Guyana Times Epaper - Wednesday, September 19, 2018

P13

Demerara Bakery teams up with First Lady to host robotics camps Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

Issue No. 3691

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Wednesday, September 19, 2018

PRICE

2 killed after mining pit collapses at Konawaruk

WHAT'S INSIDE:

Cops slapped with assault, wrongful detention charges P2

Page 7

Demerara River bridge feasibility study contract

$80 vat included

Page 3

Minister Patterson submits statement to SOCU – sources

Rape suspect dies hours P7 before court appearance

Taxi driver jailed for 4 years for narco trafficking ..fined $21M

P15

Drugs in schools

Ex-sugar workers protest PM’s office for owed severance

Guidance P11 counsellors needed in schools – rights activist

Page 2

Child molester goes into hiding before life imprisonment sentence Page 12

Better wages strike

5 months later

Commencement order yet to be issued for Juvenile Justice Bill P9 City Hall’s CoI

P14 Former auditor ready to testify

Teachers likely to return to streets

…unless arbitration panel fast-tracked

Page 9

…says criminal charges recommended since 2012

2 news

wednesdAY, september 19, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Ex-sugar workers protest PM’s office for owed severance ...as Uitvlugt Estate strike continues over working conditions

S

ome 162 sugar workers attached to the Uitvlugt Sugar Estate downed their tools for a second day over a dispute surrounding pay and other working conditions. Guyana Times was told on Tuesday that the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) is refusing to give workers $2700 as their six-hour pay.

As such, the De Kindren (DK-8) gang refused to perform duties, highlighting that there are many vines growing among the canes in addition to deep mud in the fields owing to the continued rains.

Though grinding has been affected, another gang of 141 workers at the estate is said to be working in the place of their colleagues.

However, GuySuCo is not saying how the shortfall of 162 workers will directly impact operations.

Meanwhile, union representatives met with man-

agement on behalf of workers on Tuesday morning in a bid to settle the impasse.

When Guyana Times contacted Uitvlugt Manager Yudhisthira Mana for a comment on the Sugar Corporation’s position on the matter, he said he was in a meeting and disconnected the call.

Last week, workers nationwide were not paid their weekly wages but following reports by this newspaper, GuySuCo finally honoured its obligation and employees received their salaries this week. Representatives reportedly said they were told that funds were not available. Guyana Times has made numerous attempts to contact the entity’s Finance Director Paul Bhim for a comment on the matter but to no avail.

Severance pay protest

Meanwhile, the workers’ representative body,

the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) announced on Tuesday that some of the dismissed workers from Skeldon and Rose Hall Estates staged a picketing exercise outside of the Prime Minister’s Office in Region Six (East BerbiceCorentyne) at Port Mourant. According to GAWU’s disclosure, workers are demanding that Government settle the outstanding severance payments with them. These workers, along with their colleagues at Skeldon, have been owed since December 29, 2017, but have only received half of their payments. This issue is at the centre of a civil suit at the High Court which contends that Government’s half-pay is unlawful.

The protesting former employees claimed that the funds from the first half of their payment have already

Ex-sugar workers and other supporters protested Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo’s Region Six office on Tuesday

been exhausted as they have not been able to secure steady employment. The protesters also vented their vexation of President David Granger’s recent comments that their payments were taking away from other sectors.

“They said they found the President’s remarks most disappointing as they pointed that they are not asking for any concession but only seeking what they are lawfully entitled to receive. They related that the President’s remarks cannot be disconnected from the actions of the GuySuCo which through its attorneys are seeking to invoke all sorts of red herrings regarding the court matter taken by the GAWU on their behalf seeking that the outstanding payments be honoured at last,” the union stated.

GAWU’s members are urged the President to visit their villages and homes and hear first-hand about the suffering rather than

making “outlandish and clearly irresponsible statements,” especially given the hardships the former sugar workers have faced. Among the challenges ex-sugar worker face include the inability to fully pay bills and inadequate and proper meals.

“The now former workers urged the Government to no longer continue to break the law and settle, without further delay, its indebtedness to them.

While they said this would provide some temporary reprieve, they also look forward to further assistance from the Administration to help them to permanently overcome the challenges they face,” GAWU added.

Cops slapped with assault, wrongful detention charges

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wo Police ranks that reportedly assaulted and wrongfully detained a man who visited a drinking spot they co-own found themselves before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Tuesday.

Thirty-two-year-old Mahendra Singh of Pike Street, Kitty; and 30-yearold Christopher Dhanraj of Section “C” Diamond Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara (EBD), both denied the allegation read to them by the Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan.

Singh, an Assistant Superintendent denied that on August 15, 2018, at Diamond Housing Scheme, he wrongfully detained Perry Barker while Dhanraj, a Corporal for the past 11 years, denied that he assaulted Singh.

The court heard that on the day of the incident, an argument ensued among the three men and it is alleged that Dhanraj dealt the Virtual Complainant (VC) several cuffs after which Singh proceeded to lock him in a bathroom.

The man was however able to escape from the bathroom and proceeded to make a report to the Police.

Police Corporal Christopher Dhanraj being escorted out of the courtroom by Police Officers

They were both bailed in the sum of $20,000 and are expected to make their second court appearance on September 24. Following the men’s court appearance, they were allowed to walk down the regular entrance to the court rather than though the chute. Additionally, Police ranks stationed at the court in an attempt to conceal the identities of the officers, approached reporters there and attempted to dissuade them from taking photos or videos of their colleagues.

news

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wednesdAY, september 19, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

BRIDGE OPENINGS The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Wednesday, September 19 – 13:30h-15:00h and Thursday, September 20 – a night retraction at 01:30h and a day retraction at 14:30h-16:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Wednesday, September 19 – 12:45h-14:15h and Thursday, September 20 – 13:40h-15:10h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

Demerara River bridge feasibility study contract

Minister Patterson submits statement to SOCU – sources

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

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High Tides: 12:25h reaching maximum height of 2.05 metre.

Low Tide: 05:44h and 18:19h reaching minimum heights of 1.11 metres and 1.19 metres respectively.

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T

Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson

hough tight-lipped about it, it seems that the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) is quietly continuing its investigation into the Government’s sole sourced LievenseCSO contract for a feasibility study of a new Demerara River bridge.

Sources indicate that Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson has submitted a statement to SOCU. There are reports that he paid a very low-key visit to the agency, in sharp contrast to Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo’s open visit to SOCU on Monday.

When contacted on Tuesday, SOCU head, Assistant Commissioner Sydney James, was reluctant to speak on the matter and promised to check with his investigators. Calls to Minister Patterson himself went unanswered.

It was reported on Tuesday that SOCU had given the parliamentary Opposition a commitment that members of the coalition Government will be questioned concerning the controversial contract.

This was according to Opposition Leader and former President Bharrat Jagdeo, who spoke to the media following his ‘interview’ at SOCU headquarters on Monday, where he was questioned by investigators probing the Pradoville land distribution matter.

When he went in, Jagdeo told the press his motive for appearing included setting a precedent for the current Government. He explained that the parliamentary Opposition has several matters involving the coalition it would like investigated.

When he came out of the interview, Jagdeo informed the media that SOCU has committed to having current Ministers questioned for one of those very matters -the contract for a feasibility study of the new Demerara River bridge.

“One thing that is pleasing about the interview is that at the end of it, I asked whether SOCU will be pro-

ceeding with the case I filed against Patterson. The answer was yes. So I asked whether SOCU will inter-

So we’re very pleased about that, that the same standard will be used.”

‘So hopefully next week you’ll start seeing members of the Government coming to SOCU here to answer for the contract that was awarded illegally with the complicity of Cabinet. We also indicated to SOCU that we have five other cases to send to them. Because the DPP had indicated we need to go through the Police first, when she nolle prossed the charges,” he explained.

In light of this, Jagdeo was expectant that over the next year and a half Cabinet

The contract in question was awarded to Dutch company, LievenseCSO, for a feasibility study into the new Demerara River bridge. The Opposition had requested that the Public Procurement Commission investigate the award of the $148 million sole sourced contract.

In its report on the matter, the Commission flagged Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson for requesting from Cabinet that the contract be sole sourced, instead of being processed through the Procurement Board as the

An artist’s impression of the new Demerara River bridge

view him at his office or here and I was told he would be called here for an interview and other members of the Cabinet will be invited here.

Ministers would make regular visits to SOCU to answer questions, providing that the Unit acts in a professional and impartial manner.

law says should be done.

It was subsequently announced that SOCU would be investigating the contract award.

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

Drug trade and usage in schools

O

n Monday, the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) made public that the use and sale of the drug ecstasy was discovered in five schools. Known as a recreational drug, it has harmful side effects, including addiction, and can cause altered sensations. CANU’s announcement might have come as a surprise to many, and is extremely worrying.

What is clear is that some young people have been, and are being, exposed to a drug that also affects the brain, and has reportedly been used as a date rape trap.

Sadly, drug use in some schools is reportedly not new.

Unfortunately, young minds are involved in cigarette smoking and consumption of substances from alcohol to others that are far more harmful. Some are bold enough to capture the effects of unsavoury activities they engage in afterwards, evident from videos that circulate. CANU’s Deputy Head, Lesley Ramlall, noted that looking at the videos, especially those involving young girls, is really worrying for society.

Clearly, this will now attract attention, and the expectation would be for the implementation of measures to eliminate this illegal practice, especially within the school system.

This will not be easy, and Ramlall did allude to the related challenges, honing in on how do you get to the man at the top, the established leader? Law enforcement will have to up the ante in all aspects, including intelligence, to holistically deal with this situation, which has a frightening potential to become a wider problem.

While CANU must be commended for making the discovery and alerting the nation, it rises concerns over how long it might been ongoing; whether the schools were aware, and whether they have the capacity to aid in identifying drug sales and use within. The drug trade tends to operate within a network, and at this point it may be difficult to know how extensive it may be in the schools, and whether the actual use is confined to the five.

Another reality is that young people would experiment, unfortunately, with harmful things. This is where the Ministry of Education will have to be more innovative to derive mechanisms to build capacity among teachers, so that they can be able to spot any possible sign. Once again, this will not be easy, given the innovativeness of those involved.

That aside, there must be some signs, including changes in students’ behavioural patterns and performances, depending upon the extent of usage. This is not just for ecstasy, but other drugs as well.

The teachers would need to be supported in this fight, and it may very well demand a relooking of policies at a higher level for the implementation of effective combating mechanisms. This would need some urgency, given that some young people, who represent the future, are involved.

It will take the involvement of all: parents, teachers, the Ministry of Education and law enforcement.

Crucial is sustained education on the harmful effects of drug use, for which the media should be encouraged to be a part of. It has to be national, given what’s at stake.

Maybe this could be the opportunity for the establishment of a structured school monitoring mechanism with specific responsibility. This has been touted before, for other reasons, where trained personnel could either be stationed or make visits to schools to gauge any related effects.

This will have to be thoroughly thought out, for there is the possibility teachers could feel that part of their responsibility is being usurped. They generally look for signs that could indicate a shift in behavior, and try to find a way of having it resolved. With what is now in the news, it begs the question of whether the situation has, in some way, moved beyond the remit of teachers; be it a lack of capacity, or awareness, or frankly being afraid to intervene.

Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan, speaking on the issue, was quoted as saying law enforcement agencies were “losing the battle” now that drugs have ended up in schools. This is a battle that the nation cannot afford to lose, and one which must be consistently and relentlessly fought.

While the stark reality is the battle being lost at this point, it can also be seen as a failure by those in authority.

The Government came into office with a strong security portfolio, and the security minister’s comments, though factual, not only underscore that failure, but hint at a lack at optimism in dealing with the issue.

Granted that Guyana has porous borders, one would want to believe that surveillance has been heightened at ports of entry. The issue again highlights the need for intelligence gathering to be strengthened so as to aid agencies in curbing the situation.

Beyond these shores, some schools in the USA were forced to install metal detectors following an upsurge of attacks on students by students in what was described as gang- related violence. That was after the situation had festered and grown. Routine searches here may not be farfetched to nip the presence of ecstasy in schools.

Larger-than-life comic strip characters storm the skyline of Brussels, Belgium in the annual Balloon's Day Parade with a gargantuan display of balloons during each year’s comic festival (prokerala.com)

The time for GAW to act is now

Dear Editor, The Guyana Amazon Warriors have been given the uncomfortable tag as bridesmaids and chokers after another stumble at final hurdle in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), which ended Sunday night in Trinidad with an easy victory for the hosts.

While it is a justified position, we must take a closer look to see what is needed to get the Warriors over the line, for we have come up empty-handed after reaching four finals in six years.

Over the first five years of CPL, the Warriors had used Guyanese coaches; Roger Harper in 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017, and Carl Hooper in 2015, to oversee the team.

Harper took the Warriors to the final in 2013 and 2014, but could not get them over the line, and was replaced with Hooper in 2015, when they crashed out at the semifinal stage.

Harper was brought back for 2016 and 2017, when the team finished second and third respectively, forcing the Warriors to look outside of the region for a coach.

South African Johan Botha was brought in, and

was assisted by Guyanese Rayon Griffith. Initially, the move seemed to have brought fresh ideas, and according to the local media, the feeling in the camp was that 2018 was the year of the Guyana Amazon Warriors.

They even got oil exploration giant ExxonMobil to sponsor them, and the entire Guyana to jump on the bandwagon.

After a few encouraging games, they hit some snags when they had three captains in nine games. Original captain Shoaib Malik left after five matches to represent Pakistan for Asia Cup, and former captain Rayad Emrit took over. However, following a dip in form and a heavy defeat at the hands of Trinbago Knight Riders, Trinidadian Emrit was stripped of the captaincy and was dropped. Australian rookie off-spinner Chris Green, in his first season in CPL, was then thrown in the hot seat.

With the batting exploits of Shimron Hetmyer and Sherfane Rutherford, the Warriors booked their place in their fourth final, and were looking to beat TKR three consecutive times to

lift their maiden title.

At the start of the tournament, many had expectations of the team, especially after it was played up smartly by the media and was supported by ordinary performances from St Lucia Stars and Barbados Tridents. To this the fans got even more involved, and Providence was sold out for the home matches.

Before the start of the season, there was the desperate move to find a coach who can get the Warriors over the line; while, during the season, the Warriors were chopping and changing to find the right captain and team. The switching around helped, and they got to the final amidst all the pressures.

However, there is one position that is constant, and that is the position of ‘Team Manager.’ The Operations Manager has been the only constant in six years for the Amazon Warriors, and I strongly believe that his involvement is the jinx of the team.

The Operations Manager seemed to be involved in too many things, and the word outside is that he is not the man for the job. He was responsible for creating ten-

sion, and even had fallout with some players over the years, especially in 2017.

With the wealth of talent in Guyana, I know we can do better, but not worse.

Cricket West Indies, like the rest of the world, has gone down the road of having former players fill the role of Team Operations Manager, a move that has proven to be successful.

If the Warriors are not looking at guys like Harper and Hooper, there are Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Clyde Butts, Reon King, Colin Stuart, Lennox Cush, Neil Barry, Julian Moore and Andre Percival, who all have local knowledge and must be considered. They are actively involved in the game, and can even assist in selecting players, like what the Operations Manager did at the CPL Player Draft earlier this year.

If the Guyana Amazon Warriors are looking for a different result, they cannot have the same persons doing the same things over and over again. The time to act is now.

Sincerely, A Grant

The ghost of the AFC

Dear Editor, The Alliance for Change (AFC) has now invented an innovative and creative campaign strategy, which reproduces the inherent lies and deceit, but in another form.

It was claimed by Mr Khemraj Ramjattan, on the Alliance on the Move programme, that PPP supporters are intimidating people from putting their names on the AFC candidates’ list.

He further said the Guyana

Police Force will be called in to deal with these PPP supporters. This is hard to believe, since no one can stop anyone from backing any candidate, that being an entirely private matter; unless these would-be AFC backers made a public proclamation to the effect.

However, this is just a prefabricated excuse, or more like a good defence when the AFC fails at the LGE polls, which they are bound to!

It must be recalled that, not so long ago, Mr Ramjattan lambasted and insulted the residents of the Upper Corentyne, accusing them of sitting down and drinking rum, and only waiting for the ‘lawyer boy’ to come and buy rum for them.

Now he wants them to vote for him! He should apologise, and then ask for their support. Mr Ramjattan has always opined that Berbicians are illiterate and stupid, but

he needs to understand that they have excellent longterm memories, and can recall insults verbatim.

Moreover, the AFC is now promising roads, land, street lights, gun licences, and other favours once residents support them by signing on the LGE backers form. This is not only deceitful, but illegal. No political party can promise state resources in return for support and votes.

Continues on page 5

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

Guyanese need a Govt beside us, not on top of us Dear Editor, The contemptuous sentiments expressed by Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan, against the people of this nation would have been shocking and disappointing had we higher expectations from this Government.

As expected from our brand of “us vs them” politicians, more than half of Mr Bulkan’s interview with a section of the media centred on idiotically attacking the PPP/C, and nothing that he said there is worth engaging, unless one is an idiot too.

What cannot be condoned, however, is the contemptuous attack on us, the people of this country. Apparently according to the dear Minister, the people of this country don’t know what Local Government is all about. The minister claims “it will take time for persons to fully grasp the benefits.”

Sections of the media quoted the minister’s arrogance and big talk as follows: “We are empowering people ultimately for their own benefit. The PPP will either conform or step aside.”

So, in the Minister’s mind, it seems clear that the Local Government Elections are a battle between the two major political parties currently in the National Assembly; Local Government Elections are just like National Elections.

So who is it that needs the education on what Local Government is all about, and time to fully grasp the concept: the people of this coun-

try, or Minister Bulkan and cohorts?

The system for Local Government in Guyana is heavily structured in favour of political parties. This is a system of Local Government that is supported by both major political parties in this nation. President Granger, when questioned about the heavy participation of his party in Local Government Elections, expressed a view that was biased against the participation of individual candidates in Local Government Elections.

With politicians who are invested in consolidating political power, controlling the activities of NDCs, and directing the future activities of our communities; and who believe in state control, we cannot expect any other sentiment more in alignment with freedom and the spirit of democracy.

The governance architecture that we have in Guyana is a set of self-interested politicians operating at the Central Government level. Politicians at the Central Government level infiltrate the Guyana Public Service directly, and also through the recruitment of partisan staff. We have seen in this country Permanent Secretaries – the backbone of stable Government across political transitions -- who are directly affiliated with political parties. We have Mr Mortimer Mingo, holder of an “Independent” position -- Chairman of the Local Government Commission –

being also a PNCR Executive.

What is it about our country and the political culture of the political parties that allow these kinds of corruption to thrive? What happened to ethics, and how can it be institutionalised?

Contrast the behaviour and ethics of Elisabeth Harper, who resigned from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs prior to venturing into a career in politics.

The Laws of Guyana support a Local Government System that has pushed out all the capable, independent and civic-minded citizens to the fringes of Local Government, so what we have is complete political domination, with a corresponding path for the free flow of corruption from Central Government to Local Government, and a corresponding lack of diversity of perspectives within our politics; with the creative, independent-minded professionals and individuals on the sidelines of society while the corrupt and the partisan take centre stage in the administration of the nation. This model allows for too much corruption and too much political control. We need freedom from this oppression.

If we wish to have a truly democratic nation, and a knowledge-based society free of the weight of oppressive politics, we need to identify those structural elements that are blocking the sunshine. This is not a job that calls for political consensus

in a model of the cat guarding the milk. With oil and gas at our heels, this is an urgent job that requires national consensus and the coming together of all those disenfranchised on the fringes of society. We cannot have an oil and gas economy that sits on top of a dense and Third World Government; for if we do, we will have a Third World outcome.

The people of this country need Government beside us, not on top of us. We are not a monarchy. We are not only an Independent nation, but we are also a Republic.

And while the political class, in their mad rush for Local Government Elections to control Amerindian lands and dominate our future, have forgotten the true meaning of a Republic and the role of the people, we, the people, are very much aware of our role.

All over this country: from Region 1 to Bartica to Lethem to Corentyne, Guyanese are desirous of changing our politics. We may, at present, be amorphous, but we are everywhere.

It might take Mr. Bulkan some time to fully grasp what all this means. Let him save his breath, for we know that the rush to Local Government Elections has nothing to do with benefiting the people, and everything to do with consolidation of political power in pursuit of their own personal agenda.

Sincerely, Sandra Khan

GAW needs fresh ideas to win CPL

Dear Editor, Before the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) started, I wrote to the press a letter wherein I posited that the players that were bought during the CPL draft do not have what it takes to win the CPL this year, and my prediction has come to pass.

I alluded to the fact that Jason Mohamed and Rayad Emrit should never have been in the squad because of their poor performances over the years, and instead Colin Munro and Chanderpaul Hemraj should have been selected before them.

As I said then, those two -along with Chadwick Walton and Cameron Delport -- had a

very poor tournament, which contributed to the Warriors’ not winning the CPL. Editor, I want to submit, though, that the blame must lie squarely with the Operations Manager, who has been with the Warriors since the inception, and who has been integral in the selection of the teams over the past six years. Over those six years, the Warriors have reached the finals four times and never won, yet the Operations Manager remains at the helm.

Something is definitely wrong. For the Warriors to win the CPL next year, there has to be new management with fresh ideas, who must

The ghost of...

Another ploy is their going into NDC areas where work was done by the Regional Democratic Council and taking credit for the work. This was done in the Kilcoy/Hampshire NDC, where I am the Chairman.

This was raised at the last RDC statutory meeting.

Furthermore, someone (named) told the viewers on the Alliance on the Move programme that only if the residents put their names on the AFC’s List can they gain access to the AFC Ministers, such as Mr Ramjattan and Mr Patterson, to ventilate their issues. This is a new

from page 4

form of corruption, holding the people at ransom to vote for the AFC. This is what should be investigated by SOCU and the GPF, not legal Cabinet decisions!

Never in the history of this country has a political party been so barefaced and corrupted. Our State resources are being used to openly bargain for votes.

Let the people beware of these illegal and nasty manoeuvrings of the AFC! The AFC’s ghost is now on the haunting!

Yours sincerely, Haseef Yusuf

buy players who specialise in all aspects of the game: batting, bowling and fielding. In other words, we must have a more balanced team, with no weak links. And the players who were outstanding during this year’s CPL, such as Luke Ronchi, Shimron Odilon Hetmyer, Sherfane Rutherford, Imran Tahir and Chris Green, should form the core of the team for next year.

I would not select Sohail Tanvir for next year, for the simple reason that age has caught up with him. He was very slow in the field and in running between the wick-

ets, and as the commentators mentioned, he seemed to have been burnt out towards the back end of the tournament.

Finally, Editor, it is clear we need more Guyanese in the team. Remember the last time we won a T20 tournament, Stanford, the entire team were Guyanese; and looking at many of the players in the Warriors team over the years, many of them are no match for Guyanese players. Hetmyer and Rutherford are classic examples.

Yours Faithfully, Imtiaz Baccus

Disgrace to the legal profession

Dear Editor, The despicable behaviour of the attorney-at-law who described himself to the Traffic Police as “Ryan f#@ king Crawford” is a great disgrace to the legal profession. He used his power to abuse this Police officer, who was just doing his duty.

When I looked at the video, I was moved by this attorney's behaviour, because this man represents law and order and he refused to submit himself to a Police officer who represents the traffic laws. This lawyer refused to surrender his driver's licence, and used a ton of expletives (cuss words) on the Police officer before driving away. A learned lawyer of his esteem should have conducted himself better, but he used his office to abuse his power by cussing out and insulting this Police officer.

We have a law here about tinted windscreens; also, in my opinion, it's a traffic officer’s duty to stop any suspected vehicle and ask for documents.

In my opinion, that lawyer had no legal right to cuss the Police officer, even if the officer failed to answer his questions properly. The lawyer should have produced his documents and speak in a more professional manner.

It tells me clearly that this man, who represents law and order, violated the laws of the land, and he should be disciplined for his actions.

He owes this Police officer an apology. The new Police Commissioner ought to do something about this; also the Ombudsman and Minister of Public Security.

Our society has fallen morally, spiritually and academically, and we lack love and respect for each other.

We must conduct ourselves with discipline, dignity and morality, which are key to our success.

I conclude this missive with quotations from John Maxwell and Gandhi: ''It's true that charisma can make a person stand out for a moment, but character sets a person apart for a lifetime'' - John C. Maxwell. ''Keep your thoughts positive, because your thoughts become your words. Keep your words positive, because your words become your behaviour. Keep your behaviour positive, because your behaviour becomes your habit. Keep your habits positive, because your habits become your values.

Keep your values positive, because your values become your destiny'' - Mahatma Gandhi It is my sincere hope that this letter would inspire the Police officer and the lawyer to conduct themselves better, in excellence of character in our society. May God help us all.

Regards, Rev Gideon Cecil

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By Alison Pearce Stevens

A

re you ever tempted to check your phone in class? It seems harmless enough to take a quick peek. But a new study finds that college students don’t retain information as well when devices are allowed in class. That was true even among students who did not use the devices themselves.

And college students are likely not to be the only ones affected, say Arnold Glass and Mengxue Kang. Both of the study’s authors are psychologists who work at Rutgers University in Piscataway, NJ. Glass says he’s sure he would find the same results if he had studied middle- or high-school students.

Why? The effects he and Kang saw are likely due to basic human tendencies — ones that don’t change with age.

These researchers had noticed their students were using laptops and phones during class. And they suspected there could be a problem with that. The human brain simply isn’t wired to do several things at once.

People like to think they can multitask.

But the brain actually can focus attention on just one thing at a time. When people switch between tasks, their brains can’t keep up with everything. So there will be a delay as their attention moves from one task to another. Someone who is listening to one person talk, for instance, can’t also listen to another. They can’t even listen and read at the same time.

So what happens when students try to listen to a lecture while they check their email? Or participate in a classroom discussion while liking a friend’s photos?

Glass and Kang thought this kind of multitasking might make it harder for students to learn. Their new data now confirm that it does.

Will this be on the test?

Glass and Kang worked with two groups of Rutgers students. Both groups were taking the same psychology course, just at different times. Both groups had the same teacher and covered the same material. The only

Foundation

difference between them was the time of day that they met (one right after the other).

The researchers then added one more difference between the two groups. One class was allowed to use digital devices on odd days but not on even days. The other class had the same rules, but on opposite days. This let the researchers compare how students with and without devices absorbed each day’s lessons.

On non-device days, an observer made sure students didn’t touch their phones or computers during class. At the end of the class period, students could use their devices to complete a quiz about what had been discussed that day in class.

At the end of the semester, Glass and Kang examined the results. They compared students’ quiz results on device days and non-device days. They also looked at results from three unit exams and the final exam at the end of the semester.

For in-class quizzes, there researchers found no difference between the scores of students with and without devices. But their exams told a different story.

Students did five percent better on sections of the test that covered material from non-device days. The difference was even bigger for the class’ final exam. Here, students did 13 percent better on test sections that covered non-device days.

That’s the difference between an A and a B, or a B and a C. Glass and Kang then looked at whether it was only the students using their phones or laptops who took a hit on their grades. Did students who chose not to use devices, even when they could have, perform better on the tests than their device-using classmates?

Surprisingly, no. All students got worse grades for material taught when devices were permitted — even those who did not use their phones or computers.

More than half of all students used electronic devices when they were allowed, Glass reports. “So everyone who didn’t use a device was probably sitting next to someone who was.” He speculates that this made it harder to retain information in two ways. Students asked fewer questions, leading to less conversation between the

class and the instructor. Those conversations are important because students tend to remember them, Glass notes. “And instructors, of course, respond with what they think is important — what will be on the test.”

Using a cell phone is also distracting to people nearby, Glass points out. Even if a person doesn’t want to look at the screen, they just can’t seem to help it. He asks, “Have you ever been in a movie theatre where a stranger sitting near you was using a cell phone?” If your attention was pulled away from the movie, he says, you probably had a hard time remembering the plot afterward.

The same holds true in the classroom.

Glass and Kang described their findings online July 26 in ‘Educational Psychology’.

Distracting temptations Larry Rosen is a psychologist at California State University Dominguez Hills, in Carson.

He would like to see Kang and Glass dig deeper into why tech use in class affects performance. Rosen has done some research into this subject himself. Those studies show that students have a “fear of missing out” that drives their desire to check their phones — even at inconvenient times. Such as in class. And that has a negative impact on their ability to learn, he says.

The constant distraction of electronic devices may make students struggle more with complex materials, adds Jean Twenge.

She’s a psychologist at San Diego State University in California. Her new research finds that teens spend more than six hours a day on electronic devices. These kids rarely read books or magazines. This makes them unprepared for college-level work, she suspects.

None of this means we should eliminate technology,” Twenge says. Technology can help students learn. For example, ebooks can be easier to buy and keep with you than traditional textbooks. And students with disabilities may require certain technologies to function in the classroom. “It’s just that electronic devices have so many more temptations,” she says, which “can be distracting.” (www.sciencenewsforstudents.org)

S

taying focused in class is a pretty difficult task for most teensand almost impossible at times! But if you want to succeed in school and later in life, it’s important to learn the skills related to staying focused in class. Next time you catch your mind drifting against your will in class, consider these tips.

1. Clear your desk Out of sight, out of mind plays a huge role in how well you will focus on a given lesson. Staying focused in class is made much more difficult by distractions around you. If your phone, a book, or homework for other subjects is on your desk while your teacher is lecturing, they may rob some of your attention. During each class, keep your desk free of any unnecessary distractions at all times.

2. Sit away from your friends I know, I know, this is just that cruel and unusual tactic teachers use to punish students with friends in their class. But it’s important to acknowledge that there is a reason so many teachers have seating charts, specifically designed to “make you miserable”... they work! If your teacher doesn’t have a seating chart, and you know the friend you sit next to is a Chatty Cathy, sit far away from her. You’ll have a much easier time focusing in class when you do this.

3. Take notes Some people are lucky enough to have that laser-focus where they can simply look at the power point and absorb everything the teacher says. But very few people are gifted in that particular way.

In order to maintain focus in class, jot down notes as your teacher talks. This requires active listening skills, and gives you no option of zoning out.

4. Get involved Additionally, getting involved in class discussions can help you stay interested and attentive in class. Don’t mind being dubbed a know-it-all or Curious George type just because you raise your hand so often. All that matters is that getting involved in class will help your personal learning process and growth as a student.

5. Get a good night's sleep Really, the process of staying focused in class begins the night before when you decide how much you’re going to sleep. I know that as teenagers, we often like to stay up into the wee hours of the night... but morning always comes! So try going to bed at a reasonable hour, and aim for at least 8 or 9 hours of sleep a night (teenagers need more sleep than adults). That way you won’t be falling asleep when you’re trying to focus on Chemistry!

6. Eat breakfast Another small change you can make at home before you even think about school is breakfast. You may skip breakfast for a number of reasons; you don’t have time, you don’t feel like cooking, or you’re trying to lose weight. But breakfast is totally worth waking up ten minutes earlier, and certainly worth the extra calories! A hearty, healthy breakfast will keep you full and focused until lunchtime, and provide you with the essential energy and nutrients you need to start your day off right!

7. Figure out your motivation I can’t name a time I’ve ever focused all of my energy on something I wasn’t motivated to do. How could I? You need to figure out your motivation if you want to focus and perform well in school. So do some self-reflection and figure out why you want to pay attention in school so badly!

Focus is critical to doing well in any and every school subject. It isn’t easy to teach yourself, so it’s best to absorb what you can in class so that you can ace every test that comes your way! In order to do that though, you need to stay focused every single day! Which one of these tips will help you accomplish that? (Excerpt from teen.allwomenstalk.com)

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wednesdAY, september 19, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

2 killed after mining pit collapses at Konawaruk

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wo miners lost their lives after they were reportedly covered by mud and stones when a mud pit in which they were working caved in at the Mowasi Backdam, Konawaruk, Potaro, Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni).

Dead are Deon Sproston, called “Jersey Joe”, 36, of Lot 133 Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara (ECD), and a miner only known as “Shawn”. The incident occurred at about 20:00h on Monday evening.

Guyana Times understands the two men and other persons were working the walls of the pit with metal detectors searching for gold while it was raining heavily.

While working, a large portion of the pit wall suddenly broke off and fell on both men, covering them alive.

Reports are the other workers, who managed to escape unhurt, quickly sounded an alarm and with the aid of others, began to dig for the men.

A mining pit in Guyana’s interior

However, the men were eventually located and pulled some two hours later. They were rushed to the Mahdia District Hospital where they were pronounced dead on arrival.

These latest deaths have brought the death rate to seven for this year.

In January, 23-yearold Handel Payne, also called “Daggie” of Kaneville Housing Scheme, East Bank

Demerara (EBD) died after the mining pit in which he was working at 35 Miles, Konawaruk Backdam collapsed.

Information reaching Guyana Times revealed that Payne and others were working in the mining pit when a piece of the mud wall collapsed behind them, striking Payne in the mid-section. He reportedly fell unconscious by which

Rape suspect dies hours before court appearance

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prisoner who was expected to appear at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts for the rape of a 16-year-old student died on Tuesday morning after he was rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC) by ranks after he began vomiting in the Police lockups.

Dead is Stonie Henry, 47, a welder of Lot 539 Mocha Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara (EBD). Reports are ranks observed the man vomiting at about 06:15h, hours before he was scheduled to make his court appearance.

When questioned, Henry

complained of feeling unwell and as such was rushed to the Hospital where he was immediately treated.

However, at 08:00h, the man succumbed. It is suspected Henry may have ingested a poisonous sub-

stance; however, this is yet to be confirmed.

His body is presently at the Georgetown Public Hospital Mortuary awaiting a post-mortem examination.

An investigation has been launched.

time the water began to rise rapidly. He was submerged and subsequently drowned.

He was later pulled out and rushed to the Mahdia

Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

In April, a miner named Kevin Adams, 25, of Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) died at Chinese Creek Backdam, Mazaruni River, Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) after a pit caved in and buried him alive.

One month later, in May, Ken Ranny, 20, a resident of Kamarang, Upper Mazaruni River, died after he was covered by mud after the wall of a mining pit in which he was working collapsed at Pepper Camp Backdam, Upper Mazaruni River.

Again, one month later, in June, miner Elmo Adams died after he too was covered alive after the walls of a pit in which he was working caved at Imbaimadai,

Upper Mazaruni.

Back in 2015, 10 persons died in a mining pit in the Konawaruk area after it collapsed. The incident saw 17 miners being buried under a pile of dirt and rubble but seven managed to escape alive with varying injuries.

The others remained trapped under the dirt where they perished. The 10 miners were Leyland Jones, Jason Trotman, Vick Bernard, Frank Bernard, Desmond Martins, Raymond August, Brian Bank, Trevon Phillips, Nanmore Kurt and another man identified only as “Michael”.

The deaths were blamed on heavy rains in the area, improper mining design and poor safety practices at the mining camp.

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wednesdAY, september 19, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

2 women remanded for cocaine bust at CJIA

Shellon Barrow

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wo women were on Tuesday morning remanded to prison following a cocaine bust at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) over the weekend.

Shellon Barrow and her friend, Christine Griffith, were charged for trafficking 1.638 kilograms of cocaine and aiding the trafficking of narcotics respectively.

The women appeared

before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Barrow, 35, of Lot 35 Victoria Street, Albouystown, Georgetown, who was reportedly busted by agents of the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) on Saturday, denied she had the cocaine in her possession.

Her friend, Griffith, age 37, of Pike Street, Kitty, who allegedly delivered the suitcase containing the illicit drug to Barrow, denied that she committed that offence between the September 14-15, 2018 at the Sunset Hotel, Georgetown.

The court heard that Barrow was intercepted while attempting to board a flight destined for Jamaica with the suspected cocaine concealed in a false wall of her hard cover suitcase.

After being detained, Barrow reportedly implicated Griffith telling the agents that she was given the suit-

Pilfering…

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The cocaine concealed in a false wall of a hard cover suitcase

case by her friend, Griffith.

CANU’s Prosecutor Konyo Sandiford however revealed that video footage was obtained of Griffith further implicating herself in the trafficking of the cocaine.

Both women were remanded to prison and will next reappear in court on October 8.

Only on September 13, 2018, 46-year-old Karen Stuffle was jailed for four

years by the Chief Magistrate after she attempted to traffic 1.42 kilograms of cocaine on September 9, 2018, at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA)by consuming same in her stomach and stashing some in her vagina.

Another woman, Alicia Coppin, was also caught at the JFK Airport in the United States by ranks there with cocaine in her stomach and vagina as well.

She has since been detained.

Teen slapped with murder charge on 16th birthday

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imothy Vanmaalson, who turned 16 on Tuesday, was remanded to prison after he was charged for the murder of a 72-year–old and appeared at the Cove and John Magistrate’s Court.

Vanmaalson was not required to plead to the indictable charge of murder when he stood before Magistrate Peter Hugh. It is alleged that the teen killed Krishnachand Dabee of Lot 149 Annandale South, East Coast Demerara, on August 27, 2018.

Reports are the man’s body was discovered at about

Murdered: 72-year-old Krishnachand Dabee

19:00h on August 27, 2018, by his daughter and Police.

Guyana Times had previ-

ously reported that the pensioner’s daughter, a lecturer at the University of Guyana, made several attempts to contact her father but the telephone went unanswered and she went to the Vigilance Police Station and made a report.

In responding to the report, a team of Police ranks went to the house at Annandale with the daughter and there they found the senior Dabee lying face up with injuries to his right eye and to the back of his head.

The Police have since confirmed that one of the rooms

in the house was ransacked and from all indications, Dabee was killed during a robbery.

In court on Tuesday, the matter was heard in camera. The teen was remanded to prison until October 8.

The case was transferred to the Vigilance Magistrate’s Court.

Outside of the court on Tuesday, relatives of Krishnachand Dabee gathered as they tried eagerly to get a glimpse of the teen’s face while shouting remarks at him for the gruesome act he reportedly committed.

…and Nagamootoo ome people really have no shame…and Moses Nagamootoo’s been a card-carrying member of that benighted lot for a long time. And maybe because of this, as the designated PNC’s attack dog against the PPP in general and Jagdeo in particular, he just couldn’t help himself when he wrote the article in the Chronic “PILFERING, PRISON AND PRESIDENTS”.

Imagine Moses Nagamootoo throwing shade at Bharat Jagdeo about “pilfering”!!! If the world wasn’t so uptight about the “colour question”, your Eyewitness would’ve said it was the perfect case of the stygian kahari calling the shiny kettle black!! Nagamootoo took time to “guardedly” define the term “to include unlawful taking of objects, or petty thefts.”

We note Nagamootoo’s careful use of the phrase “unlawful taking of objects or petty thefts”. What this does, he hopes, is shield him from the wholesale pilfering of the public purse he’s been engaged in from the moment he slid into office. What but “pilfering is the spending of $21million to asphalt the approach to his home in Liliendall”, when all the other long-suffering residents had to continue circumspectly navigate the moon-like craters that continued to dot their streets??

Then, of course, there’s the refurbishing of the PM’s residence on Main Street at the cost of another $20 million – when his predecessor Sam Hinds resided there quite comfortably, thank you, for decades!! Nagamootoo claimed he found a dead rat in one of the ovens in the kitchen!! Apart from defaming the cooking staff – not to mention the always meticulous and immaculate Mrs Hinds – did he have to install air conditioning for the entire house because of the allegedly deceased rodent??

The whole episode was nothing more than petty pilfering.

Petty - not in the sense of a small sum of money – but petty in a “never-see-come fuh-see”, small time hustler, way!!

What about the specially outfitted (as his flack would say - “bespoke”!!) $23 million SUV he ordered because he claimed that he had to visit his “constituents” all the way in Berbice? Wasn’t this “pilfering” since he must’ve been to Berbice since 2015 less times that the fingers on his hands?!! And your Eyewitness won’t even talk about the increase in salary he demanded – even as he went along with the firing of 4000+ of his “constituents” in Berbice, who’re now starving!!

Nagamootoo shamelessly bemoaned those who revel in pilfered wealth and said, “for some, it is everything, the causa viventium.” He should know since the Latin phrase simply mean “the reason for living”.

Can anyone review Nagamootoo’s lifestyle since 2015, and even suggest that pilfering from the public purse isn’t his reason for living?

And for the AFC, the causa viventium is clearly “catching”!! …from Teachers’ livelihood The Teachers of Guyana are discovering the meaning of “between a rock and a hard place”!! They thought they wouldn’t embarrass the government – which most of their members voted into office – too much, so returned to work after a one-week strike. They thought the government saw ‘reason” when they agreed to “binding arbitration”. They thought wrong!!

As this PNC government has shown in every activity they’ve engaged in, they believe in practicing the principle of “outcome determinativeness”!! That is, they insist on fixing the initial circumstances so that whatever outcome they want, inevitably follows. Want to ensure the elections – any elections, local or national! – go their way? Just unilaterally pick the GECOM Chair, who has the casting vote!!

Want to ensure that last bastion of “separation of powers” - the judiciary - become the handmaiden of the Executive?? Just hand-pick the Chancellor! And finally, if you want the workers to get crumbs unlike the 50% increase their ministers awarded themselves, just pick your own Arbitration Chair!!

Even rejecting respectable PNC “old-heads”!! …from our new bridge Your Eyewitness was intrigued by the rendition of the proposed new Demerara Harbour Bridge, from the design that was sole-sourced by the MPI. The Minister will be questioned by SOCU on possible misfeasance.

Will the “Ming Swing” have to go?

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

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wednesdAY, september 19, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Better wages strike

Teachers likely to return to streets …unless arbitration panel fast-tracked

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he nation’s teachers are likely to resume industrial action if no progress is made soon at the level of arbitration to fasttrack the issue of wage in-

who said on Tuesday that this process is dependent on the Labour Department.

"We are guided by our Constitution and the Constitution gives our mem-

our attorney, they will decide what we will do after... so we have not ruled out further strict action," she said when asked about the next course of action.

Teachers protesting outside the Education Ministry on September 4, 2018

creases.

This is according to General Secretary of the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) Coretta McDonald

bers the authority to dictate what happens. So, when all of this recent information would have been said to our members, as well as

McDonald said while it is not the first option to take strike action, if they are given no choice, they may have to head down that road

again, but this time on a larger scale.

“The GTU is hopeful that the sole issue will be resolved in a matter of a month or two months. We are going to continue to be vigilant, very vocal and we will continue to have our members updated on what is happening” McDonald told Guyana Times.

Following the last meeting, McDonald said the GTU had written the Education Ministry indicating that they are still willing to have talks again with the Department of Labour about naming someone to chair the arbitration panel.

She said, “It says to propose, and proposals on many instances, are not accepted. So, we will wait for the proposal to be made and for the invitation to be made for that meeting. And we will listen for the name to be mentioned.”

GTU General Secretary Coretta McDonald

The panel will be expected to broker a new multiyear agreement for the period 2016 to 2020. The last agreement expired in 2015.

In the meantime, the Department of Labour through the Social Protection Ministry said it will be nominating a chairman on behalf of the Education Ministry,

to head the arbitration panel for the Ministry and GTU. The Department of Labour on Monday said the two parties have failed to agree on a common chairman, and in keeping with the provisions of the extant Collective Labour Agreement between themselves, the Education Ministry sought the intervention of the Social Protection Ministry to nominate the chairman.

Moreover, the Social Protection Ministry said it agreed to satisfy the request of the Education Ministry and has since written to the President of the Teachers’ Union indicating its acceptance of the Ministry’s request.

The Union was advised also, that it would be informed of future developments on the matter in due course. turn to page 10

5 months later

Commencement order yet to be issued for Juvenile Justice Bill

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t was hailed as a landmark move, but almost five months after it was passed in the National Assembly, the failure of Government to bring the Juvenile Justice Bill into commencement through a Ministerial order is cause for concern among sections of society.

According to the clause, two of the preliminary sections of the Bill state, “This Act shall come into force on the date the Minister may, by order, appoint.” The Bill was laid in the National Assembly

by Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan, making him the responsible Minister.

However, checks with the official Gazette’s website revealed that a commencement order has not been issued for the law. According to sources

familiar with operationalising laws, a commencement order has to be issued when referenced in the Bill; otherwise all it takes is the President’s assent to bring the law into operation.

The Bill would repeal the ancient 1931 Juvenile Offenders Act and the Training Schools Act, abolishing offences like truancy and wandering. The draft bill was conceived in 2004 under the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic Administration, with the support and input from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

According to the criminal capacity aspect of the Act, “no child shall be capable of or guilty of committing an offence unless the presumption is rebutted pursuant to an

evaluation done in accordance with subsection.”

In addition to other factors, it was also stated that “where a child is charged, the Director of Public Prosecutions or the prosecutor or the attorney representing the child shall request of the court and the court shall order an evaluation of the child by a suitably qualified person to be conducted at the expense of the State.”

If a teenager has been found guilty of a crime, it was plainly stated that the Juvenile Justice System will be separate from that for adults, and place emphasis on the rehabilitation, education and reintegration of youths.

As such, it seeks to ensure that a juvenile is subject to meaningful consequences proportionate to the offence and

circumstances, recognising his or her greater dependency and reduced level of maturity, while providing procedural protection to ensure that adolescents are treated fairly and humanely and their rights are protected.

Rehabilitation

It has been touted that the Bill will provide timely intervention that reinforces the link between the offending behaviour and its consequences; inform and involve parents of juveniles of and in measures or proceedings, and ensure that victims are provided with information about the proceedings and are given an opportunity to participate and be heard and wherever possible contribute to the rehabilitation and reintegration of the

juveniles.

Moreover, in accordance to the Act, the application of measures taken against juveniles who commit offences will reinforce respect for societal values; ensure fair and proportionate accountability; encourage the repair of harm done to victims and the community; and where appropriate, involve the parents, the extended family, the community and social or other agencies in the juvenile’s rehabilitation, education and reintegration, and 12 criminal capacity be prompt given a juvenile’s perception of time.

Depending on the nature of the offence, the Juvenile Justice Bill 2018 provides “Diversions” which is considered to “often [be] the most appropriate and effective way

to address juvenile crime and it allows “for effective and timely interventions focused on correcting offending behaviour.

Diversion measures shall not be exploitative, harmful or hazardous to the physical or mental health of the juvenile; shall be appropriate to the age and maturity of the juvenile; and shall not interfere with the education of the juvenile.

Some of the examples of “Diversion measures” provided by the Bill may include “an oral or written apology to a specified person or institution”, “placement by the court under the supervision and guidance of the Chief Probation Officer” or “referral by the court to counselling or therapy for a specified period” among others.

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wednesdAY, september 19, 2018| guyanatimesgy.com

Ramjattan urges “restraint” when consuming alcohol ...following 2 fatal accidents involving Cops

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ollowing recent reports of two Guyana Police Force members being involved in fatal motor vehicular accidents while under the influence of alcohol, Public Security Minister

Khemraj Ramjattan has called for law enforcement ranks to be more disciplined in their personal lives, as he called for more restraint when imbibing.

In recent weeks, Constable

Ryan Persaud and Deputy Superintendent Patrick Todd were both detained by their colleagues for allegedly causing the deaths of two persons in separate motor vehicular accidents. This set alight much debate over the conduct of officers who are tasked with upholding law and order.

Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan weighed in on the issue at the 2019 Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) staff training on Monday, highlighting the many social ills that surround intoxication, including domestic violence. With great emphasis and conviction, the Minister who called for improved personal conduct, said also that ranks should seek alternatives to driving when they have had too many drinks. He suggested that ranks hire a taxi or ensure that one rank is not intoxicated.

“Take a taxi and go home or ask another Policeman to drive you home who is not drunk or had any drink but Guyanese love to take a chance,” he stressed.

The ranks involved in the recent incidents were both over the age of 21, with the senior of the two being reportedly close to retirement. In 2017, Ramjattan signalled his support for increasing the legal age of purchasing alcohol from 18 to 21. However on Monday,

he curtailed those previous statements.

“I believe that self-restraint more than making a new law to amend the age from 18-21 will do the trick.

We have to get people to understand that alcohol is bad for them. Not exclusively but moderate use of it can be allowed and that is the position of this Administration,” the Public Security Minister outlined.

Sixty-four-yearold Hague, West Coast Demerara, pedal cyclist Conrad Alleyne, lost his life on the Boerasirie Bridge last week and the Superintendent was allegedly at fault.

Meanwhile, 23-year old Constable Ryan Persaud of Kitty, Georgetown, was in early September released on $25,000 bail after he was charged for allegedly driving Guyana Police Force minibus PVV 4652, while his breath alcohol level was 91 micrograms. The normal breath alcohol level is 35 micrograms.

East Ruimveldt resident Akemo Anthony was killed in that Mandela Avenue, Georgetown accident.

Neither Persaud nor Todd has been arraigned on the charge of causing death by dangerous driving as legal advice is being sought in both matters. From January to November 2018, there have been 94 road fatalities; an increase from the 81 such cases that were recorded for 2016 at the comparable period.

Teachers likely to...

from page 9

The Education Ministry on Friday, September 14, 2018, rejected the GTU’s proposed arbitrators without giving reason, resulting in the Union also rejecting the Ministry’s arbitrators during the second meeting held last week to put an end to the ongoing teachers’ salary impasse.

The two officials which Government proposed were Permanent Secretary of the Telecommunications Ministry, Derrick Cummings and Human Resources Manager of the Guyana

Revenue Authority, Glenndon Hariss.

On the other hand, GTU proposed former Home Affairs Minister Jeffrey Thomas; former Foreign Affairs Minister Rashleigh Jackson and an experienced arbitrator, Aubrey Armstrong.

McDonald said the GTU thinks the Ministry’s rejection of their nominees speaks to the fact that they are not prepared to have neutral professionals sit on the panel.

The GTU recently called

Broken-hearted

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atiricus was so disconsolate he hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep after the CPL Finals. He was trudging towards the Back Street Bar to drown his sorrows with the fellas.

How many times would he have his hopes raised, and then dashed on the rocks to be shattered into shards? He knew he was getting a bit dramatic, but he couldn’t help himself.

For the fourth time in six seasons, his beloved Warriors had reached the finals, only to go down in defeat.

“Wha’ wraang wid yuh black tong, bai?” was how Cappo greeted him as he took his seat slowly at the table.

“Yeah maan, yuh always tell abee dat when yuh put yuh black tong pan something, ‘e gat fuh happen!” said Bungi accusingly.

“Well, it did up to now, hasn’t it?” said Satiricus defensively.

“OK fellas, don’t blame Sato for the Warriors’ loss,” said Hari. “There were a lot of other reasons for that disaster!’

“Me ‘gree wid yuh,” said Cappo. “When me look a de game, me seh dis na de same team wha’ me see in Guyana!”

“Yes!” interjected Bungi. “Me know dem seh de groun’ na gi’e big score. But fram de beg’ning, me t’ink dem need about 170 runs.”

“But even when the wickets started to fall, I thought Tanvir would stabilise the innings,” said Hari. “That was a very irresponsible shot he played to get out.”

“And it’s not just his batting,” complained Satiricus.

“Look at his fielding and bowling!!”

“Dem na shou’d bring he back nex’ year,” said Cappo firmly. “Like he get too ole!”

“Me see wan letta seh dem shou’d fyaah de maninja,” pointed out Bungi. “Me ‘gree!”

“Well, I think a serious shake- up has to happen,” said Satiricus. “But don’t forget that we still got into the finals!”

“I know that, Sato,” said Hari. “But we can’t accept the tag of being ‘chokers’. ” “Suh leh abee na t’row out de baby wid de dutty wata,” concluded Cappo.

They all drank to that and “cheered”: “Wait till nex’ year!” off a nationwide strike after the Government gave in to arbitration during the second round of conciliation talks, being mediated by Minister Keith Scott.

At that time, some 4000 teachers were on strike after several talks failed between the two parties with regards to a salary increase for teachers.

The Union said they were willing to accept a ‘substantial’ payout from the Government even after the GTU rejected Government’s request for teachers to agree

to a debunching payoff of $200 million for 2018/19.

The Union similarly rejected the $700 million cap that was placed on salary increases which was for 2018 only.

Government also wants the clothing allowance to remain at $8000, a figure the GTU said was given in 2011.

As for the Whitley Council Leave, teachers still have to wait four years before getting their one-month off, even though the GTU appealed for that period to be reduced to three years.

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wednesdAY, september 19, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Drugs in schools

Guidance counsellors needed in schools – rights activist – says ecstasy bust in school system must prompt serious discussion

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he discovery of the illegal drug ecstasy in schools in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) and Region Four (DemeraraMahaica). have prompted much worry, with one child rights activist urging the authorities to take serious action to prevent reoccurrences.

According to activist and Rights of the Child counsellor Nicole Cole, Government must “walk the talk” of placing guidance counsellors in as many schools as possible, if it is truly serious about protecting the nation’s children. She pointed out that children spend many hours in schools and the environment must be safe at all times.

“Children need safe spaces and places to grow and develop and once the school environment becomes flooded with dangerous, harmful drugs then there will be another public health problem burgeoning, which is addiction. Our society already has a huge alcohol abuse problem and a survey has shown that consumption of alcohol can start as early as 11 years old.”

“The absence of counsellors, poor parenting coupled with rampant child neglect may have led to the use of harmful drugs such as ecstasy being used by children. What this points to is the need for a public health response which has to be preventative as well as curative! There is need for drug rehabilitation services because ‘drug addictions’ are the end re-

sult of drug abuse and misuse,” she noted.

Back in 2016, then Education Minister, Dr Rupert Roopnaraine had declared that having counsellors in every school is crucial. In sections of the media, he was quoted saying that a central counselling unit was established in the Education Ministry in order to have trained counsellors in schools across the country.

“The Rights of the Child Commission had visited the then Minister of Education, Dr Roopnaraine and endorsed his utterances on placing guidance counsellors in schools but all that now appears to be a fleeting illusion to be pursued but never attained,” Cole observed.

Calls to current Education Minister Nicolette Henry to ascertain the status of this plan went unanswered.

“Worrying trend”

The Customs AntiNarcotics Unit (CANU) had announced a “worrying” trend whereby date-rape drug ‘ecstasy’ is being sold to students in at least five schools across Regions Three and Four.

The date-rape drug is making its way into schools after being already popular among many affluent members of society, according to CANU Deputy Head, Lesley Ramlall. The anti-drug enforcement agency is reportedly working with education officials to address the illegal practice.

“A lot of people are using it

the CANU official outlined.

In the meanwhile, CANU will collaborate with the Education Ministry and Regional Education Officers to combat the growing trend of drug use in schools which investigators believed is linked to the many explicit videos of young girls which have been surfacing online. The production and distribution of such material is prohibited under the recently enacted cybercrime legislation.

All of these matters were raised at Monday’s CANU staff training in Georgetown where Public Security Minister Rights activist Nicole Cole

for their sexual enhancement and now it’s trickling down to our youths in schools. The disturbing thing is that when you look at some of the videos that the children have in their phones, especially of our girls, is really worrying for us,” Ramlall said.

While it was not revealed if or how many of these affluent individuals of society were charged; Ramlall says CANU is working on tracking down the drug mules and is not inclined to carry out full-fledged investigations in schools.

“We will not get into any school without the invitation of the Ministry of Education. In all the schools we found the ecstasy, the children admitted to the use of it, the selling of it. We have gone to the other step of arresting persons who are selling this to the school children,”

Khemraj Ramjattan had called on parents to closely observe the activities of their children.

“Parents need to have more discipline in relation to what their children do and do not do… I’m not interfering with family life [but] I’m pleading with people. When they go to a party and they’re partying plenty, what are they doing at the party; are they doing ecstasy with their friends and other family members?” he questioned.

Ramjattan told CANU agents that their work is instrumental in cutting the profits

from the drug trade which was described as a “big monster”.

He further stated that marijuana cultivation is appealing to many citizens in the riverine communities, while adding that some drugs can sell for as much as $70,000 or $80,000 United States dollars by the time the prohibited products hit the North American market.

CANU says it will continue to collaborate with stakeholders in combating the narcotics trade which includes marijuana, cocaine and synthetic drugs such as ecstasy, heroine and crystal meth.

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wednesdAY, september 19, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Child molester goes into hiding before life imprisonment sentence

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ense scenes played out at the High Court on Tuesday when a man who was implicated for sexually penetrating a young female relative, fled both his verdict and life imprisonment sentence.

The absconding offender is 52-year-old Deosaran Narine, who was unanimously found guilty by the 12-member jury for the May 2014 offence. He was 48 at the time he committed the illegal acts while the girl was only five years old.

When the verdict was returned, Sexual Offences Court Judge Priya Sewnarine-Beharry inquired of attorney Maxwell McKay on the whereabouts of his client. However, McKay re-

sponded that he did not know where Narine was at that time. Nevertheless, the Judge sentenced the offender to life imprisonment with the possibility of being released on parole after serving 25 years.

Justice SewnarineBeharry’s sentence considered the psychological effects that activity had on the child.

According to the case’s particulars, Narine kissed the child on her back before he inserted his index finger in her vagina. The girl through her impact statement said that she feels sad and hurt and even blamed herself for what happened to her.

The State’s case was prosecuted by Attorneys Orinthia Schmidt and Lisa Cave.

“Fifty” turns self in for questing over fatal beating

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olice in Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice), have arrested a Lindener, Travis Hazel, called “Fifty”, of Silver City, Wismar, Linden in connection with the murder of 55-year-old Leroy Barron, of Lot 59 Old Kara Kara, Mackenzie, Linden, who was beaten to death in Linden on Friday last.

E Division (LindenKwakwani) Commander Anthony Vanderhyden on Tuesday confirmed the arrest, explaining that the suspect who had been in hiding, turned himself in at the Mackenzie Police Station in Linden on Monday evening.

He said advice is presently being sought on the way forward as investigations continue. Meanwhile, a post-mortem examination (PME) conducted on the body of the 55-year-old gave the cause of death as brain haemorrhage due to blunt trauma to the head. The PME of the unemployed resident was conducted on Monday by Government Pathologist, Dr Nehaul Singh at the Georgetown Public Hospital after the

body was positively identified by his brother, Kevin Barron.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the incident occurred at about 11:00h on Friday at Coop Crescent, Mackenzie.

Initial investigations revealed that there was an argument between Barron, who was known to do odd jobs around the Mackenzie Market, and the suspect, during which the suspect allegedly armed himself with

a piece of wood and dealt the now deceased a severe beating before fleeing the scene. The badly wounded man was later taken to the Linden Hospital Complex where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

Meanwhile, Guyana Times was told that persons who witnessed the incident have indicated that the deceased had accused the suspect of being involved in the sale of cocaine, which allegedly led to the confrontation. Reports also indicate that the deceased was also involved in another confrontation with another man on the fateful day as well. A neighbour, Michael Thomas, described Barron as being a “disrespectful individual” who abused drugs.

According to the neighbour, Barron, a father of three, had lived overseas for some time before returning to Guyana. However, his brother, Kevin Barron, described the deceased as a loving brother.

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wednesdAY, september 19, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Demerara Bakery teams up with First Lady to host robotics camps

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irst Lady Sandra Granger met with managers of Demerara Bakery to discuss possible collaborations in the area of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). During the meeting on Tuesday, held at the First Lady’s office, Mrs Granger thanked the officials of the bakery for showing interest in STEM and suggested that robotics camps be held in the community to which the bakery exists. Demerara Bakery is located at Land of Canaan, East Bank Demerara.

“I suggested that they do something within their community, so that the community will see that they are giving back. I think it is always good when we have corporate sponsors and the people among whom they work, know what they are doing,” said the First Lady.

She noted that the camps are aimed at teaching the children robotics, at the end of which, they can start their own

First Lady Sandra Granger (left) greets Director of Demerara Bakery, Sharmella Chan-Abai. Also in photo are CEO of the Bakery Marissa DaCosta-Thakurdin (second left), and Human Resource and Marketing Manager, Davindra Lalltoo (second right)

clubs.

Granger said too that the establishment of camps on the East Bank of Demerara will represent the beginning of col-

laborations between her office and Demerara Bakery. It is expected that within the next few months, camps will be held along the wider East Bank cor-

ridor.

Meanwhile, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company, Marissa DaCosta- Takrudin said her company admires the work done by Mrs Granger, particularly in the area of technology.

“We are pretty impressed with the work the First Lady is doing with her initiatives such as the STEM robotics … we want to be able to partner with her on some of these initiatives and whatever she has in the pipeline for the coming year, we want to give her our full support,” DaCosta-Takrudin stated.

DaCosta-Takrudin was accompanied by Demerara Bakery’s Managing Director, Peter Abai; Human Resource

and Marketing Manager, Davindra Lalltoo; and Director, Sharmella Chan-Abai.

Mrs Granger since 2015 has initiated several programmes in the areas of early childhood development, technology (STEM), entrepreneurship, teenage pregnancy, youth development, fist-aid and geriatric care. Ever since, she has received widespread support locally, in the Caribbean and through the Diaspora.

“These are Guyanese and Caribbean companies, they see my projects and decide they would like to make a donation… and I spend that money where they would want it to go and I report to them how their money has been spent,” the First Lady said.

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wednesdAY, september 19, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

City Hall’s CoI

Former auditor ready to testify

…says criminal charges recommended since 2012

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inancial improprieties were uncovered at City Hall by Consultant Ramon Gaskin since 2012, when he conducted an audit at the Georgetown municipality; and, in some instances, recommendations were made for criminal charges to be pressed against those culpable.

Gaskin has said he would provide the evidence to substantiate his recommendations based on that audit to the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) that has been ordered set up by the Local Government Commission (LGC) to look in the management and spending at City Hall.

“I’m supporting the CoI; I think it is long overdue. I will be giving evidence before the CoI,” the economist told Guyana Times on Tuesday.

He explained that he had produced and delivered three

comprehensive reports to the then Government which had ordered a CoI. Then Local Government Minister Kellawan Lall had, in 2008, set up the CoI to investigate the state of affairs at City Hall. The minister had appointed Keith Burrowes, an economist, sole Commissioner, assisted by an eight-member team.

That CoI was set up after the Auditor General had submitted on City Hall a report that revealed serious breaches in regulations and protocols by the Administration of the municipality, particularly within the City Treasurer’s Department.

In 2012, Gaskin was appointed head of the Implementation Committee for the reform of the Georgetown Municipality, and was expected to breathe life into the recommendations of the 2008 CoI which

City Hall

was headed by Burrowes.

“I wrote a report, but did two more on corrupt transactions and corrupt practic-

es that were taking place. I wasn’t hired to do it, but as I was there and I found out things, I decided to write,” Gaskin said.

He noted that none of the recommendations was enforced.

Gaskin’s report had highlighted grave matters: such as the council’s financial books not being audited for years, because records were unavailable, while others were difficult to follow.

He added that fraudulent transactions, including

a payment made to a bogus company affiliated with a staff member’s family, had also surfaced. He said brand new compactor trucks were not put into use, but were parked; and he had uncovered fuel theft, sold resources unaccounted for, and funds missing.

In early 2013, the services of four top officials of City Hall were terminated following a report submitted by the Auditor General’s Office. Those dismissed were: City Treasurer Anthony Meredith; Town Clerk Yonette Pluck; City Engineer Gregory Erskine and Head of the Solid Waste Management Unit, Hubert Urling.

That AG report had revealed many irregularities, among which were failure to adhere to procurement and financial procedures and record keeping; not taking proper care of council’s assets; reckless incompetence; and, most importantly, being culpable of “failing to deliver on the services expected of the council”.

Gaskin has repeatedly criticised City Hall for not accepting responsibility for non- implementation of the recommendations. He is adamant that City Hall’s failure is based specifically on

the laissez faire and corrupt culture of the Councils’ operations.

Asked whether he thinks this new CoI would bear any fruit, the outspoken social commentator and economist said he has faith in retired Justice Cecil Kennard’s delivering. He also believes that the LCG is serious about the issue, because of its move to set up a CoI. The public hearings will commence on September 24, and are expected to conclude on October 31. The necessary actions will be taken by the Commission after conclusions are drawn from the Inquiry.

The CoI comes two months ahead of Local Government Elections wherein a new executive body would be elected to oversee the activities at the Council.

Over the years, City Hall has complained about lack of funds, which is a mere contradiction to its excessive spending. Concerns were raised over this issue, and it was noted that while the building is in need of repairs, millions of dollars have been squandered excessively.

Town Clerk Royston King has been sent on leave pending the outcome of this CoI.

news

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driver jailed for 4 Ramsammy’s Ruminations Taxi years for narco trafficking Something is rotten at Gecom – time for freedom-loving Guyanese to speak out

…fined $21M

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here is general suspicion that APNU+AFC have hijacked GECOM for a PNC-style rigging of elections that Guyana unfortunately suffered from for decades between 1968 and 1992.

While it is customary for the PNC leadership and their sycophants to deny any rigging in that period, the vast majority of Guyanese know of, or experienced directly, election rigging by the PNC. It is documented locally and Dr Leslie Ramsammy internationally, and many wellknown PNC officials admit to this in private. The blatant rigging in that period forced an international intervention headed by former American President Jimmy Carter, which led to the restoration of democracy in 1992.

The Leader of the Opposition argued last week that the Guyanese people have valid reasons to believe that the 2020 elections are being positioned to follow the illegitimacy of elections in 1968, 1973, 1980 and 1985, and the Referendum of 1978. The President’s arbitrary imposition of a GECOM Chair is only one of the reasons why people believe that the intentions of this Government is to rig the 2020 elections.

Electoral-rigging suspicion is heightened by the behaviour of the GECOM Chair and the three APNU+AFC commissioners.

Take the example of the UN’s involvement in supporting free and fair elections in Guyana. The UN was solicited by GECOM in February this year to provide support to build and strengthen IT capacity and other related functions for the upcoming local government elections, and for the 2020 general elections. The UN has provided critical and invaluable support for free and fair elections in Guyana since 1992. The UN responded immediately, declaring its willingness to continue its support for free and fair elections and the sustainability of democracy in Guyana. The UN sent a team in May to determine gaps and ways that it could provide support. The Attorney General posed proudly with the team in May, and bragged that this was evidence APNU+AFC is committed to free and fair elections.

The problem is that since then, GECOM’s Chairman, handpicked by the President in violation of constitutional provisions and in breach of the consultative process in place since 1992, has stalled the initiative. In June, he spoke publicly about the importance of the support that the UN is proposing, assuring the public that the support would include an IT specialist who would help develop the software that, among other things, would facilitate tabulation process, biometric verification at the polling stations, verification of electoral lists, and general security at polling stations. Since that June declaration by the Chairman of GECOM, he has gone quiet, and is quietly and effectively sabotaging the UN’s promise of assistance.

The mission had a pre-arranged meeting with GECOM for August 7, to discuss the gaps they identified and the ways they proposed to assist GECOM. The UN team was responding to the terms of reference that were agreed to. The Chairman, without any credible explanation, simply informed GECOM commissioners -- that same morning, during a statutory meeting -- that the discussion with the UN, scheduled for that same afternoon, was cancelled by the Chairman. In the best tradition of an authoritarian leader, he told them he had information that necessitated the cancelling. One member, Robeson Benn, was forced to publicly address the matter in a letter to the media on August 10. It is now past a month and the Chairman has gone totally silent. The LGE is less than two months away, and the sought-after help from the UN is being sabotaged by the Chairman himself. Why? In the meanwhile, local government elections are to be conducted on November 12. The Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan, has arbitrarily, without following the law, changed certain demarcations of NDCs, and even incorporated Amerindian villages in some of the NDCs. He is effectively gerrymandering, which is another of the rigging instruments. Space does not permit a detailed discussion of gerrymandering introduced in these elections, but one example is APNU/AFC’s clandestine changing of two Amerindian Village Councils, Annai and Aranaputa, into NDCs without consulting the toshaos or residents.

We must not forget the clandestine operations at the Ministry of Citizenship: there is no explanation for the issuing of thousands of new adult birth certificates; there is no explanation for what happened to the many thousands of Haitians, Cubans, and people from other countries who entered Guyana and never left; there is a frightening suspicion that these persons will show up on the voters list, and that padded voters’ list will become a feature of the elections, just as it did pre-1992.

Something really rotten is smelling at GECOM.

A

Jailed: Jason Chufoon

taxi driver was on Tuesday jailed for four years and fined

$21.7 million when he appeared at the Blairmout Magistrate’s Court and admitted to a trafficking in narcotics charge.

Magistrate Rhondell Weaver imposed the hefty fine on Jason Chufoon, who on September 14, 2018, at D’Edward Village, West Coast Berbice, had in his possession 36 kilograms of cannabis.

The 29-year-old admitted to the offence as soon as the charge was read to him on Tuesday.

Reports are the drugs

The 36 kilograms of cannabis which was found in the car

were found at about 19:00h on Friday last when Chufoon’s black Toyota Fielder Wagon was inter-

cepted and searched by Police during a mass patrol at D’Edward Village, West Bank Berbice.

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wednesdAY, september 19, 2018

Regional

Microplastics may enter food-chain Maduro’s Turkish feast sparks outrage as Venezuelans go hungry through mosquitoes – research

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osquito larvae have been observed ingesting microplastics that can be passed up the food chain, researchers said Wednesday, potentially uncovering a new way that the polluting particles could damage the environment.

Microplastics – tiny plastic shards broken down from man-made products such as synthetic clothing, car tyres and contact lenses – litter much of the world’s oceans.

Hard to spot and harder to collect, they can serious-

Maduro was in Turkey after touring China and Russia to secure funding for the cash-strapped national oil company PDVSA. Before returning home, the president stopped in the Turkish capital Istanbul and visited the restaurant of Nusret Gökçe, better known as “Salt Bae”, a celebrity chef who became an internet sensation for his theatrical way of carving meat dishes before throwing salt on them

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viral video showing the Venezuelan President, Nicolás Maduro, feasting on a steak prepared by a celebrity chef at a time many in his crisis-racked nation are going hungry has provoked fury from opponents of the embattled socialist leader.

Maduro visited the famed Nusr-Et steakhouse in Istanbul when he stopped over briefly in Turkey on the way home from a trip to China to raise investment.

In the videos, he can be

seen puffing on a cigar from a personalized box while he and the first lady, Cilia Flores, watch the owner, Nusret Gökçe, in dark aviator glasses and a tight black T-shirt, cut into a steak in flamboyant fashion.

Gökçe, a world renowned restaurateur better known by his nickname “Salt Bae”, posted the videos on his Instagram account, which has 16 million followers.

His other videos show him serving customers such as Diego Maradona and posing

as Don Corleone from the Godfather movies.

Gökçe later deleted the images and a thank you post to Maduro. But by that time the videos had already generated a maelstrom of criticism for Maduro, who was forced to put a lighter spin on the dining experience.

Appearing on television on Monday night, Maduro called the meal a “once-ina-lifetime opportunity” and thanked Gökçe for his hospitality, saying he hoped to see him soon in Caracas.

(Excerpt from The Guardian)

ly harm marine wildlife and are believed to pose a significant risk to human health as they move through the food chain and contaminate water supplies.

Now researchers of the University of Reading believe they have proof for the first time that microplastics can enter our ecosystem by air via mosquitoes and other flying insects.

The team observed mosquito larvae ingesting microscopic plastic beads – similar to the tiny plastic balls

found in everyday cosmetic products – before monitoring them through their life cycle.

They found that many of the particles were transferred into the mosquitoes’ adult form, meaning whatever creatures then ate the flying insects in the wild would also ingest the plastic.

“The significance is that this is quite possibly widespread,” Amanda Callaghan, biological scientist at Reading and the lead study author, told AFP. (Excerpt from

Jamaica Observer)

Jamaica Govt banning single-use plastic bags, plastic straws and styrofoam

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tarting January 1, 2019, the Jamaica Government will be imposing a ban on the importation, manufacture, distribution and use of specific categories of plastic packaging materials.

These include single-use plastic carrier/shopping bags; expanded polystyrene foam, commonly referred to as Styrofoam; and plastic drinking straws.

Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Daryl Vaz, who made the disclosure at a press conference yesterday, said the restriction has become necessary due to the fact that “Jamaica is literally inundated with all types of plastic”. These items, he said, are improperly disposed of and are causing increasingly harmful effects to human as well as animal life.

He noted that the ban will not apply to bags used to maintain public health or food-safety standards, such as those utilized to package raw meats; flour; sugar; rice

Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Daryl Vaz, looks at some of the plastic products that the Government will ban starting January 2019

and baked goods, such as bread.

As it relates to the ban on Styrofoam, he said that this applies to importation of the product for use as food and beverage containers.

He indicated that the use of polystyrene for the packaging of food items such as raw meats will be exempt, and producers who utilize such packaging must apply to NEPA for limited exemptions.

Meanwhile, the Minister said the importation of plas-

tic straws attached to lunch juice boxes and drink pouches will be banned as at January 1, 2021. He said there will be no restriction on wax-lined paper straws or other non-plastic straws.

Vaz said it is recognised that drinking straws made from alternative materials such as paper or bamboo are not always suitable for the medical sector and persons with disabilities, and exemptions will be examined in consultation with key stakeholders. (Excerpt from

Caribbean360)

Guatemala’s top court rules in favour of return of UN anti-corruption commissioner

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he next day or two will be crucial for Guatemalan democracy. In a unanimous decision, the Constitutional Court of Guatemala ordered the Government to allow Colombian jurist Ivan Velasquez to return to the country and resume his work as head of the United Nations-backed International Commission against Impunity (CICIG in Spanish).

Last month, President Jimmy Morales announced that he will no longer renew the mandate of the CICIG aside from barring the return of Velasquez, who is now based in the United States. The decision caused outrage nationally and internationally, prompting

protests and condemnation from human rights defenders.

The President’s decision followed the Commission’s allegations of corruption, specifically illicit campaign financing against Morales himself, and against members of his family who are now facing a fraud trial before the Constitutional Court.

The next two days constitute not only a test for Guatemala’s democratic institutions, but also for the sectors that backed the President in the past.

According to the court’s official document, disobeying the court’s orders could mean the President’s removal by constitutional mechanisms.

These events gain special significance when seen in the light of the long and difficult struggle against corruption in Guatemala and the country’s recent political turmoil. In fact, the rise to power of Morales followed an extraordinary popular movement fed up with the corruption and impunity of the political class that ended up with the resignation of President Otto Pérez Molina in 2015.

After the political crisis of 2015, in which the presence of the Commission also had an important role investigating corruption cases, the Government of Morales was expected to be under close scrutiny. (Excerpt from Caribbean

News Now)

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guyanatimesgy.com

Around the World

Yemen conflict: A million more Britain, EU are close to achieving children face famine, NGO warns orderly Brexit deal: May

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Earlier this month, Save the Children said it had treated almost 400,000 children under the age of five for severe malnutrition so far in 2018, warning that more than 36,000 children could die before the end of the year

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further one million children are at risk of famine in Yemen, Save the Children has warned.

Rising food prices and the falling value of the Yemeni currency as a result of the conflict are putting more families at risk of food insecurity.

But another threat comes from fighting around the key port city of Hudaydah, which is the entry point for most aid to the country’s rebel-held areas. The charity says a total of 5.2 million children in Yemen now face famine.

Yemen has been devastated by a conflict that escalated in early 2015, when Houthi rebels seized control of much of the west of the country and forced President Abdrabbuh

Mansour Hadi to flee abroad.

Alarmed by the rise of a group they saw as an Iranian proxy, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and seven other Arab states intervened in an attempt to restore the Government.

What impact has this had on people?

The war has led to severe delays in paying the salaries of teachers and public servants, with some people receiving no wages for almost two years.

Those who are paid face food prices which are 68 per cent more expensive than when the war began. Meanwhile, the Yemeni Riyal has lost almost 180 per cent of its value over the same period, according to Save the Children.

Earlier this month, the currency reached its lowest value in history, placing a further burden on population. Media captionThe BBC travels deep into rebel held Yemen, to see starvation caused by war Fears also remain of potential damage to or a blockade of Hudaydah’s port as a result of the fighting. The basic supplies that pass through it are needed to prevent famine and a recurrence of a cholera epidemic that affected a million people last year.

Almost 10,000 people – two-thirds of them civilians – have been killed and 55,000 others injured in the fighting, according to the United Nations. (Excerpt from BBC News)

China hits back at Trump with tariffs on US$60B of US goods

US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing in November last year

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hina has hit back at President Donald Trump by imposing new trade tariffs on US$60 billion of American goods. It comes after the US slapped duties on US$200 billion of Chinese imports on Monday, escalating its trade war with Beijing.

China will target American goods such as liquefied natural gas, which are produced in states loyal to the

US President. However, in a tweet Trump warned Beijing against seeking to influence the upcoming US midterm elections.

“There will be great and fast economic retaliation against China if our farmers, ranchers and/or industrial workers are targeted!” he said.

Earlier he had suggested that this would mean further US tariffs on another $267bn worth of Chinese products.

Such a move would mean roughly all of China’s exports to the US would be subject to new duties.

The Chinese commerce ministry said it would impose its tariffs from September 24– the date the US duties come into effect – but at lower rates than previously expected.

It will place an additional five per cent in duty on US products including smaller aircraft, computers and textiles, and an extra 10 per cent on goods such as chemicals, meat, wheat and wine.

By contrast, the US duties will apply to almost 6000 items, making them the biggest round of trade tariffs yet from Washington. They will affect handbags, rice and textiles, although some items such as smart watches and high chairs have been exempted.

On Monday, Trump said the latest round of tariffs was in response to China’s “unfair trade practices”. (Excerpt from BBC News)

2 Koreas aim for agreement to unlock nuclear talks

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eaders of South and North Korea plan to announce steps aimed at rekindling stalled nuclear talks and deepening bilateral ties after they meet for a second day of summit talks on Wednesday in the North’s capital Pyongyang.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in kicked off their third meeting on Tuesday, during which Kim

said his “historic” summit with US President Donald Trump in June had improved regional stability and raised hopes for further progress.

A joint statement expected from the two leaders at the conclusion of their talks on Wednesday will provide clues to whether negotiations between North Korea and the United States over dismantling Pyongyang’s nuclear programs could regain momen-

tum.

The outcome will also be a litmus test for another meeting Kim has recently proposed to Trump. Kim pledged to work toward the “complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula” during his first meeting with Moon in the Demilitarised Zone that separates the two Koreas in April, and at his summit with Trump in June. (Excerpt from Reuters)

he United Kingdom and the European Union are close to agreeing an orderly Brexit, British Prime Minister Theresa May wrote in a German newspaper on Wednesday, urging the European Commission to evolve its position for the sake of a deal.

Writing in Die Welt daily, May said both sides needed to show goodwill to avoid a disorderly UK exit from the bloc next March, which some fear would unleash major economic disruption.

“We are near to achieving the orderly withdrawal that is the essential basis for build-

ing a close future partnership,” May wrote. “To come to a successful conclusion, just as the UK has evolved its position, the EU will need to do the same. Neither side can demand the unacceptable of the other, such as an external customs border between different parts of the United Kingdom.”

Growing hopes among investors that London and Brussels can secure an agreement has buoyed the British pound, though it pulled back from a six-week high on Tuesday.

EU leaders are due to meet in Salzburg in Austria

on Wednesday and Thursday for talks that UK Brexit Minister Dominic Raab has said would be an “important milestone”.

Raab said the Government is sticking to its proposal for a post-Brexit border between its province of Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland, one of the major obstacles to an agreement.

On Tuesday, the EU’s Brexit chief negotiator Michel Barnier said the bloc was ready to improve its proposal for an “insurance policy” backstop arrangement on how to manage the Irish border after Brexit. (Excerpt from Reuters)

South Africa’s top court legalises private use of cannabis

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outh Africa’s highest court has legalised the private use of marijuana, upholding a lower court’s ruling that found the criminalisation of cannabis was unconstitutional.

In delivering the Constitutional Court’s unanimous verdict, Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo on Tuesday declared the law banning marijuana use in private by adults “is unconstitutional and therefore invalid”.

“It will not be a criminal offence for an adult person to

use or be in possession of cannabis in private for his or her personal consumption,” he said in Johannesburg.

The court also ordered parliament to draft new laws within 24 months to reflect the order. However, the judgement did not specify the amount that can be used by an adult in private use.

Activists, including members of the Rastafarian movement and traditional healers, greeted the ruling with loud applause. Outside, pro-cannabis campaigners lit pipes and

rolled joints to celebrate the news, filling the air with the distinctive aroma of marijuana.

A court in Western Cape had ruled in March 2017 that a ban on cannabis use by adults at home was unconstitutional, a move that effectively decriminalised it in the province, which includes Cape Town.

But the Ministers of Justice, Police, Health and Trade challenged that finding, arguing that there was “objective proof of the harmful effects of cannabis”. (Excerpt from The

Guardian)

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wednesdAY, september 19, 2018

ARCHIE

Take note of what others are doing to get a better idea (March 21- of what you should do next.

April 19) It’s how you react that will make a difference to the outcome of a situation.

ARIES

A change of heart will TAURUS leave you in a precarious po(April 20- sition. Protect yourself emoMay 20) tionally, financially or physically. If you choose to remain calm, you will find a way to handle uncertainty.

dilbert

A timeout will do you good.

GEMINI (May 21- Consider what you have and June 20) the changes going on around you. Take better care of your personal belongings and your important relationships.

Don’t sit idle when you should be making moves and (June 21- creating opportunities. Use July 22) your intelligence and charm to convince others to help you get what you want. Romance is featured.

CANCER

Peanuts

Take better care of your LEO health, property and posses(July 23- sions. Simplicity and modAug. 22) eration will help prevent an argument with someone concerned about your generosity or indulgent habits.

Discuss your intentions VIRGO and feelings. Someone’s re(Aug. 23sponse will affect how you Sept. 22) move forward, and a change at home will give you hope and bring you joy.

Calvin and Hobbes

Don’t leave anything to LIBRA (Sept. 23- chance. The more things you Oct. 23) do for yourself, the better off you’ll be. If you count on others, you will be disappointed.

Listen to your head and protect your heart.

WORD GAME

SUDOKU

TODAY’S WORD – TACHYON (TACHYON: TAK-ee-on: A hypothetical particle that travels faster than light.)

Fact-checking will help SAGITTARIUS you avoid being taken advan(Nov. 23- tage of by an expert manipuDec. 21) lator. Take notes and ask reliable people to verify what you have been told.

Average mark 11 words Time limit 30 minutes Can you find 19 or more words in TACHYON? The list will be published tomorrow.

SATURDAY’S WORD – DEADLINE dale dandle dead deaden deal dean deed dele deli denial denied dial

died die dine elan eland elide ended addle aide aided ailed alee

alien anil anile laddie Jade laden laid lain land lane lead leaden

Jean lend liane lied lien line idea ideal idle indeed nail need

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

Copyright 2015, Distributed by Universal Uclick for UFS

Observe how others react.

SCORPIO The changes going on around (Oct. 24you may be subtle but telling.

Nov. 22) Aggression isn’t the answer, but discussion and compromise will bring you closer to a workable solution.

solution for last published puzzle

Personal gains can be CAPRICORN (Dec. 22- made. The changes you inJan. 19) dulge in should be geared toward relaxing, updating your look and improving your relationship with the people you care about most.

Emotions will mount.

AQUARIUS Don’t let someone goad you (Jan. 20- into something you will end Feb. 19) up regretting. You don’t have to join in. Don’t let temptation be your downfall.

Get involved in something PISCES (Feb. 20- that excites you. Offering March 20) your assistance or collaborating with someone who can help you reach your goals will pay off. Partnerships are favored.

wednesdAY, september 19, 2018

19

Lady Jags’ ranking improves across

FIFA, CONCACAF and CFU T

he senior women’s football team commonly known as the “Lady Jags” has moved 35 places up the FIFA Women’s World Ranking to 83, entering for the first time the top 100 bracket of countries in the world.

This movement has resulted in the team being placed eight among the CONCACAF member associations, and fourth in the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) following re-launch of the programme in 2017.

In an invited comment, Head Coach of the “Lady Jags”, Dr. Ivan Joseph, said this is a first step in a continuous effort to raise the bar on women’s football.

“This is a great first step to validate the work of the Federation, and what our female athletes have put into the programme. Our coaching staff look to continuing our efforts to advance the Lady Jaguars’ standing at the international level,” Dr Joseph declared.

Ian Greenwood, Technical

I

Guyana’s senior women’s football team – the Lady Jags

Director of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF), said this is a positive step in the right direction. “The relaunch of the Lady Jags programme required an innovative approach, and we are very confident under Dr. Ivan and his experienced staff it will continue to grow. The recent rankings show a very positive push in the right direction, but also highlights

that we must be consistent in our women’s development programmes, as we still have a long way to go on this journey.”

The International Women’s Coordinator and Coordinator of the International Supporters Group (ISG), Paul Beresford, noted that this new ranking is an achievement of the targets established by the

ISG; which are, achieving top 100 in the FIFA Rankings, top 10 in CONCACAF, and top five in CFU respectively. I would like to thank the GFF for their innovative approach when faced with the challenge of relaunching a programme that had been dormant for two years, and the confidence placed in the coaching and support staff, especially Coach Ivan and

his team, and members of the International Supporters Group (ISG) during this initial period.”

“This is a fine example of what is possible when we believe in a mission that is beyond the might of one person, said President Wayne Forde.

“The collective strategic focus of the Executive Committee, the GFF International Support Group

(ISG), our technical staff, parents, and most importantly our courageous young women, has produced early dividends which have certainly elevated the credibility and direction of our Women’s programme.

“The GFF-Scotiabank Academy Training Centres (ATC) are injecting a higher percentage of quality players into our national programme, which will result in the creation of many more scholarship opportunities for our girls in the coming years. This is truly a proud moment for our nation,” Forde declared.

Since the relaunch of the women’s programme, the “Lady Jags” have been engaged competitively in two tournaments – the CFU Women’s Challenge Series and the CONCACAF Caribbean Women’s Qualifiers. The team placed third in the CFU Women’s Challenge Series in March, and tied nil-all against Barbados in May 2018 in their final qualifier match of the latter tournament.

Firmino leaves it late to sink PSG in 5-goal thriller

t was the second minute of stoppage time when the ball left Roberto Firmino’s foot, when Jürgen Klopp set off on his victory run and the noise inside Anfield reached its crescendo. And in that moment, even though these are only the early stages of the Champions League, perhaps we learned some more about last season’s beaten finalists.

We knew they played their home games with fearlessness. We knew they attacked in numbers, that they went for the jugular and that nobody, but nobody, would persuade them to change that policy. But now we can safely say that the modern Liverpool have powers of endurance to go with all their other gifts.

Another team might have lost their way after that moment in the 83rd minute when Kylian Mbappé decided it was time to introduce himself to Anfield properly – inside the penalty area, with the ball on his right foot, and burying his shot so confidently it felt necessary to remind yourself this player, holding the keys to the football universe, was a boy of 19.

Briefly, Liverpool even toyed with the idea of losing a game they had once led 2-0. Only briefly, however. Klopp’s men quickly shook their heads clear, rousing themselves for one final onslaught and conjuring up the winner after harrying Mbappé into a mistake in his own half. Firmino, a 72nd-minute substitute, had started on the bench because of the eye injury he suffered against Tottenham on Saturday. He celebrated his winner by cupping the affected eye – yet there was nothing wrong with his vision when he beat Alphonse Areola, the PSG goalkeeper, with a low, diagonal shot from right to left.

That goal, and the night as a whole, should be added to the growing file of evidence that Anfield, without any exaggeration, might have legitimate claims to be thought of as the most difficult place for any team to visit in the Champions League right now.

Another team might have chosen to play with restraint given that the opposition included Mbappé on the right, Neymar on the left, Edinson Cavani through the middle and Angel Di María never too far away. Not Liverpool, though.

Roberto Firmino fires in Liverpool’s third

The team in red played as if affronted by the suggestion that the opposition had the better selection of attacking riches. Liverpool did not reach the final last season with conservatism and, once again, they could be seen trying to rush the opposition players off their feet, swarming forward and, in the first half, rekindling the thought that it is amazing how many times European opponents concede a goal in front of the Kop, become unnerved and quickly let in another one.

Perhaps an argument could be made that Liverpool should have closed down the game after finding themselves with a two-goal lead, 36 minutes in, courtesy of Daniel Sturridge’s header and a penalty from James Milner.

Sturridge was making his first-ever Champions League start and opened the scoring, on the half hour, by heading in Andy Robertson’s cross. At 2-1 he missed what was probably an easier chance, failing to get any power with a header. Overall, however, he can reflect on a satisfying evening’s work, no matter that Firmino was still, ultimately, the hero.

PSG were certainly rattled during the period in the first half when, six minutes after going behind, Juan Bernat’s challenge on Georginio Wijnaldum gave away the penalty.

It was not a wild challenge, just a risky and slightly unnecessary one. Milner, one of several outstanding performers for Liverpool, slotted the penalty past Areola, aiming to the

goalkeeper’s left.

Even at that stage, however, with Wijnaldum and Jordan Henderson also excelling, there was always a lurking danger. Neymar, for starters. The Brazilian began the game with a body swerve to glide away from Trent AlexanderArnold and then a slaloming run past, in order, Henderson, Sadio Mané and Milner.

The crowd enjoyed it later in the first half when Neymar was flattened by Milner’s hard but fair challenge and, again, when Mané went past the Brazilian with some showboating of his own. But it was also clear that PSG had the personnel to believe a feat of escapology was possible.

Their comeback began five minutes before half-time. Di María supplied the cross from the left and Cavani’s attempt at an overhead kick connected with only thin air. The ball bounced off Robertson and Thomas Meunier, venturing forward from his right-back position, hooked a splendid leftfoot volley past Allison.

Until the equaliser, there were only fleeting glimpses of Mbappé’s menace and only one occasion early in the second half that he managed to get past the quick, alert Robertson.

Di María’s link-up play with Neymar was a prominent feature. As a front three, however, Neymar, Cavani and Mbappé still looked a work in progress.

Liverpool were determined not to sit on their lead and there were prolonged celebrations after Mohamed Salah stabbed in a loose ball, believing he had made it 3-1, only for the Turkish referee, Cuneyt Cakir, to signal that he had not missed Sturridge’s studs going into Areola’s midriff after all.

It was the correct decision and Sturridge’s missed chance to make it 3-1 looked like being a costly lapse when Salah gave away the ball in the build-up to Mbappé’s goal, with Neymar’s initial run opening up the chance for the French World Cup winner. Yet Liverpool still found a way to win, even with Salah being substituted, and created an unhappy sense of deja vu for Thomas Tuchel, the PSG manager who also lost in stoppage time when he came here with Borussia Dortmund in the Europa League quarter-finals in 2016. (The Guardian)

20

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

wednesdAY, september 19, 2018

Courts Pee-Wee Tournament

BCB/Magic Moments 20/20…

refuelled and ready! RHT, Fyrish to

contest Lower Corentyne final

Courts’ Managing Director Clyde DeHaas makes a point during the launch of the seventh edition of the Courts Pee Wee Tournament

T

he 7th annual Courts’ Pee-Wee Tournament is expected to kickoff in the coming weeks, giving younger school football enthusiasts opportunity to showcase their skills.

Already a staple part of the physical education programmes at primary institutions of learning in Georgetown, on the East Bank, and on the East and West Coasts of Demerara, the competition is again being sponsored by Courts Guyana and organised by the Petra Organisation.

The Petra Organisation is striving to upkeep the competition, and with assistance of Courts Guyana and new sponsors Banks DIH, that is a possibility.

Petra’s Co-Director Troy Mendonca spoke on the history of the tournament, and noted that it was once played through clubs. He said that when an alternative was needed, the organisation turned to the schools.

Further, he highlighted the contributions that the tournament has made over the course of its existence.

“So I want you, the youngsters, to understand that what you’re going to enjoy for the next seven weeks is preparation and hard work for seven years. More so, this program is in keeping with efforts being made at the

FIFA level, and by extension the GFF, where a lot of emphasis is being placed on youth football,” Mendonca said.

Courts’ Managing Director Clyde DeHass noted that the company has found a partner in Petra, and is happy to be exercising its corporate social responsibility.

“I think it was a very good alignment of the celestial bodies that the meeting took place, and we found the right partner in the Petra Organisation, whereby we can channel some of the funds we have available for development and to play our part as a corporate entity.”

He explained.

Stressing that the company would do its utmost to continue the tournament over the years to come, Mendonca said, “And I can tell you that, after six years, we have not been disappointed.

We have seen this competition grow (from) year to year (and from) strength to strength; because even if we have the funds we want to spend to develop communities, if we don’t have a partner to help execute the plans, then we cannot do anything.”

Also coming on board for sponsorship is Banks DIH, under its Rainforest Waters and Malta Supreme brand.

Here’s what their brand Manager, Clayton McKenzie, had to say: “Banks

DIH wouldn’t be supportive of a programme if it is not worth it. We look at the investment in children and physical activity, because we at Banks DIH believe that sports is equally important to academic development and academic achievement.”

The tournament will kick off on September 29 with 32 primary school teams involved. The teams, which hail from Georgetown, East Bank, East Coast and the West Coast of Demerara, are being placed in eight groups of four.

In previous years, the tournament was held at the Thirst Park ground.

However, the matches will now strictly be hosted at the YMCA playing field, and will begin at 10hrs every Saturday for the next seven weeks.

Participating schools are: Marian Academy, Mae’s, School of the Nations, West Ruimveldt, South, St Pius, Smith’s Memorial, Winfer Gardens, Enterprise, Sophia, St Margaret’s, St Agnes, Tucville, St Ambrose, North Georgetown, F.E. Pollard, J.E. Burnham, St Stephens, Stella Maris, Colaaco, Victoria, Grove, MochaArcadia, Redeemer, St Gabriel’s, Soesdyke, Timehri, Supply, Golden Grove, Goed Fortuin, Den Amstel and Clonbrook.

National Chess Champion withdraws from World Olympiad

G

uyana’s National Chess Champion Wendell Meusa has announced his withdrawal from Guyana’s 10-member team scheduled to participate in the 43rd World Chess Olympiad to be held in Batumi, Georgia.

Tight-lipped about the reason for his decision, the champion has issued a statement which reads, “Due to personal problems and problems with the Guyana Chess Federation, I have decided to pull myself out of the National Team that will be departing for the 43rd World Chess Olympiad. My family and my integrity (mean) more to me, so I've decided to do this. I will be having an interview with the press tomorrow to enlighten the general public more about the reasons for my decision. I deeply apologise for any inconvenience I may have caused, and would like to thank all those who have continuously stood by me through everything. My best wishes of success go with the team.”

The nine remaining members of this team, consisting of 16-year-old Nellisha Johnson, 14-year-old Sasha

Shariff, National Female Champion WFM Maria Varona Thomas, CM Sheriffa Ali, Attorney-at-law Yolander Persaud, Anthony Drayton, Taffin Khan, Loris Nathoo and Glenford Corlette, are scheduled to depart for Georgia today to participate in the international competition.

The 43rd World Chess Olympiad will run concurrently with the FIDE Congress wherein the World Chess Federation would elect its new president.

Wendell Meusa

Kevin Sinclair

R

ose Hall Town (RHT) Bakewell and Fyrish Cricket clubs will clash in the finals of the Berbice Cricket Boardorganised Magic Moments 20/20 Competition for teams in the Lower Corentyne Zone.

RHT defeated arch rivals Courtland by a whopping 130 runs, while Fyrish created a major upset by getting past neighbours Chesney by five wickets at the Fyrish Ground.

In the first semifinal, held at the Area ‘H’ Ground, RHT elected to take first strike after winning the toss. They were given a flying start by National Players Kevin Sinclair and Junior Sinclair, who added 63 off just six overs, before the latter was run out for 20.

Sinclair and the elegant Surendra Kissoonlall then added 122 for the second wicket, to take the score to 191 for 1 before Kissoonlall was run out for a well composed 49.

Sinclair went on to score a majestic 125, which included six huge sixes and eleven boundaries, as the home team amassed 234 for 6 from their allotted twenty overs. Kevlon Anderson chipped in with 25.

Timothy Mc Donald with 2 - 27 and Troy Mathieson with 3 - 34 were the main wicket takers for Courtland.

In response, the visitors were rattled by the pace of former National Under-19 fast bowler Sylus Tyndall, who clean bowled all of his victims to claim 5 - 18. Only John Percival, batting at number 9, offered any resistance with 23, as Courtland Cricket Club was bowled out

for 104 in 19.3 overs.

National Under-15 off spinner Jonathan Rampersaud supported Tyndall with 2 - 18 as RHT booked themselves a place in the final.

At the Fyrish ground, Chesney batted first and were able to reach 174 all out in 20 Overs. M. Subjraj top-scored with 38, and received support from S. Kanabeni (34) and Avinash Deonarine (27).

Ashnarine Srikissoon with 3 - 23 and Imran Ally with 2 - 36 were the successful bowlers for Chesney.

Needing to score 175 in 20 overs to advance to their first ever BCB final, Fyrish’players Y. Gordiyal (59) and Srikissoon (60 not out) combined to push their side to the target with 1.1 overs to spare. Yogindra Chinapen supported 20 in the chase, while Avinash Deonarine and Imran Khan took a wicket each for the visitors.

The BCB is hosting four separate 20/20 inter-zone tournaments for teams in West Berbice, New Amsterdam/Canje, Lower Corentyne and Upper Corentyne. Each zone will have its own champion, before they clash with each other for the overall championship.

No. 48 Challengers won the Upper Corentyne Zone, while Young Warriors are champions of the New Amsterdam/Canje Zone.

The tournament is being sponsored by Frank Sanichara of Sueria Manufacturing under the Magic Moments brand.

sports

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21

Gayle, Powell, Taylor named in Scorpions squad

C

hris Gayle and Rovman Powell have been named to a Jamaica Scorpion 14-match squad to contest the Regional Super 50 tournament set to begin next month.

However, neither player will be with the Scorpions for the duration of the tournament.

Powell will join the Windies squad for their ODI tour of India that begins on October 21, while Gayle will leave to compete in the Afghanistan T20 League set to start October 5. When they depart John Campbell and Derval Green will replace Gayle and Powell, respectively.

The remainder of the Scorpions squad captained by Nikita Miller includes Jermaine Blackwood, Andre McCarthy, Brandon King, Fabian Allen, Nkrumah Bonner, Paul Palmer Jr. Christopher Lamont, Jerome Taylor, Oshane Thomas, Chadwick Walton, and Gordon Bryan.

King and Allen enter the competition in good form having played well for their respective teams in the just-concluded Hero CPL whole Taylor has been in great form with the ball in the Vitality T20 League in the United Kingdom while representing Sussex.

The Jamaica Scorpions, who play their opening match against the Combined Colleges and Campuses on Thursday, October 4, are

Lewis replaces Joseph for Test squad to India R

ight-arm fast bowler, Sherman Lewis will replace Alzarri Joseph in the 15-man squad for the Test Tour of India which starts Thursday, October 4 in Rajkot.

Lewis made his debut at the firstclass level for the Windward Islands in March 2017 and took 30 wickets at an average of 21.66 in the 2017/18 West Indies 4Day Championship. He recently toured England as part of the WINDIES A squad where they played against India A and England Lions.

Joseph, in the last week, underwent two fitness assessment procedures and a CWI medical panel has recommended that he be “allowed to continue his rehabilitation to full fitness for international competitions.”

Joseph suffered a stress fracture last November and has since been in intense programmes to get him back to full strength.

Since then, he has also played in an international home series against Bangladesh and the recently concluded Caribbean Premier League (CPL).

Joseph will continue his rehabilitation programme under the monitoring of medical officials at the High-Performance Centre at Coolidge Cricket Ground in Antigua.

In the meantime, some members of the Test squad are already in Dubai and have begun training sessions at the ICC Academy as they continue their preparation for the Test series in India.

drawn in Group B alongside the Barbados Pride, the Leeward Islands Hurricanes, the CCC and the USA. The semi-finals are set for October 25 when the winner of Group A will play the runners-up in Group B while the Winners of B will play the runners of in A on October 26.

The finals are set for October 28. (Sportsmax)

22 Dinanauth, Harry star in Guyanese continue Jorge Medina Farewell to dominate BACC golf tournament T GUYANATIMESgy.COM

wednesdAY, september 19, 2018

Winners row! Jorge Medina (centre) is flanked by (from left) Kassim Khan, Paton George, Bridgelall Harry, Miguel Oviedo, Mohanlall Dinanauth and Aleem Hussain

A

competitive yet sentimental day of golf was played this past Sunday when members of the Lusignan Golf Club (LGC), including winners Mohanlall Dinanauth, Bridgelall Harry and Miguel Oviedo, bade club member and MACORP CEO Jorge Medina farewell.

The event was very well attended by golfers, who came out in great numbers to honour a most beloved colleague and say farewell to an ardent golfer who had contributed in a huge and significant way to improvements of the Golf Course and to standards of play in the game.

At the end of the well-supported tournament, played under the now common Flights Format, it was former Guyana Open champion Dinanauth, with 69/5, who starred in the 0-9 Handicap.

He was followed closely

by Club President Aleem Hussain (70/9); with good performances coming from Mike Mangal 73/8, Kassim Khan 74/8, and Munaf Arjune 75/8.

In the ‘B’ flight, (h/caps

10 – 18,) the two winners were: 1st - Harry 67/16 and 2nd - Club Vice President Paton George 68/18. Also in keen contention were Fazil Haniff and Ian Gouveia, both returning 73/15; and Club Executives Aasrodeen Shaw and Rabindranath Persaud, both returning 74/15.

While the ‘C’ flight was ruled by the two winners, who were: 1st –Oviedo 69/28, and 2nd – Imtiaz Subhan 70/22. Other close contenders for the flight were the honourable Jorge Medina 71/28, Mark Lashley 72/24 and Clifford Reis 75/25.

During the prize-giving ceremony, Medina expressed his delight and appreciation to the Club members for the great camaraderie and sportsmanship he had experienced over the years.

He expressed delight that his successor, Guillermo Escarraga, was also an ardent golfer, and expected that, through him, the great support of Macorp would continue towards the Golf Club.

The Colombian Medina -- quiet, dignified, friend-

ly, a stickler for high standards -- also served as the Chief Executive Officer of Macorp Guyana, and was accredited by the Government of Guyana as the Honorary Consul of Colombia. During his more than two decades of distinctive service in Guyana, his passion for golf made him a greatly beloved personality on and off the golf course.

To show the sincere and abiding appreciation for his personality and sterling contribution to the Club during his time here, the honourable Jorge Medina was given a crystal plaque of appreciation, as well as he awarded a certificate conferring on him life membership of the Lusignan Golf Club.

On hand at the informal farewell gathering that followed the tournament were current US Ambassador Perry Holloway and his wife, former Prime Minister of Guyana, Samuel Hinds; Minister of Communities Ronald Bulkan – an old golf buddy of Medina; and the wives and children of several golfers of the Macorp family.

he Guyanese contingent continues to impress at the Big Apple Cricket Club (BACC) in New York, putting in standout performances in the Eastern American Cricket Association Division One T20 on Sunday, September 16.

The double-header saw BACC do battle with, and completely dominating, the Gladiators CC and Scorpions CC. The first match was against the Gladiators; and BACC, in opting to bat, made a commanding 196-2, with Guyanese Martin Pestano-Belle coming off an unbeaten 113 in the previous game to frustrate the opposition by adding 106 alongside his opening partner Khaleem Bux, who made 74; the duo combining for a partnership of 196.

The Gladiators were then sent in to bat, and they were restricted to 108 for 7 in 20 overs. Guyana’s Winston Forrester led the bowling attack, bagging 3 - 9 from 4 overs, with support from Trevon Garaway, who chipped in with 2 - 27 runs.

In the second match of the day, BACC demolished Scorpions, bowling first and restricting them to 126 for 7 in 20 overs.

Yet again, Forrester was among the wickets, while Garaway, Pestano-Belle and

Martin Pestano-Belle

Jamal Romain claimed a wicket each.

In reply, BACC chased their target of 128 in 9.2 overs, with the captain, former youth Guyanese player Jamal Hinckson, blasting 67 as Pestano-Belle chipped in with 29 and Forrester was not out on 25.

Beharry supports GRFU ahead of RANs 7s

Guyana 7s Captain Dwayne Schroeder (airborne) in action during a previous game

A

familiar scene was played out in the Boardroom of the Beharry Group of Companies at Charlotte Street, Georgetown on Tuesday, when the Guyana Rugby Football Union (GRFU) received a handsome donation from the manufacturing conglomerate to aid in preparation for the upcoming Rugby Americas North (RAN) Sevens Championships.

Present at the simple ceremony were Guyana’s Sevens Captain Dwayne Schroeder, the 15s Captain Ryan Gonsalves, President of the GRFU Peter Greene, and Monique Tiwary -- Indi and Champion brands Manager.

In remarks, Greene said, “As we know, annually, Beharry plays a part in the sponsorship of the men’s and women’s sevens teams, helping the team to offset its expenses. This year’s RAN Championships, in order for us to keep going, we need the support, because we have run up expenses to almost 7 million dollars.”

Extending heartfelt gratitude to the company for the timely donation, Greene made known his deep appreciation for the assistance forthcoming from the Beharry Group of Companies, who have for many years been ardent supporters of rugby.

In closing his remarks, Green reiterated the importance of the team representing Guyana consisting of young talent mixed with experience. He said that is the only way the team can move forward and play as a unit, bypassing the injuries of experienced players such as Godfrey Broomes.

In response, Tiwary said, “We at the Edward B Beharry Group of Companies are proud to be sponsors of the Guyana Rugby Team. We are proud to contribute towards the nurturing of young rugby talent in Guyana, and this is our way of giving back.” And on behalf of the company, Tiwary wished the team the best of luck in the upcoming Caribbean Championships, scheduled for Barbados.

guyanatimesgy.com

wedneSdAY, september 19, 2018

23

2018 GCB/CGI Jaguars One-Day League…

Teams gain momentum as 4th round bowls off

F

ollowing a thrilling third round of play on Monday, teams will be seeking to maintain their forms heading into today’s Jaguars Franchise League, which bowls its 4th round from 9:00h, weather permitting.

Senior cricket action continues across the country with Lower Corentyne battling the mighty Essequibo at Albion in Berbice, while red-hot defending champs Georgetown will be facing

were washed out the previous week, Monday’s 3rd round witnessed East Coast, Lower Corentyne, Essequibo and Georgetown gaining victories.

East Coast vs East Bank at Enmore

Batting first, East Coast were kept to 152 all out in 46.1 overs, with only Kamesh Yadram making 33, and Amir Khan who top scored with 39 runs gaining himself the man-of-the-match title.

Kemol Savory

figures as the West Indies and Guyana pair of Bhaskar Yadram and Chandrapaul Hemraj grabbed 3 wickets each, while match MVP Khan and Gajanand Sukhanand chipped in with 2 apiece to cap an effective East Coast bowling outing.

West Berbice vs Lower Corentyne

Amir Khan

East Bank at the legendary Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) Ground.

Over at the Everest Ground, the East Coast franchise will take on West Demerara at Everest, and West Berbice battles Upper Corentyne at Port Mourant.

After rounds one and two

Bowling for East Bank, Ronaldo Alimohammed and Trevon France picked up 3 wickets each.

East Bank, in reply, fell for 127 in 39.5 overs, failing to chase a paltry total. Opener Trevon Griffith cracked 78, but was the only batsman to achieve double

Over at Albion ground, the star-studded Lower Corentyne won the toss and took first strike in a reduced 36-over match, which was due to moisture on the pitch. They ended on 1667. Opening batsmen Jason Sinclair and Junior Sinclair produced 30 and 32 runs respectively, while National U19 player Kevlon Anderson made 17.

Senior player and Manof-the-match Jonathon Foo got his campaign off to a good

BCB/Elizabeth Styles U-21 Tournament…

Blairmont sink Albion to enter final – to face RHT for spoils F

or the second time this year, Blairmont Community Centre defeated Albion Community Centre in a semifinal of the Berbice Cricket Board’s junior cricket tournament.

After knocking Albion out of the New York Business Group Under-19 Tournament, Blairmont Community Centre again defeated Albion, by 56 runs, to join Rose Hall Town (RHT) Gizmos & Gadgets in the grand finals which will be played shortly.

Winning the toss, Blairmont Community Centre elected to bat first. Fawaz Gafoor top-scored with 25, and received support from Javed Karim (22), Nigel Deodat (17), and Rameshwar Samaroo (17), as Blairmont were bowled out for 165 from 45.1 overs.

National Under-19 bowler Kevin Umrao took 5 – 37, while Karran Arjpaul who played for Guyana in 2017 took 2 - 19.

Needing to score 166 for victory from 50 overs, Albion crumbled to a disappointing 109 in 35.4 overs, despite Umrao returning with the bat to score 32.

National Under-17 off spinner Seon Glasgow was the best bowler, with 5 - 27 from ten overs.

Nigel Deodat, another Guyana Youth Player, took 2 – 13, while Javed Karim bagged 2 - 23 for the hardworking side.

Rose Hall Town Gizmos & Gadgets had earlier in the week destroyed Tucber Park Cricket Club by eight wickets to advance to the finals. Tucber Park were bowled out for 104, then RHT blasted 108 for 2 in just 8.3 overs. The final promises to be an exciting affair, despite RHT having a superi-

start with a brisk 59 off 57 balls, as the classic bowling of the West Berbice attack was led by Guyana Jaguars’ pair of spinner Gudakesh Motie with 3-23 and pacer Keon Joseph 2-51.

West Berbice, in their chase, crumbled to 163 despite knocks from national youth players Kevin Sinclair 30, Javid Karim 22, and top-scorer Andrew Dutchin with 35. Kassim Khan, Foo and Kelvin Umrao collected 3 wickets for 27, 32 and 29 respectively.

from Alex Algoo and Clinton Pestano, who made 50 and 51 respectively, along with 35 from Joshua Ramsammy, highlighted the batting.

Bowling for Georgetown, Guyana Jaguars Franchise player and former Windies U19 captain Ramaal Lewis picked up 4-26 with his spin, as left-arm pacer Andre Stoll returned 2 wickets for 28. Windies U19 spinner Ashmead Nedd was also among the wickets with 2-31.

The pugnacious Barnwell bullied the opposition with 83, while the more elegant left-handed Johnson constructed 70 as the champs found their way home with relative ease.

West Demerara vs Essequibo

Over at the Lusignan ground, Essequibo won the toss and chose to bat, whip-

ping up a massive total of 217 all out in 48.5 overs.

Academy player Kemol Savory top-scored with a brilliant century, while pacer Ronsford Beaton made 29, Chetram Persaud 22, and Kevon Boodie 23.

Bowling for West Demerara, off-spinner Richie Looknauth snatched 3-39, Ewert Samuels 2-11, and Travis Persaud 2-50.

West Demerara, in reply, fell cheaply for 127 in 38.5 overs, with former World Cup-winning wicket-keeper/ batsman Tevin Imlach hitting a top-score of 37.

Bowling for Essequibo, the spinners Anthony Adams and Ricardo Adams snared 3 each, while the younger of the Adams brothers, Akenie, with 2-9, starred in a classy effort. (Clifton Ross)

Upper Corentyne vs Georgetown

Defending champs Georgetown were guided home safely by the senior pair of MVP Chris Barnwell and Skipper Leon Johnson. Inserted to bat, the Berbicians made 177 all out in 42.2 overs in a reduced 44 overs match. Half-centuries

Jonathan Foo

8th of May Movement receives audience with Head of State

President David Granger is flanked by the 8th of May Movement delegation. From left: Oscar Glasgow, Dikemma Utoh, Latecia Stuart (Chairperson), Deborah Shortt-Parker, Reinsford Benfield and Elton Mc Rae

T

Seon Glasgow

or team on paper with players like Kevin Sinclair, Kevlon Anderson, Junior Sinclair, Keith Simpson, Sylus Tyndall, Jonathan Rampersaud, Mahendra Gopilall and Jeremy Sandia.

Most of these players were involved in the New York Business Group Under-19 Finals when Rose Hall Town easily defeated Blairmont. However, with another chance to take on their rivals, much would depend heavily on national youth players Karim, Marvin Prashad, Deodat, Fawaz Gafoor and Glasgow. The Under-21 Tournament is being sponsored by Elizabeth Styles, a United States cosmetics company.

he 8th of May Movement of the East Coast Demerara community of Beterverwagting/ Triumph had the golden opportunity of meeting with President David Granger on Wednesday, September 12, to discuss its work and development plans.

Movement Chairperson Latecia Stuart outlined to the President the Movement’s strategic development plan, which has four main pillars: the family, church, school and farm, and said the plan was developed in keeping with the President’s vision for the sustainability and advancement of each community.

She explained that there also is intention to place specific emphasis on sport, smart agricultural practices, and agro-processing.

In response, President Granger praised the Movement’s work in the area of sport, and encouraged them to continue placing more emphasis on this discipline, noting that sport is a strong unifying force.

The President’s comments were mainly in reference to the recently concluded in-

augural BV/Triumph 8th of May Movement Emancipation Cohesion Football League, which saw three teenagers receiving academic/vocational awards for outstanding performances on the football pitch. The awards are valued at $180,000 each, and are for the period September, 2018 to August, 2019. These academic/vocational awards are being sponsored by the Restoration Opportunities through Christ (ROC), and are aimed at assisting their recipients in specified areas relative to their academic and vocational advancement. The awards are valued at $15, 000 monthly for the identified year.

Two award recipients, Ian Dooker and Omari Glasgow, have already started to benefit from this sponsorship; while the third recipient, Trevon Adams, would soon benefit from his.

As the audience with the Head of State concluded, Stuart thanked President Granger for his continued support extended to the Movement and the work that has been undertaken by it.

wedneSDAY, september 19, 2018

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

guyanatimesgy.com

Beharry supports GRFU ahead of RANs 7s Page 22

Guyana 7s captain Dwayne Schroeder receives the donation from Monique Tiwary on behalf of the Edward B Beharry Group of Companies

BCB/Elizabeth Styles U-21 Tournament…

Blairmont sinks Albion to enter final Page 23

National Chess Champion withdraws from World Olympiad Page 20

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