Guyana Times Wednesday January 22, 2020 NEW

GNBS, GRA scrutinised oil lift – Energy Department …as 1M barrels of oil depart Guyana for US P9 Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

Issue No. 4173

THE BEACON OF TRUTH WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

PRICE

General and Regional Elections

GECOM making over 91,000 changes to RLE outside statutory period Page 3

…deliberate ploy to create confusion – PPP/C’s Chief Scrutineer False declaration

Shuman, Bandhu, Leung thrown off candidate lists by GECOM Page 7

…signed statutory form while still being dual citizens

$80 VAT INCLUDED

WHAT'S INSIDE:

6-year-old P10 allegedly raped by grandfather P13 Garbage collector crushed to death P14 GECOM Commissioners in Canada to oversee ballot printing ...Govt Minister admits to meeting with same company

President completes medical evaluation P12

P12 Over 200 students caught loitering at minibus parks

PPP/C Presidential Candidate Irfaan Ali on Tuesday in discussion with a resident of Nappi Village, Rupununi, Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) during his visit to the region. There, the villagers raised several concerns while echoing their commitment to the PPP/C

Page 13

Major fraud Jet unearthed at skiing CH&PA trip turns

…former employee, 4 others detained – Crime Chief

Page 15

deadly …1 dead

Specialty Hospital Project to be restarted under new PPP/C Govt – Dr Anthony P11

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

NEWS

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS

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

Wednesday, January 22 – 03:30h – 05:00h and 14:30h – 16:00h and Thursday, January 23 – 04:30h – 06:00h and 14:30h – 16:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Wednesday, January 22 – 14:55h – 16:25h and Thursday, January 23 – 15:35h – 17:05h.

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

WEATHER TODAY Sunshine is expected throughout the day.

There will be clear skies at night. Temperatures should range between 19 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius.

Winds: North-Easterly to East North-Easterly between 1.34 metres and 4.47 metres.

High Tide: 02:39h and 14:53h reaching maximum heights of 2.31 metres and 2.46 metres.

Low Tide: 08:25h and 20:59h reaching minimum heights of 0.91 metre and 0.73 metre.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 18, 2020

LOTTERY NUMBERS K

03 08 09

11 15 27

FREE TICKET

6 Bonus Ball

TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2020

DAILY MILLIONS

01 02 04 19 21 LUCKY 3

1

5

0

7

Afternoon Draw

5

0

Evening Draw

DRAW DE LINE

02

07

09

10

PAY DAY

05 10 12 13 14

12 13 18 SUPER PAY DAY

08 10 12 13 15

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

General and Regional Elections

GECOM making over 91,000 changes to RLE outside statutory period

…deliberate ploy to create confusion – PPP/C’s Chief Scrutineer

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uyana Elections C o m m i s s i o n ( G E C O M ) dropped a bombshell on both its Opposition and Government-nominated Commissioners on Tuesday, when the Secretariat informed them that over 91,000 changes are being made to the Revised List of Electors (RLE).

Speaking with Guyana Times on the matter, Opposition-nominated Commissioner, Robeson Benn said that the announcement came as a complete shock and “so it is a very unhappy situation”.

“Over 91,000 names, I am calling them names because they said there are changes and so to me, a change relates to a name. So the presumed addition of these changes/names is that it would be occurring outside of the statutory period for which such changes could be made for addition to the Official List of Electors,” Benn told this publication.

He added that as a Commissioner, he along with his fellow Commissioners were told that within the period there were some changes to be made and that the Chief Elections Officer as Commissioner of Registration could make changes. “…our understanding that was that would have been a relatively small number of changes. We subsequently heard that the changes underway amounted to some 10,000 and we were concerned then but then thought that it would be to tidy up and that would be the end of the matter – meaning simple name changes – though they kept saying changes of addresses,” Benn said.

He said, however, that at Tuesday’s statutory meeting, the situation took a drastic turn when they were blindsided with what he described as an “impossible number”.

“But then today we got hit with what I would think is an impossible number to contemplate, in that over 91,000 changes – in our view names – are being made to the list of persons to be added to the Official List of Electors. Our understanding is a simple rough calculation would suggest that it affects about 25 per cent or so of the total list of electors.

In addition that fact that we were not told the enormity of this exercise – what it all entails and the fact that the stakeholders themselves were not informed of the extent of this activity is viewed with alarm and suspicion,” Benn stated.

GECOM Commissioner Robeson Benn

GECOM Chair Retired Justice Claudette Singh

PPP/C’s Chief Scrutineer Zulfikar Mustapha

He added that there is deep concern about what is occurring both at the Commissioners and at the party (People’s Progressive Party/Civic) levels.

According to Benn, the problem is what the PPP/C has always warned about - ie the use of House-to-House Registration data.

“I myself had said today (Tuesday) that all the changes which are contemplated – the names of the persons, their ID numbers, their addresses – should be published in the national newspapers (advertised) and also posted at the registration offices. This suggestion was not taken up,” Benn said.

“I believe that the number of changes will be more than 91,000 and the problem is that it has the great potential of creating confusion on Elections Day, that

is you may turn up at a polling station and discover that where you thought you had to vote, you may be in some other place where you may not be able to get to on Elections Day.” He stated that a complete list of all the changes is expected to be sent to the GECOM Commissioners today.

if this is a deliberate ploy by the Secretariat to effect these changes,” Mustapha said. According to him, this can lead to the issue of persons not finding their names in the respective areas/divisions.

“This is very dangerous and the international community plus those observers that are in the country should take note and examine this…because this is very serious. This is the last minute leading up to election and if these changes are made wholesale like that then it will affect thousands of persons who will not be able to vote on Election Day because they may not be able to find their particulars at the correct division.”

Mustapha is calling on the Chair of GECOM, retired Justice Claudette Singh to address this matter frontally.

Deliberate ploy

Meanwhile, speaking with Guyana Times, PPP/C’s Chief Scrutineer, Zulfikar Mustapha said that the international community should take note of this occurrence at GECOM. “This is a deliberate ploy and will create a mass of confusion on Election Day. This confusion we had in 1990 when the entire list had to be scrapped and they had to do fresh House-to-House Registration. So it seems as

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guyanatimesgy.com

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

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

CPL’s massive economic impact

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he Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) on Tuesday announced that the tournament, which was hosted between September 4 and October 12, 2019, created a total economic impact of US$29,514,926 in Guyana. This represents a 15 per cent increase from previous years. A calculation is used every year by using organiser spend, visitor spend and media value and was collated for the tournament by world-renowned researchers, YouGov Sport. According to CPL, in addition to the economic impact figure, the tournament filled 7664 hotel rooms in Guyana, saw an increase in overall arrivals into the country during the period, and 608 jobs were created.

The CPL is a good example of the tremendous benefits that could be derived from a sporting event of that magnitude. Guyana, through the CPL, has benefited significantly from sports tourism since the inception of the tournament. The games’ economic impact locally has been both direct and indirect. With five group games and two playoff matches taking place in Guyana during 2019, the CPL was correct in its assessment that the fans were treated to seven fantastic cricket matches with their team once again making the final.

Guyana’s National Stadium at Providence saw sold-out audiences for home games and this is what CPL has come to represent as it continues to bring people from all backgrounds together in a national demonstration of unity for a common cause. As was stated previously, a mere glance at any given moment during a game at Providence could question the existence of the national crisis which had dominated the news in months leading up to the tournament. Partisanship seemed abandoned as camaraderie and unbridled support once again took over. This is how it has been since the CPL commenced in 2013 and the organisers and franchises must be commended and encouraged to continue providing the opportunities to help unify. With a sea of colours from the waving flags of Guyana’s home team – Amazon Warriors – and that of the country, accompanied by the blaring rhythmic music often drowned out by the collective deafening screams of fans, the positive influence of the of cricket through the CPL is pellucid.

The power of the game to affect the bypassing of differences and for rallying in unison for a common cause is never in doubt. Of course, naturally, there would have been disappointment over the Warriors not yet claiming the title. However, that has never prevented the overwhelming support local fans have given the team with Guyana probably the highest fan turn out for the tournament.

The Providence Stadium, which has proven its worth over the years, will once again burst into life as cricket superstars from across the globe battle for supremacy.

Guyana will once again be in the international spotlight as millions will join the global live broadcast from the East Bank corridor. The benefits of such international exposure are priceless as are those that redound to the local economy from the hosting of CPL games. Cricket has always been seen as a unifying force across the region. Here at home, CPL and the exciting exploits of the Guyana Amazon Warriors have created a formidable platform for the furtherance of that process. Guyana must, therefore, capitalise on the economic successes of CPL and work towards further developing sports tourism in general. The tournament has provided stakeholders here a perfect opportunity to create a sustained sports tourism initiative. What the Hero CPL Chief Operating Officer, Pete Russell said about Guyana on Tuesday was profound. He said: “There is nothing like watching cricket in Guyana, and we were so pleased with how welcome we were made once again”. That speaks to the true Guyanese spirit!

Chinese Wudang wushu group members perform a traditional Kung Fu show to celebrate the Chinese spring festival at the Royal Cultural Centre in Amman, Jordan. (Reuters/Muhammad Hamed)

Sobers using his office to issue numerous threats to media

Dear Editor, Leslie Sobers works for General Secretary of the Ministry of the Presidency, Joseph Harmon’s law firm; he is also Chairman of the Guyana National Broadcasting Authority.

There is nothing illegal about this arrangement and even the ethical questions could be overcome by integrity of character, sadly, Sobers has failed to act with the impartiality his office at the GNBA requires and has taken to a social media platform (Facebook) to engage in political spats and denigrating posts about the Leader of the Opposition in the manner of an office boy in the aforementioned law firm.

Sobers is using his office to issue numerous threats to media that are friendly to the Opposition or unbiased in coverage of the upcoming elections. Head of the Special Investigative Unit of the GNBA is Joel Edmond, whose wife is a candidate on the APNU/AFC list. As with Sobers, integrity of character

could mitigate this obvious disqualifier; the insistence that David Granger cannot be described as a ‘charlatan’, a noun meaning a person falsely claiming to have a special knowledge or skill shows not only bias but inability to understand nuanced or diplomatic use of language, would they rather the use of synonyms such as ‘quack’ ‘sham’ ‘fake’ ‘fraud’? Sobers and Edmond are not the arbiters of morality they pretend to be and ‘frauds’ may well be applied as a descriptor of the duo who are unable to perform their duties of the office impartially. The Facebook posts of Sobers, in particular, are disturbing.

Sobers may plead the Imran Khan defence; I can recall an incident where the Director of Public Information posted a comment on his Facebook page (10.1.2018), questioning whether the Indian High Commission in Guyana was interfering in the country’s internal affairs and was attempting to engage in the destabilisation

of the coalition Government.

The Government had to issue all sorts of inane excuses to avoid a full-blown diplomatic incident and loss of an important development partner. Joel Edmond needs to acknowledge that his membership in the AFC and his wife’s presence on the APNU/AFC list disqualifies him from being the impartial arbiter his office demands and recuse himself or resign.

The Guyana Press Association can use the dictionary recently gifted to their President conveniently opened to the letter F and look up ‘fair’ and use that definition to call on Sobers to behave impartially; Transparency InternationalGuyana need not be silent until the boat goes over the falls and speak up for the values the organisation represents.

The international community is well represented and respected, a public word of advice would do wonders for the morale of the oppressed and almost certainly cause an adjustment of attitude from

Sobers and Edmond.

There are only six weeks before the General and Regional Elections on March 2; it would be a crying shame if partisan behaviour by Sobers were to cause interference in the freedom of the press at such a crucial time. Institutions have not fared well under the Granger Administration, the trials and tribulations at GECOM have left a crisis of confidence in it as a credible body to conduct free and fair elections. The fate of the GNBA now rests on another political appointee entrusted with an office that demands the highest levels of impartiality and good judgment; the social media fights and statements made by Sobers do not engender confidence that he can be an impartial arbiter; for the sake of the nation and a free and fair election, Sobers needs to find that neutral gear and engage it quickly.

Respectfully, Robin Singh

GFC’s hurried allocation of State forest will be a national environmental disaster

Dear Editor, It was widely reported in the print and online media as well as on GFC’s website that the GFC Board is planning to allocate or reallocate a significant tract of State forest previously held

by Baishanlin and Barama.

This is a significant development. Allocation of such large scale State forest presumably over one million acres a mere 40+ days before national elections looks premature and ill-advised if not foggy. Something does not augur and smell right about this transaction. Why wait

until the last days, when these lands as reported was repossessed some time ago.

Contrary to the GFC Board’s belief, the State forest is a national patrimony and belongs to all Guyanese and not to one group of stakeholder. In this day of climate change and the sensitivity of the environment to natural disaster, this seemingly hurried and reckless decision will have dire consequences on our environment. What has suddenly happened to the Green State Development Strategy and the Agreement

with Norway? The President has been on record to state that he was committing two millions acres of forest to Protected Areas or Conservation back in 2015.

Has this promise ever materialized? Why now instead of putting the forest to protection, the recently appointed Commissioner has decided to give large scale allocation for log production. Export of logs will no doubt skyrocket.

I am calling on all environmental groups, Norway, the EU, civil society and all local and international partners who have an interest

in the protection of the global environment to please do your bit to stop the GFC/ Board/Government to put on hold any large scale issuance of State forest. The recent forest and bush fires in Australia, Bolivia and California should serve as living examples of how vulnerable the environment is to natural disasters and thus, forest protection is a must, not an option.

Sincerely, Concerned environmentalist

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

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

Change must come from within Dear Editor, It is most painful to recall from our history the dark PNC era which made supporters of the People’s Progressive Party the target for blatant acts of aggression. The only fault of these people is that they are perceived to be supporters of the PPP and nothing else! Aggression are the trademarks of the PNC since its formation but it is unimaginable that the paraphernalia of the PPP is now being subjected to such blatant acts of violence and destruction in broad daylight. It leaves us to wonder what will happen as we advance closer to the elections and its aftermath. The incitement by the PNC leaders is once again taking centre stage.

It leaves us to wonder that after all the baptismal name changes that the PNC has gone through that yet it cannot project a clean, honest and dignified image to the populace, instead, its dirty image is now on social media for the world at large to witness. Why have the leaders of the PNC condone such barbaric acts in these civilised and modern times? Flags do not vote at elections, people do. Such vile and vulgar display by the PNC supporters are intolerable. You do not have to be a rocket scientist to know that the PNC leaders condone such behaviour and even encourage them.

For instance, the words of Volda Lawrence, Granger and Harmon immediately come to mind. This is not unlike the words of their past leaders such as Burnham and Hoyte.

The Chair of the PNC, Volda Lawrence urged supporters at the Kitty Market Square to be vigilant at the close of polls to guard against any interference during the counting of the ballots at the polling stations and “to remain until they get it right..our strong men will be mobilised to follow that ballot box”. Lawrence should be aware that from history, it is the PNC which has been guilty of stealing and tampering with ballot boxes and only one interpretation can be given to her exhortation. They are the ones who will be interfering. Why not urge them to go home after voting and

let the GECOM officials and our security forces do their jobs? They do not have to follow ballot boxes, it is the PNC who has been guilty of stealing and tampering with ballot boxes from 1968 to 1985! It would seem that Lawrence is once again encouraging such activities. It must be recalled that it is this same person who spewed racial rhetoric about jobs for the PNC people only. Dr Thomas of the TIGI had said that her behaviour needed to be arrested but it seems that after apologising she is involved in another detrimental ‘game of incitement’ which can encourage violence on Elections Day. Then Harmon did his own incitement of race and violence at Buxton labelling the Afro-Guyanese who supported the PPP/C as “Black tokenism”. It must be recalled that Buxton had seen many violent acts against PPP supporters in the form of ‘freedom fighters’ and such rhetoric can only ignite racial disharmony and clashes with Blacks who support the PPP/C. Moreover, in September last year, Granger had lied about PPP protesters attempted to overturn a Minister’s vehicle and referred to them as ‘hooligans’. Such lies again can result in violence against the PPP/C supporters, this strategy was used in the past to incite riots.

The police must do their jobs. Granger should know from experience and hooliganism and aggression belong to the PNC, he propagated and nurtured those under the PNC. Not to be outdone, Basil Williams made his ‘dire consequences’ threat. The PPP has always conducted peaceful and non-violent protests and has never been involved in electoral violence and fraud.

In summary, all the elections since 1992 have been marked by violent street protests and how can we ever forget Hoyte’s ‘march of defiance’ and his ‘slow fyah mo fyah’ slogan which he aimed at making the country ‘ungovernable’. Then Granger took over where Hoyte had left off and immediately the Agricola protest comes to mind which according to former President

Donald Ramotar, it was “well-planned and centrally directed violence against many innocent people”. I do not want to go back to the House of Israel and the infamous Rabbi Washington who wreaked havoc on behalf of the PNC during its 28 years of dictatorial rule.

History is replete with many instances of aggression and the resultant mayhem by the PNC and I am sure that we have not seen the end of those characteristics, they are brewing it again. Will this election be free from such aggression given the commencement of the destruction of the PPP/C’s paraphernalia? We can only hope that PPP/C’s prime ministerial candidate’s call for a peaceful election is heeded and that the PNC can follow suit.

Burnham had once said that “Those who call off the dogs own the dogs” and I do believe it’s still relevant today. Change must come from within!

Yours sincerely, Haseef Yusuf

No legacy!

Dear Editor, The PM of Antigua has taken the bold step and fired the country’s Agriculture Minister for “taking decisions inimical to good governance” (“Antiguan Agriculture Minister fired” GT Jan 21).

His many failed attempts for six months to get the Minister to step in line were futile.

One Government takes decisive action before its tenure is up, while another whose tenure is up, its Agriculture Minister decided he is finished with politics.

No legacy!

With regards, Shamshun Mohamed

Chairperson of GECOM should act decisively

Dear Editor, In an article captioned “Bring me the evidence” attributed to the Chairperson of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Justice (ret’d) Claudette Singh (Sunday Chronicle, January 19, 2020), it was stated that she said to date there is no evidence of persons registered during the House-to-House Registration are non-existent or do not live at the addresses listed. The article reported that the Chairperson stated that “them not being home, does not mean they do not exist” and was quoted as saying “We have no evidence that they do not live at the addresses which they gave”. The Chairperson further went on to challenge persons to prove that the Revised Voters’ List is flawed.

Well, here is the evidence (listed below) which proves that many persons on the Revised Voters’ List

are on empty lots and this is from only one Division – 412235B – Sugar Cane Fields, Peters Hall. This revelation may only be the tip of the iceberg and proves the folly of GECOM proceeding with the House-to-House Registration without scrutineers from the PPP/C, with the agenda of tampering with the list of electors for the rigging of elections.

Thousands of people have been demanding that the data for the House-toHouse Registration should not be incorporated into the RLE and these findings have shown they are vindicated. It is now up to the Chairperson of GECOM to act decisively.

Sincerely, S Baksh

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

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CONTINUED FROM MONDAY

Something that is useful to you

Extracurriculars are a great opportunity to learn a new skill and grow as a person. Sometimes, your participation might even spring from necessity. Perhaps you need to earn some spending money or contribute to your family’s finances. If that’s the case, you might need to get a job. Though you ultimately might not have many choices, try to find something that falls into at least one of the other categories on this list. Other extracurriculars can also be useful to you if you learn a new lifelong skill. Some examples of these could include a knitting club or a computer club.

Something that is useful to others

Finally, consider how your extracurricular activities might be a way to give back to those around you.

Even if you are not explicitly participating in a service project, many clubs find ways to incorporate a service element. Extracurriculars are ultimately a privilege. Not everyone can choose how they spend their time outside of school, and many students don’t have the means to participate in the activities they’d like. Keep this in mind as you select your extracurricular activities.

Is there a way to give back to your community? Some

Foundation

examples of extracurriculars that are useful to others include organising fundraisers for a specific cause, tutoring younger students, or volunteering as a youth sports coach.

If you can find an extracurricular activity that fits into several or even all of these categories, you will be off to a great start. Try to think outside the box – even self-led pastimes or hobbies can count as an extracurricular activity.

Keep in mind, though, that simply signing up and participating isn’t enough.

Most college admissions committees look to see sustained participation, ideally with increasing res p o n sibilit y a n d / o r

leadership.

Ultimately, you will need to be able to speak to how the activity has impacted

you as a person and as a student. Think critically about the role these activities will play in your life and try to imagine what you’ll have to say about the experience when you look back on it.

A few words of caution

First, do not get involved in an activity only because you think it will help your chances for admission to college. If you don’t have the intrinsic passion for it that other students do, your commitment will suffer. Not only that, but admissions committees are used to seeing this tactic again and again, and they don’t generally look fondly upon it. This strategy could definitely backfire.

N e x t ,

don’t get involved in too many activities. It can be tempting at first to get your feet wet in a little of every-

thing, but it’s easy to get overwhelmed. It doesn’t look good if you get in over your head and then have to drop out. Instead, show your maturity by selecting just a few activities to pursue.

Quality over quantity is always a good rule of thumb.

Lastly, be careful not to change your mind too many times. It’s possible that you might find an activity isn’t all you expected it to be, and if that’s the case, you’re probably justified in dropping out of it. But try to be more judicious in the future about choosing activities that you can stick with over a longer period of time.

A history of joining and then dropping out of activities may cause you to come across as flaky and noncommittal.

Try not to get overwhelmed by extracurricular activities. They should be enjoyable pursuits that you look forward to as a way to refresh, relax, or reconnect outside of your academic work. Try to find activities that you enjoy, that you care about, that challenge you, and that are useful to you or others in order to maximize what you get from the experience and capitalize on a finely-tuned extracurricular portfolio for your college applications. (Excerpt from blog.collegevine.com)

Should I go on a diet? Some people say I could lose weight, other people say I look good the way I am. But my best friend is always talking about her big hips and she’s a size smaller than me! What should I do?

– Evie*

F

riends, family, and even society can influence the way we see our bodies, leaving lots of people wondering if they should diet. But not all teens who diet actually need to lose weight. In fact, a constant focus on weight and dieting may lead to eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia.

The best thing to do if you have a question about dieting is to see your doctor. He or she can help you determine what’s a healthy weight for you. If needed, your doctor can refer you to a dietitian, who can design a healthy eating programme that works for you.

Even without your doctor, you can make smart food choices that keep you healthy. Substituting healthy foods for not-sohealthy ones and eating regular-sized portions is a good start.

Regular exercise can make you look and feel even better and help you maintain a healthy weight.

Weight loss is most likely to be successful when people change their habits, replacing old, unhealthy ones with new, healthy behaviours:

Exercise

Regular physical activity burns calories and builds muscle — both of which help you look and feel good and keep weight off.

Walking the family dog, cycling to school, and doing other things that increase your daily level of activity can all make a difference. If you want to burn more calories, increase the intensity of your workout and add some strength exercises to build muscle. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn, even when you aren’t exercising.

Reduce screen time

People who spend a lot of time in front of screens are more likely to be overweight. Set reasonable limits on the amount of time you spend watching TV, playing video games, and using computers, phones, and tablets not related to school work.

Be sure to set aside enough time to exercise every day and get enough sleep.

Watch out for portion distortion

Big portions pile on extra calories that cause weight gain.

Sugary beverages, such as sodas, juice drinks, and sports drinks, are empty calories that also contribute to obesity. So, choose smaller portions (or share restaurant portions) and go for water or low-fat milk instead of soda.

Eat 5 servings of fruits and veggies a day

Fruits and veggies are about more than just vitamins and minerals. They’re also packed with fibre, which means they fill you up. And when you fill up on fruits and veggies, you’re less likely to overeat.

Don’t skip breakfast

Breakfast kickstarts your metabolism, burning calories from the get-go and giving you energy to do more during the day.

People who skip breakfast often feel so hungry that they eat more later on. So, they get more calories than they would have if they ate breakfast. In fact, people who skip breakfast tend to have higher BMIs than people who eat breakfast.

Lifestyle changes like these can have lasting results — unlike the temporary results from going on a diet. *Names have been changed to protect user privacy. (kidshealth.org)

NEWS

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

False declaration

Shuman, Bandhu, Leung thrown off candidate lists by GECOM …signed statutory form while still dual citizens …Police contacted

T

he Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has rejected the presidential candidates of the Liberty and Justice Party (LJP), Lenox Shuman, and United Republic Party (URP), Dr Vishnu Bandhu, from the candidate list after they signed statutory declaration forms while still dual citizens.

This was revealed at the conclusion of GECOM’s statutory meeting on Tuesday, where GECOM Commissioner Bibi Shadick revealed that since they signed the statutory declaration forms on Nomination Day, they will be removed from the list. Also evicted from the candidate list for being a dual citizen was Dr Valerie Leung of the People’s Republican Party (PRP).

“The Commission’s decision was that Mr Bandhu, Mr Shuman and Ms De Jonge, their names have to be taken off those lists. Because when they put their names there they were all dual citizens.

Whatever happens after…

some correction will be made to that,” Shadick explained.

Bandhu had claimed that his relinquishment was processed and granted and had even provided a document titled ‘Certificate of loss of nationality of the United States’ from the US consulate dated January 16. Nomination Day was January 10. Shadick questioned the alacrity with which Bandhu was able to process his documents.

“So he says, but I don’t understand who applies and gets relinquishment (so soon).

He took the oath and he gave us a paper which says it was approved on (January) 16,” she said, adding that while the lists were approved and gazetted with the names of the dual citizens, this will have to be corrected.

Meanwhile, Governmentnominated Commissioner Vincent Alexander noted that notwithstanding Bandhu’s claims that he has since relinquished his citizenship, he was in breach of the requirements when he signed the statutory declaration form.

“The situation is that if someone did not make a proper, correct and authentic declaration and at the time of the declaration was in default, then the person is not eligible to be on the list.

That’s the principle.”

“If one is to apply to be on the candidate list and that application requires a declaration, I would assume that at the time of that declaration you have to be in compliance. And the fact of the matter is, from all evidence, at the time of the declaration Dr Bandhu was not in compliance.”

Alexander said that despite the removal of these particular candidates from the list, the entire list has sufficient numbers to allow it to be used. A National Top Up list must have a minimum of 42 candidates eligible to sit in the National Assembly.

In an interview with this publication on Monday, Bandhu had claimed that he made GECOM fully aware that he was a dual citizen and, moreover, he received

Thrown off: Former LJP Presidential Candidate Lenox Shuman

the approval of his candidate list from GECOM. Article 155 (1) of the Constitution of Guyana states: “No person shall be qualified for election as a member of the National Assembly who (a) is, by virtue of his own act, under any acknowledgement of allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign power or state.”

Section four of the Statutory Declaration Act, Chapter 5:09 states that

Evicted: Former PRP Candidate Dr Valerie Leung

Thrown off: Former URP Presidential Candidate Dr Vishnu Bandhu

“Everyone who makes a declaration according to this Act containing any statement false in fact, which he knows or believes to be false or does not believe to be true, shall be guilty of a misdemeanour and shall be liable to imprisonment for one year.”

When contacted on Tuesday evening about these new developments, Bandhu claimed to be in the dark about the GECOM decision.

At a press conference

on Saturday, Shuman had brushed off the fact that he signed the statutory form while still a Canadian citizen. According to him, he has already applied for relinquishment and is awaiting certain documents from the Canadian Government.

Asked what would happen if LJP won a seat in Parliament before his documents arrive, Shuman had said that the party could go on without him.

8 NEWS

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

IN THE COURTS

Sophia man slapped with ganja possession charge Undermining…

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37-year-old miner was on Tuesday arraigned for trafficking in narcotics when he appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Desmond Rigby of Sophia, Greater Georgetown appeared before Acting Chief Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus and denied the charge. He was report-

edly arrested on January 20, 2020, at Bartica, Region 7 (Cuyuni-Mazaruni).

The suspect told the court that he was imbibing at a popular shop and got into a scuffle with another man.

He added that he was arrested and taken to the station and the Police asked to conduct a search on his per-

son. He, nevertheless, accused that Police rank of planting the cannabis in his pockets.

Police Prosecutor Quinn Harris told the court that on the day in question, Rigby was arrested and taken to the station after someone had made an allegation against him.

A search was then con-

ducted on his person when the ganja was unearthed.

Rigby was released on $10,000 bail and is slated to make his next court appearance on January 29 at the Bartica Magistrate’s Court.

The accused was asked to report to Bartica Police Station every Monday until the determination of the matter.

Y

…our interests our Eyewitness was quite taken aback by Barbados PM Mia Mottley’s statement that the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was trying to “divide” Caricom by meeting only SOME members of the regional grouping.

Guyana was one of the notable members of the grouping not invited to the conclave in Jamaica – and this was confirmed

by Carl Greenidge, who’s now our “Foreign Secretary” after the musical chairs precipitated by his dual-citizen status.

The countries invited were Jamaica, Belize, St Kitts, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Bahamas, and St Lucia. DR, of course, is a member of CARIFORUM along with the other Caricom countries, and Greenidge had just returned from a CARIFORUM meeting. Hopefully, he would’ve been briefed on the background of the subsequent US meeting but Greenidge was yet quite sanguine with Mottley’s reaction about the effort to “divide”!!

And what WAS that background?? That’s not a secret… and could’ve been gleaned by just looking at Secretary Pompeo’s travel itinerary preceding the Jamaica meet: Venezuela, Venezuela and Venezuela. This was signalled, of course, by his meeting with Guaido in Columbia and OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro Lemes. Almagro has worked assiduously with the other members of the OAS to make the region return to democratic values – especially in Venezuela and more recently, Bolivia.

Pompeo’s address to the OAS spelt out explicitly what the US was seeking to achieve and he did two things that should matter to Guyana: he explicitly praised Almagro— who’s coming up for re-election to head the OAS: “Secretary Almagro is worthy of our respect and our admiration. The heroes in the Hall of the Americas would be proud of what he’s done. He is a true champion for freedom throughout our entire hemisphere.” And he mentioned the upcoming meeting in Jamaica: “I’ll then travel to Jamaica, a good friend of America. My team told me that would be a really tough duty. I’ll gather at an important meeting with many Caribbean leaders to discuss how we can all work together to promote our common democratic values and prosperity for all of our people”.

Mottley’s accusation, therefore, suggests that as Head of Caricom and as PM of Barbados, she doesn’t share the US approach to upholding democratic norms in our region??

Ron Saunders suggested that Caricom isn’t comfortable with Almagro’s “leadership style” and might not be supporting him. Is this “leadership style” complaint a code for Washington’s democratic policies? Does Greenidge’s agreement with Mottley go as far as opposing Almagro??

Your Eyewitness wonders whether Greenidge’s objection is really because the OAS will be fielding an observer team to our elections.

Is the PNC worried that the OAS and the US won’t put up with their rigging any longer?? …integrity The Ministry of the Presidency (MotP) vehemently (one might be tempted to say “violently”!) objected to former Min of Agri Ramsammy’s assertion that while Granger claims to be a paragon of honesty and integrity, “…they (the PNC MPs and Govt appointees) refuse to make integrity declarations, which is the law. A few months ago, David Granger said he was very busy and that is why he has not been able to adhere to the law”. In bold banner headlines, the Govt mouthpiece Chronic, screamed: “Presidency condemns Ramsammy”!!

It certainly looked like the President “protests too much”!!

Rather than addressing the gravamen of Ramsammy’s claim – no filing, the Presidency focused on the word “busy”: “at no time did the Head of State indicate that he was too busy to adhere to the Laws of Guyana”!! The Chronic repeated Granger’s statement on the issue back in MAY: “I have NOT submitted all of my declarations. [The documents] are taking some time. But I am in touch with (the Commission)”!!

But did he file? Where’s his integrity? …Guyana’s international capital Caricom was due to nominate this year’s Chair of G77 – the third world’s mouthpiece. Jamaica refused because they couldn’t justify the US$1million price tag.

So Guyana’s stuck with the post – and bill – to satisfy the PNC’s ego!!

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

NEWS

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

GNBS, GRA scrutinised oil lift – Energy Department ...as 1M barrels of oil depart Guyana for the US

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he first million barrels of Guyana’s oil has been lifted, loaded and has departed Guyana’s shores, with the Energy Department confirming that representatives of Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) and the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) were on hand to scrutinise the process.

In a statement on Tuesday, the Department of Energy announced that oil tanker MV Yannis departed for the US with Exxon’s share of the oil.

It had previously been announced that when oil production starts, the first lift would go to Exxon.

There had been concerns, however, as to who

The MV Yannis

2020, and all activities were executed as planned. The Guyana National Bureau of Standards is responsible for independently ensuring the accurate measure-

Guyana Revenue Authority

would observe the process to ensure Exxon took the right amount of oil.

The Energy Department confirmed in its release that the Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) independently verified the amounts.

“The GNBS has reported that the first offloading of crude oil on the FPSO commenced on the morning of Saturday, January 18,

ment of Guyana’s oil from the Stabroek Block,” the release said.

The Department also cited the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) for its role in the process. It added that moving forward, lifts are expected approximately every 10 to 12 days.

Guyana has an arrangement where its first three lifts will be sold to Shell.

“This first lift due to the

record set from discovery to production by the operator, sets Guyana firmly on its way to becoming one of the wealthiest countries on the globe per capita, according to many industry specialists,” the Department said.

“Already, the sector has witnessed foreign direct investment (FDI) in excess of US$500 million, the creation of over 1700 direct jobs, over 600 service providers, and the establishment of over 70 joint ventures, alliances and partnerships which continue to increase. Oil revenues from this venture alone are projected to realise approximately US$300 million in this first year and more than tripling over the next 5 years.”

The crude tanker was built in 2010. ExxonMobil’s Public and Government Affairs Advisor, Janelle Persaud had said on Friday that ExxonMobil will process the cargo in its own refining system as was previously announced.

On December 20, 2019, United States oil giant ExxonMobil announced the commenced production of Guyana’s oil in the

Stabroek Block, where 15 discoveries of crude in commercial quantities have been made since 2015.

In September 2019, the Liza Destiny floating production, storage and offloading vessel (FPSO) arrived in Guyana’s waters.

The vessel is a significant component of the Liza Phase One Development, which involves four undersea drill centres with 17 production wells.

Besides its production capacity of 120,000 barrels of oil per day, it also has an overall storage volume of 1.6 million barrels.

During normal operations, there will be at least 80 persons living and working onboard the vessel.

With the 120,000 barrels expected daily from

production in the Liza Phase One Development, it is estimated that Guyana will earn some US$300 million annually.

ExxonMobil had previously said there is potential for at least five FPSO vessels in the Stabroek Block, producing more than 750,000 barrels of oil per day by 2025. Liza Phase Two Development is expected to start-up by mid2022. It had been reported that the project would use the Liza Unity FPSO to produce up to 220,000 bar-

rels per day.

With Hess Guyana Exploration Ltd holding 30 per cent interest in the Stabroek Block, ExxonMobil’s affiliate, Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL) has 45 per cent interest and is also the operator of the 6.6 million acres block while CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of China’s state-owned CNOOC Limited, holds the remaining 25 per cent interest.

10 NEWS

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Elderly man allegedly 6-year-old girl allegedly raped by grandfather beaten over stolen – man released on station bail pending money dies probe S

eventy-two-year-old Ramsahoye Deochand, who was brutally beaten by his son’s employer and three others in the wee hours of Sunday last at his Strathspey, East Coast Demerara home succumbed to his injuries while receiving medical attention at the Georgetown Public Hospital.

This was confirmed by the man’s grandson, Randy Deochand, who confirmed that his grandfather took his last breath at about 01:00h on Tuesday morning.

It was reported that the now dead man’s son, while being employed at a business in Strathspey, ECD, reportedly stole an undisclosed sum of money and a gold chain belonging to the owner.

He was, however, confronted by the boss and others and was severely beaten. Ever since, he has gone into hiding, leaving his father at the mercy of the men.

However, at the home of the dead man on Tuesday, his wife, Farida Deochand, explained that on the night of the incident, she and her husband were awakened by sounds of breaking glass and as they went to investigate, they saw the four men throwing objects at the windows.

“They pelt the window, break it up, then they come in here, they break up here… the door only have one bolt and I put on an iron bar on the door. They come and they start to kick up the door shouting open the door, open the door. Well me in open no door, he come through the window and he open the door and they start beat up he father. I beg them and say you all don’t beat he because he ain't well”, she explained.

Gavin Ramsahoye, the man’s son, and Taijwattie Bhanwanie, along with their one-

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Dead: Ramsahoye Deochand

year-old baby were also at home at the time of the incident. They reside at the bottom flat of the house.

Farida also related that when she begged the men to have mercy on her sickly husband, they placed a gun to her head and instructed her to “shut up”.

“They tell me if me nah talk weh me son deh, they gon shoot meh and kill meh. I beg them, they slap me four slaps, they push me in meh bedroom and meh bend down and beg them not to beat me or beat meh husband anymore. They left and go away and meh call me son from downstairs. He left and get away, he left and go away and hide”, she said.

However, the now dead man suffered a stroke to the right side of his body seven years ago and could not move without the support of his family. He was beaten with a mop stick about his body and was hit to his head with an amplifier.

Meanwhile, the widow has confirmed that she has not seen or heard from her son, who is accused of stealing the items since he left home on January 15.

six-year-old girl is now traumatised and is receiving medical and psychological treatment after being allegedly raped by her maternal grandfather.

Based on reports received, the child and her younger brother were left with their grandparent at Mahaicony, Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice), after their father died about a year ago.

Police Commander of Region Five, Superintendent Yonette Stephen

Guyana Times understands that the 54-year-old man was looking at porn as he allegedly sexually assaulted the child.

According to information, it was a neighbour of the family that heard the child

The Child Care and Protection Agency

pleading with her grandfather to stop, who went to investigate. The woman, upon peeking through a window, caught the man in the act as the child cried bitterly. The neighbour, according to reports, contacted the police and the man was arrested.

The mother of the sixyear-old, who lives away from her children, reportedly received a telephone call from her mother notifying her that something was wrong with her child. She went to the house where she was briefed on the matter.

The child reportedly told her mother that the man had interfered with her multiple times.

This publication understands that a medical examination was conducted

on the six-year-old which proved that the child was molested.

When contacted, Police Commander of Region Five, Superintendent Yonette Stephen explained that a report was officially made to the police over the weekend.

She explained that the child’s grandfather was arrested but was released on station bail pending investigations.

The Commander noted that the probe is active and currently, the priority is to ensure that the child receives necessary counselling. The Child Care and Protection Agency (CCPA) has launched an investigation into the matter. The child is in the care of the CCPA.

11 Specialty Hospital Project to be restarted under new PPP/C Govt – Dr Anthony NEWS

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

C

iting the lack of specialty healthcare in Guyana, Dr Frank Anthony, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic point-person on health, says when the Party returns to power, it will re-

“We will return to one of the PPP/C’s flagship programmes and that is we are going to build a specialty hospital,” Dr Anthony declared to thousands of supporters.

The former Government

An artist’s impression of the scrapped specialty hospital

start the Specialty Hospital Project, which was scrapped by the current coalition Administration.

This commitment was made over the weekend during a rally at Damon’s Square at Anna Regina on the Essequibo Coast, Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam).

Minister was at the time reflecting on the state of the health sector in the country.

Dr Anthony, who was the Opposition’s Shadow Health Minister, referred to instances right on the Essequibo Coast when persons seeking medical attention at the hospitals had to wait long hours for treat-

ment.

In this regard, he slammed the David Granger-led A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government for not developing the sector, explaining that Guyana needed a healthcare system that was responsive to the population’s needs.

“We want a healthcare system that is responsive to our needs…we must feel confident that when we get sick that we can go to our hospitals and get the best care possible,” Dr Anthony posited.

The US$18 million Specialty Hospital Project, which was being funded by the India Export Import (EXIM) Bank via a line of credit (LOC), was dropped in 2016 after the contracted company, Fedders Lloyd Corporation Limited – which was handpicked by the coa-

lition Administration— was blacklisted by the World Bank until 2020 over fraud and corruption practices.

The Guyana Government subsequently announced that the Project was “dead”.

The Specialty Hospital Project started under the PPP/C Administration and back in 2012, the contract was awarded to Indiabased company Surendra Engineering Corporation Limited. However, citing instances of alleged fraud and delays, the Donald Ramotar Administration in 2014 announced that it had terminated the contract and filed a lawsuit against the company for failing to honour its obligations.

While in Opposition, both A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the Alliance For Change (AFC), before they collated, had opposed the US$18 million project and upon

Dr Frank Anthony speaking during the PPP/C’s rally at Anna Regina

their assumption to office in 2015, decided to scrap the project, which had already expended some US$4 million on preliminary works.

The coalition Government then approached India to divert the remaining US$13.8 million towards improv-

ing the country’s primary healthcare service by upgrading three public hospitals across the country.

Former Indian High Commissioner to Guyana, Venkatachalam Mahalingam had expressed disappointment in the scrapping of the project.

He had also posited that Guyana needed such a medical facility and the Indian Government would be open to the idea of restarting the project.

For the PPP/C, Dr Anthony assured that the Party has a plan to improve the health sector.

“We don’t want drug shortages; we want medicine in our health centres and hospitals; we want better labs, better diagnostic services … and when the PPP/C gets back, we will overhaul the entire system and make it work for you,” Dr Anthony said.

12 NEWS

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

President completes medical evaluation Over 200 students caught

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resident David Granger has completed his medical evaluation in Havana, Cuba.

Granger left for Cuba on Saturday last to undergo a follow-up medical evaluation by doctors at Centro de Investigaciones Medico Quirurgicas (Centre for Surgical Medical Research) CIMEQ. Granger was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, a type of cancer that develops in a network of vessels and glands spread

throughout the body. The announcement was made on November 14, 2018.

A statement from Guyana’s Embassy in Cuba on Tuesday stated that the team of Cuban medical specialists confirmed that the President’s medical examination shows that he has improved to the satisfaction of his doctors and that he is in good health. The President’s health has been an issue of concern following his diagnoses with cancer in 2018.

“The specialists iterated that the President responded very well to the treatment at CIMEQ in Cuba and that the Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

and stems amounting to 223 grams.

The team of policemen then went to the home of a 45-year-old miner of Tabatinga, Central Lethem, and conducted a search on

his person and found nine zip lock bags with 11 grams of cannabis.

In addition, the ranks conducted searches on two occupants of a bus on the main road in the vicinity of

President David Granger

remains in remission,” the statement said.

Granger is expected in Guyana today.

Last October, almost one year after being diagnosed with cancer, Granger was said to be in remission. At that time, medical specialists expressed complete satisfaction with the state of the President’s health. In complete remission, all signs and symptoms of cancer disappear, although cancer still may be in the body.

loitering at minibus parks

Chief Schools Welfare Officer Gillian Vyphius picking up school children on the Sophia/Kitty Minibus Park

T 4 nabbed with ganja in separate raids

F

our persons were arrested on Tuesday after Police conducted searches in several parts on Police Division Nine (Lethem) which unearthed 4876 grams of ganja.

Based on reports received, at about 05:30h, a party of policemen went to the residence of a 25-yearold miner of Beverly Hills Drive and conducted a search at his home and found 16 zip lock bags and two plastic bags containing a quantity of leaves, seeds

Manari, Lethem.

A 20-year-old labourer of Hope, West Enmore, East Coast Demerara, was arrested after 435 grams of ganja was found in his possession. The cannabis was concealed in a black plastic bag.

Finally, a labourer of West Ruimveldt Housing Scheme, Georgetown, was also nabbed with 4207 grams of ganja. The four men were arrested and are assisting with the investigations.

he Education Ministry’s Welfare Department on Tuesday morning swooped down at several minibus parks around the city, where over 200 children who were caught loitering.

Chief Schools Welfare Officer at the Education Ministry, Gillian Vyphius, told this publication that a decision was made to carry out a truancy campaign after it was reported that students are loitering on the minibus parks instead of heading to school.

“Well, this morning (Tuesday) we had a truancy campaign because we found that most mornings, children are going to school late.

The Welfare Department is really in charge of punctuality so we are out here to ensure that children get to school on time,” she said.

She said the aim was to get the students to school and in a timely manner.

“What we did was to round up children who were loitering, children who were actually late and stepping.

We round them up and ensure that they enter a bus to go to school.”

She added that loitering seems to be a norm for students. “…And based on feedback that we got from members of the community, we find that some children need to stay back late, that they are not interested. We are here to see that they go to school.”

She said that parents should encourage their children to attend school and check on their punctuality.

“Without education, you cannot move forward in life,” she expressed.

Meanwhile, Vyphius said that if a child is found to be late every day or very often then the Education Ministry will take necessary actions to deal with the situation from a parental level.

“If we find that a specific child is being late on a daily basis, we will try to get that child to the nearest school to which they are living. We find that there are children living on the West Coast and they are coming to school in Georgetown so we are going to look into it and transfer them to the nearest school that they can reach to school on time,” the officer said.

NEWS

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Major fraud unearthed at CH&PA …former employee, 4 others detained – Crime Chief

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former staff attached to the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA), as well as several civilians are currently being grilled by the Police after major fraud was uncovered at the Authority.

According to a statement from the CH&PA, the staff – who this publication understands from sources is female – was immediately fired after several discrepancies were uncovered by the agency.

“Immediate steps were taken to have the staff relieved of duties with immediate effect to facilitate the investigation. At this juncture, the agency will not be providing any further information on the matter, to not prejudice the investigation,” CH&PA said.

“In the interim, the agency will be making all necessary information needed by the Guyana Police Force

next two years or so but this would not significantly reduce the numbers. For us to make a significant impact on that number, we need to make available an average of four to 5000 solutions

The Central Housing and Planning Authority

available to ensure that justice is served. The Central Housing and Planning Authority again reiterates its zero-tolerance policy on any form of corruption and misuse of public funds.”

Reliable sources have meanwhile informed this publication that the alleged fraud was in connection with the selling of lands to persons outside of the regular channels.

Crime Chief Michael Kingston, when contacted by this publication, confirmed

that the former staffer and several persons are indeed in Police custody assisting them with their probe. He took care to stress that those detained are not staff of the Ministry of CH&PA. Last year, CH&PA had confirmed it was grappling with a backlog of in excess of 25,000 active applications in the system. According to CEO Lelon Saul, they are currently working to reduce the backlog.

“We will be developing several areas over the

Garbage collector crushed to death by disposal truck

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garbage collector was crushed to death on Tuesday by the very truck on which he was working.

Dead is 54-year-old Chatterpaul Kabir.

Reports are at about 10:45h on Tuesday, Kabir and his co-workers were working at Covent Garden, East Bank Demerara (EBD) when the incident occurred.

This newspaper was told that the dead man’s colleagues who left the vehicle were collecting garbage near Middle Street, Covent Garden, to empty into the garbage truck GBB 2689.

Kabir reportedly remained inside the garbage truck for a short while before disembarking; however, the 68-year-old driver was

unaware that Kabir was in the process of exiting the vehicle when he started reversing.

According to reports, Kabir was run over by the back wheel of the vehicle.

His co-workers raised an alarm but by then, he was already crushed.

The Police were summoned to the scene while persons attempted to remove him to take him to the

hospital. However, the man was already dead.

Meanwhile, the Police have since taken statements from Kabir’s co-workers.

The 68-year-old truck driver is in Police custody assisting with investigations.

According to a Police Officer close to the investigations, the driver is “confused” and visibly traumatised about the death of Kabir.

yearly over the next five years,” Saul had said.

Under the previous Administration, over 100,000 house lots were distributed and over 200 core houses were made avail-

able to underprivileged families, while a programme for professional groups provided 200 teachers, nurses and Policemen with fast track access to loans for home construction.

Man arrested in connection with brother’s murder – Police hunt second brother

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fter being on the run for more than thirty-six hours, one man who was implicated in the murder of his brother was arrested and is expected to be arraigned for the heinous crime shortly.

The lifeless body of 50-year-old Mark Burquette was found in a clump of bushes in Kaneville, East Bank Demerara (EBD), on Sunday.

Following the discovery, the police had launched a manhunt for two brothers who were reportedly involved in a confrontation with the now dead man prior to his demise. However, one of the suspects was arrested on Monday evening.

Police Commander of Region Four (DemeraraMahaica) Sub-Division B (East Bank Demerara), Superintendent Kurleigh Simon when contacted explained that the suspect in custody is expected to face at least one charge as investigations continue.

He noted that there is enough “tangible evidence” in relation to Burquette’s murder for the individual to remain in Police custody.

It was reported that the man was found with several chops to his fingers and head, and abrasions to his side and other parts of his body.

Burquette was known for doing odd jobs in the communi-

ty. Further, it was reported that the man’s brothers were the last persons to see him alive.

Initially, the police were told that the now dead man and two men, identified as his brothers, had a confrontation just before he was found dead.

A visit to the brothers’ home revealed that the dead man’s belongings were packed up and removed from the premises.

Commander Simon is requesting that anyone with information in connection with the death of Burquette makes contact with the Diamond Police Station on telephone numbers 216-0251/4.

14 NEWS

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020| GUYANATIMESGY.COM

GECOM Commissioners in Canada to oversee ballot printing ...Govt Minister admits to meeting with same company

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Finance Minister Winston Jordan

s the Guyana E l e c t i o n s C o m m i s s i o n (GECOM) continues its preparations for the upcoming March 2 General and Regional Elections, two Commissioners are currently in Canada to oversee the printing of the ballot papers.

Opposition-nominated Commissioner, Sase Gunraj, and Governmentnominated Commissioner, Charles Corbin, travelled to Canada to observe the printing of the ballot papers for the upcoming polls.

This is being done by printing firm, Canadian Bank Note Company Limited, which first supplied GECOM with elections materials at the 2018 Local Government

Elections (LGEs).

The two Commissioners will be in Canada until the production of the ballots is completed. They will also be engaging in other elections-related matters with the company.

Only last week, it was revealed that 11 parties have been approved by GECOM to contest the upcoming polls, which is less than six weeks away. A total of 13 parties had initially made submissions to GECOM on the January 10 Nomination Day but the Guyana National Service Party and the National Independent Party did not meet the requirements and as such, were kicked out the race.

Concerns

Opposition-nominated Commissioner Sase Gunraj

Government-nominated Commissioner Charles Corbin

On Monday, the Opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic - raised concerns over a scheduled meeting between Finance Minister Winston Jordan and the Canadian printing company.

In a post on social media on Monday, the PPP/C said it was strange that Jordan, who is also a candidate on the National Top-Up List of the incumbent APNU/ AFC, is expected to meet with the company at a time when it is engaged in producing ballot papers for the elections.

“We believe that Jordan’s engagement with the company at this time, during the production of ballot papers and other sensitive material relative to the holding of free and

lotto,” Jordan told Guyana Times on Tuesday.

Canadian Bank Note owns the Guyana Lottery Company Limited (GLCL).

According to the GLCL website, CBN is a company which supplies printed products and related issuing and control systems in four business areas: lottery systems, identification systems, payment systems and shareholder services.

He pointed out that the meeting with CBN, which is on Thursday, was fixed after the company reached to the Guyana Government.

According to the Finance Minister, there have been some developments in the lotto market and CBN wants a review of those developments that have been taking place in order to maximise their investments in Guyana.

“They have a contract with us which essentially

gives them a monopoly in the market so they’re looking on at the developments recently and the court rulings, and they want to know what is the implications for them and their investments… Obviously, they invested quite a bit in the market and so on. So that’s why the meeting is a day or two days, if we can’t meet an agreement. But at the end of the day, we’re hoping to get some kind of understanding going forward…,” Jordan told this newspaper.

In addition to owning GLCL and getting the contract to print Guyana’s electoral materials, CBN also prints Guyana’s currency notes and recently got a US$12.4 million ($2.5 billion) contract to procure a new border management system to cater for e-passports. This was announced in September last year.

Leon Speede of Fifth Avenue, Bartica, CuyuniMazaruni (Region Seven), appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts and denied the

charges which stated that on January 15, 2020, at Third Avenue, Bartica, he stole two truck batteries valued $72,000 belonging to Kevin Ramnarine.

It was further alleged that at the same location, he stole two batteries valued $78,000 belonging to Selwyn Cameron.

In addition, the police stated that on the same day and at the same location, he stole two batteries valued $160,000 belonging to Rodney Desouza.

Police Prosecutor Quinn Harris told the court that on the day in question, the victims parked their vehicles at Third Avenue, Bartica, and went home.

However, upon their return the following day, the men realised that the batteries were missing.

As such, the matter was reported to the police and based on investigations, Speede was arrested.

The prosecutor added that while in custody, the suspect confessed to the crime.

On that note, the prosecutor objected to bail being granted to the defendant.

He was, nevertheless, released on bail in the sum of $200,000 and the case was transferred to the Bartica Magistrate’s Courts for January 24, 2020.

fair elections in Guyana represents, at a minimum, a serious violation of ethics,” the party stated.

To this end, the Opposition party is calling on GECOM as well as local and international observers to take note of this development.

The PPP/C is also urging the Canadian company to not engage Jordan at this time.

Meeting

However, while Minister Jordan has confirmed that there is an upcoming meeting with CBN, he explained that the meeting was fixed since last year and has nothing to do with the electoral process.

In fact, he noted that they will be meeting to discuss issues relating to the local lottery sector, where CBN holds a monopoly.

“We will have some discussions with them on the

Alleged battery thief granted bail

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n 18-year-old mechanic was on Tuesday granted bail

by Acting Chief Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus on a simple larceny charge.

NEWS

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Jet skiing trip Body of Kaneville Ramsammy’s Ruminations teen found in trench turns deadly All political parties must …1 dead reject violence, provocation in election campaign

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lections are here. In less than 42 days, the Guyanese people will go to the polls. As usual, these elections have stirred worrying tensions. I was present at a rally held by the PPP in Linden this past Sunday. At the height of the rally which was attended by about 4000 people, a group of APNU/ AFC supporters decked out in green shirts and waving green flags marched into the crowd gathered for the rally. It was provocation. Thankfully, the PPP supporters refused to become engaged or provoked.

The PPP supporters decked out in red, waving the PPP flag ignored the APNU/AFC supporters trying to invade an energised PPP gathering.

The peaceful response

by PPP supporters confused the APNU/AFC supporters Dr Leslie Ramsammy who discovered it takes two to tangle. Since the PPP supporters ignored them, the APNU/AFC supporters were not able to provoke any kind of disturbance and most of them simply left with their flags.

Some stayed for a while but the boisterousness with which they invaded the PPP rally was replaced with listening before they departed.

After most of them left the site of the rally, one APNU/ AFC supporter, who was waving the APNU/AFC flag, stopped the waving and intently listened to speeches made by the PPP General Secretary, the PPP Prime Minister candidate and the PPP Presidential Candidate. She bantered in a mutually friendly manner with PPP supporters, was presented with and accepted a PPP red shirt.

Had the same happened with PPP supporters in red, waving PPP flags, invading an energised APNU/AFC rally, what would have happened? It would not have been nice. But provocation like this is expected in Guyana, although, invariably, the provocation is one-sided.

Yes, the PPP had the audacity to come into the APNU/AFC stronghold with more than 4000 supporters, many of whom live in and around the rally site. But this is a right for any political party. And it is the right of any citizen to attend a political rally, even those who do not support the political party holding the rally. However, entering a rally of an opponent, all decked out in your party’s colour and waving your party’s flag, is provocation.

There are other examples of provocation. I watched in Essequibo as the PPP activists placed flags on poles along the highway and along streets. Within hours, those PPP flags disappeared. Activists of APNU/AFC knocked down and destroyed the PPP flags. This has happened across the country.

It has happened in West Demerara, Georgetown, West Berbice, Corentyne and other places in Guyana. By and large, only PPP flags and banners are being destroyed.

In some examples that have been captured and have gone viral on social media, supporters of APNU/AFC have taken it upon themselves to prevent activists of the PPP from putting up their flags and other party paraphernalia. In one instance, at least, a supporter of APNU held his ground that the GPL posts are his and he will not permit any PPP activist to put up a flag. After initial insistence, the PPP activists decided not to be provoked and left.

In South Georgetown, a bus with PPP supporters sharing out PPP flyers was stopped and prevented from traversing the area, threatened with violence.

Last week, the PPP went into Mocha, another APNU/AFC stronghold. For seventy years, the PPP has never conceded any vote or any community to the PNC/APNU/AFC or any political party. They have always fought for every vote. The PPP believes in democracy and believes that citizens can only make astute political decisions when they have access to messages from every political party. No matter how strong an activist is, the PPP believes that given a fair chance, they can persuade a voter to join them.

The PPP’s instructions to their supporters are that no one should provoke any of its opponents. The PPP’s message to supporters is if they cannot stomach the presence of another party in their communities, stay away from their meetings.

The PPP’s message to its supporters has always been that if another political party wants to put up flags, they have an absolute right to do so and no one should interfere with them.

In fact, a simple visit to several PPP strongholds will show APNU/ AFC’s flags are undisturbed. This is a mature approach and is what true freedom and democracy are about.

On the other hand, I do not know if the behaviour of APNU/ AFC supporters at PPP public meetings and rallies, preventing activists of the PPP from doing their work, destroying PPP’s flags, banner and other paraphernalia are centrally directed or the result of spontaneous reaction from passionate supporters. But APNU/AFC has never publicly condemned such behaviour from their supporters.

In fact, they have taken to the public platform to incite people. While the PPP urged supporters to stay home when their opponents come into their community, APNU/AFC urged supporters to drive out their opponents. The recent reprehensible call for supporters to surround polling stations on Election Day is a clear incitement. Our country is better than this.

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he lifeless body of a teenager was on Tuesday morning found in a trench at Craig, East Bank Demerara (EBD) with injuries to the head.

The dead young man has been identified as 18-yearold Wayne Anthony George of Kaneville, East Bank Demerara.

Based on reports received, the body was discovered at about 07:40h with a cutlass and a bicycle in close proximity. The teenager was last seen at about 22:30h on Monday evening.

At the time of the discovery, blood was oozing from his nose and he had a visible wound to his head.

It is believed that the teen and a group of young men were involved in a confrontation on Monday evening. He would have reported same to his mother before leaving home later that night.

This was confirmed by Regional Commander, Senior Superintendent Kurleigh Simon who told Guyana

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Dead: 18-year-old Wayne Anthony George

Times that the teen’s body bore several marks of violence including his head, face and abdomen.

The Commander explained that based on informed received about a fight, the Police are on the hunt for those who were involved.

“He was involved in an altercation prior to his mother seeing him. He told his mother of the altercation and he left shortly after and went back on the road with a bicycle and a cutlass”.

Investigations are ongoing.

young man lost his life on Monday afternoon after he allegedly fell overboard from the jet ski he was operating.

Dead is Amar Shampersaud, a 27-yearold resident of Canal Polder Number Two, West Bank Demerara (WBD).

Reports are that on Monday afternoon, two of Shampersaud’s friends visited him and they left to go jet skiing at the conservancy, which is a short distance from his home.

Guyana Times understands that Shampersaud would usually accompany his friends for the recreational activity at the nearby conservancy. This newspaper was told that the 27-year-old man, who could not swim, was not wearing a life jacket at the time of the incident.

According to reports, Shampersaud fell off the jet ski while navigating a turn in the conservancy. This newspaper was told that when the

Dead: Amar Shampersaud

man fell off the jet ski he went under the water but did not surface. His two friends reportedly combed the area but after not locating him, notified other persons in the area. The police were also informed.

However, as the search continued, Shampersaud’s body was spotted and taken out of the water.

His body was taken to the funeral parlour. A post post-mortem examination (PME) is expected shortly.

His two friends are in custody assisting with the investigation.

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guyanatimesgy.com

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

Regional

Brazil dam collapse: Murder Bolivia Congress rubber charges filed by prosecutors stamps November

resignation of Evo Morales

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The aftermath of the dam collapse at Brumadinho

razilian prosecutors have filed charges including murder in relation to the collapse of a dam a year ago that killed at least 250 people.

The collapse in Brumadinho, Minas Gerais state, in January 2019 was Brazil’s worst industrial accident.

Mining giant Vale and German auditor Tüv Süd face environmental charges, with 16 individuals who worked for the companies facing charges of murder.

The prosecutors’ charges will have to be approved by a Judge.

Among the individuals charged is the former

chief executive of Vale, Fabio Schvartsman, Reuters news agency reported.

The 16 individuals have also been charged with environmental crimes.

Vale has been accused of failing to report warning signs before the dam engulfed a canteen, offices and farms.

Last July, a Brazilian Judge ordered Vale to pay compensation for the collapse of the dam, saying that the company was responsible for fixing all the damage, including the economic effects.

The same month, emails emerged that showed Tüv Süd’s own analysis of the dam initially failed to meet official requirements.

Tüv Süd inspected the dam in the months before the collapse.

It was a “tailings” dam – an embankment filled with waste product – and decades of waste from the nearby mine had been piled up and grassed over.

The German firm said it was co-operating with “authorities and institutions in Brazil and Germany in the context of ongoing investigations”.

It said it was “deeply saddened” by the disaster but added that the “real causes” had yet to be determined.

Vale is yet to comment on the charges. (BBC News)

educational attainment of women now surpasses that of men, yet women in the region still earn 17 per cent less per hour worked than men,” the ILO report noted.

It said that contemporary labour markets also continue to be characterised by gender inequality.

The ILO reported that last year the female labour force participation rate was just 47 per cent, 27 percentage points below the male rate at 74 per cent.

“There is strong regional variation in gender disparities in access to employment. Gender stereotypes that emphasise the role of

women as the main caregivers and that of men as the main breadwinners remain deeply ingrained in some regions.”

The ILO report notes also that substantial inequalities in the labour market prevail.

“To begin with, a person’s geographical location strongly determines his or her likelihood of finding paid work that is of good quality. Low-income countries have the highest employment-to-population ratio (68 per cent), as many vulnerable workers are forced to take up any job, regardless of its quality”.

(Excerpt from CMC)

olivia’s Congress on Tuesday formally accepted the November resignation of leftist leader Evo Morales and his deputy Álvaro García Linera, rubber-stamping the end of his 14-year socialist administration as the South American country heads for new elections in May. Bolivia’s legislature, controlled by his party, had not yet accepted his resignation. Morales stepped down on November 10, as support from his allies and the military evaporated following a disputed election and widespread protests.

“The letter of resignation has been considered and approved by a majority,” said Sergio Choque, head of the lower Chamber of Deputies.

Choque added that the move showed Congress was fulfilling its parliamentary role.

Morales has maintained

Former Bolivian President Evo Morales holds a news conference where he announced the candidates for President and Vice President for his Movements for Socialism (MAS) coalition party, in Buenos Aires, Argentina

that he was ousted in a rightwing coup. Since he stepped down, he has noted in some interviews that he was legally still President until lawmakers approved his resignation. He does not plan to run in new elections in May. In the resignation letter, read out to a packed Congress, the long-standing leader criticised the cur-

rent Government and said it was his responsibility to continue to protect his Bolivian “brothers and sisters”.

Morales left Bolivia days after his resignation and is now in Argentina. From there, he has been active in his Movement for Socialism party’s election campaign ahead of the May 3 vote.

(Reuters)

Commissioner Griffith promises the GBVU will provide a degree of sensitivity, confidentiality and trust

“With the establishment of this Unit, there is now going to be a system of better leadership, better management,” he promised. “We are going to measure performance, and we are going to hold persons accountable.”

He added: “I get a number of reports from women who would state that they were not treated as good as they should have been when they go to the police stations. There was one I got just today. She went to a police station, and was spoken to by three officers.

They took her statement and then one said: ‘All yuh together so long. All yuh try and work it out’. And this is after this woman was badly beaten.”

Commissioner Griffith admits he cannot assure the public that all 7000 Police Officers will treat with gender-based violence appropriately, but he promised the GBVU will provide a degree of sensitivity, confidentiality and trust. (Excerpt from T&T Guardian)

TTPS launches Gender-Based Violence Unit

ILO report says women still underpaid in the Caribbean

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he International Labour Organization (ILO) says while a significant number of women in Latin America and the Caribbean have been able to attain higher education than men, they are still earning less than their male counterparts.

In its World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends 2020 (WESO) publication released here on Monday, it noted almost half a billion people are working fewer paid hours than they would like or lack adequate access to paid work.

“In Latin America and the Caribbean, for example, the average level of

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he Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) launched a new unit tasked with handling cases of gender-based violence and domestic violence in this country.

The newly-formed Gender-Based Violence Unit (GBVU) will focus heavily on domestic violence cases and breaches of restraining orders. In addition to victims making reports to the Unit, members of the public with information on domes-

tic abuse also can bring that information to the Police, so they can act on it.

At today’s launch, Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith apologised on behalf of the Police Service for not doing enough to deal with domestic violence in this country.

The Commissioner said the TTPS has made mistakes in the past, particularly the one of not developing the GBVU a long time ago.

Colombia seeking deals with protest leaders but some demands “unconstitutional” Pompeo calls for fair elections in Venezuela and Nicaragua

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o l o m b i a ’ s Government is willing to discuss the country’s problems with leaders of demonstrations against the social and economic policies of President Ivan Duque, but some protest demands are “unconstitutional”, a presidency official said.

Marchers in the Andean country held mass demonstrations in November and December last year to demand a varied laundry list of concessions from Duque’s

right-wing government.

New protests are expected on Tuesday.

The unions and student groups who make up the National Strike Committee initially made 13 demands in talks with the government.

These included stepped-up efforts to stop the murder of human rights activists and implement a peace deal with leftist rebels and the dissolution of the riot police force, who have drawn ire after a marcher was killed by a projectile.

The list eventually expanded to include 104 points covering fiscal, economic, trade and environmental demands, said presidency official Diego Molano, who leads negotiations for the government.

“We’ve found that some of the demands, an important number of them, are unconstitutional and don’t correspond to executive branch functions,” Molano told Reuters late on Monday.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

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S Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday stressed the need for Venezuela and Nicaragua to hold free and fair elections, singling out the countries’ left-wing governments for criticism.

Pompeo said Nicaragua was an authoritarian regime, calling on its government to cease repression and support free and fair elections, sentiments he echoed in comments about

Venezuela.

The two countries’ allied governments have been hit by US sanctions following humanitarian crises. Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega crushed protests in 2018 in a clampdown that led to more than 300 deaths.

Oil exporter Venezuela is suffering an economic collapse and hyperinflation under the leadership of President Nicolas

Maduro.

Maduro blames US sanctions for the suffering.

He has resisted international calls for early presidential elections.

“We’ve seen no evidence that Maduro is remotely interested in having free and fair elections.

He knows that he would lose,” Pompeo told reporters in the Costa Rican capital. (Excerpt from Reuters)

guyanatimesgy.com

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

Officials confirm first US case of the coronavirus

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United States citizen who recently returned from a trip to central China has been diagnosed with the new virus that has sparked an outbreak and stringent monitoring around the world, a spokesman for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Tuesday.

The man returned to the Seattle area in the middle of last week after travelling to the Wuhan area, where the coronavirus outbreak began.

The man is in his 30s and is in good condition at a hospital in Everett, outside Seattle.

The US is the fifth country to report seeing the illness, following China, Thailand, Japan and South Korea.

Late last week, US health officials began screening passengers from central China at three US airports. Officials around the world have implemented similar airport screenings in hopes of containing the

A Kazakh sanitary-epidemiological service worker uses a thermal scanner to detect travellers from China who may have symptoms possibly connected with the previously unknown coronavirus, at Almaty International Airport in Kazakhstan [Pavel Mikheyev/ Reuters]

virus during the busy Lunar New Year travel season.

Last month, doctors began seeing a new type of viral pneumonia - marked by fever, coughing and difficulty breathing - in people who spent time at a food market in Wuhan. More than 275 cases of the newly identified coronavirus have been confirmed in China, most of them in Wuhan, according to the World Health Organisation.

The count includes six deaths - all in China, mostly among people age 60 or older, including at least some who had a previous medical condition.

Officials have said the virus probably spread from animals to people, but this week Chinese officials said they have concluded it also can spread from person to person.

(Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

North Korea abandons nuclear freeze pledge, blames ‘brutal’ US sanctions

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orth Korea said on Tuesday it was no longer bound by commitments to halt nuclear and missile testing, blaming the United States’ failure to meet a year-end deadline for nuclear talks and “brutal and inhumane” US sanctions.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un set an end-December deadline for denuclearisation talks with the United States and White House national security adviser Robert O’Brien said at the time the United States had opened channels of communication.

Ju Yong Chol, a Counsellor at North Korea’s mission to the UN in Geneva, said that over the past two years, his country had halted nuclear tests and test-firing of inter-continental ballistic missiles “in order to build confidence with the United States”.

But the United States had responded by conducting dozens of joint military exercises with South Korea on the di-

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un watches the launch of a Hwasong-12 missile in this undated photo released by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on September 16, 2017

vided peninsula and by imposing sanctions, he said.

Speaking as the envoy from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), North Korea’s official name, Ju accused the United States of applying “the most brutal and inhumane sanctions”.

“If the US persists in such hostile policy toward the DPRK there will never be the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula,” he said.

“If the United States tries to enforce unilateral demands and persists in imposing sanctions, North Korea may be compelled to seek a new path.”

US military commanders said any new path could include the testing of a longrange missile, which North Korea has suspended since 2017, along with nuclear warhead tests. (Excerpt from Reuters)

final resting place of the revered Soleimani, who was killed in an American drone strike in neighbouring Iraq on January 3.

He did not say if the idea of a reward had any official backing from Iran’s clerical rulers.

Hamzeh offered the money for the US President’s assassination while speaking to the 290seat Parliament, or Majlis.

Hamzeh also said Iran should start producing nuclear weapons and delivery systems to protect itself.

“If we had nuclear weapons today we would be protected from threats ... We should put the production of long-

range missiles capable of carrying unconventional warheads on our agenda. This is our natural right,” he was quoted as saying.

The United States and its Western allies have long accused Iran of seeking nuclear weapons. Tehran insists it has never sought atomic arms and never will, saying its nuclear work is for research and to master the process to generate electricity.

Under a 2015 nuclear agreement signed by Iran and world powers, Tehran received sanctions relief in return for curbing its nuclear activities.

(Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Iranian MP puts $3M bounty on President Donald Trump’s head

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n Iranian legislator on Tuesday offered a US$3 million reward to “anyone who kills” US President Donald Trump to avenge the assassination of top General Qassem Soleimani.

American disarmament ambassador Robert Wood dismissed the reward as “ridiculous”, telling reporters in Geneva it showed the “terrorist underpinnings” of Iran’s establishment.

Ahmad Hamzeh, a little-known member of Parliament, offered the bounty on behalf of the people of Kerman, the hometown and

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Around the World

Militants kill 36 civilians in Burkina Faso market attack

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hirty-six civilians were killed in Burkina Faso on Monday in what the Government called a terrorist attack on a market in Sanmatenga province.

Armed militants forced their way into the market of the village of Alamou and attacked people there before burning the structure to the ground, the Government said in a statement on Tuesday.

The bloodshed is part of a surge in violence in the West African country that has killed hundreds, forced near-

ly a million from their homes and made much of the north ungovernable over the past two years.

“These repeated attacks on innocent civilians call for real cooperation between defence and security forces,” the Government said.

President Roch Marc Kabore called for two days of national mourning in response to the attack. It was not immediately clear who was responsible.

Islamist groups with links to al Qaeda and Islamic

State have carried out increasingly brazen attacks against civilian and military targets in Burkina Faso in recent months, including an attack on a mining convoy in November that killed nearly 40 people.

The country was once a pocket of relative calm in the Sahel region, but its homegrown insurgency has been amplified by a spillover of jihadist violence and criminality from its chaotic northern neighbour Mali. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Trump impeachment trial starts with rule wrangling in Senate

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he Senate impeachment trial of US President Donald Trump has begun, with Democrats and Republicans wrangling over the rules.

Republican Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell wants to block subpoenaing key witnesses or documents.

The Democrats said this will be no less than a cover-up.

Trump is charged with abusing his presidential power with leverage over Ukraine, and of obstructing Congress as it looked into his conduct.

He denies all the charges.

Senators have taken oaths to act as impartial jurors, hearing arguments for six hours a day, six days a week in a trial presided over by the US Chief Justice, John Roberts.

It is only the third time in US history that a President is facing an impeachment trial and it is unclear how long it will last.

Mitch McConnell (C) wants to block subpoenaing key witnesses or documents

BBC North America reporter Anthony Zurcher said the chances of a conviction in the Republican-majority Senate are slim to none.

In his opening statement, Adam Schiff, the House Democrat leading the impeachment case, said most Americans “do not believe there will be a fair trial. They don’t believe the Senate will be impartial.

They believe the result is pre-cooked”.

Trump’s Republicans have been looking to shorten the trial as much as possible. The President’s legal

team had earlier demanded he be immediately acquitted, calling the trial “a dangerous perversion of the Constitution”.

McConnell had proposed condensing the opening arguments from three days to two, backed by the President’s lawyers.

But after a meeting with senators, including some Republicans, McConnell agreed to three days for opening arguments.

Democrats had complained Americans would be kept in the dark. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Lebanon announces formation of new Government

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ebanon has formed a new Government, the presidency announced after Hezbollah and its allies clinched a deal on a Cabinet that must tackle the country’s worst economic crisis in decades.

Heavily indebted Lebanon has been without an effective Government since Saad Hariri resigned as premier in October under pressure from protests against state corruption and waste - root causes of the crisis.

Prime Minister Hassan Diab, a 60-year-old professor at the American University of Beirut, now heads a Cabinet of 20 members, mostly specialists backed by political parties.

“I’ve been appointed in the face of many accusations.

I wanted to work, not to argue. I have abided by the law informing me to form a Government. I followed the rules and regulations to form

Lebanon has been without an effective Government since Saad Hariri resigned as premier in October [Andres Martinez Casares/ Reuters]

a new team of Ministers,” he said, moments after the lineup was read out at the presidential palace on Tuesday.

He said his Government “will strive to meet their demands for an independent Judiciary, for the recovery of embezzled funds, for the fight against illegal gains”.

“In this decisive moment, I salute the revolution and the uprising that pushed us towards this and Lebanon has become victorious. We

will achieve the social cohesion. There will be accountability.”

The move is unlikely to satisfy protesters. They have been calling for sweeping reforms and a Government made up of independent technocrats that could deal with the country’s crippling economic and financial crisis, the worst this tiny Mediterranean country has faced in decades. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

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guyanatimesgy.com

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

ARCHIE

ARIES (March 21April 19)

DILBERT

TAURUS (April 20May 20)

GEMINI (May 21June 20)

PEANUTS

CALVIN AND HOBBES

SUDOKU

Mistakes will happen if you overreact. Don’t question others or complain, go about your business and show how efficient you can be. When uncertainty prevails, take time out.

Be careful what you chase. An impulsive move will lead to regret. Take your time to consider your options and focus on what’s feasible. A positive attitude will improve prospects.

Refuse to let personal matters and anger filter into your professional world, causing mistakes or reduced productivity. Use your brain over brawn and focus on your responsibilities.

CANCER (June 21July 22)

Change your direction or learn something that will help you advance. Don’t show vulnerability when you should be accepting and dealing with the inevitable. Move forward instead of standing still or losing ground.

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Put in overtime and accomplish your goals. If you plan a vacation, it will give you the incentive to get things done on time. Be demonstrative, and you’ll drum up support.

(Aug. 23Sept. 22)

A jovial attitude will encourage popularity. Plan to have fun or start a new hobby that is conducive to expanding your friendships. A self-improvement program will bring rewarding results.

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

You cannot count on others to help you. Criticism and complaints will not solve problems. Look for positive incentives if you want others to adhere to your way of thinking.

SCORPIO

Patience will pay off. Focus your attention on the details, and be precise when asking questions. Changing your routine or taking better care of your physical and emotional well-being will be rejuvenating.

(Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Don’t give up. Stay foSAGITTARIUS cused on what’s important (Nov. 23to you and ignore anyone Dec. 21) trying to entice you to do something that won’t benefit you. Don’t let your ego take charge.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

SOLUTION FOR LAST PUBLISHED PUZZLE AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 19)

PISCES (Feb. 20March 20)

You’ll have mixed emotions regarding what others want you to do. Size up whatever situation you face and offer up only what you can afford. Personal gain and growth should be your priorities.

Mistakes are likely to happen, and compromise will end up being necessary.

Evaluate what’s going on instead of letting anger set in and cost you financially, emotionally or physically.

An emotional situation will give you a reason to make adjustments in your life. Listen to others, decipher who is in your corner, make your plans clear and stabilize your position.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

D

amian Lillard broke his own franchise records by scoring 61 points and making 11 3-pointers to lead the Portland Trail Blazers to a 129124 overtime victory over the visiting Golden State Warriors on Monday night.

Lillard scored 60 points during a 119-115 loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Nov. 8. He also held the franchise mark of 10 3-pointers.

Lillard was 17 of 37 from the field — including 11 of 20 from 3-point range — and hit all 16 of his free-throw attempts.

He also had 10 rebounds and seven assists.

Hassan Whiteside recorded 17 points and 21 rebounds for the Trail Blazers, who had lost four of their previous six games.

Alec Burks scored a season-high 33 points and matched his season best of eight assists for Golden State, which lost for the 11th time in the past 12 games.

Milwaukee Bucks 111 - Chicago Bulls 98

Giannis Antetokounmpo recorded a triple-double with 28 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists, and host Milwaukee cruised past Chicago for its seventh win in a row.

Khris Middleton added 24 points on 10-for-13 shooting as the Bucks improved to 21-2 on their home court and completed a four-game sweep of the Bulls in the regular season. It was Antetokounmpo’s fourth triple-double of the season and the 18th of his career.

Zach LaVine scored 24 points to lead the Bulls, who have lost nine of their past 12 games. Kris Dunn had 15 points, and Thaddeus Young finished with 14 points off the Chicago bench.

Boston Celtics 139 - Los Angeles Lakers 107

Jayson Tatum scored 27 points, Kemba Walker and Jaylen Brown added 20 apiece, and host Boston overwhelmed Los Angeles to end a three-game losing streak.

Enes Kanter had 18 points (all before halftime) and 11 rebounds off the bench, and Gordon Hayward chipped in 16 points. Walker (knee) and Brown (thumb) were back in the lineup after one and two missed games, respectively. Walker ended a personal 0-28 career drought against LeBron James-led teams.

James had 15 points and 13 assists for the Lakers, who lost for just the second time in their past 12 games. Anthony Davis had nine points in his return from a five-game absence caused by a bruised tailbone.

Oklahoma City Thunder 112 - Houston Rockets 107

Dennis Schroder scored 15 fourthquarter points and teamed with Danilo Gallinari to rally visiting Oklahoma City past Houston.

Gallinari scored 12 of his 25 points in the fourth as the Thunder erased a 15-point deficit in the final period and won for the seventh time in their past eight road games. They did so despite a quiet second half from Chris Paul, who tallied just one point after posting 27 prior to halftime.

Rockets star James Harden struggled mightily throughout, missing 16 of 17 3-point attempts while scoring 29 points.

Russell Westbrook posted a triple-double of 32 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists,

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NBA round-up:

Lillard scores 61 in Blazers’ OT win but h i s e r ra n t 3-point try with 8.8 seconds left represented the Rockets’ final gasp.

Philadelphia, and Josh Richardson and To b i a s Harris had 15 apiece. Seven Nets scored in double figures, led by Spencer Dinwiddie, who had 22 points and added seven assists.

overcame a sluggish start to win at Charlotte.

Nikola Vucevic poured in 24 points, and Terrence Ross, who carried the team in the first half, ended up with 19 points for the road-weary Magic, who played Saturday night at Golden State and wrapped up a season-long sixgame road trip.

Malik Monk came off the bench to lead the Hornets with 20 points. P.J. Washington finished with 19 points, and Devonte’ Graham had 15.

Washington Wizards 106 - Detroit Pistons 100

Bradley Beal had 29 points to pass Wes Unseld for fourth on Washington’s career scoring list and lead the Wizards past visiting Detroit.

Ian Mahinmi supplied 21 points on 9-for-10 shooting and added seven rebounds, three blocks and two steals for Washington, which won the season series 3-1. Thomas Bryant added 13 points and six rebounds off the bench.

Derrick Rose led the Pistons with 21 points. Andre Drummond had 18 points and 16 rebounds but also committed nine turnovers. He left the game in the final minute after being elbowed in the face by Bryant.

Toronto Raptors 122 Atlanta Hawks 117

Norman Powell came off the bench to score 27 points, and Fred VanVleet scored eight points in the final 63 seconds to help visiting Toronto hang on for a win over Atlanta.

VanVleet scored 20 points and made 5 of 6 free throws in the final 42.6 seconds to help prevent the Raptors from blowing a 21-point lead. He made each attempt of a three-shot foul with 14.2 seconds remaining to give Toronto a five-point lead and preserve the win.

Powell was 6-for-9 on 3-point attempts and scored 20-plus points for his fifth straight game. Toronto also got 18 points from Pascal Siakam and 14 from Marc Gasol.

Philadelphia 76ers 117 Brooklyn Nets 111

Ben Simmons posted a triple-double with a career-high-tying 34 points, 12 assists and 12 rebounds, and Philadelphia made enough plays down the stretch to beat Brooklyn in New York.

The 76ers beat the Nets for the second time in six days by executing in the fourth quarter. After outscoring the Nets 3116 in the final 12 minutes Wednesday at home, Philadelphia did not dominate the entire quarter, but it made plays on both ends in the final minutes after blowing most of a nine-point lead in the final sixplus minutes.

Al Horford scored 19 points for

New Orleans Pelicans 126 Memphis Grizzlies 116 Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) scores the ball past Golden State Warriors guard Damion Lee (USA Today Sports)

Jrue Holiday returned from a seven-game absence and tied a season high with 36 points to lead visiting New Orleans to a victory over Memphis. The Grizzlies’ seven-game winning streak ended.

Holiday overcame an elbow contusion to make 12 of 18 field goals, including 7 of 10 3-point tries, and the Pelicans made a franchise-record 21 3-pointers on 48

shot by Bogdan Bogdanovic in the final seconds of overtime.

The Heat improved to 7-0 in overtime games this season in a contest that featured 16 lead changes and 14 ties.

Nemanja Bjelica led the Kings with 22 points, Buddy Hield had 20, and Marvin Bagley III contributed 15 points and 15 rebounds.

Denver Nuggets 107 - Minnesota Timberwolves 100

Rookie Michael Porter Jr. had 20 points and a career-high 14 rebounds, Nikola Jokic finished with 17 points and 13 rebounds, and Denver beat Minnesota in Minneapolis.

Jerami Grant scored 19 points and Will Barton added 18 for Denver, which has won seven straight against the Timberwolves. The Nuggets have won four of their past five games overall.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points, Josh Okogie scored 16 and Andrew Wiggins 15 for Minnesota, which has lost six straight. Allen Crabbe had three points in his first game for the Timberwolves.

San Antonio Spurs 120 - Phoenix Suns 111

guard Oklahoma City Thunder the Dennis Schroder drives to kets Roc on ust Ho t basket agains rd centre Clint Capela and gua rts) Spo ay Tod A (US James Harden

New York Knicks 106 - Cleveland Cavaliers 86

Marcus Morris’ fourpoint play capped a game-turning run of 15 unanswered points in the third quarter as visiting New York pulled away from Cleveland.

The Knicks, playing on the road on Martin Luther King Jr. Day for just the second time since 1987, snapped a three-game losing streak. The Cavaliers have lost five straight — their fourth losing streak of at least five games this season.

Morris finished with 19 points for the Knicks despite playing through an ankle injury sustained when he landed awkwardly while being fouled by Kevin Love on the four-point play. New York’s Julius Randle had 19 points and nine rebounds. Cleveland’s Collin Sexton had 17 points, and Tristan Thompson added 13 points and 22 rebounds.

Orlando Magic 106 Charlotte Hornets 83

Evan Fournier scored 20 of his 26 points in the second half as Orlando

attempts.

Brandon Ingram added 25 points, Nicolo Melli had 15 and Josh Hart and JJ Redick scored 10 each as the Pelicans won for the 11th time in 16 games since they had a 13-game losing streak. Dillon Brooks poured in 31 points for the Grizzlies.

Miami Heat 118 - Sacramento Kings 113 (OT)

Rookie Kendrick Nunn scored a gamehigh 25 points and reserve James Johnson added a season-high 22 points to lead host Miami to an overtime win over Sacramento.

Johnson made 9 of 11 shots from the floor, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range, as the Heat improved their home record to an NBA-best 19-1. Johnson also blocked a potential game-tying 3-point

Derrick White racked up a season-high 25 points, including a big 3-pointer in the final two minutes, and San Antonio outlasted host Phoenix.

The Suns’ Devin Booker scored a gamehigh 37 points but clanked a 34-foot 3-point attempt with two seconds left.

Deandre Ayton scored 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, and Kelly Oubre Jr. and Ricky Rubio scored 10 points apiece for Phoenix.

Bryn Forbes scored 24 points, all on 3-pointers, for the Spurs. DeMar DeRozan finished with 18 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, and LaMarcus Aldridge added 19 points.

Utah Jazz 118 - Indiana Pacers 88

Donovan Mitchell scored 25 points, and Rudy Gobert added 20 points and 14 rebounds as Utah continued its home dominance while also halting Indiana’s winning streak at five games.

Georges Niang scored 15 points as the Jazz improved their home record to 17-3 while winning their eighth consecutive game at Salt Lake City. They are the only Western Conference team with three or fewer home defeats. The Jazz won for the 12th time in 13 games overall.

Aaron Holiday and Myles Turner each scored 12 points, and Jeremy Lamb added 11 for the Pacers, who lost for the first time since Jan. 8 against the Miami Heat.

Indiana fell on the road for the first time since losing at Atlanta on Jan. 4. (Reuters)

20

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

Nadal through; Nick Kyrgios, Fabio Fognini also win

W

orld number one Rafael Nadal cruised into the Australian Open second round with a straightforward victory over Bolivia’s Hugo Dellien.

Nadal, champion in Melbourne in 2009, dropped just five games in a 6-2 6-3 6-0 win over his 72nd-ranked opponent.

The Spaniard, runner-up to Novak Djokovic last year, is bidding to equal Roger Federer’s record of 20 Grand Slam men’s singles titles.

Nadal, who will play Federico Delbonis of Argentina next, has reached the Australian Open final five times but won it only once, beating Federer in a five-set epic 11 years ago.

He dropped serve twice against Dellien but barely looked troubled, hitting 38 winners to his opponent’s 15.

Fourth seed Daniil Medvedev came through a testing first-round match against American Frances Tiafoe, winning 6-3 4-6 6-4 6-2 in two hours and 36 minutes.

Russian Medvedev, beaten in five sets by Nadal in last year’s US Open final, plays Spanish qualifier Pedro Martinez in the second round.

Kyrgios on home turf Nick Kyrgios’ best performance at the Australian Open was reaching the quarter-finals in 2015 Australian Nick Kyrgios entertained a packed Melbourne Arena as the 23rd seed beat Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego 6-2 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-1).

Kyrgios pledged before the tournament to donate 200 Australian dollars (£105; $137) for each ace he hits to the bushfire appeal and he hit 14 during his victory.

Former world number one John McEnroe told Kyrgios on court afterwards that he would donate A$1,000 for each set Kyrgios won during the rest of the tournament.

Kyrgios has been criticised in the past for his on-court behaviour but he said the bushfires

A

Reilly Opelka swore at umpire Carlos Bernardes during his first-round loss to Fabio Fognini (Getty Images)

that have devastated large parts of Australia had given him perspective on his game.

The 24-year-old dedicated his victory to Australian men’s number one Alex de Minaur, who withdrew before the tournament with an abdominal injury.

Kyrgios slipped during his match but told McEnroe it was nothing serious, adding: “I move like a giraffe sometimes. I’m pretty dramatic sometimes - but you know all about that.”

He will face 35-year-old Frenchman Gilles Simon in the second round and could meet Nadal in the last 16.

Halep, Pliskova thorugh Wimbledon champion Simona Halep had to save three set points in the first set but

eventually came through 7-6 (7-5) 6-1 against American Jennifer Brady.

Romanian Halep, who had her right wrist strapped after a fall in the first set, raced through the second set in 27 minutes after the opener took 69 minutes.

World number two Karolina Pliskova easily won the first set before having to work hard in the second as she beat Kristina Mladenovic to reach the second round.

The Czech took the opener in just 25 minutes on her way to a 6-1 7-5 win.

It was a tricky draw for the second seed, with Mladenovic a former top-10 player who helped France win the Fed Cup in November.

Pliskova is unbeaten in 2020, winning the Brisbane International this month.

In the next round, the 27-year-old will play

German w o r l d number 72 Laura Siegemund.

Pliskova, chasing a first Grand Slam title, is joined in the second round by Swiss sixth seed Belinda Bencic, Dutch ninth seed Kiki Bertens, American 10th seed Madison Keys and Greek 22nd seed Maria Sakkari, but British 12th seed Johanna Konta was knocked out.

Two-time Grand Slam champion Garbine Muguruza fought back from a dreadful first set to beat American Shelby Rogers 0-6 6-1 6-0 and 2016 champion Angelique Kerber of Germany saw off Italian qualifier Elisabetta Cocciaretto 6-2 6-2.

American 26th seed Danielle Collins, a surprise semi-finalist in Melbourne last year, overcame Vitalia Diatchenko 6-1 3-6 6-4.

Czech 15th seed Marketa Vondrousova, a finalist at last year’s French Open, lost 6-2 4-6 6-4 to Russian 34-year-old Svetlana Kuznetsova, while American 18-year-old Amanda Anisimova fell 6-3 4-6 6-3 to Kazakhstan’s Zarina Diyas.

Catherine Bellis, playing at her first Grand Slam in two years, breezed past Germany’s Tatjana Maria 6-0 6-2.

American Bellis, who has fallen to 600 in the rankings, was told she may have to quit tennis after struggling with wrist and elbow injuries.

She had four surgeries in 2018 on her wrist, arm and elbow and only returned to the WTA Tour in November 2019. (BBC Sport)

Arsenal hold Chelsea to share points

rsenal overcame David Luiz’s dismissal against his old club to twice come from behind against Chelsea in an eventful London derby.

The Gunners looked beaten when Jorginho fired Chelsea ahead from the penalty spot after Luiz was shown a straight red card for bundling over Tammy Abraham.

The Chelsea forward had pounced on a terrible backpass

by Shkodran Mustafi and rounded keeper Bernd Leno when he was shoved over by Brazil defender Luiz.

Chelsea were dominant for long periods but failed to kill the game off and were punished when N’Golo Kante slipped inside the centre circle allowing 18-yearold Martinelli to gallop free and produce an excellent finish, the Brazilian’s 10th league and cup goal of the season.

It was Arsenal’s first shot on target and came after a Chelsea corner which was cleared by Mustafi, the German atoning for his earlier error.

Chelsea thought they had won it when skipper Cesar Azpilicueta scored from six yards six minutes from time but spirited Arsenal earned a point through captain Hector Bellerin - making his first appearances since 5 December.

Jorginho (right) is the first Chelsea player to score home and away against Arsenal in the same Premier League season since Juan Mata in 2012-13 (EPA)

Man City edge out Sheffield United

Sergio Aguero scored his sixth goal in his last three games as Manchester City edged a gutsy Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.

The Blades had looked on course to claim a hugely credible draw against the reigning Premier League champions, with

Dean Henderson saving a Gabriel Jesus penalty in the first half as well as making a string of excellent saves.

But Aguero came off the bench to score the decisive goal, tapping in a cross from Kevin de Bruyne towards the end of the second half.

That strike came just moments

after Sheffield United came close to taking the lead themselves Oli McBurnie stretching to meet a cross but just failing to turn the ball into an empty net.

Victory for Manchester City means they strengthen their place in second. They have 51 points 13 behind leaders Liverpool but six ahead of Leicester, who play

West Ham on Wednesday.

Sheffield United, meanwhile, remain seventh on 33 points.

Nathan Redmond and Stuart Armstrong both scored as Southampton claimed a fine win over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park to secure their fourth successive away victory in the Premier League.

Redmond opened the scoring for the Saints midway through the first half as he turned away from two markers before firing home from the edge of the box.

Armstrong then doubled his side’s lead early in the second half when he collected Redmond’s pass and curled in a superb effort from outside the area.

Following a lacklustre first half, the Eagles did improve after the break although they failed to put the Saints under sustained pressure, and Southampton held on for a deserved three points.

It is only the second time the South Coast club have claimed four Premier League away wins on the bounce - with the previous run coming between December 2014 and February 2015.

Victory for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side means they move above Palace into ninth - with Roy Hodgson’s side slipping to 11th.

(BBC Sport)

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

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F

inal preparations have begun in Guyana and Canada as Coach Ivan Joseph and his staff prepare for the 2020 CONCACAF Women’s Under-20 Championship being held in the Dominican Republic from February 22.

Guyana will play their first game

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against Nicaragua on February 23 and look to field their strongest U-20 women’s squad.

Assistant Coach Akilah Castello has been conducting training sessions for the Guyana-based players while Head Coach Ivan Joseph conducted training sessions in Toronto for all of the internationally-based

players.

Competition for placement in the final squad is expected to be very stiff as noted by Ivan, who said, “We have a very talented pool of players to choose from, and that will make our decision very difficult. However, at the end of the day, my primary responsibility is to always select the

best possible squad from all players available to me for the final team.”

The final squad will be selected from the list of eligible players below who have been working hard to impress the coaching staff. The final squad is expected to be announced in early February.

Diamond United FC retains Orein Angoy as President H

istory was created on Monday evening when the Diamond United Football Club elected nine women in an 11-member executive committee that will govern the affairs of the club for the next two years.

Returning as President was Orein Angoy with the other male executive being Committee Member Rockwell Adams.

The full executive committee reads: Orein Angoy (President); Vianne Stanislaus (Vice President); Marcel Pinder (Treasurer); Charlene Da CostaCameron (Secretary); Nicole Mc Kenzie (Assistant Secretary/ Treasurer) and Atoya Shepherd (Public Relations Officer).

Committee Members: Rockwell Adams, Tobika Wright, Amanda King, Threcia Williams, and Yerina Carvahal.

East Bank Football Association (EBFA) President Kevin Anthony, who performed duties as Returning Officer, charged

Six of the nine women elected to the Diamond United FC Executive Committee (2020-2022) pictured with President Orein Angoy (left) and EBFA President Kevin Anthony

the new executive to continue the good work of the club ,which has been improving its pedigree with every competition played in the Association.

He also congratulated the club for electing so many women to the executive and encouraged them to be the trailblazers in charting a new course. President Angoy

thanked the club for reposing confidence in him and encouraged them to work as a team to take the club to another level.

22

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Neville Ramotar Memorial T20

Enmore CCCC Bravados, Ogle CC Blasters clash in final this weekend E

n m o r e CCCC A (Bravados) will take on defending champions Ogle CC Blasters in the final of the 2019 Neville Ramotar T20 cricket competition this Sunday at the Enmore Community Centre Ground.

This competition commenced in 2019 among 20 teams before being suspended in December 2019 owing to inclement weather.

The competition is being played in memory of the late Neville Ramotar, an ardent cricket supporter and businessman from Enmore. The first team, which wins the competition twice, will keep the Neville Ramotar lien trophy.

Despite not winning any T20 competition recently, ECCCC Bravados will start as favourites after defeating a formidable Lusignan team recently in the 40-over cricket format on the Coast.

There will also be an exhibition game preceding the final between a combined East Coast U-23 team and Lusignan East, who are the third-place team.

ECCCC’s batting will be led by Amir Khan, national U-17 player Chaitram Balgobin and the in-form Vishwanauth Ramlakhan while their quartet of spinners – Satash Jainarine, Chris Surat, Amir Khan, and Yuvraj Dayal – will look to restrict the Ogle batting line-up. Ogle CC Blasters Andrew Samaroo and Khemchandra Dindyal are expected to make significant

Strathavon SC. The scores are as follows: At Enmore: ECCCC A defeated LBI SC by 12 runs.

ECCCC A 88 for 3.

B Ramkelawan 21, V Ramlakhan 21 and I Hassan 22.

LBI SC were restricted to 76 for 7, with R Dowlatram scoring 19. Satash Jainarine took 3 for 7 from 2 overs.

Ogle CC defeated ECCCC B by 10 wickets.

ECCCC B) 40 for 4. Dion Thomas took 2 wickets for 6 runs from 2 overs. Ogle CC knocked off their target in 4 overs with Irfan Ali unbeaten on 22.

Ogle CC got the better of Industry SC by 4 wickets.

Industry SC 56 all out from 9.3 overs.

Ayodha Joseph and Khemraj Jaikarran took 3 wickets each for 8 and 10 runs respectively. Ogle CC laboured to their target of 57 for the loss of 6 wickets in 9.1 overs.

Irfan Ali made 20. Aravida Gainda and Mohamed Nazir took 3 wickets for 7 and 2 wickets for 7 runs respectively.

At Lusignan: Lusignan East SC defeated Lusignan SC B by 17 runs. Lusignan East 98 for 7 from 10 overs.

Hardeo Jailall made 48 while Ferron Kadir took 2 for 20. Lusignan B were then restricted to 71 for the loss of 6 wickets. V Jailall and M Jailall took 2 wickets apiece for 8 runs.

Avish Auto Sales (Unity) SC defeated Strathavon SC by 4 wickets. Strathavon SC scored 57 for 5 from 10 overs.

P Chowtie took 2 wickets for 6 runs from 2 overs. Avish Auto Sales (Unity) reached their target for the loss of 6 wickets in 9.3 overs.

Lusignan SC B returned to defeat Strathavon SC in the final game. Scores were unavailable up to press time.

Captain Bheemraj Ramkelawan of Enmore (left) and his opposite number, Davindra Ramtahal pose with the championship trophy

contributions to their teams’ score while their bowling will be led by Ayodha Joseph and Damuka Ngondo. The exhibition game is set for 10:00h while the final will be played at 13:30h. The teams are as follows: ECCCC Bravados: Bheeemraj Ramkelawan (Captain); Yuvraj Dayal; Imran Hassan; Vishwanauth Ramlakhan; Amir Khan; Chris Surat; Rudolph Singh; Navindra Gobin; Cordel Marz; Kenon Ramascindo; Ranjeet Hiralall; Chaitram Balgobin; Hemraj Garbarran and Satash Jainarine.

Ogle CC Blasters: Davindra Ramtahal (Captain); Soopaul Sanichar; Michael Deonarine; Khenchandra Dindyal;

Ayodha Joseph; Andrew Samaroo; Orlando Persaud; Khemraj Jaikaran; Damuka Ngondo; Anthony Ifill; Deion Thomas; Shivanand Gossain; Nazir Hussein and Orlando Persaud.

Lusignan East: Hirdeo Jailal, Ramchand Jailall, Harrinarine Hira, Ayube Sammy, Patrick Appanna, Sachin Sahadeo, Joash Lall, Mohan Jailal, Khemraj Jailal, Navindra Balram, Kedar Amsterdam, Kevin Mckenzie, Tulsie Persaud and Bhogpaul Balram.

East Coast U-23: Gavin Budwah (Captain); Robin Williams; Travon Charles; Suresh Jainarine; Denzil Williams; Vickram Doonauth; Rajpaul Basdeo; Chaterpaul Ramraj; Mike Persaud; Yogesh Umrao; Darshan Persaud; Yudister Persaud and Viviakanand Ishwardin.

In the ECC-sponsored T10 competition, six matches were played last Sunday, with wins for ECCCC A, Ogle CC, Lusignan B and

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GUYANATIMESGY.COM

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

National U-12 Chess Tournament

Couchman, Raghunauth, Shariff bag top spots

CPL’s economic impact on Guyana F sees 15% increase

T

he Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) has announced the tournament’s economic impact for Guyana.

The 2019 event, which took place between 4 September and 12 October last year, created a total economic impact of US$29,514,926 in the country, a 15% increase on the fantastic results that were achieved during the 2018 event.

This figure has been calculated using organiser spend, visitor spend and media value and was collated for the tournament by worldrenowned researchers, YouGov Sport.

In addition to the economic impact figure, the tournament filled 7,664 hotel rooms in Guyana, saw an increase in overall arrivals into the country during the Hero CPL and 608 jobs were created. Working closely with the local tourism authority the CPL also created content that showed why people should visit Guyana and experience this wonderful country.

With five group games and two playoff matches taking place in Guyana the local fans were treated to seven fantastic cricket matches with their team once again making the final. The crowds in Guyana were fantastic once again,

and the support that the tournament has received from fans in the country has been outstanding.

Speaking about the report from YouGov Sport the Hero CPL Chief Operating Officer, Pete Russell said: “There is nothing like watching cricket in Guyana, and we were so pleased with how welcome we were made once again. The Guyanese economy is moving forward rapidly and we are very pleased to be playing our part in that success. We are already looking forward to putting on more matches of exciting cricket in the country in 2020.” (CPL)

West Indies to tour Sri Lanka in February for 3 ODIs, 2 T20Is

W

est Indies will tour Sri Lanka in February for three ODIs and two T20Is, Sri Lanka Cricket has confirmed.

West Indies are expected to arrive in Sri Lanka on February 10, and they will play two warm-up games on February 17 and 20, before the first ODI on February 22.

The first of the two warm-up matches will be an unofficial encounter at the P. Sara Oval, while the second game against a Board President’s XI at Katunayake will mark the official start of the tour.

Apart from the warm-ups, only one of the five limitedovers contests will take place in Colombo. The SSC will host the first ODI, which will be a day game; usually limitedovers matches in Colombo take place at the Khettarama stadium, however the stadium is still undergoing renovations.

The second ODI - a day-night encounter - on February 26 will then see the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Stadium in Hambantota host its first match in almost three years, the last being an ODI between Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe in July 2017.

The final ODI on March 1 will move the action to Kandy, where the teams will stay for the start of the T20I series on March 4. The second and final T20I will be held on March 6.

All three matches in Kandy will be hosted at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium.

Sri Lanka have played nine T20Is against West Indies, winning six of them, while their last 10 ODI encounters against the same opponents have seen eight wins and two losses. However, the teams have only faced each other once in limited-overs cricket since 2016 - a dead rubber at the 2019 World Cup that saw Sri Lanka come away 23-run winners.

The last bilateral series between the sides was in 2018 when Sri Lanka played three Tests in West Indies, drawing the series 1-1. West Indies last toured Sri Lanka in 2015, where they lost the ODI series 3-0 and drew the T20Is 1-1. (ESPNcricinfo)

A snippet of the chess action over the weekend

ollowing two days and seven rounds of competition, organisers are one step closer to identifying Guyana’s representatives for the CARIFTA Junior Chess Championships 2020.

The National Under-12 championships, which were hosted over the weekend (January 18 and 19), are being used as a scouting initiative to build a fortified team for the CARIFTA Junior Championships, which will be hosted in Guyana for the first time this year.

The seven-round Swiss competition, sponsored by DeSinco Trading Limited’s Moo Milk, commenced on Saturday at the School of the Nations Auditorium.

Under the watchful eye of tournament director Nelisha Johnson, who was assisted by former national champion Taffin Khan, Rai Sharma and technical expert John Lee, four rounds were completed on Saturday with a few players in prime positions to take the top spots.

A r y s h Raghunauth was one such player with four wins from

four games. Omar Shariff was also in a similar position with four wins under his belt.

However, the competition heated up on Sunday when the final three rounds were contested. By the penultimate round of play, Mae’s Under 12’s Raghunauth and Marian Academy’s Kyle Couchman were neck and neck for the overall championships.

Couchman, after moving level on points in the final round on board one against Raghunauth, found himself tied on six points with his opponent.

A tieb re a ke r eventually decided t h a t

the championship would be given to Couchman while Raghunauth settled for second place. Nicholas Zhang finished third in the category.

Over in the Under-10 subcategory, Shariff kept his slate clean to cop first place. Mahir Rajkumar and Jacob McDonald finished second and third respectively.

Aquialini Swammadha was the best player in the Under-8 division while second place went to Alek Singh and Jibrel Kahilel was third.

The special prize put aside for the best female player in the National Under-12 competition was awarded to Issebella Rodrigues.

With the National Under-12 competition completed, Guyana Chess Federation executives will now move to select a group of players who will represent the country at the CARIFTA championships.

The ninth edition of the auspicious regional event will be hosted in Guyana at the Princess Ramada Hotel, East Bank Demerara from April 10 to 13. Improving from a contingent of six players in 2018, who competed in Suriname, the CARIFTA 2019 team rose to a high of 14 members in Curaçao.

However, with the home advantage this time around, the 2020 team are expected to increase significantly in order to boost Guyana’s chances of medalling. Guyana finished fifth out of 10 countries in 2019.

(Jemima Holmes)

Under-12 champion Kyle Couchman

27th Ricks & Sari 11-race programme on Saturday

T

Pooran made 118 against Sri Lanka in the World Cup - his highest ODI score - but West Indies were all out for 315 chasing 339 (Getty Images)

he cycling season will begin with the staging of the 27th Ricks and Sari 11-race programme this Saturday, at the National Park’s inner circuit.

National Cycling Coach Hassan Mohamed has organised the event, which pedals off from 09:00h.

In 2019, the feature event – the School Boys and Invitational 35-lap race – was won by Balram Narine who stopped the clock in one hour, 14 minutes, and 62 seconds.

The 10-lap juveniles’ race was won by Ajay Gopilall in 27:22.28s while Junior Niles won the veterans’ Under-50 five-lap in 12:47.70s.

The three-lap 12-14 years’ BMX race saw Steve Bhimsen lifting the title in 10:05.26s with Neshaun Rigby and Jose Rodrigues winning the 9-12

Balram Narine (left) outsprinted Michael Anthony (centre) and Paul DeNobrega to win the feature event in 2019

and 6-9 years’ categories, respectively. Ozia McAully was again the best for the five-lap mountain bike race.

In contention will be Jamaul and Briton John, Alanzo Ambrose, Andre Green, Andrew Hicks, Christopher

Griffith, and others who had exceptional performances last season.

Mohamed thanked the sponsors for their continued investment and predicted an exciting day to kick-start the year.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020

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

guyanatimesgy.com

CPL’s economic impact on Guyana sees 15% increase

West Indies to tour Sri Lanka in February for 3 ODIs, 2 T20Is

Page 23

Page 23

National U-12 Chess Tournament

Couchman, Raghunauth, Shariff bag top spots Page 23

The winners’ row following the completion of the Under-12 chess championships

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