Guyana times september 23, 2017

Guyana’s P14 oil industry a beautiful challenge – Chilean Ambassador …pledges commitment to development Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Saturday, September 23, 2017

Issue No. 3340

PRICE

New Demerara River bridge Page 3

$80 vat included

WHAT'S INSIDE:

IDB’s credibility now at stake in light of ‘procurement fraud’ – Teixeira

2 confess to sodomising, dumping P2 body of 13-year-old in river

...says highly suspect contract could lead to criminal charges

Govt scraps Diamond vehicle overpass

…cites lack of space

Page 9

Parents call for more teachers at Whim P11 Nursery …express frustration over teacher shortage

Bandit shot during botched ECD robbery P8

Public servants’ salaries at P9 negotiations stage – Harmon

Beharry donates over $6M to CDC for hurricane relief

Emergency drugs

Page 11

Executive Director of the Public Sector Commission (PSC), Elizabeth Alleyne; Beharry Group of Companies Chairman, Edward Anand Beharry; Vice Chairman of the PSC, Desmond Sears; and Director General of CDC, retired Colonel Chabilall Ramsarup at the handing over which was held in the boardroom of PSC on Waterloo Street

Wife dies after beating by husband Page 8

Govt in Page 7 hunt for casino partners

...must first sign ‘confidentiality undertaking’

$515M is payment for first contract – CEO P14 …says there is no new contract

Govt promises better weather reports P8

2 news 2 confess to sodomising, dumping body of 13-year-old in river saturDAY, september 23, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

By Jarryl Bryan

T

he Guyana Police Force has made a startling breakthrough in the case of the missing 13-year-old East Bank Berbice (EBB) teenager, with the prime suspects

confessing to abducting, sodomising and then dumping the lad’s body in the Berbice River.

Leonard Archibald, who attends Overwinning Secondary School, has been missing since last Sunday night. After a missing report

was made, two men, who villagers claim are known paedophiles, were arrested.

However, things have taken a horrific turn, as acting Crime Chief, Assistant Police Commissioner Paul Williams confirmed to Guyana Times on Friday

that the suspects have confessed to committing the heinous acts.

“They confessed,” the acting Crime Chief stated. “(And) we found the bicycle in the area that they (sus-

noon.

“That’s how we picked up the bicycle,” Williams related. “So as night rolls in, we’ll start back in the morning.”

Reports are that the missing boy, who hails from

The bicycle which the teen was last seen riding

pects) pointed out. We’re still looking for the body.”

According to Williams, the area in question is situated behind one of the suspect’s house. He noted that the bottom of the river was dredged earlier in the after-

Brothers Village, was last seen riding a bicycle along the main access road on the East Bank of Berbice, wearing only a pair of trousers and slippers.

Archibald reportedly rode ahead of his three sis-

ters that he was accompanying home from a birthday function on the EBB. He has not been seen or heard from since.

Following the disappearance of the teenager, Police questioned several persons, but detained the two.

The two persons were taken into custody after a missing child’s report was filed at the Sisters Village Police Station.

Shortly after Archibald went missing, a pair of slippers was discovered at a remote site in the village.

Villagers had linked the slippers to the prime suspect. One of the suspects is a man who villagers say has a history of sexually molesting young boys.

The main suspect, whose name was only given as “Edwards”, is allegedly known in the village as a child molester.

Villagers had reported that the suspect would tie up young boys and molest them.

They claim that recently, he broke a boy’s jaw. Reports are that on Thursday that a pair of slippers was found at the site where a boy was tied to a tree, but he subsequently escaped when the suspect moved away.

The search continues for the missing boy.

news

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saturDAY, september 23, 2017 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Saturday, September 23 – 05:30h-07:00h and Sunday, September 26 – 05:30h-07:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Saturday, September 23 – 05:50h-07:20h and Sunday, September 26 – 06:25h-07:55h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY Early morning sunny weather is expected to give way to light showers, while cloudy skies can be expected for the remainder of the day and into the evening.

Temperatures are expected to range between 26 degrees Celsius and 31 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Ranging from East South-easterly to south Easterly and Easterly between 4.47 metres and 5.36 metres.

High Tide: 06:08h and 18:20h reaching a maximum height of 2.69 metres at each scheduled high tide.

Low Tide: 11:57h reaching a minimum height of 0.57 metre.

New Demerara River bridge

IDB’s credibility now at stake in light of ‘procurement fraud’ ­­­­ ̶ Teixeira ...says highly suspect contract could lead to criminal charges

N

ow that Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson has indicated that the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) had funded the Feasibility Report for the $146 million New Demerara River Crossing, that international financial institution is being called on to make a public statement on the matter, in light of the different pronouncements being made.

The People’s Progressive Party, on Friday, through its Chief Whip, Gail Teixeira, made the demand of the IDB in light of its reputation and adherence to procedures – procedures that Teixeira insists appear to have been flouted by the Public Infrastructure Ministry.

Teixeira on Friday met

Opposition Chief Whip, Gail Teixeira

Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson

istry came to know of the company, pointed out that the company was not even interested in providing an Expression of Interest in the project when the min-

Twelve of the 22 firms were subsequently shortlisted, but according to Minister Patterson, only two submitted bids; and of the two submissions, only one firm had a valid bid, albeit the firm's bid price exceeded the US$800,000 budget.

He said, too, that concerns were also raised on the technical level.

Minister Patterson said the Public Infrastructure Ministry subsequently made the decision to annul the process in May, following permission from the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) and the Finance Ministry.

The Opposition has since demanded the minutes and documentation verifying all of what Patterson has claimed, including the authorization issued by the NPTAB.

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

An artist's impression of the new Demerara River Bridge

with members of the local press corps, along with Member of Parliament Bishop Juan Edghill, to call on the IDB to make public its involvement in the entire sordid affair which is now mired in controversy.

“The credibility of the IDB is now at stake,” Teixeira said, as the Members of Parliament questioned how exactly the Public Infrastructure Ministry came to know of the Dutch consultants it eventually paid to undertake the study.

Bishop Egdhill, in questioning the choice of the company and how the min-

istry first advertised for the feasibility study.

Patterson, in what was described as a knee-jerk reaction to a publicised complaint and call for a formal investigation to be done by the Public Procurement Commission (PPC), had issued a public statement which essentially confirmed that Government did in fact hand-pick the Dutch consultants.

According to Patterson, with funding from the IDB, the ministry advertised the Consultancy for Feasibility Study and Design for the new Demerara River Bridge, and 22 entities expressed their interest.

In demanding the minutes of meetings and other pertinent documentation, Edghill also demanded the evaluation report for the company to undertake the project, and questioned against which companies the report was compared, since the process had been annulled in the first instance.

Teixeira, in addressing the matter on Friday, firstly pointed to the fact that had the PPP not complained very publicly to the Procurement Commission, the information divulged by Patterson would not have seen the light of day.

She was adamant that the Administration has never made public the fact that it had discarded the original tenders for the project, and had in fact instead handpicked a consultant.

Pointing to the Administration’s penchant for retendering for projects – a situation which has led to the abysmal implementation of any of its annual budgets – she said there is no record of a contract being awarded to any company, including the Dutch consultants that eventually prepared the report.

According to Teixeira, the explanations given by Minister Patterson have simply mired the contract in even more controversy, and makes the contract even more highly suspect. “And in my view, (this) could lead to criminal charges,” she expressed. turn to page 9

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guyanatimesgy.com

saturday, September 23, 2017

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

The Rohinga crisis

T

he Rohinga crisis is one of the worst human rights’ disasters of the modern world. In many ways, it is a replay of the Nazi terrorization, expulsion and murder of the Jewish people, which occurred in the 1930s and 1940s. A few countries, such as Denmark, protected their Jewish citizens, but no country in the 1930s condemned, on the international stage, the Jewish persecution. When the condemnation did come, it was too late.

It is only now, when half of the Rohinga population have been brutally driven out from their homes -- their villages destroyed by fire; many killed, wounded and raped -that the United Nations and some countries have spoken out against the persecution of this ethnic minority by the Myanmar (formerly Burma) military.

According to UN estimates, some 380,000 Rohinga refugees fleeing violence in Myanmar have crossed the border into Bangladesh since 25 August. A visit to the area last week by a UN team led by Assistant High Commissioner for Operations, George Okoth-Obbo, found people suffering real hardship and some of the most difficult conditions seen in any current refugee situation. The team has reported that refugees continue to arrive daily outside of the two established camps, which are already substantially overflowing, and many people have received little meaningful help to date.

Bangladeshi Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, told the UN General Assembly this week that Myanmar must stop “ethnic cleansing” in Rakhine state, and “safe zones” should be created inside that country to protect all civilians, under the supervision of the United Nations.

Myanmar (Burma) has several ethnic minorities, some of whom, like the Karens and the tribes who live in the Golden Triangle -- a drug-dealing area bordering China -- have been in rebellion against the Myanmar Government. The Myanmar Army has never carried out a campaign of ethnic cleansing and destructive brutalization against these rebel minorities as it has done to the Rohingas. The reason why the Rohingas have been singled out is because of stark racial and religious discrimination.

The Rohinga people are Muslim by religion, small farmers and peasants, and there are no rich and powerful Rohingas. They are extremely peace-loving people. They number about one and a half million.

The Myanmar military and Government have long been persecuting the Rohingas. Rohingas have been denied their citizenship, and, many years before the eruption of the present crisis, they were harassed, and public opinion was encouraged to hate them. The Myanmar Army had long been planning the destruction of the Rohinga community, and adjudged that this was an opportune time to execute its nefarious plan, since the world was distracted by a number of crises. The Secretary General of the United Nations, Mr António Guterres, took the very unusual step of writing the Security Council, and it was owing to his effort that the Security Council discussed the Rohinga crisis. Owing to the influence of China, which has a strong relationship with the Myanmar military, the communiqué issued was very weak.

Despite this, more nations are sympathetic and supportive of the Rohinga people and their suffering.

Myanmar has very few friends in the International Community, though its leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, had once won a world-wide reputation of being a fighter for Democracy and Human Rights, for which she was awarded the Nobel Prize. After her speech to her Parliament last Tuesday, her reputation became further dented, owing to her basically non-committal approach to the Rohinga crisis.

The Guyana Government has been presented with a windfall of diplomatic opportunity by this crisis, but it has so far failed to seize the opportunity presented. President L.F.S. Burnham, as he did in the Non-Aligned Movement and in the Anti-Apartheid struggle, would have seized this opportunity. His Foreign Ministers -- Sir Shridath Ramphal, Mr Rashleigh Jackson and Mr Rudy Insanally -- are still available to be consulted.

It is, however, not too late for Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to act.

They could, for instance, develop a CARICOM position or bloc on the issue. Guyana could act independently, as Mr Burnham did. As far as we are aware, however, Guyana has not issued a statement condemning the human rights’ abuses perpetrated by the Myanmar military.

The New Thriving Restaurant at Providence, East Bank Demerara on Thursday evening came to life as the Chinese Embassy hosted a grand celebration in honour of the 68th Independence Anniversary of the People’s Republic of China. Ambassador Cui Jianchun welcomed Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo, along with other Parliamentarians and scores of foreign dignitaries to the festivities, which featured an array of food, drinks and cultural displays in commemoration of China’s contributions through its 45 years of diplomatic relations with Guyana

Misrepresentation of facts Dear Editor, Three Ministers of the Government -- Minister Raphael Trotman, Minister Dominic Gaskin and Minister Khemraj Ramjattan -- recently released, via the press corps, incorrect information to the public to the effect that in 1997 according to Minister Trotman, 2008 according to Minister Gaskin,and according to Minister Ramjattan 2011, the then President, Bharrat Jagdeo, had amended the Petroleum Act so as to ensure that the ExxonMobil contract cannot be released to the public.

They cannot even get their dates straight when concocting their stories.

These contradictory pronouncements by the three ministers are all fabrications. Neither President Jagdeo nor any other PPP President ever amended the Act to prevent disclosure of the contract.

There is an obvious agenda by members of the coalition Administration, with collusion from their financiers, to malign the reputation of Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo.

Shortly thereafter, at a recent press conference, Minister Patterson, supported by Ministers Ramjattan and Cathy Hughes, also informed the Guyanese public that there were no remaining un-assigned oil blocks because Jagdeo had already distributed all to favoured

awardees. Again, this is palpably untrue, and has compelled me to release the list of concessions and expose the malicious lies being repeated by the current administration in another effort to defame Mr Jagdeo.

The following advisement reveals that, of the ten existing concessions, none had been given out by the Jagdeo Administration.

Faced with exposure of this lie, the decent thing to do was to apologize and withdraw the erroneous claims. Instead, in sections of the media on September 22, the minister, in another act of deception, now claims that all the offshore blocks are gone, and that is what he was referring to. This is another falsehood, which is debunked by the map published by the GGMC outlining the offshore blocks that are yet available.

• ExxonMobil was given by the Late Hon. Janet Jagan –1999 Eight were given by former President, Hon. Donald Ramotar; to wit: • Mid-Atlantic -- 2015 • CGX 2012 -- 2013 • Repsol -- 2013 • Retio -- 2015 • Anadarko -- 2012 • On Energy -- 2013 • Nabi – 2012 The tenth one was given by Minister Trotman under the Granger Presidency to Tollow Eco. Based on recently released documents

by GGMC, there still remain several unallocated

blocks.

Let me hasten to add that all of the blocks allocated by PPP presidents were properly issued; as a result of which ExxonMobil invested millions of dollars, which led to the discovery of oil.

I wish to deplore the constant misrepresentation of facts by the coalition Administration, and the incessant repetition of these falsehoods by sections of the print media. It seems that deflecting the public’s attention away from their own inadequacies and ungrounded accusations against PPP leaders, especially Mr Bharrat Jagdeo, is a norm in the construct of the coalition and its partners in the media.

One glaring instance is the lie that has been exposed – time and again -- that is yet repeated by coalition ministers of Government and reprinted in sections of the media.

Trotman’s allegation in Parliament: that Mr Jagdeo and the PPP gave out all of the productive land in the forestry sector, has been repeatedly refuted. According to the Opposition Leader: “The fact is that about fifty-five per cent of the state forest has been given out so far in our history. It’s about seven million hectares out of 12.5 million hectares; and out of that 55 per cent, just about 40 per cent is under extraction. Of the (millions of) hectares that were

given out, almost half was given out in the pre-1992 era. Barama alone had 1.7 million hectares.”

In conclusion, I have observed the recent headlines and hype surrounding the Government’s announcement that they are engaged in discussions to bring gas onshore to generate electricity. Again, this is obviously a ploy to divert the public’s attention from the atrocious spate of blackouts that have been ravaging the lives of citizens. This cannot be the solution for the pressing problems we face on a daily basis.

I was with the Leader of the Opposition when he asked officials from the oil company whether a feasibility study to use gas for electricity, as compared to other alternatives, was done. The answer was in the negative.

The PPP/C is prepared to defend its legacy as it relates to its decisions to grant oil and gas concessions, in particular since its decision to embrace ExxonMobil has borne fruit, and has been proven to have been a transparent process.

Sincerely, Odinga Lumumba Vice Chairman – Sectoral Committee: Natural Resources Member of Parliament – People’s Progressive Party/Civic

guyanatimesgy.com

saturday, September 23, 2017

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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

Inaccurate statements about Indian immigrants refused swamplands Procurement Commission

Dear Editor, The Public Procurement Commission (the Commission) has noted several inaccurate and misleading statements about the work of the Commission published in the media recently.

The Commission takes this opportunity to remind the public of the important role of the Commission in promoting the highest standards of public procurement of goods, services, and the execution of works.

The Commission was established under Articles 212 W, X, Y and Z of the Constitution, and is required to carry out its work independently, in a manner consistent with the fundamental principles of fairness and impartiality, as enshrined in the Constitution.

The Commission works in a collaborative manner, which affords all members equal opportunity to participate fully in its work; and this is exactly what transpired in the recently concluded investigation of the procurement of emergency drugs by the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

The Commission did not delegate any aspect of the work of the GPHC investigation to any individual commissioner. The five commissioners worked collectively throughout the process of the investigation, and were, at

all times, all fully aware of the contents of the final report, to which they all contributed and were all also afforded the opportunity to sign.

It should also be noted that the Commission comprises five commissioners, who each took an oath of confidentiality in respect of the conduct of the GPHC investigations, and as such, it would be inappropriate and in breach of that oath for any commissioner to discuss, at this time, the specific details of the findings and recommendations relating to the investigation.

The atmosphere of deliberations during the work of the Commission has been one of mutual respect and courtesy, albeit there have been vigorous discussions and healthy debate, as one would expect from a group of mature professionals who are all fully qualified and experienced in their respective areas of expertise (procurement, legal, financial and administrative matters).

Unlike what was reported, there has been no instance of acrimony, where any commissioner was threatened with being fired, since all the commissioners are fully knowledgeable of the Articles of the Constitution under which the Commission was established, and the provisions relating to appointment and removal of com-

missioners.

Also, contrary to sections of the media, the Commission has not “hurriedly scrambled” to formulate rules barring commissioners from speaking to the press. The Commission has crafted no rule that states that commissioners cannot speak to the press.

As it relates to the most recent investigation into the procurement of emergency drugs by the GPHC, the Commission reiterates that its formal report has already been submitted to the National Assembly, and no further comment will be made on this matter until the National Assembly has an opportunity to consider it.

At that time, the Commission will, if necessary, make a full statement about the conduct of this investigation and the persistent misinformation being peddled in the public domain.

The Commission, as an independent body, will stoutly resist any external efforts to direct and control its work.

The Commission will continue to execute its mandate without fear or favour, and remain above partisan politics. Any attempt to use the Commission’s work to satisfy any specific political agenda will be rejected.

Sincerely, Public Procurement Commission

Parikwaranau titled land encroachment Dear Editor, The residents of Parikwaranau Village, located in south Central Rupununi, Region Nine (Upper Takutu– Upper Essequibo) are highly concerned that a known cattle rancher has taken over and fenced a portion of their titled village lands, without their consent.

This matter was brought by the village council to the attention of the Minister of Indigenous People’s Affairs, Vice President Sydney Allicock, about a year ago, but, to date, nothing has been done.

The residents are claiming that while Minister Allicock has recently addressed the land boundaries of villages in the North Rupununi, he is deliberately refusing to address the Parikwaranau-titled land encroachment by the known rancher, a situation of which he is fully aware.

Villagers informed that both Ministers Allicock and George Norton visited Parikwaranau Village on September 14, 2017, but in-

formed villagers on their arrival that their visit was not to deal with land issues, but to address other issues. Minister Allicock instead advised residents to take their land problem to the Land Commission of Inquiry (CoI), and he also advised on who should be invited to the village.

The residents are of the opinion that their current land problem is not one for the Land CoI to solve, but the Ministry of Indigenous People’s Affairs (MoIPA) should solve it.

The residents have said they will not be taking their village problem to the Land CoI, neither will the Land CoI be invited into the village.

Parikwaranau village residents are extremely disappointed over Minister Allicock’s refusal to settle their land problem with the known cattle rancher. They are wondering if it is a conflict-of-interest situation, and if so, then Minister GarridoLowe or a specially appointed person should take over.

In the meanwhile, the

problem is currently affecting the strategic development of the Parikwaranau Village.

Yours sincerely, Peter Persaud

Dear Editor, I refer to Kingsley Williams’s letter, “A question for Ravi Dev”, in the media referring to my column in which I asked, “Can the Indian Guyanese speak for justice?”

Mr Williams cited Preambles #4 and 8 of Ordinance 21 of 1850, which confirmed Indian indentured servants ” shall be entitled to a free passage back to India” after 5 years’ “service” ,and further, if “desirous to commute his right to a free passage for the value in land to the amount of the cost of such passage, and the Governor shall see fit to grant to such immigrant out of the Crown lands of the colony a piece or parcel of land equal in value, at the upset price of Crown lands, to the amount of the cost of such return passage, such immigrant shall have the same in lieu of his right to a free passage.”

Mr Williams’s question was why, as I had written “Of the 163,964 Indian immigrants that remained in Guyana, a mere 2,653 (1.6%) exchanged their return passage for land”? I want to compliment Mr Williams for his query, because I really believe if we become more conversant with our history, we can create a Guyanese reality and narrative that gives each group an “equal place” in our land.

Firstly, Mr Williams’s citations debunk the claim by some that Indian immigrants were “pampered” by the planters and “given” free land. The minuscule acreage acquired by them via this route was in EXCHANGE for the cost of a passage back to India, which they were owed through the

terms of their indentureship.

As I demonstrated, the value of the land for the exchange was on the average half of what the passage would have cost.

It is important to note that the “exchange” clause was inserted after indentureship from India was suspended in 1848 after a mere three years.

In 1847, however, the exslaves’ strike for higher wages after a 25% reduction was broken by the 15,747 Portuguese, 12,898 West Indian (mainly Barbadians), 8,692 Indian and 6,957 African indentureds brought in to work for the lower wages. The Planterdominated legislature wanted to impress the Indian Government to re-open immigration, and also to sweeten the recruiters’ inducement because the other sources were dwindling and uncertain.

Matters had become desperate for sugar interests because, by 1848, more than half of the 83,545 freed slaves had departed to the villages they formed after purchasing abandoned estates. While these experienced workers could outperform the indentureds, they worked on their own schedule, and sugar production had fallen by 40%.

The planters, on the other hand, wanted a cheap labour force they could control totally, because of the demands of sugar production. Indian indentureship resumed in 1851.

But the reality was always quite different from the promises on the indentured contract.

On Mr Williams’s specific question, Mr Mohammed Shabudeen, in his book, “From Plantocracy to Nationalisation”, has this to

say on exchanging return passages for land: “here the idea had been around since 1850, but its implementation started only in the 1860s, and then with the almost absurd suggestion that a portion of the somewhat “gelatinous territory” at Plantation Best, West Coast Demerara be allocated in one-acre grants.”

In his footnote, Shahabudeen noted, “… the provisions were not acted upon and were omitted from subsequent ordinances.”

Carl Greenidge, in his book, “Empowering a Peasantry in a Caribbean Context: the case of land settlement Schemes in Guyana (1865-1985)”, agreed with Shahabudeen, and suggested, “Presumably this was the case because it was not seen as being of any special benefit to sugar.”

In fact, Ordinance 22 of 1856 tried another tack and allowed the planters to reindenture the immigrant for a bounty payment.

In 1863, Immigrant AgentGeneral James Crosby proposed villages be established for non-returning Indian immigrants, but it was not until 1871, when the De Vouex Commission was inquiring into the conditions of India immigrants, that Plantation Nooten Zuil, ECD was identified. But, as with Plantation Best, the condition of the land was deemed unsuitable, and there were no takers.

Between 1880 and 1903, the above-mentioned land was exchanged, but by the following year, all the settlements were dubbed as “failures”.

Sincerely, Ravi Dev

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Foundation state, not to reflect his/her anger with your own anger reaction.

Avoid raised voices, lectures and knee-jerk consequences that turn up the heat and escalate conflict every time. Related tip: As the child gets louder, you get quieter.

– 7 strategies for schools and parents

“D

By Signe Whitson o not teach your children never to be angry; teach them how to be angry.” —Lyman Abbott As a School Counsellor, one of the most frequent questions I am asked by teachers and parents is how to respond effectively when a young person is upset or emotionally overwhelmed. Since self-regulation is the core of emotional wellbeing (not to mention a pre-requisite for academic progress), I am not just willing...but completely eager...to share practical strategies for helping children manage intense feelings and develop selfregulation skills.

In this article, I offer six core emotion-management strategies that educators and parents can use. Note: I will use the word “angry” throughout as a generic way of expressing the kind of powerful emotions that distract children in school and/or disrupt learning, but please know that other emotions such as sadness, worry, frustration, and fear are just as applicable.

Think: calm, cool, and collected First and foremost, when you see a child in a highly emotional state, avoid the urge to lecture or try to reason with him/her at that moment. I cannot stress this enough. Research shows that the least effective but most used discipline strategy for dealing with emotional outbursts in schools is verbal reprimanding.

Is there a time for talking with children, establishing expectations, and discussing accountability? Of course. But that time is never in the heat of the moment when they (and likely you) are upset.

Brain-science shows us very clearly that when children are upset, the emotional part of their brain (the amygdala) is activated and simultaneously, the logical, rational part of their brain (the prefrontal cortex) is less active.

Because of this, no amount of verbal reprimanding or reasoning will help a person control their anger in the heat of the moment.

In fact, almost anything you say regarding the incident or its consequences at this time will likely worsen the situation. The only strategy you have in the moment is to help the young person calm down.

Strategies for helping a child calm down are plentiful. What they all have in common are time, space, support, unconditional positive regard, moving, and breathing. Play-dough never hurts, either. I encourage all educators to think about the use of a “Take a Break space” in their classroom. For older students (middle and high school), a neutral space in the room could still be great, but I recommend letting older students take a quick walk in the hallway (if you feel they can do this safely) or take a cool drink of water.

Teach children what to do Create a class/household of Do’s instead of an environment of Dont’s so that young people know how to express their feelings in safe ways. Instead of making a rule such as “no hitting,” offer positive (often sensory) strategies such as: • Squeeze a stressball • Get a drink of water • Hug a stuffed animal • Use mindful breathing practices • Listen to calming music • Take a walk...or a run...just move around (safely!)

• Eat a quick, non-sugary snack • Use the classroom break space, where sensory and/or fidget items are available • Write/draw/talk about the problem • article continues after advertisement Use diversions and distractions When the amygdala (emotional brain) is activated by an upsetting event, it can be extremely helpful to distract the child from the repetitive angry thoughts that keep their brain in a high state of alarm. This is especially effective with younger students, although it is clear that people of all ages can be assisted by distraction.

In school, distraction from an emotional trigger can look like: Ask a student to pass out papers, bring a note to the office, carry a box (heavy lifting is a great sensory, calming strategy).

Offer a fidget or tactile object that is new or novel to them. (Playdough, anyone?)

Offer the child’s crackers or a non-sugary snack, or a cold drink of water.

Consider allowing the student a brief change of space. Take a walk. This often makes a world of difference.

Learn their triggers Become aware of frequent triggers for a student’s intense emotions, such as hunger, being hot, tiredness, the time of day, certain activities, or transitions. Is the child always stressed on Mondays after a weekend with a parent, or on Fridays before a visit with a parent? Are they stressed about grades? Does test anxiety usually throw them for a loop? Very often, if you can predict it, you can prevent it.

Be a thermostat, not a thermometer Your job is to turn down the heat on a young person’s emotional

Offer a hug Hugging an angry child may be the last thing you feel like doing in a stressful moment, but it might be the very best thing you can do to show support and help the young person regulate his/her emotions and behaviours. You are meeting sensory needs as well as safety and belonging needs. Say to young person, “I can see that you are upset about _________.

Would you like a hug?”

Use morning meetings Consider using morning/ class meetings with students to

purposefully and regularly build self-regulation skills in children.

Try any of these topics and skillbuilders: During a group-sharing time, ask children to share their go-to strategy for how to calm down when they are upset.

Encourage children to share with each other their triggers for becoming angry and upset. This provides excellent insights for you (see #4 above) and builds group trust.

Do a daily check in on children’ moods and game-plan for how children will cope with upsetting emotions.

Teach children your classroom procedure for how to ask for help when they feel themselves becoming upset or overwhelmed by emotion.

Teach children how to show compassion when they see a classmate who is upset. (Excerpt from psychologytoday.com) (Excerpt from psychologytoday.com)

When tempers flare

S

ome of it may be the changes your body's going through: All those hormones you hear so much about can cause mood swings and confused emotions. Some of it may be stress: People who are under a lot of pressure tend to get angry more easily. Part of it may be your personality: You may be someone who feels your emotions intensely or tends to act impulsively or lose control. And part of it may be your role models: Maybe you've seen other people in your family blow a fuse when they're mad.

No matter what pushes your buttons, one thing is certain — you're sure to get angry sometimes. Everyone does. Anger is a normal emotion, and there's nothing wrong with feeling mad. What counts is how we handle it (and ourselves) when we're angry.

Tools to tame a temper: self-awareness & self-control Because anger can be powerful, managing it is sometimes challenging. It takes plenty of self-awareness and self-control to manage angry feelings. And these skills take time to develop.

Self-awareness is the ability to notice what you're feeling and thinking, and why. Little kids aren't very aware of what they feel, they just act it out in their behaviour. That's why you see them having tantrums when they're mad. But teens have the mental ability to be self-aware. When you get angry, take a moment to notice what you're feeling and thinking.

Self-control is all about thinking before you act. It puts some precious seconds or minutes between feeling a strong emotion and taking an action you'll regret.

Together, self-awareness and self-control allow you to have more choice about how to act when you're feeling an intense emotion like anger.

Getting ready to make a change Deciding to get control of your anger — rather than letting it control you — means taking a good hard look at the ways you've been reacting when you get mad. Do you tend to yell and scream or say hurtful, mean, disrespectful things? Do you throw things, kick or punch walls, break stuff? Hit someone, hurt yourself, or push and shove others around?

Dealing with anger For most people who have trouble harnessing a hot temper, reacting like this is not what they want. They feel ashamed by their behaviour and don't think it reflects the real them, their best selves.

Everyone can change — but only when they want to. If you want to make a big change in how you're handling your anger, think about what you'll gain from that change. More self-respect? More respect from other people? Less time feeling annoyed and frustrated? A more relaxed approach to life?

Remembering why you want to make the change can help.

It can also help to remind yourself that making a change takes time, practice, and patience. It won't happen all at once.

Managing anger is about developing new skills and new responses. As with any skill, like playing basketball or learning the piano, it helps to practice over and over again. (Excerpt from Kidshealth)

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7

saturDay, September 23, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Govt in hunt for casino partners

...must first sign ‘confidentiality undertaking’

T

he Guyana Government is currently searching for partners to finally complete construction, as well as to operate the casino at the Marriott Hotel in Kingston, Georgetown.

The US$58 million project completed in 2015 last was advertised as a stateof-the-art, energy efficient edifice, complete with hotel, casino and entertainment complex.

The project was completed under the previous Administration and was railed against by the then political Opposition, A Partnership for National Unity, Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC), which has since been elected to office.

According to requests for Expressions of Interest (EoI) advertised locally, Atlantic Hotels Inc – the special purpose, Government owned company that set up to construct and own the Marriott Hotel – has invited interest parties to present proposals for the completion and operation of the facility.

According to the adver-

The Marriott Hotel in Kingston, Georgetown

tisement, “AHI is seeking Expression of Interest from reputable organisations/ individuals to complete the construction, outfitting and operating its casino annexed to the Marriott Hotel...”

The Government owned company says it “is interested to receive EoIs from either persons or companies, either individually or as part of a joint venture/ consortium.”

AHI said preference will be given to submissions by applicants who are established in the gaming and entertainment industry.

It was also pointed out

that in selecting the lessee, “AHI will consult with Marriott.”

Those interested in partnering with AHI in order to complete constructing and to operate the casino are being asked to submit design proposals, proof of financial viability, a financial plan and are being asked to sign on to a ‘confidentiality undertaking’ on registration.

Government has in the past publicly indicated its intention to sell off the multimillion-dollar tourism flagship project of its predecessors but acknowledges that in order to make the project attractive, it will

Bandit shot during botched ECD robbery

A

bandit is now under Police guard at the Georgetown Public Hospital after he was shot while attempting to rob a security guard on the East Coast of Demerara (ECD).

Reports are that the incident occurred on Thursday at about 23:30h on the Bachelors’ Adventure Public Road, East Coast Demerara (ECD).

Guyana Times understands that the 39-year-old security guard, who resides at Bachelor’s Adventure, was walking home when the incident occurred.

This newspaper was told that two men on motorcycle approached the guard, and as they drew parallel to him, the pillion rider pulled out a gun and pointed it at the guard.

In retaliation, the security guard grabbed the gunman, and a scuffle ensued.

The bandit, however, fired a shot during the scuffle, injuring his accomplice in the process.

After shooting his accomplice, the bandit got up and fled the scene of the crime, reportedly into a nearby cemetery, and made

good his escape.

However, the injured bandit, who also attempted to flee, was subdued by the guard, who managed to grab hold of the weapon.

The Police were called to the scene, and the gunman, along with the .32 revolver, one spent shell and the motorcycle, were handed over.

The bandit was taken to GPHC where he is said to be in a stable condition.

An investigation has been launched, and a manhunt is continuing for the accomplice.

have to complete the casino.

The project was mired when the then Opposition APNU/AFC vehemently opposed the construction of the hotel over its cost, debt servicing and general lack of transparency.

Despite the controversy, the hotel was opened to begin its phase one operations.

A second component of the project was advertised as entailing the construction of a 29,000 square foot

entertainment complex that will house a casino, restaurant and nightclub; all of which will be privately operated, separate and distinct from the hotel and its operators – Marriott International Inc.

8 NEWS

saturday, September 23, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Wife dies after alleged beating by husband

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man is in custody assisting with investigations into the death of his wife, who died four days after she was allegedly beaten.

Dead is Janette Tahal, 58, of Smithfield, New Amsterdam. Tahal died at the Georgetown Hospital on Thursday.

Reports are that the now dead woman and her 60-year-old husband had an argument on Sunday at their Lot 95 Smithfield home when he allegedly lashed her with a piece of wood several times. In a semi-conscious state, the woman was picked by a friend who was visiting the home, and tak-

en to the New Amsterdam Hospital, where she was stabilized and transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital.

The couple was involved in mobile vegetable vending, and, according to neighbours, had had frequent fights.

On Tuesday, Police ar-

rested her husband as he was on his way to the Georgetown Hospital. On Friday, Police were granted permission by the High Court to further detain him as the investigation continues.

Tahal has reportedly been cooperating with the Police. (Andrew Carmichael)

Govt promises better weather reports

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uyanese citizens are expected to receive more accurate, timely weather reports from the Hydro-meteorological Services Department of the Agriculture Ministry, as it has now been boosted with 21 Automatic Weather Stations (AWSs) to enhance its existing framework. These weather stations, together with site preparation and installation costs totalling US$257,000, were donated under the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Climate Change Adaptation Programme (CCAP) and was facilitated by the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC).

The US$26 million USAID CCAP is designed to strengthen an integrated system for the implementation and financing of sustainable adaptation approaches

in the Eastern and Southern Caribbean region. This initiative builds on both the USAID/ESC’s Caribbean Regional Development Cooperative Strategy and the Caribbean Community (Caricom) Regional Framework for Achieving Development Resilient to a Changing Climate.

In keeping with the investments planned under the programme, one such activity is the provision of the

AWSs to enhance the existing network within Guyana and the wider region. Under a CCCCC commissioner study conducted by the Caribbean Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH) in early 2017, Guyana became the beneficiary of the weather stations. The total cost of the stations is US$215,000, with site preparation and installation costs amounting to approximately US$42,000, a total investment of US$257,000.

Maxine Nestor, Procurement Officer of the CCCCC, is quoted by the Department of Public Information as saying that weather stations will see greater benefits for the country, particularly for fisher folk, farmers and other persons who are dependent on accurate weather information.

Checking…

C

…the Ming swing hecking one’s golf swing is a favourite preoccupation of the moneyed class. Did you see Trump working on his swing at his exclusive Resort down in Florida? As usual, we in Guyana slavishly “follow pattern”, as we can see from the diligent, if risible, efforts at the Lusignan Golf Course. These wannabe “Gatsbys” should be excused for their gauche efforts at social climbing, since like the original fella who made his wealth on contraband moonshine (“bush rum”), the nouveau riche is always a schizophrenic lot!

But this new Demerara Harbour Bridge is acting like a Rorschach test, exposing the inner landscape of so many in this APNU/AFC Administration. And what a twisted, avaricious and bleak mindset it is! Just look at the latest expose, which will necessitate you taking a look at an aerial “top view” of the bridge in one of the dailies and for sure in THIS newspaper a couple of days ago.

If you look at bridges across the world, you’ll see them perfectly straight. They might be at an angle to the river banks - but between the two points, they’re straight.

The proposed DHB, however, is curved!! It starts out from the Eastern (Houston) bank straight as an arrow, then suddenly, as it approaches the western (Versailles) bank it curves!! “What the heck!?” you’ll exclaim for sure, or maybe some spicier words!! This, dear reader, is the “Ming Swing”!! If the bridge had continued as it should have - straight ahead - it would have ended up on the property of one Mr H, in Versailles. NOT anyone’s close friend, as has been alleged!!

But this would’ve meant the Government would’ve had to pay “Mr H” quite a bundle…and HE would’ve immediately joined the moneyed class, and probably start working on his golf swing! But the Government had another idea. BY SHEER COINCIDENCE, the very wealthy Stanley Ming - who’d been one of the APNU/ AFC major financiers and made quite a lot of “political investments” - had purchased a plot of land downwind from Mr H, and by ANOTHER SHEER COINCIDENCE, the bridge made a swing to Mr Ming!!!

The Government will now be forced to pay all that money to Mr Ming. But maybe it’s all for the best. Mr Ming’s already loaded to the gills, but had picked up go-kart racing rather than golf, so never got a chance to work on his swing. Now he has his own swing!!

The Govt knows money brings its own worries -think of all the guards and guard huts etc. the Ministers had to be supplied with after they got their 50% raises!

Mr H will be spared all this headache! Isn’t this Government all heart?? …Procurement While most of you, dear readers, may think of “procurement” as involving material things, like schools and bridges and stuff, it also covers services, such as the feasibility study for the new DHB that just suggested the “Ming Swing”. And guess what…with all the brouhaha that has been made about corruption in procurement, you’d think this Government would learn, wouldn’t you?

Well, maybe. But then old people do talk about dogs getting hooked on egg-sucking! So we now find out the feasibility study was “sole-sourced” for the tune of $143million!! And even after they were outed, the Government continues to treat the Guyanese people like they’re morons. Twenty-two firms, it said, expressed interest, and 12 were subsequently shortlisted; but only two submitted bids, but they were annulled and the NYTAB informed. So far, so good. But then, rather than opening up new bidding, they sole-sourced to LievenseCSO. They insist, “The information of this release is factual”.

Yes…but is it legal? Not by the laws of Guyana! …for gas After huddling with Exxon, the Govt spokesperson said they discussed natural gas’ complementarity “to other renewable sources of energy, such as hydro”, to generate electricity.

Until they mention the astronomical costs involved - including transmission - the Govt’s just letting out (noxious, unnatural) gas!!

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

News

9

saturDAY, september 23, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Govt scraps Diamond vehicle overpass project Public servants’ – cites lack of space salaries at negotiations stage – Harmon E

fforts by the Coalition Government to address the heavy rushhour traffic situation on the East Bank of Demerara have been thwarted, forcing them to cancel the construction of a vehicular overpass at Diamond.

In January, it was revealed that tenders for the construction of the overhead road structure were opened, while tenders for supervisory services were opened since in December 2016, and at time were being evaluated.

However, Head of the Public Infrastructure Ministry’s Work Services Group, Geoffrey Vaughn, told Guyana Times on Friday that the process had to be aborted after the Group ran into a stumbling block about five months ago.

He explained that the area which had been earmarked for the start of the overpass in the Diamond/ Grove Housing Scheme was sold to the owner of a local fastfood chain, M&M – which had recently relocated further in the scheme (opposite G3 Building).

“Space was a constraint

WSG Head, Geoffrey Vaughn

at that time because M&M now takes up that land that we had proposed to use to carry the vehicle overpass from Diamond straight onto the East Bank Road. And we weren’t aware of that, because that was reserve all the time, and apparently it was sold,” he stated.

Vaughn added, too, that the Group hit further obstacles when they realised that the East Bank Public Road end of the overpass would have landed into the compound of the mandir which is located opposite the entrance of the scheme.

According to the WSG

Head, the Group was considering the viability of several other sites, but those options were not found to be feasible. Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson was quoted in an online media outlet – Newsroom – as saying that they are looking to build a second road into the scheme, with a proposed location in the vicinity of the Guyoil Gas Station.

Nevertheless, Vaughn indicated to this newspaper they are also considering other locations along the East Bank that are maybe in need of a vehicle overpass.

“We are looking to see if we get other areas which are in need of (an overpass).

It may not be the same area.

It’s not just doing it, we got to find areas that it is going to bring relief to people,” he pointed out.

However, the WSG Head reminded of the bypass road, funded by the Indian Government and seeking to link the East Bank and East Coast of Demerara, noting that this second link will alleviate traffic congestion on the East Bank.

“You will now be able to

IDB’s credibility now at stake in...

Teixeira said that by Minister Patterson’s own admission, he is making the situation worse, and she pointed to the fact that his public statement is the first to implicate the IDB in the process.

As such, Teixeira told media operatives, “If this is so: that the IDB was funding the feasibility study – and, at this point, we can’t believe anything the Government is saying, because we are now being overloaded with lies, in a sense -- if that is so that the IDB is funding it, what is at stake now is the credibility of the IDB.” The Opposition Chief Whip was adamant, “It is

important for the IDB to say, ‘yes,’ they were funding this project; two: that they approved this process.”

She recalled that the IDB has its own procurement laws, which would dictate that the matter cannot be simply transported to the level of Cabinet.

Teixeira reminded that, before the Cabinet is allowed to have a voice in the matter, the NPTAB must first write to the IDB, which would then decide on approvals before it can be transmitted to the Cabinet for its no objection.

Insisting that the local procurement laws had been flouted, the Opposition Chief

from page 3

Whip was quick to also point out that she was not in any way attacking the Dutch company, but rather the process used by the Ministry of Public Infrastructure.

Teixeira, in writing to the Public Procurement Commission calling for an investigation, had pointed out to the constitutional body that part of Guyana’s international obligations under the Inter-American Convention against Corruption was to ensure that there was transparency and accountability, in order to enhance public trust and confidence, particularly in respect to the public procurement process.

either use the existing East Bank road; or, if you going to the East Coast, you can use the new link – which will pass through Great Diamond going all the way through South (Ruimveldt) and getting us straight to Ogle, coming out at the Railway Embankment or main highway,” he said, while mentioning that consideration is also being given to extend the bypass road from Diamond to Timehri.

“So you can actually come from Timehri and head all the way to the East Coast,” he noted.

Vaughn further added that, with the bypass road, they are looking at strategic locations that may be in need of vehicle overpasses.

However, he was quick to point out that these are all mere considerations, and not concrete proposals. The WSG Head explained that they were hoping that the vehicle overpass at the entrance of Diamond/Grove Housing Scheme would have been the model structure to determine whether other similar structures were viable on the country’s roadways.

W

ith the 2018 National Budget preparations ongoing, public servants can look forward to yet another increase in wages. This is according to Minister of State Joseph Harmon, who told the Department of Public Information that salaries for public servants are in the “negotiation stage.”

Minister Harmon pointed out that a committee was established to exclusively deal with the wages of public servants.

According to the Minister, the committee comprises of “several persons from the Government side and those from the Public Service Union.”

Detailed discussions on how much of an increase public servants will receive will commence shortly between the two sides, the Minister is quoted by Department of Public Information as saying.

Ensuring the Guyanese populace lives a quality of life that is acceptable remains high on the

Minister of State Joseph Harmon

Government’s agenda. Only as recent as Friday, Minister Harmon announced that the Administration is moving to standardise the employment of sweeper/cleaners as public servants.

The Minister said he is optimistic that the intervention will bring an end to the situation with the sweeper/ cleaners. Regularising their employment will also ensure that they receive the same benefits as every other public servant.

10 news

saturday, September 23, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Opposition insists Govt covering up corruption in oil sector ... “If you get ketch lying, at minimum say sorry nah” ̶ Edghill

G

overnment’s defense of Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson has flabbergasted the political opposition, which insists that the Government continues to deflect from the substantial issue at hand when it comes to the allegation that relatives and friends of those in the administration have in fact been applying for petroleum blocks in order to flip it for a profit.

The political opposition now believes that the administration is engaged in covering up the corruption taking place in the embryonic industry, and in fact does not want to come clean on all of the pending applications currently being processed.

Former Minister within the Finance Ministry, Juan Edghill, lashed out at the administration, and has since, in a direct message to Minister Patterson, said,

Patterson, I know, is technically competent and careful

Former President Bharrat Jagdeo

Former Minister within the Finance Ministry, Juan Edghill

Natural Resources Committee member Odinga Lumumba

Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson

“Ow man, c’mon, if you get ketch lying, at minimum say sorry nah.”

Patterson, this past week, found himself embroiled in controversy when, during an Alliance For Change press briefing, he told media operatives that former President, Bharrat Jagdeo, had farmed out all of the available petroleum

blocks—a claim that has been debunked by the former president, among others.

However, Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, lent support to Minister Patterson, saying that his utterances are a Government position. Minister Harmon told media operatives, “I am quite sure that Minister

Patterson is quite aware of the statement that he made with respect to the offshore concessions. I don’t know (why) the Leader of the Opposition is seeking to have some kind of confusion about it; he knows fully what Minister Patterson is talking about.”

According to Minister Harmon, “Minister

enough to be able to explain that situation again if necessary; but Minister Patterson was talking about offshore concessions.”

Maps supplied by the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission have since confirmed that there are several concessions available in the offshore economic zone.

Meanwhile, Opposition Member of Parliament and member of the Parliamentary Natural Resources Committee, Odinga Lumumba, has also lent his voice to the debate, saying the actions of the Government ministers have exposed “an obvious agenda by members of the coalition government, with collusion from their financiers to malign the reputation of Opposition Leader Dr Bharrat Jagdeo.”

He drew reference to the specific utterances by Patterson that there were no remaining un-assigned oil blocks because Jagdeo had already distributed all to favoured awardees, saying, “Again, this is palpably untrue, and has compelled me to release the list of concessions and expose the malicious lies being repeated by the current administration in another effort to defame Dr Jagdeo.”

news

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saturDAY, september 23, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Beharry donates over $6M to CDC for hurricane relief T

he Beharry Group of Companies through the Private Sector Commission (PSC) on Friday donated over $6 million worth of food supplies to the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) as relief to be sent to Caribbean countries affected by Hurricanes Irma and Maria.

The donation was made

by Chairman of the Beharry Group of Companies, Edward Anand Beharry to the CDC Director, Chabilall Ramsarup at the PSC boardroom, Waterloo Street, Georgetown.

The corporate member of the PSC made the donation following a meeting with the Commission and the Government of Guyana.

The donation is of 33,000 pounds of food valued at $5 million along with a donation from Sterling Products Limited of 382 metric tonnes of cleaning supplies valued just under $2 million.

According to Beharry’s Chairman, his almost 82-year-old company was ready to answer the call of PSC to give the much needed assistance to the affected Caribbean countries.

Beharry remarked that the donation, even though

From left: Beharry Group of Companies Chairman, Edward Anand Beharry; Vice Chairman of the PSC, Desmond Sears; and Director General of CDC, Retired Colonel Chabilall Ramsarup at the handing over, which was held in the boardroom of PSC on Waterloo Street

large cannot do much given the scale; however, “If called on again, we will certainly make additional donations.”

The Chairman however expressed satisfaction with the present donation and noted “it certainly is a start and we are proud to be a part of the PSC to contribute towards this initiative.”

“We have 85 tonnes of stuff to move and we have one little problem that is the moving of the stuff. We

were disappointed this afternoon when we were told by a company that they cannot be of assistance any longer by lending us an aircraft to move the supplies.

We are currently working out other means to have the supplies moved to those islands because if we take another two weeks to get the stuff there, it might not mean anything, so the fastest that we get the humanitarian assistance, it is always best in a disaster,” the

Director explained.

He added however that another member of the PSC has promised to lend a boat to the CDC to deliver supplies to the affected Caribbean countries.

PSC Chairman, Desmond Sears said that logistics are always a problem, and as such, called on other companies to come on board to lend assistance to have the supplies transported.

Parents call for more teachers at Whim Nursery …express frustration over teacher shortage

P

arents of children attending the Whim Nursery School are calling on the Education Ministry to put mechanisms in place for the school to have its full complement of teachers.

The school has suffered from a shortage of teachers for more than one year and parents are saying enough is enough.

The school has been without its full complement of teachers since September 2016. The headteacher has reportedly been filling in the gap for one year. The parents say they were expecting things to change as from this school year.

Jeney Sookraj, who is the mother of a first-year child attending the school, told Guyana Times that there is a need for another teacher for the first-year students.

“Because the head teacher can’t teach year-one and then run the school when she also has to attend meetings, and she also has her work to do so the children can’t learn nothing.”

She added that the development of the children depends on how much work the teacher puts in with them. “We try at home but they need the teacher. If

they can get the new teacher as from Monday it would be good.”

Sookraj said before school was reopened, they were told that the Ministry would have sent a teacher to the school for the new school term. They were later told by the headteacher that the teacher was due to arrive after the first week.

The school had 77 children; with 36 being in the first year, which has two classes but only one class has a permanent teacher.

Another parent, Malissa Seepersaud, is also of the opinion that the school cannot function efficiently with the current shortage.

According to her, the class with a permanent teacher will eventually have students that are behind in the curriculum. “The headteacher told us that the Ministry will send a teacher, but up to now, none. It is three weeks in this school year. We are urging them to have a teacher sent to the school.”

Officials at the school said they could not comment on the issue for fear of victimisation. Guyana Times was informed that the Teaching Service Commission is aware of the situation.

12 news

Guyana Times reporter awarded 1st ever Hughes scholarship saturDAY, september 23, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

…as APA secures sponsorship for Indigenous student’s tertiary education

A

fter earning her place in this year’s University of Guyana law programme, Guyana Times reporter Paula Gomes on Friday awarded on the first ever Clarence A F Hughes scholarship for Indigenous students pursuing an LLB. This is as the Amerindian People’s Association (APA) seeks to secure sponsorship for Indigenous students to ensure that high flyers are given the opportunity to chase after advanced levels of education.

Shortly after gaining entry to the UG LLB programme, Gomes, who hails from Paramakatoi Village in Region Eight (PotaroSiparuni), reached out to the APA for financial aid as she reads for her LLB. As a result of her request, the representative body of Indigenous peoples extended her application to the Hughes, Fields & Stoby Law Firm who responded favourable. The 20-year-old is now the first ever recipient of this scholarship which provides full funding for the education of promising Indigenous youths who will be embarking on the journey of becoming an Attorney.

Speaking at the presen-

Attorney-at-Law Nigel Hughes presenting the scholarship to awardee Paula Gomes in the presence of representatives from the APA

tation ceremony which was hosted at the office of the law firm, Attorney Nigel Hughes, congratulated the young reporter, alluding to the longstanding relationship his firm shares with the APA. The Attorney went on to say that, ““I am happy to say that the APA contacted us last week and they identified what I believe is the best candidate to pursue an LLB course at the University

of Guyana and as a result of our collaboration, Hughes, Fields & Stoby have agreed to fund the entire law programme for Miss Gomes.”

He pointed out that Gomes’ outstanding results at the Caribbean Examination Council examination was a positive factor leading to the award of the scholarship. “She will perform extraordinarily well and we are honoured and

privileged to have been afforded this opportunity to provide this scholarship for Miss Gomes.”

Meanwhile, in her address at the ceremony, awardee Paula Gomes extended gratitude to both the law firm and the APA while highlighting the significance of this contribution, especially as it relates to the development of the first peoples of Guyana.

On that note, Gomes stated, “while I applaud the generosity of Mr Hughes and his law firm, I believe that there should be more awards of this kind for I know of many Indigenous persons who are not able to realise and unleash their full potentials simply because of financial constraints.”

With that being said, the

aspiring lawyer assured that the investment will have a significant rippled effect on her community and the first peoples at large. She even offered words of advice to others looking to follow in her footsteps by saying, “Being an Indigenous person and being someone who truly knows the struggles of Indigenous peoples, I would like them (other Indigenous students) to know that the opportunities are endless if only you reach out far enough.”

The scholarship awarded to Gomes marks the first award to be made in honour of the late Attorney, Clarence A F Hughes and sets the way for other to benefit, with talks of it becoming an annual initiative.

M&CC, MoPH collaborating to improve Festival City Health Centre

Minister within the Public Health Ministry, Dr Karen Cummings along with Chief Health Visitor, Medex Beres Springer and engineers scout out areas for possible ground expansion of the Festival City Health Centre

J

unior Health Minister, Dr Karen Cummings, along with a team from the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) of Georgetown, visited the Festival City Health Centre and made the commitment to collaborate with the municipality to improve the conditions at various medical facilities in the city.

District Health Officer, Dr Danelle Drepaul, Chief Health Visitor (Georgetown) Medex Beres Springer, along with city and public health engineers and other representatives of the M&CC in

Georgetown accompanied Minister Cummings on the visit.

The Minister initially remarked that the Ministry would be collaborating with the M&CC to strategically plan and roll out upgrades to the facility. She met with Town Clerk, Royston King, who has expressed an interest in contributing to a better health care delivery system to the citizens of Georgetown.

“We would like it (Festival City Health Centre) to come on par with some of our facilities that we have at the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH), so we are prepared to partner with the City Council to ensure that we deliver quality care to the residents of South Georgetown,” she said.

“Starting from outside, as you know this place floods very easily when it rains.

So, we are working; we have two engineers (one from the M&CC and one from the MoPH). They will work together with the Ministry of Public Infrastructure (to) see how we can improve the situation so we don’t have

flooding, so the mothers don’t have to skip and jump when they are coming to the clinic and also we are going to cater for the disabled,” Minister Cummings added while addressing the issue of flooding at the facility.

She said there might be plans to extend the clinic, in order to house more staff and equipment and offer extensive services to residents in that area.

The health centre currently offers maternal and child health services, which includes prenatal, antenatal and postnatal care along with family planning, counselling and testing services from Tuesdays to Thursdays.

Services for chronic disease patients are also facilitated on Mondays and Fridays.

Minister Cummings a few weeks ago was forced to visit the La Parfaite Harmonie Health Centre after the issue of unsanitary conditions coupled with poor infrastructure was raised.

However, a few hours before the Minister’s visit, the regional administration conducted emergency works at the facility.

news

13

saturDAY, september 23, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

3-year-old death

Child had an inoperable brainstem tumour – doctors …says parents were in denial

By Lakhram Bhagirat

T

hree-year-old Anisha Singh had an intrinsic brainstem tumour that caused her health to rapidly deteriorate, but her parents were in denial, despite many explanations from the team of doctors at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

Head of the Neurosurgery Department at the Georgetown Public Hospital, Dr Amarnauth Dukhi, told Guyana Times that the child’s tumour was inoperable, and that it would have reached the stage where it began to compress the brain stems, thus resulting in the symptoms that Anisha was experiencing.

S a m a n t h a Kandasammy and Michael Singh, the parents of threeyear-old Anisha, have accused some doctors at the institution of serious malpractice, which they claim resulted in the death of their toddler.

Anisha, of Lot 2 Edon Street, Tucville, Georgetown, passed away at a private institution at about 02:00h on Tuesday,

Three-year-old Anisha Singh

after her parents had taken her away from the GPHC against her doctors’ advice.

The distraught parents said that their baby girl was healthy, but had a cold, which was later diagnosed as pneumonia, but the doctors at the GPHC failed to treat her for that, which may have caused her death. They added that the hospital also withheld the medical records, preventing them from accessing care at another institution,

and possibly overseas.

Guyana Times first reported the death of the toddler along with the parents’ accusations, and in an effort to clear the air, what the team of doctors and nurses told their side of what had transpired.

“A brain stem tumour is the definitive diagnosis.

The patient had pneumonia as a complication of the brain stem tumour. Her initial issue was, and has always been, a brain stem tumour,” Dr Dukhi reiterated.

The neurosurgeon said the tumour was inoperable, and no institution would have operated on it.

He explained that from the initial diagnosis the parents of Anisha were in denial, refusing to believe that she had a life-threatening tumour, and as such, he organized a multi-disciplined team to address the situation.

The team comprised social workers, the Chef Executive Officer of the GPHC, the Director of Medical Services, the pediatric neurosurgeon, and several nurses.

“We explained to the mother, but she has been

From left: Head of the Neurosurgery Department at the Georgetown Public Hospital, Dr Amarnauth Dukhi; Chief Executive Officer George Lewis, and Director of Medical Professional Services, Dr Sheik Amir

denying the fact that (the child) had a brain tumour.

The child could have depreciated clinically with time.

If the patient would have gone overseas, the management would have been the same that was given at the GPHC, and I told the family exactly that,” he related.

He explained that the option of radiology treatment was discussed, but the Radiologist wanted the tumour to be biopsied, which would have been fatal; and that was explained to Kandasammy and her husband. He noted that, in most cases like Anisha’s,

the patient would eventually die.

On the issue of withholding medical records, Dr Dukhi said hospital authorities have an obligation to provide the relatives with a report, and they did.

“It was not until last Wednesday or Thursday this was requested, and it was ready Friday and it was signed on Monday by the Director of Medical Services. Regardless if it was signed earlier, it would not have made a difference, because evacuating a patient takes time,” he related.

“I would not allow a child who was in that state to be transferred anywhere.

The child was taken out of the hospital against medical advice. Our responsibility legally ends when the parent signs the form, and that was what happened,” he added.

He noted that at that juncture the mother became abusive to medical personnel on his team, but that was brushed off in an effort to provide quality care to the family.

The hospital has expressed its condolences to the family of Anisha.

14 news

saturDAY, september 23, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Emergency drugs

$515M is payment for first contract – CEO …says there is no new contract

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hief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), George Lewis, said that the Cabinet’s recent approval of $515 million to pay ANSA McAL for emergency pharmaceutical supplies for the GPHC is not the sole sourcing of a new batch of supplies; rather, it is payment for the previous one.

“ANSA McAL and three other companies would have supplied the GPHC with

pharmaceuticals, and those pharmaceuticals were received and consumed. While I am not going (to) debate why the laws were broken, the suppliers would have supplied GPCH with those pharmaceuticals in good faith, and that, as a consequence, we have a responsibility to ensure that they are paid,” he said.

“So the document (that was circulated in the media) which suggests that a second award was made, it’s not a second award. It is approv-

al for the payment to ANSA McAL for drugs supplied. In addition to that, approval was granted for us to pay the other companies. There is a difference in figures …the initial figure was $605 million, but now we are talking about $515 million, so we only pay for what we received,” Lewis added.

The leaked secret Cabinet document outlines that the sub-committee considered and approved the procurement of emergency pharmaceuticals to the tune of $515.2 million. The request was approved on Monday last.

Lewis told this publication that there was no other way the companies could have been paid, hence the reason Cabinet’s approval was needed.

He related that changes are being made to the procurement and financial departments of the GPHC. He said that they have separated the departments, and that they are being managed independently to improve accountability and eliminate possible corrupt activities. Lewis said that they have been engaging different stakeholders to address the issue of drug short-

Chief Executive Officer of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation, George Lewis

ages and utilisation.

The then Opposition, now Government, the coalition A Partnership for National Unity/ Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC), vehemently railed against the sole sourc-

ing practice.

Earlier this year, a contract was handed to ANSA McAL, a Trinidadian conglomerate, to the tune of $605 million, for which the Public Procurement Commission had launched an investigation and had found that there were breaches of Guyana’s Procurement laws in order to facilitate the purchase.

The investigation by the Public Procurement Commission had found that procurement laws had been broken.

Drug purchases by and for the nation’s premier health institutions had come under intense scrutiny earlier this year, when probity by the political Opposition had found glaring discrepancies and breaches of the laws of Guyana. It was discovered that more that 90% of the drugs’ purchases made this past year were done on an emergency basis.

Guyana’s oil industry a beautiful challenge – Chilean Ambassador …pledges commitment to development

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hilean Ambassador to Guyana, Claudio Rojas Rachel, has joined in commenting on Guyana’s oil and gas sector, noting that the new find will pose a beautiful challenge for the country.

Ambassador Rachel noted that while the potential wealth promises much improvement of the society and economy, it will require extra effort, both on the Government and the citizen’s behalf, to ensure that Guyana can optimally take advantage of being a “rich oil country”.

The Chilean diplomat made the comment as he was addressing the gathering at the celebration of the 207th Independence Anniversary his country, during which he pledged the support of his country as Guyana prepares to take on the impending changes.

In doing so, Ambassador Rojas Rachel highlighted, “We know that becoming a rich oil country could be a blessing and it also could be a major challenge.”

However, despite referring to the potential complications awaiting Guyana as the country gets ready to compete on the international oil market, the foreign official went on to outline the approach needed to ensure that the outcomes of the industry can be spun into positive ripple effects for the country.

On that note, he stated, “The beauty of the challenge is how everyone could work together in bringing the economic wellbeing that this new industry will produce to enjoy the economic, social, and cultural development of Guyana.”

The Chilean ambassador added that in order for Guyana to cash in on maxi-

Chilean Ambassador Claudio Rojas Rachel while addressing the gathering at the Independence celebrations

mum growth from the promised wealth, there is a need for a strong sense of democracy, responsibility, application of the rule of law, and accountability.

Nevertheless, the Chilean diplomatic did indicate that he is confident that the Guyanese Government can see this through.

“I have acknowledged the commitment of President Granger in order to ensure that this new momentum in the life of Guyana will bring about better quality of life to everyone,” expressed the ambassador.

Meanwhile, in his remarks, the featured speaker also alluded to the upcoming elections in Chile, indicating that the country is about to undergo a major social and democratic transformation from which Chileans hope to emerge as an even stronger nation.

With that being said, Chile’s representative pledged commitment, on his country’s behalf, to continued partnership between the two South American States, especially in light of the developments in the pipeline for Guyana as well.

news

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saturDAY, september 23, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Conditions at Wismar-Mackenzie Bridge a major concern – Councillor

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he state of the almost 50-year-old WismarMackenzie Bridge at Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) continues to be a topic of concern for users, residents and officials.

Recently, Municipal Councillor Lennox Gasper shed light on the centre span of the bridge, which serves as the only bridge linking Mackenzie to Wismar shore, which appears to be seriously corroded. Motor vehicle users have also complained of the harsh condition of the wooden decking situated at the centre of the bridge, which they noted has damaging effects on the undercarriage of their vehicles.

Dysfunctional traffic lights have also, for years, resulted in intense traffic build-up during peak hours.

Regional Councillor Charles Sampson has said that, as a daily user of the bridge, he has observed that it appears to be sinking. He has called on the Linden Municipality and the Linmine Secretariat (under whose purview the bridge

The centre span of the bridge (Lennox Gasper photo)

falls), as well as the Public Infrastructure Ministry, to have the bridge inspected.

He said there is generally a slowdown in traffic at the centre span of the bridge, where the wooden decking is situated, and he noted that focus should be placed on constructing a new bridge.

“I am convinced that the bridge needs to be inspected by engineers to de-

termine its present condition and how suitable it is for continuous usage under those conditions... Over the past 10 months, I have seen the sinking on the bridge on the Wismar side. It has sunk about a little over two inches, and it is worrying because I’m not certain that the limits on the bridge are being taken seriously...,” he noted.

Councillor Gasper, who

shared images of the bridge on social media, said the aim

B

Region Nine Chairman Brian Allicock

I

n light of the spike in illegal activities in the mining and natural resources sector, the Ministry of Natural Resources, in a collaboration with the Guyana Police Force, on Thursday enlisted 25 rangers to the country’s first ever Corps of Wardens.

Stemming from the partnership was launched this new law enforcement body which is aimed at protecting, conserving and promoting the sustainable development of the country’s natural resources, and the livelihood of those involved within the sector.

In doing so, the batch of 25 graduated from a fiveweek training programme which provided the knowledge and skills needed to reduce and eradicate illegal activities and malpractices within the field.

Speaking at the cer-

emony, hosted at the Police Officers’ Training Centre, was the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Denise Griffith, who presented an overview of the training programme, which commenced on August 14 and concluded on the 8th of September.

In doing so, she noted that, “The programme is very intense, and covered 25 topics. The participants were exposed to several areas of learning, both theoretically and practically. They were all hungry for knowledge, and they displayed a high degree of discipline throughout the training.”

Also addressing the gathering at the graduation ceremony on Thursday was the Acting Commissioner of Police, David Ramnarine, who welcomed the rangers to law enforcement.

Ramnarine urged the 25 to display professionalism in the execution of their duties, and as such, not to become power hungry.

With that, Ramnarine went on to say that, “We have given you a foundation. You are to grow and develop in that foundation.”

Meanwhile, delivering the feature address was the Natural Resources Minister, Raphael Trotman, who expressed delight in the materialisation of a specially equipped body to tackle unlawful operations.

This inaugural training programme sets the path for other classes to follow in the coming years, and was conducted under the theme: “Forging ahead with professionalism and intelligence-led policing, in collaboration with stakeholders.”

years, residents have complained about congestion on the bridge occurring at peak hours, and have made calls for a two-lane bridge. He noted that Government officials had, a few years ago, visited to determine a suitable location for a new bridge, and the latest he has heard was that of the feasibility study.

He said the major concern of the bridge is its centre span, most of the major components of which were changed in 2010.

Between this year and last year, Alves said, wooden planks were removed from the centre span, and inspection and repairs were carried out on the metal works below the wooden span. The components, he added, were seen to be intact.

Region 9 airstrip legal – Chairman

25 enlisted as natural resources wardens

The 25 newly enlisted Corps of Wardens joined by Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman, along with other Government Ministers and officials of the Guyana Police Force

is to bring awareness and attention to the bridge, so that authorities would take immediate action, given the present state of the bridge.

Gasper noted that the bridge is used by commuters to access Regions Seven, Eight and Nine, and major mining companies also use the bridge. He said while it was upgraded to carry 30 tonnes, he is surprised that larger vehicles traverse the bridge. Gasper said the vehicular scale situated at nearby West Watooka is “totally abandoned”, and trucks heading into the interior are not being weighed prior to crossing the bridge.

Chief Executive Officer of the Linmine Secretariat, Emmet Alves, addressing the issue, said that, over the

rian Allicock, Regional Chairman of Region Nine (Upper Takutu- Upper Essequibo), said that the airstrip in the Parabara Savannah, South Rupununi, is one that is legal but has not been used in a long time.

“The team reported that the airstrip is legal and that it (has) not been used in a while. The residents in the area said that they have seen aircraft circling the area, but we cannot confirm that any landed,” Allicock said.

Allicock had told Guyana

Times they have received several reports that, over a period of time, several aircraft have been seen circling and landing at a suspected illegal airstrip in the Parabara Savannah in South Rupununi. He noted that following the reports, a team comprising ranks from the Guyana Police Force and the Guyana Defence Force ventured to the area to investigate.

The team is still conducting investigations. As of recent, several illegal aircraft and airstrips have been discovered in Region Nine.

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saturDAY, september 23, 2017

Regional

Disaster zones

Puerto Rico dam bursts in wake of Hurricane Maria – Mexico earthquake: Death toll rises as search for survivors goes on

A

dam has failed and caused “extremely dangerous” flooding on Puerto Rico’s Guajataca river in the wake of Hurricane Maria, authorities say.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said buses were “currently evacuating people from the area as quickly as they can”. At least 13 people have died on the US territory since Maria ripped through Puerto Rico, devastating homes and knocking out the island’s electricity.

The island’s governor has called it the worst storm in a century. Operators of the Guajataca Dam said the dam, located at the northern end of Lake Guajataca

in northwest Puerto Rico, failed at 14:10 local time (18:10 GMT).

It sparked a flash flood emergency for Isabela and Quebradillas municipalities, the NWS said in a series of tweets. The agency urged residents in the area to “move to higher ground now” in an alert posted on its website.

Meanwhile, the death toll from Mexico’s powerful earthquake has risen to 273, officials say, as rescuers race against the clock to reach trapped survivors.

President Enrique Peña Nieto said that rescuing and attending to those injured

by Tuesday’s 7.1 magnitude quake would remain “the highest priority”.

Floodwaters from Hurricane Maria have destroyed homes in Puerto Rico and knocked out the island’s electricity

The quake toppled dozens of buildings and left millions without electricity.

Rescuers believe that

Rowley opens T&T doors to Dominica

T

rinidad and Tobago’s (T&T) Prime Minister, Dr Keith Rowley has proposed that this country open its doors and waive immigration restrictions so that Dominicans left homeless in the wake of Hurricane Maria can find shelter in T&T. Speaking during Thursday’s post-Cabinet press briefing at the Diplomatic Centre, St Ann’s, Rowley said while T&T was not in a position to contribute financially to the reconstruction of Dominica, ac-

commodation was one of the things we could offer.

“If they (Dominicans) could make their way to T&T and find a household to accept them we will waive restrictions to their entry for a period of six-months.”

The restriction waiver means affected Dominica citizens can make their way to T&T once it is established they have family or friends to house them. T&T citizens who have the means and are willing to volunteer space in their homes were also encouraged to approach the

Government to offer assistance. Rowley said details for citizens willing to assist would be provided over the next two days.

“If you do have accommodations and you have the means and inclination to support a Dominican, arrangements will be made to identify yourself and for the next six months T&T will open our doors, homes, pots and I dare say our schools to citizens of the Commonwealth of Dominica,” the PM said.

(Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

Antigua & Barbuda PM pleads for debt forgiveness to help hurricane recovery process

F

aced with a bill expected to run into the millions to rebuild Barbuda which was rendered “uninhabitable”

by Hurricane Irma earlier this month, Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne has made a strong case for debt relief for the island.

He painted a grim picture as he captured the attention of world leaders and officials at the UN General Assembly yesterday with a reminder that “for the first time in over 300 years, there is no permanent resident of Barbuda.”

“The footprints of an entire civilization have been emasculated by the brutality and magnitude of Irma.

“Everything that meant anything to the inhabitants had to be left behind – their homes, their possessions, their history,” he said.

Browne said it would cost US$250 million to rebuild, about 15 per cent of

people may still be trapped alive in as many as 10 buildings in Mexico City alone.

The new death toll was announced by Mexico’s emergency services chief and the president’s office.

Assistant Navy Secretary Angel Enrique Sarmiento said that rescue teams now believe an adult person – probably a school employee

– may still be alive under the rubble. He added that all pupils had now been accounted for - either alive or dead.

Trapped girl never existed

Frida Sofia, a young girl believed to be trapped in the rubble of a collapsed school, stole the heart of a nation shocked by a deadly earthquake on Tuesday. But it

seems Frida Sofia never existed. As rescue workers raced to free people from the ruins of Enrique Rébsamen school, Mexicans fixated on the fate of the child.

“Frida Sofia” had apparently said, “I’m thirsty, I’m okay. Please don’t take too long,” Mexican newspaper El Universal reported on 21 September.

But on Thursday night the Navy confirmed the story of Frida was false and apologised for conflicting reports.

There were no signs that a child was alive in the ruins of the school and Government authorities said they had never known about a child called Frida Sofia, he claimed.

However, on Thursday night Mr Sarmiento contradicted his earlier statement, confirming that the navy had distributed reports of a surviving girl. The body of a female teacher was found on Thursday night. (Excerpt from )

Cuba urges US not to politicise allegations of harmed diplomats

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uba urged the United States on Friday to cooperate with its investigation into incidents that the US says have harmed its diplomats in Havana and not to politicise the matter, days after Washington said it was considering closing its Cuban embassy.

In an address to the United Nations General Assembly, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said the top level of the government in Havana had or-

dered an investigation into the mysterious matter, which threatens the fragile detente between the old Cold War foes.

However, a Cuban government source told Reuters that the United States had provided no evidence of the harm, including hearing loss, dizziness and nausea, that it says US diplomats and their relatives based in Havana have suffered.

Cuban doctors had also not been allowed to examine anyone, the source said.

A spokesman for the US embassy in Havana declined to comment.

“The investigation to clarify this issue continues, and in order to be able to arrive to a conclusion, it will be crucial to count on the cooperation of the US authorities,” Rodriguez told the UN. “It would be unfortunate if a matter of this nature is politicised,” said Rodriguez.

Cuba has denied any involvement in the affair.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Canada targets senior Venezuelan officials with sanctions

C Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne

his country’s gross domestic product, and he pleaded for wealthier countries to forgive or reduce Antigua’s US$130 million debt which has been incurred over decades.

“Antigua and Barbuda urgently requires the assistance of the international community, including the international development and finance institutions, to accomplish this vital task of rebuilding Barbuda,” he added.

Browne also remind-

ed the United States officials attending the General Assembly that Antigua was still anxiously awaiting settlement of the more than decade-old online gaming dispute.

“In this time of great need when our sister island of Barbuda was devastated by a hurricane, the US Government should, in the interest of fairness, justice and of good conscience, settle the debt,” he urged. (Excerpt from Caribbean360)

anada will impose sanctions against senior members of the Venezuelan government over their “anti-democratic behaviour”. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is among the 40 people who will have their assets frozen, and Canadians will be banned from doing business with them.

Canada’s Foreign Minister said the country “will not stand by silently” amid the country’s ongoing crisis. The move follows a similar action by the United States in August.

Venezuela has been hit by waves of anti-Government protests this year in which more than a hundred people have been killed. US economic sanctions targeting the Government were imposed after the formation of a controversial constitu-

President Nicolás Maduro is top of the sanctions list

ent’s assembly at the start of last month.

The assembly is filled with pro-Government supporters and has assumed the powers of the Oppositionheld Parliament. Critics say the body is a way for President Maduro to cling to power, and the US, EU, and many Latin American countries do not recognise it.

Canada said the 40 peo-

ple targeted by its sanctions were “the people responsible for the deterioration of democracy” and warned of Venezuela’s “deepening descent into dictatorship”. As well as President Maduro, the named figures include Vice-President Tareck El Aissami and the head of the constituent assembly, Delcy Rodriguez. (Excerpt from BBC News)

saturDAY, september 23, 2017

guyanatimesgy.com

17

Around the World

Theresa May asks EU for 2-year US challenged by rising North Korea tensions, Russia urges calm Brexit transition period

R

ussia urged “hot heads” to calm down on Friday as the United States admitted it felt “challenged” by North Korea’s warning that it could test a hydrogen bomb over the Pacific and President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un traded more insults.

Trump called the North Korean leader a “madman” on Friday, a day after Kim dubbed him a “mentally deranged US dotard” who would face the “highest level of hard-line countermeasure in history” in retaliation for Trump saying the US would “totally destroy” North Korea if it threatened the US or its allies.

“We have to calm down the hot heads,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters at the United Nations, where world leaders gathered this week for the annual UN General Assembly. “We continue to strive for the reasonable

T

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (Daily Express)

and not the emotional approach...of the kindergarten fight between children.”

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson expressed hope in an interview with ABC that sanctions and “voices from every corner of the world” could lead North Korea back to talks, but admitted intensifying rhetoric had left Washington “quite challenged.”

North Korea’s Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho, warned on Thursday that Kim could consider a hy-

drogen bomb test of an unprecedented scale over the Pacific. Ri, who is due to speak to the United Nations on Saturday, added that he did not know Kim’s exact thoughts.

North Korea’s six nuclear tests to date have all been underground, and experts say an atmospheric test, which would be the first since one by China in 1980, would be proof of the success of its weapons programme.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Syrian Opposition activist and her journalist daughter murdered in Turkey

A

Syrian Opposition activist and her journalist daughter have been found murdered in their apartment in Istanbul, the Istanbul Police department said on Friday.

The bodies of 60-yearold Orouba Barakat and her 22-year-old daughter Halla were found overnight in their apartment in Istanbul’s Uskudar neighbourhood in the Asian side of the city.

Orouba Barakat, a mem- Orouba Barakat and Halla Barakat ber of the Syrian Opposition Council, was reported- Orouba’s sister Shaza wrote ly investigating torture on Facebook, adding that in Government prisons in they were stabbed to death.

The two women were Syria. Turkish media said close friends of Kayla she had initially lived in Britain, then the United Mueller, the US aid worker Arab Emirates before com- who was kidnapped in Syria

by Isis in August 2013 and ing to Istanbul.

“The hand of tyranny killed 18 months later.

According to ABC news, and injustice assassinated my sister Doctor Orouba and the women were closely inher daughter Halla in their volved in efforts to negotiapartment in Istanbul,” ate Mueller’s release, and following her death were

setting up a charity in her memory, to help Syrian women living in Turkish refugee camps.

Orouba Barakat was also the aunt of one of three Muslim college students who were shot dead by a neighbour in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, in 2015. Halla Barakat, who was born in the USA, was a journalist on a website called Orient News. (Excerpt from The Guardian)

New Zealand polls open as record numbers of voters cast ballots in advance

N

ew Zealand went to the polls to choose the make-up of its fifty-second Parliament on Saturday, in a close-run race between the governing National Party and the Opposition Labour Party.

Doors to the polling booths opened at 09:00 local time, though a record number of voters had already cast their ballots in advance. Voting would end at 1900 and the country’s Electoral Commission would start releasing results half an hour later.

The centre-left Labour Party, led by recently appoint-

ed 37-year-old leader Jacinda Ardern, was vying against incumbent National. The centre-right governing party, led by 55-year-old Bill English, had been in power for almost a decade.

Around 986,000 ballots have already been cast, accounting for almost a third of the 3.2 million New Zealanders on the electoral rolls.

“Special votes,” which includes ballots from New Zealanders overseas and those who vote outside their home constituencies, will only be released on October 7. These

could have a considerable impact on the outcome, given New Zealand’s large Diaspora, and accounted for around 12 per cent of the vote in the 2014 election.

New Zealand uses a German-style proportional representation system in which a party, or combination of parties, needs 61 of Parliament’s 120 members – usually about 48 per cent of the vote – to form a Government.

This means that minor parties often play an influential role in determining which major party governs. (Excerpt from Reuters)

heresa May proposed pausing a full Brexit until 2021 by asking EU countries to agree to a two-year transition period during which the UK would continue to enjoy unfettered access to the single market.

The Prime Minister said the Government would be prepared to accept EU rules in that time, including allowing EU citizens to live and work in Britain, submitting to European laws and continuing to pay into the EU budget.

But although her speech was described as “constructive” by Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief negotiator, and appeared to have placated Boris Johnson, the two-year transition plan was immediately criticised by hardline Brexiters for lasting too long – and by business groups for being too short.

May had tried to set out

Theresa May was ‘positive, optimistic and dynamic’, according to her foreign secretary

an upbeat vision for Britain’s future relationship with the EU in a speech at the Santa Maria Novella church in the heart of Florence, Italy.

Arguing that more time was needed to work on the details of Brexit, May insisted the proposed implementation phase would be “strictly time-limited” lasting “about two years” and the UK

would still be formally leaving the bloc in March 2019.

However, she offered a string of concessions to the EU as well as the transition period in a bid to break the deadlock in Brexit negotiations and push talks from the divorce procedures onto questions around the future trading relationship. (Excerpt

from The Guardian)

Africa's biggest modern art gallery opens in Cape Town

A

frica's largest gallery for contemporary art from the continent and its diaspora has opened in the South African city of Cape Town. The Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz Mocaa) is set inside old grain silos on the V&A Waterfront.

The building has been converted by UK architect Thomas Heatherwick into a maze of rooms with bulbous windows.

Visitors are greeted by a giant flying dragon made of rubber, created by South African artist International Arts Award last week.

Critics say the collection is missing some important African artists.

"The absence of works by Cameroonians Samuel Fosso, Pascale Martine Tayou and Barthélémy Toguo, as well as South Africans Robin Rhode, Tracey Rose and Berni Searle – all esteemed, pace-setting artists – hints at crucial blind spots," says one reviewer in South Africa's Sunday Times newspaper. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Nicholas Hlobo.

Much of the work on display comes from the private collection of the museum's patron, former Puma chief executive Jochen Zeitz, who is German.

"Africans need to come on board," he says.

"It's not my museum or the Waterfront's - it's for Africa." One of the biggest draws is a selection of work by the Ghanaian sculptor El Anatsui, who won the prestigious Praemium Imperiale

'Indian shooting' kills 6 Pakistanis across border

I

ndian military shooting across the de-facto border has killed at least six Pakistani civilians, Pakistan's military says.

At least 26 people were also wounded in the exchange of fire, which affected Pakistan's Chappar, Harpal and Charwa sectors, the Pakistani military said in a statement on Friday.

Skirmishes across the Line of Control (LoC), the de-facto border between India and Pakistan, have

become increasingly common in the last year, despite a 2003 ceasefire agreement.

The sectors reportedly targeted in the violence, which broke out on Thursday, fall in the Pakistani province of Punjab, parts of which are separated from Indianadministered Kashmir by a separate de-facto border known as the Working Boundary.

Pakistan's military said a senior officer contacted

his Indian counterpart via a telephone hotline to lodge a protest against the violence.

Separately, the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Indian High Commissioner to lodge a protest over the violence, according to a statement.

Footage released by the Pakistani military showed several seriously wounded civilians being treated for their injuries. At least one had a leg amputated. (Excerpt

from Al Jazeera)

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guyanatimesgy.com

saturDAY, september 23, 2017

ARCHIE

ARIES

Look for alternative ways

(March 21- to get ahead and to deal with April 19) others. Use your imagination

and tame your temper when it comes to personal relationships. Choose love over conflict.

A social event, reunion or

TAURUS pleasure trip looks promising.

(April 20- Sharing your plans with someMay 20) one special will encourage you

dilbert

to be more romantic. Children will play a role in a decision you make.

Someone will take advanGEMINI (May 21- tage of you if you are too willJune 20) ing to become a gofer. Before you lend a helping hand, find out what the person asking for assistance has contributed.

CANCER (June 21July 22)

Peanuts

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Calvin and Hobbes

Use your imagination and do something creative. You'll enjoy the process of developing something that makes you happy. Getting together with friends or family is encouraged. Romance is highlighted.

Keep your opinions to yourself if you want to avoid conflict. Choose creativity over emotional outbursts. Don't let indulgence tempt you.

A brief vacation or get-toVIRGO gether with someone you ha(Aug. 23ven't seen in a long time will Sept. 22) prove interesting and will inspire you to take on a new challenge. Romance is featured.

Serious talks will help you LIBRA (Sept. 23- bring order back to the foreOct. 23) front of any partnership you are involved in. Don't give ultimatums or let anyone emotionally manipulate you.

WORD GAME

SUDOKU

Share your intentions and SCORPIO motivate someone special to (Oct. 24join your quest for success. The Nov. 22) journey will be much better if you share it with someone you love.

Don't put pressure on yourSAGITTARIUS self or others. Relax and enjoy (Nov. 23- some downtime. A close friend Dec. 21) will provide insight into the ulterior motives harbored by someone you are dealing with.

solution for LAST PUBLISHED Puzzle

A commitment to someone CAPRICORN special will encourage and (Dec. 22- enhance a better relationJan. 19) ship. Building a future that offers greater security will ease your stress. Romance is in the stars.

Discuss any personal matAQUARIUS ter that arises with the per(Jan. 20- son who will be most affectFeb. 19) ed by the decision you make.

Listen to reason and proceed with caution.

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

Caring and sharing will PISCES (Feb. 20- help you grow closer to someMarch 20) one you love. Romance is encouraged and will enhance the way you move forward.

Physical change is highlighted.

saturDAY, september 23, 2017

19

Ronaldo, Messi and Neymar

on FIFA Player of the Year shortlist

C

Neymar

Cristiano Ronaldo

ristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Neymar have been nominated as finalists for the Best FIFA Men’s Player award, the sport’s governing body said on Friday.

Ronaldo helped Real Madrid to a second consecutive Champions League title and finished as the tournament’s top scorer with 12 goals earlier this year.

Messi and Neymar claimed the Spanish King’s Cup with Barcelona with the former finishing as La Liga’s top scorer with 37 goals last season.

Juventus captain Gianluigi Buffon was shortlisted for the Best FIFA Goalkeeper award after leading the Italian club to a sixth successive Serie A title, a third-straight Italian Cup success and a runner-up finish in the Champions League.

He was joined by Real Madrid shot-stopper Keylor Navas and Bayern Munich’s Manuel Lionel Messi Neuer.

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane, Chelsea’s Antonio Conte and Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri were on the shortlist for the Best FIFA Men’s Coach award.

The women’s player of the year award will be contested between Venezuelan striker Deyna Castellanos, American midfielder Carli Lloyd, and Leike Martens, who helped Netherlands to the Euro 2017 title.

The awards ceremony will take place in London on Oct. 23. (Reuters)

Neymar to miss PSG's Montpellier clash

N

eymar will sit out Paris SaintGermain's match at Montpellier but is expected to return to face Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

Paris Saint-Germain will be without Neymar away to Montpellier in Ligue 1 on Saturday due to reported a minor foot problem.

The Brazil international has not been named in the

squad to travel to Stade de la Mosson, as coach Unai Emery takes a cautious approach with the most expensive player in the world.

The 25-year-old attacker, who joined PSG from Barcelona for €222million in August, has made a strong start to life in the French capital, scoring four goals and supplying the same number of assists in his first five Ligue 1 appearances.

He also netted on his Champions League debut for PSG in a 5-0 victory away to Celtic and

is expected to be available when Emery's side host Bayern Munich in the competition next Wednesday.

Neymar - on Friday confirmed as one of three fi-

nalists for the FIFA Best Men's Player award in 2017 - was caught up in a small spat with attacking team-mate Edinson Cavani during a 2-0 win over Lyon

last time out, the pair arguing over who would take a 79th-minute penalty at the Parc des Princes.

The Uruguay centre-forward won the battle

of wills but failed to score, prompting Emery to confirm he will dictate which of the two will be first choice from 12 yards out in the future. (Sportsmax)

Manchester City boss says Carabao Cup can be 'waste of energy' M anchester City boss says Carabao Cup can be 'waste of energy' Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has questioned the Carabo Cup, saying it can be a waste of energy that you get little credit for winning.

Guardiola's comments come after Manchester United counterpart Jose Mourinho said some clubs could be better off without the League Cup. The City boss made eight changes for Wednesday's 2-1 win at West Brom.

"The prize is good when you win another one, but you waste a lot of energy," said the Spaniard.

City face Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday before hosting Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League on Tuesday. They then travel to Chelsea for a league game the following Saturday.

"You can't imagine going to play a Tony Pulis team at West Bromwich Albion, play 90 minutes there in those conditions. And then after three or four hours - bus, come back, three days later Crystal Palace, three days later Shakhtar Donetsk, three or four days later Stamford Bridge," added Guardiola.

"For the managers it is a lot of wasted energy, but we knew that before, so it is not a complaint in those terms. If we have to play we have to play."

The League Cup provides winning teams with a place in the third qualifying round of the Europa League. City have won it twice in the past four sea-

sons.

Guardiola's men host Championship side Wolves in the fourth round of the League Cup on 24 October, three days after they take on Burnley in the Premier League and four days prior to their top-flight trip to West Brom.

"If you have to play the competition, you have to play the competition.

But it is a title that when you win, it is ok, but after that people don't give too much credit," he added.

Mourinho made nine changes but still fielded a strong side containing 11 internationals as holders United beat Championship side Burton 4-1 on Wednesday night.

After the game, he told BBC Radio 5 live: "If you ask me 'could English football survive or be even be better without this competition?'

Maybe.

"Maybe we would be fresher for European competition."

City gave first starts of the season to Yaya Toure and Ilkay Gundogan at West Brom, with another recalled player - Leroy Sane - scoring twice in just his second start of the campaign.

Guardiola also gave rare starts to internationals Claudio Bravo, Fabian Delph and Eliaquim Mangala.

BBC Sport pundit Danny Mills, who won the League Cup in 2004 with Middlesbrough, does not

think that fans are short-changed by teams making sweeping changes to their line-ups.

He told BBC Radio 5 live: "The pathways for younger players at top clubs are blocked, and this competition is an opportunity. It's competitive, it still means something, it qualifies you for Europe. These cup competitions for the big clubs are opportunities to rotate (BBC) their squads."

Pep Guardiola

20

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

saturDAY, september 23, 2017

Windies CEO still upbeat about World Cup qualification W

est Indies remain confident they will appear in the 2019 World Cup, despite missing out on automatic qualification.

With defeat in the first ODI at Old Trafford ending their distant hopes of direct qualification, they will now progress to the 10-team qualifier next year. There they will be joined by the bottom three sides in the ICC's ODI rankings - Afghanistan, Zimbabwe and Ireland - as well as the top four sides from the ICC World Cricket League Championship and the top two sides from the ICC World Cricket League Division 2.

The top two sides from that qualifying tournament will complete the 10-team lineup for the World Cup, which will be staged in England and Wales from May 20 to July 15, 2019. It has not yet been confirmed where the qualifying tournament will take place, although Zimbabwe is the anticipated venue.

While Johnny Grave, the chief executive of Cricket West Indies, admitted his disappointment, he felt the changes made to the team's schedule would give them the best chance of success. It is also anticipated that CWI will shortly announce the award of white-ball contracts for the first time, which should increase the availability of some of their best-known players.

"We have known for some time that we would more than likely need to qualify for the 2019 World Cup," Grave told ESPNcricinfo, "so we have already planned our 2018 season on that basis.

"Sri Lanka will now tour in June for three Tests, with Bangladesh touring in July playing all three formats. We now have the remainder of the England series, three ODIs against New Zealand and our domestic Super50 competition in February to prepare for the qualifiers. "It is clearly disappointing that we are faced with the reality of having to qualify, but we are confident that

we have a squad that can still make it to the 2019 World Cup. " T h e prospect of having to play under the pressure of having to qualify will be great experience for our ODI team." " W e knew it was going to be a tough ask [to qualify]," Toby Radford, the team's batting coach, said after the loss at Old Trafford. "But we are very positive as

Cricket West Indies CEO Johnny Grave

a group and are trying to develop in all formats. If it means the qualifiers next year, it means the qualifiers next year and we'll build our way back up." (Cricinfo)

Windies keeping fingers crossed for Gayle – Law W

est Indies head coach Stuart Law says the team is keeping its fingers crossed as it relates to the availability of Chris Gayle after the player reported hamstring issues ahead of the second One Day International (ODI).

The team is awaiting results of a scan done on Thursday, which will reveal the extent of damage to the player’s leg after he appeared to tweak the muscle in the first ODI against England at Old Trafford and aggravated it in the warm-up ahead of the second match at Trent Bridge.

The 38-year-old reported to the team that he was feeling a strain in the muscle ahead of the coin toss on Thursday and Law believes it was better to err on the side of caution.

“We probably erred on the side of caution, which is probably the right thing, with three more games to play here. “Fingers crossed, he’ll be okay to take part in all those three,” Law said.

“He said he didn’t want to risk it, which is fair enough,” he added. “If you do a hamstring at 38, it takes a bit longer to heal than when you’re 18.”

The Windies will next face England on Sunday at Bristol, followed by games at Kennington Oval in London and the final match at The Rose Bowl in Southampton. (Sportsmax)

National Karate Championships a launchpad to Olympics – Khouri G

uyana Karate Federation (GKF) president, Sensei Amir Khouri, said Sunday’s Senior National Karate Championships slated for the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall are being used to prepare fighters for the World Championships/2020 Olympics.

Speaking with Guyana Times Sport on Friday, Khouri said the significance of the competition was to ensure the best fighters on display will have an opportunity to show off their skills. The karatekas will be vying for the honour of representing Guyana at various international tournaments while gaining the necessary experience required to participate at the international level.

Guyana Karate Federation (GKF) President, Sensei Amir Khouri

With Guyana having done well in past tournaments, the senior instructor be-

lieves that the competition will help the fighters to intensify preparations ahead of upcoming assignments; and this, he says, could allow them to make strong cases ahead of the Olympics.

A total of five clubs, the likes of National Martial Arts Association (NMAA), ASKGYN, Berbice Shotokan Karate Dojo (BSKD), Shotokan Karate Guyana (SKG), Guyana Karate College (GKC) and 3-Ryu, will participate in the one-day event, which kicks off from 10:00hrs with a series of elimination matches.

Open to males and females, the tournament will be contested under different weight classes and ages. For the Males over 18, the five weight classes are: Under-60kg, -67kg, -75kg, -84kg and 84+kg. According to the sensei, fewer females are participating in the tournament. Ladies will therefore compete in the following weight classes: -55kg, -61kg, 68kg, 76kg, 76+kg.

Fighters will compete in Kata (exercise consisting of several of the specific movements of a martial artist) while the

highlight of the day will be the 3-versus-3 team battle. Also, there will be a junior category (Green-Black belt) for karatekas aged 14-17 years, with boys competing in: -55, -68, 68+kg categories and girls competing in -48, -56, 56+kg.

Speaking about a few of the challenges the GKF encountered while preparing to host the annual tournament, Khouri pinpointed the lack of equipment as well as the lack of certified equipment. He said this lack forced the local body to tweak a few rules. He explained that fighters are required to have internationally-approved brands for their helmets, instep foot guards and gloves when participating in competitions; and the international body has 10 approved brands, but acquiring such pieces of gear could likely cost US$500 per person, while fighters are required to have two separate Gis (uniform) for Kata and Kumite (grappling hands).

The action kicks off with the eliminations at 10:00hrs and the opening ceremony starting at 13:00hrs, followed by the finals.

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T

he Guyana National Rifle Association (GNRA) recently paid a courtesy call on Honourable Minster Dr George Norton, Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports.

Honorary Secretary Ryan Sampson, along with Fullbore Captain Mahendra Persaud, paid the courtesy call on behalf of the GNRA, and updated the new Sports Minister on the upcoming 150th Anniversary Shoot in October.

The status of the preparations of the ranges, arrival of participants, and accommodations, along with the intensity of team training were also discussed.

The Minister was also told of the planned Kaieteur Falls’ tour that the participants have booked and will be going on. This formed part of the sports tourism that the Association pushed when initially inviting participants.

The Honorable Secretary stated, “This will contribute directly to the economic aspect of our country’s tourism community.”

Minister Norton has accepted an invitation extended to him by Fullbore Captain Mahendra Persaud to be at the opening ceremony of the Championship and at the presentation and dinner ceremony. The Minister was pleased with the update, and further committed to assisting with transportation for the championship.

The Fullbore Team plans on testing and training with the recently arrived Hornady ammunition today and Sunday in preparation of the Championship.

Foreign Ministry hosts Heritage domino tourney

T

he Foreign Ministry Sports Team will be hosting their 2017 Heritage Domino Competition on Saturday, September 23, at the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) Hall.

Sports organizer James

Lewis stated via press release that teams from the Ministry of the Presidency, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Social Protection and Guyoil, among other entities, are already on board, and a few more are expected to get on board.

Meanwhile, organizers are preparing to host some 16 teams for an 11-a-side super-six overs’ knockout tape ball competition on the National Cultural Center tarmac, which bowls off from 9:00hrs.

21

Woods still taking recovery slowly despite progress F

urther progress has been made in Tiger Woods' recovery, but a PGA Tour comeback is not imminent.

Tiger Woods is hitting the ball 60 yards and working on his putting with Justin Thomas and Rickie Fowler but is not rushing his return to the PGA Tour.

Persistent back issues have led to a succession of surgeries for the former world number one, who has made only three tournament appearances since August 2015 and withdrew from the most recent of those - February's Dubai Desert Classic - after just one round.

A tumultuous year for Woods has also seen him arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence after he was found asleep at the wheel of his Mercedes on May 29 in Jupiter, Florida.

After attributing his condition to an "unexpected reaction" to the mix of medications he was on, the 41-year-old confirmed he was receiving professional help.

More positive news came last month when Woods revealed he had been cleared to start chipping and further progress towards a return has been made by the 14-time major champion.

"As I wrote earlier this summer, I had a few matters to work on with my doctors and I did that. I'm feeling good, strong and doing really well," Woods wrote in a blog post on his website.

"About my most recent surgery, it's nice not to live in pain anymore. I'm sleeping better because I don't have any nerve pain going down my leg. It makes a world of difference.

"I'm starting to hit the ball a little further – 60-yard shots. I have not taken a full swing since my back fusion surgery last April, but continue to chip and putt every day.

"The latter is paying off. Justin Thomas and Rickie Fowler have been dropping by my house for putting contests. Justin also comes over to practice his chipping. It was fun to celebrate his PGA Championship win with him and Rickie, and we had a blast.

"I have my six-month back X-rays coming up. Once my surgeon takes a look, he'll give me the parameters of what I can do moving forward.

"I'm working out six days a week, alternating between the treadmill, bike riding, swimming and lifting twice a day.

My muscle tone is coming back, but I'm not in golf shape yet.

That's going to take time.

"Playing wise, I'm not looking ahead yet because I don't know what kind of swing I'm going to use. I just don't know what my body is going to allow me to do. Until I do, I'm going to listen to my doctors and continue to take it slowly”.

(Sportsmax)

Well Teen/Trophy Stall/Tropical Springs/Nauth Motor Spares U-13

GCC, DCC, Rose Hall register wins T

he Under-13 tournament involving 25-overs-a-side sponsored by Well Teen/TrophyStall/Tropical Springs/Nauth Motor Spares saw Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC), Rose Hall and Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) emerging winners following last weekend’s round.

Played at the DCC ground, Queenstown, GCC beat Gandhi Youth Organization (GYO) by 107 runs, after posting 168-8, thanks to MVP Rahul Singh’s 45, Rivaldo Phillips’s 27, and Mitra Dhanraj’s 12. Dilshan Ramnarine claimed 3-33 and Anthony Dhanraj 2-23, bowling for GYO; who were then knocked over for 61 in 17 overs, after Yohance Angoy took 3 wickets for 9 runs, Sanjay Persaud 2 for 8 runs, and Aryan Persaud 2 for 15 runs.

Rose Hall, batting first, made 147-9 versus Everest, thanks to knocks from Surendra Kamcharan (24); Jermey Sandia (20) and Shaeam Khan (12). Extras conceded totalled 52 runs, as man-of-the-match Raynaldo Mohamed claimed 3 for 23, supported by Antonio Daconeicao with 2 for 35. Everest were kept to 64 in 14 overs in response, thanks to two wickets apiece from Christopher De Roop, Mathew Protoya, Sandia and Wayne Williams.

Rose Hall were skittled out for 34 in 9.3 overs, after batting first against the home team DCC, led by spinner Romeo Deonarain, who cleaned up the batting order with figures of 5 for 9 to take the man-of-the-match award. Jason Holder, 2 for 5, and Daniel Mootoo 2 for 10, lent support to Deonarain as DCC in reply cruised to 35-1 in 8.2 overs.

GCC lead the standings with 81 points from five games, followed by DCC with 70 points from five games, followed by TSC with 57 from five; GYO with 51 from five; Rose Hall with 36 from four; Blairmont with 27 from two, and Everest on 21 from four.

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GUYANATIMESgy.COM

saturDAY, september 23, 2017

GCB/3-Day League

Essequibo ahead despite Suknannan’s 6 for 22 G

Kemo Paul

eorgetown off-spinner Gajanan Suknannan’s six-wicket haul has proven futile, as Essequibo ended the opening day of round four with a 40-run lead heading into day two in the Guyana Jaguars’ three-day franchise league.

Suknannan snatched 6-22 in his first innings to restrict Essequibo to 170 all out in 51.4 overs, despite

knocks from Keemo Paul who top-scored with 43, and leading-run scorer for the competition, Kemol Savory, chipping in with 38; while Kevon Boodie contributed 22, as Chris Barnwell, Ramaal Lewis, Kellon Carmichael and Steven Sankar finished with a wicket each.

Earlier, Essequibo skipper and left-arm spinner Anthony Adams bagged 4-33, while Paul (3-29) and all-rounder Ricardo Adams (3-38), were instrumental in Georgetown being rattled out for a paltry 117 in 39 overs.

The batting for Georgetown was led by Robin Bacchus, who scored 34, while support came from the lower order duo of Sankar (22) and Suknannan (12).

Batting a second time,

Niles to defend Laparkan Cycling title today

G

uyana’s top local cyclists will do battle today in the 13th Annual Laparkan Holding Limited 11-race cycling programme.

Organised by National Cycling Coach Hassan Mohamed, the day’s activities will pedal off at 09:00h, and will feature the leading senior riders and up-and-coming talents in the country.

Mohamed is expecting a large turnout, as riders would be keen on racking up points towards the back-end of the season.

The day’s event will be highlighted by the gruelling 35-lap Schoolboys and Invitational race, which is set to attract a large group of starters.

It will be a showdown between the seasoned campaigners and the emerging talents, in the midst of which Team Coco’s Junior Niles will look to defend his title won last year.

Niles, classified a veteran Under-50 rider, won the 35-lap race last year in a time of one hour, 18 minutes, 55 seconds.

Brighton John is the defending champion of the 10-lap Junior/Juvenile race, while Lennox Jackman had won the 5-lap Veteran Under-50 event back in 2016. Also in winner’s row last year was Ozia McAulay in the 5-lap Mountain Bike race.

Top officials of Laparkan Holding Limited, including Human Resources Manager Lynette Shivlochan, will be on hand to witness the races and later assist in the presentation of prizes.

Georgetown were 13-0 from five overs, with openers Raymond Perez (13*) and Robin Bacchus (00*), set to

Kandasammy Surujnarine

resume today.

Over at Port Mourant Ground, Upper Corentyne ended their first day on 267-7 from 100 overs, thanks mainly to some quality innings from opener Kandasammy Surujnarine (63), national wicket-keeper Anthony Bramble (62), Rajiv Ivan (47) and Balchand Baldeo (36).

After the openers added 74 before losing their first wicket, Ivan and Bramble joined forces as they added 100 runs for the fifth wicket to keep their team in a good position.

The bowling for West Demerara was led by Keshram Seodan, who grabbed 2-31 from 20 overs, while support came from fast-bowler Romario Shepherd (2-39) and spinner

Richie Looknauth (2-34).

At Young Warriors ground, Lower Corentyne were bowled out for 148 in 54.5 overs in their first innings versus East Bank. Alex Algoo 14, Kevlon Anderson 44, Seon Hetmyer 28, and Veerasammy Permaul 17, were the premier scorers. Bowling for East Bank, Sherfane Rutherford and Darshan Persaud both picked up 4 wickets, while Keon Morris and Steven Jacobs claimed a wicket each. East Bank were 132 for 8 at close of play.

Over at Bush Lot, West Coast Berbice won the toss and elected to bowl, leaving East Coast 134-8 in 32.2 overs at lunch. Rajendra Chandrika 14, Brian Sattuar 13, Bhaskar Yadram 21,

Anthony Adams

Joshua Persaud 19, and Kamesh Yadram 21, were among the top scorers.

Day two action continues today at 9:30hrs.

100 students for National

Skip to my Lou- Jump Rope Team championship

T

he Ministry of Social Cohesion on Friday launched the 2017 National Skip-to-my-Lou Jump Rope Team championships, which are scheduled for Thursday, 28th September, 2017 at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall in Georgetown from 10:00 hours to 16:00 hours.

This year, the championship will target 50 primary and 50 secondary school students from eight educational districts across Guyana. Each school team will comprise five (5) jumpers who can participate in various events according to competition rules.

The competition will take the format of Individual Freestyle, Individual Single Rope/Double Dutch Teams, and Last Man Standing.

Jump Rope (Skipping) is a physical activity that has experienced a great deal of growth in the school system since its introduction to Guyana through the Trinidad and Tobago Alliance for Sport and Physical Education in 2010.

Minister of Social Cohesion, Dr George Norton, in his address pointed, out, “There is no doubt about the fact that this competition has numerous benefits, one of which is the fostering of social cohesion. Participants will be able to develop better interpersonal skills through interaction with others from various educational districts.

At the same time, the competition will allow for the students to engage in team-building.”

The Minister further maintained that the fostering of social cohesion through this competition will go beyond the students; as parents, teachers, sponsors, members of communities and other Government ministries will partner to ensure its success.

Participants will be given the opportunity to improve their level of skipping skills, geared towards international competitions.

He also revealed that Guyana could soon see a federation in place.

“It is our aim to very soon have a well established National Jump Rope Federation in Guyana.

With such a body in place, we will have jumpers to participate at world class competitions, such as the Pan-

American Jump Rope Competitions and the International Double Dutch League.”

He continued: “It keeps youth gainfully occupied while cultivating them into well-rounded individuals. A greater level of competitiveness and sportsmanship as a country is also an intended result of the championships.”

Stakeholders play an integral role, and Minister Norton was keen to point this out.

“The successful hosting of this year’s championships will not be possible without the support of various stakeholders, who will play an integral role,” he said.

Among the stakeholders are the participating schools, Skip-to-My-Lou organisers, National Sports Commission, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Public Health, Public Telecommunication Ministry, and sponsors.

He expressed gratitude to Banks DIH Limited for coming on board, as he pointed out that they fulfil their corporate social responsibility.

Minister of Social Cohesion, Dr George Norton

guyanatimesgy.com

saturDAY, september 23, 2017

Preserve our culture

23

Massy gives boost to referees with donation of substitution board

– Minister Garrido-Lowe

…as colourful Heritage Games open

T

he annual Heritage Games which form part of the Amerindian Heritage Month celebrations were on Friday declared open by Minister in the Indigenous Peoples Affairs Ministry, Valerie Garrido-Lowe, and subject Minister Sydney Allicock.

The three-day event, which includes a cricket tournament, football, swimming, archery and volleyball, has teams from the various regions across the country participating.

At the march past, Minister Garrido-Lowe noted that Amerindians have always been athletically inclined, and it is important for them to preserve their culture, even through sports. In female cricket action, newcomers Kartabo of Region 7 (125/2) beat Siparuta of Region 6 (29 all out) by 96 runs to advance to the next round.

Also in winners’ row were Moraikobai of Region 5 (79/7 from 10 overs) who beat Moruca of Region 1 (39 all out) by 40 runs; Santa Mission of Region 3 (74/2) winning by 8 wickets over Laluni of Region 4 (73/4), and Capoey of Region 2 (76/5) who beat Swan of Region 4 (72/6) by 5 wickets.

Kartabo will today come up against Santa Mission, while Pakuri (formerly St Cuthbert’s Mission) will take on Moraikobai. Capoey have drawn the bye to the semi-finals In the male cricket competition, the hunt for semi-final places is on as well.

Mahdia of Region 8 will play Pakuri, while Laluni will take on Region 2 United.

Campbelltown have drawn the bye.

In the opening match, Campbelltown made 97/5 from 10

Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Vice President Sydney Allicock (centre), Minister in the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Valerie Garrido-Lowe (left), and Advisor within the Ministry, Mervin Williams (DPI Photos)

overs, before limiting Moraikobai to 58/8 for the 39-run victory.

In the second match, Laluni beat Matarkai of Region 1 by 55 runs.

Laluni were led by David Francis with 88 not out, on their way to 131/7 before reducing Matakai to 76/8.

In the final match of the day, Pakuri (80/3 from 7.1 overs) beat Santa Aratak (78/9) by 7 wickets.

Heritage Games will continue today with volleyball at 10:00h, while archery will be done between 13:00 and 15:00h at Everest.

GTT Indoor Hockey Championships get cracking on Monday

T

Flashback! Action in the women’s tournament

he annual GTT National Indoor Hockey Championships return to the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall after a seven-year hiatus, as the Guyana Hockey Board (GHB) stages its first tournament on the

newly installed tile floor.

The tournament has been sponsored by the communications giant for 17 years, and is the top local indoor competition that determines the annual national champions.

The competition commences early this year as the GHB gears up for the Indoor Pan-American Cup to be contested in mid-October this year.

In order to prepare for the International event, the GHB will use the National Championships as a test event, to ensure all systems are in working order. To maximize the benefit to the local national teams, both male and female national teams will compete in the competition, although they will not be eligible for the trophies.

The competition features four divisions, being Men’s First Division, Men’s Second Division, Ladies, and Veterans (over-35).

Despite being three-time champions, the favourites, Pepsi Hikers, will now be without their fantastic four in Robert France, Andrew Stewart, Jamarj Assanah and Aroydy Branford, who will all be making an appearance for the national BLACKS. The club still boasts a solid line-up, with veteran Shane Samuels expected to fill the void along with goalkeeper Jason ‘Puzzle’ Hoyte.

Old Fort, without the likes of the dynamic Aderemi Simon and skilful Jason De Santos, will look to capitalize on their depth of quality to offer good opposition for the top spot. Bounty GCC and Saints are also poised to topple the defending champs with their strong junior teams, who competed well in the most recent competition.

Pizza Hut GCC has lost six players, all called up for national duty, but remain the solid favourites to win gold.

The defending champions, who have not lost the competition in ten years, will need to bring their top game to hold off the challenges of the new teams in contention.

Old Fort, led by Boshani Kaladeen and Tamala Glenn, have been creeping up the ranks over the past 8 years.

They will pose a potent attack that will be hard for oppo-

Chairman of Massy Guyana Group of Companies, Deo Persaud, presenting the board to Dion Inniss, GFF’s Executive Committee Member and Chairman of the National Football Referees Council (NRFC)

T

he Guyana Football Federation (GFF) has received a referee’s electronic substitution board from Massy Guyana Group of Companies, to enable the work of the referees in Guyana.

This presentation was made at the company’s Headquarters at Ruimveldt Georgetown by Deo Persaud, Chairman of Massy Guyana Group of Companies. Recipient was Dion Inniss, GFF’s Executive Committee Member and Chairman of the National Football Referees Council (NRFC) In brief remarks, Inniss noted that Massy has always been receptive to the football fraternity, and is thus not a first-time partner. He expressed gratitude to the company for the support.

“Massy has always been a very reliable partner for football. We are happy to be using the MoneyGram brand; and this very important piece of equipment in football, which appears simple, contains information relevant to spectators and players alike. We’ve been without one for many months. We’re thankful for this presentation.”

Persaud, in response, said: “We are happy to assist sports on the whole, and in this case, football in particular. We do support several sporting disciplines and bodies across Guyana. So, we as a group, (Massy Services and MoneyGram) continue to support and give back to the community. It’s part of Massy’s corporate philosophy to give back.”

In his remarks, Head of the Refereeing Department of the GFF, Stanley Lancaster, said: “This is by far the most modernized board that we’ll use compared to the others we’ve had. We’ve had many manual boards, so we welcome this. Every time we make a substitution, the brand will be visible.”

MoneyGram is an international money transfer operation that provides innovative money transfer and payment services globally. In Guyana, Massy Services is the super-agent for this business. On offer are international and local money transfers across Guyana through the network of more than forty (40) sub-agents.

nents to handle. The Bingo Spartans are eager to contest their second indoor tournament, and are a fast improving side; while a new entrant, SIDM, will take the floor in an effort to make the record books as the first debutant to hoist the trophy.

Defending veterans’ champions GCC Vintage are strong favourites for the over-35 division, while the Old Fort Warriors are expected to have the edge in the men’s 2nd division. Both divisions, however, promise to be competitive, as no team has retained the trophy for more than two consecutive years.

Matches start on Monday, September 25th from 17:00hrs, and the finals will be contested on Saturday, 30th September. Men’s national selections, the BLACKs and the GREENs, will play an exhibition match against each other right before the final presentation.

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

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

guyanatimesgy.com

Preserve our culture – Minister Garrido-Lowe

…as colourful Heritage Games open

Pg 23

Several of the villages came out ready for some testing games (DPI Photos)

GCB/3-Day League

Essequibo ahead despite Suknannan’s 6 for 22 Pg 22

GTT Indoor Hockey Championships get cracking on Monday

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– to serve as National Team test Flashback! Jason DeSantos being challenged by Mark Sargeant

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