Guyana Times - Monday, May 20, 2019

P5

38 girls graduate from Parushi Club SRHR Mentorship Programme Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

Issue No. 3929

THE BEACON OF TRUTH MONday, may 20, 2019

PRICE

Corentyne banditry

$80 vat included

WHAT'S INSIDE:

Police kill 3 suspected bandits in shootout – AR-15 assault rifle among weapons confiscated Page 9

Armed bandits beat, rob Diamond P11 residents during birthday celebration

P12 Union urges swift commencement of special audit into UG

Ramnarine Jagmohan

Mother of 6 dies days after eye P12 removed

Kelvin Shivgobin

Crane murder

Suspect to make court appearance shortly

GECOM’s legal advice appears in line with the law – former GCCI President Page 3

...Commissioner says advice being vilified because it goes against agenda for delaying elections Page US$150M CJIA expansion

Body of female taxi driver found in ditch, car missing Page 10

Passengers forced to use tarmac despite million-dollar air bridge

P2

– family concerned over delay of murder charge

11

– days after flooding inside airport

Bagotstown murder

1 confesses to killing biker ...tells Police he wanted teen’s gun Page 10

Accountants P7 warned of penalties if caught in money laundering

2 News

monday, may 20, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Crane murder

Suspect to make court appearance shortly – family concerned over delay of murder charge

A

Murdered: 37-yearold Zaila Sugrim

lthough 37-year-old Zaila Sugrim was laid to rest on Saturday after being reportedly murdered and buried in a shallow grave, the alleged perpetrator, her estranged husband, is yet to be arraigned for the murder.

The delay in instituting charges against the man was not taken lightly by her relatives, who are calling for justice to be served at the soonest.

Ahmad Haniff, the brother of the deceased, told

Murder suspect: Ryan Sugrim

Guyana Times that to date, his family has not been provided with feedback as to when the alleged murderer will be making his court appearance.

Addressing the issue, with respect to Police investigations, Commander of D Division (West Bank Demerara-East Bank Essequibo), Edmond Cooper stated that the suspect remains in Police custody while adding that he will be arraigned soon.

“That is an active inves-

The body being removed by undertakers on Tuesday

tigation. What I could tell you is that we have gotten the cause of death and then we have to do some forensics in terms of ensuring that the DNA matches that of the name of the person. So we have gotten an extension to continue our investigation, so as soon as the Director of Public Prosecutions is finished, he will be arraigned,” the Commander stated.

According to the Police Commander, the matter is not being swept under the carpet or overlooked, but there are certain steps that have to be taken to ensure that justice is served.

He said that there needs to be specific testing conducted so that the case that the Police build when going to the courts will be concrete and accurate.

“These things have to go to where it is supposed to go, remember it is remains you found, he said something, we found some remains. We have got to send it to be tested and so to match the DNA and those kinds of things.

The Police, we are doing our work,” Commander Cooper posited.

Less than a week ago, tears flowed down the cheeks of residents and the five children of the now dead woman as undertakers removed the body believed to be their mother’s from a shallow grave behind their Crane, West Coast Demerara (WCD) yard.

Zaila Sugrim was last seen by her sister at the Vreed-en-Hoop Stelling on May 11, when she entered the motor car with her estranged husband.

Guyana Times was told that on Saturday last at about 13:00h, Sugrim left her brother’s Diamond, East Bank Demerara (EBD) house where she had been living for the last eight months, to be picked up by her estranged husband to visit the businessman’s home where she was expected to celebrate the birthday of her eldest child.

However, the 14-yearold child reported that she did not see nor hear from her mother. By nightfall, the family became worried since it was very unusual for her not to call if she was out for long periods.

Her brother, Ahmad Haniff, grew worried and called her cellphone but the phone was turned off.

Repeated attempts to reach Sugrim on her mobile proved

futile and other family members confirmed that they had not heard from the woman since she left her brother’s home.

On May 12, 2019, the worried man visited the Diamond Police Station where he filed a missing persons’ report. In the company of several Police Officers, a visit was made to his sister’s estranged husband’s home, where the man was uncooperative, but nonetheless informed Haniff and the Police that he did not see Zaila nor does he want anything to do with her.

“So I seh bai, Zaila left to come by you, and we get footage to show that you pick she up Saturday 02:30h; he said no, he nah left the place and the children them know that he nah left the place,” the grieving brother had related.

After realising that something was amiss, the suspect’s children reportedly inspected CCTV footage of the home but a particular time period was deleted.

This was reported to Sugrim’s relatives, who in turn informed Police ranks.

This led to ranks swooping down on the suspect’s La Grange, WBD property where a search was carried out, however, nothing was found.

After relatives made additional reports on Monday at the Diamond Police Station, another group of ranks swooped down on the suspect’s Crane home.

It wasn’t until a search of the suspect’s motor car was conducted by the Police that they received a break in the case after blood was spotted in the car’s trunk. This prompted Police to arrest the suspect and impound the car.

After much interrogation, the suspect finally broke down and confessed that he indeed killed his estranged wife and later led Police to where he buried the body, in a shallow grave behind his Crane home.

When this publication visited the scene, the stench of the decomposed body was strong and a large group of onlookers were gathered. All of her personal belongings which included her purse, shoes, jewellery and other items were found in the shallow grave.

The woman’s remains were placed in a hearse and taken away as her children, family, friends and residents looked on in disbelief.

news

3

monday, may 20, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

BRIDGE OPENINGS

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

Monday, May 20 – 05:00h-06:30h and Tuesday, May 21 – 05:00h-06:30h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Monday, May 20 – 05:05h-06:35h and Tuesday, May 21 – 05:40h-07:10h.

GECOM legal advice appears in line with the law – former GCCI President ...Commissioner says advice being vilified because it goes against agenda for delaying elections

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

WEATHER TODAY Thundery to light rain showers will prevail, with sunny intervals in the late afternoon.

Partly cloudy skies and light rain showers can be expected in the evening, with temperatures ranging between 23 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius.

Winds: East North-easterly to North-easterly between 2.23 metres and 4.47 metres.

High Tide: 05:08h and 17:35h reaching maximum heights of 2.77 metres and 2.60 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 11:09h and 23:19h reaching minimum heights of 0.44 metre and 0.65 metre respectively.

saturday, may 18, 2019

LOTTERY NUMBERS B

01

05

10

15

25

26

FREE TICKET

17 Bonus Ball

DAILY MILLIONS

04

05

14 15 25

LUCKY 3

0

0

6

3

Afternoon Draw

8

0

Evening Draw

DRAW DE LINE

01

05

06

07

PAY DAY

01 02 03 08 14

11

18

20 SUPER PAY DAY

05 06 11 15 21

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

GECOM Legal Officer Excellence Dazzell

T

he recent legal opinion by the Guyana Elections Commission’s (GECOM’s) Legal Officer that the expired voters’ list should be refreshed without house-to-house registration continues to divide opinions.

According to a former elections observer on behalf of the Private Sector, the opinion does follow what is set out in the law.

Making an appearance on Globespan 24×7 live show in New York on Sunday, former Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) President and election observer, Vishnu Doerga noted that having looked at the advice the legal officer offered and then comparing it with his own research, it appears in line with what the law prescribes.

“I’ve looked at that particular piece of advice and in my research, it seemed to be in alignment with what is called for in the legislations,” Doerga said. However, he also noted that if there are still doubts about the accuracy of the legal opinion offered by the legal officer, all GECOM has to do is conduct an inquiry.

“So again, if we have any fear that it is not so, we should have some inquiry in terms of how we should go about coming to these conclusions. Whenever any company hires a lawyer, it is their responsibility to do their due diligence to ensure this lawyer is both competent and is acting in their best interest.

“If at any point in time there is any doubt, in a company it’s simpler. You either let go of the lawyer and go through the process again or in a larger company, you might do an investigation,” he said.

Doerga acknowledged that as the CEO of a company, there might be times when he wants things to go a certain way. But he added that if the laws do not allow for that and he is advised in accordance with the law by his legal counsel, then he has to understand and take the requisite action.

Vilification

GECOM Commissioner Sase Gunraj also made an appearance on the show on Sunday. According to him, Legal Officer Excellence Dazzell is catching flak for tendering the legal advice that recommended Claims and Objections because it goes contrary to the agenda

to delay elections.

“Myself and my fellow Commissioners have been asking from day one, can we have a plan for the holding of elections that does not include house-to-house registration? Because it is my considered view that the refreshing of the list does not require house-to-house registration,” he said.

“That explains why so much harsh words are being directed towards the legal officer. All kinds of motives are being imputed to her. And the only reason for that, I am sure, is because she tendered a view that does not accord with certain members of the Commission. Simple. So the opinion is bastardised and they’re attempting to crucify her for saying that.”

Responding to questions from viewers on whether the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) can compel GECOM to hold elections without houseto-house registration, the Commissioner responded in the affirmative.

“The courts are the guardian of the Constitution. They have the responsibility to interpret and make orders that they see in keeping with the tenets of the law. It has always been my contention that house-to-house registration is a policy decision and a policy decision cannot take precedence over the law.

“So the answer to that question is yes. I believe that GECOM can be ordered to conduct the elections without the need for house-to-house registration,” Gunraj added.

Last week Tuesday, Dazzell’s legal opinion was tabled at a statutory meeting of GECOM. In the opinion, she set out that “based on (election laws), the list must be updated bi-annually by

Panellists on the Globespan show (from left) GECOM Commissioner Sase Gunraj, Economist Sase Singh and former GCCI President Vishnu Doerga

adding persons who are now qualified to be registered to that list, and those who are no longer qualified to be registered to be taken off that list.”

This runs counter to the arguments made by the Government-nominated Commissioners on GECOM that a new list was required

through house-to-house registration. In fact, a United Kingdom-based Guyanese has gone to the courts over the exercise, arguing that if it goes forward, she will be disenfranchised. In fact, the Opposition has contended that many more will be in the same predicament.

4

guyanatimesgy.com

monday, may 20, 2019

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

Betraying Independence

D

uring their rule over the empire on which “the sun never sets”, the British insisted that, unlike the “settler colonies” such as Australia and Canada, the ones populated by non-European “natives” had to undergo a period of “tutelage” before they would be ready for independence.

This policy was greatly resented by the new leaders of the latter colonies, including then British Guiana, who insisted they were in no way inferior to the British in matters political. In fact, they revelled in one account that described them as politically “precocious”.

However, with the benefit of hindsight, after the PNC’s rule for 28 long years after independence and their latest 4 years at the helm, one has to ruefully concede that maybe the colonial power had a point on “tutelage”.

Obviously, the leaders could “read and write”, and therefore understand the tomes on politics and government; and, like Forbes Burnham, the Britishtrained lawyer, could regurgitate their ideas with great aplomb and eloquence.

The problem came from the question as to whether they and their societies could put those ideas into practice, so as to appreciate not just the words, but the spirit that gave life to the words. In a word, whether they had developed a tradition of governing for the welfare of the people. The British, after all, had developed their traditions from the time of their Magna Carta in 1215, and their habits of independence had percolated into all their institutions, not just at Westminster.

This is well illustrated in the famous remark by the Duke of Wellington: that the epoch-shaping Battle of Waterloo against Napoleon had been won “on the playing fields of Eton”.

He said this a decade after the battle, while looking at a game of cricket at Eton, the elite Grammar School on which our Queen’s College was modelled. He meant, of course, the games inculcated values that could guide one in all aspects of life. It was rather ironic that Burnham did in fact attend Queen’s, but, sadly, was not noted for his activities on the playing fields. He was to later mock Walter Rodney, who had to scale fences after being chased by his goons, for being a champion high jumper at Queen’s.

In cricket, for instance, there is the tradition of “walking” if the batsman knows he nicked the ball, even when it might not have been evident to the opposing side or umpire. This was illustrated in the 2011 World Cup, when a delivery from West Indies pacer Ravi Rampaul hit Tendulkar’s glove and carried through to the keeper. The umpire was stuck in two minds, but his predicament was resolved by the great man himself, as he decided to walk.

Even if one were inclined to give Burnham the benefit of the doubt for his acquiescence with the US/British ouster of the PPP in 1964, because his choice was, in the words of Tyrone Ferguson, “to survive sensibly or to court heroic death”, there is no gainsaying that he drove a stake into democratic practice in our land when he not only did not accept the notion of “walking” at the 1968 elections, but actually conspired to rig the elections and to do so until he died. While it is to his eternal credit that Desmond Hoyte decided to “walk” in 1992, we have to note that it was bitterly opposed by his then Prime Minister, Hamilton Green.

Green has continued to insist that Hoyte was “naïve” to accept the results of the elections, even though technically he was not actually walking, but accepting the decision of the voters. It is therefore not coincidental that Granger, the present leader of the PNC, who has boasted about fulfilling the legacy of Burnham and has honoured Green with the “Order of Roraima”, is adamant on his control over GECOM via his unilaterally appointed Chairman.

Whatever else may be said of the PPP, they accepted the “tie” in 2011, and “walked” in 2015. They have never betrayed our independence.

Members of the Guyana Defence Force on Saturday render assistance to a woman whose outboard engine suffered a failure on Saturday in the Essequibo River. After a few minutes, the woman was on her way to her destination but not before praising the service men who went to her assistance (Malcolm Harripaul photo)

Sold into sex slavery

By Mark Bassant and Hema Ramkissoon

M

aria Theresa, a 19-year-old nursing student from Tucupita, saw the promise of a new beginning.

Like other places in Venezuela, the economy of her small town in the Orinoco Delta had collapsed, causing thousands of residents to flee.

Maria saw her chance when a friend told her about people who could take her to find a better life in Trinidad.

Some traffickers, an organised network of Trinidadians and Venezuelans, promised Maria and her friends that they would loan them money for the trip. When they landed in Trinidad, the same people would find them jobs as hairdressers or housekeepers.

So, one night in January, Maria climbed onto a pirogue from a hidden inlet on the Orinoco River. About six hours later, she landed in an area she believed to be Chaguaramas, where she and other passengers on the boat were met by a man they didn’t know. From there, they were taken to a house occupied by other migrants.

For three days, Maria and eight other Venezuelans were crammed into a room where daylight barely crept in. Their passports were taken from them and they were fed a diet of Crix and water.

One day, they had no food at all.

It was only then Maria realised that the traffickers had sold her a lie.

On the third day, the door to her room opened and one of her handlers told her to get pretty; that some visitors would be arriving soon.

Maria was confused and afraid but did as she was commanded.

When a strange man came in and leered at her, she understood her fate.

“They said that we (were) going to be prostitutes and if we didn’t like it, it didn’t matter, because they brought us

here and we had to do it.”

Dressed in a green track suit, Maria gave this detailed account from a safe house in Petit Bourg.

“I would have worked in any job because there is nothing in Venezuela. There is no opportunity. You can’t survive. But not prostitution,” Maria said, burying her face in her hands.

Bondage debt paid with sex

Venezuela’s economic collapse has triggered an exodus of some five million people from the South American nation. By some estimates, some 60,000 have sought refuge in Trinidad.

A three-month Guardian Media investigation has revealed how human traffickers have swooped in to prey on Venezuelan women seeking economic survival. These traffickers have placed hundreds of young women into modern-day sex slavery.

The networks involve an entangled web of Trinidadian and Venezuelan traffickers who smuggle these women, corrupt Police Officers who facilitate the trade and protect wrongdoers, and immigration officials who often times take bribes to turn a blind eye to the women’s exploitation.

Underworld Venezuelan figures with illicit arms and Asian criminal gangs are often part of the criminal networks.

The illicit sex trade seems to span the entire country, from the remote port of Cedros to high-rises in Westmoorings, where sex slaves – some as young as 15 years old – are held against their will, locked in rooms and forced to have sex with men. Some victims are drugged so older men can have their way with them.

The traffickers routinely take these women to bars and nightclubs in search of clients. The younger the women, the higher the price.

For a 30-minute session, traffickers charge US$300, about the price of a doctor’s visit. The rates double to US$600 for an hour. For the

entire night, the trafficker pockets US$6000.

The women are given a mere pittance to survive.

They are forced to work night after night until their bondage debt is erased; a debt owed to traffickers for their passage to this country.

These women are trapped in a cycle of debt with no relief in sight. And the traffickers find ways to keep the women enslaved by adding the cost of food, clothing, shelter, medical and protection fees to the original figure.

Six years later, no convictions

Since the inception of the Counter Trafficking Unit under the Ministry of National Security six years ago, only 56 people – a little more than nine a year – have faced the courts for this offence, according to a top law enforcement official. To date, no one has been convicted, authorities say.

In the last six months, Police have made some high-profile arrests, but human rights activists contend that not enough is being done.

The recent arrests include: On February 6, Police Commissioner Gary Griffith led an operation that rescued 19 young South American women from two homes in Westmoorings and a restaurant along Ariapita Avenue.

The young women, ages 1518 years, were locked in rooms and made to take drugs and have sex with men for money. Police also rounded up at least 18 suspects for questioning. A Chinese man, Jinfu Zhu, and his 23-yearold Venezuelan accomplice, Solient Torres, were later charged with 43 sex charges under the Sexual Offences Act. The young women, mostly of Venezuelan nationality, were later taken under the State’s care and kept in a safe house.

Mere days after this major bust, a 24-year-old Venezuelan woman who

had escaped from human traffickers was recaptured by them in Diego Martin.

Police intercepted the alleged traffickers along the Solomon Hochoy Highway in the Claxton Bay area.

Battered and bruised, the shaken woman was taken to the Woodbrook Police Station. Akeem James, a 28-year-old special reserve Police Officer, and 39-yearold Kevin Houlder, a truck driver, were later arrested.

Authorities acknowledge that the human trafficking problem involving sex slavery is a massive one.

Minister of National Security Stuart Young said the rescue of the 19 women last February had triggered a flood of tips about illegal activity involving human trafficking across Trinidad and Tobago.

The world takes notice

Several international agencies have focused on the sex trafficking problem during their investigation of the Venezuelan migrant situation in Trinidad.

Melanie Teff, who is UNICEF UK’s senior humanitarian advocacy and policy adviser, recalled interviewing about 50 Venezuelan victims who recounted how traffickers entrapped them into lives of sex and drugs.

In an interview with Guardian Media, Teff said, “We heard about these women and girls reading advertisements for what seemed like jobs in bars that did not appear to be prostitution.

Their documents are taken away leaving them trapped in a foreign land.”

Teff said the heightened despair of these Venezuelan women left them at the mercy of heartless traffickers.

“They want to survive and send back money to their families, who they feel a responsibility to support. If they are not allowed a way of being legal in Trinidad and Tobago, then they are going to be at much greater risk of being exploited,” she said.

(Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

news

5

MONday, MAY 20, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

38 girls graduate from Parushi Club SRHR Mentorship Programme

Project Coordinator of The Parushi Club, Yvonne Barrow

“P

arushi is a fairly new addition to Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR). It is a social programme that has provided empowerment and awareness for [a] maximum of three years,” said Yvonne Barrow, Project Coordinator of the Parushi Club.

She was speaking at a graduation ceremony held on Sunday for teenage girls of the Buxton community. The ceremony was held at Grand Coastal Hotel, Le Ressouvenir, East Coast Demerara.

Barrow added that the personal inspirational stories shared during the Saturday afternoon sessions served to empower the young girls to face unfair social practices.

Assistant Chief Commissioner of the Guyana Girls Guide Association, Schmel Patrick said that in the Guyanese society, matters pertaining to sexual reproduction are labelled “taboo”.

She implored parents present to support young girls in the Buxton community, saying “we need to give our girls the resources to make informed decisions”.

Additionally, she encouraged the girls to share the knowledge that they have acquired through the programme.

Thirteen-year-old Oshornde Joseph, a member of the Parushi Club, said that young women from her community came out every week to offer “words of encouragement to achieve” their dreams.

SRHR Adventures launched the Parushi Club

The 38 girls who graduated from the Parushi Club SRHR Mentorship Programme.

on Saturday, March 2, 2019, at Buxton Health Centre.

Parushi is an Akawaio word meaning girls.

The Parushi Club was a mentorship programme

which catered for adolescent girls living in Buxton and Annandale. Members met every Saturday afternoon to discuss matters, such as sexual reproductive health, bullying

and fundamental life skills.

The club’s activities were funded by a grant from FRIDA, The Young Feminist Fund. FRIDA is a feminist organisation that provides sup-

port to young leaders to “amplify their voices and bring attention to their work”. The core values are flexibility, resources, inclusivity, diversity and action.

Our poisoned food

Dear Editor, Over the years, repeatedly, I’ve penned my concerns regarding farmers lacing their produce, mainly fruits and vegetables, with chemicals and putting it on the market without giving the produce the due time for the chemicals to work out.

Under the previous and current Administrations, I’ve complained and ironically, those responsible fail to act or address this issue properly.

Today you go to the

market, make your purchase, store it either in or out of a refrigerator and chances are that most of it would be in a condition that you would end up discarding a good amount because it became inedible.

Our country is still in the stone age in terms of medical testing and I am quite certain that the drugs in the fruits/vegetables cause some sort of effects unto us and are not being monitored properly.

Government alone is not responsible for this

lapse, there are various agencies responsible for monitoring and carrying out random checks but are failing.

These people are getting paid to do a job and they are either not doing it or are taking bribes. Those found wanting should be dismissed and others should be given a chance.

That’s the only way we will have an effective system.

Editor, at this present time, it’s the season for mangoes and without a doubt, it’s the most wide-

ly selling fruit, green or ripe. There is a chemical popularly known as ripening/ripener, which is being used on vegetables and fruits to get them ripe before their ripening period.

When the mango is close to being ripe (most people say half ripe/full/ turn) they would put the chemical on the fruits or vegetables. Now there are vendors going around purchasing mangoes (buying out all the mangoes from the tree) and taking them home and soaking them in

chemicals to get them ripe.

Sometimes, or in most cases, these mangoes are extra green and they are being put in chemicals to get ripe.

Now you innocently make a purchase and if you don’t eat all of it the same day, it would turn black or have abnormal black spots inside, making it inedible.

This is a new development and many fruits, especially mangoes, banana, etc are being forced to ripen before their time.

As I said before, there

are people getting paid to do their jobs and they are not doing it. At any given day, you could go to Stabroek Market and you would see people buying and getting either underweight or expired items and the only time raids are being conducted is when someone in higher authority says something. We are not moving/heading anywhere and it’s sad.

Respectfully, Sahadeo Bates

6

monday, may 20, 2019

Page

“A

fter you finish your homework.”

You have probably heard your mom or dad say these words. It might seem like all the good stuff has to wait until your homework is done. There’s a good reason why adults make a big deal out of homework.

Homework helps you learn.

And getting a good education can help you build the kind of future life that you want. So homework is important, but how can you get it done?

First, you need a quiet place without clutter and confusion. Writing on top of potato chip crumbs while talking on the phone is not going to help you finish your history lesson. Turn off the TV and other distractions. You’ll be better able to concentrate, which usually means you’ll finish your work more quickly and it’s more likely to be correct.

Set aside enough time to finish your work without rushing. You can’t just squeeze your science assignment into the commercials during your favourite TV show. Really learning something takes time. But if you find that you’re struggling even after putting in the time, you’ll want to ask for help.

Why do some kids need homework help?

Aside from just not understanding the lesson or assignment, kids might need homework help for other reasons. Some kids are out sick for a long time and miss a lot of work. Others get so busy that they don’t spend enough time on homework.

Personal problems can cause trouble with your work, too. Some kids may be

Foundation

dealing with stuff outside of school that can make homework harder, like problems with friends or things going on at home.

Kids whose parents are going through a divorce or some other family problem often struggle with getting homework done on time.

Even students who never

able to show you how to do a tough Maths problem or help you think of a subject to write about for English class. But they also can be helpful by finding that perfect spot in the house for you to do your homework and keeping supplies, like pencils, on hand. Parents also can cut down on distrac-

care for kids. Often, homework help is part of the programme. There, you’ll be able to get some help from adults, as well as from other kids.

You can also use the Internet to visit online homework help sites. These sites can direct you to good sources for research and offer tips

you’re one of them, good for you! Why not use your talent to help a friend who’s struggling? You might offer to study together. Going over lessons together can actually help both of you.

Information is easy to remember when you’re teaching it to someone, according to one fifth grader, who says she helps her friend, Jenny, with multiplication tables.

“It helps me to learn them, too,” she says. “I practise while she’s practising.”

You might want to create a regular study group.

You could set goals together and reward yourselves for completing your work. For example, when you finish writing your book reports, go ride your bikes together.

Looking forward to something fun can help everyone get through the work.

Still having trouble?

Sometimes even after

had a problem with homework before can start having trouble because of problems they face at home. But whatever the reason for your homework struggles, there are many ways to get help.

Who can help?

Talk to someone (parents, teachers, school counsellor, or another trusted adult) if you’re having problems with schoolwork. Speak up as soon as you can, so you can get help right away before you fall behind.

Your parents are often a great place to start if you need help. They might be

tions, like noisy younger brothers and sisters!

Teachers also are important resources for you because they can give you advice specific to the assignment you’re having trouble with. They can help you set up a good system for writing down your assignments and remembering to put all the necessary books and papers in your backpack. Teachers can give you study tips and offer ideas about how to tackle homework. Helping kids learn is their job, so be sure to ask for advice!

Many schools, towns, and cities offer after-school

trying all these strategies, a kid still is having trouble with homework. It can be tough if this happens to you. But remember that everyone learns at a different pace. You might have to study for two hours instead of one, or you might have to practise multiplication tables 10 times instead of five to really remember them.

It’s important to put in as much time as you need to understand the lessons.

Ask your mom or dad to help you create a schedule that allows as much time as you need.

And keep talking about the problems you’re having — tell your parents, teachers, counsellors, and others.

That way, they’ll see that you are trying to get your homework done. And when

it is done, make sure you find time to do something fun! (kidshealth.org)

and guidance about many academic subjects. But be cautious about just copying information from an Internet website. This is a form of cheating, so talk with your teacher about how to use these sources properly.

Another option is a private tutor. This is a person who is paid to spend time going over schoolwork with you. If cost is a concern, this can be less expensive if a small group of kids share a tutoring session.

Do it together

Some kids will hardly ever need homework help. If

S

chool counsellors are people you can turn to when you need help. They are good listeners, and they want to help you get the most out of school. School counsellors help students handle all types of problems.

For example, they can help if a kid is: being bullied at school struggling in Maths and needs extra help new to the school and doesn’t have friends yet upset about a family problem, such as divorce or death of a loved one having trouble concentrating on homework having friendship troubles feeling nervous about what to expect next year at middle school If you’re going through any type of problem, a great person to share your thoughts and feelings with is your school counsellor.

How do I meet a school counsellor?

It’s a good idea to know the school counsellor, even if you don’t need any help right now.

Some school counsellors visit the classroom to teach lessons about feelings, study skills, friendship skills, standing up for yourself, or dealing with bullying.

Students can also meet privately with their school counsellor in the counsellor’s office. Some counsellors have special group meetings for kids who are all dealing with the same issue — such as divorce in their family, or a loved one who died.

If you want to talk privately with your counsellor, ask your teacher, your parent, or someone who works in the school office. (kidshealth.org)

news

7

monday, may 20, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Accountants warned of penalties if caught in money laundering

Attorney General Basil Williams

A

ttorney General (AG) and Legal Affairs Minister Basil Williams, SC, on Saturday highlighted penalties that accountants and auditors could face if they refuse to report or are found to be involved in money laundering and terrorism financing activities.

The AG delivered brief remarks at a session hosted to sensitise the professionals on their roles and responsibilities as Guyana moves swiftly towards Anti-Money Laundering/ Countering Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) compliance.

“The consequences that come with being involved in money laundering, whether willingly or not, are severe with penalties such as the

loss of licence to practise to significant fines as much as $40 million and even a prison sentence,” he warned.

According to a report from the Department of Public Information (DPI), he stressed the critical role of reporting, which lies within the accounting profession.

The Attorney General, who is also the Chairman for the National Coordinating Committee on AML/CFT, said that the accountancy sector was one set up without a supervisory body, with just a regulatory agency, which is the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Guyana (ICAG). The need for a supervisor, according to AG Williams, represents a gap in the AML/CFT–PF (Proliferated Financing) re-

gime locally.

This, he said, if not remedied or looked into, will pose a possible challenge to combating money laundering and terrorism financing.

“You are regarded as gatekeepers of financial systems as it can be used for purposes of facilitating or assisting illicit activities of criminals, including accounting and auditing malpractices … Additionally, money launderers utilise the expertise of accountants to facilitate money laundering through various mechanisms such as transferring funds across several countries, setting up shell companies, and structuring complicated transactions.”

Member of the ICAG committee, Aaron Fraser was also in attendance and delivered brief remarks on behalf of the institute.

He told the gathering of Guyana’s continued economic growth, and advised on how the profession could be safeguarded from money laundering and terrorism financing activities.

“This particular workshop is timely in that it allows us as accountants to share some of the experiences that we would have had in the past, our interpretation of some of these things. At the end of the

The gathering of accountants and auditors at Cara Lodge day, it will enable us to understand what is before us, read through the lines, and to really get to the bottom of what is going on.”

Accountants and auditors gathered at the Cara Lodge on Saturday, May 18, 2019, to learn more of how their profession can be compliant with the reporting obligations to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).

This workshop follows a similar one held on May 17 where Attorneys-at-Law were briefly engaged, and their role towards Guyana’s compliance with AML/CFT laws was highlighted.

8 News

monday, may 20, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

GTT celebrates World Telecommunication and Information Society Day

Two staff members of the telecommunications giant giving the students a tour of GTT’s switching area

L

ocal telecommunications company GTT on Friday celebrated World Telecommunication and Information Society Day by hosting 20 tech students from the Bishops’ High School (BHS).

Throughout the day, the students were engaged in several activities, which included a presentation by Customer Experience Vice President Orson Ferguson and a tour of the communication hub through which mobile, landline and Blaze services interface; Senior Engineer Floyd Rodney and Network Technician Carl De Souza fa-

cilitated this.

GTT Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Justin Nedd said that “it is important to inspire future generations and mould their technical skills to contribute to the development of Guyana; it is our expectation that hosting students like you would kindle your interest in the technology sector”.

The aspiring engineers lauded the company for the opportunity to engage in the walkthrough, citing how informative it was. Michelle Shivcharran was given special recognition by the company for being the only young lady

in the tech stream at the Bishops’ High School. The students were quizzed on what they would have learnt, and Omkar Persaud won for himself a cellular phone.

Accompanying the students were Ms Williams, a Maths teacher, and Sir Blyden, the Technical Drawing teacher. They noted how educational the walkthrough was and thanked GTT for allowing the students to have such an experience.

GTT, over the years, has contributed to bridging the standardisation gap through the deployment of many new and improved services.

The company earlier this year ventured into several new initiatives including a paperless billing system, which supports the green initiative, as well as the enhanced use of technology through the use of electronic payment systems like Mobile Money Guyana (MMG) and the MyGTT App. World Telecommunication and Information Society Day marks the founding of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) on May 17, 1865, when the first International Telegraph Convention was signed in Paris. This year, it is being celebrated under the theme, “Bridging the standardisation gap.”

Wounding charge against City Constable dismissed

G

e o r g e t o w n Magistrate Faith McGusty has dismissed a wounding charge against City Constable Mark Murray after the virtual complainant, Paul John, refused to offer evi-

dence against the defendant.

The VC told the court that the matter is very time consuming, and, as such, he does not want to proceed with same.

Murray had recently been charged for discharging

a loaded firearm at the victim with intent to maim, disfigure, disable, or cause him grievous bodily harm in an incident that had occurred on September 26, 2018 at Water Street, Georgetown.

Facts presented in court

had indicated that on the day of the incident, Murray had approached the VC and told him he could not park his vehicle in the area, but this had resulted in an argument and subsequent scuffle between the men, during which Murray had discharged his service weapon at the VC. The VC told the court that the constable had shoved him, and that had led to the scuffle; and while he was walking away, the constable had discharged his firearm and the bullet had hit him in his leg.

In his first court appearance, the defendant had refuted claims made by the VC, but was nevertheless placed on $75,000 bail. The magistrate dismissed the case last Friday.

Lindener fined $45,000 for traffic violations

L

indener John Joseph has been fined $45,000 by Linden Magistrate Wanda Fortune, before whom he appeared on Wednesday charged with several traffic violations.

Joseph was fined $25,000 for being an unlicensed driver, and $20,000 for driving an uninsured motor vehicle.

These charges were in addition to several others which were dropped by the magistrate.

Both fines carry default sentences of one month’s imprisonment.

A tale of…

E

…of two communities ver since sliding into office, the PNC-led government’s been working to relocate the squatters on a privatelyowned piece of land in the prime real estate location at Broad and Lombard Streets. They were first told they’d be given house lots at Mocha on the East Bank, but they refused that offer after the NDC balked. Finally, a month ago, the government announced they’d be moving 20 of the families into houses built in collaboration with FFTP at Prospect on the East Bank. The remainder will be relocated to Cummings Lodge into similar homes to be built there.

Contrast this to the report this weekend that workers - purportedly from the CH&PA - swooped down on six squatter houses at Anna Catherina and demolished them to the ground. Why the difference in treatment between the two communities - apart from the obvious fact that one is rural Guyanese (Anna Catherina) and the other is urbanGuyanese (Broad and Lombard Sts)?

Well, the very next month after the May 2015 elections, then Minister of Social Protection, Volda Lawrence, visited the Broad and Lombard St squatters and announced that: “their voices were heard at the recent elections, and it is time for the new government to intervene.” Yup!! This is the very same Volda Lawrence as Minister of Health and Chair of the PNC who said, “Only friends and PNC members can get wuk from the government”. With the recent developments on the Broad and Lombard St squatters, it’s clear that not only do PNC members get “wuk”, but also houses!!

Now if that’s all there was to it, one might mutter “well…political supporters must be stroked…” But look what happened to the squatters over on West Coast. They weren’t given three years to remain in their shacks while alternative arrangements were made. Instead, their houses were demolished on the spot and they were thrown into the streets with just their clothes on their backs - during the wettest period of the year. Why? The only variable is they were perceived as “PPP supporters” because of their ethnicity and singled out for “condign” treatment, as Burnham used to warn opposition members back in the day.

How different is this from what the same PNC government did to 7000 sugar workers when they unilaterally and arbitrarily shut down 4 sugar estates with no alternative employment opportunities arranged?

They’re demonstrating they intend to destroy the PPP by destroying the morale of their supporters - come hell or high water.

All Guyanese – including supporters of the PNC – must stand up for what’s moral and just.

The PNC showed during their first iteration, after destroying PPP supporters, they’ll turn on their “own” …moral blindness After Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson, was caught with his pants down with US$9000 deposited into his private account from China International Contractors (CIC), the government and its sycophants have their drawers all in a knot about how did the PPP get the info to release, rather than the deposit!! But that’s par for the course, for the PNC, ain’t it??

Then Patterson releases an INVITATION to an exhibition arranged by CIC and huffily insists he’d used funds from MARAD to cover the expense and when CIC paid for the trip into his account, he reimbursed MARAD! Well for one, how come if he was using MARAD’s bank account as his own, he didn’t tell CIC to send the money straight to their bank account?? But as a “Quantity Surveyor” – where the standard question to the client is, “How much do you want the property to be worth?” – Patterson’s been dodged by a dark cloud of shady deals.

Remember the “new” CJIA and sole-sourced DHB design?

…two cultures Forced on the backfoot to explain the contretemps over their AFC colleague Patterson paying more for less on what was supposed to be a NEW terminal at CJIA, one AFC executive explained, “corruption is now cultural”!!

So why blame poor Patterson!! Blame his culture!!

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

news

9

monday, may 20, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Corentyne banditry

Police kill 3 suspected bandits in shootout – AR-15 assault rifle among weapons confiscated

Ramnarine Jagmohan

Kelvin Shivgobin

hree men believed to be the executioners of the daring robberies on the Corentyne over the past weeks were on Sunday afternoon shot dead during an exchange of gunfire with members of the SWAT unit in the backdam at Johanna, Black Bush Polder, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne).

The three dead men have been identified was wanted murder suspect, 32-yearold Kelvin Shivgobin called “Kelly” of Belvedere, Corentyne, Berbice; acquitted murder accused Ramnarine Jagmohan of Belvedere Village and Sewchand Sewdat called “One Eye Pappy” also of Belvedere, Corentyne, Berbice.

Shibgobin is suspected to have been the ring leader. Based on reports received, the police operation commenced at about 12:00h on Sunday and lasted a few hours, thus resulting in the

death of the three armed and dangerous men.

After the shootout, the police retrieved several weapons including an AR-15 assault rifle. At the scene, Divisional Commander Paul Langevine confirmed the death of the three men as well as the confiscation of the high-powered rifle.

T

“We want to believe that these men are linked to the robbery of the Chinese supermarket and also to the shooting.” About a week ago, armed men stormed a Chinese supermarket at Albion and relieved the owner of an undisclosed sum of cash and a number of mobile phones from customers.

As Police responded to the report, they were greeted by gunfire. After the men successfully escaped, the police recovered 26 spent shells which are suspected to have been used by the AR-15 rifle.

A few days before that, a Corentyne money changer was shot to his leg during a robbery involving three bandits. Following two other robberies in the Black Bush Polder, a unit from the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) was deployed to the area.

Police ranks at the scene on Sunday

Residents of Black Bush Polder came out to get a glimpse of the dead bandits

“I am now hoping that persons will be able to sleep more comfortable and they will feel more at ease. We want people to know that the police are always working.

Sometimes they get the impression that the police are not working but we are al-

ways working. If the people cannot sleep comfortable, we cannot sleep comfortable,” Langevine told reporters on Sunday evening.

Residents of Black Bush Polder on Sunday afternoon highly praised the police as the vehicle bearing the bodies of the men rolled out from the backdam.

However, the bodies of the three men were retrieved from the backlands and taken to the Port Mourant Hospital where they were pronounced dead on arrival.

Nevertheless, Shivgobin was implicated in the murder of Harricharran and Premcharran Samaroo; two brothers who were killed during the course of a robbery at their mother’s home on Old Year’s Night at Bush Lot, Corentyne.

Jagmohan, on the other hand, was charged for the murder of Hampshire busi-

nessman, Devendra Deodat also called “Dave”, who was shot to his chest, chopped to his neck and hands and lost a finger during a home invasion.

Jagmohan and his brother, Neshan Jagmohan, were charged for the murder.

However, Neshan was killed during a prison brawl at the New Amsterdam penitentiary.

There are reports that three men were seen sitting on a log in the backdam at Johanna shortly after midnight on Sunday. According to a source close to the police, the operation was an intelligence-led one and for several days, they have been tracking the movement of the wanted men.

Upon arriving in Berbice, the SWAT Team was stationed at Adventure – one of the entrances to Black Bush Polder.

10 news

monday, may 20, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Body of female taxi driver Black Bush cleaner beaten, found in ditch, car missing robbed by armed men

Indira Bipat

S

hock waves rippled through the community of La Parfaite Harmonie, West Bank Demerara (WBD), on Sunday morning when residents discovered the body of a woman in a ditch.

The dead woman was later identified as 47-year-old Indira Bipat of Lot 18 Samaroo Dam, Pouderoyen, WBD. She was said to have been a part-time taxi driver and would have left home on Saturday after receiving a telephone call.

Derick Bipat, the now dead woman’s son, when contacted explained that he last saw his mother on Saturday around 17:30h when she left home in the family motorcar, a SilverGrey Toyota Axio bearing reg-

istration number PXX 4114.

“She got a call on her phone and said she was going and coming back just now. That is the car that she uses part-time as a taxi but when they found her body, the car was not there. We don’t know where the car is,” he explained.

According to the distraught son, it was after several calls to his mother’s mobile went unanswered between Saturday night and early Sunday morning that he visited the Vreeden-Hoop Police Station, West Coast Demerara (WCD), to file a missing persons’ report.

“While at the station, a friend of my sister called to say there was news that a body was found in Parfaite,

but she did not know if it was our mother. However, we confirmed shortly after that it was my mother. We don’t know what happened or how it happened. Also, the car is yet to be found.”

The now dead woman is survived by her son and her 18-year-old daughter. Her husband passed away in 2013.

The children are hoping that the person(s) responsible for their mother’s demise are caught since it appears as if she was murdered and the car hijacked.

Meanwhile, Commander of D Division (West Bank Demerara-East Bank Essequibo), Edmond Cooper told this publication that investigations into the circumstances surrounding the woman’s death are ongoing.

“We understand she is a taxi driver, so the investigation has now started with this information,” he explained.

According to the Police Commander, it is too early to assume that foul play was involved in the woman’s death, but detectives are looking at all possible angles.

“We have not seen any marks of violence or anything, so, as I said, we are still investigating. We got the report early this (Sunday) morning that a body has been found, a body was lying at the back of Parfaite, and the police responded. They found the lady’s body,” he stated. (Kristen Macklingam)

The window that the men used to gain entry to the house

A shaken Indrawattie Dhanraj

A

cleaner attached to the Black Bush Polder Water Users Association was on Saturday evening beaten and robbed by three armed men in the presence of her 11-year-old son, who is now left traumatised.

Based on reports received, about 23:30h, three men – one of whom was armed with a hand gun and another, a crowbar, made their way into the Lot 157 Mibicuri South Black Bush Polder home of Indrawattie Dhanraj, and demanded cash and jewellery.

According to the 44-yearold mother of one, the men gained entry into the house by removing the louver panes from a front window.

“After I hear someone walking on the zinc outside and I go to the window, I see a person peeping at me from

outside and when I holla out for ‘thief’ they say ‘don’t holler’ … when they come inside then tell me ‘What you hollering for, you and nobody around here don’t talk’ and then ask me for the money and jewellery,” she noted.

She reportedly told the men that she did not have money and instead handed over a pair of gold earrings, two gold bangles, four rings and a gold chain.

The men also collected a cutlass and the woman’s mobile phone as they were leaving. According to Dhanraj, the entire ordeal lasted close to two hours.

“They hit me on my neck with a crowbar, one on my hand, one on my foot and about four lashes on my back,” the woman related.

One of the bandits stood guard downstairs while the other two ransacked the house and found about $60,000, which was to be used to purchase seed paddy and to pay workers to sow the paddy.

Before the bandits left the house, they reportedly took her into the yard and it was then she saw the third accomplice, who was unmasked. However, he stayed some distance from her.

“They take me and carry me to the kitchen and tell me to open it and I put on the light, but they tell me to turn it off and they get a torch light that they using. I tell them they could take whatever grocery they wanted, but they say they did not want grocery,” Dhanraj said.

As they left the house, they threatened that if she raised an alarm, they would take her to the backdam and kill her. The woman said she begged for her life.

After the men made good their escape, Dhanraj and her son left the home and headed to the Police Station, but just then she saw the Police patrol. A report was made and the Police launched an investigation.

Bagotstown murder

1 confesses to killing biker ...tells Police he wanted teen’s gun

A

s investigations into the murder of 23-year-old Patrick Matthew Fraser also called “White Boy”, who was shot and killed at Norton Street, Bagotstown, East Bank Demerara (EBD), continues, the police have arrested one man who has since confessed to the heinous crime.

This was confirmed by a senior police officer who told Guyana Times that detectives are on the hunt for a second person who was implicated in the murder. Both the man in custody and the one on the run are known to the now dead young man.

However, they were not a part of the group of men that Fraser was hanging out with on the night that he was killed.

“The murder of the young man has been solved due to good investigative work by the police working on that case. The man in custody has already confessed and ranks are searching for the second suspect presently but it is good to note that they were not hanging out with Fraser when he was shot. In fact, they turned up at the location in search of Fraser because they knew that was his usual liming spot and they were looking for him

Patrick Matthew Fraser

that night,” the source stated.

The police source further explained that Fraser and the men were not “at odds” but that the duo wanted a firearm that the now dead man would usually have in his possession.

“They knew him well enough apparently to know that he [Fraser] had a gun that he is alleged to carry around on his person frequently. The thing is, from what we [police] know is that they wanted his gun, that is what they went there for, to get his gun. And it should be noted that this gun is an unlicensed firearm which meant it was illegally in his possession if he in-

deed carried one around.”

Following the confession, the file will be sent to the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) today for further advice.

It is expected that the file will be returned to the police soon and the man will be hauled before the courts for the crime.

On May 9, 2019, Fraser was shot twice to his body in the yard of a burnt house and was picked up by one of his friends and rushed to the Diamond Diagnostic Centre, where he succumbed while receiving medical attention.

From earlier reports, the young man had frequented the area and had been seen hanging out at the location on numerous occasions. On the night of Fraser’s shooting, persons confirmed that they heard the sound of the gunshots and as they rushed to the scene, they saw the young man lying on the ground with blood oozing from his stomach.

Initially, the police had stated that although the young man was shot twice, they only retrieved one .32 spent shell and one warhead. In addition, a pair of slippers and a bloodstained Polo hat were found at the scene.

news

11

monday, may 20, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

US$150M CJIA expansion

Passengers forced to use tarmac despite million-dollar air bridge – days after flooding inside airport

D

espite the millions of dollars in improvements being made at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), passengers on social media vented their frustration as they were forced to use the tarmac after one of the airport’s air bridges reportedly malfunctioned.

In a social media post, one such passenger complained about the fact that despite being forced to pay CJIA’s increased fees of $7500, he had no choice but to disembark and walk on the tarmac while the boarding bridges were inoperable.

Last month, CJIA had announced that as of April 1, arriving and departing passengers would have to pay an additional US$35… all to support the ongoing CJIA expansion project.

According to Caribbean Airlines, one of the major airline carriers at the air-

A still image from a video of the flooding in the CJIA

port, they were informed that both the airport security fee and the airport passenger service charge would be increased.

“The total cost of the new fees to all travellers for a return trip is US$35 or $7315.

For departing passengers, US$17 and US$15 for arriving passengers, payable in Guyana dollars at the prevailing foreign exchange rate.”

Caribbean Airlines had also revealed that CJIA

had advised all airlines that these increases were to support improvements at the airport, with the new fees being collected at the checkin counters and arrival hall for departing and arriving customers respectively from April 15.

It was only a few days ago that outside and inside the CJIA was flooded.

Around that time, there had been heavy rainfall. Efforts to contact airport officials for a comment were futile.

The project got underway in 2012, under the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration when Guyana secured a US$138 million loan from the China Exim (ExportImport) Bank to fund the expansion and modernisation project, for which the Guyana Government was to contribute some US$12 million.

The A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC), when in Opposition, had cut the funds the then Government – People’s Progressive Party (PPP) – had allocated for the CJIA expansion.

When the coalition Government came in to power in 2015, the project was put on hold, but after some discussions, it was later announced that the project would be continued but several aspects were cut from the original design.

After the 32-month projected completion date had passed, officials had been

A photo taken by one of the passengers forced to disembark

optimistic of the project being completed by 2017.

However, the extension of works into 2019 comes in disparity to an earlier commitment by Government where it committed that the works associated with the expansion would have been completed by the last quarter of 2018.

Upon completion, the airport is expected to have four air passenger boarding bridges for arrivals and departures; a 450-seat departure area, escalators and elevators in addition to an extended runway catering for larger categories of aircraft.

Armed bandits beat, rob Diamond residents during birthday celebration

T

he birthday celebration of a Diamond Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara resident turned into a nightmare when armed bandits stormed into her house on Saturday evening. At least one of the bandits was toting a gun.

Reports are that around 22:00h at 21st Street, Diamond, four men attacked the family and demanded cash and jewellery.

During the ordeal, two of the victims were physically assaulted. However, neighbours were not aware of the commotion owing to the loud music at the birthday celebration.

Guyana Times understands that the robbery was executed within minutes and the four bandits made good their escape into the dark of the night heading towards Kaneville Village, EBD. According to a Police source, the victims were traumatised and the two who were not injured were busy trying to help the others after the men escaped. They did not notice if the men left on

foot or bicycle.

However, the source explained that coupled with the darkness of the night and lack of street lights in the area, it would have been difficult to pursue the armed men.

He stated that when Police Officers were finally summoned to respond, the ranks did so “quite quickly”, but by then it was too late.

The men had already made good their escape with their loot.

“You see, that area is like a canefield area, similar to a backdam. It leads into Kaneville, which is a known spot for petty thieves and other criminals to hide out sometimes. Without knowing where they went, what they looked like, or who we are looking for, then it would have been difficult to make arrests in 24 hours,” the Police source added.

Meanwhile, the injured family members were treated at the Diamond Diagnostic Centre and sent home.

Investigations into the matter are presently ongo-

The Diamond, EBD house that the gunmen stormed on Saturday evening

ing.

Meanwhile, between Thursday and Friday, in the county of Berbice, gun-toting bandits struck, attacking two families at Black Bush Polder and carting off cash and jewellery. Upon making a report, family members were told that the Police had no vehicle to respond immediately.

Reports are the gunmen, all masked, initially tried to break into the home of a farmer at Johanna North around 01:20h. They shot at him after their attempt failed.

Harmond Roopnarine, a

40-year-old farmer; his wife and two children, aged 17 and 16, were at home.

The farmer said he heard someone trying to break into his home and stood up, waiting with a cutlass in his hand as they repeatedly hit the window.

As one bandit was making his way in from the broken window, the family began

to scream while Roopnarine stood next to the window armed with the cutlass. The bandits ordered him to put down the cutlass, but he did not comply. This led to them firing shots at the farmer and demanding, while still outside, that he hand over his gold and money.

Roopnarine said another shot was fired in the direction of his wife and children, who were in the bedroom.

The two bandits, the farmer said, were outside of his home for about 10 minutes during which time several calls were made to the Mibicuri Police Station, but the family was told that the Police were incapable of responding since they had no vehicle.

Meanwhile, at Johanna South, Lennox Ramcharran, 51, a rice farmer, was beaten after gunmen went into

his home about 20:30h on Thursday.

Ramcharran said he left his two teenage children inside after he heard dogs barking and went outside to investigate only to be confronted by bandits.

All three of the bandits had guns, the man recalled.

He said that the bandits ransacked the house after his wife gave them money and jewellery. She and her two children were also beaten.

The men left with $300,000 and jewellery worth an undisclosed amount. To ensure their escape was without incident, the men grabbed the farmer’s 16-yearold daughter, but released her after they realised that they were not being followed.

Ramcharran said shortly after the robbery, two Police Officers arrived on motorbikes.

12 news

monday, may 20, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Mother of 6 dies days after eye removed

S

unita Vandyke, the mother of six who recently lost her eye weeks after giving birth at the Suddie Hospital in Region 2, has died.

She died on Friday at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC), two days after being referred there from the Leonora Hospital in Region 3 because of the severity of her condition.

Vandyke’s family members are alleging that the GPHC had done nothing to save her. Her mother-in-law, Phyllis Carter, told Guyana Times on Sunday that after Vandyke had been admitted to the GPHC on Wednesday, she had received no treatment at the hospital.

“She was left to die there.

They never looked in her direction. Other patients in the ward told us that the doctors never even checked on her.

They plugged needles in her head, strapped her down to the bed, and left her to die.

She was treated like an animal, and no one is telling us anything; no explanation, no cause of death or anything,” Carter said.

Carter is calling on the authorities to investigate this matter, which had caused her young, healthy daughter-in-law to deteriorate in health until her demise over the course of a few weeks.

“This is a clear picture of how the public health systems work. They had no care, no interest in her condition.

They feel that because it’s free, people begging them for a service. They are being paid to do their job!” the distraught woman declared.

Vandyke had been admitted at the Suddie Hospital on the Essequibo Coast in Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam) for several weeks, after doctors at the Georgetown Public Hospital had removed one of her eyes without any proper explana-

Dead: Sunita Vandyke

tion, although she had never had any medical complication with her eye.

Relatives reaching out to Guyana Times on Tuesday last, in calling for a full investigation into the incident, are alleging that Vandyke had been admitted at the Suddie Hospital to give birth, but everything had gone ‘downhill’ after her delivery.

Carter told this publication that Vandyke had delivered a healthy baby at the

Suddie Hospital some seven weeks ago; but after the birth of the baby, Vandyke had gone home to her Parika residence and had started to complain of feeling unwell.

She had been taken to the Parika Health Centre, where the nurses had administered saline. After receiving the saline, she had started complaining of blurred vision.

“As soon as she get the saline, and we go home, she started complaining (of having problems) with the eye,” Carter said.

She explained that after her daughter-in-law had continued to complain about having blurred vision, she had taken her to the Leonora Cottage Hospital, from where doctors had transferred her to the West Demerara Regional Hospital.

However, she had taken Vandyke to the GPHC after the eye problem had worsened and Vandyke’s condition had deteriorated. “We

meet GPHC Emergency (Department) with the eye draining inflammation and the nose bleeding, and they said, ‘That’s not an emergency’. And we waited several hours, and were sent away without seeing a doctor.

“I even went to the boss upstairs to complain that we were not getting to see a doctor, and still we could [not] get help; we were sent away,” Carter said.

The frustrated Carter related that she had then visited the Public Health Ministry to lodge a complaint, and had been directed to the St. Joseph Mercy Hospital, and then to the Eye Clinic at GPHC. When they arrived at the clinic, the doctors had quickly admitted Vandyke for surgery to remove the eye.

“Just so, they say they gotta take out the eye.

GPHC and West Dem (hospitals) sabotage my daughter-in-law! They did noth-

ing to help! They never even checked the eye, and we need answers! This girl never had any eye problem!” Carter contends.

Vandyke’s condition had gotten worse, to the point where she had been unable to walk, and had stopped speaking. Since the incident, she had been in and out of hospital, and had been unable to care for her newborn.

She had again been taken to the Leonora Cottage Hospital on Monday last, but due to the severity of her condition, had been referred to the GPHC. She died at the GPHC on Friday last.

Carter is calling for a full investigation of this matter.

She contends that Vandyke’s medical record would show that she had never suffered from any medical or eye condition.

Attempts to contact officials from GPHC for a comment proved futile.

Union urges swift commencement of special audit into UG

P

The University of Guyana

residents of the University of Guyana Workers Union (UGWU) and the University of Guyana Senior Staff

Association (UGSSA) are calling for the swift commencement of the special audit into the spending of the educational institution.

In a press conference on Friday, the UGSSA Head, Dr Jewel Thomas, after outlining the state of affairs at the University which

reportedly sees the ViceChancellor, Professor Ivelaw Griffith and Pro-Chancellor, Joe Singh who heads the institution’s council practically running same to fit their own desires, made the call.

The University is presently low on funds and is unsure as to how it will keep in operation until the end of 2019.

Coupled with this, it was revealed at the press engagement that the ViceChancellor, who is the highest paid the University has ever seen, is demanding payment in lieu of leave, even as that is contrary to the policy at the University.

“That is why we are pushing for this special audit, there are many questions that needs to be answered,” Thomas said.

The audit, which was called for by the Education Ministry after several complaints from UG Unions, is expected to commence in the coming week.

Auditor General, Deodat Sharma made the announce-

UGWU President Bruce Haynes and UGSSA President, Dr Jewel Thomas

ment a couple of weeks ago. He had noted that the Permanent Secretary of the Education Ministry had officially written to him, requesting this special audit, but before his office could begin its work, the necessary meeting had to take place.

“Meetings were held with the Education Ministry officials, of course, they had to be held first so that we could be briefed. Then there were meetings with the Unions from UG but I am not at lib-

erty to discuss what transpired in those meetings.

However, what I can say is that I am hoping to go into UG to start the special audit within two weeks from now” Sharma had informed on April 20.

However, ViceChancellor Griffith, who is bearing the brunt of the allegations into illegalities at the institution, welcomes the audit.

In a press release, Professor Griffith stated “The administration welcomes the opportunity to clear the air on the allegations and assertions by the Unions and other individuals…We have long indicated such, both directly to the UG Unions and in my two recent memoranda to the University Community”.

On Friday last, UG Unions called on Professor Griffith to embark on his end of contract leave which would see the end of his post as Chancellor of the institution and further called on Pro-Chancellor Singh to resign.

According to Thomas and UGWU’s President, Bruce Haynes, Singh has guided the Council in a direction that is not in the interests of Guyana’s sole national University.

News

13

monday, may 20, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Invasion of Waiakabra gold miner’s home

Confrontation held between resident, Police ... PCA launches probe

T

he Police Complaints Authority (PCA) has launched an investigation into the alleged invasion by ranks of the Guyana Police Force into the home of a Waiakabra LindenSoesdyke Highway resident last weekend.

Commander of A Division (Georgetown-East

Bank Demerara) Marlon Chapman told Guyana Times that the aggrieved resident had visited his office to file an official complaint into the matter.

He said he subsequently directed the man to the Police Complaints Authority where the ranks were summoned to appear for a con-

frontation. An investigation is ongoing.

The resident (name withheld) explained that the policeman (name withheld) during the confrontation was made to apologise for his unprofessional actions.

He said he was advised that the PCA will contact him upon completion of the in-

Supenaam) in collaboration with the Municipality of Anna Regina had taken the decision to launch a new campaign targeting the numerous strays that line the roadways posing imminent dangers to motorists and other road users back in March.

In 2017, due to inclement weather conditions, Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan had urged motorists to exercise caution on the roadways as the Stray Catching Unit of the Ministry was asked to relax its efforts in light of the weather conditions affecting cattle farmers.

This call by the Minister came in light of an incident in Corentyne, Berbice, which left six persons injured after the taxi in which they were travelling swerved to avoid hitting a donkey and ended up toppling several times before coming to a halt.

More recently, Ravindra

Nazamoodin, of Number 56 Village, Corentyne, Berbice, Region Six (East BerbiceCorentyne), was killed in November of last year when the motorbike he was riding collided with a cow on the Corentyne Highway at Number 55 Village.

The animal was also killed in the accident.

The Stray Catching Unit was launched under the People’s Progressive Party in 2011 under the Home Affairs Ministry. The 2011 budget had made provisions for the rehabilitation and construction of new pounds that would cater for holding the animals caught.

In April 2010, the Pounds Amendment Bill was passed in the National Assembly.

Part of it states that a fee of $5000 will be paid to a stray catcher or any other person for every animal they take to the pound. These animals include horses, ponies, cows, sheep, and goats.

Lack of resources cripples Stray Catching Unit

A

s the rainy season steps in, farmlands tend to become flooded resulting in animals wandering on the roadways which pose a hazard to drivers, especially in the evenings. With such an occurrence, the Stray Catching Unit of the Public Security Ministry should be activated but due to the lack of vehicles, the Unit cannot effectively carry out its functions.

This is according to a senior source attached to the Ministry who reminded Guyana Times that a few months ago, the Unit was down due to some issue which was not detailed; however, it is back up and running to a point.

When questioned specifically about the availability of vehicles, Guyana Times was told, “It’s a work in progress you know. It’s a work in progress because of the length and breadth of Guyana that we have to cover where it concerns protecting the environment, protecting citizens from animals on the road and all of that and crops on the road [so] the Department is currently working to bring it up to par to where we want it to be”.

With stray animals wandering the streets more frequently to the point of it being a norm, motorists have been fuming as they would usually have to sit in their vehicles to allow an animal, or in some cases, animals to cross the road. They believe that this phenomenon poses a threat to their lives and vehicles too, especially at this time of the year when vision is interrupted by heavy rainfall.

With this in mind, the regional administration of Region Two (Pomeroon-

vestigation.

Furious residents contacted Guyana Times on Saturday last when ranks attached to the Timehri Police Station allegedly invaded the home of a miner, claiming that they were searching for stolen items.

The actions of the police have left residents to believe that they were planning to rob the man, who returned from the interior one day prior to the raid.

Reports were that two of the ranks were dressed in uniform, while a female was dressed in casual attire. They all claimed to be ranks of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID).

Based on reports received, at about 2:15h on Saturday, residents of the village were engaged in a night of worship at the church when they saw a motorcar bearing registration number PVV 2207 passing, heading towards the man’s home.

A resident, Devika (only name given), stated that as the car passed, one of the occupants told the others, “people in the church”, but the vehicle continued driving towards the house.

The woman explained that the villagers became suspicious after they heard a loud sound, and upon

checking, they saw one of the ranks kicking open the door to the miner’s house.

She said the owner of the home came out and inquired as to the purpose of the visit. By this time, the congregation had left the church and were headed over to the man’s house, since they feared that their fellow villager was about to be robbed by bandits posing as Police ranks.

The woman said the ranks all appeared to be under the influence of alcohol, and more so, one of the men was reportedly smoking.

“They were shocked because the area is usually very desolate and has very little electricity, and no one would be up at that hour but because we had an allnight prayer service, we were there, and it was obvious they weren’t expecting that,” she added.

A sister of the home owner, Oslyn Wilson, related that the police told her brother that they were there to search the premises for stolen articles in relation to a robbery involving his son.

However, the young man who is being accused works as an operator at a gold mining company in the interior and was at his place of employment at the time, hence he could not have been involved in a robbery, as was

reported by the police.

The police, she said, were quite adamant that they had to search the bottom flat of the premises.

“We asked for them to produce a search warrant, which they did not have but because my brother was fearful, he allowed them in,” she said.

The woman added that as her brother opened the door, the police entered the home as did the other occupants of the car. Upon seeing this, the church members followed.

“They went in and opened the wardrobe and cupboards, and immediately walked out back. It was as if they were not even searching for anything,” Wilson stated.

Upon questioning the ranks about the stolen items they were searching for, they could not provide a response.

It is based on their actions that the residents are of the opinion that had the church not been in session, the occupants of the car would have executed a robbery.

When Guyana Times contacted the Timehri Police Station, a corporal related that he was not aware of an operation, and advised that the residents make a report to the station.

14 news

monday, may 20, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

I express my thoughts through art – budding artist

Alex Blair

T

hroughout history, art has been a unique medium for expressing oneself. An individual may choose to translate his or her inner thoughts by means of a magnificent painting, sculpture, or some other amazing work of art.

In this modern age, it would seem that less emphasis is being placed on self-expressing art, primarily amongst young people.

There are a few, however, who, despite the many challenges, have defied the odds and charged on with their brush or rasp in hand.

Alex Anthony Blair is no exception. This youngster, who is just 18-years-old, hails from the quiet community of Vergenoegen on the East Bank of Essequibo.

Alex, who is better known to many as “Flexx,” has grown quite popular over the years

for his marvellous paintings, and just recently works in tie-dye.

To most who may know this intriguing young man, he may appear to be somewhat shy. Nevertheless, his paintings are quite reflective of the person he is on the inside; giving us a glimpse of his beliefs. In one of his paintings entitled, “the dream world,” a single tree that appears in contrasting environments is illustrated. In the first environment, the tree appears

to be withered under darkness and negative energy.

In contrast, the second environment illustrates the tree flourishing under light and positive energy.

During an interview with Guyana Times, Alex described a piece by saying, “It’s an abstract painting done from my imagination of the two main aspects of life/art ‘darkness and light.’

It was my idea of, I guess

you could say, heaven and hell. Showing that there is a thin line between righteousness and unrighteousness and the two can easily mix.

If you look closely at the painting, you will see that the root from in the dark is crossing over to the light”.

As Alex reflected on his early days in art, he explained that he developed a liking for drawings and paintings from a tender age.

“I was a child who always

had pencils and crayons in my hands. I can remember trying to draw everything I see around me. I always drew for the fun of it.”

Like any caring parent, Alex said that his mother and father always complimented his drawings, even though at times they never looked like the object he intended to draw. Their encouraging words, he said, motivated him to develop a compelling love for art.

For a majority of us, as we grow older, our love for painting and drawing may dwindle. Alex, on the other hand, explained that as he grew older, his love for art deepened. “I then went on to further my secondary education at Leonora Secondary School. There, I realised artistry was more than just drawings. I then decided to challenge myself and did my

first painting. I was only 15 when I painted an oasis. The responses I’ve got from both my teachers and classmates were overwhelming. I was even surprised at my work.

The feeling was surreal,” he explained.

Alex said that during his journey through high

and recently mastered tie-dying, which he always saw as a challenge. “Well, I wasn’t actually into tie-dye that long. I always saw it as a challenge that I needed to surpass.”

Today, Alex looks forward to doing much more with his talent in the art

school, he was privileged to have met two amazing friends, Shanice Wilson and Seon Babb; two intelligent minds like himself, who both shared the love for art.

In 2018, Alex graduated as the best visual art student and was even named the best performer for visual arts in his region. “I was overjoyed, but yet I remained humble for my hard work had finally paid off.”

The eighteen-year-old continues to excel in his art,

form, now that he is a part of a support team; the Queens of Queens (QOQ) and Kings of Kings (KOK) family.

“My successful journey this far could not have been possible without my support team.” He said. While some may turn to other means of self-expression, Alex noted that he will continue to express himself through even more creative art pieces in the future. (Kizzy Coleman)

Linden professionals benefit from TB/HIV peer education training

P

rofessionals from across the Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) community last week benefitted from a TB/HIV (Tuberculosis/Human Immunodeficiency Virus) Peer Education training organised through the Public Health Ministry under the

National Tuberculosis programme initiative.

The activity, which was conducted at the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC), targeted professionals such as Head Teachers, religious leaders, law enforcement officers and media personnel, among others.

According to officials at-

tached to the initiative, it aims at enhancing public education on TB and HIV through participation in outreach activities and dissemination of information to various sections of society.

The programme forms part of the Public Health Ministry’s 2019 budgeted training plan.

Some of the participants at the workshop

Administrative Manager attached to the TB/ HIV Department of the Ministry’s Disease Control National TB programme, Rhonda Cripaul said it mainly sought to sensitise participants so that they can go back into society and spread the message about what was learnt.

“The purpose of the Peer Education training is to sensitise the community about tuberculosis – what it is, what are the classic signs and symptoms, the mode of transmission, the medication. We also do drug-resistant TB, we touched on adherence because adherence is a very big component of taking the treatment. We’re also touching on infection control too which is really important – it helps persons to know, ‘well look this is how I can protect myself and my family’. So, you can con-

tain the spread of the disease,” she highlighted.

Cripaul, who was one of the facilitators, in her presentation, narrowed in on peer education and communication which she explained was aimed at empowering participants on important aspects such as verbal communication skills and how they can educate people in the community about the disease. It also entailed a case study as well as focus on stigma and discrimination.

“It’s really just getting the message out there, educating persons so they’re able to take the message further – back to their homes, workplaces and back to their community,” Cripaul said.

She further alluded to the outstanding work put out by the Linden Chest Clinic which manages TB and HIV cases in the region.

“Linden has been doing very good work in terms of their cure rate. You have a very dedicated team located at the Wismar Hospital Chest Clinic headed by Dr Roscoe McDonald. They work closely with the community in containing the spread of TB and with the patients in ensuring that they see them through to the end of the treatment. They have the highest cure rate for last year which is excellent,” Cripaul said.

TB/HIV focal person and department head, Dr Rhonda Williams was also part of the initiative.

The National Tuberculosis programme is headed by Dr Jeetendra Mohanlall, who serves as Programme Manager. The initiative was hosted in Region 5 last year and in Region 4 in 2017.

15

monday, may 20, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

VOX POPULI

What the people say

I SAY...

What more can be done to help domestic violence victims in Guyana?

Danielaa Araujo “Personally, I think that parents should teach their daughters from a tender age the value of self-love and selfworth. Once a woman is aware of how priceless she is, no man can take advantage of her much less hit her. Train our younger men to have more respect for our women, as they grow, also let this concept grow with them. I think they should start a campaign to bring awareness and educate people about the early signs of domestic violence.

Let us come together and uplift the victims to be strong individuals, to have the courage to walk away, let our victims know that ‘I was drunk or it was a mistake’ is not an excuse!”

Xia Singh “People should actually start listening and believing when someone is speaking.

Most times the people you try speaking out to, all they do is criticise. They should also set up some places they can go for a while until they figure out what to do next.”

Ivor Rajnarine “I think educating both men and women at an early age would significantly help in the decrease in domestic violence. Also, it’s all comes back to the household, being brought up in a family of good morals and values.”

Alva Waithe “We need to have more confidential safe houses along with trusted personnel like the police, social workers etcetera to help the victims. And our laws need to be adjusted to the point of punishing the perpetrators for a long time and not giving them one week in jail etcetera. Also, if crimes are reported about domestic violence and they are not taken seriously by the relevant authorities, they too should be held accountable.”

Neel Rampersaud “Bring the death penalty.”

Matana Sage “Personally, I think the various Ministries need to do more “groundwork” to find out what is actually happening to our women and men. For instance, last month was sexual assault awareness month but what was actually done to bring awareness to these victims?.....to my knowledge not much was done...They (various Ministries) should create a safety plan for these victims to help them get out of these relationships if they actually want to and more sensitisation training should be done in the different regions of Guyana.”

Shannan Ganga “I think they need to enforce counselling centres and they need better management and professional people there to help.”

Michael James “The thing about domestic violence is it’s like a deadly disease with origin, symptoms, causes and effects on the human life. With that being said, the following must be done: 1.

Intensive study and research using blueprints from other countries which have dealt with this issue successfully.

2. A task force being set up consisting of professional psychologists, counsellors, domestic violence police and prevention staff who will be placed primarily in the most effective areas with the sole purpose of checking reports and conducting follow-ups.

3. Government and Non-Governmental Organisations funding this agency effectively.

4. 24-hour hotline services for victims or witnesses to call or text. I believe we in Guyana have the ability to do the same.”

Arif Fareed “The police should take reports of domestic abuse more seriously and they should implement harsher consequences for the ones that abuse their wife/husband.”

Nisana Gobin “The police needs to take emergency calls seriously.

Many times they tend to treat it as something unimportant or to be a bluff but at that point in time, someone who was being abused was desperate for help and could’ve even lost their life. So the police need to step up their game when it comes to this issue.”

Samantha Deodat “This, what I’m saying here, is the actual reality of what should happen in our country.

Avoid bashing the abuser and never blame the victim.

We should not underestimate the potential danger for the victim and yourself. Don’t promise any help that you can’t follow through with.

Avoid completely, anything that might provoke the abuser and never should we pressure the victim.”

Shawnette Fiedtkou “Financial support and safe housing. Most women stay in abusive relationships because the abuser is the provider and controls the finance, making it difficult for the victim to leave. Women need to know that there can be life without the abuser. Safe housing for women and their children, who are more than often caught in the middle and used as a bargaining chip in these relationships.”

16

guyanatimesgy.com

monday, may 20, 2019

Regional

Venezuelan soldiers oversee fuel rationing in some towns amid shortages

A man walks past fuel containers while vehicles queue to refuel with gasoline in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, May 17, 2019

S

oldiers oversaw rationing of gasoline at service stations in several parts of Venezuela on Sunday as worsening fuel shortages forced angry drivers to wait for hours to fill their tanks, prompting protests in some areas.

Venezuela, whose economy is reeling from a fiveyear recession amid a prolonged political crisis, saw long lines of vehicles appear at service stations in several regions this week

after a shutdown at the nation’s second-largest refinery.

Shortages have been exacerbated by tough US sanctions on Venezuelan State oil firm Petroleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA) in January, which have slashed crude oil exports and imports of refined fuels.

Washington recognised Opposition head Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s rightful leader after he in-

voked the Constitution in January to declare himself interim President, saying President Nicolás Maduro rigged last year’s election.

Maduro calls Guaidó a US puppet and says Washington wants to control Venezuela’s oil reserves, the largest in the world. Dozens of people have been killed in political protests this year.

In the western city of San Cristóbal, close to the Colombian border, National Guard soldiers in anti-riot gear limited gasoline sales to 40 litres (10.6 gallons) per vehicle, witnesses said – roughly equivalent to a full tank on a compact vehicle.

Angry residents blocked streets with metal barriers, rubbish and branches in some parts of the city.

At some gasoline stations, people said they had been waiting days for fuel.

“How can a country function like this?” asked

Antonio Tamariz, 58, who said he had waited for days for fuel to drive his truck back to his farm. “No one has explained why there are so many lines for gasoline.

I think the Government is

losing control of this.”

Venezuela’s Information Ministry – which handles media enquiries for the Government – did not respond to requests for comment.

Oil Minister Manuel Quevedo said on Sunday his country’s oil industry was under siege from the US Government, causing supply problems. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Former Jamaica MP claims disrespect

F

ormer Member of Parliament (MP) for St Ann North Western, Othneil Lawrence has come out blazing as he finally broke his silence on allegations that he gave up being the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) representative in the constituency for a J$5.5-million contract.

Lawrence, who had gone to court in 2014 to prevent a move by the JLP to unseat him as the representative in the constituency, signed the contract as an advisor at Caribbean Maritime University

(CMU) in 2018 and two months later walked away from the political post to pave the way for then Education Minister Senator Ruel Reid to replace him.

Reid was at the time the Minister with responsibility for the CMU. But Lawrence, in his first full interview since the situation was made public, told the Jamaica Observer “The decision to leave North West St Ann came based on the fact that after losing a second elec-

tion in 2016 I thought that the support at that time was very minimal from several sectors, plus with what had happened in the past it was best for me to walk away. It was just a convenient time,” added Lawrence.

He said that based on the respect that he was shown by the party's leadership this time around when it was indicated that Reid was being tipped to replace him, there was no need to enter another fight with the organisation.

(Excerpt from Jamaica Observer)

Germany to compensate T&T: Probe into absence of school Chile commune victims official during CSEC exam

E

ven as investigations continue into the cheating scandal which occurred during last Wednesday’s Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) Maths exam at the Tranquillity Government Secondary School, a parallel investigation has been launched into the absence of a key senior official who ought to have been present at the institution on the day.

Claiming the school was one which sometimes presented "challenges", officials at the Education Ministry said the individual took a day off. Checks re-

vealed that a similar pattern had been observed in relation to the official’s absence every time a situation arose at that particular school.

Although teachers and principals are entitled to 14 days occasional leave during the academic year, a senior Ministry official said arrangements should have been made by the official to be present on the day as it was important to ensure proper controls were in place.

The Tranquillity Government Secondary School was used by the Caribbean Examinations

Council (CXC) to house three exam centres.

Confirming three invigilators had been dismissed after a video was posted to social media showing several students using their cell phones to share an answer sheet, Ministry officials on Friday said while those students would be allowed to continue to write the remainder of their exams, there is a strong possibility they would face repercussions after the exams are concluded.

This could result in them being penalised by CXC and not being allowed to graduate. (Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

Youth jailed for 17 years for killing college student at Caribbean J'Ouvert

Before he was taken away in handcuffs, the convicted murderer apologised to the victim's family

A

judge on Friday sentenced a Brooklyn youth to 17 1/3 years in jail for killing a 22-year-old college student just before the Caribbean J'Ouvert festival in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn began in 2016.

Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Donald Leo imposed the stiff sentence on Regional Moise, 20, for shooting in the head at point-blank range, Tiarah Poyau, a graduate student in accounting at St John's University in Jamaica, Queens, New York.

The incident took place on September 5, 2016.

Poyau died after she was taken to the nearby Kings County Hospital in Central Brooklyn.

Police said Moise was intoxicated at the time of the shooting, but jurors found him guilty of criminally negligent homicide, reckless endangerment and weapons possession in Poyau's shooting death. He was acquitted of the more serious charge of murder.

“This is the most tragic case I've ever come across,” said Justice Leo before imposing the sentence on Moise. “In one selfish act of idiocy, you destroyed the incredibly bright future of a promising young woman.”

The victim's family had pleaded with Justice Leo to sentence Moise to consecutive – no concurrent – sentences, as Moise's lawyers had requested.

“Criminally negligent homicide is a slap in the face, Your Honour,” Poyau's mother, Valerie Brown, told the court before Moise's sentence. “It's really an insult, not just to me but to my whole entire family.

Please, I beg of you, please see fit to give him the maximum that is allowed for each charge.” (Excerpt from Jamaica

Observer)

Colonia Dignidad was built to resemble a Bavarian village but the reality was very different

G

ermany will pay compensation of up to €10,000 (US$11,000) to victims of a notorious and abusive commune in southern Chile.

Colonia Dignidad was founded by former Nazi soldier Paul Schäfer in 1961.

The commune, which was located 350 kilome-

tres (220 miles) south of Santiago, was run as a secretive cult and dozens of children were sexually abused there.

Hundreds of German and Chilean survivors will now be eligible for compensation.

The decision to pay the victims was made by a government commission in

Berlin on Friday. A fund of €3.5 million will be set aside to do so.

It comes a week after prosecutors dropped their investigation into a German doctor who worked at the commune.

A court in Chile had found Hartmut Hopp guilty of complicity in child sex abuse committed by Schäfer, but he fled to Germany before he could be jailed.

German prosecutors said there was insufficient evidence to uphold the ruling.

Colonia Dignidad was a colony set up by Schäfer in the remote Maule area.

He ran it as a secretive cult with members living as virtual slaves and prevented from leaving by armed guards with dogs.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

Antiguan Government mum on former airport CEO’s resignation

T

he Government of Antigua and Barbuda has remained tight-lipped regarding the recent resignation of the former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Antigua and Barbuda Airport Authority (ABAA).

This is possibly due to advice obtained by their Attorneys.

Information Minister Melford Nicholas said since the brief work stoppage which took place last Friday, the Cabinet was been advised against making further public remarks on account of the threat by the former CEO, Stanley

Smith, to sue the Airport Authority for constructive dismissal.

Nicholas told media representatives at this week’s post-Cabinet press briefing that owing to this, the details of the disagreement which led to Smith’s suspension, his subsequent resignation, and his resorting to the courts will be withheld until he has submitted his pleadings and the ABAA responds.

Last Friday’s incident involved around 100 workers from the VC Bird International Airport who stopped working and mounted a demonstra-

tion in front of the old airport terminal to protest the suspension of their now former boss and the Human Resource Director, Forsianne Joseph.

The rumoured cause of the suspensions is said to be the alleged leak of a report recommending salary increases for ABAA staff.

Smith, a Jamaican, had been at the helm of the ABAA for the past seven years, having been recruited for the job in 2012 under the previous United Progressive Party (UPP) Administration. (Excerpt from Antigua Observer)

guyanatimesgy.com

monday, may 20, 2019

17

Around the World

Blast injures South African tourists India elections: Modi predicted near Egypt’s Giza pyramids to win!

A

n explosion targeting a tourist bus injured at least 12 people on Sunday, mostly South African tourists, near a new museum being built close to the Giza pyramids in Egypt, two security sources said.

A third security source said the bus was carrying 25 South African tourists from the airport to the pyramids area, and that four Egyptians in a nearby car were also injured by broken glass.

Security and judicial sources said a rudimentary device containing nails

and pieces of metal had been detonated remotely on the perimeter of the Grand Egyptian Museum, not far from the site of a roadside blast that hit another tourist bus in December.

There was no damage to the museum from the blast, which happened 50 metres from its outer fence and more than 400 metres from the museum building, the Antiquities Ministry said in a statement.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Egyptian security forces are waging a counter-insurgency campaign against

Islamist militants, some with links to Islamic State, that is focused in the north of the Sinai Peninsula.

Attacks outside Sinai have become relatively rare, though there have been several security incidents in recent months in Giza, across the Nile from central Cairo.

In December, three Vietnamese tourists and an Egyptian guide were killed and at least 10 others injured when a roadside bomb hit their tour bus less than 4 kilometres (2.5 miles) from the Giza pyramids. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Saudi Arabia “seeks to avert war, ready to respond with force”

S

audi Arabia wants to avert war in the region but stands ready to respond with “all strength and determination” after last week’s attacks on Saudi oil assets, a senior official said, adding that the ball was now in Iran’s court.

Riyadh has accused Tehran of ordering Tuesday’s drone attacks on two oil pumping stations in the kingdom, claimed by Yemen’s Houthi group.

The attack came two days after four vessels, including two Saudi oil tankers, were sabotaged off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.

Iran has denied it was behind the attacks which come as Washington and the Islamic republic spar over sanctions and the US

Saudi Arabia’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir

military presence in the region, raising concerns about a potential US-Iran conflict.

“The kingdom of Saudi Arabia does not want a war in the region nor does it seek that,” Minister of State for Foreign Affairs

Adel al-Jubeir told a news conference on Sunday.

“It will do what it can to prevent this war and at the same time it reaffirms that in the event the other side chooses war, the kingdom will respond with all force and determination, and it will defend itself and its interests.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif has dismissed the possibility of war erupting, saying Tehran did not want conflict and no country had the “illusion it can confront Iran”.

This stance was echoed by the head of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards on Sunday.

Saudi Arabia and Iran are adversaries in the Middle East, backing opposite sides in several regional wars. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Australian PM heads to church, football after “miracle” election win

A

ustralian Prime Minister Scott Morrison thanked his fellow Pentecostal churchgoers on Sunday after a miraculous election victory that defied years of unfavourable opinion polls and bruised a Labour opposition that had been widely expected to win.

Morrison’s Liberalled conservative coalition has won or is leading in 76 seats, the number needed to form a majority Government, according to the Australian Electoral Commission. Slightly more than three-quarters of the roughly 17 million votes have been counted.

A jubilant Morrison hugged community members after an early Sunday service at the Horizon Church in Sydney’s southern suburbs, from where he was first elected to Parliament in 2007.

He drew cheers later on Sunday when he arrived in the stands to watch his team, the Cronulla Sharks,

P

rime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will win almost as many seats as it did in 2014 and form a government comfortably, exit polls predicted on Sunday at the end of the national election. The poll of polls, an aggregate of exit polls, gives the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) 302 of 543 seats and the Congress and its allies 122.

The poll of polls indicates that the BJP, as it had calculated, will make up for its losses in Uttar Pradesh with a surge in Odisha and West Bengal.

In Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress will get 26 of 42 seats and the BJP will move to double digits at 14 – from two the last time – predict exit polls.

Odisha Chief Minister

Many saw the election as a referendum on Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Naveen Patnaik’s Biju Janata Dal (BJD) will be neck and neck with the BJP, the poll of polls says.

That is a huge improvement for the BJP, which won just one of the state’s 21 seats in 2014.

The gains in the two states will offset what the BJP is predicted to lose in Uttar Pradesh, where it scooped 71 of 80 seats in 2014. The poll of polls predicts 49 seats for the BJP.

The Mayawati-Akhilesh Yadav combination is given 29 seats while the Congress is set to do no better than it did in 2014 – two seats, if exit polls prove correct.

Voting in one of India’s most acrimonious elections in decades ended on Sunday after seven rounds held over a month-and-ahalf.

The results will be declared on Thursday, May 23. (Excerpt from ndtv.com)

Swiss voters approve tighter gun control, avoid EU clash

S

wiss voters agreed by a nearly two-to-one margin on Sunday to adopt tighter gun controls in line with changes to European Union rules, heading off a clash with Brussels.

The measure passed in the binding referendum under the Swiss system of direct democracy by a 64-36 per cent margin, provisional final results showed.

The restrictions, which apply to non-EU member Switzerland because it is part of Europe’s Schengen open-border system, had raised hackles among shoot-

ing enthusiasts ahead of the vote.

Failure to adopt the rules could have forced Switzerland to leave the passport-free Schengen zone and the Dublin joint system for handling asylum requests.

After militants killed scores of people in Paris in 2015, the EU in 2017 toughened laws against purchasing semi-automatic rifles such as the ones used in those attacks and made it easier to track weapons in national databases.

The initial EU proposal provoked an outcry because

it meant a ban on the Swiss tradition of ex-soldiers keeping their assault rifles.

Swiss officials negotiated concessions for veterans and gun enthusiasts who take part in the country’s numerous shooting clubs, but any restrictions imported from the EU go too far for rightwing activists concerned about Swiss sovereignty.

Gun rights proponents complained the rules could disarm law-abiding citizens and encroach on Switzerland’s heritage and national identity, which includes a well-armed citizenry. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Brexit: Theresa May plans ‘bold offer’ to get support for deal

T Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison with wife Jenny, and children Abbey and Lily after winning the 2019 Federal Election, at the Federal Liberal Reception at the Sofitel-Wentworth hotel in Sydney, Australia

in a rugby league match in his beachside electorate.

Morrison told raucous supporters late on Saturday, who had earlier seemed resigned to defeat, that he had always believed in miracles.

Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were among the first world leaders to congratulate Morrison.

Jacinda Ardern, the progressive Prime Minister of neighbouring New Zealand, also called to congratulate him, saying that Morrison

“understands us”.

Opinion polls in Australia had all pointed to a Labour victory. So strong was the expectation the Government would fall that one betting agency even paid out bets on a Labour win days before the election.

Morrison, who emerged as an unlikely leader after Liberal party infighting last year, cast himself as the candidate who would work for aspirational voters and the tactic seemed to strike a chord. (Excerpt from Reuters)

heresa May has said a “new and improved” Brexit deal will be put to MPs when they vote on the EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill in early June.

Writing in the Sunday Times, May said the bill will be a “bold offer”.

Cabinet Minister Rory Stewart told the BBC he hoped extra guarantees on workers’ rights would enable “sensible” Labour MPs to support the Government.

But Jeremy Corbyn said Labour would oppose the bill and it was “very difficult” to see it making progress.

While he would consider new proposals “very carefully”, he said what was being talked about did not appear “fundamentally dif-

UK Prime Minister Theresa May

ferent” from what was already on the table.

May announced last week that MPs would vote on the bill - which would bring the withdrawal agreement into UK law - in the week beginning June 3. If

the bill is not passed, the default position is that the UK will leave the EU on October 31 without a deal.

The bill risks failing to clear its first parliamentary hurdle, with many Conservative Brexiteers, as well as the Democratic Unionist Party, Scottish National Party and Liberal Democrats, also opposed.

But in her Sunday Times piece, May said she will “not be simply asking MPs to think again” on the same deal that they have repeatedly rejected - but on “an improved packaged of measures that I believe can win new support”.

The PM said she wanted MPs to consider the new deal “with fresh pairs of eyes - and to give it their support”. (Excerpt from BBC News)

18

guyanatimesgy.com

MONday, may 20, 2019

ARCHIE

ARIES (March 21April 19)

TAURUS (April 20May 20)

dilbert

Know what is and isn’t possible. Don’t allow anyone to take advantage of you. Any partnership you develop has to be equal if you want it to work.

CANCER

If you lend a helping hand, it will prompt you to make a personal change that will pay off. An offer or settlement will improve your financial situation.

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Calvin and Hobbes

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

SUDOKU

Observe how an expert handles a tough situation to find your footing when dealing with matters that perplex you.

A physical or personal change is favoured.

GEMINI (May 21June 20)

(June 21July 22)

Peanuts

Expand your interests and improve your skills and qualifications. How you handle others will affect the way you are treated. Listen carefully and avoid getting into an argument.

Keep your distance from anyone trying to take advantage of you. Your generosity should be limited to those who give as much as they receive. You can’t buy love.

A personal change will do you good. A chance to network or present what you have to offer will lead to advancement. An independent demeanour will attract interest. Walk away from excessive behaviour.

Look at what you can accomplish, not at what’s impossible. Know your market and concentrate on developing your skills and making new connections. Avoid discord and disruptive situations.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Consider how to best move forward. A change will give you a new perspective on how to use your skills most effectively. Positive advice will be offered. Romance is highlighted.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23Dec. 21)

Look at the big picture and go directly to the source if you find a discrepancy.

Don’t trust someone who is trying to twist things around or pressure you. Stifle indulgent behaviour.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

solution for SATURDAY’s puzzle AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 19)

PISCES (Feb. 20March 20)

Don’t let someone from your past back into your life. A change you make at home will bring you closer to a loved one. Use your intelligence and discipline to keep the peace.

Consider what you can accomplish and concentrate on reaching your goal.

Refuse to let anyone interfere in your life or stall your progress. Avoid people who are pushy or selfish.

Learn through observation and by helping those less fortunate. A domestic or lifestyle change will encourage you to improve your spending habits.

monday, MAY 20, 2019

R

afael Nadal claimed his first title of the year by defeating world number one Novak Djokovic 6-0 4-6 6-1 in the Italian Open final in Rome.

The Spaniard raced through the opener in 39 minutes, the first 6-0 between the great rivals in 141 previous sets.

Djokovic battled back, but in the Rome sunshine Nadal sealed his ninth Italian Open title in two hours, 25 minutes.

It was his 81st tournament win and it takes him 34-33 ahead of Djokovic in Masters 1,000 Series titles.

Victory is a boost before the French Open for Nadal, who was beaten by Djokovic in the Australian Open final in January, and had lost at the semi-final stage in his past four tournaments.

Since 2005, Nadal has won at least one of the nine Masters 1,000 events in a season every year except 2015.

Djokovic had saved two match points in his quarter-final win over Juan Martin del Potro that finished at 1.05am local time on Saturday and then had another three-set encounter later that evening against Diego Schwartzman which lasted two hours, 31 minutes.

The 54th meeting between the world’s top two players saw the Serb, perhaps sufferings the effects of those two gruelling matches, initially overwhelmed by Nadal, who was ruthless with his trademark forehand.

To tumultuous acclaim from the capacity crowd, Djokovic forged his first break point opportunity of the match in the fourth game of the second set, but a magnificent, whirling forehand into the corner from Nadal soon eradicated it.

However, the 31-year-old showed his famous powers of resolve, firing some fierce returns as he took the next chance to break, which sealed the set in 59 minutes.

Nadal broke in the opening game of the decider, prompting Djokovic to demolish his racquet in frustration and with

19

the Serb continuing to falter with drop shot attempts, Nadal surged to a 58th clay-court title.

It reduced his career deficit against Djokovic to 28-26, improving his record on clay against him to 17-7.

Pliskova beats Johanna Konta in final

British number one Johanna Konta’s wait for a first WTA clay-court title continues after she lost to Karolina Pliskova in the Italian Open final.

Czech world number seven Pliskova won 6-3 6-4 in one hour 25 minutes in Rome for her second title of the season.

Konta, 28, beat two top-10 players to reach the final and earned a seeding at the French Open starting on 26 May. “I’m super pleased with how I’ve been progressing this year and improving in every match,” said Konta.

“This is my second biggest final after Miami. This is a big moment for me.

I’m very pleased to be making that progress.”

Konta was the first British woman to reach the Italian Open final since Virginia Wade in 1971, while Pliskova is the first Czech woman to win it since 1978.

Konta did not recover from being broken in her opening service game, and again at 3-3 in the second.

Pliskova required three match Rafael Nadal, who is 33 next points to secure victory and claim month, celebrates his ninth her first title since the Brisbane Italian Open title International in January. (BBC Sport)

Simmons to step down as Wilder knocks out Breazeale Afghanistan Coach after World Cup in 1st round to defend title

D

P

hil Simmons will step down as Afghanistan coach after the World Cup. The former West Indies opener, who was appointed to the position in December 2017, said the time is right for him to move on as the target he was given - of helping Afghanistan reach the World Cup - has been achieved.

Simmons is understood to have communicated his decision to the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) on Saturday. His contract, which runs until the end of the World Cup, would likely have been extended given Afghanistan’s results during his tenure, including their tournament win in the crucial World Cup Qualifier last March.

“I have thought about it and I have actually given the ACB my notice that I will not be renewing my contract,” Simmons told ESPNcricinfo. “I will move on to something different once my contract expires on July 15.

“I signed up originally for 18 months and I think I have done a lot in this period. It is time for me to move on to something else now.

To want to get to the World Cup - that was ACB’s goal at the time they appointed me.

My goal is always to leave things better than when I joined: the way we practice, the way we think about the

On his appointment in December, Phil Simmons (left) had been given a contract until the 2019 World Cup

game, the way we assess other teams. I’ve tried to help the players in all those areas.”

Simmons’ decision to not extend his contract comes close on the heels of the ACB’s controversial change in the side’s leadership, which brought an end to Asghar Afghan’s fouryear captaincy stint across formats. Gulbadin Naib was appointed ODI captain, while Rahmat Shah and Rashid Khan were put in charge of the Test and T20I teams respectively. Rashid and Mohammad Nabi, the two global superstars of Afghanistan cricket, strongly criticised the move, tweeting in support of Afghan. Nabi said it wasn’t “the right time” to change

the captain, and credited Afghan for helping the team “gel” well. Rashid, who is the ODI vice-captain, called the move “irresponsible and biased”.

Simmons revealed that neither the ACB nor the national selection committee had consulted or alerted him to the changes, catching him off guard.

“No, I was not aware of it.

I was not given any reasons.

It was the decision of the Afghanistan Cricket Board and the selectors,” Simmons said. “How can I take it? I can’t change it. So I have to just get on with what I have to do and make sure the squad is preparing in the same way I wanted them to prepare barring the [captaincy] change.” (ESPNcricinfo)

eontay Wilder produced a sensational first-round knockout of Dominic Breazeale to retain his WBC world heavyweight title in New York.

Wilder, 33, flattened his fellow American with 43 seconds of the opening round left - taking his record to 41 wins and a draw from 42 bouts.

Breazeale was on the ropes early on before finding a solid shot to respond to the champion.

But Wilder finished the fight moments later with a huge right hand.

After his victory, Wilder was approached by Cuba’s Luis Ortiz in the ring - a man he beat in 2018 - but when asked about potential contests with British heavyweights Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, said “no doors are closed” and that such fights “are in discussion”.

“All parties involved are talking,” Wilder told Showtime. “There’s too many people and opinions involved.

It will take our teams to sit down, handle things, squash everything and get it done for the fans.

“The big fights will happen the way we all benefit.

We risk our lives in here, so let us get our time to iron out our differences and you guys will know when it happens.”

Breazeale, 33, left the ring without talking to the media, fresh from a punch that

The only blip on Deontay Wilder’s otherwise flawless record is a draw with Tyson Fury in December 2018

left him sprawled on the canvas and unable to answer the count.

His counter-punch when cornered had briefly seen Wilder engage in a couple of grapples but - after a pause for breath - the champion followed a left-hand jab with a right to the jaw which was as accurate as it was destructive.

It was a 40th victory by knockout for Wilder and just a second career loss for Breazeale, following his 2016 defeat by Anthony Joshua.

Wilder swaps trash talk for compliments

Wilder will face a World Boxing Council hearing for pre-fight comments where he again raised the prospect of an opponent dying in the ring.

“This is the only sport where you can kill a man and

get paid for it at the same time,” Wilder had said in the build-up. “It’s legal.”

But afterwards Wilder spoke warmly about his beaten rival.

“Everything came out of me tonight,” Wilder told Showtime. “I know it’s been a big build-up, a lot of animosity, chaos and hatred to one another, a lot of words said.

It just came out tonight.

“This is what makes boxing great. When you have stuff to overcome.

“I’ve told him I love him and I want to see him go home to his family. I know we say things we mean sometimes but when you get into a fight and settle your differences, if you can then hug him and kiss him, I wish the world was like that, handle things with our hands and then live to see another day.” (BBC Sport)

20 Pakistan humbled as World Cup dress rehearsal ends in misery SCOREBOARD P GUYANATIMESgy.COM

monday, MAY 20, 2019

3

akistan’s pre-World Cup tour didn’t go exactly as planned as Sarfaraz Ahmed and his side were humbled 0-4, losing the fifth and final ODI by 54 runs in Leeds on Sunday (May 19). Set a massive 352, Pakistan folded for 297 as Babar Azam and the captain did the bulk of the scoring before the hosts closed the game.

With the series done and dusted, the focus will now shift on the World Cup as both sides need to finalise their squads.

While Pakistan more or less have got their answers - with Mohammad Amir’s unavailability - England selectors have a few tough choices to make. Pakistan, though, need some serious venom in their bowling line-up as England managed to post four consecutive 340-plus totals in the series.

On the day, their total of 351 for 9 was set up by the fast start from the openers and then the 107-run third-wicket stand between Eoin Morgan and Joe Root. Though both middle-order batsmen failed to convert their half-centuries to ton, they threatened to take the side over 400 before the visitors staged a comeback. James Vince and Jonny Bairstow gave the side 63 runs for the first wicket but their adventurism got the better of them. Root and Morgan helped the side cruise past 200 in the 26th over as Pakistan continued to struggle. They were once again sloppy on the field but recovered well in the death overs.

England suffered a middle-order wobble that started with the wicket of Root as Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Ben Stokes and David Willey failed to capitalise on the platform set. Tom Curran did his World Cup prospects no harm as he lifted the side to over 350 after they were tottering at 295 for 7 with more than five overs to go.

Pakistan do take away some positives but leave with more worry lines. Their chase was dented early as they lost three wickets in the first three overs, and all of them to Chris Woakes. Babar and Sarfaraz did an exceptional repair job - scoring 146 for the fourth wicket - to revive the chase.

The asking rate, however, kept climbing and the two runouts more of less sealed Pakistan’s fate just when they were

England wrapped up the series 4-0 with a 54-run victory

primed for a timely assault.

Babar was run out first - by Rashid - before Pakistan were dented with another wicket of Shoaib Malik. And then the run out of Sarfaraz - with Buttler affecting the dismissal this time - left the visitors 193 for 6 and with a mountain to climb. Woakes picked up a five-wicket haul, and registered his best figures in ODIs, with the lower order crumbling under pressure. Mohammad Hasnain and Shaheen Afridi scored 47 for the final wicket to frustrate the hosts and fans.

Despite the series win, the England bowlers will be the one more nervous as Ed Smith and the think-tank sit down

Messi scores twice as Barcelona draw at Eibar

L

ionel Messi scored two goals in two minutes but champions Barcelona had to settle for a draw against an impressive Eibar side in the final La Liga match of the season.

Marc Cucurella, on loan from Barcelona, grabbed the home side’s opener when his low shot beat Jasper Cillessen.

Messi fired in the equaliser from a tight angle before he clipped his second past Marco Dmitrovic.

Pablo de Blasis equalised just before the break with a superb 20-yard strike.

Barcelona celebrates during the final La Liga match of the season

The Argentine was as impressive as his compatriot Messi in an entertaining conclusion to the 2018-19

campaign.

Aside from the two goals, Barcelona rarely troubled Eibar’s keeper, al-

though Messi should have tested the Serb with a late effort from 15 yards that sailed over the bar.

Dutchman Cillessen had a busier time at the other end and did well to block shots from Charles and Sergi Enrich.

Cucurella also had a golden opportunity to score his second late in the game, but he blazed over from only six yards out.

Barcelona - who finished on 87 points, 11 more than second-placed Atletico Madrid - will now prepare for next Saturday’s Copa del Rey final against Valencia in Seville. (BBC Sport)

Windies star Gayle could make unwanted World Cup history

W

indies talisman Chris Gayle is known for setting records but the big left-hander could be heading for one he may not want when he makes his appearance later this month at the ICC World Cup. The 39-year-old batsman is expected to earn his 290th ODI cap as a Windies opener, having scored 10,151 runs.

The appearance will also be the player’s fifth at a World Cup. If the Windies do not win the tournament and with the player already slated to retire immediately after it, Gayle would join a select group of players to have played the most World Cup without winning.

The big left-hander is in danger of being the ninth player to have accomplished this unwanted record.

Some of the most notable names include the likes of Mahela Jayawardene, Shahid Afridi and Jacques Kallis.

Regionally Gayle will join legends Brian Lara and Curtly Ambrose.

Ambrose played in 17 World Cup games across three editions from 1992 to 1999 and had 24 wickets at just 20.79, conceding a miserly 3.03 runs per over. Lara is the third highest run-scorer in World Cups with 1225 runs from 34 matches spread across 5 editions, starting from 1992. (Sportsmax)

England Innings (50 overs maximum) JM Vince c Zaman b Afridi 33 JM Bairstow c Afridi b Wasim 32 JE Root c Asif Ali b Hasnain 84 EJG Morgan (c) c Ali b Afridi 76 JC Buttler † c Abid Ali b Wasim 34 BA Stokes c Zaman b Ali 21 MM Ali lbw b Wasim 0 CR Woakes c Azam b Afridi 13 DJ Willey b Afridi 14 TK Curran not out 29 AU Rashid not out 2 Extras (lb 2, nb 1, w 10) 13 TOTAL (50 Overs, RR: 7.02) 351-9 Fall of wickets: 1-63 (JM Vince, 7.3 ov), 2-105 (JM Bairstow, 11.2 ov), 3-222 (EJG Morgan, 29.3 ov), 4-257 (JE Root, 35.3 ov), 5-272 (JC Buttler, 38.1 ov), 6-272 (MM Ali, 38.3 ov), 7-295 (CR Woakes, 44.1 ov), 8-310 (BA Stokes, 45.5 ov), 9-336 (DJ Willey, 48.5 ov) BOWLING H Ali (10-0-70-1) S Afridi (10-0-82-4) M Hasnain (8-0-67-1) I Wasim (10-0-53-3) F Zaman (4-0-23-0) S Malik (4-0-29-0) M Hafeez (4-0-25-0)

Pakistan Innings (target: 352 runs from 50 overs) F Zaman c Root b Woakes 0 A Ali lbw b Woakes 5 B Azam run out (†Buttler/ Rashid) 80 M Hafeez lbw b Woakes 0 S Ahmed (c) † run out (†Buttler) 97 S Malik c & b Rashid 4 A Ali c Stokes b Willey 22 I Wasim c †Buttler b Woakes 25 H Ali c Willey b Woakes 11 S Afridi not out 19 M Hasnain st †Buttler b Rashid 28 Extras (lb 3, w 3) 6 TOTAL (46.5 Overs, RR: 6.34) 297 all out Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Fakhar Zaman, 0.3 ov), 2-6 (Abid Ali, 2.3 ov), 3-6 (Mohammad Hafeez, 2.6 ov), 4-152 (Babar Azam, 26.2 ov), 5-189 (Shoaib Malik, 30.6 ov), 6-193 (Sarfaraz Ahmed, 31.5 ov), 7-232 (Imad Wasim, 36.6 ov), 8-250 (Asif Ali, 39.3 ov), 9-250 (Hasan Ali, 40.1 ov), 10-297 (Mohammad Hasnain, 46.5 ov) BOWLING CR Woakes (10-2-54-5) DJ Willey (9-1-55-1) TK Curran (6-0-40-0) BA Stokes (4-0-28-0) MM Ali (10-0-63-0) AU Rashid (7.5-0-54-2)

to pick the final 15. Jofra Archer played just two games and picked up just two wickets. But the fight is between Willey and Curran for one spot. Curran walked away with six wickets while Willey had four from three matches at a slightly better economy rate. (Cricbuzz)

MotoGP: Marc Marquez wins in Le Mans to extend title lead

Marquez leads the pack at Le Mans

S

even-time world champion Marc Marquez increased his lead at the top of the MotoGP standings with victory in the French MotoGP at Le Mans.

The 26-year-old Spaniard, who started on pole, finished almost two seconds ahead of Italy’s Andrea Dovizioso.

Dovizioso moved up to second in the standings, eight points behind Marquez, winner of five of the last six titles.

It was Marquez’s 47th victory - joint fourth on the alltime list with team-mate Jorge Lorenzo - and Honda’s 300th.

Marquez was overtaken by Australian Jack Miller on the fifth lap, but the defending champion regained the lead two laps later before pulling away from the chasing pack.

Compatriot Alex Rins, who was second in the standings before the race, finished 10th after starting 19th following a disappointing performance in Saturday’s qualifying.

Marquez’s younger brother Alex won the Moto2 GP earlier in the day.

French MotoGP results 1. Marc Marquez (Spa/Honda) 41mins 53.647secs 2. Andrea Dovizioso (Ita/Ducati) 41:55.631 3. Danilo Petrucci (Ita/Ducati) 41:55.789 4. Jack Miller (Aus/Ducati) 41:56.587 5. Valentino Rossi (Ita/Yamaha) 41:56.700

Chris Gayle

Overall standings 1. Marc Marquez (Spa/Honda) 95 points 2. Andrea Dovizioso (Ita/Ducati) 87 3. Alex Rins (Spa/Suzuki) 75 4. Valentino Rossi (Ita/Yamaha) 72 5. Danilo Petrucci (Ita/Ducati) 57

21 MVP Sinclair has eyes set on West Indies U-19 berth guyanatimesgy.com

monday, may 20, 2019

B

erbice U-19 opening batsman Junior Sinclair finished as the lead player in the just-concluded Hand-in-Hand Under-19 Inter-County tournaments. Sinclair was awarded “the player with the most runs” when he accumulated 374 runs, and he was the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the tournament after he picked up eight vital wickets for his team in the tournaments.

Speaking after the One-Day final, Sinclair explained that this is a stepping stone for his moving forward into the senior level.

“This performance will motivate me heading into the future, because the senior level with get tough”, Sinclair explained.

The multi-talented Sinclair, who formerly played the role of a wicket-keeper earlier in his blooming career, has flourished as an opening batsman who is capable of bowling off-spin.

The 2019 MVP of the U-19 Inter-County tournadismissals, watches ment explained this trandyal, who had the most Din dra vin Ma ile wh on Sinclair bats sition process during this interview: “As an all-round player, it came at the club level, where I had to assist my team when they Sinclair has said his preference lies with bowling, are in different situations”. and this MVP will remain a monumental achievement FOR SALE Sinclair bowled off-spin in the Regional that he will cherish. With the Regional U-19 tournament 1 COMPLETE 6 BASS MUSIC U-19 tournament in 2018, where he played in playing shortly, Sinclair revealed that he would be eyeing SYSTEM. TEL: 601-9855 / 253-3070 six 50-over matches for Guyana in St Vincent stellar performances in that tournament.

• SMALL BUS/VAN – GOOD and the Grenadines, but he had only two wick“I will be looking for (an) MVP in that tournament, CONDITION $380,000 NEGOTIABLEets. where I will place myself into the final U-19 World Cup 680-3863 • TOYOTA COROLLA Within that one-year period, Sinclair has squad”, Sinclair disclosed.

CAR, LEFT HAND DRIVE $380,000 evolved as an off-spinner and has taken wickNEGOTIABLE -680-3863 • STAND UP Sinclair, who scored four half-centuries in the inFREEZER - $85,000- 680-3863 ets for his team. In the recently concluded in- ter-county tournaments, is among the final year gradter-county three-day tournament, Sinclair was uands from the U-19 level. The lanky right-handed NOTICE called upon to keep wicket due to the absence Sinclair stated that his performances in this tournaINVITATION TO REGISTER IN of Chanderpaul Govindan, the wicket-keeper, ment may earn him selection for an Academy conTHE CARICOM SECRETARIAT’S who was absent due to examinations. tract in the near future. (Brandon Corlette) VENDORS, CONSULTANTS AND

CLASSIFIED ADS

HOUSING DATABASES. The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat herewith invites all consultants and suppliers of goods and services (including those vendors who provide housing accommodation) to register as preferred suppliers. Online registration of consultants and suppliers of goods and services can be done through the web portal that is available at http:// vendors.caricom.org/. For vendors who provide rental housing accommodation, online registration in the Housing database can be done through the web portal that is available at https://housing.caricom. org/. Queries regarding the registration process in any of the databases should be addressed to: Programme Manager, Procurement, CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana. Email: procurement@caricom.org. Or procurement.group2@caricom.org APPLICATION FOR MONEY LENDER CERTIFICATE. PURSUANT TO SECTION 4 OF THE MONEY LENDER ACT. I CEDRIC JOEL WEEKES OF LOT 8 DEN AMSTEL OLD ROAD, WEST COAST DEMERARA GUYANA IS HERE

BY GIVING NOTICE THAT I HAVE APPLIED TO THE MAGISTRATE OF THE GEROGETOWN MAGISTERIAL DISTRICT FOR A CERTIFICATE UNDER THE MONEY LENDER LICENSE, AUTHORISING THE GRANT TO ME OF A MONEY LENDER LICENSE TO CARRY ON THE BUSINESS OF A MONEY LENDER UNDER THE TITLE, WEEKES FAST CASH PAWNSHOP AT LOT Y BLANKEN BURG PUBLIC ROAD WEST COAST DEMERARA. NOTICE OF ANY OBJECTION TO THE APPLICATION SHOULD BE SENT FORTHWITH TO THE CLERK OF THE COURT OF GEORGETOWN MAGISTERIAL DISTRICT AND A COPY OF SUCH NOTICE SHOULD BE SENT TO THE SUBSCRIBER CEDRIC JOEL WEEKES (APPLICANT) DATED AT GEORGETOWN DEMERARA THE DAY MAY 2019.

TO LET FURNISHED AND UNFURNISHED APARTMENT TO RENT 3 E PUBLIC ROAD LUSIGNAN -638-9803, 6564163

VACANCY • COOK-624-0033 • DRIVER AND PORTER FOR WATER DELIVERY TRUCK – 680-3863

WANTED TAILOR AND SEAMSTRESS TEL: 6019855 / 253-3070

Kompany leaves Manchester City to become Anderlecht player-manager

V

incent Kompany says joining Anderlecht as player-manager is the “most passionate yet rational” decision he has made after announcing he has left Manchester City.

The 33-year-old has signed a three-year deal with the Belgian club after 11 years at Etihad Stadium, eight of which he spent as club captain.

Saturday’s 6-0 FA Cup final win over Watford was Kompany’s final game for City, after winning four Premier League titles, two FA Cups and four League Cups.

In an open letter on Facebook, Belgium defender Kompany said leaving City “doesn’t feel real”.

“Countless of times have I imagined this day,” he said. “After all, the end has felt nearby for so many years.

“Man City has given me everything. I’ve tried to give back as much as I possibly could.”

In a second letter released hours later, Kompany announced his move to Anderlecht, who said his arrival marked the “return of the prince”.

“I want to share my knowledge with the next purple generations,” said Kompany, who first joined Anderlecht at the age of six.

“With that, I will also put a bit of Manchester in the heart of Belgium.”

High Rollers trample Amazings for Guinness ‘Linden’ title

H

Vincent Kompany captained Manchester City to the Premier League title, FA Cup and Carabao Cup this season

’The time has come to go’

Centre-back Kompany joined City from Hamburg as a defensive midfielder in 2008 and was named club captain three years later.

He scored his final goal against Leicester on 6 May, a brilliant strike from 25 yards that was voted goal of the season on BBC Match of the Day. That victory took City to within one win of the Premier League title, which they sealed on the final day of the season with victory at Brighton.

“The time has come for me to go now,” Kompany said.

“As overwhelming as it is, I feel nothing but gratefulness. I am grateful to all those who supported me on a special journey, at a very special club.

“I remember the first day, as clear as I see the last. I re-

member the boundless kindness I received from the people of Manchester.

“I will never forget how all Man City supporters remained loyal to me in good times and especially bad times. Against the odds, you have always backed me and inspired me to never give up.”

City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said: “There have been many important contributors to Manchester City’s renaissance, but arguably none are more important than Vincent Kompany.

“He defines the essence of the club. For a decade he has been the lifeblood, the soul, and beating heart of a supremely talented squad.

“A booming voice in the dressing room yet a quiet and measured ambassador off it, Vincent can be as proud of himself as we are of him.” (BBC Sport)

Junior Sinclair stands with his MVP and Most Runs awards (Brandon Corlette photos)

igh Rollers copped the crown of the Guinness ‘Greatest of the Streets’ Linden Championship by dismantling Amazings 6-1 on Saturday at the Mackenzie Market Tarmac.

The mammoth crowd which descended on the venue witnessed the largest margin of victory in the history of the tournament. The contest was effectively over at the halftime interval, as the clinical High Rollers outfit plundered four answered goals to reduce the result to a mere formality.

Jonah Simon commenced the rout with a sixth-minute strike. His conversion was quickly followed by a Jehu Regis effort two minutes later. The aforementioned strikes sent the crowd -- obviously partisan in their support -- into a frenzy.

Anfernee Barrow then made his presence felt by extending his team’s advantage, compliments of an 11th minute effort. The perfect period for High Rollers was sealed when Antoine Gill found the back of the net in the 15th minute.

Amazings’ consolation goal was scored in the final half

by Kevin Dornick. That goal was nothing more than a consolation, as Captain Omar Brewley tallied a ‘Guinness Goal’ [GG: a goal scored in the final three minutes of regulation and extra time counts as two] in the 39th minute to commence the championship celebrations.

With the win, High Rollers walked away with $400,000, the winner’s trophy, and the earned right to represent the zone at the National Championships. Amazings collected $150,000 and a trophy.

Meanwhile, Capital Storm dismissed Silver Bullets 4-1.

Akeem Singh tallied a brace in the fourth and 24th minutes, before completing the result with a GG in the 30th minute.

Jermaine Samuels netted for Silver Bullets in the first minute. With the result, Capital Storm walked away with $100,000, while Silver Bullets had to settle for $75,000.

The event continues in the month of June with the Bartica Championships. The other major sponsor of the event is Colours Boutique.

22

monday, MAY 20, 2019

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

4th Independence Classic…

GDF, Running Brave sweep electrifying relays

The victorious 4x400m GDF team

Odwin Tudor rewrote the 3000m Steeplechase record

Marks wins it by a toe. Loneil Marks beat Daniel Williams by a spilt-second in the Men's 18+ 200m

n exhilarating Men’s 18+ 200m race and the Open 4x400m race were highlights of the day as the Independence Classic track and field event concluded on Sunday in front of a fair sized but boisterous crowd.

Organized by the Athletics Association of Guyana (AAG) and the Guyana Overseas Based Sports Association (GOBSA), the event featured athletes from as young as 6 years old.

As promised by the Club before the meet, the Hopetown Flames out of Berbice figuratively set the track on fire, and the biggest upset was when Loneil Marks put a toe on the finish line just before popular sprinter Daniel Williams did, to take the Men’s 18+ 200m gold. Marks clocked a time of 21.36s, while Williams, of Upper Demerara Schools, clocked 21.37s. Third place was taken by Stephon Boodie of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) with a time of 22.69s.

Williams, however, could not be stopped in the 400m race, wherein he took gold with a time of 48.97s. Brian Roman of the Guyana Defence Force and Courtly Bobb

of Hopetown Flames made up the podium with times of 49.02s and 50.39s respectively.

The female versions of those races were swept by Running Brave’s Kenisha Phillips, who clocked 24.90s in the 100m dash and 58.99s in the 400m race. Alita Moore of the GPF placed second in both races with a time of 25.42s in the 100m and 1:00.05s in the 400m.

Kenisha Phillips completed her sprint triple with another win in the 100m race, wherein she clocked 11.94s.

She was followed once again by Alita Moore, who ran 12.18s for second.

The men’s 3000m Steeplechase saw a record breaking performance from Odwin Tudor of the GDF, who placed first with a time of 9:54.91s. The previous record, which was set in the 1950s, stood at 10 minutes 2 seconds.

Royston Fordyce of the GDF clocked 10:01.25s for the second position, while renowned distance athlete Cleveland Thomas of Running Brave took third with 10:09.12s.

Track fans, parents, athletes, officials and other specta-

tors were moved to their feet when the marquee races were ready to sound off.

The Guyana Defence Force was the team to beat in both the Male 4x100m and 4x400m races, wherein they swept gold. The team clocked 41.09s in the 4x100m race, while the 4x400m team clocked 3:19.63s for the win.

The Hopetown Flames’ teams took home silver in both races, with 41.65s in the 4x100m and 3:20.40s in the 4x400m. The University of Guyana crossed the line third in the 4x100m race with 43.48s, while the Guyana Police Force took third in the 4x4 race with a time of 3:27.71s.

In the female 4x100m event, Running Brave ‘A’ took top honours with a time of 48.82s. Running Brave ‘B’ crossed the line second with 49.38s, while 51.89s was the time for the third-placed GDF. The 4x400m saw a similar result, with Running Brave ‘A’ taking the gold with a time of 3:55.32s. The GPF ‘A’ team was second, clocking a time of 4:02.85s; while Running Brave ‘B’ clocked 4:16.06s for third place.

A

Hand-in-Hand set to brand Guyana Corona Futsal Tournament…

Final eight decided Regional U-19 Team

T

Hand-in-Hand executive Howard Cox presenting the ‘three-day’ winning trophy to Berbice U-19 Captain Kevlon Anderson

I

t has been revealed that the insurance giants Handin-Hand will be one of the official partners for the Guyana team that will participate in the upcoming Regional U-19 tournament in 2019.

Guyana are the defending champions from 2018, when they won the 50-over title in St Vincent and the Grenadines for a fifth consecutive time, and they will be eying a sixth consecutive championship.

This 2019 tournament will play in only one version, the 50-over title, and Guyana will be eying to continue their winning ways.

The tournament has been slated to play in Guyana, but the venue remains unconfirmed. Guyana will have at least eight members from the 2018 squad playing in the 2019 tournament.

In 2017, Guyana also reigned supreme in the U-19 One-Day championship, when they won the title in St Kitts and Nevis under one of the most successful youth coaches, Julian Moore. Speaking at the presentation ceremony, Head of Cricket Guyana Inc., Anand Sanasie, disclosed that the branding of the Regional U-19 Team is an

additional incentive.

He further added that this U-19 tournament is the premiere tournament, not only for Guyana U-19 selection, but for transition into the senior levels, where some of the players may earn Academy contracts. The Insurance giants Hand-in-Hand have continued to show their interest in cricket by taking an inter-county match to Berbice after it had been absent for a decade from that county.

The 2019 Hand-in-hand Inter-County tournament remains a success year after year, with players participating in the tournament moving up to higher levels in representing Guyana and the West Indies. The 2019 inter-county tournament saw four West Indies U-19 selectees participating, and one of them has U-19 World Cup experience.

Ashmead Nedd, a left-arm spinner, has had the opportunity, while his Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) teammate Sachin Singh and Berbicians Kelvin Umroa and Kevlon Anderson are the Windies U-19 selectees that are products of the Hand-in-Hand U-19 Inter-County tournament.

he quarterfinal stage of the Corona Futsal Tournament was decided following the conclusion of the round-robin stage on Saturday night at the National Gymnasium.

Back Circle, Bent Street, Sparta Boss, Future Stars, Tiger Bay and West Front Road have finished atop the three Groups; while California Square and North East La Penitence, the best third-place finishers, have each earned a spot in the final eight teams to contest the quarterfinals.

California Square demolished Beacons 7–nil in Saturday’s opening match. A helmet-trick from David George, who scored in the 2nd, 3rd, 5th and 18th minutes, together with a goal each coming from Travis Hercules, Mishack Baritta and Jamal Adams, enabled the California Square win.

Match two on Saturday saw Future Stars blast Mocha into the past with a 9-2 demolishing. Jamal Cozier’s helmet-trick (3rd, 5th, 8th & 13th minutes), and William Europe’s hat-trick (12th, 14th & 19th minutes), coupled with a goal each from Keran Solomon and Shamar Fraser, produced a result that was more than enough to overshadow the opposition. Mocha’s two goals were scored by Amos Ramsay and Delroy Lowenfield.

West Front Road then crushed Tucville 5 – 1. Doubles from Hubert Pedro and Colin Nelson, and a single successful strike from Randolph Wagner, propelled West Front Road to victory. Carl Griffith scored Tucville’s consolation goal in the 10th minute.

The night’s final victory went to a fighting Bent Street, who defeated Leopold Street 3-2. Bent Street led from the first minute with an early strike from Sheldon Holder, then their lead was extended in the 15th minute when Pernel Schultz scored; and it was made a three-possession game a minute later when Holder scored his second goal.

However, two quick goals from Okenny Fraser -- in the 19th and 20th minutes -- signalled what looked like a Leopold Street comeback, but the eventual victor ensured no such thing happened.

Trayon Bob’s 13th minute goal for Back Circle and Jermaine Junior’s 14th minute goal for Sparta Boss warranted a draw in the final match of the night.

The other showdown between North East and Tiger Bay ended in a nil-all stalemate.

guyanatimesgy.com

monday, MAY 20, 2019

23

Hand-in-Hand One-Day U-19 Inter-County Tournament…

Demerara dethrone Berbice to win 50-Over title - Mootoo, Singh game–changers

of 38 between Kevlon Anderson t was a fairytale endand Deonauth ing to the 2019 HandPersaud swung the in-Hand Under-19 Intermomentum back in County One-Day tournament, the Berbicians’ favour. with Demerara getting the fiHowever, West Indies nal laugh with a five-wickU-19 player Ashmead et win in the grand finale at Nedd put an end to the Georgetown Cricket Club the promising partner(GCC) ground at Bourda. ship when he removed Watched by some vocal supPersaud for 14, caught by porters mostly from Torrington in the field.

Demerara, Nedd continued to Berbice show his class with the displayed ball when he got his opan ordiposite number, West nary batIndies U-19 teammate ting efAnderson.

Arguably fort when the most prolifthey were ic youth batsman restricted to in the country, 115 all out.

Anderson looked The hosts, in good touch; Demerara, but soon after achieved their hitting a six, he target in 27.5 was adjudged overs, ending leg-before for on 116-5.

33 from 65 The double balls, includdefending chaming one four pions, Berbice, won and one six off the toss and electthe bowling of ed to bat first on a Nedd. slow-turner.

They W i t h lost Alex Algoo earBerbice at 64ly when he was out 4, Demerara caught for four by opted for Sachin Singh off the torque inducbowling of Joel Spooner. tion, as only His fellow opener Junior one of the final Sinclair also fell for a sinseven batsmen gle-digit score when he for Berbice made edged one to wicket-keepit to double figer Yeudistir Persaud off ures.

Demerara Qumar Torrington. got the final sevDaniel Mootoo was With Berbice at 17- in fine form with en wickets for a 2, Demerara took con- the ball, taking four mere 51 runs, with (Brandon Seon Glasgow betrol of the match, but a wickets Corlette photos) third-wicket partnership ing left stranded at

By Brandon Corlette

I

the crease for an unbeaten 21 off 38 balls as he watched his team crumble to 115 all out in 38.3 overs.

Left-arm spinner Daniel Mootoo was the star with the ball, taking 4-32 in 9.3 overs. He was well backed up by his fellow spinners Spooner and Nedd, who had two wickets each.

In response, Demerara had a solid start despite the loss of Robin Williams (04). Sachin Singh had come to the party, and he displayed some powerful shots at Bourda. Berbice began proceedings on the wrong note, as they failed to follow the spintrend, the pacers Leon Swamy and Anderson leaking 21 runs in two overs.

Singh played the shot of the day when he hit Swamy out of the ground and into Regent Street. The West Indies U-19 selectee bullied his way into the runs chart after being dropped in the previous match.

His return to duty for Demerara literally took the game away from the opposition with a counter-attacking 48 from 42 balls, which included four sixes and two fours before he was outfoxed by the brilliance of Nigel Deodat when he was out caught.

The stabilizer, Alphius Bookie, anchored the innings with a responsible 30, but was dismissed on the brink of Demerara’s victory at 1065. Andrew Samaroo sealed the match with a boundary through mid-wicket. He scored an unbeaten seven while skipper Nedd scored 10 to ensure his team a championship victory with the score on 116-5 in 27.5 overs.

Kelvin Umroa, who finished the

tourn a ments as the leading wicket-taker with 31 wickets, had 2-35, while the gifted Deodat had 2-19 in a losing effort.

H a n d - i n Hand, the insurance giants, among other executives of Cricket Guyana Inc. (CGI), hailed the tournament a success.

Junior Sinclair was a w a r d ed Most Valuable Player (MVP), a n d h e also

Sachin Singh showed his true colours with an explosive knock

copped the award for the most runs with 374 runs, edging Alex Algoo who was in contention.

Kelvin Umroa finished with the most wickets, edging Joel Spooner in the wickets’ race.

Berbice won the three-day title earlier at Lusignan, but failed to achieve the double. The captain, Kevlon Anderson, was satisfied with his team’s performances throughout the tournament, but he revealed that the batting let the team down in the final. Anderson stated that the

game w a s lost when Sachin Singh scored those invaluable 40-odd runs.

Meanwhile, Demerara captain Ashmead Nedd was delighted with his team’s effort. He stated that Berbice had defeated them twice in this tournament, but it is a good feeling to win the important match. Nedd, who is a sure selection for the Guyana U-19 Team, was happy to win a championship in his final year at junior cricket.

US Embassy Staff 9-hole Better-Ball Tournament…

Bates, Cadogan reign as champions S tarting almost an hour later than planned because of the several golfers who called in insisting that they be allowed to play despite being delayed for legitimate reasons, the US Embassy’s Staff inaugural Open 9-hole Better-Ball golf tournament turned out to be a massive session with amazing success.

A genuinely electric atmosphere, exuding from some 40 excited golfers in addition to as many spectators coming from the US Embassy, ExxonMobil, the IDB, SlumberJs, ANSA McAL, Crown Mining, the media and local spectators, transformed the naturally exhilarating Lusignan Golf Club and Course into a refreshing and fabulous experience of friendly rivalry, keen competitiveness, extreme goodwill and great fun. (Part of the event was live-streamed by Guyanese Critic.)

Solomon Bannister of the US Embassy, a new member of the LGC, organized the event with club President Aleem Hussain, and agreed that some of the proceeds would go to media personnel Mia Ritchie of NCN, whose home had recently been destroyed by fire. With an ingenious combination of local players and visiting / embassy players, President Hussain must be credited for his tremendous ideas for Club’s development, improvement and expansion, and social contribution, as he seeks to spread the game of golf in Guyana.

Ritchie was on hand to receive the contribution from member Guillermo Escarraga, CEO of Macorp, (picture at right) and ex-

From left: Ziev, Joe Lamaina, Guillermo Escarraga, Imtiaz Subhan, Videsh Persaud, Patanjilee Persaud, Maxim Mangra, Troy Cadogan, Daniel Bates, Sean Bundles, Aleem Hussain and Solomon Bannister

pressed her gratitude to all involved for reaching out to her in support. Escarraga noted that the social responsibility of the LGC is a task taken seriously, and that the Club would always seek to give back to those in need whenever possible. (Macorp is soon to unveil their multi-million-dollar lighted driving range, set to open in time for their grand tournament of June 8.)

Bannister thanked his team from the US Embassy for their great performance and camaraderie, and promised them that the day’s events have clearly marked the LGC as a place for great social events of the Embassy staff. Prizes were distributed by Solomon Bannister and Col McNamara of the US

Embassy, and Ivan Gaviria of the IDB. The Better-Ball format is a variation in Golf wherein two persons play as a team.

Each player is given an opportunity to play a ball at each legitimate time of play, and the ball which was played better is accepted as the ball of play, the worse-played ball being ignored.

A combination of ExxonMobil staffer Daniel Bates and local member Troy Cadogan (Manager Director of ANSA McAL) was the pair to emerge as champions with an excellent net score, while 2nd, 3rd and 4th places were also won by similar combinations. The record of the day’s play reads as follows: 1st – Daniel Bates & Troy Cadogan

(Net 24 / Joint Handicap 13); 2nd – Videsh Persaud & Imtiaz Subhan (25/12); 3rd – Ziev & Guillermo Escarraga (29/11); and 4 th-Joe Lamaina & Maxim Mangra (29/12).

After the top four, the results were very significant, with three ties for net 30 and three ties for net 31 – Aleem Hussain & Sean Bundles (30/5); Kassim Khan & Jeremy Fernandes (30/5); Mahindranauth Tiwari & Mauro (30/8); Robin Tiwari & Bispat (31/8); Fazil Haniff & Gaelen (31/8), and Aasrodeen Shaw & Ehmling (also 31/8).

Solomon Bannister & Ray turned in a commendable 32/14, while Romel Bhagwandin & Kendrick turned in 32/9. (This was the second week in a row when an Exxon Player triumphed, with Errin Mitchell taking home top honours last week.)

In the skills portion of the match, Patanjilee ‘Pur’ Persaud, with a 300-yard drive, crushed the competition -- which included regular champions Richard Haniff and Max Persaud -- to walk away with the trophy for Longest Drive. The best shot for Nearest the Pin came down to a matter of inches between playing partners Aleem Hussain and Sean Bundles of the US Embassy, with Sean taking the trophy home.

With a packed schedule of tournaments in the months ahead, the LGC will be teeming with action and events, and all are invited to spectate or learn the game absolutely free of charge. For more information, please visit Facebook: Lusignan Golf Cub or call 645-0944.

monday, MAY 20, 2019

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

guyanatimesgy.com

Hand-in-Hand One-Day U-19 Inter-County Tournament…

Demerara dethrone Berbice to win 50-Over title Page 23

One-Day 50-over champion team, Demerara

Page 21

High Rollers trample Amazings for Guinness ‘Linden’ title High Rollers receiving their spoils following their tournament triumph over Amazings

GUYANA TIMES - www.guyanatimesgy.com, email: news@guyanatimesgy.com, NEWS HOTLINE: 231-8063 EDITORIAL: 223-7230, 223-7231, 231-0544, 225-7761 SPORT: sport@guyanatimesgy.com SALES AND MARKETING: 231-8064 - marketing@guyanatimesgy.com - PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY GUYANA TIMES INC.