Guyanatime 10 april 2018

Training needed to improve leadership P13 in education sector – Minister Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Tuesday, April 10, 2018

Issue No. 3529

Mother to serve 98 years for killing children Page 10

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WHAT'S INSIDE: Linden sexual assault

AFC member P15 allegedly took delegates to businessman for sponsorship ECD man P8 remanded to prison for threatening to kill President

Body of man fished out of Carifesta Avenue trench P12 Twenty-five-year-old Hofoswana Awena Rutherford being escorted by prison officers from court on Monday after she was sentenced by Justice Navindra

Singh

PAC hears

Region 5 driver given free housing, handpicked for promotion Page 3

Basil Williams hints at contesting PNCR chairmanship P11

…position not advertised, despite ministry’s instruction

Drug shortage forces doctors, nurses to sit-in at Skeldon Hospital Page 12

Convict escapes while working at prison officer’s house Page 9

No place for corruption in security sector – UK diplomat P7

…calls for jailing of dishonest officials

Mae’s 42% fee hike

Parents protest

…call for Govt's intervention

Page 9

GCCI, MAPM against parking meters's return …plan to raise objections with City Hall P13

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tuesDAY, April 10, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

news

PAC hears

BRIDGE OPENINGS

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

Tuesday, April 10 – a night-time retraction at 01:00h and a day-time retraction at 12:30h-14:00h and Wednesday, April 11 – a night-time retraction at 02:00h and a day-time retraction at 13:00h-14:30h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Tuesday, April 10 – 12:45h-14:15h and Wednesday, April 11 – 13:30h-15:00h.

Region 5 driver given free housing, handpicked for promotion …position not advertised, despite Ministry’s instruction

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY Light cloudy skies can be expected with light rain showers throughout the day. Light cloudy skies can be expected in the evening. Temperatures are expected to range between 21 degrees Celsius and 29 degrees Celsius.

Winds: East North-easterly to North-easterly between 1.78 metres and 7.15 metres.

High Tide: 12:28 reaching a maximum height of 2.09 metres.

Low Tide: 05:58h and 18:38h reaching minimum heights of 1.21 metres and 1.09 metres respectively.

SATURDAY, April 7, 2018

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tuesDAY, April 10, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Region 5 REO Ovid Morrison

PAC Chairman Irfaan Ali

Q

for fuel for himself. However, Morrison denied that the officer ever requisitioned fuel for his own vehicle.

According to Morrison, he was doing so for other vehicles. Ali urged Auditor General Deodat Sharma, who was present at the sitting, to look into this.

It was subsequently revealed that there was a letter attesting to the driver commencing official duty as transport officer.

uestionable employment practices in Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice) and suspicious privileges and responsibilities being afforded to one of the Region’s drivers were put under the microscope during the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) hearing on Monday.

Appearing before the PAC was Regional Executive Officer (REO) Ovid Morrison.

He was made to account for the deferential treatment of his driver, Frank Wilson, who was provided with housing at the Region’s expense despite not being entitled to such.

Questions were also raised about the “heavy duty driver” being promoted to transport officer. The position was not advertised, despite express instructions from the Ministry of the Presidency’s Public Service Department that this be done.

He had previously been performing the functions of transport officer, including signing off and certifying payments for maintenance work done on vehicles, until his elevation. He had also been functioning as a requisition officer for fuel and spares since 2016.

In the regional administration’s official response, it claimed that approval was actually granted for the position to be created and the individual was recommended owing to his experience.

PAC Chairman Irfaan Ali pointed to a number of infractions recorded by the Auditor General, including instances where a driver was cited signing off on payments

Turn to page 15

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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

Autism Awareness

A

pril is Autism Awareness Month, also referred to by some people as Autism Acceptance Month. Autism, or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is characterised by challenges with social skills, communication, and by repetitive behaviour.

Around the world, hundreds of thousands of landmarks, buildings, homes, and communities will be lit up with light blue lights in recognition of people living with autism. Autism-friendly events and educational activities take place all month, to increase understanding and acceptance and foster worldwide support. World Autism Awareness Day can trace its roots back to November 1, 2007. This is when the United Nations first requested that a day be established as World Autism Day. This resolution was passed on December 18, 2007. Autism Awareness Month grew out of World Autism Awareness Day (WAAD), commemorated on April 2 every year.

Locally, this year, a ceremony was held at the University of Guyana in recognition of the UN’s World Autism Awareness Day. This followed an invitation from the “Autism Speaks” organisation for the institution to be involved in the global “Light It up Blue” campaign. As of April 6, 2018, every night for the rest of the month, the Registry building at the Turkeyen Campus will be lit blue.

This is in keeping with the worldwide observance of World Autism Awareness Month 2018.

This symbolic gesture was intended to unite the world to shine a light on autism and increase greater understanding and acceptance for children, individuals, and families across the globe. According to the founder of Sorsha Williams Foundation for Autism and Special Education, Karen Williams, persons living with this developmental disorder are often placed under an umbrella. She further explained that the demands of living with a child with autism are great, and families frequently experience high levels of stress.

What’s more, World Autism Awareness Day goes one step further to celebrate the unique talents of those with autism, while putting a huge focus on the warm embrace and welcome that these skills deserve through community events around the globe.

World Autism Awareness Day aims to put a spotlight on the hurdles that people with autism – and others living with autism – face every day. As a growing global health issue owing to its increasing exposure in the press, autism is an issue that is only gaining more understanding; and WAAD activities are planned every year to further increase and develop the world’s knowledge of children and adults who have Autism Spectrum Disorder.

As more people become aware of the autism spectrum, more parents reach out for answers. More awareness leads to more knowledge and greater visibility. More people who aren’t living with autism learn to accept, and respect, people who are. At present, there are no official statistics on the number of autistic persons in Guyana; Government officials should, therefore, be keen to acquire the numbers, to better understand the complex disorder that affects communication and behaviour.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a neurological disorder that typically appears during the first years of life, and affects the development of the child in three broad areas: communication skills, social skills, and repetitive or rigid behaviours. As reflected in the name, children with Autism Spectrum Disorder vary greatly in terms of the level and type of impairment. Current statistics suggest that approximately 1 in 88 children has an autism spectrum disorder.

The rate of autism in all regions of the world is high, and the lack of understanding has a tremendous impact on the individuals, their families, and communities.

Further, stigmatisation and discrimination associated with neurological differences remain substantial obstacles to diagnosis and therapy, an issue that must be addressed by both public policy-makers in developing nations, as well as donor countries.

While there are several local companies who already make autism causes a part of their charitable giving, there are many who have not yet jumped on board. Please consider doing so, autism is real; it affects us all. Those affected by autism need not only our understanding but our support. More importantly, those on the spectrum deserve our understanding and support. This disorder affects males and females of all races in all parts of the world.

The Poy Sang Long ceremony marks a rite of passage among the Shan peoples in Myanmar and northern Thailand. Boys between seven and fourteen years of age are temporarily ordained as Buddhist novices, pampered and carried around on the shoulders of their older male relatives (BBC)

We must stop the parking meters Dear Editor, City Hall debated and voted to approve the parking meter by-laws. Two of the vocal opponents of the parking meter contract -Councillors Duncan and Jaikaran, both AFC members -- were absent from the debate and the vote. A third AFC member came late to the meeting, and then abstained. It was curious and puzzling that these AFC members took such a low profile in the debate and voting for the parking meter by-laws, given their previously robust objection.

Were they under instructions from AFC leaders to stand down? Was the AFC leadership intimidated, given the prominent PNC/ APNU warnings that the parking meter by-laws must be passed, and the City Council be given a smooth space to impose parking meters on the citizens of Georgetown and on citizens that visit and work in Georgetown? Did they stand down because the AFC broke ranks with APNU? It is now expected that the

Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan, will approve the by-laws in about two weeks, clearing the way for the parking meters to become operational again.

Unless Bulkan resists instructions from higher-ups, his approval is certain. We know this much because Minister Harmon has already pronounced that the Granger-led Government has no objections when he made clear that City Hall must be allowed to implement the parking meter contract.

Two weeks ago, I challenged the political parties to state their position now on the parking meters. I fully expect that citizens will come out in rejection of this new iteration of the parking meters, and this rejection will come in the form of boycotts and through public protests. The private sector has already indicated its objection, and the Movement Against the Parking Meters is expected to protest soon.

My challenge was for political parties and leaders to come out before public pro-

tests and stand on principles and conviction, not wait to see where and how the wind is blowing.

When the original parking meter contract was enforced in Georgetown (2016/2017), and the boycott and protest were overwhelming, the AFC cowardly embraced Councillor Duncan’s earlier objection to the parking meters as an AFC position. This is in spite of prior equivocation on the matter

by AFC leaders. What drove them to eventually express dissatisfaction with the parking meter contract fiasco was its total repudiation by citizens. The AFC’s position then was driven by vulgar political opportunism, and not by conviction.

We now are at a stage when City Hall is awaiting the approval from Minister Bulkan, which is guaranteed by positions already expressed by Minister Harmon and Oscar Clarke. We have no idea where AFC stands, other than being part of the collective of the APNU/AFC Cabinet, for whom Minister Harmon spoke. This also

applies to the WPA, which is part of the APNU+AFC Cabinet.

In the absence of any public position, and in the midst of their total silence, coupled with the puzzling behaviour of their members on the City Council, I have to assume that the AFC has capitulated and is now fully behind the parking meter contract. The AFC appears to be standing with City Hall, standing against the citizens.

My reading is that APNU/PNC, AFC and the WPA support City Hall to impose parking meters under still rigid and onerous conditions for citizens, while the PPP is opposed to City Hall imposing parking meters. We have arrived again, therefore, at a time for People’s Power to intervene.

We must stop the parking meters. The green monsters must not be allowed to defile our citizens. We stopped them before, we can stop them again.

Sincerely, Dr Leslie Ramsammy

Jailing of Lula is an attack on democracy Dear Editor, The arrest and sentencing of former President of Brazil, Lula da Silva, is one of the most shameful pages in the recent history of Latin America.

It is hard not to conclude that this is a vicious political act to prevent Lula from being a candidate in the Presidential election later this year.

Lula has done a great

amount of work to lift the vast masses of Brazilian people out of poverty. He has worked hard for the unity of Latin America and the Caribbean. He remains the most popular leader in Brazil, and is one of the most respected in the region.

This jailing of Lula is an attack on democracy in our region. It is endangering all the democratic gains made by the people of Latin

America and the Caribbean.

Gains that were achieved through struggles in which many lost their lives.

I extend solidarity to the peoples of our continent and the Caribbean in general, and to the democratic forces in Brazil in particular, on the attack on one of our foremost fighters for peace and social progress.

I join my voice with the millions throughout

the world in calling for the immediate release of President Lula. I call on the Government of Guyana to condemn this attack and demand the release of President Lula. Let us work together to stop the persecution of the patriots of our continent.

Sincerely, Donald Ramotar Former President

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

Why would WPA leaders heap scorn upon Roopnaraine? (Pt 2) Dear Editor, In 1979, when the WPA declared itself a political party, the social reality of Guyana took a dramatic turn. It had changed from a pressure group into a contender for political power. It was a direct challenge to the “big boys”. Prime Minister Burnham declared that university professors could engage in academic exercises, but once they stepped into the political arena, they would be subjected to a different set of rules, rules more akin to the Roman amphitheatre. He boasted of his sharper steel. The political reality of Guyana took on a new persona, one that forever changed the historical narrative of Guyana from that day forward, creating a new narrative regarding the sociological reality in terms of the racial divide. The Jagan/Burnham political/ racial dichotomy had been

seriously challenged, and both men realised the danger the WPA posed to their racial blocs.

At a public meeting, Eusi Kwayana raised the hands of both Walter Rodney and Rupert Roopnaraine, clasped them together, and proclaimed that these two men represented the new political/racial reality of Guyana. It was a moment of inspiration for many Guyanese of all races, one that they will forever cherish. Without that hope of a new dawn, Guyana is doomed. With the assassination of Walter Rodney, Rupert Roopnaraine, at that time, assumed a heavy burden of ensuring that vision of the WPA remained alive.

Freddie Kissoon makes the claim that, “I knew the WPA burnt down the Ministry of National Development. I know that it stole the arms that were

removed from the People’s Temple when Jonestown collapsed and other conspiratorial things. I know the little illegal things I did.”

There is no indication by Kissoon whether his knowledge of the events he claimed were first hand or second hand. It raises the question as to why the Burnhamled PNC State was unable to prove what Kissoon claims that he has definitive proof of, despite hauling the arson trio to court as in the case of the burning down of the Ministry of National Development, a ministry which was in reality the PNC headquarters financed by State funds under the Doctrine of the Paramountcy of the ruling party.

Many of the young cadres at the time felt the loss of Dr Rodney profoundly as he was their mentor.

Several sought solace in the

person of Dr Roopnaraine for leadership at that critical juncture of the party’s history. They were granted that invaluable insight that Kissoon wished he had access to, but deliberately spurned, that of “being close to such a giant of an intellectual with such a deep analytical mind.” These young men and women did learn “priceless and valuable lessons in sociology and history.” Dr Roopnaraine shared his profound insights with them. Today they yearn for the person they knew him to be. Kissoon’s “tragic decline of a brilliant mind” reminds us of that reality.

If Kissoon’s definition of “honesty” is taken at face value, should Dr Roopnaraine have confessed to the burning down of the de facto PNC headquarters assuming Kissoon’s knowledge of the facts of the matter to be true? If Kissoon is

prepared to argue that “history is more important than friendship”, then he must tell us when “history” begins and when “friendship” ends.

There is also a question mark as to what Kissoon meant by “friendship”.

Kissoon failed to give testimony at the Walter Rodney Commission of Inquiry, where his “honesty” would have set the historical record straight. He states that Dr Roopnaraine did not give names to the claim “(w) hen he admitted that the WPA was stockpiling arms to overthrow Burnham”. It is unlikely such testimony would carry much weight, since any person could make such claims without any means of corroboration from independent sources. More fundamentally, the WPA never depended on the use of arms to remove the Burnham dictatorship, so the statement

is very inaccurate if taken out of context.

The claim that the WPA is a dead party has been made by Kissoon on numerous occasions. Is Kissoon making a case that “the decline of a brilliant mind” of Dr Rupert Roopnaraine is a major contributing factor to the lingering presence of the corpse? Political parties are known to come back to life when the occasion demands it. Kissoon, more than any other critic, has kept the WPA alive with his high expectations of the party, expectations he claims it has failed to live up to. He remains one of the WPA’s best friends with his critique of the shortcomings of the party, regardless if they be real or imagined.

Sincerely, Rohit Kanhai WPAOA Member

Separating race from politics Mental health training in the GPF, GDF Dear Editor, We have made a fateful and depressive decision to align our political system along racial lines, and we have seen its destruction unravel us like a tsunami from the beginning to now. I have always wondered why we must be in a situation like this and why is it we cannot separate politics and the development of Guyana from who we are as different races.

After learning more about our beloved brother Walter Rodney, I understood that race and politics have always been a tool of manipulation to control the people and keep them with just enough to survive, but not enough to thrive and have a voice for determination.

When the slave masters left our country, our own brothers and sisters who had some position of control wanted to live like the slaves masters, so they continued the trend of the British to exploit their own.

As our leaders schemed

and propagated the divide and conquer strategy by pitting Indians and Blacks against each other, it morphed into an uncontrollable beast that we now accept as normal. But we never took the time to see, that upper-class Blacks exploited other Blacks while upper-class Indians did the same to their own race. And sadly, all political campaigns in Guyana have always been about racial division and this never changed to this day.

The truth is that there have always been only two choices in Guyana and that’s either the PPP or PNC, and if someone chooses to cross the line on the grounds of politics, they would immediately be branded a traitor on either side. In effect, we have closed all possibility of hope to have a political system that supports objective thinking based on what Guyanese deserves and not what a politician or party wants.

Rodney was the only lead-

er that offered a way that was better for Guyana and that is why he was killed. But it is important that we do not forget what Rodney stood for, his dream must live on and grow so that we can find a way forward that gives us a better future. I chose to support the PPP in 2015 not because of race, but because I believe that they are more efficient and progressive than the PNC. As a mixed-race Guyanese coming from an Indian and Amerindian mother and Black and White father, I have embraced my African, Amerindian and Indian roots because at a deeper level, there is not much difference between them. We all need the same things: to provide for our families a better life for them that is not hard as we had it and that our politicians do not forget this simple need as they take control of our tax dollars.

Sincerely, Malcolm Watkins

Dear Editor, The Caribbean Voice (TCV) has been in the forefront of calling for mental health training for all Police Officers which would not only make them better prepared to handle cases involving mental health issues such as child abuse, domestic violence and suicide, but will also make them more aware of mental health issues affecting their colleagues. This issue was also raised in a recent meeting with the personal assistant to Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan.

Also, TCV recalls being contacted by the GDF, a few years ago, to conduct suicide prevention workshops for members of the GDF. Our follow-up attempts to finalise arrangements for the workshops elicited no responses from the source that had made initial contact with us. However, the issue of mental health workshops for the GDF mem-

Bartica in need of nursing school Dear Editor, Over one hundred residents, young people in particular, are calling on the A Partnership for National Unity /Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government for the establishment of a nursing school in Bartica, Region Seven, to support this recently-commissioned town and its environs.

Parents and nursing students have disclosed the difficulty faced in having to travel outside of Bartica to attend nursing school in other regions and the high cost associated with the rental of apartments, food, transportation, and utilities among other obligations.

On numerous occasions, members of the Government, and even President David Granger

himself, would have visited Bartica and promised to upgrade, improve, and develop Bartica following its township status.

After numerous requests by residents of Bartica, the Bartica United Youth Development Group (BUYDG) makes representation on their behalf to have the Government develop this facility soon.

Under the last Administration, BUYDG had made requests for the improvement of the health sector in Bartica.

Deficiencies in the system included the shortage of medication and the absence of an ambulance at Bartica Hospital among other issues.

The current Government has managed to address

some of these matters, and the sector itself has seen some expansion, which now increases the demand for more nurses to be included within the town’s health sector.

Young people who recently completed secondary school in Region Seven and are leaning toward the health profession are loudest in their calls for the nursing school, since they know they would have to seek the training outside of Bartica.

BUYDG fully supports the residents’ request for the establishment of the nursing school in Bartica. With the expansion of the town, its rise to becoming a green location with high economic and social prospects, the need for better health care is paramount; a nursing school

is just an investment in that direction.

The BUYDG will be seeking an engagement with the relevant Government agency, and we trust that there will be full support for this absolutely necessary facility.

Region Seven is well known for its mining contributions to the nation and is seeking this advantage toward improving the health sector in the Region.

We see great potential with this nursing school and look forward to Government’s support of this project.

Yours faithfully, Micah Williams General President Bartica United Youth Development Group

bers was also raised with Minister Ramjattan’s personal assistant in that recent meeting.

In an article in 2016, the US magazine, “Psychology Today” pointed out that: “Almost a quarter of (US) military members have symptoms of at least one mental health condition.” In fact, research indicates that soldiers and Police in general are more susceptible to mental health dysfunction than the general population. And Guyana would be no exception to this reality. Thus, whether through TCV, or any other entity or combination of entities, all members of the GPF and the GDF should be provided

with urgent mental health training on the one hand and enough psychologists (one psychologist centrally located would be woefully inadequate) to ensure a proactive approach to diagnosing and addressing mental health issues.

Referencing Captain Orwain Sandy, one letter writer asked whether there are more ‘ticking time bombs’. The Caribbean Voice urges the establishment of a mechanism, in both the GPF and the GDF, to detect and defuse all such time bombs before further harm results.

Sincerely, The Caribbean Voice

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Foundation

– every child wants to be good and to be loved

By Meri Wallace

F

our-year-old Maddie is lying in her bed talking to her mom. Feeling ashamed, she keeps her face covered with her blanket.

Maddie: Mom. I think I’m becoming one of those bad kids.

Mom: Why do you think you’re bad?

Maddie: I can’t tell you.

Mom: Did you do something that you felt was wrong?

Maddie: (Almost in a whisper.) Today I was chewing on my new library book.

Every child wants to be good and to be loved. This is the cornerstone of a child’s moral development. When your child pulls his cat’s tail and you get mad, he may question you throughout the day, “Am I bad?” or “Do you still love me?” He may even lie and say he didn’t do it, because he fears losing your love. Your child may beseech your forgiveness by saying repeatedly, “I try to be good.”

As her parent, you may find it hard to believe that she is so concerned with right and wrong when she takes that forbidden cookie, lies, or hits her brother for the millionth time. (Doesn’t she know the rules by now?)

You may even get frightened when you see this behaviour. You want him to know the difference between right and wrong. You want him to be honest, polite, trustworthy, giving, kind, and loving. In a scary world such as ours, where many people behave as if they have no morals, you may be fearful that he won’t learn these positive values This fear may cause you to overreact and assign grown-up meanings to your child’s actions. For example, when you see your four-yearold taking candy from a shelf at the store, you might think, “Oh my goodness – she is going to be a thief!”

Sticking out her tongue at Grandma? “Oh no. She’s going to grow up to be a rude adult!”

Kicking a classmate at school? “She is

going to be an axe murderer!”

The truth is, you can relax. The reason your child is still engaging in this behaviour is developmental, not because of a lack of moral fibre. He’s just not emotionally mature, as yet.

Young children are often egocentric.

They are guided by their impulses and wishes, so they will have a hard time if you ask them to stop jumping on the couch.

They’re having too much fun. Even older children display similar behaviours.

It is hard for children to gain control over their impulses. Even as adults we can identify with this difficulty, if we think about how tricky it is to guide our hand past a luscious brownie when we’re hungry, and choose a banana instead.

Conscience Around the age of five or six, children have developed a conscience – which is actually an internalised set of rules that you have taught them. Your regulations become her inner stop sign and will direct her. (Though it may be hard for you to believe, someday she’ll actually throw t h o s e dirty

socks in the hamper.) Initially, she adopts your rules to please you. Later on, following these directives becomes a part of who she is.

You can help this process along by setting clear, reasonable limits and modelling your values. If you want your child to be respectful, treat him, your family, and the neighbours respectfully.

(He is watching.) If you want him to be honest, never lie to him. If you want him to be responsible for his actions and apologise, then you must apologise to him when you make a mistake. If you say please and thank you, he will be polite.

Your child loves you, so he will identify with you and behave as you do. Your ideas will become his, and guide his behaviour.

In the meantime, sometimes she will be able to follow the rules and behave positively. She will use her words and say, “I’m angry”, rather than hit, or ask for another piece of candy, rather than sneak one. If she transgresses she may even say, “I’m sorry.”

He will practice by saying the rules aloud, “It’s not right to put your hand out the car window, right?” and cautioning others about the re g u l a t i o n s , “You have to wear your bicycle h e l m e t .”

He will also report to the adults, “ O o h .

Brother said a bad word.” Tattletaling, though historically frowned upon, is actually a sign that he realises the rules are important, he’s trying hard to comply, and his conscience is developing. (psychologytoday.com)

B

eing a toddler is all about action. Encourage continued language development and interest in books and reading by keeping things lively and engaging. Everyday experiences are full of opportunities to engage in conversation and develop language skills. The tips below offer some fun ways you can help your child become a happy and confident reader. Try a new tip each week. See what works best for your child.

Don’t expect your toddler to sit still for a book

Toddlers need to move, so don’t worry if they act out stories or just skip, romp, or tumble as you read to them. They may be moving, but they are listening.

Recite rhymes, sing songs, and make mistakes!

Pause to let your toddler finish a phrase or chant a refrain. Once your toddler is familiar with the rhyme or pattern, make mistakes on purpose and get caught.

Choose engaging books

Books featuring animals or machines invite movement and making sounds. Books with flaps or different textures to touch keep hands busy. Books with detailed illustrations or recurring items hidden in the pictures are great for exploring and discussing.

Keep reading short, simple, and often

Toddlers frequently have shorter attention spans than babies. Look for text that is short and simple. Read a little bit, several times a day.

Encourage play that involves naming, describing, and communicating

Set up a zoo with all the stuffed animals. Stage a race with the toy cars. Put your toddler in charge and ask lots of questions.

Every day is an adventure when you’re a toddler

Choose books about everyday experiences and feelings. Your child will identify with the characters as they dress, eat, visit, nap, and play.

Ask questions

Take time to listen to your toddler’s answers.

Toddlers have strong opinions and interesting ideas about the world. Encourage your toddler to tell you what he or she thinks. You’ll build language skills and learn what makes your toddler tick at the same time.

Play to their favourites

Read favourite stories again and again. Seek out books about things your toddler especially likes — trains, animals, the moon. These books may extend a toddler’s attention span and build enthusiasm for reading.

Not having fun?

Try a different story or a different time during the day. Reading with a very young child is primarily about building positive experiences with books, not finishing every book you start. (readingrockets.org)

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tuesDAY, April 10, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

No place for corruption in security sector – UK diplomat …calls for jailing of dishonest officials …anti-bribery training launched

UK High Commissioner Greg Quinn; Special advisor to SOCU, Sam Sittlington; along with two UK fraud experts who will be conducting the training

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two-week training exercise intended to assist investigators in the fight against bribery and corruption has been launched by the Public Security Ministry under the auspices of the United Kingdom High Commission.

UK High Commissioner Gregory Quinn stressed the need for persons to be held accountable for bribery and corruption. He made it clear thus: “There is no place for corruption within security agencies in Guyana. If officials or individuals cannot work with honesty and integrity, then they should be…prosecuted and imprisoned as necessary,” Quinn stated.

“If people don’t like the sound of that, then frankly (that’s) tough. Security agencies cannot expect respect and cooperation from the public if they themselves are not willing to operate within, and be subject to, the law. All of you can and must set the examples for everyone to follow,” he expanded.

In his address to the participants, Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams, noted that the training was especially important with Guyana preparing for operation of the oil and gas sector.

“To successfully fight against corruption, there has to be effective detection, investigation, analysis of evidence,

Sam Sittlington.

There have been, for locals, several training initiatives wherein UK specialists have been involved. Last year, local immigration officers underwent the Risk and Liaison Overseas Network (RALON) training conducted by the UK’s Immigration Enforcement International.

The training had covered three fundamental issues: overview of human trafficking, enhancing of interview skills when dealing with arriving passengers, and overall increased awareness of the latest

The investigators participating in the training

and prosecution of crime, ultimately leading to convictions.

It is for this reason that this course is important,” Williams stressed.

The training is expected to be conducted by two UK experts who are experienced in anti-money laundering and white-collar crime investigations. It is understood that investigators from the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), the Customs Anti- Narcotics Unit (CANU), the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the State Assets Recovery Unit (SARU), and the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) are participating in the training.

Also present at the opening were Public Security Minister, Khemraj Ramjattan; Acting Police Commissioner David Ramnarine, and the UK’s Special Advisor attached to the Special Organised Crime Unit,

trends and concerns in the wider Caribbean.

The UK has done much of its security sector collaboration through the security reform project, which began in 2007 and was scrapped in 2009, after the British Government had requested to have oversight of the programme to ensure that there was ‘value for money’.

The former Government had disagreed with the manner in which the British Government had wanted the programme to be run, claiming that Britain had sought to intrude upon Guyana’s sovereignty.

However, the British Government has said the Government of Guyana had submitted a different proposal, one which had focused on Police modernisation rather than a holistic approach to reform. The intention was to

“If officials or individuals cannot work with honesty and integrity, then they should be…prosecuted and imprisoned as necessary,” – UK High Commissioner build a workable basis for improving national security while reducing crime in Guyana.

Government believes that, once implemented, Guyana’s security sector will be signifi-

cantly strengthened, and hopefully, this will lead to a reduction in the number of illicit activities that take place.

President David Granger has also said there is need for a stronger Police Force, one that is better equipped with all tools necessary to function adequately.

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tuesDAY, April 10, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

ECD man remanded to prison for threatening to kill President

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hief Magistrate Ann McLennan on Monday afternoon remanded a 64-year-old man who reportedly threatened President David Granger’s life.

Motilall Balkarran of Triumph, East Coast Demerara (ECD), appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts and denied the charge.

The charge against him stated that on March 20, 2018, he made calls to the 911 emergency line at the Brickdam Police Station and threatened to kill President Granger.

It is further alleged that he made use of threatening language by calling the 911 telephone line and threatening to kill the President.

Balkarran reportedly threatened to take a bomb to the Ministry of the Presidency.

In court on Monday, Balkarran was represented

by Attorney-at-Law Tiffany

Remanded: Motilall Balkarran

Jeffrey, who made a bail application on the ground that the call was placed from an address where several persons live.

Owing to the fact that there is no voice recognition system at the Brickdam Station, Jeffrey said in the bail application, it is not clear who made the call.

Police Prosecutor Gordon Mansfield objected to bail being granted, noting the seriousness of the offence.

Chief Magistrate

McLennan denied bail and remanded the 64-year-old to prison. The case will continue on April 16.

The matter was transferred to the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court.

Two other men are also expected to be charged shortly for the same offence.

This is not the first instance persons have been charged for similar offences. Back in 2016, 52-yearold Safoora Salim, of Vergenoegen, East Bank

Essequibo (EBE), was charged for using Facebook to issue threatening and derogatory statements against the Head of State.

Acting Police Commissioner David Ramnarine had confirmed last November that they were investigating reports of an inmate at the Lusignan Prison calling the 911 emergency line and threatening to kill President Granger along with officers of the Police Force.

Back in March last year, reports surfaced of an alleged plot to assassinate the Head of State and some $7 million was allegedly offered to carry out the act. After several weeks of Police investigations, President Granger ordered a Commission of Inquiry into the alleged assassination plot. The Commission found that while some aspects of the allegation have a “ring of truth, it was not confirmed during the inquiry”.

Looking back…

F

…at MLK and 1968 ifty years ago last week – April 4, 1968 – Martin Luther King was assassinated. Over here in Guyana, Burnham had already told the Americans he was going to rig the upcoming elections. He’d met Dean Rusk, Secretary of State in Jan ‘68 and in the same month MLK had been assassinated, the “303 Committee” – constituted by the Americans to install and keep the PNC in power – reported: "[less than 1 line of source text not declassified] representatives met with Prime Minister Forbes Burnham in late April to discuss operational matters related to the electoral campaign. At this meeting Burnham stated unequivocally that he plans to conduct the registration and voting in such a manner that the PNC will emerge with an absolute majority in the Guyana National Assembly.

Burnham said that he will never again allow the life of his government to depend upon his coalition partner Peter D'Aguiar ... Burnham said that he plans to register 17, 18, 19 and 20-year-old PNC adherents (minimum voting age is 21 years) to make up part of the vote he needs…” He’d also arranged for the overseas vote which would prove to be his ace in the hole.

Over in the US, Lyndon Johnson, who’d fervently expanded JFK’s anti-communist crusade to add some machismo to their (suspect) domestic Liberal bent, had taken Burnham horseback riding at his ranch in Texas as a reward for the latter preventing “another Cuba in the hemisphere”. In Guyana, Burnham played that credential to the hilt and had the local US Ambassador, Delmar Carlson, jumping to the crack of his whip. For instance, he refused to even meet Jagan, upon instruction from Burnham!!

Ironically, in the US, MLK had become a fierce critic of Johnson’s expanded Vietnam War and also a staunch socialist in his economic thinking, who was hounded by the FBI. Today he’s become beatified for his position on nonviolence – which he’d picked up from Gandhi over in India.

But by the time of his assassination, he’d begun to question the efficacy of the strategy in light of the unchanging deep structural barriers to Black equality – even after Johnson had pushed through the 1965 Voting Rights Act to finally facilitate Black voting unimpeded.

In the West Indies, Kingston, Jamaica would erupt in riots to protest their government’s ban of our own Walter Rodney – who had grounded there about Black Power of Stokely Carmichael rather than the non-violence of MLK. He moved to Tanzania because of the racial situation here.

The US approved Burnham’s rigged elections of December 1968 and the stage was set for Rodney’s rendezvous with assassination.

C’est la change… …at anti-corruption promises The US just released its “International Narcotics Control Strategy Report” (INSR) and it’s not too kind on this government. Which rode into power on the back of their fervent promises to clean up corruption, claiming it stemmed largely from the PPP’s alleged links to “drug elements”!! After three years at the helm, the report says, matters have gotten WORSE!! This time the GOVERNMENT’s been named directly!!

Now this is nothing strange for the average Guyanese – as even a staunch PNC supporter Minette Bacchus wrote recently. But for the US to actually make the accusation in an official report, can we now expect them to do something about it? Not really. As we saw above, the US – like every other great power – will turn a Nelson’s Eye to a host of even more serious transgressions – once it serves their national interest.

And with Exxon’s mega oil strike off our coast, unfortunately, it serves their interest not to have new variables entering the equation.

So, like during the PNC years, expect corruption to increase!! …at drugs In the meantime, the local Drug Czar – Public Security Minister Ramjattan – continues with his hand-wringing!

This time about drug usage increasing among youths.

So what’re you gonna DO about it, Minister?? After all, you’re responsible!!

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

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tuesDAY, April 10, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Mae’s 42% fee hike

Parents protest …call for Govt’s intervention

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s the lunch break saw children playing in the nearby playground, about 20 parents with children attending the institution

Mae’s Administrator, Stacey French

staged a peaceful picketing exercise in front of the Mae’s Schools at Third Avenue, Subryanville, Georgetown, calling for the administration to meet with them to discuss the hike in fees.

The parents claim that just before school closed for Easter, they received notice indicating school fees for the Christmas term will be increased by up to 42 per cent, depending on the Grade.

Spokesperson for the parents, Shenera Sam, said parents are not against a reasonable increase, but the current

figures are almost exploitative. She said she has two children attending the institution, and she cannot afford an extra $25,000 in fees when she has to pay as much as $50,000 for textbooks.

“At this point in time my standard of living has not increased; therefore, I cannot go to my (bosses) and tell them that I now have $25,000 more in expense, that they should increase my salary. So I am here, and I will stand here for as long as I can, until the administrators decide to speak with us, come up with a reasonable increase,” she said.

She opined that the move to increase the fees was a calculated one, since registration at other private schools has already closed.

“What I found is that it was strategically done, so there is no way we can get these children in private schools, because all the private schools have had registration…I am very optimistic that some compassion would come up somewhere along the line in terms of the administrators, and they will find a way to help us, or for us to work it out. But what is ironic is that this same administration stood with us when we were opposing the 14 per cent VAT,” Sam noted.

Additionally, Sam said the more than 170 parents are

hopeful that the Government would see it fit to intervene and provide them with some satisfaction.

“There are no laws or institutions governing private schools. I called the Competition and Consumer Affairs and they said because we don’t have a written contract with the school, there is nothing they can really do for us. So, we are hoping (that) with us coming out and protest, that somehow the Government would find it in their heart to intervene and help us,” Sam related.

Meanwhile, at last week’s post-Cabinet press briefing, State Minister Joseph Harmon said the matter has not engaged the attention of Cabinet, but he did note that the arrangement between the private institutions and the parents is private. However, he said the Education Ministry would have to look at the increase to determine whether it was an unreasonable imposition.

Mae’s Administrator, Stacey French, has said the increase is due to the school’s increased costs to do business, as well as the challenge of hiring teachers who are both motivated and experienced, in addition to overall operational costs.

Another parent, Mark Singh, told the Guyana Times that the parents are out to protest since the school’s ad-

Some of the outraged parents outside the Mae’s Schools on Monday

ministration has been ignoring their request to meet. He said his two children are in Upper Playgroup and Upper Nursery, and he would have to find an additional $30,000 to pay when the new term comes.

He explained that it is his preference to send his children to a private school, but he would not allow himself to be exploited.

Meanwhile, a grandmother, Mrs Reid, (only name given) said she has four grandchildren attending the institution and that their mother is already contemplating enrolling them in the public school system.

“If they raise their fees they put on a $5,000, but $15,000 is too much! The facilities (are not good), the toilet is dripping water and the ceiling leaking…$1 million a year is too much; people isn’t working for that,” she said.

Convict escapes while working at prison officer’s house

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embers of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) are now on the hunt for a convicted prisoner, who escaped on Sunday while performing duties at the home of a prison officer in Anns Grove, East Coast Demerara.

At the time of his escape, two other prisoners were with him.

The prisoner, Deryck Oudkerk, was discovered missing about 16:30h as the officer was preparing to return to the Lusignan Prison.

The three prisoners were taken to the home of the officer, who was the lone supervisor of the men.

Acting Director of Prisons, Gladwin Samuels confirmed that Oudkerk escaped while noting that he was serving an 18-month sentence at the Lusignan Prison for larceny.

Director Samuels added that based on reports he would have received, Oudkerk was

Prison escapee: Deryck Oudkerk

“cutting bushes” when he used the opportunity to escape.

Oudkerk, of Upper Watooka Linden, worked as a gold miner and pleaded guilty to stealing a fuel pump, starter, six pails of diesel, and a quantity of groceries valued $245,000, property of Sherwin Bernard at St Elizabeth Mission.

Anyone with information that would lead to the recapture of the prisoners is asked to contact the Guyana Police Force on telephone numbers 226-4585, 225-2700, or 911 or at the nearest Police Station.

In October 2017, convicted rapist Delon Blake, 35, escaped from the Lusignan penitentiary by using his bed sheet and wooden pallets to climb over the fence on the northern side of the facility in full view of Police ranks performing duties in the tower. However, he was recaptured two days later along the Linden-Soesdyke Highway.

Back in July 2017, 13 hardcore criminals escaped from the holding area at the said correctional facility. Twelve of the 13 were recaptured over a two-day period, while one remains on the run.

The one still at large is Paul Goriah, who was charged for murder. He is reported-

ly from Timehri, East Bank Demerara.

It was reported that the men escaped from the swampy pasture of the Lusignan Prison by digging a hole under the perimeter fence. The hole was about five feet in length and another five feet in depth. The 13 escapees had been transferred from the Camp Street Prison after it was reduced to ashes by inmates, who set the place on fire.

The parents have also called for an interim body to manage the affairs of private schools.

Then Education Minister, Priya Manickchand, had tabled the Education Bill of 2014, which was read in Parliament in 2014. Then in 2017, the MoE had said the regularisation of all private education institutions will be provided for under the new Education Act. When contacted concerning the status of the new Education Act, the Education Ministry (MoE) said, “The matter has to engage Cabinet, Opposition and all other

stakeholders on the matter reference to the Bill.”

Additionally, the MoE was unable to confirm or deny whether the situation at the school in regard to fees was being liked into.

This is not the first time that parents of children attending the Mae’s Schools are protesting a decision by the school’s administration. In May of 2016, several parents of students in Grade 5 staged a protest, claiming that they had paid $20,000 for extra lessons that were not being delivered.

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tuesDAY, April 10, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Mother to serve 98 years for killing children

…she failed to love, protect, comfort them – State Prosecutor

By Shemuel Fanfair

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wenty-five-year-old Hofoswana Awena Rutherford, who was recently found guilty of killing her two children by poisoning them with carbon tablets, was on Monday sentenced by Justice Navindra Singh to 98 years’ imprisonment on two counts of manslaughter.

On the first count, killing of four-year-old Hodascia Codogan, Rutherford was sentenced to 45 years’ jail; while on the second count, killing of one-year-old Jabari Codogan, she was ordered to

serve 53 years’ jail time.

Rutherford had crashed to the floor when the 12-member jury unanimously found her guilty on both counts on March 15, 2018. The jury believed the State’s evidence that the mother had given each of her children half of a tablet of aluminium phosphide (rat poison) on March 27, 2014 at Supply Branch Road, Mahaicony, East Coast Demerara. Aluminium phosphide tablets (rat poison).

During Monday’s sentencing, a probation report was admitted into evidence but was not read in court.

Drawing from this docu-

ment, Rutherford’s attorney, Adrian Thompson, in his plea of mitigation before a packed courtroom of relatives and several other onlookers, detailed that his client had a “hard life”.

Thompson stressed that Rutherford dropped out of school at 16, her mother died when she was young, and that she knew her father only later in life. The defence lawyer, pleading for the judge to temper justice with mercy, pointed out that his client was not in the best of mental health. However, Thompson admitted that he had no doctor’s report to attest to his cli-

Hofoswana Awena Rutherford, who was convicted for poisoning her two children being escorted by Prison officers on Monday (Carl Croker photo)

ent’s mental state.

In contrast to his calls, State Prosecutor Abigail Gibbs stressed that Rutherford knew exactly what she was doing. In her address to the court, she told Justice Singh that a hard life and economic struggles can never justify taking the life of another, especially those of one’s own children.

“She was the one who needed to protect them, comfort them, and show them love. However, she failed them,” the Prosecutor pointedly stated.

On those grounds, Gibbs called for the maximum penalty to be leveraged for the killings of Jabari and Hodacia Codogan. This prompted light gasps from some persons in the gallery, but the court marshall swiftly turned and ordered silence.

Rutherford, who stared at Justice Singh directly, begged him for mercy before later losing her composure with streams of tears. Unlike the dramatic events when she hit her head by falling last month, she stood tall in

her cries.

“No one in this world loves my children more than I do. I love them to my soul.

I am sorry for my shortcomings and my faults,” she told the court.

She then turned to her family members in court and expressed hope that they would be able to overcome the pain of losing Jabari and Hodacia Codogan.

“Justice Singh, even God in Heaven above is merciful, and I am asking you to grant me a second chance so I can make things right,” Rutherford lamented.

Justice Singh seemed perplexed as to why the State had indicted the mother on manslaughter, contending that “everything points to murder”. On the first count, he started the sentence at a base of 30 years, added 10 years for the victim being a child, five years for the victim being her child, five years for her using a poisonous substance, and another 10 years for premeditation.

He, however, deducted eight years for what was list-

ed in the probation report, and another seven years for Rutherford’s show of remorse. This computation resulted in a sentence of 45 years. Using similar facts, he calculated 53 years for count two, ordering that the sentences must be served consecutively.

This means that the court’s cumulative sentence is 98 years. However, the Prison Service was ordered to deduct the time Rutherford had spent awaiting trial.

During her trial at the Demerara High Court, Rutherford’s initial story was that she had bought cold tablets from a man at the Plaisance Park, who sells rat poison. However, the logic behind this story was not accepted by the jury.

Rutherford had been hospitalised for seven days after the poisoning of her offsprings, and she had said she had drunk two tablets after giving same to them.

Prosecutor Shawnette Austin also appeared for the State.

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tuesDAY, April 10, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Basil Williams hints at contesting PNCR chairmanship

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ith just several months left before the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) holds its next party Congress, longstanding member Basil Williams has hinted that he may run again for the chairmanship.

Williams, who happens to be the current chairman of the party, told media operatives on Monday that

when the time came, he would consider the option of running again for the second highest PNCR office.

“I am servant of the PNC and a servant of my party.

They know me. I have been working steadily throughout the years, and me and my comrades… so we don’t think that’s an issue,” he stated.

Nevertheless, the cur-

rent Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister said he was confident of winning the position again, although there have been reports that his performance has been weak.

“Our members are very intelligent people and the type of leadership that they require, they know,” he said.

Asked if he was confident that he would win the chair-

Region 2 RDC expresses disappointment with GPL’s service

Regional Chairman Devanand Ramdatt

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he Region Two ( P o m e r o o n Supenaam) Regional Democratic Council (RDC) has expressed its disappointment with the Guyana Power and Light’s service to the Region.

Regional Chairman Devanand Ramdatt said that the RDC was very much disappointed that despite previous pledges by senior management of the power company to use available mediums to inform residents of scheduled outages, this was not being done.

Ramdatt said on Monday that GPL and key stakeholders in the Region had agreed that the company would utilise local media (RCA TV) and cellphone messages to inform residents of power outages, but to date this

system has not been put in place.

The Regional Chairman added that the RDC recalled an email from Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson, dated July 9, 2017 which stated, ‘“I will ask GPL to provide advance notice on any load-shedding activities; on the long term, a new set for Anna Regina has been procured already, it is expected to be on site by October; however, we have to complete ground works and other infrastructure issues before we can connect it and have it in full service; it is anticipated all to be completed by November.”’

“We are now in April 2018 and the Region is still suffering from constant blackouts which is causing disruption to all GTT land-

line phones, GWI water flow and Internet service just to name a few,” the RDC said in a statement on Monday.

As such, the RDC said, residents, especially the business community, are calling on the Government and GPL to speed up the process at Anna Regina Power Plant and bring some relief to the Region.

Only last week, Deputy Mayor of the town of Anna Regina, Darshan Persaud expressed his outrage at the service being offered by the power company.

In an interview with Guyana Times, Persaud said residents in the township were complaining about the long periods of power outage, which have contributed to the loss of thousands of dollars in ice cream, chicken, meat, and other frozen foods.

Over the Easter weekend, a generator placed by GPL at the Anna Regina Power Station, Essequibo to supply the Region with electricity was moved to Bartica for the Regatta.

According to reports, the remaining generators cannot supply the coast, and as such, residents were faced with constant blackouts.

(Mohanlall Seulall)

Joseph Harmon

manship again, he said: “I have always been a confident person in my make-up, as a lawyer, as a minister…”

There are also reports that Minister of State,

Current PNCR Chairman Basil Williams

Joseph Harmon plans to contest the post in August, when the PNCR will hold their Congress.

At the last PNCR

Congress, Williams contested the position of Chairman unopposed. Initial reports had indicated that Williams would have been challenged by former party leader Robert Corbin, Minister Volda Lawrence and Lurlene Nestor. However, they all signalled their non-interest.

Williams was first appointed PNCR Chairman in 2012 when he first contested the post along with Dr George Norton. That year, he replaced longstanding party member Cammie Ramsaroop as Chair.

At the last Congress held in 2016, Dr Norton and Lawrence were also re-elected Vice Chairpersons.

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tuesDAY, april 10, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Drug shortage forces doctors, nurses to sit-in at Skeldon Hospital

By Andrew Carmichael

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octors and nurses at Skeldon Hospital on Monday staged a sit-in and refused to see patients. Their drastic action came as a result of shortages of drugs and lack of basic equipment for them to carry out their duties.

Since they had no tools to down, the staff at the Accident and Emergency Unit simply refused to see patients who turned up at the facility.

Working or not working did not make a difference, since the medical staff cannot provide a service, given the current conditions at the hospital, they said on Monday.

A patient, Shamwar Appru, said he arrived at the medical institution at about 07:00h, and after more than one hour, he was told by a

Patients waiting to be attended to at the A&E Department of the Skeldon Hospital

staff that there was no one to attend to him.

“They tell me that the doctor is not working. I got a bad abscess on my mouth, paining real bad.

They say the doctors on strike and they have no drugs to distribute to pa-

tients, so it is waste of time for them to see the doctor,” Appru said.

The very upset Appru said he was initially told to revisit the hospital at 12:00h, but after an hour had elapsed, he was told to return another day.

“They had more than 20 people waiting this morning when I come, and they (had) all the people wasting their time,” he added.

Another person with whom the Guyana Times spoke was Mahindra Mohan. As the 20-year-old left the medical institution, he said he had no idea when he would be able to receive medical attention, and since his situation involves the Police, he cannot go to another hospital.

Meanwhile, Natasha Qualie of Number 65 Village said she was told that service might return to normal next week.

“Yesterday (Sunday) I come, and they say that I got to get (an) ID card. Now I come back with (an) ID card and can’t get look after,” she said.

Raginjra Shivnarine, 49, of Number 75 Village, was seen limping into the hospital compound, but moments later was limping out. He said that, despite his condition, he was told to come back another time.

He said he begged to have a nurse attend to him, but was told that it was not possible, since they did not have gloves and face masks.

Executive member of the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) Ram Mangru told this publication that he visited the hospital after hearing about the sit-in.

“When I come up here and I talk to the General Medical Officer and ask him if he is aware of the situation, he said, ‘Yes.’ I asked him if he made a report and requisition and he said, ‘Yes’, that he has been constantly making reports and requisitions for drugs because there is a shortage,

A patient waiting to be attended to at the Skeldon Hospital

but they have not been getting any attention,” the union representative said.

Mangru said he then met with the doctors and nurses on the sit-in, who confirmed the shortage of drugs and other medical supplies at the Skeldon Hospital.

The GPSU official said the workers are willing to continue their protest action, but the union cannot advise them on the way forward unless it first holds discussions with regional officials.

He said he was told the Director of Regional Health Services was informed of the situation but had not responded.

However, Regional Health Service Director Jevaughn Stephens told media operatives that he was not aware of what was happening.

Meanwhile, in a press release issued on Monday, the Public Health Ministry has said a high-level meeting is planned for today following the sit-in.

According to the release, the sit-in did not disrupt operations in other parts of the hospital, and according to the Focal Point Person for the Public Health Ministry in Region Six, Alex Foster, physicians were upset that critical supplies were unavailable to treat their patients and were thus forced to take industrial action.

Meanwhile, Permanent Secretary in the Public Health Ministry, Collette Adams, said other ministry officials are mystified

by Monday’s industrial action taken by the Skeldon Hospital physicians. Adams said the hospital received supplies from the Materials Management Unit (MMU) last Thursday.

The Public Health Ministry has said today’s talks involving all the stakeholders are expected to pave the way for a return to duty by the striking physicians.

The ministry also said medical supplies are expected at the Skeldon Hospital today.

Body of man fished out of Carifesta Avenue trench

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he body of an unidentified male was on Monday morning fished out of a trench in the vicinity of the Guyana Defence Force on Carifesta Avenue, Georgetown. At the time of the discovery, the corpse was shirtless and was clad in a pair of black jeans.

The discovery was made just after 07:00h, during the rush hour, and would have attracted a large crowd.

However, up to late Monday afternoon, the body was yet to be identified.

According to Commander of ‘A’ Division, Leslie James, the body bore marks of vi-

olence, which suggest that foul play was involved.

The deceased is suspected to be in his late 30s.

His body was taken to the Lyken’s Funeral Home to await identification and post mortem. A probe is currently underway.

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tuesDAY, april 10, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

GCCI, MAPM against parking meters’ return …plan to raise objections with City Hall

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t a joint press conference on Monday, the Georgetown Chamber of Industry and Commerce (GCCI) and the Movement Against Parking Meters (MAPM) both said they were dissatisfied with the proposed return of the controversial parking meter project, adding that their experts would review the amended by-laws with the intent of raising their objections with the administration.

GCCI President Deodat Indar said the Chamber’s interest in the project was as a result of the concerns of members, recalling the disastrous effect the project had when it was first implemented in 2017.

“We have to get our experts to go through the bylaws to make sure we find the areas where we believe that it’s not good for the city, and we will so make that available to the Town Clerk

and the Council at City Hall and we will so inform the Minister of Communities of the areas we have found that are troublesome or ticklish in our view,” Indar noted.

“A year ago, a number of people from this Chamber took two separate walks around the city during the implementation of the parking meter project and when we were there talking to business people, 99 per cent of them said business went down between 30-70 per cent,” he stated.

Additionally, he noted that it was shocking when they saw the numbers, explaining that businesses felt the worst of the impact. He further outlined that the GCCI had 14 days to raise objections to the amended by-laws before the legislation went to Communities Minister Ronald Bulkan for his approval.

Indar said the GCCI’s

position remained the same: no impact assessment, environmental study or feasibility study was done to give rise to a parking meter system, which is touted to act as a revenue generation unit for City Hall. He also alluded to the fact that the city streets were deserted when the project was first implemented, because citizens refused to pay the exorbitant sum for parking.

Meanwhile, MAPM’s Marcel Gaskin said they were prepared to take to the streets again if the project went ahead in its current form. He explained that MAPM was not against a metered parking system in the city, rather it was against the manner in which the project came about.

He, like Indar, bashed City Hall for not conducting a feasibility and financial study in addition to a means assessment, adding that MAPM was hopeful

From left: GCCI Executive Director Richard Rambarran; Don Sing and Marcel Gaskin of MAPM, GCCI President Deodat Indar, MAPM’s Komal Ramnauth and GCCI Senior Vice President Nicholas Boyer

Minister Bulkan would address its objections favourably.

“We submit that the tender procedure as outlined in (Municipal and District Councils Act Chapter) 28:01 was breached by City Council. We are maintaining that the national procurement act was breached

by City Council in soliciting services from Smart City Solutions and we maintain the position that if these things are addressed in a proper manner, then we will have no objection to a me-

tered parking in the city,” Gaskin added.

Gaskin further related that they needed to see proper data before giving the go-ahead to the parking meter project.

The amended parking meter by-laws were approved on April 4, 2018 by a majority vote. Now that the amended by-laws are approved, the city administration will have to display them for a minimum of 14 days in public spaces and during that time persons could write to City Hall ex-

pressing their concerns.

Following that 14 days of public display, the adopted by-laws will be forwarded to Minister Bulkan for his approval; if such is given, they will then be gazetted.

Under the new agreement, persons will be paying $150 per hour and $800 for eight hours of parking in the city. Meanwhile, residents of the city would be issued with a restricted residential pass for free parking from 17:00-19:00h Monday to Friday while parking will be free on Saturdays.

Training needed to improve leadership in education sector – Minister

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or Guyana to enhance and raise the standards of its educational sector, formal training of educational leaders is critical.

These sentiments were expressed by Education Minister Nicolette Henry, during the opening ceremony of a three-day educational leadership conference hosted by the Education Ministry, which is aimed at improving the leadership qualities of educational leaders.

Speaking at the event, which was hosted at the Roraima Duke Lodge on Monday under the theme, “Leading schools in a changing world and the challenges change brings with holding people to account”, Minister Henry emphasised the need for such an initiative and the fact it has finally been made a reality. Her keynote address focused on leadership and qualities which govern this skill.

“I recognise that many persons may not have had the opportunity to benefit from formal training

on leadership and so that training provides that opportunity and support that is needed for you to optimise performance. Having the foundational knowledge of leadership perspectives and system thinking provides an opportunity to improve your own leadership skills and resources,” she stated.

Persons who attended the event were urged to utilise the advice and training given to improve their skills when educating others. The Minister explained that this conference was expected to modify certain aspects of the sector that were suited to tackling the changes of society.

Henry noted that it was also expected that the leadership conference would set the pace for the much-needed change necessary in education today.

“With so many evolving changes in education, it is the role of new leaders within the field to inspire great changes for the individuals, the community, and the world,” she added.

Some of the participants at the opening ceremony of the education leadership conference

In giving her opinion on the qualities of a good leader, Henry advised participants to display motivation, which was the most critical factor, highlighting that the creation of good leaders began with the modification of training of teachers and the implementation of a system-thinking approach.

“The most profound aspect of effective leadership is ability to motivate others to enact change. This is not

an act that occurs with leadership, but it is an act that contributes to effective leadership,” she said.

Facilitator of the workshop, Dennise Hilliman, who shared remarks, stated that while the training was one that would not have

a major impact “overnight”, it certainly would aid in the long-term benefits of good quality education.

According to her, the world is considered to be more dangerous with increased life expectancy and virtual reality among the burgeoning issues.

With this, she emphasised the need for teachers to maximise the use of their instructional time towards effective goals, since the task of educating children happened only once.

Additionally, three panellists were featured and more advice given on the calibre of persons who would be considered inspirational leaders, with the Vice Chancellor of the University of Guyana (UG), Professor Ivelaw Griffith cited as an example.

Meanwhile, head teachers and other education of-

ficials from all the administrative regions of Guyana took the opportunity to participate in the activities to further improve their performance. They are expected to implement these new skills upon their return to the various communities.

In 2018, great priority was placed on education with a large percentage of the budget allocated towards the sector.

The training exercise for the next three days is expected to provide participants with foundational information on educational concepts, theories, and approaches that are frequently utilised in the delivery of education. In the future, the Ministry is hoping to have this programme delivered to all teachers in Guyana so that teachers can explore the perspectives of teaching.

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tuesDAY, april 10, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Local law school

Shareholder agreement being finalised – AG

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local law school will be established here in Guyana, Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister, Basil Williams, has said. The Guyana Government plans to go ahead with its plans in this regard, despite several concerns having been raised relative to the process of establishing this law school.

Government is now in the process of finalising a shareholders’ agreement in pursuance of this objective.

Government had, in January 2017, announced it would start a project to establish the JOF Haynes Law School of the Americas through a public-private partnership entered into between the Government, the Law School of the Americas (LCA), and the University College of the Caribbean (UCC).

Several burning concerns were brought to the fore, especially in relation

to whether approval was granted by the Council for Legal Education (CLE), and whether the programme was accredited. Former Minister Anil Nandlall’s main concern is whether Guyanese be able to practice law throughout the Caribbean.

According to Williams, a recently completed Canadian-funded study into legal education in the region has recommended the establishment of law schools here, Antigua and Jamaica.

It also recommended that the CLE serve as a regulatory body, rather than one that manages the day to day affairs of law schools.

The minister said he supports these recommendations and it is now left up to the regional Governments to discuss and decide on this matter at the Caribbean Community (Caricom) level.

He noted however that this study only helps to bolster Guyana’s request to have a

law school established here.

“We are confident that we really need a law school,” Williams told the media as he explained the recent increased tuition fees at the Hugh Wooding Law School and the difficulty of having Guyanese students live and study in Trinidad and Tobago also support Guyana’s push in this direction.

To substantiate his point, the minister said, “Tuition fees this year have been increased at Hugh Wooding and are now TT$97,000…,

well over $3 million (Guyana dollars)…that’s only for tuition, they still have to live and exist in Trinidad.”

He also made the point that Trinidad and Barbados churn out at least 200law graduates yearly, while Guyana is allowed to have only 25 or less lawyers trained on an annual basis.

Williams noted that with the impending oil and gas sector, Guyana would need more trained and competent lawyers. “…especially at this time, with how Guyana is

poised…we would need lawyers to deal with oil and gas, we would need lawyers to deal with the green state and economy. So we have a lot of capacity to build.”

Williams is adamant that Guyana has not been refused permission to set up a law school here. As such, preparations are being made to advance this process with the identification of space at the University of Guyana (UG) Turkeyen campus, where the proposed school would be built.

The AG has said, however, that while UG has identified 15 acres of the 150 acres that it has situated close to the area that houses the Forensic Laboratory, the amount would not be sufficient. While the CLE has agreed to establish a law school in Guyana, approval would be granted only after a feasibility study is conducted.

Williams had attacked

CLE Chairman Reginald Armour for responding to the concerns raised by former Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall without consulting with the current Government on the matter.

He said this was one of the reasons why the establishment of this law school was delayed, and it had nothing to do with non-approval.

Williams maintains that a Review Committee could not overrule a decision taken by the Council in 2017 in regard to the issue of whether Guyana should be allowed to build a law school.

The AG had said members of Guyana’s committee included the Chancellor of the Judiciary (ag), Yonette Cummings-Edwards; Chief Justice (ag), Roxane George; Retired Justices Duke Pollard, Claudette Singh and Rudolph James; Professor Harold Lutchman, and the Registrar of UG, Dr Nigel Gravesande.

Grove pedestrian crossings “Big Foot” murder trial repainted by Policing Group “Me ain’t go fuh kill he” –

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everal pedestrian crossings along the Grove Public Road on the East Bank of Demerara (EBD) were on Sunday painted following an exercise by the members of the Grove Community Policing Group.

This activity was undertaken in light of the fact students would have returned to their respective schools on Monday after a two-week break for the Easter vacation.

As such, several pedestrian crossings at Market Street, Station Street,

accused reportedly told Police

A Members of the Grove Community Policing Group who were engaged in the painting exercise on Sunday

School Street, and Campbell Street were refreshed with paint. This is expected to

highlight the use of the crossings, which is sometimes overlooked.

s the High Court trial of Diamond, East Bank Demerara (EBD) resident Bryan Leitch continued before Justice Sandhill Kissoon, the deposition of former Policeman Phillip Bowman was read in the court alleging that the accused told the rank that he did not intend to kill the SouthCentral hotelier.

“Me ain’t go fuh kill he,” Leitch reportedly told Bowman under caution.

Leitch stands accused of murdering Joseph Jagdeo, between November 13 and 14, 2013 at South Road, Georgetown in Room 10 of the South-Central Hotel.

It was revealed on Monday that five witnesses, including key Prosecution witnesses, could not be located locally even though several notices were sent out via television and radio broadcasts.

Communications Officer within the Director of Public Prosecutions’ Chambers, Liz Rahaman disclosed the names as former Police Constable Miguel Charles; Shantel De John of Kitty, Georgetown; Felecia Williams of Albouystown, Georgetown;, Kiana Garnett of Good Intent, West Bank Demerara and Trevor Richards.

The 12-member jury was also told via immigration records that a sixth witness, Policeman Bowman left for the United States of America in August 2017 and that there was no evidence that he returned to Guyana. However, Police

Dead: Joseph Jagdeo

Prosecutor, Inspector Bharrat Mangru, who conducted the Preliminary Inquiry (PI) before the then Magistrate Priya Beharry at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, read out the deposition of several of the elusive witnesses.

Mangru testified that several exhibits were tendered and admitted into evidence at the lower court, including the wooden key ring for Room 10, a Nokia mobile phone box with three user manuals and the pieces of cloth that were used to tie and gag the hotel owner. Reading from Shantel De John’s deposition, the Police Inspector noted evidence implicating Leitch for selling the phone.

De John reportedly claimed that she only had $1000 of the sum that Leitch requested as payment for the SIM card. During a confrontation held by Police, according to De John, the defendant admitted that he sold her a black and grey

Nokia phone.

From Felecia Williams’ deposition, the jury heard that she allowed Leitch into Room 9, because he had nowhere else to go. She reportedly had known him from the New Opportunity Corps (NOC). She claimed that Jagdeo, the hotel owner, agreed to let him stay, but an argument between herself and Leitch over his possession of two cellphones erupted. Williams claimed that she took a phone and gave it to Jagdeo and she put Leitch out of her room. The defendant was then placed into Room 10.

A worker called “Buxton”, Jagdeo and the witness herself were all present when he was removed, according to Williams’ evidence-in-chief.

In Bowman’s deposition, it was claimed that De John met Leitch at Pike Street, Kitty, where he sold her the phone for $4000. It was stated that the accused similarly admitted to selling her the phone. Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Lawrence Harris, Inspector Mangru admitted the accused was unrepresented when the exhibits were tendered at the Magistrates’ Court and when the witnesses had testified.

State Counsels Mandell Moore and Lisa Cave are appearing for the State, while Leitch is also being represented by defence Attorney Hewley Griffith. The matter continues before Justice Kissoon.

(Shemuel Fanfair)

NEWS

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tuesDAY, april 10, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Linden sexual assault

AFC member allegedly took delegates to businessman for sponsorship

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oncerned parties have now responded to allegations that an incident occurred involving a Linden businessman making sexual advances and assaulting contestants of the Linden Town Week Beauty Pageant with the knowledge of a member of the Linden Mayor and Town Council (LM&TC).

The LM&TC, responsible for overseeing this year’s event in the mining town, has spoken out against the allegations of sexual misconduct, saying it is deeply concerned and regrets the occurrence of such an incident because it

tarnishes the image and integrity of the pageantry and the municipality.

An allegation has been circulating in a viral social media post that a businessman from Amelia’s Ward, Linden had made sexual advances towards the delegates when they were at his premises to seek sponsorship during March 2018. The post alleges that the LM&TC tried to cover up the matter and officials tried to silence the victims.

But the LMTC has said that aiding or abetting any activity and behaviour that is demeaning to women or any

other individual or group of individuals is incompatible with its ideals. As such, given the sensitive nature of the case, the LM&TC conducted an independent investigation

Parking meter oversight committee appointed …by-laws to be posted at public places

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he controversial parking meter project on Monday received an oversight committee, which will act to supervise the proper functioning of the project.

The call for the appointment of the committee was made by Town Clerk Royston King, who is no stranger to advocacy for the project. “Since we have accepted and approved the by-laws, I’m now asking the Councillors of this meeting to accept and approve the appointment of this committee,” King stated.

He went on to explain that the committee would bring a “local face and proper representation of this Council to the operational aspect of this project”. The Town Clerk in his bid for the appointment also cited the Municipal and District Councils Act Chapter 28:01, Section 60 which regulates the appointment of standing or special committees.

The Act reads: “A council may appoint general or special committees for any such general or special purpose as in the opinion of the council would be better regulated or managed by means of a committee; and any such standing committees.

“A council may appoint councillors to be the chairman and vice chairman of the committee.

A committee of a council may include persons who are not councillors, but who because of their special skill or experience will, in the opinion of the council, be able to assist in the consideration of

the work of the committee.

Providing that (a) At least two thirds of the members of every committee shall be councillors, (b) no person other than a councillor shall be chairman or vice chairman of a committee.’

Under this premise, Councillor Oscar Clarke explained that the five-member committee should have two councillors, two members from the project’s mother company and one independent member.

The floor was opened subsequently and Councillors Noelle Chow-Chee, Akeem Peter and Bishram Kuppen were nominated. However, Councillor Kuppen declined the position.

As a result, the remaining two Councillors were appointed to the oversight committee with Peter taking up the position of Chairman and Chow-Chee Vice Chairman.

The Town Clerk also took

the opportunity at Monday’s statutory meeting to announce that the municipality has taken the initiative to publicise the new parking meter by-laws by posting them at municipal buildings around the city, namely: Agricola Post Office, General Post Office, East Ruimveldt Market, Albouystown Market, Bourda Market, Stabroek Market, Festival City Clinic, the Mayor’s Office, the Offices of the Town Clerk and Chief Constable, the City Treasurer’s Department and the Dorothy Bailey Health Centre.

“You can check at any of these locations, and you will find copies of the by-laws for the parking meter,” King affirmed.

However, when Guyana Times visited a few of the named locations no copies of the by-laws could be found, nor were the City Constabulary departments aware of them being posted at their respective locations.

The recently revised by-laws were approved last Wednesday by the City Councillors with 13 Councillors in agreement, two against and two in abstention.

The parking meter project was initially launched in January of 2017, but received high levels of rejection and retaliation from the public. The lop-sided contract was contested by drivers and even Councillors of the municipality; this led to the suspension of the bylaws by Central Government.

The revised by-laws saw the fees being reduced to $150 an hour and $800 for eight hours of parking.

Horse cart worker remanded for escaping from custody

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horse cart operator, who is a father of eight found himself before the Court of Law in Georgetown on Monday morning slapped with two charges - escaping from Police custody and fraudulent conversion one - which saw him being remanded to prison.

Paul Archer of Lot 562 Cummings Lodge, East Coast Demerara (ECD) admitted to escaping from the Kitty Police Station on April 5, 2018, where he was being held for fraudulently converting monies given to him by Lelowtie Persaud on October 14, 2018.

Archer told Magistrate Leron Daly that he indeed escape from Police custody after he was being held for six days.

He, however denied that he fraudulently converted $30,000, which he received after selling a Honda pump for Persaud.

The Virtual Complainant (VC) told the Court that she did not wish to pursue the charges laid against Archer and as such that matter was dismissed.

However, when Magistrate Daly was about to sentence the 47-year-old man for the escaping from custody charge, he began to plead for leniency.

“I begging you, I had my eight children at home…the oldest is 13 and the youngest four and I had to get home to provide for them” Archer pleaded.

When told that his guilty plea would see him being jailed, Archer changed his plea to not guilty.

Police Prosecutor, Richard Harris objected to bail being granted revealing that the man is a flight risk and was recaptured in Georgetown after he escaped from the Police Station.

As such, bail was refused.

The case will continue on April 27.

into the incident.

The investigation found irrefutable evidence that an incident occurred on March 3, 2018, and the said matter was settled between the parties involved on March 6, 2018.

In providing a detailed explanation on the matter, the Council said the matter was first brought to its attention on March 16; that the issue was brought to the attention of the mayor by Councillor Devin Sears, but the mayor was informed that the matter was with the Police.

On Sunday, April 1, the issue was again brought to the mayor’s attention with information that the matter had not been settled. The Council immediately called for an investigation, and visited the coordinator of the pageant,

who provided some information, and a meeting was then scheduled with the victim.

However, the mayor was later informed by the victim that she did not wish to prosecute the issue. On this premise, the Council met with the victim on April 5, and the minutes of that meeting were taken. The victim indicated that she had no comment to make on the issue, since a signed document existed prohibiting any further discussion on the matter.

“Contrary to stated opinion, the Mayor did not, in any way, attempt to trivialize the issue or to sweep anything under the carpet. In light of (the victim’s) previous statement with respect to the signed document and her refusal to comment, there was no need for the mayor to caution her to be silent. Hence this allegation is a malicious, fallacious attempt to deliberately smudge the Office of the Mayor,” LM&TC said.

The mayor has since advised the victim that since they had no prior telephone conversation, she should make a public statement to correct this information. The Council has said it stands res-

olute in its position against any sexual misconduct, sexual abuse or harassment, and will advocate for justice.

AFC statement

Meanwhile, the Alliance For Change (AFC) said in a statement on Monday that it is aware of a social media post regarding an alleged incident which took place in Linden.

The party also admitted that the incident involved a member of the AFC’s Region 10 Regional Management Committee.

Based on some sources, the AFC member was one of the persons who accompanied the victim to the businessman’s premises to seek sponsorship, which led to her allegedly being assaulted. The AFC said the party leadership has communicated with the named member, and the party will launch its own investigation into the matter, and act in accordance with the findings.

“The AFC reiterates its strong revulsion of any mistreatment of females, and will take appropriate action should any misconduct in this, or any other regard, be proven,” the statement added.

Second-time offender jailed

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man who was previously fined for stealing a zinc sheet from the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) Sport Complex building found himself before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts yet again, this time charged for stealing a water pump.

Andrew Arjune, 30, admitted to stealing the water pump valued $200,000, property of Doonauth Lalta from the Kitty Seawall on April 5, 2018 when the charge was read to him by Magistrate

Judy Latchman.

According to Police Prosecutor Arvin Moore, Arjune was seen by Police ranks walking along Vlissengen Road, Georgetown with the pump on his shoulder and as a result, he was stopped and questioned.

Further investigations revealed that the pump was stolen from a contractor doing work at Vlissengen Road.

As such, Arjune was told of the offence and was later charged with the crime.

After reminding Magistrate Latchman that

he was previously charged, Arjune proceeded to beg for mercy.

In the previous charge, Arjune had admitted to stealing galvanised zinc on February 28, 2018 at Thomas Lands, Georgetown. He was fined $30,000 for that offence.

In handing down the sentence on Monday, Magistrate Latchman told the defendant that he needed to see that his actions were wrong.

She then sentenced him to spend the next 18 months in prison.

Region 5 driver given...

Ali upbraided both Morrison and the chief accountant for the region on holding back this information.

Ali also pointed out that the Public Service Department had instructed that the position be advertised widely. When asked whether an internal posting of the vacancy was done, Morrison answered in the negative, but acknowledged that such a posting was required.

Vacancies

Meanwhile, PAC member Juan Edghill also questioned Morrison on whose authority certain vacancies were filled.

Morrison noted that the vacancies were filled by the Public Service Department.

Ali questioned him on the number of staff actually required to be on the payroll.

PAC member, Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence noted that during the course of the year, priorities change and if more staff was needed, permission could be requested from the Public Service Department.

Under questioning from Ali, Morrison confirmed that they did have the approv-

al for the 90 additional staff.

Edghill questioned how many were new positions that were created. Morrison noted that there were no new positions.

Edghill pointed out that at one time the authorised employment strength was declared. He lamented that this has been discontinued and because the regions have ceased presenting their authorised strength, they can employ in an ad-hoc manner.

Ali questioned how many contracted employees were in the region. However, when Morrison balked at the question, Ali upbraided him for his lack of preparation. While Morrison admitted that there has been an increase in contracted employees, he promised to supply the actual figures at a later time.

Opposition parliamentarian and PAC member Nigel Dharamlall upbraided the REO for not knowing his staffing strength. Dharamlall contended that as the principal accounting officer in the region, Morrison should be familiar with these figures.

“You employed during the course of 2016, an additional 47 clerical office support staff.

So you started at 10 and end up at 47. Those 10 staff, were they doing the work of 47? So,

from page 3

I think this issue has to go beyond the numbers.

“I find it unacceptable that you are the REO of a region and you don’t know what is the strength of your organisation… that you don’t know how much staff you’re supposed to have, but you employ staff every year. I find that inherently unacceptable.”

The considerations concluded with the Chairman reminding the REO of the information he has to return to the Committee with.

Morrison gave a commitment to provide the information by the end of the week.

“As it is, REO, you have committed to a set of information. One (is) the letter of approval from the public service ministry authorising you to employ the additional 90 persons. You said all 90 were in relation to vacancies existing in the region.

“You have to give us the vacancies that existed and the positions these vacancies filled. You also have to give us the authorised strength based on all your vacancies, so we know the total need of the region from your organisational structure,” Ali also instructed the REO.

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guyanatimesgy.com

tuesDAY, april 10, 2018

Regional

leads opposition Lula’s supporters camp outside jail Brazil to emissions cuts H T undreds of supporters of the former Brazilian President, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, have set up camp outside the cell where he is being held.

Lula has been sentenced to 12 years and one month in prison for corruption and money laundering.

He handed himself in to federal Police on Saturday in São Paulo and was flown to the southern city of Curitiba.

The former leader says he will continue to fight against his conviction, which he says was politically motivated.

Polls conducted before he was jailed suggested that Lula, who governed from January 2003 to December 2010, was the frontrunner in October's presidential election, but his imprisonment has left the race wide open.

As a convict Lula would

Supporters of the ex-President say they will not budge until he is released

normally be barred from standing for election in October, but Brazil's top electoral court will make the final decision if and when he submits his candidacy.

Supporters of the former leader say they will not budge from the "Free Lula" camp until he is released.

Security around the federal Police building in

Curitiba where he is being held was strengthened after some of Lula's supporters clashed with Police on Saturday night. Nine people were injured. (Excerpt from BBC News)

alks on the global shipping industry cutting greenhouse gases have opened with a passionate plea for action.

A Minister from the Marshall Islands warned that the future of his low-lying Pacific country was at stake.

The shipping industry generates more than two per cent of global CO2 emissions but that's projected to increase rapidly.

More than 100 countries are meeting at the International Maritime Organisation in London to try to agree on a new policy.

Battle lines are drawn between countries determined to see deep cuts in shipping's greenhouse gases and those that fear that rapid limits could damage development.

Brazil argues against fixing a goal right now because 90 per cent of its internation-

al trade is carried by shipping and because its geographic position means it is very distant from major markets so a limit on emissions would be unfair.

Shipping was exempted from the Paris Agreement because it involves an international activity and the agreement was based on a system of national targets.

But the industry currently produces a higher level of carbon emissions than Germany and, if it was ranked as a country, it would be the sixth largest emitter on the planet.

Speaking to the gathering of more than 1000 diplomats and shipping industry executives, David Paul, environment minister of the Marshall Islands, said that shipping was a major source of income for his country which had the second largest number of ships registered.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

T&T: 1 Minister demoted, ‘Smile and nod’: Latin American leaders another removed in brace for tense Trump visit major Cabinet reshuffle U

Office of the Prime Minister

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ports Minister Darryl Smith has been demoted as the Office of the Prime Minister has announced a major Cabinet reshuffle that sees the change in portfolios of five Government Ministers and the Prime Minister himself.

Minister of Public Administration and Communications, Maxie Cuffie has also been removed as a member of the Cabinet.

The announcement came via a statement issued by the Office of the Prime Minister Monday morning: "Prime Minister Dr the Honourable Keith Rowley today (April 09, 2018) advised Her Excellency PaulaMae Weekes, President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago of the following in accordance with Sections 3(9) and 76(3) and 79(1) of the Constitution of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago: (i) reassign Mr Darryl Smith as Minister in the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development; (ii) reassign Ms Shamfa Cudjoe as Minister of Sport and Youth Affairs; (iii) reassign Mr Randall Mitchell as Minister of Tourism;

(iv) revoke the appointment of Mr Maxie Cuffie as Minister of Public Administration and Communications and reassign Mr Cuffie as Minister in the Ministry of Public Administration and Communications; (v) appoint Ms Marlene Mc Donald as Minister of Public Administration and Communications; and (vi) revoke the Prime Minister’s assignment as Minister with responsibility for Public Administration and Communications, and in addition to his present duties as Prime Minister, appoint him as Minister of Housing and Urban Development." (Excerpt from Trinidad

Guardian)

S President Donald Trump, who has disparaged Latin American countries over immigration, narcotics and trade, heads to the Region this week for a summit that diplomats say is likely to be awkward and tense.

Trump will arrive in the Peruvian capital, Lima, on Friday for the Summit of the Americas with an agenda of encouraging commercial ties and urging allies to take a hard line on Venezuela, according to US officials who briefed reporters on the trip.

But the US President’s divisive rhetoric and fraught relationships with leaders such as Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto make it unlikely he will make big strides toward his goals, experts said.

“He is going in profound-

ly unpopular in the Region, and that obviously complicates the ability of leaders to work with him,” said Mark Feierstein, who managed hemispheric issues for President Barack Obama’s White House, and is now an adviser with the Albright Stonebridge Group.

The visit is stirring nostalgia for Obama, the Republican President’s Democratic predecessor, a Peruvian diplomat said.

The diplomat added, however: “Nobody has lost any sleep over Trump,” saying: “We all know how to smile and nod along, so we’re not too worried.”

Trump has complained about US job losses to Mexico, threatened to rip up the North American Free Trade Agreement with Mexico and Canada and be-

US President Donald Trump shakes hands with Mexico’s President Enrique Pena Nieto during their bilateral meeting at the G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany, July 7, 2017 (File Photo)

gan his presidential bid with a speech describing Mexican immigrants as “rapists” and drug dealers.

Trump has also taken aim at migration from Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador and other Latin American countries and threatened to cut off aid to

Colombia and Peru over the drug trade.

As he prepares for his trip, which includes a stop in Colombia after the summit, Trump has ramped up his rhetoric on illegal immigration with a plan to send National Guard troops to the U border. (Excerpt from Reuters)

timent, Local Government Minister Desmond McKenzie used the platform to announce that Jamaica would host a regional summit on disaster preparedness and emergency response later this year.

The Caribbean Region's vulnerability to climate change was echoed by differing presenters and is ex-

pected to be one of the focal points of discussion for the summit.

Jamaica’s Foreign Affairs Minister Kamina Johnson Smith and State Minister in the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sports Alando Terrelonge were also in attendance for the launch and brought greetings. (Jamaica Observer)

Mayors' summit kicks off in Kingston

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he Inaugural Caribbean Conference of Mayors started early Monday morning at the University of the West Indies (UWI) Regional Headquarters in Kingston.

The mayors from Trinidad, Guyana, St Lucia, Barbados, the United States as well as local mayors will convene Monday through

to Wednesday to share in knowledge and best practices.

Mayor of Kingston, Senator Delroy Williams, in his opening remarks, highlighted that the conference is the first step in a long journey towards a united approach among Caribbean cities and the common problems they face.

Underscoring this sen-

Carnival adds 20 cruises to Cuba

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arnival Cruise Line has added another 20 voyages to Cuba aboard Carnival Paradise from Tampa, Florida, next year, complementing the 11 cruises to the island taking place aboard the vessel through next year.

The new voyages aboard Carnival Paradise are in addition to the 17 recently announced Cuba cruises aboard Carnival Sensation departing from Miami in 2019, in-

dicating that more and more travellers view cruising as a great way to experience the destination.

“Our Cuba cruises have been met with phenomenal guest response since we began sailing to the island

last year and we’re thrilled to add yet another 20 voyages to this fascinating and sought-after destination,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line.

The newly added five-day voyages on Carnival Paradise will depart Tampa on Saturdays and feature a day-long or a full day and overnight call in the Cuban capital of Havana, along with stops at tropical destinations Key West and Cozumel. (Excerpt from Caribbean360)

tuesDAY, april 10, 2018

guyanatimesgy.com

Putin gives warning as US mulls 'major Syria decision'

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war of words has broken out between Moscow and Washington over a suspected chemical attack in a Syrian rebel-held town, as calls grow for an international response to the incident amid an urgent United Nations Security Council meeting.

Rescue teams and medics have said a "poisonous chlorine gas attack" in Douma on Saturday killed dozens of people, including many children and women. The Syrian Government of President Bashar al-Assad and its ally Russia have called the allegations "fabrications".

As the fallout continued on Monday, US President Donald Trump pledged to soon announce "major decisions" over the attack, while his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, warned against "provocation".

In a statement, the Kremlin said Putin had had a phone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, during which the

The UN Security Council held a meeting to discuss a response to the alleged chemical attack [Brendan McDermid/Reuters]

two "leaders exchanged opinions on the situation in Syria, including the accusations against Damascus by a number of Western countries of using chemical weapons.

"The Russian side stressed the unacceptability of provocation and speculation on this matter," the Kremlin added.

For his part, Trump condemned what he called a "heinous attack on innocent" Syrians in Douma, as he opened a Cabinet meeting at

the White House, adding that decisions would come in the "next 24-48 hours".

"This is about humanity; it can't be allowed to happen," he said.

Earlier, Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron had vowed a "strong, joint response", while US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said nothing was off the table in terms of military action.

(Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Virunga National Park: DR Congo rangers killed

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ive rangers and their driver have been killed at the Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a spokesman says.

The group was killed in an ambush by suspected rebels operating in the park, Joel Wengamulay told the BBC. Virunga boasts Africa's most diverse wildlife habitat and is home to endangered mountain gorillas.

Some of eastern DR Congo's armed groups are also based in the park, where they often poach animals.

Rangers are constantly under threat in Africa's oldest park

Virunga is home to about a quarter of the world's remaining 880 mountain gorillas, as well as lions, elephants and hippos. More than 130 park rangers have been killed in the park

since 1996.

Eastern DR Congo is a mostly lawless region, hit by conflict between the government and various armed groups. (Excerpt from BBC News)

17

Around the World

Facebook: Cambridge Analytica warning sent to users

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acebook members can discover whether they are among the 87 million potential users whose data was shared with Cambridge Analytica.

Every account holder is being sent one of two notices informing them whether their data was breached.

The tech giant said people will also be shown what apps they use and what data

those apps may have gathered.

Facebook has additionally suspended a data analytics firm called Cubeyou, ahead of an investigation.

The tech giant will look into whether Cubeyou collected data for academic purposes and then used it commercially, following a partnership with Cambridge University in the UK.

The investigation follows allegations reported by CNBC, regarding a personality quiz called "You Are What You Like", also known as "Apply Magic Sauce".

Cubeyou denies the allegations. Both the firm and Cambridge University state that the app made it clear that data was for use in both academic and business purposes. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Dozens of children killed as India school bus plunges off cliff

A

t least 27 children, some as young as 10 years old, have died in northern India after a school bus plunged into a deep ravine in the Himalayan foothills, according to Police.

Three adults also lost their lives on Monday when the vehicle carrying young students home in Himachal Pradesh state skidded off a cliff and crashed into a gorge near Nurpur, about 325 kilometres from the state capital, Shimla.

Twelve injured passengers were rushed to hospital, most in critical condition.

"The bus rolled into a 200 foot-deep gorge, killing 27 schoolchildren, two teachers and the driver," said Santosh Patial, a senior local Police official.

"My first priority was to save lives. We will now investigate the reasons for the accident," he told the AFP news agency from the scene.

Most of the students

Most of the students were aged between 10 and 12 years [AFP]

were aged between 10 and 12 years and were from a local school, added Patial.

Onlookers rushed to search the mangled, upturned yellow bus for survivors.

Images from the scene showed injured children being carried away, bloodied and bruised, some on stretchers and others in the arms of bystanders.

The state government has announced 500,000 rupees (US$7700) in compen-

sation for each victim's family.

India has some of the world's deadliest roads, nearly 150,000 people were killed in accidents in 2015, the latest Government data shows.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was anguished by the loss of lives in the latest incident.

"My prayers and solidarity with those who lost their near and dear ones in the accident," he wrote on Twitter.

(Al Jazeera)

Bill Cosby sexual German Minister warns EU after Orban victory in Hungary assault retrial begins after delays A key German Minister says the European Union (EU) must drop its "arrogance and condescension" towards Hungary, where Eurosceptic Prime Minister Viktor Orban has just won re-election.

Interior Minister Horst Seehofer wants curbs on Muslim migration to the

EU, and Orban sees himself as a defender of "Christian" Europe.

It is a tense time in EUHungary relations, as Orban is defying EU migration and rule-of-law policies.

Election monitors said the vote was marred by media bias and xenophobia.

Observers from Europe's

OSCE security organisation said "voters had a wide range of political options, but intimidating and xenophobic rhetoric, media bias and opaque campaign financing constricted the space for genuine political debate".

The vote took place in an "adverse climate" and politi-

cal rivals could not compete with Orban on an equal basis, the OSCE said.

Orban, 54, campaigned on a Eurosceptic, anti-immigration platform.

His Fidesz party won a two-thirds majority in Parliament, as it did in two previous elections. (Excerpt from

BBC News)

FBI raids offices, home of Trump's personal lawyer – source

T

The case involves former basketball player Andrea Constand

he retrial of the American actor and comedian, Bill Cosby, has begun in Pennsylvania.

Cosby, 80, denies drugging and sexually assaulting former basketball player Andrea Constand 14 years ago.

As the trial began, the prosecutor said Cosby paid Constand nearly US$3.4 million in a 2006 civil settlement, according to the Associated Press.

The first trial, in June 2017, ended when the jury failed to reach a verdict.

The actor, who starred in the 1980s TV series “The Cosby Show”, has faced allegations from dozens of other women but has denied them all.

The trial was due to start on Monday morning, but delayed by an issue with one juror, who is alleged to have said he thought Cosby was guilty.

Cosby's lawyers petitioned for his removal, but the presiding judge rejected their arguments and the trial began in the mid-afternoon. (Excerpt from BBC News)

T

he Federal Bureau of Investigation on Monday raided the offices and home of US President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen, law enforcement sources said, in a dramatic new development in a series of probes involving close Trump associates.

Cohen’s lawyer, Stephen M Ryan, said that US Prosecutors conducted a search that was partly a referral by the Office of Special Counsel, Robert Mueller.

Mueller is investigating whether members of Trump’s 2016 campaign colluded with Russia during the US presidential election. Trump has called the probe a “witch hunt” and denied any collusion.

“Today, the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York ex-

Michael Cohen, personal attorney for US President Donald Trump (File photo)

ecuted a series of search warrants and seized the privileged communications between my client, Michael Cohen, and his clients,” Ryan said in a statement.

“I have been advised by federal prosecutors that the New York action is, in part, a referral by the Office of Special Counsel, Robert Mueller,” Ryan said. Monday’s raids were first reported by The New York Times.

Cohen has been at the center of a controversy surrounding a payment to porn star Stormy Daniels, who has alleged that she had sex once in 2006 with Trump and was paid money shortly before the 2016 election to keep quiet about it.

Cohen did not immediately respond to Reuters for a request for comment.

A spokesman for Mueller had no comment. (Excerpt from Reuters)

18

guyanatimesgy.com

tuesDAY, april 10, 2018

ARCHIE

Limit your spending.

Protect your money and pos(March 21sessions. Offer your guidApril 19) ance, experience and time.

Discipline will be necessary when dealing with health issues.

ARIES

Your desire to help othTAURUS ers could be taken the wrong (April 20- way. Refrain from trying May 20) too hard or interfering with someone who isn't going to listen. Sometimes, it's best to do your own thing.

dilbert

Spend more time working GEMINI on a professional or passion (May 21project. If you slap something June 20) together, it won't stand the test of time. Hard work and discipline will help cut costs. Don't divulge personal secrets.

Before you offer your assistance to someone, find out (June 21- what's entailed. You'll be takJuly 22) ing on more than you bargained for if you aren't precise about what you are willing to do.

CANCER

Peanuts

Don't let emotional stress LEO take the reins. Keep life sim(July 23- ple and spend time with peoAug. 22) ple who appreciate you and what you have to offer. Learn from experience to avoid a mishap.

Calvin and Hobbes

Don't feel that you must folVIRGO low someone else. One of your (Aug. 23peers is likely to take on too Sept. 22) much and leave you to deal with unwanted responsibilities. Focus on doing your own thing.

Attend networking funcLIBRA tions or participate in events (Sept. 23that interest you. The peoOct. 23) ple you encounter will make suggestions that will pique your imagination. A partnership looks promising.

WORD GAME TODAY’S WORD — CONCERTO (CONCERTO: kon-CHAIR-toh: A composition for an orchestra and one or more solo instruments.)

SUDOKU

Taking a day trip or makSAGITTARIUS ing plans with someone you (Nov. 23enjoy collaborating with is Dec. 21) encouraged. A change of attitude will make a difference to how things get done.

Average mark 22 words Time limit 30 minutes Can you find 30 or more words in CONCERTO? The list will be published tomorrow.

YESTERDAY’S WORD — DISABUSE dais daub disuse dues idea ides issue said side subside suds

sued abed abide abuse adieu aide aside bade base basis bass

baud bead beau bias bide bused buses busied busies buss used

RULES OF THE GAME: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. For example, if “bake” is used, “baked” or “bakes” is not allowed, but “bake” and “baking” are admissible. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed. To contact Word Game creator Kathleen Saxe, write to Word Game, Kathleen Saxe, Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.

Copyright 2015, Distributed by Universal Uclick for UFS

Situations will escalate SCORPIO quickly.

Don't put up with (Oct. 24excessive behavior or get inNov. 22) volved with individuals who will tempt you to adopt poor habits. Protect your reputation and emotional welfare.

solution

Feelings will be shared, CAPRICORN (Dec. 22- even if you aren't ready to Jan. 19) hear what someone has to say. Your best response is to listen and then contemplate the choices you've been given.

Situations will escalate if

AQUARIUS you don't speak up and ask (Jan. 20- questions. Getting the facts Feb. 19) straight before you move forward will help you avoid making a mistake.

An opportunity looks PISCES (Feb. 20- amazing, but you should first March 20) do your due diligence and get the lowdown on what's expected of you and what you will receive in return.

tuesDAY, APRIL 10, 2018

19

Commonwealth Games 2018…

Guyanese boxers out of medal contention – Hooper sisters, Ramdhani spring into action today

H

eading to Australia with much hype of returning with a medal, the Guyanese boxers faced the harsh reality of the 21st Commonwealth Games and are now out of medal contention.

On Monday, Keevin Allicock lost to Scotland’s Reece McFadden in the Round-of-sixteen of the Men’s 52kg Class. He lost 1-4 on the judges card. Only one Judge scored the contest in Allicock’s favour, 2928. The other four officials had the fight 30-27, 29-28, 29-28, 29-28 in favour of McFadden.

The previous day, compatriot Collin ‘Superman’ Lewis lost to South African Sinethemba Blom in the Round of 16 of the Men’s 64kg Class. Only one Judge scored the three-round contest in Lewis’ favour, 29-28.

The other four judges had the fight 29-28, 30-27, 30-26, 29-28 in favour of Blom.

In athletics, 400m specialist Winston George finished seventh in the semi-finals with a time of 47.25s which was way below par his 46.92 seconds in the heats. He will now focus on the 200m heats this evening for which he will be running out of Lane 3 with Season Best (SB) of 20.41s.

Emanuel Archibald time of 10.4s was not enough

13.08m.

Badminton will have their first test with Narayan Ramdhani coming up against Saint Helena’s Vernon Smeed in the Round of 64 in the Men’s singles.

Additionally, Lennox Braithwaite and Ransford Goodluck are 7 points off the pace following day one of action at the Fullbore Championships – Queen’s Prize Pairs Finals.

Competing at the Belmont Full Bore Range, the pair ended the day with a total of 293 points and 29 Vs, ending the day with the distinction of being the only

The Guyanese shooting team Down Under from right, Lennox Braithwaite, Paul Slowe and Ransford Goodluck

to help him progress to the 100m finals. The athlete, who is attached to the University of the West Indies (Jamaica), will shift his attention to today’s Long Jump qualifiers. He has a SB of 7.71m and will be the first to take flight in Category A. Sisters Natricia and Natrina Hooper will take to the pit for the Triple Jump

Narayan Ramdhani

final. The duo has SB of 12.18m and 12.57m respectively which is below their Personal Best of 13.33m and

Caribbean nation to shoot possible on a day when the big guns held the sway.

At the 300 yards range, Goodluck shot a possible 50:6 while Braithwaite only dropped a single point 49:5. At 500 yards, it was Braithwaite who shot a possible 50:5 while Goodluck only dropped one point, 49:6.

It was at the 600 yards range that the Guyanese lost a combined 5 points, Braithwaite losing three (47:4) and Goodluck, 2 (48:3). It was a good day for the locals sharp shooters given the high level of competition in Australia and they also ended the day as the top Caribbean nation.

The Jamaican pair of Denis Nelson and David Rickman is 13th on the grid with 280:12 followed by Barbados’ Richard Arthur and Jason Wood (274:20) in 14th, Trinidad and Tobago’s Michael Perez and Delborn Joseph (268:12) in 15th and Antigua and Barbuda’s Edworth Benjamin and Desroy Maile (266:11) in 16th.

Three nations are separated by Vs at the top having dropped a single point, England 299:39, South Africa 299:37 and 299:35.

Scotland and Northern Ireland are 4th and 5th on 298:31 and 298:30, respectively.

Wales and Jersey are

Keevin Allicock

next

o

n

297:34 and 297:23, followed by New Zealand, Canada, Guernsey on 296:34, 295:33 and 294:30.On Monday, the Pairs Championship was set to be completed with the 900 and 1000 yards shoot. The Individual competition will commence after.

Simbine upstages stumbling Blake

A

kani Simbine led Henricho Bruintjies in a surprising South Africa 1-2 finish in the 100 meters at the Commonwealth Games that may have Yohan Blake thinking twice about going home to Jamaica.

The 2011 world champion entered Monday night's final as the hot favorite after posting the quickest time of the season and in the first two rounds on the Gold Coast, but stumbled early and never regained his form against the two runners to his right.

Simbine, who was fifth at the 2016 Olympics and at last year's world titles, won in 10.03 second, with Bruintjies second in 10.17.

Akani Simbine ran a superb race to win the Men’s 100m ahead of favourite Yohan Blake

Blake was 0.02 further back to get bronze after a photo finish with Nigeria's Seye Ogunlewe.

The Jamaicans had already missed out on gold in the women's 100, which went to MichelleLee Ahye of Trinidad and Tobago.

So the pressure on Blake intensified. Even more so because recently retired world record-holder Usain Bolt, the only man with a faster career-best time than Blake's 9.69, joked that his old training partner may not be welcome home if he didn't win the title on the Gold Coast.

Ahye won her first gold medal at a major international meet, celebrating with an air punch

as she crossed the finish line in 11.14 and relegated Jamaicans Christania Williams (11.21) and Gayon Evans (11.22) to silver and bronze. England's Asha Philip was fourth.

The win for Ahye, a finalist at the 2016 Olympics and the last two world championships, delivered Trinidad and Tobago its first Commonwealth title in the women's 100 and meant a Jamaican hasn't won the title since 2006.

Although, it came in the absence of the top Jamaican, Elaine Thompson, who won the Olympic 100-200 double in 2016 but is only running the 200 on the Gold Coast. (Sportsmax)

20

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

tuesDAY, APRIL 10, 2018

Indian Premier League 2018 …

Sunrisers spoil Royals' return party

S

unrisers Hyderabad opened their account in VIVO IPL 2018 in grand style after they defeated the returning Rajasthan Royals by 9 wickets at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Monday night. SRH, after winning the toss and opting to field, were clinical with the ball and in the field, and restricted the visitors to a paltry 125-9. In the latter

the first 25 balls he faced, but then slowed down, and eventually perished for 49 (made from 42 balls) while attempting to break loose. The RR innings played out similarly too; the team got off to a brisk start posting 48-1 in the powerplay, but the wheels came off the innings in the middle overs when they lost wickets in clusters. RR could only add 77 runs in the 14 overs after the fielding restrictions were

edgy to begin with – playing out five consecutive dot deliveries and edging one over the slip fielder, but once he had runs against his name, he grew in confidence and started playing his strokes freely. In the third over, he drove Dhawal Kulkarni through the covers and in the same over collected a six through an upper cut. Boundaries came thick and fast thereafter, and Dhawan reached his half-cen-

Notable Support Act - Batting

Kane Williamson’s was easily the top support act of the day. Not pressurised by the demands of rocketing required rates, Williamson took his time and played his natural game; there was a calmness to how he went about the job of scoring runs. He played second fiddle in the partnership with Dhawan and finished with a score of 36 (made from 35 balls) against his name.

Standout bowling performance

Billy Stanlake towers over the rest as he jumps during his delivery stride © BCCI

part of the match, Shikhar Dhawan made lightwork of the chase, helping himself to a half-century. His unbeaten 121-run second-wicket partnership with captain Kane Williamson took SRH across the line with in the 16th over.

Earlier in the Rajasthan Royals’ innings, Sanju Samson’s was the only knock of note. The 23-year old started off briskly, scoring 35 off

relaxed – not a single six was hit in the entire RR innings.

Standout batting performances

Shikhar Dhawan’s was the standout batting performance in this low-scoring match. The SRH opener made the most of the reprieve he was handed early on – Ajinkya Rahane put down a sitter at slip when the batsman was yet to score a run. The left-hander was

tury at the start of the tenth over; the left-hander needed only 33 deliveries to reach the milestone.

He carried on, and in the sixteenth over scored the winning runs in style, punishing a Kulkarni short delivery and sending it on its way to the midwicket fence. Dhawan remained unbeaten on 78, made from 57 balls and decorated with 13 fours and a six.

One would normally get to see one or two standout bowling performances in a T20 match, but in this particular contest the entire SRH bowling attack came good.

Siddarth Kaul (4-0-17-2), the most impressive bowler in the match, broke a blossoming second-wicket partnership when he had Rahane caught at square-leg; he also troubled the RR batsmen with well-directed short-pitched deliveries.

The towering Billy Stanlake (4-0-29-1) clocked good speeds and generated good carry off the surface; he dismissed the dangerous Ben Stokes in the ninth over.

Shakib-al-Hasan (4-0-23-2) struck twice in the fourteenth over when he saw the back of Rahul Tripathi and a well-set Samson.

Kaul returned to dismiss Gowtham, who fended a sharp short delivery to be

Shikhar Dhawan muscles a pull © BCCI

caught behind, a f t e r w h i c h R a s h i d Khan (4-023-1) castled Jos Buttler.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar (4-0-30-1) deceived Shreyas

Gopal with t h e knuckle ball and had him caught in the outfield. (IPL.com)

SCOREBOARD

Rajasthan Royals Innings (20 overs maximum) A Rahane (c) c R Khan b Kaul 13 D Short run out (Williamson) 4 S Samson c R Khan b Shakib Al Hasan 49 B Stokes c Williamson b Stanlake 5 R Tripathi c Pandey b Shakib Al Hasan 17 J Buttler † b R Khan 6 K Gowtham c †Saha b Kaul 0 S Gopal c Pathan b Kumar 18 D Kulkarni not out 3 J Unadkat run out (Pathan/†Saha) 1 B Laughlin not out 1 Extras (lb 3, w 5) 8 Total (9 wickets;20 Overs) 125 Fall of wickets: 1-6 ( Short, 0.6 ov), 2-52 (Rahane, 6.5 ov), 3-63 (Stokes, 8.6 ov), 4-92 (Tripathi, 13.2 ov), 5-94 (Samson, 13.5 ov), 6-96 (Gowtham,

14.4 ov), 7-115 (Buttler, 17.2 ov), 8-122 (Gopal, 18.6 ov), 9-123 (Unadkat, 19.2 ov) Bowling: Kumar 4-0-301, Stanlake 4-0-29-1, Shakib Al Hasan 4-0-23-2, Kaul 4-017-2, R Khan 4-0-23-1 Sunrisers Hyderabad Innings (target: 126 runs from 20 overs) W Saha † c Laughlin b Unadkat 5 S Dhawan not out 77 K Williamson (c) not out 36 Extras (b 4, lb 1, nb 1, w 3) 9 Total (1 wicket; 15.5 Overs) 127 Did not Bat: M Pandey, D Hooda, Y Pathan, Shakib Al Hasan, R Khan, B Kumar, B Stanlake, S Kaul Fall of wickets: 1-6 (Saha, 1.3 ov) Bowling: Kulkarni 2.5-0-18-0, Unadkat 3-0-28-1, Gowtham 1-0-9-0, Laughlin 2-0-200, Gopal 3-0-17-0, Stokes 2-0-21-0, Short 2-0-9-0

NESTLÉ & Hero CPL reaffirm their successful partnership T

h e H e r o C a r i b b e a n Premier League and NESTLÉ Trinidad & Tobago Limited have reaffirmed their partnership after a successful link up for the 2017 Twenty20 tournament. As the premier entertainment brand in the Caribbean and a manufacturer of premium range coffees the alignment of the two brands worked perfectly last year. The sixth Hero

CPL tournament runs from August 8th through September 16th 2018 and the alliance continues with even more benefits for players and fans.

In addition to barista stations, cricket fans can also expect exciting giveaways, interactive games and innovative executions at each match. Not attending a match? No problem. Consumers can look

Hero CPL COO Pete Russell (left) and Robin Cumberbatch, NESTLÉ Business Executive Officer (right) celebrate the partnership between both brands

out for numerous T20-based promotions at supermarkets and stores through-

out the region. And for the players - “It all starts with NESCAFÉ®.” To pay

homage to this tagline, cricketers can expect to have their dressing rooms and hotels well-stocked with NESCAFÉ® products for their morning brew or afternoon pick-me-up, courtesy of NESTLÉ.

Business Executive Officer, NESTLÉ AngloDutch/Caribbean, Robin Cumberbatch, and Hero CPL Chief Operating Officer (COO) Pete Russell represented the brands at the official agreement signing this week. Cumberbatch described the partnership as a “perfect alignment between a Premier League and a premium range of coffees.” He expressed how

thrilled the Good Food, Good Life company is to be a part of the CPL for a second year, after a successful first year experience in 2017. He also hinted that the NESCAFÉ brand will be “owning moments,” both before and after each game, so fans should “stay tuned.”

Pete Russell, Hero CPL’s COO said: “We are delighted to be associated with such a prestige brand and have really enjoyed our partnership with NESTLÉ thus far, not least because the Hero CPL has such a grueling schedule for the teams and Hero CPL staff and their wonderful products kept us going.” (CPLT20)

sports

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Poor negotiations forced Whitmore to resign

T

heodore Whitmore, former coach of the Reggae Boyz, quit his job, in part, because he was embarrassed by the nature of contract negotiations between himself and the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF).

The revelation was inside a lengthy resignation emailed to president of the JFF, Michael Ricketts, where Whitmore expressed ‘profound disappointment’, at having to tender the missive.

“The sequence of events surrounding my contract negotiation with the JFF and which has become a public issue, have left me extremely humiliated and is the cause of painful emotional scars to my personal, reputation and standing in the international, regional, local football community and the wider public,” read the letter.

According to Whitmore, a private man by all accounts, there had been months of media attention about those negotiations, afterwhich, he was left to feel he was not being taken seriously.

“After months of media attention, I was expecting a discussion whilst we

were together in Turkey for 10 days with the National Team. I was able to finally meet with you on February 21, 2018 at the JFF. The meeting included Mr. Roy Simpson, Team Manager.

On the matter of my contract we concluded that the JFF would use the next 30 days thereafter to bring closure to the very protracted contract negotiations. This you announced to the public,” Whitmore said.

According to Whitmore, when the month was at an end, he wrote to the JFF about pertinent matters related to the Reggae Boyz and to the looming Nations League the team was to be part of and received no acknowledgement of same.

Instead, Whitmore said he learnt, through a media release of a game the team had against Antigua and Barbuda.

In his letter,

Whitmore says operating in that manner was beneath the JFF. “As the person responsible for the National Team, at the very least, I would have expected consultation regarding the organisation of these matches.

This was again disrespectful,

lacked professionalism and left me very disturbed,” read Whitmore’s letter.

(Sportsmax)

Former Reggae Boyz and Jamaica Coach Theodore Whitmore

22

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

tuesDAY, APRIL 10, 2018

“My best innings yet” says Nkosi Beaton – all-rounder hopeful for productive inter-county stint

By Akeem Greene

Hurrah! Nkosi Beaton celebrates scoring his maiden century for Demerara Cricket Club on Sunday, an innings he rates as his best yet (The Xercise Photo)

Young and promising cricket talent continues to be in abundance in Guyana, and Nkosi Beaton is the latest to stake a claim for future National duties. If you are wondering why the burly batsman is a contender to be the ‘next best’, should he input the hard work, Sunday at the Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) was your opportunity to witness why.

With the home-side tottering at 48-6 in the eighth over against arch-rivals Malteenoes S p o r t s C l u b (MSC),

in the New York TriState/Georgetown Cricket Association Under–19 final, the right-hander forged a 122-run stand with Windies Youth player Ashmead Nedd, bailing his team out of trouble and the title into their hands.

He composed a scintillating 120 as his maiden century. Let’s talk about the hitting now. Despite DCC arguably being one of the smaller venues, his three sixes were humongous, and added the icing on the cake to his immaculate strokeplay, which brought 17 fours.

And let’s not forget his off-spin accounted for 2-17 in five overs. His three matches accumulated 149 runs and had five wickets.

“I would rate it as my best innings, since it was my maiden century under lots of pressure, with a noisy audience which included my mother”, the 16-year-old

conveyed to Guyana Times Sport after his innings on Sunday.

“While batting with Nedd, we were telling each other to keep going, play each ball on its merit, and simply stay focused”, he disclosed.

With a spot in Demerara Under-19 squad for the inter-county tournament which commences today, the player is conscious that the century is just the beginning of a long road ahead, and the hard work starts now.

“As a batsman, I’m trying to work on my fitness and concentration. It’s very important showing my coaches that I do have the ability to bat starting after my career as an off-spinner,” he declared.

He reflected on his previous selection to represent Demerara at the under-15 level, when he got no chance to play a match; Beaton is now confident he has the

GCB/Hand-in-Hand Insurance U-19 Inter-County…

Select U-17 engage mighty Demerara at Everest

T

he Guyana Cricket Board (GCB)/Hand-inHand Insurance sponsored Under-19 Inter-County tournament will commence today with its three-day segment.

At the Everest Cricket Club, the marquee names in Windies Youth players Bhaskar Yadram and Joshua Persaud will look to make a big impact in their final for Demerara who play the National Under-17 Select squad.

The list of match winners lengthens for the Demerara who are the defending champions as fellow Windies Youth player Ashmead Nedd , express Windies under-16 seamer Qumar Torrington and the all-round talent of Sagar Hathiramani make them strong tournament favourites.

The under-17s should not be discounted too early since their battling will revolve heavily around Windies under-16 captain Sachin Singh who has the ability to decimate attacks above his age group. Seon Glasgow Jr and Yeudistir Persaud are also

– Berbice, Essequibo battle at Lusignan

some handy additions with bat in hand.

Over at the Lusignan Community Centre ground, Essequibo opposes Berbice.

The squad from the Ancient County have undergone intense preparation and the duo of Kevin Sinclair and Kelvon Anderson will be a

tournament in Barbados.

Demerara Squad: Bhaskar Yadram (Captain), Sagar Hathiramani (Vice-Captain), Joshua Persaud, Ashmead Nedd, Stephen Wilson, Adrian Hinds, Rajendra Singh, Robin Williams, Dwyain Dick, Dambuka Nqyando, Nksoi Beaton, Joshua Reddy, Mark

Kelvon Anderson

prized wicket for the opposition; there is still powerful Alex Algoo who should open the batting.

Both matches commence from 10:00h and will be used as the basis of preparation and selection of the National squad for the July-August regional

Baptize, Qumar Torrington, Manager: Jitlal Jowharilall, Coach: Dhanpaul/ Rohan Sarjoo.

Select Under-17 Squad: Sachin Singh- (Captain), Seon Glassgow, Fawaz Gafoor,Ameer Singh, Saeed Hakh, Navendra Persaud,

Yeudistir Persaud, Andre Seepersaud, Hrithik Singh, Niron Bissu, Nigel Deodat, Marvin Prashad, Gevon Shultz, Saif Amoi, Trevon Charles, Badesh Parsotam, Sheldon Charles, Sylvian Williams, Lance Roberts, Andrew Samaroo, Manager: Nazeer Mohamed and Coach: Orin Bailey Berbice Squad : Kevin Sinclair (Captain), Kevlon Anderson (Vice- Captain), Alex Algoo, Junior Sinclair, Javed Karim, Steve Deonarine, Garfield Benjamin, Malcom Mickle, Leon Swamy, Trevon Stansilaus, Kevin Umrao, Keith Simpson, Karran Arjpaul, Christopher Harry, Manager: Neil Rudder and Coach: Andre Percival.

Essequibo Squad: Kevin Christian (Captain), Kurt Lovell (Vice-Captain), Orlando Jailall, Joshua Jones, Reyaz Khan, Elian Whyte, Mark Ramsammy, Shane Wong, Rayon Venture, Matthew Choung, Beesham Moses, Sherlon Anthony, Quintin Sampson, Joel Fortune, Manager: Andy Ramnarine, and Coach: Ryan Hercules.

goods to be a national player.

“Yes, I do have what it takes to make my first National step. I hope to someday represent the West Indies. I have been putting in the work, especially with my fitness. Over the past two weeks, I’ve been running a lot, because to play at the highest level you need to be fit,” he said.

Joining the Queenstownbased institution in 2014, he has been under the guidance of Coach Gavin Nedd, and looks to club mate Christopher Barnwell for inspiration.

“I look up to players like Shai Hope and

is against the wall; and the way he goes about playing cricket is great,” he revealed.

Cricket is not the only aspect he is orchestrating to score high with, since the North Georgetown Secondary School student will be writing nine subjects at the upcoming Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examination, laying the platform for his dream to become an Aeronautical Engineer.

Christopher Barnwell. Chris always shows fight, even when his back

Ministry of Foreign Affairs Domino Competition…

MoB/National Bureau of Standards cops top prize

Organiser James Lewis (left) presents the accolades to a representative from the Ministry of Business (MoB)/National Bureau of Standards

T

he Ministry of Business (MoB) who partnered with the National Bureau of Standards walked away with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Domino competition trophy and the cash prize of $70,000 on Friday. They accumulated 74 points which was good enough to out-do the Ministry of Social Cohesion/National Culture Staff who had 68 points and won $35,000.

Third place went to Transport and Harbours Department who had to settled for $20,000 after

accumulating 64 points.

Organiser James Lewis expressed gratitude for the support of management and the participants which saw the host Ministry donate all the cash prizes, entrance fees and accolades for 13 teams which competed.

Meanwhile, in a tape ball tournament held under the auspices of Lewis on Sunday at Durban Park saw the Ministry of Public Infrastructure Road team securing the winners’ purse of $40,000 ahead of Supreme Court.

tuesDAY, APRIL 10, 2018

guyanatimesgy.com

23

GABF Road to Mecca V…

Colts clinical on opening weekend D

efending champions Bounty Colts were unstoppable as they defeated Ravens when play continued in the Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation (GABF) Road to Mecca V Club Championships at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.

Sunday’s games saw a youthful Bounty Colts team trounce an old but experience Ravens squad 72 -59 points in the feature showdown. The all-Linden battle had Bulls winning against Retrieve Raiders

Nathan Saul goes up for a layup against the Jets

74-64 while Pacesetters’ pace was too hot for the Jets who were defeated 90-79 and Nets edged past Eagles 68-66.

On Saturday when the tournament commenced, newcomers Eagles defeated Kobras 63-51, then Colts trounced Bulls 9950, Royals sank Nets 78-61 while in the feature game, Ravens defeated Guardians 65-57.

The tournament resumes on Wednesday from 18:00 hrs with three matches. Eagles taken on

Pacesetters in the first match then Kobras face Nets and Plaisance Guardians oppose Bounty Colts to wrap up the night The 12 teams will battle for the coveted title and winner’s purse of $600,000 while second takes home $400,000 and third $200,000.

Bounty Paper Towels Outdoor Hockey…

Pizza Hut GCC blow away Spartans

P

izza Hut GCC blew away new comers Bingo Spartans on Sunday when play in the Bounty Paper Towels Outdoor Development Hockey League continued at the St. Stanislaus College Ground, Carifesta Avenue.

GCC won 6 – 2 against their opponents in the Women’s Second Division while Old Fort and Woodpecker Hikers battled to a draw.

Carina Moller led the way for GCC with a helmet-trick of goals as Vanessa Pires drew first blood in the 10th minute

Sarah Klautky about to score for GCC

GABBFF Novices Championships

Dakhil is Mr Physique – Dr Persaud is top Bantamweight

M

uscle-building once again attracted and dazzled followers as the Guyana Amateur Body Building and Fitness Federation (GABBFF) Fitness Express 2018 Novices Championships was staged on Sunday at the Cultural Centre.

The night saw Space Gym’s Tariq Dakhil claim the Mr Physique title while gym mate Diciula DeSouza was crowned Ms. Bikini.

Dakhil finished ahead of Renaldo Caldeira (Space) while Xavier Kiton of Fitness 53 finished third.

Onai Vasconcellous, Nevon Pinketon, Vishno Pancharan and Donald Lindie rounded out the other positions, in that order.

Ms. Bikini finished ahead of Angelia Barrows

Batamweight Champion Sundarshanandan Persaud (left) poses with Ms Bikini Diciula DeSouza and Mr Physique Tariq Dakhil

(Space) and Jennifer Gordon (Fitness Paradise) who were second and third. The other competitors were Abigial Adams, Inderia Moore, Letitia Daniels and Kristen Odie. Fitness 53’s Dr. Sundarshanandan Persaud won the Batanweight category ahead of Pierre Wagner and Vishnu Ramcharran.

GDF’s Odwin Yansen and Donston Richmond finished first and second, being the only participants in the Welterweight Category.

The Junior category also had only two competitors and was won by Vishnu Ramcharran while Leakram Seawaran was second.

Light Middleweight Fabian Roza and Master’s Allan Savory were adjudged victors of their divisions as they were the only entrants.

then Sarah Klautky doubled the lead three minutes later.

Moller recorded the first of her four in the 15th minute as the half ended with the new comers trailing, 0 – 3.

Moller then piled on goals in the 22nd, 26th and 32nd minutes while Spartans endured the fight to record two consolation goals in the final half. Macaela Harding opened Spartans’ scoring while Dominque de Groot accounted for the other goal.

In the under-19 category Hikers humbled Saints Splinters 3 – 0 and GCC Pitbulls sank Joseph Warriors 2 – 0.

Baraka Garnett recorded a second half hat-trick to see Hikers home after the half ended with neither team being able to score. Garnett struck in the 35th, 36th and 37th minutes to take the fight out of the opposition.

In the other game, a goal each from Tariq Nelson and Seth Jeffery was enough to give the Pitbulls a win.

The Men’s Second Division saw Old Fort squeeze past Bounty GCC 3 – 2 and GCC The Sequel defeated Saints Under-19s.

Old Fort completed an amazing come-from-behind win as a goal each from Shaquille Leung and Meshach Sargeant put Bounty GCC ahead at the half. However, in the second half, it was all Old Fort who had a double from Jael Gaskin and the decider being scored by Omar Hopkinson. The league is scheduled to continue on Saturday and Sunday at the same venue from 15:00h.

tuesDAY, APRIL 10, 2018

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

guyanatimesgy.com

GABF Road to Mecca V…

Colts clinical on opening weekend Pg 23

Half Mile Bulls' Terron Welch rises for a jumper against the Raiders on Sunday evening at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall

GCB/Hand-in-Hand Insurance U-19 Inter-County…

Select U-17 engage mighty Demerara at Everest

Pg 22

– Berbice, Essequibo battle at Lusignan

Bhaskar Yadram

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