Guyana Times July 15, 2018

LOOK INSIDE !

Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana

Land titling, interior roads’ condition high on NTC agenda – source guyanatimesgy.com

Issue No. 3624

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Sunday, July 15, 2018

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$120 vat included

WHAT'S INSIDE:

GECOM discrimination

P19

ERC to meet with Opposition’s Commissioners

Page 9

Joint Services rank nabbed with ganja P8

CANU unearths 91kg cocaine during fishing docks raid Page 10

Pensioner perishes after son sets home on fire Page 14

Teen dies during resort P20 outing

Kwakwani flooding

Gambling spree ends in murder P11

PPP calls on Govt to provide speedy relief …as water levels remain dangerously high

Page 20

As floodwaters continue to rise at Kwakwani, Berbice River, this little girl manoeuvres her canoe through the dangerously high water. Also seen is one of the many houses in the community that are almost submerged

Elections count for nothing if not “free & fair” – GECOM Chair Page 17

...warns staff to ensure smooth running of polling stations

Article IV consultations

IMF warns Govt against reckless borrowing …says central bank, private external Page 3

financing should be avoided

US researcher finds high P13 mercury levels in Mazaruni River

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BRIDGE OPENINGS

Article IV consultations

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

Sunday, July 15 –05:30h-07:00h and Monday, July 16 –05:00h-06:30h.

…says central bank, private external financing should be avoided

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The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Sunday, July 15 –05:45h-07:15h and Monday, July 16 –06:30h-08:00h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY Sunny intervals and lightly cloudy skies are expected throughout the day followed by partly cloudy skies in the evening. Temperatures are expected to range between 21 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius.

Winds: East south-easterly to North-easterly between 1.34 metres and 5.36 metres.

High Tide: 06:02h and 18:33h reaching maximum heights of 2.82 metres and 2.67 metres.

Low Tide: 12:05h reaching a minimum height of 0.56 metre.

SATURDAY, July 14, 2018

LOTTERY NUMBERS D

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10 13 16

12 Bonus Ball

FREE TICKET

DAILY MILLIONS 02 14 16 20 26 LUCKY 3 1 3 5

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Afternoon Draw DRAW DE LINE

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IMF warns Govt against reckless borrowing

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Evening Draw

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

aving completed its Article IV consultations with Guyana, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is warning Government against using central bank financing for the short term. This is according to the IMF Executive Board, which released its findings on Friday.

Instead, the Bank urged Government to rely on Multilateral Development Banks. Besides warning against central bank financing, the IMF also urged the Guyana Government to avoid private external borrowing.

"Short-term financing needs should be carefully managed," the IMF stated.

"The authorities’ prudence and restraint towards borrowing in anticipation of future oil revenue is commendable."

"They should rely as much as possible on Multilateral Development Banks, including their non-concessional financing operations.

Developing the domestic capital markets would provide a more stable source of financing and help meet the needs of domestic long-term institutional investors."

The IMF’s warning against borrowing from private external investors comes as the Government has just arranged a US$85 million bond at a 4.75 per cent rate of return over five years – ostensibly to be sunk into the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo).

While the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL)

Finance Minister Winston Jordan

had said that this sum was raised from local investors, a second tranche of US$65 million is expected to be raised from both local and regional investors.

Recently also, the World Bank group approved a US$35 million Development Policy Credit to support Guyana’s efforts to strengthen the financial sector. The money will also go towards improving fiscal management to better prepare the country to benefit from its newly-discovered oil and gas reserves and transform its oil wealth into human capital.

Government also secured a US$900 million line of credit from the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) earlier this year, to develop areas of agriculture, banking and finance, human development, energy and rural development.

Public debt

The Public Debt Annual Report released by the Finance Ministry last year

President David Granger

had highlighted that since 2015, there has been a 4.1 per cent rise in Guyana’s indebtedness to creditors. The report details that Guyana’s total debt, inclusive of external and domestic, increased to $330 billion as of December 2016.

The Ministry attributed this to disbursements from the Export Import Bank of China towards the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) expansion project, as well as monies from multilateral creditors.

A breakdown of the figures shows that total external debt amounted to $240 billion, 72.6 per cent of the total public debt. Domestic debt stood at $90.6 billion, or 27.4 per cent of the total.

“At the end of December 2016, multilateral creditors continued to be the predominant creditor category, accounting for 59.7 per cent of the external debt portfolio, a slight decrease from the 2015 position of 60.6 per cent.

Bilateral lenders and commercial lenders represented

38.8 per cent and 1.5 per cent of the public external debt portfolio, respectively,” the Ministry explained.

“Although the nominal public debt increased, the total external public debt to GDP [Gross Domestic Product] ratio declined from 36.1 per cent as at end-December 2015 to 33.7 per cent as at end-December 2016, as a result of GDP growth outstripping the rate of growth of public external debt stock,” the Ministry said, in justifying the increase.

In 2012, the public external debt was $277.8 billion, but by early 2015, that had been reduced to $236 billion.

In similar manner, the domestic debt had been reduced from $93.4 billion in 2012 to $81.6 billion in 2015 before a sudden spike in the figures after the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU-AFC) took office.

Guyana’s four main external creditors are the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB); the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB); the State-owned ExportImport Bank of China (China EXIM Bank) and Venezuela State-owned oil company (PDVSA).

Together, they constitute some 77.7 per cent of Guyana’s public external debt stock, as at end-December 2016, with the IDB the most dominant creditor. According to the report, the IDB has an average share of 42.0 per cent of the debt portfolio. (Jarryl Bryan)

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Views Editor: Tusika Martin News Hotline: 231-8063 Editorial: 231-0544 223-7230,223-7231,231-0544, 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

Editorial

Delayed selfgratification and development

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mmigrants the world over, not excluding Guyana, demonstrate a remarkable penchant to practise deferred gratification, which allows them to improve their economic lot. As is occurring in the US today, this sometimes engenders hostility. This capacity to save, found in people who were at best grubbing out a day-to-day existence from cane cutting, farming or fishing, became part of their culture, and ensured that their children lived ‘better’.

Today, this willingness to imbibe self-control, plan for the future, and defer gratification to ensure that the plan gets accomplished in the face of humble circumstances is fast disappearing. We are now generally living and consuming for the moment, but still want to see our lives improve over time. We want to “suck cane and blow whistle at the same time.” It can’t be done, so we end up frustrated, sink into despair, or demand handouts.

Some, of course, use force and take what they want; and we see this reflected in the ever-rising rate of robberies.

From whence have we imbibed this new ‘don’t give a damn’ attitude? For one: in any group, there will be some who will go “against the grain”; but, generally, it’s as a result of outside pressures and influences – cultural and otherwise. In the Caribbean, there are aspects of the dominant Creole culture that present some of these pressures and influences. And this has to be part of our rejection of the assimilationist imperatives in the present dominant mode of ‘integration’, as we begin to interrogate the dysfunctional aspects of Creole Culture and practise true multiculturalism based on taking the positive aspects from all of our peoples’ cultures.

Back in 1984, there was an International Roundtable in Guyana to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the abolition of slavery. Then Prime Minister, Desmond Hoyte, delivered an address: “Towards 2034: A Deeper View of the Horizon”, in which he made some pertinent remarks on the refusal of some of our people “to live for the future”. We quote below rather liberally from Mr Hoyte’s address: “...one of the most pernicious consequences of slavery was that it bereft the slave of a vested interest in the future by imposing upon him the need to be constantly preoccupied with the exigencies of the moment. Indeed, the African slave on a WI plantation found himself in a world without horizons. His condition circumscribed within very narrow limits not only his physical, but also his spiritual, being. It deprived of the cohering and creative influences of his social organisation and his culture.

“Uprooted from his natural milieu, no longer able to fulfil his civic and religious duties, he was robbed of his spiritual points of reference. His personality disintegrated, and in a word, he suffered “social death”. It is not to be wondered at, then, that his outlook was little informed by any curiosity beyond the immediate, by any speculation about the distant future.

“And so, lacking a social motive, he developed no interest in, or aptitude for, making long-term arrangements.

Moreover, the colonial polity which succeeded the era of slavery did not provide the former slave and his descendants with significantly greater incentive or opportunity for cultivating these pursuits. Thus there persists in our society, even to this day, a reluctance to focus too intently on the future.

“It is critically important, I believe, that we should analyse and understand this phenomenon of our lack of interest in the future and our failure, generally, to plan in a serious, methodical way with respect to it.”

While Mr Hoyte’s address focused on the need for planning at the country and international levels, it is important to note that he grounded the fundamental lacuna at the individual’s level, for all of us who followed the slaves on the plantations. And it is here I believe that, in the present, THIRTY-FOUR years after his warning, we must begin.

The question is: “Can we teach ourselves how to live for the future?” The research shows we can.

The Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) on Saturday hosted a brunch for the local media fraternity as the Commission continues with its familiarisation campaign to re-engage stakeholders following its reconstitution back in February after a seven-year sabbatical.

In the photo are Executive members and staff of the ERC, along with media operatives who attended the event, themed “Promoting harmony and good relations”.

Government can buy over Berbice River Bridge

Dear Editor, As a kid growing up in Skeldon/Corriverton, I was among the many people of that area who dreamt of the day when there would be a bridge across the Berbice River because crossing by ferry was a big hassle and took many hours.

Today, I am pleased that this dream has become a reality. Building this bridge was a great feat. There is no question that it has brought huge relief for Berbicians and other travelers. Time is money. By cutting commuting time to and from Region Six significantly, the bridge is worth its weight in gold.

Let us give Jack his jacket. The Bharrat Jagdeo Government and the private sector deserve credit for taking up the challenge to build the bridge. It was a novel initiative based on a unique private and public-sector partnership at a time when Guyana did not have the money to pay for such a project.

I understand that the Berbice Bridge Company Inc. (BBCI) is now saying that it is almost bankrupt and wants to increase the tolls in order to do maintenance work on the bridge, cover operation costs and pay dividends to shareholders.

But, from what I recall

from the early talks about the bridge between private sector investors and the Jagdeo Government, the Berbice Bridge tolls were never intended to be similar to the tolls for the Demerara Harbour Bridge; they were to be comparable to the ferry rates for various vehicle types.

I understand that the BBCI needs funds to recover its investments, pay dividends and to fulfill its responsibilities. I empathise with this; but the toll increases will be hard for the average Guyanese to pay and could very well damage the psyche of the people and cause great hardship for everyone.

There is a stalemate because this Government has taken a firm position not to approve any increases to the bridge tariffs and has also declared the intention to fulfill a campaign promise to reduce the tolls. This is a tough situation, but there is a solution.

I have a suggestion: Government should buy the Berbice River Bridge! A lot of wealth is expected in Guyana from the oil industry and from other natural resources. This puts Government in an ideal position to get one or more loans and use other

financial tactics to buy the bridge.

I am sure that the European Union or a government from a great nation like India or China would be interested in giving a loan or grant so that our Government can buy the bridge from the private sector, in the interest of assisting Guyana’s national development.

If Government buys the bridge, its operations and maintenance can then be subsidised with taxpayers’ money, just like what is being done with the Demerara Harbour Bridge, whereby Government’s input allows travellers to pay an affordable fee to cross the river.

The tolls for the Berbice River Bridge can be higher than those for the Demerara Harbour Bridge and it can be subsidised by taxpayers’ money. Think about it. If Government buys it and it belongs to the Guyanese people, why can't the people’s money be used to subsidise it to protect their interests?

The Berbice River Bridge is vitally important to our country and people. I remember back in the day crossing by ferry involved all kinds of skullduggery and corruption. People who had influential friends to manipulate the system got priority in

crossing. Others were inconvenienced and embarrassed.

Today, travelling over the Berbice River has been reduced from three to four hours to just one to two minutes. Consider that for a moment.

As one of those who suffered in those times, I view the Berbice River Bridge as a great blessing. I, along with many others who use the bridge regularly, know how much it has benefitted the county of Berbice and would like to see it kept in place and functioning well.

Even though I compliment the private investors and the Jagdeo administration for making the bridge a reality, I respect the fact that this is a different Government with a new vision. But I believe this Government has the interest of our people at heart, so I urge them to consider my suggestion carefully.

All power, success, achievements, progress, come from the heart and from the thoughts. I am calling on the Government to use positive thoughts, think wisely and think big to help the people of our country reach our rightful destiny of peace and prosperity.

Sincerely, Roshan Khan Sr

Govt failing the Hindus of Guyana

Dear Editor, Allow us a space within your newspaper to express the disappointment and disenchantment that we, the Hindus of this country, continue to face because of an uncaring Government.

We are positively sure that everyone throughout the length and breadth of this country is aware of the problems facing the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha. Over the last year, many Hindus from different parts of the country would’ve taken to your newspaper, via letters and other means, to high-

light the issues facing the Maha Sabha, and ultimately the Hindu community at large. The Maha Sabha, being the oldest Hindu religious and cultural organisation in the country, holds a dear and special place in the hearts of many Hindus in Guyana, and therefore its problems and the turmoil it is currently facing have affected us all!

On many occasions, if not at all times Editor, calls were made by these persons to the Government, literally begging their attention and intervention in order to restore order and legitimacy to the

Maha Sabha. All have since fallen on deaf ears!

Editor, there is a term that is quite popular among the older folks who are in touch with their Hindi “Bilaway”. This term, Editor, refers to the wasteful or corrupt spending of one’s resources. The cabal that has been in charge of the Maha Sabha since the year 2000 has only sought to “bilaway” the resources of the Maha Sabha. For 22 years the Maha Sabha has not held an election to renew membership or to change office bearers, although its by-laws

state this must happen at least every five years!

The treasurer of the Sabha is no longer a resident of Guyana, but has been signing cheques of the organisation and spending the organisation’s money as if it belongs to them! The organising Secretary has been serving in that capacity for years on end, and has also been paying a hefty sum to themselves every single month for the last five years! Tell me Editor, isn’t it time that the Government of Guyana look into this situation? turn to page 6

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Foundation Laws of our colonial past

Ashley Anthony

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s July speedily comes to a close, our minds will turn, once again, to the celebration of Emancipation.

What does it mean to be emancipated? It is quite simply the state of being free -- from both restriction and influence. But, as we celebrate Emancipation this year, we must look inwards and ponder: is Guyana truly emancipated?

When we think of Guyana, we think of an independent nation, with its own constitution and parliament. But how many of us are aware that within our constitution lie remnants of our colonial rulers.

Perhaps most importantly, something known as a ‘savings clause’.

A savings clause such as the one present in our constitution “purports to carry forth all the laws from the old regime.” (M. Burnham, 2005). This means that, within our constitution, not only are all of the laws from our former colonial rulers carried forth, but also they cannot be repealed.

This clause stagnates Caribbean society. It does not take into account the progression of society, along which comes the changing of values and morals; but rather tethers us to a definition of ‘just’ provided by our former colonial rulers from a point in history long past. A great example of just how backwards this clause can be is shown in

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the case of the death penalty. In England in 1965, after much debate, the death penalty was abolished, yet Caribbean countries retained these laws. Even though modern English society had decided that the death penalty should be abolished, we were stuck upholding the laws.

To summarise, as Sheila I. Velez-Martinez, put it, “The savings clauses inserted in the independent constitutions across the Caribbean serve to perpetuate laws that were not products of the independent nations’ own desires; not the result of deep reflection about the nature and direction of the new Caribbean societies.”

In 2013, the savings clause surfaced when Justice Ian Chang ruled that a law from our former colonial masters was not unconstitutional; and therefore, under the said savings clause, was protected from challenge. The particulars of the case were that seven transgender persons were charged with cross-dressing for an ‘improper purpose’ under the law, which states that, “Every person who does any of the following acts shall, in each case, be liable to a fine of not less than seven thousand nor more than; (xlvii) being a man, in any public way or public place, for any improper purpose, appears in female attire; or being a woman, in any public way or public place, for any improper purpose, appears in male attire.”

Moreover, Chang ruled that the law was not discriminatory, as it applies to men and women equally. However, as colum-

nist Alissa Trotz pointed out in 2013, “We could come up with other examples to show how this thinking is deeply flawed and short-sighted; say, a ruling that upholds a racist law that criminalises inter-racial marriages between Indians and Chinese, arguing that since both Indians and Chinese are equally liable to face charges and go to jail if they intermarry, then the law is not racially discriminatory. In short, what this judgment says is that the law is not discriminatory because men and women are equally vulnerable to its discriminatory provisions.”

Chang did, however, rule that cross-dressing is not illegal in itself, unless it is done for an improper purpose. But what constitutes an improper purpose was left woefully undefined. In fact, if we look at the law itself, we can see that it, too, is incredibly vague. What constitutes “male attire”? And what constitutes “female attire”? The law leaves much up to the discretion of the person who is enforcing it. Who is to determine what is proper for males to wear, vs. what is proper for females to wear? And can we not agree that from the time that these laws were made (in 1893), fashion has evolved? Do we keep those standards of male and female clothing, and therefore charge every woman seen wearing jeans?

The law also serves as a staunch reminder that Guyana fails to recognise the legitimacy of the trans-identity. It empowers discrimination against the LGBTQ community, and places in the hands of the

Police the power to decide who should be charged, and who is “improper”.

It is with this background that the case proceeded to the Caribbean Court of Justice early this month with a few key points being made. Some of those being that, one: the offence is so vague it does not qualify as a law at all, since every law must be certain enough for the ordinary person to know in advance what is prohibited and what is allowed. And two: that the offence violates the separation of powers doctrine, because it is so vague that -- as one court explained -- it “impermissibly delegates basic policy matters to policemen…for resolution on an ad hoc and subjective basis, with the attendant dangers of arbitrary and discriminatory application.

While the ruling will not be made for quite some time, it is the hope that this vague and flawed law will see its end soon. On 27th June 2018, the Caribbean Court of Justice found Barbados’s mandatory death penalty unconstitutional, thus overruling that country’s constitution’s savings clause. If the cross-dressing law can be proved unconstitutional, then there is a chance that it, too, may be overturned.

In closing, we may be independent, but we are still haunted by the laws of our colonial past. We should all listen closely to the ruling that will be made by the CCJ, and continue to examine all aspects of our society -- whether it be our law or our culture -- that have been passed down from colonial leaders and continue to oppress us.

Safety training to be provided for all road users – CDB Division Chief

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ith the aim of reducing the quantity of serious and fatal accidents along the rehabilitated roadway on the West Coast of Demerara (WCD), a number of safety training exercises are said to be ongoing for all road users.

This was according to Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) Division Chief O’Reilly Lewis, who shared that there was a partnership with the Public Infrastructure Ministry to have the roads rehabilitated and the implementation of these training exercises.

“The road safety awareness activities are expected to result in behavioural changes such as the adoption of road safety usage and better driving practices. These improvements will appeal to the project area for businesses and housing,” Lewis indicated.

The safety training comprises education programmes in various schools in these communities, whereby students will be engaged in good road practices. This is intended to “strengthen road safety awareness in the curriculum and increase the awareness of children and young people, thereby helping them to be good road users”.

Additionally, a community and driver road safety education programme will also be implemented at key locations. According to the CDB Division Chief, this will “improve the road safety awareness along the West Coast

Demerara road corridor”.

Meanwhile, a public relations and community education programme was also established along with the training of staff members from the Ministry in highway development and management, to build wider awareness of road safety principles and influence behavioural change.

Lewis indicated that while the roadway was ‘technologised’ with new features, the additional input of training will seek to better the way in which pedestrians, drivers, and other road users utilise the WCD corridor resulting in direct and indirect positive impacts.

Just a few days ago, the 30.7-kilometre roadway from Vreed-en-Hoop to Hydronie was commissioned as part of a road improvement project, which had been ongoing for approximately 40 months.

The project, budgeted at US$46.7 million, the contract for which was signed in 2014, is the fourth of its kind funded by the CDB, in collaboration with the Government. It comprised road works along the main access road on the WCD. With the completion of these works, the Ministry has also indicated that the West Bank of Demerara (WBD) will see the refurbishing of the La Grange to Wales road and Belle West Canal Number Two Old Road in the coming months along with the installation of street lights at some locations.

Govt failing...

Many may argue that the Government has no business in the affairs of the Sabha, but at the same time, one must be cognisant of the fact that the Maha Sabha is incorporated as a parliamentary body under Act no. 42 of 1954! This in itself gives the Government of Guyana the prerogative to intervene for the betterment of the organisation. Very recently, we saw this happening at the Guyana Public Service Credit Union, where the Government installed an interim management committee (IMC) to bring order and to stamp out the corruption that had engulfed the GPSCU. The question, Editor, is: Why hasn’t the same been done at the Maha Sabha?

Why does the Government continue to overlook and ignore the situation facing the Maha Sabha despite numerous calls for Government to intervene? Has the Government of Guyana forsaken its Hindu populace?

These are questions that the Hindus of this country will remember come 2020, and should the Coalition Government fail to answer them by that time, then we

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will surely show the power of the ballot.

Editor, justice has to be served to those who have wreaked havoc at the Maha Sabha in the name of power and money, and it can only be done through the help and assistance of the Government of the day. We, the members of the Maha Sabha, therefore renew our call to the President and the Government of Guyana to look into the affairs of the Maha Sabha, and to do what is necessary in the eyes of the law to bring back the organisation to functionality and legitimacy!

We will no longer sit and allow our pleas to be ignored, nor do we plan to sit and allow the Maha Sabha to sail into oblivion. We will continue to fight until this prestigious organisation is rescued and returned to its rightful place in the heart of every Hindu!

Yours respectfully, Vishnu B Persaud Central Georgetown; Shakti Arora - Leonora; Jeewan Singh - Charity; Tamesh Deodat - East Berbice; Raymond Sharma West Berbice

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Lusignan Prison raid

Pocket knife, blades among items found N early one month after ranks cleared the Lusignan Prison of several illicit items, including 31 improvised weapons, another search of the facility has unearthed even more contraband.

This recent exercise was carried out on Saturday morning by ranks of the Police Force and the prisons service. During the threehour search of the East Coast Demerara penitentiary, a number of sharp weapons such as a knife, scissors and blades were discovered.

Ranks found three cellphones, two cellphone batteries, 27 cellphone chargers, four phone casings, four earpieces, one memory card, three SIM cards, one pocket knife, four pairs of scissors, two packs of needles, a quantity of razor blades, two hacksaw blades, 13 improvised weapons, two mirrors, four metal spoons, 24 lighters, a quantity of cigarettes, four ziplock bags with marijuana, and a quantity of wires.

This find comes on the heels of authorities trying to curb the smuggling of contraband items into prisons, which remains a perennial problem within the system.

In fact, only last Sunday, a man attempted to smuggle marijuana and cigarettes in a pair of sneakers into the Lusignan Prison.

While the authorities were able to unearth the items at the checkpoint, the suspect, however, managed to escape from the grip of Police and prison ranks there.

Nevertheless, authorities have been working to curb the practice and these efforts have resulted in several prison officers getting caught facilitating the illegal trade, which is said to be “big business”.

In fact, Director of Prisons, Gladwin Samuels, disclosed during a press conference earlier this month, that five prison officers have been relieved of their duties after they had been implicated in the May 1, 2018 incident in which a parcel containing cannabis had been thrown into the Lusignan Prison Holding Bay area. “…We also have five officers who have been interdicted from duty following the May 1 matter at the Holding Bay, where our CCTV footage would have revealed that a number of what is suspected to be contraband items were thrown into the Holding Bay facility … Based on the reviews we would have conducted, it is clear that the officers were working in collusion with each other in order to facilitate the movement of the suspected contraband into the prison,” he explained.

Samuels further disclosed that legal advice has been sought from the Director of Public Prosecutions on the way forward, and he has decried the behaviour of such ranks.

“It is quite disturbing; it is quite embarrassing to have to face these situations on a daily basis, but this is not a situation whereby the prison administration

The items which were unearthed during Saturday’s search at the Lusignan Prison

is failing to act. The reality of it is, despite we would do vetting and so forth, these prison officers are drawn from communities … and for some strange reason, de-

spite they’re given their dos and don’ts, they allow themselves to be sucked into the financial gains that these activities can bring you,” he said.

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Joint Services rank nabbed with ganja …2 others arrested in separate drug bust

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Joint Services rank is one of six persons who have been arrested in connection with two drug busts made by members of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) early Saturday morning.

About 00:25h on Saturday,

acting on information received, Police stopped and searched a motor car on the western side of the Demerara Harbour Bridge and found 927 grams of cannabis packaged in small ziplock bags.

The driver, who current-

Tough sledding…

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The cannabis that was found on Saturday in two separate drug busts

ly serves in the Disciplined Services, and three male passengers were arrested.

A few hours later, Police in Bartica went to the Bartica Stelling about 08:45h and detained a 32-year-old female resident of Patentia, West Bank Demerara (WBD) who was in possession of a plastic that contained two taped parcels of compressed cannabis, which amounted to 1169 grams. Based on further information, a 30-year-old male resident of La Grange, WBD, was arrested nearby.

On Friday, a rank attached to the Tactical

Services Unit (TSU) was intercepted by his colleagues at Cove and John, East Coast Demerara (ECD) with some 21 kilograms of marijuana in his possession.

The rank, Delon Alexander, of New Amsterdam, Berbice, was headed to Georgetown when the car in which he was the sole occupant was stopped by ranks of the TSU who were at the time acting on information. When the vehicle was searched, some 10 wellwrapped parcels were reportedly found in several sections of the car, including the back seat and in the trunk.

…for sugar workers

t’s going on two years since 5700 sugar workers were fired directly when the PNC Government had GuySuCo shutter four sugar estates. Another 2000 were also placed on the roti-lines when private farmers who supplied cane to the closed sugar estates had to go out of business. How are these people going to find employment to take care of the more than 30,000 persons who depend on then to survive??

Well, back in 2015, not long after they slid into office, the PNC had launched the “Sustainable Livelihood and Entrepreneurial Development (SLED) Initiative” to deal with poverty in communities across the land.

Handled through the Ministry of Communities, a Social Protection Department would identify opportunities in communities for unemployed persons to open up all sorts of small businesses by getting training and loans.

In Aug 2015, Finance Minister Jordan announced a budget of $117 MILLION for the next four months. So far so good.

Now with those 7700 sugar workers facing starvation from 2016-2017 – especially in Berbice – you’d think SLED was tailor-made to help them out, wouldn’t you? Well, if you thought so, you’d be wrong!!

In 2016, 2017 and 2018, similar budgets of around $100 million annually were given to SLED, and hundreds were transitioned into poultry farming, condiment manufacturing, etc. $155 million was given to LEN in Linden, but not a single cent to the devastated sugar communities drowning in despair.

This was revealed last week when PPP MP Vindhya Persaud quizzed the Government benches and the sordid tale slipped out. The excuse offered by PNC Whip Amna Ally is that while SLED was supposed to help any and all communities, the folks in the communities had to APPLY…and then they’ll be funded!! Really?? Going by the optics, your Eyewitness could see in every instance when the recipients of funding from SLED were publicised, they were overwhelmingly from the PNC’s constituency!! And he’ll bet dollars to donuts those folks didn’t apply for any SLED help - without FIRST being organised by PNC activists.

That lady who was pardoned by President Granger and then received a $200,000 grant, was she organised? All those delinquent youths who passed through the US Embassy’s programme SKYE, did they organise themselves? Pleeeease!! We all know what’s going on here, don’t we? It’s pork-barrel time for PNC supporters…and let the good times roll!!

And from a PNC perspective, the different treatment makes sense, doesn’t it? Since their closure of the sugar factories was designed to drive a stake into the heart of the PPP support base, why keep that base alive by SLED interventions? To these army types, their motto is drawn from their training in warfare: Show no mercy to the enemy!!

…in Cricket Administration

Your Eyewitness had a good chuckle – even a few guffaws! – over a letter and article written by David Hinds, in which he claimed the PPP Government facilitated the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) in policies for board and team selections he deemed to be “racial”!! Which country was he living in over the past decade, when the PPP Government and the GCB were locked in mortal combat? Well, he was living in the US… but the fella does keep up with matters “back home”, so there’s got to be some other factor operating here.

Didn’t he hear about that High Court judgement against the GCB, for an IMC to be established and new elections to be held? Didn’t he hear about a Linden local board being facilitated to open up the voting process? Didn’t Rupert Roopnaraine, on behalf of the APNU, support the new Cricket Bill in the House?

Wasn’t it Basil Williams who removed the lawyer appointed by Nandlall, the PPP AG, from fighting the GCB’s appeal??

Give the PPP its (maroon) jacket!!

…for Bangladesh Cricket

Your Eyewitness didn’t realise how much Bangladesh is despised by its fellow South Asian cricket teams for their showboating, until he saw the latter’s reaction to their drubbing at the hands of the WI!!

The Indians, Pakistanis and Sri Lankans take schadenfreude to a new low!!

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

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SUnDAY, july 15, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Land titling, interior roads’ condition high on NTC agenda – source

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s toshaos from across the country prepare to convene at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre for the 12th National Toshaos Council Conference commencing on Monday, the issues of deplorable roads in the hinterland communities and Government’s inability

Commission, and would see maintenance works being executed on the Mabura, Kwakwani and Lethem roads. The condition of those roads continues to deteriorate, due to heavy rainfall coupled with the fact that heavy vehicles laden with lumber constantly traverse

A truck is stuck on one of the bridges along the Linden-Lethem road

to issue new land titles are said to be major parts of the agenda.

A source close to the National Toshaos Council (NTC) told this publication that the deplorable condition of the interior roads has been a major concern for the Amerindian communities for quite some time. The source explained that some villages, particularly in Regions 1 and 9, are cut off because roads are either impassible or washed away.

“A lot of the leaders have complained about the road condition, so when they meet next week, that along with the Amerindian Act and land titles would take centre stage.

We hope the Government could address the land title issue and the roads as soon as possible, since the roads and lands are critical for the villages,” the source related.

H i n t e r l a n d Parliamentarian Alister Charlie recently said that more than 4,000 residents in the villages of Wauna, Yarakita, Kamwatta and White Water in Region One (Barima-Waini) are directly or indirectly affected by lack of proper roads. He said that, on a daily basis, students, teachers and other residents traverse the roadways and their transportation cost is substantial.

Just last month, the Public Infrastructure Ministry had to close a section of the Linden-Lethem Road, between the communities of Mabura and Kurupukari, to facilitate emergency repairs. Following that, the Ministry of Natural Resources announced that an estimated $640 million has been allocated for works on the Linden-Lethem Road.

However, works will not commence until the end of the rainy season, the Ministry has stated.

The $650 million was taken from the coffers of the Guyana Geology and Mines

them.

The condition of the roads has been much talked about, with users complaining bitterly about their state and the damages their vehicles are forced to endure. Heavy rainfall and constant flooding causes a lot of the villages to suffer, since access to them are cut off when the roads wash away.

No new titles

Since

taking

office

in 2015, the APNU/AFC Administration has failed to issue new land titles, causing the NTC to come out and bash them for this failure.

Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Minister, Sydney Allicock, has said only 26 percent of the Amerindian Land Titling Project has been completed.

“I have not been able to title any village, because we want to do things that are truly reflected in the free, prior and informed (consent) (FPIC) process,” the minister stated.

The minister told the Parliamentary Natural Resources Committee that the ALT work programme which commenced in 2013 will require another decade before it could be completed, although the project’s life comes to an end in October 2018. According to him, only about 25 per cent of the total US$10 million earmarked for the project has been utilised thus far – some Gy$500 mil-

The current state of the Puruni Road, Region Seven (CuyuniMazaruni)

lion, or US$2.5 million.

The Government in 2013 signed a US$10.7 million agreement for the implementation of the Amerindian Land Titling and Demarcation project, which concluded in 2016. However, an extension in 2017 was requested, resulting in $165 million being earmarked for the advancing of the remaining identified areas.

So far, 13 communities have applied for absolute

grants for the first time. Of that number, seven have received approval and six have been demarcated. Out of 23 communities, 14 have been issued with certificates of title.

But not one single community has so far received a title

under this new Government.

The ALT project seeks to achieve three major goals: completion of land titling issues and demarcation process for all Amerindian villages that submitted requests; increased use of existing and alternative mechanisms to resolve land titling disputes; and a communication strategy, including a handbook describing the process of titling, demarcation, and social economic impact of secure land tenure.

The project is being financed from the Guyana REDD+ Investment Fund (GRIF) under the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS).

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SUnDAY, july 15, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

CANU unearths 91kg cocaine during fishing docks raid

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n early morning operation on the East Coast of Demerara shore led ranks of the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) to a quantity of cocaine and marijuana in a fishing vessel.

The raid occurred about 04:00h on Saturday morning at the Mon Repos Channel, East Coast Demerara (ECD). According to reports, CANU ranks were conducting an operation along the ECD whereby several locations used for docking of fishing vessels were reconnoitred.

During the exercise, a fishing vessel was observed approaching a docking station at the Mon Repos Channel and was eventually intercepted. Two males were seen in the vessel; however, the boat captain, who is known by the alias “Dive and Shoot” of Mon

The cocaine which was found during the fishing docks raid

Repos Foreshore, managed to escape and is currently at large.

Nevertheless, the other suspect, of Phase 1, Good Hope, ECD, was arrested.

His wife has also since been detained.

They were arrested after a search of the vessel unearthed a quantity of narcotics suspected to be cocaine and cannabis. The substances were later weighed and amounted to 91.132 kilo-

grams of cocaine (82 parcels) and 56.008 kilograms of cannabis (98 parcels).

CANU said that several other persons of interest, including Venezuelans, are at large.

Only last week, CANU officials busted 19-yearold Anisha Hardy, of South Ruimveldt, Georgetown, with 702 grams of cocaine at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) as she was about to travel to

the United States. She later excreted 119 cocaine-filled pellets and gave investigators the identities of two known drug traffickers, who exploited her.

Based on information obtained, CANU ranks carried out an operation at a location on the ECD during which they unearthed some 279 suspected cocaine pellets. Three additional persons were detained for questioning and were later released. However, the two suspects, Mark Sauers, called “Marcus”, of Ogle and Liliendaal, ECD, and his cousin, Kelvien Sauers, called “John”, of Success, ECD, are still on the run.

It was reported that Mark Sauers was charged back in 2016 for recruiting drug mules; however, the case was later dismissed after the victims refused to give evidence against him.

Facing the music

S

atiricus was happy with the way things were turning out. He didn’t have to face the firing squad of his buddies at the Back Street Bar nowadays, since the leaders of his KFC party were keeping low profiles. The fellas, on the other hand, thought they’d become irrelevant now that they’d been discarded like used tissue; but that was neither here nor there.

“Suh wha mek yuh leadah Grain Ja a run fram dem reporta?” demanded Cappo, as soon as they’d polished off their first beer.

“Firstly, he’s NOT my leader,” said Satiricus with a smirk.

“Our KFC’s just in a coalition with his Pee an’ See!” “Really?” said Bungi, as his eyebrows nearly reached his hairline in surprise. “Suh how come Nagga Man and Rum Jhaat a talk ‘bout de man like ‘e a Kim Jong?!!”

“But why don’t you answer the question why Grain Ja don’t want to face reporters?” asked Hari quietly.

“Maybe he doesn’t want to answer questions about “I is” Broom?” suggested Satiricus. “Would you want to talk about a relative who acts like a ‘bad woman’?”

“Well, if ah me fam’ly, me cyaan do nuttin ‘bout she,” said Cappo. “But “I is” Broom na Grain Ja family.”

“Yes Sato,” piped up Bungi. “Grain Ja can fyaah she any time!”

“But you do know Grain Ja is from Bartica, and so is the Broom, don’t you?” pointed out Satiricus. “Maybe they ARE relatives!”

“Even if dem a fam’ly, ‘e sh’u’d still fyaah she,” said Bungi firmly. “She mek ‘e haan drap!”

“Maybe it’s not just “I is” Broomes,” suggested Hari.

“The reporters might ask him who he prefers to become Chair of the Pee an’ See.” “Yuh mean who guh tu’n Prezzie afta de nex’ election!” butted in Cappo.

“Ev’rybaddy know ‘e gat fuh pick de army bai!” chuckled Bungi.

“That’s Grain Ja’s real family!!” said Hari. “He doesn’t want to say power will be kept in the family!!”

“An’ dat Nagga Man an’ Rum Jhaat ah dead meat!” chuckled Cappo, looking slyly at Satiricus.

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SUnDAY, july 15, 2018 | guyanatimesGY.com

Gambling spree ends in murder

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The sell-out to big oil

By Ryhaan Shah

I

t isn’t just that the Granger Government is preparing GECOM for rigged general elections in 2020, and in full view of the world; but that, by their own words and actions, they are clearly stating their intent to continue the PNC dictatorial corruption that has already begun, complete with the recklessness – economic, social and otherwise – that ruined the country before.

One of the most recent indications came from the mouth of Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman, who, in an interview with “The Wall Street Journal” (WSJ), said: “Each Guyanese is going to be a US-dollar millionaire, or worth that, in a few years.” The statement is revelatory of the Granger Government’s state of mind vis-a- vis the oil find and Guyana’s future.

To give the WSJ its due, the article did register scepticism about Trotman’s statement, and did report that there were local criticisms of the ExxonMobil deal, which they said many Guyanese feel disproportionately benefits the oil company.

They also reported on the current state corruption and the possible governmental inability to handle an oil deposit worth nearly “50 times the nation’s gross domestic product”. The US$18 million signing bonus is evidence of that, but Trotman’s statement is worrying for its revelation that Government is paying no heed to warnings that Guyana could fall prey to the Dutch Disease, a disease suffered by new oil-rich countries which disregard traditional revenue streams and become solely dependent on oil earnings, to their detriment.

Perhaps the closure of sugar estates was due in part to the economic recklessness brought on by the expected oil wealth.

That Guyana has to import molasses this year to satisfy the demands of the rum industry could be an indication of what is yet to come.

Government has also embarked on a pattern of reckless spending and borrowing that, according to economist Sase Singh in a recent Guyana Times column, would make Guyana “more indebted per size of the economy than Haiti.” The economy is growing at a slower pace than the growth of the national debt. That is to say: we are spending more than we earn, and Singh foresees more economic stagnation ahead, unless Government acts now to improve the situation.

Trotman’s statement, however, reveals a Government so heady about the expected oil wealth that it is unprepared to listen to any cautionary advice, and the headiness could also explain the lack of interest and policy directives in developing and diversifying traditional revenue earners, like sugar and rice.

But Government’s recklessness extends to more than the projected economic ruin. There are growing fears that economic disaster could be accompanied by irreparable environmental damage. ExxonMobil arrived here bearing the baggage of the Exxon Valdez oil spill of 29 years ago, and has perhaps learned how best to tailor its policies to protect its interests.

To refresh everyone’s memory about the crude oil that spilled from the Exxon Valdez tanker when it struck a reef off Alaska in 1989: the opening in the damaged hull released 11 million gallons of crude oil into the sea; more than 1,000 miles of coastline were contaminated, and thousands of animals died. Exxon paid billions in clean-up costs, but the damage done is irreparable. Many Alaskan beaches remain polluted to this day, with crude oil buried just inches below the surface.

Conservation International, a global environmental watchdog, has compromised the integrity of its local mission by accepting funding of US$10 million from ExxonMobil. This is a clear conflict of interest, not only for CI, but for the Granger Government and its Green State Development Plan, since part of the funds will be used to finance classes at UG aimed at expanding community-supported conservation efforts.

“The mouth is always muzzled/By the food it eats to live,” wrote our Poet Laureate Martin Carter; and you would think that Government, touting its GSDP, would be in the forefront of insisting on clear policy guidelines from the oil corporation in regard to safeguarding Guyana’s environment – with tough legal and financial consequences for any breaches -- instead of compromising its own conservation efforts by accepting handouts for some classroom training.

It is clear where the Granger Government’s loyalty lies; it is not with Guyana, its citizenry, or with the environment.

Conservationist Annette Arjoon-Martins must be given every support as she battles, often single-handedly, the oil giant. She is one of the true patriots in the fight to defend and safeguard Guyana’s rich environmental patrimony for future generations.

The Granger Government, on the other hand, has shamefully vacated its responsibility to this nation, and has sold out to big oil.

hree persons have been arrested and held for questioning following the death of a 43-year-old man of Lot 316 Fifth Street, Rose Hall Town, Berbice.

Dead is Wayne Sundar Singh, called “Whino”.

Reports are Singh was beaten on Friday and received severe head injuries.

Guyana Times was told that the now dead man was on Friday evening seen at a house located at Bulletwood Street, Rose Hall Town, imbibing and gambling with several persons.

His mother, Morti Sundar-Singh, told this publication that about 20:00h, one of her son’s friends visited her home and informed her that the painter had been beaten and left in an unconscious state since about 14:00h.

According to the woman, her daughter visited the house where he was and confirmed the report. Relatives then picked up the injured man and took him to the Port Mourant Hospital. He was later transferred to the

the three men in custody claimed that the now dead man fell and sustained the injuries he received. A

Dead: Wayne Sundar Singh

New Amsterdam Hospital.

According to the grieving mother, her son’s face was swollen and unrecognisable.

She explained that there were marks on his body that corroborated reports that he was beaten.

Doctors at the New Amsterdam Hospital transferred Singh to the Georgetown Public Hospital.

However, the injured man died in the ambulance as he was being transferred.

While details are sketchy about the beating at the Bulletwood Street home,

post-mortem is expected to be performed on the body on Monday to determine the cause of death.

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SUnDAY, july 15, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Labourer jailed for B&E

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labourer was on Friday sentenced to one year in prison when he appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts slapped with two counts of simple larceny.

Jason Joseph admitted to the charges after they were read to him by Magistrate

Leron Daly.

The Court heard that between July 4 and July 5, 2018, while at Lot 196 Charlotte Street, Georgetown, he broke and entered the storeroom of Ryan Gobi and stole one roll of electrical wire valued $600,000; one power drill valued $105,000; one electri-

cal machine valued $28,000 and mechanical tools valued $45,000, a total value of $778,00,0 property of Sherwin Khan.

He also admitted that between July 4 and July 5, 2018, at the same location, he broke and entered the store of Ryan Gobi and stole one electrical

saw valued $35,000; painting materials valued $15,000 and other items valued $20,000, property of Sherwin Khan.

According to facts presented by the prosecution, on the day in question the Virtual Complainant secured the storeroom and left the premises.

Later, upon checking, he observed that the storeroom was open and subsequently discovered the items missing.

As a result, the Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) footage was reviewed and this led to the arrest of the defendant who subsequently admitted to the offence.

Jason Joseph

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SUnDAY, july 15, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

US researcher finds high mercury levels in Mazaruni River Conscripted by (western) modernity

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ome years ago, taking my son to write his CAPE Literature exams, he waxed enthusiastically about the poet Olive Senior, whose “Gardening in the Tropics” was an assigned text. The Jamaican, of mixed racial and cultural heritage, used the everyday West Indian activity of “gardening” as an extended trope to analyse the brutal colonisation of the Caribbean by the Europeans, and their influence in the formation of our identities.

Gardening does involve “rooting out”, “discarding”, “cultivating”, “nurturing”, “grafting”, “hybridity”, and so many activities that are also at work in cultures and relationships in the construction of identities.

Call it “hegemonisation”, “discursive practices”, or what you will; all of us have been -- and continue to be --“cultivated”, whether we like it or not.

Even when we were uprooted from homelands in Asia, Africa and Europe, we Ravi Dev were all already “hybrids” that had been variously constituted. The North Indians of the Bhojpuri belt, from where I originated, for instance, were the ‘work-in-progress’ of continuous invasions for thousands of years, of which the Moghul invasion and its Islamic world view was only the most extensive. The music and the religions and their culture of the people were dramatically “cross fertilised”. The British presence in the century before the end of Indentureship had already begun to have its impact, not only in the famines that made millions hungry and homeless and willing to seek their fortunes across the “Kala Pani”, but also, for instance, so many lower casted enlisted into their armies.

In the Caribbean, the Indians and Portuguese and Chinese indentureds would encounter the Africans, who had been subjected to hundreds of years of European imposition of culture and religion – forcibly and not so forcibly. While, against all odds, the Africans retained elements of their cultures in Africa -- they were drawn from all across West Africa – it was into their “creolised white-bias” culture, as described by RT Smith, that the new arrivals would be exposed in the Caribbean.

As the anthropologist David Scott wrote, we have all been “conscripted by modernity” – which of course is teleologically western.

The Africans were expected to inculcate “English culture”, even though their humanity was denied. This was interesting, since most of the overseers they interacted with were Irish and Scottish, who had themselves been “colonised”. The indentured servants inevitably imbibed much of their new culture from the African creoles, who preceded them in the plantation, and who were expected to “season” them into the new dispensation.

Think about eating “boil and fry”, and holding “wakes”.

Out of this experience with independence, we were told that we were “One People; One Nation; One Destiny”. However, in Guyana and the rest of the Caribbean, people of African origin sought to counter the European hegemonic cultural imposition with the ideologies of “Black Power”, “Negritude” and “Pan Africanism”, all of which privileged the African culture as the “root” of the tree of “national culture”.

But reviewing the broad sweep of Caribbean history, Senior sought to make the point that there is no “pure” origin and no “one root” that we can discover on which to construct our Caribbean identity. She borrowed the metaphor of the “rhizome” – with its multiplicity of roots that privilege no one root for Caribbean identity from the Martiniquean Edouard Glissant. He was consciously reacting against the construct of “negritute” and of “hybridity” that had been proposed to describe French Antillean identity. The former excluded all others, such as people of Indian origin and the French, and the latter still privileged the “African root”.

Glissant himself had adapted the image from the French philosophers Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari, who introduced the rhizome as a metaphor for “multiplicity,” rather than a “multiple”. In a more abstract plane than Glissant and Senior, Deleuze and Guattari emphasised “there are no points or positions in a rhizome, such as those found in a structure, tree, or root. There are only lines.” They also emphasised that we need to stop focusing on sameness, since what holds all existence together is difference, not resemblance.

I am happy that CXC had chosen a text like “Gardening in the Tropics”, which can help make our (reflective) young people move away from the binary of “African” and “Indian” -- which enviably creates divisions -- and towards a more fluid, permeable conception of self, in which “Guyanese” can be a mosaic rather than hierarchical strata of dominator and dominated.

A

Sam Huston State University Professor, conducting research documenting the effects of mercury contamination in freshwater fishes and food webs in the Mazaruni River and tributaries, has found higher than normal levels of mercury in the fishes as well as the water.

Dr Carmen MontañaSchalk from the Department of Biological Sciences has been conducting research in the Mazaruni area for the past two years, and has published some of her preliminary findings over the past week.

“Preliminary results by Dr Montaña-Schalk suggest a strong potential for bio-accumulation of mercury in the aquatic food web. For instance, large fish predators contain greater concentrations of mercury.

Dr. Montaña-Schalk has also observed that several fishes important in local human diets had Hg (mercury) levels higher (> 1 mg Hg/ kg) than the threshold proposed by the World Health Organization (0.5 mg Hg / kg). Therefore, local communities along the Mazaruni River are exposed to dangerous levels of mercury through consumption of fish as well as piscivorous wildlife,” the paper stated.

Region Seven (CuyuniMazaruni) is predominantly a mining region, and mercury plays a large part in gold recovery there. The Mazaruni River houses one of the world’s greatest con-

Gold dredges in the Middle Mazaruni River. Dredges operate 24/7

centrations of freshwater biodiversity, and contains high levels of species endemism, with a number of Amerindian communities relying on those fishes for their food. The Mazaruni area is home to thousands of Amerindians.

Dr Montaña-Schalk has said that a major problem facing the freshwater biodiversity in Guyana is habitat transformation via deforestation for gold mining operations and the release of mercury from alluvial gold mining activities into water bodies. She said that although there are studies documenting the presence of mercury in freshwater fishes and alluvial sediments in rivers of Guyana, very little still is known about the synergic effects of gold mining or mercury contamination in all components of the aquatic food web and the pathways for inorganic mercury to be converted into organic methyl mercury.

For the last two years, Dr Montaña-Schalk and col-

leagues from University of Guyana have been surveying tributaries of the Mazaruni River, and documenting fish diversity and mercury accumulation on fishes inhabiting these rivers. She documented that, every year, the effects of gold mining operations are greater.

There are more gold dredges in the main channel operating 24/7, but also high inland deforestation to establish inland mining operations. Gold mining activities significantly alter local habitats and downstream waterbodies.

“The most noticeable effects in the ecosystem are high turbidity in the water and sediments accumulation. This is particularly concerning, because some species endemic to the Mazaruni Basin appear highly associated with the main channel habitats… post-mining results are having adverse and detrimental effects on natural resources, including biodiversity and the environment. We have

observed severely degraded aquatic ecosystems, decline in fish diversity, and mercury accumulation in fishes used as food resources by locals.

All of this is of great concern, and requires immediate attention that involves conservation monitoring and restoration initiatives,” she said.

Dr Montaña-Schalk will continue her research to serve first-hand information for policy makers to address the threats on fish species in Mazaruni due to mercury contamination.

Last week, the Guyana Water Inc announced that the Kaituma River was found to have a high mercury content. GWI Managing Director Dr Richard Van West-Charles had stated that samples had been taken from the river, and the results have shown levels of 0.016mg/L, which are more than the accepted World Health Organisation’s (WHO’s) 0.006mg/L standard.

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SUnDAY, july 15, 2018| guyanatimesgy.com

Pensioner perishes after son sets home on fire

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he burnt remains of a 72-year-old man were removed from the debris of his burnt-out Berbice home after his son allegedly set the house ablaze.

Dead is James Pertam Lachmansingh, of Lot 9 A Bush Lot, West Coast Berbice.

Reports are the former rice farmer shared the home with his 20-year-old son.

Guyana Times was told that on Saturday, the son, who is reportedly a known drug addict, started the fire on the veranda and it quickly spread to the kitchen. He left the burning building and stood on the road as the fire spread.

At the time, his father was sitting in the living room watching television.

This publication was told that the pensioner suffered from a medical condition, which limited his mobility.

As such, he was unable to escape the inferno.

According to an eyewit-

Dead: James Pertam Lachmansingh The damaged Bush Lot, West Coast Berbice house

ness, the smoke was initially seen coming from the kitchen area, but by the time neighbours were alerted and rushed to the building, flames had already consumed the door and they could not enter.

Meanwhile, a fire unit from the Onverwagt Fire Station responded quickly.

The firemen braved the heat

to enter the building, but the pensioner had already perished. The man's burnt body was found lying on the kitchen floor.

However, they were able to prevent extensive damage to nearby buildings, one of which had already ignited when they arrived.

A close relative who spoke with this newspaper

related that the man’s son had developed a habit of beating his father whenever he was denied money to purchase marijuana.

Both the Police and the Guyana Fire Service are investigating the matter.

Lachmansingh leaves to mourn four children, two of whom are overseas, and five siblings, all of whom are overseas.

(Andrew Carmichael)

Investigating Complaints of Pollution

I

n our last feature, we looked at how you can be a steward of the environment by reporting pollution and other environmental violations to the Environmental Protection Agency. You should now have an understanding of the EPA’s complaint process, including where you can file the complaint, and the information that will be required from you. It was also highlighted that some environmental complaints are dealt with by other organisations, and that the Agency will help guide you to them if necessary.

As promised, this week’s article will focus on how the EPA addresses complaints, so that you can have a better understanding of the importance of this process, and be confident enough not to turn a blind eye to any environmental violations.

Screening of Complaints When a complaint has been received and recorded, the matter then goes through a prescribed screening process, to ensure that it can be addressed by the Agency, to identify the Programme Area (PA) of the EPA which will assume responsibility for investigating the complaint, and to determine the urgency of the matter.

The complaint is also inputted into a database by the Field and Data Management Technician, who will also categorise it as either a new or recurring issue.

This will help in the decision-making procedure on the best way to address the complaint.

If another regulatory body is better suited to investigate the complaint, the complainant is notified, and is provided with the relevant contact details.

Assignment of Complaints to the Relevant Programme Areas There are several technical PAs at the Agency which are designed to manage authorisation, monitor compliance, and enforce activities that would impact different aspects of the environment. For example, a complaint regarding fumes from spray painting activities or noise from the construction or operation of a facility is likely to be assigned to the Air Quality and Noise Management PA. Once the complaint has been entered into the database, it is then forwarded to the Senior Environmental Officer (SEO) of the PA identified, to have the matter investigated. The complaint would further be categorised based on the location of the reported pollution. It is more economically feasible and time-efficient to group investigations for complaints occurring in the same geographical area. The SEO supervises the Environmental Officers of the PA to ensure that investigations are done in a timely manner.

Field Inspections and Reporting Inspections are scheduled based on the urgency of the matter, location of the activity or facility, and the current workload of the PA. Depending on the nature of the reported pollution, PAs may be required to jointly address the issue. Inspections are always conducted in a professional manner. As such, the identity of complainants is always kept confidential. Additionally, it is not compulsory that either the complainant or the alleged polluter be informed prior to the investigation of the activity or facility. During the course of the investigation, it is not unusual that the inspecting Officers would also interview nearby residents, business operators, etc., who are likely to be impacted by the reported pollution. Based on the nature of the complaint, several environmental tests may be performed, e.g., water and/or soil sampling, air quality tests, noise level readings. Once the investigation is completed, an inspection report is prepared with the findings of the inspection, as well as recommendations of measures needed to mitigate any pollution that was observed, or to prevent further pollution. The inspection report is reviewed by senior officers, who will determine the final measures that are to be implemented by the polluter. All of the EPA’s decisions are evidence-based.

Taking Action The actions taken by the EPA to resolve the complaint may differ based on the nature of the complaint. Generally, for new matters, the Agency writes to the polluters, clearly outlining the mitigation measures the polluter needs to implement within a specific deadline. The complainant is also updated, at this stage, on actions that have been taken by the Agency.

For recurring complaints, any inspections after the initial inspection would be considered as a ‘follow-up inspection’. Follow-up inspections are carried out after the deadline has passed for the implementation of mitigation measures which were given based on a previous inspection. If the polluter has complied with the recommendations provided by the Agency and the complainant is no longer being affected, the complaint may be closed. It must be noted that the EPA can close a complaint even if the complainant claims to be affected, as long as it is observed that adequate measures have been put in place to mitigate and prevent pollution.

Non-Compliance by Polluters If there is non-compliance with the measures recommended, the polluter will be warned, and more follow-up inspections will be done. If the Agency is satisfied that enough time has been granted for the pollution to be addressed, legal proceedings may be initiated, which can result in the issuance of a Prohibition Notice or Court Injunction against the polluting activity. Noncompliance with a Prohibition Notice is an offence, and violators will be liable to a fine of not less than three hundred thousand dollars nor more than seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and imprisonment for one year. Noncompliance with a Court Ordered Injunction is Contempt of Court, and violators would be liable to be brought before the Court and punished accordingly.

Contravening the Environmental Protection Act makes an offender liable to fines of up to two million dollars and imprisonment for five years, with corporations being fined up to four million dollars; and where the offender is liable to serve time, imprisonment for ten years, but this will vary depending on the nature of the contravention. Note that all activities, whether authorised or not, are subject to the EP Act and regulations.

As can be seen, the EPA takes complaints about environmental violations very seriously, and will do what is necessary to ensure compliance with the Environmental Protection Act, Cap 20:05, Laws of Guyana and its Regulations.

However, be reminded that in order to do this, the Agency needs your participation and support!

You can share your ideas and questions by sending letters to: “Our Earth, Our Environment”, C/O ECEA Programme, Environmental Protection Agency, Ganges Street, Sophia, GEORGETOWN, or email us at: eit.epaguyana@gmail. com or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

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Georgetown-Vreed-en-Hoop crossing

Understanding Guyana’s FX Market (Part 2)

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n last week’s edition of this column, the author demonstrated the main features and characteristics of the domestic FX market. It was shown that the dominant players tend to be the commercial banks, which in effect determine the exchange rate through price leadership premised upon the oligopolistic structure of the banking sector, a notion also highlighted by Khemraj and Pasha (2012). It was further established and demonstrated, evidently, that as far as a shortage of foreign currency is concerned, so far there hasn’t been a real shortage.

Rather, an artificial shortage tend to be created from time to time, wherein the commercial banks, narrowing this down, two commercial banks are the real culprits that distort the domestic market by investing a greater portion of their foreign currency balances in foreign assets abroad, to simply earn higher returns and to prop up their profits, instead of focusing on lending wisely and more prudently in the domestic economy.

In so doing, this practice effectively constrains the availability of foreign currency in the domestic market to accommodate foreign currency transactions. In other words, the commercial banks behave like investment banks – a practice which the legal and existing regulatory environment does not restrict, but is nonetheless a regulatory arbitrage, given that the practice of investment banking comes with its own set of regulatory requirements. Commercial banks therefore should contain the level of their foreign investments, given the implications of this practice on the domestic economy against the backdrop of their dominant role in the FX market, and hence its impacts.

The author also wishes to reiterate these points, especially having recently reviewed a programme titled “the economy in focus”, in which the shadow Minister of Finance of the political Opposition in Parliament made a presentation on this very issue of a foreign currency shortage. In reviewing the contents of that presentation, the Opposition MP contended that the directive issued by the Central Bank of instituting a $3 spread is the resultant factor of a sharp decline in foreign currency.

While the MP, in that presentation, failed to effectively and evidently demonstrate the correlations thereto, the aforesaid real factor was completely omitted. In fact, the Central Bank’s directive to limit the spread was an excellent short-term policy directive against the real causation of this problem; that is, the creation of an artificial shortage. Had this policy directive not been instituted, the outcome would have been an unfortunate scenario in which the domestic currency would have been significantly depreciated against the U.S. dollar, which would have also fuelled inflation to the extent where there would have been hyper-inflation.

It is important to note that the key benchmark one needs to focus on in order to ascertain whether there is a real foreign currency shortage is to first examine the import cover benchmark, which should constitute three months of import cover. Import cover simply means having enough foreign currency to pay the country’s import bill. To this end, at the end of December 2017, the Central Bank’s international reserves stood at US$584 million, which represented four months’ import cover, which is above the minimum benchmark.

Looking at the import figure for 2017, one would arrive at an import cover of US$408 million (US$1,632 million representing imports for 2017/12 months x 3 months). This therefore means that at the end of December, 2017, there was an excess of US$176 million held in the Bank of Guyana’s international reserves. This, therefore, engenders a stable exchange rate.

It is true that the banking system’s net foreign assets have been depleted over a period of time, as was highlighted in previous columns and by other commentators, but it is also true that there is no real shortage of foreign currency at this point in time. To further corroborate this argument, the table below illustrates this point by showing data over the last 11 years. Pay attention to the international reserves held by the Bank of Guyana, import cover and the level of import cover maintained.

(For comments, questions and responses on articles featured in this column, readers can reach the author at jbinsights@outlook.com).

Passengers decry unlawful doublefare hike on Sundays, holidays

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number of passengers who utilise the services of speedboats to cross alternately from Georgetown to Vreeden-Hoop have complained of the double-fare being demanded by these speedboat operators on Sundays and holidays; and head of the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) has since denounced this practice.

This newspaper has been informed that boat operators also usually demand an increase of an additional $100 when they transport half the number of passengers on this route on a normal day.

Harbour Master of the Maritime Administration Department, Michael Tennant, has since told this publication he is aware of the situation. He said the increase is unlawful, and passengers should report those boat operators who engage in the practice. He has advised that passengers should note the name of the boat and time of the incident, so that it can be investigated.

When Guyana Times visited the Georgetown Stelling on Friday, some disgruntled passengers opined that the fare increase is quite burdensome and “unfair” to them. An angry passenger said, “I ain’t get raise on my salary, so I ain’t concern with no raise of fare! I won’t go for no raise of fare!”

Another frequent boat user told <<Guyana Times>>, “I think that the fee increase on weekends and holidays is unnecessary and unacceptable.

The boat captains and bowmen would have the maximum number of persons on board and still charge the $200 fee. It is a matter that should be looked into by the relevant authorities, because it's an act of exploiting customers.”

“We have no other choice. Sometimes -- especially when they (boat operators) know that the bridge is closed -- they try to exploit us, and I think that is unfair,” another passenger of the water taxis said.

Still another passenger noted that she has experienced the increase predominantly on Sundays and holidays.

“The double-fare being charged by boat operators on Sundays and holidays is definitely ridiculous! It’s unethical! This was never approved! I believe only persons who aren’t aware of this are the ones that are being targeted. I pay $100 on those days, especially when the boats travel with a full load,” this passenger said.

Agreeing with the statements expressed by most passengers, Trisha

The Georgetown Stelling

Patterson said she has seen cases in which the boat operators come over with full loads and still demand $200 from each passenger.

According to her, the situation needs to be investigated, since “a lot of people don’t get money to give them. Is what they feel?

They tryin to make a living by exploiting people! If you don’t give them de money, them does try to shame you and buse you”.

“It’s not fair! Because salary-wise, payment and

so, they are exploiting us on Sundays and so. It should be $100 for the fare per person, because people got family and so to maintain,” another passenger contended.

Some passengers have, however, said they usually willingly pay the extra money, and they do not have an issue with the additional fee being charged on selected days.

A bowman who spoke to this newspaper said the fares are increased on

Sundays and holidays because those are not full working days.

“Sundays and holidays is $200 (charged) because we ain’t supposed to be working. So them man does come out because them ain’t got nothing fuh do (and them want) fuh try and help de passengers to get across more fast. $200 a head. Me ain’t know why them (passengers) does row, because this is de cheapest boat fare around here,” he declared.

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Gynaecologist, photographer robbed after leaving reunion armed with a gun.

The Police said investigations revealed that the woman had attended the school’s function, and had parked her motor vehicle in a westerly direction on the northern side of Woolford Avenue in the vicinity of the Stella Maris Primary School.

At about 00:30hrs, she went to her vehicle accompanied by a male friend.

While the two were in the Yusuf Ali

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gynaecologist and a 28-year-old photographer were, during separate incidents on Friday evening, robbed after leaving the St Joseph High School’s reunion activity at Woolford Avenue, Georgetown.

According to the Police, 33-year-old Judy Hung-Kem of Lot 134 De Silva Street, Newtown, Georgetown was relieved of a designer wrist watch valued at $45,000 by two males, one of whom was

vehicle, a male approached, opened the vehicle’s door and pointed a gun at the head of the male, who was also dealt two blows to his head.

After confiscating the valuables of Hung-Kem and her friend, the gunman and an accomplice escaped on foot in a westerly direction along Woolford Avenue.

At about 22:00h that same evening, the vehicle of 28-year-old pho-

tographer Yusuf Ali of Cummings Lodge, East Coast Demerara, who also had attended the St Joseph reunion, was broken into while it was parked on Woolford Avenue. The thieves escaped with valuables amounting to $360,000.

The photographer told Guyana Times on Saturday that he had parked his Mazda Axela motorcar in front of the St Joseph High School on Friday evening, and when he returned to the vehicle, the locks were broken, and his bag which contained cameras, batter-

ies, chargers and several other valuables was missing.

Ali said he reported the incident to the Alberttown Police Station, and the Police have since dusted the vehicle for fingerprints.

Investigations into the two incidents are ongoing.

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Elections count for nothing if not “free & fair”– GECOM Chair ... as staff warned to ensure smooth running of polling stations

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raining of Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) instructors got underway on Saturday with Chairman James Patterson stressing the importance of instructors maintaining their professionalism and ensuring that their wards understand the importance of “free and fair” elections.

GECOM has been entwined in Elections Day controversies before, and on Saturday, at the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE), Patterson was firm in his instructions to the instructors. He made it clear that the elections would count for nought if they are not declared free and fair.

“I have discovered, since they declared me to be chairman of the outfit, what an important part GECOM plays in the public forum of this country,” Patterson informed the gathering. “I think the Commission anywhere takes the part even of the politicians, because we endure not only to see elections go smoothly, but we are here all the time. Politicians go and come at the beck and call of the electorate.

One of the qualities that should permeate GECOM and those who function in it is that you have to see that elections are run free and fair. My template for that is India. Don’t have time to go through all of it, but they have thousands of polling places. They have gone through metamorphosis of change, and India has been declared to be the largest democracy in the world. I hope

GECOM Chairman James Patterson

GECOM will put an end to that (being seen as crooked), in terms of position.”

Chairman Patterson reminded the gathered staff that they are essentially running the elections. He urged the workers to put all their effort into learning the election procedures being taught.

“Do you realise that elections are of no avail if they are not declared to be free and fair?” Patterson questioned. “Although we are in our infancy as an independent country, we aren’t doing too (badly). I mean to say that democracy and free and fair elections are like conjoined twins; you cannot have one without the other.”

The training is expected to last for two days, during which trainers will endeavour to cover polling day protocol, among other things.

GECOM has been allocated over $2 billion in order to hold Local Government Elections (LGE), which are due in a matter of months.

GECOM’s handling

of previous elections has been criticised by the now Opposition People’s Progressive Party (PPP).

In fact, because of concerns over electoral irregularities, that party filed an elections petition in June of 2015, little over a month after General and Regional Elections had been held.

The petition challenges the validity of the outcome of the 2015 General and Regional Elections.

Following the outcome of the May 2015 elections, the PPP underscored that the elections were not held in conformity with the Constitution of Guyana.

The matter, filed in the name of PPP/C Parliamentarian Ganga Persaud, essentially requests a recount of all ballots cast for the last elections, and calls for fresh elections to be held. Persaud has claimed that the elections were “unlawfully conducted”, and that the results of the elections were affected.

Persaud has cited procedural errors and instances of fraudulent and/or suspicious actions during the elections.

Unrest, fake statements of poll (SOPs) and multiple voting were among the reasons behind the petition.

Further, the presence of “huge mobs” at several polling stations and other strategic places, particularly in Region Four (DemeraraMahaica), were also cited by Persaud as other causes for intimidation and fear.

The PPP had exceptionally good results from the

last LGE in 2016, winning the popular vote and dominating the vote count in rural areas. But this time around, the party has been crying foul over the one-sided manner in which appoint-

ments within GECOM are being made in the run up to the elections.

While Patterson and the Government commissioners have denied contentions that they skewed hiring practic-

es in favour of one ethnic group, concerns over the ethnic balance within GECOM headquarters have seen the party make complaints to the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC).

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GECOM discrimination

ERC to meet with Opposition’s Commissioners

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he Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) will, in the new week, be meeting with the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) representatives on the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) as the ERC probes allegations of employment discrimination at the elections body.

The Opposition Commissioners at GECOM wrote the ERC last month, complaining of employment discrimination after GECOM Chairman, (rt’d) Justice James Patterson, used his deciding vote to break a deadlock which saw second-ranker Roxanne Meyers being appointed Deputy Chief Elections Officer over top-ranker and former DCEO, Vishnu Persaud.

Asked about the complaint filed by the PPP Commissioners, ERC Chairman Dr John Smith told reporters at a media engagement on Saturday morning that his team will be meeting with the complain-

ants on Monday.

“We will be meeting on Monday with Opposition Commissioners of GECOM… and whatever comes in, we’ll deal with that… [But] some matters fall under labour, and not the ERC, so we have to remind them about that,” Smith explained.

Nevertheless, the ERC Chairman posited that the task ahead is a difficult one, and after Monday’s meeting, a determination will be made as to the way forward in terms of whether there would be the need for investigative and legal inputs – resources which the ERC is now recruiting.

“We will need some help, [because] if the pie chart that I saw is authentic, we really have a problem… We have our work cut out, nothing is going to be easy, going forward. We will try our best to be fair, but it may take some time [to resolve], because problems with roots take some time to resolve,” Dr Smith outlined.

While the ERC is now putting together its resources, its Vice Chairman, Norman McLean, disclosed that the Opposition Commissioner had actually cancelled a previously scheduled meeting, thus further delaying the matter. Nevertheless, he noted that following Monday afternoon’s meeting with the PPP Commissioners, the ERC would subsequently meet the GECOM Chairman.

“We’re looking to having a fair approach to whatever [the issue] is,” McLean asserted.

The issue of Persaud being overlooked was disclosed by the PPP Commissioners, who had previously highlighted that candidates applying for posts at GECOM were being rejected or accepted based on their ethnicity and political alignment.

This practice, the commissioners have said, has resulted in the Commission being staffed mainly with one ethnic group.

However, questioned by

ERC Chairman, Dr John Smith

Guyana Times about the concerns of ethnic imbalance at the Commission, and the impact this could have on the public’s perception of the entity, Justice Patterson had made a point to mention that a similar situation had existed before, when Doodnauth Singh was Chairman, and most of the staff at the

Commission were of Indian descent.

“I’m not concerned about any so-called ethnic imbalance… So this ethnic thing will drive us into disaster.

I hate it… Be assured I’m not that sort; wrong man,” Patterson asserted.

Meanwhile, in regard to overlooking Persaud for the DCEO post, Justice Patterson had said it is his call to vote for the candidate whom he thinks is “the proper person”, and he did just that. He added that there were other issues which led to him supporting the appointment of the second highest scored candidate, an AfroGuyanese, over Persaud, an Indo-Guyanese.

“There are other issues (regarding why Persaud was not selected), and I don’t wish to comment on them, because I don’t want to say anything that would hinder Mr. Persaud’s career, or him getting another job. So it’s my personal view, and nobody

knows why in detail, but it’s easy to guess. I feel the choice is a right choice. My regime here excludes ethnicity. We want the correct person for the job, it doesn’t matter their race… I don’t look at ethnicity, I look at talent,” Justice Patterson posited.

Persaud, who had been employed as a PRO at GECOM since 2001, had acted as the DCEO within the entity since 2014. However, when his contract expired during the period when there was no Chairman at the helm of the Elections Commission, he was informed that he had to re-apply for the position.

In a subsequent interview with this newspaper, Persaud had said he is now contemplating his next step after his appointment was rejected -- a move on which he opted not to share his personal thoughts or emotions.

However, he did note that he has always done his work professionally, without any racial or political biases.

Contracts awarded for Wakenaam, Prospective foster parents trained in childcare Leguan sea defence works …Parika-Goshen road to be rehabilitated

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ith sea defence works ongoing along various sections in Region Three (Essequibo IslandsWest Demerara), the Public Infrastructure Ministry has announced that contracts have also been awarded for works on the islands of Leguan and Wakenaam.

Making this revelation earlier this week, Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson noted that, with those plans for the latter part of this year, 1.2 km of road works at Windsor Forest, Waller’s Delight and Ruimzeight have already been completed.

“We look forward to have this momentum going throughout this year. We’ve also awarded contracts for sea defences in Leguan and Wakenaam. We have sea defence work structures to be done in Uitvlugt, Leonora, Den Amstel, and rehabilitation of sluices along the West Coast of Demerara. All works are slated for completion this year. In fact, as of today, sea defence works remain ongoing in De Willem,” he said.

He noted that while those projects are ongoing, rehabilitation and other projects will be slated for next year. Meanwhile, emergency works along the West Coast of Demerara (WCD) have been approved

by Cabinet after ruptures had been caused during the high tide in March.

During an interview with Guyana Times a few weeks ago, Chief Sea and River Defence Officer Kevin Samad had indicated that four projects would be tendered, but evaluations were

Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson

still ongoing at that time.

However, he posited that the projects are expected to begin at the end of the month.

Three of the projects will see the construction of riprap structures at Leonora, Uitvlugt and Den Amstel, while the fourth involves rehabilitation of several drainage structures.

“We’ve had a temporary intervention which would entail placing some rocks for the critical section at Uitvlugt. The current status is that we went ahead with four projects on the West Coast for rip-rap works at Leonora, behind the hospital; Uitvlugt; the Den Amstel area; some other areas along the coast; at Windsor Forest and Blankenburg, where we have the sluices and drainage structures,” Samad noted.

Samad also highlighted that the unit is pushing to commence the works at the earliest, and as such, the works would commence before the next spring tide,

during October/November.

“It depends on the contractors that are successful with the necessary resources required; and at this point, I wouldn’t be able to say which contractor will be going first. But with our timeline, we would want all the contractors to mobilise at least by July monthend to August, before we have our next high tide in October-November,” Samad explained.

Meanwhile, consultations for other works will be facilitated later this month by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), which will focus on the upgrade of the Parika Stelling.

This project is expected to last for approximately six to eight months.

“On July 27, 2018, the CDB will be (conducting) studies for the upgrade of the Parika Stelling; and we do anticipate that those studies will take approximately six to eight months, and we can actually hope that we can have some work commencing in 2019,” he added.

Minister Patterson indicated that the much-awaited feasibility study was also completed for the Parika/ Goshen Road, and the ministry is seeking to complete the project via a public-private partnership.

“The feasibility for the Parika/Goshen Road has been completed, except one element; and we do anticipate that we will be going out with a request for a public-private partnership to ensure that that road be commenced and completed as well,” Minister Patterson has said.

Participants of the training engaged in an interactive session

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two-day training exercise for prospective foster parents was on Saturday organised by the Child Care and Protection Agency (CC&PA) in collaboration with the Social Protection Ministry, with the intention of developing the necessary skills and knowledge relative to childcare and to being effective caretakers.

Facilitated at the Regency Suites in Hadfield Street, Georgetown, the training saw inputs from both participants and the CCPA in activities and discussions which increased the understanding of how to deal with vulnerable children.

Social Protection Minister Amna Ally was present at Saturday’s proceedings. She noted that there are many children who are in need of foster care because of the circumstances under which they live, and she said this

workshop would equip potential caretakers with the various needed skills.

“We live in a society today where, unfortunately, there are numerous recorded cases of children who are deprived of biological parental care due to abuse, neglect, poverty, death of their parents, the impact of HIV/AIDS, (and) disability among other (things),” the minister told the gathering.

She reiterated that the work of the CC&PA over the past years has been to provide homes for children and remove them from dangerous environments. Some children have been successfully removed from threatening households.

It was, however, related that welfare services have historically struggled with the conflicting goals of family preservation versus child protection.

The participants of the

training exercise were also briefed by facilitator Ismay Griffith, who spoke about some of the areas that would be addressed during the two-day session.

“There’s always something more that we can learn in parenting, and especially with parenting children who’ve gone through the history of the ones that we ought to be caring for,” Griffith stated.

Measures in dealing with foster children were also discussed, and ways that such measures can be modified to suit various situations. The special needs of these children were also examined, along with different strategies to deal with children with special needs.

“We’ll spend some time trying to individualise our children and checking to see what may work versus (what may not),” she remarked.

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Kwakwani flooding

PPP calls on Govt to provide speedy relief …as water levels remain dangerously high

A tractor partially submerged

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ore than 300 residents of the community of Kwakwani, Region 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice), continue to be affected by high levels of floodwater forcing the Opposition to call for the Government to provide immediate relief to the affected residents.

“The People’s Progressive Party (PPP) expresses its concern regarding the flood situation in Kwakwani, Region 10, where residents have been faced with untold suffering as a result of the accumulation of water in their homes and villages. This has been compounded by the deterioration of roads, bridges and other critical transportation infrastructure across Region 10. The Party is, therefore, calling on the APNU+AFC Government to take all measures that will bring speedy relief in an effort to alleviate

This house is almost covered by the floodwaters

the situation,” the Party said in a statement.

The flooding started over the weekend owing to heavy rainfall. Persons living on Lamp Island and the Waterfront are the most severely affected, but according to acting Director of the Guyana Civil Defence Commission (CDC), Major Kester Craig, there is no need for emergency shelters at this time.

On Saturday, the residents told Guyana Times that the water, which is at dangerously high levels, submerging some vehicles and homes, was showing no signs of receding.

“The rain still falling hard and the water not going anywhere. We have to make sure that we save our things and so on, but the flooding is mostly to the Waterfront and Lamp Island,” resident James Andries said.

The affected areas are said to be low-lying with residents being given the option to move, but they have not taken up that offer.

However, a team would have visited the community on Friday, and representatives from the Agriculture and Public Health Ministries discovered that livestock and farmland were affected.

The medical team visited the Kwakwani Public Hospital to determine if anyone was suffering from any disease or was hospitalised as a result of the flooding, but they found none.

According to a Regional official from the community, over 100 households are affected by the floods. However, Regional Chairman Renis Morian on Friday indicated that the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) was unaware of the situation as it unfold-

These houses are threatened by water levels as high as 8 feet

ed, despite having regional officials stationed in the community.

Residents have complained of damage to household appliances and belongings on account of the flood situation, which they believe was caused by the inclement weather and overtopping of the Berbice River. The community has reportedly been

experiencing significant high tides since last weekend.

The Regional Chairman said there was need to understand the backdrop against which the flooding was taking place, as he pointed out that owing to increased rainfall, there was presently overtopping at the River. He said those affected were mainly from low-lying areas. He

warned that should persons continue to live in such areas, they would experience flooding.

For now, the residents are taking all the necessary precautions to ensure that the damage is as minimal as possible. Residents are utilising boats as their primary mode of transportation, since most of the roads are inundated.

Pedestrian killed by drunk drivers Teen dies during resort outing

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he Police have launched an investigation into the death of a pedestrian after he was killed in an accident involving two drunk drivers.

Police on Saturday said that the dead man was yet to be identified.

Reports are the accident occurred about 01:30h on Ruby Public Road, East Bank Essequibo.

Guyana Times was told that two motor cars were involved in the accident.

Investigations have revealed that motor car PRR 459 was proceeding west along the

southern carriageway when it struck down the pedestrian who was allegedly walking in the centre of the road.

This publication understands that immediately after, PWW 6353, which was also proceeding in the same direction, hit the pedestrian.

Public-spirited residents picked up the pedestrian and rushed him to the Leonora Cottage Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival. Both drivers were taken into custody and were found to be above the legal alcohol limit. Investigations are continuing.

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n outing turned tragic for a Georgetown family after an 18-year-old drowned at a private resort on the LindenSoesdyke Highway.

The dead young man has been identified as Ronaldo Gomes of Lot 8 Norton Street, Wortmanville, Georgetown.

According to information reaching Guyana Times, the incident occurred late Saturday afternoon. This newspaper understands that the teenager went to the creek with his cousin, a bus owner who was hired to transport some persons to the private resort.

While details surrounding the incident are sketchy, this publication was told that when the group was getting ready to leave, persons realised Gomes was missing. Upon searching and making enquiries, they were informed that while swimming, the water became rough and the teen ventured out to the deep end. The cousin was reportedly told that the teen went beyond the barricade ropes and was

Dead: Ronaldo Gomes

allegedly hit by a jet-ski.

A search was then conducted, and his body was found floating. Investigations are ongoing.

Human skeleton found at Puruni

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he skeletal remains believed to be that of a female were last Sunday discovered at Thomas Island, Puruni River, Region Seven.

Based on reports received, a security personnel stumbled upon the remains while heading to an internet cafe to make a call. He, however, reported the findings to the Police on Tuesday.

As such, a party of Police ranks was dispatched to the scene to conduct preliminary investigations.

Due to its present state, identification of the body -clad only in a brassiere and still having some amount of flesh -- was not possible.

The Police are making checks to determine if a missing person’s report had been made of recent.

However, a Police source has confirmed that no such report was made.

Nevertheless, the Police are continuing their investigations.

A post mortem is expected to be performed on the remains to determine the cause of death. The Police have since questioned several persons in the area, but to no avail.

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Hazard leads Belgium to 3rd place over England E

ngland’s World Cup campaign in Russia ended with a 2-0 defeat

by Belgium in St Petersburg that meant the Three Lions finished in fourth place.

Gareth Southgate’s team were unable to bounce back from the despair of Wednesday’s extra-time loss against Croatia in the semi-final in Moscow - but this still represents a highly creditable tournament for England.

Thomas Meunier put Belgium ahead after just four minutes when he slid in ahead of Danny Rose to divert Nacer Chadli’s cross past goalkeeper Belgium’s Eden Hazard shoots and seals the deal Jordan Pickford.

England had chances to sloppiness from Danny Rose - who allevel in the second half as Toby Alderweireld cleared off the line lowed Meunier to slide in on his blind from Eric Dier, while Harry Maguire side - led to them falling behind so early. also headed wide from a good position.

England, as others have before Eden Hazard wrapped it up for Belgium with eight minutes left when them, struggled to cope with the varihe got the better of Phil Jones to beat ety of Belgium’s attack, but their attiPickford, who had just saved magnif- tude was once again commendable and icently from Meunier, with a powerful they had chances to pull the game level before Hazard snuffed out their hopes. finish.

Dier’s clever chip was miraculously Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku missed two chances and was substitut- cleared off the line by Alderweireld, beed without scoring, leaving England fore he and Harry Maguire headed wide captain Harry Kane in pole position to from good positions as England pressed.

This is a fixture regarded as an unwin the World Cup’s Golden Boot with wanted intrusion for teams who have six goals.

Kane will collect the award bar- suffered the despair of a World Cup ring remarkable deeds from France semi-final defeat, but Belgium and duo Antoine Griezmann and Kylian England made it competitive.

It was, in some respects, a game too Mbappe, who are on three goals apiece, in Sunday’s final against Croatia in far for England after the disappointment of Wednesday’s loss to Croatia Moscow (kick-off 16:00 BST).

Southgate made five changes to the but to go home having finished fourth team beaten by Croatia - but there was at this spectacular World Cup in Russia still a clear determination to secure is no disgrace.

England defender John Stones, their best result at this tournament apart from one lapse that let Mario since 1966.

And with Belgium counterpart Mandzukic in for Croatia’s winner in Roberto Martinez adopting the same Moscow on Wednesday, has had a magapproach, it made for an entertaining nificent World Cup. And he ended it with a flawless perplay-off in this magnificent arena in St formance in St Petersburg, doing more Petersburg.

It would have been easy for than anyone to keep Belgium’s outEngland’s heads to drop after defensive standing attack at bay.

Kerber beats Serena to win Wimbledon A

ngelique Kerber beat seven-time champion Serena Williams to win her first Wimbledon title and spoil the American’s dream comeback as a mum.

The German 11th seed, 30, beat the 23-time Grand Slam champion 6-3 6-3 to add this title to her 2016 Australian Open and US Open crowns.

Williams had been the favourite despite it being only her fourth tournament since giving birth in September.

Kerber dropped to the grass when a netted service return gave her victory.

“It is a dream come true,” said Kerber, who is the first German woman to win the title since Steffi Graf in 1996.

“I know I had to play my best tennis against a champion like Serena.

Serena is a great person and a great champion and she is a great inspiration for all of us.”

Williams said she had been happy to simply get to the final so soon into her comeback, adding: “It is obviously a disappointment but I can’t be disap-

pointed. I’m literally getting started.

“To the other mums out there I was playing for you today and I tried. But Angelique played really well. I look forward to continuing to be out there and do what I do best.”

Kerber, known for her defensive style, came to the match with a more attacking plan in mind - keep the point going and exploit Williams’ lack of mobility around the court.

And it paid off handsomely with the 36-year-old’s dashes to the net ending in errors half of the 24 times she came forward.

The German former world number one showed her intent in the first game, breaking the Williams serve that forms the backbone of her game.

Williams broke back to level at 2-2 before Kerber re-established the advantage in the seventh game when the American hit long, and she took the set

Stones produced a standout moment in the first half when he retreated in the face of Lukaku running at him, biding his time before making a perfect tackle.

He was the barrier on countless occasions and even got a handshake from his Manchester City team-mate De Bruyne for one late interception.

Stones’ ability to play out from the back and his cultured style are integral to Southgate’s future plans - and he has performed in this tournament in exactly the manner his most fervent admirers hoped he would.

Belgium’s delight at a third-place finish - their best at a World Cup - was obvious in the manner in which Martinez and his assistant Thierry Henry celebrated with their players at full-time.

It meant a lot - although it could have been even better after beating Brazil in the quarter-finals only to then lose to France in the last four.

However, Martinez has a truly outstanding squad at his disposal and there is every chance they will now get stronger having gained stature here.

Any squad that boasts the attacking firepower they have in De Bruyne, Hazard and Lukaku, as well as their strength of squad elsewhere, is a force to be reckoned with - and this may be only the start of Belgium’s story as a rising football force. (BBC Sport)

when Williams sent a backhand into the net.

Kerber stuck with her tactics in the second set, breaking in the sixth, and the sight of Williams falling to the ground in frustration when she missed a straightforward lob for 30-0 when Kerber was serving for the match summed up her day.

The German struck a forehand winner to bring up championship point and sealed the victory on the next point when Williams could only return a serve into the net.

Overcome by the magnitude of what she had achieved against a player who beat her in the 2016 Wimbledon final, Kerber collapsed on to the ground and covered her eyes, while Williams came over to her side of the net to share a warm embrace. (BBC Sport)

22

guyanatimesgy.com

SUnDAY, july 15, 2018

Charlestown, Multi book their spots in Under-14 final T

he girls of Charlestown Secondary and the boys of North Ruimveldt Multilateral have secured their places in the ExxonMobil/Petra Under-14 Football league following thrilling semi-final games on Saturday.

Although two of the semi-final matches were postponed because several players had been involved in a Guyana Football Federation camp, players in attendance were pumped and ready to get the ball rolling.

The young ladies of Charlestown and New Campbellville Secondary were the first to take the field in Saturday’s double semi-final action. Their match-up was nothing short of nail biting, with a number of attempts being scooped up by the more- than-capable goal keepers.

Driven by determination, the young ladies gave their all, but often saw their cunning plays fall through at the last moment. With

would be the winning goal of the match.

Highlighting that a few of their players were not able to play in Saturday’s match up, goal scorer Shaquan Favorite was of the opinion that the team performed to the best of their ability.

“It was challenging, but I felt the team did well,”

Favorite stated.

This enthusiastic team is confident it can match skills with either of the two teams scheduled for the next semi-final.

Both Charlestown and North Ruimveldt Multilateral will have to wait until Tuesday’s staging of the two remaining semi-final matches to determine whom they will meet in the final, come next Saturday, June 21.

Charlestown’s Donna Lowe fires up a blistering penalty shot

the score locked at nil all, the decision was made to go into extra time, but even a few additional minutes could not determine who would advance to the final round.

Following both team’s failure to score in extra time, a penalty shootout became the deciding factor in the electrifying encounter. It was then that the Charlestown girls took their opportunity, connecting each penalty to the back of the net.

“It was challenging between us

and Campbellville, but they played nice. It feels wonderful to go into the finals,” Charlestown captain Donna Lowe stated after the win.

Subsequently, North Ruimveldt Multilateral took on St. John’s College in the first male semifinal.

The encounter got off to a heated start, with Multi’s striker taking a shot at the goal within the first two minutes. Their upbeat attitude led them to a goal early on in the first quarter. Little did they know that

A glimpse of the action between St John’s and North Ruimveldt

GFF Elite League III…

Kings stun Milerock

M

ilerock and Victoria Kings football clubs contested one of the most intriguing match ups of the recently resumed Guyana Football Federation’s (GFF’s) Elite League III on Friday evening at the Leonora Stadium.

Kings managed to come out on top 5 – 3 and move on to 22 points. The fourth place holders were led by a second-half hat-trick from Aubrey Gibson which shifted the weight of the battle in the closing moments.

Keon Sears put the Linden-based Milerock ahead as early as the sixth minute, and he struck again in the 41st minute, but the Victoria Kings managed to pull one back before the half time whistle, compliments of Nickosi Denny.

When play resumed, Brentsley Allicock found the back

of the net to make it a two-possession match in Milerock’s favour. However, no one could tell in the next ten minutes what Gibson had in store would be all that was needed for the win.

Gibson struck in the 59th minute, then again 10 minutes later, thus placing the match on an even keel at 3 – 3.

Eight minutes later, this gladiator gave his side the lead for the first time in the match. It was not a grip the Kings intended to have loosened, and they held it right down to the end, with Azumah Roberts picking up the final goal in injury and stoppage time to comfortably give Victoria Kings three points.

Milerock are, however, still in seventh place, with nine points on the board.

In the other match, Guyana Defence Force (GDF), sitting at 5th, got past New Amsterdam United, who currently sit in the cellar.

GDF moved on to 21 points with their 3 – 0 drubbing of the Berbicians. Jeffery Perreira and Cedric Osborne were the army scorers in the 12th and 31st minutes respectively, while Delroy Fraser accounted for the other goal in the 66th minute.

The Man-of –the-match Jason Holder celebrates one of his six victims

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SUnDAY, july 15, 2018

23

Holder’s six-for seals 2-0 sweep J

ason Holder completed Bangladesh’s devastation with career-best match figures of 11 for 103, as West Indies cantered to a 2-0 series win, their first at home since 2014. Holder, who took 5 for 44 in the first innings, followed up with 6 for 59 as Bangladesh folded for 168 in the second innings. That was also their highest score in four innings this series.

Shakib Al Hasan, the Bangladesh captain, was the lone shining light from his side, top-scoring with 54. That came on the back of a six-wicket haul earlier in the day that triggered a West Indies collapse as they were bundled out for 129 - the lowest score against any visiting Bangladeshi side - giving Bangladesh a slight opening in the Test. Shakib’s 6 for 33 are the best bowling figures by a Bangladeshi in an away Test.

Chasing 335, Bangladesh needed to come up with their best batting performance of the series. They began that pursuit by losing Tamim Iqbal early. Undeterred, Liton Das counterattacked, punching Holder for four fours in one over.

Liton stayed put with his aggressive approach, which fetched him 33 runs in quick time, before Keemo Paul put an end to it when he held onto a catch at gully. Mominul Haque managed his best contribution of the series - 15 - which ended just before the tea interval, when Roston Chase had him lbw.

Mominul ended his series with a solitary run from his three other innings.

Mahmudullah, who also endured a wretched Test series, perished meekly when he tried to loft Chase over midwicket, but Shai Hope intercepted the shot with a well-timed jump.

Shakib and Mushfiqur then added 54 runs for the fifth wicket, with both batsmen hitting boundaries quite freely.

Shakib took a liking to Paul, collecting his first four boundaries off him, flicking and driving through the covers, before cutting him twice past point in the 20th over. Shannon Gabriel, too, felt the brunt, going for three fours in the 29th over: two straight drives and a square-cut.

Mushfiqur’s first four came via a reverse sweep against Chase, before he unleashed cuts, glides and straight drives against Miguel Cummins. Holder, however, went through the gate, created by a large bat-pad gap, to bowl him in similar fashion to Gabriel in the second innings in Antigua.

With his next ball, Holder gave Nurul Hasan a pair, the batsman falling lbw in almost identical fashion to the first innings, although this one was more adjacent. Mehidy Hasan survived the hat-trick ball, but soon became Gabriel’s first victim, Devon Smith taking the catch diving to his left at second slip.

Shakib struck three more fours to reach his fifty, before Holder struck again. Rabbi and Abu Jayed followed suit. It was the completion of West Indies’ recovery after enduring a torrid time during first half of the day.

Like with the bat, Shakib played an important role with the ball, but he also found help from the younger bowlers, with Mehidy Hasan, Abu Jayed and Taijul Islam sharing the other four wickets. But it was he who paved the way for the fightback, snaring the first three wickets in the morning, taking out Devon Smith, Keemo Paul and Kieran Powell. Smith and Paul were stumped, while Powell was adjudged leg-before going back to a length ball. Taijul and Jayed struck next, dismissing Shai Hope and Shimron Hetmeyer, and soon after the lunch break, Mehidy bowled Chase, who top scored with 32.

The innings also saw wicketkeeper Nurul Hasan complete a Bangladesh record of three stumpings when Holder ran past a Mehidy delivery in the next over. Shakib then bowled Cummins and Gabriel in the same over to end the West Indies innings nine overs after lunch. (ESPN cricinfo)

Bartica Guinness “Greatest of the Streets” Competition...

River View begin title defence with champion performance

A section of the large crowd that attended the opening night of the Bartica Zone of the Guinness “Greatest of the Streets” Competition

R

iver View, defending champions of the Bartica Guinness Greatest of the Streets competition, immediately established that they are in no mood to accommodate pretenders to their throne when they registered an emphatic 5-1 thrashing on the Might Rulers in the penultimate game on opening night of the Bartica Zone of the Guinness ‘Greatest of the Streets’ competition.

Led by a Guinness goal from Godfrey Norton, which came in the 20th minute, the River View team registered single strikes from Shaquille Hopkinson in the 13th minute of play, Andel Norton in the 15th minute, and Romario Lake in the 17th minute, to complete their tally. Devon Elias’s 11th minute effort was the lone response from the Mighty Rulers.

Also displaying impressive form, Goal Raiders defeated Goal Impact 3-0, with Brian Browne netting a Guinness goal in the 19th minute, and Sherwin DaSilva opening the Raiders’ account in the 5th.

In the first game, Street Kings survived Hard Tackles to secure a narrow 1-0 win, with

Seon Ferrier being the lone marksman following his 6th minute effort.

Almanac Kings then dispatched SML 2-0, with Ricardo Pereira firing in a brace in the 2nd and 14th minutes respectively.

In what was clearly the most exciting game of the night, Potaro Strikers outlasted Agatash 3-2 to advance to the next round.

Ron Smith was on target for the winners, netting in the 10th and 13th minutes, while Kurt Spencer added the other goal in the 7th minute.

Andrew Simons scored a pair for Agatash, bombing the opposition in the 3rd and 6th minutes.

Play in the tournament was expected to resume last evening.

The national playoffs are set to be staged on July 27 and August 1, at the Pouderoyen Tarmac and Haslington Market Square respectively, while the final will be played on August 4, at the National Stadium, Providence.

SCOREBOARD West Indies 1st Innings - 354 Bangladesh 1st Innings - 149 West Indies 2nd Innings KC Brathwaite b Shakib Al Hasan 8 DS Smith st †Nurul Hasan b Shakib Al Hasan 16 KMA Paul st †Nurul Hasan b Shakib Al Hasan 13 KOA Powell lbw b Shakib Al Hasan 18 SD Hope lbw b Taijul Islam 4 SO Hetmyer lbw b Abu Jayed 18 RL Chase b Mehidy Hasan Miraz 32 SO Dowrich † not out 12 JO Holder (c) st †Nurul Hasan b Mehidy Hasan Miraz 1 ML Cummins b Shakib Al Hasan 1 ST Gabriel b Shakib Al Hasan 0 Extras 6 (b 1, lb 2, nb 2, w 1) TOTAL 129 all out (45 Overs, RR: 2.86) Fall of wickets: 1-19 (KC Brathwaite, 8.1 ov), 2-28 (DS Smith, 12.1 ov), 3-53 (KMA Paul, 18.5 ov), 4-60 (KOA Powell, 20.1 ov), 5-64 (SD Hope, 21.6 ov), 6-97 (SO Hetmyer, 33.2 ov), 7-122 (RL Chase, 39.2 ov), 8-124 (JO Holder, 41.6 ov), 9-129 (ML Cummins, 44.1 ov), 10-129 (ST Gabriel, 44.6 ov) BOWLING: Abu Jayed (8-1-211), Mehidy Hasan Miraz (112-45-2), Kamrul Islam Rabbi (2-0-3-0), Shakib Al Hasan (175-33-6), Taijul Islam (7-0-24-1)

Bangladesh 2nd Innings Tamim Iqbal lbw b Holder 0 Liton Das c Hope b Paul 33 Mominul Haque lbw b Chase 15 Shakib Al Hasan b Holder 54 Mahmudullah c Hope b Chase 4 Mushfiqur Rahim b Holder 31 Nurul Hasan † lbw b Holder 0 Mehidy Hasan Miraz c Smith b Gabriel 10 Taijul Islam not out 13 Kamrul Islam Rabbi lbw b Holder 0 Abu Jayed b Holder 0 Extras 8 (b 4, lb 2, nb 2) TOTAL 168 all out (42 Overs, RR: 4.0) Fall of wickets: 1-2 (Tamim Iqbal, 2.1 ov), 2-40 (Liton Das, 11.5 ov), 3-52 (Mominul Haque, 14.5 ov), 4-67 (Mahmudullah, 18.3 ov), 5-121 (Mushfiqur Rahim, 31.2 ov), 6-121 (Nurul Hasan, 31.3 ov), 7-138 (Mehidy Hasan Miraz, 34.4 ov), 8-162 (Shakib Al Hasan, 39.5 ov), 9-168 (Kamrul Islam Rabbi, 41.1 ov), 10-168 (Abu Jayed, 41.6 ov) BOWLING: JO Holder (133-59-6), ST Gabriel (9-2-29KMA Paul (7-0-34-1), 1), ML Cummins (5-1-20-0), RL Chase (8-4-20-2) Result: Windies win by 166 runs

SUNDAY, JULY 15, 2018

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

guyanatimesgy.com

Holder’s six-for seals 2-0 sweep

Hazard leads Belgium to third place over England Pg 21

Pg 23

FRANCE or CROATIA?

The Belgium team displays their hardware after sinking England 2 – 0 in the third place World Cup Playoff

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JULY 15, 2018

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2 Sunday Times Magazine

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JULY 15 , 2018

Feature

Q

The Robot

uite often, smaller communities are underestimated in relation to what they have to offer and in order to break that mindset, Shahad Hussain has created the Crabwood Creek STEM Club to show the small Region Six community has the potential to shine.

STEM, which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, is not a new concept, but it is now really taking off in Guyana, and is an absolute necessity for the technology age. With this in mind, the 22-yearold Shahad began following the work of STEMGuyana and when time came for him to start studies at the University of Guyana, his dream of being a part of the STEM league became a reality.

In January, STEMGuyana co-founder Karen Abrams was offering coaching sessions at the Public Telecommunications Ministry, and Shahad was lucky enough to be selected

for that. After that session, he returned to Crabwood Creek and immediately got a team together and started the Crabwood Creek STEM Club.

“I was always interested in STEM. I am particularly biased to engineering and I completed the GuySuCo Apprenticeship Programme in mechanical and electrical engineering and that is what inspired me to go after my dream of STEM,” he said.

According to Shahad, his love for STEM and Robotics was cemented when Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield spoke at his apprenticeship graduation in 2016. During Lowenfield’s speech to the graduands he encouraged them to go after the STEM field and position themselves and their communities to make their mark.

Now the Crabwood Creek STEM Club has five members, just enough to participate in STEMGuyana league competitions. Shahad says that for now the aim is

to build a reputation for the Club and then expand to accommodate more members of the community.

The Crabwood Creek team at the Robotics Expo

“The aim for the future is for me to complete the challenges and get more students aware of the STEM aspect of things. I want them to say that coming from a small community does not mean that you can’t dream big. I want them to know that they can compete and be a part of anything that they want to,” he said.

With the Education Ministry pushing for the implementation of STEM in the school curriculum, Shahad says that before that is done, it is the intention of his Club to ensure that every student within

the community has a foundation in STEM. He said while the immediate goal was to secure sponsorship and donations to expand the reach of the Club, the near future would see them going into schools to educate the children.

“I would like to see different facilities offering robotics and Scratch coding classes to get the youths involved.

Technology is rising and we want to educate everyone.

Also, the schools should be a part of the leagues and then persons from school would have some knowledge going into the STEM field,”

The team with Public Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes

Robot building

Shahad said.

Speaking about the challenges relating to starting up a STEM Club, Shahad said time management was key as well as a stable and powerful Internet connection, in addition to the resources needed to acquire equipment for robotics as well as programming.

When asked what drives him, Shahad had this to say: “The passion that I know that I am making a difference. I want to make this place better and for the youths to transition without much issues.”

guyanatimesgy.com

JULY 15 , 2018

Sunday Times Magazine

3

Feature

Defying the odds to be on the ICT frontier “Parents didn’t get their permission slip in time after we would have dropped it off and so we didn’t get much support there when it comes to permission to have the kids go over Melanie to have the project completed. Well, the thing is most of the kids we worked with is from Buxton, so the facility was a big deal and even though they had, we didn’t had like teachers who were willing to stay back and help us out with gaining access to the room and things like that.

We had 10 students and more were interested, but the [lack of] access to facilities, that caused us not to accommodate all of them,” Aisha explained.

At the end, however, they were able to complete the tasks assigned by STEMGuyana in just three days. There were times when the team lost motivation, but as Aisha explained the level of determination exhibited by the students was the

D

Students being taught Scratch Coding

espite not receiving the level of expected support, the Buxton STEM Club is pushing through to ensure it is positioned to take advantage of the opportunities offered by Guyana’s booming Information Communication Technology (ICT) industry.

The Club was started in February of this year as part of the initiative to push STEM education.

The Club was launched at the Buxton Secondary School with the students being really excited to learn programming and robotics. According to STEMGuyana Coach Horace Mosely, they have six active students in the Club and they have all been exposed to Scratch Coding as well as robotics building.

Horace, being a Buxtonian, said he was extremely excited to be part of a team that was pushing the STEM initiative in his community. When speaking about the im-

pact of the Club, he said that he has been approached by a number of organisations to aid them in the establishment of their own STEM Clubs.

“It actually has a great impact, because, currently, I have over four places that reached out to me in Buxton to start STEM groups. They will be starting STEM groups and this is Churches and we have two other youth fellowships and two other Clubs. It’s technology, and children and technology is moving really fast right now,” Horace said.

Like every new initiative, there are quite often challenges and for the Buxton STEM Club the challenge was the lack of support – lack of support from the teachers at the Buxton Secondary School and facilities, given the lack of commitment. Coach Aisha Peters said that the lack of support resulted in them having to move over to Melanie in order for them to complete the tasks set out

by STEMGuyana.

driving force.

“Determination to learn because they were very involved and they were texting and calling parents to get permission and to see how they can get out and all the different things, so it was their determination that gave us the courage to go forward in aiding and assisting in completing the challenges. We started late and then they finished all four challenges within three days, so the kids actually motivated us when we were not like feeling it, because without their support we could not have made it.”

The aim of the Buxton STEM Club is to go bigger and better. The Coaches want to get the school involved as well as the teachers. The immediate plan is to raise funds to purchase their own Robotics Kit for the children, since the one they used in the competition was loaned by STEMGuyana.

4

Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

JULY 15 , 2018

Feature

Coach Melissa Gordon

I

f we are to go by the predictions of the development pundits, then within the next decade 80 per cent of jobs will require some sort of technological skill, so with this in mind the Belladrum STEM Club was birthed.

The Club was the idea of Lelon Saul, who is the Chief Executive Officer of the Central Housing and Planning Authority. Saul, who hails from Belladrum, West Coast Berbice, wanted to position the youths of the community to take advantage of the opportunities of the Information Communication Technology (ICT) age. However, initially he could not find someone to manage the Club.

According to co-founder Melissa Gordon, the idea really got implemented after she attended a training seminar with STEMGuyana founder Karen Abrams.

“I attended that training and after that, the other Coach, Tyreke Wilson, he is a Computer Science student at UG. The two of us are working together. He

came on board and we are launched the Club.”

When they launched the Club over three months ago, they started with over 20 students, since the intention was to focus on the secondary school youths, but soon after they started, primary school students started to show up. Melissa told the Sunday Times that presently they have over 60 students on roll explaining that they could not turn away the primary school children since the intention is to afford everyone the chance to take advantage of the opportunities.

“We would meet twice per week. Primary on Saturday and Secondary on Tuesday and Saturday from 2:30pm to 5:30. We are running two programmes in one. They are doing the Scratch programming and robotics,” she said.

Students who are in Form Three and below are being taught Scratch programming while the older students learn robotics, which is much more technical. However, the Club

would soon be switching things up with students learning both robotics and Scratch programming.

The Club is housed at the Community Development Centre Building with most of the equipment for the functioning being donated by local and overseas donors.

“All the materials we are working with has been donated and some people overseas came forward and donated stuff and so on.”

When asked about the impact of the Club, Melissa said that judging from the response of members, it has been “impactful”.

“The way the world is working everything is moving towards technology and they would have realised that and the parents also, and so it is important that we get them there. They are very excited and enthusiastic and they are learning. We have people from out of Belladrum coming here and it’s from as far as Mahaicony,” she said.

“We are hoping to get them into Information Technology and we are giving them the fundamentals they need for them to move on, so we’re hoping that with the knowledge they would have gained that they are going to take up study in IT that’s going to help them.

We are hoping that we can get some great inventions

Some members of the Club

coming out from them that we can use in the near future to solve some of the problems.”

At the recently-completed Robotics Expo, the Club had a successful run and showed off four robots. One of the robots tackled the garbage problem by being able to recognise recyclable

waste while another had the ability to pick up any form of waste.

But the one that was most impressive was the demolition train robot that had the ability to not only demolish but also clean up.

This caught the attention of Public Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes,

who commended the group, noting that City Hall could utilise that robot.

For now, the Club is focused on making the members the best version on themselves while positioning them to take advantage of every afforded opportunity.

Introduction to Robotics

Some members at the Robotics Expo

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Sunday Times Magazine 5

Feature

N

ot e v eryone can say that while in school they were afforded the opportunity to create something unique and invent something that could possibly position them on the frontline

of greatness, but for a few students of the Bartica Secondary School that opportunity has presented itself and they are taking full advantage of it.

Bartica is being touted as the “Green Town” of Guyana and with that in mind, the Bartica S e c o n d a r y School’s STEM Club invented the Roco163A. The Roco163A was created to aid the Town to promote the green agenda by assisting with garbage disposal.

The Club was started in February as a part of the STEMGuyana initiative to introduce

The Bartica Secondary School STEM Club during the Robotics Expo

Learning Scratch Coding

Putting together Roco

STEM into the school’s curriculum.

“We have 20 students with 16 being active members, and they are involved in robot building and Scratch coding and we don’t have any problems as yet, but we were able to gain outstanding research in the recent robotics competition,” Coach Onicka Chisholm said.

Onicka is the Science and Technology teacher at the School and was selected to undergo the Coaching Training Workshop with STEM Guyana after which she started coaching the Club along with her coCoach Clinton Bobb.

“The children are very excited about it, especially about the robot building and when it comes to the Scratch coding the students are able to express their ideas through stories and how they see it in Scratch coding. It’s basically allowing them to create different animations of their choices and it is encouraging to see them create things,” she noted.

“It has impacted the students and their eagerness to learn. Come September we will be taking in more and more for our STEM Club. We are trying to have more females join the Club because we have 65 per cent males and 35 per cent females.”

For now, the Club meets Monday to Friday after classes.

At the recently-concluded STEM Robotics Expo, apart from introducing Roco163A, they also built a bulldozer that works hand in hand with Roco to aid in garbage disposal.

When asked what advice she has for a young person wanting to be a part of the STEM field, Onicka said that they should follow their passion and dream big. However, she noted that focus and determination were everything.

Testing Roco

6 Sunday Times Magazine

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Feature

Angel and Makenna

and the Caribbean.

The Clubhouse Story

Now that we are aware of the impact of STEMGuyana and the amount of interest its model is generating, let us look at the softer side of things. STEMGuyana team member Farnaz Baksh wrote this piece titled “The Clubhouse Story”: Angel is a dedicated member of the Sports

S

STEMGuyana co-founder Karen Abrams during her presentation

TEMGuyana cofounder Karen Abrams generated much interest in the organisation’s model for STEM engagement of Guyana’s youth, which she presented to an energetic audience at the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) eighth Annual Meeting.

Abrams, whose presentation was titled “Robots In The Caribbean”, showcased STEMGuyana’s activities in four quadrants: preparing the robotics national team, creation of social good apps, the training of STEM club trainers and

expansion of the STEM club network throughout the country, and the management of a national robot building and Scratch coding competition throughout the country.

Abrams made the point that, “STEMGuyana is working with partners to make investments today which will pay off in 10, 15, 20 years. We want our young people to be prepared to provide technology services for the world. Estonia, a nation of 1.3 million people, is home to 14,000 tech startup companies; Guyana

has a little more than half their population, so a target of 5000 Guyanese tech startups in 15 years is what we’re aiming for.

STEMGuyana is working with partner organisations to make longterm investments in Guyanese youth.”

The presentation was also well received by leaders of Indigenous groups who expressed interest in making the programme ac-

“HOW?!”

I shared her excitement and answered the best I could. A short while later, Makenna was stuck on creating her first Scratch program, so I told her there is another girl across the room who can help since she’s been creating programs for a while now. I introduced Makenna to Angel and Angel to Makenna.

A few minutes later, Angel was helping Makenna; they were creating a conversation program between t w o Preparing a robot

cess i b l e to their communities.

Additionally, representatives from several Guyanese communities and Caribbean countries expressed interest in replicating the STEMGuyana model in their respective communities and countries.

STEMGuyana recently received the first tranche of a $2 million donation from GTT, which will be used to sponsor its upcoming robot exhibition and the expansion of STEMGuyana programmes across Guyana

Hall STEM Club (usually visits every Saturday) while Makenna was a new student visiting yesterday. I met Makenna sitting in a corner of the room; it was her first time trying to learn Scratch programming. She was a bit shy but quite open to answering all of my questions [She doesn’t have a favourite subject at school; she loves everything. When I told her that she could create her own web and mobile apps, her eyes opened with excitement and she asked

pers o n s and had my teammate Ryan Benschop voicing the male character. We transitioned the clubhouse room into a re-coding studio for 5 to 10 minutes so they could finish their Scratch coding challenge.

Angel and Makenna became friends yesterday and two innovators have joined the STEMGuyana family.

They also learned about collaboration and teamwork yesterday. With such enthusiasm to learn, I’m sure they will go on to help change Guyana and the world for the better! (Taken from STEMGuyana website)

Some of STEMGuyana team members

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Sunday Times Magazine 7

The Guyana Annual:

by

Petamber Persaud

T

Guyana Times Journalist Jarryl Bryan receives his award for the Photography Competition

he subject/thrust of the Editorial for the 2018 issue of The Guyana Annual is ‘no idle boast’ and the custodians of the magazine have ensured that this issue lived up to that declaration in every aspect of production including brainstorming stages which moved from actual meetings into the realms of virtual meetings. In fact, the use of the internet played a notable role in the production from announcing the start of production to uploading the rules and regulations of competitions and submission of entries to publishing the shortlists to offering the magazine for sale.

It was ‘no idle boast’ that this issue is ‘bigger and better’ by many furlongs. For one, it has placed control into the broad spectrum of a management committee as against leaving it to the confines of a single editor/individual. This is not to cast aspersions on the ability of the single party but the installation of a management committee was a move to add more value to the publication. Additionally, and a more populist move, was the return of various competitions, a hallmark of this annual tradition. However, the return of the competition aspect was a move to add value in that many of the existing and new competitions were named in honour of local exponents in various art forms, obviously acknowledging their in contribution and legacy.

The full list of compe-

titions offered by this issue of The Guyana Annual are as follows: Dr. Puran Singh Open Short Story, Sheila King Writing Short Story for Children, Bobby Fernandes Award for Photography, Stephanie Correia Award for fine Arts, David De Caries Award for Journalism, Bertram Charles Award for Drama, Hawley Harris Award for Cartoon, and Dr. Tulsi Dyal Singh Oil and Gas Essay Competition. This extensive range of competitions warranted a huge amount of work in each stage of production especially at the adjudication stage which was executed by capable hands namely Dr. Joyce Jonas (Open Short Story), Mr. Alim Hosein (Open Poetry & Sheila King Writing Stories for Children), Mr. Subraj Singh (Open Poetry & Junior Poetry), Ms. Elfrieda Bissember (Stephanie Correia Fine Art), Ms. Denise Hopkinson-Braam (David de Caires Journalism), Mr. Paul Harris (Hawley Harris Cartoon), Mr. Wellesley Davis (Bobby Fernandes Photography), Messrs Christopher Ram & GHK Lall (Tulsi Dyal Singh Oil & Gas), and Ms. Mosa Telford (Bertram Charles Drama).

It was ‘no idle boast’ that this issue is ‘bigger and better’ for instance the book is much thicker and weightier (on many counts).

Beginning with the cover which featured a Guyanese literary heavyweight, one of Guyana’s most prolific and ‘original’ novelists, Wilson Harris – what an inspiration for emerging writers! And

Notice to Readers

Literary Corner

continuing into the magazine proper with the (return of the) judges’ reports. The reports served many purposes including the main purpose which is of grave and great interest to the competitors. These reports contained notes of interest for the custodians in arranging various competitions especially in regards to the photography, art and drama.

One of the judges also raised the need for Guyana to standardize its creolese.

And of course, the prize money packages were bigger and better. That apart for the winners to see his or her name in print, especially for the first, was worth the effort. And all of these things come courtesy of The Guyana Annual which is ‘now snugly into its second century of life’ (Dr. Singh).

And the winners in sequential order are: Open Short Story 1. Andrew Hutson 2. Rae Wiltshire 3. Malcolm De Freitas Junior Short Story – 1. Analise Samaroo Hon Mention Lucas K. C. Jonas Sheila King Writing Stories for Children – 1. Kathleen Henriquo 2. David Thomas 3. Adelaja Dalrymple Junior Poetry – 1. Hadiya Mcbean 2. Brianna Gopie 3. Abike Barker Open Poetry 1. Scott Ting-A-Kee

2. Francis Farrier 3. Gabrielle Mohamed Stephanie Correia Fine Art 1. Jermana de Freitas 2. Walter Gobin Bobby Fernandes Photography 1. Amanda Richards 2. Dwayne Hackett 3. Jarryl Bryan David de Caires Award for Journalism Hon Mention - Lucas K. C. Jonas Dr.Tulsi Dyal Singh Oil & Gas Essay 1. Omari Joseph 3. Vishani Ragobeer Hon Mention Joenitta Arthur-Mckenzie Bertram Charles Drama Rae Wiltshire Hawley Harris Cartoon Prize Hon Mention – Chabilall Persaud Hon Mention – Walter Gobin Launched in December 1915, the magazine is still a vibrant presence in the lit-scape of this country. In fact, this magazine is the only such outlet and springboard for local writers and artists.

The 2018 issue of The Guyana Annual was launched on Thursday, May 24, 2018, coinciding with Guyana’s Independence celebration, signalling respect for our creators of ideas and images.

Responses to this author telephone (592) 226-0065 or email: oraltradition2002@ yahoo.com

If you have a poem and/or short story you would like to publish on our Literary Corner page, please email to timessundaymag@gmail.com. Kindly include your correct name and a contact number in your email. If you have any questions, please call 223-7230 or 223-7231.

8 Sunday Times Magazine

JULY 15 , 2018

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Travel & Tourism

P

aruima is an Amerindian settlement with a population of about 800 persons and is located in the Upper Mazaruni District of Region 7 (CuyuniMazaruni). Paruima is said to be the only Arecuna speaking community in Guyana.

The journey to get to this scenic village is a long one from Georgetown but worth every second of the ride there. If you are up for an adventure you can take the approximate 1 hour 15 minutes flight from Ogle to Kamarang as opposed to the direct flight to Paruima. If you opt for option one you will not regret any of it since you will enjoy the scenes at the Kamarang Airstrip and the river leading to another village just outside of the Paruima. This village, the natives call Falls Mouth.

It takes about 7- 8 hours on a low tide due to huge rocks formations and fallen trees in the Kamarang River in order for you to get to the village. Is recommended that your captain be a skilled one with knowledge of the river or someone preferably one from the Paruima village. Along the way, you will pass a lot of different Amerindian settlements and enjoy the views of mountainous terrains, dense The Paruima Seventh Day Adventist Church

forests, huge volcanic rocks, fallen trees, all kinds of birds, turtles, otters, and so much more fun than being in the plane for a few more hours.

Upon arriving to the Falls Mouth drop off, a 20 minutes hike through a mountainous forest like terrain leads you to another part of the Kamarang River where a 20 minutes canoe ride takes you to the lovely village of Paruima. There you are greeted by the warmest of smiles and words of welcome from the villagers.

Our photographer, Subhash Haimraj, writes, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Surrounded by mountains, forests and rivers the village is alone worth all the long travels.â&#x20AC;?

The Paruima and Panasima Falls are scenic waterfalls in that territory, and, located in the CuyuniMazaruni region between Guyana and Venezuela, the area also hosts stunning views of the Kamarang River leading to Venezuela. There are also huge rock formations between which children enjoy playing hide and seek.

Paruima Village also contains a place of worship, sports ground, and a college named the Davis Indian Industrial College. (Photos

by Subhash Haimraj)

The Panasima Falls

Drying laundry by the riverside

A typical house

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Sunday Times Magazine

9

10 Sunday Times Magazine

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Local talent

Members of the Dynamic Tassa Troupe

By Rupadai Seenaraine

M

usic is an art that is used to determine the cultural identity of many people and it has evolved throughout the centuries since its existence.

In fact, we see changes every day in the way it is portrayed to suit varying audiences.

Tassa drumming is one such musical art form that has nestled its way into Guyana via the indentured immigrants and has evolved throughout the region. While the practice is something that many enjoy on celebrative occasions, it is something that is also appreciated by all who would dance according to the beats of the different instruments that are used to create one unique sound.

Furthermore, while it is

popularly seen with persons who invest all of their time into perfecting these beats, those who haven’t heard of the idea of a fashion designer, comedian, technician, photographer and chemistry student as versatile musicians are up for a treat.

The Dynamic Tassa Troupe is a group of young lads who are known for their heart throbbing performances and according to them “it pushes the boundaries of all rhythms”. For them, they have experimented with modern beats and have now been able to bring a change to the stage by incorporating chutney, soca and calypso rhythms into the olden style of drumming. But this is just a part time activity that the lads have incorporated into their busy schedules and professional careers. This is a mere hobby and their full-

time job still awaits when their weekend is over.

In fact, the nine of them are quite talented and are responsible for a different component which compliments their performances.

Currently, the group consists of Ray Khan, the fashion designer who is recognized for branding their group with his remarkable taste in clothing; Navindra Jaimangal, the interior decorator and floor specialist; Chanshekhar Jaimangal, the guy who is titled as the jack of all trades for his ability to pursue numerous musical instruments; Mohan Singh, the comedian and actor; Deepak Rupchand, the one with a quick notch for instruments such as the keyboard and guitar; Chanderpaul Jaimanjal, an outstanding chemistry student;

Some of the guys on stage at the Dubraj Tassarama 2018 Competition

Jagdeo Persaud, the barber and Subhash Haimraj and Kevin Somwaru, the guys behind the camera that captures their unforgettable moments.

But this journey of theirs which began some nine years ago started some time ago when practicing musical instruments was just a leisure activity. While ruminating on their journey which has brought both admiration and fame, the guys explained that it was never planned. Three of them, who are brothers, recalled the day that they were given their first sets of instruments about nine years ago by an uncle who saw their passion for drumming.

“Our love for tassa and music grew with each event or play out we encountered.

The bonds between this

Blessing the drums

group also grew a lot and we now cherish each other as brothers more than just band mates,” one of them said.

From then, practice sessions were happening every day and folks were treated to their performances at cultural programs and small venues, after which they would include other tassa enthusiasts and developed exceptional pieces of music.

However, in 2014 the group was officially formed and they branded themselves under the name The Dynamic Tassa Troupe.

From their recollections from then onwards, the group recalls participating in a number of events on the coast and the interior locations, at pageants and motorcades; weddings and fundraisers.

“We played for a lot of events and to say the truth we enjoy them all, just going out there and just having fun with our clients. But if we had to narrow it down to some of the best ones, we would say working in Karia Karia.”

They have participated in innumerable events in the past but just a few months ago marked their first participation in a competition.

At the Dubraj Tassarama 2018, they secured the second place while stealing the prize for the Best All Round Performance. They were part of the Miss Earth Pageant just a few days ago and are currently participating in Drum Festival Competition 2018 which is set for July 15.

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Sunday Times Magazine 11

Home & Cooking

Ingredients

• 1 tsp oil • ½ onion, chopped • 5 sprigs thyme • 2 tsp crushed garlic • 2 cups long grained white rice • 1 tsp black pepper • 1 cup coconut milk • 2 ½ cups water • 1-15oz can pigeon peas or 1 1/3 cup • ½ tsp salt • 1 scallion

Directions

1. Place oil in a large pot over high heat. When oil is hot add onion and sauté until softened then add thyme and garlic and cook for 30 seconds.

2. Add rice, black pepper, coconut milk, water, pigeon peas, salt and scallion and stir.

3. Bring to a boil and stir.

Lower heat to a simmer and add cover pot.

4. Cook for 20-25 minutes, until the rice is tender and all the liquid has been absorbed.

(Jehan Can Cook Blog)

Some people call it a living room, others, a lounge, or more formally, a sitting room. However you refer to it, there's no doubting this room's main purpose in your home: to be a comfortable space where the household can relax. These living room ideas will help you create your dream space however much you have to spend.

Whether you are looking for inspiration to completely redecorate or just want to give your space a quick refresh, we've got living room decorating ideas, styling tips and the best shopping advice to help you choose the perfect sofa or find the ideal colour for your walls.

Ingredients

Instructions 1. In a bowl combine chicken, garlic, ginger, salt, thyme and pepper and set aside. In a large pan over high heat, add oil. When oil is hot add chicken and cook until browned.

2. Add chopped tomatoes, tomato paste and white onion and stir. Cook for about 10 minutes, until the tomatoes start to break down.

3. Add coconut milk and water and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium low and allow to simmer until the liquid thickens.

4. Remove from heat and garnish with chopped scallions. (Jehan Can Cook Blog)

• 3 lbs boneless chicken thighs cut into strips • 1 tbsp crushed garlic • ½ tsp crushed ginger • 1 tsp salt • 5 sprigs Thyme • ¼ tsp hot pepper, diced • ½ tsp oil • 2 plum tomatoes, finely chopped • 1 tbsp tomato paste • ½ white onion • 1 cup coconut milk • ½ cup water • 3 scallions

Make it modern Dusty purple looks great with off-white furniture for classic style, but team it with shades of cool grey for a more modern scheme.

Combine dusty purples – plum, aubergine, fig – with blush pink and grey for a harmonious palette that creates just the right mellow mood for a bedroom.

Alternatively pair with shades of linen, mushroom or soft green for an additional contrast

Mix jewel colour with boho style

Take the jewel colours and painterly details of boho style, but put them with contemporary furniture instead of country or vintage-look pieces. It’ll give your room bags of character and an eclectic vibe that’s easy to evolve. The trick is to layer dark, mid-weight and light colours, adding lots of white and pale grey so they don’t overwhelm. Here watercolour washes and oil-painting prints are key to creating a successful boho style. And why not include an oversized chandelier for instant va-vavoom?

Stick to soft accessories and furnishings Neutral tones and plush soft furnishings give this stylish living room a homely feel.

The purple rug provides a grounding for the scheme that boosts the impact of the pale walls and sofas. While the chandelier and sumptuous curtain fabric are luxurious touches; the pinks of the odd-one-out cushion and lampshade are off-message tones that lift the scheme above the ordinary. At least this way, if you get bored, you can easily change the look in an instant.

12 Sunday Times Magazine

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Puzzles

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99 Make -- -- for oneself

100 Slacks material

101 Edible bulb

102 Suspicious

104 Army doc

105 Innsbruck locale

106 "Gunsmoke" doc

109 Nature walk

110 Records in advance

111 Gusting

115 Ale sources

116 Drop -- -- line

117 Wandered off

118 Salon creations

119 Mete out

121 Part of PGA

123 First-down yardage

125 Keep -- -- to the ground

126 Lively

127 Hurt

128 Relieve

129 Johnnycake

130 Coral reef locales

131 Implored

132 Mr. Philbin

133 Cooking vessels

Seesaw support

1 52, to Livy

2 Jeweler's weight

3 Shade of green

4 Arizona river

5 Zoologists' mouths

6 Be the basis of

7 Celts, to Romans

8 Zorro's marks

9 Gorby's realm

10 Alpine gear (2 wds.)

11 Fog up

12 Feudal underling

13 Welcome

14 Voice an opinion

15 Usual fee (2 wds.)

16 Ms. Zadora

17 Stream

18 Box or bucket - 19 Igneous rock, once

20 English or French

30 Thin coating

32 Map a course

34 Batman's garb 37 Neighborhood market? (2 wds.)

38 Aberdeen kid

39 Inland sea of Asia

41 Party thrower

42 Cotton pods

43 Bond

44 Was forced to apologize (2 wds.)

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Coal seams Goes backpacking Execs Seer's decks Comic -- Kaplan Renowned James or Ventura Promote Prepared fish -- -de-sac Dandelion, to many Osprey kin Soybean pastes Met (2 wds.)

Best-seller Coffee brewers Clotheshorse Lark or oriole Full-size Later than Erect Spiked the punch Tint twice Burgs Michael Caine role Merman or Waters Dislodges Crumble away Relish Down at the heels DOWN Seductive women Like helium Darth of "Star Wars" Followed suit Composted Went on stage Motives Tire filler Vegan morsels (2 wds.)

Time off Drivers' needs -- 500 Hush-hush org.

Write music Affront Diner orders Poet's contraction Squeezes oranges Ohio Indians "Hurricane" singer Fountain or light -Mail-motto word Sullies Dark Hideaways Sir -- Guinness One-celled plants Region Pac-12 team High mark (hyph.)

Metallic sound

KATHLEEN SAXE

WORD GAME TODAY'S WORD -- HULLABALOOS (HULLABALOOS: HUL-uh-buh-looz: Uproars.)

Average mark 25 words Time limit 30 minutes Can you find 34 or more

words in HULLABALOOS? hall halo haul hobo hula hull lash loll lull lush abash alas

aloha also ball balsa basal bash blah blush bola boll bolus buhl

bull bush shall shoal shoo slab slob slub solo soul

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" are not allowed, but "bake" and "baking" are admissible. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

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Vassal's holding Barely speak Woman, but not she "Primal Fear" star -- salts Dart Frat Z Where Asia begins Tea clipper Squirrel away Coats with gold Earth sci.

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103 Showy Gaucho's rope

104 Price offered Senior

105 Little Engine verb Picnic fare 106 Dock Made hay

107 Quilt filler Sees steadily

108 Chopin opus Hodgepodges

110 Dah-dit guy Formation fliers 111 Aaron Copland work

Do well

112 Pigeonhole Message concealer

113 At bay Like farm oxen

114 In a strange way Theater and dance

116 Sporty trucks Goddess of spring

117 Get healthy again Chomps down

118 Mask feature Dorm denizen

120 Drain cleaner Headquarters

122 Couple Oahu port

124 Possibilities Like cardinals Pursues intently (2 wds.)

See Solution on Pg 13 Oats container

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Sunday Times Magazine 13

Tech

A

pple has updated its 13-inch and 15inch Touch Bar MacBook Pros today with Intel’s latest eighth-generation chips. It’s also offering up to 32GB of RAM and 4TB of SSD storage — if you’re willing to pay for it. While the base models of Apple’s laptops still cost the same (starting at $1,799 for the 13-inch model or $2,399 for the 15-inch model), the updated MacBook Pro now tops out at a whopping $6,699 for the top configuration. That’s $2,400 more than the best 2017 MacBook Pro you could buy.

That may sound a lot at first, but Apple hasn’t really changed the prices on anything from last year to this year: the top-spec MacBook Pro is priced higher than ever because Apple is offering more options than it has in the past.

Both the 2017 and 2018 models have the same starting prices: $2,799 for the “highend” version of the 15-inch computer, with a faster processor, better GPU, and twice the SSD storage as the $2,399 “base” 15-inch model. Like last year, Apple offers a $300

upgrade to an even better Intel processor — here from a 2.6GHz Core i7 chip to a 2.9GHz Core i9 — and storage upgrades to 1TB (an extra $400) or 2TB (an extra $1,200) for the same $4,299 price as last year’s specced-out machine.

The difference is that Apple is also offering two new options for 2018. You can pay an extra $400 for 32GB of RAM or an extra $3,200 for 4TB of storage. Together, those push the price up to that $6,699 figure. (And while the SSD pricing is almost ludicrously high, the $400 for 32GB of RAM is almost reasonable, at least by Apple pricing standards.)

That $6,699 price tag is shared by another computer in Apple’s lineup: the top configuration of the aging Mac Pro. There, your money will get you a 2.7GHz 12-core processor, 64GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD. But Apple hasn’t updated the specs in over a year (plus the planned redesign is said to be coming sometime next year), so you’re probably better off putting the cash toward a new laptop at this point. (The Verge)

M

icrosoft is preparing to add Dolby Vision support to its Xbox One S and Xbox One X consoles. The addition will mean Microsoft’s consoles join the Apple TV 4K and Google’s Chromecast Ultra as the only streaming devices that currently support both Dolby Vision and Dolby

ing out its Dolby Vision support with Xbox Insiders right now, and it appears to be limited to streaming apps for now. Netflix is one of the first apps to be updated with

Atmos.

Microsoft is test-

Crossword Solution

Dolby Vision for the Xbox One S and Xbox One X, and it’s not clear if Microsoft plans to extend this to Blu-ray discs too.

Dolby Vision is widely considered to be more superior to the current HDR10 support found on the Xbox One. Dolby Vision adjusts the brightness and color of scenes with metadata, and supports up to a 12-bit color depth and higher peak brightness targets than HDR10. While you won’t necessarily see an immediate difference on current TV sets, Dolby Vision support (alongside HDR10) on the Xbox One makes it more future proof in the current HDR standards war.

Microsoft’s main rival console, Sony’s PlayStation 4, still doesn’t fully support Dolby Atmos or Dolby Vision. (The Verge)

A

flying car that will not require a pilot's licence to operate has been unveiled in California. The BlackFly can travel for up to 25 miles (40km) at a speed of 62mph. Its makers say it will eventually cost the same as a typical sports-utility car, but early models will be more expensive.

Kitty Hawk - another US start-up, which is backed by Google co-founder Larry Page - is also testing a personal aircraft in Las Vegas. Several other rival flying cars are in development across the globe.

BlackFly's creator is the Palo Alto-based firm Opener. The car has been tested in Canada, where the country’s aviation authority has authorised its use. Like Kitty Hawk, BlackFly could perhaps be more accurately described as a human-carrying drone.

It is not designed to be driven on roads. The vehicle carries one person in a small cockpit, powered by “eight propulsion systems, spread across two wings”.

It works best, Opener says, when taking off and landing from grassy surfaces.

While the vehicle will not require a pilot's licence, Opener said as a precaution riders would have to undergo a training programme in order to become acquainted.

“Even though not required by Federal Aviation Administration regulations, BlackFly operators will be required to suc-

cessfully complete the FAA Private Pilot written examination and also complete company-mandated vehicle familiarisation and operator training," it said.

Opener’s chief executive Marcus Leng said the on-board controls offered “instant gratification”.

“You have total command of three-dimensional space. When you press the thumbstick to climb, you have absolute full control.

When you stop in the middle of the air and go off the joystick, the aircraft freezes. And when I say freezes… it literally freezes in the air,” ” he told CBS News correspondent John Blackstone Opener joins a long list of companies chasing the ultimate science fiction dream of a flying car, and thanks to rapid improvements in drone capabilities, that future seems closer than ever. As well as BlackFly and Kitty Hawk, companies such as Uber are also seeking to get into the flying car market - if indeed there ever is one.

The Hiller Aviation Museum in Northern California is a graveyard of failed attempts to create a flying car.

But the museum’s head of operations, Willie Turner, believes this latest batch might be on to something - as long as aviation authorities can accommodate the new ideas. (BBC)

Robots will lead to more human trafficking, slavery, report says

T

he rise of robot manufacturing will dramatically alter the labor market in southeast Asia and result in a spike in human trafficking, slavery and other labor abuses, according to a report released Thursday.

The "Human Rights Outlook 2018" report from corporate risk-analysis consultancy Verisk Maplecroft plays out the scenarios of a United Nations prediction that 56

adapt or the cushion of social security will have to compete for a diminishing supply of low-paid, low-skilled work in what will likely be an increasingly exploitative environment," Alexandra Channer, the consultancy's head of human rights, said in a statement.

"Without concrete measures from governments to adapt and educate future generations to function alongside machines, it

percent of workers in Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam will lose their jobs to automated alternatives over the next two decades.

Those countries are specifically at risk for increased slavery and human trafficking due to the "dependence of the workforce on low-skilled jobs and existing high levels of labor rights violations," the report said.

"Displaced workers without the skills to

could be a race to the bottom for many workers."

The report highlights Vietnam as the country at greatest risk among the five countries included in the research, with 36 million workers expected to lose their jobs to automation. In addition, the report cites the garment, textile and footwear industry as being particularly at risk from automation. (CNET)

14 Sunday Times Magazine

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Bollywood/Hollywood

After Sanju, Sanjay Dutt set to release his autobiography

A

ctor Sanjay Dutt will come out with his autobiography next year in which he will reveal many interesting stories that he “never had the chance to tell before”. The memoir will be published by HarperCollins on his 60th birthday on July 29, 2019.

“With this book, the reader will finally get to look into his soul. Finally, we will get to hear the fascinating stories about his youth, his Bollywood stint in the ’80s and ’90s, his experiences in prison, and his selfdiscovery, that have never been told before,” the publishers said.

The autobiography is billed as “perhaps the biggest, most dramatic and honest star memoir to emerge out of Bollywood”.

A biopic on the controversial actor, titled Sanju and starring Ranbir Kapoor as Dutt, was recently released to rave reviews.

The film has amassed over Rs 250 crore at the box office.

Commenting on the book, Dutt said, “I have had the fortune of living a remarkable life, full of ups and downs, joys and sorrows.

There are so many interesting stories to tell that I’ve never

F

arhan Akhtar is all set to reunite with Priyanka Chopra for Shonali Bose’s next The Sky is Pink. This will be the second instance of Farhan and Priyanka sharing screen

space. The two actors were last seen together in Zoya Akhtar’s 2015 directorial Dil Dhadakne Do. Before Dil Dhadakne Do, Priyanka collaborated with Farhan on films such as Don and Don 2, which the actor directed and produced under his banner Excel Entertainment.

Priyanka had recently shared a photo on Instagram with a caption “And it begins #prep #hindimovie”.

Reports also suggest that

S

had the chance to tell before. I am looking forward so much to sharing my memories and emotions with readers everywhere.”

What makes Sanjay Dutt’s journey an epic story, quite apart from his professional accomplishments, are the ebbs and flows that have characterised his life, the publishers said.

“He’s a star like no other, and what an extraordinary life he’s had! This is a memoir that is going to be told from the heart, and will reveal a Sanjay Dutt that even his most ardent fans don’t know,” said Udayan Mitra, publisher (literary) of HarperCollins India.

(Indian Express)

C

Zaira Wasim has joined the film’s cast and will play the couple’s onscreen daughter. Zaira is known for her roles in Dangal and Secret Superstar.

“So they have started the

workshop for the film. And Zaira is also a part of it. the sky is pink is a working title. This is the first Hindi film Priyanka Chopra is doing after two years. Also, this is the fifth film she is doing with Ronnie and Sid Roy Kapur,” a source told indianexpress.com.

The film has been written by Shonali and the dialogues have been penned by writer Juhi Chaturvedi.

Shonali had earlier directed films such as Margarita with

ince becoming engaged to Prince Harry, the former Hollywood actress bid farewell to her longtime lead role on Suits with the season seven finale, which coincidentally aired just weeks before her royal wedding.

While the star has since assumed several new off-screen roles since walking down the aisle at St. George's Chapel—wife, royal and Duchess of Sussex—the 36-year-old Los Angeles native has not forgotten her beloved Hollywood character and the show that made her a star.

She confirmed this while chatting with a woman from Dublin after a visit to the Irish Emigration

a Straw and Amu. Earlier, there were speculations that Abhishek Bachchan might be cast opposite Priyanka.

The Sky is Pink reportedly tells the true story of Aisha Chaudhary, a young girl diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis, more commonly known as immune deficiency disorder, at the age of 13. After her diagnosis, she went on to become a motivational speaker at events like TEDx and INK conferences. She also authored a book called My Little Epiphanies.

Farhan Akhtar is currently working on his production Gold which is slated to release next month. He is set to helm Don 3 as writer and director too. Farhan is also involved in the production of Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt starrer Gully Boy. Priyanka, meanwhile, is constantly juggling between New York and Mumbai. She will be next seen in Salman Khan’s Bharat, which arrives on Eid next year.

(Indian Express)

ardi B's bundle of joy is officially here!

The hip-hop superstar has given birth to her first child, a baby girl, with rapper Offset. The star confirmed the news on Wednesday with a pink and floral-themed nude photo and simultaneously revealed her little one's name. "Kulture Kiari Cephus 07/10/18," she captioned the photo, revealing that the baby was born on Tuesday.

News of the newborn's arrival comes three months after Cardi finally confirmed rampant pregnancy rumors during an unforgettable performance on Saturday Night Live. All eyes were on the "Bodak Yellow" MC when cameras panned down to reveal her growing bump, which she draped in a skintight white gown.

With a baby on the way, Cardi's professional commitments only continued to skyrocket as she co-hosted The Tonight Show alongside Jimmy Fallon, took the stage across two weekends of Coachella, attended her very first Met Gala and dominated award show after award show.

Not to mention releasing her debut studio album, Invasion of Privacy, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 Chart and broke several genre records. And when asked to address the seemingly negative impact a pregnancy might have on her career, Cardi (whose real name is Belcalis Almanzar) had this to say: "You know what—I'm a grown woman. I'm 25 years old," she told Power 105.1's The Breakfast Club. "I'm a schmillionaire and I'm prepared for this."

"It just really bothers me and it disgusts me because I see a lot of women online [commenting], 'I feel sorry for you. Your career is over.' Why can't I have both?" she added. "Why do I gotta choose a career or a baby? Why can't I have both. I want both."

Of course, the Bronx native had to begin slowing down at some point to fully prepare for her daughter's arrival. In late April, Cardi cancelled several tour dates but promised she was "working my ass off" behindthe-scenes on upcoming projects.

The proud parents' relationship is now better than ever, having moved past the alleged sex tape scandal that nearly pushed Cardi to call their engagement off for good.

Cardi B and Offset's took their romance public in early 2017. In October of that year, Offset popped the question in front of a soldout crowd with an 8-carat diamond ring.

Just recently in late June, the star confirmed that she had already married Offset in September 2017. (E-News)

J

ustin Bieber and Hailey Baldwin have returned to New York, Thursday just three days after the singer popped the question to Hailey in the Bahamas.

The two looked very happy in the Big Apple—and her huge ring was hard to miss.

Justin and Hailey stayed in the Bahamas for a few days to enjoy and celebrate their engagement. A source told People, “They were having the best time. They’re just enjoying being engaged.

They know when they leave, there will be a lot of attention on them.”

The couple was spotted walking around in back in New York after their romantic vacation. Hailey paired her oversized white "Rap-ALot Records" varsity jacket with a black crop top, cutoff denim shorts, black sporty sneakers, and of course, her new bling. Justin opted for very casual shorts and a t-

Museum on the final day of her first royal visit to Ireland with Prince Harry on Wednesday.

"I'm a fan of Suits and I said to her that I miss it and she said 'so do I'," Fiona Moore recalled to reporters. "She seemed very relaxed and was joking and laughing."

While the world has bid farewell to Zane, there still seem to be remnants of her in Markle's closet. The royal immediately made us think of her Suits character when she changed into a bespoke black Givenchy wool tuxedo suit for part of the day's events on Wednesday.

Though that chapter of her life has closed,

shirt, which has been his goto style recently.

Justin confirmed his engagement to Hailey on Instagram on Tuesday, and called his new fiancée the "love of my life."

"Hailey I am soooo in love with everything about you! So committed to spending my life getting to know every single part of you loving you patiently and kindLY," he wrote in the post.

Justin and Hailey’s re-

it sounds like Markle has impressed the public since assuming her newest duties as a duchess.

"Meghan really took her time and looked us in the eye. She was really nice," Caroline Bates told the press. "She's a breath of fresh air in the royal family. Meghan is a great role model for women," Heather Nicell echoed. "She is very likeable and relatable."

Meanwhile, if Markle finds some downtime back home at Kensington Palace in front of the television, season eight of Suits premieres on July 18. (E!)

cent getaway was the latest of their many vacations together, following trips to Miami and the Hamptons.

Rumors about the engagement started to swirl over the weekend when the model arrived to a crowded beach bar in the Bahamahas wearing an oval diamond ring on that finger. Onlookers immediately snapped photos and videos of the two showing PDA and her rock in all it's glory. (Harpers Bazaar)

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JULY 15 , 2018

Sunday Times Magazine 15

16 Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

JULY 15 , 2018

Fun Times

Archie

ARIES (March 21April 19)

Say what's on your mind, but don't make a fuss if someone counters with his or her own opinion.

Debate with finesse and the willingness to admit when you are wrong.

Stop talking and start doTAURUS ing. It's up to you to make the (April 20first move. Don't let emotionMay 20) al situations deter you from doing what's best for you.

Home improvements will GEMINI enhance your relationship (MAY 28- with someone who appreciJune 20) ates your effort. If you discuss your intentions, you'll be offered suggestions and the help required to reach your goal.

You can be entertaining without sending a false mes(June 21- sage about someone or someJuly 22) thing you experienced. Stick to the truth and you'll make an impression and build trust and respect.

CANCER

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Dilbert

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Peanuts

Don't let your vision lead you to the poorhouse. Live within your means. Make changes at home that are necessary, not frivolous. Do the work yourself and save money.

Embrace changes that will give you the edge you are looking for. Adopting a new look, connecting with influential people or doing things with loved ones will help you build a better future.

Keep moving forward and make changes at home or in your community that will leave you and your loved ones feeling proud of your accomplishments. Don't let a negative individual dampen your day.

Decisions can be made that SCORPIO (Oct. 24- will alter the way you live.

Nov. 22) Follow your heart and do what suits you best. Express your feelings and let your intentions be known.

SAGITTARIUS Look for an outlet that will (Nov. 23- keep you busy and out of trouDec. 21) ble. If you address emotional issues, you are likely to come up short. Choose to do your own thing.

Implement the changes CAPRICORN you want to see take place at (Dec. 22- home to improve your attiJan. 19) tude. Plan a romantic evening and express your feelings.

Calvin and Hobbes Don't feel pressured to AQUARIUS make a snap decision. When (Jan. 20- in doubt, slow down and Feb. 19) wait to see what happens.

Taking on too much will lead to added stress.

Mix and mingle.

PISCES (Feb. 20- Socializing will bring out Mar. 20) the best in you and attract someone who can change your life. Romance will enhance your personal life.