Guyana Times Thursday September 19, 2019

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THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Jagdeo urges GECOM Chair to "walk the talk", act decisively guyanatimesgy.com

Issue No. 4051

thursday, september 19, 2019

See stories on pages 2, 3 & 7

... GECOM Chair to advise President on election date today

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WHAT'S INSIDE: Mon Repos fire

Police probing arson, death of 7-year-old P10

Truck driver in fatal Agricola accident P8 charged

...caretaker President "uncomfortable with restricted Govt" he precipitated

IMF shines spotlight on Guyana’s inadequate foreign reserves …reserves fall short of int’l standard of 3 months' import cover Page 7

Pensioner dies in Page 9

Police kill suspected bandit

…Leopold Street residents burn tyres, debris in protest Page 12 …damage fire truck; probe launched

Corriverton fire

Bosai employees down tools over wage disagreement Page 11

Barber jailed for assaulting P10 woman

P13 New EU, Mexican Ambassadors accredited

2 news “I’m uncomfortable with a restricted Govt” – caretaker President thursDAY, september 19, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

…now wants “certificate of readiness” from GECOM

S

till maintaining that he is awaiting the readiness of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) before setting a date for the much-anticipated General and Regional Elections, caretaker President David Granger has stated that he is uncomfortable running a caretaker Government which has a lot of restrictions on its functioning.

“It is very uncomfortable for me as a Head of State to labour under the restrictions of an interim administration,” he told reporters on the sidelines of an accreditation ceremony at the Ministry of the Presidency on Wednesday.

According to the President, apart from health reasons, he has not accepted any invitations for state

GECOM headquaters

visits while many of his Government’s core functions have been restricted.

“Many of my ministers have had their travels restricted; we cannot plan a budget or bring a budget to Parliament and we cannot engage in certain types of projects which are regard-

ed as irreversible and the whole business of the government has been slow because we are obedient to and compliant with the instructions of the CCJ (Caribbean Court of Justice) since July.

So it is uncomfortable for me to remain in this condition,” Granger, whose administration was toppled since December 21, 2018, posited.

The Head of State, who has been blamed for the current political status, on Wednesday claimed that his mindset is on credible elections in the shortest time possible.

It is for this reason, he noted, that PNC Chair Volda Lawrence led a Government delegation to meet with the Guyana

Elections Commission on Friday to emphasise his Government’s interest in having early elections with a credible list.

Contending that he is anxious to have elections held as quickly as possible, President Granger, nevertheless, reiterated that GECOM has the “exclusive authority” to determine its readiness. “…as soon as I hear from the Commission that it is ready – it has the resources and the staff, ballot papers are printed and all these requirements are complied with under the law – I will then consider making an announcement as soon as possible afterwards”.

He went on to say, however, that “…this is not in my hands. People are calling on me and people are picketing, but I cannot do anything because I do not have the authority. I cannot go out and print ballot papers, I cannot appoint returning officers, I cannot detail where polling stations would be.

These are functions given exclusively to the Elections Commission, and I don’t interfere; I don’t intrude and I cannot give instructions to the Elections Commission”.

While he insists on awaiting GECOM’s advice before setting polling dates, Article 61 of the Constitution of Guyana gives him to powers to dissolve Parliament and set a date for General and Regional Elections. This point has been lamented by legal luminaries and other local stakeholders to the President but to no avail.

Conveniently ignores

In

fact,

the

People’s

Progressive Party (PPP) Opposition in a statement on Monday maintained that while GECOM is indeed an independent agency, it is not independent of the Constitution of Guyana.

“The caretaker President conveniently ignores this fact and attempts to convey the impression that GECOM, being an independent body, can afford to ignore its obligation to comply with the Constitution of Guyana”.

Moreover, the Party drew attention to the July 12, 2019, consequential orders by the CCJ, which had ruled that the NoConfidence Motion (NCM) was validly passed on December 21, 2018, saying that the Court clearly stated that: “The Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has the responsibility to conduct that election and GECOM too must abide by the provisions of the Constitution”.

Elections were constitutionally due since March 21, 2019 – three months after the December passage of the NCM against the current Government. However, with the legal challenges which ensued, that timeline was on pause but was subsequently reinstated after the July 18, 2019 CCJ ruling which validated the passage of the motion.

Despite the constitutional timeline for early elections long expired, there is yet to be a decision as to when elections will be held.

In fact, discussions in this regard are still ongoing at GECOM. However, following yet another meeting on Wednesday, it was noted

President David Granger

that the Chairperson, (retired) Justice Claudette Singh, is expected to make a final decision on a timeframe for polls sometime today.

The PPP has been contending that elections can and should be held long before the end of this year.

In fact, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo made a case for this when he met with the Elections Commission last week.

Meanwhile, as he awaits the Elections Commission to come up with such a timeframe, President Granger told reporters on Wednesday that he is expecting two major benchmarks from GECOM in this regard. That is, that the Commission as a whole is satisfied with the credibility of the voters’ list and secondly, that the schedule is one which is achievable.

“So the second benchmark they must give me a sort of certificate of readiness and after that I’m good to go,” the Head of State posited.

GECOM Chair retired Justice Claudette Singh is expected to meet with the President today to inform him of the date by which GECOM will be ready for General and Regional Elections.

news

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thursDAY, september 19, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

BRIDGE OPENINGS The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

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Impending election date

Jagdeo urges GECOM Chair to "walk the talk", act decisively

…says Chair should have long removed Granger’s excuses by advising him

G

uyana Elections C o m m i s s i o n (GECOM) Chair retired Justice Claudette Singh has previously been reported as telling the parliamentary Opposition that she is hopeful of carrying out elections by this year end.

According to the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) General Secretary Bharrat Jagdeo, it is now time for the Chair to ‘walk the talk’.

This is even as she is expected to advise President David Granger today on a timeframe for holding elections.

Justice Singh “needs to act now, consistent with our Constitution, the ruling of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) and her statement to both Government and Opposition parties that she is working to have elections before the end of the year,” he said in a statement on Wednesday evening.

According to Jagdeo, September 18, 2019 was a “red line” day for Guyana, by which time, as referenced by the CCJ, General and Regional Elections should have been held.

The Opposition Leader pointed out that the GECOM Chair should have long removed President Granger’s excuse for avoiding naming a date for elections while he waited for GECOM’s advice, by writing him to advise about their readiness to hold elections before the end of the year.

“She has not done so thus far. To my surprise at this late hour in the evening of the 18th of September, another biased press release is sent out by GECOM seeking to blame an Opposition Commissioner for not submitting a timeline for elections at today’s meeting and saying that the Chair

Opposition LEADER Bharrat Jagdeo

will make a decision tomorrow on the basis of a proposal submitted by Mr Corbin”.

The Commissioners representing the Opposition, he added, made a conscious decision not to submit another proposal at this time which would have invariably triggered another round of protracted discussion designed to delay a decision being made when the primary purpose of the meeting was to authorise the Chair to write the caretaker President before the end of the day.

Jagdeo went on to question exactly what GECOM was doing for the past few weeks if not settling on a timeframe for elections. He pointed out that there are previous proposals which, if adjusted for time, can deliver elections by year end.

“The Chairwoman must act decisively now. She must end the prevarication

of the Secretariat – which had advised the CCJ that even with a full Houseto-House Registration exercise they would’ve been ready to hold elections before the end of the year – and stop the delaying tactics of the APNU/AFC,” the Party said.

After receiving proposals from the Government and Opposition side, it was announced that Justice Singh will make a final decision on the timeframe for elections today and communicate same to President Granger.

This was announced by both Opposition and Government-nominated Commissioners at the conclusion of a meeting on Wednesday. While the opposition has insisted elections could be held this year, the government commissioners have been pushing for elections next year.

President Granger has repeatedly said that he was awaiting the advice of GECOM before he can set an election date. This was repeated in an address to the nation on Monday following a meeting with Carter Center representatives… a meeting during which he promised the organisation not to delay but to act swiftly once GECOM advises him.

During the address, President Granger repeated the substance of previous statements; that GECOM is an independent agency and that he has to await advice from GECOM before he can

GECOM Chair Retired Justice Claudette Singh

name an election date.

The constitutional deadline for holding elections, as set out by the CCJ, has meanwhile expired as of Wednesday. When it made its July 18 ruling on the no confidence cases, the CCJ had said that the effect of the No-Confidence Motion was on pause while the cases were being litigated.

That process, CCJ President Adrian Saunders had clearly said, was no longer on pause following the court’s June 18, 2019 ruling, which upheld the validity of the No-Confidence Motion and, thus, triggered the need for fresh elections.

In keeping with the constitutional threemonth provision once a No-Confidence Motion is passed, this would mean that General and Regional Elections should have been held on or before September 18, 2019.

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guyanatimesgy.com

thursday, september 19, 2019

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

A now constitutionally unconstitutional regime

T

oday is a very historic day for Guyana as it marks the beginning of an untested period. The President would have lost his constitutional standing and technically, should not be referred to as such. In addition, the APNU/AFC coalition he leads no longer legally exists as a government. In other words, both, as of this day, have become constitutionally unconstitutional.

This situation resulted from APNU/AFC’s reluctance to abide by enshrined constitutionally-mandated processes following the historic No-Confidence Motion (NCM) successful passed on December 21, 2018.

Having over the last eight months gone around in circles on the back on millions of taxpayers’ dollars just to be told what’s already clear in the Constitution, the Government was legally designated as a caretaker one, following the ruling and consequential orders of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in June this year.

That meant elections, which should have been held by March 21, 2019, had to be held by September 18, 2019, following resort to the court. That date could have only been extended through a vote by a two-thirds majority in Parliament. There was no such extension and no elections, hence, the current reality of an unconstitutional leadership.

No one knows how long this period of uncertainty will last. Even if the President had within the last moments of September 18 dissolve Parliament and announce an election date, according to legal experts, him holding on to the office after that is unconstitutional.

Following the NCM, the Government had one primary function, which was to facilitate an election within ninety days. Then, the President would have been within his constitutional rights to act with the powers vested in him to ensure the elections are held and to legally stay on until a new President is sworn in within that said ninety-day period.

With that period now officially expired, as per the CCJ’s ruling, Guyana is now legally without a legal administration. This is a very serious development and, unfortunately, can have consequences.

How this would be resolved is anyone’s guess. Possibly, it may have been made more difficult by APNU/AFC’s seemingly unbridled desire to remain in office apparently with utter disregard for the consequences of such actions.

In the process of doing so, it may have shown its hand for selfgratification and self-advancement at the expense of adherence to the rule of law. With a belief of it placing self over country, the nation is placed at risk of possible instability and international sanctions.

This is not where Guyanese want the country to be, for as difficult as it is for many to make ends meet, there is that inherent hope of a brighter future as first oil beckons. With such high expectations for the country’s much touted potential to be realised, why potentially jeopardise it through seemingly selfish politics?

As a result, citizens have remained dismayed over APNU/AFC’s refusal to respect the Constitution, thereby, plunging the country into this untested and challenging period.

Earlier this week, the President reaffirmed that he is ready to call elections but only after advice from the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM). This has been his position all along as he seemingly relinquished his responsibility ***as per Art 61*** of naming an election date to GECOM. That seems to suggest, that in his mind, there is no room for snap elections as provided for in the Constitution.

Over time, he foisted his own interpretation of the Constitution upon the Guyanese people as evident when he unilaterally appointed Justice James Patterson as GECOM’s Chairman. His sustained position that GECOM, not him, must advise when elections be held, is another instance. GECOM clearly has a role, but the Constitution also has clear provisions that cater for elections within that three-month timeframe.

This was reiterated by the CCJ in its final ruling. One may be tempted to ask: with the Government not abiding by the Constitution and may be in contempt of the CCJ ruling, is GECOM reportedly being encouraged to do likewise for the realisation of a particular agenda?

In his recent address, the President stated that GECOM has exclusive and explicit responsibility for the conduct of elections, that the election body is insulated from political interference and that its independence is safeguarded by the Constitution. But what about his constitutional role for which he took an oath to uphold?

What about the mandated processes for elections within three months following the NCM and which are safeguarded by the Constitution? What about processes to derive a credible voters’ list within that timeframe and which are also safeguarded by the Constitution?

From this, it appears that the President is selective on constitutional provisions seemingly with the intention of prolonging his administration’s hold on power. The most basic of understanding is, had the Constitution been followed, the elections would have been held by March 21 this year.

With APNU/AFC resorting to the courts, the new deadline was September 18, 2019. There is no ambiguity in that, for GECOM must always be at the ready. What is indisputable, is where the country has been placed as a result of non-adherence to the Constitution by a now unconstitutional regime.

A laser light show plays from the top of the Marina Bay Sands integrated resort amid haze in Singapore. (Reuters photo)

Freed Venezuela lawmaker Edgar Zambrano: The regime kidnapped me

E

dgar Zambrano, the deputy of Venezuelan Opposition Leader Juan Guaidó, has lashed out at the Government of President Nicolás Maduro as he was released from detention.

Zambrano was arrested in May on suspicion of treason shortly after a failed uprising against President Maduro organised by Guaidó.

He said his detention amounted to a "kidnapping".

The Government said he was released to further "peaceful co-existence".

The 64-year-old lawyer is a member of the National Assembly, Venezuela's Opposition-controlled Parliament, for the Democratic Action party.

Since January, he has been the deputy of National Assembly leader Guaidó.

Guaidó declared himself interim President in January, arguing that the 2018 re-election of President Maduro was fraudulent.

He has been recognised by more than 50 countries as Venezuela's legitimate leader.

Zambrano was one of Guaidó's key aides as the latter tried to oust President Maduro from power.

Zambrano was arrested shortly after Guaidó tried to get the military to switch sides and support him rather than President Maduro.

On April 30, Guaidó appeared at an air force base in the capital, Caracas, surrounded by about 30 men in uniform calling on people to take to the streets to end "the usurpation of power" by President Maduro.

Zambrano could be seen in footage recorded a few hours later alongside Guaidó

Edgar Zambrano was held in detention for four months on charges of treason

on a bridge near the base as it became clear that the attempted uprising had failed to garner the necessary support to succeed. That footage led to Zambrano being accused of treason.

Eight days after the failed uprising, members of Venezuela's secret service intercepted the lawmaker as he was leaving his party's headquarters in his car.

They ordered him to get out of the vehicle and when he refused, he was towed to prison while still inside the car.

Attorney-General Tarek William Saab said a petition for his release had been granted following "partial agreements reached by the Government and parts of the Opposition in order to foster citizens' peaceful co-existence".

Saab did not say if the treason charges against Zambrano had been dropped. His statement also said that Zambrano would still be facing "other precautionary measures" instead of detention, although he did not make clear what those were.

Zambrano spoke to Journalists as soon as he was released and was scath-

ing in his criticism of what he said was his completely illegal detention.

"I do not suffer from Stockholm syndrome," he said referring to the condition which causes hostages to feel sympathy with their captors.

"I will not thank my kidnappers nor any pseudo-opposition for my release," he said, referring to Saab's explanation that talks with parts of the Opposition had led to his freeing.

"I did not commit any crime; I was kidnapped and almost annihilated by this regime solely for thinking differently."

He described how he was not allowed to see his wife until his 34th day in captivity and how he did not have any access to his lawyers for more than two months.

He called for the release of "all political prisoners". According to pressure group Foro Penal, there are 478 political prisoners in Venezuela.

Zambrano also said he would meet Guaidó later on Wednesday and soon retake his seat in the National Assembly.

Guaidó said that Zambrano's release was

a result of public and international pressure, including a report by United Nations Human Rights Commissioner Michelle Bachelet, put on the Government to release the political prisoners it is holding. "It's not a 'kindness' shown by the dictatorship," he said.

One of the four Opposition lawmakers taking part in dialogue with the Government was more positive about Zambrano's release.

Timoteo Zambrano, who is no relation of Edgar Zambrano, tweeted: "The process of freeing political prisoners has begun. We celebrate the freedom of our colleague, the deputy Edgar Zambrano."

The talks which Attorney General Saab says led to the release of Zambrano are highly controversial. Only four little-known lawmakers signed an agreement to enter into the negotiations with the Government on Monday.

The move was seen by larger and more influential parties as an attempt to divide the Opposition.

It came a day after Guaidó had announced that Norwegian-mediated talks between his representatives and the Government had been exhausted.

The Government broadcast the signing of the "deal" live on television in what critics say was a "show" orchestrated for the international community.

Opposition news site Caraota Digital reported that European Union diplomats who had been invited to the event without being told what it was about walked out in protest. (BBC News)

guyanatimesgy.com

Thursday, september 19, 2019

5

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

Boldly disobeying rule of law, Constitution which are heart of any democratic country Dear Editor, One of the happiest days of my life (before my daughter was born) was when Forbes Burnham died. To me, that man was the worst and most evil person who had ever lived. He took it upon himself to take our freedom and to decide what the citizens of this beloved country should own to some extent or even worse of all what we should eat. Nobody does that to me, nobody.

I hated everything about him, except when I got the message that he had died. I can’t (and really don’t care) to even remember the year or date that he died, I was a lad then and I was just glad that he had died. However, every era has its share of experiences and if a person is smart and fair-minded, you can put things in better perspective as you get older and be able to compare and learn from events of the past.

Even realise that you made some mistakes in judgement of people or places that you were affected by. That being said, in retrospect, I probably owe Mr Burnham an apology, he had some steadfast core values and not everything was bad about him.

I’ll explain in a bit.

Fast forward to present day, in fact, let’s back up a bit to December 2018. As we all know, a No-Confidence Motion was carried against the Government by the Opposition, mainly because of severe neglect of the citizens, the ill and tyrannical use of power and unbelievable blatant corruption by them in such a short time. It became too much to bear by anyone of sound mind and integrity. Something had to be done to stop them before it was too late for the country to recover. Thankfully, the No-Confidence Motion was validly passed in the National Assembly on the 21st December, 2018 and the Government was toppled.

Here is where an incredible chapter in history begins… President “Credible Elections” Granger boldly announced soon thereafter, that he and his Government would respect the result of the No-Confidence Motion.

As per normal, in any democratic society, the Cabinet has to resign, Parliament dissolved and elections held within 90 days. The Government then adopts a caretaker mode until another (or incumbent) President is sworn in. Nothing difficult to understand there... well for the average person

I should say. No-Confidence Motions are nothing new, unusual or shameful, it has happened many times in the past and will happen many times more in the future.

So, as the law prescribed, elections were to be held in Guyana on the 31 March, 2019.

Yesterday was the 18th September, 2019, over eight months after the motion was passed and nothing near to honouring the Constitution or the simple rule of law is even attempted or in the making by this Government! Forget the corruption, forget the stealing of tax payers’ money, and forget the excessive waste of Government funds, blatant abuse of power and total neglect of the citizens – which was the very instrument that triggered the NoConfidence Motion in the first place! Forget all of that for a bit, let us just deal with the solid facts here.

Soon after publicly announcing that the Government would respect and abide by the decision in the National Assembly they took action to appeal! The honourable Speaker of the House upheld his decision.

They then moved to the High Court. That court upheld the decision. They then moved further to the Court of Appeal (someone there probably got nicely paid off) and that ruling was in favour of the Government. Here now, the Opposition was forced to counter with several lawsuits in order to protect the Constitution of Guyana and approached the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) for a final decision. There the case was held expeditiously I should say and the CCJ upheld the rules of the Guyana Constitution and they handed down the judgement. The clock started ticking again on the 18th June, 2019.

Plus the (CCJ) ruled in favour of the Opposition that the Chairman of GECOM was illegally appointed by “Credible Elections” Granger! Due to shame the illegal Chairman almost immediately resigned.

After immense pressure by the Opposition, we finally got another Chairperson of GECOM, whom Mr Granger is taking credit now for “working expeditiously” with the Opposition in appointing! This Government is low and it is always possible them go lower and be worse than the outer limits of worst.

Here is where I will make reference again to Mr

Burnham. He was a tyrant and a communist, he (along with his right hand Granger) rigged elections in the past.

However, Mr Burnham was honourable and wise enough to always remain within the laws and the Constitution of Guyana. Mr Burnham was

never ruling in any illegal capacity for even one minute. He had integrity and obeyed the law.

Thanks to this (now absolutely illegal) Government, we definitely have our place marked by this dirty bunch. It is really unfortu-

nate for us that throughout history only infamous people and events are synonymous with Guyana. Nobody knew Guyana years ago unless you mentioned Jim Jones. Now on this 18 day of September, 2019, we will be famously remembered

once again as the first country to boldly disobey the rule of law and the Constitution which heart of any democratic country.

Dear Editor, The September 18 date marks a second deadline that has been disregarded by the Granger Government, despite the constitutional requirements expressed in Article 106 (6) and (7) and the rulings of the CCJ— which is our final appellate court.

This is outrageous behaviour where a Government can show gross disrespect for the court as well as the Constitution of this country, but such has been the situation in Guyana ever since the passage of a successful No-Confidence Motion, and the downfall of the coalition. They have refused to abide by the dictates of the law and has held this country in abeyance while all sorts of manufactured excuses spewed forth why they should stay in office while disregarding the Constitution.

We are now at the second chapter of broken timelines and into another version of full blown season of a PNC bullying Government.

There is no question on anyone’s mind as to Granger and his Government’s schemes and where they are headed in this dilly dallying of circumstances. What is clear, is that they do not want elections and if there are, they have planned it that those elections would be rigged.

Now, I urge readers to carefully follow the sequence of events and make their own decision: 1) A successful passage of a No-Confidence Motion on December 21, 2018 and the coalition Government fell.

2) Article 106 (6) and (7) of the Constitution takes immediate effect.

3) Granger’s Government refuses to accept defeat and stays in government regardless.

4) The timeline of 90 days when elections should have been called expired March 21, 2019.

5)The CCJ— our final Court— rules that elections should be called no later

than September 18, 2019, this date has come and gone and still the President and his Cabinet refuse to resign or set an election date; instead, Granger comes on television and issues a convoluted statement of GECOM setting a time for elections.

6) GECOM, on the other hand, is dragging its feet in not having the Election Commission ready for elections.

In all of these twists and turns in this latest saga of elections being held in this country, one salient fact stands out and that is the Government would not budge, as it continues its illegal existence, as well as an election commission which follows suit.

I make that bold remark in light of recent findings as relates to respect for the law and honouring timelines.

The laws of Guyana cry out for the GECOM to go straight ahead into the Claims and Objections phase and be in readiness for election later this year, but instead of that, we have the Government, through its Commissioners, saying no, we are going to “pad the voters’ list” and some other nebulous excuse that elections cannot be held this year. Now, if elections cannot be held this year, then when will election be held?

This is the foolishness that is transpiring right before our very eyes.

Now, in the previous paragraph I hinted that the Government wants to pad the voters’ list before, if ever, they call elections.

And I mean just that, for the simple fact that the present asinine excuse that the voters’ list has to be cleansed of its dead persons, while the new registrants has to be added, or merged into the NRR, is truly a reckless and evil statement. The Government keeps harping on the figure of 370,000 “new registrants” which is an indication that these are first time registrants? Far from it, you cannot tell anyone, even someone with half

a brain, that Guyana’s voting population actually doubled in 5 months? This is an outrageous lie and that propaganda has to stop now.

That 370,000 names are duplicate registrants and these cannot be merged into anything. The reality is, any new registrants for the most part would see a representative figure of about 2,000 plus names, and those names could have been easily grafted into the National List of Electors through the continuous registration process. There was no need for a House-to-House, which we have witnessed was never completed. You cannot add— or as they are implying “merge”— incomplete and unverified data on to the NLE, this is illegal and constitutes a fraud and this retired Judge Chairwoman

knows that. What she will succeed in carrying out with that merger is a confused and duplicated list which will very well stretch the final verification process way beyond August of next year.

The point I am making is that the Granger Government is bent on padding the voters’ list with duplicated names and that means that the PNC would have succeeded in carrying out the most brazen rigging exercise never seen before in Guyana.

We must have national election, free, fair and unbiased and the true party will come out triumphant. We have come too far to turn back now.

Sincerely, Shane Lindie

Govt’s continued illegal existence

Respectfully, Neil Adams

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thursday, september 19, 2019

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Foundation

…8 reasons why I’m worried, and hopeful, about the next generation

D

ear children of today and of tomorrow, Thirty years ago, against the backdrop of a changing world order – the fall of the Berlin Wall, the decline of apartheid, the birth of the world wide web – the world united in defence of children and childhood. While most of the world’s parents at the time had grown up under dictatorships or failing governments, they hoped for better lives, greater opportunities and more rights for their children. So, when leaders came together in 1989 in a moment of rare global unity to make a historic commitment to the world’s children to protect and fulfil their rights, there was a real sense of hope for the next generation.

So how much progress have we made? In the three decades following the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, in spite of an exploding global population, we have reduced the number of children missing out on primary school by almost 40 per cent.

The number of stunted children under 5 years of age dropped by over 100 million. Three decades ago, polio paralyzed or killed almost 1,000 children every day.

Today, 99 per cent of those cases have been eliminated. Many of the interventions behind this progress – such as vaccines, oral rehydration salts and better nutrition – have been practical and cost-effective. The rise of digital and mobile technology and other innovations have made it easier and more efficient to deliver critical services in hard-to reach communities and to expand opportunities.

Yet poverty, inequality, discrimination and distance continue to deny millions of children their rights every year, as 15,000 children under 5 still die every day, mostly from treatable diseases and other preventable causes. We are facing an alarming rise in overweight children, but also girls suffering from anaemia. The stubborn

challenges of open defecation and child marriage continue to threaten children’s health and futures. Whilst the numbers of children in school are higher than ever, the challenge of achieving quality education is not being met. Being in school is not the same as learning; more than 60 per cent of primary school children in developing countries still fail to achieve minimum proficiency in learning and half the world’s teens face violence in and around school, so it doesn’t feel like a place of safety. Conflicts continue to deny children the protection, health and futures they deserve. The list of ongoing child rights challenges is long.

And your generation, the children of today, are facing a new set of challenges and global shifts that were unimaginable to your parents. Our climate is changing beyond recognition. Inequality is deepening. Technology is transforming how we perceive the world. And more families are migrating than ever before. Childhood has changed, and we need to change our approaches along with it.

So, as we look back on 30 years of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, we should also look ahead, to the next 30 years. We must listen to you – today’s children and young people – about the issues of greatest concern to you now and begin working with you on twenty-first century solutions to twenty-first century problems.

With that in mind, here are eight reasons why I’m worried for your future, and eight reasons why I think there is hope: 1. You need clean water, clean air and a safe climate 2. One in four of you are likely to live, and learn, in conflict and disaster zones 3. We must make it OK to talk about mental health 4. Over 30 million of you have migrated from your place of birth 5. Thousands of you will

Set off on a sound hunt!

S Henrietta H Fore UNICEF Executive Director

officially never exist, unless we act 6. You need twenty-first century skills for a twenty-first century economy 7. Your digital footprint must be protected 8. You might be the least trusting generation of citizens ever

You need clean water, clean air and a safe climate Why I’m worried:

It sounds obvious that all children need these basics to sustain healthy lives – a clean environment to live in, clean air to breathe, water to drink and food to eat – and it sounds strange to be making this point in 2019. Yet climate change has the potential to undermine all of these basic rights and indeed most of the gains made in child survival and development over the past 30 years. There is perhaps no greater threat facing the rights of the next generation of children.

There is perhaps no greater threat facing the rights of the next generation of children.

The Food and Agriculture Organization noted last year that climate change is becoming a key force behind the recent continued rise in global hunger, and as escalating droughts and flooding degrade food production, the next generation of chil-

dren will bear the greatest burden of hunger and malnutrition.

We are already seeing evidence of extreme weather events driven by climate change creating more frequent and more destructive natural disasters, and while future forecasts vary, according to the International Organization for Migration, the most frequently cited number of environmental migrants expected worldwide by 2050 is 200 million, with estimates as high as 1 billion.

As temperatures increase and water becomes scarcer it is children who will feel the deadliest impact of waterborne diseases. Today, more than half a billion children live in areas with extremely high flood occurrence and almost 160 million in high-drought severity zones.

Regions like the Sahel, which are especially reliant on agriculture, grazing and fishing, are especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change. In this arid region, rains are projected to get even shorter and less predictable in the future, and alarmingly, the region is warming up at a rate one and a half times faster than the global average. In the Sahel, the climate gets hotter and the poor get poorer, and it is all too common for armed groups to exploit the social grievances that arise under such pressurized conditions.

hh! What can you hear?

Head outside and listen for busy birds and buzzing bees.

Nature is noisy – the planet is alive with the sounds of nature! See how many you can hear.

Ribbit ribbit! Listen out for friendly frogs.

Rat-a-tat-tat! Can you hear a woodpecker pecking?

What sound do raindrops make – pitter patter or plop plop?

Grown-ups: Buzz and quack with your little one. It’s a fun way for them to practise making different sounds and helps improve speech development. (woodlandtrust.org.uk)

(Excerpt from UNICEF) To be continued

Did you hear any other sounds?

Feel free to copy and share this for personal and educational use – and don’t forget there are loads more brilliant activities to download on our website! woodlandtrust.org.uk/naturedetectives | 0330 333 5301 | naturedetectives@woodlandtrust.org.uk Search for ‘nature detectives’ | #NatureDetectives

© Made in 2015 by the Woodland Trust (registered charity nos 294344 and SC038885)

news

7

thursDAY, september 19, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

calls for adherence GECOM Chair to advise President ERC to Guyana’s Constitution on election date today A fter receiving proposals from the Opposition and Government side, Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Chair retired Justice Claudette Singh will make a final decision on the timeframe for elections today and communicate same to President David Granger.

This was announced by both Opposition and Government-nominated Commissioners at the conclusion of a meeting on Wednesday.

Oppositionnominated Commissioner Sase Gunraj first made the announcement that Justice Singh would be making her decision in the morning.

A f t e r w a r d s , Commissioner Vincent Alexander elaborated on what took place at Wednesday’s meeting. He noted that fellow Government Commissioner Charles Corbin and Gunraj made presentations on various timelines for holding elections.

“Commissioner Corbin made a written proposal, which proposed March (2020), with possible negotiations to bring it down to an earlier time. Now it’s up to the Chairman to make a determination, which she said she would do after studies and contacting advisers, an announcement will be

GECOM Chair, Retired Justice Claudette Singh

made,” Alexander said.

Alexander further explained that Corbin had proposed that the encoding of registrants’ data that was gathered during GECOM’s House-to-House Registration could be done concurrently with the extraction of a preliminary list and Claims and Objections.

Meanwhile, GECOM later released a statement in which it said that Commissioners Gunraj, Robeson Benn and Bibi Shadick insisted on a November 2019 date for the holding of elections, while Commissioner Corbin made his proposal.

“Justice Singh undertook to study the submission, consult with the Secretariat, and based on all the information available to her make a decision on the way forward. Justice Singh

will communicate this decision to the President in accordance with the mandate of the Commission (today),” GECOM said in the statement.

While the Opposition has insisted elections could be held this year, the Government Ccommissioners have been pushing for elections next year.

President David Granger has, meanwhile, repeatedly said that he was awaiting the advice of GECOM before he can set an election date, despite Article 61 of the Constitution of Guyana empowering him to dissolve Parliament and set a set for elections.

The responsibility for GECOM to set a date, instead of him, was again repeated in an address to the nation on Monday following a meeting with Carter Center representatives – a meeting during which he promised the organisation not to delay but to act swiftly once GECOM advises him.

During the address, President Granger repeated the substance of previous statements; that GECOM is an independent agency and that he has to await advice from GECOM before he can name an election date.

The constitutional deadline for holding elections,

President David Granger

as set out by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), has meanwhile expired as of Wednesday. When it made its July 18 ruling on the no confidence cases, the CCJ had said that the effect of the No-Confidence Motion was on pause while the cases were being litigated.

That process, CCJ President Adrian Saunders had clearly said, was no longer on pause following the court’s June 18, 2019 ruling, which upheld the validity of the No-Confidence Motion and, thus, triggered the need for fresh elections.

In keeping with the constitutional three-month provision once a No-Confidence Motion is passed, this would mean that General and Regional Elections should have been held on or before September 18, 2019.

IMF shines spotlight on Guyana’s inadequate foreign reserves

…reserves fall short of int’l standard of 3 months’ import cover

A

s a rule of thumb, economists recommend that Governments keep enough foreign reserves to be able to cover three months of imports. In Guyana’s case, however, our reserves are enough to cover little over a month’s worth of imports.

This was a finding of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) during its recent article IV consultations in Guyana where it consulted with various stakeholders and analysed data to come up with economic projections and data on Guyana.

The report pointed out that gross reserve coverage declined to 2.1 months of imports, mainly owing to higher imports. According to the IMF, the balance of weaker exports and higher imports because of oil-related investments was such that the external current account deficit rose to 17.5 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

According to the report, Guyana has projected 2019 official reserves of US$643 million— with this figure projected to rise to US$857.8 million by 2020.

In terms of 2018, the figure was US$528.4 million.

However, there was good

The International Monetary Fund news when it came to pub- tile foreign inflows from oil lic finance. According to the production,” the IMF said in IMF, this improved in 2018, its report. with the central govern“Over the medium-term, ment deficit being recorded developing the necessary inas 3.5 per cent of GDP, low- frastructure, supported by er than the budgeted 5.4 per IMF Technical Assistance, cent of GDP. for a suitable monetary Moving forward, the policy framework with inFund recommended certain creased exchange rate flexmeasures be taken to safe- ibility would facilitate guard Guyana’s foreign re- economic expansion and adserves. It noted the role that justment to oil price shocks maintaining exchange rate while maintaining price staflexibility, which is a mon- bility and safeguarding foretary policy determined by eign reserves”. supply and demand, could It was recorded last year play in this regard. The that Guyana’s net foreign Fund also alluded to provid- reserves, held by the cening technical assistance. tral bank in foreign curren“Exchange rate flexibili- cy notes, had fallen to its ty could play a greater role lowest point since 2008, a as part of the monetary pol- recent report from the bank icy framework for managing has highlighted. large and potentially volaIn March of 2018, the

foreign reserves stood at US$498.5M. In contrast, the reserves in 2012 stood at US$825M. A perusal of the Bank of Guyana’s statistical abstract shows that from the lows of US$298.8 million ten years ago, Guyana’s foreign reserves were built up to 2012’s sum and then it started dropping— going to US$751.2 million in 2013 and US$652.2 million in 2014.

The slide continued with the foreign reserves being recorded at US$594.7 million at the end of 2015, before picking up in January of 2016 and being recorded at US$621.1 million. While the year 2016 saw the reserves fluctuate, it never strayed below the US$500 million mark until the end of the year.

In 2017, the reserves plunged well into the US$500 million range. By November of last year, the reserves were recorded at US$562 million and as of March 2018, for the first time since 2008, the net foreign reserves fell below the US$500 million benchmark.

As of this year, the Ministry of Finance’s midyear report had found that total reserves at the Bank of Guyana were $75.3 billion.

Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) head office in Queenstown, Georgetown

T

he Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) has expressed concerns over the current political impasse regarding the hosting of General and Regional Elections, and is urging players to adhere to the Constitution of Guyana.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Commission pointed out that since the December 21, 2018 passage the NoConfidence Motion (NCM) against the coalition Government, it has been aware of the ensuing political impasse and how Guyanese have seemingly become more divided along political lines.

“The ERC, not unaware of [these challenges], urges the relevant authorities to work assiduously to have elections within the shortest possible time in keeping with the Constitution and the rule of law,” the missive stated.

According to the ERC, it has a constitutional and national responsibility to promote cooperation, arbitration, conciliation, mediation and like forms of dispute resolution between all bodies concerned in order to secure ethnic harmony and peace.

The ERC added that its integral role encompasses intervention to mitigate social tension derived from political impasse, which, if unresolved, will impact negatively on ethnic harmony and peace.

The Commission outlined that despite rulings at various levels of the judicial system, the current political impasse seems no closer to being resolved and, evident from some public utterances and through social media, tensions have unfortunately been exacerbated from all sides.

“The Commission re-

mains encouraged by the response and the peaceful conduct of recently held elections and wishes to once again commend all involved. However, it would be remiss if the Commission did not state how concerned it is over the ongoing political impasse,” it noted.

Moreover, the ERC posited that it respects the independence of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) as safeguarded in the Constitution. On this note, the Commission is urging persons to display patience as GECOM executes its mandate to arrive at a date for elections.

At the same, however, the ERC recognised that in the interim, the social fabric of the society will undoubtedly be severely tested more so, along political lines.

“Guided by the history of the political climate that engulfs our electoral process and period, the Commission reiterates the need for a collective effort of all to place Guyana first and to ensure that hate speech, racial and other forms of incitement have no place in our public discourse. Despite our right to disagree, disagreement is not a reason for hostility and division,” the statement detailed.

Nevertheless, the Commission appeals to citizens to remain calm and resolute. It is also calling on Guyanese to embrace peaceful, harmonious and good relations in this testing period.

The ERC has its genesis in the Herdmanston Accord, which was signed on January 17, 1998 by the then President, Mrs Janet Jagan of the People’s Progressive Party Civic, and Hugh Desmond Hoyte, then Leader of the Opposition.

8 news

thursDAY, september 19, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

IN THE COURTS

Truck driver in fatal Agricola accident charged

D

anion Welcome, the driver of the truck in the horrific accident at Agricola Public Road, Greater Georgetown that claimed the life of seven-year-old Ciara Benjamin back in June, was on Wednesday charged and appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

The 39-year-old man appeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan and pleaded not guilty to the charge which detailed that on June 1, 2019, at Agricola Public Road, Georgetown, he drove motor lorry GWW 962 in a manner dangerous to the public causing the death of Ciara Benjamin.

Defence Counsel James Bond, in a bail application, requested that his client to be released on reasonable bail. He assured the court that once his client’s bail is granted, he will ensure that Welcome adheres to any conditions attached.

In addition, the lawyer informed the court that his client is unable to work since the ordeal, owing to the injuries he received by the hands of Agricola residents, who beat him mercilessly.

Bond went on to tell the court that his client has

Danion Welcome

to seek medical attention abroad for his injuries, after being advised by a local doctor.

Police Prosecutor Gordon Mansfield told the court that on the day in question, about 16:10h, Welcome, who was driving motor lorry GWW 962, was proceeding at a fast rate of speed along the Agricola Public Road. The prosecution is claiming that Welcome lost control of his vehicle and collided with the child, who was standing at the median, which resulted in the child’s death.

The matter was reported; however, after a lengthy investigation, a file

was sent to the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) who advised that Welcome be charged.

The court further heard that the DPP’s advice that Welcome’s driver’s licence should be suspended.

The Chief Magistrate, after listening to the facts, released Welcome on $500,000 bail.

Welcome was instructed to lodge his passport with the court and report every Friday to the officer in charge at the Ruimveldt Police Station until the hearing and determination of the case. The Magistrate further suspended his driver’s licence until the hearing and determination of the matter.

Nevertheless, Welcome is slated to make his next court appearance on September 23.

Based on reports received, the child was attempting to cross the road with her aunt, who was on her cellular phone, in the vicinity of the Independence Arch at Agricola.

During that time, a truck bearing registration number GWW 962 was heading to Georgetown when the driver allegedly swerved to avoid hitting an-

I

Ciara Benjamin

other vehicle and the child was struck.

Hundreds of people flocked the roadway in the aftermath of the tragic incident. With the truck lodged in the middle of the roadway, Police officers made efforts to clear the streets to allow for the child’s body to be removed.

About one hour later, a forklift and crane were used to lift the vehicle and remove the child’s remains.

Her body was completely severed in two. However, before Police arrived, residents of Agricola mercilessly beat Welcome. His truck was later set on fire by the residents.

Unremorseful man fined $40,000 for fraudulent misappropriation

A

47-year-old man was hauled before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Wednesday and charged for fraudulent misappropriation.

Shastri Dhanasar appeared before Magistrate Faith McGusty and pleaded guilty to the charge.

The charge stat-

ed that on September 4, 2019, at Mandela Avenue, Georgetown, being solely entrusted with $4,700 to buy water and juice for Shamain Safi, he fraudulently converted the money to his own use and benefit. The unremorseful man in his address to the court said, “I done spend out she money, I have no time with her, do what

you want do”.

Police Prosecutor Ceon Blackman informed the court that the Virtual Complainant (VC) and Dhanasar are known to each other for the past five years.

The Prosecutor indicated that on the day in question, the VC, who is a vendor, was at her stand when Dhanasar asked to borrow her bike.

The woman, after lending him the bike, asked if he can buy the items for her; however, Dhanasar never returned after collecting the money to purchase the items. A report was made to the Police and the man was subsequently arrested.

Magistrate McGusty fined Dhanasar $40,000. Failure to pay the fine will result in him spending four months in prison.

Minibus driver slapped with 7 charges, remanded to prison

A

minibus driver made his first court appearance at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts after he was slapped with seven charges.

Tavid Ahmad appeared before Magistrate Faith McGusty and denied the charges.

The first charge detailed that on September 13, 2019 at Camp Street, Georgetown, he unlawfully and maliciously assaulted Police Constable Jafar Blackman, who was acting in the execution of his duties.

The second charge stated that on the same day, and location, the 30-yearold man resisted arrest from Police Constable Jafar

Tavid Ahmad

Blackman. Additionally, he was charged for unlawfully and maliciously damaging one Police shirt belonging to the Guyana Police Force (GPF). Another charge stated that on the same day and location, he made use of threatening language to-

wards Police Constable Blackman.

It was further alleged that under the circumstances, he behaved disorderly in public hearing.

Following his appearance before Magistrate McGusty, Ahmad was taken before Magistrate Clive Nurse where he faced two additionally charges.

Those charges stated that on September 13, 2019 he drove minibus BVV 3428 in a manner dangerous to the public and was under the influence of alcohol.

Police Prosecutor Seon Blackman informed the court that the rank was performing duties on Camp Street, Georgetown when he observed the Ahmad obstructing traffic.

The court heard that the

Losing corn…

officer proceeded to the defendant and instructed him to drive to the Brickdam Police Station, when the defendant came out his bus and dealt the officer a cuff to his face and said, “I am not afraid of no Police”.

The defendant then held on to the rank’s uniform, which resulted in the shirt being damaged, as he began to threaten him.

Ahmad was arrested and taken to the Brickdam Police Station.

The Prosecutor further objected to bail being granted on the grounds of the prevalence of the offence and the fact that the officer was executing his duties.

The Magistrate remanded the defendant to prison.

The case will continue on September 25.

…and husk n our present circumstances, the “corn” is our oil and the husk is the “local content” and together, they represent how we— the people of Guyana— should be benefiting from those undersea gushers that are popping up faster than jumbie umbrellas. Well, we know for sure, we’ve already lost the corn. And your Eyewitness is still hopping mad that those responsible for boasting about us receiving 12.5% of the take on all that corn aren’t being fitted for orange jumpsuits.

Especially when from our crumb, WE’VE got to pay the income tax on the profits that IOCs will be raking in!! If that isn’t rubbing salt into our wounds, then what is??

Anyhow, as we’ve been harping away in this space, we still haven’t lost all the husk of “local content” as yet.

But from the way this PNC Government has been going, unless something changes pretty quickly, that’ll soon be gone for channa. It’s obvious this Government hasn’t the foggiest idea of what “local content” is all about – so it’s not surprising that one IOC listed that buying cane juice and pine tarts from the vendor on the road is “local content”!!

The fact of the matter is that the PNC had three years to start preparing for substantive benefits of local content and they haven’t done squat. Take that company that wanted to store chemicals for the FPSO at Houston but faced a firestorm of protests from local residents and decided to relocate “temporarily” to T&T. Any government worth its salt would’ve had experts advise it of all the ancillary activities that the offshore oil extraction demanded and worked with the business community to get ready since 2015. As the old folks say, “you cyaan wait ‘till yuh belly hu’t, fuh buil’ latrine”. Why are we only finding out now that the industry needs benzene, which must be readily available? We have a whole community in economic crisis over at Wales with huge swathes of land near a river; couldn’t the Government have created an industrial estate there to service the oil industry??

Whatever happened to that US$500 million facility that Trotman was talking about on Crab Island?? Has the idea been ‘privatised’ to a few insiders who were granted all that land a few miles away at Bohemia?? Wouldn’t it have been best for the venture to be a PPP – Public Private Partnership!! – model so that local businessmen could’ve been guided up the technological ladder with the requisite skills imparted?? And couldn’t a couple of hundred scholarships been given to locals to pick up the requisite skills right over in T&T? So we wouldn’t be stuck with spreading grease at US$350/GY$70,000 a month?

…but claiming benefits Yes…Guyana will only benefit from the funds that’ll flow from the 12.5% of the crude oil that we’ll get as our “share” and the “local content” benefits. But the Government is already hyping claims that we’ll become the richest country in this hemisphere on a “per capita” basis once the oil starts flowing. Now this is where you, dear reader, will have to pick sense from nonsense – and there’s a whole lotta nonsense floating around.

But without getting involved with GDP vs GNP and all that jazz, we just have to follow the money. Take all that gold that was produced over the past decades in our country by those big foreign companies like Omai. Apart from the 5% royalty the Government collected and the wages that workers earned, did it improve YOUR per capita income?? Nope!! All that equipment was paid for overseas and all the profits were repatriated overseas.

And it’ll be the same for oil.

And even for the portion passed on to the Government – that was money for “the boys”. …and getting chickenfeed While corn may be used to feed chickens overseas, “chickenfeed” here is rise husk (“boosie”) and broken rice.

So with our oil money going overseas to feed their fat cats, we should be happy with chickenfeed?

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

news

Pensioner dies in Corriverton fire A n early morning fire on Wednesday at Scottsburg Corriverton, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) has left one person dead and five others homeless.

Dead is 85-year-old Stanley Brown of Scottsburg, Corriverton.

Brown, an amputee, was trapped in the upper flat of a two-storey house while his wife, 77-year-old Maurvette Brown, had to jump through a window from the upper flat to escape the flames. The couple’s daughter, Carol Melville, along with her husband and two children – ages 11 and 18 — are also now homeless.

The Browns lived on the upper flat while the Melvilles lived on the lower flat of the house.

The couple had been married for 56 years.

Initial investigation revealed that the fire started in Stanley Brown’s bedroom then spread to his wife’s room.

Maurvette told Guyana Times that she heard her hus-

was in Maurvette’s bedroom.

Maurvette said that after she was alerted about the fire, she could not get to her husband’s bedroom through the door.

She said that she begged him to get her the keys but he could not find them at the time. The pensioner explained that she had to break through the wall separating the two rooms in order to get to her husband, who was in danger. She said that by the time she got into the room it was filled with thick smoke.

“I throw the water but it couldn’t do anything,” she explained.

According to the visibly shaken woman, she was then forced to start taking evasive actions.

In an attempt to get Stanley away from the flames, she took him into her room; however, because of the flames, she had to jump to safety but her husband was unable to do the same. His remains were later found in the building.

The teen said that his mother had left a few moments before for a trip to Georgetown while his father had gone to work.

“After my mother left, I was on my phone playing because I couldn’t go back to sleep, and then I hear my grandfather calling for my grandmother, ‘Maurvette,’ so, I want to know why he calling for her so early and that I hear my grandmother shouting and I get up and run up-

by.

A unit from the Corriverton Fire Station arrived about 15 minutes after the fire started.

It is believed that a lighted candle caused the fire.

Reports are at the time of the blaze there was a power outage in the area and Stanley may have lit a candle.

Brown was a boiler operator at the Skeldon Sugar Estate.

His body is currently at

Stanley Brown and his granddaughter Faydeha King (Miss Earth Guyana 2019) in happier times

The burnt two-storey building

band calling her but she could not get into his room because it was padlocked.

Stanley was attacked by bandits several years ago and since then, he kept several padlocks on both the front and back doors of the upper flat. He also kept his room padlocked when he went to bed. All of the windows were also barred, except one which

“The heat was too much,” the elderly woman recalled.

Having jumped 14 feet to safety, she was taken to the Skeldon Hospital, where she was treated.

Meanwhile, 18-year-old Tyreese Smith said he heard his grandfather calling his grandmother and attempted to make his way upstairs but the doors were locked.

stairs and asked them what going on and I try to open the door,” the teen said.

He recalled hearing his grandmother shouting for the keys.

“So, I run downstairs and go to the back door and then I see the fire coming through the window. I start kicking the door but I could not get it open,” the teen said.

He said two neighbours rushed to their assistance, but they too were unsuccessful in getting the door open.

“Because the door get so much of locks it not opening and by the time other people come the house was already in a big flame so nobody could not do anything,” he revealed.

Meanwhile, as the fire spread throughout the building, neighbours formed a bucket brigade and began socking another house near-

Bailey’s Funeral Home of Number 4 Village, West Coast Berbice awaiting a post-mortem examination.

Persons who may wish to get in contact with the family can contact them on telephone number (592) 6735597.

9

thursDAY, september 19, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Woman rescues 4-year-old grandson as fire razes Plaisance home

A

woman and her four-year-old grandson are now homeless after their Plaisance, East Coast Demerara (ECD) home was destroyed by fire early Wednesday night.

The blaze started about 18:45h at the Lot 38 Graham Street, Plaisance residence.

The small wooden house was occupied by Florence Alexander, a security guard, and her toddler grandson.

Speaking with Guyana Times, Alexander related that the child was asleep in the room and she was out in yard washing clothes when she noticed the flames in the house.

“I see a red thing like a ball in the kitchen and I run in but by the time I reach in, the fire done start spread all over,” she recalled.

The distraught woman added that she rushed in the house and woke her grandson. She noted that while she managed to get both the child and herself out the burning building to safety, she was unable to save anything from the house.

“I run in and shout ‘fire, fire’, calling for him. When he wake up and see the smoke, he was going to run back in the room but I tell him to run outside because the fire was spreading fast fast and nasty,” the woman related.

Small fires still ignited around the burnt rubble

By the time the two occupants got out the burning building, neighbours became aware of what was happening and summoned the fire service.

Upon arriving at the scene, firefighters went into action and managed to put out the blaze. However, by that time, the 47-year-old woman said everything was already gone.

In tears, Alexander further told this newspaper that this is the third time a house was destroyed by fire at that residence – the first being in 2005 and then again in 2011.

According to the grieving woman, the 2005 fire claimed the life of her twoyear-old nephew, who was burnt to death in the house.

10 news

thursDAY, september 19, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Women’s conference

“Hire women and you will succeed” – US Ambassador

I

n a world where men have dominated statistics for senior positions in most sectors, United States Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah-Ann Lynch has urged companies to hire more women, since they are linked to producing higher profits.

The Ambassador shared these remarks during the third annual Women’s Leadership and Business Conference, organised by WeLead Caribbean—a Guyanese-based non-profit organisation.

“There is so much data which supports the notion when you bring women into the political and economic life of a country, the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) goes up and poverty rates go down. It’s proven that companies with more women in higher management positions achieve higher profits.

It’s simple really, hire women and you will succeed,” she beckoned.

Lynch indicated that in many scenarios, women are faced with obstacles which hinder their growth. As a result of sexism, men are given importance or credit for the work of women.

“There are still barriers and obstacles for women to achieve their full potential. Talented women everywhere are working 24

ber of reasons, specifically, they will access a large part of the available talent pool as well as employ individuals who reflect a substantial part of their consumer base,” Harper highlighted.

She underlined the prevalence of sexual harassment in the workplace, but there are other factors which prevent women from owning their own enterprises entirely. These are related to religion, culture and social trends. In other cases, their

United States (US) Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah Ann Lynch

hours a day and still get discouraged that they cannot seem to get ahead. Every day, sexism is still with us.

We’ve all felt it. The meetings where your ideas are ignored and a man says the same thing and he gets the credit. The banks that won’t extend credit to you because you’re a woman,” the Ambassador related.

Throughout the session, motivational speeches were delivered by women across Guyana. Managing Director of Ansa McAL, Beverley Harper, shared some of the advantages of including women in a business environment.

“Organisations that develop and advance women will benefit for a num-

own timidity hinders the achievement of their true potential.

“We, as women, have to experience varying degrees of sexual harassment once we enter the workplace…

Social and traditional constraints restrict women’s participation in business.

Sometimes, religion hinders women from owning their own businesses and in some countries, women may be required to have a male partner to make the deals

and be the face of the business”.

Meanwhile, First Lady Sandra Granger acknowledged that many women are creating their own businesses using their fashion, manufacturing, art and culinary skills. However, domestic violence continues to play a part in societal ills.

“Here in Guyana, we also confront the scourge of domestic violence which cuts across class, race, creed, age and geograph-

ic location. As women living in the 21st century, we still have to contend with Neanderthal concepts of a woman’s place and function.

It baffles me that there is no greater outcry and/or action against acts of violence committed against women and children in our society,” Granger expressed.

The business conference also saw contributions from American singer Beyonce’s publicist, Yvette NoelSchure.

Mon Repos fire

Police probing arson, death of 7-year-old

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he fire at North Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara (ECD) which wounded and later claimed the life of sevenyear-old Shaniya Persaud has been ruled as arson after the Guyana Fire Service concluded its investigation.

This was confirmed by Fire Chief Marlon Gentle on Wednesday. He noted that any further probe to apprehend the perpetrator will be carried out by the Guyana Police Force (GPF).

The now deceased child had received second and third-degree burns about 97.8 per cent of her body when her North Mon Repos house went up in flames at approximately 01:00h on August 5. At that time, she was at home with two other siblings while her mother was attending a wedding in the said community.

The children were awo-

Dead: Shania Persaud

ken by intense heat after which the two older boys reportedly saw flames and quickly ran out of the house.

Shaniya, who was still asleep, reportedly told relatives that she woke up to find her feet on fire. The

child told her family members that she was unable to see but walked through the fire and out of the house, into the streets.

After hearing her name being called out, the child reportedly responded; however, by that time, her skin was severely burnt.

After the incident, the Saving Hands Emergency Aid (SHEA) contributed funds for her to be medevaced from the Georgetown Public Hospital on August 10 to the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, where she boarded a chartered flight to the United States. During the short period, several corrective surgeries were performed at the Shriners Hospital in Galveston, Texas in an effort to save the child’s life.

Last Sunday, Persaud succumbed after undergoing one of the surgeries. The

announcement came one day after SHEA revealed that the child’s wounds were not healing, especially those suffered internally. Additionally, Persaud had one of her legs, a few fingers, and a section of her ear amputated during surgery, a decision taken to save her life.

The Non-Governmental Organisation later announced that after completing all required post-mortem procedures, Persaud’s body was released from the hospital to the funeral home in the United States, and as such, arrangements were made to have the child’s remains transported back to Guyana on September 19.

The body will be received by Sandy’s Funeral Home in Georgetown, after which the family will make further funeral arrangements.

September 16 at Lot 144 Regent Street, Bourda, Georgetown, he unlawfully assaulted a woman.

Police Prosecutor Annalisa Brummel informed the court that Cholomondeley went to the Virtual Complainant’s work of place to have a conversation with her.

However, the woman was adamant that she did not want to speak with him and tried to board a bus, when the grabbed her out of the vehicle.

The court heard that the woman then tried to stop

a taxi but Cholomondeley sent it away and pushed the woman into a store, when he told her “You’re provoking me and you’ll cause me to do something to you”.

Meanwhile, a few bystanders and saw the man’s aggressive behaviour and informed two Policemen who were on patrol in the area. The man was then arrested and taken to the Alberttown Police Station.

After listening to the Prosecutor’s submissions, Magistrate McGusty jailed Cholomondeley.

Barber jailed for assaulting woman

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48-year-old barber was on Wednesday sentenced to three months imprisonment when he appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts and admitted to an

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assault charge.

Seon Cholomondeley of Lot 322 East Ruimvedlt, Georgetown appeared before Magistrate Faith McGusty and admitted to the charge that on

news

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thursDAY, september 19, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Bosai employees down tools over wage disagreement E

mployees attached to bauxite mining company Bosai Minerals Group (Guyana) Incorporated in Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) downed tools on Wednesday over disagreements relating to a proposed salary increase.

Over 60 employees, mainly operators attached to the East Montgomery Mines location, walked for miles where they joined others at the north gate of the company in peaceful protest.

According to the disgruntled employees, the action stemmed from a proposal made by the company to pay a salary increase ranging from six to 6.5 per cent. Based on the offer, employees noted that they would be paid a six per cent increase if they agree to this amount for one year, or a 6.5 per cent increase if they agree to it for a period of two years.

This, the employees are contending, is totally unacceptable. Assembling at the company’s main location in Linden, the protesting employees mainly chanted, “Six per cent can’t work!” with some holding up placards sharing their disagreements.

The employees contended that while they are willing to accept any increase above 6.5 per cent, a nine per cent or above increase would be most welcomed.

An employee, Cecile Boston of the Mines Department, said the proposal is unacceptable as he pointed out that employees are hoping for a reasonable resolution to the situation.

He said employees are asking that Bosai’s management reconsider what is being offered.

“This is unacceptable, because we don’t know what next year will bring... so we shouldn’t bargain for next year. The bargaining is supposed to start from

Employees of Bosai in Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) protesting at the company’s headquarters on Wednesday

6.5 per cent... over the past three to four years we have been getting 6.5 per cent, so how now we must accept six per cent?”

The employee pointed out that, “the work getting harder and harder every day. It’s a great infringement upon us...we are in the mining sector, the operations section which is number one of Bosai and without us, Bosai don’t have a business...we need some changes and we’re talking positive changes”.

The employees noted that while they all work a 12 hour shift for six days, they are paid varying rates.

Nevertheless, the stated that the proposed increase will be insufficient.

“When you calculate your money for your six days period...the money cannot suffice, it’s not enough. And it’s a bauxite company that is one of the main outstanding minerals that has Guyana surviving...We’re family-oriented people with children, responsibilities, with bills and this money cannot do anything for us. Cost of living getting higher every day. Every year they’re setting a new (work) target and the target is being met...by the same people that they are treating like this. We can’t accept that... today is the end of the

road. We have to do something. We’re not here to create any issues...we just need them to understand that we’re the feet for the table and if you’re not taking care of the feet, the table can’t stand,” Boston stressed.

He noted that tensions increased as a meeting which was planned earlier on Wednesday between management, the workers union and employees had been cancelled.

Another employee, Clint Duke, who has been working with the company for over seven years, said the workers feel disrespected with the proposal as they had been expecting a better offer.

“Instead of trying to make things better to me, they’re making things worse, because every day cost of living going up...I think that’s really unfair ...

I think they can do better for workers”.

Meanwhile, Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU) Divisional Chairman Whitney Graham noted that for the past four years, employees have been receiving a 6.5 per cent increase, while the company has been setting annual targets which are achieved.

He said this year’s proposal seems to be holding

employees at ransom and they are prepared to continue the protest until their demands are met.

“Every year we’re supposed to have negotia-

tions...but they (company) wanted it for two years because, the end result they would gain... that would mean, automatically, next year, no retro would be

paid so it would be in their favour. So it is like a ransom now for us not to go with the one year (proposal) but the two years, but the workers don’t want no two years (negotiation),”, he told this publication.

“Basically, we’re at negotiations right now...management make a proposal to the workers which they do not approve of and they’re not prepared to accept the workers’ demands, so as a result, the workers decide to take strike action against the company,” he continued.

Back in 2016, the employees had also protested an across the board increase of 4.5 per cent which was at the negotiations stage, as they aimed for a nine per cent increase.

Teen convicted for rape of 6-year-old

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fter being found guilty of rape at just 16 years old, Trevlon Frank now awaits his sentencing whilst on remand for the crime.

This comes after a 12-member jury on Wednesday returned a unanimous guilty verdict against the teen, who was accused of raping a sixyear-old back in 2016.

Frank initially pleaded not guilty to the indictment when it was read by Justice Simone Ramlall at the trial commencement

earlier this week. The indictment stated that between November 16 and 30, 2016, in Demerara, he engaged in sexual penetration with a child under the age of 16 years old.

Short facts presented state that the teen, who was 13 years old at the time, saw the victim in his yard and walked up to her.

Frank then proceeded to undress the child and performed the act. The young child later complained to her family about what had occurred and a report was

made to the Police.

At Wednesday’s court hearing, a victim impact statement was presented to the court and revealed the trauma which the incident had caused the victim, who is now nine years of age.

The state’s case was presented by State Prosecutors Sarah Martin and Teriq Mohamed.

Frank is expected to make his next court appearance on October 3, 2019 to facilitate a probation report for sentencing.

12 news

thursDAY, september 19, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Police kill suspected bandit

…Leopold Street residents burn tyres, debris in protest …damage fire truck; probe launched

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haos erupted in Leopold Street, Georgetown on Wednesday after a suspected bandit was shot and killed by Police in the wee hours of the morning while hunting for two robbery suspects.

Dead is 35-year-old Orin Odinga Williams, a father of one of Leopold Street, Werken-Rust. He was killed about 01:45h on Wednesday in Norton Street, Wortmanville by ranks of the Stabroek Police Outpost, who had responded to a report of an alleged robbery in the area.

The scene of the protest on Wednesday

Dead: Orin Odinga Williams

According to a statement from the Police, four persons were held at gunpoint at the corners of Hadfield and High Streets by three

men and robbed them of four cell phones, an undisclosed amount of cash, and personal documents.

The victims reported the matter and in response, the Police proceeded in the direction in which the suspects fled. While in the vicinity of Norton and Bishop Streets, Wortmanville, the Police said one of the suspects dismounted his bicycle and drew a firearm from his waist before discharging two rounds in the direction of the ranks.

The statement added that the ranks “took evasive action” and returned

fire from their service weapon, wounding one of the suspects. The injured man was taken to Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

The other suspects made good their escape, the Police said.

A .38 revolver with its serial number filed out, along with one live round and two spent shells, a quantity of cannabis, three cellular phones, one yellow metal chain, $10, 900 and one backpack were recovered from the scene.

The Police said that two

of the cell phones recovered have since been identified by two of the victims as their properties.

Later that morning, at approximately 09:00h, residents of Leopold Street, including family members of the now dead man, took to the streets in protest his killing and called for justice.

They blocked the corners of Leopold and Breda, and Durban and Breda streets with burning tyres and other debris on the roadways.

Thick black smoke from the burning tyres could be seen from lengthy distances away.

Williams’ family is accusing the Police of allegedly lying about the circumstances surrounding the shooting and instead claimed that the ranks robbed the now dead man.

Speaking with the media, Omesha Murphy, the victim’s sister, related at the scene of the protest that her brother was shot and then robbed by Police.

“They got to bring back the gold and the money that them tek, everything we got to get back because we got we lawyer, we got we lawyer and we need them things back! He wife got to get them back! We need justice,” the woman cried out.

Another relative declared that “We have to get justice for he, he never do no crime, nothing he never do.

Them kill he! Plus them rob he! We got to get everything back! Everything we got to

The items which Police said were found in the dead man’s possession

get back, all the gold jewellery, and everything that them thief!”

Meanwhile, a Leopold Street resident told Guyana Times that she had just spoken to Williams prior to his killing.

According to the woman, Williams had indicated to her that he was making his way home to his wife, Cassandra Williams.

Fire tender damage

Meanwhile, the Police say that during the protest demonstrations, Fire Tender #93, under the command of Section Leader Watts and four other ranks of the Guyana Fire Service, responded to the scene at Leopold and Breda streets, and attempted to extinguish the fires. However, they were met with resistance from the protestors, who threw missiles at the fire truck, causing damages to the front windshield and

left passenger window.

Attorney-at-Law Nigel Hughes, who is said to be Williams’ uncle, visited the family and spoke with the now dead man’s wife.

Further, the scene was visited by a party of Police ranks, headed by Assistant Commissioner Marlon Chapman, who spoke with the protestors in the presence of Attorney Hughes and assured them that a thorough investigation into the matter would be conducted.

This resulted in the residents extinguishing the fires and removing the debris at both locations. However, they warned of their readiness to continue protest actions until a proper investigation is carried out by Police.

This publication understands that Williams had recently moved back to Guyana from Cayenne, French Guiana, where he lived for many years.

Burnt out Govt vehicle

CH&PA fleet of vehicles very old – Minister

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unior Minister attached to the Communities Ministry, Annette Ferguson on Wednesday admitted that the vehicles owned by the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) are “old” but she does not want to blame that just yet for the cause of the fire, which destroyed the agency’s Nissan pickup on Tuesday afternoon.

Ferguson told this publication, on the sidelines of an event hosted at the Ministry’s Kingston, Georgetown office, that “I want to underscore the point that the fleet of vehicles there at CH&PA are actually old vehicles so I don’t want to immediately say now that probably the fire was caused due to that but as I said before an investigation is ongoing so I await the final report on that investigation”.

She noted that the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the agency, Lelon Saul, has been informed of the incident which is currently being investigated.

Meanwhile, Fire Chief Marlon Gentle, when con-

The vehicle belonging to the Central Housing and Planning Authority on fire

tacted by this newspaper, said he is not ready to disclose any details surrounding that matter as it is still being probed.

The Nissan pickup, which bore registration plate PNN 7686, burst into flames on Tuesday afternoon on the Rupert Craig Highway in the vicinity of the Rubis Gas Station.

The driver, Wilbert Mingo, who is said to be in his late 30s, was accompanied by his colleague, Daniel Persaud, in the pickup which was heading to East Coast Demerara when the

incident occurred.

Guyana Times understands that Mingo observed smoke billowing from his air conditioning vents and thought something was amiss. Before he could have brought the vehicle to a halt to make checks, the vehicle burst in flames.

He and Persaud rushed from the vehicle on to the flooded roadway to safety and escaped unhurt, but the vehicle was destroyed.

The Government vehicle is the fifth for the year to be mysteriously destroyed by fire.

13 New EU, Mexican Ambassadors accredited P news

thursDAY, september 19, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

resident David Granger on Wednesday received letters of credence from the new Ambassadors of the European Union (EU) and Mexico to Guyana. During the ceremony, the Head of State committed to building upon the long-standing relationship with both countries.

The accreditation ceremony was held at the Ministry of the Presidency.

The Department of Public Information reported that the President said that Guyana has benefitted substantially from the EU’s development cooperation programme, especially in the agricultural, education, housing, and public health sectors, as well as in its efforts to combat climate change.

“Guyana and the EU

have collaborated within the ambit of the successive Lomé Conventions and the current African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States: ACPEU Cotonou Partnership Agreement. These arrangements establish a platform on which to construct a new generation of partnership for their mutual benefit.

These agreements will assist in the realisation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including the Sustainable Development Goals to which Guyana is unequivocally committed,” he is quoted by DPI as saying.

The European Union Ambassador to Guyana, Fernando Cantó said that the EU is proud to have been a reliable partner and supporter of Guyana’s development initiatives for more

President David Granger receiving the letter of credence from European Union Ambassador to Guyana, Fernando Cantó (DPI photo)

than 40 years. Of particular note, he emphasised the EU’s extensive contribution to helping Guyana maintain and rehabilitate its sea defences which become more and more relevant each day as we witness the harsh effects of climate change.

Ambassador Cantó, the DPI report added, said that the EU looks forward to supporting Guyana’s efforts in other areas, such as security, and implementing the Voluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance

and Trade (FLEGT) in the years ahead. This is also part of the joint efforts to address the challenge of developing natural and extractive resources while preserving the environment and fostering sustainable and inclusive development.

Diplomatic relations were established between Guyana and the EU in 1975 and are premised on the common principles of equality, mutual respect, the rule of law and tolerance.

Guyana and Mexico also established diplomatic relations 46 years ago and have collaborated in the fields of agriculture, disaster management, education, oil and gas and trade. Mexico is also a valued market for Guyana’s rice. It has provided valuable technical support in disaster manage-

ment, extended scholarships to build Guyana’s human resource capacity, and commenced cooperation in the oil and gas sector.

President Granger said Guyana looks forward to Mexico’s support in building a more robust agriculture sector and learning from the country’s experience in disaster management.

Mexican Ambassador to Guyana, H E José Contreras said that his country will be seeking to strengthen relations in the areas of education. Both countries have aggressive agreements in scientific and technical cooperation, and therefore, “we can make the most of in sectors such as education. For example, I think a big opportunity is teaching Spanish here in Guyana,” the Ambassador noted.

Digital libraries can transform quality Councillor expelled from

of education delivered – Minister …as country’s 1st e-library launched

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o celebrate its 50th anniversary, the North Georgetown Secondary School (NGSS) on Wednesday marked the occasion with the commissioning of a multimillion e-library— an innovative project which is the first of its kind within the school and the country.

This significant achievement for the educational institution was applauded by Education Minister Nicolette Henry, who was at the time delivering the keynote address at the opening ceremony.

In her address, Henry said that through the implementation of e-libraries in schools across Guyana, the quality of education delivered can be improved.

According to the Education Minister, libraries, specifically in the digital form, play a pivotal role within the education sector, which includes the eradication of illiteracy and creating a greater access to information for students.

The facility stands at the cost of $10.5 million, and

Students test the new devices

was made possible through the contributions of the NGSS committee of past students both locally and internationally along, with other partners including the Education Ministry.

The e-library can accommodate 25 students at time, who can access learning information (past papers, textbooks) from the devices, which is situated in a specialised area at the school.

Coordinator of the school’s 50th anniversary committee, Rear Admiral (retired) Gary Best revealed plans to expand the access

which will see students being able to use personal devices to access information anywhere in the school’s compound and at home.

“This entire e-library, the concept was birthed from a recognition by pass students that the school’s going to celebrate 50 years…It’s a three-phase project, phase one is accessing information in this repository for 25 students, phase two is accessing the information anywhere in the school on a dial-in on a tablet owned by the student, and phase three is accessing information from home”.

John-Port Mourant NDC

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he only independent Councillor on the John-Port Mourant Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) has been expelled for the remaining life of the Council.

The Council recently moved a motion to have Orin McDougal expelled.

At the Council’s statutory meeting, which was held last Friday, John-Port Mourant NDC Chairman Ishwarsammy Narainsamy called for a motion to be passed to have McDougal expelled.

Addressing the Council, he claimed that McDougal has been intimidating the staff, aiding and abetting residents of the community not to pay market revenue, as well as aiding and abetting with market vendors.

Narainsamy told the Council that what McDougal has been doing was gross disrespect to the Council, while noting that Council is now out of control.

“We are at an embarrassing situation where we cannot get the money to pay staff. The money has not been coming in and you have persistently been doing

this thing so now we cannot even pay the increases to workers for 2019…A motion has to be moved to evict this man from the Council for the rest of his life because his action is bringing disrepute…,” the Chairman said, adding that the offences which McDougal committed are criminal.

However, when McDougal attempted to defend himself, the Chairman told him that he was not a Councillor and not authorised to speak.

However, McDougall said he has a right to defend the allegations.

Nevertheless, the motion was moved and voted on. Out of the thirteen councillors present, 11 voted in favour and one abstained.

McDougal also did not vote.

Prior to that, Chapter 28:02 of the Local Government Act Section 12 was read to the Council.

Chapter 28:02 reads: “If at a meeting any member of the Local Authority, in the opinion of the Chairman notified to the Local Authority, misconduct himself by persistently disregarding the ruling of the Chair, or by be-

having irregularly, offensively, improperly or by wilfully obstructing the business of the Local Authority, it shall be competent for a member to move ‘That the member named not be further heard’ or ‘That the member do leave the meeting’ and the motion, if seconded, shall be put and determined without discussion”.

Following the reading of the section of the law, Councillors voted on the motion and the Chairman ordered that McDougal be removed from the Council's chambers.

The meeting was then adjourned.

However, McDougal refused to leave and the Chief of Security attempted to remove him from his seat but the two ended up in a scuffle.

Meanwhile, McDougal said that he was not the one responsible for the drop in revenue being collected. At one time, the NDC was collecting over $1 million in revenue monthly. The NDC now collects a third of that sum monthly from the market.

14 news

thursDAY, september 19, 2019| guyanatimesgy.com

Over $64M in vehicles Eye patient still awaiting surgery funds from Public Health Ministry donated to 3 regions … family has been stranded in Suriname I

The new vehicles that were handed over by Junior Communities Minister Annette Ferguson

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egions One (BarimaWaini), Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) and Nine (Upper TakutuUpper Essequibo) on Wednesday received several vehicles from the Communities Ministry.

The six vehicles in total valued about $64 million, the Junior Communities Minister, Annette Ferguson, told the media during the brief handing over ceremony hosted at the Ministry’s Kingston, Georgetown office.

Minister Ferguson explained that four of the six vehicles were allocated to

Region Nine. She called on the Regional Executive Officers (REOs) to ensure that the pickups are serviced regularly and maintained.

The Ministry expects to hand over four other vehicles next month. Beharry Automotive Limited supplied the vehicles.

Regional Executive Officer of Region Nine, Carl Parker said he was very thankful for the vehicles, although two more are still to be delivered.

One of the Toyota Hilux pickups will be used by the

Regional Health Officer to conduct outreaches in the various communities, while another will be used by the Regional Education Department to assist in the supervision of schools.

The third vehicle will be given to the Public Works Department to monitor and evaluate projects, while the fourth will be used by the Region’s Accounting Unit.

According to the REO, the Region is usually affected by several challenges as it is unable to manoeuvre through the 23,000 square miles of land.

t has been over one week since three-year-old Rajin Sewsankar underwent surgery in Suriname to mend his right eye, which suffered severe trauma and could have resulted in blindness if not rectified at the earliest.

However, the family has been stranded in the foreign country as they await half of the funds for the operation from the Public Health Ministry. Since the surgery was not offered in Guyana, the Ministry had pledged a portion of the money. The child’s two grandmothers accompanied him. However, when they contacted the Ministry for the money as promised, they were told that the money was not made available as yet.

In expressing disappointment to acquire all the funds to pay for the surgery, relatives of the child are pleading with officials to look into the matter.

“We called and every time, they said that we need to call back later in the day or another time. This child would be blind if they didn’t do the surgery. They told us that we should have waited on the money and then do the operation. How long is that?” relatives questioned.

They indicated that the surgical procedure is not practiced in Guyana presently and they were referred to Trinidad or Suriname for it to be performed. Suriname was chosen since it was more economical. Guyana

Rajin Sewsankar after completing the surgery

Times was told that the child might even have to stay in the country for an entire month for observation, owing to the severity of his condition. The family has since sought shelter with a local woman, Mel Henry, who has also been assisting.

The little boy, who is from Hope Estate on the East Coast of Demerara, would have experienced trauma to his right eye. He was losing his sight and an operation was severely needed to ease his condition.

The diagnosis was uncovered when a visit was made the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation earlier last month. After being admitted for eight days, it was discovered that the young boy had corneal perforation with hypopyon. Hypopyon is described as a medical condition involving inflammatory cells in the anterior chamber of the eye.

Along with that, doctors would have unearthed significant findings of congested conjunctiva, mild haze to the cornea and other problems upon examination.

His vision continued to decrease while inflammation increased.

As such, it was recommended that a vitreo-retinal surgery be conducted as an evaluation, along with urgent Vitrectomy under anesthesia. A Vitrectomy is a surgery conducted to remove some or all of the vitreous humour from the eye.

Sewsankar’s grandmother, Rajkumarie Budhoo told Guyana Times that she desperately awaits an answer from the Ministry as soon as possible since the clock is ticking.

This publication contacted the Ministry on Wednesday but no information could be provided on the status of the financial aid.

Elderly man found submerged drowned – PME

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he 87-year-old man, who relatives believed was murdered after his naked body was discovered submerged in a dam at Polder, Canal Number One, West Bank Demerara (WBD), died as a result of drowning, the autopsy stated.

An autopsy was performed by Government Pathologist, Dr Nehaul Singh on Monday, which showed that that Sewkuar Somwria, known as “Balgobin”, of Lot 6 Goodland, Canal No 1 Polder, WBD died from asphyxiation as a result of drowning.

The man’s nude body was discovered on September 11, a week after he went missing on September 6 when he left his home to go for a walk, his family members told Guyana Times.

He was spotted in Dairy (La Parfaite Harmonie),

WBD, and then again in the Canal Polder at approximately 15:00h. However, the last time that he was seen alive was at around 17:00h.

Family members formed several search parties to search for the elderly man, but came up empty-handed. A missing person’s report was then filed at the La Grange Police Station by the man’s daughter.

Family members, however, continued their search and it was on September 11, about 12:00h, the man’s partly decomposed and nude body was discovered lying face down submerged in water aback Baya Dam in Canal Polder.

The family were alleging that foul play was involved in the man’s death since, in addition to Somwria’s clothing being missing, his body looked to have been dumped

Sewkuar Somwria, known as “Balgobin”

at the area where it was discovered.

However, the family is still questioning how the man’s body ended up at the area where it was found without any clothing.

As such, the family is calling out for a full investigation to be launched in order for their questions and confusion to be put to rest.

15 Child deaths in road accidents increase – Traffic Chief T news

thursDAY, september 19, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

he number of children who died as a result of injuries sustained in accidents have doubled this year when compared to figures during the corresponding period for last year.

In an interview with Guyana Times, Traffic Chief Linden Isles said that three children died as a result of accidents last year and six has died this year.

For 2019, there have been 67 fatal accidents. Last year, during the same period, 64 accidents were recorded. This shows a five per cent increase.

“We had 64 fatal accidents in 2018 compared with 67 in 2019 for the corresponding period, which is an increase of five per cent.

We had 74 deaths in 2018 with 73 in 2019, which is a decrease of one per cent,” he explained.

Thirteen pedal cyclists, he said, were killed for the year and 16 motorcyclists lost their lives as a result of road accidents. Meanwhile, 21 motorcycles and 22 hire cars were involved in these accidents.

This year, 60 males died in accidents and 13 females.

Traffic Chief Linden Isles

Six out of the total deaths were children.

Recently, a three-yearold baby boy was killed after being struck by a speeding car at Islington, Greater New Amsterdam, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne).

The child, Dominic Tyler Sulker of Lot 49 Stanleytown, New Amsterdam, Berbice, was at the time at his grandfather’s business place at Islington when he reportedly ran out on to the public road where he was struck by the car with registration plate HC 9655.

Reports are that the three-year-old had just returned home from school and got out of the car with his grandmother and went into the shop, but moments later, an uncle saw him on the road and dashed out to get him. His efforts proved futile since he was hit by the speeding car before his uncle got to him.

Eyewitnesses said that the car hit the Savannah Park Nursery School student and the impact sent him flying through the air for several metres before he landed. This newspaper was

told that the child landed 105 feet from where he was hit.

Efforts made by doctors at the New Amsterdam Hospital to resuscitate the young lad proved futile.

In a more gruesome accident, reported in June, a seven-year-old child was crushed to death and severed by a sand truck on the Agricola Public Road, East Bank Demerara.

Ciara Benjamin of Kitty, Georgetown was attempting to cross the road with her aunt when the accident occurred. (Davina Ramdass)

Surinamese nabbed with Venezuela calls on US to cocaine at Jamaica airport reopen diplomatic ties

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Surinamese man has been charged with breaches of the Dangerous Drugs Act following the seizure of 25 pounds of cocaine at the Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston yesterday.

He is 29-year-old Wlodi Roche Marius Decker, mechanic of Sophieednant Street and Verlengde Weide Straat in both in Suriname.

Decker reportedly arrived on a flight from Trinidad and Tobago about 7:30 am and whilst waiting

to transit to Bahamas, his luggage was searched and the cocaine found.

His court date has not yet been ascertained. (Jamaica Observer)

Oil prices settle after turbulent week as Saudi Arabia reassures on output

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il prices edged higher in early Asian trade on Thursday after days of turbulence, with markets soothed by Saudi Arabia’s pledge to restore full production by end-September at facilities knocked out in drone and missile attacks last weekend. Brent crude futures LCOc1 rose 8 cents to $63.68 a barrel by 0139 GMT while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 was up 12 cents to $58.23 a barrel.

The steadying of nerves, after a 2% drop on Wednesday and a 14% plunge on Monday, came after Saudi Arabia set out the timeline to full operation and also said it had managed to restore supplies to customers at levels prior to the attacks by drawing from its oil inventories.

Saudi Arabia, the world’s leading oil exporter, has said the crippling attack on its oil sites was “unquestionably sponsored” by bitter regional rival Iran. U.S. President Donald Trump said there were many options short of war with Iran and added that he had ordered the U.S. Treasury to “substantially increase sanctions” on Tehran. “Prices may have found equilibrium for now,” said Michael McCarthy, chief markets analyst at CMC Markets in Sydney.

Quick recovery in Saudi oil production would confirm disruption could be temporary, he said.

Meanwhile oil analyt-

ics firm Kayrros estimated Saudi Arabia lost about 3.4 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil output after crude oil inventories plunged nearly 10 million barrels as of Sept.

16 compared with pre-attack levels.

Still, the head of the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday it does not see a need to release emergency oil stocks as markets are well supplied.

While tensions in the Middle East remained elevated, the White House’s response on Wednesday to Saudi producing evidence that it said implicated Iran in the attacks pointed to a more measured approach in handling the region’s issues, said McCarthy at CMC Markets.

Separately, weekly data from the Energy Information Administration on U.S. oil inventories provided a mixed snapshot.

Crude oil stockpiles at

the world’s largest oil producer rose by 1.1 million barrels last week against analysts’ expectations for a drop of 2.5 million barrels.

However, stocks in Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point for benchmark futures, fell to the lowest

enezuela's socialist government on Wednesday called on the United States to restore diplomatic ties with Caracas after it opened talks with fringe opposition parties.

Venezuela broke off relations with the United States after Washington recognised opposition leader Juan Guaido as interim president on January 23.

Vice President Delcy Rodriguez told reporters in Caracas that it made sense for the US "to restore diplomatic contacts and dialogue with the government."

Rodriguez said Washington was left with only "a single path" having failed to remove Maduro from power, and that was "negotiation and diplomatic communication".

President Donald Trump's administration had targeted Venezuela's oil industry and Maduro's inner circle with a raft of economic sanctions.

The US blames Maduro for the economic collapse of Venezuela, from which millions have fled due to basic shortages, and considers him illegitimate after widespread reports of irregularities in last year's election.

Both Maduro and Trump said last month that talks had been taking place involving senior officials from both sides. Rodriguez also welcomed Monday's agreement between the government and minority opposition parties — outside of Guaido's coalition— to open

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza, Education Minister Aristobulo Isturiz, Vice President Delcy Rodriguez and Opposition member Javier Bertucci pose after signing a dialogue agreement between the government and the Opposition in Caracas on September 18, 2019

negotiations on political changes aimed at resolving Venezuela's crisis.

Former presidential candidate Javier Bertucci joined the pact on Wednesday.

The agreement involves the return of socialist lawmakers to the opposition-dominated National Assembly and the release of political prisoners.

Guaido's deputy as National Assembly leader, Edgar Zambrano, was the first to be released late Tuesday. Zambrano said 58 other opposition figures

would be released from Wednesday.

The Assembly's deputy vice-president Stalin Gonzalez said Wednesday that the agreement would allow Maduro "to cling to power".

The Government deal with fringe opposition parties is clearly aimed at trying to sideline Guaido, by flooding his power base with pro-Maduro members.

In a defiant move on Tuesday, the National Assembly confirmed Guaido as its leader. (AFP)

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THURsDAY, september 19, 2019

Regional

Independent Cuban Journalists petition 200 Bahamians arrive against increased Government repression in Florida fleeing

A

group of 55 independent Journalists, bloggers and activists in Communist-run Cuba launched a petition this week denouncing increased media repression and calling for guarantees for press freedom.

Nearly 900 people have so far signed the petition published on Tuesday that also warns of another Government crackdown like the 2003 “Black Spring” when 75 dissidents, including 29 Journalists, were

jailed.

The Cuban State has a monopoly on traditional media, but independent journalism has flourished online in recent years in tandem with the expansion of Internet access.

Authorities have mostly tolerated these outlets, which exist in a grey legal

Original signers include Yoani Sanchez, a well-known dissident blogger and Director of the news outlet 14ymedio

space, although they have

blocked several websites.

Reporters say they have also faced harassment that has picked up of late.

This includes short-term detentions, raids on homes, confiscation of equipment, interrogations, bans on leaving the country, defamation campaigns, hacking of personal accounts and intimidation of family and friends.

“Physical, juridical and psychological repression has increased,” reads the petition, published on the online campaigns group Avaaz.

Original signers include Yoani Sanchez, a well-known dissident blogger and director of the news outlet 14ymedio and Carlos Manuel Alvarez, a writer and editor of the more recently launched narrative journalism website El Estornudo.

They call for “the cessation of repression against those who exercise freedoms of the press and expression in Cuba” and “the establishment of legal guarantees to exercise them”. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Maduro left Norwegian mediators in the dark about side deal – Venezuela Opposition negotiator

V

enezuelan President Nicolás Maduro did not inform Norway’s Foreign Ministry, which is mediating a dialogue between his Government and Opposition Leader Juan Guaidó, about a side deal with a smaller sector of the Opposition before it was announced earlier this week, a member of Guaidó’s negotiating team said on Wednesday.

Guaidó, leader of the Opposition-controlled National Assembly, over the

weekend declared the Oslobacked talks dead more than six weeks after Maduro walked away in protest over US sanctions. The Opposition said the Government had no interest in discussing their main priority: a new election.

The Government responded on Monday by announcing a deal with smaller Opposition parties to resolve the South American country’s deep political divide by reforming the National Electoral Commission, ac-

cused of bias in favour of the ruling socialists. That deal was not backed by Guaidó’s allies.

“The Norwegians had no idea what was happening,” Gerardo Blyde, one of Guaidó’s representatives to the talks, said in an interview. “There is bad faith on Maduro’s part. He was playing on two fields. When it became difficult for him he secretly created another option.”

Neither Venezuela’s

Information Ministry nor Norway’s Foreign Ministry immediately responded to requests for comment.

Venezuela’s political crisis deepened in January when Guaidó invoked the Constitution to declare himself President, arguing Maduro’s May 2018 re-election was illegitimate. He has since been recognised as the rightful leader by more than 50 countries, including the United States. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Marielle Franco murder: 5 accused of obstructing case

B

razil’s top Prosecutor has accused five people of trying to obstruct the investigation into the murder of a prominent politician last year. Two court officials and two Police Officers are among those named by Prosecutor General Raquel Dodge.

Marielle Franco and her driver were shot dead in Rio de Janeiro, an event that ignited mass protests.

The crime is believed to have been orchestrated by a criminal network, but no clear motive has been established.

In March, two former Police Officers were arrested in connection with the murders.

Marielle Franco was an outspoken councillor in Rio de Janeiro

Franco, an outspoken councillor, had been critical of the Police’s often deadly raids in densely populated shantytowns, or favelas, and denounced paramilitary groups run by retired and off-duty Police known as milícias.

On her last day in office

on Tuesday, the Prosecutor General said federal agents should take over the case to prevent interference in the investigation, which is being carried out by Rio civil Police.

Dodge, who left office after a two-year term, said

she had ordered the indictment on obstruction of justice charges of: Domingos Brazão, a former state legislator and adviser at Rio state’s audit court, as well as Gilberto Ribeiro da Costa, his subordinate; Federal Police Officer Hélio Khristian Cunha de Almeida and Rio military Police Officer Rodrigo Jorge Ferreira; and Camila Moreira Lima Nogueira, a lawyer.

According to Dodge, the accused tried to prevent investigators from identifying those who had ordered the crime, and fed the Police false information to derail the case.

Brazão denied the allegations while the other accused could not be immediately reached for comment. (Excerpt from

BBC News)

Ecuador abortion: National Assembly rejects easing law in rape cases

E

cuador’s Parliament has rejected a controversial bill to allow abortion in cases of rape, a proposal that exposed divisions in the traditionally Catholic country.

Supporters of the reform pointed to what they say is an epidemic of rapes of girls and underage pregnancies.

Some opposed it on religious grounds saying innocent lives would be at risk.

Abortion is allowed only after the rape of a woman with a mental disability or

Pro-choice activists say there is an epidemic of rape of girls and underage pregnancies

when the mother’s life is in danger.

The proposal, which would also decriminalise abortion in cases of foetal abnormalities, fell five votes short of the 70 required for its approval at the National Assembly. Fifty-nine members were against it and six refrained from voting.

The current abortion laws have been in place since 1938, and women undergoing terminations face up to two years in jail. (Excerpt

from BBC News)

Dorian’s devastation

I

n the second mass arrival by cruise ship, more than 200 Bahamians whose homes were destroyed by Hurricane Dorian have arrived in Florida, the Associated Press reported.

It was reported that more than 850 Bahamian evacuees arrived September 7 after the storm ravaged the islands of Grand Bahama and Abaco.

“US authorities asked companies to contact Bahamian officials to screen passengers who don’t have

US visas. A ferry company last week asked passengers without visas to disembark in Freeport, forcing 119 people out of the boat,” the news agency reported.

According to the AP report, the Bahamians who arrived Wednesday from Freeport say they will temporarily stay with relatives or friends before travelling back. The Grand Celebration ship required evacuees pay US$49 per person and provide a US address.

St Vincent Govt resists legal challenge to law

T

he Government of St Vincent and the Grenadines has assigned Karen DuncanGonsalves, a senior litigation person in the Attorney General’s Chamber to respond to the legal challenge to the nation’s buggery law, scheduled to be heard in court on Wednesday.

Counsel Jomo Thomas, whose chamber filed the legal challenge, told CMC News on Tuesday that Wednesday’s hearing would be for case management as the court is not returning from its annual vacation.

Responding to questions at a press conference on Tuesday, Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves, who is also Minister of Legal Affairs, noted that the nation’s buggery and indecency laws date back to its colonial past.

Gonsalves, who is also a lawyer, further pointed out that once a law is passed, it

is presumed to be constitutional until it is overturned.

“So I suspect that the Attorney General will seek to help the court with all of those technical, legal issues. It is not a combative thing…,” he said.

Gonsalves said he has not instructed the Attorney General Jaundy Martin “to fight to the death A, B, or C points”.

“That’s not my role. The court has to be helped for the court, in its own judgement, to come to a conclusion,” he said.

In July, Javin Johnson, 22, successfully claimed asylum in the United Kingdom and Sean Macleish, 53, a Vincentian resident in Chicago, Illinois in the United States, filed court proceedings to challenge the country’s buggery and gross indecency laws, which criminalise homosexuality. (Excerpt from CMC)

Trinidad: Ministry takes action against ‘abusive’ teacher

T

he Standard Five teacher accused of verbally degrading and abusing students of the Tranquillity Government Primary School has been removed from the classroom.

This was confirmed

by Education Minister Anthony Garcia following a meeting at the school Wednesday morning.

Garcia made the impromptu decision to meet with the school’s administration after several voice recordings of the teacher were made by students and shared with their parents as to the level of abuse being meted out by the teacher.

Accompanied by the Chief Education Officer Harrilal Seecharan, Permanent Secretary Lenore Baptiste-Simmons, Advisor Cheryl Ann Wilkinson and other officials –- Garcia admitted they were “very disturbed and very concerned” after learning of the issues affecting the school.

Garcia said the fate of the teacher, who was informed by way of letter not to report for duty, now lay in the hands of the Teaching Service Commission, who would have to pronounce on what the outcome would be. (Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

guyanatimesgy.com

thursday, september 19, 2019

Around the World

Saudi Arabia oil attacks: Weapons debris “proves Iran behind them”

S

audi Arabia’s Defence Ministry has shown off what it says is wreckage of drones and cruise missiles that proves Iranian involvement in weekend attacks on two oil facilities.

It said 18 drones and seven cruise missiles were fired from a direction that ruled out Yemen as a source.

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi rebels had said they were behind the attacks.

Iran has denied any involvement and warned it would retaliate against any attack that targeted it.

The US has stood by its accusation that Iran was behind the attacks.

Secretary of State Mike

17

Pompeo said after arriving in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday that it was an “act of war”.

The evidence was presented at a Defence Ministry press briefing, where debris from the drone (unmanned aerial vehicle –UAV) and missile attacks was laid out.

Defence Ministry spokesman Colonel Turki al-Malki said the evidence showed the attacks were launched from the north and were “unquestionably sponsored by Iran”.

However, Colonel Malki said the Saudis were still “working to know exactly the launch point”.

Among the debris was what was said to be a del-

Saudi Arabia says the direction of the strikes showed the missiles could not have come from Yemen

ta wing of an Iranian UAV. Colonel Malki said: “Data recovered from the computers [on the UAV] shows it’s Iranian.”

He said that 18 UAVs had been fired at the

Abqaiq oil facility and seven cruise missiles had been launched at both targets.

Four cruise missiles struck the Khurais oilfield and the other three fell short of Abqaiq. (Excerpt from BBC News)

UN Security Council to vote on call for Idlib truce, Russia likely to oppose – diplomats

T

he United Nations Security Council is due to vote today on a draft resolution calling for a truce in northwest Syria, though diplomats said the measure was likely to be opposed by veto-power Russia.

Syria’s north-west corner, including the Idlib region, is the last major chunk of territory still in rebel hands after more than eight years of war. In that time, Russia has vetoed a dozen draft Security Council resolutions to protect its ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Experts from the Council’s 15 members have met three times to negotiate on the latest text drafted by Kuwait, Germany, and Belgium last month. A resolution needs nine votes and no vetoes by Russia, China, France, Britain or the United States to pass.

Russia’s UN mission did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the draft resolution.

Assad’s forces, backed

by Russian air power, have been waging a five-month long offensive in the Idlib region. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Liberia school fire leaves many US Congress to advance “Hong Kong Human Rights children dead near Monrovia and Democracy” bill

A

t least 27 people, many of them children, have been killed in a fire at a boarding school in a suburb of the Liberian capital Monrovia.

The fire is believed to have broken out in the early hours of the morning, when Koranic school students were sleeping in a building near their mosque.

Police have told the BBC they are still looking

Crowds of people gathered near the school on Wednesday

for bodies in the building, in the Paynesville area.

President George Weah has visited the scene and

expressed his condolences.

Police spokesman Moses Carter told Reuters news agency that the fire was caused by an electrical problem, but investigations are continuing.

Eyewitness Pastor Emmanuel Herbert told the BBC that he woke up to sounds of the fire and raised the alarm.

“When I looked through the window, I saw the whole place blazing with fire,” he told the BBC.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

US President Donald Trump has named a new national security adviser to replace John Bolton

R

obert O’Brien has had a long career in foreign policy working for both main US parties and currently heads hostage negotiations at the State Department.

He is Trump’s fourth national security adviser.

As top adviser on national security, O’Brien will be tasked with tackling everything from immigration policy to heightened tensions with Iran.

The President and his

new appointee spoke with reporters on Wednesday morning in Los Angeles.

“Robert has been fantastic,” Trump said, praising O’Brien’s work with hostages. “We know each other well.”

O’Brien said it was a “privilege” to take on the role.

“We’ve got a number of challenges, but there’s a great team in place,” he said. “I look forward to working with them and working

U

Kashmir is a bilateral matter under the terms of the Simla Agreement of 1972.

But Guterres said that he would continue to advocate for a settlement of the Kashmir dispute.

He was answering a question from a Pakistani Journalist on what he could do to resolve the Kashmir dispute and about his reaction to the clampdown in Kashmir after India rescinded its special constitutional status last month.

“I go on with a clear opin-

Rights and Democracy Act of 2019”.

The activists have spent much of this week in Washington making their case for US support, including testifying at a congressional hearing on Tuesday.

“Democrats and Republicans in the House and the Senate enthusiastically support this legislation,” Pelosi said.

Leaders of the House Foreign Affairs Committee said the committee was due to mark up – debate and vote on – the bill next week. It is expected to pass, which would send it for a vote by the full House. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Israeli voters deliver deadlock, Netanyahu’s tenure in doubt President Donald Trump and new national security adviser Robert O’Brien

with the President to keep America safe and continue

to rebuild our military.” (Excerpt

from BBC News)

UN Secretary General rules out direct involvement in Kashmir

nited Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday ruled out any direct involvement in resolving the Kashmir issue unless both India and Pakistan agreed to it.

At a news conference at the UN, he said that his capacity for helping resolve the situation “is related to good offices and good offices can only be implemented when the parties accept it”.

His statement was in line with India’s position that

U

S congressional committees are due to start voting next week on legislation supporting human rights in Hong Kong, with measures under consideration including annual reviews of the Chinese territory’s special economic status and the imposition of sanctions on those who undermine its autonomy.

House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi held a news conference on Wednesday with House members – Republicans and her fellow Democrats – as well as Joshua Wong, Denise Ho and other Hong Kong democracy activists to back the “Hong Kong Human

UN Secretary General António Guterres attends a press briefing to mark the opening of the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly at the UN, September 18 in New York. (Timothy A Clary/AFP/Getty Images)

ion that human rights must be fully respected in the territory,” he said.

He said his capacity to find a solution to the IndiaPakistan dispute “relates to advocacy.”

“Advocacy was expressed and will be maintained” on the issue, he said.

“I go on with the clear opinion that dialogue between India and Pakistan is an absolutely essential element for the solution of the problem,” he added. (India West)

I

sraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to win a ruling majority in an election that produced a virtual tie between his right-wing bloc and a centre-left grouping that would be led by former military chief Benny Gantz.

The outcome, according to almost complete results published on Wednesday, dealt a new blow to Israel’s longest-serving leader, who was already weakened by the inability to put together an administration after an inconclusive election in April.

But with coalition-building again key to forming a government, it could be days or even weeks before it becomes clear whether the wily politician hailed by support-

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

ers as “King Bibi” has been dethroned after a decade in power.

The campaigns run

by Netanyahu and Gantz pointed to only narrow differences on many important issues, and an end to the Netanyahu era would be unlikely to bring about significant changes in policy on relations with the United States, the regional struggle against Iran, or the Palestinian conflict.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

18

guyanatimesgy.com

thursday, september 19, 2019

ARCHIE

ARIES

(March 21April 19)

dilbert

Peanuts

Calvin and Hobbes

SUDOKU

Not everything will go as planned. Be on guard and ready to make adjustments to keep the momentum going and your destination in sight. Romance will ease stress.

TAURUS (April 20May 20)

You’ll see a situation differently if you listen to someone else’s perspective.

Complete what you start and move on to what you really want to do. Visit a place that encourages you to reflect.

GEMINI (May 21June 20)

Go somewhere conducive to relaxation and contemplation. Personal improvement, health, diet and exercise should be priorities. Don’t give in to pressure.

CANCER (June 21July 22)

Set a goal and stick to it.

If you want to help, make sure you get something in return that will help you excel as well.

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

You’ll get a fresh perspective if you visit an old friend or relative, or attend a reunion. Making personal gains and improvements should be your priority.

Listen and learn.

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

Make a lifestyle change that will help eliminate stress. Take a serious look at what’s important to you and make adjustments to suit your needs. Don’t give in or give up.

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Don’t leave anything undone. Being fully prepared will ease stress and encourage you to stop procrastinating and make a decision that can improve your life.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Stay focused and do your own thing. Team up with people who have as much to offer as you. If someone is holding you back, you should reassess the relationship.

Don’t take action based SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23on what someone else does Dec. 21) or tells you. Find out firsthand what’s going on and how to best use your time and skills to your benefit.

Romance is encouraged.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

yesterday’s Word –

solution for LAST PUBLISHED puzzle AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 19)

PISCES (Feb. 20March 20)

Look over your personal documents, finances and medical concerns. Having information at your fingertips will help when you discuss important issues. A change is overdue.

Consider what’s best for you and put your ideas and plans in motion. Taking care of yourself should be your first priority. If you negotiate, you will get what you want.

Finish what you start, live up to your promises and take a moment to consider how you want to move forward. It’s time to put your needs first. Pampering is encouraged.

Thursday, september 19, 2019

19

India take 1-0 lead after resounding win

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fter the dampener in Dharamsala, it was all too easy for India in Mohali. Only once have India failed down to chase a score that's shy of 150 while playing a T20I at home.

Wednesday wasn't going to be an anomaly as India strolled past 150 in 19 overs with seven wickets in hand, and exposed some of the very visible frailties of the South African line-up as the hosts took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. Deepak Chahar was India's star –ending with 4-0-22-2 – but the Indian bowlers were aided by South Africa's inability to kick on.

It was all Quinton de Kock at the start as the South Africa Captain put the bowlers under pressure despite the loss of Reeza Hendricks.

South Africa moved to 39 for the loss of a wicket in the powerplay as Temba Bavuma settled in. De Kock kept the runs flowing and had 33 off the first 39. Bavuma finally broke free in the eighth over with a six against

SCOREBOARD

Hardik Pandya, but it was more of a false alarm.

De Kock registered a 35ball half-century, but failed to kick on. When the Captain was dismissed – caught towards the left of mid-on – South Africa had 88 on the board in the 12th over. The onus then moved to Bavuma to provide the i m p e t u s .

Rassie van der Dussen was caught and bowled by Ravindra Jadeja and that didn't h e l p

Quinton de Kock

Virat Kohli

Bavuma. He consumed 43 balls for his 49 as the noose kept tightening. South Africa kept hoping for a late push, but David Miller's 15-ball 18 and Bavuma only kept delaying it. There was no final

flourish, but there were two sixes in the last over that did give South Africa something they could work with.

In the chase, India got off to a fast start – smashing 30 in the first three. Shikhar Dhawan slapped Kagiso Rabada to the deep point fence before Rohit Sharma climbed onto Anrich Nortje.

The pacer fed Rohit juicy back-of-length balls and had to bear the brunt. The first one was sent over midwicket with a front-foot pull while

South Africa Innings RR Hendricks c Washington Sundar b Chahar 6 Q de Kock (c) † c Kohli b Saini 52 T Bavuma c Jadeja b Chahar 49 HE van der Dussen c & b Jadeja 1 DA Miller b HH Pandya 18 D Pretorius not out 10 AL Phehlukwayo not out 8 Extras 5 (lb 5) TOTAL 149/5 (20 Overs, RR: 7.45) Did not bat: BC Fortuin, K Rabada, A Nortje, T Shamsi Fall of wickets: 1-31 (Reeza Hendricks, 3.5 ov), 2-88 (Quinton de Kock, 11.2 ov), 3-90 (Rassie van der Dussen, 12.1 ov), 4-126 (Temba Bavuma, 17.1 ov), 5-129 (David Miller, 18.1 ov) BOWLING O M R W Washington Sundar 3 0 19 0 DL Chahar 4 0 22 2 NA Saini 4 0 34 1 RA Jadeja 4 0 31 1 HH Pandya 4 0 31 1

the second one went sailing over fine leg even before the opener completed his swivel.

Rohit fell for 12 –- trapped lbw by Andile Phehlukwayo –- but his innings had 10 dot balls. The first break came in the fourth over, but the visitors failed to smash the door open. Dhawan and Virat Kohli collaborated to score 61 for the second wicket and drove the chase forward.

It wasn't all doom and gloom for South Africa as

KH Pandya 1 0 7 0 • India Innings (target: 150 runs from 20 overs) RG Sharma lbw b Phehlukwayo 12 S Dhawan c Miller b Shamsi 40 V Kohli (c) not out 72 RR Pant † c Shamsi b Fortuin 4 SS Iyer not out 16 Extras 7 (lb 2, w 5) TOTAL 151/3 (19 Overs, RR: 7.94) Yet to bat: HH Pandya, RA Jadeja, KH Pandya, Washington Sundar, DL Chahar, NA Saini Fall of wickets: 1-33 (Rohit Sharma, 3.5 ov), 2-94 (Shikhar Dhawan, 11.4 ov), 3-104 (Rishabh Pant, 13.4 ov) BOWLING O M R W K Rabada 3 0 24 0 A Nortje 3 0 27 0 AL Phehlukwayo 3 0 20 1 D Pretorius 3 0 27 0 T Shamsi 3 0 19 1 BC Fortuin 4 0 32 1

Miller plucked a one-handed stunner at long-on to end Dhawan's innings of 40 off 31, but the wicket came a tad too late. The equation came down to 45 in the last six overs and it was all too routine for the India Captain. Kohli completed his half-century off 40 balls and ended unbeaten on 72 to power India home. He also became India's leading run-scorer in T20Is going past Rohit Sharma. (cricbuzz)

Stephen Curry: Playing in 2020 Tokyo Olympics “is the plan, for sure” Victor Lindelof: Man Utd

S

tephen Curry plans to make his Olympics debut for the United States in Tokyo next year.

The Golden State Warriors star revealed he had designs on the 2020 Games, which is good news for the USA after the nation's seventhplace finish at the recent FIBA World Cup. "That is the plan, for sure," Curry said in an interview with ESPN. "You know, obviously knock on wood, you don't want any injuries or things like that to interfere."

Curry played for Team USA in the 2010 and 2014 FIBA World Cup tournaments, winning the title both times, but this would be his first Olympics appearance. "[I] definitely want to go," said Curry.

"I've never been on the Olympic team. I've been on two World Cup championship gold-medal teams. But the Olympics is the experience that I want. And next year will hopefully be it."

While Curry is the first NBA star to commit to the squad, Warriors teammate Draymond Green told CNBC last week that he also hoped to play.

Meanwhile, LeBron James told The Athletic in April that playing for Team USA in 2020 could happen.

A USA squad shorn of their best talents due to a plethora of withdrawals produced their worst showing at a World Cup. Curry, though, is understandably confident USA can reassert their dominance at the Olympics if their big names do decide to play.

"We're still the best," said the 31-year-old. "If we get the guys that are supposed to be there, in terms of, you know, representing us on the Olympic stage and the commitment's been there, and I think it'll be there next year." (Sportsmax)

defender signs deal to 2024 with option for further year

M

anchester United defender Victor Lindelof has signed a new contract through to the summer of 2024, with the option of a further year.

The Sweden international, 25, has made 74 appearances for the club since joining from Benfica for £31 million in June 2017.

"Since the day I arrived at United, it has felt like home," said Lindelof.

"I've grown significantly both as a player and as a person in the last two years."

Lindelof has started every game for United so far this season alongside £80 million summer signing Harry Maguire.

He is the second Manchester United player to commit his future to the club this week after goalkeeper David de Gea signed a new deal on Monday.

"I know that everyone at the club shares this vision and will give everything to get Manchester United back to where it belongs," added

Victor Lindelof, pictured with boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, joined Manchester United from Benfica in June 2017

Lindelof, who began his career at Swedish club Vasteras before moving to Benfica in 2011.

"I'm still young and know I can improve further, but with the help of the boss and his coaching staff, I believe that only good things are ahead for this great club."

United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said: "Victor has established himself here and has become a very important

part of our team. He brings calmness on the pitch and I can see that he is determined to help this club and to be successful here.

"I'm extremely happy that he has committed his future to Manchester United. We're all looking forward to working together to deliver the success and get United back to where we know the club belongs." (BBC Sport)

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Thursday, september 19, 2019

Olympiacos 2-2 Tottenham: Spurs collapse as Valbuena leads deserved comeback

T

ottenham threw away a 2-0 lead to draw 2-2 at Olympiacos in their opening match of this season’s Champions League.

Last term’s beaten finalists were two goals to the good after half an hour in Athens thanks to Harry Kane’s penalty and Lucas Moura’s excellent finish.

Mathieu Valbuena was the catalyst for a deserved Olympiacos comeback, though, setting up Daniel Podence for a goal on his debut in the competition before burying a penalty 54 minutes in.

Olympiacos seemed to target Davinson Sanchez at right-back in the early stages and one such attack led to Guerrero rattling the base of the left-hand post with a shot from just inside the area.

The home side were certainly the stronger until Kane fired a spot-kick high into Jose Sa’s net, having been tripped by Yassine Meriah as he worked his way into the box.

There was another blow to Olympiacos four minutes later, as Ben Davies stole back the ball in their half and fed Lucas, who lashed a shot beyond Sa from the edge of the area.

Pedro Martins’ side grabbed a lifeline before the break, though, Podence exchanging passes with Valbuena and firing past Hugo Lloris’ right hand.

Spurs were then punished again when some slack play from Christian Eriksen led to Jan Vertonghen standing on Valbuena’s foot, allowing the French midfielder to send Lloris the wrong way from the spot.

Dele Alli was denied by the legs of Sa, who also kept out an effort from Erik Lamela, as Spurs failed in a late push for a winner, meaning they still have not won back-to-back away matches in Europe’s elite competition.

What does it mean? Spurs frailties a growing concern The problems in Mauricio Pochettino’s defence were apparent last term even as Spurs reached the final – indeed, they have now conceded 20 goals since the start of last season’s competition, more than any other team.

While most would still expect them to progress from Group B, this was a stark reminder of Spurs’ fallibility at the back. They might not have merited a 2-0 lead after 30 minutes, but a team of their standing should certainly not have surrendered it so meekly.

Olympiacos dance to Valbuena’s tune Valbuena set up Olympiacos’ first goal and won and converted their penalty, capping a fine display in which he largely dictated the pace of the game.

Eriksen a shadow of himself When Spurs threw away a two-goal advantage at Arsenal this month, it was a result that did not do Eriksen’s excellent display justice. On this occasion, he summed up Spurs’ frailties completely, offering next to nothing in attack and conceding possession in the build-up to Valbuena’s penalty.

What’s next?

Spurs – who face Leicester City in the Premier League on Saturday – play their second group game at home to Bayern Munich on October 1, when Olympiacos head to Red Star Belgrade.

Geraint Thomas named in GB Road World Championships Team

Geraint Thomas (right) finished runner-up to Ineos teammate Egan Bernal in the Tour de France in July

F

ormer Tour de France winner Geraint Thomas will ride for Great Britain at the UCI Road World Championships in Yorkshire, to run from September 22-29.

The Welshman, 33, will compete in the time trial and road race at the event.

Joining him in the time trial on September 25 will be national champion Alex Dowsett, while Ben Swift is also in the road race team four days later.

Owain Doull, Tao Geoghegan Hart, Ian Stannard and Adam Yates have also made final selection for the team.

Doull and Geoghegan Hart both rode for Team Ineos at the Vuelta a

Thomas won the Tour de France in 2018, but this year was beaten 1. Alex Dowsett (30, Essex)

by Ineos team-mate Egan Bernal, 2. Geraint Thomas (33, Cardiff) who will not be competing at the 3. Elite Men’s Road Race Championships.

4. Owain Doull (26, Cardiff) British Cycling’s elite men’s 5. Tao Geoghegan Hart (24, London) road coach Matt Brammeier said: 6. Ian Stannard (32, Chelmsford) “We have such a talent pool of elite 7. Ben Swift (31, Yorkshire) men’s road riders in this coun8. Geraint Thomas (33, Cardiff) try that final selection was quite 9. Adam Yates (27, Bury) tricky, even though the course is so challenging.

“Having just finished the Tour of Espana, which finished last Sunday.

Britain with the Great Britain cycling The women’s team were named team, I was once again blown away by last week and include former world champion Lizzie Deignan and sisters the level of support we receive out on Alice and Hannah Barnes, the nation- the roads and I know we are all lookal road and time trial champions re- ing forward to experiencing that again in Yorkshire next week.” (BBC Sport) spectively.

GB Elite Men’s Time Trial

Next Gen & HJ Entertainment’s “Not In My House”

Top fights on card

By Timothy Jaikarran

I

t all goes down on Saturday, September 28 at D’Urban Park in Georgetown, when Next Gen Global Marketing and Hits & Jams Entertainment present “Not In My House” – an event featuring more than 50 rounds of top quality boxing, which is scheduled to commence at 18:30h.

The main event of the night will see Dexter Marques battling Jose Antonio Jimenez from Colombia, who has 21 fights to his name.

According to Marques, he is grateful that he has received an opportunity to showcase his talent. He relayed that he would be aiming to redeem himself on the 28th as there will be a lot of war. He noted that a few years ago he lost his fight to a Colombian and this time around, things will be different as he aims to demolish Jimenez.

The fight card for the night will see: - Bout #1 (Catchweight – 6 rounds) Kwesi Jones v Edmond Declou - Bout #2 (Junior Edmond Declou Welterweight – will be hoping to 4 rounds) Joel exact revenge on Williamson v Keeve Kwesi Jones Allicock Bout #3 (Middleweight – 4 rounds) Patrick Boston v Bryan Cuvero (USA) - Bout #4 (Welterweight – 4 rounds) Anson Green v Raymond Wilburg (USA) - Bout #5 (Light Heavyweight – 6 rounds) James Moore v James Walcott - Bout #6 (Flyweight – 10 rounds) Dexter Marques v Jose Antonio Jimenez (Colombia) Added to the card will be a female contest of Pearline Lochan taking on Sharon Warde. Further, Patrick Boston will battle Duel Augustin.

There will also be an after-party powered by Boom FM and HJ Entertainment Guyana Carnival.

Complimentary tickets are available at Hits & Jams Entertainment’s main office, New Trend Auto, and sponsors that will be announced shortly.

Dexter Marques will be headlining the night’s event

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thursday, september 19, 2019

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spirituality & ASTROLOGY

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Heritage Day set to commence tomorrow O

ne year has officially passed since the hosting of the last Heritage Games, and once again the anticipation has begun to build as thousands of Indigenous people will gather from every corner of Guyana to compete in the 2019 edition of the competition tomorrow at the Everest Cricket Club located on Camp Road.

This year’s sporting activities and family fun day will be held under the theme, “Maintaining our Traditional Practices while promoting a Green Economy”. The day’s activities will commence at 10:00h and conclude on Sunday, September 22.

The swimming competition will be held at the National Aquatic Centre at Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown.

The three days of power-packed activities will showcase preliminary matches in cricket, foot-

ball, volleyball, archery and swimming on Friday and Saturday, paving the way for the finals on Sunday. The Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Ministry is expecting that more than

al cash prizes and trophies will be up for the taking.

Other novelty activities set to be part of the day’s action are piwari-drinking, hot tuma pot-eating, firewood bursting competition,

Mabaruma were the 2018 male volleyball champions

Laluni were the new 2018 male cricket champions

600 sportsmen and women hailing from Indigenous villages across Guyana’s 10 regions will be competing in the Games, and sever-

lime-and-spoon race, and other novelty games.

The event will be one to watch as most villages have almost complet-

ed the hosting of their regional playoffs. Fans will be able to see their defending champions return while new faces will be set to appear and as expected, cause major upsets to occur.

The celebration of Amerindian Heritage Day marks the day when Stephen Campbell became the first Indigenous

Member of Parliament in Guyana on September 10, 1957. In 1995, September was officially designated Amerindian Heritage Month. The opening ceremony is held on the first day of September and the festive celebrations take place in a “Heritage Village”, that is selected annually.

BCB/Let’s Bet 100 Balls…

2nd Cyril Bonar Memorial T20 Cricket Competition…

P

14-man squad

East Bank Blazers upset Tucber Park A Rising Stars announce hilburt Wilburgh’s brilliant innings of 69 led the East Bank Blazers to a 4-wicket win against Tucber Park A at Sister Ground on the East Bank of Berbice, on Sunday last.

Chasing 112 for victory in the 100-ball contest, Wilburgh, a hard-hitting officer, struck four sixes and six fours to lead the Blazers to victory.

He was supported by Carl Campbell, who hit two sixes in his cameo innings of 18 as East Bank Blazers ended victorious on 1136 in 15 overs. Bowling for Tucber Park, former national youth pacer

Nial Smith

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The Rising Stars team

By Timothy Jaikarran

F Flashback! Philburt Wilburgh receiving a trophy from Coach Winston Smith (left)

Nial Smith grabbed 4-11 in four overs of high-quality fast bowling. Orlando Tanner and off-spinner Kwesi Mickle had one wicket each for Tucber Park A. Earlier, Tucber Park posted 111 all out, losing wickets early in their innings; former Berbice Under-19 opener Malcolm Mickle went for three. The aggressive Martin Singh smashed two sixes in his innings of 16, but the middle order stumbled. At 26-2, Tucber Park A further slumped to 68-6. In the process, they lost Guyana Under-19 batsman Garfield Benjamin (09), Clifton Lindie (00), Smith (06) and

Kwesi Mickle (04) for single digits.

Tanner, however, hit some big shots in his top score of 29, which was decorated with two fours and two sixes. Joel Davis hit two sixes in his brief knock of 16 while Nicholas Veren made 12 runs, which included one six and a consolation four. Luke Wilson was the star with the ball for East Bank Blazers with 3-12 in three good overs while Jomal Chisholm, Osman Gilead and Devon Lewis had two wickets each for 12 runs.

The second round of matches for the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) 100 Balls tournament will continue on Sunday, September 29, 2019.

(Brandon Corlette)

or the first time ever, the Rising Stars cricket team will be participating in the Cyril Bonar Memorial T20 Cricket Competition, to be held at the DR Snelle Park in Paramaribo, Suriname on September 27, 28 and 30.

Captain Elroy Fernandes is optimistic about his side’s performance.

The matches will commence on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 09:30h to 19:00h daily and admission is free of cost. Some of the teams participating are defending champions Spartan CC out of Suriname; UG Trojans, Guyana Eagles CC, Satro CC, and Rising Stars CC all out of Guyana.

Speaking with Guyana Times Sport, Fernandes said, “We are representing the West Demerara; of course, we will be disciplined when we head out to the competition as we want to represent Guyana with pride. This will give us an opportunity to showcase our

skills, because it has always been my dream as the skipper to see our team recognised on a higher level and that alone has been a challenge. We have the talent, so it is just for us to have the opportunity to showcase it. I believe that if we win this competition, it will give us the opportunity to travel to other Caribbean countries and play against their top teams. Such opportunities would mean selection for our young players, as it would provide the necessary opportunities for our youths to be selected and make a living for themselves.

So, that is why I am certain that we have what it takes to win the competition.”

The 14-man squad reads: Elroy Fernandes (C); Marvin Cheong (VC); Travis Cato; Nikosi Major; Michael Richardson; Shane Persaud; Anthony Smith; Yogendra Singh; Dhanraj Singh; Romel Zamal; Anand Bharat; Chris Louis; Chris Naipaul; Shaquille Brisport and Beepaul Bandoo.

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thursday, september 19, 2019

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

Guyana on track for increased CPL economic impact

By Jemima Holmes

S

ince its inception in 2013, the “Biggest Party in Sport” – the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) has proven to be more than just cricket and a great party.

From laying a platform to propel Caribbean players, especially Guyanese, to a higher level, to creating a forum for younger players to showcase their skills, the Hero CPL is impactful in many more areas than just the gentleman’s game.

In fact, the CPL has created a formidable platform for host countries to bring in revenue that would otherwise not have been made.

With the inclusion of tourists, sold-out venues, staffing, media coverage and exposure, the CPL has been racking up millions, as it relates to the economic impact on Guyana. With three games in four days left to be played in Guyana, the question that is being asked: is whether CPL will surpass its economic impact of past years?

In 2017, CPL had a US$95,122,465 impact on the Caribbean region, as it operated in six host nations. The mammoth figure had been an 84 per cent increase since its 2014 season.

When the microscope was focused on Guyana, an economic impact of US$14 million or 2.8 billion Guyana dollars was realised. The figure usually includes organiser spend, visitor spend and media value.

While the numbers seemed surreal in 2017, the following CPL season had greater things in store for the Land of Many Waters. In 2018, CPL for the first time had surpassed $100 million, recording a total of US$127,355,010. However, Guyana had seen a US$25,515,816 economic impact, which was an 80 per cent increase on

the figure registered in 2017.

Zeroing in on organiser spend, Hero CPL had an expenditure of US$1.29 million in Guyana, over the seven games played. This figure boasted a significant increase as compared to the organiser spend for 2017 when CPL expended US$978,000.

While the figure seemed to amaze many, it was highly likely that Guyana would see a vast increase, given the fact that the National Stadium, Providence had, for the first time, taken on the hosting of the first two play-off games for 2018. To make the situation better, the country’s local franchise, the Guyana Amazon Warriors had qualified in the top two, paving the way for yet another massive crowd at Providence. In addition, 468 jobs were created and 7654 hotel rooms were booked for the 2018 CPL season.

As it appears, CPL is only getting better and better in Guyana. Not only does the Guyana Amazon Warriors remain one of the most consistent teams in the tournament, but one other factor that always remains consistent is the fan support in Guyana. In fact, this was one of the main reasons why CPL chose Guyana as the play-off hosts in 2018 and owing to the fact that fans turned up in their numbers and supported last year, CPL had no trouble in deciding the hosts of the 2019 double-header play-offs.

Looking at 2019, the Warriors have played their part in ensuring that Guyana’s economic impact soars once again. The Warriors have already won their first three games at home in front of a ‘packed to capacity’ Providence Stadium. To this end, fans are left wanting more

The fans at the National Stadium, Providence contribute greatly to Guyana’s earnings

of the Warriors’ brilliance, and with the GAW vs Trinbago Knight Riders match on October 4 closely approaching sold-out status (The grass mound and orange stand, are already sold out), there is no doubt that the Warriors have already made their contributions.

When it comes to tourists, Guyana’s two airports, the Cheddi Jagan International and the EF Correia International, are expecting an influx of tourists as they not only come to watch cricket at one of the most electric venues in the Caribbean, but enjoy all the sights and events that Guyana has to offer. With the Tourism Authority working hard, this is one sector that will boom when the teams circle back to Guyana.

As mentioned before, Guyana has already secured the play-off double-header, which will

go down at Providence on Sunday, October 6.

With an enticing ‘2 for one’ offer, this additional event will also positively influence Guyana’s economic impact once again. After all, with the Trinbago Knight Riders and Amazon Warriors already tipped to settle in the top four once again, fans from all across the Caribbean will be eager to watch the top four clash.

In addition to all the larger sectors that directly influence the economic impact on Guyana, the small businesses are also known to benefit from the tourists and ‘party atmosphere’ that the CPL brings.

While Guyana may not see another 80 per cent increase in CPL’s impact, one thing that is for sure is that the Land of Many Waters will be one of the front runners as compared to Caribbean counterparts.

Lewis and Khan guilty of 17th annual Victor Macedo code of conduct breach cycling set for Sunday L T eft-handed opening batsman Evin Lewis was fined 100 per cent of his match fee while fast bowler Ali Khan was fined 75 per cent of his match fee.

During Match 14 of the 2019 Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL), both Lewis of the St Kitts & Nevis Patriots and Khan of Trinbago Knight Riders were charged by the on-field umpires with breaching Article 2.2.4 of

the Code of Conduct - Inappropriate and deliberate physical contact between players in the course of play.

The incident occurred following the third ball of the Super Over being bowled

by Khan. Both players pleaded guilty to the charge and accepted the sanctions imposed

by Match Referee Simon Taufel, which are in keeping with the sanctioning guidelines provided for, for such breaches, at Article 7.3 of the Code. (CPL)

Ali Khan Evin Lewis

he William Howardled Flying Stars Cycling Club will host the 17th annual Victor Macedo Memorial Cycle Race on Sunday, September 22.

The race, which will attract all the top cyclists in the country, will pedal off at the outer circuit of the National Park.

It will begin in front of the big tree on Vlissengen Road near the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) onto Carifesta Avenue into Camp Street and onto Thomas Lands before going into Vlissengen Road for the finish. The event is 30 laps which are equivalent to 120 kilometres or 74.56 miles.

A total of 10 primes will be up for grabs and the top six cyclists in the open category will be awarded.

In the other categories: the veteran top three cyclists will receive awards as well as the mountain bikers.

With Briton John in red-hot form on the highways winning two races in two days during the last weekend.

He won the race at the inner circuit at the National Park and followed up with a win in Berbice. The likes of Jamaul John, Michael Anthony, Paul DeNobrega, and Berbice boys Andre Green and Romello Crawford will be looking to bring their A game.

Deeraj Gharbharan has also been in top gear along

Curtis Dey will be seeking to retain his Victor Macedo title (Brandon Corlette photos)

with Marcus Keiler, who will also pose a threat for the top spot. In the 2018 event, which was held along the Homestretch to the Highway route, Curtis “Chappy” Dey

won after dominating the open category. Veteran Ian Jackson won the vets category while Jude Bentley was the mountain bike champion.

guyanatimesgy.com

thursday, september 19, 2019

GAW make it 5 in 5!

T

he Guyana Amazon Warriors (GAW) produced a record-breaking effort, not only scoring their highest total in Hero Caribbean Premier League history, but making it five wins in as many matches. Jamaica Tallawahs are the latest victims suffering an 81-run defeat to the GAW. With dew expected to play a factor in the latter part of the match, Tallawahs won the toss and asked GAW to bat first. In the second over of the match, that decision looked a good one for the hosts, Tallawahs, when Englishman Jade Dernbach rushed Chandrapaul Hemraj with a short ball and sent him into the dressing room for a golden duck.

At 5-1, fortunes changed as Brandon King introduced himself on home soil while Shimron Hetmyer played some outrageous shots at the other end. The dynamic duo ensured GAW reached 52-1 in the power play. After adding

two sixes.

Captain Malik began his innings with a bang, smashing Smith for four through point while the gracious King developed the habit of smashing consecutive sixes.

King smoked Zair Khan for consecutive maximums in the 10th over as GAW moved on to 97-2 at the half-way stage.

The elegant right-handed King reached his half-century in style, cross batting Smith into cow-corner and capping off the bowler’s spell with a six over long-off.

Tallawahs displayed some sloppy fielding, but the right bowling change at the right time got them the prized scalp of King, who was dismissed

by Ramaal Lewis for 59 from 37 balls. King, who played an early pull and found Chadwick Walton at long-on, hit six maximums and four boundaries. Nicholas Pooran partnered his captain

that point, Malik was motoring nicely, picking boundaries and maintaining a calm head. At 170-4 in 16.3 overs, Sherfane Rutherford came with the intention to light up the skies at Sabina Park with some big hits. On his second ball, his old Guyana Jaguars team-mate, Lewis dropped a skier.

Rutherford immediately made them pay, smashing Dernbach for consecutive sixes. His innings of 15 from six ended when he found Smith at fine leg.

ꟷ Malik, King, Paul, Tahir star

their 20 overs. Malik remained unbeaten on 67 from 37 balls as GAW posted their highest total in CPL history. Tallawahs bowlers leaked 45 runs in the last 18 balls; Dernbach and Russell had two wickets in the run-fest.

In reply, Tallawahs were pegged back by the GAW spinners, with the score a t 40-2 in the power play. Imran Tahir began his run for the real estate with two big wickets, removing Gayle for seven and Walton for 15.

Javelle Glen came and went for four while George Worker departed for a duck. During some brilliant bowling, only Glenn Phillips (40) and the aggressive Andre Russell (40) offered some resistance.

All hope went down when Paul took three wickets in one over; at 13.1 overs, Phillips departed; 13.3, Smith was out and at 13.5 overs, Lewis departed. The GAW looked a complete team and completed the win with ease, bowling out Tallawahs for 137.

3

SCOREBOARD

GAW Innings BA King c Walton b Lewis 59 C Hemraj c Glen b Dernbach 0 SO Hetmyer b Smith 44 Shoaib Malik (c) not out 67 N Pooran † c †Phillips b Russell

20 SE Rutherford c Smith b Dernbach 15 KMA Paul c †Phillips b Russell 5 CJ Green not out 0 Extras 8 (nb 2, w 6) TOTAL 218/6 (20 Overs, RR: 10.9) Did not bat: Qais Ahmad, Imran Tahir, OF Smith Fall of wickets: 1-5 (Chandrapaul Hemraj, 1.1 ov), 2-74 (Shimron Hetmyer, 8.1 ov), 3-117 (Brandon King, 12.2 ov), 4-170 (Nicholas Pooran, 16.3 ov), 5-190 (Sherfane Rutherford, 17.5 ov), 6-212 (Keemo Paul, 19.4 ov) BOWLING O M R W O Thomas 4 0 58 0 JW Dernbach 4 0 50 2 AD Russell 4 0 35 2 DR Smith 4 0 32 1 Zahir Khan 2 0 26 0 RA Lewis 2 0 17 1 Tallawahs Innings CH Gayle c Hemraj b Imran Tahir 7 GD Phillips † c †Pooran b Paul 40

CAK Walton (c) c Qais Ahmad b Imran Tahir 15 J Glen c Shoaib Malik b Green 4 GH Worker c King b Qais Ahmad 0 AD Russell c Shoaib Malik b Smith 40 DR Smith c Rutherford b Paul 6 RA Lewis c †Pooran b Paul 1 JW Dernbach c Hetmyer b Qais Ahmad 12 Zahir Khan run out (Shoaib Malik) 0 O Thomas not out 2 Extras 10 (lb 1, nb 3, w 6) TOTAL 137 all out (17.3 Overs, RR: 7.82) Fall of wickets: 1-12 (Chris Gayle, 1.3 ov), 2-34 (Chadwick Walton, 3.5 ov), 3-42 (Javelle Glen, 6.4 ov), 4-51 (George Worker, 7.6 ov), 5-111 (Andre Russell, 12.4 ov), 6-118 (Glenn Phillips, 13.1 ov), 7-119 (Dwayne Smith, 13.3 ov), 8-119 (Ramaal Lewis, 13.5 ov), 9-120 (Zahir Khan, 14.4 ov), 10-137 (Jade Dernbach, 17.3 ov) BOWLING O M R W CJ Green 4 0 30 1 Imran Tahir 4 0 21 2 Qais Ahmad 3.3 0 32 2 KMA Paul 3 0 34 3 OF Smith 2 0 14 1 Shoaib Malik 1 0 5 0

Brandon King on the charge

Shimron Hetmyer looked explosive during a promising innings (CPL /Getty images)

69 runs for the second wicket, Hetmyer departed when Dwayne Smith, who got the ball to talk, shattered Hetmyer’s woodwork. Hetmyer scored a promising 44 from 25 balls which included six fours and

and the duo continued the brisk scoring.

Malik playing a special innings, watched Pooran hit two sixes in his 11-ball 20, but Andre Russell’s extra pace saw Pooran getting a top edge. At

Captain Malik held the innings together and raced away to his fifty with a streaky boundary. Keemo Paul, who was dropped by Chris Gayle, hit one four but he scored only five.

Malik finished in finesse with a boundary to square leg as GAW ended on 218-6 in

Andre Russell took two wickets and scored 40 runs with the bat

GFF makes youth tournament reports available online I

n a bid to promote accountability and transparency on its part, the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) has made the reports for its youth tournaments public online.

The key tournaments – the National U-15, U-17 and U-20, which serve to inform the GFF’s Youth Development Strategy – have been executed with support from long-standing partners Pele Alumni; National Milling Company (NAMILCO) and new partner Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC).

The reports, among others, capture the tournaments executed – participating Regional Member Associations, teams,

match fixtures and results, goal scorers, highlights as well as challenges. However, owing to partner confidentiality agreements, the financial information is not included.

GFF President Wayne Forde said the release of the reports is now part of the Standing Operating Procedure (SoP) of the Federation.

“The Executive Committee has always emphasised transparency and accountability as part of its key values and this extends to the operations of the Secretariat. The release of the reports of some of our most critical tournaments is now part of our SoP as we recognise that football, as much as it is

23

ours, is also part of the public good,” he explained. “It will afford, among others, the nation to understand the achievements and challenges of football administration, the opportunities which await their engagement, and track the development of our most important resources and talent from as early as possible, so we can have maximum involvement for the good of the game.”

Forde added that reports of national and international tournaments will also be part of the GFF’s SoP and made public.

The reports are available on the GFF’s website via the following link https://www. guyanafootball.org/youth-tournaments/

GFF President Wayne Forde

thursday, september 19, 2019

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

guyanatimesgy.com

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GAW make it 5 in 5! ꟷ Malik, King, Paul, Tahir star

Page 22

Guyana on track for increased CPL economic impact

Page 22

17th annual Victor Macedo Cycling set for Sunday

Briton John will be aiming to extend his supreme form

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