Guyana Times International

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You can also read Guyana Times daily edition online at www.guyanatimesgy.com WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26, 2017

ISSUE NO. 372

US$20M Exxon signing bonus: Jagdeo says Govt should resign if info provided proves true See story on page 3

…Promises to place issue on front burner until truth revealed

In light of the rising number of Trafficking in Person cases, the US Embassy in Guyana in collaboration with the United Nations Migration Agency hosted a workshop on Wednesday November 22nd, 2017 to offer guidance in the development of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for victim-centred investigation and prosecution and identification and protection of victims of trafficking. Among those present at the workshop were US Ambassador to Guyana Hon. Perry Holloway, First Lady Mrs. Sandra Granger, Minister of Public Security Mr. Khemraj Ramjattan and Minister of Social Protection Mrs. Amna Ally who gave the feature address.

US scrapping of Haitian immigrants’ protected status

Page 21

First Haitian New York State Assembly Member, among other legislators outraged

Bishops’ High School teacher accused of sexual grooming …denies allegations but admits to dating former students …protesters call for head teacher’s dismissal Page 9

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NEWS 3

WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

US$20M Exxon signing bonus: Jagdeo says Govt should resign if info provided proves true

…Promises to place issue on front burner until truth revealed

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ne week after making a commitment to inquire from ExxonMobil whether a multi-million-dollar signing bonus was indeed paid to the Government, Opposition Leader, Dr Bharrat Jagdeo says he has information that can reasonably confirm the allegation despite several Government Ministers having pleaded ignorance to this particular issue.

Jagdeo noted that while he does not have any documents to support his claims, he has enough information to confirm that the Government received the money.

“They received this money it seems almost a year ago. Now if this turns out to be true then

I believe that the entire Government should resign,” he said, during a Wednesday press briefing at his Church Street Office.

The Opposition Leader asserted that Government resigning would be the most appropriate thing to do since they would not be deemed transparent on receipts from any company, especially when Guyana is seeking membership from the EITI. “So if this turns out to be true and the Government has received the money and Winston Jordan did not know about this then where did the money go?

If Winston Jordan, who is the finance Minister doesn’t know about it?”

In another scenario, Jagdeo said if Finance

Opposition Leader Dr Bharrat Jagdeo

Minister Winston Jordan claims he is not aware of it and it turns out that he was lying, then that is just as bad as hiding the truth. “…And how many other persons in the Government

know of this? Definitely the Minister of Natural Resources should know about this payment” the Opposition leader remarked.

The Parliamentarian promised to place this

issue on the front burner until the truth is revealed, noting that the issue has languished in the media because no one felt that any Government official would make such a de-

ceptive move.

The allegation about Government receiving this bonus was first made by prominent Chartered Accountant and Attorney Christopher Ram. Ram had said that this payment may be one of the reasons why Government was not disclosing the new contract between itself and the US-oil giant.

“The Government of Guyana used the excuse of a new licence to extract a signature bonus — a payment made by a contractor on the signing of an agreement to take up any given number of blocks. The figure I have been told is twenty million United States dollars,” Ram had said in a column. continued on page 10

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WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

INTERNATIONAL To contact: Guyana Times International

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EDITORIAL

Pictured here is the bauxite plant in the mining town of Linden, Guyana. Commercial mining of bauxite started over 100 years ago in Guyana with the first operations set up in 1916 by Demerara Bauxite Company Limited, known as DEMBA, a subsidiary of the Aluminum Company of Canada Limited. Bauxite remains a major contributor to Guyana’s GDP. (Girendra Persaud photo)

Climate Change Guyana’s classification of a anyone? middle-income country means

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he 2017 UN Climate Change Conference (COP 23) — held in Bonn, but actually hosted by Fiji — was wrapped up last Friday on a more positive note than had been expected, after US President Donald Trump’s bellicose opposition to the COP 21 agreement crafted in Paris two years ago. That agreement had committed the countries gathered to collectively limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius, the tipping point for irreversible climate change.

The fly in the ointment being that individual national targets had not been made mandatory, the goal at Bonn was to move closer towards such targets. While Fiji did place on the agenda a process for the post-2020 emissions’ reduction targets to be stated by all countries – developed and undeveloped — it failed to point out that, under the Paris Accord, emissions’ reduction by developing countries were linked to those of the developed countries.

The developed countries had also committed to provide up to $100 billion in funds by 2020, and transfer green technologies to developing countries. This became the pre-2020 agenda of the Bonn climate change talks, but the developing countries found that this had been dropped from the formal UN negotiations. That meant that the developed countries would not be held accountable for their commitments up to 2020.

Matters were not helped after the Conference opened on Nov 6th and the US negotiators immediately began pushing for upping the use of coal and other fossil fuels. But the G77 countries+ China took a tough stance, and eventually the developed nations agreed to report on their emissions’ reduction targets for 2020, and these would be linked to the “facilitative dialogue” for measuring the developing countries’ cuts.

The developed countries would also have to inform the UN climate change forum about the levels of finance they provide to developing countries by 2020.

But, from a local standpoint, it was very disappointing that, for a nation that had been catapulted to the very centre of the fight against global warming by former President Bharrat Jagdeo, Guyana was nowhere to be seen at Bonn — especially when it was the block of developing nations that took the lead in forging the new agreement. The representatives of the latter block were very candid about their assessment — that the developed countries: the EU, Britain, Japan, Australia and Canada, would hide behind the skirts of the US in the future, but they would at least be able to occupy the moral high ground.

Guyana’s opportunity to continue occupying that moral high ground had already been prepared by the PPP, so its absence was also surprising — especially since Guyana would be one of the countries most affected by rising sea levels consequent to rising global temperatures, and the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) of the previous PPP Administration had become a model for the rest of the developing world in the goal of creating a sustainable Green Economy. But these had been all but abandoned.

While the PNC-led APNU/AFC coalition speak about a “Green Economy”, most of their efforts have unfortunately been confined to painting government buildings – including the Office of the President – and other official structures in the colour green. The Government seemed to have lost the plot after Exxon struck oil just before they assumed office. The most glaring proof of this is their refusal to pursue the generation of hydro-power even though Guyana is so bountifully provided by waterfalls that it is conservatively estimated that we can generate over 4000MW of electricity annually.

The Amaila Falls Hydro-Electric Power project has been described as most cost effective by Norway, which has committed US$80 million towards its completion; but it has been abandoned simply because the administration does not want Jagdeo to receive credit for his visionary plans on dealing with Climate Change.

In fact, if the plan of the Government is to pursue generation of power from the newly discovered fossil fuels, Guyana might just have to issue its plans for achieving COP 23 compliance.

fewer concessions on public external loans- Debt report

By Jarryl Bryan

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any of Guyana’s developmental loans were negotiated on concessionary terms. But Guyana’s new status as a middle-income country is expected to bite, with the Finance Ministry’s Public Debt Annual report signalling an impending end to these concessions.

According to the report, most of Guyana's public external debt was contracted on a fixed interest rate basis. A fixed interest arrangement ensures that the interest rate a borrower has to repay along with the principal sum does not exceed a set limit.

At the end of December 2016, the fixed interest rate for Guyana’s public external debt was 86.8 per cent of the external debt portfolio. This, the report notes, represents a marginal decline from 2015’s year-end position.

“Consequently, the share of variable interest rate debt increased by the corresponding 0.5 percentage points to 13.2 per cent as at end-December 2016. The increase in the variable interest rate component of the debt in 2016 is due to the disbursements made on IDB [Inter-American Development Bank] and CDB [Caribbean Development Bank] variable rate loans.”

“Notably, Guyana's high percentage of fixed interest rate debt is as a result of the highly concessional loans contracted in the past. Fixed interest rate debt eliminates the impact of market volatility on the economy. This aids in insulating a developing country, and particularly small open economies, from international shocks which affect capital market stability,” the report explains.

Guyana’s reclassification by the World Bank from a lower to an upper middle-income country came in July 2016 following the oil discoveries in the Stabroek Block. While it was

The World Bank reclassified Guyana as an upper middle income country in the wake of the oil discoveries

agreed that the upgrade was a positive indicator, concerns had also been expressed that Guyana would lose some of the concessionary terms and agreements it enjoys internationally.

According to the report, it turns out that as Guyana graduates to upper middle-income country status and the economy continues to grow, the development will be a proverbial Trojan Horse as there will be a transition to floating interest rate loans. Floating interest loans are adjustable and thus, do not afford the same protection a fixed rate arrangement would.

“Already, Guyana is beginning to experience an increase in the prevalence of 'blended loans' where one portion of the loan is granted on a fixed interest rate basis and the other portion of the same loan is granted on a floating interest rate basis,” the report states.

“With a fixed interest rate loan, the cash requirements for debt service can be accurately forecasted as the interest rate is set throughout the life of the loan. However, as the economy begins to transition to floating interest rate loans, cash pro-

jections become more complex and less accurate as market forces impute unpredictability and induce volatility,” the report further adds.

Currently, Guyana's four main external creditors are the IDB; the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB); the State-owned Export-Import Bank of China (China EXIM Bank) and Venezuela’s Stateowned oil company (PDVSA).

Together, they constitute some 77.7 per cent of Guyana's public external debt stock, as at end-December 2016, with the IDB being the most dominant creditor. According to the report, the IDB has an average share of 42.0 per cent of the debt portfolio; the CDB – 12.6 per cent; China’s EXIM Bank – 12.5 per cent and PDVSA – 10.6 per cent. Notably, PDVSA has recently been declared to be in default of its debts by a US trade group.

Kuwait and Libya, whose debts are in arrears, were recorded as Guyana's largest non-Paris Club bilateral creditors. They accounted for 10.1 per cent of Guyana's public external debt stock as at the end of December 2016.

NEWS 5

WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Cocaine cases Guyana Stock Feeds slated to increased by become 100% privately owned 44%, marijuana - as Govt seeking buyers for shares cases decreased I

By Jarryl Bryan

- as Crime chief reveals statistics for Jan-Oct 2017

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s law enforcement officers ramp up the fight against the narco-trade, recent Police statistics have re-

vealed that 421 persons were charged with trafficking in narcotics offences.

These numbers, for the period JanuaryOctober 2017, were revealed by acting Crime Chief Paul Williams.

Of the 421, 310 persons were charged with marijuana offences while 111

individuals were charged for cocaine-related offences.

The statistics showed that the 310 marijuana

possession cases reflected a decrease of 171 cases as the corresponding figure during the same period in 2016 was 481.

In 2015, 503 persons were charged; in 2014, 454 and in 2013, 593.

For cocaine cases, there was an increase of continued on page 7

t seems that the Guyana Sugar C o r p o r a t i o n (GuySuCo) is not the only commercial enterprise the Government intends to withdraw State involvement from. Next on the agenda for a complete private takeover is the Guyana Stock Feeds Incorporated (GSFI).

In a notice originating from the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL), bids to purchase the Government’s shares in GSFI were invited from reputable organisations.

It is understood that NICIL holds 6.68 per cent of the total shareholding of the company, with the other shareholders retaining 93.32 per cent. Bidders must first register with NICIL and pay a Gy$10,000 registration fee.

They would then be provided with a Request for Proposals (RFP) document, a Memorandum with company details, guidelines for bidders and a draft share sales agreement. Adding that

NICIL CEO Horace James

it is not “bound to accept any proposal”, NICIL also issued a stipulation that these proposals must be submitted by December 7, 2017.

The GSFI was established in 1960, with the main purpose of supplying animal feed to Guyana’s livestock sector. In 1975, the then Government nationalised the GSFI and thus it stayed until 1998 when it was put back into private hands.

At the time, the State brought in a strategic partner to reorganise the business, which was losing market share to imported feeds. Today, after an initial consolidation period under new

management, the GSFI is a conglomerate with interest in the livestock, rice, and edible oil sectors. The enterprise itself is located in an industrial park at Farm, East Bank Demerara.

But NICIL’s time as a shareholder in the GSFI has not been a smooth ride, with repeated clashes over the years with principal shareholder and Pegasus owner Robert Badal. In fact, NICIL once took the GSFI to court and obtained an injunction against the enterprise.

Divestment

This is the latest in a series of moves by NICIL to free the Government of involvement in certain

enterprises. The most famous example is the divestment taking place at GuySuCo, under the auspices of a Special Purpose Unit (SPU).

The Unit has begun the process of selling the Corporation’s assets, including a number of estates. It has been soliciting proposals from companies or persons, either individually or as part of a joint venture or consortium “with an interest in the privatisation and/or diversification of Skeldon, Rose Hall, Wales and East Demerara ‘Enmore’ factories.”

The request for letters of interest by the SPU is identified as the first step in the process of finding and shortlisting buyers or investors.

The entity has noted too that in order to increase transparency, it is partnering with a suitably qualified international financial services firm “to provide technical and financial advisory support in the process leading to a successful privatisation and diversification of the sugar industry”.

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Haitians, other refugees deserve America’s help Dear Editor, The recent attack on immigrants and minorities in the United States by the Donald Trump Administration to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and send 60,000 Haitians back to suffering and pain in their country – the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere – is the latest in an alarming trend. Haiti cannot provide for them, and this decision is inhumane and unconscionable. This status was extended to Haitians, as America has done in the past with several other countries, after a destructive earthquake hit the island nation in 2010. With its poor economy, infrastructure and resources, Haiti is incapable of repatriating tens of thousands of people.

Conscious of, and humbled by, its people’s suffering, the Haitian Government had asked the Trump Administration to extend the protected status. After all, America has a conscience. Haitians are the second-largest group of foreigners with temporary status. The protection is extended to people already in the United States who have come from countries severely affected by natural disasters or armed conflict that prevent their

citizens from returning or prevent their country from adequately receiving them.

Roughly 40,000 people who lost their homes in the earthquake still live in camps for the displaced, and a cholera epidemic killed thousands of people in the aftermath of the earthquake.

Struggling to recover from the earthquake, they rely heavily on the money expatriates send to them back home to survive, but that lifeline will now be cut from them. Moreover, the decision to end the programme will uproot the lives of Haitians who have been in the United States for years, most of whom live in Florida, home to roughly two-thirds of Haitian TPS enrollees. Haitians sent home will face dire conditions, including lack of housing, inadequate health services and unemployment. It will precipitate double hardship.

Indeed, a permanent legislative solution must be found within the 18-month grace period. The move means that the Haitians given temporary protected status, or TPS, may remain until July 22, 2019, but could face deportation after that date. This is unconscionable, and a more humane solution must be found.

El Salvador has the largest group of Temporary Protected Status beneficiaries in the United States; nearly 200,000 people.

The Department of Homeland Security is scheduled to announce next month whether it will rescind or renew protection for that country, which is plagued by gang violence and high unemployment. The protection applies to Salvadorans who were in the United States without permission on February 13, 2001, and was granted after deadly earthquakes destroyed their home country.

Protection for Nicaraguans ended last month, and similar protection for Hondurans loom large. These countries’ citizens living in the US need help and humanitarian consideration also.

Others who now benefit include people from Nepal, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen, and the Trump Administration must not continue to err on the side of cruelty and hostility to these nationals. That’s not the America we want, nor is that the America we have been!

Sincerely, Albert Baldeo

Importance of child protection is personal Dear Editor, As Guyana joined the rest of the world in celebrating the 28th anniversary of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) on November 20, 2017, it is important that we recognise the connection between child protection and our nation’s well-being.

Protecting children from violence and abuse is critical to ensuring economic and social development in society, as well as achieving several of the United Nations’ Sustainable Developmental Goals (UN SDGs).

More importantly, it is about doing the right things to keep children safe from all forms of abuse.

There has been an increase in the number of cases of child abuse reported to the Child Care and Protection Agency (CCPA) over the past several years. According to ChildLinK’s Child Neglect in Guyana Report, there were 2745 reported cases of child abuse in 2014. In 2016, the number of reported cases increased to 4015 – an increase of 19 per cent.

While it is important to know the reason for the increase in re-

ported cases, the impact of child abuse and the importance of ensuring children are protected need to be at, or near, the forefront of our national deliberations. When we fail to ensure that children are protected from violence and abuse, there is a possible constraint to Guyana’s ability to achieve several of the UNs’ SDGs; Number Four – ensuring quality education and promoting lifelong learning, and Number Eight, which seeks to promote sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all. This suggests that children who experience abuse are likely to remain poor, disadvantaged, and less likely to contribute to Guyana’s development.

The ChildLinK 2016 study: An Analysis of the Nature and Extent of Institutionalisation of Children in Guyana (Bess-Bascom) revealed that girls between the ages of 10 and 16 are vulnerable to being placed in institutional care as a result of sexual abuse. The continued sexual abuse of girls will hinder Guyana’s ability to achieve the UN SDG Number Five, which seeks to achieve gender equality and empower all women and

girls. Gender equality cannot be realised if girls are subject to sexual abuse and are separated from their families.

According to the Child Neglect in Guyana Report, the main contributing factor to child neglect is lack of finances. Affected income earning capacity may contribute to either a cycle of poverty or a resort to criminal activity — a national security concern. Child neglect and child poverty will hinder Guyana’s ability to achieve the UN SDG Number One, which aims to end poverty in all its forms.

Ultimately, the issue of the importance of child protection is personal. Every child has the right to grow up in an environment in which they feel safe and have the freedom to learn as well as to explore their potential.

Stronger legislation and improved policies, once implemented and enforced, will not only improve the quality of life for children, but the economic and social well-being of our nation.

Yours faithfully, Hasani Tinnie Child Rights Alliance

Is there no stopping the madness at City Hall?

Dear Editor, It is mind-boggling how the train wreck called the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown are being allowed to hurtle toward complete disaster at break neck speed taking all of the citizens of Georgetown with them into proverbial hell, while those in authority are pretending as though everything is honky dory at City Hall.

Reading the recent letter appearing in the dailies, authored by the Chief Constable is very instructive.

Why the Social Protection Ministry and the Police have not taken assertive action against the heads at City Hall is just unbelievable. Are we to understand that these senior operatives of the City Council are above the law, or is statutory rape of a minor no longer considered a seri-

ous offence in Guyana?

About this wanton waste of property rates in useless and unnecessary travel by municipal delegations led by the Mayor, will they be allowed to continue unabated?

On what legal basis has the Georgetown City Council made the decision to grant a 100 per cent waiver of interest of outstanding property rates. The law clearly only gives them the authority to

grant a discount in special instances, not wipe out all of the interest at their whims and fancies. Will someone have to take them to court to stop this illegal practice that they embark on every time they are broken?

And why are they being allowed to withhold statutory deductions being made from their employees’ salaries? Is it no longer a serious offence to with-

UK Guyanese diaspora object to unilateral GECOM appointment Dear Editor, I spent some two weeks this month in the United Kingdom, travelling around and interacting with Guyanese and other Caribbean and South Asian diaspora communities, and discussing varied issues relating to immigrants and minorities. Naturally, politics in Guyana was the focus of discussion among all Guyanese and most Caribbean nationals.

Several of them raised issues, including the controversial appointment of retired Justice James Patterson as Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).

The recent unilateral appointment of Patterson as GECOM Chair was the center of conversation of every Guyanese I met.

Some Caribbean nationals are also well versed on the issue, perhaps learning about it from Guyanese. The Guyanese diaspora in the UK are polarised on the issue, based on party affiliation and race.

I was astounded at the level of interest in Guyana’s politics by the diaspora in UK, given most British Guyanese left their homeland several decades ago (1950s thru 1970s). While they may not be as familiar or as attuned with Guyana’s day-to-day political or economic affairs as many Guyanese are in North America, they are current and up to date on the controversial GECOM appointment.

Almost every Guyanaborn and their adult British-born descendant seem to have some kind of knowledge of the GECOM matter. Every Guyanese I spoke with, irrespective of party affiliation and ethnicity, expressed disappointment with the way the appointment of Patterson as GECOM Chair was handled. They objected to the idea of a unilateral appointment by President Granger. Almost everyone felt there should have been some kind of consen-

sus (by the Government and the Opposition) on an appointee, instead of the President acting unilaterally to choose someone in whom he (and by extension the Government) has confidence to head the elections body.

Based on my interaction with many Guyanese, supporters of the PPP and AFC in the UK objected to James Patterson as GECOM Chair.

Supporters of the AFC feel their party’s leadership should not have endorsed the way the appointment was done, nor should they have endorsed the appointee himself. Almost every PPP and AFC supporter felt the President had violated the spirit of the Constitution, if not the Constitution itself.

But PNC supporters are not as vociferous in their objection to President Granger’s unilateral appointment, although they are not pleased with how the issue was handled. PNC supporters, some of whom claimed they visited Guyana last year for the 50th anniversary independence celebrations, are split on the issue. Some back President Granger’s action, and some are not supportive.

Everyone feels the country is badly divided, and that racial healing is urgently needed. People do not feel the Government has been doing much to unite the nation.

Guyanese of all political affiliation expressed admiration for the action taken by Messrs Joe Singh (former GECOM Chair) and respected Accountant Chris Ram -- to resign from Government appointments after the President rejected them as “not being fit and proper” to head GECOM. Every UKbased Guyanese said both gentlemen and several others among the 18 submitted by the Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo would have made an excellent Chair of GECOM. Yours truly, Vishnu Bisram

hold Pay As You Earn taxes from the Guyana Revenue Authority, and contributions for the National Insurance Scheme? Why are these agencies failing to prosecute them?

The Finance Chairman announced his intention and that of the Council to begin retrenching workers very soon. The workers cannot be penalised for the maladministration and financial recklessness of the Council. It is the Finance Committee, the Town Clerk and the City

Treasurer that should be immediately removed. But which workers will they be retrenching?

How much longer will the Council be propped up?

How much longer will they be allowed to give out contracts for hundreds of millions of dollars to a few relatives and friends in breach of all the tender and procurement laws of Guyana?

Is there no stopping the madness?

Sincerely, Mark Roopan

news 7

WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

calls on Govt for establishment Cocaine cases AFC of Integrity Commission increased A by 44%... from page 5

44 per cent, as the 111 cases filed this year reflected a spike up from 49 cases up to October last year. In 2015, there were 132; in 2014, 111 and in 2013, 141 cases.

The acting Crime Chief in his analysis suggested that success in cracking down on the cocaine trade was owed to increased collaborations between the Police Force and the Customs AntiNarcotics Unit (CANU).

“Because of the collaborative effort between the Police and CANU [and] numerous training, this would have made the detection rate very high. The couriers may have run out of style in terms of how they are able to move,” Williams observed.

Self-confessed drug lord Barry Dataram was convicted and sentenced to spend 60 months (five years) in jail and fined Gy$164,268,000 after he was found guilty, in absentia, of possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking in September 2016. On April 16, 2015, at 661 Fourth Avenue,

Block X Diamond, East Bank Demerara, Police found Dataram and others with 60.840 kilograms of cocaine in their possession for the purpose of trafficking.

The others, including his reputed wife, Anjanie Boodnarine, were all freed. Dataram is also currently serving time for additional crimes, including illegal ammunition possession, passport forgery, absconding from the law and illegal departure.

CANU agents in recent months have increased patrols on land and on the country’s waterways and ports, in efforts to reduce trafficking. Although Police are basking in their success, many advocacy groups are still calling for decriminalisation of small amounts of marijuana and for Magistrates to impose alternative sentencing, including community service. It has been observed that such measures could assist in reducing the prison population.

s time marches on without a functioning Integrity Commission in place, even the governing coalition’s minority partner, the Alliance For Change (AFC) has grown impatient with the slow pace of change.

At the conclusion of the National Executive Council (NEC) last weekend, the minority party demanded, in a statement, that the Integrity Commission be treated as a matter of national priority.

Noting that it remained fully committed to its role in the advancement of constitutional reform in Guyana, the AFC called for the establishment of the Integrity Commission by the Government – of which a number of its own members are a part.

Guyana Times International made contact with AFC executive and Public Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes.

However, she declined to comment on the AFC’s role in the process. Calls to other AFC Ministers went unanswered.

The history of the Integrity Commission is a tempestuous one.

For years, the Integrity Commission has been in limbo

In 1999, the previous Government had sworn in members to the Commission. But since the 2006 resignation of the Commission’s Chairman, Bishop Randolph George, the body has been headless.

In January 2016, Government used its one-seat parliamentary majority to turn down a motion tabled by the Opposition that would provide for all Members of Parliament (MPs) making public declarations of taxable income and all assets over the last 10 years to the

Integrity Commission which would be released to the public.

The coalition had noted that it was not in favour of the public declaration, and would prefer to make such disclosures to the Integrity Commission instead.

It had said that such a move would violate the privacy of members.

In defeating the motion, the Government MPs had proposed amendments to the motion for the National Assembly to support the enforcement of the legal requirement for all MPs

to file their Income Tax returns and make declarations to the Integrity Commission.

However, that proposal was protested by the Opposition and eventually resulted in MP Juan Edghill calling for his motion to be withdrawn, arguing that the amendments significantly changed the intent of the original motion. But the coalition MPs declined the withdrawal request and at the end of the debate, succeeded in passing the amended motion. continued on page 11

8 news

WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

9 women entrepreneurs to benefit Trinidadian accused of faking his own kidnapping in from business coaching, mentoring Guyana granted Gy$1m bail

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he 33-year-old Trinidadian who came to Guyana and allegedly attempted to fake his own kidnapping was on Tuesday granted bail in the sum of Gy$1 million when he reappeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan.

Sawak Maraj made his third appearance at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, where he was previously arraigned for giving false information to the Police and for conspiring with others to commit a felony.

Maraj, who was also ordered to lodge his passport at the Courts, is expected to reappear on December 4, 2017.

The prosecution’s case is that on October 27, 2017, at Madewini Resort, Timehri, East Bank Demerara (EBD), Maraj allegedly gave false information to the Police that he had been kidnapped and US$700,000 was demanded for his release.

The Police, upon investigating, found that the claim was false.

It is also alleged that on the same day at the same location, Maraj conspired with others to commit a felony, that is to say, he knowingly conspired to obtain US$700,000.

However, Maraj maintains his innocence and his lawyer stated that his client is being made a victim twice – by his abductors and the Guyana Police Force (GPF).

Reports indicate that Maraj arrived in Guyana and was scheduled to check in at the Ramada Princess Hotel at Providence, EBD, but never showed up.

Maraj’s parents back in Trinidad were contacted by an unknown person, who revealed that their son

was in unlawful custody in Guyana while demanding a large sum of money for his release.

A photograph of the shirtless man with a cutlass to his neck was sent to his parents as evidence.

However, Police investigators, acting on intelligence received, swooped down on the Madewini Resort and reportedly found the man vacationing with his alleged accomplices.

On November 16, 2017 – when the case was last called – Chief Magistrate McLennan had reprimanded the investigating rank after he failed to show any substantial progress in the matter since it was brought before the courts two weeks prior.

The previous session was scheduled for submission of statements by the prosecution.

However, when the matter was called before the Chief Magistrate, Prosecutor Arvin Moore indicated to the court that he had no statements and was not ready to proceed to trial, as there were “a few more points to clear up”.

According to Moore, the case had to be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for an Early Case Assessment Programme (ECAP) Prosecutor to be assigned.

This, he said, has to be done before statements can be filed.

The court also heard that the Prosecution sought advice of the Police Legal Advisor (PLA), who directed that the parents of the accused be contacted.

However, the Police were unable to do so.

Responding to the Prosecutor at the time, defence lawyer Senior Counsel Bernard De

Sawak Maraj, the Trinidadian engineer who allegedly faked his kidnapping in Guyana

Santos bashed the prosecution for impeding the process of a fair and timely trial for the accused, who is not only a foreign national but is also incarcerated.

“They (the parents) are not only here; they’ve been here for two weeks now,” De Santos had informed the court.

The lawyer, in a renewed application for bail, informed the court that it was unfair to incarcerate his client in the inhumane conditions that exist at the Lusignan Prison.

In addition, De Santos had argued that Maraj did not pose any flight risk, as the Police were in possession of his travel documents, and his parents have also entered into a contract to rent accommodations pending the outcome of the trial.

Nonetheless, the Prosecutor had maintained a strong objection to bail being granted on the basis that the lodging of a travel document did not provide assurance that the defendant would not flee the jurisdiction.

In strengthening his submission, the Prosecutor informed the court that the defendant had previously been involved in a case of similar nature, in which Interpol had become involved.

First Lady Sandra Granger and six of the nine participants who are expected to benefit from the second WINC AP accelerated programme for women in business. Founder and Managing Director of GeoTech Vision, Valrie Grant, is also pictured first from left

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ine Guyanese women will be participating in the second Women Innovators Network in the Caribbean Acceleration Programme (WINC AP) for women entrepreneurs. The women were selected from a total of 250 applicants from across the Caribbean.

First Lady Sandra Granger attended the opening session of the eightmonth programme, which was hosted at the GeoTech Vision office on Brickdam. In an invited comment, the First Lady said she was proud of the women, and that she is confident they would capitalise on the opportunity to learn the skills that they need to grow their businesses.

GeoTech Vision is a company that specialises in innovative spatial technologies and business ICT solutions, and is an accredited World Bank /Infodev AP Facilitator for the Caribbean. Its Founder and Managing Director, Valrie Grant, has said the programme is primarily based on facilitation of peer-to-peer learning among growth-oriented women.

The programme is designed to teach participants “a more advantageous context, leading to improved business performance and investment,” Grant has said, adding that “these growth-oriented entrepreneurs will learn from each other (and) they will be co-creating”.

Grant has said this entrepreneurship ecosystem approach emerged after it was found that creating an enabling environment for business start-ups was not leading to the creation of highgrowth firms.

As such, the WINC partnered with

large firms, service providers, civil society and universities to mentor the women, teaching them how to overcome challenges in relation to financing, owning and growing their businesses.

Participant Christine Gooding, owner of ‘Market Square’, has said she is looking forward to the training, and expects to gain a wealth of information that would help her to take her business to the next level.

“I’m definitely looking forward to (knowing) how I can get funding for my business; how I can leverage my business to gain a bigger market within the country, and also ways in which I can work for persons regionally perhaps,” she said.

The other eight participants are: Veronica Glen, Wanda Dillon, Maxine George, Cecily Bernard, Natasha Goodman, Candace Wickham, Petal Dodson, and Claudette Fredericks.

Over the training period, the participants will learn how to advance their ventures using networks; how to access financing; and how to link business with technology.

According to a statement from the Ministry of the Presidency, the programme includes business coaching and mentoring, as well as personal development sessions.

Chargé d’Affaires of the Canadian High Commission, Jan Sheltinga; General Manager-Credit, Republic Bank (Guyana) Limited, Parbatie Khan; and owner of ActionCoach Guyana, Vishnu Doerga, also spoke at the event.

Region 9 communities receive Gy$2.6M in grants for development projects

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Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Minister Sydney Allicock (left) presenting the cheque to Fair View Toshao Lucy Marslow

inister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Sydney Allicock, on Friday last handed over the sum of Gy$2.6 million in community grants to the villages of Kwatamang, Rupertee, and Fair View in Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper

Essequibo), to facilitate the undertaking of green, sustainable projects under the Presidential Grant Fund.

Kwatamang and Rupertree each received Gy$800,000, for construction of a community centre and a sanitary block continued on page 9

NEWS 9

WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Bishops’ High School teacher accused of sexual grooming …denies allegations but admits to dating former students …protesters call for head teacher’s dismissal

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everal activists and members of civil society took to the streets on Tuesday, calling for the sacking of Winifred Ellis, Headmistress of The Bishops’ High School, following her alleged derogatory remarks aimed at female students.

Her remarks came in light of the recent widely-publicised sexual assault allegations against a male teacher of the school, to which she allegedly turned a blind eye.

The Education Ministry has launched a full-fledged investigation into the appalling allegations that Bishops’ High School economics teacher Coen Jackson groomed female students and then had sexual relationships with them. Meanwhile, several calls were made for the Education Ministry and the Child Care and Protection Agency to step up and have the matter taken to the Police.

Over the course of the latter part of last week, allegations of Jackson’s grooming and sexual molestation of several teen-

agers while serving in the capacity of an economics teacher took social media by storm.

A formal complaint against the teacher of over 15 years was made to the Education Ministry over last weekend and was addressed to the Education Minister Nicolette Henry; Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan; Social Protection Minister Amna Ally; Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence; Legal Affairs Minister Basil Williams and Social Cohesion Minister, Dr George Norton.

Since then, Chief Education Officer Marcel Hutson has informed the media that an investigation has been launched, while the Social Protection Ministry issued a short statement outlining that it was “aware of the allegations levelled against a senior teacher at The Bishops’ High School. The matter is currently under investigation and the Ministry is actively involved in this process. The Ministry takes these complaints seriously and holds

Youman Nabi to be observed on Dec 1

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he Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG) has on Monday advised that the Muslim festival of Youman Nabi will this year be observed on Friday, December 1.

This is because the moon signalling the commencement of the third Islamic month of Rabi’ al-awwal has not yet been sighted, thereby confirming that date for the observation.

Youman Nabi, also known as Mawlid al Nabi, is the celebration of the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad, the Founding Prophet of Islam.

Although Islam claims earlier prophets all the way back to Adam, the first man recorded in the Creation narrative, it holds up Muhammad as the final prophet, who gave definitive shape to the religion of Islam.

The CIOG, in its release, has extended best wishes to all Muslim brothers and sisters at home and abroad, ahead of the celebration of Youman Nabi this year.

Region 9 communities ...

from page 8

respectively; while a sum of Gy$1,000,000 was presented to Fairview for the construction of a Village Office.

Toshao and representative of the Fair View community, Lucy Marslow, explained that construction of the village office would add to the many projects being commenced to facilitate community development, as she expressed gratitude to the Government for its continued support.

Thus far, a total of Gy$300,000 has been injected into the con-

struction of a hot meal kitchen, and there are plans to construct a village restaurant, for which some Gy$5 million is to be received.

These ventures are a part of the Community Development Project (CDP).

Minister Allicock, at the time attending the North Rupununi District Development Board (NRDDB) meeting in Apoteri, encouraged proper management of funds and maintenance of projects.

Accused teacher, Coen Jackson (second from left) flanked by his attorneys

paramount the protection of our nation’s children.”

As news of the alleged sexual molestation implicating Jackson broke out on social media, a number of past students reportedly came forward and related similar experiences.

Meanwhile, in the presence of his attorneys (Jerome Khan, Priyanka Sookraj and Siand Dhurjan), Jackson broke his silence on the allegations against him, which claimed that he abused his position of trust as a teacher and groomed female, and some male, students for sexual activity.

At a press conference on Tuesday, in the office of Attorney Khan, Jackson denied the allegations made against him.

He said that the complainant “has created this caricature of me as a beast, as a predator. There are many students that could testify on my behalf. My professional conduct, my ability in the subjects that I teach, the performance record of me as a teacher is there. I have contrib-

uted to the CoI on education…I have a track record of high performance.”

However, Jackson did admit to dating two former students of Bishops’.

He explained that he was currently in a relationship with a 21-yearold former student and has been involved with the young woman for a number of years.

Jackson posited his belief that the matter was only brought to light by a notorious character in society only after he [the complainant] became engaged in an intimate relationship with a former student of The Bishop’s High School, with whom Jackson had been involved.

“In the process, I have been accused, prosecuted and convicted in the court of public opinion…I wish to deny the accusation being peddled by [the complainant] and believe that he is using this as a basis for his self-promotion, disregarding what damage is done to many, many persons’ profession, reputation and character,” he

said.

Jackson and his attorneys noted that there have been several libellous statements made on social media and that they were monitoring them and would take further action soon.

The accused also indicated that he was open to any type of scrutiny by any government agency and/or ministry.

Head teacher’s reaction

The news first broke on social media with several former students confirming the allegations. It was in light of this that Headmistress Ellis called a general assembly, where she allegedly berated students for not defending Jackson.

“I remember once I am coming down the corridor and I had to step back and ask a child to close her legs. A male teacher is teaching. How many times I telling y’all, don’t touch the boys. Don’t touch the boys. How much times I am standing at my office door and when y’all see me y’all running inside ‘cause

you hugging and touching the boys? You are very slack. Very loose with youself,” Ellis allegedly told the assembly after a purported recording of her was leaked .

“Do you know, Mr Jackson? I want to see the hands…if you felt uncomfortable at any time, step out the line. If he ever touched you and you tell me, step out of the line.

Y’all saw it on (Facebook) right? Y’all know what I talking about, right? Can you corroborate that story? I didn’t see any of you going and defend him on this story. Not one. Don’t lie. Tell the truth!” she further declared.

Outraged by her alleged actions, several former students, activists and members of civil society picketed the top secondary school on Tuesday.

Organiser of the picketing exercise, activist Akola Thompson related that a resounding call should be made for the termination of Ellis as head of one of continued on page 10

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WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Foreign Service Officers benefit 10th Annual Medical-Scientific Conference Medical research papers from orientation programme

highlight use of local materials

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T

Director of the Foreign Service Institute, Ambassador Ronald Austin (front centre) with the newly-recruited FSOs

he Foreign Affairs Ministry concluded a five-day orientation programme for newly-recruited Foreign Service Officers (FSOs) last Friday at the Roraima Duke Lodge in Kingston, Georgetown.

Each day senior officials from the Ministry as well as national diplomats, among others, delivered a series of presentations to enrich each FSO’s understanding of Guyana’s foreign policy, the Ministry’s mission and responsibilities, diplomatic protocol and etiquette, among other topics.

Director of the Foreign Service Institute, Ambassador Ronald Austin, noted that “it was a very important ex-

ercise in that it was an opportunity for the officers to acquire knowledge of diplomacy.

Over the past week, new recruits to the Ministry gained a better understanding in areas such as economic diplomacy, the culture of different nations, the changing international environment and knowledge on how they should conduct themselves.”

Furthermore, according to one FSO, “The orientation programme gave us a chance to seek clarity on questions we had since starting our jobs at the Ministry. When we return to work, we can apply what we learned…”

US$20M Exxon signing bonus: Jagdeo says Govt should resign...

from page 3

Government’s Petroleum Advisor Dr. Jan Mangal has said he had told the coalition Government to release the contract in the interest of transparency.

Asked by the media, the Finance Minister declined to confirm or deny whether the Government was paid the sum of US$20 million by ExxonMobil when it granted the oil giant a production licence.

“I cannot confirm anything.

Somebody said we have received US$20 million,” Jordan said. “I will check and see whether we did receive US$20 million. I will check and see whether we received any bonus of any kind, signature or otherwise; and how much it was, if at all.”

In June 2017, Exxon was granted its formal production licence. Before that, reviews were done of the technical and environmental aspects of the Liza Project Development Plan submitted by Esso Exploration and Production (Guyana) Ltd in December 2017.

As per the agreement the coalition Government made with Exxon, there will be a two per cent royalty per barrel of oil and a 50/50 share of profits.

This 2 per cent is, however, below the global average.

The Government has justified the two per cent royalty by contrasting it with the 50/50 share of the profits; an arrangement that the Government has said is a reasonable one, arrived at through the advice of experts. Some had opined that a revenue-sharing arrangement would be a better option than a profit-sharing one.

There has been a flurry of activ-

ities in the Stabroek Block, since ExxonMobil’s 2015 oil find in Guyana.

In May of that year, Exxon confirmed that more than 295 feet of high-quality oil-bearing sandstone reservoirs had been encountered at its Liza 1 exploration well.

In late June 2016, Exxon’s drilling results at Liza 2 revealed more than 58 metres of oil-bearing sandstone reservoirs in Upper Cretaceous formations.

The well was drilled to a depth of 5,475 metres at 1,692 metres water depth.

Drilling results confirmed recoverable resources to be between 800 million and 1.4 billion barrels of oil equivalent. Data from the Liza 2 well test is being assessed.

The company has announced that it had made its third significant discovery in its drilling explorations offshore Guyana. Its partner, Hess Corporation, had noted that the Liza 3 exploratory well’s net value could be US$6.2 billion based on calculations from the Bank of Montreal (BMO) Capital Markets.

Drilling on Payara well began on November 12, 2016, with initial total depth reached on December 2, 2016.

In January of this year, the oil giant had announced it had struck oil in its Payara-1 well, targeting the same type of reservoirs as the well’s Liza counterpart.

The Stabroek Block is 6.6 million acres. Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (Exxon’s subsidiary) 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.

n its pursuit to promote research findings by doctors at the post-graduate level, the Institute of Health Sciences Education (IHSE) held its tenth Annual MedicalScientific Conference at the Ramada Princess Hotel at Providence, East Bank Demerara last Sunday.

This allowed doctors the opportunity to present their research findings to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) administration and those responsible for managerial changes.

Director of the Institute of Health Sciences Education, Dr. Alexandra Harvey, said she was happy to be able to continue providing a forum for local healthcare practitioners to present their research findings.

“We (IHSE) are continuing to work to improve this whole culture of researching in the medical environment, because we feel (that) in order to improve healthcare delivery, it should

Director of the Institute of Health Sciences Education, Dr Alexandra Harvey

be based on evidence, to allow for sustainable practices, thereby delivering quality healthcare to our patients.” Dr. Harvey explained.

This, she opined, would boost the credibility of healthcare delivery among peers and the public alike.

Dr. Harvey noted that research papers presented at the meeting promoted the use of local materials, as opposed to importing these supplies.

“We had the papers relating to things that can be used practically here in Guyana.

Using local materials for shielding people that are getting their x-rays, instead of importing the barriers normally used to prevent our patients and ourselves from getting the bad effects of the x-ray. It is possible to use materials that are made here,” Dr. Harvey said.

In addition to the use of local alternative material as a structural shield for diagnostic radiological facilities, some of the other topics discussed during the conference dealt with team-building exercises for doctors and nurses working in the Accident and Emergency units, and educating the GPHC female patients on the correct approach and practices in relation to cervical cancer.

According to the Department of Public Information, the conference, hosted under the theme “Transforming Health Care: Celebrating 10 years of residency education and research in Guyana”, attracted more than 200 local medical practitioners and overseas associates.

from page 9

Bishops’ High School teacher...

Nicole Cole

Guyana’s most senior high schools.

“After the allegations about Coen Jackson would have broken, one of the first things the Headmistress did was call an assembly and basically victim blame and castigate students for not coming to the defence of an [alleged] predator. That is a very dangerous message to be sending to your students, particularly when it comes to female students, because we already have a high rate of persons not coming forward…,” she said. “…so when we have situations like this now, it just makes it more difficult, because persons feel like they have nowhere to go. If they have no faith in the system, then we will continue to fail them,” Thompson posited.

She noted that there was widespread information, in almost every school in Guyana, of some teacher having sexual thoughts of students and in some instances those thoughts are acted upon with no consequences.

At one point during the protest, stu-

dents held placards out of the windows in counter protest. One of the placards read “Our HM did not fail us.”

“We just had the kids up there saying that their HM did not fail them and I think this says a lot about what will happen with this school and it’s mostly about protecting the reputation of the school rather than protecting the students,” Thompson lamented.

Meanwhile, activist and Commissioner of the Rights of the Child Commission, Nicole Cole, said that no adult has the right to berate children, particularly students, the way Ellis allegedly did. She noted that ever since the recording was shared on Monday, she made the call for Ellis to be removed, adding that what she did was “victimise the victims”.

“What she has done is to make every child who would have gone through the heinous abuse re-victimise them twice.

Just like the court system. We wonder why Guyana has a burgeoning rape culture. It’s because of adults like her. Here she is telling the students how loose they are. I wanna say to you, Ms Winifred Ellis, you are loose, you are slack, you are running a bloody horror school, not The Bishops’ High School, because if you had this teacher in your midst and information has come that you have girls who are subjected to abuse, then you have a right to intervene and to ensure that those students are given the best type of care,” Cole declared.

Also among the protesters was former student Kemol King, who said that Ellis failed to create a safe environment for the victims of Coen’s abuse and as such, she should be dismissed with immediate effect.

“She did not try to create a safe environment for these students to air their complaints, so we believe that Ms Ellis, the head mistress, because of the things she said, she should be dismissed and so we’re calling for the administration to dismiss Ms Ellis immediately,” King said.

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AFC calls on SARA Head defends claims Govt for... of political bias from page 7

While there is no functioning Integrity Commission, a ministerial Code of Conduct was gazetted in June of this year. The Code of Conduct is made up of 11 Articles. Article One prohibits public officials from taking bribes, while Article Two focuses on discrimination.

Article Three prohibits public officials from accepting “any gift, benefit or advantage from anyone, (except) personal gifts from a relative or friend”.

This provision, it states, does not apply to gifts received on behalf of the State.

Article Five states: “No public (official) shall use his or her official influence in support of any scheme or in furtherance of any contract or proposed contract or other matter in regard to which he or she has an interest.”

Article Six has provisions for ensuring confidentiality. It prohibits public officials from disclosing any information that is classified as privileged or confidential, to any unauthorised person. Article Seven prohibits officials from using public property such as money, equipment, supplies or services for unapproved purposes.

Article Nine prohibits public officials from accepting “lavish or frequent entertainment” from any person or entity that the Government has or may have dealings with. This, the Article notes, includes invitations to sporting events and concerts.

Article 10 prohibits officials from using their office in an improper manner for personal gain, while the final article forbids anyone in public life from having outside employment “except with the written consent of the relevant authority”.

…Opposition says Agency being run by “political hacks”

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lthough the State Assets Recovery Agency (SARA) has been accused of being politically biased, the Head of that agency has rejected those claims, stating that there was no evidence to prove that was true.

Professor Dr Clive Thomas said he recognised that there have been some concerns raised regarding that very issue, but asserted: “We have not gone after any political person. There is no evidence of that.”

While recognising that SARA has also been heavily criticised for its work, the Head of the Agency said he did not take those criticisms seriously because they were baseless.

“I don’t take the criticism as anything but a promotional exercise on the part of those who have something to hide,” he asserted, explaining that SARA served a significant purpose.

Professor Thomas said the institution was operating within the confines of the law and everything that it was engaged in were serious matters of alleged misuse of public assets and funds.

While commenting on the cases that SARA has worked on so far, Dr Thomas said

these types of cases tend to be slow, mainly because case building is something that takes a lot of time and patience. “…Because you have to make sure that in this environment the first set of cases that we take to the court are successful so that we build on that reputation going forward,” he explained.

However, while time could pose a problem, he said the sums of money involved were mostly huge and the cases were, therefore, worth the patience, explaining reasons for seeking training assistance from the Caribbean.

He said, “Some cases [Special Organised Crime Unit] SOCU investigating, significant numbers have been taken to the point where they themselves have recommended to the [Director of Public Prosecutions] DPP that these cases be handed over to SARA for pursuit.”

However, the Opposition People’s Progressive Party (PPP) has vigorously opposed the appointment of Dr Thomas; the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Aubrey HeathRetemyer, Tacuma Ogunseye and Eric Phillips.

The PPP claims that all four men have close ties with the current Administration

and should not be entrusted to hold such high offices in Government. The Opposition also claims that all of the senior officials there are tainted political people and none of them are qualified on that ground alone.

Opposition Member of Parliament (MP) Anil Nandlall had argued that SARA, by the terms of the legislation that brought it into force, has tremendous law enforcement powers and only persons who are trained in the areas of law enforcement and related matters should be hired.

He said, “This Bill (State Assets Recovery Agency Bill 2017) has no place for politicians. So, if any of the current people, they are tainted political people and none of them are qualified on that ground alone.”

Former President Bharrat Jagdeo had also expressed his disappointment over the appointment of “political hacks” to SARA. Jagdeo had also made known the PPP’s intention to implement several changes to the SARA Bill 2017, if the Party was re-elected to office in 2020.

With the recent passage of the Bill during the last session of Parliament, SARA was created out of the

SARA Director, Dr Clive Thomas

State Assets Recovery Unit (SARU). The PPP had expressed concerns about this legislation setting the stage for the creation of a parallel justice system.

While noting that the Bill contained some good elements, Jagdeo, who is also the General Secretary of the PPP, said his Party would remove the ambiguity about private property.

Jagdeo said his Party would also ensure that the head of the unit was accountable to someone else, as opposed to leaving it to him to make his own decisions.

The PPP had argued that the Bill would create an environment that encouraged the violation of individuals’ constitutional rights and undermine the rule of law, since it has conferred on a single individual – the Director of SARA – powers that are 10 times greater than those of the Police Force.

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WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Excise Tax stamps on alcohol, Murdered tobacco products aim to school teacher deter smuggling- GRA laid to rest

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ollowing the launch of the Excise Tax Stamp programme recently, Customs Officers of the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) have already placed the first set of Excise Tax Stamps on imported alcohol at local outlets.

According to the GRA, this process has been implemented to ensure that all duties and taxes are paid on imported alcohol and tobacco and to verify that these products are legal and safe to consume.

As such, all “importers and retailers of alcohol and tobacco products are required to stamp each bottle of alcohol (excluding beers) and cigarette packs”, the Authority outlined.

The GRA says it has teamed up with Canadian Bank Note (CBN) to reduce the amount of alcohol and tobacco smuggled through Guyana’s porous borders. The CBN has committed to designing, producing and shipping stamps to Guyana.

According to Deputy Commissioner of Excise Stamp and Environmental Levy,

A GRA officer demonstrating how the Excise Stamps will be affixed to alcoholic products

Rohan Beekhoo, the stamp is clearly identifiable with a host of security features such as metallic gold ink, heavy ink deposits inherent to the security printing processes, etc.

Additionally, Beekhoo pointed out that officers will be equipped with hand-held scanners to verify whether or not the stamp is authentic, if it was applied to the right product and whether all duties and taxes were paid.

The GRA, in a statement, said self-adhe-

sive tobacco and alcohol stamps will incur a cost of Gy$8 and Gy$16 per stamp respectively.

“Customs Officers have started verification checks to businesses, importers and persons selling these products to determine existing inventories before beginning the stamping process. The officers will be requesting documents and supporting evidence to corroborate that the items were legally imported. Once they are satisfied that the full payment of taxes was

made, payment for the stamps will be facilitated at GRA Headquarters cashier counter,” said the GRA. Moreover, the Revenue Authority cautioned that failure to pay the relevant duties and taxes and neglecting to stamp the products “will incur penalties ranging from 300 [per cent] of the tax value to five years’ incarceration”.

The GRA is urging all importers to register with the agency and indicate the amount of stamps required.

rief-stricken family members and friends of the late Kescia Branche tearfully bade her farewell last Saturday.

The 22-year-old teacher of the Richard Ishmael Secondary School died at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC) two days after her battered body was discovered lying at the corner of Princess Street and Lousia Row in Georgetown on the morning of November 5.

The cause of her demise has been determined as brain haemorrhaging and blunt trauma to the head.

At her ‘home-going’ ceremony, those who knew Branche reflected on her life, while others made a strong call for justice to be served.

Her devastated twin, Kessandra Branche, who had been at her bedside when she died, begged for her sister to return to her at the funeral service.

Kereece Branche, Kescia’s younger sister, described her as having been a driven and determined person who had fought for what she had accomplished in life.

“It always seems like Kescia was never too young

Kescia Branche

for anything, but this time she was,” Kereece said in her tribute, as she broke down in tears.

Head Teacher of the Richard Ishmael Secondary School, Melanie Jones, reiterated her called for justice to be served. “I do hope that they solve your case and that your killer or killers doesn’t or don’t disappear without a trace. This nonsense has become too commonplace, and I take the blame as part of the human race,” Jones said.

The mother of one was laid to rest at Buxton, East Coast Demerara.

Police are yet to charge anyone for her death.

Her ex-boyfriend, along with four cops, were questioned about her death, but were later released on station bail. Investigations are still ongoing.

Govt promises to take action on social issues

- as first Children’s Forum hosted

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he prevalence of social issues in all regions of Guyana is likely to be addressed in a swift manner, as children representing schools and communities in various regions across the country took the opportunity to voice their concerns at the first Children’s Forum held on Monday.

Held in observance of Universal Children’s Day, the event was hosted by the Childcare and Protection Agency (CPA),

through the Ministry of Social Protection, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

Children under the age of 12 expressed their views through various artistic forms, including dance, spoken word, dramatic poetry, and skits.

Most of the issues which were highlighted fell under the purview of the Ministry of Social Protection, and included

Merano Kent, representing one of the primary schools in Region One, delivering his views to leaders present

Government officials and other national leaders in attendance at the children’s forum

domestic violence, physical and sexual abuse, child abandonment and neglect, among other things. Infrastructural upgrades and better access to education were also mentioned.

Keen attention was paid to the children as they portrayed life in their various communities.

President David Granger, who attended the event, noted that the children – Guyana’s future leaders — can be assured that those in Government today would positively pave the way for them to fol-

low.

“You (the children) have to take over this country ten years from now, 20 years from now; and we are very happy that you are so articulate. Some of the criticisms are a little painful, but it means that the adults here will take note and try to make things better for you,” President Granger explained.

In keeping with Article 13 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which Guyana is a signatory, this initiative was sought after to provide an opportunity for

children to exercise their right to freedom of expression.

According to the Act, this includes “the liberty to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds regardless of frontiers either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art or through any other media of the child’s choice.”

Minister of Social Protection, Amna Ally, commended the Childcare and Protection Agency for the initiative. According to the Department of Public Information, she observed that the medium

gives children an equal opportunity to voice their concerns.

“We certainly take note of all the things that they have been saying; and we also take note, hence we are going to be making (and) we are going to be taking action based on recommendations that they have made…this is a very serious forum.”

The event was hosted at the Ramada Princess Hotel under the theme “The Voices of Our Children: Standing Strong and Speaking Out.”

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CCJ President urges judiciary to adopt strategic reforms

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ecommendations are being made for Guyana’s Judiciary to follow the lead of other jurisdictions, including the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) which has crafted new strategies in line with international best practice.

Making these recommendations was CCJ President Sir Dennis Byron, who was at the time addressing the Guyana Bar Association.

According to Byron, several complaints are usually levelled against the performances of judiciaries, the most common of which are the inordinate delays for trials to start, low performance and efficiency, high costs of court

operations, and the public’s lack of confidence in the system.

“Discussions on judicial independence usually concentrate on the tensions between the executive and the judiciary; but let us recall the definition of judicial independence as the guarantor of the right of the citizen to a fair and timely trial,” he cautioned.

“If the trial process fails to provide this, should the judges and the legal profession look at their influence on judicial independence? I want to introduce some ideas that have influenced our operations at the CCJ,” Sir Byron continued.

He said that an efficient court system is a process of continuous improvement. The legal luminary noted that the best courts are those that are continuously assessing where they are and developing plans to deal with systemic weaknesses. He noted that such courts also have to implement those plans, evaluate their effects, and then start over.

“In this regard, the International Framework for Court Excellence is a quality management system designed to help courts to improve their performance. The Framework is particularly useful to judicial policymakers and practitioners, and it prescribes a set of focused, clear and actionable core court performance measures,” Sir Byron explained.

“The Framework makes it clear that a court’s pathway to excellence will also be enhanced by open communication regarding its strategies, policies and procedures with court users and the public in general. (It) stresses the imperative for courts to be open and transparent about their performance, strategies, and processes, to ensure public respect and confidence in the judicial system and to publish details of what actions they are taking to address problems within the court system. This goes hand in hand with strategic planning,” he related.

He noted that one of the advantages of strategic planning is that important stakeholders, including the Bar, can use the opportunity to contribute to developing strategies which

would guide judicial performance.

“At the CCJ, we also embraced this concept, and now we are at the end of the first plan, from 2012 to 2017,” Sir Byron revealed. “We are currently in the process of developing the new plan for 2018 – 2023. I recommend a similar process for the courts here.”

In Guyana, some have argued that there is a need for the judiciary to be more proactive in carrying out its duties. These calls have gained more urgency in the wake of a fire earlier this year that gutted most of the Camp Street prison.

It was only last year that another fire had claimed the lives of 17 inmates.

According to the report of a Commission of Inquiry into the 2016 fire, the combination of being overcrowded, uncomfortable, and an unhygienic confinement creates ideal conditions for epidemics and for gangs to prosper and propagate discontent.

Moreover, the CoI found that reducing numbers in prison to manageable levels is the single most important priority for establishing safe, humane and purposeful prisons.

It was further noted that repeat offenders have increased by over 100 per cent, “indicating not only a waste of taxpayers’ dollars, but also the need for a more comprehensive and structured partnership within the wider justice system.”

But despite these recommendations, Director of Prisons, Gladwin Samuels, himself confirmed that at the time of the 2017 fire, over 1000 prisoners were being housed at the prison – a place of incarceration originally built to house half that number.

In addition, it was only after the 2017 fire that the judiciary took concerted steps to grant pre-trial liberty to remand inmates whose bail had previously been curtailed for various reasons.

From an infrastructure perspective, some steps have been taken to address some of the most prevalent complaints against the judiciary.

Those include the construction of a night court and a court dealing specifically with sexual violence cases.

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International firms submit tenders for GuySuCo valuation - selection to be completed by mid-December

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Representatives from PricewaterhouseCoopers

s Government moves ahead with plans to privatise and diversify the sugar industry, three firms who met the deadline for tender for International Financial Services Provider all made presentations to the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) evaluation team.

Head of the Special Purpose Unit (SPU) under NICIL, Colvin Heath-London said the second stage in the process of selecting an International Financial Services Provider was conducted on Monday at the Marriott Hotel in Georgetown. The SPU is expected to announce a selection by mid-December, he said.

The selected International Services Provider would be conducting the valuation of all assets related to the sugar estates up for privatisation and diversification, in addition to advisory, financial, and other related services. The three firms that met the October 30 deadline for submissions and made presentations are: Pricewaterhouse Coopers, Ernst & Young, and Deloitte.

Following the presentations, Heath-London said they were “all very engaging and the firms all have the international and regional experience as expected”.

Each of the firms included persons with substantial experience in sugar diversification and privatisation in the Region, and as such, the dialogue was rigorous and engaging.

The SPU Head also indicated that the other preparations were on track to have the assets ready for privatisation and/or diversification.

The SPU has been meeting with the management of the Guyana Sugar Corporation

(GuySuCo) as well as with other industry stakeholders, including the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) and the National Association of Agricultural, Commercial, and Industrial Employees (NAACIE).

According to a statement from the SPU on Monday, both GAWU and NAACIE expressed support for the Unit’s efforts to keep the estates operational in the interest of the economy and the workers.

The unions also expressed concern over the reported moving of equipment from the estates set for privatisation and diversification, and urged the SPU to quickly safeguard the assets to ensure the best possible deal for these estates and the workers and communities they support.

The SPU also met with executives of the Private Sector Commission (PSC).

The SPU has said it was interested in companies, both local and international, that could integrate the production of sugar into their existing operations and product mix. According to the Head, companies that are in rum production, other beverage manufacturing, and food processing, for example, would be ideal as potential operators of some of the current GuySuCo assets.

While factories could be sold to potential operators and investors, lands will not be sold but could be leased.

The Opposition has since said that the SPU, set up by the Administration in order to sell assets belonging to GuySuCo, is nothing but a vehicle for corruption that completely bypasses the established privatisation procedures and the sale of State assets.

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GAWU appeals to Govt: Keep sugar estates ‘open, First Haitian New York State Assembly Member, among more productive, save jobs’ other legislators outraged US scrapping of Haitian immigrants’ protected status

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GAWU President Komal Chand

overnment has postponed closure of the Rose Hall Sugar Estate from end of 2017 to sometime in 2018, and the Guyana Agriculture and General Workers Union (GAWU) is urging the administration to make this position permanent, so as to allow workers to keep their jobs.

GAWU President, Komal Chand, gave reasons for this proposal, stating that even during discussions with the Special Purposes Unit (SPU) of the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL), consensus was arrived at that the best position was to keep the estates open.

“We feel that is not enough. We don’t want them to push back; we want them to make the decision permanent. It should be reversed instead,” Chand told the Guyana Times International on Sunday.

The GAWU leader said officials from the SPU are interested in getting the estates functional. “They are talking about getting the work continuing, and they might pause for a few months, and that may be for the entire first crop in the next year,” he added.

Chand said that if everything goes well, “They feel that both estates have the potential to do well and to become sustainable.” He noted that during a meeting with the SPU officials on November 14, they also expressed concern with the removal of the assets of those estates, agreeing with GAWU. “In fact, we have commented on this matter and we made this aware to the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo)… It’s not private assets, but state

assets,” Chand further stated.

The GAWU official told this newspaper that if the sugar estates had not been nationalised in 1976, most of them would have already been closed by now. He said it is therefore important that Government reverse its plans to privatise those estates and factories, in order to save the industry.

However, he noted, “estates would not be able to continue on sugar revenues, but they can use bagasse to produce electricity and some other stuff, which GAWU had submitted in its proposal.”

He continued, “Keep them open and make these estates more productive, to bring down cost. We are hoping that we halt the decision to close and sell Skeldon and turn this industry around.”

State Minister Joseph Harmon recently announced plans to push back the closure of the Rose Hall Estate to 2018. The decision was taken to push back the closure until works being done by the SPU are completed.

Back in May, Government had announced plans to close the Enmore and Rose Hall Sugar Estates, sell the Skeldon Sugar Factory, reduce the annual production of sugar, and take on the responsibility of managing the drainage and irrigation services offered by GuySuCo. Ever since that announcement, workers attached to the various estates, backed by their unions –GAWU and the National Association of Agricultural, Commercial and Industrial Employees (NAACIE) — have taken to the streets in several protest demonstra-

tions, to signal to the Government the negative impact the closure will have on workers and the economy as a whole.

In fact, the Rose Hall Estate workers had only last week said it was not too late to reconsider closing the facility at the end of the crop. One of the workers’ representatives, Glen McCloud, had said the workers were hopeful that there would have been a relook at the intention, having recognised the obvious hardship that would result from the estate’s closure.

Last month, GuySuCo announced plans to retrench 2,500 workers by the end of this year; but GAWU said the downsizing and subsequent closure of sugar estates would lead to the loss of more than 15,000 jobs and the potential threat of poverty for between 50,000 and 100,000 people.

Workers believe Government has no plans in regard to making provisions for those workers who would be displaced by the closure of estates.

In regard to the Skeldon and Enmore estates, State Minister Harmon has explained that the SPU would have to conduct evaluations, surveys and inventory assessments before any steps are taken to actually sell them.

It was recently reported that the Private Sector Commission (PSC) has submitted a proposal for the acquisition of the East Coast Demerara estate. A statement from Head of the SPU, Colvin HeathLondon, last month detailed that an international accounting firm will be recruited to evaluate GuySuCo’s assets for privatisation and divestment.

Selected tenders were invited from Pricewaterhouse Coopers, Ernst & Young, Deloitte, and KPMG to provide the services to the SPU as international financial services provider. The selected firm would be conducting the valuation of all assets under the control of GuySuCo, in addition to other advisory and financial services.

After the winning firm is identified, which should be anytime, work will commence in regard to the valuation of the assets. The preparation of a prospectus is expected to be completed by the end of January 2018.

Rodneyse Bichotte is the first Haitian American from New York City to be elected to New York State Assembly

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he Unites States Administration’s recent decision to terminate the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for approximately 60,000 undocumented Haitian nationals residing there has not resonated well with Democratic congressional leaders and Caribbean legislators.

Immigrants from the Caribbean nation received protected status in 2010 after a devastating earthquake that left over 220,000 dead and 1.5 million people displaced.

The Temporary Protected Status (TPS) programme grants temporary visas to more than 435,000 people from 10 countries ravaged by natural disasters or war.

But the Administration, led by President Donald Trump says conditions in Haiti have now improved and its nationals can return safely.

A statement from the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Monday said the decision was made to terminate the TPS designation for Haitians, with a delayed effective date of 18 months, “to allow for an orderly transition before the designation terminates on July 22, 2019.”

Haitians therefore have 18 months to return.

"Significant steps have been taken to improve the stability and quality of life for Haitian citizens, and Haiti is able to safely receive traditional levels of returned citizens," the statement added.

However, House Democrat Leader Nancy Pelosi told BBC that: "Deporting tens of thousands of men and women back into the nation will only deepen the suffering in Haiti…I completely disagree with the characterization that the situation in Haiti has improved."

Moreover, New York State Assembly Member Rodneyse Bichotte, the daughter of Haitian immigrants and, who represents the predominantly Caribbean 42nd Assembly District in Brooklyn, New York told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) that she was “equally saddened and angered” by the decision.

“For anyone who has been to Haiti in recent months, it is clear that the administration's decision does not coincide with the dangerous reality on the ground,” said Bichotte, the first Haitian American from New York City to be elected to New York State Assembly. “The return of tens of thousands of people is only going to make

conditions worse.”

“Furthermore, it would be equally dangerous for the other hundreds of thousands of Central Americans who don't know any life other than their life in the US,” she added. “In addition, for both Haitians and Central Americans, their economic contributions to both the US and their home countries will now be lost. The fight must continue to address these inhumane and unconstitutional decisions.”

New York City Councilman Jumaane Williams, the son of Grenadian immigrants, who represents the 45th Council District in Brooklyn, said he was “appalled to hear the administration's decision, but I was not shocked. “This kind of callous, deliberate disregard for the well-being of hard-working immigrants, this disdain for our fellow human beings, is what we've come to expect from Donald Trump,” he told CMC. “Trump's own State Department has a travel advisory in place, which cites the dangers of travel to Haiti for Americans. Yet, he has no problem forcing Haitians, who came here in the wake of a devastating earthquake and outbreak of disease, to return to a country once again crippled by a natural disaster, Hurricane Matthew.

“It could not be clearer that his motives are xenophobic, that his priorities lie in creating fear and relegating certain people to a second class, and I will not stand for it. Fifty eight thousand Haitians living in the US under Temporary Protected Status will not stand for it, and their neighbours and communities will not stand for it,” Williams added.

According to a report from the CMC, US Congresswoman Yvette D Clarke, the daughter of Jamaican immigrants; Congressman John Conyers of Michigan, House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member and CBC chairman; and Congressman Cedric Richmond of Louisiana said in a joint statement that they were outraged by the decision that now forces the Haitian immigrants to return home.

“The people of Haiti demonstrated extraordinary resolve in their efforts to rebuild. These efforts have been supported by Haitian nationals here in the United States who have worked hard and sent money to family members and friends,” the statement said.

“These remittances are critical to the recovery, and have provided for basic needs, including education, agricultural restoration, business development and home reconstruction…

Although the administration granted Haitians another 18 months in the United States, the conditions on the ground clearly merit continuing TPS coverage, rather than terminating this essential, life-saving designation,” they added.

The lawmakers said that while campaigning in Miami, then-candidate Donald Trump called HaitianAmericans “hard-working, creative and industrious, and promised to be their 'greatest champion.'” Today, Donald Trump has broken that promise.

According to the BBC, the move to terminate TPS for Haitians comes after a similar step was taken against 5,000 Nicaraguans. Protection for 86,000 Hondurans in the US has been extended. A decision on El Salvador's status, which was given TPS after its 2001 earthquake, is due in January.

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Administration needs to better handle its financial affairs- economist

…as Guyana’s public debt increases to Gy$330B

By Samuel Sukhnandan

A

s Guyana’s debt continues to rise, there have been some concerns in several quarters of society that the coalition Government’s spending is spiralling out of control and should be better managed, or the country could be faced with insurmountable challenges in years to come.

Russia-trained economist and political commentator Ramon Gaskin is one of those persons who believe that the current Administration needs to do a better job at handling its financial affairs. Although debt has been an issue for many years, Gaskin considers this Government to be responsible for adding to the burden.

“This Government loves to borrow all the time. They love to borrow everything. They should just stop it. The problem is not the revenue (collection), it’s the expenditure,” the outspoken economist told Guyana Times International .

According to him, one of the best examples to show the David Granger-led Government has to take blame is the massive increase of the Disciplined Services payroll from Gy$4.2 billion to Gy$7 billion.

Gaskin noted that the increase was close to 60 per cent and included all the contract

Finance Minister Winston Jordan

workers who have been employed to work within or advise on the Disciplined Services.

While the coalition Government has broadened its revenue collection base by implementing several new measures since taking office, the economist said that focus now needed to be placed on broadening this base, to include royalties for Guyana’s natural resources, particularly bauxite.

“We have to start to get royalties that are being shipped out of Guyana. There is no country in the world that allows you to ship out natural resources or non-renewable without charging you royalties,” he advised, noting that locals were already overburdened by heavy

taxation.

Gaskin told this newspaper that if certain measures were not implemented soon, Guyana’s debt could spiral out of control and this could have a negative impact on the local economy. He also noted that Guyana’s debt has been increasing steadily over the years, at both the domestic and external levels.

“It is easier to service the debt now, because the economy is much bigger. But we are going back to the phase in 1992 where the per capita debt hasn’t changed much over the years,” he explained. He said 75 to 80 per cent of the old debt from 1992 which is about US$1.9 billion has been written off.

“So, although we’ve had many debts written off, we keep incurring more debt and adding to it…We borrow for everything. You want to do something, we go to the IDB (InterAmerican Development Bank) and they give you money for everything, for some programme, some survey and some nonsense. And we are creeping back up to the US$2 billion mark we had in 1992,” Gaskin warned.

The Finance Ministry’s recent Public Debt Annual Report has highlighted that since 2015, there has been a 4.1 per cent rise in Guyana’s indebtedness

to creditors. The report details that Guyana’s total debt, inclusive of external and domestic debt, increased to Gy$330 billion as of December 2016. The Ministry attributed this to disbursements from the ExportImport Bank of China towards the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) expansion project, as well as monies from multilateral creditors.

A breakdown of the figures shows that total external debt amounted to Gy$240 billion, 72.6 per cent of the total public debt. On the other hand, domestic debt stood at Gy$90.6 billion, or 27.4 per cent of the total. Multilateral creditors continued to be the predominant creditor category.

In 2012, the public external debt was Gy$277.8 billion, but by early 2015, that had been reduced to $236 billion. In similar manner, the domestic debt had been reduced from $93.4 billion in 2012 to $81.6 billion in 2015 before a sudden surge in the figures after the new Government took office.

The report noted that Guyana’s four main external creditors are the IDB; the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB); the State-owned ExportImport Bank of China (China EXIM Bank) and Venezuela’s State-owned oil company (PDVSA).

Economist Ramon Gaskin

Together, they constitute some 77.7 per cent of Guyana’s public external debt stock, as at end-December 2016, with the IDB the most dominant creditor. According to the report, the IDB has an average share of 42.0 per cent of the debt portfolio.

The CDB is Guyana’s second largest creditor, accounting for 12.6 per cent of total public external debt. The ExportImport Bank of China follows closely with a 12.5 per cent share of external debt, while Venezuela’s PDVSA accounted for 10.6 per cent. Of significant note is the fact PDVSA has recently been declared to be in default of its debts by a trade group in the US.

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WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

‘We may not agree with its findings but we have confidence in the Public Procurement Commission’ – Opposition Leader

By Samuel Sukhnandan

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hile the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) had made some general remarks regarding the work of the Public Procurement Commission (PPC), Opposition Leader Dr Bharrat Jagdeo has clarified that the Party still has confidence in the body although it did not agree with all of the reports.

During a recent press conference, Opposition Chief Whip Gail Teixeira had expressed that she had ‘no confidence’ in the PPC, since she believed that a thorough probe would not be conducted into the award of a contract to Dutch company

LievenseCSO for a feasibility study on the proposed new Demerara River bridge.

However, Jagdeo dismissed the “unfortunate characterisation” of comments made by the PPP/C Member of Parliament (MP). He said, “Reservations were expressed about the work of the PPC. We may have reservations about the pace in which the PPC does its work…we may not agree with all of its findings…”

However, the former Head of State noted that the PPP/C would continue to work with this body. “…we will continue to supply information to the PPC to expose the serious acts of corruption taking

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo

place in Guyana by this Government … we participated in the formation of the PPC, so even with those reservations, we have not lost confidence in the PPC.” Teixeira’s ‘no-confi-

State’s ignorance of pending litigation unacceptable- CCJ finds – as Dipcon awarded US$2.2M in appeal judgment

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he Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) has delivered a ruling on the matter involving the Attorney General (AG) of Guyana and Trinidad construction company Dipcon whereby the Government will now have to pay that company US$2.2 million, after losing its bid to appeal the judgment.

But the CCJ in its ruling pointed out that there were various timeframe violations, on all of which detailed comments were given in the written judgment. It said these very factors highlight how unacceptable were the reasons for the State’s failure to be aware of this pending litigation and the award of judgment.

It also noted its failure to apply urgently for an extension of time within which to appeal.

“To say, regardless of who was in Government, that the State failed to satisfy the most basic standard of care is an understatement,” noted the Court in the written judgment, which was released a few days ago.

In delivering his ruling, CCJ President, Sir Dennis Byron reprimanded the State for its failure to apply for an extension of time to file a special leave application, and said that was sufficient reason to dismiss the out-of-time application for special leave, for want of jurisdiction.

The Judge noted that even though the AG was well aware that he needed to have applied for special leave to appeal, and needed first to have

applied for an extension of time within which to make the application, his counsel deliberately chose not to file these applications and offered no justification.

Recalling the timeframe in which this case happened, former Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall pointed out that he had demitted office after the May 11, 2015 elections and the new and current AG, Basil Williams, had taken up his post not long after.

In October 2015, the High Court granted judgment against the AG in favour of Dipcon in certain legal proceedings, which eventually culminated in the CCJ’s decision delivered on November 15, 2015.

When that judgment was granted by the High Court, Williams was already six months in office. No appeal was filed against this judgment within the required sixweek period as prescribed by the law.

Nandlall recalled that the AG had claimed that he only became aware of the judgment in January 2016, which was four months after the judgment was granted and 11 months after he assumed office. The AG had also blamed Nandlall for his ignorance of this judgment, although Nandlall had left office in May 2015. Williams took another few weeks before he filed an application in February 2016 to extend time for appealing the judgment granted by the High Court.

The matter reached

President of the CCJ, Sir Dennis Byron

the CCJ due to the AG’s failure to provide to the Court of Appeal of Guyana good and substantial reasons for an extension of time to be granted for an appeal to be filed out of time and to persuade the Court that the said intended appeal has some prospects of success. As a result, the Court of Appeal had refused to grant an extension of time.

While the blame was put at the feet of Nandlall who served previously as AG and the then acting Chancellor of the Judiciary, Justice Carl Singh for the Court of Appeal aspect, the CCJ has now ruled that the wrong type of appeal was filed to that Court; therefore, the jurisdiction of the CCJ was not properly invoked.

Additionally, the CCJ went on to express the view that even if the proper documents were filed, the decision would not have been different, since sufficient material was not put before the Court to demonstrate that there was a “miscarriage of justice”. As a result, the Court dismissed the application, leaving Guyana to pay the judgment of US$2.2 million, an embarrassing setback.

dence’ remarks were made based on the fact that PPC Chairperson Carol Corbin promised to look into the matters raised with the relevant entities and also wrote that this would be done “within the confines of (the Commission’s) work programme and available resources”.

The Opposition MP had expressed concern about the Commission’s response, noting that the law mandated it has to investigate complaints.

Teixeira, who wrote requesting the probe of the feasibility contract, even described the Commission’s response as scary – when its responsibilities are considered.

“The issue to flag is that phrase, within the confines of our work programme and available resources. Now the

Constitution makes it absolutely clear that once there is a complaint, the PPC has to investigate it. It cannot say, well we have a work programme and we have these 10 items, we have to do these first. Or we don’t have enough resources. This is unacceptable, this is a Constitutional body,” she asserted.

Meanwhile, former Attorney General Anil Nandlall had stressed that the PPC’s functions and mandates are outlined in the Constitution.

“So it’s not a capricious or whimsical schedule that they can construct. They have to have a work programme that is within their constitutional mandate. And the matters requested in the letter are matters that ought to find priority within their constitutional mandate.”

According to the Opposition MPs, the Commission has also responded in similar fashion to requests for probes into the D’Urban Park Project and the Sussex Street bond. Opposition MP Juan Edghill had confirmed that the Commission also responded in similar fashion to his request for two probes.

In a letter to PPC Chairperson Corbin, Edghill identified aspects of the D’Urban Park

Project the Party is most concerned about. Edghill, a member of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), noted that despite promises to the contrary, no account of donations received between September 2015 and January 2016 was made public. The PPP/C, therefore, queried the procurement process used for works on the project; as well as the scope a private company has to engage contractors and receive funding for a public project. The Party queried the budgeted and actual costs throughout the project, as well as the final cost. In addition, the Party demanded information on what payments were made to individuals and contractors up to June.

In the case of the Sussex Street bond, Edghill also approached the PPC to call for an investigation into the contract inked between the Public Health Ministry and a known financier of the coalition Administration.

Edghill had also indicated that the political Opposition was demanding “a definitive pronouncement specifically addressing if this award was done in a fair, equitable, transparent, competitive and cost-effective manner according to our procurement laws.”

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WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Town of Linden enters twinning relationship with Xuzhou in China B y U tamu B elle

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he Linden municipality is making good on its promise to advance the development of the town by all means, including friendly relations with international cities that are more developed.

Just recently, Linden Mayor Carwyn Holland signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the City of Xuzhou, which was represented by its Vice Mayor Xu Donghai, at a ceremony held at Xuzhou City’s Exotic Conference Hall.

The symbolic signing, which immediately puts into effect municipal cooperation

between the two municipalities, has already yielded great benefits for Linden in the areas of education, youth, agriculture and infrastructure.

The Linden team that attended this signing ceremony comprised the Mayor and his wife Nikosa Holland, Councillor Lennox Gasper and First Secretary of the Guyana Embassy in China, Dennelle Marshall.

This team had bilateral discussions with Xuzhou officials, led by the Vice Mayor Xu Donghi; Deputy Secretary-General of Xuzhou Municipal Government, Jiang Ming; Director of Xuzhou Foreign

Mayor Zhou Tiegen receiving a gift from Linden Mayor Carwyn Holland

Affairs Office, Wang Lianyun; and the Deputy Director of Xuzhou Foreign Affairs Office, Sun Weimin.

Discussions were centred on means of advancing cooperation between the two municipalities, and there was great consensus, given the mining background of Linden and Xuzhou.

In his brief remarks, Vice Mayor Donghai highlighted his similarities to Mayor Holland: they both came from a media background, and share the same drive to see development of their municipality. However, he noted the disparities in size, budget and development of the two municipalities, while pledging Xuzhou’s full support to see Linden develop comparatively. The Vice Mayor also said that his city will be looking out for Linden’s interest as a big brother, and would waste no time in fortifying the relationship.

The Linden Mayor, in his response, thanked Xuzhou for twinning with Linden, and said the town of Linden, birthed in 1970, is known for its friendly and industrious people. He invited other Chinese investors to join BOSAI Minerals by establishing manufacturing and agro processing plants in Linden.

Mayor Holland said this was his third visit to China, but this time it was extra special, as both municipalities seek to advance friendly cooperation on the principle of equality and mutual benefit, and to facilitate fruitful results in a wide

area of cooperation.

Linden Councillor Lennox Gasper, who led the gift exchange after the signing ceremony, expressed his appreciation for the outcome of the visit, and said the people of Linden are very grateful for the cooperation. Together with the Mayor, he championed the call for tangible results through the establishment of twincity relations.

The Linden delegation also toured the Xuzhou Institute of Agricultural Sciences, where they negotiated for the training of Lindeners in agri-scientific research with the Director Mr. Qinghe Cao. They later visited the China University of Mining and Technology (CUMT) and met with Director of International Office, Mr. Zhang Zhenkang, to discuss the possibility of student exchanges, scholarships, and research collaboration.

Mayor Holland, also a University of Guyana Education Resource Ambassador, lobbied for academic staff exchanges and fostering ties between Guyana’s leading tertiary institution and CUMT. In the immediate future, the two municipalities will host art exhibitions showcasing the art of the children of the sister territory, which will be opened for public viewing. Linden will host the first exhibition of art pieces by children of Xuzhou in December 2017, while Xuzhou will host the exhibition of Linden children’s art in early 2018 in Xuzhou. A pen pal initiative by all participating students would also be kick-started.

The Linden delegation was also featured at the Xuzhou Investment Conference, which gave them the opportunity to participate in the forum showcasing Xuzhou’s business sector and investment opportunities, providing insight into a viable model of investment promotion from which the Linden team could draw lessons.

The twinning, according to Mayor Holland, will target development in the areas of agriculture, education, sports, youth, culture, tourism, and infrastructure development.

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By Dr. Odeen Ishmael

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ne of the adventurers and explorers who believed in the existence of the ‘golden city’ in Guyana was the Englishman, Sir Walter Raleigh, a businessman and explorer with military experience, who was also a favourite of Queen Elizabeth I. Queen Elizabeth herself was

Sir Walter Raleigh

a bitter enemy of Spain with whom England was at war during the last

quarter of the sixteenth century.

In 1594, Raleigh sent an expedition led by Captain Jacob Whiddon to the Guyana region to obtain information about Manoa.

He returned to England with additional details of the myth. One year later, Raleigh himself decid-

ed to sail to Guyana saying that, besides looking for gold, he was going there to attack the Spaniards who had by this time established settlements on the Orinoco River.

While one of his main aims was to search for the golden city, Raleigh also planned to set up a colony in Guyana to be used as a base from where, with the help of

Raleigh's book

Amerindian allies, the Spanish would be expelled from Peru and the treasures of that region sent to England.

Raleigh first stopped at Trinidad where he attacked the newly established Spanish colony and burnt the capital, St. Joseph. With the Spanish Governor Antonio de Berrio as his prisoner, he then set off for the Orinoco to search for Manoa. Berrio, who himself had attempted to find the golden city, tried to discourage Raleigh explaining that he had lost hundreds of men, horses and cattle on his previous trips.

Raleigh and his captains, Lawrence Keymis and George Gifford, and 40 men set out in small boats in their expedition up the Orinoco.

(Ocean-going vessels could not pass through the Orinoco delta). For many weeks they suffered severe privations, including the deaths by disease of some of the men, but Raleigh urged the team to press on.

Eventually, they arrived at an Amerindian village where they were entertained and given gifts. The chief told them that a large gold mine was located about four days’ journey farther upriver, but after searching for it, the expedition did not find it.

Raleigh’s men attacked a few small Spanish settlements on the Orinoco River, and explored a few of that river’s tributaries. They also questioned the Amerindians they met, but no one could provide them with information about Manoa.

He left two young members of his crew with friendly Amerindians in

the right bank of the Orinoco for the purpose of learning the language of the natives. He also ordered them to learn the geography of the country and to identify suitable sites on which to establish English colonies. It certainly was Raleigh’s intention of returning later.

After releasing Berrio, Raleigh returned to England with the feeling that the golden city could still be found. He encouraged his countrymen to establish a colony in the Guyana region, and to win support from the English queen and from investors, he advertised the country by describing his trip up the Orinoco in his book, “The Discoverie of the Large Rich and Bewtiful Empyre of Guiana”.

He described Guyana as rich and beautiful, with glorious rivers and possessing several varieties of birds and plants and delicious fruits.

He stated: “Whatever prince shall possess it, that prince shall be lord of more gold and of more cities and people than either the King of Spain or the great Turk.” But he also wrote that in the interior was a tribe of Amerindians whose heads were below their shoulders!

Raleigh’s book, which became very popular on the European continent, encouraged explorers to pay attention to Guyana, and by the year 1600, English, French and Dutch ships were already trading in the main rivers of the northern South American coast. (“The Guyana Story - From Earliest Times to Independence”

by Dr. Odeen Ishmael) (Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)

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feature 31

Dozens of new wildlife species

discovered at Kaieteur National Park

Area near the study site with extensive forest in an undulating landscape with rivers and creeks (Photo by Evi Paemelaere)

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ozens of species, which are likely new to science, have been discovered in the Kaieteur National Park (KNP) and Upper Potaro area in Guyana during a month-long expedition by a team of intrepid researchers.

Some of these species found are thought to only occur in the Guiana

Shield. These findings were among the most significant highlighted in a recent report released

by World Wildlife Fund Guianas and Global Wildlife Conservation.

The report is the second in a series which aims to highlight Guyana’s incredibly rich biodiversity and represents the most recent broad-based floral

and faunal assessment in this unique region.

The publication reveals that: 1. More than 30 species, including 6 species of fish, 3 plants, 15 aquatic beetles and 5 odonates [an order of predatory insects that comprises the dragonflies] are more than likely new to science. Many species were also recorded for the first time in Guyana.

2. The Kaieteur Plateau - Upper Potaro provides important habitat for many charismatic and threatened species such as the Tepui Swifts, Jaguar, Guianan Cock of the Rock, White-lipped Peccary and an icon of the KNP, the Golden Rocket Frog.

3. More than 50% of birds, 40% of odonates, 30% of mammals, and 43% of amphibians known to occur in Guyana, inhabit the area.

Sampling a stream for species, and sorting for shrimp, crabs and aquatic insects (Photo by Chetwynd Osborne)

A rare, secretive bi-striped viper (Bothriopsis bilineata) perched above a stream (Photo by Andrew Synder)

ter quality, were completely absent in some creeks The Groete Creek carrying where mining frog, Stefania evansi, is had taken place. Loss of found in the Kaieteur forest and water quality National Park and is due to mining not only endemic to Guyana. The has an impact on the frog rears its offspring on its back until they are ready environment and biodiversity but also on local to fend for themselves (Photo by Andrew Snyder) people who rely on the The distinctiveness area for their livelihoods, of the area’s biodiversity freshwater, fish, game, stems from several fac- timber and other natural tors including the integ- resources.

With such tremenrity of the undisturbed dous importance for naforest, river and stream ture and livelihoods, it habitats; its topography and geology and the iso- is thus extremely imporlating effect on species tant that economic develwhich the Kaieteur Falls opment for the area and and the presence of nu- its inhabitants is based merous rapids in the on the principle of usPotaro River exert. At ing natural resources in the same time, howev- a well-planned and suser, human-induced pres- tainable way. In fact, sure on the landscape maintaining the largeis growing and was evi- scale integrity of the dent during the survey. landscape, which takes For instance, aquatic into account both highbeetles and odonates, land and supporting the whose presence are an development of sustainindication of good wa- able livelihoods is essen-

tial for the region’s longterm conservation.

The research teams hope that their results will be utilised to the fullest to guide land-use planning at the national level, managers of protected areas, particularly of the Kaieteur National Park, and community members and researchers to better understand the biodiversity of this area and to plan for its management.

The BAT survey was done in close partnership with the village of Chenapau; University of Guyana’s Departments of Biology and Agriculture, and Faculty of Earth and Environmental Sciences; and Protected Areas Commission. The launch took place at the Cara Lodge in Georgetown on November 16, 2017 with senior members of Government, including ministers; members of the diplomatic community; prominent environmentalists and other stakeholders, including the media, in attendance.

The full report can be accessed from www.wwfguianas.org (Text provided by the WWF Guianas) (Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)

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Mattai’s opens new massive store dubbed ‘The Food Market’

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Managing Director, Harry Mattai along with his wife, daughters and son cutting the ribbon to the new food mart

attai’s – Guyana’s one stop food depot – is living up to its name as it opened a new food mart across the street from its other branch on Water and Hope Streets, Georgetown, which promises quality food. The new establishment, named ‘Mattai’s: The Food Market’ was declared open on Friday.

According to Managing Director of the franchise, Harry Mattai, the new food mart is already known in the Caribbean.

“Quite a few people flew in from the Caribbean when they heard about the store, its size, what we’re doing, the quality, where we’re heading, where we’re taking the business to the next level and they’re very impressed,” Mattai said at the opening.

He added that the new facility in-

cludes a boardroom, an IT department and a training room, which will be used to build the capacity of its staff and also the staff of other similar companies in Guyana.

“Our mission is not only just hiring people,” he said. “We believe in a lot of training; we plan to do a lot of nice things with the company to make our staff and our people better to serve,” the Managing Director explained.

Mattai promises high standards in the products that they will be providing. “We’re looking at standards, we’re looking at certificates, we’re looking at dates, we’re looking at quality,” Mattai said.

The Managing Director promises that plans are already afoot to expand further in order to deliver value to Guyanese.

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GDF colonel (retd) defends Constitutional agencies President’s decision to decry budget cuts ‘militarise’ top Govt positions T

Retired Lieutenant Colonel George Gomes addressing the gathering at Veterans’ Day 2017 activities

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he President of the Guyana Veterans Legion, Lieutenant Colonel (retd) George Gomes, last Friday defended the Head of State’s decision to employ former Guyana Defence Force (GDF) ranks for top Government positions.

Colonel Gomes said President David Granger has gravitated towards people he can trust and those that he knows, even if others are also qualified for the positions.

“President Granger was a soldier, and birds of a feather flock together. He gotta go with who he knows and who he trusts, and who he knows got the discipline,” Lieutenant Colonel (retd) Gomes said.

He made the comment while speaking at the annual wreath-laying ceremony hosted at Camp Ayanganna in recognition of the selfless service of former army officers and war heroes in

defending Guyana.

In his address to the gathering, Colonel Gomes underlined that when a young person enlists in the army, it is perhaps the highest level of service he or she can offer to his/her country.

He noted that the experience of being a rank in the GDF teaches many disciplines, which can prove to be invaluable in future endeavours.

“The military teaches discipline, order, leadership, teamwork; it builds maturity and character.

With early retirement, ex-military personnel can start a second career, and with this type of discipline and leadership that is so badly needed in Guyana, they are bound to be assets wherever they go,” the retired colonel said.

Gomes lashed out at the press, saying, “It is for that reason that I get annoyed when some socalled newspaper columnist who has never worn

a boy Scout or girl Guide’s uniform (is) critical about our President making use of the skills of former officers to execute the work of Government.”

This was as he alluded to the growing concerns among members of the Opposition over what they deem the militarisation of the state and Government apparatus in Guyana by the current Administration.

Gomes singled out exmilitary officials currently serving in the APNU/ AFC Government, with the topmost-ranked being Minister of State, Lieutenant Colonel (retired) Joseph Harmon.

There are also Lieutenant Colonel Sydney James, who heads the Special Organized Crime Unit (SOCU); and retired Colonel Chabilall Ramsarup, who came in for high praise for his excellent strides in disaster risk management and relief as the Director General of the Civil Defence Commission (CDC).

Since taking office in May 2015, the APNU/ AFC Administration has consistently employed former army personnel to senior Government positions. This has not been well received by sections of society, and the political Opposition has lashed out at the Government, accusing the Administration of turning the country into an appendage of the military.

The first X-Man

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atiricus was swinging in his hammock drowsily as he read the letter from Hammerhead Green excoriating the PPCEE on their behaviour in Parliament. After the first line, as he fell asleep, the letter turned into a diary entry.

Dear Diary, Human history is replete with examples where the behaviour of persons in leadership positions can influence those around them……….

And I must confess, Dear Diary, I was once placed in a position of leadership, and did my best to influence those around me. I don’t like to boast, but I will tell you about a few instances.

Did you hear about the X-Men, Dear Diary? Well, I was the first X-Man, since I was supposed to be in charge of carrying out the X-13 Plan! Ahhhh… those were the days when we could carry out more destruction than they generate with their fancy CGI nowadays in the movies!!

Surely you must’ve heard about Black Friday 1962, Dear Diary? That was the day Martin Carter said a City of

Clerks became a City of Men! And I was with them, Dear Diary – influencing them and supplying the gasoline to burn down all the businesses of those PPCEE supporters in Georgetown.

We bombed the Rice Marketing Wharf, we burnt down Star Cinema in my old neighbourhood, and I influenced the young’uns to shout, “Burn baby, burn!!” I influenced so many of our Pee-an-See supporters that burning became a staple of all our protests since!!

My proudest act was to prevent that rabble-rousing history teacher from getting a job at UG. What was the use of hiring him? Hadn’t I written the definitive history of Guyana, “From Pain to Gain”? And I influenced all those people who write nowadays to defend even the rigging by our Pee-anSee!!

But I didn’t only inspire people about public violence, Dear Diary.

Who do you think showed Guyanese men how to deal with their uppity wives?

he recent slashes to constitutional agencies have left some of these agencies questioning their work mandate and how the cuts would affect their mandate.

A representative of both the Women and Gender Equality Commission and the Rights of the Child Commission believes the cuts will have repercussions.

According to noted social activist Nicole Cole, much work remains to be done by these two Commissions, including physical outreaches to atrisk communities. She expressed fear that the work of the two Commissions, which requested a combined total of close to Gy$100 million but received Gy$85 million, would be hindered.

“There are still many communities that need to be visited to ascertain the socioeconomic conditions affecting persons, hence cuts to the budget can and will curtail the Commissions’ ability to effectively reach those persons in dire need of our services,” she said in an interview with this publication.

Giving an example, Cole said Region Nine is Guyana's largest geographical area, and visits are many times concentrated only in Lethem; “but there are the Maurudi Mountains (which) is a neglected area, as well as Siparuta, Monkey Mountain and other hinterland areas that are woefully underserved. What we need are more finances to effectively execute our constitutional mandate, because basket cannot fetch water,” she declared.

According to Cole, journeying into hinterland re-

Social Activist Nicole Cole

gions is costly because of the geographical locations and terrains. She noted that this should have been a guiding consideration when the Budget cuts were being contemplated.

“The commissions need a Jeep that can effectively traverse those difficult terrains. Our bus got stuck in the sand twice going to St. Cuthbert’s Mission (now renamed Pakuri). We need a stronger vehicle, the bus (isn’t) built for that terrain.

There are coastal areas that we also need to visit, so we need every dime.

More money will effectively give us more spending power to conduct more outreaches,” she said.

Last Friday, a total of Gy$8 billion (over Gy$2 billion less than what was requested) in estimates from 16 constitutional agencies was approved for the 2018 Budget in the National Assembly.

This includes Capital and Current Expenditure.

All proposed cuts were sustained, with Finance Minister Winston Jordan being asked in the house whether he was marginalising women, even as the proposals from the Women and Gender Equality Commission and the Rights of the Child Commission were being slashed.

The slashed proposals from the Office of the Ombudsman, Indigenous People’s Commission, and the Public Procurement Commission were also passed by the House.

The recent multimillion-dollar cuts by the Finance Ministry to the budget proposals put forward by these constitutional agencies had not gone down well with the parliamentary Opposition.

The Opposition had, for some time, called for the autonomy of these agencies to be respected by the Government.

According to the 2018 annual budget proposals of constitutional agencies which were tabled in Parliament last week, the Audit Office’s request for Gy$844.4 million was slashed to a proposal of $783.8 million. In slashing the amount, it was noted that Budget 2018’s submission did not fulfill certain requirements set out in a budget circular.

The need has been expressed for the Audit Office to be in its strongest possible position when it comes to its audit capacity. This is especially so as Guyana gets ready to enter oil production. In addition, Auditor General Deodat Sharma has already expressed intentions to audit Guyana’s environmental protection systems.

Other agencies on the chopping block for 2018 are the Parliament Office, the GECOM, the Supreme Court of Judicature (request of Gy$2.7 billion was reduced to $1.8 billion), the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecution’s request for Gy$223.8 million was reduced to Gy$174.2 million), and the Office of the Ombudsman.

34 feature

B y I sahak B asir , CCH

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artmouth is a village with rich history located in Region Two on the Essequibo Coast. The glory of Dartmouth comes into brightness every Friday afternoon until Sunday night, but the ordinary traveller cannot miss this unique village of which history will not be overlooked.

From 1640 to 1850, Dartmouth has no drainage system or sea defence. The area was a “no man’s land” and was first occupied by ex-slaves who could not find solace in the existing sugar plantations. However, while the ruling plantocracy was able to

WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

enact laws restricting freed people to occupy and cultivate lands in creeks or rivers, this law was never exercised in Dartmouth.

This was because of Dartmouth plot triangular shape - 800 acres of forested land - which was not in early colonial control but became a haven for people who fought against slavery.

Nearby villages, Bounty Hall and Perth, collectively, were a mathematical experiment to change the flow of canals to suit the gravity pull of the sea coast tide, which has a strange phenomenon of ebbing at low tide between the Essequibo River and the Waini River in the North West

8th of May Secondary School and St Barnabas Anglican Church

District. The British occupancy did not learn from this exercise and made a similar mistake in 1923

when they dug the Somerset Pramage canal in the opposite direction of the tide gravity pull.

Double kokers at Dartmouth

In 1908 a trail was discovered through the savannah south west of Dartmouth by three land owners of charity, which was then made into a road to charity that links Pomeroon and the Northwest District.

Dartmouth is entirely agricultural where mangoes and coconuts dominate while rice, pig-rear-

ing and other crops follow.

Dartmouth was also a “rescue raft” for displeased Indian sugar workers who were unceremoniously forced to leave their logies on existing sugar estates with the collapse of indentureship. The ‘Jahangese’ renamed Dartmouth with a Hindi name “Ludge Jaa” meaning “turning back”.

The remaining offspring of indentured Indians should never forget the compassion of Dartmouth.

Like a few other villages, Dartmouth has its pathfinders the first veterinary surgeon and statesman Dr. P. A. Reid.

The Andamantadors, some of whom that excelled in the medical field, include the first Regional Chairman of Region Two, Mr. Kenneth Hopkinson, who hails from Dartmouth also. Other historical families included the Brummels, Cummings, Peters, Bostons, Daymons, Gens and Persauds.

By 1961, Dartmouth landscape changed rapidly with expansions of other

facilities. From 1992 there were further developments that were admirable. This village has secondary and primary schools, health centre, community building, wellpaved streets, farm to the market road, modern hotel and many entertainment centres. Two main wooden public road bridges were replaced with concrete structures. With the exception of Queenstown, Dartmouth overruns the market with ‘Buxton spice’, which is the most delicious mango in Region Two. Spokesman for the village, Carnol Daymon, a proud speaking Member of Parliament (MP), made the Neighbourhood Democratic Council office functional, new Peace Corps Volunteer tutors, a fully functioning Information and Communication Technology Computer Lab for the secondary school and also a wellkept environment.

The two concrete bridges signal Dartmouth’s presence. (Photos by Marco Basir) (Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)

Huge pots used to cook for slaves

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US ends 'Temporary Protected Status' for Haitians

Mamaguing…

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Acting Director of Homeland Security Elaine Duke announced the end to TPS.

…the masses

he AFC are struggling to survive, and it ain’t pretty! Like all victims of con men, they’d fallen for the wiles of the PNC-as-APNU because of their greed — their greed for power, their greed for money, their greed for flesh, and their greed, PERIOD! Even though then party leader Khemraj Ramjattan had predicted they’d become “dead meat” if they coalesced with the PNC-as-APNU, their greed made them plunge ahead.

They would’ve become “dead meat” because the people who supported them knew that the PNC wasn’t to be trusted. The people had over thirty years of (bitter) experience with the PNC to reach that conclusion. It didn’t take long for the folk wisdom to be validated. In fact, right after the elections, Prezzie so diluted the Cabinet via expansion with Junior Ministers that the vaunted 40% of the Cabinet promised to the AFC wasn’t worth squat!! Supporters jumped off the ship!

The Prime Ministership for Nagamootoo, which was supposed to be bulked to Hulk-like proportions, was so stripped of any relevance that he became the archetypical “97-pound weakling” into whose face everybody kicked sand at the beach!! More supporters jumped off their ship! And so it went — like when it was revealed that there was a “Nassau Accord” between the man who would once again become Leader of the AFC — Trotman — and Prezzie. Was there any doubt after he’d been selected by the PNC-as-APNU as Speaker in 2011 – over Nagamootoo, nominated by the AFC??

And now comes the final straw, if there were AFC followers clinging to the dead meat: the revelations that both Trotman and Ramjattan had advised Prezzie to reject the second list and make his unilateral appointment! The revelation came out after emails on the subject were released by the AFC Canadian support group, who broke with the party over the high-handed way the party was being led.

The revelation was even more destructive against the background of the AFC Leadership INSISTING they played no role in the President’s unilateral selection of (Chief?) Justice Patterson. In addition to the e-mails, there was — of course — the presence of AFC Leader Trotman being at State House when Jagdeo arrived to be informed about Prezzie’s unilateralism!

Ramjattan’s e-mails were also interesting to their old rank and file, since they confirmed that after a period of strained relations in the top leadership, they were all as one after the Patterson selection!!

Ramjattan’s expression of joy at the last circumstance — even as his party had evaporated — signals that he and Nagamootoo are prepared to play the loyal lapdog to the PNC-as-APNU. They will be the window dressing now that the WPA is expendable! …the Public Service The Government made a big ‘’to do” about resuscitating the Public Service Appellate Commission (PSAC) after a hiatus of over a decade.

This lacuna had denied the Public Servants “justice” – since they had no one to turn to if they were wronged! Not much help forthcoming from the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU), since its president-for-life is always MIA – and of late had been bought out through high appointment!!

But at its first meeting with the press, the PSAC revealed the sad (and sick) truth: it was just a toothless poodle, unable to sanction anyone it had determined had screwed Public Servants!! All it was empowered (?) to do was listen to the complaints of Public Servants, empathise by looking concerned, and hope that the wrongdoer did the right thing.

If they didn’t — which is more often than not the case — tough luck!

So how about at least giving them a small whip? …Georgetown citizens After the euphoria of the 50th Anniversary Independence celebrations – lubricated by billions from the treasury and businessmen making strategic “political investments” – the City Council promised a return of our Garden City.

The City’s once again covered with garbage; the Central Govt is bailing City Council out, and the Mayor is abroad! The more things change…

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ASHINGTON, United States – Haitians living in the United States under the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation have been given 18 months to get out of the country.

The Donald Trump administration on Monday announced that it would not be renewing the TPS that has allowed Haitians to remain in the country following the 2010 earthquake that devastated the country.

Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Elaine Duke said the decision to end provisional legal residency for Haitians came after it was determined that the extraor-

dinary conditions caused by the earthquake, which justified their presence in the US, no longer exist.

She said the 18-month deadline will allow for an orderly transition before the designation terminates on July 22, 2019.

“This will provide time for individuals with TPS to arrange for their departure or to seek an alternative lawful immigration status in the United States, if eligible. It will also provide time for Haiti to prepare for the return and reintegration of their citizens,” Duke said.

She met with Haitian Foreign Minister Antonio Rodrigue and

Haitian Ambassador to the United States Paul Altidor recently in Washington to discuss the issue.

The Department of Homeland Security noted that since the earthquake seven years ago, the number of displaced people in Haiti has decreased by 97 per cent.

“Significant steps have been taken to improve the stability and quality of life for Haitian citizens, and Haiti is able to safely receive traditional levels of returned citizens. Haiti has also demonstrated a commitment to adequately prepare for when the country’s TPS designation is terminated,” it added.

In May this year, then-Secretary John Kelly announced a limited extension for Haiti’s TPS designation, stating that he believed there were indications that Haiti – if its recovery from the 2010 earthquake continued at pace – might not warrant further TPS extension past January 2018.

At the time, Kelly said his six-month extension should give Haitian TPS recipients living in the United States time to attain travel documents and make other necessary arrangements for their ultimate departure from the United States, and should also provide the Haitian government with the time it needs to prepare for the future repatriation of all current TPS recipients.(Caribbean360)

Health outreach lauded as Guyana observes Diabetes Month

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s Guyana joins the world in observing November as International Diabetes Month, the Public Health Ministry on Saturday last hosted a health outreach at the Stabroek Square in Georgetown.

Along with the Lions Club, the Guyana Diabetic Association as well as the New GPC Inc, PAHO, and the Young Leaders in Diabetes participated in the event, providing various medical services to the public.

Blood glucose testing was provided; along

A section of those who participated in the health walk

A woman testing her blood pressure at the free clinic

with eye testing, VIA screening, dental care, HIV testing, and sexual education. Among other services offered were rehabilitation, mental health, and blood pressure testing.

Persons were also provided with a wealth of information on the

steps to a healthier life.

President of the Guyana Diabetic Association, Glenniss Beaton, applauded the event and noted that the turnout was excellent.

M e a n w h i l e , Chairperson of the Lions Club of Bel Air Diabetes Clinic, Candace Ford, claimed the initiative as

the brainchild of the club, and sought to encourage the Health Ministry and other organisations to come on board to help spread awareness of the disease.

Ford declared herself very satisfied with the results of the outreach.

Additionally, the New GPC Inc representative Elizabeth Ram said the pharmaceutical company was happy to be part of the initiative. She added that the company had already participated in the Diabetes Awareness Walk hosted earlier this month, but still wanted to do more to reach out to the public.

Also, on Saturday,

representatives from various health institutions, associations and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) assembled at the Square of the Revolution to participate in a health walk to promote awareness of diabetes throughout Georgetown.

Coordinator of the Guyana Diabetic Care Project, Brian Ostrow, lauded the initiative and explained that the way to solve diabetes is through public awareness and through changing the people’s behavioural lifestyle. That is the key, he said, and that’s the only way that this pandemic can be controlled.

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Auto supply dealers urged to adhere to laws, best practices

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Auto supply dealers in attendance at the seminar

he annual Suppliers’ Seminar of the Consumer Affairs Unit on Monday brought together auto suppliers from across the country and other stakeholders to review the best practices and laws under which auto dealers must operate.

Hosted at the Herdmanston Lodge in Georgetown, the forum aims to bring auto deal-

ers into greater compliance with the laws, regulations and standards that safeguard the rights of consumers.

Minister of Business Dominic Gaskin, who attended the seminar, noted that Government and private stakeholders must both collaborate to ensure all parties in the auto industry are protected.

“Our Government

needs to work with your industry to encourage adherence to the guidelines that the industry is required to operate within,” he said.

According to Minister Gaskin, transportation is key to the economic competitiveness of any country; therefore safe, reliable vehicles are important sub-components of this sector. He said it is important that the

auto industry be aware of Government’s projections going forward.

“Last year, as part of Government’s 2017 budget, measures of renewable energy sources, co-generational alternatives, the Government announced five measures. One: the lowering of excise tax on hybrid and electric vehicles; two: granting of tax exemptions to set up electric vehicles’ charging stations; three: zero-rating the excise tax on biofuel and specially designed refuse trucks; four: the restriction of used tyres; and five: the reduction of taxes on new tyres”, Minister Gaskin highlighted.

Director of the Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission (CCAC), Dawn Holder-Alert, has said the economy is growing, and this has seen more cars being im-

Director of the Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission, Dawn Holder-Alert

ported; hence stricter guidelines need to be implemented.

“Consumers are eager to purchase cars from auto dealers. It is very important that these consumers are vigilant and know what they are entering into. Sometimes the eagerness of the consumer to buy a car will affect their ability to ensure they are protected,” Holder-Alert explained.

It has been recommended that individuals and businesses operating within the auto industry be required by law to observe fair business practices in their transactions with consumers.

The Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission (CCAC), which was established in 2006 and became fully operational in 2010, is tasked with objectively executing the laws governing the two acts – the Competition and Fair-Trading Act #11 of 2006 (CFTA), and the Consumer Affairs Act # 13 of 2011 (CAA). The agency advocates and ensures a balance of fairness and equality between consumers and businesses, protects consumers’ interests in relation to the supply of goods and services, and guarantees efficient and effective redress.

International experts to speak at 18 social activists asset recovery training programme honoured …at TCV’s 3rd annual - hosted by SARA

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Participants at the asset recovery and law enforcement training

number of staff members from the State Asset Recovery Agency (SARA) and other agencies on Monday started an 18day training programme with support from the Caribbean Institute of Forensic Accounting (CIFA) aimed at teaching participants the basic concepts of assets recovery and forensic auditing.

In declaring the workshop open, Head of SARA, Dr Clive Thomas told participants that corruption could not be tackled by one institution such as SARA, but it has to be multi-pronged.

He said this was the main reason for including persons from other agencies that work closely with the finance, revenue and management sectors.

He told the attendees

who were drawn from several State agencies that the exercise was mandated by law. “The law in its wisdom mandates me to treat training as a priority. I have to train you, not because I think training is necessary, but I am compelled by law to provide you with training, and that I will do.”

Professor Thomas told the participants that the training was systematic and they were required to be diligent, attentive and punctual.

Further, he said that the training to be undertaken was critical if the agency was to succeed at the task of asset tracking and recovery.

“The law also gives me other powers, but those powers can only be exercised on the basis of the competence of those persons who are execut-

ing on SARA’s behalf or in the name of anti-corruption,” he explained, adding that he was also compelled by law to ensure that they were certified.

In delivering brief remarks at the opening, Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) Commissioner Godfrey Statia noted that corruption accounted for 45 per cent of all frauds in Latin America and the Caribbean; therefore, Guyana was not alone.

However, he said Guyana should try to reduce fraud and gave the commitment of the GRA to work with all the agencies for the good of the country. He also emphasised the importance of networking among the various agencies involved in the fight against corruption and fraud.

“Until we have a common database, you’ll have to ask your colleagues for information.

Sometimes, laws will stymie access to that information, but that does not mean you cannot come together and use your resources so as to meet the end result.”

Meanwhile, the facilitator, Stephon Grey, a certified fraud examiner and forensic practitioner, noted that the timing for the training was suitable since Guyana was preparing to welcome a new industry. He said in developed countries training exercises similar to the one he would be conducting were necessary as they helped to educate persons on ways in which they could help to fight corruption at all levels.

Grey, who heads the CIFA, will bring together experts from around the world. These include a leading asset recovery attorney and expert out of Europe, Steven Baker; a former Head of the Grenada Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), Senneth Joseph; Mark Hood from England and Rene Cummings from the United States of America.

Among the agencies participating in the training are the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), the local FIU and the GRA.

El Dorado Awards

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he Caribbean Voice (TCV) on Saturday hosted its 3rd annual El Dorado Awards, during which 18 social activists were honoured for their contributions through charitable ventures to their respective communities and by extension the country at large.

This was as the TCV, in collaboration with the 'Save Abee Foundation', set out to recognise and award individuals as well as organisations and business establishments for their selfless missions of impacting change in the lives of the lesser fortunate and atrisked sections of society with specific focus on those tackling social issues such as abuse, sexual violence, drug and alcohol misuse and most significantly suicide, among others.

Emerging at the forefront of their various fields of social activism were a non-governmental organisation working with children within several Indigenous communities, an indigenous artist who engages in tremendous social work, several businesses giving back to the tune of millions of dollars, along with two community based organisations making significant contributions to their respective societies.

They were joined by one youth activist as well as a youth organisation making significant strides in youth activism, a disability rights activist who is visually impaired, a women empowerment activist, an organisation providing services for children living with autism and to wrap it up an organisation providing relief through food and other necessary supplies to families hit by disasters such as fires and flooding.

As such, among the honourees for the 2017 awards was former Prime Minister Samuel Hinds who was recognised for exceptional accomplishment characterised by humility, pride in performance and approachability while giving back and/or displaying activism.

Adding to the list of El Dorado awardees for this year were public figures Clifford Reis who is the Chairman/Managing Director of Banks DIH, singled out for his achievement in the private sector characterized by activism and/or advocacy or charity and giving back in a significant manner along with the Chairman of Region 2 (Pomeroon-Supernaam), Devanand Ramdat, receiving the Umana Yana continued on page 47

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Recognising…

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…the precariat ack in the day when factories were starting to belch out the smoke and soot in Europe and the US that pushed our global temperatures to its present tipping point, Marx gave the workers labouring in those hell-holes a name: the “proletariat”. Now even if you don’t like Marx, that was significant: if you don’t have a name for “something”, you can’t even talk about it and it doesn’t exist, does it?

Sure those workers were used and abused and must have complained bitterly. But it was “life”…they just drowned their sorrows in alcohol, domestic violence and general “acting out”. But when their condition was named, and its causes defined, they could then start doing something about it. And they did – ranging from forming trade unions to agitate for better wages and working conditions – to overthrowing the government – like in Russia.

But while everyone has noted the 1989 fall of that last initiative – which had been birthed exactly 100 years ago – the demise of the former has been a long, slow, lingering death that’s still going on. So what has happened to the proletariat that used to man – and “woman” – all those factories in the west, which includes us in their neck of the woods, albeit on the periphery?

Well UNCTAD – remember them? – just issued its report for the year and to no one’s surprise, announced that “financialisation” is what delivers the biggest profits nowadays – not production.

Meaning – as we know – the Wizards of Wall Street and the City (of London) can make more profits from “derivatives” or “credit swaps” or all the other “financial innovations” they created, in one second than the entire Caribbean can earn from their TOTAL production from fields and factories in a year!!

So the reality is, the proletariat’s been thrown out on their asses, even as less than 100 individuals own as much wealth as the rest of the world combined. Life for those who were the proletariat have now reverted to the state described by old Thomas Hobbes in its “state of nature” – nasty, brutal and short. But mentally worse since we’d become used to believing if we worked hard and faithfully our lives would keep on improving.

With no stable employment, income and housing or social safety net, what’s the word to describe this new precarious existence? Well how about “precarity” and the folks enduring it, “precariats”?

And if you want to see precariats in the flesh – just amble over to Wales, where 1700 sugar workers were fired a year ago!

The 5000 from Rose Hall and Enmore given a 1-year reprieve, should go first. …sexual harassment But naming an objected-to condition doesn’t mean those who suffer can eliminate it soon.

Just think after 170 years, the “proletariat of the world” didn’t unite to break their chains!! Now, there’s an even more topical instance – sexual harassment. Believe it or not, it was only in the late seventies that the term was coined – at the Ivy league Cornell University in NY. Women, of course, had been groped, fondled and had their privates “grabbed” by men since cave-man days. But it was only when a woman academic suffered through the experience inflicted by a male colleague, reported him to the administration, and SHE was fired for “causing trouble”, that her colleagues named the act to protest it. She took the university to court and “sexual harassment” was born.

When Anita Hill exposed Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas in 1991 for the sexual harassment the term received a rush of publicity.

But the post-Weinstein exposures illustrate how widespread the practice remains. …the City Hall culprit The Chief Constable just belled the Mayor and Town Clerk for their coverup of the sexual violation of a child.

He informed them the same night of the violation by their favoured cop!!

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Artist Anthony Butts

efore the age of ten, Anthony Butts, popularly known as Antonio, realised his artistic talent. He believes that being artistic is a “Godgiven talent” everyone has, all they have to do is “discover their potential”.

In 1977, the selftaught artist held his first solo exhibition in Georgetown. Later that year, he was awarded first prize in the National Art Exhibition and Competition. His paintings were exhibited at the first Caribbean Festival of Arts held in Guyana.

In 1980, he designed and laid out the Guyana Booth for the

International Trade Exhibition in Suriname, on behalf of the Guyana Government. His artwork was shown at various galleries in Suriname before he migrated to Trinidad.

He continued to work in the graphic arts industry, where his growing proficiency in the field is evident in select pieces of his work displayed in stores and supermarkets.

“I didn’t choose art, art chose me. Even though we didn’t have art in college, I went to other schools that taught art, where I received an amount of training. I had a burning desire that’s difficult to explain. My in-

spiration comes from my Creator who has given me this gift. I now teach art to students that we are all born with this God-given talent; it’s just that we have not discovered our potential. I paint and draw every day because there is a burning desire to share my talent and show the beauty of life,” the artist shared in an interview with Sunday Times Magazine.

Anthony has been working with the Studio 66 Art Support Community in Trinidad since 1999, tutoring art students and exhibiting his own work since its inception. Studio 66, a melting pot of diverse talents, has been the nucleus of the art scene where many artists from all parts of the country and beyond meet and exchange ideas. One of the better known projects the artist has worked on with the Studio team is the painting of a mural in the Panberri Steelband Yard. He has taken part in a number of art exhibitions through Studio 66, including their annual Emancipation exhibition at the Queen’s Park Savannah. Artists associated with Studio 66, Makemba Kunle and Leroy Clarke, have exerted a great deal of influence over Anthony’s work and helped him developed his own style.

Being a member

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“The Blue and Yellow Macaw”. Pyrographic drawing and mixed media on hardboard

of the Trinidad and Tobago Arts Society, Anthony has taken part in its annual and bi-annual art exhibitions. He has also assisted and directed the students of St Georges College in painting and designing the walls of the St James Child’s Welfare League and has been conducting workshops in Wire Sculpture for beginners, also tutoring children art and art education at various schools and organisations.

Continuing his work in the arts and culture, the artist is an adjudicator of national calypso competitions and a coordinator for the judges of national carnival competitions.

Anthony’s work expresses images that re-

flect the multi-cultural society that encompasses the Caribbean. His themes are drawn from various aspects of the diversity of the Caribbean culture. For instance, his “Pan Explosion” emphasizes the themes of music and masquerade.

The artist uses acrylics and watercolours in most of his work, relying on other materials, such as chalk pastel and ink, to bring out the substance of his work.

One of his passions, pyrographics, has led him to experiment with various techniques and styles.

Pyrographics, also known as wood burning, is an artistic technique that uses a hot tool to burn wood, leather, canvas, paper and others, creating a design, drawing or

painting.

“For me, art is a personal expression on canvas that the artist shares with the wider society. It’s not static.

Like culture, it changes form with the times. Art is subjective and therefore infinite; it’s beyond verbal expression, and quietly speaks for itself.

My art is my life. When I paint, I paint of myself.

When I share, I share part of me, exposed to the world. I paint in a style that best express my ‘Caribbeaness’,” he declared.

For more information on the artist, visit Antonio Butts - Masada ART on Facebook or email him at abutts2k11@gmail.com (Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)

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hulinab is a community situated in the spectacular natural beauty of South Central Rupununi, Region Nine. Also known as Makushi Village, Shulinab lies along the main South Savannah road, about 35 miles south of Lethem and about 12 miles southeast of Parikwarinawa Village.

Shulinab has a population of approximately 500 people. It has several active organisations, and serves as headquarters for the South Central People's Development Association.

The Shulinab Industrial Arts Centre, financed by the

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New Zealand government, focuses on carpentry and joinery, and enables community members to tap into the construction industry and capitalise on the growing markets at Lethem and in Brazil.

Farming is a very important activity within the community, and is done along the banks of the Saurab, Shulinab and Sawariwau Rivers. Shulinab has a welcoming community spirit, and village members eagerly share their life events, projects and personality with the rest of world. (Guyana

Times Sunday Magazine)

Houses in Shulinab

Road into Shulinab (Photo by Elizabeth Gottesman)

Main benab (left) where all community meetings are held

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CIBC First Caribbean assists Dominican students

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s many residents of hurricane-ravaged Dominica start to put their lives back together, a number of Dominican students studying at the Cave Hill Campus of the University of the West Indies continue to experience difficulties.

Five of them recently received a contribution from CIBC FirstCaribbean International Bank to assist them with the purchase of their groceries and toiletries for the month.

In accepting the donation, they shared some of the difficulties that had

led them to seek assistance. One young lady’s mother has lost her job while others do not have homes and their families are busy trying to get a roof back on their family homes. Another’s father is a farmer who has lost his entire crop and the family’s only source of income.

All of these make it very difficult for the families to send money to Barbados for their children studying at Cave Hill. Others depend on the Dominican government for a monthly stipend to cover living expenses, but they have not been able to get any

18-year-old Berbice beauty wins “I am a Big Deal” pageant The queen, Farah Bates

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n 18-year-old aspiring entrepreneur has won the inaugural ‘I am a big Deal’ Miss Berbice pageant.

Farah Valentina Bates copped the title from eleven other contestants on Sunday morning at the Albion Sports Complex.

Bates, a Rose Hall Town Corentyne resident who is pursuing a diploma in Public Management at the University of Guyana Berbice Campus, competed under the platform ‘suicide awareness and prevention’.

The contest saw the delegates competing in four categories: talent, costume, beach wear and evening wear, with the top five having to answer a question based on their platform in the intelligence segment, to decide the winner and positions the others will occupy.

The first runner-up is 17-year-old Tatiana Lancaster of Rose Hall Town, who competed under the platform ‘climate change and its impact on Guyana’. Lancaster, who was a crowd favourite throughout the competition, is also a university student pursuing an associate degree in Social Work.

Pre-contest favourite Lottoya Williamson, a 30-year-old English major at the University of Guyana, copped the third place spot, as she represented her platform, ‘violence against women’, an issue which has affected members of her close family.

The fourth spot went to Atasha Pantlitz, 17, of Princetown, Corriverton, after she sought to bring awareness about HIV/ AIDS. Pantlitz attends the Upper Corentyne Industrial Training Centre.

Shaquilla Sharpe, a 22-year-old from Limlair Village, Corentyne, placed fifth.

Meanwhile, Bates also won the best gown prize.

Her gown was designed by Randy Madray. She also won best smile and best talent. The People’s Choice award was given to Latoya Williamson, while 19-yearold Kelisha Ramoutar, who chose domestic violence as her platform, was judged Miss Photogenic.

The person with the best walk throughout the pageant was 17-year-old Tatiana Lancaster, who performed under the platform of ‘global warming awareness’.

The “I’m a Big Deal/ Miss Berbice Beauty” pageant was promoted by RD Productions.

Promoter Royston Drakes says the event will be an annual one.

According to him, the concept is to “empower young women” in every aspects of their lives. The pageant focused on education, empowerment, discipline, talent, and building self-confidence and leadership qualities.

The pageant is also aimed at encouraging women to take up roles as leaders in society. (Andrew Carmichael)

of those funds since the passage of the hurricane.

As a result, they explained, the Cave Hill Campus has agreed to defer the payment of the campus fees for this semester until the next semester, giving them time to get their lives back in order.

The presentation from CIBC FirstCaribbean will cover the groceries and other incidentals for the five students for at least one month.

In answer to the question of what was their greatest need, they confirmed that groceries are the immediate need but one student stated that she would really like to go home for Christmas as she wanted to see her family and her home even though she was aware that the home she left is not the same as it now has no roof and her family is sheltered from the elements by tarpau-

Treasurer of the CIBC FirstCaribbean Barbados Operating Company Krystle Maynard presents the cheque to two of the representatives of the Dominica Students Association of Cave Hill Kishna Moses and Jyorianne Daniel. (GP)

lins.

“I just want to go and see for myself and spend Christmas with my family” stated Jyorianne Daniel.

Managing director of CIBC FirstCaribbean Barbados Operating Company, Donna

Wellington commented on the effort.

“When we heard about the plight of these students, we wanted to help. Yes, we had sent aid and relief supplies and helped on a big scale with the relief effort in Dominica, but it was

easy to forget that there are Dominicans who are not there but who are still going through the hardship caused by these devastating hurricanes. I am glad that we found a way to assist,” he said. (Nation News)

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"Respect women folk," President urges …as Guyana celebrate International Men’s Day

President David Granger speaking at the commissioning ceremony for Radio Bartica

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s Guyana celebrated International Men’s Day, President David Granger took the opportunity to remind fathers to instill respect for women in their sons.

“It is something that has to be engendered in the home; it has to be taught in the home,” the President said in his first live broadcast on Radio Bartica on Saturday last.

According to the Department of Public Information (DPI), the Head of State shared a quote he often refers to, “the correct time to educate a child is 100 years

before he is born.”

He explained that the home was the base for a socially cohesive society and children needed to grow up in a family environment that fostered responsible parenting to provide direction and guidance.

International Men’s Day has been observed annually on November 19 since 1992.

The six pillars of International Men’s Day include focusing on men’s and boys’ health, improving gender relations, promoting gender equality, and highlighting male role models.

Informed consent Informed consent is required for every invasive medical procedure, from getting your ears pierced to having an abortion – Bob McDonnell

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very day, at some point, we usually have to make decisions: whether it’s a decision about what we’ll wear, or what we’ll eat, or what TV show we should start binge-watching. And despite those being seemingly not very ‘serious’ decisions, most of us still take time to weigh our options and make a decision based on all of the facts we have at our disposal.

Basically, what I’m getting at is that we all like to have all of the facts before we make a decision or commit to something; that’s just being rational. But there’s one area in our lives that, many times, we’re kind of shoehorned into making decisions without having all the facts, or understanding all of the facts. And those are decisions that we make when we come into contact with the medical profession — when the question might literally be one of life and death.

One of the things that I’ve noticed when I’ve gone to hospitals (as a patient) is that there are some doctors who often don’t take the time to explain fully

to their patients exactly what’s wrong with them, and precisely why they’re suggesting a particular method of treatment.

And it’s extremely ironic that it’s the area of our life that’s the most “life-or-death” that we’re the least informed about when making decisions.

Can we still call them “consent”? I wonder: are we just going along with what the doctor decides?

For consent to be valid, it must be “informed consent”, and we have a big role to play in “informed consent” also.

Think about it: “informed consent” must be given voluntarily (with no coercion or deceit) by an individual who has capacity, and by an individual who has been fully informed about the issue.

Interestingly, what we’re being taught at school is that obtaining informed consent is a legal and ethical necessity before treating a patient.

It derives from the principle of autonomy — one of the 4 pillars of medical ethics: Autonomy, Beneficence, Nonmaleficence and Equality.

The ethical principle of

autonomy requires that patients should accept or reject treatment based on a true understanding of their situation and on their personal philosophy.

But numerous studies have suggested that patients are giving consent based on misconceptions. There is a failure of communication: doctors are not doing a good job of providing accurate information, and/or patients are failing to process that information. I suspect it is a combination of both.

While “informed consent” is great…how many of us can digest what the doctor might be talking about?

So it’s important to trust your doctors.

They’ve take an oath to ‘do no harm’ (Principle of Non-maleficence) to their patient; so their decisions aren’t made to hurt patients, but rather to help them. But at the same time, many times there’s more than one way to go about helping the patient.

A surgeon might be more likely to recommend a surgical intervention not because he/she wants to cut you open and make money off of you, but because that’s his/her spe-

Anu Dev cialty and those interventions are what he/ she knows work. A medical doctor would probably suggest going a more medical route, treating the patient with drugs.

Second opinions can help in this area.

As a patient, you have the right to ‘informed consent’, which means that if you need treatment, your healthcare provider must give you the information you need to make a decision. You shouldn’t have to blindly go along with treatment; you have a right to know exactly what it is you are agreeing to.

Consent means nothing if the patient doesn’t know what they’re giving permission for. It’s like those times kids try to get their parents to sign a blank piece of paper so that they can write an excuse to their teacher for missing school.

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TRINIDAD: 20-month probe into bid-rigging ends

EMBD goes after Moonilal

Investigation launched into plane crash in which Belize Acting PM escaped injury

claimed the State’s claim is a fabrication by members of Cabinet. Khan had said Moonilal also reported the investigative irregularities to both acting Police Commissioner Stephen Williams and the Police C o m p l a i n t s Authority (PCA).

ROODAL RETAINS EX-AG FOR DEFENCE

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he Estate Management and Business Development Company Ltd (EMBD) has filed its TT$200 million cartel claim against former T&T housing minister Dr Roodal Moonilal, two former executives and a group of contractors.

The Office of the Attorney General and Legal Affairs made the announcement on Monday, a little over a month after allegations of corruption in the State-board were first raised by Government.

The release said: “EMBD has claimed, based on evidence gathered over the past 20 months, that these individuals and entities engaged in bidrigging and cartel behaviour, support and/ or encourage and/or permitted by persons in public office, including Moonilal, who at all material times was the line minister for EMBD, the former CEO of EMBD, Gary Parmassar and the former divisional manager of EMBD Madhoo Balroop.”

The other persons/entities the lawsuit was filed against are Andrew Walker, Fides Limited (Fides), Namalco Construction Service Limited (Namalco) and LCB Contractors Limited.

While the release said the claim was filed in the High Court, it admitted Moonilal and the other defendants were expected to be served between Monday and in the coming days.

The claim centers around 10 contracts for rehabilitation of roads in Caroni, which were granted to five contractors in the run-

up to the September 2015 general elections.

Besides Namalco and Fides, the other contractors identified are TN Ramnauth and Company Ltd (TN Ramnauth), Mootilal Ramhit and Sons Contracting Ltd (Ramhit) and Kall Company Ltd (Kallco).

The others have already been served as it was filed as a counterclaim to their lawsuits against the State for well over TT$1 billion in unpaid contracts, which were performed separate and apart from those identified in the cartel claim.

Those cases and the State’s counterclaim are yet to be determined, having been filed last month.

“EMBD claims, inter alia, breach of fiduciary duty, cartel behaviour, bribery, collusion, knowing receipt, dishonest assistance and unlawful means conspiracy and is seeking against these defendants and the other contractors (who previous claims were filed), inter alia, certain declarations, damages in the hundreds of millions of dollars, equitable compensation, repayment of sums paid, an account of profits and interest,” the release said.

The Government is alleging that Moonilal, Parmassar, Balroop and the contractors were part of a conspiracy to defraud the State through inflating costs and delivering incomplete work.

In a letter sent to acting Supt Yussef Alexander of the Anti-Corruption Investigations Bureau (ACIB) last month, Moonilal’s lawyer Israel Khan, SC,

Former Housing Minister Roodal Moonilal Monday described the latest move as “a fascinating development, it means that the Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi and the Minister in the Office of the Attorney General Stuart Young have filed nothing but they have sent the EMBDC out to do their bidding.”

He said “the EMBD has become the second state entity to sue me in two years. CEPEP tried to injunct me from speaking and the matter was thrown out of court.”

But he said “the EMBD cannot sue a minister of government. It is the Attorney General who may take action against a former minister, but the EMBD cannot file action against the minister.”

“It is the AG as guardian of the public interest who may sue a former minister. But after all the talks for weeks and weeks it appears that the AG and junior AG duck and run and send a company that is a loss-making company to sue me.” Moonilal said he intend to fight the case.

“I assure them I am not God. I will have no mercy on them. I will claim damages from the AG himself because the EMBD operates in the red and cannot pay. If the EMBD cannot pay contractors how will they pay damages resulting from a court judgement?” he asked.

He said the legal battle “will be a showdown between (Anand) Ramlogan and AlRawi finally. It will be a legal showdown and my bet will be with Ramlogan.” (TT Guardian)

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A photo released by the Belize government shows passengers and crew in shallow water near the semi-submerged plane.

ELMOPAN, Belize – An investigation has been launched in Belize into the crash of a plane on which Acting Prime Minister Patrick Faber and Minister of Agriculture Godwin Hulse were passengers.

The Tropic Air single-engine propeller plane went down last Friday morning but Faber, who was acting while Prime Minister Dean Barrow was out of the island, Hulse and the other five people on board escaped serious injury.

According to a government statement, the plane which was enroute to Punta Gorda Town was taking off from the tiny airstrip in the town of Placencia when its left landing wheel clipped a passing car. The impact caused the plane to plunge into the sea right off the coast of Placencia, not far from the airstrip.

“A rescue team was sent out and all passengers onboard the plane including the pilot, were transported safely back to land,” the statement said.

A road passes near the end of the airstrip and two barriers are usually

lowered to stop traffic during takeoffs and landings. A key part of the investigation into the crash is why only one barrier was lowered when the Tropic Air plane was taking off.

“The Belize Airports Authority had placed barriers and signage in place at the Placencia airstrip to prevent just such an occurrence,” the airline said in a statement.

“In the wake of what has happened, Tropic Air in coordination with the Belize Airports Authority and the Belize Department of Civil Aviation are looking at how this vehicle passed in front of the departing aircraft and what measures need to be implemented immediately to prevent another such occurrence.”

The airline insisted that the incident “was in no way a reflection of Tropic Air’s operational, maintenance or business practices”, stressing that it continues to meet and exceed all industry standards and recently completed its third International Air Transport Association (IATA) Standard Safety Assessment audit.(Caribbean360)

Jamaican Dancehall Artiste and son found guilty of murder

'Ninja Man' faces up to life in prison after being found guilty, along with his son and another man, of a 2009 murder. (Photo credit: HOT 97.1 SVG)

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INGSTON, Jamaica – Dancehall artiste ‘Ninja Man’, his son and another man were on Monday convicted of a 2009 murder, and will know by the middle of next month how long they will spend behind bars for their crime.

After a five-week trial, the artiste, whose

real name is Desmond Ballentine; his son, Jahneil; and a third man, Dennis Clayton were found guilty of killing Ricardo ‘Ricky Trooper’ Johnson.

The verdict was delivered by a jury that deliberated for just over three hours.

‘Ninja Man’ was also convicted of a separate

charge of shooting with intent, but his co-accused were found not guilty on that count.

“A suh it go man,” the Jamaica Gleaner quoted the 51-year-old artiste as saying when he and his co-accused were led away from the court.

“Don’t worry yuhself, Jamaica. I’ll be back.”

Sentencing has been set for December 15, and the three face the possibility of life in prison.

Johnson was killed on March 16, 2009.

According to the evidence, the day before his death, he was sweeping his yard, in the company of a friend, when a motor car carrying three men pulled up. There was an argument between Johnson’s friend and the men but they eventually left. However, the trio returned the following day and opened fire, fatally shooting Johnson.

(Caribbean360)

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18 social activists...

Could have been…

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…Guyana?

urely, dear reader, you must’ve read one of those “counterfactual” novels…the ones premised on ‘what if” such and such facts were different. Like what would’ve happened if apes had developed intelligence and ruled Earth? Oh…they did that in “Planet of the Apes”!! Well, right here in Guyana, lots of folks are wondering what life might’ve been if Forbes Burnham was still around.

Of course, there are some who’ve vowed to take us back to the Burnhamite days to “fulfil” his legacy… but fate’s arranged for us to have our counterfactual – in the object lesson of Robert Mugabe. Mugabe and Burnham, you see, had so many things in common – apart from being contemporaries – Burnham’s DOB Feb 20, 1923 and Mugabe’s, Feb 21, 1924.

While both saw themselves as “anti-colonialists”, Burnham cut a deal with the Brits to get power, Mugabe had to engage in a bloody guerrilla war with one Joshua Nkomo. But, in the end, they both got rid of their political rivals – who just happened to be from another ethnic group! In the case of Burnham, he made Jagan toothless through election rigging; while in Zimbabwe, Nkomo — from the Ndebele tribe — the senior politician in the “multiracial” ZAPU, was swamped in the 1980 elections by Mugabe’s ZANU via his numerically preponderant Shona tribesmen.

Even though Nkomo was brought into the government, Mugabe never trusted him; and, in 1983, unleashed the N.Korean army led by Emmerson Mnangagwa – known as the Crocodile – against the Ndebele, massacring over 20,000 of them. Nkomo fled, never to return. So, while Mugabe would later turn his guns against the white Rhodesians, to drive them off their farms and “redistribute” the lands, the ethnic hostilities have never been addressed.

Most of the lands ended up in Shona hands – and the favoured few, to boot!

And so we saw Zimbabwe reduced from the “breadbasket of Southern Africa” to its “basket case”!! Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Inflation at one point got so bad Zimbabweans had to carry around their money in wheelbarrows!! Anyhow, when Mugabe remarried (like Burnham) his wife became very visible in the party!! Too visible, it seems, for “the Crocodile,” who by now had become VP — but in the way of the ambitious young wife!

So we have an army coup orchestrated by the Croc, who always remained close with them, and he’s now President. But, it’s now even worse than the same ole, same ole — with the minority Nbele still suppressed and the army now directly controlled by “their man”.

Any lessons here, with our army being remade in Burnham’s vision? To be loyal only to his government! …a contender The line, of course, is from the movie classic “On the Waterfront”, where Brando, the washed up ex-boxer who went on the wrong side, exclaimed, “I coulda been a contender!” And it’s a line that’s very apropos of what’s happened to Ramjattan and Nagamootoo in Guyanese politics. In the PPP, Ramjattan was very much the “young man in a hurry”, and didn’t bide his time; while Nagamootoo had become like “old man river” by the time there was a spot at the top.

And the powers that be just didn’t think he had what it took to go all the way to the top. Events since his move to the AFC and then into the PNC (as APNU) have shown that while the Jagans might’ve been atheists, they were certainly prophetic! Ramjattan, on the other hand, was “force ripe’ and never allowed himself to develop the nous for politics.

His erstwhile co-founder of the AFC, Trotman, certainly played him like a “shak-shak!!” …Independent Agencies Nagamootoo berated his old PPP comrades for questioning the requests by the constitutional bodies for Gy$8 billion. Says the PPP always wanted to ‘control” those agencies.

So Prezzie doesn’t want to control GECOM? Why then his act of unilateralism to appoint Patterson?

There are many ways to skin a cat!!

Award for significant contribution towards community building.

Meanwhile, decorated with the Arapima Award for youth achievement characterised by activism and/or advocacy or charity and giving back in a significant manner were the Youth Action Network and one of the Youth Ambassadors Guyana 2015, both operating through the support of the US Embassy in Georgetown.

At the same time, disability rights activist Ganesh Singh was the recipient of the Pakarimas Awards for a lifetime accomplishment characterised by activism and/or advocacy or charity and giving back in a significant manner.

Speaking at the event hosted at Park Vue on the East Bank of Demerara was the President of the US based organisation,

from page 36

Some of the social activists who were honoured when The Caribbean Voice (TCV) last Saturday hosted its third annual El Dorado Awards

Annan Boodram who explained the concept of the award ceremony and dinner.

In doing so he outlined that there is a plethora of individuals and organisations, both locally and within the Diaspora, engaged in making a difference and qualitatively impacting the lives of Guyanese, especially the powerless and disadvantaged, while tackling the social issues that negatively af-

fect lives.

It is towards this end that El Dorado Awards provides a space to recognise the efforts of those so involved so that they can connect with each other and establish dialogue that would enhance the collaborative approach within a national framework.

Moreover, the initiative seeks to build connections with the business and professional community so as to fos-

ter collaboration with those engaged in civic activism.

With this being the third consecutive staging of the annual El Dorado Awards, the Caribbean Voice has thus far honoured 34 Guyanese social activists and change agents, both individuals and organisations along with the additional 18 which were honoured this year.

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‘Tumhari Sulu’: How Sulu’s ‘hello’ helps S her find an identity

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here is a charming scene in ‘Tumhari Sulu’ where the protagonist Sulu aka Sulochana Dubey, played by Vidya Balan, calls up her husband and asks him to come back home early. The scenario is not out of the ordinary. It is afternoon and it is one of those calls in the middle of the day that the husband, deeply immersed in work, would receive out of habit and the wife, whose life revolves around her husband and children, will remember to make. And yet this time, the husband is jolted from his work-enforced stupor. He excuses himself, goes to a corner and blushes. It is still one of those perfunctory calls, but the words chosen by her is different. Sulu, speaking close to the phone, almost teasingly asks him, “jaldi aaogey na? bolo na?”

It is his wife all right, but he can no longer recognise the voice and least the tone. He obliges, almost timidly and lost in thought, flashes a smile at a mannequin.

In many ways, ‘Tumhari Sulu’ is a film about realisation of ambitions and dreams, of middle-class aspirations and an enduring companionship of two people who met when still in school.

But it is also about those several nameless middle-aged housewives we often encounter on the road. Those who appear on the road waving goodbye(s) to their children, looking wistfully as the school bus departs and who spend their evenings poring over school notebooks, taking account of their daily activity in their school. Sulu is one of them. Sulu is that woman.

She failed in the 12th standard, a fact her elder sisters do not forget to remind her and even though she has a loving husband, her name does not feature in the nameplate — Mr and Mrs Ashok it says. Sulu is not an overachiever and certainly not an underachiever. She is fairly content doing her household chores, taking her afternoon naps and participating in the

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icky Kaushal, who rose to fame with his 2015 film ‘Masaan’, has surely become Bollywood’s new favourite. After wrapping up Meghna Gulzar’s ‘Raazi’ opposite Alia Bhatt, the actor has confirmed being a part of Karan Johar’s short in ‘Bombay Talkies 2.0’. The film will have Vicky paired opposite Kiara Advani.

Shah Rukh Khan at IFFI 2017: Storytelling should bind us together instead of tearing us apart

many competitions (Lata Mangeshkar Sad Song Contest) she ends up winning. Amidst all this, however, lies her scattered identity. She is the wife, the mother and to the shopkeeper nearby she is synonymous to her house number.

Perhaps this is why when she says “Hello”, stretching on the vowels, the effect it causes astounds her. Her voice – full-throated and husky – not only enables people to look beyond, what is often-considered a conventional and hence banal attire, but also coaxes her husband to break into a jig at the sight of her after rushing from office. It makes her aware of her own sexuality and in this case her agency.

Sulu’s voice gives her an identity in a way very few things do. It makes her feel desirable and wanted. It helps her earn and stand upto her bossy twin sisters. It also enables her to be the rare confidante people pour their hearts out to at solitary nights, and be the woman young men unflinchingly choose even when they are self-confessedly spoilt for choice.

Sulu’s voice becomes then her identity, bringing her to the centre from the periphery, making her the object of desire without objectifying her or rendering her powerless. It becomes an instrument of empowerment for her. When one of the listeners, rather haplessly asks for her number, Sulu, speaking close to the mic, haltingly says 100 and disconnects the line with a triumphant gesture. Her voice, intangible as it is, becomes the device that help her explore her sexuality, making her aware of tricks she always seemed to know but had never tried.

“Hello, Sulu se kaun baat karna chahta hain?” she asks. Although it might seem like a question directed to listeners at large, let’s not get fooled by it. It is Sulu who calls the shot here.

(Indian Express)

Talking about it, Vicky said, “I am thankful that filmmakers such as Raju sir and Karan sir are showing trust in me. It is a lot for this newcomer who is only just started.

Just to be getting these opportunities means a lot to me.” Shedding light on ‘Bombay Talkies 2.0’, he says, “All the short films will be based on the theme of ‘love and lust’.

It’s got me, Kiara (Advani) and Neha (Dhupia) and though the theme is love and lust, it’s also peppered with a lot of good situational comedy. Karan had experimented in the first film and he is also sort of experimenting this time, too but it won’t be a serious film. I am excited and it’s like a dream come true to be directed by him,” he said.

hah Rukh Khan inaugurated the 48th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa earlier this week. In his official welcome address, the superstar emphasised on how India’s rich history has always had a culture of storytelling and story-listening.

The superstar said, “We are a land of stories, fables, cultural history, religious history, mythology, and legends.

Stories that have mesmerised us, stories that make us think, stories that make us believe, give us hope, and inspire our future generations for the larger potential. So tonight, it feels absolutely wonderful to be surrounded by storytellers of the world, at the birthplace of stories, that is India.”

SRK also pointed out how filmmaking is a labour of love, and that it should spread love all over and not tear the world apart.

“I think over the years, in the last thirty years, I have learnt one thing that films are a symbol of love, and filmmaking is about loving. And I don’t mean the love-stories I have been paddling for years. I truly believe films are made with the collaboration of hundreds of people coming together, working relentlessly for an idea they believe in, they love and want to share it with the world. This idea becomes the film that we all watch and sometimes we feel very happy watching it, sometimes we dance along with the film, at other times we get angry, disturbed or agitated, and that exactly is the magic of storytelling. The magic that has the power to touch all our senses, and in doing so, actually binding us together. The essence of storytelling is in-

complete if there is no story-listener.

I believe storytellers and story-listeners are, should be like a family. There is a word in Sanskrit ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’, it means bringing the world together like a family,” the 52-year-old star added.

Concluding his welcome address the king of romance highlighted that filmmakers and film-watchers should share a familial experience where even in the face of dissent and discussion the family ends up binding together.

He said, “I believe no matter what your language is, no matter which country your story comes from, and no matter what your ideology is, story telling and listening should be a familial experience, which binds us all together, makes relationships stronger even in the face of dissent and discussions as it usually happens in a family, instead of tearing us apart. And with that in mind, the International Film Festival of India’s slogan for this year (the future of Indian cinema) will make that come true. Connecting the world through stories, and if I may extend it and say connecting each and every one of us through stories and films here, in Goa tonight, and all times to come.”

(Indian Express)

Emraan Hashmi begins shooting for his next film titled ‘Captain Nawab’

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fter having a decent 2017 so far with ‘Baadshaho’, Emraan Hashmi is ready to begin his next project, ‘Captain Nawab’. The actor shared a picture from the sets of the film and announced that he is starting its shoot from Monday this week.

The project, which is being directed

by Tony D’Souza, was announced last year and took internet by storm with its first look.

Emraan was seen donning a uniform with a background of Indian and Pakistani flags, making his look extremely intriguing. This is Emraan’s second outing with director Tony D’Souza. The two had earlier teamed up for ‘Azhar’, which was the biopic on the controversial life of former cricketer Mohammad Azharuddin.

Emraan is also set to touch another milestone with ‘Captain Nawab’. The actor has turned producer with this

The film’s shoot will be wrapped up in a week and it goes on the floors in the first week of December.

Recalling how he bagged the project, Vicky said, “It really was a pleasant surprise for me that he considered me for his film.

That’s why when someone asks me about my career I say that I feel like I am in a dream sequence. God has been really kind be-

film. “I’m really excited to turn producer in collaboration with Tony D’Souza, who is an extremely talented filmmaker and a great friend,” Emraan said in a statement.

Tony D’Souza expressed his happiness over the collaboration. In a statement, the director said he is happy to join hands with Emraan for the new venture.

“After the success of ‘Azhar’, Emraan and I are happy to join hands on this venture. While we cannot disclose much at this juncture, we are finalising the script and the casting,” Tony said.

Meanwhile, Emraan had a decent run at the box office this year with ‘Baadshaho’, which had him teaming up with Ajay Devgn and Milan Luthria yet again. The trio had previously worked together in ‘Once Upon A Time In Mumbai’. (Indian Express)

cause whatever is happening in my life right now is way better than anything I had imagined when I started off. I feel lucky and blessed that these films are coming my way.”

Apart from ‘Raazi’, Vicky will soon essay the lead in Ronnie Screwvala’s production ‘Uri’ based on the recent surgical strike by the Indian army.

(Indian Express)

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WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Marvel Studios president: Matt Damon’s cameo in ‘Thor Ragnarok’ was very surreal

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arvel Studios president Kevin Feige said seeing actor Matt Damon dressed as Loki in a cameo in ‘Thor: Ragnarok’ was a “very surreal” moment for him. Damon shocked Feige by taking up the part, where the actor had to dress up

as Loki (played by Tom Hiddleston) in the movie, with Chris Hemsworth in the title role.

Talking to Collider, the MCU prez said, “Who could be Loki? We didn’t have any brilliant ideas.

At one point, off handedly, Mr Hemsworth goes, ‘Well what if I ask

my friend Matt?’ I said, ‘Matt who?’

“He said, ‘My friend, Matt Damon. Okay.

Sure. Sure Chris, ask your friend Matt Damon.

Give me a break. He’s not doing this.’ ‘Oh he’s gonna do it. He’s flying down.’ The next thing I know, Matt Damon is on set in a full Loki costume, full Loki wig…

It is very surreal and very amazing.”

The film, directed by Taika Waititi, also featured Cate Blanchett, Idris Elba, Jeff Goldblum, Tessa Thompson, Karl Urban, Mark Ruffalo and Anthony Hopkins.

(Indian Express)

‘Justice League’: What do the midcredits and post-credits scenes mean

‘Death on the Nile’ to follow ‘Murder on the Orient Express’

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he thrilling tales of English crime-detective novelist Agatha Christie are going to make a comeback on the big screen with ‘Death on the Nile’. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Twentieth Century Fox Film is working on a follow-up to ‘Murder on the Orient Express’, developing Agatha Christie’s ‘Death on the Nile’.

Michael Green, who adapted the screenplay for ‘Orient Express’, is penning the script, and while there is no deal currently in place, five-time Oscar nominee Kenneth Branagh is expected to return as director and reprise his role as the internationally famous Belgian detective Hercule Poirot.

‘Murder on the Orient Express’ has performed solidly at box office with 50 million dollars in India and another 100 million dollars internationally.

The film is about a murder that takes place on a train and Poirot is given the

responsibility to solve the mystery.

Christie first published ‘Death on the Nile’ in 1937, three years after her novel ‘Murder on the Orient Express’ was published. The novel saw Poirot on a vacation in Egypt and becoming involved in a love triangle gone murderously bad. Agatha Christie is listed as the best-selling novelist of all time. Her novels have sold about 2 billion copies.

‘Death on the Nile’ was adapted into a 1978 movie with Peter Ustinov as Poirot along with Bette Davis, Mia Farrow, Maggie Smith, Angela Lansbury, George Kennedy, Jane Birkin, Jack Warden and David Niven.

‘Murder on the Orient Express’ stars Penélope Cruz, Willem Dafoe, Judi Dench, Johnny Depp, Josh Gad, Derek Jacobi, Leslie Odom Jr., Michelle Pfeiffer, and Daisy Ridley.

(Indian Express)

Adam Driver unsure about seeing ‘Star Wars The Last Jedi’

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his piece is about the scenes that appear after the ‘Justice League’ movie, so there would inevitably be spoilers. If you have not watched it, and plan to do so, do not read further.

‘Justice League’, DC and Warner Bros’ answer to ‘Avengers’, is one of the most divisive films this year in the sense that critics and fans seem to have vastly different opinions on it. It has received mixed to negative critical reception but most fans seem to love it. At least that’s what Rotten Tomatoes suggests. Its Tomatometer is currently at a measly 39%, but 86% of audiences have said that they liked it.

Those of you who have seen it must have stayed for the two scenes that appear after the movie, one in mid-credits and the other in post-credits.

Here we will take a look at what the two scenes mean and whether they portend anything in DC

Extended Universe.

Mid-credits scene: Superman vs Flash

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short while after credits begin rolling, Ezra Miller’s Flash and Henry Cavill’s Superman contest to see who is the faster man between them. During the movie, when Superman went mad just after his resurrection and took on the entire ‘Justice League’ alone without breaking a sweat, Flash, whose sole superpower is that he is blazing fast got the shock of his life when he saw the Man of Steel’s gaze could follow him easily as he was coming around Superman to ambush him from behind.

In the comics, there is a friendly rivalry between these two characters as to who can run faster, and most of the time the race ends in a draw, so this little scene did not really have any significance other than a nod to the comic book rivalry. Sadly, we did not get to see who won, as the scene ended just

when the duo started the race.

Post-credits scene: Injustice League?

It is revealed in post-credits that Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor is out of the prison and is actually chilling in a yacht. But that is not all. Lex Luthor meets the deadly mercenary Deathstroke (played by Joe Manganiello) and talks of making a league of their own in response to the Justice League.

Deathstroke is one of the favourite characters among DC fans and Marvel’s Deadpool was actually a ripoff (and a parody) of Deathstroke.

Even Deadpool’s real name, Wade Wilson, derives from Deathstroke’s Slade Wilson.

The ‘league’ that Deathstroke and Luthor are talking about may turn out to be ‘Injustice League’, which is antithesis of Justice League and full of villains such as The Joker, Penguin, Bizarro, and Bane. (Indian Express)

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ooks like Hollywood actor Adam Driver is still not sure about watching his own movies. The 34-year-old actor is not sure if he’s going to watch the upcoming ‘Star Wars’ movie in which he reprises his role as Kylo Ren, as he finds it “self-destructive” after a while, reports People Magazine.

In an interview with a leading U.S. magazine, when asked if he is going to his upcoming movie ‘The Last Jedi’, he said, “Undecided. I can’t just watch it objectively.

I always hate it and then come back to, like, ‘Okay, that’s fine, it’s not about me. It’s the story.’ I can’t watch it once. I have to watch it five times, you

know? The movie is over.”

Adding, “It’s on film, so it’s permanent. But if I think about it more, it’s just an obsessive loop I keep playing in my mind that I can’t get caught up in because it’s totally self-destructive and not helpful moving forward.”

The ‘Silence’ star has appeared to hint that he doesn’t like tuning into his own movies.

While talking about ‘Silence’, the film he made with Martin Scorsese, he noted, “Actually, I hadn’t seen it. It was on TV the other night, which I was surprised by. And I’m like, ‘Oh, I can watch that. I’m not in a lot of that movie.”

But he made an exception as Adam made an exception though and

did go to watch ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ with his wife Joanne.

“The Force Awakens is the only movie I’ve sat with an audience and watched.

Joanne [his wife] hadn’t seen it. I didn’t tell her anything about it. I didn’t tell her I kill Han Solo.

Credits started, the whole scroll at the beginning, and they start screaming, ‘Oh my God! It’s happening.’ And I flash-forward to where I killed Han, and I got really sick, and went really cold, waiting for when it was over,” explained Driver.

The eighth installment, ‘The Last Jedi’, in the epic sci-fi franchise ‘Star Wars’ will hit theatres on December 15.

Helmed by Johnson, ‘The Last Jedi’ stars Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Mark Hamill, Oscar Isaac, the late Carrie Fisher, and Adam Driver in pivotal roles. (Indian Express)

50 sport

WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Daniel flexes to Mr ‘Stage T of Champions’ title

Powerlifting Federation to close year with Senior Nationals on December 3

Kerwin Clarke presents the prize to Damion Daniel in the presence of men’s Physique Champion Emmerson Campbell (right) and Ms Bikini Stefeni Tjon-A-San

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ast Saturday night, the Theatre Guild was the place to be for bodybuilding fanatics since some of the best bodies in the Caribbean took the stage to do battle in what turned out to be a highly entertaining evening.

After 28 gladiators flexed their muscle fibres to the max, Grenada’s Damion Daniel, Guyana’s Emmerson Campbell and Suriname’s Stefeni Tjon-A-San found themselves as the last men and woman standing.

Daniel, a 2016

Central American and Caribbean Games (CAC) gold medalist in the heavyweight class, stood head and shoulders above the competition, flexing and posing his way to the Mr ‘Stage of Champions’ overall title.

Standing at 6-foot 2’, Daniel outclassed his opponents as he possessed a superior level of detail and his 215-pound frame was a mass of striated muscle.

With chiselled arms, deltoids, glutes, legs, a barn-door back and a washboard mid-section,

the muscleman from the Spice Isle, used his sharp physique to slice through the competition.

Before winning the overall pose down of the champions of champions against Sudarshanan Persaud (under 143 lb) Marlon Bennet (154 lb), Nolan Smith (164 lb) and Ollyn Martin (super heavyweight), Daniel dispatched five other bodybuilders in the heavyweight class. For his exploits under the lights, Daniel expertly tanned and clad in a

he Senior Nationals of the Guyana Amateur Powerlifting Federation (GAPLF) will close off the calendar year on December 3 at the Ramada Princess Hotel.

According to officials of the federation, powerlifting fans can come out expecting an entertaining show since the local lifters will be pushing themselves to qualify for next year’s international competitions.

Moreover, overall winners of the Raw Nationals held in October; Vijai Rahim and Lisa Oudit are returning to showdown with the other top competitors.

Aiming to “lift” away the accolades will be Colin ‘Mr. Clean’ Chesney, Grace and Blossom Babb as well as Jackquelyn Toney, while Joseph Stoll in the Masters 2 (50- 60 years) and Frank Tucker in the Masters 3 (60- 70 years) will seek to prove that they can still compete with the younger genera-

L-R: Lisa Oudit and Vijai Rahim after winning the RAW Championships

tion of lifters.

Also being featured at the National Seniors is Romario Gonsalves, who was part of Guyana’s contingent at the 16th North American Powerlifting Federation (NAPF) and 32nd South American Powerlifting Federation (FESUPO) Championships contested in Florida July last.

The competition will begin at 10:00h with the athletes competing in the Raw

(Classic/Unequipped) or Equipped categories.

In addition as part of preparations for the final showdown, the GAPLF will host a referees’ clinic on December 2, which is targeting capacity building of local referees and officials functioning as spotters and scorers. The athletes will also be duly informed of the demerits of using performance enhancing drugs and will be able to take their anti-doping tests.

Boxing: Forgotten Youth Foundation punch way to GBA U-16 title Part of the highoctane action on Saturday

continued on page 52

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istic fury and hard fought battles were the highlights of the 2017 Guyana Boxing Association’s (GBA) national under-16 championships held at the Andrew “Six Head” Lewis gym in Albouystown last Saturday. At the tourney, the Forgotten Youth Foundation Boxing gym came out victorious, while the Savannah Boxing Gym’s (SBG) performances were memorable.

Technical Director at GBA, Terrence Poole noted that the 16bout, one-day tournament which “rumbled” off on Saturday afternoon was a fitting way to close off junior amateur boxing in the country for the year, since all the fights exhibited by the 38 athletes were very exciting.

The Forgotten Youth Foundation (FYF) won 11 of the 16 fights in convincing fashion ahead of the other five gyms that participated for the championship trophy.

Julicia Rodney of Savannah Boxing Gym based in Lethem won the lone female fight. Poole noted that there is a great need to get more females involved in amateur boxing and this can be an opening. The technical director further pointed out that the tournament was a big success and explained that it is very possible that in the future Guyana will be represented by one of the boxers from the tournament.

The list of Saturday’s bouts: 1. 56-60lbs Vickacy Graham (FYF)

defeated Michael Mangal (FYF) 2. 135-140lbs Shemar Morrison (FYF) defeated Emmanuel Pompey of Young Achievers (YA) 3. 60-64lbs Joshua Tamambaran of Rose Hall Jammers (RHJ) defeated Moses Crawford (FYF) 4. 75-79lbs Sean Graham (FYF) won by unanimous decision against Wayne Castello (FYF) 5. 85-89lbs Dwayne Baptitse (FYF) won by walkover against Elijah Waldron of Pocket Rocket Boxing Gym (PRBG) 6. 90-94lbs Richard Howard (FYF) defeated Kamil Yahya (PRBG) 7. 100-104lbs Travis Inverray (FYF) defeated Jadan Graham (YA) 8. 105-110lbs Patrick Harvey (FYF) won by split decision against Francis Sukhu (RHJ) 9. 125-129lbs Jaqwan Mild (FYF) defeated Jamal Mercier (YA) 10. 115-119lbs Raphael Sebastian (RHJ) defeated mark Crawford (FYF) 11. 15-157lbs Female Julicia Rodney (SBG) defeated Abiola Jackman (FYF) 12. 155-162lbs Javon Thomas defeated Kevin Tacoordeen (SBG) 13. 170-178lbs Joshua Corbin (Carryl) defeated Brian Harris (FYF) 14. 180-187lbs Daniel Dey (FYF) defeated Shauquan Michael (RHJ) 15. 56-60lbs Vickacy Graham (FYF) defeated Shanquan Deen (FYF) 16. 135-140lbs Shemar Morrison (FYF) defeated Troy Nero (SBG)

Sport 51

WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

2017 GCB/Jaguars 50-over League

Chanderpaul, Shepherd star in West Demerara’s 31-run victory – Crandon hits 1st century

Royston Crandon

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est Demerara was indebted to the returning Guyana Jaguars opener Tagenarine Chanderpaul who struck four boundaries in his top-score of 70 which laid the platform for their 31-run win over East Bank in first round of the Jaguars’ 50-over Franchise League at the Everest Cricket Ground

on Tuesday.

Chanderpaul helped West Demerara to 16710 in 41.2 overs as Safraz Esau was the next best scorer with 35. The batting lineup suffered from regular losses of wickets thanks to the East Bank duo of skipper Ronaldo Alimohamed with figures of 3-26 and Trevor France (3-29) while seasoned allround spinner Steven Jacobs ended with 2-35.

Chasing 168, East Bank folded for 136 all out in 37.3 overs with Jacobs resisting with 28 while support came from Sachin Singh (23) and Quazim Yusuf (22). However, their innings proved futile as West Dem pacer Romario Shepherd

ripped through the toporder to end with 3-23 and off-spinner Richie Looknauth supporting with 3-32.

Imam Bacchus Ground in Essequibo Essequibo opened their account with a crushing 79-run win over West Berbice.

Batting first, Essequibo ended on 189-9 from 30 overs compliments of knocks from Kevon Boodie (35), along with 34 apiece from Kemol Savory and Ricardo Adams.

Youth player Kevon Sinclair was the pick of the West Berbice bowlers with 4-30 but his teams never got out the blocks during the chase and were rolled over for 111 in 28.3 overs.

Steffon Adams was the top-scorer with an unbeaten 21 as Adams bagged 4-28 to help set up a comfortable win.

Albion Ground, Berbice

Georgetown won the

West Demerara celebrate one of Romario Shepherd wickets

toss and inserted Lower Corentyne to have a first knock, to which they made a whopping 249 for 6 with former Guyana/ West Indies batsman Royston Crandon hitting the first century of the competition with 101 off 121 balls.

Jonathon Foo chipped in with 34 while useful hands were played by Devon Clements (35) and Jason Sinclair (38). Bowling for Georgetown, Paul Wintz and Ashmead Nedd snapped up two wickets each while Jamaicanborn Franchise player, Ramaal Lewis and

spinner Steven Sankar, claimed a wicket each.

Georgetown were then blown away by 131 runs after folding for a meager 136 with Shemroy Barrington (29), with 22 apiece from Lewis and Wintz. The damage was led by leftarm national spinner Veerasammy Permaul who continued his top form from the Regional 4-Day, ending with 4-26 with support coming from Crandon 3-11.

Port Mourant Cricket Ground, Berbice

East Coast won the toss and elected to bat first Brian Sattaur was

out lbw by Rajiv Ivan for 29, Steve Ramdass contributed with 28.

Young Bhaskar Yadram also contributed with 15 before he was bowled

by Balchand Baldeo, along with Kamesh Yadram who had so far top scored with 41runs.

East Coast was at 183 for 5 at lunch after 42 overs. As play continued after lunch Ameer Khan Whipped up an acceptable 52 while Pradesh Balkishun was cheaply ran out by David Latchaya for 3 runs.

Upper Corentyne was bowled out for 252 in 48.4 overs.

Football: Golden Jaguars arrive in Indonesia for historic clash keepers: Akel Clarke (North East Star FC), Andrew Durant (San Juan Jabloteh FC); Defenders: Christopher Bourne (Islington Admiral United FC) England Jake Newton (Walton & Hersham FC), Jelani Smith ( Sigma FC), Jeremy Garrett (Fruta Conquerors), Cecil Jackman (Fruta Conquerors); Midfielders: Dwain Jacobs (Police FC), Brandon Beresford (Rochester Golden Jaguars at the Soekarno–Hatta International Airport in Indonesia

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uyana Senior Men’s Football Team commonly called Golden Jaguars arrived in Indonesia on Tuesday for their momentous clash against the host on Sunday in Jakarta.

The 19-man squad is expected to begin training to face an opponent they will be meeting for the first time for a debut match in the continent of Asia.

The squad consists two Goalkeepers, five Defenders, seven Midfielders and five Forwards, including locals Dwain Jacobs (Police FC), Trayon Bobb (Uitvulgt FC), Curtez Kellman (Georgetown FC), Denzil Fordyce (Milerock FC) and Anthony Abrams, Jeremy Garrett and

Cecil Jackman (Fruta Conquerors FC).

Wayne Dover, Interim Head Coach, said the squad is one of youth and experience: “The composition of the squad is a good blend of overseas and locally-based players. Most of the locally-based players have played over 10 games for Guyana at the senior level while it would be valuable exposure for the likes of Jeremy Garrett, Cecil Jackman, Denzil Fordyce, Kelsey Benjamin and Curtez Kellman. This group of young players has an average age of 20 years and this augurs well for the programme to see them in the senior final 19-man squad. As the Elite league gets underway, many more opportunities would be given

to the players from the league even as Guyana prepares for the 2018/19 Caribbean Cup. “The game against Indonesia is a very interesting fixture given the fact that it is the first time Guyana will be playing against a team from South East Asia,” Dover said.

“The coaching staff, players and administration want to ensure we get a positive result to make history, winning our first game in that side of the world. This effort by all involved will be seen as ‘one team, one dream’ to make it happen,” Dover added.

With Charles Pollard as Assistant Coach, Eon De Veira as Goalkeeper Coach and Rawle Adams as Manager, the Full Squad reads: Goal

Rhinos FC), Anthony Benfield ( S.V. Nishan), Daniel Wilson (S.V. Nishan), Trayon Bobb (Uitvulgt FC), Curtez Kellman (Georgetown FC) Denzil Fordyce ( Milerock FC); Forwards: Shaquille Agard (Durham United FC), Kelsey Benjamin (Caledonia FC), Devonte Small (Reynir FC), Daniel Jodah ( Sigma FC), Anthony Abrams (Fruta Conquerors FC).

52 sport

WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

‘Windies’ arrive to face ‘Black Caps’

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Batsman Jermaine Blackwood pushes his luggage following his arrival on Tuesday. PICTURE CWI MEDIA

HRISTCHURCH—An upbeat West Indies touched down on Tuesday to continue preparation for their two-Test series against the hosts, bowling off next month.

The Caribbean side has spent the last two-and-a-half weeks in Australia undergoing training for the series which will see matches at the Basin Reserve in Wellington from December 1-5 and at Seddon Park in Hamilton from December 9-13.

Before those Tests, however, the tourists will take on a strong New Zealand ‘A’ side in a three-day tour match at the Bert Sutcliffe Oval in Lincoln starting Saturday, November 25th.

The match is the only warm-up fix-

ture prior to the Test series.

West Indies are coming off a 1-0 win in a two-Test series against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo earlier this month, and will be hoping to take that winning form into the current tour.

The weight of history will be against the Windies, however, as they have not won a series on New Zealand soil in 22 years.

On their last tour four years ago, the Windies went down 2-0 in a threematch rubber.

West Indies made just one change to the squad which toured Zimbabwe, bringing in prolific batsman Sunil Ambris for out-of-form right-hander, Kyle Hope. (TT Guardian)

CONCACAF Women’s football activities day hailed a success –Trim, Smith cop U15 and U17 MVP accolades

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Some female players going through drills on Saturday

ational U15 member, Jaladi Trim, and U17 Tiandi Smith were the Most Valuable Players (MVPs) of their respective categories in the 3rd annual CONCACAF Women’s Football Day hosted by the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) last Saturday at the National Training Centre, Leonora.

The programme, held from 11:00 to 17:00hrs, saw The U15 competition being won by Kwakwani while Senior Fruta Conquerors won the U17 edition. The participants were girls from across Guyana inclusive of Kwakwani, Lethem, East Bank, Georgetown, Bartica, Orealla, Berbice and West Demerara.

Trim, captain of U15 Kwakwani Strikers, was proud of her team’s performance and had encouraging words for her peers: “I am grateful that we won today.

I think if more females showed up to more ATC games they would be successful.” U17 MVP, Tiandi Smith, while being thrilled for her nomination, was also proud of her team. She said “we knew what we were capable of and we did our best while hav-

ing fun.” Outstanding Player Awards went to the Lady Jags’ Kendra Thomas and U15 Fruta Conquerors’ Hasha Holder.

The Women’s Day featured 12 female teams and Grass Roots participants who competed, learned and laughed together under the supervision of the GFF Technical Staff.

The programme began with Grass Roots exercises then proceeded to U15 and U17 round robin matches. The U15 matches were among girls from Kwakwani, Lethem, East Bank, Georgetown Academy Training Centre (ATC), Bartica, Orealla, Junior Fruta Conquerors and New Amsterdam United.

Meanwhile, the U17 competition was among Senior Fruta Conquerors, West Demerara and the U17 Lady Jags. A special Grass Roots game was also played among the participants.

Trim, captain of U15 Kwakwani Strikers, was proud of her team’s performance and had encouraging words for her peers: “I am grateful that we won today.

I think if more females showed up to more ATC

games they would be successful.” U17 MVP, Tiandi Smith, while being thrilled for her nomination, was also proud of her team. She said “we knew what we were capable of and we did our best while having fun.” Outstanding Player Awards went to the Lady Jags’ Kendra Thomas and U15 Fruta Conquerors’ Hasha Holder.

The Women’s Day featured 12 female teams and Grass Roots participants who competed, learned and laughed together under the supervision of the GFF Technical Staff.

The programme began with Grass Roots exercises then proceeded to U15 and U17 round robin matches. The U15 matches were among girls from Kwakwani, Lethem, East Bank, Georgetown Academy Training Centre (ATC), Bartica, Orealla, Junior Fruta Conquerors and New Amsterdam United.

Meanwhile, the U17 competition was among Senior Fruta Conquerors, West Demerara and the U17 Lady Jags. A special Grass Roots game was also played among the participants.

Daniel flexes to Mr ‘Stage...

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red posing trunks, pocketed the Gy$250,000 first prize.

Martin was adjudged the second place bodybuilder overall while a novice on the stage, surprisingly took third ahead of Bennett and Smith.

Men’s Physique

The judges awarded the Men’s Physique Showdown trophy to 2016 CAC silver medalist, Campbell with Suriname’s Raphael Kromokanjo and Trinidad’s Brendon Francis placing second and third respectively.

Among a group of eight outstanding physiques, Campbell brought the shape and stage presence the judges most wanted to see, he was well-proportioned, well-muscled and conditioned, the tools necessary to present a winning package in the category to repeat as champion.

Ms Bikini

In the sizzling Ms Bikini segment, TjonA-San upstaged her countrywomen, Militia Galimo (last year’s winner) and Suelle Sheppherd in the fivewoman category. The

overall Ms. Bikini champion was the near perfect mix of muscularity, symmetry, sass and style.

Campbell and TjonA-San took home the Gy$100,000 first prize for winning their segments of the show.

Second and third place finishers, in the Bikini and Physique classes earned Gy$50,000 and Gy$25,000 respectively.

The organisers of ‘Stage of Champions’ dubbed the event a success and are looking to raise the profile of the third edition of the fixture in 2018.

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WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 26 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

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