Guyanatime 18 april 2018

P10

Lack of textbooks hindering education delivery in Region 1 Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

Issue No. 3537

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Wednesday, April 18, 2018

PRICE

2018 Assets and Liabilities statement

WHAT'S INSIDE:

Bank of Guyana gold reserves plummet Page 3

…go from $25B in 2014 to $1.9B in 2018

Page 9

DPP asked to review charges against Singh, Brassington

$80 vat included

Man found guilty of Page 13 raping 6-year-old …jailed for 28 years

Wife busted while sneaking ganja for husband in P7 prison

Gunmen trail, rob auto sales employees P7

Thieves rob Journalist P14 during home intrusion

Another motorcyclist dies in accident Page 16

Foiled robbery

6 suspects slapped with gun, ammo possession P2 charges

Dead: Florenda Benjamin

…1 jailed for 8 years, fined $800,000

Accident scene: The damaged motorcycle and car following the collision on Tuesday at Sir David Rose Avenue, Mackenzie, Linden, Region 10

Commonwealth Heads of Govt 2018

Guyana-Venezuela border controversy case discussed during bilateral Page 12 talks

Footballer P8 charged for attempting to kill colleague Region 7 roads to be tolled – Patterson P13

Voters' list sanitisation

PPP calls for due diligence by GECOM …says dead persons' names still on voters' list Page 11

2 news

wednesDAY, april 18, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Foiled robbery

6 suspects slapped with gun, ammo possession charges …1 jailed for 8 years, fined $800,000

T

he six men who were reportedly found with a quantity of firearm and ammunition while travelling in a stolen car, after allegedly attempting to commit a robbery a week ago at Supply, East Bank Demerara (EBD) were on Tuesday arraigned at the Providence Magistrate’s Court.

Mark Prince, 39, a taxi driver of Parfaite Harmonie, WBD; Nabadingi Gobin, 24, of Georgetown; Leonard Khan, 31, a fish vendor of Albouystown, Georgetown; Edward Skeete, 30, of Albouystown; Marvin Blackman, 27, a fish vendor of South Ruimveldt and Steve Hercules appeared before Magistrate Sunil Scarce.

The men, with the exception of Hercules, all denied the 10 charges that were read to them.

According to the prosecution’s case, on April 10, 2018, while in the vicinity of Grove, EBD, the men had in their possession six live

.32 ammunition, 11 rounds of 9mm ammunition, two 9mm black pistols, and a .32 black Taurus pistol.

Another charge stated that the men attempted to commit a felony on April 10, 2018.

The prosecution applied for the case to be tried at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

This application was granted by Magistrate Scarce.

The prosecution also objected to bail on the grounds that the men were all known characters to the Police.

As such, Gobin, Khan, Skeete, Blackman and Prince were remanded to prison until May 10, 2018.

Hercules was additionally charged with fraudulent conversion of a vehicle’s identification mark.

It was alleged that on April 10, 2018, at Grove, EBD, he changed the identification plates of a grey Premio motor car registered as PVV 6204 to HC

4543.

Hercules admitted to nine of the ten charges and told the court that a customer of his offered him $50,000 to transport the vehicle on April 10, 2018, to Georgetown from Soesdyke, EBD. Hercules said prior to him delivering the vehicle, he was told of its contents, but still agreed to transport it.

He explained that on his way to the city, he collected the five men. The men, he argued, did not know about the gun and ammunition.

“While I was coming down, I decided to pick up couple passengers to cover me while I was coming down from there,” he told the court.

Hercules was sentenced to an $800,000 fine and eight years in prison.

The six accused were nabbed after they reportedly attempted to rob a Supply poultry farmer, Michael Chang Yuen.

Four of the men reportedly entered the man’s yard

The men being escorted by Police ranks after their appearance at the Providence Magistrate’s Court

and an alarm was raised.

The men subsequently quickly returned to the waiting motor car, which was parked some distance away, and fled the scene.

However, the Police

were alerted, and a roadblock was set up in the vicinity of the Grove Public Road, which saw the four men, along with two others in the same car, being captured.

A search carried out on the motor car unearthed, in addition to the weapons and ammunition, one sledgehammer, two pairs of latex gloves, and trade plates.

news

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wednesDAY, april 18, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

BRIDGE OPENINGS

2018 Assets and Liabilities statement

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Wednesday, April 18 – 05:00h-06:30h and Thursday, April 19 – 05:00h-06:30h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Wednesday, April 18 – 05:30h-07:00h and Thursday, April 19 – 06:05h-07:35h.

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

WEATHER TODAY Lightly cloudy skies can be expected during the day, with partly cloudy skies in the evening. Temperatures will range between 21 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius.

Winds: East North-easterly to North-easterly between 2.23 metres and 6.25 metres.

High Tide: 05:56h and 18:23 reaching maximum heights of 2.88 metres and 2.76 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 11:55h reaching a minimum height of 0.32 metre.

saturDAY, April 14, 2018

LOTTERY NUMBERS G

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16 23 24

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TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2017

DAILY MILLIONS 04 05 14 16 26 LUCKY 3 1 1 9

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

Bank of Guyana gold reserves plummet …go from $25B in 2014 to $1.9B in 2018

By Jarryl Bryan

T

he Bank of Guyana’s latest Statement of Assets and Liabilities are out and it shows the bank’s total assets are on a slide, with several indices ranging from the bank’s gold holdings to its market securities showing reductions when compared to previous years. The statement was only recently released.

According to the bank document, its total assets as of March 28, 2018, were $206.4 billion. This includes $1.9 billion in gold reserves, $82.1 billion in capital market securities and $5.6 billion in money market securities.

This is a reduction from the gold reserves the bank recorded in June 2017.

According to the bank’s Half Year Report last year, it had $4.8 billion worth of gold in its foreign holdings as assets.

Indeed, the gold reserves have steadily been declining with each passing year. At the end of 2016, the bank had $7.4 billion in gold, while at the end of 2015 the gold reserves stood at $14.2 billion. At the end of 2014 the bank of Guyana had $25 billion in gold as assets.

In the case of total assets, that has also seen a marked decrease. At the end of 2014, total assets were $207.9 billion. It reduced in 2015, being recorded at $188.7 billion in December of that year, before recovering by 2016 year end and being recorded at $220 billion. At June 2017, total assets were $221.8 billion, before the drop recorded in this year’s figures.

Gold price The practise of countries selling the gold it held in reserves is not an uncommon one. Many countries hold billions of dollars in gold as a “back up” in time of inflation or economic downturn. It is usually in these cases that the gold is then sold.

At present, gold prices are approximately US$1350 per ounce. It has fluctuated over the years, at one point hovering around the US$1000 per ounce mark in 2016. In Guyana’s case, observers are likely to worry whether the State received the best price the world market could offer.

Other considerations would see links being established between the steady selling off of gold and Guyana’s regressing economic standing. Only a few days ago, Finance Minister Winston Jordan confirmed that Guyana recorded a growth rate of just 2.1 per cent for the 2017 fiscal year. He had linked the dismal figures to sectors including sugar. “The economy did not perform as robust as we expected during last year. Even at the half year we were predicting that the economy would not, given what we knew about sugar. At the end of the day, it was even worse than we predicted. So even though there was positive growth last year, the growth rate ended up being 2.1 per cent.”

“Sugar, we had budgeted at 208,000 tonnes, came in at only 137,307 tonnes. Bauxite again did not do quite well. We had budgeted 1.7 million tonnes.

Bauxite came in at 1.4 million.

Gold (was a) major disappointment. We budgeted at 694,000 ounces. It came in at 653,674 ounces.”

Rice, it seems, was one of the few bright spots, with the Minister reporting that from a target of 600,000 tonnes, rice came in at 630,104. Having budgeted for 318,000 cubic metres, forestry recorded 349,900 cubic metres. Jordan noted that this is better than previous years.

According to Jordan, the overall state of the economy is nothing new.

“I think I’ve been quite open with you about this economy, in the sense that this economy has not changed much in over 50

The Bank of Guyana statement showing its financial standing as of last month

years, depending on one or two products, which depends on what prices are. One day you’re up when gold is up, one day you’re down when bauxite is down.”

“Our critical sectors have always depended on some grandfather, that grandfather being some protectionist market. In the case of sugar, that grandfather being the ACP markets. In the case of rice, rice has always had some kind of grandfather market,” Jordan explained.

Previously, Jordan had said the economy was expected to grow by 2.9 per cent, failing to meet the revised growth projection of 3.1 per

cent for 2017. The initial projected growth of the economy was 3.8 per cent. This was, however, revised by midyear to 3.1 per cent after the economy only grew by 2.2 per cent by July.

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guyanatimesgy.com

WednesDAY, April 18, 2018

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

Pageants and standards T

here is urgent need for the Government of Guyana to draft and implement regulations as well as guidelines that would seek to further strengthen and enhance the quality of pageants that are held locally to select the country’s beauty ambassadors.

These regulations and standards could emanate from a national multi-stakeholder forum that is hosted at the invitation of the Ministries of Business, Tourism, Education and Youth. The forum could be seen as a focal point for information sharing and capacity building from all those who form part of the local pageant and fashion-related sub-industries.

It could also be used as an opportunity for the directors, executives and coordinators of community, regional and national pageants to have dialogue about the state of the industry and the challenges that are currently affecting its ability to flourish and achieve its full potential.

The truth is, the local pageant industry since the turn of the new millennium has been dogged by scandal after scandal depending on who were the principals of the pageant, behind the scene actors, sponsors, and delegates.

For far too long, these young women have been the victims of sexual misconduct, sexual harassment, economic exploitation and outright fraud. They have suffered and endured a lot to get to the finish line only to emerge successful and realise that the worst is still ahead.

There have been countless stories of pageant delegates being promised a number of prizes, gifts, employment and endorsement if they emerge as the victors of their respective competitions, but many times end up with half or none of the promised bounty.

Delegates are often left to fend for themselves despite pageant coordinators collecting entry fees, sponsorship revenue and other forms of in-kind contribution from corporate Guyana to make an event happen or fully sponsor a delegate or segment.

There have been stories where Guyana’s representatives turn up at international pageant events which attracts millions of viewers around the world poorly trained, prepared and resourced to compete in the first place much less purport to represent the essence of Guyanese women.

The situation locally reached its pinnacle last year with damning allegations being made against one of Guyana’s national pageant franchise holders and more recently, a decision to cancel the historic Miss Linden Town Week Pageant after reprehensible allegations that there was an attempt to sexually assault some delegates who were seeking sponsorship.

These must not be seen as isolated instances since they happen on a larger scale but are hushed up by those who are responsible for various pageants out of fear that the pageant’s reputation may be impugned, and their image maligned.

Also, the regulations must address the manner in which delegates are selected and the pageant themselves funded and executed. Guyana needs to abandon the principle of choosing delegates for a particular pageant, weeks or two months before the actual event. They girls should undergo months of coaching and preparations that are aimed at improving their overall welfare and well-being.

Our representatives are disadvantaged when there is not enough effort placed into sending well-rounded not only beautiful representatives abroad to represent Guyana. While many of the young ladies – Lisa Punch, Alana Seebarran, Soyini Fraser, Rafieya Hussain and a few others have defied odds by securing resounding success internationally, there is need for us to regulate the industry and bring back order and methodology in order for Guyanese girls to be given a good chance at securing fame and prestige internationally on behalf of Guyana.

Baby elephants play at the David Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage in the Nairobi National Park, near Nairobi, Kenya (Reuters)

Wiser economic decision was to keep sugar industry Dear Editor, Finance Minister Winston Jordan during his press conference on Friday, April 13, 2018, announced that the economy expanded by only 2.1 per cent, the lowest growth rate in recent times. Incidentally, it was Black Friday; was it coincidence?

The Minister, among other things, charged that sugar production of 137,307 tonnes in 2017 was responsible for the poor economic showing.

The Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) will not rehash the reasons for the poor production which we shared publicly on more than one occasion. Though the Minister seeks to use sugar as one of his punching bags in seeking to explain what is clearly a worrying situation, at the same time, the admission by Minister Jordan serves to

demonstrate the importance of the sugar industry to the wider economy.

As GAWU has been saying consistently, the sugar industry cannot be seen solely and only from the financial/profitability argument the Government, like a horse with blinders, is focused on. Important as that is, the GAWU strongly believes, and must reiterate, that sugar has to be seen from its wider economic impact in terms of direct and indirect employment, taxes whether be income or consumption, foreign exchange receipts, among other things.

The four closed estates aggregately paid its workers $11.9 billion in 2014, using data available from the Sugar Commission of Inquiry report. To illustrate the significance of what the economy has really lost, we

contrasted what obtains in the Private Sector. Using most recently available data concerning employment costs at Banks DIH Limited, Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL), Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry (GBTI), and Republic Bank (Guyana) Limited – four publicly listed companies in Guyana and among the country’s largest enterprises – we learnt they spent aggregately G$9.6 billion.

Also, it is estimated that the now jobless workers of Skeldon, Rose Hall, East Demerara and Wales, conservatively, utilised about 85 per cent of their earnings on the purchase of goods and services. In other words, directly shopkeepers, market vendors, fisherfolk, transportation providers, etc have lost $10.15 billion.

Indirectly, using the income multiplier formula, a further

$70 billion has been removed from the economy. This is a massive and substantial hit and one which many, especially in rural Guyana, may not be able to recover from.

With now four closed estates, some resuming operations in a minimalistic way at this time; it would be interesting to know what the 2018 figures would reveal.

Clearly, from all appearances, the wiser economic decision was to keep the industry going while working to make it profitable and viable as the Special Purpose Unity is now seeking to do at Albion, Blairmont and Uitvlugt. What is clear, as Minister Jordan is reported in the April 14, 2018 in sections of the media to have said sugar is too big to fail.

Yours faithfully, Seepaul Narine General Secretary

A CoI set up to substantiate a rumour Dear Editor, Commissions of Inquiries (CoIs) are usually set up to find or uncover facts that were once hidden and bring them to light.

That is why in some places like the South African hearings, it is called a Truth and Reconciliation Commission – these inquiries are designed to get to the bottom of things with a firm view to bring closure and healing to the affected parties and the nation as a whole. With this principal thought in mind, let us take a closer look into the most recent of CoIs held by the Government, that is, the Lindo Creek massacre. Was this Commission

set up to get the facts or is it really a sham inquest? Or is it another one of those attempts to whip up hate for the Opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) who was in power at the said time? In either case, the People’s National Congress (PNC)-led coalition is not on a quest to know the truth but, are headlong on a mission to substantiate a rumour. Ultimately, the PNC is hoping that they can get back that much needed support from its own power base. The PNC is cognisant of the fact that support from its constituencies is dwindling – talk to the common man on the ground and

you will get the real picture – so there is serious urgency to regain ground. So, any plausible mechanism that can be employed, would be employed to regain lost territory, this CoI is one of them.

The way the Commission’s directors are going about their duties is that they would like the hearings to go in a certain direction but sadly things are not turning out the way they would like it to be.

The PNC is not interested in getting to the truth, they would rather settle for a substitute for the truth no matter how ludicrous it may be.

This became a clear fact in their meticulous, painstakingly detailed handling of Arokium’s hearsay testimony.

Lindo Creek was meant to be the smoking gun of all inquiries set up to unearth all the deadly corrupt practices of the PPP/C during their tenure in office.

When a CoI is set up purely on the basis of a rumour, no good can be the result, in fact, by so doing the PNC have exposed themselves to be a shameful political entity before the entire world.

Respectfully, Neil Adams

guyanatimesgy.com

wednesDAY, April 18, 2018

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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

Police rejection of rape report is deeply disturbing Slothfulness in building

Dear Editor, I am totally disturbed by news reports that ranks of the Guyana Police Force in New Amsterdam refused to take seriously a rape report by a 58-year-old Berbice woman and humiliated the victim at the Police station.

It is detestable and totally inexcusable that Police Officers whose duty is to “protect and serve” would stoop so low as to disrespect and embarrass a senior citizen making a report at the height of her suffering after being the victim of a vicious attack and rape. This abominable act not only disgraces the officers in question, but by extension, the entire Police Force.

Police Officers are at the service of every man, woman and child within the jurisdiction of Guyana. When any person approaches members of the Police Force with a report about a crime, their first order of business is to take the report seriously and investigate the circumstances immediately. It does not matter if the person making the report is a beggar or a “junkie”, they are required

to investigate because crimes are committed against all persons, no matter what is their station in life. Even vagrants on the streets have been robbed.

No Police Officer has a right to humiliate any citizen for any reason.

Dealing with reports of crimes at Police stations, especially serious crimes like murder or rape, cannot be left to the ‘whim and fancy’ of junior officers on duty. There must be a reliable and effective system in place at every Police outpost to record accurately and follow up on citizens’ reports to the Police.

This is standard Police procedure worldwide and that is how it should be in Guyana as well.

Police salaries are paid for by the citizens of this country through their tax dollars and every citizen, male or female, rich or poor, sick or well, educated or uneducated, has a right to protection and attention. This is the basic reality in any civilised and sane society.

According to the news item, the position of the Cops on duty was that the woman

is a beggar and a junkie so: who would want to rape her?

This is contemptible rubbish. I am aware that elderly women over 80 years old have been raped and murdered in the Bourda area of Georgetown, up to recent times. All Police ought to know that perverts will rape anyone, anywhere, anytime.

I have seen and read and known of women 85 years old and over being raped and murdered in Wakenaam and I know of other cases of these same monstrous acts being committed by young men against elderly women in Berbice. In recent times, there have been reports of old women at home alone being attacked, raped and murdered. You cannot tell me the Police do not know about such cases.

Therefore, I am upset and disappointed that trained Police Officers acted like total ignoramuses in this matter by rejecting the rape report of this senior citizen because they looked at her and decided she may be a “junkie” or beggar and no one would want to rape her. Who gave them the right to judge

her? Who gave them the authority to condemn her?

This is a great shame and severe indictment of the Guyana Police Force. It shows that there are ranks on duty at Police stations who are unfit to do their job with fairness and professionalism. The way they treated this woman will cause citizens to lose confidence in the Police and this could escalate feelings of insecurity and fear among law-abiding persons.

If the reports are true about the abominable conduct of the ranks in this case, then the Guyana Police Force needs to do massive damage-control to restore the confidence of the people.

This case demands an immediate and complete investigation; if the officers are guilty, they must be publicly humbled and punished by the top brass of the Police Force.

There is no other way to deal with this. Every citizen across the board has a right to Police protection, including the criminal.

Sincerely, Roshan Khan Sr

The Fyrish well issue

Dear Editor, I could recall that a letter writer, Imtiaz Bacchus, questioned the health issues stemming from a GWI well located in the cemetery at Fyrish Village and which provides drinking water for thousands of residents on the surrounding areas.

As far as I could recall, there was no comment offered by GWI on the issues raised by Bacchus. I found this to be very irresponsible. We are talking about the health of the people and the head of GWI is a doctor by profession and of all people, he should have proffered an explanation to allay the concerns of residents. Why was no explanation done to allay the fears of the residents?

What I found was astonishing and I was shocked that experts at GWI and the health authorities would have allowed this dangerously high risk to the residents’

health to be so intentionally ignored or at least allay their well-founded fears (no pun intended).

It must be noted that the Fyrish Cemetery is located just across the 12-foot dam where the residents live so it poses a high risk during flooding.

The study also stated that the health hazards from cemeteries are nothing new and caught the attention of scientists at the end of the nineteenth century.

In 1879, the French Society for Hospital Hygiene noticed the relationship between typhoid fever and groundwater contaminated by leachates from a cemetery in Paris.

Since this finding goes back a long time, it befuddles the mind why this well should be located in a cemetery when there is an abundance of land nearby.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO)

“Human or animal remains must not be buried within 250 metres of any well, borehole or spring from which a potable water supply is drawn”. This makes the location of the well at Fyrish highly questionable.

In conclusion, the residents must know the rationale behind the location such as the type of soil and its permeability to permit leaching and seepage. The questions of how far above are the graves from the water table, and the effects of flooding in

the cemetery on the percolation of the groundwater.

However, it must be borne in mind that the location of the water well in a cemetery whether or not it satisfies the criteria of suitability will do nothing to alleviate the psychological fear which eats the minds of the residents, causing many of them to buy water for drinking purposes.

Yours sincerely, Haseef Yusuf RDC Councillor, Region Six

houses from the Housing Department Dear Editor, Editor, I have a genuine interest and specific concern for people like me who are desirous of owning their own house or home.

This concern has germinated out of the slothful progression of work in relation to the actual building of houses from the Housing Department for our fellow Guyanese citizens, the poor people who are in the majority.

The Ministry with responsibility for housing, Editor, has two Ministers with this portfolio and sadly not much has been done since 2015 for the actual construction of houses and the jobs that can be created from this Ministry.

I do acknowledge the work done by Minister Yearwood who is in this post at present and ensures that house lots are made available for many Guyanese who had their applications in the system for many years, and today, they are now house lot owners.

As commendable as this may be, this is not the principal mandate and primary objective of this Ministry as set out by his Excellency in his well-articulated vision for housing. The building of communities as posited by our President, require houses to be built on those lands and people living in them.

Since 2015, this Ministry without a shortage of funds have not built 200 houses as yet!

The houses that are being built by the Ministry are too expensive for the average Guyanese public servant, who works for less than five hundred US dollars per month.

The price tag of over seven million for those 24X30 two-bedroom flat houses is burdensome and will cause the poor to be poor-

er. Furthermore, I do not believe there is a lending institution that will provide a loan for one to purchase a duplex house/apartment in the country.

On the notion of the poor, the Food For The Poor (FFTP) organisation is doing what the Housing Department is not and should be doing, which is building houses. Houses that are affordable for the average paid workers in this country.

With over a billion plus dollars spent, what is there to show that is noteworthy of mentioning.

FFTP has recently boasted about its 3500 houses it has built already for the poor in our country and is now taking there project to the interior and rural communities.

What is this Ministry doing to achieve the President’s vision of building communities?

The Minister of Housing has the opportunity to create a multiplicity of opportunities for countless Guyanese to gain employment by clearing the land, selling the materials for the drainage and water system, lighting, building materials for the houses, the actual building of those houses as well as create possibilities for youngsters to learn a skill.

The Minister is sleeping on the Ministry’s tail and depriving countless young Guyanese of not only work but the pride and joy of home ownership. We need a Minister of housing, not house lots.

It is sad when a Ministry has allowed an organisation like Food For The Poor to lead the way with its mandate of building houses for Guyanese.

Sincerely, Houseless land owner

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wednesDAY, April 18, 2018

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By Alyssa Nucaro

I

began my teaching career as a transplant to the Memphis community and felt an enormous culture shock. I quickly learnt that many of my students needed much support owing to the troubling circumstances they faced on a daily basis – Memphis is one of the most violent cities in the United States.

At first I wasn’t sure what difference I could make in this situation.

However, over time I learnt that to combat the violence my students saw every day I needed to instil love and compassion into their learning experience. I needed to teach them how to care for one another as well as themselves. And I needed to lead by example as a loving, caring, and empathetic teacher.

One day after school, I had a conversation with a student who told me that he moved his bed into the middle of his bedroom every night to avoid the stray bullets that had hit his home before. He explained that this was why he was so tired in class – he didn’t sleep well due to constant fear and anxiety.

This is only one of the many examples I’ve accumulated over the years of the influence of violence on children’s academic success. Recent school shootings have heightened the fear of violence across school campuses, and now more than ever there’s an urgent need to teach children the power of love, kindness, and compassion.

Simple ways to teach compassion

Practise what you preach: Teachers should model compassion and acts of compassion on a daily basis, by complimenting students on their successes, enquiring about their day or their weekend activities, and addressing all bullying behaviours

Foundation consistently.

Also, I make sure to tell my students positive affirmations each morning, such as, “You are smart” and “You are capable,” to display my beliefs in their abilities. Our school’s morning announcements end with the phrase, “We love you, and make today great.”

Affirmations such as these, from a whole school community, allow love, compassion, and support to be displayed to each and every student on a consistent basis.

Care for a pet: Allowing a pet in the classroom helps students learn

about responsibility beyond taking care of themselves. A pet also shows students how to share responsibility among peers and how to trust one another with varying amounts of accountability.

In my classroom, we adopted three hermit crabs, which students were allowed to take home over the weekends.

They needed to have parental approval to care for the pet, and they took a checklist of responsibilities they had to account for each day.

I used this opportunity as a classroom management tool, since only those students who exhibited excellent character were allowed to care for the pets by themselves.

Lend a helping hand: Allowing students to engage in community service projects and diversity activities helps them learn how to care for others

as well. Some of the community service projects incorporated by my school are: canned food drives during the holiday season, spare change drives during times of natural disasters, and community beautification projects such as our school garden. Students can also be encouraged to volunteer for activities like feeding the homeless.

When students have an opportunity to lend a helping hand, it provides them with knowledge about current events as well as ways that they can help provide assistance and create change for others. For students who regularly receive support from others, showing them how to lend a helping hand builds self-esteem, motivation, and confidence.

Play the Compassion Games: The global competition called the Compassion Games is a spin on The Hunger Games— students can compete in tracking their acts of kindness once you register their class online (individuals can play on their own, too). Teachers can log their students’ acts of kindness via the website, and students compete with their peers around the country and the globe to see who has the most compassion.

The competition runs in April and September, and students and teachers inspire the movement of kindness by tracking and accumulating service projects and/or missions of compassion, thus instilling these principles of moral character on a global scale. I brought this community engagement experience into my classroom in order to promote acts of compassion within the school and our local community.

As I reflect upon my teaching experience and the community I call home, I find myself constantly thinking about the future of my students. As I continue to see violence throughout the community that surrounds them, I feel that a shift toward lessons encompassing love, compassion, and kindness is a priority. Such lessons must become a focal point in academic communities in order to promote and inspire significant change. (edutopia.org)

guyanatimesgy.com

“Sleep on it” to boost brain power …science shows sleep is beneficial for generating creative ideas

By Melissa Burkley, PhD

W

riters often get their ideas from their unconscious mind rather than their conscious mind. To illustrate these two mental systems, I used the analogy of a tourist riding a mule down into the Grand Canyon. In that analogy, I referred to the writer’s unconscious mind as their “inner mule” and their conscious mind as their “inner rider”.

Their ideas often come to them when their inner rider is asleep or bored, allowing their inner mule to speak up.

“You get ideas from daydreaming,” Neil Gaimen once told his seven-year-old daughter’s class when they asked him the infamous question. “You get ideas from being bored. You get ideas all the time. The only difference between writers and other people is we notice when we’re doing it.”

So it’s not that successful writers have more creative ideas than the rest of us. They just do a better job of listening to their inner mule when it starts talking. But what do you do if your inner mule just isn’t cooperating? Each day this week I will post a new tip (based on psychological science research, of course!) that should spur your inner mule into action. And keep in mind these tips are not just limited to generating creative writing ideas, they help spur creativity for any kind of endeavour.

Each day this week I’m posting simple tips you can use to boost your creativity. Today’s tip focuses on sleep. It seems counterintuitive but the best way to get your mind working may be to put it to sleep. Lots of scientists have discussed how some of their best ideas came to them either in a dream or upon waking.

Thomas Edison, for instance, would nap with steel balls in his hands held over a metal pan so that when he dropped them,

presumably because he was dreaming up some juicy solution, he’d awaken with new and creative answers to his problems.

Lots of writers have also mentioned how sleep has helped their creative process. For example, Stephen King tells a great story in “On Writing” about how he fell asleep on a long plane flight from New York to London and had a terrifying dream about a famous writer who is captured and held hostage by a psychotic fan. When he awoke from the dream, he could still hear the crazed fan’s dialogue in his head so he jotted it down on an airline cocktail napkin. That snippet of an idea would go on to be Misery, one of King’s best novels.

Similarly, John Steinbeck wrote in Sweet Thursday, “It is a common experience that a problem difficult at night is resolved in the morning after the committee of sleep has worked on it.”

Lots of research backs up the idea that sleep boosts creativity.

For example, in one study by Wagner and colleagues, participants were given a challenging and time-consuming number task.

However, what the participants didn’t know was that there was a hidden secret strategy built into the task and if they figured it out, it would greatly speed up their progress. All participants were introduced to the task and them some were allowed eight hours of sleep while others were kept awake. After the eight hours had passed, participants resumed working on the task. The results showed that 60 per cent of the sleep group discovered the hidden strategy compared to only 23 per cent of the wake group.

According to these researchers, sleep allowed the participants’ brains to mentally restructure the information learnt, resulting in new and insightful responses. To put it another way, when you learn something new and then immediately sleep on it, what you learnt becomes clearer and more creative.

Don’t have time for a solid eight hours of sleep? No problem.

Research shows similar creativity benefits occur for mid-day naps too. In fact, this study found a 60- to 90-minute midday nap was more effective in boosting brain performance than 200 mg of caffeine (the equivalent to two shots of espresso)! (Excerpted from psychologytoday)

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wednesDAY, april 18, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Gunmen trail, rob Wife busted while sneaking auto sales employees ganja for husband in prison

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olice are hunting for four men, who reportedly robbed employees attached to Ideal Auto Sales in Little Diamond, East Bank Demerara, on Tuesday morning as they were returning from a commercial bank in Diamond, EBD. According to the Vice President of Operations, Jailall Ragunauth, the incident occurred at around 11:30h in front of the Auto sales’ entrance located on the northern side of the compound.

Ragunauth told Guyana Times that the driver and a female employee of the auto sales were returning from the bank after completing a transaction and as they approached the auto sales establishment, a silver-grey Toyota 212 drove in front of their vehicle, thus blocking its path.

By then, three masked and armed men exited while a fourth remained in the driver’s seat.

“There was no money transaction, they probably were trailed from the bank and the robbers thought that they did a money

Ideal Auto dealership at Little Diamond where the robbery occurred

transaction but we don’t do money transactions here,” Ragunauth explained.

The female employee, who had experienced the ordeal, was too traumatised to speak to the media.

However, it was relayed that she was relieved of a sum of cash and other valuables that were in her handbag, which the men took away.

According to the security guard attached to the facility, he had left his post to retrieve some drinking water and as he was returning, he observed the car alongside the company’s vehicle.

“This thing happened

fast, I not too long get up to go and get some water is when I coming back I see the three men coming out the car all of them had gun and all of them had on mask, so I run back to the back and call out other staff,” he explained.

Ragunauth has since indicated that security will be upgraded at the facility, noting that this is the first his company was robbed since its establishment three years ago.

Police have confirmed that an investigation is ongoing and the perpetrators are “known” characters.

Joseph Pollydore Street, Lodge, Georgetown resident was on Tuesday arrested after she attempted to smuggle a quantity of marijuana into the Camp Street Prison.

Based on reports received, the woman, Nicola Clarke, turned up at the penitentiary with food for her husband, Orpheus Johnson, a murder accused.

As the woman presented the boxes of food at the checkpoint, the officers discovered two wellwrapped packages containing the marijuana.

One of the boxes reportedly contained cook-up rice while the other had curry and rice.

The packages were neatly placed under the rice. They were immediately ripped open and the illegal drug was found.

Clarke is expected to be charged shortly.

Her husband was on remand for the murder of Travis Rudder, which took place at Nandy Park, East Bank Demerara (EBD) back in 2015. In that same incident, his son and reputed wife were seriously injured. Of recent, several contraband items were smuggled into the prisons.

These items include cigarette lighters, marijuana, improvised weapons, cellphones and cellphone cards.

In February last, a Joint Services operation

at the Mazaruni Prison unearthed several cellular phones and improvised weapons, among other contraband items.

The six-hour search exercise resulted in the discovery of four cellphones, five phone chargers, three USB cables, a memory card, 30 lighters, 15 smoking utensils, six improvised weapons and several other items, the Guyana Police Force said in a brief statement on Thursday evening.

One week prior to that, a 26-year-old prison officer attached to the New Amsterdam Prison was arrested after he was caught with 528 grams of cannabis and 20 packs of cigarettes at the facility.

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WednesDAY, April 18, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

IN THE COURTS Jury finds “Big Foot” guilty of manslaughter

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fter two weeks of trial at the High Court, Bryan “Big Foot” Leitch was on Tuesday found guilty of manslaughter by a unanimous 12-member jury. This decision was announced by the jury foreman who had earlier told the court that the defendant was not guilty of murder.

Leitch was originally indicted for murdering Joseph Jagdeo, the SouthCentral hotelier whose body was found bound and gagged at the guesthouse on November 14, 2013 in Room 10. Leitch was said to be the last known person to stay in Room 10. The prosecution contended that he committed the crime between November 13 and 14, 2013, at South Road, Georgetown after stealing the businessman’s cellphone.

Murdered South Central Hotelier Joseph Jagdeo

The offender’s sentencing was delayed to facilitate the presentation of a probation report. As such, presiding Judge, Sandhill Kissoon adjourned the matter to

May 2. After hearing the jury’s verdict, Leitch and his two relatives that were present in court were all on the verge of tears.

The jury’s determination meant that the panel disbelieved Leitch’s brief unsworn statement from the prisoner’s dock on Monday when he claimed that he was innocent of the crime. “I don’t know anything about any murder, I did not kill anybody,” he had observed.

The defendant’s Caution Statement (CS) alleged that Leitch was “sorry” for his actions. On December 1, 2013, retired Police Sergeant Phillip Bowman took the CS which quoted Leitch as saying that on the morning in question, Jagdeo came to his room and told him to leave the hotel which angered him.

“I was vexed and I tell he and I tie he hand and put a cloth around he mouth and tie it, I push he under the bed and put the room key on the bed. I then go to the office and took out he cellphone; I sorry for what happen, I didn’t go to kill he,” the excerpt from the CS had stated.

Kiana Garnett testified on Monday that on November 13, 2013, when Leitch asked her and Shantel DeJonge if they wanted to buy a cellphone. The witness stated that Leitch gave the phone to DeJonge and noted that the phone was black in colour.

State Counsels Mandell Moore and Lisa Cave appeared for the State while Attorneys Hewley Griffith and Lawrence Harris represented the defendant.

Campbellville man charged for hitting wife

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man who reportedly beat his wife after he found his eight-yearold daughter at home alone was before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Tuesday.

Boodnauth Mohadore denied that on April 14, 2018 at Lot 4 Seaforth Street, Campbellville, he assaulted Shebad Mohadore so as to cause her actual bodily harm.

In court on Tuesday, Mohadore told Magistrate Judy Latchman that he was at work and returned in the

afternoon to find his daughter at home alone.

He claimed that he attempted to make contact with his wife, who he could not reach. He also told the court that his wife returned home at midnight.

He said that when his wife arrived home, an argument ensued. He claimed that the Virtual Complainant (VC) pushed him and then took up a pot spoon to hit him. He further claimed that while attempting to take the spoon from her, she fell.

He also told the court that he was surprised when the Police showed up to arrest him after his wife reported the matter.

The VC, however, told Magistrate Latchman that her husband was an alcoholic who usually assaulted her.

As such, she was advised to seek a restraining order against the defendant and if he breached the restraining order, he would be jailed.

The woman agreed to do same, but asked that the matter be dismissed.

As such, the matter was dismissed by Magistrate Latchman.

Footballer charged for attempting to kill colleague

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footballer who used a broken bottle to stab a member of an opposing team found himself before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan charged with the indictable offence.

Jillian Knox, 25, of Lot 36 Pearl, East Bank Demerara (EBD), allegedly unlawfully and maliciously wounded Keith Dalton with intent to murder him on April 11, 2018 at Coverden, East Bank Demerara (EBD).

According to the facts of the matter presented by Police Prosecutor Gordon Mansfield, the two men who play for opposing teams had a misunderstanding on the day in question.

As such, an altercation ensued when Knox broke a bottle and dealt Dalton a stab to his right side.

Dalton was rushed to the hospital where he was admitted for three days.

Knox was released on $250,000 bail on the condition that he reports to the Timehri Police Station every other Friday until the conclusion of the matter.

He was also ordered by the Chief Magistrate to stay 50 feet away from the Virtual Complainant (VC) and witnesses in the matter.

Knox is expected to make his next appearance at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on April 30, 2018.

Tossed aside…

T

…WI in Britain

here’s talk about Britain apologising for its treatment of Black West Indians who’d arrived in the wave that brought over 500,000 of them after the Windrush in 1948. But Britain had joined the anti-immigrant wave since 1968 when Conservative MP (and Minister) Enock Powell gave his infamous “rivers of blood” speech to Conservative party members in Birmingham. He claimed to be quoting a constituent when he said that “in 15 or 20 years’ time the black man will have the whip hand over the white man”. And ended with a quote from the Aeneid – Virgil’s poem about Rome – predicting civil war with “the River Tiber foaming with much blood”. The man was a classical scholar!!

At that time, it was only 20 years after the Windrush had landed with its hold chock-full of West Indian blacks – paying their own way in a reversal of the Middle Passage – to perform the menial tasks even a war-battered British working class wouldn’t touch with a 10-foot pole. It said a lot about the desperate conditions in the West Indies after Britain had ruled us for over three hundred years: we’d been cast aside like bagasse!

But the British had convinced us by then that after fighting by their side to roll back the “fascist Germans” to “save democracy”, our “motherland” needed us one more time. So we ran the “underground”, the buses, the garbage trucks and whatever else was beyond the pale to build back “old Blighty”. Hell…back in the West Indies we even signed along the dotted line to supply them with sugar in “perpetuity” for their “cuppa”!!

Anyhow by 1968, the welcome mat had been worn threadbare…especially since TT-born Stokely Carmichael had visited the year before and personally introduced the claims of “Black Power”!! Powell was only saying aloud what the Brits had always thought about us. Contrary to the claims of CLR James about our Cricket, our equality hadn’t reached “beyond the boundary”!! We were the children of Ham and we were born to be servants and slaves to ‘real’ – read “white” – Christians. After their economy recovered, the racism – always there – became muted since it was not “politically correct”.

So why this newfound contrition by PM May about how Britain welshed to the descendants of the Windrush generation – who’d been taken so fast off the ships to perform their grubby tasks their papers hadn’t been even straightened out? Simple: Britain is hosting this year’s “Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting” (CHOGM)!! With them out of the EU, they need the Commonwealth to strut on the world stage again!!

On our backs!!

…and into the streets

Now that Clive Thomas has been tossed out of GuySuCo on his ear, it’s not surprising to hear that his SARA is now going into the streets to fight corruption!! It’s clear it’s “the night of the long knives” for the WPA. First, they came for Roopnaraine…then Hinds…now Thomas. And who’s the “they”?? Did YOU, Dear Reader, think the PNC really forgot how Rodney and the WPA ridiculed and humiliated their Founder Leader?? Fat Boy!! King Kong!! King Midas of Doo-Doo!!

The WPA should’ve sensed something was amiss when SARA – explicitly in charge of recovering STATE ASSETS – was bypassed for SOCU, to recover assets supposedly “given away” by the PPP! Thomas is – and always will be – a paper pusher: he hasn’t the faintest inkling how the real world operates! It’s easy to spin tales about “the criminalising of the state” – just like he used to do about “the rape of the South”. Translating that into action is a dimension he has never entered!!

So, let’s see what he does about “street” corruption!!

Three-card hustle??

…for stonewalling

The PAC, chaired by the Opposition, is mandated to inquire how allocated Government funds are spent.

Because the PNC’s PAC was years late, the spending checked was moot. Unlike the PPP – like with the money spent and no drugs.

Don’t just throw the delinquents out – jail them!!

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

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wednesDAY, april 18, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

DPP asked to review charges against Singh, Brassington

Former Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh

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request has been made to have Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Shalimar Ali-Hack review the charges filed against former Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh and former Head of the Privatisation Unit of the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) Winston Brassington.

The request was made through defence Attorney Anil Nandlall, who formally wrote to the DPP on Tuesday, April 17. In his letter, Nandlall explained that his clients were charged by information upon oath dated April 12, with three counts of misconduct in public office contrary to common law in Georgetown.

The matter was called up before the court on the said day and adjourned until May 7, 2018.

“I respectfully invite a review of the said charges for the purpose of specifically considering whether the particular of the offences disclose any offence at law, more particularly, the offences for which the accused persons have been charged and if not, I further invite you to consider exercising the powers vested in your office by Article 187 of the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana and to discontinue the said charges, forthwith”, the correspondence read.

The attorney reminded the DPP that her office bears a constitutional responsibility to protect the citizenry against the insti-

Former Head of the Privatisation Unit, Winston Brassington

tution of criminal charges that are based upon “malice or sinister motives that cannot reasonably yield a lawful conviction.”

Close to one year after the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) completed an investigation into the sale of lands, the Unit on Thursday, April 12, instituted legal proceedings against Singh and Brassington. These charges were instituted based on the sale of three plots of State land.

The three charges advanced by SOCU were not read by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan when the case was called last week since the men were not in the jurisdiction.

Representing Dr Singh was Nandlall, while Attorney

Stanley Moore appeared on behalf of Brassington. The case was adjourned to May 7, to allow the defence lawyers to contact their clients concerning the charges.

In the three charges advanced by SOCU and seen

by Guyana Times, it was outlined that Singh being the Chairman of NICIL and Brassington being the CEO in December of 2008, by way of Agreement of Sale and Purchase, sold to Scady Business Corporation a track of State land (4.7 acres) being a portion of Plantation Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown, for the sum of $150,000,000 “knowing that the said property was valued at $340,000,000

by Rodrigues Architects Associate, a competent valuation officer.”

Similarly, the other charge outlined that Singh and Brassington sold to Multicinemas Guyana Inc a plot of State land (10 acres) at Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, for the sum of $185,037, 000 “without first having procured a valuation of the said property from a competent valuation officer.”

Moreover, it was outlined that Singh and Brassington in 2009, by way of an Agreement of Sale and Purchase sold to the National Hardware Guyana Limited a track of Sate land (103 acres), being a portion of Plantation Liliendaal and

Director of Public Prosecutions Shalimar Ali-Hack

Turkeyen for the sum of $598,659,398 (VAT exclusive) without first having procured a valuation of the said property from a competent valuation officer.

However, during an interview with Guyana Times, Nandlall blasted SOCU on the fact that they had not, at any point, made contact with the individuals who were being investigated prior to the disclosure that charges will be laid.

“Last year, on behalf of Ashni Singh, I wrote to SOCU informing them that I am the lawyer for Dr Singh and that should they require him to assist in any investigations, that I am prepared to make contact with him and that he stands willing and able to assist and participate in any in-

A copy of the letter sent to the DPP

vestigation… I received no response to that letter…

They called me late yesterday evening to indicate to me that Dr Singh will be charged,” he explained.

Further, Nandlall asserted “since I sent that letter and during the (course) of whatever investigation they were conducting, no one attempted to make con-

tact with Dr Singh.”

Nandlall, who also held the post of former Attorney General, also questioned why a criminal investigation of this type would be conducted and no attempt would be made to seek input from the person or persons who are the subject of the investigation. (Samuel Sukhnandan)

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wednesDAY, april 18, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Lack of textbooks hindering education delivery in Region 1

The team with Regional Chairman Brentnol Ashley

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team of senior Education Ministry officials visited Region One (Barima-Waini) and was informed of the lack of textbooks and electrical issues, among other major hindrances when it comes to education delivery within the region.

The team, led by Chief Education Officer Marcel Hutson, met with parents and regional officials at the Whitewater Community Centre to listen to their concerns and take corrective steps to address the issues.

In relation to the electrical issues, a directive was issued to have a technical expert immediately visit the Whitewater School to ensure power is connected to utilise the computers. Hutson mandated Regional Education

Officer Nigel Richards prepare a list of the needed textbooks so that they could be supplied within a two-week time frame.

“Very soon efforts will be afoot to have the annex gazetted and be made into an official school with a head teacher,” Hutson said.

The residents were informed that plans are in train to introduce the Secondary Competency Certificate Programmes (SCCP) at the Wauna Primary School to ensure children leave the school with a technical certificate that affords them the opportunity for meaningful employment in Guyana or anywhere in the Caribbean and to also pursue further education.

“We want to encourage parents to consider the

fact that while you might not have major qualifications, your community must make sure that as parents you should demand a certain level of excellence from the school system and do your part as a key stakeholder,” Hutson advised.

“We all have the same brain and we all need to em-

dressing the fixing of the solar powered panel to get electricity for full use of the computers. Other findings and recommendations with timelines are to be compiled for necessary action.

A feedback meeting was also held with teachers of Whitewater Primary School and a request from a parent was for the establishment of a community library for which Jennifer Cumberbatch the Director of NCERD promised some assistance through a donation of books

by Month end.

The high-level team comprises of Assistant Chief Education Officers Owen Pollard, Carol Benn and Patrick Onwuzirike

Stakeholders at the meeting with Ministry officials

power each other to build the community and safeguard the resources and facilities.

The idea of us coming here was to not just see problems but to fashion workable solutions. The engagement was also to assure residents that education could be delivered in the best possible way,” the CEO added.

Plans are afoot for the Parent Teachers Association Coordinator Nadia Hollingsworth and other education officials to conduct Townhall meetings to engage with parents. The issues include limited textbooks, ad-

from the primary, secondary and technical divisions of the MoE. Also, on the team is Senior Welfare Officer Vickram Mohabir, along with Parent Teachers Association Coordinator Nadia Hollingsworth. There is also a representative from the Monitoring, Evaluation Technical Support Unit Nashrullah Khan, Civil Engineer Shaunette Braithwaite of the MoE Buildings Unit and two Technical Facilitators of the CEO Franseca Vieira and Simone Wills.

Selling out

S

atiricus was bemused at all the flak the government was taking on the oil contract. As he ambled over to the Back Street Bar, he worked himself into a mood of righteous indignation. “Suddenly everybody’s an expert!” he thought. He decided he’d put his foot down on the matter with his friends who as usual had already gathered at their watering hole.

“Why can’t you fellas be more patriotic?” he demanded even before he took a swig of the proffered beer.

“Ah who abee betray dis time, Sato?” asked Bungi absently. He was used to Satiricus’ non-sequiturs.

“Our government, that’s who!” said Satiricus sternly.

“Everybody’s on their case on the oil contract!”

“An’ wha’ wrang wid da?” asked Cappo. “Na wan schupid contrac’?”

“That’s just what I mean, fellas,” complained Satiricus.

“Vexxon is a foreign company and we can’t show foreigners we’re divided.” Everyone’s eyes swivelled towards him.

“Let me get this straight, Sato,” said Hari. “You think Guyanese should stay quiet on the oil contract?”

“That’s right,” said Satiricus. “The contract is already signed…A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.”

“Na if de bird in de bush’ a wan gold bird!” said Bungi.

“An’ de bird in yuh han’ a wan kiskadee!”

“Sato, lissen to me,” said Cappo leaning forward. “Yuh t’ink yuh party leadah Trat Man a wan smart fella?”

“Yes, he is,” said Satiricus.

“An’ yuh t’ink he get de bes’ contrack fuh abee ile?” continued Cappo.

“Well…may be could’ve done better,” Satiricus conceded. “But boat gone a water!”

“But in this case,” interrupted Hari. “The boat can turn back! Contracts can be renegotiated.”

“But everyone will say, we don’t keep our word,” fretted Satiricus. “We’ll get a bad name!”

“But yuh Prezzie own advisah seh plenty country a renegotiatt all de time,” said Bungi. “De man name Namgal.”

“But people will say we are greedy,” said Satiricus.

“Suh Vexxan na greedy?” asked Cappo. “How come dem na shame?”

Satiricus became silent.

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wednesDAY, april 18, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Voters’ list sanitisation

PPP calls for due diligence by GECOM …says dead persons’ names still on voters’ list

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hile the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) has expressed some level of satisfaction over the fact that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) and various stakeholders are engaged in a process to update and sanitise the list of registered electors, the Party is also calling for due diligence to be exercised.

One of the tasks undertaken by GECOM and stakeholders is to cleanse the list of deceased persons, based upon information generated by the General Registrar’s Office (GRO), which is responsible for the issuance of certificates of death. This is something the Party has repeatedly called for.

“The PPP calls upon GECOM to exercise greater care and due diligence in their attempts to sanitise the list. We will continue to partner with GECOM and other stakeholders, in a concerted effort, to produce

a list of registered electors that is accurate and whose integrity can withstand objective scrutiny,” it stated.

The removal of names of persons who have died from the list of registered electors is a responsibility of GECOM and is guided by strict laws and rules, the Party reminded. Only on the basis of a certified list of persons who have died, issued by the GRO, can GECOM remove a person’s name.

“It is, therefore, imperative that we emphasise that names cannot be removed from the list on the ground that persons are dead, unless confirmation is received from the GRO,” the PPP asserted.

The Party therefore noted that GECOM issued five lists of persons who have died between December 2015, and March 2016. One of the lists, according to them, is of persons who have died but whose names are not on the list of registered

electors (that is persons who never registered).

The PPP said it has conducted a review of this particular list and has discovered a significant number of names which are in fact on the list of registered electors. “This list is, therefore, not accurate. As a result, the names of deceased persons will continue to be on the list of registered electors,” it pointed out.

In March, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo called for an audit to be done on the digitisation of records at the General Registrar’s Office (GRO). His comments were followed by Citizenship Minister Winston Felix, who claimed that the process is transparent and one that does not include partisanship.

However, the Opposition Leader feels that there might be attempts to fiddle with the registration process at the GRO using the digitisation of records as the cov-

er for “fictitious names being registered, which could then be used, (seeing) that it is registered with the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).”

Jagdeo said he would also urge GECOM to pay careful attention to the issue, because the integrity of that entity’s data base would depend heavily on the source documents being issued by the GRO. Jagdeo said he would also urge GECOM to pay careful attention to the issue, because the integrity of that entity’s data base would depend heavily on the source documents being is-

sued by the GRO. “But (it is) not just GECOM that has to worry, but all the foreign embassies and everyone else; because if people have fake Guyanese documents and some of them are not Guyanese, they pass through here and just get the fake documents for the purpose of registration, they can eventually secure passports and a whole range of other documents,” Jagdeo opined.

The Opposition Leader is asserting that the integrity of the disgitisation process is vital.

“We in the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) are

paying careful attention to this, given what has happened historically — that the heavy padding of the voters list with fictitious names was a norm under previous Government sometime back in our history,” Jagdeo recalled.

Earlier, Region One Chairman Brentnol Ashley, had raised concerns about the active participation and involvement of Government Member of Parliament (MP) Richard Allen in the affairs and functions of several State agencies and elected bodies in the region.

Ashley complained about MP Allen’s active involvement with the GRO visiting team issuing birth certificates in the region, and had noted that the MP was not employed at any of those agencies.

The Regional Chairman went on to disclose that he had even received reports of Allen personally distributing birth certificates in bulk to people in various communities.

12 news

wednesDAY, april 18, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Commonwealth Heads of Govt 2018

Guyana-Venezuela border controversy case discussed during bilateral talks

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he Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Patricia Scotland, QC and British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson were updated on the status of the Guyana/Venezuela border case which is presently before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) by Head of State David Granger during bilateral discussions.

The President along with his delegation comprising Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge; Director General of the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Ambassador Audrey Waddell; and Guyana’s High Commissioner to the UK, Frederick Hamley Case met with the officials on the sidelines of the 2018 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) being hosted in London, United Kingdom.

Providing an update following the meetings,

which were held at the Intercontinental Hotel, Minister Greenidge said Guyana expressed gratitude to the Commonwealth for articulating their position in support of the country as it relates to the border controversy on the international scene.

“What is unfolding now, what the ICJ is likely to go in terms of the future steps,” he added.

The work of the Commonwealth and new areas of focus, particularly the development of toolkits to assist in the implementation of key policies in member states, which is an initiative of Secretary General Scotland also constituted the talks, Minister Greenidge revealed.

Guyana’s Iwokrama Rainforest and environment protection initiatives were also explored.

The bilateral engagement was described as fruit-

President David Granger engaged in bilateral talks with British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson on the sidelines of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, London

ful as the President and Foreign Secretary Johnson committed to strengthening the cooperation between Guyana and the UK on all fronts.

The Head of State discussed issues of common interest with the British Foreign Secretary and according to Minister Greenidge, “issues ranging from BREXIT to the chal-

lenges the UK faces to environmental issues and so forth, cooperation that is ongoing in terms of the security initiative and other areas,” were addressed.

The Foreign Affairs Minister noted that these meetings precede previous engagements, including one held by UK Prime Minister Theresa May with Caribbean countries in relation to bilateral cooperation.

As part of the CHOGM events, President Granger is expected to meet with Mozambique’s President

Filipe Nyusi, attend the Commonwealth’s Malaria Summit and welcome dinner, which is to be hosted by Prime Minister May, tomorrow.

Leaders at this year’s CHOGM are expected to consider a Commonwealth Blue Charter on ocean governance, a Commonwealth connectivity agenda for trade and investment, a declaration on cybercrime and Revised Commonwealth guidelines on election observation in member countries.

Hairdresser robbed at gunpoint in Alberttown

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35-year-old old hairdresser was on Monday afternoon relieved of her personal items while walking along Cummings Street, Alberttown, Georgetown. The victim has been identified as Wendy Griffith of Cummings Street, Alberttown.

Based on information re-

ceived, the woman was walking along Cummings Street when a black CG motorcycle carrying two men approached her. Soon afterwards, the motorcycle stopped and the pillion rider came off, whipped out a gun from his waist and held Griffith at gunpoint.

He proceeded to demand she turn over her handbag

which contained $20,000 in cash and a Motorola mobile phone valued at $30,000.

After she complied, the bandit then hopped back onto the motorcycle and fled the scene.

Police have confirmed that CCTV footage of the area is being reviewed with the intention of apprehending the culprits.

Grove man charged for stealing cellphone

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man, who claimed that he accompanied a friend to sell a stolen cellphone was on Tuesday charged with simple larceny and appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Stanley George, 32, of Lot 103 Grove, East Bank Demerara (EBD) denied that he stole a Samsung

cellphone valued $32,000 on April 13 from Tiffany Duncan.

Reports are Duncan was attacked by two men and robbed of the cellphone.

In court on Tuesday, George claimed that he was not the person that stole the phone but rather he merely accompanied his

friend to sell it.

Police Prosecutor Devon Goodman asked that substantial bail be set and requested three weeks to arrest the second suspect in the matter.

Magistrate Annette Singh released George on $25,000 bail.

He is expected to return to court on May 24.

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wednesDAY, april 18, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Man found guilty of Region 7 roads to be tolled – Patterson raping 6-year-old …jailed for 28 years

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olvin Norton was on Tuesday found guilty by a 12-member jury on two counts of raping a six-year-old girl, whom he attempted to silence with death threats.

The 24-year-old man was jailed for a total of 28 years

by Justice Jo-Ann Barlow at the Sexual Offences Court for illegals acts which occurred August 1, 2013, and just five days after on August 6, 2013 in the county of Demerara.

For the first count, he was sentenced to 24 years but on the second count, the Judge added four extra years for aggravation, thereby sentencing him to 28 years. In fact, during the trial the court heard that Norton was caught in the act by the child’s mother on the second occasion.

It was revealed that after he sexually penetrated the young child, he told her not to tell anyone as her mother would not believe her. The jury also considered that Norton later threatened the girl that if she told, he would kill both her and her mother.

In the child’s impact statement read out by her court support, Celeste Mullen of ChildLink Guyana Inc, stated that the child still has flashbacks to the time the incident occurred. Mullen also said she was so affected by

Jailed: Convicted child rapist, Colvin Norton

Norton’s actions that even her grades started to slip at school.

“At first I felt sad and ashamed. After the incident, I felt that I was the cause of what happened...I deserve me innocence, I thought I was the only child in the world who had something like this happen but I later learned that this was not so. I am not so ashamed now as I know that Colvin Norton is being punished,” the girl who is a few years shy of being a teenager expressed.

Before Justice Barlow considered sentencing, the court inquired twice of the defendant if he had anything to add following the jury’s verdict. He however stated that he didn’t really know what to say at that

moment. Later on, he did not offer any comment in mitigation. The Judge took into account that Norton was 19 years old at the time of the offences but stressed that it still was not an excuse for raping the child.

Justice Barlow considered that the offender breached the trust of the child’s mother who had entrusted him to care for not only the six-year old but others as well.

“Like a thief in the night, you violated a six-year-old,” the Judge remarked.

She also pointed out that Norton trying to silence the victim showed his total disregard for proper moral values. The Judge further noted that sexual offenders have issues with controlling their emotions and ordered that Norton undergo treatment under the sexual offender’s rehabilitation programme. She added that he should also take on programmes to improve his literacy. She also expressed hope for the child to continue receiving counselling.

Norton will be 52 years old before he is allowed to return to society. He was unrepresented as reports indicated that he could not afford the services of an attorney. State Prosecutors in this matter were Abigail Gibbs, Tiffini Lyken and Narissa Leander.

(Shemuel Fanfair)

R

oads in the Cuyuni/ Mazaruni region will soon be tolled following the completion of various road projects.

This is according to Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson who said the strategy will aid in the maintenance and sustainability of the infrastructure.

“Soon we will be finished upgrading the roads.

I would hope that we can work along with the region on this,” Minister Patterson is quoted as saying by the Department of Public Information. He made the comments upon conducting the inspection of the hinterland projects during his recent trip to the region. It was observed that work needs to be done on the Amaila Falls road, which is heavily traversed, especially by trucks from the gold company – Troy Resources.

He noted that’s the tolls collected will go directly to the region for the proper maintenance and care of the roads since it will be generated from those in the region. Minister Patterson

Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson

Regional Chairman of Region Seven RDC, Gordon Bradford

encouraged the town council to create a road plan and work along with his Ministry on the idea.

Regional Chairman of Region Seven, Gordon Bradford said the Council welcomes the idea of tolling the roads and believes it is vital for the upkeep of the roads. He explained that in previous years, the strategy was used in the region and aided in the preservation of several roads leading to Mahdia.

Echoing his sentiments, Mayor of Bartica, Gifford Marshall, explained the town council has deliberated the issue of tolling

the roads for some time.

However, he believes the Ministry will have to be the implementing body of the strategy.

Marshall said during the next regular statutory meeting, the council will craft a “road plan” to which it will seek the approval of the Regional Democratic Council before sharing with the Infrastructure Ministry.

The Ministry has ongoing works on the roads from Mahdia to the Denham Bridge and Miles 78 on the Bartica-Potaro trail to Mile 96 (Cassandra Crossing).

14 news

wednesDAY, april 18, 2018 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Thieves rob Journalist during home intrusion A

journalist and her fiancé are now left counting their losses after bandits reportedly invaded their home and made off with their valuables.

Shunza Samuels, a

senior journalist at the National Communications Network (NCN) and her fiancé, Jermaine Massiah of First Street, Cummings Lodge, East Coast Demerara (ECD) were robbed sometime during

the wee hours of Tuesday morning.

According to reports, the couple woke up at about 05:30h and Massiah could not locate his cellphone. As such, he attempted to use Samuels’

phone to call his but hers also could not be found.

Samuels immediately proceeded to search for her laptop, which contained projects as she is a final year student at the University of Guyana but that was also missing.

It was at that moment that the couple realised that their apartment was broken into. They also frantically searched for a handbag containing cash and documents but that also proved futile.

Further inspections carried out showed that the rear door of the apartment

Shunza Samuels

had been prised opened.

At around 10:00h however, a security guard returned the missing handbag which he allegedly found in front of his place of employment, ETK mining, Atlantic Ville.

Samuels is asking the public for assistance in locating the valuables, especially her laptop which contains important information such as her assignments and project for the University of Guyana.

The matter was reported to the Turkeyen Police Station and an investigation was launched.

NEWS

Ramsammy’s Ruminations US$18M oil bonus – not just a mystery, an attempted heist?

wednesDAY, april 18, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Walk against corruption mere “smokescreen” to detract from violations – Jagdeo …declines invitation by SARA to participate

M

any people have thought of the perfect heist. Not everyone has the chutzpah to really try it. In the Agriculture Bank Heist in China, a banker stole a few million dollars and thought if he bought lottery tickets, he could win and put back the money. It worked the first time, but not the second and third time and he got caught stealing over US$7 million. In the Great Brink Heist, 11 men made copies of Dr Leslie Ramsammy keys and entered the bank’s vault and stole US$3 million.

Their plan was to stash the money for six years until the Statute of Limitations ended before they started to use the money.

Some got greedy and started to kill off the others, until they were caught. In the 1963 Great Train Heist, 15 crooks stopped a postal train and got away with US$41 million. It took a while, but 13 of them were caught. To this day the other two are at large. When I think of the US$18 million oil bonus in Guyana and the on and off mystery, I think of those people who had the chutzpah to think they could create the perfect heist.

The Guyanese people are still largely in the dark about the signing of the contract and the bonus that was part of the signing. Information comes forward in small pieces – drip, drip, drip. Each time we get a little more information, it is not because the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government is forthcoming, rather it is because we drag another piece of information out of them.

Each time that information is dragged out of them, we cannot be certain they are telling the truth. Each time a minister or the president talks about the signing bonus, each time that person contradicts something another one of them said. The Cabinet has been all over the map when any member speaks about the US$18 million oil bonus. Why? The APNU/AFC created a US$18 million mystery and as the mystery got exposed, a little at a time, we get the uneasy feeling that someone had sinister plans for the US18 million oil bonus. We get the distinct impression that had we not exposed them, the US$18 million would have been a heist.

Why the secrecy? Why the various misinformation and lies?

Misinformation and lies are indispensable elements in a strategy to misdirect people, to get people off the trail. In this case, therefore, can we conclude that there was this nefarious plan to subject the $US18 million oil bonus to a heist? Maybe, after all, these APNU/AFC dullards really believe and had the chutzpah to think of the perfect heist.

All oil production contracts around the world have had a signing bonus. When some of us initially raise the possibility that Guyana received a signing bonus, we did not really know that. We simply assumed that Guyana must have received one since this has been the standard practice around the world. When Christopher Ram in late 2017 revealed his sources told him Guyana received US$20 million in July 2016, APNU/AFC through senior spokespersons like Trotman, Jordan, Greenidge and Harmon denied Guyana received a signing bonus. When confronted towards the end of 2017 with a paper trail to prove Guyana received at least US$18 million, they were forced to admit the truth.

They then took the citizens on a merry-go-around before admitting that the US$18 million was sitting in a special secret account at the Bank of Guyana. One of them in the last couple of weeks then informed us that the US$18 million was transferred to the Consolidated Fund, another said it was still in the Bank of Guyana and yet another one said it was used to pay the legal fees for the ICJ. But political commentator, Ramon Gaskin, challenged them because he perused the Bank of Guyana reports and there is no indication of the US$18 million.

This week Jordan told us that, in fact, the money has been sitting secretly in a foreign bank to earn interest. Is this the truth? Why is information given to us in drips and drabs and only when information leaks from an outside source? This is an asset that belongs to the people, not the APNU/AFC. APNU/AFC for this period has the responsibility to manage these resources for the people. Yet we were never told that this money was paid to and it was only confirmed by APNU/ AFC some 18 months after the fact. We were told just in the last two weeks contradicting stories – the money was in the Bank of Guyana, in the Consolidated Fund and used to pay legal fees for the ICJ. We have been subjected to the $US18 million oil bonus mystery story, as if we are children. What is the motivation? Is it that some in APNU/AFC had the chutzpah to plan a perfect heist?

15

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo

O

pposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has declined an invitation extended to him by Head of the State Assets Recovery Agency (SARA), Dr Clive Thomas to participate in a “symbolic” walk against corruption on Friday.

In declining the invitation, the Opposition Leader said that he viewed the walk as it is – a mere “smokescreen” to detract from the grossest violations of the constitutional and statutory provisions regarding financial probity, transparency, and accountability ever witnessed since independence. Furthermore, he added that he would not participate in such a walk while members of successive People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Governments and other public officials have been discriminated against, victimised, and targeted by a State-sponsored witchhunt on frivolous manufactured charges.

In a letter sent to Thomas, Jagdeo stated that the parliamentary Opposition held firmly to this position, which was reflected in the PPP press release of April 14, 2018 that stated, among other things, “after be-

223-7230-1 (Ext 55)

ing in office for only three years, the APNU/AFC Government can easily be classified as the most corrupt Government in the post-independent Englishspeaking Caribbean.

Indeed, its corruption is only surpassed by its incompetence.”

In three short years, the Party said, the coalition Government has managed to “completely bypass the public procurement process, mandated by law, and has handed to its cronies and financiers, hundreds of contracts to the value of billions of dollars.”

It added that the number of cases of such violations is mounting on a daily basis.

In light of the “blatant transgressions” by the Government, the Party said in its letter, “Can one wonder why the parliamentary Opposition, critical national stakeholders and thousands of Guyanese are angry at the audacity of this government to accuse others of

corruption when there is nothing being done to stop this “corruption haemorrhage” undermining the rule of law in our country?”

The Opposition Leader also noted in his letter to Dr Thomas that the “Government manipulates the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and directs the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) to institute fabricated and malicious charges against political opponents and highly qualified professional Guyanese, who have served their country and their people with distinction. The frivolous charges instituted against Dr Ashni Singh and Mr Winston Brassington are simply the most recent, and we have no doubt others will be made victims of this vindictive and undemocratic regime.”

The letter to Dr Thomas added that “the passage of the SARA Act has given you, sir, enormous, in fact, super powers – something we abhor

Head of State Assets Recovery Agency (SARA) Clive Thomas

as it is in total contravention to human rights and due process – but sir, you have those powers so why have you taken no action as a so-called anti-corruption champion to bring members of the present Government to book? As they say, clean your own house so that others can see the light and know you are serious about fighting corruption.”

16 NEWS

wednesDAY, april 18, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Another motorcyclist dies in accident

A

Linden, Region 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice) motorcyclist died on Tuesday after he was struck by a car at Mackenzie, Linden. Three persons, including an 11-month-old child, were injured in the accident.

Dead is Florenda Benjamin of Block 22, Wismar, Linden. Injured are Leinani Ally, 31, of Lot 26 Cinderella City, Amelia’s Ward; Emily Ally, 11 months of the same address, and Mary Fraser, 16, of 24 Cinderella City, Amelia’s Ward. The three injured persons were all occupants of the car.

Reports are the accident occurred about 16:30h on Sir David Rose Avenue, Mackenzie. Guyana Times understands that 37-yearold Benjamin, who was riding motorcycle CJ 1644, was struck down by motor car HC 6299, which was driven by 31-year-old Michael Stewart of Amelia’s Ward, Mackenzie.

According to the Police report, the driver of the car, which was proceeding north, reportedly overtook another car and in the process he struck Benjamin, who was proceeding south along the eastern side of the road.

Benjamin and other injured persons were rushed to the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC), where Benjamin was pronounced dead on arrival, while those injured were treated.

This publication understands that this is the second accident to have occurred at

Dead: Florenda Benjamin

the location this week; however, the first accident had no casualties. In the accident which occurred on Monday evening, a motorcyclist narrowly escaped with minor

lided with motor car PTT 8052, which was driven by Tonisha Bridglall.

At the time of the accident, Bridglall was reportedly proceeding from the Wismar Hill access road without stopping onto Allan Lewis Drive which resulted in the collision. The motorcyclist who reportedly jumped off his motorcycle fell to the ground and his motorcycle broke in two. The rear rightside door and fender of the car were slightly damaged.

Residents have since called for speed bumps to be placed in the area, which is noted for such accidents.

There is also a blind turn at the intersection, which residents are calling on the authorities to look into, more so since it is in the vicinity

The motorcycle at the scene of the accident

injuries after his motorcycle collided with a car at Wismar Housing Scheme, Linden.

The accident occurred about 17:00h as the motorcycle CH 8217, which was ridden by Kellon Nicholas, proceeded east along the northern side of Allan Lewis Drive and col-

of the Wismar Hill Primary School.

Meanwhile, E Division (Linden-Kwakwani) Commander Anthony Vanderhyden has issued a warning, urging road users to be cautious on the roadways, especially when it is raining. (Utamu Bell)

wednesDAY, april 18, 2018

guyanatimesgy.com

17

Around the World

Fresh kidnapping by Former US First Lady rebel group Barbara Bush dies at 92 dissident rocks Ecuador

F

ormer US Lirst Lady Barbara Bush, the only woman to see her husband and son both sworn in as president, died on Tuesday, the Bush family said. She was 92.

Bush was the wife of the 41st president, George H W Bush, and mother of the 43rd, George W Bush.

The Bush family had said in a statement on Sunday that she was in failing health, had decided not to seek further medical treatment and instead would focus on “comfort care.”

According to some media reports, Bush had been battling chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and congestive heart problems in recent years.

Former US First Lady Barbara Bush

“Barbara Bush was a fabulous First Lady and a woman unlike any other who brought levity, love and literacy to millions,” George W. Bush said in a statement. “To us, she was so much more. Mom kept us on

our toes and kept us laughing until the end.”

Dubbed “The Silver Fox” by her husband and children, Bush was known for her snow-white hair and for being fiercely protective of her family.

She was first lady when her husband was in the White House from 1989 to 1993. Her son, Republican George Walker Bush, triumphed in the disputed 2000 US election and was president from 2001 to 2009.

The father-and-son presidents were sometimes referred to as “Bush 41” and “Bush 43.”

The Bushes celebrated their 73rd wedding anniversary in January.

Bush had an indepen-

dent streak and could be sharp-tongued. As first lady, she promoted literacy and reading but said she was more interested in running a household than helping her husband run the country.

She discouraged speculation that she wielded political influence with the president like her predecessors - Ronald Reagan’s wife, Nancy Reagan, and Jimmy Carter’s wife, Rosalynn Carter.

“I don’t fool around with his office and he doesn’t fool around with my household,” she once said.

“She’ll speak her mind but only to him,” said Jack Steel, a longtime Bush aide.

(Reuters)

E

cuador’s Interior Minister, César Navas says the Government has been sent a video showing a couple who have been kidnapped by members of a dissident Colombian rebel group.

The video comes just days after the Government received confirmation that two kidnapped Journalists and their driver were killed by the same group.

In the recording, the couple ask President Lenín Moreno for help.

Neither the nationality nor the names of the couple are known.

The man and the woman, who have ropes around their necks and whose

hands are tied, can be seen pleading with President Moreno to help them so that they do not suffer the same fate as the journalists.

Interior Minister Navas showed the video at a news conference on Tuesday morning. Navas said officials had received the video “via a communication channel with Guacho” on Monday evening.

Guacho is the alias of Walter Artízala, a former member of Colombia’s FARC rebel group who broke away from the guerrilla movement after it signed a peace deal with the Colombian Government in 2016. (Excerpt from BBC News)

France’s Macron urges Chemical weapons experts enter EU to shun nationalism site of attack in Syrian town

F

rench President Emmanuel Macron has warned that “there seems to be a European civil war” between liberal democracy and rising authoritarianism.

He urged the European Union to renew its commitment to democracy, in a passionate speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

“I don’t want to belong to a generation of sleepwalkers that has forgotten its own past,” he said.

Populists dominated recent elections in States like Hungary and Italy, fuelled by the continuing EU migrant crisis.

Hungary’s right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban returned to power with a landslide victory earlier this month while Eurosceptic parties caused a political earthquake in Italy in March.

Macron and his liberal La République en Marche (LREM) party triumphed in France’s elections last year

with a strongly pro-EU platform.

However, the French polls saw record numbers of voters staying away, with turnout of less than 50 per cent at both rounds of the parliamentary election.

President Macron used some memorable phrases as he sought to reinvigorate European democracy.

The divisions in Europe were like a “civil war… where there is an increasing fascination with illiberalism”. (Excerpt from BBC News)

UK values Windrush generation – PM May

Prime Minister Theresa May apologised to Caribbean leaders at a Downing Street meeting

B

ritain’s Prime Minister Theresa May has apologised to Caribbean leaders over the Windrush generation controversy, at a Downing Street meeting.

She said she was “genuinely sorry” about the anxiety caused by the Home Office threatening the children of Commonwealth citizens with deportation.

The United Kingdom Government “valued” the contribution they had made, she said, and they had a

right to stay in the UK. It comes amid reports some are still facing deportation.

The deportation of one man, which had been due to take place on Wednesday, has been halted following an intervention by Labour Member of Parliament (MP) David Lammy.

The Tottenham MP said the mother of 35-year-old Mozi Haynes got in touch saying her son was due to be removed from the country after two failed applications to

stay.

Lammy later tweeted that he had been contacted by Immigration Minister Caroline Nokes, who had said that Haynes would not now be deported on Wednesday and his case was “being reviewed”.

The Tottenham MP, who has called the controversy a “national disgrace,” urged the children of the Windrush generation facing deportation to contact him, promising “justice will be done”.

Lammy said that of 12,056 deportations in 2015, 901 were over 50 years of age, and 303 were to Jamaica. He is calling on the Home Office to review all such cases since 2014 to “ensure no wrongful detentions have taken place”.

The Home Office said it was making efforts to speak to Haynes to advise him that there is no requirement for him to leave the UK. Officials say it is not a Windrush case and was never an “enforced removal”. (Excerpt from BBC News)

G

lobal chemical weapons inspectors finally reached the Syrian town on Tuesday where a suspected poison gas attack took place, days after the United States, Britain, and France launched missile strikes to punish Damascus for it.

Syrian State television reported that the experts from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons had entered Douma, where Western countries say scores of civilians sheltering from bombs were gassed to death on April 7.

France said it was very likely that evidence of the poison gas attack was disappearing before the inspectors could reach the site. Syria and its ally Russia deny that any chemical attack took place.

Douma is now in the hands of government forces after the last rebels with-

Members of Syrian Police sit at a damaged building at the city of Douma, Damascus, Syria April 16, 2018

drew just hours after US, French and British forces fired more than 100 missiles to hit three suspected chemical weapons development or storage sites.

Saturday’s air strikes were the first coordinated Western strikes against Assad’s Government in a seven-year war that has killed more than 500,000 people and drawn in global powers and neighbour-

ing States.

The intervention threatened to escalate confrontation between the West and Russia, but has had no significant impact on the ground, where President Bashar al-Assad is now in his strongest position since the war’s early days and shows no sign of slowing down his campaign to crush the rebellion. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Starbucks to shut over 8000 US cafes for race training

C

offee chain Starbucks is to close more than 8000 company-owned branches in the United States for an afternoon next month to carry out “racial bias” training.

The aim is to prevent discrimination in Starbucks stores.

The move comes after the firm had to apologise over last week’s arrest of two black men who were waiting for a friend in a Starbucks in Philadelphia.

Following the incident, protesters converged on the store and there were calls

for a boycott of Starbucks.

Starbucks’ boss said he had been “learning what we did wrong and the steps we need to take to fix it”.

Chief executive Kevin Johnson said he had spent the last few days in Philadelphia. On Monday, he met the two men who were arrested.

“While this is not limited to Starbucks, we’re committed to being a part of the solution. Closing our stores for racial bias training is just one step in a journey that requires dedication from every level of our com-

pany and partnerships in our local communities,” he said.

All Starbucks company-owned branches and corporate offices will be closed in the afternoon of Tuesday, May 29. Nearly 175,000 staff will receive the training, as will all future recruits.

The training will “address implicit bias, promote conscious inclusion, prevent discrimination and ensure everyone inside a Starbucks store feels safe and welcome”, the company said in a statement. (Excerpt

from BBC News)

18

guyanatimesgy.com

WEDNESDAY, april 18, 2018

ARCHIE

Learn from your mistakes and be ready to set some (March 21guidelines and rules in place April 19) to ensure that you reach your goal. Research and dedication are your route to victory.

ARIES

A personal change will TAURUS suit your current needs and (April 20- give you the boost you need to May 20) pursue bigger and better objectives. Use common sense and apply your skills strategically.

dilbert

You need to take a closer GEMINI (May 21- look at your personal situaJune 20) tion. If you aren’t happy with a relationship you have with someone, speak up and make suggestions.

You’ll be reminded of a change you made that you (June 21- aren’t happy about. Use this July 22) experience to help you avoid making a similar mistake.

CANCER

Peanuts

Get as much done as you LEO can to avoid complaints and (July 23- criticism. Be open about the Aug. 22) way you feel and what you would like to see happen.

Embrace change.

Calvin and Hobbes

Emotional issues should VIRGO not be vocalized around any(Aug. 23one you cannot trust to keep Sept. 22) a secret. Concentrate on making personal physical changes.

Choose your words wisely LIBRA if you want to convince oth(Sept. 23Oct. 23) ers to help you or approve of your plans. Listen to sound advice regarding a change you want to make.

WORD GAME TODAY’S WORD — WITHHOLDS (WITHHOLDS: with-HOLDS: Refrains from giving, granting or permitting.)

SUDOKU

Talk over your concerns SAGITTARIUS to find out exactly where (Nov. 23you stand. A partnership Dec. 21) will need some fine-tuning if you plan to move forward or make a commitment.

Average mark 30 words Time limit 40 minutes Can you find 42 or more words in WITHHOLDS? The list will be published tomorrow.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

YESTERDAY’S WORD — DYSPEPSIA dais daisy yapped yipped said sapid sapped sappy says sepia side

sipped spade spay sped spied spies paid pass passe pied pipe

easy espy essay idea ides aide aped apse apsis aside

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

Get to the bottom of a sitSCORPIO uation that could influence (Oct. 24your earning ability. A conNov. 22) tract will need to be adjusted before you continue to offer your services or help.

solution AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 19)

PISCES (Feb. 20March 20)

Plan to have some fun.

Going on a shopping spree or spending time with someone who rocks your world will improve your attitude.

A cosmetic improvement or healthier routine is favoured.

Excessive behaviour should be ended before it takes control. Be kind to your body and protect it from anything that may become habit-forming or costly. Caution and safety come first.

Participate in functions that allow you to mingle and network with people who can help you get ahead. A partnership will be financially advantageous. Personal grooming will result in compliments.

wednesDAY, april 18, 2018

Rugby’s domestic season resumes Saturday

19

“Screw” Richmond U-18 School Football…

New Silver City Secondary face unbeaten Mackenzie in semi-finals – Wismar clash with Wisburg

I

T

The national ruggers have a packed international calendar ahead

he Guyana Rugby Football Union (GRFU) domestic season will resume on Saturday at the National Park with the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) playing Yamaha Caribs in the second round of the Bounty Farm XV’s tournament from 16:00h, while on Sunday, Panthers will oppose Police Flacons in the B-Division final.

Based on the schedule released to the media on Tuesday, players are in for a packed season since there will also be a Pepsi Hornets Anniversary

Invitational Sevens tournament in May followed by the female 7s, School Festival, and Under-19 tournaments as well as the Scotiabank Summer Camp.

The season will also include high-performance training for both men and women for international engagements.

This year, Guyana will take part in the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games, with the Men’s 7s scheduled for July 19-August 3 in Colombia. The team will remain there for the Rugby Americas North

Challenge Series Men’s 15s before turning their attention to the RAN Sevens in Barbados.

Players are being reminded XV’s training sessions will be conducted on Wednesdays from 17:00h and Sundays from 07:00h while the Sevens sessions will be Tuesdays and Thursdays from 17:00h.

Gym sessions will be held at the Michael Paris gym in the National Park under the guidance of Barrington Browne and Theodore Henry from 05:45h to 07:00h and 17:00h-19:00h on Mondays and Fridays.

t is down to the final four in the 10th edition of the Edward “Screw” Richmond Linden Under-18 Secondary Schools football tournament with the semi-fin a l s being played this afternoon at the

Mackenzie’s top scorer, Kemuel Batson

Wisburg Ground. The first clash will see Mackenzie High School, with an unblemished record, match skills with New Silver City Secondary at 14:45h while the second match pits the reigning champions Christianburg Wismar Secondary against home side Wisburg at 16:15h.

In preliminary round-robin group play, Mackenzie High upset last year’s winners Christianburg Wismar Secondary 2-1 thanks to their top scorer Kemuel Batson, and also registered a 2-1 victory against Linden Technical Institute while getting past Harmony Secondary 3-1.

They face a New Silver City Secondary side which demolished the Private Schools Combined 100, humbled Linden

Technical Institute 6-1 and lost their match against the Christianburg Wismar Secondary 2-1. Their leading scorers are Emmanuel Atkins, who heads the list with six goals, and Ojai Whittington, who has four.

Defending champions Christianburg were winners over Harmony Secondary 3-1, lost to Mackenzie High 2-1, but made it through by a walkover victory over Linden Technical Institute. Their best scorer has been Mickel Adams, who has two goals.

Their opponents, Wisburg Secondary, led by Joel Isaacs who has two goals, won against New Silver City Secondary 2-1, benefited from a walkover win against the Private Schools Combined, but lost to Linden Foundation Secondary 4-0.

20

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

wednesDAY, april 18, 2018

Indian Premier League 2018…

Rohit, Lewis batter RCB in imposing win

V

irat Kohli's efforts were in vain as Royal Challengers Bangalore suffered a 46-run defeat at Mumbai Indians, who claimed their first win of the Indian Premier League season.

The defending champions had lost all three of their matches in 2018 - all from either the final or penultimate delivery - but got off the mark in comfortable fashion at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday.

It looked as though they would be set for more disappointment as they made a desperate start, losing wickets to the first two balls of the game, but Rohit Sharma and Evin Lewis countered brilliantly and propelled the hosts to a massive 213-6.

Skipper Rohit thrashed 94 from only 52 balls, hitting 10 fours and five sixes but fell at the end as he chased triple figures, Lewis having departed earlier for a 42-ball 65.

Without Brendon McCullum, Kohli opted to open and it was a decision that paid off as he made 92 not out to become the IPL's all-time leading run-scorer, but he did not receive the requisite support as RCB finished 167-8 and fell to a third defeat in four.

Rohit and Lewis re-build after shocking start

Umesh Yadav picked up three wickets in an over against Kings XI last week,

and he got off to a remarkable start in this encounter - clean bowling Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan with the first two deliveries.

Both batsmen were cleaned up through the gate as they attempted booming drives through the off side, before Rohit successfully negotiated the hat-trick ball.

He and Lewis instantly set about swinging the clash in their favour, and Mumbai had progressed to a more

Nasty blow for Kishan, Kohli's fireworks not enough

Woakes scuppered by snicko

Lewis eventually perished, having crashed six fours and five sixes, but Rohit maintained the momentum and was joined by Hardik Pandya in the penultimate over.

Chris Woakes had dismissed Kieron Pollard and

SCOREBOARD Mumbai Indians Innings (20 overs maximum) S Yadav b Yadav 0 E Lewis c †de Kock b Anderson 65 Ishan Kishan † b Yadav 0 R Sharma (c) c Woakes b Anderson 94 K Pandya run out (Woakes/ Anderson) 15 K Pollard c de Villiers b Woakes 5 H Pandya not out 17 M McClenaghan not out 0 Extras (lb 1, w 16) 17 Total (6 wickets; 20 Overs) 213 Did not bat: M Markande, J Bumrah, M Rahman Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Yadav, 0.1 ov), 2-0 (Kishan, 0.2 ov), 3-108 (Lewis, 11.2 ov), 4-148 (K Pandya, 15.3 ov), 5-178 ( Pollard, 18.1 ov), 6-207 (Sharma, 19.5 ov) Bowling: U Yadav 4-0-36-2, Woakes 3-0-31-1, Sundar 2-032-0, Siraj 4-0-34-0, Chahal 3-032-0, Anderson 4-0-47-2 Royal Challengers Bangalore Innings (target: 214 runs from 20 overs)

the ropes.

than respectable 60-2 at the end of the powerplay, thanks in part to one Washington Sundar over that yielded 19.

V Kohli (c) not out 92 Q de Kock † b McClenaghan 19 AB de Villiers c H Pandya b McClenaghan 1 M Singh st †Kishan b K Pandya 16 C Anderson c sub (JP Duminy) b K Pandya 0 W Sundar c Yadav b KH Pandya 7 S Khan st sub (AP Tare) b Markande 5 C Woakes c K Pandya b Bumrah 11 U Yadav c Sharma b Bumrah 1 M Siraj not out 8 Extras (b 1, lb 2, nb 1, w 3) 7 Total (8 wickets; 20 Overs) 167 Did not bat: Y Chahal Fall of wickets: 1-40 (de Kock, 4.1 ov), 2-42 (de Villiers, 4.4 ov), 3-75 ( Singh, 9.3 ov), 4-75 ( Anderson, 9.4 ov), 5-86 (Sundar, 11.3 ov), 6-103 (Khan, 13.5 ov), 7-135 (Woakes, 17.3 ov), 8-137 (Yadav, 17.6 ov) Bowling: Bumrah 4-0-28-2, K Pandya 4-0-28-3, McClenaghan 3-0-24-2, Rahman 4-055-0, Markande 4-0-251, H Pandya 1-0-4-0

Rohit Sharma goes over the top © BCCI

thought he had two in two as Pandya was given out caught behind first ball.

He immediately reviewed and although the snickometer showed the smallest of

tremors as ball passed bat, the decision was overturned.

To rub salt into the wound for Woakes and a furious Kohli, Pandya dispatched the next two deliveries over

There were concerning scenes as Mumbai wicketkeeper Kishan was struck in the face by a throw that bounced up awkwardly off the turf and substitute Aditya Tare had to take over with the gloves.

That stoppage did little to affect Kohli's concentration, as the captain continued his one-man assault on the Mumbai attack.

His seven fours and four sixes were a lone beacon of hope for RCB, however, as Krunal Pandya (3-28) built on the earlier good work of Mitchell McClenaghan, who had removed danger men Quinton de Kock and AB de Villiers in the space of four balls. (Sportsmax)

Blairmont CCC to host AGM on Thursday B

lairmont Centre Cricket Club (BCCC) will be holding its eight Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Thursday at the Blairmont Estate Ground from 16:30h.

The AGM, which was last held in 2010, will see Shabeer Baksh, in the role of Club President for the last eight years, being open to any challengers. He expressed a desire to work with anyone who has the interest of youths and cricket at heart.

The Club, which was once very active, was resuscitated on May 26, 2010, and has since been moving from strength to strength. Since its resuscitation the Club’s administration has been very active with many programmes on and off the field.

In summarising the Club’s activities, Baksh stated that the period 2010-2017 has been very progressive for the BCCC. He mentioned that although cricket has been unstable in Guyana for a long period, the Club has stayed focused on its aims and objectives to create opportunities for youngsters and prepare them for elevation to higher heights.

During the period, there were several coaching sessions, a cricket summer academy, inter-club organised matches and outreach charity programmes which helped to boost and rebuild the image of the Club.

The BCCC participated in all cricket competitions run under the auspices of the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB)

and had representatives in the Berbice teams and the national team at all the age levels, including Under-15, Under-17, Under-19 and Under-21.

The BCCC has won the BCB Under-21 tournament; GFLSA’s Under-13 tournament; and the Western Berbice Association Under-23, Under-19, Under-17, and Under-15 tournaments. Also, the Club has won numerous 20/20 and 10/10 one-day fundraising events. The BCCC also has

First, Second Division and Over-40 teams.

The other executives during 2017-2018 include Govindaraj Khan (VP); Vejai Farhad (Treasurer); Derrick McCalmon (Secretary); Shizad “Greens Massive” Ali, (Assistant Treasurer); Anil Sukra (Assistant Secretary) and active committee members Jerry Karim, Omeshwari Prashad, Kevon Jawahir, and Waqar Hassan.

The executive will be striving for added success in 2018-2019. Baksh noted that the new executive body can build on the Club’s hard work over the last eight years.

He also welcomes the public to be part of the club proceedings.

BCCC is one of the founder clubs of the BCB, and has produced two Test cricketers Roy Fredericks and Brendon Bess.

Current BCCC President Shabeer Baksh

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Ganesh Parts joins in support G

anesh Parts and General Store became the latest sponsor of the Boyce & Jefford Relay Festival and Family Fun Day on Tuesday when the company handed over a sponsorship cheque to the organisation ahead of the event scheduled for Sunday at the Police Sports Club Ground, Eve Leary.

Sales Manager Suresh Rampersaud handed over the cheque and indicated that the company was pleased to be associated with an organisation that has been contributing to the development of sports and youths in Guyana for the last decade.

Ganesh Parts, the sole distributor of Bridgestone Tyres in Guyana, is a first-time sponsor of the event. Other sponsors include flagship brands Stag Beer and Heineken, I Cool Water, National Sports Commission, K&B Mining, Antarctic Maintenance and Repairs, Romano Builders, Starr Party Rentals and Jude Cycle Shop.

Here is a summary of what will happen at the Eve Leary Ground on Sunday.

Relays: 4x100 Females; 4x100 Males; 4x400 Females; 4x400 Males; 4x200 Mixed Relay; 4x400 Mixed Relay; Sprint Medley Females (100m,100m, 200m, 400m);

Sprint Medley Males (100m, 200m, 400m, 800m); 2400m Distance Medley Females (400m, 600m, 600m, 800m); 2800m Distance Medley Males (400m, 600m, 600m, 1200m); and Distance 4xx800 Male and Female Relay.

Cash prizes of $25,000; $20,000 and $15,000 will be awarded to teams finishing first to third. Total prize monies of $780,000 will be handed out in the relay events.

Football: Five-a-side small goal football featuring eight teams. Cash prizes: $50,000 (winner) and $25,000 (second place) plus champion and runner-up trophies respectively.

Cricket: Male: Trophy Stall Masters vs Foreign Service Association; Female: Trophy Stall Angels vs Mike’s Wellwoman Cash prize: Females $50,000 (winner) and $25,000 (second place) plus champion and runner-up trophies respectively.

Cycling: Devil Takes the Hindmost (Male) and 2000m Sprint (Female) among two other races. Cash prizes of $25,000; $15,000 and $10,000 will be awarded to cyclists finishing first to third, for a total of $200,000 in prize money. Trophies will accompany incentives.

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Ganesh Parts Sales Manager Suresh Rampersaud (left) hands over the sponsorship to Boyce/Jefford Committee Chairman Colin Boyce on Tuesday outside the Robb Street store

20 teams competing for $250,000; $150,000 and $50,000 in prize money for first, second and third respectively, with the MVP winning $10,000.

Total prize monies of $460,000 will be handed out in the Domino Competition.

Total prize monies for all events: $1,600,000.

Two novelty events will be named for participating patrons, while Kids Zone will feature bouncy castles, trampolines, face painting, and many more attractions.

Four lucky patrons

will go home with four impressive prizes, including a microwave and $20,000 cash; the largest family will win a household hamper including Ariel Soap Powder, Swinger Matches, Rage Insecticide, Hefty Garbage Bags, TrinChloro Bleach and Squeezy, compliments of ANSA McAL. Entertainment will be provided by Stereo Sonic, Selector Face and DJ Winston (Linden), Guest Boys, and Stitchie One Man Band. The entrance fee is $500 for adults and $200 for children.

Stellar performances continue for draughts team

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21

uyana’s draughts team secured their second consecutive international win within two weeks, having completed an amazing run of form.

One week ago, they beat Taylors’ draughts club in Trinidad, before that they defeated Jo -Fe - Wa organisation of Suriname in an invitational hosted by the two countries and staged in Guyana.

The tournament involved senior players and schoolchildren from both countries and was played at the Aquatic Centre, Liliendaal. The Guyana

seniors featured Jiaram, Khemraj Pooranmall, Mark Brathwaite, Ulric Brathwaite, and Steve Bacchus.

Ulric was defeated by P Hardyal of Suriname; Pooranmall won against H Basdewsingh; Bacchus took a win from P Basdewsingh; Mark drew with P Hardyal and Jiaram lost to H Basdewsingh, forcing a tiebreaker after the match ended 5-5.

Jiaram chose Pooranmall as Guyana’s representative while Hardyal, a draughts teacher in Suriname, was chosen by his team. A half

hour on the clock was allotted for each player; both players battled intensively to the end, but it ended in a draw.

The second tiebreaker was adjourned to be played at the Kanuku Lodge, Campbellville the following evening with Pooranmall again selected to do battle. The game started at 19:10h with another half hour each on the clock. Again, both players battled with anxious spectators from their countries looking for a breakthrough from their players, but the game ended in yet another draw.

The next tie-breaker was 10 minutes per player, but it was evenly poised, as both players battled with even pieces. Brain versus brain, mind versus mind until late in the evening.

Three minutes to go on the clock, Pooranmall stepped up the heat. He mentally tortured the

Surinamese, he sneaked through his opponent’s defence and took up the king check. Two moves later, it was all over; Guyana had won.

At a simple presentation ceremony, both Jiaram and Basdewsingh complimented Pooranmall for his fine performance, and he was adjudged best player of the tournament.

In the children’s tournament, the Guyanese were outmatched by the Surinamese.

The only win from Guyana came from Devendra Budhu of Campbellville Secondary School.

The National Draughts Association expressed gratitude to the National Sports Commission (NSC) for the usage of the Aquatic Centre venue, Guyana Beverage Inc for refreshments and snacks, and Chief Education Officer (CEO) Marcel Hutson.

22

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

wednesDAY, april 18, 2018

Paul lone Guyanese in Windies squad for Relief T20 A

Chris Gayle

ll-rounder Keemo Paul is the only Guyanese to feature in the Windies 13-man team who will tackle the ICC Rest of the World XI in a Hurricane Relief T20 charity game set for the famous Lords Cricket Ground, England on May 31, 2018.

The squad is led by all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite, who returns to lead the Caribbean side in the charity match backed by the MCC, ECB and ICC. The proceeds will go directly towards the restoration of five major cricket venues at the heart of Caribbean communities that were damaged by Hurricanes Irma and Maria back in 2017.

As a result, a number of big Windies T20 players were recalled to the side for the event. Some of these players include in-form power-hitter Andre Russell, who will leave the ongoing IPL to join the squad following his return to cricket during the Super50 Cup. Also in the squad are explosive left-hand openers Evin Lewis and “Universe Boss” Chris Gayle, veterans Marlon Samuels, Denesh Ramdin, Rayad Emrit, and all-rounder Rovman Powell among other top T20 stars.

Cricket West Indies (CWI) Chairman of Selectors, Courtney Browne, in a release from the Board, said the move to keep the

Guyanese as well as the veteran Ramdin was a result of their recent slew of good performances.

“We welcome the return of the players who missed the Pakistan Series and are delighted to recall Andre Russell to the squad, as we believe he will have a key role in our white ball cricket. Denesh Ramdin and Keemo Paul keep their places after encouraging performances at both regional and international level,” said Browne.

Paul, the former West Indies U-19 World-Cup winning Vice Captain, has

been raising his stock over the past few months, having played a crucial role in Guyana winning the Regional 4-Day title for a record fourth consecutive year.

The 20-year-old as a result was drafted in the Windies ODI team where he has had a decent run to date prior to his recent selection to the T20 team.

Meanwhile, the venues which will benefit from the match include: Ronald Webster Park, Anguilla (damaged in Irma); Sir Viv Richards Stadium, Antigua (temporari-

ly converted to host refugees from Barbuda following Irma); Windsor Park Stadium, Dominica (damaged in Maria); AO Shirley Recreation Ground, BVI (damaged in Irma) and Carib Lumber Ball Park, St Maarten (damaged in Irma).

Windies T20 squad: Samuel Badree; Carlos Brathwaite (Captain); Rayad Emrit; Andre Fletcher; Chris Gayle; Evin Lewis; Ashley Nurse; Keemo Paul; Rovman Powell; Denesh Ramdin (wicketkeeper); Andre Russell; Marlon Samuels and Kesrick Williams.

Powerlifting raising funds with Guinness bench-press challenge

GAPLF executives Andrea Smith, Runita White, Jermaine Prescod (704), President Ed Caesar and Erwyn Smith during the launching

T

he Guyana Amateur P o w e r l i f t i n g Federation (GAPLF), in partnership with Club 704 and Banks DIH’s Guinness brand, has launched a benchpress fundraising competition set for this Sunday.

The launch, held at Club 704’s Albert and Lamaha Streets location on Monday, saw GAPLF President Ed Caesar, along with other members of the organisation, giving insight into the upcoming event.

According to GAPLF Public Relations Officer (PRO) Runita White, the event is the first of many ac-

tivities which are geared towards raising funds to send a 15-member team to participate in the North America Powerlifting Championships in Mexico, July 31-August 4, 2018. White added that registration would be done in three categories: Light, Medium and Heavy with registration open to both males and females and starting from 14:00h.

“Weight training is one of the best ways of getting strong and fit; we got 32 medals for Guyana recently in a tournament in Florida, and I call on Government and corporate Guyana to

support this team which puts Guyana on the map, give this country glory when we do well,” GAPLF President Caesar said.

Meanwhile, GAPLF General Secretary Andrea Smith thanked Club 704 as well as Guinness Brand Manager Lee Baptiste of Banks DIH for their support.

Smith further made a special call for more girls to come out and participate in the upcoming competition.

Admission to the Club’s Sky Lounge is $1000 with registration open to the public, who can win a number of cash prizes.

wednesDAY, april 18, 2018

guyanatimesgy.com

23

GCB/Hand-in-Hand U-19 Inter-County…

Abysmal Demerara hammered by Berbice – Umroa wreaks havoc with 7-16

By Akeem Greene

B

erbice are well on their way to winning the 2018 Guyana Cricket Board (GCB)/ Hand-in-Hand Insurance Under-19 Inter-County

Three-day title after inflicting an eight-wicket trouncing on defending champions Demerara in a low-scoring affair at the Lusignan Community Centre Ground on Tuesday.

Last savouring three-

day title success in 2015, the men from the Ancient County were more abreast with the conditions after the second day of play was ravaged by torrential rain.

On a pitch offering considerable spin and some

Man of the moment! Kevin Umroa is congratulated by teammates after a top performance with the ball

Ashmead Nedd continued his ripping form to end with match figures of 6-82 (Akeem Greene photos)

bounce, left-arm spinner Kevin Umroa proved to be a mystery for the formidable batting unit, grabbing 7-16 in 11.4 overs.

The 17-year-old stuck to his plans and outfoxed the batsmen who were lacking simple application in a match they would have been in the driving seat in had it not been for the abysmal second innings in which they were bundled out for 50 in 22.4 overs. Only Windies youth star Bhaskar Yadram made it into double figures with a score of 22.

The next best was opener Robin Williams with seven as off-spinner Karan Arjpaul, who exerted great

Hikers hitting peak in Solo U-19 Leagues

T

he Hikers had a productive weekend in the Solo Under-19 Leagues win two wins in as many matches. This performance has elevated them into second behind the GCC Pitbulls, who were also victorious against Saints Sonics, while the Saints Splinters enjoyed their first win of the competition at the expense of newcomers NR Multilateral. Just one goal separated the Hikers from a strong St Joseph’s Warriors challenge. With the teams locked at 0-0 for the first half of play, the lead-

NR Multilateral after losing their first two matches. Leroy Geer was the player on target, scoring in the 16th and 18th minutes for Saints.

The GCC Pitbulls completed an unbeaten first round with a 3-1 win over Saints Sonics. After a scoreless first half, the game came alive in the first minute of the second half with midfielder Samuel Woodroffe blasting home a shot to give GCC a 1-0 lead.

The lanky Malique Ferreira found the back of the GCC net six minutes later to signal that the Sonics would Diminutive Saints Splinters midfielder Oshazay Savory showed good skills throughout the match against NR Multilateral

Baraka Garnett was once again the high scorer of the match with a hat-trick, while Joash James scored the fourth goal for the Hikers. Rafael Robertson managed to pull one goal back for Old Fort in the dying minutes, but it was too little too late.

In the female competition, the Bingo Spartans and Saints continued to dominate with both teams chalking up their second victoLeading scorer Abosaide Cadogan of the Bingo Spartans ry in as many matches. The tries to escape from Akeaba Singh of St Joseph’s tournament’s leading scorers ing scorer of the competition, not go down without a fight. Abosaide Cadogan and Alana Baraka Garnett finally man- GCC strikers Tariq Nelson Cheung both scored twice in aged to make a breakthrough and Gianni Carpenter, how- the match for Spartans, while in the 25th minute to score ever, would have the final say Makeda Harding and Kirsten the deciding goal, which gave by scoring a goal each to give Gomes added one each in the one-sided affair. the Hikers a 1-0 victory. the GCC Pitbulls a 3-1 win.

The GCC Her-ricanes did The Saints Splinters The Hikers topped off a little better against Saints as scored their first goal of the productive weekend with the greys racked up five unancompetition against the lowly a 4-1 victory over Old Fort.

swered goals in their convincing victory. The promising Charlia Webb was top of the scorers’ table with two goals for Saints, while teammates Kizia Chinian, Kimberley Kenyon, and Thea Heartly each scored singles.

The boys’ table finds the GCC Pitbulls at the top with 15 points followed by the Hikers with nine, Saints Sonics seven, Joseph’s Warriors four, Old Fort and Saints Splinters three each and NR Multilateral zero.

The girls’ table sees the Bingo Spartans and Saints sharing the lead with six points each, while St Joseph’s and the GCC Her-ricanes are yet to secure points. Matches continue on Saturday and Sunday at the St Stanislaus College Ground.

control, chipped in with 2-20 which meant the visitors only needed 79 for victory, which was comfortably achieved shortly after the lunch interval.

A pugnacious Alex Algoo led the chase with a quickfire 24-ball 38 (5x6s) in which he smashed off-spinner Sagar Hathiramani for three consecutive sixes over mid-wicket while Junior Sinclair (31) waded into some short-pitched bowling from the steamy Qumar Torrington.

A lofted six over deep cover by Captain Kevin Sinclair brought the curtains down in just nine overs. Spinner Ashmead

Nedd ended with a match tally of 6-82, which moved him to 14 wickets in two matches. Earlier, Berbice, resuming on 102-5 in response to Demerara’s 148, were only able to add 15 more to their total as Nedd snared 5-54 and the lanky off-spin of Dwain Dick accounted for 4-26; Kevlon Anderson did the bulk of the scoring with an attractive 58 inclusive of 4 fours and 3 maximums. The final round commences today with Berbice and the National Select U-17 team playing at Everest while Essequibo host Demerara at the Tuschen Ground.

Match time is 10:00h.

“Government on board will help us build golf”– Hussain

L

usignan Golf Club (LGC) President Aleem Hussain said the commitment shown by Social Cohesion Minister with responsibility for sport, Dr George Norton to the golfing fraternity would help to unlock different levels going forward.

Speaking with Guyana Times Sport on Tuesday, Hussain confirmed Minister Norton, who recently visited the LGC’s Flashback! Social Cohesion Minister course which is under with responsibility for sport, Dr George development, was im- Norton hands Christine Sukram the 2017 pressed by the state Guyana Open Cup Female Trophy of the greens as well months to be part of the sport. as the infrastructural works Minister Norton has been a which are part of the lavstrong supporter of schools ish transformation billed for and students getting involved the Club before the end of in golf, as it helps to nurture 2018. Hussain said that the and relax one’s mind.

Minister was adamant about “This allows us to build getting more schools involved a market for the future bein golf, as the moves to incause having the Government clude schools in the Guyana on board will help us to reach Open Cup tournament as and build golf from a junior well as the University of level and eventually help us Guyana Golf Programme, to find players for the future,” have been opening wider diHussain noted. mensions for the sport. As a Also, contestants of the result, Minister Norton is in Miss Guyana World pageant full support of the LGC’s plan will be using the LGC as the to launch a mini-tournament venue for their sport piecand golf training programme es for this year’s pageant. for at least 10 schools, tentaMeanwhile, the LGC is pretively set for the first or secparing for a double-header ond week of May. this coming weekend, with The idea, according to the Muneshwers Open billed Hussain, will help to strengthfor Saturday and the Ganesh en the bond between golf and Spare Parts Open set for students, who have been Sunday. (Clifton Ross) coming out more in recent

wednesDAY, april 18, 2018

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

guyanatimesgy.com

Paul lone Guyanese in Windies squad for Relief T20

Pg 22

Rugby’s domestic season resumes Saturday Pg 19

Some intense rugby action will return to the National Park Saturday with Yamaha Caribs battling the Guyana Defence Force in a 15s encounter (Orlando Charles photo)

Keemo Paul

GCB/Hand-in-Hand U-19 Inter-County…

Abysmal Demerara hammered by Berbice

Pg 23

– Umroa wreaks havoc with 7-16

Bowled! Nkosie Beaton is beaten all ends up by spinner Kevin Umroa at the Lusignan Community Centre Ground on Tuesday (Akeem Greene Photos)

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Umroa’s guile and consistency rewarded him with 7-16