Guyana Times Wednesday March 4, 2020

OAS calls for overhaul of Guyana’s antiquated elections laws P2 P8

Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Issue No. 4215

guyanatimesgy.com

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020

PRICE

General and Regional Elections

Region 4 Returning Officer abruptly halts SOP verification – Nandlall …PPP/C questions motive

$80 VAT INCLUDED

WHAT'S INSIDE: Good Intent/Patentia protests

No fake IDs sold, distributed or used on Election P10 Day – Police Commander

See stories on pages 3 & 13

...Jagdeo urges GECOM to fulfil its statutory obligations …PSC concerned over delayed ROs' declarations 2020 Preliminary General Election Results Region 2

Region 1

ANUG

APNU/AFC 3,839

LJP 145 PPP/C URP

7,996 77

Region 6

NO

TS L SU E R

Region 3

APNU/AFC 14,475

CG 149

PPP/C 18,788 PRP

55

URP

64

NO

Region 7

NO

Region 5

86

APNU/AFC 7,343

IN

Region 4

TS L U S RE

TS L SU E R

IN

Region 8

IN

NO

TS L SU E R

IN

Region 9

PPP/C

18,263

CG

125

PRP

55

URP

60

…parcels stashed in bushes

Region 10

APNU/AFC 2,086

APNU/AFC 4,826

APNU/AFC 19,153

LJP

460

LJP

282

PPP/C

3,202

PPP/C

2,041

PPP/C

7,065

PRP

69

URP

39

URP

55

URP

119

GECOM warns of fake social media page P7 being circulated Jude Bentley’s death

EU diplomat urges losing party to accept results …ABE hail free, credible elections

CANU unearths 14.2kg cannabis in abandoned P11 yard

Page 7

Only GECOM authorised to declare elections result – PPP/C Page 9

…condemns APNU/AFC for irresponsible statements

Police unable to locate PNCR executive Gary P8 Best …Attorney promises to produce client

Lamaha Gardens house ravaged by fire P10

2 NEWS

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

OAS calls for overhaul of Guyana’s antiquated elections laws ...recommends purging voters’ list ahead of any future vote

A

n overseas electoral observer mission fielded by the Organisation of American States (OAS), has recommended a purging of the Official List of Electors before any future elections are to be held in Guyana.

This is in addition to pursuing a greater use of technology in the voting and tabulating process as well as reforming the country’s Campaign Finance and Elections Laws.

The review of the 2020 election process and recommendations for the Guyana

Elections Commission (GECOM) were handed down on Tuesday by Mission Head, the Right Honourable Bruce Golding—Former Prime Minister of Jamaica— who led a team of electoral specialists from across 13 countries.

Speaking to the issue of the voters’ list, Golding told members of the media that the development of a technology solution that allows the “collection and transmission of images of Statement of Polls and collated results from regional locations to a central serv-

Head of the OAS Observer Mission to Guyana, former Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding along with other members of the OAS team in Guyana

er location in Georgetown would allow Guyana to implement a more modern tabulation system which facilitates the publication of preliminary results.”

As such, Golding said the OAS mission is recommending to the Commission that they implement a system that would allow the issuance of preliminary results for national elections, in order to make this information available on election day….”

According to Golding “GECOM should also consider including a technology solution in the electoral system which supports the final tabulation of the results of the election.”

Comprehensive reform

On the matter of the list of voters, Golding told stakeholders present that the Official List of Electors for this year’s election was 660,998 persons, a “number that is relatively high in relation to the estimated population of Guyana—approximately 785,000.”

Golding told reporters that it was reported to him that the reasons for the bloated list include the fact that there were dead persons still on the list along with persons that no longer reside in Guyana.

It was explained that this is compounded by the fact that the law—as was recently upheld by the Chief Justice—provides limitations on how names can be removed.

The OAS, as such, “recommends a comprehensive reform of the voter registration system along with the necessary legislative authorisation for registration, changes to voters’ lists and

submission of complaints about the exclusion or inclusion of voters.”

He said GECOM should undertake “a House-toHouse Registration exercise at the earliest possible opportunity upon completion of the election and periodically thereafter.”

Meanwhile, turning his attention to the issue of Campaign Financing, Golding observed that while there is some form of legislative provisions in this regard, these are antiquated.

He observed that according to the Act, candidates and their agents must submit a report on their expenses to GECOM upon the conclusion of an electoral process.”

The Former Jamaican Prime Minister noted, however, that the provision sets a limit on expenses at US$250 per candidate. He noted further that the Act does not make provision for the disclosure of the sources of contributions received by candidates or their agents, neither are there effective enforcement mechanisms.

According to Golding, there are no expense reports that are submitted by candidates though it is required by law and there are no limits on campaign expenses, neither are there reports on contributions or donors.

It was observed too that there is no “guidance on the use of State resources.”

As such, Golding noted that the OAS is recommending that the existing legislation be revised and modernised to include clear limits on campaign spending, the identification of the sources of funding, the prevention of anonymous donations and the limitation of private and in-kind donations to political and electoral campaigns.

He said consideration should be given to the inclusion in such a regulatory framework of State funding for political parties and campaigns.

Golding told reporters that the Mission’s outlined recommendations were preliminary in nature and that a more detailed report on the mission’s observations and suggestions will be presented to the OAS Permanent Council in Washington, DC, along with stakeholders in Guyana.

NEWS

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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

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

Wednesday, March 4 – 01:00h – 02:30h and 12:00h – 13:30h and Thursday, March 5 – 02:00h – 03:30h and 13:00h – 14:30h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Wednesday, March 4 – 11:00h – 12:30h and Thursday, March 5 – 12:25h – 13:55h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY Sunshine will prevail during the day. There will be clear skies at night. Temperatures should range between 20 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius.

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

High Tide: 11:41h reaching a maximum height of 2.18 metres.

Low Tide: 05:07h and 17:59h reaching minimum heights of 1.15 metres and 0.99 metre.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2020

LOTTERY NUMBERS L

01 08 09

13 18 20

21

FREE TICKET

Bonus Ball

TUESDAY, MARCH 3, 2020 DAILY MILLIONS

07 13 19 20 25 LUCKY 3

3

8

4

9

Afternoon Draw

1

8

Evening Draw

DRAW DE LINE

03

06

07

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PAY DAY

20 SUPER PAY DAY FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2020

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15

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

COMMODITIES Indicators

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Crude Oil Rough Rice London Sugar

$51.86/barrel $242.64/ton $389.20/ton

Live Spot Gold

Change %

-0.08 -0.26 0.00

USD Per Ounce

Bid/Ask $1642.40 $1643.40 Low/High $1593.10 $1652.80 Change +2.30 +0.14

Elections 2020

Region 4 Returning Officer abruptly halts SOP verification – Nandlall

…PPP/C questions motive

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laiming tiredness, after assuring polling agents that the verification of Statements of Poll would continue until its completion, the Returning Officer for District Four (Demerara-Mahaica) abruptly pulled the plug on the exercise, leaving agents questioning the motive.

According to People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) candidate, Anil Nandlall, at around 19:30h he received assurance from RO Clairmont Mingo that the process would continue uninterrupted. However, Mingo backpedalled on his commitment shortly after.

“This commitment came as a result of a specific inquiry which I made loudly and clearly in the hearing and presence of every person in the room, including the representatives of the various political parties and the international observers whom were present. Within less than an hour, the said RO abruptly adjourned the exercise until 9:00 am tomorrow morning, claiming tiredness,” Nandlall said in a statement posted to his Facebook page.

The verification is being done at the RO’s Office, Ashmin’s Building, Hadfield and High Streets, Georgetown. The building also hosts the Guyana Elections Commission’s Media Centre for the 2020 General and Regional Elections.

“This Returning Officer cannot be oblivious to the urgency which is attached to the conclusion of this exercise. Almost all of the other regions across the country which are affected by various factors, such as distance, rough physical terrain and other logistics in respect of transmission of the SOPs have concluded this very exercise. Yet District No 4, where almost all of the SOPs are in, the exercise is yet to complete,” Nandlall contended.

He added that the Returning Officer must also be aware of the unnecessary tension which the sloth in the official declaration of the results of the elections is causing. He went on to question the motive behind the abrupt halt.

“I cannot help but think that there is a sinister motive at work. This attempt to delay is deliberate. Is there is plan to wait out the observers so as to execute some illicit design? Is this delay to facilitate the unlawful removal and destruction of official records of the

Former Attorney General Anil Nandlall

Government of Guyana and the pilfering and destruction public properties,” Nandlall wrote.

Thousands of Guyanese have expressed their dissatisfaction with the slothfulness of GECOM when it comes to the release of preliminary results.

Just on Elections Day, the Head of the Organisation of American States (OAS) Elections Observer Mission, former Jamaican Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Bruce Golding lamented the fact that many

of the recommendations coming out from that body over the years continue to go unimplemented.

He told media operatives that “regrettably” only two of the recommendations coming out of the OAS’s previous two missions for the 2015 and 2011 elections were partially implemented.

According to Golding, “a lot of the recommendations made by [the] mission in 2015 and even in 2011 those are still languishing.”

Golding said that the mission had urged the

GECOM to seek to ensure that the results of Monday’s poll are communicated in a timely manner. This, he explained, was a matter that was raised with the Commission based on the experience of the Mission in the previous years.

“It is not good to have an election on Monday and several days can pass before the people of Guyana can know what the outcome of those elections are….that is courting mistrust, it is providing fertile ground for rumours and conspiracy theories,” he had stated.

Golding sought to point out that it must be borne in mind that given the geography of Guyana, there are remote polling locations where it would prove to be challenging to have the results conveyed at times by boat or plane. He was adamant, however, that results from the elections can be communicated as they are tabulated and that the Commission does not have to wait until the final box of ballots has been counted before releasing any reports.

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guyanatimesgy.com

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 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

False dichotomy between jobs and infrastructure

O

ne of the signal failures of the PNC-led coalition Government since 2015 has been its callous cop-out statement to the people of this country, foundering in the highest employment rate in the region, that “governments do not create jobs”. David Granger has declared that he is focusing on “education” and “infrastructure”, so we can expect more of the same stagnation in the job sector if he is to be re-elected.

But after the PPP, in 1992, inherited the disaster that was bequeathed after 28 years of PNC ministrations, they were able to create jobs as well as improve the delivery of education, besides building infrastructure.

The PNC has created a false dichotomy between jobs and infrastructure. Schools, roads, bridges, hospitals are all good; but of what use are schools if the graduates cannot find jobs with their “education? Of what use are roads if the ordinary citizens cannot afford the price of gasoline, much less the price of a car to get from here to there because, at best, they are stuck at subsistence wages if they’re lucky enough to have a job?

When a person has a job that can provide the basic needs of his family – food, shelter, clothing, and perchance transportation – then this is the beginning of a life of respect and dignity. Handouts such as providing “boats, bicycles and breakfasts” to children, can never accomplish this. Even if citizens do not have all of the infrastructure, once there are jobs, the infrastructure will come. Jobs mean businesses and enterprises and these mean taxes – both personal and corporate – for all levels of government. People with jobs will assert themselves and demand that the Government use those taxes to provide the amenities of infrastructure. The people may even create the infrastructure for themselves. It is quite a virtuous circle.

Even though it has failed, the PNC are lazily following the neo-liberal model of economic development that was foisted on them by the IMF/World Bank combine. They insisted that if we liberalized our economy, privatized the state corporations, and kept a tight rein on our macro-economic fundamentals, investments would pour in to generate jobs.

Well, it has not worked out this way for the simple reason that it has not succeeded in transforming any poor country.

Countries in our situation cannot stand on dogmas, but must tailor their policies to suit their own circumstances.

Even the IMF/World Bank had grudgingly conceded this after the 2008 global economic crash. Our circumstance – whether due to political instability or other factors – is that even though the commercial banks are awash in cash, the latter is not being intermediated into investments that deliver high-paying jobs. The countries that have succeeded in pulling themselves out of poverty – the Far Eastern Flying Geese and most recently China – all have governments that were much more engaged with custom-tailored, job generating industrial policies.

These governments adopted a catalytic role for development; set strategic goals, and then did whatever was necessary to back into them. For instance, Korea, Singapore and now China followed the Japanese example and explicitly tied assistance to selected private industries based on their commitment and ability to export. This strategic decision had two significant and faithful results that differed from the old “import substitution strategy”.

Firstly, the assisted firms were subjected to the market discipline of the competition of international trade. This was the most intense competition, and ensured that efficiencies and productivities had to be raised to the highest levels.

These firms not only could not afford to be fat and lazy, but had to become world class – and they have remained world class. The second benefit, of course, was that the exports brought in foreign exchange, and there was no need to ban anything to save foreign exchange.

We know that, under our present mentality, there will be much griping when certain firms will be selected for governmental backing. But once the criteria are set and applied objectively, the selection can be defended, especially when jobs are created.

Migrants cross Meric River toward the Turkey’s Pazarkule border crossing with Greece’s Kastanies, near Edirne, Turkey (Reuters)

How climate change is making recordbreaking floods the new normal

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series of recent storms in the United Kingdom has led to severe flooding, with the equivalent of one month of rain in 48 hours in some locations according to reports. Most of England received above average rainfall during October 2019, saturating water catchments.

Climate change and floods— how they are connected

Floods are made more likely by the more extreme weather patterns caused by long-term global climate change. Change in land cover – such as removal of vegetation – and climate change increase flood risk.

Extreme floods can be triggered by intense precipitation, longer duration, close repetition of precipitations or a combination of these. In the case of intense precipitations, such as was experienced in the United Kingdom, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in its comprehensive assessment of the physical science basis of climate change found that there is high confidence that this is an increasing trend in Europe, especially for winter flooding.

“While it is difficult to make a direct link between an individual extreme event and climate change, it is clear that we need to be prepared to face more intense and more frequent extreme hydro-meteorological events due to climate change,” says Pascal Peduzzi, Director of the United Nations

Environment Programme (UNEP) Global Resource Information Database in Geneva.

Rising global temperatures mean more rain

With higher temperatures, we have more energy in the Earth’s system.

Higher ocean water and air temperatures increase the possibility for evaporation and, therefore, cloud formation. At higher temperatures, the air can hold more moisture content. This can lead to an increase in precipitation intensity, duration, and/or frequency.

Temperatures increase faster at higher latitude than at the equator. It results in a smaller temperature gradient between mid-latitude and polar temperatures, which can affect the jet stream. For the North Atlantic region, research points to a potential higher frequency of extreme hydrometeorological events, such as heavy storms in winter, or prolonged drought in summer.

Temperatures are on the rise

Global temperature in January was the highest-ever on record. The global average temperature is now 1.1 degree Celsius higher than the beginning of last century. UNEP’s World Environment Situation Room includes regularly updated information about global temperature anomalies, and this graph shows that January 2020 was the warmest January since records began, rising to 1.19 degree Celsius above pre-in-

dustrial levels.

Extreme flooding will continue to be concentrated in regions where humans have built on floodplains or low-lying coastal regions.

As global warming increases the likelihood for more extreme weather events to occur, risks will expand beyond the high-risk areas known today. More extreme flooding must be expected, and for the towns and cities where flooding has already occurred, theirs will no longer be a ‘once in a lifetime’ risk but now far more frequent.

The reality is that this is the world we live in with 1.1 degree Celsius of warming. These records temperatures, record floods are not anomalous, they are the beginning of a new norms, and the new records will continue to be exceeded, year after year.

What will things be like in a few decades when we hit 1.5 degree Celsius? As affected communities drain, dredge, dry out and count the cost of lost belongings, ruined homes and businesses, as people live with lingering damp, and new fears of future storms, it appears that much needs to be done to prepare ourselves to face our future reality.

Everyone – governments entities at all levels, business, civil society, individuals – need to be prepared to face more extreme weather events as the climate continues to change at an increasing pace. Climate science must be taken into serious account in how we build, adapt and protect our

homes, communities, businesses and infrastructure.

Most urgently, greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced, so that rising global temperatures can be controlled while this is still possible. Nature-based climate solutions, such as reforestation and land restoration should be considered, as they can both reduce the impacts of extreme weather events and absorb CO2.

2020 is the year that Governments will meet to take stock of and increase the ambition of their commitments to taking climate action. It is the year that global emissions must drop by 7.6 per cent, and by 7.6 per cent again every subsequent year until 2030 in order to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, according to UNEP’s 2019 Emissions Gap Report.

Governments, companies, industry and the public of countries of the G20, who are responsible for 78 per cent of emissions, must set targets and timelines for decarbonisation. We must embrace the vast social, economic and political opportunities of transitioning to a world powered by renewable energy and the deployment of a multitude of carbon-neutral solutions across society.

The insight these floods give to the growing threat of a changing climate are a sombre reckoning for the United Kingdom on the year of their presidency of the United Nations Climate Conference. (unenvironment.org)

guyanatimesgy.com

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020

5

News

General and Regional Elections

“Be patient for results” – GECOM Chair T

he Guyana Elections C o m m i s s i o n (GECOM) has delivered free, fair and credible elections. This view was expressed by GECOM Chairperson, retired Justice Claudette Singh as she urged the public to have patience while her agency does its work.

Justice Singh was at the time speaking at a press conference called by GECOM at its media centre to provide an update and some preliminary results.

The Chairperson lauded her staff for their dedication on Elections Day, noting that they worked well into the night.

“Our elections were, as promised, GECOM has delivered free, fair and credible elections… The elec-

GECOM Chairperson, Retired Justice Claudette Singh is flanked by GECOM PRO Yolanda Ward (left) and GECOM CEO Keith Lowenfield

tions [on Monday] were well run. And on behalf of the Commission, I wish to express sincere thanks and appreciation to our CEO and the hard-working Secretariat. They did a fan-

tastic job. They were working day into night without realising they were working in the night.”

She added that despite the many “rough” times, which “we had to endure to

Skeletal remains found on Berbice beach human

by Commander of Region Five, Yonette Stephens during an interview with this publication. She added that a Post-Mortem Examination which was done on the bones revealed that it was human remains and investigators would now have submitted the bones for DNA testing.

The bones were found on February 21 at about 10:00h by a farmer who reported the discovery to the Police.

The remains that were found at Number 37 Village, West Coast Berbice (Mahaica-Berbice)

T

37

he skeletal remains, which were washed up on the Number Village, West Coast

Berbice (Mahaica-Berbice) foreshore, are those of a human.

This was confirmed

get here. I will urge you to be patient… the results are trickling in and the process of verification is being conducted.”

Singh’s view was backed by members of the diplomatic community. United Kingdom High Commissioner to Guyana, Greg Quinn; United States Ambassador, Sarah AnnLynch and European Union Ambassador to Guyana, Fernando Ponce-Canto, all declared that the process was smooth and free from any rigging.

This election went down as one of the most watched and monitored in Guyana’s recent history, with a number of international observers and technical advisors in the country to oversee the process. For instance, it was the first time that the European Union deployed a fully-fledged team of observers on the ground

for Guyana’s elections.

The Carter Center was also involved, with Chairperson of The Carter Center Board of Trustees, Jason J Carter (the grandson of former US President Jimmy Carter) on the ground leading the Carter Center’s international election observer mission

in Guyana.

Other overseas-based observers that participated in overseeing the election included teams from the Organisation of American States (OAS), as well as the Caribbean Community (Caricom), who this publication encountered periodically at various Polling Stations.

GECOM also received assistance from a number of technical advisors who were provided by other countries and international organisations. Canada, for instance, provided GECOM with Jean-Pierre Kingsley, a Canadian elections expert.

The Commonwealth also provided the services of its senior technical advisor, Dr Afari Gyan. In addition, Dr Syed Nasim Zaidi, an elections advisor from India, also joined the team.

6

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020

Page

Y

ears ago, French physician Émile Coué caused quite a stir when he claimed to have managed to heal patients simply through the power of affirmations.

He asserted that patients to whom he spoke about a medicine’s effectiveness healed faster than those to whom he said nothing. This would later become known as the placebo effect. In one interview, Coué claimed, “Auto-suggestion is nothing more than a method of obtaining this control [of the subconscious mind], by hypnotising the mind, so that it will act in the way we wish. This, I have found, can be accomplished by repeating over and over again what we wish to convince our subconscious mind is true.”

Coué and his well-known mantra, “Every day, in every way, I’m getting better and better,” set the stage for what would develop into the theory of auto-suggestion.

This theory proposes that our thoughts can lead to positive or negative outcomes.

As can be expected, a theory claiming that one can use the subconscious mind to heal came up against much criticism.

One of the greatest challenges facing Coué’s theory of auto-suggestion was the absence of scientific proof. Scepticism was rife, and critics have continued to say that uttering positive self-statements “may benefit certain people, but backfire for the very people who ‘need’ them the most.”

But what if Coué had been right?

What if positive words really do lead to positive results? Studies conducted years after Coué’s affirmations seem to point in this direction. Several researchers have found that auto-suggestion helps improve problem-solving and creativity under stress. Others have found that it can help increase confidence. Still other researchers have found that autosuggestion is an effective way to increase self-compassion and prosocial behaviour.

The latest study to come to a somewhat

Foundation

similar conclusion was conducted by researchers from Utrecht University, the University of Applied Sciences in Leiden, the University of Amsterdam and the University of Southampton. The researchers wanted to know whether positive self-talk would have a positive impact on the Maths performance of children with low levels of self-confidence in their Maths abilities; 212 10-year-old children participated in the study. The children were first asked about their competence beliefs and then they were

requested to complete the first half of a standardised Math test. They were then divided into three groups. The first group was asked to engage in “effort selftalk” (I will do my very best); the second group in “ability self-talk” (I am very good at this); and the third group in “no selftalk”. Students who engaged in self-talk were asked to quietly repeat the self-talk statements for at least 30 seconds. They were then asked to write down the selftalk phrase and encouraged to repeat it while working on the second part of the test.

The study found that children performed better when they engaged in “effort self-talk” than when they engaged in “ability self-talk” or in no self-talk. The researchers found that engaging in selftalk may help struggling children focus

on their effort rather than on their lack of ability.

Findings from this study and other available scientific research suggest that positive self-talk can be a powerful tool to help deal with difficult situations. It can help improve academic performance and increase self-confidence and a sense of overall well-being. That said, selftalk can only be effective if it is applied appropriately.

Here are some ways you can start applying positive self-talk today: Focus on realistic affirmations If you do not believe in the affirmations you are saying, those affirmations will not work. Simply saying “I will win the race” will not make you run faster. Focusing on effort will help you get better results when using positive self-talk. Here are a few examples of affirmations that focus on effort: I’ll do my best.

I’ll try.

I’ll give it my best shot.

I’ll learn from my mistakes.

I’ll get better with time.

Find a way to link words to actions Why do people, with time, get better at doing things? Because they practise, because they learn from their mistakes and because they never give up. Positive self-talk (“I’ll get better with time”) also means doing specific actions to ensure success (“I’ll do exercises for 10 minutes a day”). You will do better when you are capable of associating your affirmations to the specific actions that will help those affirmations come true.

Do not ignore your personality The most powerful affirmations are those that align with your personality. The most important thing to remember when

using positive self-talk is that for affirmations to work, they have to be consistent with your internal beliefs, so know

you are special and capable of achieving more than you could ever imagine. (Adapted from parentmap.com)

E

ven if you have never been on an airplane, air travel is an important part of life. In this writing activity, create a comic about living in a world without flight.

Supplies

* Writing and drawing supplies—paper, pencil, markers, ruler * The comics section from your local newspaper, comic books or access to online comics * Tracing paper (optional)

Getting started

Talk about all the ways air travel affects you.

Make a list of what is possible thanks to aviation, such as fresh fruits flown from distant countries or visits to relatives who live long distances away.

Think too about how flight has affected lifestyles and culture. For example, if humans never took to the skies, would George Lucas have made Star Wars? Would there be more travel by train or boat?

With that list in mind, start a new list that will help you shape your comic. Use headings where you can organise your thoughts about characters, their problems, the actions they take, and the setting.

Narrow ideas or devise a specific prompt, such as a favourite professional sports team missing an important away game because they couldn’t fly there and had to travel by much slower means.

When you are ready to draw your comic, first create a six-panel grid on your paper. This is easy to do without measuring if you first fold the paper lengthwise and then in thirds. Unfold it and you will have six boxes to draw and write in. You may need more than one sheet depending on the length of your story. Some tips for helping the comic flow: The first panel can be for the title of the comic.

Comics often have captions, written details that help explain a comic panel, included in a frame at the bottom or top of a panel.

Comics involve a lot of repetitive drawing.

Tracing is allowed and a friend or family member can help with the comic.

If a character is speaking in a panel, write what he’s saying first and then draw the speech bubble around it.

Sometimes the best way to tell any story is in graphic form. Comics don’t have to be funny. Take a look at other comics and compare them.

Often comics are drawn in pencil and finished in pen and ink. This technique will make it easy to photocopy your child’s comic and share it with others. (Adapted from startwithabook.org)

7 EU diplomat urges losing party to accept results NEWS

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

…ABE hail free, credible elections

EU representative Fernando Ponce-Canto

By Jarryl Bryan

D

iplomats from the ABE countries, that is to say, the United States (US), United Kingdom and the European Union have expressed confidence in the voting process during E-Day on Monday, making it clear that they have observed no cases of rigging.

The diplomats were at the time speaking on the sidelines of a press con-

ference called to announce preliminary results on Tuesday.

According to British High Commissioner Gregory Quinn, all that is now required is for the Guyanese people to wait patiently for the results.

“I think the important thing, of course, is that GECOM makes sure the result is announced. So, we have to let GECOM do what GECOM needs to do… I was here in 2015, this is my second election.

The process is slow because of the checks and balances that go into it. I fully understand why things are slow.

We want results as quickly as possible, but of course, we want credible and accurate results,” Quinn said.

“Everywhere we went yesterday (Monday), the process worked exactly as it should work. The procedures were there. For example, whenever people turned up without a voter ID card, the procedures meant to be followed were followed. So based on everything we saw, albeit from a small sample of polling stations, everything

British High Commissioner Gregory Quinn

was fine,” Quinn added when asked.

In her comments, US Ambassador Sarah AnnLynch noted that having visited polling stations in Bartica, Skeldon, Linden, New Amsterdam and Georgetown, she observed a smooth process. According to the Ambassador, she is now looking forward to hearing about the final results, as well as continued peace in the city.

“We look forward to

GECOM warns of fake social media page being circulated

T

he Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has warned of a fake Facebook page being circulated, purporting inaccurate information to the public.

The page, created under the name “Guyana Elections Commissions”, brandished the logo of the Secretariat while sending out statements on behalf of the agency.

As such, the Commission advised individuals to ignore these contents. Further, the Commission stated that all updated information will be sent through their official social media account. The fake platform is easily identifiable from the authentic one since it has just a few followers. The genuine one has close to 25,000 followers.

“The page has been releasing inaccurate information with the intent to cause mischief and confusion. Please be alert and ignore all such content. All official updates would be posted on GECOM’s official page,” the Secretariat noted.

Throughout the electoral season, media outlets and other agencies were also battling the plague of phoney websites and social media pages under their name.

In one instance, a screenshot of a “news

item”, purported to be posted by INews Guyana, is making its rounds on the social media platform, Facebook, where many unsuspecting users believe it to be genuine content.

In another instance, a Facebook page branded “Guyana Times” was recently created, and purported to carry a poll which showed that the PPP/C was garnering fewer votes than the APNU/AFC coalition.

hearing about the final tabulation and the continued peace in the city… I did [observe], I was out in the city, to a couple polling stations in Essequibo, in Bartica, in Linden, Skeldon, I was in a number of places in Rose Hall and New Amsterdam and I’m finished in Georgetown.”

“In each case, things were well run and very smooth. So, it’s really a great achievement and a great success, we think.

My message is just to wait and hear the tabulation of the results and when the Guyanese people have spoken, to accept those results. We look forward to continued good hours and days ahead.”

Accept results

Meanwhile, European Union (EU) representative Fernando Ponce-Canto went further by seeking to urge whichever political party may be on the losing

US Ambassador Sarah Ann-Lynch

side, to accept the results when they are declared.

“We are very satisfied in terms of the peace of the process. The process has been peaceful. That is something very important. Most of the citizens of Guyana considered yesterday a celebration of democracy.”

“Having said this, it’s important to add that the winner, whoever it is, should form a Government as soon as possible. And the loser, whoever it is, accepts the results and the whole country unites to ensure they can profit and benefit from the future.”

Asked directly if there were any cases of rigging, Ponce-Canto referred the media to the EU observers led by Estonian politician Urmas Paet. The diplomat also noted that the European Union stands ready to work along with whoever forms the next Government.

“Whatever the result, we will be very happy to work with whatever Government Guyana decides to give to itself. And we will be happy to cooperate with Guyana. We have a very strong, longstanding partnership and we are looking forward to a stronger one,” he also said.

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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

“Otisha” back in court on robbery charge

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opular cross-dresser Otis “Otisha” Pearson, who is no stranger to the courts, made another court appearance at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Tuesday, this time slapped with a robbery charge.

The accused pleaded not guilty to the charge which stated that on November 20, 2019, at Sandy Bobb Street, Kitty, Georgetown,

Charged for robbery: “Otisha” Pearson

Otis

he robbed Dane Peters of $100,000 while using personal violence. The charge was read by Principal Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus.

The prosecution did not object to bail and as such, the accused was released on $70,000 bail and was ordered to report to the Kitty Police Station every Friday until the hearing and conclusion of the trial.

The case was adjourned

to March 16, 2020.

Back in 2018, the said defendant was committed to stand trial at the Demerara High Court to face a rape indictment committed against a 14-year-old boy.

The LGBT personality was arrested in March of 2018, after accusations were levelled against him with regards to his involvement in sexual activity with minor boys.

Sri Lankans slapped with illegal entry charge

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reshawn Kumar and Aru Rugam, 36, both of Sri Lanka, were on Tuesday fined and ordered to be deported when they appeared at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Courts for illegally entering Guyana.

The two men admitted that on February 28, 2020, at Springlands, Corentyne, Region Six (East BerbiceCorentyne), they entered Guyana by sea and disem-

barked without presenting themselves to the nearest Immigration Officer.

The court heard that on the day in question, the defendants were heading to Lethem, Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) when the vehicle in which they were travelling was stopped by Police ranks at the Mabura checkpoint.

Upon inspection, the two men were asked to present

their travel documents and it was discovered that the documents bore no travel stamps indicating that they arrived in Guyana legally.

They were arrested and taken to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Headquarters, Eve Leary, and following an investigation, they were charged.

The men were fined $40,000 each or an alterna-

tive of 40 days’ imprisonment. It was ordered that they are deported after paying their fines or serving their time in prison.

Only last week, four Sri Lankans were charged and fined for the same offence.

They too were heading to Mahdia when the vehicle they boarded was stopped and Police officers found that they illegally entered the country.

Jude Bentley’s death

Police unable to locate PNCR executive Gary Best

…Attorney promises to produce client

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lthough People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) Executive Member, Retired Rear Admiral Gary Best has been charged for causing the death of national cyclist, Jude Bentley, although he has not been arraigned since Police are unable to locate him.

According to Commander of Region Four (DemeraraMahaica) Sub-division A (Georgetown), Assistant Police Commissioner Edgar Thomas, the case was likely to be filed on Tuesday, taking into account that Monday was a public holiday.

However, Best’s attorney, James Bond, informed the cops that his client was executing party duties and was unable to make the court arraignment.

“Mr Best is crisscrossing the country on a special assignment. Mr Best, as most people know, is a candidate for the APNU/AFC and has a lot of assignments,” Bond

had earlier told the media.

This was in contradiction to Best’s announcement just after the accident on February 8, that he would have suspended all his appearances at all public campaigns for the APNU/AFC coalition.

According to the Commander, Bond had promised that the Best would have presented himself on Tuesday but up to press time, this was not forthcoming.

Almost a month has passed since 41-yearold Bentley died after being struck down by Best in an early morning accident on the Rupert Craig Highway, in the vicinity of the Russian Embassy.

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) last Thursday recommended that charges be laid against Best for causing the death of the national cyclist.

Traffic Chief, Superintendent Linden Isles had confirmed that

Best failed two breathalyser tests. Best, who was arrested by Police, complained of feeling unwell and was admitted to the Georgetown Public Hospital. He was later released on $100,000 station bail.

On February 18, family and friends of the late Bentley picketed the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, calling for charges to be initiated against Best.

Bentley’s cousin, Gary Wiltshire, had told the media that the family will go the “length and breadth”

to ensure that justice is served.

“We are calling for justice, we believe that those [who] are responsible for Jude’s death should be held accountable. If we have to show up here every day until justice is served, we will do that,” Wiltshire stated.

“If this was a poor man he would be right here in front of the [Georgetown] court today and we want everybody to be treated the same and we will stand up for that,” Wiltshire added.

Pork-knocker arraigned for killing co-worker

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miner was on Tuesday arraigned for killing his co-worker and appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Twenty-six-year-old Emric Joseph was not required to plead to the indictable offence when it was read by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan.

Police stated that on February 26, 2020, at Lime Tree Road, Black Water Backdam North West District (NWD), he murdered Compton Benjamin of Durban Street, Georgetown.

It was reported that Joseph and Benjamin had an altercation over a quantity of stolen raw gold which he had earlier stashed in a cupboard they both shared.

Reports are the argument escalated into a fight and it was then that the suspect stabbed the 48-year-old miner in the region of his chest.

The now-dead man was rushed to the Bartica Regional Hospital where

Charged and remanded for murder: Emric Joseph

he succumbed to his injury whilst receiving medical attention.

No hesitations were made by the Chief Magistrate who remanded the murder accused to prison until March 12, 2020. The matter was transferred to the Bartica Magistrate’s Court, where Joseph will make his next court appearance.

Waiting to exhale…

S

…after elections o after all the storm and fury of the year-long campaign, the relatively incident-free casting of the votes and the counting of those votes at the place of poll, one has to ask why we’re still waiting for a declaration of the results two days down the road?? And the asking isn’t just prompted by wanting to know who won. In Guyana, we all know that the longer the announcement is delayed, the more likely all hell will break loose.

This election was very reminiscent of the 1997 one – following the first “free and fair” elections in 1992 that brought in the PPP. Desmond Hoyte, the PNC leader was convinced he’d broken the back of ethnic voting with his “Desmond Persaud” claims and he’d sweep the PPP out of office. He built up huge expectations in his traditional constituency. But more insidiously, he created a narrative of PPP’s victimisation and peripheralisation of African Guyanese.

He started right after the 1992 elections with strident claims of “ethnic cleansing” when the PPP attempted to rationalise the top tier of the Public Service to better execute their manifesto programmes. He turned each of those programmes – from land distribution to agriculture – into a racial Rorschach Test. While there weren’t actual violent outbreaks, matters did almost reach boiling point on several occasions – such as when he called upon his supporters to “shoot to kill” if necessary in a land dispute at Boeroserie.

By the time the 1997 elections rolled around, it didn’t take much of a spark to set off an explosion. This was provided by Trotman’s claims of “thousands of ID’s being distributed by PPP” and the delay in announcing the elections results. As the OAS summarised afterwards: “In contrast to the situation prior to the elections and during the voting, the Mission noted significant weaknesses in the organisation, management, and administration of the collection, transmittal, verification, and announcement of results. This situation, coupled with significant delays in the announcement of results from key polling districts, created a climate in which some have questioned the electoral process and results.”

And it was this “questioning” of the results by claiming PPP “rigging” that the PNC of Desmond Hoyte unleashed protests in Georgetown and unleashing massive violence on Jan 1998. After 2015, we saw the PNC under David Granger stoking a volcano of worse accusations against the PPP as it relates to their treatment of African Guyanese.

The trope of “killing 400 black youths” moved from being an urban myth into “TRUTH” carved in two stone tablets.

The accusations of PPP “distributing IDs” to their supporters to vote, gunmen arrested for attempting to steal Statements of Poll etc, have now set the stage for mischief.

Results must be released pronto!! …after Lowenfield’s “briefing” The word “briefing” is derived from “brief”, no?? But you could be excused for believing it originated from “circumlocutory” after witnessing GECOM CEO Lowenfield’s “briefing” to the Diplomatic Corps and media on the state of the counting yesterday at noon. High noon, it was NOT!!

At the close of polls the day before, he’d assured the nation that by then, the 10 “Returning Officers” (ROs) from each of the Regions would be in possession of ALL the SoPs and he’d be in a position to make some substantive announcements.

The invitees turned up expectantly – as did the rest of Guyana via TV and social media. But the fella just went around and around the topic of election results – merely referring to 5% of the SoPs cited by the PRP – which was meaningless in the big picture. As he focused on the logistics of moving the SoPs in the interior jungle areas, he gave a graphic illustration of how the phrase, “beating around the bush” might have originated!!

It really was an insult to the Diplomats gathered there. …on coronavirus One other reason your Eyewitness wants the elections results to be announced is we haven’t been paying enough attention to the coronavirus that’s now a pandemic.

And will reach us sooner than later.

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

NEWS

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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Only GECOM authorised to declare elections results – PPP/C …condemns APNU/AFC for irresponsible statements

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a i n t a i n i n g that only the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) can declare results from Monday’s General and Regional Elections, the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) has condemned the APNU/AFC for indicating to the public that the coalition will return to office.

On Tuesday morning, the incumbent coalition issued a statement imploring Guyanese, especially its sup-

porters, to remain calm. It added that GECOM must be allowed to do its work await the official announcement.

But in the same vein, the party said: “All of our internal projections are positive and indicate that we will be returned to Government for a second term to continue the work of building and developing Guyana”.

This statement, according to the PPP/C, is misleading to the people of Guyana.

“One worrying paragraph

in the coalition’s statement is where it claims that projections are positive for a second term in office. We urge Guyanese not to be misled.

As is characteristic of the coalition, while appealing for calm, it is attempting to mislead our people” a missive from the PPP/C stated.

The Opposition party pointed out that only the elections body can give the results of Monday’s polls.

“The People’s Progressive Party reiterates that GECOM

is the only authority to declare, officially, the results of the March 2, 2020, General and Regional Elections and we urge patience as the Elections Commission finalises its work… The Party urges Guyanese to not be misled by the APNU/AFC coalition on the matter of official Election results,” the Party added.

The PPP/C contended that this action should be condemned, noting that only on Monday’s Election Day, Leader of the Coalition,

David Granger, had indicated that GECOM is the only “authority” to officially and formally declare the results of Monday’s polls – yet today the coalition has made its own declaration.

To this end, the PPP/C said it has informed the international Election Observer Missions here in Guyana about this matter and will remain engaged with stakeholders.

In the meantime, the party is cognizant that GECOM’s

verification is being done in the presence of several international and local election observer teams. To this end, it urged persons to remain calm and patient until the official declaration of results from the elections body.

“The Party also believes that Guyanese must remain calm and go about their business in a peaceful manner as GECOM finalises the official results via its verification process,” the PPP/C said.

GECOM not obliged to accept foreign observers’ recommendations …defends slothfulness in release of elections result

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hief Elections Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Keith Lowenfield has fired back at the Organisation of American States’ (OAS) recent critique over its non-implementation of recommendations over the years, saying that the Commission is not obliged to accept any.

Lowenfield was at the time addressing members of the domestic and international media corps gathered for a press engagement with the GECOM top brass yesterday.

The CEO also used the occasion to defend the perceived slothfulness of the announcement of the results of the elections – another of the aspects of GECOM that had come under criticism by OAS Mission Head, the Right Honourable Bruce Golding.

Addressing members of the media, “not all recommendation made by bodies are accepted by agencies, that is given.”

The CEO admonished media operatives not to run away with the impression

OAS Mission Head Bruce Golding

“that all recommendations made by bodies or observer groups must be accepted…we have to start at that premises.”

He suggested that were this to be the case, it would set a precedent that recommendations from all such bodies must be accepted, “that is not so.”

The OAS Mission Head had on Election Day – while observing the polling exercise – told media operatives that many of the recommendations coming out from that body over the years continue

to languish unimplemented.

He told media operatives only two of the recommendations coming out of the OAS’ previous two missions for the 2015 and 2011 elections have been partially implemented to date and that “a lot of the recommendations made by [the] mission in 2015 and even in 2011 those are still languishing.”

He suggested, “…we may very well find ourselves in position where this mission is going to have to restate those recommendations because they are still valid.”

Defends slothfulness

Meanwhile, Lowenfield at his press engagement also defended the perceived slothfulness in the delivery of elections results, saying that the Commission was merely following the prescribed processes that have been outlined in the Representation of Peoples’ Act. In fact, Lowenfield told members of the media corps that the laws under which elections are held in fact give the Commission up to 15 days for the announcement of the results.

It was reported that by midday on Monday the Commission had only completed processing just over 30,000 votes from 139 ballot boxes of the 2339 from Polling Stations across the country with an electorate list of more than 600,000.

He sought to explain the process which includes the public verification of each Statement of Poll across the districts in addition to the declarations that would have to be made in each region.

The Statement of Polls would then have to be physically transmitted to the CEO for another round of tabulation before a formal announcement can be made.

The CEO was quick to point out too that the law does provide a 24-hour period after formal announcements for a process of a recount, which can again be time consuming but lawful.

Lowenfield conceded

GECOM CEO Keith Lowenfield

slothfulness in the process being employed by GECOM and indicated that measures are being taken to expedite the process while not sacrificing security checks in the process.

According to the GECOM CEO, each of the Statement of Polls and ballots was produced with built-in security features.

Adding to the list of challenges, Lowenfield pointed to Guyana’s geography and

weather – as was the case in Region Eight – as some of the reasons that prove to be challenging in getting elections results to the public in a timelier manner.

The Head of the OAS mission had a day earlier called on GECOM to ensure that the results of Monday’s poll be communicated in a timely manner.

He told media operatives that this was a matter that was raised with the Commission as was experienced in Guyana in previous years – the time that it takes for the results to be announced According to the OAS Mission Head, “it is not good to have an election on Monday and several days can pass before the people of Guyana can know what the outcome of those elections are….that is courting mistrust, it is providing fertile ground for rumours and conspiracy theories.”

10 NEWS

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Lamaha Gardens house ravaged by fire

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Towering flames from the upper flat of the structure

Lamaha Gardens, Georgetown property went up in flames on Tuesday morning, after a fire of unknown origin started in the upper flat of the building and quickly ripped through the structure.

Based on information received, the fire started just after 10:00h at the Lot 178 Durbana Square, Lamaha Gardens, Georgetown house.

At that time, just the housekeeper was at home.

The fire was consuming the building, while onlookers anxiously awaited the arrival of the Guyana Fire Service – whose closest station is located a short distance away.

The two-storied house, built mainly from concrete, was battered as the fire extended to other adjoining spaces. When Guyana Times arrived at the scene, firefighters had arrived and were working to contain the flames from reaching neighbouring houses. Three fire tenders had shown up and due to the availability of a hydrant with water sup-

Divisional Officer of Operations for the GFS, Gregory Wickham

ply in close proximity, they were able to douse the inferno in a short span of time.

Persons at the scene indicated that they came out after noticing the billowing flames and immediately contacted the fire department. However, the fire had already ruined the internal structure of the house, causing extensive damages. The upper flat was dealt significant blows as fragments collapsed later on.

Sharda Veeran-Chan explained that her brother, Noel Shewjattan, is the owner of the property. He also operates Auto Fashion, Campbellville, Georgetown, and was out of town at the time.

“There is extensive damages upstairs. She [the housekeeper] was in the yard so she doesn’t know…

They’re [the owners] out of town. They should be here by the end of the day,” the woman said.

As firefighters extinguished the burning structure, relatives and neighbours turned up at the scene to witness what unfolded. Divisional Officer of Operations for the GFS, Gregory Wickham provided more clarity on what transpired after an initial assessment. He told the media that they responded to calls that the house was on fire.

The housekeeper was alerted by an explosive sound, which alerted her that a fire broke out. From their initial observation, Wickham noted that her description was consistent.

“Generally, we got the call. We responded with three tenders. When we arrived, we noticed that the top floor of the structure was fully engulfed in flames so they went into operation. We received information that the maid was in the building at the time of the fire. She was on the lower floor and she heard a booming sound coming from the top floor. When she got upstairs to investigate, she saw fire coming from one of the rooms,” he shared.

Upon quelling the fire, only the blemished structure remained. He stated that officers will comb through the remnants to establish what transpired.

“Our investigative team are on the ground and they’re going through the rubbles or the remaining of what is there. They’ll certainly come up with the cause of the fire. The top floor and its contents was completely destroyed.”

Aftermath of the blaze

Wickham pointed towards the advantage of having a fire hydrant on site which aided in containing the tragic situation, thus saving nearby structures.

Some would have only suffered minor scorches outside.

“Kudos to GWI (Guyana Water Incorporated) for allowing us to use the hydrant and getting water out of it.

That’s a good point because

we weren’t hindered by the firefighting process because of lack of water. We had enough water to bring the fire under control. On approaching any structure, we do a quick assessment and then we implement a system that would bring control in order to stop the fire spread to structures nearby,” the Divisional Officer said.

Good Intent/Patentia protests

No fake IDs sold, distributed or used on Election Day – Police Commander

The situation at Patentia area, West Bank Demerara (WBD) on Monday

Police Commander of Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), Assistant Police Commissioner Simon McBean

N

o evidence has been produced that persons were selling, distributing or using fake identification (ID) cards in the Good Intent-Patentia area, West Bank Demerara (WBD), on Elections Day. This is according to Police Commander of Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West

Demerara), Assistant Police Commissioner Simon McBean, who told Guyana Times on Tuesday that those allegations were investigated and no proof was garnered by investigators.

He explained that when ranks were summoned to the area where protesters had gathered and levelled such accusations, the male whom the allegation was made against was thoroughly investigated.

“No one was arrested. A statement was taken from him but he was never arrested.

Thus far, the Police hasn’t any evidence to support the allegation specifically of the use of fake ID cards. He was a legitimate voter; however, the polling station that he was accused of visiting and operating abnormal was not the polling station that he was slated to vote but the polling station that I met him, he was a legitimate voter there,” the Commander said.

However, according to the Police, the man accused was, in fact, assisting a legitimate voter to find his polling station. The legitimate voter confirmed that his name was on the voters’ list at that polling station and the man accused was helping him find his station.

This resulted in the protest, which eventually had to be quelled by the Police.

NEWS

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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Caribbean Airlines CANU unearths 14.2kg cannabis in abandoned yard monitoring coronavirus …parcels stashed in bushes

The 14.2 kilograms of cannabis that was concealed in two parcels

O

ne man is now in the custody of the Customs AntiNarcotics Agency (CANU) after ranks searched an abandoned yard in Georgetown and discovered two parcels of cannabis hidden in a clump of bushes.

An intelligence-led operation by ranks of the drug enforcement agency on Tuesday led to the seizure of 14.2 kilograms of cannabis that was concealed in the two parcels that were wrapped in plastic.

Reports are that between 04:30h and 05:00h,

the CANU officers went to an abandoned yard at Howes Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, where they made the discovery.

According to CANU, it is believed that the illicit substance had been transported from Berbice to Georgetown.

Investigations into the matter are currently underway.

The CANU, in a statement on Tuesday, also noted that it will continue to tighten its grip on narcotics distributors throughout the country.

On Wednesday last, two men who were recently in-

…now monitoring air quality in cabins

tercepted and arrested by the CANU with some 27 kilograms of cocaine concealed in a boat’s bow were arraigned at the Wales Magistrate’s Court, West Bank Demerara (WBD).

Thirty-five-year-old Latchman Sankar, known as “Jack”, and 47-year-old Muneshwar Dusrajh, known as “Bonny”, denied the charge when they appeared before Magistrate Crystal Lambert. They were remanded and slated to return to Court on March 13, 2020.

On February 22, the CANU ranks interdicted the cocaine in a fibreglass vessel at the Parika Backdam, East Bank Essequibo (EBE).

Sankar and Dusrajh were immediately arrested after the search conducted inside of the darkly-painted ‘go-fast’ vessel revealed 25 parcels of cocaine stashed in the boat’s bow.

Meanwhile, the CANU continues to hunt for another suspect, Ryan Pemberton, commonly referred to as “Sancho” of Alberttown, Georgetown, who reportedly issued threats to the agency in relation to the above-mentioned drug bust.

Persons who may have information regarding the whereabouts of Pemberton are being asked to make contact with the CANU on 2260431. Any individual with relevant information that will lead to his arrest will be treated with confidentiality.

C

aribbean Airlines has indicated its efforts to monitor the coronavirus outbreak as thousands of persons continue to travel to countries where confirmed cases were detected.

Headquartered in Trinidad and Tobago, the carrier provides its services across the region, especially in linking Caribbean states and North America.

The airline company indicated that while no travel restrictions have been issued to their destinations, they are still working with health authorities to ensure the safety of its travellers and staff.

“Caribbean Airlines is committed to the health and safety of both its crewmembers and customers and is working directly with health and security officials as well as industry leaders to keep updated and to ensure that it continues to implement best practice,” the carrier stated.

Thus far, a number of measures were implemented in preparation. Safety kits were placed in all aircrafts and provisions were made for the air quality in cabins to be monitored. They are also continuing the compliance with aircraft cleaning procedures, as well as the sanitation of polls.

Meanwhile, employees were equipped with international guidelines on how suspected cases should be handled. A special response team was activated to monitor the situation in real-time.

They are also promot-

ing frequent hand-washing practices amongst its crew members and passengers.

Furthermore, contingencies are in place in the event of any future disruptions.

They also added: “The airline is permitting persons travelling on Caribbean Airlines with onward connections to/from mainland China, Iran, Italy, Japan, South Korea and Singapore to rebook the Caribbean Airlines travel segment without change fees, subject to conditions”.

The coronavirus, recognised as COVID-19, has reached a global epidemic and just recently, Guyana’s southern neighbour, Brazil, recorded its first case.

Through contact during travel, a number of flight attendants would have reportedly contracted the virus in other parts of the world.

In Guyana, local authorities would have indicated last week that 18 persons were being monitored at home, noting that 54 persons were initially under surveillance but 36 were given clearance.

According to the state-

ment, since the commencement of active monitoring at ports in Guyana on January 18, a total of 54 persons arrived in the country with a history of travel from highrisk areas. Some 51 persons arriving from mainland China or Hong Kong were screened.

Out of this number, 37 of these persons were Chinese nationals, 12 Guyanese and one each from Finland and the United States of America. Two Ukrainians and one Singaporean travelled from Singapore through Europe to Guyana and were also cautiously screened and cleared for entry.

Along with ‘high-level’ monitoring for any suspected cases, the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) was equipped with 14 bed units while Diamond and West Demerara Hospitals have the capacity to isolate and manage any confirmed cases.

Globally, there have been over 92,000 reported cases with approximately 3168 deaths.

12 NEWS

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Tense atmosphere in Building goes up in flames after city as Guyana awaits security attempts to torch snake GECOM’s declaration

J

A section of Regent Street, Georgetown, just after midday on Tuesday

ust one day after Guyanese went to the polls to elect a new Government, the city of Georgetown was reduced to almost a ghost town as the country awaits the official declaration of results by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).

Though Tuesday was not a holiday, businesses remained closed as the commercial district was at a standstill.

When this publication visited several parts of the business hub, a few persons were seen walking in the desolate streets.

“I am so anxious to get the results because I cannot understand everybody locking up. We don’t need no riot in this place, we don’t need no 80 days strike. I need

peace, love, and harmony and be quiet, sit and listen for the results and who win, win,” Linda Forde, a resident of Georgetown, who was walking along the isolated street said.

Further up Regent Street, Jomanna Cyrus, a trainee teacher at the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE), said that she is hoping that everything returns to normal.

“I was kind of surprised because I was expecting persons would have probably turned out. It is kind of shocking, I guess persons are scared. When the results are out, based on the atmosphere now, probably I might not see anybody on. I am not expecting any violence, I am expecting persons to accept the result as it is,” she ex-

plained.

Another person who identified herself as Aubery said that the closing of the businesses in Georgetown would be taking “food out of a person’s mouths.”

“I feel the workers are being inconvenienced because if we don’t go to work, we don’t get paid. We have to live and we need to survive after the election we are all still Guyanese”, she said.

Meanwhile, many business places around the city were closed and, in some cases, those who turned up for work were sent home.

Over 600,000 registered electors were on March 2, expected to cast their ballots across Guyana in what was considered Guyana’s most important election.

Firefighters containing the blaze

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Corentyne, Berbice building went up in flames on Tuesday afternoon after security personnel reportedly attempted to torch a snake.

The fire was reportedly seen coming from the building at about 13:30h. Persons rushed to the scene and alerted the guard, who said that he had seen a snake and lit the fire to chase it away and went to the guard hut.

He reportedly fell asleep.

It was after thick black smoke was seen and persons arrived on the scene that the guard realised that the building was on fire.

Dried canals in the area presented a challenge for firefighters who had no water source, hence the fire spread to a vacant plot of land situated across the street. However, the firefighters managed to control the blaze. The building was

being used as an administrative office but no one has been working there for more than a year. However, the company still has items in the building and containers

Chairman David Armogan, a private company had taken up space there since the Administration had been experiencing difficulty maintaining the building which

Vegetation ablaze in a nearby plot of land as the flames spread

in the yard.

The compound was initially owned and operated by the Regional Administration but according to Regional

had become unoccupied for years.

Police have since taken the security guard into custody for questioning.

13 Jagdeo urges GECOM to fulfil its statutory obligations NEWS

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

PPP General Secretary Bharrat Jagdeo

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eneral Secretary of the Opposition People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Bharrat Jagdeo on Tuesday night called on the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to follow the statutory process which allows Returning Officers to make declarations of the results as soon as regional tabulations are completed.

Jagdeo, who is also the Opposition Leader, said that GECOM had promised observers and political parties that this law will be fol-

lowed.

“The Chief Elections Officer (Keith Lowenfield) said as is required by law, the ROs, once they do the tabulation and verification with the party agents and the observers present, they shall declare the results.

Many regions have already gone through that process.

They have completed the tabulation, they have completed the verification in the presence of observers, yet they have failed to make the official declaration at the level of the district,” he

pointed out.

According to the Opposition Leader on Tuesday evening, there seemed to be a second set of instructions.

“I made it clear that the second check by the CEO is not part of the statutory process but they can still pursue that and treat the declarations at the regional level as preliminary results because in any case, once the ROs make a declaration then you have up to noon the following day to submit any requests for recount if a party wishes. But we don’t see any attempts to do so now and it seems as though they all have instructions to report back to Georgetown,” he noted.

Jagdeo said this is unusual and as such, the PPP/C has urged the observers to prevail on GECOM to follow the law and ensure the CEO keep his promise to everyone that the ROs will perform what is required by law, that is, after the verification have been made, they should make the declaration.

This statement was made

by Jagdeo just after 18:00h.

GECOM CEO Keith Lowenfield

Results from ROs started trickling around 19:00h on Tuesday. The CEO had indicated on Monday night that these regional results were expected since midday on Tuesday.

Nevertheless, the PPP/C General Secretary noted that the party’s numbers indicate that it is in the lead but it will await GECOM to make an official declaration but will respect the Memorandum of Understanding that the party’s Presidential Candidate,

PSC concerned over delayed ROs' declarations …says partial release by GECOM dangerous

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fter being told by the Guyana Elections C o m m i s s i o n (GECOM) on Monday evening that all the Returning Officers (ROs) would have made their declarations of results from their respective regions by midday on Tuesday, Guyanese were left in suspense – a situation which the Private Sector Commission (PSC) was concerned about.

At a press conference at 17:00h on Tuesday, Chairman of the PSC, Captain Gerry Gouveia, pointed out that they were expecting results to start trickling in from the 10 Regions/Districts since Monday evening after the closing of polls.

He referenced laws, which authorise the ROs to make declarations soon after tabulations in their regions, but up to that time, this was not done.

“We are extremely concerned that this process is delayed and we don’t have an acceptable reason at this time why that is happening. So, it’s an extreme concern to the Private Sector that this tabulation process seemed not to have ended at this time…,” Gouveia stated.

The PSC Chairman further noted that after receiving reports that the ROs were in receipt of the final results, he enquired

PSC Chairman, Captain Gerry Gouveia at Tuesday’s press conference along with Media Consultant Kit Nascimento; AmCham Guyana President Zulfikar Ally and PSC Governance and Security Committee Chairman, Retired Major General Norman McLean

from Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield about whether there were any restrictions on the regional officers to make public declarations – an act which would be against the law.

However, the PSC Chair said he did not ask the CEO what the reason behind the delays in the declarations was. According to Gouveia, he was more interested in whether restrictions were on the ROs since this had been a bug-bearer in past electoral processes.

“Whilst the law was exactly the same, in the past, the returning officers were prevented from making the public pronouncements because GECOM head office prevented them until they have some kind of correlation between what was happening at the GECOM head office and the Returning Officers… [Lowenfield] had assured us as observers that

tabulation would happen by the law… that’s why we are baffled that we’re at the same place we were four or five elections ago,” he contended.

Nevertheless, Chairman of the Commission’s Governance and Security Committee, retired Major General Norman McLean, contended that the longer it takes to declare the results of Monday’s General and Regional Elections, the more likely there will be “problems”.

In fact, many businesses in Georgetown had closed their stores early as tension continues to mount among Guyanese over the uncertainty of the impending elections results.

The PSC Chairman told reporters that the Commission has deliberately stayed away from conducting its own tabulations of the results for this reason.

It pointed to an attempt by GECOM around midday on Tuesday to update the country with preliminary figures of a mere 132 polling stations that were processed from a total of 2339.

This, Gouveia posited, was a dangerous thing to do.

However, at about 19:30h ROs finally started declaring the regional results.

On this note, the PSC Chair called on political parties not to engage in premature pronouncement of victory and to leave that to be officially declared by GECOM. “So we, basically, are asking all political parties to exercise restraint, we’re asking citizens to exercise patience and give GECOM the opportunity to complete the work that they’ve embarked on,” Gouveia stressed.

The PSC was one of the local election observers.

Irfaan Ali, signed. “…We will not declare results before GECOM does

so officially. We’ve done our numbers and the numbers show us in an unassailable lead,” Jagdeo asserted.

He went on to say that the delays in the results affect citizens as well as businesses, as tension is on the rise in the country. “…one of the things we were resolved in these elections to do, and I think a lot of the observers came here insisting that there be a clear pathway to early declaration without compromising the quality of the verification. They’ve done so conscious of the trauma that people have faced after elections when you have prolonged delays in declaring the results,” he stated.

Afghan conflict: Clashes shatter partial truce after US deal

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ighting has resumed in Afghanistan after the Taliban ended a partial truce with government troops, casting doubt on peace talks scheduled for next week.

Dozens of incidents in more than 16 provinces left eight militants and six civilians dead, officials said.

Eight security personnel were also killed.

Meanwhile Donald Trump says he had a "very good talk" with a Taliban leader.

Their phone call follows the peace deal signed between the US and the Taliban at the weekend.

A Taliban spokesman said the call between the US president and Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar lasted more than half an hour, and both expressed a desire to bring peace to Afghanistan.

The Taliban said that Mr Trump would ask his

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to talk with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in order to make sure negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban went ahead as planned as part of the peace deal.

A dispute over a prisoner swap has raised questions over the agreement - to which the Afghan government is not a direct party.

Under the accord, some 5,000 Taliban prisoners and 1,000 Afghan security force prisoners were to be exchanged by 10 March, when talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government are due to start But Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani said on Sunday his government had agreed to no such release. And on Monday the militants said talks would not take place if their prisoners were not released first.

(Excerpt from BBCNews)

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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

US lawmakers push for release of Biden wins 7 states on Super Tuesday, intelligence on Khashoggi murder Sanders takes 2 – network projections

Hatice Cengiz, the fiancée of slain Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, attends a news conference calling for the Trump administration to release details about his killing [Saul Loeb/AFP]

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wo members of the United States Congress said on Tuesday they will push for the public release of a new US intelligence report on the 2018 murder of Saudi Arabian journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Senator Ron Wyden and Representative Tom Malinowski, both Democrats, joined by Khashoggi's fiance Cengiz Hatice, held a news conference on Tuesday to announce plans to force release the US report.

Partially responding to a law passed by Congress, the Trump administration delivered a classified version of what US intelligence agencies know about the murder of Khashoggi to Congress on February 20.

"The law stipulates that publicly, in an unclassified way, you would identify those who carried out, those who participated in, those who ordered this murder or were otherwise complicit in, or responsible for the death of Jamal Khashoggi," Wyden said.

A provision attached to an annual defence bill, requires a public report from the US intelligence agencies identifying who carried out the Khashoggi murder and who ordered or was otherwise complicit in his killing.

"The law left no ambiguity. The law was very specific about what needs to be public," Wyden said.

Khashoggi, a columnist for The Washington Post newspaper, was assassinated in October 2018 in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.

According to individuals who have seen the US intelligence, intelligence agencies concluded that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had a hand in directing the hit squad in Khashoggi's murder - a conclusion Saudi officials rejected.

Khashoggi "was lured out of the United States by the government of Saudi Arabia with the purpose of murdering and silencing him", said Representative Malinowski.

"This was not just a horrific human rights violation.

It was an act of extreme arrogance by the government of Saudi Arabia to think they could get away with murdering somebody who had sought and received shelter in the United States," Malinowski said.

Wyden said he now is invoking procedures within the Senate Intelligence Committee providing for congressional release of the information. A Senate vote would likely be required.

'It's been 518 days' Hatice Cengiz, the fiance of Khashoggi, joined Wyden and Malinowski at the news conference.

"It has been 518 days we have been denied the truth.

It has been 518 days we have been denied justice," Cengiz said.

"I am here today to support Senator Wyden's calls for public release of the DNI report and any other related intelligence so we know the answer to some of our critical questions," she added. "There is no reason to keep the DNI report secret.

There is no reason to hide

the truth."

In a February 20 letter to leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee, the top US intelligence agency declined to provide an unclassified version of the report citing "protection of sources and methods" as a rationale.

"This is a total and complete cover-up," Wyden said.

A spokesperson for the Office of the Director of International Intelligence (ODNI) said the office "will continue to be responsive to questions from Congress, including providing classified briefings, reports and information to meet the needs of its oversight committees".

The spokesperson added: "The Intelligence Community has a legal and moral obligation to protect classified information and ensure sources and methods are not jeopardised."

Members of Congress are continuing to debate and reassess the US relationship with Saudi Arabia amid increased military tensions with Iran and the war in Yemen.

'Not going away' US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was in Riyadh on February 20, the same day the classified report was sent to Congress.

Pompeo was there for meetings with Saudi leaders including bin Salman and a review of US troop deployments at the Prince Sultan Air Base to help Saudi Arabia defend against the threat of missile attacks from Iran.

Asked by reporters travelling with him about the Khashoggi murder, Pompeo said, "the Saudis share our strategic objectives."

"They are an important ally and partner, and we continue at the same time to make clear to them our expectations with respect to a broad range of human rights issues," Pompeo said, without specifically addressing Khashoggi.

Saudi Arabia is scheduled to host the annual G-20 economic cooperation summit of developed nations in Riyadh in November.

The Khashoggi murder and the continuing campaign of repression of Saudi dissidents and journalists will be a focus of criticism by outside groups. (AL Jazeera)

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resurgent Joe Biden was projected to win seven large states on Tuesday, and front-runner Bernie Sanders captured two states with several others too close to call on the biggest day of voting in the 2020 Democratic presidential nominating race.

Edison Research and the main television networks declared Biden the winner in Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee and Alabama based on exit polls on Super Tuesday, when Americans in 14 states voted for a Democratic challenger to Republican President Donald Trump in the Nov. 3 election. Fox News projected Biden would also win Oklahoma. The Associated Press projected he would also win Arkansas and Minnesota.

Sanders was projected to win in Colorado and his home state of Vermont, expected outcomes for the self-described democratic socialist and independent senator who hopes to take a huge step toward winning the nomination on Tuesday.

More than one-third of the delegates who will pick the eventual nominee at a July convention are up for grabs in primary elections on Tuesday that could pro-

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vide some clarity at last in a muddled race for the White House.

Early results showed Sanders holding a narrow lead over Biden in Texas, while Biden had a narrow lead in Massachusetts and Minnesota.

The rush of early results left Michael Bloomberg, the billionaire former New York mayor who spent more than half a billion dollars on advertising, largely out of the running, with his only victory coming in the US territory of American Samoa.

NBC News reported that

Bloomberg would reassess whether to stay in the race on Wednesday, but a campaign official said it was inaccurate to suggest his White House bid could end on Wednesday. The official said the campaign reassesses everyday.

Biden, former President Barack Obama’s vice president, has enjoyed a burst of momentum since a blowout win in South Carolina on Saturday, which led to endorsements from a flood of prominent party officials and former rivals. (Reuters)

WHO warns of global shortage of medical equipment to fight coronavirus

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he World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday warned of a global shortage and price gouging for protective equipment to fight the fast-spreading coronavirus and asked companies and governments to increase production by 40% as the death toll from the respiratory illness mounted.

Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve cut interest rates on Tuesday in an emergency move to try to prevent a global recession and the World Bank announced $12 billion to help countries fight the coronavirus, which has taken a heavy toll on air travel, tourism and other industries, threatening global economic growth prospects.

The virus continued to spread in South Korea,

Canadian in T&T tested for COVID-19 Canadian man being treated for flu symptoms at the Port of Spain General Hospital is also being tested for covid19.

Chief Medical Officer Roshan Parsaram confirmed that the man, who came to TT from Canada on Monday, was admitted to the hospital for an "influenza-like illness."

Parsaram told Newsday blood work was being done

Democratic US presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden appears at his Super Tuesday night rally in Los Angeles, California, US, March 3, 2020 (REUTERS/Mike Blake)

to test for the virus" "out of an abundance of caution."

He added that the man had no history of contact with anyone with the virus when background checks were done on him. Parsaram also said the risk of contact with the virus in Canada is very low. The tests will be done at CARPHA in St Clair. It takes 24-48 hours to get the results of covid19 tests.

(T&T Newsday)

Crowds wearing protective masks, following the outbreak of the coronavirus, are seen at the Shinjuku station in Tokyo, Japan, March 3, 2020 (REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha)

Japan, Europe, Iran and the United States, and several countries reported their first confirmed cases, taking the total to some 80 nations hit with the flu-like illness that can lead to pneumonia.

Despite the Fed’s attempt to stem the economic fallout from the coronavirus, U.S. stock indexes closed down about 3%, safe-haven gold rose 3% and analysts and investors questioned whether the rate cut will be enough if the virus continues to spread.

US lawmakers were considering spending as much as $9 billion to contain local spread of the virus.

In Iran, doctors and nurses lack supplies and 77 people have died, one of the

highest numbers outside China. The United Arab Emirates announced it was closing all schools for four weeks.

The death toll in Italy, Europe’s hardest-hit country, jumped to 79 on Tuesday and Italian officials are considering expanding the area under quarantine. France reported its fourth coronavirus death, while Indonesia, Ukraine, Argentina and Chile reported their first coronavirus cases.

About 3.4% of confirmed cases of COVID-19 have died, far above seasonal flu’s fatality rate of under 1%, but the virus can be contained, the WHO chief said on Tuesday. (Reuters)

NEWS

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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Surprise! Fed slashes interest Fresh call for Oxford dictionaries to change rates to counter coronavirus ‘sexist’ definitions T T he Federal Reserve cut its benchmark interest rate by half a percentage point on Tuesday in a surprise move aimed at shoring up the economy against negative fallout from the coronavirus outbreak.

In a statement, Fed policymakers noted that while the United States economy remains strong “the coronavirus poses evolving risks to economic activity”.

Tuesday’s move lowers the federal funds rate to a range between 1 percent to 1.25 percent, marking the deepest one-off cut since the 2008 financial crisis. It is also the first time since then that the Fed has slashed borrowing costs between regularly scheduled meetings. Policymakers are not set to meet until mid-March.

The Federal Open Market Committee voted unanimously for the emergency move and signalled its possible willingness to cut borrowing costs again, if warranted.

During a press conference following the rate cut, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell told reporters that the virus and measures being taken to contain it “will surely weigh on economic activity both here and abroad for some time”, noting emerging effects on the tourism and travel industries and concerns over global supply chains.

Powell added that “the magnitude and persistence of the overall effects on the economy, however, remain highly uncertain and the situation remains a fluid one”.

Paul Ashworth, chief US economist at Capital Economics, described the sudden rate cut as a “dramatic turnaround from last week, when even the most dovish of Fed officials didn’t appear to sup-

port any additional policy loosening”.

Global stock markets have been roiled by volatility as investors try to get to grips with how damaging coronavirus could be to economic growth.

US stocks moved higher on the heels of Tuesday’s rate cut, only to turn lower shortly after.

Last week, US stock prices took a beating not seen since the financial crisis as the widening outbreak stoked fears of growing recession risks. But share prices surged on Monday after central banks around the world said they were ready to unleash stimulus measures to offset the negative economic impacts of the outbreak.

On Tuesday, Australia’s central bank took the lead among developed markets after the country’s central bank cut its benchmark rate to a record low, citing challenges to growth from coronavirus.

US President Donald Trump seized upon Australia’s rate cut to prod the Fed to follow suit, tweeting that the Fed: “Should ease and cut rate big. Jerome Powell led Federal

Reserve has called it wrong from day one. Sad!”.

When asked by reporters on Tuesday whether political pressure had influenced the Fed’s interest rate policy, Powell said: “We’re never going to consider any political considerations whatsoever.”

On Monday, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) warned coronavirus “presents the global economy with its greatest danger since the financial crisis”, adding that even in the “best-case scenario of limited outbreaks in countries outside China, a sharp slowdown in world growth is expected” in the first half of this year as supply chains and commodities are impacted, tourism drops and “confidence falters”.

The OECD sees global economic growth falling to 2.4 percent for the whole year, but cautioned that “broader contagion across the wider Asia-Pacific region and advanced economies” could bring global growth to as low as 1.5 percent this year - half of what it had forecast in November. (AL Jazeera)

he leaders of Women’s Aid and the Women’s Equality party are among the signatories to an open letter calling on Oxford University Press to change its dictionaries’ “sexist” definitions of the word “woman”.

The letter points out that some Oxford Dictionaries’ definitions of the word include synonyms such as “bitch” and “maid”, and says that derogatory and sexist examples of usage include, “God, woman. Will you just listen?”

The definitions for “man”, meanwhile, include “a person with the qualities associated with males, such as bravery, spirit, or toughness”.

“Bitch is not a synonym for woman. It is dehumanising to call a woman a bitch. It is but one sad, albeit extremely damaging, example of everyday sexism.

And that should be explained clearly in the dictionary entry used to describe us,” says the letter, which is asking OUP, which publishes the Oxford Dictionary of English, as well as the online Oxford Dictionaries, to change their entries.

The letter, published in time for International Women’s Day on 8 March, is the latest move in a campaign that was launched last year by Maria Beatrice Giovanardi. Giovanardi’s petition calling for a change to the dictionary’s definition of woman has now been signed by more than 30,000 people. On Tuesday, she said that she hoped having the backing of women’s rights campaigners and linguists would

strengthen the message.

The Oxford Dictionary of English is the source licensed by Apple and Google, meaning that when users search for the definition of woman on either, they are given a list of “similar” words including chick, bint, popsy, wifie, besom, wench and maid. Terms such as piece, bit, mare, baggage and bitch are labelled derogatory and offensive by the dictionary, but words including bint and wench are not.

A spokeswoman for OUP said the company had finished reviewing the dictionary and thesaurus entries for terms for women and girls, and that changes, including more labels that show certain terms are offensive or dated, would be “visible across various platforms in the next few weeks”.

“Our dictionaries reflect rather than dictate how language is used. This is driven solely by evidence of how real people use English in their daily lives. This independent editorial approach means that our dictionaries provide an accurate representation of language, even where it means recording senses and example uses of words that are offensive or derogatory, and which we wouldn’t necessarily employ ourselves. In cases where words and uses may be considered offensive, they are clearly labelled as such. This helps our readers to understand the connotations of terms when looking them up and also acts as a lasting record of the way in which language evolves,” the spokeswoman said.

(The Guardian)

Woman serving “never-ending” jail term suffered “sudden unexpected death”

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n artist caught in a “perfect storm” of deteriorating mental health and a prison term she feared would never end suffered an extremely rare sudden death alone in her cell, an inquest has concluded.

Charlotte Nokes, 38, was on suicide watch when she died in her cell in Peterborough prison, run by the outsourcing company Sodexo, on 23 July 2016, the inquest was told.

Nokes, who had been offered a scholarship at Central Saint Martins art school in London, was struggling with the indeterminate term of her sentence, known as an imprisonment for public protection (IPP).

IPP sentences, which were abolished in 2012 after their use spiralled out of control and the European court of human rights deemed them unlawful, gave offenders a minimum jail tariff but no maximum.

Nokes, who was diagnosed with a personality disorder, was given a minimum term of 15 months for attempted robbery and possession of a bladed weapon, but at the time of her death had been in prison for eight and a half years, jurors were told.

Her family were concerned the medication she was receiving to treat her worsening mental health, which had been exacerbated

by the IPP sentence, contributed to her death.

But the inquest heard a postmortem examination was unable to establish a cause of death and appropriate checks to monitor the side effects of medication had taken place.

On Tuesday, jurors at an inquest in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, concluded Nokes died of natural causes, namely sudden arrhythmic death syndrome (Sads), also known as sudden unexpected death syndrome.

After the inquest, Charlotte’s father, Steven Nokes, said the family were disappointed by the conclusions of the inquest.

He said: “Natural causes is too ambiguous. There were so many other things to consider in Charlotte’s death. After a three-anda-half-year wait since she died, this felt like an anti-climax.

“We’ve been grieving all this time. The grief won’t go away. But we have an answer now. A line can be drawn under it. It’s not quite the answer we wanted.

Charlotte died and it doesn’t seem that much is happening to stop something like this from happening again.”

Tara Mulcair, a solicitor at Birnberg Peirce, who represents Nokes’s family, said: “Charlotte’s inquest has shone a light on the injustice faced by IPP prison-

Charlotte Nokes

ers … There should now be an urgent review of all IPP prisoners who are over tariff and were sentenced before the courts recognised that these sentences are unlawful. It is time to put right this injustice.”

Charlotte’s father; a psychologist who treated her; and a forensic psychiatrist with expert knowledge of mental heath in prisons, told the jurors Nokes’s IPP sentence had had a significant impact on her mental health.

Dr Dinesh Maganty, a consultant forensic psychiatrist, said Nokes was caught in a “perfect storm”. “[When] individuals with a personality disorder and depression and anxiety, [are] incarcerated the sense of hope is gone; and for treatment of a personality disorder, for psychological treatment, the provision

for a sense of hope is key,” he said.

“That’s very difficult, almost impossible when you’re on an IPP sentence as there’s a sense of injustice over-hanging you and no sense of hope.”

Maganty said the death rate of those serving IPP sentences was disproportionately high “because of this loss of this sense of hope”.

Nicky Asplin, the principal counselling psychologist who worked with Nokes in the months before she died, told the jury that during a therapy session shortly before her death, Nokes expressed “a lot of frustration at the never-ending sentence of an IPP prison sentence”.

The psychologist said she had raised concerns with the National Offender Management Service (Noms) – now called

Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service – about the impact of the sentence on Nokes.

“I expressed my concern that she was significantly over tariff and could we move this forward,” Asplin said.

Steven Nokes told the inquest his daughter “almost always” mentioned her IPP sentence. “It was a source of great distress for her,” he said. “She would say things like: ‘Dad, I don’t think you understand the sentence, it’s like a death sentence’, and: ‘I could be in here for the rest of my life.’”

Nokes, from Hayling Island, Hampshire, was subject to ACCT (assessment, care in custody and teamwork), a care plan for prisoners identified as being at risk of suicide or self-harm.

She was on a mix of drugs, including medication used to treat anxiety, anti-depressants, a hypnotic to treat insomnia, a treatment for acute mania and another to control tremors caused by anti-psychotic medication, the inquest heard.

She was observed on more than one occasion to be “over-sedated” with slurred speech, the inquest heard.

She was found unresponsive in her cell at 8.55am on 23 July 2016 and was pronounced dead at the scene, the jury was told.

Dr Martin Goddard, who

conducted the postmortem examination, told the inquest he was unable to record a cause of death, ruling out third-party involvement, or a toxic cause of death, such as a drug overdose. He also said there were no obvious underlying natural causes.

Goddard told the jury it was possible she had suffered from Sads, which is only recorded in 1% to 5% of deaths at inquests.

“I apologise to the family that I’ve been unable to give them peace of mind, but I’m afraid that is the way it is,” he said. “There is nothing to suggest it was an unnatural death.”

Deborah Coles, the director of Inquest, which has worked with Nokes’s family since her death, and supported other families bereaved by the deaths of people on IPP sentences, said if Nokes had not died, she would probably still have been in prison.

“Charlotte was trapped in limbo, her ambitions and prospects indefinitely on pause,” Coles said. “She was being forced to wait for action to truly end IPP sentences, despite them having long been deemed unlawful and ‘abolished’. Had she not died it is likely she would have still been in prison waiting for that action, as many others are.” (The Guardian)

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guyanatimesgy.com

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020

Regional

Argentina, Chile record 1st confirmed Bahamas establishes case of coronavirus – Health Ministries laboratory to test

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rgentina Health Minister Gines Gonzalez Garcia on Tuesday confirmed the South American country’s first case of the fast-spreading new coronavirus.

The patient, a 43-yearold man, arrived in

Argentina on March 1 after a two-week trip that included northern Italy, another health ministry official said. Northern Italy is grappling with one of the world’s worst outbreaks of the respiratory illness outside of China.

Health Access Secretary Carla Vizzotti said Argentina is still in the containment stage in dealing with the virus.

“Containment means that we will work on the early detection of possible cases, confirming or ruling them

out.”

Moreover, Chile also recorded the first confirmed case of coronavirus in the country, the health ministry said on Tuesday.

The patient is a 33-yearold man in the city of Talca, south of Santiago. (Reuters)

for COVID-19

Vatican sends sex crime investigators to assist Mexican church

Pope Francis poses with a group from Mexico at the Vatican

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he Vatican is sending its top two sex crimes investigators to Mexico on a fact-finding and assistance mission as the Catholic hierarchy in the world’s second-largest Catholic country begins to reckon with decades of clergy sex abuse and cov-

er-up.

Archbishop Charles Scicluna and Monsignor Jordi Bertomeu teamed up in 2018 to investigate the Chilean church and its wretched record of protecting paedophile priests - a bombshell expose that resulted in every ac-

tive Chilean bishop offering to resign.

Their new mission to Mexico, due to take place from March 20-27, is not an investigation per se but an assistance mission to help the Mexican church combat abuse, Vatican officials said.

Nevertheless, the Vatican embassy in Mexico City expressly asked victims to come forward to speak with the two prelates, offering victims an email address to arrange meetings or send their testimony, a phone number to call, and total privacy and confidentiality. It stressed that Scicluna and Bertomeu would be “at the disposition of all those who want to share their experiences or to receive direction or assistance”.

When Scicluna and Bertomeu went to Chile in 2018 to investigate a single case of an old cover-up, they were stunned as more than 60 abuse survivors came forward to speak with them about a variety of cases around the country, providing enough testimony and evidence to fill a 2600-page dossier. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Trinidad fines lawyer TT$2.25M

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High Court Judge Monday imposed a fine of TT$2.25 million on the Jamaica-born Queen’s Counsel Vincent Nelson for his role in an alleged conspiracy involving former attorney general Anand Ramlogan and an opposition legislator.n On June 6 last year, Nelson pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit money laundering, misbehaviour in public office and conspiracy to commit an act of corrup-

tion after Justice Malcom Holdip accepted a plea agreement between Nelson and the state.

The misbehaviour charge was discontinued by the Director of Public Prosecutions, (DPP) Roger Gaspard, in keeping with the plea agreement.

The Judge Monday also agreed not to impose a custodial sentence on the attorney, but he warned potential fraudsters that they should not feel emboldened by this

case that they can carry out fraud and quickly pay restitution.

During the three-and-ahalf hour sentencing hearing, Justice Holdip also put Jones, who is said to be receiving medical treatment in Britain, on a TT$250 000 bond for two years. He has been given time to pay the fines and there are default prison terms attached if he fails to do so.

The charges against Jones arose out of a series

of financial transactions and alleged rewards involving legal fees paid to him for representation in state briefs.

The briefs were allegedly obtained while Ramlogan was attorney general.

Nelson has agreed to turn state witness and testify against Ramlogan and former opposition legislator, Gerald Ramdeen, and his statements have been disclosed to both men. (Excerpt from CMC)

President Fernandez tries to slay Argentina’s inflation dragon

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ired of living in a one-bedroom apartment with their young daughter in Buenos Aires, Nerina Torre and Fernando Vargas thought a bigger home was within their reach.

It was March 2018 and a new government mortgage product had lowered the income threshold for borrowing. So the couple sold their apartment, used the proceeds as a down payment on a larger unit, and took out a 1.4-million peso mortgage (about $70,000 US at the time) with a monthly repayment that was within their budget.

Until blistering inflation struck, doubling what they owed.

The mortgage Torre and Vargas took out is indexed to inflation, meaning the amount they have to repay on that loan rises or falls with a basket of prices.

And in Argentina, all bets are off when it comes to chronic price increas-

A protest in Buenos Aires by Argentines who are struggling to pay back mortgages that are pegged to inflation, which hit more than 50 per cent in 2019 [Photo by Natalie Alcoba/ Al Jazeera]

es.

“We thought that inflation could end up hurting us,” Torre, a government worker, told Al Jazeera. “But no one thought it was going to be the highest we’ve seen in 28 years.”

Inflation hit nearly 54 percent in

2019 - the most since 1991 - in a year that saw the recession deepen with sharp devaluations of the Argentine peso, high unemployment, growing poverty and increasing desperation.

(Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

B

ahamas on Tuesday announced the establishment of a laboratory with the capacity to test for the coronavirus (COVID-19) as the government said it would utilise the resources necessary to help minimise the risk of the virus in the country and ensure the safety of all Bahamians and residents.

Chief Medical Officer Dr Pearl McMillian said that the lab is part of the Ministry of Health’s ongoing COVID-19 preparedness and response plan to ensure optimal readiness and response to the virus that has killed more than 3000 people mainly in China, South Korea, Japan and the United States, among other countries.

While the Bahamas has reported no suspected or confirmed cases of the virus, Dr McMillian the authorities have put in place vari-

ous measures to deal with the situation, including the establishment of a task force made up of key personnel from various Government agencies including customs and immigration, the Port Department, tourism, foreign affairs, and the police and the defence forces.

Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis said his administration would utilise the resources necessary to help minimise the risk of the virus here.

“I want to be clear that when it comes to public health threats the Government will not take any chances. We take this outbreak very seriously.

Public health is an absolute priority,” Minnis said, urging the public to rely on certified, credible sources of information to stay up to date and properly informed about COVID-19 in The Bahamas.

(CMC)

Hugo Carvajal: Spain backs US extradition request for former Venezuelan General

T

he Spanish Government has approved an extradition request from the US for Venezuela’s former intelligence chief General Hugo Carvajal.

The US accuses him of drug-trafficking offences.

Carvajal turned against the government of President Nicolás Maduro in February 2019 and backed opposition leader Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s president.

He fled Venezuela on a boat and was arrested in Madrid in April 2019.

He then disappeared in November 2019 after a Spanish court ruled he should be extradited to the US. Spanish police have been unable to locate him since.

Carvajal – who denies wrongdoing – had been under US sanctions since 2008 due to allegations he helped

Colombia’s Farc rebel group and protected US-bound drug shipments.

Federal charges which accuse him of co-ordinating a 5600kg (12,345lb) shipment of cocaine from Venezuela to Mexico in 2006 became public in 2014.

The US Justice Department said in April that, if convicted, he could face between 10 years and life in prison.

Washington also believes that Carvajal could share incriminating evidence about Maduro.

The former general was a close ally of Venezuela’s late socialist leader Hugo Chávez but later denounced his successor President Maduro. He was stripped of his rank after choosing to back Opposition Leader Juan Guaidó. (Excerpt from BBC News)

guyanatimesgy.com

OILNEWS Crude oil rises a 2nd day as stimulus hopes, expected OPEC cuts offset virus il prices rose for a second day on Tuesday on expectations

O

that central banks are likely to enact financial stimulus to offset the impacts of the coronavirus outbreak and growing optimism that Opec will order deeper output cuts this week.

Brent crude rose US$1.48 per barrel, or 2.5 per cent, to US$53.18 per barrel at 0148 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose US$1.33, or 2.8 per cent, to US$48.07 a barrel.

Brent and WTI have rebounded somewhat over the past two days from a more than 20 per cent drop from their 2020 peak in January that was caused by signs the coronavirus spread has dented fuel demand.

Since Friday, WTI has gained 7.9 per cent while the frontmonth Brent contract has climbed 7.5 per cent, the biggest twoday percentage gains for both contracts since prices snapped back after the missile attacks on Saudi Arabian oil facilities in September 2019.

The OrganiSation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, a group known as OPEC+, are expected to announce deeper output cuts at their meeting on March 5-6 in Vienna.

G7 Finance Ministers will also discuss this week how to best to cushion the impact of the outbreak on economic growth, French Finance Minister Le Maire said on Monday. That is occurring as other major central banks have promised monetary and fiscal stimulus.

The coronavirus, which originated in China, has spread to more than 60 countries and has killed over 3000 people globally.

"Oil prices got their groove back after the world's largest economies signalled they will be united in fighting off the economic impact of the coronavirus and on the Russian capitulation in agreeing to deliver deeper production cuts at this week's meeting," said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA. "The coronavirus is still spreading globally and until markets can possibly calculate a return of normal travel and trade, oil will struggle."

With lingering worries over oil demand amid the virus outbreak, several key members of OPEC are mulling a bigger oil output cut. The previous proposal was for an additional reduction of 600,000 barrels per day (bpd). (Excerpt from The Economic Times)

Kuwait Oil Minister says optimistic on outcome of OPEC meetings

K

uwait’s Oil Minister said on Tuesday he is optimistic about the outcome of OPEC meetings this week despite the “noticeable” impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the global oil markets during the past month, Kuwait state news agency KUNA reported.

“Marathon” meetings will be held during by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies to reach an agreement on the best ways to restore stability and balance to the global oil market, Kuwaiti Minister Khaled al-Fadhel told KUNA before heading to Vienna to attend the meetings.

“We are optimistic on the expected outcome of the meetings and the continued cooperation among the OPEC+ alliance,” he said.

“Global oil markets have been noticeably impacted during the past month following the new coronavirus outbreak which noticeably reduced oil demand and negatively affected the prices,” he added.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) said global oil demand growth has fallen by 435,000 bpd in the first quarter to its lowest level in a decade, and said that this forecast may be revised even further.

OPEC countries have been debating whether to further reduce oil production by one million barrels per day (bpd), among other options, as it seeks to stabilise falling prices.

That is more than an initially proposed cut of 600,000 bpd.

The group and its allies led by Russia known as OPEC+ agreed in December a collective cut of 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd) to their supply until the end of this month.

The Kuwaiti Minister stressed the importance of eliminating the expected surplus in global oil inventories especially during the second quarter of this year, following the big decline in global markets due to the impact of the new coronavirus outbreak.

The global death toll has now risen above 3000, with more than 86,500 infections, and the virus is now spreading outside China at a much faster rate than within the country where it began. (Excerpt from Reuters)

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020

17

Around the World

Netanyahu leads in Israeli election, but still lacks majority

P

rime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu led on Tuesday in Israel’s third national election in less than a year but was short of a governing majority, nearly complete results showed.

Netanyahu claimed victory in Monday’s vote over his main challenger, former armed forces chief Benny Gantz of the centrist Blue and White party, after exit polls projected the conservative leader’s Likud party had come out on top.

“We turned lemons into lemonade,” he told a cheering crowd at Likud’s election headquarters as exit polls were released.

But Gantz stopped short of conceding defeat, saying the election could result in another deadlock and he

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu waves to supporters following the announcement of exit polls in Israel's election at his Likud party headquarters in Tel Aviv, Israel, March 3, 2020

understood and shared his supporters’ “feeling of disappointment and pain”.

With some 90 per cent of votes counted, Likud said Netanyahu met leaders of religious-rightist par-

ties and secured their renewed pledge to join him in a coalition. That appeared to promise him 59 seats in Parliament - two short of a ruling majority.

Netanyahu and his pro-

spective partners “would not bar from the Government parties that recognise the State of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state,” Likud said in a statement.

That beckoned Gantz’s centrist Blue and White and ex-Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman’s secularist-nationalist Yisrael Beiteinu parties. But Gantz has ruled out sitting with Netanyahu, and Lieberman has long feuded with the premier’s ultra-Orthodox Jewish partners over their constituents’ state benefits.

A win for Netanyahu, 70, would be testament to the political durability of Israel’s longest-serving leader, who fought the latest campaign under the shadow of a looming corruption trial. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Deadly tornadoes kill 19 in Nashville, Tennessee

A

t least 22 people have died after two tornadoes ripped through central Tennessee, including the state's biggest city Nashville.

Officials said the tornadoes also caused widespread damage to buildings in the city.

Nashville Mayor John Cooper said the city was "devastated", and urged people to "lend a helping hand" to neighbours.

President Trump has said he plans to visit the state on Friday.

The death toll may rise given the number of people who remain missing throughout the state, Tennessee Governor William Lee said on Tuesday.

The tornadoes caused significant damage to buildings in the city

About 44,000 people have been left without power, Nashville Electric said.

There was also "significant damage" to John C Tune Airport, about eight miles from the city centre, the airport said.

Police in the Mt Juliet suburb, east of Nashville,

Turkey shoots down 3rd plane as Syrian forces retake town

T

urkish forces downed a fighter jet flown by Syrian Government forces over southern Idlib on Tuesday as a strategic town in northwest Syria fell under the control of President Bashar al-Assad's military.

It was the third such shoot-down in three days after Turkey hit two other Syrian aircraft on Sunday.

On Twitter, the Turkish Defence Ministry confirmed the news, saying "an L-39 plane belonging to the [Syrian] regime has been downed".

Meanwhile, Syrian Government forces overnight took over the key city of Saraqeb, which lies at the junction of the M4 and M5 commercial highways that connect the country's major cities.

Saraqeb has changed hands twice in the last month, but a dramatic escalation in fighting over the

past few days saw armed opposition groups retreat to the villages of Nairab and Afis in the west, as Syrian Government forces - under cover of Russian air power secured the city.

Rashwan Abu Hamza, a field commander in Saraqeb belonging to one of the rebel groups, told Al Jazeera the battle against al-Assad's forces intensified on Monday night.

"Regime forces began to advance into the city at 2 am and an hour later entered the neighbourhoods and began combing them," Abu Hamza said. "The shelling from Russian warplanes escalated and forced us to withdraw west of the city."

At 4 am (01:00 GMT) on Tuesday, Saraqeb was under the full control of the Syrian forces, he said, but added a counteroffensive was imminent. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

said: "There are gas lines that are leaking, power lines that are on the ground, and multiple emergency responders are responding to those who are injured."

Nashville's Emergency Operations Centre said it had opened a shelter with running water in a farmer's

market to help displaced residents.

The city's schools, courts and transport lines will be closed on Tuesday due to the damage, officials said.

Election polling sites located at schools will be open, but four Polling Stations have been moved.

Tennessee is one of 14 US states holding primary contest votes on Super Tuesday to select a Democratic nominee to stand in November's presidential election.

Much of the damage is centred in Putnam County - 80 miles (128km) east of Nashville - where 14 deaths have been reported so far.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

Coronavirus deaths in Italy at 79, China cases slow

T

he World Health Organisation warned the world was in "uncharted territory" as coronavirus cases continued to spread in the West and Italy announced 27 more people died from the disease.

More than 92,000 cases have been confirmed worldwide and the number of deaths from the virus has reached 3110 globally, according to the WHO. Protective gear - such as masks and goggles used by health workers fighting coronavirus - were running out and the WHO warned against "hoarding and misuse".

The death toll from the coronavirus in Italy has climbed to 79, the head of Italy's civil protection agency announced.

Angelo Borelli said 27 more people died from the disease over the past 24 hours with the death toll now surpassing Iran, which has 77 recorded deaths.

The total number of cases in Europe's worst-hit

country rose to 2502 from 2036 on Monday.

The increase in deaths was the largest since the outbreak surfaced 12 days ago in the wealthy northern regions of Lombardy and Veneto.

Pope Francis only has a cold and is "without any symptoms related to other pathologies," the Vatican said.

The statement followed a report in an Italian newspaper that said the pope had tested negative for coronavirus. It did not say whether the pope had been given a test for the virus. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

18

guyanatimesgy.com

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020

ARCHIE

ARIES (March 21April 19)

TAURUS

DILBERT

(April 20May 20)

GEMINI (May 21June 20)

CANCER (June 21July 22)

PEANUTS

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

VIRGO

CALVIN AND HOBBES

(Aug. 23Sept. 22)

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

SUDOKU

SCORPIO (Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Stay focused on the present and where it leads. Keep negativity at a distance and get along with everyone. If you are patient, you will get the last laugh.

If something worries you, take care of it, and if it’s not fixable, distance yourself from it. Don’t waste time complaining -- do what needs to be done. Be honest and move forward.

Look for life’s little pleasures and do something to ease stress and bring you comfort and joy. If you travel to a place you’ve never been before, it will prove enlightening.

Positive thoughts will open doors to better alternatives. A personal change will help you realize what you have to offer. Don’t let your health suffer due to bad habits.

Refuse to let a small yet annoying situation get the better of you. Take time to assess whatever situation you face rationally and proceed to make a positive move.

Stand behind your word and use the power of persuasion to get others on board your train. A partnership will end up having more to offer than you imagined.

Expect the unexpected and make adjustments as you progress. Adaptability will be a prerequisite of success. Don’t let your emotions interfere with your decisions or productivity.

Take care of all the things you’ve been putting off. Don’t hesitate to ask for favors or call in debts. If you look closely, you will discover something you didn’t know.

Keep your life simple.

SAGITTARIUS Don’t let troublesome situ(Nov. 23ations or people get to you.

Dec. 21) Spend time taking care of business instead of blaming others for whatever doesn’t go your way.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

Concentrate on the job assigned to you. A partnership will form if you are open to it. An opportunity, new direction and an open mind will change your life.

AQUARIUS

Make adjustments to the way you do things. Work harder and handle your cash more efficiently. Now’s the time to make big decisions.

Romance is featured.

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

PISCES (Feb. 20March 20)

Express your thoughts and feelings. Get busy taking care of odd jobs that will please the people you want to impress or whom you care about most. Personal improvements will boost your ego.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020

19

NBA round-up:

G

i a n n i s Antetokounmpo claimed winning back-to-back NBA MVPs is "not important at all" to him after seeing the Milwaukee Bucks suffer just their ninth loss of the season.

Antetokounmpo was kept in check by the Heat on Monday, scoring a season-low 13 points as center Bam Adebayo frustrated the reigning MVP with a fine defensive performance.

Despite the loss, Milwaukee still lead the Eastern Conference standings with an NBA-best 52-9 record and Antetokounmpo is the frontrunner to be named MVP again.

Yet such accolades were far from his thoughts after a rare loss.

"It's not important at all.

I really don't [care]," he told reporters when asked about

Giannis after Heat loss: MVP award "not important at all" being n a m e d MVP once more.

The Heat improved to 39-22 with t h e

Giannis Antetokounmpo

105-89 victory and may have provided the blueprint for how to stop Antetokounmpo.

It is a game plan they might need to revisit in the playoffs and Antetokounmpo knows the Bucks will likely need to find a way to break Miami down if they are to reach the

NBA Finals.

"We haven't lost a lot this year," he said.

"Teams are looking at me and obviously I've got to keep my confidence high "You're gonna win some games, you're gonna lose some games.

We're not going to go 82-0.

"Miami's a great team, came out [ a n d ] played really, really hard tonight.

We're definitely going to play them again at some point and we've just got to play better, play hard.

"They're going to play hard for 48 minutes, it doesn't matter whether they make shots or miss shots.

"They made 17 threes. If we see them in the playoffs,

which is a month and a half away, we've got to be ready."

Harden: Knicks rookie RJ Barrett has "opportunity to be great"

James Harden is convinced RJ Barrett will have the opportunity to become an NBA great after the rookie inspired the New York Knicks to a surprise win over his Houston Rockets side.

Barrett put up 27 points, his joint-season high, as the Knicks ended the Rockets' six-match winning streak in a 125-123 success at Madison Square Garden on Monday.

Rockets superstar Harden, who top-scored with 35 points, is impressed by what he has seen from the Knicks guard.

"Aggressive," Harden said of Barrett's performance in quotes reported by ESPN.

"I like that, especially for a rookie. Not timid at all, and when you're aggressive and confident in your game, you look good out there.

"Want him to continue to build his confidence and keep being aggressive and have the opportunity, which he will, to be great."

The Rockets fell to a 21-point deficit in a slow start and were 10 down by the end of the third quarter.

Harden, who was perfect with 16 of 16 from the free-throw line, and Russell Westbrook (24 points, nine rebounds) did their level best to drag the Rockets back into contention.

But Barrett, a righthander, produced a moment of magic with just under eight seconds remaining with a left-handed lay-up on the drive over PJ Tucker.

"I just took the shot that came," Barrett said. "I like

going left. That was kind of, in that situation, you're not really thinking about it.

You're kind of just playing."

Westbrook lamented the Rockets' slow start, saying: "We should've never put ourselves in that position because it takes a lot of energy to fight back.

Especially on the road.

"We can't take games like this lightly. This is the NBA, everybody is going to go out and compete and we have to be ready to play."

Harden added: "We weren't consistent with our defensive principles throughout the course of the game and we paid for it.

Simple."

The Rockets are fourth in the Western Conference with a 39-21 record, while the Knicks (19-42) remain a lowly 13th in the East.

(Sportsmax)

IOC stands firm on Tokyo Games despite coronavirus concerns

T

he International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Tuesday gave further unequivocal backing to this summer’s Tokyo Olympics, urging athletes to prepare “full steam” despite the coronavirus threat.

“We are preparing for a successful Olympic Games, Tokyo 2020,” IOC head Thomas Bach said at an executive board meeting to discuss the July 24-Aug. 9 sporting extravaganza.

Earlier on Tuesday, Japan’s Olympics minister Seiko Hashimoto had said that details within Tokyo’s contract with the IOC “could be interpreted as allowing a postponement” until the end of the year.

That host city contract states that one of several triggers which would allow the IOC to withdraw the Games from Tokyo would be if “the Games are not celebrated during the year 2020”.

Hashimoto said, however, that Japan’s government and Tokyo were still committed to the Games beginning on July 24, and the IOC has repeatedly swatted aside any suggestions of a postponement.

The Olympic body said again on Tuesday there was no Plan B, and that the Games would take place in their allotted time slot.

Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) gives a statement after an Executive Board meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland

Wreak havoc

Any change to dates would instantly wreak havoc on most sports programmes, with competition calendars planned several years ago to accommodate the Tokyo timings.

Finding a new date in 2020 at this stage, which would first need the green light from the IOC, would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for the 33 sports federations present in Tokyo.

Bach, a 66-year-old lawyer and former Olympic fencing champion, has an iron grip on IOC decision-making and is known for sticking to his guns in adversity.

“I would like to encourage all the athletes to continue their preparation for the Olympic Games, Tokyo 2020 with great confidence and full steam,” the German told reporters in Lausanne. “From our side, we will continue to support the athletes and

the National O l y m p i c Committees.”

Multiple sports events around the world have been cancelled during the epidemic, which has killed more than 3,000 people in China and spread to more than 60 nations including Japan where infections are near 1,000 and 12 people have died.

Smaller crowds

Crowds will be smaller and receptions have been scrapped at the Tokyo 2020 torch-lighting ceremony in ancient Olympia, Greece, next week as the Hellenic Olympic Committee (HOC) introduced measures to protect against the coronavirus, it said on Tuesday.

Despite concerns over possible health risks to spectators and participants at the Games, the Olympic body is unwilling to publicly discuss any other option, such as cancella-

tion o r postponement.

“No,” IOC spokesman Mark Adams said when asked if the Olympic body had discussed possible options if the situation deteriorates.

“There is no international travel ban and all the advice that we are getting is that the Games can and will go ahead,” Adams said. “At this precise time we are expecting the Games to begin on the 24th of July.”

The IOC board said a joint task force had been created two weeks ago, involving the IOC, the Tokyo Games organisers, the city, the government, and the World Health Organisation to help deal with the coronavirus ahead of the Olympics.

“The IOC EB appreciates and supports the measures being taken, which consti-

tute an important part of Tokyo’s plans to host safe and secure Games,” the task force said in a statement.

Asked if he was comfortable with American athletes travelling to the Games, U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday he would defer to Japan, adding that it would be “a very sad thing” given Tokyo’s investment in venues for the Games.

Trump said U.S. officials were evaluating further action to restrict international travel to other virus “hot spots,” including Japan, but that no decision had been made yet.

Tokyo has pumped in more than $12 billion to organise the event, while billions more were spent on related projects.

Tokyo Games organisers are due to deliver a report via video conference to the executive board on Wednesday.( Japan Today)

20

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Tokyo Games could theoretically be postponedꟷ Japan Olympics Minister

T

he Tokyo Olympics could theoretically be postponed until later in 2020 if the spread of coronavirus worsens, Japan’s Olympics Minister has said.

The virus has caused several scheduling headaches for the sporting calendar, having spread to more than 60 countries.

The Games are due to take place between

July 24 and August 9 and International Olympics Committee President Thomas Bach stated last week the organisation is still planning to go ahead with the event as scheduled.

When asked in parliament about the potential for a postponement, Seiko Hashimoto – Japan’s Olympics Minister – said “the contract calls for the

Games to be held within 2020”.

She added that “could be interpreted as allowing a postponement”.

Several sporting events have been rearranged in a bid to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, including the World Athletics Indoor Championships that were due to take place between March 13 and 15 in Nanjing.

In football, Serie A cancelled several fixtures over the previous two weekends and all Swiss Super League and Challenge League fixtures have been suspended, while the Ireland versus Italy Six Nations match due to take place in Dublin on Saturday was called off.

The Chinese Grand Prix on April 19 was also postponed.

Barkley inspires Chelsea against Liverpool to reach FA Cup last eight

I

f Chelsea needed this, then Ross Barkley certainly did. And the boyhood Evertonian could hardly have chosen better opponents to punish. The midfielder’s Chelsea career since his move from Goodison Park in January 2018 can be best described as stop-start.

Nobody doubts Barkley’s ability when it is his day. It is just that those days have been too scarce. Everything came together for him here in a performance of touch and influence and the goal that he scored to smooth Chelsea’s passage into the FA Cup quarter-finals was the defining moment.

Seizing upon a loose ball 10 yards inside his own half, he sprinted away from the Liverpool midfielder Fabinho and, when he reached the edge of the area, with Joe Gomez backing off, he unfurled a venomous drive that ripped past Adrián.

Chelsea’s form has been poor since late November and they entered this tie having won only one of their previous six in the Premier League – and that is not to mention the Champions League hammering against Bayern Munich. This was better from them, a keeping alive of their final realistic shot at silverware but, from a Liverpool point of view, it was another strangely off-colour performance to follow that in Saturday’s shock 3-0 league defeat at Watford.

The pre-match talk had taken in the need to show a reaction to what had happened against Watford.

Instead they slipped to a third away defeat in a row – the first was not necessarily terminal, the 1-0 against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League – and it was an evening when they could get little going in the final third.

The tone was set when Adrián allowed a Willian shot to slip through his fingers – a horrible mis-

was.

“We lost a football game a t

take – and, although Kepa Arrizabalaga, who was restored by Frank Lampard to the Chelsea team, made fine saves, Liverpool lacked their usual fluency. Chelsea’s margin of victory could and should have been greater.

Klopp made the point beforehand that he had never been in a situation like this because he had never previously experienced the end of a 44-game unbeaten league run.

There was an element of the unknown in psychological terms. At the same time, he did not want to make it “bigger” than it

Watford,” he said, simply.

This was the first time that Klopp had played in the FA Cup fifth round, his record in the competition having been decidedly patchy in his previous four attempts, and he went stronger than expected with his line-up.

He prioritised experience over youth, although he did start the teenagers, Neco Williams and Curtis Jones, and there were a handful of his first-choice players.

Frank Lampard gave an opportunity to Billy Gilmour at the base of his midfield three and the 18-year-old was busily effective – in fact the

BBC made him man of the match – but the standout piece of Chelsea team news was the recall of Kepa Arrizabalaga after a six-game absence.

Errors were the theme of a frenetic opening, with Chelsea making two, first through Kurt Zouma and then Antonio Rüdiger from which Liverpool almost got in. On the second occasion, Arrizabalaga bailed out his team with a decent stop to keep out Sadio Mané. The visitors also flickered when Takumi Minamino released Mané only for him not to shoot when the opportunity was there.

The biggest slip, though, came at the other end and it was a grisly one from Adrián, who played in goal ahead of Allison. It followed a risky sequence of passes out from the back into the Chelsea press, with Joe Gomez playing Fabinho into trouble and the Liverpool midfielder losing the ball, although there still did not seem to be too much danger when Willian took aim from the edge of the area.

Seconds earlier, af-

ter a Pedro shot had deflected kindly, Willian put his laces through the ball and was denied by Adrián’s strong hands. It was an eye-catching save. But this time, although t h e shot was

straight at him, curling only slightly, Adrián lost his concentration and fumbled it into the net.

Pedro and César Azpilicueta had earlier had chances for Chelsea and, after Adrián’s lapse, the spotlight picked out Arrizabalaga in the other goal. It has been a testing time for the Spaniard, with Euro 2020 three months away. How can he push his starting claims with his national team from the sidelines at Stamford Bridge?

Arrizabalaga needed

a big performance and he stood tall before the interval. He made a triple save to deny Mané, Divock Origi and Jones, a celebration of bravery, positioning and reflexes, and there would be another to thwart Mané after a quicksilver burst from the forward.

The tempo was high and Chelsea suffered a casualty when Mateo Kovacic took a knock and went off on 42 minutes.

Perhaps his withdrawal was precautionary, with Jorginho banned for the next three matches and N’Golo Kanté injured.

Kovacic did not appear to be in too much discomfort when he went off.

Lampard has had reason to bemoan his luck with injuries, with Andreas C h r i s t e n s e n , Christian Pulisic, Callum HudsonOdoi and T a m m y

Abraham also out, and the situation worsened when Willian was forced off early in the second half.

Chelsea pressed on and they thought they had the second when the substitute, Mason Mount, bent a freekick that he had won himself over the wall only for it to catch the top of the crossbar.

Barkley brought the ruthlessness and Liverpool’s pain would have been more acute had Pedro not shot weakly at Adrián when oneon-one after a mix-up between Williams and Gomez or if the goalkeeper had not tipped a shot from Olivier Giroud against the crossbar.

(The Guardian)

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21

Odyssey Travel Service donates over $300,000 in scorebooks to RHTYSC

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ozens of cricket clubs in the Ancient County of Berbice will shortly receive scorebooks as the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTY&SC) continues its outreach programme to assist its sister clubs to fulfil their mandate.

The club on Thursday received a donation of scorebooks valued over $300,000 from its long-time sponsor, Odyssey Travel Service.

Club Secretary/ Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Hilbert Foster and Organising Secretary Rabindranauth Kissoonlall collected the donation from Troy Khan, the Manager of the Travel Service, in the presence of Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) Treasurer, Dr Cecil Beharry at the company’s Light Street, Bourda head office.

Foster stated that since its formation in 1990, the RHTY&SC has assisted over 150 cricket clubs in Berbice with millions of dollars’ worth of cricket gear, scorebooks, cricket balls, stumps, cricket uniforms and coaching equipment.

Despite being a rival cricket club, the RHTY&SC strongly believes, Foster stated,

RHTY&SC Secretary/CEO Hilbert Foster and Troy Khan of Odyssey pose with scorebooks. Looking on are officials of both organisations

in assisting others, so that they too can make a positive difference in the lives of youths.

Foster, who is also the President of the vibrant BCB, noted that the two organisations enjoyed a close working relationship, with the objectives of lifting Berbice cricket to a higher level, making sure that every potential talent is nurtured and the game is promoted as an alternative to a life of crime and drugs.

The scorebooks will be distributed to every club in Berbice apart from those who would have granted a

walkover to other clubs in a BCB-organised tournament or who played unauthorised players. Noting that discipline is important to a club’s success, Foster stated that clubs who failed to respect the BCB rules would not benefit from any assistance.

Since the Foster-led BCB took over in February 2018, clubs and youth players have benefited from over $6 million worth of balls, cricket gear, trophies, medals, educational materials, bicycles, school bags, scorebooks, and raincoats among other items. This, the BCB President stated, is because

the Board is fully aware of the huge financial cost attached to the game and it is committed to assisting as much as possible.

Among the clubs that will receive the scorebooks are No 73, No 72 Cut and Load, Scottsburg, Dukestown, No 48, Ramnarine Memorial, Tain Block 4, Whim, Port Mourant, Albion, Chesney, Fyrish, Blairmont, Cotton Tree, Achievers and Bush Lot United. The BCB, Foster stated, is already looking at other areas to assist clubs during the rest of the year.

Earlier this year, member clubs of the Board,

along with those with junior teams, received $400,000 worth of cricket balls, donated by former Health Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy. As part of its own effort to become self-reliant, the BCB has also obtained its own coaching gear and a pair of cricket pitch covers worth $320,000 under a special developmental fund spearheaded by its former President, Anil Beharry.

RHTY&SC Organising Secretary and Cricket Manager Rabindranauth Kissoonlall expressed gratitude to the management and staff of the Odyssey Boat Service, especially MR Feroze Barkat and Troy Khan for their support of the club and Berbice cricket over the years.

Kissoonlall assured the company that both the RHTY&SC and BCB would promote their business across Berbice as a thankyou gesture.

The Odyssey’s Manager, in brief remarks, stated that his company was very impressed with the outstanding work of the RHTY&SC and will continue to assist in the future.

Dominican Republic basking in historic achievement

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or the first time ever at any level in men’s or women’s football, a Dominican Republic national team have reached the quarter-final stage of a CONCACAF competition, with the Dominican Republic Under-20 Women’s National Team reaching the final eight of the 2020 CONCACAF Under-20 Women’s Championships being played in the Dominican Republic.

The host nation achieved that feat with a 4-1 win over El Salvador on Saturday in the Round of 16, which came on the heels of a very impressive group stage performance that saw the Dominican Republic compile a 2W-0D1L record, with seven goals scored and four conceded.

When asked to put into

The Dominican Republic team celebrate

words what it means to be part of the team to have made Dominican football history, team captain and MF Alissa Oviedo was near

speechless.

“I have no words for how I feel,” said Oviedo in an exclusive interview with Concacaf.com following

Saturday’s victory. “I feel so proud of this team. I’m so excited to see how far this team can go, because I think we have a great team

and I cannot begin to describe how happy I am.”

Oviedo also expressed her gratitude to the legions of fans who have come to the Estadio Olimpico Felix Sanchez in Santo Domingo to support the team.

“Thank you so much to the fans. They are our 12th player and we thank them for coming to all the games and giving us all the support we need,” said Oviedo.

Next up for the Dominican Republic is a quarter-final date with Jamaica today. FW Mia Asenjo knows that a difficult 90 minutes awaits against the Reggae Girlz.

“Jamaica is a very good team, but I think we’re a great team as well and I think it’ll be a fight and a tough game between both of us as well,” said Asenjo.

(Concacaf)

Coronavirus: England's Vunipola self-isolating

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ngland prop Mako Vunipola has gone into self-isolation as a coronavirus precaution and will not face Wales in the Six Nations on Saturday.

Vunipola was named in a 34-man squad on Monday, but the Rugby Football Union (RFU) said he did not come into camp after travelling through Hong Kong on his return from Tonga over the weekend.

"Mako is not in camp on medical grounds," said an RFU spokesperson.

"He is not sick, but it is a precaution."

Mako Vunipola played in the win against Scotland, but missed the victory against Ireland

Vunipola missed England's victory over Ireland on February 23 after flying to Tonga for family reasons.

But his return flight took him through virus-hit Hong Kong, and he has now gone into an isolation period.

It is believed Vunipola has shown no symptoms of the illness, with his absence from the England set-up a precaution.

Travellers returning from areas where the virus is prevalent are being asked to self-isolate if they have symptoms. Those in self-isolation should stay at home for 14 days.

He is, therefore, unlikely to be available for England's Six Nations finale against Italy in Rome, which is due to go ahead as planned on Saturday, March 14.

Ireland's game against

Italy has been postponed because of coronavirus, but Six Nations organisers said on Monday that the rest of the weekend's fixtures were currently set to go ahead.

Later on Tuesday, England Head Coach Eddie Jones streamlined his squad to a group of 27 players, with Exeter scrum-half Jack Maunder among those left out.

Exeter prop Harry Williams, Bath hooker Tom Dunn, Exeter centre Ollie Devoto, Gloucester wing Ollie Thorley and Wasps fly-half Jacob Umaga were also omitted. (BBC Sport)

22

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

CWI/PCL Regional 4-Day Championships...

Pride enjoy 29.2 points lead over Jaguars

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arbados Pride are the leaders of the Regional 4-Day Championships with 108.2 points after six rounds. Pride recorded five wins and suffered one defeat while the fivet i m e defending champ i o n s , Guyana Jaguars are 29.2 points behind Pride, with

feats, and one draw.

Jaguars will now play the bottom placed Leeward Islands Hurricanes from Thursday, March 5 at the Guyana National Stadium from 09:30h.

Jamaica Scorpions are in third position with 61.2 points while Windward Islands Volcanoes are in fourth with 56.8 points.

Trinidad and Tobago

Red Force are fifth with 54.8 points while Hurricanes have 40.4 points.

In the batting department, the experienced Kyle Mayers has the most runs after six rounds. Mayers has 579 runs with two centuries and five half-centuries to his name.

Regional superstar Devon Smith is second in the runs with 495 runs while the urgent Jermaine Blackwood is in third with 450 runs.

Shayne Moseley has 449 runs while Kaveem Hodge has 409 runs. Joshua Da Silva has 389 runs and Guyana players Christopher Barnwell and Leon Johnson have 376 and 362 runs respectively.

Veerasammy Permaul leads the wicket charts by 15 wickets. The left-arm spinner has 45 wickets in six matche s this season, r e cording three five-wicket hauls, i n Team Guyana Jaguars

cluding a best innings haul of 8-18 and a best match haul of 15-77. Red Force’s left-arm spinner, Akeal Hosein has 30 wickets for second position while Pride pacer Chemar Holder has 29 scalps.

Keon Harding has 28 wickets followed by Rahkeem

Veerasammy Permaul

79 points. In the six rounds played by Jaguars, they have recorded three wins, two de-

Kyle Mayers

Cornwall with 23 victims.

Kemar Roach has 21 wickets in only four matches while Nial Smith has 19 wickets.

Jaguars wicketkeeper-batsman Anthony Bramble has the most dismissals with 22 while Shane Dowrich has 21.

(Brandon Corlette)

Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 GFF begins dorm construction at Providence Windies women final match v

A

South Africa washed out

…D’Urban Park update

few weeks ago, Guyana Football Federation (GFF) President Wayne Forde revealed that construction work would soon recommence at the Federation’s National Training Centre, Providence, as it took the necessary steps to complete the venue.

“As we speak, work is going to commence in five to six days; what we’re doing at Providence, we’re starting the work to convert the existing buildings into really good dorms,” Forde said about the project at the end of January.

While the work did not begin at the proposed time, upon Guyana Times ’ last visit to the Providence facility, it was noticed that the foundation works for

the expansion of the dorms have commenced. As stated by the GFF boss, the new dorms will play an integral role in preparing Guyana’s national teams and will even positively impact referee and coaching education programmes. “ T h e whole goal there is once that project is over; we will have our youth

source area where we can have coaching education programmes, referees’ education programmes, so a lot of the work that we have at satellite ar-

GFF President Wayne Forde

teams encamping every weekend, so the contact between player and coaches will improve dramatically.

There will actually be a re-

Preparations being made to lay the foundation at Providence

eas in Guyana concentrated there,” Forde exclusively shared with Guyana Times Sport.

On the topic of football facilities, the GFF President was then probed about the 7.3-acre plot of land at D’Urban Park, Georgetown that was leased to the GFF back in 2019. Forde assured that the project has not been forsaken and took the time to explain why no significant work has begun at the site.

“As it relates to D’Urban Park, FIFA has made it absolutely clear to us that until such time that we meet a certain level of construction at Providence, they will not authorise the use of funds for any other location. We’re also in agreement with that.

We believe it’s important that we don’t try to spread ourselves too thin,” he explained.

Furthermore, the GFF boss revealed that the Federation was looking to level the land at D’Urban Park and construct goal posts, which can be utilised by those in the area.

He went on to share that it was his hope that work can begin by the last quarter of 2020.

W

i n d i e s Women’s f i n a l match v South Africa washed out West Indies finished third in Group B of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Women’s T20 World Cup when their fourth and final match against South Africa was washed out on Tuesday night (Australian Time). The match was scheduled to be played at the Sydney Showground Stadium, but the rain started from the first match of the afternoon between Thailand and Pakistan.

The Proteas’ place at the top of Group B was confirmed as they took a point with no play possible. The washout was a disappointing end to West Indies’ campaign that saw them come away with a win against Thailand and defeats to England and

Pakistan.

A n i s a Mohammed, the Vice Captain and experienced off-spinner, who would have stood in for the injured Captain, Stafanie Taylor had the game gone ahead, felt the abandoned game was an opportunity missed.

“It was disappointing to leave before the semi-finals and we would have liked to have played tonight to go home with a win. We would have liked to have had the

chance to prove ourselves and we are playing South Africa in a couple of months, so we'd liked to have gone into that competition with a win.

“There are some positives from the tournament – we fielded well and looked good as a bowling unit, going back, we're going to have to work on our batting. Players have to pick themselves up and as much as management can give advice, it’s up to the players to perform on the day,” Mohammed stated.

The team will return home later this week. Most of the players are expected to participate in the Cricket West Indies Colonial Medical Insurance Super50 event in Guyana. The next international matches will be against South Africa in May and June in Jamaica and Trinidad. After that, they will travel to Sri Lanka for the ICC World Cup Qualifiers from July 3-19.

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020

23

Sri Lanka look to end torrid run against Windies

…Kieron Pollard has 500th T20 party

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Big picture

efore the One-Day International (ODIs), you could make the claim that these two sides were relatively evenly matched. And although it's true that West Indies are defending T20 world champions and Sri Lanka will have to qualify for the main draw of the T20 World Cup later this year, perhaps they are not so far apart in the shortest format. West Indies have failed to win each of their last five T20I series, even losing a recent match to Ireland, with whom they drew the series 1-1. Of their last eight series – a sequence that stretches back to July 2018 – they have only won one.

What is almost beyond doubt, however, is that West Indies possess greater firepower with the bat, and have the greater number of game-changing players. Lendl Simmons, Kieron Pollard, Nicholas Pooran, Andre Russell and Shimron Hetmyer are each a daunting prospect on their own, let alone in the same batting order. Perhaps their bowling is weaker, but with Dwayne Bravo's immense experience to call upon, they will still back themselves.

Sri Lanka, who were thrashed in T20Is in both

India and Australia in recent months, will hope that the good vibes and confidence from the ODI whitewash will roll on into the T20I series. As a bonus, Sri Lanka have regained Angelo Mathews the bowler. Before 2015, he had actually been one of the canniest new-ball operators around, frequently delivering tight powerplay spells, allowing the likes of Lasith Malinga or a spinner to attack from the other end.

With Thisara Perera appearing to have hit form with the bat, and Avishka Fernando in good nick as well, the hosts will hope to end a torrid stretch of T20I form.

In spotlight

the

ers in support of Malinga's leadership. The worry now is that Malinga is too poor a man-manager to get the best out of his players, many of whom are reasonably young, and often inconsistent.

Although still the best player in the team, Malinga's captaincy record since taking over a second time is beyond woeful. If Sri Lanka have another poor series under him, especially after they have had an outstanding ODI run, the selectors may step in.

With Chris Gayle out of the picture, the superstar Sri Lanka f a n s w i l l most

C a n L a s i t h Malinga feasibly captain the side in the T20 World Cup this year? Here is perhaps the most important question for the T20 side want right now. The team won to watch a T20 World Cup unover the der his leadership two matches in 2014, but that is undoubtedly was a differAndre Russell. ent age, with Thankfully for outstanding senior Kieron Pollard will be playing his 500th T20 play-

them, he comes into this series in good form, having carved up the Bangladesh Premier League only seven weeks ago, hitting 225 runs at a strike rate of over 180, while taking 14 wickets as well. And although West Indies have been through a lean run in terms of series victories, Russell has not been a part of a West Indies XI since August 2018.

If there's anyone who can change an entire side's fortunes, it's him.

Team news

With Evin Lewis not picked in the squad, West Indies have a decision to make as to who will partner Simmons at the top of the order. They could even be tempted to try Shai Hope, who although not always a

first-choice T20I player, has been in outstanding touch in Sri Lanka. Brandon King is another opening option. The bowling is harder to predict.

Provided Fabian Allen has recovered from the shoulder injury he sustained during the third ODI, they may be tempted to play two spinners.

West Indies (possible): 1 Lendl Simmons; 2 Shai Hope (wk); 3 Shimron Hetmyer; 4 Kieron Pollard (Capt); 5 Nicholas Pooran 6 Andre Russell; 7 Dwayne Bravo; 8 Fabian Allen; 9 Hayden Walsh Jr; 10 Sheldon Cottrell and 11 Kesrick Williams/ Oshane Thomas.

Although Kusal Mendis is in excellent form, there is a chance he could be left out in order to bring Shehan

Jayasuriya – who bats, but also bowls offspin – into the side, to give Captain Malinga another spin option.

Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Niroshan Dickwella (wk); 2 Avishka Fernando; 3 Kusal Perera; 4 Shehan Jayasuriya; 5 Angelo Mathews; 6 Dasun Shanaka; 7 Thisara Perera; 8 Wanindu Hasaranga; 9 Isuru Udana; 10 Lasith Malinga (Capt) and 11 Lahiru Kumara.

Pitch and conditions

The pitch for the third ODI seemed a little slow, but that didn't stop both teams scoring 300.

Generally, Pallekele surfaces do a little bit for the seamers, under lights. No rain is forecast.

(ESPNcricinfo)

CONCACAF U-20 Women’s Championships

Lady Jags to play for semi-final spot today

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By Jemima Holmes

he Under-20 Lady Jaguars team will face off with their most threatening opponents yet in the CONCACAF U-20 Women’s Championships today, as they look to defy the odds and make it to the semi-final round of t h e hemispheri c tournament.

in the tournament thus far with a goal aggregate of 34, in just four games played. In the face of adversity, however, Guyana are looking to continue rewriting the country’s football history by upsetting their opponents.

The Lady Jags are no strangers to diff i cult o p po-

nents, having taken on defendi n g

will ter-

Guyana come up against their Caricom counparts Haiti, who have been an absolute powerhouse

days that

Guyana’s Jade Vuyfhuis on the attack

champ i o n s Mexico in their final group game, just a few ago. In e n counter,

Head Coach Ivan Joseph’s strategy was to have the Lady Jags play a completely defensive game, in the hopes of restricting Mexico.

The plan was effective for much of the game until it all unravelled at the seams in the 78th minute.

Mexico went on to capitalise on Guyana’s weak final minutes, winning the encounter 3-0.

Head Coach Joseph, in correspondence to the media prior to the game, was completely honest about the strength of Mexico’s team and the formidable opposition that Guyana would have to face.

“They play a very direct and solid attack from the flanks; they like to go through the posting forward. We’ve watched the scouting tape and we’re now in the process of developing a game plan to get them in,” Joseph said.

Referencing their strategy for Mexico, Joseph hinted at devising a plan along s i m i l a r lines for Haiti, but noted that this t i m e a r o u n d Guyana would be balancing

their defensive and attacking lines.

“But again, do we have the athletes to really compete, that will be the tell of this game. You will look for us to have a low-pressure defence, clearly not the same as when we played Mexico, you have to be able to score. So, look for us to find wherever that balance is in the game,” the Head Coach stated.

Jade Vuyfhuis expressed similar sentiments as the Coach, recognising Haiti as a tough opponent. However, the defence player noted that the team would be using the game as a test of their endurance.

“Going forward for the Haiti game, I think we’re looking to defend really well, because they are a stronger team. I think having competition at their level is going to be good for us, because now we can see what we’re capable of doing and we’re going to push our boundaries a little bit,” Vuyfhuis explained.

“That being said, I think it’s going to be a little physical, so we’re going to have to try to match up to their physicality as well.

But I think we can do it,” the player went on to positively affirm.

While the likes of

Vuyfhuis and Brianne Desa have been excellent on Guyana’s backline, Jenea Knight will be a critical component in Guyana’s game. Much is expected from local girl Tiandi Smith, who is steadily adjusting in the tournament, after some lacklustre performances early on. Goalkeeper Anessa O’Brien exhibited the extent of her skill in Guyana’s encounter with Mexico, holding on to at least 10 saves. O’Brien will need a repeat of that performance or to better it, as Guyana come up against Haiti.

For the opposition, Haiti’s Melchie Durmonay currently leads the tournament’s goalscorers with 10 goals to her name. Her teammate Valentina Ornis has seven goals, while another, Florsie Joseph, has four – a testament to the high-energy, attacking game that Haiti are accustomed to playing.

Another player to watch on Haiti’s roster is Mirlene Dorce and their goalkeeper Madelina Fleuriot is yet to concede a goal. As such, the battle between Guyana and Haiti, scheduled for 16:00h local time today, will be an interesting one to watch.

Jenea Knight will be a crucial player for Guyana today In the other quarter-final games, Jamaica will take on the Dominican Republic, the USA will battle Canada, and Mexico will go head to head with Trinidad and Tobago.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2020

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

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CWI/PCL Regional 4-Day championships...

Page 22

CONCACAF U-20 Women’s Championships Page 23

Lady Jags to play for Pride enjoy 29.2 points semi-final lead over Jaguars spot today WOMEN’S T20 WORLD CUP 2020 Page 22

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