Guyana Times - Friday, July 27, 2018

13 Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Friday, July 27, 2018

Issue No. 3637

Granger pushing local leaders to get involved in decision-making Page 12

Fire guts Pouderoyen …neighbours suspect house arson Page 7

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WHAT'S INSIDE:

ERC hires P9 lawyers to investigate employment practices at GECOM

Chase Green, King could face another no-confidence motion

Former athlete jailed for P11 gun, ammo possession …tells Magistrate she "ain’t make no sense”

Yarrowkabra seeks help as it battles with high rate of teenage P10 pregnancy

Director of Sport, Christopher Jones; Mayor of Georgetown, Patricia Chase Green and Minister of Sport, Dr George Norton stop for a photo op with the Women’s T20 World Cup 2016 trophy (John Ramsingh photo)

Jagdeo unclear Assault charges on legal status recommended of SARA's for Broomes’ Deputy Director son, girlfriend Page 9

Father-in-law’s alleged stabbing

Attempted P14 murder accused remanded to prison ...tells Judge he was on an “island”

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

Friday, July 27 – a night-time retraction at 04:30h and a day-time retraction at 14:30h-16:00h and Saturday, July 28 – 05:30h-07:00h.

Chase Green, King could face another no-confidence motion

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Friday, July 27 – 16:35h-18:05h and Saturday, July 28 – 05:00h-06:30h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY Cloudy skies will prevail with light rain showers in the midmorning and sunny intervals in the late afternoon. Light rain showers are expected to return in the early evening hours followed by partly cloudy skies. Temperatures are expected to range between 21 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius.

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

High Tide: 16:28h reaching a maximum height of 2.44 metres.

Low Tide: 10:02h and 22:14h reaching minimum heights of 0.69 metre and 0.77 metre.

City Mayor Patricia Chase Green

By Michael Younge

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group of Councillors from the Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC) is working on bringing another no-confidence motion against Mayor Patricia Chase Green and Town Clerk Royston King as there continues to be growing concern over the manner in which the Georgetown municipality is being run.

One of the Councillors who spoke with Guyana Times on Thursday morning said the motion was being carefully drafted and a strategic plan was being worked out to ensure that the “infamous duo” could not use their “political manoeuvres” to kill or block the motion as was the case on previous occasions.

“We know that they will try very hard to fight the motion, but to tell the truth: these two officials are running the Council and City Hall as if it is a cake shop or their own personal business. They do not understand what good governance, democracy or integrity mean,” the Councillor who chose to remain anonymous until the motion is fully prepared and ready to be tabled.

The Councillor insisted that his colleagues and others have tried diligently to work with the Town Clerk and the Mayor, but it appeared as though they were a law unto themselves.

“There is massive corruption … fraud at the Council and the continued mismanagement of the Council’s resources, but little or no serious focus and introspection is being done. We cannot allow these two personalities to stand any longer without stepping aside so that the Council and Georgetown could be restored to their former glory. This is not the change residents of Georgetown voted for,” the Councillor alleged.

The City Councillor also told Guyana Times that at least two members of the ruling A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) coalition were willing to deflect if the motion is tabled, debated and voted on secretly.

“They are fearful. These

Town Clerk Royston King

two are seen as tyrants who in the end get their way. But we are going to strike at the right time and just when the situation is convenient.

There are scores of complaints against King at the level of the Local Government Commission, but I feel it’s powerless because of politics,” the Councillor remarked.

Back in March, City Councillor Sherod Duncan failed in his quest to have the Council argue a motion of no-confidence against Town Clerk King.

Duncan’s motion was disallowed when a majority of Councillors voted to accept legal advice which declared that the policy-making body had no right to declare a lack of confidence in its chief administrative officer.

The decision was made after Mayor Chase Green

read the advice procured by King from former Magistrate Maxwell Edwards. The motion was thrown out despite the fact that previous Councils that Chas -Green sat on had moved six motions of no confidence against former Town Clerk Carol Sooba.

Edwards argued that a vote of no confidence amounted to disciplinary action against the Town Clerk, a function which is outside the powers of the Council.

Another legal mind explained that his reading of the Municipal and District Councils Act leads him to, “off the top of [his] head”, opine that “he can’t see that the Council has no power to express its opinion on the conduct of the Town Clerk, which is what it seems to be trying to do.”

Further, a clear precedent exists with the previous Council having moved six no-confidence motions against former Town Clerk Sooba.

Sooba, who was installed as Town Clerk in 2012 by former Local Government Minister Norman Whittaker, consistently clashed with the Hamilton Green-led Council which tabled and passed motion after motion. Each motion was forwarded to the Minister of Local Government, since the Council did not have disciplinary powers but at no time did the Council declare itself unable to complain.

South Ruimveldt man wanted for illegal LOTTERY NUMBERS fuel marker distribution

WednesDAY, July 25, 2018

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he Guyana Police Force is seeking the public’s help in locating a South Ruimveldt resident for questioning in relation to unlawful distribution of fuel marker.

Wanted is Stanley Paul of Lot 256 Dove Square, South Ruimveldt Gardens, Georgetown. He is being sought for questioning into the illegal distribution of fuel marker, committed at the Guyana Energy Agency back in April this year.

tact on telephone numbers 226-2870, 229-2655, 2292289, 227-1149, 226-7065, 911,or the nearest Police

station.

All information will be treated with the strictest confidence.

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

Funding national cultural events

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ast week, the Government of Guyana announced that it has approved some $17.3 million for Emancipation celebrations across the country. These funds will be used by several African groups to take care of expenses to be incurred in preparation for Emancipation 2018. The money will be divided among the groups.

The Government’s chief spokesperson is quoted in the state media as saying that the African groups registered with the Ministry are also engaged, and are being assisted with plans and programmes in the respective communities to celebrate Emancipation Day. It was also related to the media that there are two main cultural activities occurring on August 1, including the traditional activities at the National Park. The Government has now decided that there will also be a “special event” scheduled for Emancipation Day at Union Village on the Corentyne. That event will be held at the Union Cultural Complex, and has been described by the Government spokesperson as one which “is going to be a major activity for the Emancipation”.

Also, it was related that the Ministry of Social Cohesion, which is responsible for Culture, Youth and Sport, will also be collaborating with African Groups to celebrate Emancipation Day 2018.

While no one can criticise the gesture by the Executive, which by its mandate must provide financial assistance to these cultural groups in order to promote and preserve the country’s rich and diverse culture, the Government must understand that the provision of this assistance cannot appear to be preferential, partisan, and at the expense of others.

If this money will be doled out for Emancipation activities, a similar amount of money should also be provided for the programmes that are being put together by other national and independent cultural organisations that are just as important as the Emancipation day activities.

Therefore, the Government needs to explain why it refused to provide any technical or budgetary assistance to the Indian Arrival Committee for the activities that the organisation had planned to celebrate the 180th Anniversary of Indian Arrival to Guyana, which was seen as a major milestone for people of Indian descent and Guyanese in general.

After all, it is no secret that IAC has been silent for obvious reasons on the matter, because it probably has not mustered up the confidence to raise its concerns publicly, given Guyana’s racially charged and currently divided society, especially when one looks at the scope of politics that are playing out within the National Assembly and the country’s political arena.

The truth is, the Government also refused to support, financially or otherwise, another proposal put forward by the IAC which was designed in scope, content and form to foster harmony among Guyanese. Having made representation and attended several meetings where proposals and budgets were presented, the Government has not funded the IAC-conceptualised event.

Additionally, given the Government’s talk about social cohesion, the entity continued its quest to get assistance to execute some of its functions by submitting another budget proposal to the subject Ministry on September 25, 2017 for inclusion in the 2018 budget. Nothing appears to have been included when one looks at the approved 2018 budget for that Ministry.

The long and short of it all is that no one opposes Government’s funding of cultural organisations. As a matter of fact and principle, such a gesture should be encouraged and mandated. And since Guyana is a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural country, all groups competing for financial assistance should be dealt with fairly and evenhandedly by the Government, regardless of the Executive’s composition or key demographic constituencies.

This is even more important given the fact that it is these organisations that are working hard on the ground to create the change that we expect to see in our society.

More sensitivity should also be shown by the Government because it is organisations like the IAC that are undertaking the challenging task of ensuring the survival of cultural traditions and commemorative events.

President David Granger (Front row centre) and members of his Cabinet along with representatives from the various local government bodies across Guyana at the National Conference of Local Democratic Organs on Thursday at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre

Hate of stepchildren by stepfathers Dear Editor, The death of 10-year-old Johnathan Rampersaud, who was found hanging last week at his home at Success, East Coast Demerara, has triggered certain memories and evoked a surge of raw emotions in me.

The media reported that he was found hanging by a sheet, and that his stepfather was alone with him at the time, and has since been arrested. Media interviews of the little boy’s neighbours and his biological father raised the issue of cruelty meted out to him. Who knows what horrors this innocent child must have endured?

This hurt me to my core, because while I was still a small child, I witnessed extreme brutality inflicted by a step-father on a little boy named Karosh, who was unable to fend for himself, and could only shed tears and dream of a time when it would all end.

I was too small to do anything to help that little boy, but I know the daily agony, humiliation and frustration he endured. I know the total helplessness he felt, and how bitterness and hatred tried to take over his heart, mind and soul. Out of respect for his privacy, I will not give clues about his identity; but the way he turned childhood anguish into adult triumph is a remarkable story with lessons for everyone.

What this little boy’s stepfather did to him was not ordinary abuse. Imagine a grown man lifting a slender boy, seven years old, shoulder high and then throwing him viciously to the ground for sheer cruel entertainment. The boy was only a good looking, precious, sweet little child. Imagine a stepfather creeping up behind a little boy who is happily playing marbles, just to surprise him with a sudden, powerful lash with a whip across his two shoulder blades, blows that hurt his back until this day.

This man was probably the physically strongest man that I had ever seen.

Think of that young boy being beaten to a pulp repeatedly, with his whole body swollen and hurting, blood oozing from multiple wounds. Imagine this child being brutalised constantly, being called a blight and a curse who would never amount to anything good in life, and being left to run down the street with filth on his butt while people laughed at him and mocked him at the age of two or three.

When the media reported on the hanging of little Jonathan, a vision of an incident with that other little boy came into my mind right away. I recalled his stepfather tying his wrists, pulling him off his feet and into the air, then leaving him hanging by his wrists for over 30 minutes with nothing but his thoughts speaking to the universe as his step-brothers watched him writhe in pain and shame. He was just about five years old at the time.

Three or four times a year, when it became too much, his mother would dress him in his little short pants and send him to spend time with an aunt by the Punt Trench Damn in Line Path Village, aka, ‘Cow Pen’. She would watch, with tears in her eyes, as he walked down the road, making his little way to a safer place. As he made his way to that aunt, he would turn around and look at her and smile, knowing that he would suffer no disgrace, no insult, no pain, no torment, no abuse, nothing. His mom would then go and get him a week or two later.

All the time this little boy was being abused by his stepfather, he was also forced to look on helplessly as his mother was subjected to similar abuse. The boy watched as his mother was shouted at, cursed, shoved, and beaten until she was bloodied and blackand-blue. Yet she still tried to provide some comfort for her children by going to cook their lunchtime meals. He could see that she could hardly stand. At that time, she was making babies every year.

I do not know if people

can visualise the torment of a growing boy whose stepfather would immediately fly into a violent rage if he came home and saw the boy with a book.

When the boy became a teenager and had to study for exams, his stepfather disrupted his studies all the time by cursing him using filthy language.

The boy would seek refuge at his stepfather’s brother who admired and loved him. Driven by a passionate need for guidance, blessings and leadership from positive male role models, the boy started spending time with imams, Christian priests, pandits, teachers and other adults from whom he could learn about life, humanity, philosophy and religion.

When his stepfather found out, he laughed and accused the boy of consorting with obeah men.

I often reflect on the enormous damage the stepfather could have done to this boy’s psyche. Child abuse can lead to so many mental disorders, which are in some cases irreparable. Sometimes child abuse can lead to suicide or to the children becoming monsters themselves as adults. It affects the way they analyse life and respond to stressful situations both as children and as adults.

Their relationships with their families and friends also suffer. It can even affect their physical health. It’s like a poison in body and mind. The body’s entire wiring is altered.

However, this boy I spoke about was able to gather up his life and grow up to be an outstanding, respected son of the soil, and I always think that it was through divine intervention. I can only marvel at the mercy, kindness and grace of the Glorious and Almighty God. He did confide in me, saying that he is still haunted by what he experienced. He still cannot understand what he could have done to have attracted such deep cruelty.

I believe this brutalised boy was rewarded by Almighty God because what didn’t kill him made him stronger. Even

at the height of his ordeal, he did not give in to hatred or ‘doom and gloom’. The child became a pleasant and good gentleman, considered today to be a scholar and statesman who is never vengeful or hateful. He prays for his stepfather, has forgiven him, and blesses him.

He asks God to forgive his abuser and take the abuse off of his record, so that he might have sanctuary in paradise when he passes away. The boy became an intellectual, a leader, a man of wisdom, a man of society, a businessman. Even those who are envious of him respect him. And through it all, he has honoured his stepfather, supported him, and did everything in his power to make life comfortable for him.

Despite his successes, his experiences still bring tears to his eyes in his private moments, but he said his faith keeps him strong, and he is grateful for the divine sanction that has allowed him to succeed in circumstances where so many others fail.

In this case, it seems to me that there was divine retribution, because the abused stepson was the only one who took the family name and carried it to prosperity and greatness.

The stepfather’s children were the ones who brought failure and distress to the family. When the stepfather looks at his offspring, all he sees is pain, shame, prison, violence and suffering, but his stepson’s life is a shining success.

At the age of 18, he changed his name to his stepfather’s family name.

I shared this story because I want the public agencies that help victims of child abuse to encourage them to show resilience, and not to give in to thoughts of hatred and vengeance. I also want the public to know that survivors of child abuse can be driven by a strong sense of moral purpose. They often have a strong desire to help others, and use their intellectual strengths and creative talents to seek peace and unity. continued on page 5

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

Learning from our past to prevent A critical window of opportunity for Guyana negative repeats (Part 2) Dear Editor, By 1992, the struggle for democracy was widened.

Many other forces joined the struggle for free and fair elections; it was recognised as the pre-condition for democratic governance.

The PNC, having resisted having the votes counted at the places of poll for decades, was forced to accede to that request due to the internal pressure and international solidarity. In this regard, the Carter Center and the late Senator Edward Kennedy, among others, played important roles in assisting the democratic forces in our country to achieve that objective.

Today, though, the situation has once more changed.

Many of what was fought and paid for in lives and blood are now once again on the chopping block. A visible reversal is taking place.

The PNC-led APNU+AFC regime has, over the last three years in Government, resumed the

practice of racial and political discrimination. Indian Guyanese are once more becoming second class citizens in their own land.

Our institutions are being subverted. The Police are once more being used as tools of the PNC to persecute opponents of the regime and their families. The judicial system is being compromised. Many of the decisions are looking more and more as like in the old days when judges took orders from the political directorate.

New ways were devised to rig elections. Fake Statements of Poll were used in 2015.

Moreover, the elections petition case has not as yet seen the light of day. Take this into consideration when considering that elections in Trinidad and Tobago and Kenya were held long after ours, but the elections petition cases were heard and decided on. In the case of Kenya new elections were held.

The regime is violating our Constitution almost daily. The appointment of the Chairman of the Elections Commission was done unconstitutionally. It violated the spirit of the Carter/ Price Formula, which, at the heart, was to arrive at that person via consensus.

The Public Procurement Commission has been transformed into a toothless poodle. High placed personnel in the regime are giving out contracts and procuring goods and services, bypassing the Tender Board and all other requirements. The bond deal and the drugs deal stand out like monuments to the massive corruption that has engulfed our land.

It is also clear that the PNC/APNU are planning to subvert our elections. That will send us back to the period of undemocratic rule.

Already, we see the massive gerrymandering of the boundaries for the upcoming Local Government Elections. This is elections

manipulation, but civil society is deafeningly silent.

The establishment of the Ministry of Citizenship has one and only one purpose: to manipulate the elections.

Its creation was necessary, since new methods have to be found in this period.

Our country’s history has shown us where these actions lead to. They lead to all round decay and destruction. Our economic, political and social life will deteriorate and decay.

Michael Forde, Jagan Ramessar and Bhola Nauth Parmanand gave their lives for an independent and democratic Guyana.

Our country achieved quite a bit between 1992 and 2015 as a result of their ultimate sacrifices.

Let us learn that lesson and stop the slide to dictatorship.

Yours sincerely, Donald Ramotar Former President

Dear Editor, There is a current wave of optimism regarding upcoming dialogue between Guyana’s President and Opposition Leader, initiated by former US President Jimmy Carter; and expectations by civil society, social commentators, the private sector and politicians as a whole are very high.

These meetings are expected to address a range of issues affecting the forward movement of the country, and it can be agreed by any right-minded Guyanese that the pooling of intellectual resources and ideas is critical to Guyana’s transformation and development.

But perhaps the greatest derivative of these meetings would be a consensus on the most effective utility and investment of imminent revenues from Guyana’s oil bonanza. Guyanese locally and in the diaspora have been cautiously optimistic about the fruits of the oil and gas industry, partially due to the absence of a clearly out-

lined plan.

There have been variances in views held by operatives on both sides of the political divide, as well as by private sector bodies, as to the most suitable way to spend these monies; and these meetings can provide a platform for a fusion of ideas and proposals regarding this very critical sector.

Irrespective of which side of the political spectrum we find ourselves on, this is an opportunity for us to sit with our leaders and channel our ideas upwards, so as to ensure that the best models are considered at the highest level.

It must be remembered at all times that our political leaders are merely elected stewards who oversee what is in effect ‘our wealth’, and we have a duty to ensure that this is done in a way that benefits the country today and in the future.

Regards, Andrew Mc Bean

Freddie Kissoon is "politically nasty" Dear Editor, I pen this letter in response to Frederick Kissoon’s column that was published in Kaieteur News on Friday, July 13, 2018, captioned, “One of the deadly sins of this country”.

Subsequent to its publication, I spent some time contemplating whether I should reply or ignore Kissoon, given his unrepentant attitude on the false and malicious accusations he made against me, which resulted in me having to sue him some years ago.

In his column, Kissoon decried what he sees as civil society officials and politicians objecting to, and being subjected to, public criticisms, and the many times he was sued for libel. He named me and other persons as being guilty of what he described as “One of the deadly sins of this country”.

While I don’t intend to challenge Kissoon on his thesis of what constitute “deadly sins” in Guyana, I will not allow him to get away with his self-serving, self-righteous position when he claimed to be a victim of unwarranted lawsuit for libel.

In my case, I took him to court not in pursuit of money or to silence his public criticism. Instead, I did so to give Kissoon the opportunity to produce, for the benefit of the nation, the evidence/information which he claimed to have obtained, which he said linked me to a secret meeting with gunmen in Buxton.

Equally important is that what transpired at the time must be seen in the context of the deadly killing spree in the country, and the fact that Kissoon’s false accusation

against me was contained in one of a series of articles which he was commissioned to do for the PPP for a price.

Those articles were published in the state-owned Guyana Chronicle. This forced me to conclude that Kissoon had become a willing agent of the state, and was involved in a conspiracy to do me harm, politically and otherwise. It is only in Kissoon’s warped mind that his hostile and nasty attacks on me were not matters to be tested in a court of law.

Kissoon has the habit, when it suits his purpose, to pretend that he doesn’t know right from wrong; and, as usual, he seeks to hide under deception, and opportunistically invokes generalisation in order to cover his nakedness. In this instance, he sought to give the impression that all libel suits

Hate of stepchildren...

Most importantly, I want our society to put mechanisms in place to improve detection of child abuse by making more people aware of danger signs in families. Society has to step up the systems of intervention, prosecution and punishment, and also provide suitable support and counselling for abused children.

The little boy I referred to above is not a typical survivor of child abuse, and I believe he has a divine purpose to fulfill.

One of the lessons of his story is that society’s anger and stigma should not fall on victims of child abuse, or else they might give in to vengeance and hatred. Then the traumatised children will become failing adults who fill our jails and overburden our human services agencies.

Jonathan is not alone. Too often we hear about step parents physically and sexually

abusing their stepchildren. In New York, a Guyanese woman, Shamdai Arjun, was convicted of strangling her stepdaughter Ashdeep Kaur, who was found dead in a bathtub.

Arjun has since been jailed.

The cruelties unleashed on any child will revisit the minds of the man or mother who inflicts such cruelties on innocent children.

I want to see justice for Jonathan. I want to see his killer jailed for life. Too often, I hear of cases where the abusers get a slap on the wrist and are released from jail when they are still young. Just recently, we heard of the case of 25-year-old Brian BobbSemple who was given a 23year sentence for the murder of nine-year-old Shaquan Gittens.

Little Shaquan was snatched by this beast and taken to a place where he was

against him were in the category of unwarranted acts, and were the actions of persons who disliked being criticised.

As far as Kisson is concerned, none of those cases was justified outside his self-serving construct.

It is public knowledge that he and I, over the years, have had numerous exchanges in the letter columns of the newspapers, and many of those polemics were not friendly. On every occasion that I was forced to engage Kissoon, it was as a result of his vile attacks on me for something I had written, or that he claimed I had done.

None of those matters, except for the one mentioned above, ever reached the courts.

I submit here that Kissoon at times behaves like the proverbial “school bully”, who picks a fight but doesn’t want

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sexually abused and choked to death. In my opinion, the sentence was not justice; Shaquan is dead and gone, Bobb-Semple lives to see another day, and has hope of resuming his life not too far down the line.

Where is the justice?

I wish to end with a quote from Rudyard Kipling’s poem, ‘Tomlinson’ “For the sin that ye do by two and two ye must pay for one by one!

Sincerely, Haji Roshan Khan Sr

to feel the pain from the encounter.

My position has been, and continues to be, that political activists, including me, must be subjected to public criticisms. I have, on many occasions in the past, publicly defended citizens’ right to freedom of expression, whether or not I agreed with their position. I have also defended my detractors’ right to criticise me; my only concern is that, after they have done so, my right to respond to them is upheld. The record will show that I stand firmly by this conviction.

I, however, believe that in public polemics, there must

be limits. Very often, Freddie Kissoon, more than any other writer/commentator in Guyana, crosses the “line” and deliberately commits libel.

It is my strongly held belief -- and I therefore submit that, in my case, he has been, and continues to be, politically nasty, and in the process has set out to have me jailed or killed. In Kissoon’s crooked politics, that is fair game once he is the offender, but when he becomes the victim, he shouts and screams.

Yours sincerely, Tacuma Ogunseye

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By Carl Pickhardt, PhD

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tart with a general way of identifying a young “strong-willed child”. By this term I mean a girl or boy who is temperamentally gifted with great power of self-determination to direct, persist, resist, and to prevail.

This demanding child is not inclined to easily give up and take “no” for answer. By illustration: “‘No’ is just what my parents say before I get them to say ‘yes’.”

It’s easy for parents, who feel besieged or opposed at every turn, to see this as a very stubborn child and believe their primary challenge is to assert adult control. I believe a better vision is to understand that what they have is a headstrong girl or boy whose temperament is not going to change, and who is easily aggrieved by delay or denial of what she or he wants.

What they have is an easily frustrated child, and it is the self-management of that frustration that parents need to teach. For everyone’s sake, it’s better for the child to learn to talk out her natural impatience through communication than to act it out in a tantrum of anger.

In addition, there must be some early practice delaying gratification in order to learn that not everything desired needs to be gotten right now; and there must be some early practice dealing with denial of gratification in order to learn that not everything wanted will be permitted or provided. Parents who readily give in to a little strongwilled child to spare unhappiness or avoid a fuss or to keep the peace are

Foundation

likely to increase that wilfulness come the girl or boy’s adolescence when there is more youthful urgency to get one’s independent and individual way.

In most cases, I believe a strongwilled adolescent was once upon a younger time a strong-willed child. (An exception would be the adolescent who becomes substance abusive.) So if parents had alerted early to the little girl or boy born or adopted into their care, they might have used that childhood time to practice necessary child raising skills on their side and to encourage more mature self-management in the child. What could they have alerted to? One answer is: to the child’s wilful thinking.

Wilful thinking

Operationally, I believe the thinking of a strong-willed child can often be distinguished from a temperamentally more compliant child. When the compliant child is denied what is wanted, sadness and disappointment may follow, but then the little girl or boy moves on. Not so, the strong-willed child whose mind is often governed by making what I call a conditional shift in thinking when something wanted is not forthcoming. The thought process seems to work something like this.

“If I want something, I want it a lot.” · “If I want it a lot, I must have it.” · “If I must have it, then I am entitled to it.”

(Now the conditional shift is made.)

“If I am entitled to it, then I should get it.” · “If don’t get what I should, I will

feel angry.” · “If I get angry, then I will use it to get my way.”

In response to this sequence, parents need to steadfastly declare to the child: “While it’s good to know what matters to you, you are not entitled to everything you desire. Not everything is supposed to go your way. And anger will not get you what you want.

However, we will certainly listen to whatever dissatisfaction you want to talk about.”

Adolescence can intensify wilfulness

Around ages 9-13, a detaching and differentiating adolescent begins pushing for more independent action and individual expression. Now three developmental engines that drive this growth come into serious play. There is the drive of Separation for more social distance, the drive of Experimentation to explore older experience, and the drive of Opposition to operate more on one’s own terms. In the process, adolescence normally increases wilfulness in a wilful child.

What parents can now encounter is a full court press that they might describe like this. “She keeps trying to take over the parenting job when that is our job to do, which is where we disagree most of the time.” “He’s determined to set his own rules and live his own way until it breaks down, and then we’re supposed to help him out.” But listen to the wilful teenager, and there is a different story to tell: “They’re the ones making it hard. All I want is to do is what's right for me.” (Excerpt from psycholo-

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ry these ideas to keep kids from getting bored and to create memories that they'll have for a lifetime (or at least for that first day of school when they're asked "what did you do this summer?").

Visit a creek Bake cookies for ice cream sandwiches Make a photo journal or a family yearbook Visit the beach and collect shells Make a fort out of cardboard boxes Stage an A to Z scavenger hunt, where you have to find something that starts with every letter Make ice cream Build a sandcastle Clean up a local hotspot in your community Write and illustrate your own book Make homemade pizza Go for a walk and then make a collage from nature objects you find along the way

Have a water balloon fight Practise your origami skills and make objects to hang from the ceiling Go biking Interview an older relative about what life was like when they were young

gytoday.com)

Plan a picnic at a local park – or in your backyard Practice making interesting shadow puppets and then put on a show with your characters Plant a garden of herbs and veggies Make a sidewalk chalk mural Have an outdoor painting party using huge canvases or cardboard Make totem poles out of paper towel rolls and decorate them Visit a museum you've never been to Make a giant hopscotch or Twister game with chalk String beads into jewellery (care.com)

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friDAY, JUly 27, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Fire guts Pouderoyen house …neighbours suspect arson

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uthorities are currently investigating the cause of an early morning fire which completely destroyed a West Bank Demerara (WBD) home, leaving the owner homeless and counting losses amounting to some $20 million.

The fire occurred just after midnight at the Lot 124 Coglan Dam, Pouderoyen, WBD house.

According to reports, the owner, 43-year-old Mahesh Parwat was at home alone and about 00:05h, he heard someone shouting “Fire!

Fire!” Guyana Times was told that at the time, the man was taking a shower and after being alerted, he ran out of the building and saw sections of the house completely

The Coglan Dam house on fire

engulfed.

Neighbours immediately rushed to his assistance and tried to put out the blaze

by forming a bucket brigade.

However, they were unable to do so and by the time the Fire Service arrived, the en-

Assault charges recommended for Broomes’ son, girlfriend ...Police deny ministerial interference

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anks investigating reports of assault involving a Government Minister’s son and his girlfriend were advised to file charges against the two.

Last Saturday, Hector Broomes and his girlfriend, Gilibeth Rodriguez, got into an altercation during which they allegedly assaulted each other.

According to Guyana Police Force Public Relations Officer, Senior Superintendent Jairam Ramlakhan, following “thorough” investigations against both parties after the matter was reported, legal advice was obtained.

It was recommended that both parties be charged under the Summary Jurisdiction

Hector Broomes

(Offences) Act Chapter 8:02.

Broomes was slapped with one count of assault causing actual bodily harm, while Rodriguez will face two counts: one for assault and the other for throwing missiles. The Police said that they would appear in court at

the “soonest” time possible.

Meanwhile, the Force also took the opportunity to further “vehemently” deny reports that of F Division (Interior Locations) Commander Kevin Adonis was ordered by Minister Simona Broomes to release her son after he was arrested.

A local online news entity reported on Monday that the Minister had threatened the Commander to have him fired if he did not keep the matter quiet. However, Adonis dismissed the report when the Guyana Times contacted him on Tuesday last.

“Nothing of the sort [happened], it is contrary to what happened,” the Commander told this publication.

tire one-storey wooden and concrete building was engulfed.

The firefighters were able to douse the blaze hours later, but only the front veranda was left.

Parwat, who is a known alcoholic, has since been taken into custody for questioning. “He was drunk, so the Police picked he up and say that they will keep him ‘till he sober up and then they gone question he,” one man said.

Meanwhile, neighbours believe that the fire was an act of arson. One woman, Candy, told this newspaper that earlier Wednesday night, Parwat and his reputed wife, who lived in Canada but would stay at another house further up Coglan Dam when she returned to Guyana, had an argument.

“This is not the first time they fight and they curse – you can ask the whole neighbourhood – but this get real bad and this is not the first time too they talk about burning down house while arguing… Last night she said to him “tonight is the last you gonna be here” but [I] didn’t take it as anything, because they always fighting every time she come back from Canada,” Candy related.

The remains of the Coglan Dam house after it was destroyed by fire

The woman said that she and her family have been constantly living in fear of this happening, especially during the day when they are not at home.

“Me and my husband wholeheartedly work and build our home and we don’t have anything else other than this or nowhere else to go. So, I’m always scared about what’s going to happen,” the woman posited.

However, Candy added that their worst fear came true on Thursday morning.

She recounted that they were asleep when she was awakened by the sound of glass shattering. She noted that the fire started in the back room of the house, which is adjacent to her bedroom, so she immediately saw the

flames reflecting through the window.

“When I wake up, I see the brightness and feel the heat, so I wake my husband up and say fire. We start to throw water on the walls and we start to fetch out things from in the house. Then my husband start to scream for help and the neighbours them came out and help,” the woman said.

While only the PVC gutter of the neighbour’s house was damaged, they are also suffering severe water damage to the inside of their home from soaking the building to prevent the fire from spreading.

The now-destroyed home was said to be valued some $20 million, but was not insured.

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friDAY, JUly 27, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Cocaine mule sentenced to 4 years’ imprisonment, fined $3.3M

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twenty-three-yearold man was on Thursday sentenced to four years’ imprisonment and fined $3.3 million by Magistrate Peter Hugh when he appeared in the Vigilance Magistrate’s Court slapped with a narco-possession charge.

Kelvin Sauers, also known as ‘John,’ pleaded guilty to the charge when it was read to him.

It was alleged that on July 6, 2018, while at his Lot 8 Enterprise, East Coast Demerara home, Sauers had in his possession 1.608 kilograms of cocaine for the purpose of

Kelvin Sauers is being escorted by Police out of the Vigilance Magistrate’s Court

trafficking.

Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) prosecutor Konyo Sandiford realted that, on the day in question, CANU ranks acting on information received went to the man’s home to conduct a search.

Upon seeing the ranks, Sauers escaped through a window. Nevertheless, the lawmen searched the home, and subsequently found two haversacks containing 279 cocaine pellets which amounted to 1.608kg.

Sauers had since been on the run, until he was recently arrested.

Gold miner further remanded for killing Venezuelan

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gold miner of Monkey Mountain, Region Seven, was on Thursday further remanded to prison by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan when he reappeared in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts charged for the murder of a Venezuelan citizen.

Francisco Demattos, 27, was not required to plead to the indictable charge when he made his first court appearance.

It was alleged that on

Murder accused Francisco De Mattos

June 23, 2018, while at a bar at Black Water Landing in the Cuyuni River, he murdered Rafael Angel Gonzalez Prieto.

According to facts presented to the court, on the day in question, at about 01:50h, Prieto was stabbed to death by the gold miner after Prieto had allegedly assaulted Prieto’s girlfriend at Black Water Backdam, Cuyuni.

The report stated that the woman in question was

dancing with another man in the bar when Prieto got annoyed and threw her to the ground, whipped out a knife and began cutting her hair.

Upon seeing this, De Mattos got annoyed and rushed to the aid of the woman. A scuffle ensued between De Mattos and Prieto, during which De Mattos dealt Prieto several stabs, one of which caused his intestines to protrude through his stomach.

Blockmaker released on bail for attempted murder

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n Albouystown, Georgetown block maker on Thursday reappeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts after he was slapped

with an attempted murder charge in May last.

Twenty-seven-year-old Malcolm Culley of Lot 154 Cooper Street, Albouystown, Georgetown was not re-

quired to plead when the charge was read to him

by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan on his first appearance.

The court heard that

Murder Culley

accused

Malcolm

on May 18, 2018, at Albouystown, with intent to commit murder, Culley wounded Rawle Khan. the court was informed that the injured man was at the time still hospitalised at the Georgetown Public Hospital suffering from a punctured lung, three broken ribs, and several lacerations about his body.

In a bail application, Culley’s Attorney, George Thomas, told the court that his client, a father of one, was soon to be a parent again.

He highlighted that Culley had no previous matters in the courts, and did not pose a flight risk.

Culley was granted bail under condition that he makes no contact with, and stays at least 50 feet away from, the victim. He was also ordered to lodge his travel documents with the Police.

The case will continue on August 2.

Is it cricket…

L …on Imran’s win?

ife was so much simpler on the cricket fields, wasn’t it? Your Eyewitness is talking, of course, about Imran Khan’s evident victory in Pakistan’s elections. In 1992, for instance, no one doubted Pakistan’s victory in the Cricket World Cup final under Imran’s captaincy. After he and the iconic Javed Miandad had stabilised and then set a solid platform, the target of 250 was too much for England.

His announced victory in the elections, however, is being challenged by the incumbent parties as being rigged by the military in Imran’s favour. But in that accusation alone, there lies an incredible story. The Pakistani military intervene early in politics – with General Aube Khan arrogating the presidency to himself in 1958. To legitimise their foray into politics, they adopted the promulgation of an increasingly through and through Islamic State as their mission.

So how come the army’s now being accused of finagling elections on behalf of Imran, whom the world knew as the flamboyant, playboy cricketer? It was a very well-earned reputation! Coming from an aristocratic Pakistani family, he attended Oxford University, and even captained its cricket team. He went on, of course, to become one of the world’s great cricketing all-rounders – and captain, to boot!

He was very much ‘a man about town’ in London, and after his World Cup heroics, when he married Jemima, the blond, socialite daughter of British Billionaire James Goldsmith, it broke female hearts across the cricketing world!! But returning to Pakistan, even though an ostensible, typical liberal, he increasingly turned to Islam, and eventually formed a political party - Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) - that pushed those values. By then he’d divorced twice, and was finally married to an older, spiritually inclined mother of five.

As an old fan of Imran’s, your Eyewitness is very positive that while the military will initially have much influence over Khan’s government, once the old captain gets his feet on the ground, he’ll increasingly become his own man. His entire career in cricket – and now in politics – has to have given him an unshakeable confidence in his own instincts. Imran has an opportunity to return Pakistan to the path of an authentic Islamic modernity, which can show the western world that such a notion is not an oxymoron.

Next door, India, from which it fissioned to be birthed, will inevitably loom large on Imran’s agenda – especially as it relates to Kashmir. He begins, however, with a tremendous amount of goodwill from that country’s cricket-crazy populace. Such sentiments are not to be trifled with.

With the incumbent Government rejecting the results, the next month will be crucial for Imran Khan to demonstrate his leadership skills.

Off the cricket field!

…on Broomes?

Your Eyewitness thinks it’s ironic that so many persons have their buktas and drawers in a knot over some comments – alleged to be “insults” -- made by some obscure NY Times reporter, while “I is” Broomes is allowed to get away with “Amazonia-gate”! Broomes didn’t only “insult” two real-life Guyanese by allegations – but was shown on tape to be lying through her teeth on the two security guards, who were only doing their job!!

As far as we know, no Guyanese has been actually physically hurt by the NY Times’ allegations, but those two guards were actually imprisoned for 16 hours while Broomes wolfed down her Chinese fried rice with not even a twinge of remorse! In the state-owned, taxpayer-funded Chronic, Broomes just received a full-page coverage of what was a disingenuously-designed image-boosting stunt – helping to rebuild someone’s burnt-out home!!

So the arrogance and inhumanity of Broomes to those two poor guards is now swept under the rug? What happened to that inquiry we were promised?

Oh Judgement! Thou art fled to brutish beasts, and men have lost their reason!!

…to challenge Amna’s comprehension?

Does Lincoln Lewis really think it’s a lack of “comprehension” that former headmistress, and now PNC Chief Whip, Amna Ally, didn’t support the Labour Ministry motion?

Granger’s PNC’s neo-liberalism doesn’t have any place for labour!!

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

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friDAY, JUly 27, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Jagdeo unclear on legal status of SARA's Deputy Director ...supports Bar Association’s criticisms of Heath-Retemyer

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pposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has said he is unclear whether he should refer to Aubrey Heath-Retemyer as the Deputy Director of the State Assets Recovery Agency (SARA), because Heath-Retemyer may very well be “squatting on the job”; but he agrees with the criticisms levelled against Heath-Retemyer by the Guyana Bar Association (GBA).

Jagdeo claims HeathRetemyer was not properly elected or selected to his current position at SARA, and the new legislation was not followed when he was put in that position. As such, Jagdeo says, GBA has a right to criticise Heath-Retemyer for seeking to lecture the judiciary about its decisions.

“He wants a particular decision. Now, I have big concerns about judicial sloth, but I’m not saying that you should give a favourable position to the PPP (People’s Progressive Party) or an unfavourable position,” Jagdeo declared.

He said Heath-Retemyer

SARA Deputy Director Aubrey Heath-Retemyer

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo

is seeking to suggest that he is looking for specific outcomes.

“Here you have an individual who is trying to tell the judiciary what kind of decisions they must make.

And if they make an adverse one to the SARA in protecting people’s rights, they come in for criticism. So it is within that context I support the statement,” Jagdeo said.

The Guyana Bar Association (GBA) recently condemned the SARA deputy director for saying that members of the Judiciary needed

training so that the Agency’s work could get done. HeathRetemyer had lamented an apparent resistance by judicial officers to access information from commercial banks, something which is key to the work of the anti-corruption agencies, including the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU).

However, the Bar Council of the GBA, in a statement on Tuesday, bashed the Deputy Director of SARA, saying that his comments could be construed as a “threat” to members of the Judiciary, as

well as an attempt to direct the work and functioning of the country’s legal system – something he should avoid.

Apart from the situation being alarming and of grave concern, it was also against Article 122 (a) (1) of the Constitution, which states that the Judiciary exercises its functions independently and free from political, executive or any other form of direction and control.

The GBA went on to contend that “any insinuation that the Judiciary is somehow lacking in knowledge is unjustified, without merit, and could dangerously shake the confidence of the public in the ability of the Judiciary”.

The GBA said Guyana is a democracy where the law is applied by an independent and impartial Judiciary, whose function includes restraining unlawful excesses by the Executive.

On Sunday last, former Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall had also condemned the remarks made by HeathRetemyer, and blamed the situation of banks being re-

Guyana Bar Association President Kamal Ramkarran

luctant to act in supplying the information requested on the fact that several pieces of legislation are clashing.

“Some [legislation] require the bank to maintain clients’ confidentiality, and therefore prohibit them from disclosing the information requested, while some require the bank to make the disclosures,” Nandlall had pointed out.

He noted that the issue was brought to the attention of his successor, current Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Basil

Williams, whom Nandlall said “is incapable of taking advice”.

Meanwhile, Jagdeo said the information requested places an administrative burden on the bank, and raises the issue of privacy.

“And those are the issues being contested now, and the courts will rule one way or the other. The court has to balance protecting individuals’ freedom, liberties, rights and the necessity of the Government to do its work. I don’t think it’s a deficiency in the law, it’s the individuals making the political statement,” he opined.

The GBA has posited that there is no place for comments like those made by SARA’s Deputy Director, while adding his action should equally be condemned by the Government for not being its view of the Judiciary, and by the citizens of Guyana as being an unjustified attack by an agent of the Executive on the independence of the Judiciary, and done in violation of the principle of separation of powers.

ERC to hire persons to investigate employment practices at GECOM

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he Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) has moved to hire three persons to assist with investigations into the alleged unfair hiring practices at the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).

This newspaper was informed that the three persons are an attorney, a human resource specialist and a special investigator. They will look into the issue and report back to the ERC, and ultimately GECOM. ERC Chairman Dr John Smith has confirmed that the team will start its work shortly, and could wrap up investigations in a month or two, to assist early resolution of this matter.

A meeting was already held with the Opposition, wherein these concerns were raised. The ERC will also meet with GECOM Chairman Justice James Patterson for his views on the allegations of ethnic imbalance in the staff composition at GECOM. Dr Smith had said the ERC sought former law enforcement officers or persons with a background in conducting investigations as it was thought that they would be perfect for the assignment.

People’s Progressive Party (PPP) GECOM Commissioners Sase Gunraj, Robeson Benn, and Bibi Shaddick have filed complaints with the ERC over alleged biases in

employment practices at the GECOM. They argue that a vast majority of the staff at GECOM are persons of one ethnic group.

The PPP Commissioners claim that GECOM Chairman James Patterson had prevented Commissioner Robeson Benn, who had initially raised the ethnic bias complaint, from further defending his position; and when challenged, had adjourned a meeting for over half an hour.

Their allegations were followed by an earlier statement made by executive member of the PPP, Dr Roger Luncheon, who made allegations against the GECOM regarding the same issue.

He said it was brought to his attention that People’s National Congress (PNC) Commissioners are allegedly engaged in a process to eliminate certain candidates applying for advertised positions at the Secretariat.

In addition, he said, it would seem that Government Commissioners were aiming at such an objective by resorting to “giving lowto-zero scores to candidates of Indian origin who are shortlisted during the interview process, while providing high-to-100 per cent scores to their preferred candidates”.

Further, the former Head of the Presidential Secretariat also alleged that the Commissioners

six ERC Commissioners were present. The ERC has, to date, met with President David Granger, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo, the Private Sector Commission, the Ambassador and team from the European Union (EU), Ambassador and representatives of the ABC diplomatic community, and representatives of the three major religions.

Other meetings scheduled for this month include with the Inter-Religious Organisation (IRO) and

ERC Chairman Dr John Smith

were finding extraneous reasons for eliminating top candidates of Indian origin from appointment to positions.

The ERC continued its stakeholder’s engagement on Wednesday when it met with representatives of the Indigenous, East Indian and African Guyanese constituents at Herdmanston Lodge, Georgetown.

The aim of the meeting was to get a first-hand account of issues confronting members of the various groups.

As a result, important concerns were raised, suggestions were offered, and commitments were made to work together to promote harmony and good relations across the country.

The meetings yesterday were all chaired by ERC Deputy Chairman Major General (ret’d) Norman Mc Lean, and

representatives of women and youth constituents.

In February 2018, President David Granger swore-in the 10-member ERC after a seven-year hiatus. The members are: Bishop John Smith (Chairperson), Mr Barrington Braithwaite, Ms Ruth Howard, Mr Roshan Khan, Major General (Ret’d) Norman McLean, Pandit Deodat Persaud, Mr Ashton Simon, Ms Rajkumarie Singh, Mr Neaz Subhan and Mr Norris Witter.

10 news

friDAY, JUly 27, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

16 inmates graduate from training Yarrowkabra seeks help as it battles high rate of teenage pregnancy programmes at Timehri Prison

Some of the furniture pieces made by inmates in the carpentry and joinery class

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n efforts to prepare for their reintegration into society, 16 inmates at the Timehri Prison have successfully completed training programmes in anger management and carpentry.

The East Bank Demerara (EBD) Prison hosted its second graduation this year on Tuesday. The event saw 16 inmates graduating – eight from the anger management programme, facilitated by Solutions Training Consultancy and Counseling Services headed by Wil Campbell, and the other eight from the carpentry and joinery class, facilitated by Lansdale Chapman.

The anger management

programme has been instrumental in fostering behaviour changes among the inmates. The class taught them to accept that anger was an emotion within everyone and it could not be denied but instead managed. They also learnt to accept responsibility for their actions when they are angry; this was followed by positive coping methods that could be used to combat an explosive response with a passive one. This programme encourages logical thinking and improve decision making.

Meanwhile, some of the pieces created in the carpentry and joinery class were showcased at the graduation.

The class

taught a skill that could be used outside of prison to obtain finances as opposed to returning to a life of crime.

The pieces showcased were a chest of drawers, combination chairs and bar chairs.

These are just two of the vocational and educational training programmes that the Guyana Prison Service offers to inmates in an effort to rehabilitate them for reintegration into society, with new skills and behaviour as well.

The anger management programme is currently in place at three prison locations and is expected to commence at a fourth location in August 2018. The graduation was a success as family members of the graduates were allowed to attend and lend their support.

There are at least four programmes that are expected to be restarted in the new academic year, including Work Readiness and CXC Maths and English – all in an effort to effectively rehabilitate and reintegrate inmates.

Despite the constraints, the Guyana Prison Service will continue to fulfil one of its main responsibilities: rehabilitation. The Prison Service believes that changing the thinking of inmates and equipping them with marketable skills could result in a reduction of the recidivism rate.

By Leah Hernandes

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village that recently experienced infrastructural transformation is now looking to address and bring an end to the social issue of teenage pregnancy that is quite prevalent in the community.

Yarrowkabra with a population of just over 5000 people is seeking the relevant intervention that will assist in ending the scourge which has been causing its youthful generation to become early fathers and mothers without extensive knowledge of parenting or the effects and disadvantages it would have on both their lives and the community at large.

Speaking to Guyana Times, Community Development Council (CDC) Chairman Corrine Wilson highlighted reasons for this phenomenon.

She is of the belief that the high number of teenage pregnancies is as a result of not having a secondary school in the community, since most schools that local students obtain after writing the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) are some distance away.

Owing to transportation expenses, the low-income families are forced to keep their child/children away from school.

“When they pass to go to other secondary schools,

Yarrowkabra CDC Chairman Corrine Wilson

I don't know for what reason they don't go … the issue is that they have to go very far for these secondary schools; for example, the children that wrote Common Entrance (earlier name of NGSA) this year, most of them got Dora Secondary … Dora is very far up the [LindenSoesdyke] Highway and the school is very far in, you have to walk in for miles to get to the school, I don’t know what effect it would have on the children, because some of the parents already don’t want to send them there. All the other schools fill up and this is the only one they got now …. for the past two years, we had girls around 14 – under the age of consent – getting pregnant and maybe because this is a remote area …. some of them don't have a good educational

background,” Wilson stated.

Wilson is pleading with the Government to construct a secondary school in the Yarrowkabra area very soon, which would ultimately benefit the students while helping to solve the community’s concerns such as school dropouts and teen pregnancies.

The CDC Chairman noted that she made several attempts to contact the Welfare Department, but they proved futile.

Back in 2017, workshops and programmes were held by the CDC and Welfare Department within the Education Ministry for youths, both male and female, within the community with the objective of them learning a skill.

They were taught how to tie-dye, and prepare local dishes and other crafts.

In addition, they benefited from an anger management course during the programme. It highlighted possible solutions to anger problems and ways of coping with issues which may cause it.

These programmes were aimed at empowering youths while making them independent individuals.

Sixteen persons graduated from the programme.

More of these programmes are expected to be held soon as they try to conquer the various social ills within the community.

Berbice businessman allegedly beaten by Police

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young Berbice businessman is seeking justice after he was allegedly beaten by Police ranks whom he also claimed nearly drowned him in a bucket of water.

Jameek Hakim, 19, of 4th Street Ankerville, Port Mourant Corentyne was reportedly picked up by Police at his home and taken to the Whim Police Station, where he allegedly was physically assaulted. He has shown marks on his upper body which he alleges resulted from the assault.

Hakim says he sells household items and operates as a huckster.

According to him, when he was arrested he was not told the reason

for his arrest. “They take me to the station and put me to kneel down, and start beating me in my head and my shoulders with a black wire. They stamp me in my back,” he said. Hakim claims he was kicked and slapped until his ears started to hurt.

“When they finish beating me, they bring a pail of water in front of me and then ask me where is the gold chain that I snatch? I tell them that I don’t know what they talking about… Then (one of them) hold my head and duck it into the water. I don’t know for how long, but if he did not raise me out I would drowned, because I drink a lot of water that night. When he pull

Injured: Jameek Hakim

out my head, he put several plastic bags over it.”

Hakim also alleges that the officers placed pepper in his mouth, and slammed his head into a wall.

The injured man further told Guyana Times that during interrogation, he called the names of two family members, claiming that they have knowledge which could be vital to the Police. “Instead of being saved I was tortured more,” he declared.

The teenager said he was locked up for 72 hours, and then transferred to the Reliance Police Station in East Canje, where he was charged. Hakim is currently before the court on an indictable

charge, and was released on his own recognizance.

‘B’ Division Commander, Assistant Commissioner Lindon Alves, when contacted, related that he had received a telephone call from a regional official about an alleged Police beating, and advised that the person first make a complaint to the officer in charge of that sub-division.

Alves said he received no information from the officer in charge of the sub-division, and cannot say if the person did indeed make an official complaint. He noted that the Police would not be able to comment on the matter until an official complaint has ben received.

S RAIGHT

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Former athlete jailed for gun, ammo possession ...tells Magistrate she “ain’t make no sense”

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Guyana does not have an enabling environment for Private Sector growth (Part 2)

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his week, we shall progress the series on the private sector and its role in economic growth. This week, we shall progress the discussion on the three other pillars – providing access to finance, actively promoting investments, and aggressively promoting regional trade. This series shall be concluded next week.

Providing access to finance

This is the most important factor in promoting investment and new jobs. I once heard this phrase from Lionel Peters, and he was spot on when he said, “Money is the mother’s milk of all new projects”. My research over the years has confirmed this pillar is one of the principal reasons for projects’ failures.

In 2011, a group of us pushed hard the idea of the creation of a State Development Bank structured similar to the system that resembles the BNDES (National Bank for Economic and Social Development) in Brazil.

In our plan, which was proposed to the AFC and included in that party’s 2011 Manifesto, we had suggested various measures to raise the funds for such a bank, namely long-term Government bonds, available cash from NICIL, diaspora bonds, portions of the idle cash in the banking system (up to 15% if necessary), special taxes levied on the insurance industry, utilisation of some of the pension fund capital (no more than 15%), and even the option of approaching the international agencies for soft loans. The outcome of that vision was massive state facilitated industrialisation in all 10 Regions. The rest is history; the Coalition Government has now abandoned this idea of a State Development Bank.

It was clear to us then, and it is clear to me now, that the local banking sector does not have the investment models in place to accommodate a risk/return appetite to meet the needs to drive the industrialisation of Guyana. Unless and until Guyana moves up the value chain by way of an industrialisation process, it would be very difficult to enhance the private wealth of the people quickly. The vision then was to allow the Development Bank to partner with the local and regional banks, to move their risk/return profile to one that is more feasible, thus making more projects in Guyana bankable. This vision remains a dream deferred.

Actively promoting investments

Fostering foreign and domestic investment is the cornerstone of economic growth. These new investments will come with their own rules, which will serve to increase productivity and force unproductive companies out. But there is no incentive to invest, because of the many state-sponsored roadblocks. What is missing are sustained executive actions at the highest levels that are geared to facilitating big deliverables. GO-Invest is there, but in name only, and is not up for this job. Where are the tangible investment deliverables on its success? The way it is structured today makes GO-Invest into a powerless poodle!

Aggressively promoting regional trade

Guyana’s future is primarily in northern Brazil, but in the absence of a functional transportation link between Linden and Lethem, the nation’s only option for rapid expansion today is the CARICOM region.

But even the CARICOM region and the CSME remain challenges. There are too few, no high-value, Guyanese-produced agricultural products dominating the supermarket shelves of the Caribbean. It has been three years now, and the Minister of Agriculture, Mr. Noel Holder, has failed with a big “F” grade to help the nation penetrate the Caribbean food market.

In spite of the CSME, rather than Guyana increasing its exports, we are flooded with products from the Caribbean, such as “tinned pigeon peas”, which only contribute to the importation of great financial harm to the nation, as they serve to deplete our stock of foreign exchange at an increasing rate. This brings me to the question: Is the CARICOM Agreement working against Guyana?

But, more importantly, where are the programmes that are training our producers to improve their efficiency and enhance their skills at producing competitively for the export market? One catfish exporter told me that for every shipment he exports, he is forced to bribe all sorts of officers, from customs to fisheries officers, in order to progress that shipment. This is another example of the artificial tax that exporters have to face on a daily basis. Such a situation only augments the exporter being priced out of the market.

Mr. Granger promised us he would be the leader that would clean up the corruption; but, to date, corruption has gotten worse than under the PPP. There goes another broken Granger promise!

Next week we shall conclude this series.

Please share your thoughts at sasesin1@yahoo.com.

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friDAY, JUly 27, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

former Berbice athlete was on Tuesday jailed

by Magistrate Renita Singh when he appeared at the Albion Magistrate’s Court after being found guilty on illegal gun and ammunition charges.

Curtis Fraser, 25, of New Amsterdam was accused of having a .38 revolver and five matching rounds in his possession at Hampshire Village on the Corentyne on March 09, 2017.

Fraser was previously convicted of armed robbery, and was released from prison days prior to this incident.

During the trial, the prosecution’s key witness, Detective Corporal Emanuel Davison, told the court that on the day in question, he noticed Fraser riding a motorbike, and he was aware that he was recently arraigned with attempting to commit a felony.

Davidson said that soon

after, Fraser dropped the bike and entered a car which sped off the scene. He gave chase, and it was then he saw Fraser exiting the car and throwing the firearm into a heap of sand.

The court noted that Fraser had accused several Police ranks of beating him in order to get a caution statement from him. However, when the Sergeant took to the stand to testify, Fraser never put it to him that the Sergeant had beaten him to get a caution statement from him.

In a sworn statement, Fraser told the court that he saw a man in a car with a gun on his lap, and that he was ordered into the car, an instruction he followed.

The Magistrate related that the court did not believe the story given, and that the only independent witness in the trial was the driver of the car, whose testimony was

similar to the one given by Davison.

“I believe that you had the gun in your possession and upon seeing Corporal Davison you threw it out, and I find that is why the majority of your questions were about possession. I think that you were under the misguided assumption that if you threw away the gun you were no longer in possession of the gun. However, the court found that it was in your possession when you threw it away. It was in your possession all the time. The gun was examined and it was found to be a lethal barrel weapon under the Firearms Act, and also there was found live ammunition inside the said gun,” Magistrate Singh ruled.

The Magistrate also found that the caution statement given to the Police by Fraser was free and voluntary. Singh noted that it contained details of the planned robbery.

“I find it quite strange that the Police would beat you to give a statement and will end up with all those details.

Those are all things that you would have had knowledge of.

You also said that the Police bought egg ball, Trill and water for you. I find it strange that the Police will feed you, beat you, and yet take you to the hospital to be examined. It does not add up. I find that you gave that statement freely and voluntarily, and that there was no beating involved,” she told Fraser, who was rudely interjecting.

“You just wan listen to the Police! Whatever the Police say you believe! You do what you want to do! The Magistrate ain’t make no sense,” Fraser told the court.

He was sentenced to three years on each of the charges.

The court ordered that the sentences will run concurrently.

Region 2 Councillor allegedly assaulted by D&I official

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n APNU+AFC Councillor on the Region Two (Pomeroon/Supenaam) Regional Democratic Council (RDC), Hardat Narine, was reportedly hit in the face by the Region’s Drainage and Irrigation (D&I) official.

The incident occurred on Tuesday while the men were conducting an on-site tour to review projects proposed for the 2019 Budget.

Narine, along with Regional Engineer Kawan Lall, Regional D&I Superintendent Sarwan Kumar, and two other RDC Councillors -- Chowkat Ali and Nathram -- were selected as a group that was instructed by the RDC at a meeting on Monday to inspect all projects on the

D&I proposed list for budget 2019.

Guyana Times was told that on the day in question, the team was in Hampton Court carrying out its review when Narine observed that two culverts which were on the budget proposal were located in a private estate.

He then objected to the proposal of placing the culverts in a privately owned estate, but was met with opposition from the Regional D&I Superintendent, who remarked, “Oh God! Oh Lord! Them people in position don't know nothing!”

Narine then questioned Kumar about the reason for his rude remarks. This apparently angered the Superintendent, who flew into anger and dealt the

Region Two Councillor Hardat Narine

Regional Councillor a ‘cuff’ to his face in the presence of the other members of the group. This newspaper was told that Narine immediately left the location and went to the Anna Regina Police Station, where he lodged

a complaint against the D&I Superintendent. The Councillor was subsequently advised to seek medical attention, and as such, he was seen by a doctor at Suddie Public Hospital.

When contacted, the RDC Councillor told Guyana Times that the Police have since advised him that Kumar will be charged, and that the matter will be placed before the court on July 31.

Meanwhile, efforts to contact Kumar for a comment proved futile. Nevertheless, Regional Executive Officer (REO) Rupert Hopkinson told this newspaper that the Regional Administration will also be investigating the matter, and the appropriate action will be taken.

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friDAY, JUly 27, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Granger pushing local leaders to get involved in decision-making R

egional administrators and Local Government officials from the ten Administrative Regions of Guyana on Thursday gathered at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC) at Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown for a discussion on community development and revitalisation.

The event, facilitated by the National Council of Local Democratic Organs (NCLDO), saw representatives from Local Government bodies being urged to get involved in decision-making processes and innovative thinking which can later be materialised to benefit their respective regions and, moreover, the citizens.

The areas examined included the leadership of councils, constituencies and administration, to create persons who can lead the councils and transform them into a state of independence.

Speaking at the conference, which was held under the theme “Catalysing local government leadership for community and national development”, was Communities Minister Ronald Bulkan, who highlighted that the functions

President David Granger, who explained that this conference will allow for democratic renewal whereby regions can embark on initiatives such as ecotourism and small-scale businesses.

“This meeting is a deliberate intervention intended to become a platform

Councils), which can provide practical bases for them to work with Central Government, not against Central Government, in order to celebrate community development and, most of all, improve the quality of life for ordinary residents,” the President related.

This is a move to elimi-

own.

It was related that the revitalisation and renewal of these village economies can only be successfully accomplished by the regional bodies, since they would have pertinent information on what works for the communities. As such, there are plans to make this an annu-

President David Granger

of these councils and their governing officials will be put under the microscope to increase effectiveness.

“This inaugural platform is aimed principally at addressing the nuts and bolts of the Local Government System to facilitate greater effectiveness… the primary function of local democratic organs is to ensure the efficient management and development of their area, and to provide leadership by example,” the minister stated.

He noted that these councils must come up with innovative projects to generate revenue, while establishing their organisation

as independent structures.

“We must come up with creative ways, within the confines of the law and with the voice of the communities included, to generate needed revenue. The law provides for revenue sources to come from within local jurisdictions. Is it really autonomy if you ask somebody else to pay the bill?” the Minister remarked.

He later posited that this engagement will have a central aim: to ‘remove impediments for effective leadership that neighbourhoods and towns need at this juncture’.

Meanwhile, the feature address was given by

The gathering at the conference centre

for promoting the work of NDCs (Neighbourhood Democratic Councils), municipalities and the RDCs (Regional Democratic

nate the dependence aspect of these councils on Central Government, and to enable them with the opportunity to make decisions of their

al forum for these officials to meet and share potential ideas that will benefit their respective areas.

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friDAY, JUly 27, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

New Amsterdam children, families GAWU concerned over nonappointment of GuySuCo Board benefit from donations

GuySuCo Board Chairman Colvin Heath-London

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he seeming silence over the establishment of a new Board for the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) by the coalition Administration has drawn the ire of the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU).

In a statement issued on Thursday, the Union said the non-appointment demonstrated that only “a glancing concern – if so much – is being paid to the operations of the sugar industry and the well-being of the thousands who still depend on the industry for their livelihood and well-being.

GAWU said that media reports had indicated Agriculture Minister Noel Holder last saying that the Board would have been appointed at the end of June 2018. It also recalled that prior to that, he had said that the Board would have been in place by the end of May 2018 as it explained that previously there were other timelines that were set and simply ignored.

According to Union operatives, it is their firm belief that the naming of members of the GuySuCo Board is not as difficult a task as the Government is making it out to be as they lamented the

Agriculture Minister Noel Holder

impact on the industry of not having a functioning Board in place.

GuySuCo’s acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Paul Bhim in May observed that GuySuCo was still operating without a Board. The GuySuCo official said then that he was not given any specific time when the Board would have been appointed.

The acting CEO had admitted that a functioning Board would help to advance the operations and bring some level of effectiveness to the industry.

In late April, the Agriculture Minister said that Cabinet was looking at some new names for the new Board and it was reported early in March that Finance Minister Winston Jordan allegedly proposed that the Special Purpose Unit (SPU) Head, Colvin Heath-London be named the Chairman of the new GuySuCo Board after the previous body had expired on February 14. Jordan, however, subsequently issued a statement denying making such a suggestion, saying that he was in Jamaica for a pre-Governors meeting of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Board and thus was not present for the Cabinet meeting.

However, earlier this year, the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) published the names of the new Board, naming Heath-London as Chairman while the other members included Fritz McLean, Komal Singh, Verna Adrian, Vishnu Panday, Annette Arjoon, Arianne Mc Lean, Roshan Khan Jr and George Jervis, with two other names to be added to the 11-member body. A fullpage ad had detailed that the new Board was approved

by Cabinet on February 26, 2018. Minister of State, Joseph Harmon had said the same day that there were some issues with regard to the timing of the ad and Cabinet was reviewing the matter.

The “new Board” which was named with HeathLondon as the head was gazetted at the Deeds and Commercial Registry.

According to filings on March 1, 2018, there were several documents, including a copy of the Cabinet decision on the new Board, notice of change of Directors, and consent forms to be Directors.

There were also supporting documents that listed the members of the new Board as the same.

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Beneficiaries of the Seventh-day Adventist donation

ith the new school term swiftly approaching, several children attending nursery, primary and secondary schools in New Amsterdam were beneficiaries of school uniforms and hampers donated by non-profit organisations and churches.

The Community Services Department of the Philadelphia Seventhday Adventist Church at Philadelphia Street New Amsterdam distributed twenty school uniforms and six food hampers to children, while six families also received food hampers.

Leader of the Community

Services Department, Sherry Ross-Henry, explained that the donation of uniforms is an annual initiative that has been ongoing for twelve years and targets single-parent families or the less fortunate.

“We are hoping that by next year we can double the amount to give to our community,” she explained.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, members of the Guyana Wives Association (GWA), presented school uniforms to more than eighty students of the Smithfield Drop-in Centre in New Amsterdam.

Group member Danecia David-Bynoe said the or-

ganisation has six members who all are wives and were born in Guyana. The Guyana Wives Association, she added, is a non-profit organisation based in New York and is established to “give to the less fortunate.”

Davis-Bynoe further stated that the GWA held fundraisers to raise funds to offset its expenses. She noted that last year the organisation donated backpacks to children, and thus decided to change things up in 2018 by providing school uniforms.

“It is something that we do every year as a form of giving back. The mandate is to give back to those kids whose parents necessarily might not be able to give them the things that they need, so the idea is to ensure that these children go to school,” DavisBynoe said.

Additionally, similar activities by the Guyana Wives Association are being down in towns throughout the country.

Pensioner robbed at gunpoint after buying bread

A

pensioner was assaulted and relieved of his personal items by two armed men on Wednesday evening in the vicinity of Ketley Street, Charlestown, Georgetown.

Based on reports received, 66-year-old Aubrey (only name given) of Lot 31 Ketley Street, Charlestown went to Humphrey’s Bakery

to purchase bread, and as he exited the business place, he was confronted by the two suspects, one of whom was armed with a handgun.

Held at gunpoint, the elderly man was dealt several blows to his body by the gunman’s accomplice, who confiscated his two mobile phones and car alarm before the suspects made good

their escape on foot into Albouystown.

The elderly man was picked up and taken to the hospital, where he was examined and treated before being sent away.

The Police were contacted, and a search has been launched for the two perpetrators.

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friDAY, JUly 27, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Father-in-law’s alleged stabbing

Attempted murder accused remanded to prison ...tells Judge he was on an “island”

By Shemuel Fanfair

H

igh Court Judge B rassin g to n Reynolds on Thursday remanded attempted murder accused Sudesh Rambhajue to prison for allegedly trying to kill his father-in-law at the man’s Vergenoegen, East Bank Essequibo home nearly three years ago.

Sudesh Rambhajue was a no-show in court on Wednesday when his trial was set to begin. The unrepresented Rambhajue last week denied he had attempted to kill Latchman Narine Persaud by stabbing him. He was granted three adjournments owing to the court granting him time to find legal counsel after he explained that he could not afford an attorney.

However, when Rambhajue turned up in court on Thursday, he did not apologise to the judge for his absence from court on Wednesday, but instead claimed he was on an island without any electricity, cellphones or landline telephones.

The defendant was remanded to prison pending the outcome of his matter, as his bailer told the court she could not guarantee the defendant would continue appearing in court. It was disclosed that she was at court on Wednesday but Rambhajue never showed.

Even though the accused

Accused: Sudesh Rambhajue

did not have an attorney to represent him, the court proceeded with his trial. The complainant Persaud, a rice farmer and labourer, told the jury that his son-in-law, Sudesh, never worked in the 10 years he was married to his daughter, and lived at the bottom flat of his home at Vergenoegen for all of that time.

He said Rambhajue was an alcoholic, and that he ordered him to leave his home on the morning of September 18, 2015 when he saw him going to a rum shop in the area.

“I asked, ‘Why you drink so much rum for?’ and he said if me ah buy rum for am, and I tell he take he couple piece cloth and come out me place, and then I ride away and go to de back dam,” Persaud recounted.

The elderly man told the jury that after returning

from the backdam, he saw Rambhajue, around 17:30h, and he parked his bicycle and ordered his son-in-law out of his home again.

Persaud said that as he was about to lock him out, the accused used an expletive and attacked him. Persaud told the court: “He rush into me like one bad bull.”

Persaud said he was rushed to Leonora Cottage Hospital before being taken to the Vreed-en-Hoop Hospital, and then on to the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC). He was treated for several days, and he showed the jury the marks on his stomach where he was allegedly stabbed. There were three separate marks: one where Persaud says he was stabbed; another incision which doctors carved to treat the wound, and another which the doctor inflicted to remove excess blood from his body.

Rambhajue, representing himself, was successful in objecting to Police witness Constable Sherwin Green tendering a photocopy of Persaud’s medical report, as the original could not be found at the Leonora Police Station. The doctor will have to testify to having treated the victim.

Constable Green also said that when he visited the scene on the day in question, he had not seen the accused, but saw spots of what appeared to be blood at the Vergenoegen residence.

He said that on September 21, 2015, Harilall Persaud brought Rambhajue to the Leonora Police Station, and he (Green) put the murder allegation to him. The Police witness claimed that, under caution, the accused man said that he and Persaud had a scuffle.

“I had a knife in meh

hand and he try fo tek it away from me and jook heself,” Rambhajue reportedly informed Police.

However, when the defendant cross-examined the Constable on Thursday, he accused him of being dishonest and said that Green never put any allegation to him.

Green, however, denied

Rambhajue’s suggestion, adding that the accused refused to give Police a statement. The Policeman told the jury that a weapon was never found.

The state’s case is being led by Prosecutors Seeta Bishundial and Tiffini Lyken, and proceeding will continue before Justice Reynolds.

ERC engages stakeholders

ERC Commissioners pose with representatives of the Indo-Guyanese constituency

T

he newly re-constituted Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) on Wednesday continued its series of meetings with stakeholders.

The body met with representatives of the Indigenous, East Indian and African Guyanese constituents at Herdmanston Lodge, Georgetown, to get a firsthand account of issues confronting members of the various groups.

During the productive engagements, important concerns were raised, suggestions were offered, and

commitments were made to work together to promote harmony and good relations across the country.

The ERC is in the process of spreading and fostering awareness of its twenty-four (24) functions listed in Article 212D of the Constitution, and to seek possible inputs from stakeholders in support of the execution of its mandate.

The meetings yesterday were all chaired by ERC Deputy Chairman, Major General (ret’d) Norman Mc Lean, and six ERC Commissioners were pres-

ent.

To date, the ERC has met with H.E. President David Granger; Leader of the Opposition, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo; the Private Sector Commission, the Ambassador and team from the European Union (EU), Ambassador and representatives of the ABC diplomatic community, and representatives of the three major religions. Other meetings scheduled for this month include with the Inter-Religious Organisation (IRO) and representatives of Women and Youth Constituents.

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friDAY, JUly 27, 2018 | guyanatimesgy.com

Hinterland to benefit from Prashad’s Pharmacy 7-year Peace Corps programme to host blood drive on Saturday T

he Education Ministry and the Peace Corps Guyana on Wednesday signed a seven-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to aid with the Ministry’s mission to provide an education system that delivers quality education and training at all levels.

The signing ceremony was attended by US Ambassador to Guyana, Perry Holloway; Education Minister Nicolette Henry and Peace Corps Guyana Country Director Kury Cobham.

In her remarks, the Education Minister stated that she believed that such partnerships would strengthen the collaboration between the two entities and ultimately result in good outcomes.

It was also reiterated that the Ministry was grateful for the support which it has received from the Peace Corps in the areas of health, education and the environment. In this way, students from the coastal and hinterland regions will be assisted in their educational development.

“When we come together and forge strong partnerships and collaboration, only good things can happen and in this instance, our common goals and objectives are

P

US Ambassador to Guyana, Perry Holloway (second from left) with Education Minister Nicolette Henry (third from left) and members of the Peace Corps

clearly mapped out in this document. Together through this MoU, we will be able to strengthen the mutual relationship between our agencies,” Henry stated.

She added, “We will also be able to complement the work and activities related to Peace Corps Guyana’s values and missions and well-being, which align very well with the Ministry of Education’s vision and goal and in particular, the health and family life department.”

Meanwhile, US Ambassador Holloway asserted that the Peace Corps was here to stay so long as the body was allowed to do so.

“In reality, in about sev-

en years Guyana is going to change, hopefully for the better in lots of ways. Peace Corps has been here since 1966. We’re here to stay if we’re welcomed to stay,” Holloway stated.

The placement of these volunteers will ensure maximum impact on the education sector by aiding to build the knowledge of the students in the various regions of Guyana to which they are deployed, while also improving their personal development.

The Peace Corps Country Director explained that volunteers would serve as primary literacy promoters, working with children from Grades One to Four, teach-

ing them to read and enhancing their learning environment while supporting parents and caregivers.

On the other hand, health volunteers will be assigned to secondary schools to assist children between the ages of 10 and 14 with the skills to adopt healthy behaviours. In relation to the environment, the volunteers are expected to work with primary schools to co-deliver the national science curriculum.

At present, Peace Corps Guyana has 40 volunteers with another 37 to come on board in August and will operate in eight regions of Guyana.

rashad’s Medical and Pharmacy, in collaboration with the Guyana Red Cross Society and the Blood Bank, will be hosting a blood donation drive on Saturday, July 28, with the aim of enabling people to donate to an important cause while helping to save lives.

The blood drive, which will be hosted at the Prashad’s Medical and Pharmacy at Lot 62 Second Street, Little Diamond, East Bank Demerara (EBD), will run from 10:00h to 16:00h.

The organisers are expecting more than 100 donors, and the event will also provide a medium ‘to educate and break the barriers of blood donation stigma’.

It was related that some of the healthy benefits that are associated with blood donating include the enhancement of production of new blood cells, improved

overall cardiovascular health, reduced chance of heart attacks and lowered risk of strokes and cancers.

To be an eligible donor, one must be in good health, weigh at least 110lbs, and must not have undergone a tattoo operation within the past one year.

Donors can expect a free gift, door hamper prizes, free sampling of products, free medical advice, and a prestigious gift basket giveaway. Additionally, there will be free testing for blood sugar, pressure, haemoglobin, cholesterol, and tests for all high school entrance students.

The general public is asked to participate in this activity, since the proceeds will go towards a noble cause. Music and other entertainment will also be in abundance, and booths will be stationed for persons to be educated on health products and lifestyle management.

Sol Guyana launches Back to School Promotion

Massy hosts quality power solutions exhibition

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number of public and private stakeholders were on Wednesday engaged

by Massy Technologies Guyana Limited (MTGL) to participate in a workshop and exhibition on power quality solutions for their enterprises and organisations.

The key focus was on a range of supplies from Eaton Distributors, which has been supplying the company with quality equipment for over 20 years. On display were a number of uninterruptible power supplies (UPSs), power distribution units, surge protective devices, and power management software that were created to meet the demands of large and small scale establishments.

The stakeholders were addressed by the General Manager of MTGL, Jason Sahai, who noted that the exhibition would provide an opportunity to highlight the Eaton brand and other marketed products that can assist in power management, supply and control.

“We have experience in vast sectors, and how we operate (is): if you look at the power quality solutions that we’ll be presenting, it doesn’t matter what type of business (you’re running); whether you’re running a data centre or a manufacturing facility or a business, whichever solutions

General Manager of Massy, Jason Sahai

you need, we can provide that through Eaton,” Sahai posited.

“That comes with our partnerships, and one of our partners is Eaton. Eaton is here to work on expanding their product portfolio and sensitising stakeholders on how we can operate going forward with power quality solutions in Guyana,” he added.

While stating some of the achievements that were made after the company’s rebranding, Sahai noted that the aim is to provide the same level of services that are given to other Caribbean countries.

“The presentation and workshops that we have are focused on power quality solutions. This is from the small retails that you can get in stores, like pow-

er strips and little power protection units going down to midrange, and then the large units.”

It was related that any type of business in Guyana can capitalise on the services that are offered, which range from rationalising print solutions, software programming, electronic security solutions, and computer equipment, among others. The newest introduction to the list is a disaster recovery and advanced communication system for emergency disaster response.

“We’re upgrading that system to meet the international standards, where all these organisations and persons that are on it would be able to work through that facility in emergency response,” he disclosed.

Additionally, one of the representatives from Eaton

Distributors, Everton McKenzie, explained that partnerships with renowned companies such as Massy would enable increased public awareness on the products and services that are being offered.

“We consider ourselves partners with companies like Massy, so you (the stakeholders) will be informed and share the same experience. We would like to be here, but we can’t be here, so it’s important to have that partnership,” McKenzie said.

McKenzie also underscored the importance of a stable and reliable power supply, since the global demand for energy, liquid petroleum, LED (Light Emitting Diode) lighting and food production is on the rise, and will continue to do so in the coming years.

Power stabilisers and other units that were on display

Renée Armstrong-Joseph presenting a lad with a gift during the launch

S

ol Guyana has moved to show its support for education and the technological advancement of Guyanese students with its new “Let Shell upgrade you with the latest technology!” promotion.

The promotion begins this month, and offers a grand prize bundle of a laptop, study desk, chair, printer, tablet, cellular phone, and Shell fuel. The second prize winner would get tuition fees for one year, and a tablet; while the third prize winner will be outfitted with school uniform, back-pack, shoes, books and a tablet.

Renée ArmstrongJoseph, Retail Sales Executive of SOL Guyana Inc., said Sol Guyana delivers cutting edge advances in high-performance fuel and lubricant technology, and is pleased to support access to technology for Guyanese students.

“From our company’s inception, we pledged to deliver the most technologically advanced petroleum products available. Our company is committed to ensuring that we continue to see

the benefits of technology in every area of our lives, and our students here in Guyana must therefore be afforded the opportunity to be up-to-date with all forms of technology,” she said.

Shell customers spending $3000 in Shell V-Power or Shell FuelSave will receive a coupon, which must be completed and dropped into the boxes provided at participating stations to be eligible for prizes under the promotion running from July 25 to September 5, 2018.

There will also be weekly draws for laptops and tablet computers, and customers spending $5,000 in Shell fuel will have a chance to spin to win backpacks and back-to-school supplies during weekly happy hour sessions.

Joseph noted that Sol Guyana Inc. is pleased to be associated with a promotion which aims to reward loyal customers while also assisting students, whether in school, university, or undertaking adult studies, with the opportunity to access modern educational technology.

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guyanatimesgy.com

friDAY, JUly 27, 2018

Around the World

Pakistan’s Imran Khan declares Record heatwave across victory as rivals cry foul Northern Hemisphere

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akistani cricket legend Imran Khan declared victory on Thursday in a divisive general election, and said he was ready to lead the nuclear-armed nation despite a long delay in ballot counting and allegations of vote-rigging from his main opponents.

His success in Wednesday’s election is a stunning rise for an anti-corruption crusader who has spent much of his political career on the fringes of Pakistan politics, but now stands on the brink of becoming the country’s Prime Minister.

“God has given me a chance to come to power to implement that ideology which I started 22 years ago,” Khan, 65, said in a televised speech from his house

F

rom the Arctic Circle and Scandinavia to California, Japan and North Africa, an exceptional heatwave has been sweeping across the Northern Hemisphere for several weeks, setting record high temperatures and causing drought and wildfires.

Meteorologists say the summer weather conditions

Imran Khan giving his televised speech from his home on the outskirts of Islamabad

near the capital Islamabad.

Supporters of jailed former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who accuse Khan of colluding with the still powerful army, said the vote count was rigged in what it termed an assault on democracy in a country with a history of military rule.

Oxford-educated Khan,

in the past a fierce critic of US policy in the region, called for “mutually beneficial” ties with Pakistan’s onoff ally the United States, and offered an olive branch to arch-foe India, saying the two nations should resolve their long-simmering dispute over Kashmir. (Excerpt

are a result of climate change.

“2018 is shaping up to be one of the hottest years on record, with new temperature records in many countries,” said World Meterological Organisation (WMO) Deputy Secretary General Elena Manaenkova.

“This is no surprise,” she added. “The heatwaves and extreme heat we are expe-

T

tions on Turkey”.

“Brunson is an innocent man, there is no credible evidence against him,” Pence said.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu immediately shot back: “No one dictates Turkey. We will never tolerate threats from anybody.”

Brunson, 50, an evangelical Christian pastor originally from North Carolina, was released from jail to

from Reuters)

serve house arrest because of “health problems” on Wednesday after spending more than a year in confinement, according to Turkey’s official news agency, Anadolu.

President Donald Trump wrote on Twitter later Thursday the US “will impose large sanctions on Turkey for their longtime detainment of Pastor Andrew Brunson”. (Excerpt from

Al Jazeera)

Greek fires: Blaze that killed 83 “caused by arson”

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reece has “serious indications” that a fire that killed at least 83 people near Athens earlier this week was started deliberately, Citizen Protection Minister Nikos Toskas says.

The blaze broke out on Monday and hit coastal villages popular with tourists.

Some 60 people are still being treated in hospital, 11 in intensive care. Dozens more are missing.

Earlier, rescue workers searching a cliffside in the seaside town of Mati found more human remains.

A large number of the victims were caught close to the cliff as the flames spread rapidly, whipped up by winds as high as 120km/h (75mph). Many of the survivors were saved by the sea,

from AFP)

Venezuela to remove five zeroes from currency

US threatens to sanction Turkey over detained American preacher he United States has threatened Turkey with sanctions over a detained American pastor held on terrorism and espionage charges – comments Turkish officials angrily denounced.

Vice President Mike Pence said on Thursday that if Turkey does not take immediate action to free Andrew Craig Brunson, “the United States of America will impose significant sanc-

riencing are consistent with what we expect as a result of climate change, caused by greenhouse gas emissions.

“This is not a future scenario. It is happening now.”

The summer weather in the north of Europe has been especially unusual with the thermostat in the Arctic Circle hitting 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit). (Excerpt

The measure, according to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, seeks to "protect" local currency

V

enezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Wednesday announced the removal of five zeroes from the country’s currency – two more than originally planned – amid hyperinflation the International Monetary Fund

(IMF) said could reach one million per cent this year.

Maduro announced in a Cabinet meeting that an “economic recovery” programme involving “monetary reconversion” would commence August 20.

He previously said new bolivar bills with three zeroes fewer would enter circulation on August 4 — a measure already pushed back from June 4 at the request of banks.

The measure, according to Maduro, seeks to “protect” local currency.

“Five zeroes fewer, so that we may have a new, stable financial and monetary system,” he said.

Maduro blames hyperinflation on what he calls a “war” against the currency – which is in serious shortage – including exporting it to other countries such as neighbouring Colombia.

But the IMF, in forecasting one million per cent inflation by year’s end, said it expects Venezuela’s to contract by 18 per cent this year amid falling oil production. (Excerpt from AFP)

CDB approves US$9.3M loan to support Anguilla’s reform programme

T

he Board of Directors of the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) said Thursday that it has approved a US$9.3 million loan to the Government of Anguilla, to implement a reform programme that aims to restore fiscal sustainability and enhance resilience against natural disasters.

Anguilla is highly vulnerable to natural disasters, and since 1995, the island has

been affected by eight named hurricanes. Following the passage of Hurricane Irma in 2017, it suffered damage and losses that were estimated at approximately 97 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The country is also heavily reliant on tourism, and the effects from Hurricane Irma have led to the closure of hotels and restaurants, causing significant unemployment and income losses. The loan

from CDB is the first of a series of three proposed policy-based loans, which will support Anguilla’s three-year reform programme to restore fiscal stability and build resilience, in order to promote and sustain economic recovery and growth. This first loan supports initial reforms under the Government’s MediumTerm Economic and Fiscal Plan. (Excerpt from Caribbean360)

Death sentences for Indian Police torturers welcomed by victim’s mother The seaside town of Mati, east of Athens, has been the hardesthit community

but dozens of victims were unable to reach the water.

Earlier, Greek Defence Minister Panos Kammenos told the BBC that illegal construction had contribut-

ed to the disaster.

He said building by residents between wooded areas was a “crime” that had resulted in blocking escape routes. (Excerpt from BBC News)

D

eath sentences awarded to two Indian Police Officers found guilty of killing a man in custody have been welcomed by the victim’s mother.

“God has heard a mother’s prayers,” said Prabhavathi Amma, who spent 13 years fighting the case in the southern state of Kerala.

A special court found the

two officers guilty of torturing a man to death after arresting him for theft.

These are the first death sentences given for a custodial death in Kerala.

One more officer had also been found guilty of the crime, but died before the sentence was pronounced.

The court also sentenced two senior officers to three

years in prison for attempting to cover up the murder.

Udaykumar, the 26-yearold victim, a daily wage labourer, was detained on September 27, 2005 on suspicion of being a thief, after he was discovered with a sum of 4000 rupees (US$58) at a park in Trivandrum city.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

Hundreds of Roma forcibly evicted from camp in Rome

D

espite a decision by the European Court of Human Rights to halt the evacuation of a Roma camp in northern Rome, Italian Police and municipal

authorities evicted its roughly 300 residents on Thursday.

The operation at Camping River started in the early morning and deployed a large Police contingent, continuing

throughout the day. By early afternoon, however, more than 100 residents were still outside the camp’s gate with their belongings and said they had nowhere to go.

Some of the evicted families had been lucky to find some shade amid cardboard boxes, luggage, and piled up mattresses strewn in front of the entrance to the camp, as

well as along the long country road that leads to it from the nearest village. A woman pushed a fridge up the road on a cart, but wasn’t able to answer where she was headed.

“I’ve seen many evictions, but this is the first time we are given no alternative,” Jemilia Mehmeti, a 44-yearold Kosovar, told Al Jazeera.

(Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

guyanatimesgy.com

friday, july 27, 2018

All set for

“Art of War 2018” I

showdown

n what is promised to be a night of musical warfare, Empire Media Inc is once again set to host the highly-anticipated marquee event in Guyana titled “Art of War” on Saturday evening at the Sports Hall tarmac, Homestretch Avenue, Georgetown.

This event, which is in its third year, has already created a social media craze with fans all hyped and ready for the battle. “Art of

War” will feature six of Guyana’s elite DJs and Selectors who will battle for $1 million, a trophy and the Mr Art of War 2018 title.

Winner takes all!!

Those vying for the event are Champions of the Armageddon Clash 2018 DJ Magnum and Selector Seen Up, Art of War 2016 champions DJ Platinum and Selector Skinny Hype, DJ Delly Ranks, DJ Nico Hype, Selector Turf Teacha and Selector

Spotlight Sound.

It is no secret that the entertainment/dancehall industry has been dying for this sort of event, and we proved that with the large attendance at the previous Clashes. “Art of War 2018” will serve to further reignite the fire of this art form in Guyana. There will be five rounds in the competition: Round 1: On Enemy Lines (Anything Goes)

Round 2: Engage the Enemy (Anything Goes) Round 3: Anything Goes Round 4: Challenge Round– DJs pick one artiste and play 7–10 songs by that artiste Round 5: Tune for Tune – Vocal Artistes/Vocal Tune (no exception) The fans will decide who gets eliminated and who stays by show of hands, while there will be a review panel and also judges to deal with playbacks and difficult deci-

sions.

Early juggling will be provided by Evolution Fraternity, Selector Shaq and Selector Matic.

Admission to the event is $1000 before 22:00h but more after.

Gates will be opened from 18:00h and the competition gets underway at 22:00h.

For more information you can like Empire Media Inc’s Facebook page or follow them on Instagram @empiremediainc.

Sonia Noel takes book-signing event to Hollywood, FL with fashion extravaganza

Guyana’s Honorary Consul to Florida, Ramzan Roshanali, and family members pose with Guyanese fashion icon and author Sonia Noel at the Book Signing Ceremony

G

uyana’s Honorary Consul to Florida, Ramzan Roshanali hosted a book signing, fashion and inspiration event for Guyanese designer and philanthropist, Sonia Noel at the popular Tropics Restaurant in Hollywood, Florida.

The beautiful and flamboyant Anne Humphrey

from “The Anne Humphrey Show” expressed how elated she was to emcee this inspiring event. Noel mandates all the events begin with prayers, which were done by Althea Gravesandy.

The honorary consul welcomed all in attendance and commended Noel for her determination and incredible drive to make this happen

not only for her but for others.

Hazelle Roger, Mayor of the City of Lauderdale Lakes, Florida, give brief remarks and spoke about women excelling in various fields, including politics. She welcomed Noel, who has an honorary doctorate, to South Florida and commended her cultural ambassadorial mis-

sion. She reiterated the importance of such contributions that inspire youth and women around the world.

Noel gave an overview of her books and shared some of her personal stories. Lots of heads were nodding and you could hear things like “so true”, “love it”, “needed to hear this”. “I am thoroughly enjoying my journey and I find myself celebrating more when I am in the valley.

“There is just something compelling about looking at the mountain when you are in the valley knowing because of your faith, you will get to the mountain top,” she told her audience.

Bethany Love, who is one of the co-authors for “Women across Borders with a Mission” read an excerpt from her chapter. Love flew from Arizona to be part of this event and she will be planning the Arizona launch later this year.

She drew the audience in with her story and a few persons became emotional, wiping tears away. It shows that all our stories were

meant to inspire and someone out there is waiting on your story.

The fashion display brought some excitement especially to the ladies and a demonstration was done showing the five ways to wear some of Sonia designs that can work from the

beach to the ballroom.

It was obviously branded a Guyana event with the Guyana flags and photos of the Guyanese Cabinet used as decorations.

Some well-known names in the Caribbean community were also at the event.

18

guyanatimesgy.com

friday, july 27, 2018

“Caribbean Cookout” for Castellani House on Saturday

T

he place to be on Saturday is the lawns of the Castellani House on Vlissengen Road and Homestretch Avenue for the first annual “Caribbean Cookout” international food, drink and cultural festival, commencing at 16:00h.

This event is guaranteed to ignite the global culinary passion of all the per-

processes, using original ingredients and with the help of nationals of the various countries.

To satisfy the international culinary experience that the curious food fans will want to enjoy, there will be a myriad of food booths that will make all attendees jet-setters without packing their bags – as

and cold beverages and ice creams.

But the highlight of this big, all-youcan-eat banquet will be the ability of the attendees to visit and enjoy the numerous food booths, featuring memorable Chinese dishes from the Orient, Mediterranean treats, spicy Indian and other Eastern dishes such as masala chicken, Mexican

custom temporary tattoos applied.

Every single person, from everywhere in Guyana, is invited to come to “Caribbean Cookout”. Admission is absolutely free. There will be secure parking for vehicles, and the venue is centrally and conveniently located if you prefer to use public transportation.

sons who will be in attendance, and is being organised by the Global Friendships Foundation with the kind assistance and collaboration of the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA).

The festival is set to be a grand oneday affair in Georgetown, of the customs, lifestyles and cultural identities of peoples from around the world through their traditional cuisines, which will be prepared according to their Indigenous preparatory

their taste buds will be taken around the world and back in one delightful evening.

“Caribbean Cookout” will have beers from all over the Caribbean, the United States, Europe and further afield, making it an international beer fest in its own right, along with wines, rums, and cocktails from around the world, while for the non-alcoholic drinkers there will be fruit drinks and punches, sparklers, spritzers, lemonades, sodas, and many other hot

delights from tortillas and tacos to spicy soups and stews, exotic Nigerian and other African dishes such as pepper soup, vegetarian cuisine, tasty Brazilian barbecue, scrumptious Cuban food and last, but certainly not least, our own very appetising Guyanese cuisine.

Young patrons will have a fun time with professional face painters in attendance, and other games to participate in while the adults can have personalised

The atmosphere will be great, the food delicious and very diverse, and the cultural entertainment will be top-rated.

So bring the entire family, bring your friends, bring those on holiday from school, and experience the widest range of international cooking in Guyana for yourself; you will never forget this international food and drink festival as it will be like none ever seen or experienced here before.

Meet Ronaldo Thomas

“Red Zone” for District Ultra Lounge this evening

T

he District Ultra Lounge will once again come alive this evening as scores of MMR fans are expected to storm the venue for yet another concept party planned by the entertainment group. The party is titled “Red Zone” and from all indications, those attending the event will be dressed in red.

In fact, everyone who wears red will be admitted free into the venue before 21:00h. This is another concept party that patrons do not want to miss. The night is expected to be epic as the most versatile DJs are set and ready to make sure their supporters receive the best treatment and the best

experience.

From music to mingling, the MMR Team is sure to add that special treat to make the night memorable. DJ Golden Chyld along with Selector Andy and the Party Boss himself will be on the console racking up the best music in Soca, Chutney, Filmi and other genres.

If you don’t wear red and you arrive at the venue after 21:00h, you will be charged a minimal fee of $2000 to enter. “Red Zone” is sponsored by RMaye Hardware Inc, MMR 592, and Platinum Auto Expo.

Personality Profile: Meet sassy 19-year-old Anjanie Selena Balgobin who hails from Lusignan, East Coast Demerara. This beauty is a cosmetologist by profession and enjoys listening to music, dancing and meeting new people. She says that he wants to use her positive energies to make an impact on the lives of everyone she encounters.

– contestant in the Mr African Roots Pageant

N

ineteen-year-old Ronaldo Thomas, who hails from Victoria on the East Coast of Demerara, is one of the contestants vying for the title of Mr African Roots when the pageant is hosted on Sunday, August 5 in the auditorium of Queen’s College, Camp Street, Georgetown.

This young man attended the Bladen Hall Secondary School and was successful in his Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) exams. After graduating high school, he continued his studies at the Government Technical Institute (GTI). Presently, he is employed at the Guyana Water Inc (GWI).

The Mr African Roots Pageant is the first pageant for him, and while he is enjoying it, he does not see himself participating in

another any time soon. He will be competing with delegates who have pageant experience, but Thomas is hoping for the best.

He was born to Dellon and Earl Thomas, and is privileged to have several sisters with whom he shares his joys and aspirations. He grew up in Victoria as a humble and quiet individual. In his early years, he attended the Enmore Hope Primary School where he wrote the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) and was awarded a space at Bladen Hall Secondary.

His teenager life was quite interesting since he participated in as many school projects as possible. He became a part of the pageant after he was approached by the franchise holder and after realising that it was a pageant that would showcase the culture of his ancestors.

Now, he is undergoing rigorous training with the aim of conquering the stage and takes home the title.

He loves to play football and anything athletic. He also likes dancing and hopes one day to become the richest man in Guyana, so that he can help others who are in need. His favourite foods are cook-up rice, fried rice and baked chicken while his favourite colours are pink and purple.

As the pageant draws near, he is soliciting assistance with respect to sponsorship. He can be contacted on 697-3588.

friDAY, JUly 27, 2018

19

Women’s T20 World Cup ushered in at Stabroek Square

T

he International Cricket Council (ICC) Women’s T20 World Cup 2018 was welcomed to Guyana in fine style on Thursday afternoon, as top officials, performers and the ordinary man gathered at the renowned Stabroek Market square for the launching of the auspicious cricketing event.

Under the theme “Watch This”, persons gyrated as they celebrated not only the contributions of women to Guyana and the Caribbean but also the Women’s World Cup coming to Guyana for the first time.

Guyana is one of three Caribbean countries (Saint Lucia and Antigua included) that will play host to 10

A performer entertaining the sizeable crowd at Stabroek Square

Team GB snowboarder Ellie Soutter dies aged 18

T

ributes have been paid to one of the “country’s best up-and-coming snowboarders”, Ellie Soutter, after she died on her 18th birthday.

In a joint statement announcing her death, the British Olympic Association Chairman, Hugh Robertson, and the Athlete Commission Chairman, Ben Hawes, described Soutter as “an incredibly popular and well-liked member of the team”.

Soutter won Team GB’s only medal at the European Youth Olympic Winter Festival in Turkey last year, claiming a bronze in the snowboard cross. No further details have been released about her death.

“Ellie was one of the country’s best up-and-coming snowboarders, competing in both snowboard cross and freeride,” British Ski and Snowboard said in a statement.

The statement added that Soutter was due to return to competition next month after being selected for the British team heading for the Junior World Championships in New Zealand. BSS said Soutter was one of the inaugural members of the

British Europa Cup snowboard cross programme.

Writing on Facebook, her father, Tony Soutter, said he was “so proud of the beautiful young woman she had turned into”.

He added: “This cruel world took my Soul mate and ‘Bessie’ from me yesterday on her 18th birthday. Ellie I will miss you more than you could have ever imagined.

Rest in peace you little Champion!”

Soutter’s official website described going to the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing as her “ultimate ambition”, while listing her as an ambassador for the Les Gets Ski Station in the French Alps. (The Guardian)

female teams from around the world, who will be competing for supremacy in the female league.

Present at the public celebration was Director of Sport, Christopher Jones who not only shared his thoughts on the ICC Women’s World Cup, but

also took the time to declare the importance of women to Guyanese society.

“We are only too proud to be organising this event, but you see folks, most importantly, this is an opportunity for Guyana to demonstrate how we love our women. Women throughout the years are essentially the backbone of Guyana,” the Director of Sport said.

Georgetown Mayor Patricia Chase Green, who was also in the audience, took the time to encourage Guyanese women and patrons to support the 175th anniversary of Georgetown, which will be celebrated during the month of August.

An ecstatic Social Cohesion Minister with responsibility for sport, Dr George Norton hyped up the growing crowd and reminded them that it was their duty to support and advertise the upcoming World Cup. The Minister outlined

the evolution of female cricket, stating, “Women’s cricket has come a long way; its records date back to the 1940s when the women of England were playing for barrels of ale and pairs of lace gloves. That is no longer the case today.”

He went on to explain that the credit for such a successful evolution was owed to the ICC. “Much credit is owed to the International Cricket Council for this evolution as it was the ICC who orchestrated the very first Women’s World Cup, which began on June 20, 1973,” Dr Norton disclosed.

The World Cup is slated for November 9-24 and will include teams from New Zealand, India, Australia, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Ireland. The National Stadium at Providence is expected to host 10 matches between November 9 and 17. The West Indian ladies are the current reigning champions after a thrilling victory in 2016.

20

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

friDAY, JUly 27, 2018

Thomas to avoid crowds during crucial stage of Tour de France G

eraint Thomas will avoid riding close to the crowds lining the route on today’s key Tour de France mountain stage after a spectator deliberately grabbed him and nearly caused him to crash on stage 17.

The Welshman, who retained his yellow jersey and a 1min 59sec lead after Thursday’s 18th stage ended in a bunch sprint, said he was staggered after his Team Sky colleague Wout Poels showed him a photograph of “an idiot” almost bringing him down towards the end of the climb up the Col de Portet on Wednesday.

“Obviously, it’s not good and I won’t be riding quite so close to the barriers,” said Thomas, who admitted he did not appreciate how serious the incident was until much later. “I could have quite easily fallen and lost a bit of time. I was going quite fast past him, but it certainly moved me off my line.

It was a bit of a shock, but luckily I was OK. “But obviously it wasn’t nice. We come here to race our bikes and that’s all we want to do. The whole peloton just wants to do that safely. It’s a bit too much.”

Thomas said he did not believe his incident

was specifically related to Team Sky, who have faced an almost daily diet of ire and ill-feeling from some fans during the Tour.

“Apparently he was doing the same to Nairo Quintana.

I think it was just too much to drink, a bit of an idiot.”

Team Sky principal Dave Brailsford called the incident “unacceptable” and admitted it was the latest in the long line of issues his team had faced. “I can’t imagine any fair-minded person, regardless of nationality, can watch that and think it has a place in sport.

But we’ve been saying that

for three weeks now.”

Since the Tour began in Brittany, the four-time winner, Chris Froome has been cuffed by one fan, spat at by another, and had an unidentified substance thrown at him, while on Tuesday’s 16th stage riders were accidentally hit with pepper spray after protesting farmers stopped the race.

Froome was also in the wars again on Wednesday when he was brought down by a gendarme as he made his way back to the Team Sky bus after the stage – with footage showing him swearing at the officer, who

had mistaken him for a spectator.

Brailsford insisted Froome’s reaction was understandable given the circumstances. “I think if somebody pulls you off the bike unexpectedly, the shock of that, if you think you’re being attacked, every fair-minded person would agree your first reaction to that is going to be emotional,” he said.

Froome played down the incident – which led to his bike being trashed and his bodyguard also coming down – as a misunderstanding. “I was the first rider to come

down the descent and one of the gendarmes grabbed my arm as I was passing,” said Froome, who was wearing a grey rain jacket over his race jersey.

“Obviously, he thought I was a spectator going down the race route. I was going at some speed so I came off obviously, but it was just a misunderstanding.”

The Lotto manager Richard Plugge told the Guardian that the incident had been caused by organisers changing plans at the last minute to send riders down on ski lifts because spectators had grabbed them instead.

“The big stars of cycling descending in such an environment is not a good idea, after such a mountain stage,” he said. “At least the top 10 should be helicoptered down or in some other way. They gave everything, they pushed 100 per cent, but they had to ride down in the cold, through the cars coming up and the other riders.”

Plugge, who is also Vice President of the AIGCP, the professional teams associa-

tion, said he felt sympathy for the gendarmes having to police such a volatile tour.

“The world has changed, and there have been some really difficult moments in France, so we understand the tense situation among the Policemen,” he added.

The Danish rider Jakob Fuglsang has expressed surprise at the speed of Team Sky’s train during the three weeks – and at Thomas’s brilliant performance. “I’m not surprised the others are faster than me, but I’m surprised how much faster they are,” he said. “I just talked with Mikel Landa after the stage and he can’t believe it, either. He says he did less watts last year.”

Fuglsang, who made it clear he was not accusing anybody of wrongdoing, added: “It’s surprising that Thomas had such a great Tour. He was already good in the Dauphiné and here he kept his form perfectly until now – that’s been a surprise and for a guy who’s never finished in the top 10 in a Grand Tour before, holding on to the yellow jersey for so long and defending so well, and seemingly being so strong, that it is a bit of a surprise. But he is a good guy and I hope that he holds on until Paris.” (The Guardian)

UFC’s star Conor McGregor avoids jail with guilty plea U FC fighter Conor McGregor has pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in a deal with prosecutors to avoid jail time.

McGregor had faced multiple criminal charges stemming from an altercation in April with other fighters.

As part of his deal, he is required to undergo anger management treatment. The plea will not affect his US work visa. In a statement outside the New York City courthouse, the 30-year-old thanked the Judge and Prosecutors “for allowing me to move forward”. He will also be required to fulfil five days of community service and, in exchange, will be cleared of criminal charges.

McGregor had been facing 12 criminal charges related to the incident at Brooklyn’s Barclays Centre on April 5. The charges against McGregor had included menacing, assault resulting in injury, reckless endangerment and criminal mischief.

The most serious charges carried a maximum sentence of seven years.

In a two-sentence statement outside the courthouse, he said: “I just want to say I’m thankful to the DA [District Attorney] and the Judge for allowing me to move forward.”

“I want to say to my friends, my family, my fans: thank you for the support.”

His fans had gathered outside the court, with several holding signs expressing their support for the “champ”.

In April, McGregor was filmed throwing a metal dolly into a window of a bus parked at a Barclay’s Centre loading bay.

As a condition of the deal with the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office, he was required to pay full restitution to the bus company, which he has already fulfilled.

The coach bus had been carrying a group of

UFC athletes and employees at the time. Two UFC fighters were injured and forced to withdraw from their scheduled matches.

One of McGregor’s teammates from SBG Ireland – MMA fighter Cian Cowley – was also arrested for his involvement in the incident.

On Thursday, he too pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct. McGregor’s manager, Audie Attar, gave a statement outside the court, saying the Irish fighter would be “getting back to business”.

“Now that this is past us, we can focus on things that have been on hold for some time,” said Attar.

“Conor’s been training. He’s in shape. He’s ready to go. Now it’s just about getting back to business and we hope to have some news to announce very soon.”

Last month, the father of one had expressed his “regret” for the attack.

In August 2017, McGregor launched a boxing career with a fight against ex-welterweight Floyd Mayweather. The fight, which earned him US$100 million, was considered the richest boxing bout of all time. According to sports Journalists, the legal settlement could clear the way for his return to the Octagon later this year.

His manager said in an interview after the plea deal that the current champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov, will be McGregor’s “likely opponent” in a coming fight.

Nurmagomedov was on the bus that McGregor attacked, and was the target of his hostility.

That match, which his manager said could come as soon as October, could become one of the biggest fights in UFC history. (BBC Sport)

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ing of events that were a part of the 75th anniversary celebration.

The magazine features statistics, assessments, and feature stories covering all levels of cricket in Guyana.

Many of the feature stories in the magazine are written by local Journalists.

One such story is “Guyana’s all-time XI”, which was compiled by John Ramsingh and is said to have the cricket world buzzing already.

GCB Secretary Anand Sanasie was present to give an overview of the nature and purpose of the magazine. “In this magazine, we captured everything that would have happened throughout the year in cricket, it has a lot of statistics and it has a lot of articles on the history of cricket and so on. Any earning out of this magazine is put straight back into cricket development. So, it is a revenue stream of the Guyana Cricket Board,” Sanasie stated.

To add a little glimmer to the magazine, most of the work has come straight out of the GCB. This was disclosed by Sanasie, who said: “Everything you see in the magazine was done at the office of the Guyana Cricket Board, other than the printing being done outside of there.”

Legendary cricket commentator Joseph “Reds” Perreira was the first to be presented with the magazine. After which, the Guyanese legend spoke on the article he contributed to the magazine.

“I remembered all the personalities that you met at the ground, I chose a looking back theme so that the young generation of readers and Guyanese could understand what Case Cup was all about. I think I found the right niche in producing an article, which I hope you would find interesting,” Perreira stated.

The magazine is free of cost and is available at the Guyana Cricket Board’s office on Regent Street, Bourda.

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Director of Sport, Christopher Jones receives his copy of the magazine

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The production of the magazine is in its fifth year; however, the recently-launched edition is a little more significant given that this year is the GCB’s 75th anniversary. As such, the magazine has come at a later date in the year so as to facilitate the captur-

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Guyanese commentating legend “Reds” Perreira speaks on his article as Raj Singh of the GCB displays the page

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ad weather on Wednesday and Thursday curtailed the Guyana U-19 team’s 3-day warm-up match at the Everest Cricket Club Ground, as the defending champs prepare for their title defence in the 2018 Cricket West Indies (CWI) Regional U-19 Championships.

Guyana hold both titles in the Regional U-19 tournament, having won the 50-over and longer version last year. Following the tournament, five Guyanese were picked for the West Indies U-19 team and represented the maroon colours at the Youth World Cup earlier this year.

With hopes of getting themselves further fine-tuned, given that the players are encamped four days a week for most of the calendar year, the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) organised a 3-day prep game

for the champs which bowled off on Tuesday.

Inclement weather obstructed a few outdoor events this week, even the West Indies and Bangladesh opener on Sunday at Providence, and Everest was no different as players were gifted with mixed weather on Tuesday. It was a low-scoring first innings as the U-19 team were knocked over for 52 runs before the GCB Academy players managed to knock off the low score but were unable to play through due to rain.

Thursday’s final day was no different as overnight showers reduced the venue to swamp, resulting in two days’ play being aborted due to rain. With the tournament set to bowl off in St Vincent from July 30, the Bhaskar Yadram-led Guyana will be bent on retaining their CWI Regional Under-19 titles.

Meanwhile, the squad which features some top-calibre players including the likes of Kevin Sinclair, Alex Algoo, Sachin Singh, Joshua Persaud, and Ashmead Nedd will wing out in a few days. The team are being coached by multiple-time regional championship winner Julian Moore.

The team are as follows: National Under-19: Bhaskar Yadram – Captain; Kevin Sinclair; Alex Algoo; Sachin Singh; Adrian Anthony; Christopher Hinds; Junior Sinclair; Kevlon Anderson; Javed Karim; Yeudister Persaud; Kelvin Umroa; Joshua Persaud; Ashmead Nedd and Qumar Torrington. The Manager is Andy Ramnarine.

The six stand-by players are: Joel Fortune, Sadik Khan, Sherland Anthony, Kurt Lovell, Karan Arjpaul and Silvan Williams.

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GUYANATIMESgy.COM

friDAY, JUly 27, 2018

Joseph gets demerit point for send-off W

indies pacer Alzarri Joseph has earned International Cricket Council (ICC) sanctions for his send-off to Anamul Haque during Wednesday’s day/night OneDay International (ODI) at the Providence National Stadium, Guyana.

The former Windies U-19 speedster has received an official reprimand and one de-

merit point after match referee Chris Broad found him guilty of a Level 1 breach of the ICC code of conduct.

Joseph was found to have violated article 2.1.7 of the code, which relates to “using language, actions or gestures which disparage or which could provoke an aggressive

reaction from a batsman u p o n his/her dismiss-

Alzarri Joseph

al during an international match”.

The Windies quick-man gestured towards the dressing room after dismissing the Bangladeshi opener in the third over of the Tigers’ chase. Following the match, Joseph admitted to the offence and accepted the sanctions imposed on him without need for a formal hearing.

Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand, a maximum penalty of 50 per cent of a player’s match fee, and one or two demerit points.

Meanwhile, Joseph’s current teammate and ex-Windies U-19 skipper Shimron Hetmyer scored a record-breaking ton to help the Caribbean side level the 3-match ODI series 1-1.

Caribbean school cricket teams learn from their CPL idols D

igicel and the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) toured the Region for the Digicel Youth Cricket Series Coaching Clinics over the past three months, inspiring young cricketers and teaching them the finer points of the game.

Students from six schools, one per participating CPL country, were coached by their local CPL Coaches and got to meet and interact with a CPL player from their local team.

Starting with Barbados and then travelling to Jamaica, St Lucia, St Kitts and Nevis, Trinidad and Tobago and finishing off in Guyana, approximately 360 students across the Region had one-on-one time with their cricket idols as part of the Coaching Clinics.

Zishan Motara, from St Michael School in Barbados, was able to meet and learn from Jason Holder, Captain of the Barbados Tridents.

“I learnt a lot and I believe my bowling and catch-

ing improved. I’m really glad for this opportunity and I want to thank Digicel and Jason

Holder,” Motara said.

Digicel Group Sponsorship Manager Tari Lovell said, “Watching the kids interact with their favourite cricket heroes reinforced to us just how important it is that we continue to invest in budding talent across the Region.

“They were in-

spired and motivated hearing from the cricketers first hand; Jason Holder, for example, was able to work with his alma

mater, St Michael School, as the school that had won the coaching session in Barbados.

The next phase of the series will see us taking the game to the beach or the

street for a day of fun with local youth cricket clubs.”

During the 2018 CPL competition period, each participating country will host a fun, informal game of cricket with the players and coaches and 20 children from a local cricket club and/or special needs organisation with an active cricket programme. These children will get to meet and play with their favou-

rite CPL stars while learning the best cricket techniques.

Across the Caribbean, cricket fans, young and old, come together to celebrate “The Biggest Party in Sport” and cheer for their local teams. Since 2013, Digicel and the CPL have worked together to cultivate the carnival atmosphere that has made CPL approachable and exciting

for so many.

Digicel has also played a fundamental role in bringing CPL to a wider audience through its mobile, social and television platforms across the Region.

Fans of the game can download PlayGo for free and tune into the dedicated CPL channel to watch live coverage of the 2018 tournament and past CPL games.

India-Pakistan Asia Cup match on September 19 Rohit Sharma was trapped leg before for a duck by Mohammad Amir

West Indies and Barbados Tridents skipper Jason Holder were among the ambassadors in the 2018 Digicel/CPL Coaching Clinic

I

ndia and Pakistan, the 2017 Champions Trophy finalists, are set to meet for the first time since that lopsided contest, with the announcement of the Asia Cup schedule confirming the date and venue of the clash.

The two play each other on September 19 in Dubai, the first time they will face off in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) since 2006. It will also mark the first time the arch-rivals do battle in Dubai; they have previously played 24 OneDay Internationals (ODIs) in Sharjah and two in Abu Dhabi. Pakistan have been dominant in the UAE, winning 19 of the contests.

Six teams will take part in the Asia Cup, with the

group stage divided into two groups for the first time.

Pakistan and India have been pooled with one other team to be determined by a qualifying tournament that takes place from August 29 to September 6. The qualifying tournament features six teams: Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Nepal, Oman, and UAE. The other group comprises Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan. The six teams will then be cut down to four after the first round, with each of them playing the other in a round-robin format. The top two will go through to the final, to be held on September 28.

The tournament will also revert to its traditional ODI

format, which was last the case in 2014 in Bangladesh, with Sri Lanka emerging victors. The 2016 edition was turned into a T20I tournament, serving as preparation for the World T20 that was to be held a month later. India were champions in 2016.

This year’s tournament was originally scheduled to be held in India, but political differences with Pakistan forced it to be rescheduled to the UAE. The Emirates Cricket Board will rent out the stadiums with India to serve as the “official” hosts.

All matches will be played in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, with the latter to serve as the venue for the final. (ESPNcricinfo)

guyanatimesgy.com

friDAY, JUly 27, 2018

23

boxing Bishoo urges students to “chase Hockey, record wins dreams” at Digicel/Hero CPL Clinic on CAC day 7

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uyana and Windies spinner Devendra Bishoo told youngsters at the 2018 Digicel/ Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) Youth Cricket Series Coaching Clinic, to never stop pursuing their dreams to become cricketers.

Bishoo, a Digicel and CPL Brand Ambassador, was the star of the clinic held at the Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) Ground last Saturday when students of the West Demerara Secondary School benefited from tips by the Test player.

The 33-year-old took time off his training schedule with the Windies team, who were preparing for the first of two One-Day Internationals (ODIs) at Providence the following day. He spent the day of coaching and inspiring the students to chase their dreams, as it was his desire as a young lad to be a professional cricketer, a dream he realised with his current position as one of the top leg-spinners in the Caribbean and the Windies’ main spin weapon over recent years.

The Guyana Amazon Warriors player said that “it’s always an honour to share my knowledge and

turn up to these events, because I was once like them”, as he told stories about his struggles coming up in his early years as a junior cricketer with little resources. He spoke about times when he carried bags for other cricketers and ran water for the team, before receiving the same treatment years later after he m a d e

strides.

A humble Bishoo reminded the students that the dedication they apply in school was similar to what was needed when pursuing a career as a professional cricketer.

The Berbician related too

many of the students and teachers who quizzed him with numerous questions regarding his hard times in cricket, as well as his shining moments.

In the end, it was an illustrious session, as the youngsters learnt bowling techniques and other handy tips from Bishoo, who had his hands filled with the excited students.

Digicel Guyana Communications Manager Vidya Sanichara, following the session, said the company was happy to have

helped facilitate another stepping-stone for the budding players, since it was their

goal to continue producing cricketers from the grassroots levels.

She said having students meet

Lusignan Mega Golf Open set for August 4-5

The Lusignan greens will come alive August 4-5

A

fter a long hiatus, the Lusignan Golf Club (LGC) will be staging its Lusignan Golf Open, which is set to tee off from August 4-5.

Originally the tournament which was regarded as the championship event within the fraternity before being replaced by the Guyana Open Cup, the tourney permits any player with a verified handicap to participate.

Non-members, except for Lusignan residents and caddies, will pay greens fees in addition to tournament fees.

It is the first look at the talented players who are expected to compete in the Guyana Open set for November 3-4, 2018. Prizes for longest drive and nearest to the pin on Day 2 will be showcased at the conclusion of the round.

All players will compete in front of the crowds at tee box #1 for the long drive title down fairway #1 and then hit to the #9 green from the #1

tee box for nearest to the pin.

Some 22 companies are set to be a part of the Lusignan Open and will be on hand to promote their products and services. Lots of prizes will be given away to winners and spectators as organisers seek to make this a fun-filled weekend for everyone.

Members are asked to support their club by selling at least 10 barbecue tickets so that it can fund the summer programme for new players and children. Over 70 members/players on the roster are expected to join in and make the fundraising efforts a success.

Barbecue will be available for pick-up on Sunday from 12:00h and each ticket is eligible to win one of over $200,000 in prizes. The LGC is also calling on any member or friend of the club who wishes to promote their business or services to do so during the Lusignan Open. Contact can

be made with Philip on #tel 220-5660 to arrange for setup of your booth/tent/banners or table.

Calendar of Events:

Registration completed by 16:00h on August 2.

Registration fee is $7000 Confirmed registrants will attend a cocktail/media event at the clubhouse on Friday, August 3 at 18:00h.

Draw will be announced.

Practice rounds will be played on Friday Play commences at 12:30h on Saturday and 10:00h on Sunday Lunch and snacks will be provided along with cold beverages on the course during play Awards ceremony will commence at 16:00h on Sunday Prizes for Best Gross Overall places 1-3 and Best Net in all three flights for places 1-3

these international players whom they regard as idols was important for their careers as the knowledge and tips they get from these players were invaluable and as such, it was important to have these events.

Apart from Bishoo, his Guyana Jaguars Head Coach Esuan Crandon and his team of Coach Michael Hyles and Clive Grimmond conducted sessions with the students in bowling, batting and fielding. Teams were divided and coaches went to work as the students from West Demerara got a huge boost in their budding careers.

Students from six schools, one per participating Hero CPL country, were coached by their local CPL Coaches and got to meet and interact with a CPL player from their local team.

The prog r a m m e started in Barbados and then travelled to Jamaica, St Lucia, St Kitts & Nevis, Trinidad & Tobago before wrapping up in Guyana. Roughly 360 students across the Region had one-on-one time with their cricket idols as part of the Coaching Clinics. (Clifton Ross)

T

he Guyanese contingent at the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games in Barranquilla, Colombia have added some spice to their 2018 campaign with a change in momentum.

The Guyanese team got off to a harsh start all round, registering several losses, but it appears as though the bronze medal performance from Ashley Khalil and Taylor Fernandes in the squash women’s doubles has motivated the team, allowing them to register big wins on Wednesday evening.

In the boxing arena, Colin Lewis came up against Stevenso Mayorga of Nicaragua.

The Guyanese boxer, who has been in fine form all year and copped a bronze medal at the South American Games in Bolivia, asserted his dominance in the light welterweight (64kg) category with a massive win over the Nicaraguan. Winning the bout by a unanimous decision means that Lewis will now represent his homeland in a semi-final match against Roberto Zarinana of

Mexico today. His Guyanese counterpart, Keevin Allicock will also fight in a semi-final bout against Christian O Jimenez of Mexico in the men’s bantamweight 56kg group.

Over on the hockey pitch, the men’s national team demolished their counterparts hailing from Guatemala. Going into their last group match, the hockey team were aware of the fact that the encounter was a crucial one. A loss would mean that they were eliminated from medal contention. As such, the team came out blazing from the sound of the first whistle.

In the first quarter, Meshach Sargeant got the ball rolling with the first goal in the 14th minute.

Randy Hope was the next player to add to Guyana’s tally in the 22nd minute. With three goals from forward Robert France and two from midfielder Jerazeno Bell, Guyana stormed to a thrilling 8-0 victory over their Guatemalan opponents.

Given the result, the national hockey team will advance to the semi-final round where they will come up against Cuba.

FriDAY, JUly 27, 2018

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

guyanatimesgy.com

Women’s T20 World Cup ushered in at Stabroek Square Pg 19

Bishoo urges students Caribbean school cricket to “chase dreams” at teams learn from Digicel/Hero CPL Clinic their CPL idols Pg 22

Pg 23

West Indies/Guyana Amazon Warriors spinner and Digicel/CPL Ambassador, Devendra Bishoo shares some bowling tips with a student from the West Demerara Secondary School

West Indies and Barbados Tridents skipper Jason Holder were among the ambassadors in the 2018 Digicel/CPL Coaching Clinic

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