the Bauxite Company of Guyana Inc. (BCGI) shall commence negotiation of a new Collective Labour Agreement (CLA).

The parties agreed that in the pursuit of a new CLA and in the Avoidance and Settlement of Disputes the procedure used for deal-

ing with same in the old (former) CLA shall be utilised as an interim measure; and further agreed that all major issues which involve conditions of employment shall be addressed with a view to achieving resolution.

History of BCGI workers struggle In the history of independent Guyana this is the longest industrial conflict on record occurring under the Bharrat Jagdeo regime, and continued under the Donald Ramotar regime, only be resolved finally under the Coalition G o v e r n m e n t .

Looking back this is a struggle that never should have been. It is a struggle that GB&GWU was bound to come out successful, regardless of long it went, because the laws were on our side.

It is unfortunate however inspite of the Constitution and laws that protect workers that successive PPP governments ignored the pleas and struggles of GB&GWU to hold BCGI accountable and to protect those who it was bound by Constitution to represent. And to imagine that could have occurred under a government headed by a party founded by working class advocate Dr. Cheddie Jagan is an indictment of his legacy.

44 NEWS

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Search begins for new Prime Minister after Haiti Gov’t is ousted

P

resident Jovenel Moïse is again searching for a prime minister, after Jean Henry Céant and his Cabinet were ousted just over six months after coming to office.

The Lower Chamber of Deputies fired Prime Minister Jean-Henry Céant and his 21-member government in a no-confidence vote on Monday.

In the vote to censure the government, 93 Deputies voted in favour and six against. There were three abstentions.

Neither Céant nor any of his minsters were present for the vote. When it was taking place, the prime minister had been waiting in the Senate where he had been summoned to answer questions about five Americans who had

The end game…

F

Prime Minister Jean-Henry Céant

been arrested with an arsenal of illegal weapons in Haiti but then released at the request of the US government. The hearing was postponed because of failure to get a quorum.

Following his firing, Céant, who will remain

in place as only a caretaker prime minister along with his caretaker government until his successor is chosen, said the move was “unacceptable”.

“The decision is illegal and outside of the constitution,” he told the

Miami Herald newspaper.

Céant had been appointed by President Moïse in August 2018 to succeed Jack Guy Lafontant who resigned due to the economic crisis. (Caribbean360.com)

…checkmated?

olks are wondering why the PNC is raising such a storm and fury over the elections date – after their immediate acceptance of the consequences of the NCM. What’s the difference even a year would make? Some say they wanted “first oil” to start flowing, so that they could dazzle the electorate with a spending bonanza rivalling those of the “pork- knockers” of yore!! Money to burn!

Literally!!

There COULD be something there. Exxon’s never deviated from predicting first oil in March 2020, and the coalition Government’s full five-year term would’ve ended in April, for elections to be scheduled by then. But in one or two months of production, there wouldn’t have been much money flowing into the Treasury to dole out those US$5000 cheques to the masses that were touted by the WPA’s Clive Thomas.

So if this theory is to pan out, the elections would have to be delayed to at least the end of 2020. Is this what Granger and his crew have in mind? Let’s see. But in the meantime, we can do worse than consider the words of Granger himself about the 2020 elections. Towards the end of 2017, Granger was in Atlanta, Georgia in front of the PNC’s Overseas Chapter, which included hundreds of his ex-GDF faithful. He was relaxed and among friends. And this is what he said about the immediate future in that unguarded moment: “Whatever you will choose to discuss today and the weeks and months to come, I think there are several questions that you have to ask yourself as you look to the future.

You have to ask yourself how did the PNC gain office in 1964. Ask yourself how did the PNC remain in office, and what did it do during that period. Ask yourself how the PNC regained office in 2015, and ask yourself how would the PNC retain office after 2020.”

So let’s answer those questions posed by Granger, shall we? To his first one, the PNC gained office by coalescing with the UF. And “how did the PNC remain in office”? Well, we all know that it was by RIGGING ELECTIONS, of course!! How did it get into office in 2015? By coalescing with the AFC. So how will the PNC retain office after 2020”?? Well, if we follow the logic of the questions posed…duh! …it’ll be by RIGGING ELECTIONS!!!

And your Eyewitness believes THIS is the reason for dragging out the elections date. Like the good military planners and strategists they are, Granger’s men would’ve been working on a plan with a timeline.

And Jagdeo’s NCM masterstroke threw it off track!! Grrrrr!

The best laid plans of mice and men…!! …explained But one has to also ask why are Granger and the PNC crew willing to take such risk of rigging elections again? You just have to follow the unguarded blogs of PNC folks: it’s all tied to their view of the “kind of people” in the PPP. Let’s start from the head honcho himself, David Granger. At that same meeting with the faithful in Atlanta, he got a big chuckle when he referred to the PPP’s heckling while he’d addressed the National Assembly.

He snickered: “I was greeted in the National Assembly by a crowd of vulgarians!” Yes, vulgarians – persons who make ostentatious displays of wealth, and are often poorly educated or lacking in refinement!! It’s more than just an elitist disparagement of ‘PPP people’. It was explained by Nietzsche as ‘ressissentiment’: having deep anger and envy at a set of people who were once your social inferiors, but who’ve now superseded you!

“How can such people be ALLOWED rule in the age of oil?? They’re beyond the pale!!” …for protests Asked what’ll happen after the NCM saga plays out and there are protests in the streets, Public Security Minister Ramjattan assured a global Guyanese audience that any elections violence will be “quelled”!!

From a man who couldn’t even get his choice for CoP approved!!

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

45

46 FEATURE by

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Preserving our literary heritage

Petamber Persaud

C

ommonly when we think of Guyanese literature, fiction writers in the main, Wilson Harris’s name immediately comes to mind.

The Guyanese hinterland landscape with symbolic evocations and motifs of legends of pre-Columbian peoples are Harris’s forte; he is a stellar writer, indefatigably complex. But Guyanese writing, and indeed Caribbean literature, is enriched by contributions of other key figures, not least Edgar Mittelholzer in the Guyanese pantheon. Roy Heath is not far behind, though not so well-known; significantly, Heath was selected to deliver the Eighth Edgar Mittelholzer Lecture in 1983.With Ameena Gafoor’s scholarly work, one hopes more serious attention will be paid to Heath who lived most of his life in the United Kingdom—from 1950 to his death in 2008. He was trained as a barrister, but taught languages.

Growing up close to New Amsterdam in Guyana “where most of Heath’s contemporaries lived,” as has been said, I’ve often been aware of his work: the nuances of race with Creole rhythms in the interplay of Indian, African and others of mixed-race backgrounds with class divisions (“the state of unfreedom in the lives of people”--Wilson Harris) in an urban landscape are what Heath focuses upon. Indeed, Gafoor— editor of the Guyana

Arts Journal, and known for “her patriotic devotion to the future of Guyanese letters” (Emeritus Professor Frank Birbalsingh), as well as work in philanthropy with her family’s business enterprise, captures the essence of Heath’s vision; it is an impressive work (I presume she did her doctoral thesis on Heath’s novels under the guidance of the University of the West Indies’ Emeritus Professor Ken Ramchand, a pioneer in Caribbean literary scholarship); and, it is a handsomely-produced University of the West Indies Press book, graced with a cover illustration-paint-

ing, Kali’s Necklace, by gifted Guyanese artist Bernadette Persaud.

Essentially the book sheds new awareness of Heath’s thinking and vision, perhaps overlooked by others—including myself--with chapters that cover the range of Heath’s nine novels. My own main interest in Heath’s work is the Guyanese family saga-cum-trilogy--From the Heat of the Day (1979), One Generation (1981), and Genetha (1981); and Gafoor’s close reading and exegesis in her Aftermath of Empire is apposite.

Heath’s other key titles include Kwaku(1982), Orealla(1984), and The Shadow Bride (1988).

Other novels are A Man Come Home(1974) and The Ministry of Hope(1997); and the noteworthy second novel, The Murderer(1978), which garnered a Guardian Prize. I have reviewed one or two of the early novels years ago for World Literature Today (University of Oklahoma) at the request of the editor via my fiction-writer’s prism--I focussed on aspects of Heath’s narrative technique in the main rather than on post-colonial epistemology as overall schema.

I first met Roy Heath in Trinidad over twenty years ago, and significantly, I observed his own first encounter with novelist Sam Selvon (well-known for his Lonely Londoners), and though both men as Caribbean litterateurs lived in London for years, they had never met. They are very different writers—Selvon, more demotic in style with vernacular inflection integrated with Caribbean immediacy and the organic. The psychology of this meeting--Heath dressed in formal attire with jacket and tie, and Selvon, unpretentious in singlet and shorts—in hot tropical weather, was intriguing for me. Later that evening we were hosted

by Ken Ramchand, and I recall engaging Heath about Caribbean literature, if only his thinking about Wilson Harris’s iconic first novel, Palace of the Peacock; but Heath was not game; he mainly expressed his Marxist views, as I recall. Noteworthy is that Gafoor’s illumination in Aftermath of Empire suggests that Heath “examines the political establishment in the place of his birth through a psychological study of the ordinary working man and his futile efforts to negotiate survival”(164).

This is a key reference, and Gafoor goes on to tell us that Heath’s viewpoint is unlike George Lamming’s political stance in narration, an arguable assumption about Lamming no doubt. Oftentimes it is debatable about what is the purpose of the writer come from a post-colonial plantation society—his stance being either as an ideologue subsuming his art to what’s politically relevant, or, to be a “pure” non-committed belletristic artist in terms

of ideation and narrative style. Lamming, of course, is a master of the fictional form with a poetic prose style, and I interacted with him when he was director of the fiction workshop at the University of Miami's Summer Institute for Caribbean Creative Writing; and, he remains associated with educational and cultural projects of the Barbados Workers' Union and the Barbados Labour College. I have also quoted Lamming as an example in my own teaching of creative writing at the college level.

Gafoor covers Heath’s oeuvre in a comprehensive way in Aftermath-with chapter headings such as “One generation: In Search of Self,” “Genetha: Through the Eyes of a woman,” “A Man Come Home and the Murderer: The Novels of Independence”—the most lucid chapter in the book for this reader, and with other chapters subtitled “Trapped in the Past,” and “Community in Chaos” which deals with the cynicism of President Forbes Burnham’s regime, among others. The open-endedness of human experience without closure, as Gafoor alludes to, is the essence of what Roy Heath captures about human experience in his novelistic approach read non-formulaic. She has surveyed about 75 published sources--reflective of her assiduous work-in addition to key notes, an appendix and a bibliography.

In her astute way and with intellectual breadth Gafoor comments on the politics, economics, development studies, sociology, history, psychology, literary criticism, feminism, religion, and political science relevant to her study: thus underlining her “deep engagement in her subject and mastery of it,” as University of Guyana critic-scholar Al Creighton deems it. The latter suggested, however, that Gafoor’s critical reading does not allow her “to deal adequately with the artistic aspects” of Heath’s work and his “Pinteresque” style, if such, but only touches upon Heath’s laconic narrative manner. This is an existential problem with most academic-critical studies—as I see it-- and, very often, a writer’s vision linked to his modus operandi and style are

elusive at best. Critical analysis is oftentimes mechanistic, albeit advancing scholarship and intellectualism; but it is usually challenging to circumscribe a writer’s imagination and vision-if only what’s embodied in his characters with the attendant tropes and leitmotifs.

What is more important about Gafoor’s Aftermath of Empire is that it is not cluttered with ideological-critical jargon seen in much academic work with predictable paradigms. Yet, her scholarship is slanted to “Empire” (suggested in her title). Edward Said is aptly quoted about literary texts not being just “reducible”--rightly so. Here I invoke novelist Margaret Atwood, who sardonically puts it: “There are all ways of interpreting texts, some sillier than others” (CBC Radio, Jan. 9, 2019). But Gafoor’s insight about Heath as novelist is what is compelling; and yes, in my own writerly way and neurological preference I would have liked to know more about the influences Heath internalized: European and American writers here over the years—principally influential UK ones like E.M. Forester, Virginia Woolf, and James Joyce that have influenced post-modernist aspects of fiction-making. And too, about the publishing parabola: how did Heath first get published as a beginning Guyanese novelist by the small press Allison and Busby, in the UK—and, not

by Faber and Faber or Andre Deutsch (Harris’s and Naipaul’s first publishers, respectively): always a challenge. But Gafoor’s approach is best reflected in her epigraph to Aftermath, taken from V.S. Naipaul’s The Middle Passage, that “Living in a borrowed culture, the West Indian, more than most, needs writers to tell him why he is and where he stands”: which Gafoor as scholar succeeds in most of all.

Ameena Gafoor, Aftermath of Empire: The Novels of Roy A. K. Heath. Jamaica: The University of the West Indies Press, 2017: pp.256. REVIEW BY CYRIL DABYDEEN Responses to this author please telephone 226-0065 of email: oraltradition2002@yahoo. com (Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)

47

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Hypocritical…

Y

…or unctuous? our Eyewitness looked at President Granger’s address to the nation on the constitutional crisis into which he has plunged our country by his refusal to comply with the Constitution – even as he calls it “sacrosanct and supreme” – and wasn’t surprised that it was recorded rather than live. It would’ve been impossible to keep out the snickers of derision and disbelief that would’ve issued forth from any live audience!!

And performance it was – as it has always been for Granger. But what kind of performance?? Being a church-goer and all that, was it pharisaical? You know, like the Pharisees, whose words were hypocritical, censorious and self-righteous?? He certainly was hypocritical, with his actions following the NCM certainly contradicting his words at every step of the way.

Well…to be fair to the man, there was that brief moment when he and his Prime Minister both accepted that a democratic procedure had brought their Government to an end!!

How can he say the Constitution is “sacrosanct” when he’s refused to resign, as commanded by Art 106 (6) – “the President and cabinet SHALL resign”!

– and call for elections 90 days after Dec 21 2018??

He’s never even reproached his Attorney General, Basil Williams, for saying “the Constitution is WRONG”?? He went on to claim that “the authority of the legislative branch is unimpaired”.

Well, not because of his not doing his darndest to do just the opposite to the National Assembly. For one, by raising the issue of dual citizens’ membership, which could’ve vitiated all legislation passed by that body since 2015!! How can the National Assembly maintain its “authority” when at least 7 members are “illegally” occupying their seats??

Then there’s this whopper: “The legal challenges… were not…calculated to frustrate the implications of the no-confidence vote”!!! Can you believe that mountain of hypocrisy? You become President by claiming a MAJORITY of 33 seats in the National Assembly, and suddenly 33 seats AREN’T a majority to vote you out??

Your Eyewitness fully expected Mr Granger’s tongue to split down the middle when he uttered those words!!

Censorious?? What else but shade was he throwing at the Opposition Leader when he unctuously and slyly perorated, “I urge everyone not to be intimidated by incendiary insinuations aimed at instigating disaffection.”? What has been more “incendiary” than him saying “I am prepared to do my part to ensure credible elections within…the shortest time possible this year”!? NOW he says this? If his PNC were in the opposition, Georgetown would have been up in flames by now.

And finally, how more “self-righteous” can Granger be when he said, “The resolution of the present political challenges requires collaboration”!!

Sure, like collaborating with your executioner!! …judgements Citizen Marcel Gaskin had filed a criminal charge against GECOM Chair James Patterson and the three PNC Commissioners for “conspiring to delay the elections” which were constitutionally due by Art 106 (7) three months after the NCM’s passage on Dec 21, 2018. Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan, however, dismissed the charge because “it does not create an offence; is frivolous and vexatious, and lacks basic human merits.”

Not an offence for public officials to conspire to subvert their constitutionally designated duties?? So what about that “Misconduct of Public Office” against Brassington and Singh, which was also before her??

We know it was “vexatious” to the fellas charged, but isn’t that the case with all defendants!?? “Frivolous”??

McLennan said this was because the March 21 deadline is “still approaching””! Can you believe this?? The whole point of the conspiracy was to drag GECOM’s heels and have March 21 “approach”, and now this makes the charge “frivolous”??

Does McLennan think elections can be held in four days?? THIS “lacks human merits”!!

Oh Judgement, thou art fled to brutish beasts!! …on corruption So there will be no investigation (much less a CoI) into the Ministry of Public Infrastructure paying millions of US$ MORE for a DOWNSIZED CJIA??

Is this the PNC’s “less is more” doctrine? Or just plain thiefin’??

Phagwah and Power

By Ravi Dev

A

short while back, there was a dispute about which day exactly we should celebrate the festival of Holi or Phagwah. Thankfully, that has been resolved, but this year Guyanese are confronted with another challenge: what to do when the agreedto date for Holi happens to coincide with the date when the present Government loses its legitimacy through the operation of the Constitution, which both parties across the divide, the PPP and PNC (forget about the “others”: they are “rounded up”), agree on the supremacy of that Constitution? How should we Guyanese deal with the intersection of these two putatively unrelated events??

Interestingly enough, the festival of Phagwah – which, after Christmas, has become most widely celebrated across the various divides – itself offers a perspective on the matter. As most Guyanese ought to know by now, Hindu festivals are meant to inscribe particular values in the society and its people by celebrating “the conquest of good over evil”.

But each festival contextualises this eternal struggle based on narratives from different places, times and circumstances. This makes it easier for us in the present to imbibe the particular value — if we can relate to its application — in our own lives.

Phagwah commemorates – indeed celebrates – the instance when a king who had acceded to power quite legitimately allowed that power to go to his head and inflate his ego.

He began to believe he was greater than even the entity from which all power flows – the Supreme Being – according to the beliefs of his society, and that he could make or break the rules to do whatever he wanted.

His people were oppressed and quite unhappy, but what were they to do??

The son of the king – still at an age when he was in school – answered that question.

He started to tell everyone that the king was not the Supreme Being, and that therefore they did not have to obey his biddings any longer.

The king, not sur-

prisingly, became furious, and ordered the boy be silenced through all sorts of machinations; one of which was that he be immolated in a fire in the lap of his aunt Holika, who was immune to fire.

But the boy survived all his challenges and continued to invoke the Supreme Being, who appeared one day to destroy the king by cutting through all the immunities with which the Supreme Being had once conferred him.

Phagwah/Holi celebrates the victory of the boy, who held true to the principles that when power is conferred on a ruler, it ought to be used for the benefit of the people, and not for his/her self-aggrandisement. The lesson, I believe, is quite apropos to the circumstance in which we find ourselves in Guyana today.

We have a President/ Government which acceded to power quite legitimately, but became intoxicated with power, and focused only on living the good life while leaving the people “on their own”. Through the actions of one of the President/ Government’s own MPs,

who invoked the Supreme Law/Constitution, the latter mandated that the term of the President/Government be ended immediately and they should elect another President/Government in three months.

Sadly, the President/ Government has refused to comply with the dictates of the Supreme Law/ Constitution, and as such, we have reached a very dangerous impasse.

What do we do, when the President has all the forces at his command to quell any rising up of the people, who subscribe to the Supremacy of the Constitution? I believe that the followers of the President’s party have a special responsibility at this time. They should understand that when they once supported an earlier leader to break the rules of the Constitution with impunity, what tragedy befell our dear land of Guyana.

Those who ignore the lessons of history – much less the message of this ancient festival – are doomed to repeat them. Surely, we cannot take that risk. We are on the cusp of so much wealth flowing into Guyana that we do not have to view politics as a win-lose game, but one which can be win-win if we stop supporting rulers who are only obsessed with power for their own aggrandisement.

Happy Holi, this March 21. And may the Supreme Constitution also triumph through our efforts and unity against possible tyranny.

48 Bollywood

Ajay Devgn to play IAF Wing Commander in Bhuj The Pride Of India

A

fter the tough cop act in Rohit Shetty’s Singham films, Ajay Devgn is all set to play Vijay Karnik, an IAF Wing Commander, in a film titled Bhuj The Pride Of India.

Written and directed by Abhishek Dudhaiya, the film is based on true events and will tell one of the most interesting war stories.

According to the makers, “Squadron Leader Vijay Karnik was in charge of the Bhuj airport during the 1971 IndoPak war. It was Karnik and his team, with the help of local women, who reconstructed the destroyed Indian Air Force airstrip at Bhuj in Gujarat, in what could be termed as India’s ‘Pearl Harbour’ moment.

The airstrip had been wrecked in air strikes that saw Pakistan drop bombs on it. Karnik convinced 300 fearless women from a nearby village to rebuild the airstrip so that a flight carrying Indian Army officers could land safely.

He, along with two other officers, 50 Air Force soldiers and 60 Defence Security personnel, did a great job of keeping the airbase operational despite heavy Pakistani bombing.”

Talking about the film, Bhushan Kumar said in a statement, “This courageous tale needs to be told because we want the current and the coming

M

arjaavaan, starring Sidharth Malhotra, Tara Sutaria and Rakul Preet Singh, recently wrapped up its shoot. The makers on Monday night hosted a wrap-up party which saw Sidharth Malhotra, Rakul Preet Singh, Tara Sutaria, Nora Fatehi, T-Series head Bhushan Kumar, producer Nikkhil Advani and veteran writer Salim Khan in attendance.

Marjaavaan is helmed by Milap Zaveri, who is known for directing films like Mastizaade and last year’s hit Satyameva Jayate. Milap struck gold with John Abraham starrer Satyameva Jayate as the film per-

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

generation to know about this brave soldier, Squadron Leader Vijay Karnik, who played a significant role in India’s victory in the 1971 war. He was heroic enough to take this bold step of involving civilians in a war. Also, who better than Ajay Devgn for the role of Vijay Karnik? We are working with him currently in De De Pyaar De and Taanaji, and we are glad that he is on board for this film, too.”

Narrating the tale of the war, Karnik also expressed happiness on Ajay Devgn playing his part on the silver screen. “We were fighting a war and if there had been any casualties of any of these women, it would have been a great loss. But I took the decision and it worked out. I had briefed them where they could take shelter if attacked and they followed it bravely. Also, I could only see Ajay Devgn essaying my character and I’m glad that he’s on board,” he said.

Bhuj The Pride Of India will be coproduced by Krishan Kumar, Ginny Khanuja, Vajir Singh and Abhishek Dhudhaiya.

Ajay Devgn is currently basking in the success of his adventure-comedy Total Dhamaal. The Indra Kumar directorial has crossed the Rs 150 crore mark at the box office. (Indian Express)

formed well at the box office even though it was panned by critics.

Sidharth Malhotra was last seen in 2018’s Aiyaary but in 2019, he will be seen in two projects. Apart from Marjaavaan, he will also be seen alongside Parineeti Chopra in Jabariya Jodi.

This will be Tara Sutaria’s second film after she makes her debut in Student of the Year 2.

Rakul Preet Singh has done extensive work in the southern film industry but in Hindi films, she is best remembered for her debut project Yaariyan.

Marjaavaan is scheduled to hit theaters on October 2. (Indian Express)

D

eepika Padukone and Ranbir Kapoor make for a dazzling onscreen couple. The two actors recently made their fans excited as they announced their collaboration for a TVC and now, the much-loved duo attended an event together. The photos and videos from the event have gone viral.

On Monday, Ranbir and Deepika were photographed together at a brand event that was hosted by TV anchor Maniesh Paul and comedian Bharti Singh. At the event, the two actors showcased their impeccable chemistry.

They danced on Ranveer Singh’s hit Simmba number “Aankh Maarey” and

S

sang a birthday song for Karan Johar’s mother Hiroo Johar who turned a year older yesterday.

While Ranbir looked dapper in his formal wear, Deepika was a vision in a gown. Also, the Padmaavat actor shook a leg with Bharti on her song “Ghoomar” amidst loud cheers from the audience.

Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone were last seen together on the silver screen in Imtiaz Ali’s Tamasha (2015). They have earlier shared screen space in films like Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani and Bachna Ae Haseeno. (Indian Express)

alman Khan and Sanjay Leela Bhansali are teaming up for a romantic film after 20 years and joining them on this exciting project is none other than Alia Bhatt. Salman took to Twitter and announced that he

ful journey called “Inshallah” Inshallah will mark Alia Bhatt’s first collaboration with both Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Salman Khan.

Earlier this year, Prerna Singh, CEO of Bhansali Productions, said in

is ‘looking forward to work with Alia’.

In a tweet, the actor wrote, “It’s been 20 years but I am glad Sanjay and I are finally back in his next film, Inshallah.

Looking forward to work with Alia and inshallah we will all be blessed on this journey.”

Alia also took to Twitter and recalled that it was her dream to be part of a Sanjay Leela Bhansali film. She wrote, “I was 9 when I first walked into Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s office, all nervous and hoping and praying that I would be in his next film. It’s been a long wait. Dream with your eyes wide open they say & I did. Sanjay Sir and Salman Khan are magical together & I can’t wait to join them on this beauti-

a statement, “Sanjay Leela Bhansali puts all speculations to rest as he announces his next directorial. The magic of Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam was missed by fans for 20 years and left them waiting for the director-actor to reunite. After Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Salman Khan come together in a love story.”

On the work front, while Salman Khan’s Bharat will release during Eid this year, Alia Bhatt’s Kalank will hit screens on April 17. Alia also has SS Rajamouli’s magnum opus RRR, Brahmastra, Takht and Sadak 2 in her kitty. (Indian Express)

WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019| guyanatimeSinternational.com

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arvel Studios chief Kevin Feige has confirmed that upcoming mega-superhero cinematic event Avengers: Endgame will have the original Avengers as its focus. This is understandable as with a few exceptions like Rocket, Ant-Man and Okoye, it was only the newer superheroes who perished in Thanos’ Decimation.

Now, many have said that the ‘dead’ superheroes are dead only for the time being and their still-alive comrades will work to bring them back and to deliver retribution to Thanos. This is perhaps why they will be at the centre stage.

Feige told Empire Magazine, “People would point out that that Cap wasn’t in Infinity War a whole lot. And Iron Man didn’t really speak for that last half hour because of what was going on. But those characters, and all of the original six, are very much the focus of Endgame in a very personal and emotional way.”

V

eteran producer Charles Roven said his muchawaited film Wonder Woman 1984 is not a conventional sequel.

Roven said the film, which stars Gal Gadot as the titular character, is the next iteration of Wonder Woman, which released in 2017. “(Director Patty Jenkins) was just determined that this movie should be the next iteration of Wonder Woman but not a sequel. And she’s definitely delivering on that. It’s a completely different time frame and you’ll get a sense

This might also be to give the old guard a perfect send-off. Actors like Chris Evans and Chris Hemsworth have all but confirmed that they are ending their contract with the Marvel Cinematic Universe after nearly a decade of association.

Feige has also given an official name to the Thanos storyline that began with Infinity Stones and Thanos’ hunger to acquire them all and then end half of all life in the universe (which he did).

He called it the Infinity Saga.

This is important not just because we now have a clear division of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which will doubtless go on after the Mad Titan is dispensed with.

Now we also know the next part of the MCU (with presumably newer Avengers like Captain Marvel, SpiderMan, Black Panther, Doctor Strange and so on) will tell a new mega story in the Infinity Saga.

Avengers: Endgame releases on April 26. (Indian Express)

of

what Diana/Wonder Woman had been doing in the intervening years. But it’s a completely different story that we’re telling.

“Even though it’ll have a lot of the same emotional things, a lot of humour, a lot of brave action.

Tugs at the heart strings as well,” Roven told Vulture magazine.

Wonder Woman 1984, which also features Chris Pine, Pedro Pascal and Kristen Wiig, is scheduled to release on June 5, 2020. (Indian Express)

F

lorence Pugh is in negotiations to board Scarlett Johanssonfronted Black Widow film.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Rising actor would play a spy on the same level as Natasha Romanoff, likely her moral opposite.

The highly anticipated Marvel stand-alone movie will star Johansson as Romanoff aka Black Widow, an agent of the fictional spy agency S.H.I.E.L.D and a member of the superhero team, the Avengers.

After Captain Marvel, the film is the second female superhero-led project in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The shooting is scheduled to begin in London this June.

Australian filmmaker Cate Shorthand of Nazi drama Lore fame is attached to direct. Jac Schaeffer wrote the most recent draft for the film.

Marvel had no comment. (Indian Express)

HOLLYWOOD 49

Toy Story 4 trailer: Woody, Buzz and others are off to a new adventure

D

isney on Tuesday released the first full-length trailer for Toy Story 4, the fourth film in the iconic Pixar franchise. The sentient Pixar toys are back again, to delight you and perhaps leave you in tears before the end.

Woody, Buzz and others are off to a new adventure again. Andy is gone, and they are now under the care of Bonnie. Andy left them with the little girl when he went to college. They are joined by Bo Peep, who appears to be encouraging them to find a new human, even going to the extent of saying, “Sometimes change is good.”

Bo Peep is also a changed toy. She is no longer a gentle and ladylike but is exuberant and independent.

The trailer begins with Bonnie making a new toy. He is a spork (a portmanteau of spoon and fork) with plastic eyes and hands made of wool strands by Bonnie. Woody introduces the toy to the rest of the group.

Woody calls it Forky. Forky is none too pleased about being a toy. It is, after all, cutlery. “I’m not a toy,” Forky says. “I was made for soup, salad, maybe chili, and then the trash.” He flies away outside, yelling, “Freedom.”

Woody goes in search of Forky.

Since he is Bonnie’s favourite Toy, she will be sad if she cannot find him, and Woody cannot let that happen.

The movie looks fun and nostalgic.

It also appears to have the poignant

M

arvel Studios’ obsession with keeping things under wraps is not a secret but it was a “lightbulb” moment for Winston Duke when he got to know he auditioned for Black Panther.

The actor, who had a breakout role in Ryan Coogler’s Marvel film as M’Baku, said he did not know he was reading lines from a “fake script” for a Marvel movie.

“I didn’t even know what I was doing, I didn’t know what movie it was in the audition.

They didn’t tell you so I auditioned without knowing what movie I was auditioning for,” Duke told Metro.

“They were fake scripts!

You just sign a non-disclosure agreement and then they send you sides (a part of a script provided to actors for use in an audition) that they just wrote, and you memorise it and work on it and flush it out and cre-

touches that have made the Toy Story movies such classics.

New villains also appear. There is a creepy doll who lets loose her minions — who are puppets who walk in the horrifying way you expect them to, tumbling over each other to catch Buzz. Woody and Forky are saved by Bo. Woody’s disappearance is duly noted by Buzz and other toys, who go in search for him.

Toy Story 4’s synopsis reads, “Woody (voice of Tom Hanks) has always been confident about his place in the world, and that his priority is taking care of his kid, whether that’s Andy or Bonnie. So when Bonnie’s beloved new craft-project-turned-toy, Forky (voice of Tony Hale), declares himself as “trash” and not a toy, Woody takes it upon himself to show Forky why he should embrace being a toy. But when Bonnie takes the whole gang on her family’s road trip excursion, Woody ends up on an unexpected detour that includes a reunion with his long-lost friend Bo Peep (voice of Annie Potts).

After years of being on her own, Bo’s adventurous spirit and life on the road belie her delicate porcelain exterior. As Woody and Bo realize they’re worlds apart when it comes to life as a toy, they soon come to find that’s the least of their worries.”

Toy Story 4 releases on June 21.

(Indian Express)

ate character and go in and do your things,” he added.

The actor said he was in the dark till he met Coogler for a director’s session.

“I had no idea until I had a director session the third time around and saw it was Ryan Coogler, and I was like, ‘ohhhh, lightbulb!'” Duke said. (Indian Express)

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'I will surely be Adam Zampa rebuilding opening in all the confidence as games' - Rohit Sharma Australia turn to spin I f Australia's selectors have ceased to, in the words of the chairman Trevor Hohns, "bury our heads in the sand" about the need to use spin bowling more effectively in the ODI team for this year's World Cup, then Adam Zampa is still wary of being discarded as he seeks to rebuild confidence shaken by his on again/off again recent history with the national team.

The winning ODI series in India was the first time that Zampa had been selected for a whole series of 50over matches since 2016, his first year in international cricket, and his return of 11 wickets at 25.81 was his most prolific in any series. Zampa had been dropped entirely from Australia's limited-overs squads for the tours of

built my confidence up a little bit. So I feel like, particularly the last game, it was probably the best I bowled. I'm feeling confident at the moment."

Zampa's inconsistent use in the ODI team since 2016, where he was picked and dropped almost irrespective of how he was performing, led to the attitude come January last year that he was quite simply a conditionsbased selection. "I've played a lot of Big Bash [games] on pretty flat surfaces, like the MCG and Adelaide Oval when I was at the Strikers," he said before last summer's series against England.

"So I do back myself in any conditions.

But the feedback is, and I'm used to it now, that if conditions suit I'll play and if not then I won't.

Adam Zampa

England and Zimbabwe last year, at the end of a period in which neither Zampa nor the selectors ever looked entirely comfortable.

While Zampa has admitted to making changes both in terms of his approach to the crease and his use of variations, also working at sharpening the torque on his leg-break, he is also now benefitting from a change in philosophy from Australia's planners, who realised at the outset of 2019 that they had become an outlier relative to the rest of the world in their reluctance to use spin bowlers consistently. Where one spinner in a squad and one or none in a team had been the norm, now Zampa and Nathan Lyon appear likely to accompany each other to England for the World Cup. But even so, Zampa is conscious of the fact that his place in the team is perennially tenuous. "Throughout my short career I've found it can change really quickly," he said in the UAE ahead of the series against Pakistan. "I started my career really well, but I've had some ups and downs.

"So trying to build on the momentum I have would be great - I know what it's like to be in and out of the team and be dropped from the squad altogether. Just trying to make the most of my position at the moment‌ I guess taking it one series at a time it's a bit of a clichÊ, but that's how it is.

"I'm obviously happy with how they came out in the Indian series. It's nice to try and make an impact, especially through the middle overs. After that series I feel really confident about my role in the team. I feel as though the first couple of games I wasn't at my best, but to get the wickets on the board

"That's the way I see it, with the strength of our fast bowling that we have too, I am going to miss games. So I pretty much see it as that, with the conditions, if the conditions suit, I'll play, if not then I might sit out."

Pushed to reconsider this policy by events around the world, where England and India have notably used twin spin as a matter of course, Hohns has said that Zampa and Lyon are now much more central to team plans.

"Most teams around the world seem to be including one at least and probably two spinners in their World Cup squad. We expect them to," Hohns said during the tour of India.

"We can't bury our heads in the sand and just say we're going with fast bowlers when spinners in world cricket, and in one-day cricket in particular, are being very, very successful. Nathan we know is a world-class bowler...very experienced. Zampa is coming along quite nicely, so we're comfortable at the moment. It's a good combination."

With this in mind, Zampa is eager to face Pakistan, a team known for taking the attack to spin bowlers, though often with plenty of risk attached to the attempt. "The Indians are really good at milking, they like to go at five or six an over through the middle without taking too many risks," Zampa said when contrasting the teams of Virat Kohli and Pakistan's stand-in captain Shoaib Malik. "Whereas the Pakistani guys go quite hard...they'll choose a period during the game when they'll take me on, so that's something I'm up for. I'll just do my preparation, watch a lot of footage and go from there."

(ESPNCricinfo)

M

umbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma is going to open in all their games in the coming IPL. Speaking at the team's pre-season media interaction, Rohit said that this move was partially because he opens for India and the World Cup follows immediately after the IPL. "I have in the past batted in the middle order and I've opened also in a few games so wherever the team requires me to bat I have to bat to get the right balance," Rohit said.

"But this year, I will open the batting for all the games, that is for sure.

That (World Cup) is one of the factors but also keeping in mind that this is where I bat, that is my position when I play for India and that is where I have got a lot of success off late. The team does understand that, and as a team also the composition of the players we have right now, we've got some experience in the middle order so that allows me to go and bat at the top of the order.

This season I'll try and do that - open in every game possible."

Rohit had batted mostly at Nos. 3, 4 and 5 last season for a combined 12 innings out of 14 and managed only 286 runs in all, his poorest tally in an IPL season. His best knock in IPL 2018 - 94 against Royal Challengers Bangalore came when he batted at No. 4 but he had effectively opened that day because Mumbai were 0 for 2 after the first two balls of the match.

It is well established that Rohit is a relatively slow starter and that once he faces 30-odd balls, he shoots up his strike-rate with seemingly effortless strokes to script match-winning knocks.

Apart from Rohit's poor form last season, Mumbai's failure to make the playoffs was also a result of their inability to close out tight finishes, as six of their eight losses came in the last over. One reason was their top names not performing when it mattered, and this time they have also added the experienced names of Lasith Malinga, who returns from the support staff to the playing squad, and 37-yearold Yuvraj Singh, who has had unimpressive runs in the last few IPL seasons. Zaheer Khan, Mumbai's director of cricket operations, said having Malinga back on the field could make a "huge difference" in "decision-making" and "pressure situations".

"The kind of experience he (Malinga) brings to the table is immense not only with his bowling, but also in the game situation," Zaheer said. "It's a relief for Rohit also and for the other bowlers who trust the experience and the valuable advice he brings. Because as a coaching staff you can plan things but when the game is happening and you're in a real-time situation and someone is pro-active, it makes a huge difference in terms of decision-making.

"What is going to be crucial for us

Rohit Sharma (Times Now photo)

this season is to have emphasis on decision-making which decides the outcomes of matches in the pressure scenarios."

Malinga was Mumbai's bowling mentor last season and then went on to make an impressive international return, particularly as Sri Lanka's captain in ODIs and T20Is, which could help Rohit on the field.

About Yuvraj, his former India team-mate, Zaheer said: "Bringing in Yuvraj in the squad has been a boost because of the match-winning ability he has. In our discussions leading up to the auctions, we had identified that we need experienced batsmen who can control the game in the middle. Since Rohit has decided to open, we need that experience in the middle order and who's better than someone like Yuvraj Singh."

Kieron Pollard is another 35-plus player in the squad whose place Rohit and Zaheer were asked about especially because Pollard didn't bowl at all in the IPL last year and managed only 133 runs in eight innings. His only fifty - off 23 balls against Kings XI Punjab - came a bit too late in the season in which he played nine of Mumbai's 14 matches. Zaheer, however, insisted that Mumbai were keeping their "faith" in Pollard.

"He (Pollard) has been playing a very influential role as far as MI's success is concerned," Zaheer said.

"Anyone who understands the game knows how difficult that position of batting is where people have been identifying and searching for players who can contribute with that kind of power at that scenario which can change the game. A 20-run difference is also huge in this format. So keeping that value and the faith in mind, which we've shown in Pollard, is going to be reciprocated for sure. It's something that as an individual also he recognises that how critical his role is going to be this IPL and we're just looking forward to him also providing that impact this season because we have faith in him.

"He's been in good form recently, in the recently-participated tournament (PSL) by him, he has been in form."

With Rohit and Zaheer backing so many experienced players in the T20 format, there could be one concern though. Are they losing their own identity and trying to follow the unorthodox template defending champions Chennai Super Kings followed last year?

Two of Super Kings' top three scorers last season - Shane Watson and MS Dhoni - were over 35 and the third, Rayudu, was 32. Their second-highest wicket-taker, Dwayne Bravo, turned 35 a few months after they lifted the title. If Mumbai do decide to use all their 35-plus players consistently, they'll have to do it shrewdly. (ESPNCricinfo)

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Guyana women’s hockey team to compete in Canadian Indoor Invitational Full schedule A national indoor selection has departed Guyana for Toronto, Canada to compete in the upcoming Field Hockey Canada Invitational Indoor Hockey Tri-Nation Series, scheduled to be played from March 22 to 24.

Guyana was hoping to enter male and female selections, as there is nothing else on the indoor hockey calendar internationally to prepare teams before the next Indoor Pan American Cup (IPAC) is held in March 2020 in Pennsylvania, USA. However, Guyana encountered difficulties in managing to achieve the objective of having both male and female teams attend the Series, and it was decided that the male team would be unable to attend.

The ladies have been preparing at the National Gymnasium under the guidance of Head Coach Philip Fernandes since early in January. Eight of the twelve players are from the 2017 national team that competed in the IPAC, held for the first time in Guyana in 2017. Those players are goalkeeper Alysa Xavier, Marisha Fernandes, Trisha Woodroffe,

Friday 22nd 12:00 – Guyana versus Kazakhstan 13:00 – Canada White vs Canada Red 15:30 – Kazakhstan vs Canada White 16:45PM – Guyana versus Canada Red Saturday 23rd 11:45 – Canada Red vs Kazakhstan 12:30 – Guyana versus Canada White 17:00 – Women’s semi-final 1 vs 4 17:45 - Women’s semi-final 2 vs 3

The team underwent prep at the National Gymnasium

Marzana Fiedtkou, Nicole Eastman, Gabriella Xavier, Minsodia Culpepper and Latacia Cheong.

The Guyana Hockey Board (GHB), in using this event as preparation for 2010 and beyond, have opted to give the opportunity to new, young players who show the potential to be good representatives of the country in the future. As a result, they have named their youngest-ever squad, which features — including the two reserves — 3 fourteen-year-olds, 2 fifteen-year olds, and others in their early twenties.

Coach Fernandes has lamented the loss of es-

pecially Aliyah Gordon due to injury, as he considers her to be one of those special players around whom the future of women’s hockey can be built. However, he is very excited at seeing several teenagers in the line-up, as he feels that they are among the most talented players he has seen in recent years in the women’s programme.

The Guyana team will face the Canadian National Team; a Canadian President’s 11; as well as the national team of Kazakhstan, which represented Asia in the last Indoor World Cup in Berlin. Fernandes indicated that the two countries, Canada and

Kazakhstan, both boast far superior reputations in indoor hockey than does Guyana, and he has expressed great appreciation for the invitation from Field Hockey Canada, and their willingness to include Guyana in the series.

While Fernandes is cautiously optimistic of the Guyana team’s chances, he thinks it is exactly what the local ladies need at this very moment. The coach indicated that the young players need to be exposed to this level of tough competition, where they can see, experience and appreciate indoor hockey; its toughness, and the level of physical and skil-

Sunday 24th 14:00 – Women’s bronze medal match 14:45 – Women’s Final ful play required to be at the top.

His only regret is that, during preparation, the team was unable to train on the tile floor housed at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall, as the multi-sport facility would not have been able to accommodate the floor being in place for these months. He, however, appreciates having been allowed to use the gymnasium, which although having a different and slower mat surface, still allowed the team to get through its training.

Matches in this Canadian tournament

will all be played at the University of Toronto’s Athletic Centre, and will begin on Friday.

Guyana’s full squad reads: Abosaide Cadogan, Alysa Xavier, Gabriella Xavier, Marisha Fernandes, Trisha Woodroffe, Sarah Klautky, Latacia Cheung, Nicole Eastman, Minsodia Culpepper, Tekeisha Deleon, Marzana Fiedtkou and Makeda Harding.

The reserves for this squad, which will be managed by Tiffany Solomon, are Charlia Webb and Madison Fernandes.

GABA/Let’s Bet Sports 3-division Knockout Tournament...

Pacesetters make epic comeback to take U-23 title – Eagles finish 3rd

By Timothy Jaikarran

T

he Guyana A m a t e u r Basketball Association got the Under-23 Championships out of the way in just three days of play at the Burnham Hard-court.

It ended with the Pacesetters walking away with the title after an intense finale against the Plaisance Guardians.

Supporters from Georgetown and Plaisance came out in their numbers to witness the action, and the match was entertaining from the first points.

Guardians are no strangers to the Pacesetters, having beaten them on

more than one occasion, but there was something ‘off’ with the Guardians on this night of reckoning. For Pacesetters however, it was quite a different scenario, as they looked well poised heading into their first major match in 2019.

Pacesetters won the tip-off, but the Guardians shook off the nerves and played as a unit to finish the first half ahead, 1917.

Maintaining their consistency in the second quarter, the Guardians again outscored the Pacesetters to lead 38-32 at the half.

What looked like a victory for the Plaisance side turned

out to be the beginning of a comeback for the Pacesetters, as they dug deep and employed every tactic to force Guardians to play defensively.

Despite giving away a few baskets in the third quarter, Pacesetters still managed to take the lead at 50–58 heading into the final quarter.

Once the lead was achieved, Pacesetters kept the upper hand in the final quarter to eventually win the title by six points, with the final score reading 75-69.

Top scoring for the Pacesetters were Quing Dos Santos and Zion Gray, who both had 19 points, while Akinne Wilson chipped in with 14

Part of the third-place battle between Eagles and Trojans

points.

For the Guardians, Nigel Bowen top scored with 17 points and Jared Sears contributed 16.

Earlier in the night, the third place playoff saw the Eagles defeating UG Trojans by one point in a thriller that ended 76-75.

The see-saw

match was a thriller throughout its duration, as neither side relented in their pursuit of victory and the lead kept steadily transferring between them.

But in the final 5.5 seconds of the game, the teams used their respective timeouts and consulted a revamped rule book.

However, the matter was quickly resolved, and the Eagles sunk the last basket to take the game.

Eagles’ top scorers were Shamar Huntley (26) and Anthony Vanveen (14); while Trojans’ Denzel Ross and Kadeem Peterkin were able to score 20 and 19 respectively.

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 24, 2019 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Gayle, Hetymer Johnson rates squad among and Holder move Jaguars best ever produced up ODI rankings – Head Coach confident with 23-man selection

The new international players who have joined the Golden Jaguars line-up

D

Chris Gayle

UBAI, United Arab Emirates (CMC) — West Indies' power hitters Chris Gayle and Shimron Hetmyer made big jumps in the ICC's ODI batting rankings, while captain Jason Holder has also moved up the bowlers' rankings.

The trio made headway following the regional side's 2-2 series tie in their recently concluded ODI home series against England.

The 39-year-old Gayle was the Windies' biggest mover, having jumped 35 places from 76th to now be ranked 41st.

Gayle, who was named man-of-theseries, owed his success to a serieshigh 424 runs, including two centuries,

Shimron Hetmyer

at an average of 106.

In that series, Hetmyer, the West Indies' newest batting sensation was the fifth highest run scorer, amassing 141 runs at an average of 70.50.

Those performances saw Hetmyer moving up from 39th to 23rd.

After a lean series with the bat, the Windies' highest ranked batsman Shai Hope fell three places from 7th to 10th.

Captain Jason Holder was the only bowler from the regional team to make any headway in the bowling department.

After taking seven wickets in the drawn series, Holder moved up 10 spaces to now be ranked 30th.

W

This selection follows the Guyanabased team’s preparation, which has been in training for approximately eight weeks, and which has had five training matches during this time, the last of which was held on Saturday at the Pierkhan Stadium in Nickerie, Suriname from 15:30hrs (local time). The team went down to a fullstrength Suriname Senior Men’s National Team by a 3-1 margin.

Head Coach Johnson reflected on the match: “The objective was completed with our friendly game against Suriname. It was a chance for us to have a closer examination of our Guyana-based players in a tough fixture. Everything we are currently doing is focused on March 23. We were able to find out what worked and what didn’t, who can play in this position and who plays better alongside this person; we got our answers from the game. You can do as much training as you like, but nothing beats a competitive fixture.”

With the 23-man squad listed and all players on Guyanese shores, Head Coach Michael Johnson is looking to solidify the Guyanese outfit in anticipation of a win against Belize. Identifying key areas that he is looking to work on, the head Coach noted that he is happy to have the team encamped at an early date.

“The earlier that we’re here, the better (it is for us). We can start to prepare them with what we are looking to do. It’s also better (when) we can have them in camp, because some of them are meeting their teammates for the very first time,” Johnson explained.

Johnson is of the opinion that he has made all the provisions necessary to ensure that the Guyana team are up to scratch. Preparation wise, the entire team is said to be well oiled. “There has been no stone left unturned. We’re talking about the local players being encamped for eight weeks, the players we have flown in from America, Canada; so everybody is in a great place condition-wise. And now it’s just working on the psychological aspect The 23-man shortlisted Golden Jaguars squad of the game, because we all know the magnitude of the game,” he explained.

Owing to the rigorous preparation and the highly scrutinised selection, the Head Coach believes, without a doubt, that this is the best team Guyana has to offer.

“Probably one of the strongest, if not the strongest team Guyana has ever got together. So we’re in a good place, the mood in the camp is tremendous,” Johnson stated.

ith less than a week left on the calendar to Guyana’s most important football match yet, Head Coach of the Golden Jaguars, Michael Johnson, has announced a 23-man squad to face Belize on Saturday, 23rd March, in the most significant CONCACAF Nations League qualifier for Guyana, to be played at the National Track and Field Centre at Leonora.

The top notch squad includes three Goalkeepers, seven Defenders, seven Midfielders and six Forwards, as well as three debutantes – Defender Reiss Greenidge, Midfielder Anthony Jeffrey, and Forward Keanu Marsh-Brown.

Reiss Greenidge is a 22-year-old from Norway, where he has been playing professional football since 2017. At 6 feet, 6 inches tall, he is a left-footed Defender who can operate both as a Centre or Left Back. His technical development has been based at the English Premier League (EPL) team Arsenal’s famous youth Academy.

Anthony Jeffrey is a 24-year-old rapid attacking player, who can play as a Winger or as a Main Forward. A talent also produced by EPL’s Arsenal’s Academy, Anthony has played in the English Football League for Stevenage Borough FC and Wycombe Wanderers FC. Currently a regular goal scorer in the Conference National for Dover Athletic, Anthony will add a new dimension to Guyana’s Forward line.

Keanu Marsh-Brown, brother of Ronayne Marsh-Brown, is a 26-year-old seasoned forward in the English Football League playing at Newport County. A product of Fulham’s Academy, Keanu has played for MK Dons, Oldham Athletic, Yeovil Town in England, and Dundee in Scotland.

Among the seasoned members of the squad rejoining the team are Warren Creavalle, Emery Welshman, Samuel Cox, Walter Moore and Gregory ‘Jackie Chan’ Richardson.

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