Sunday Times - March 10, 2019

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Nationwide coverage coverage from from the the best best news news team team in in Guyana Guyana Nationwide Issue No. 3859 guyanatimesgy.com

THE BEACON BEACON OF OF TRUTH TRUTH THE

Sunday, March 10, 2019

Opposition to engage more women in politics – Jagdeo

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WHAT'S INSIDE:

Porter crushed to death by P11 container truck

Page 3

Business Minister admits political climate affecting local investments

Teen allegedly beaten by Police P12 …suffers broken jaw, several missing teeth

Page 13

Over $188M in seized drugs destroyed by CANU, Police

Traffickers finding innovative ways to ship drugs – CANU P10

Page 2

Alleged P11 bandit drops cellphone with photo at crime scene

People’s Progressive Party/ Civic Presidential Candidate Irfaan Ali visited the Rama Krishna Blenheim/Leguan Mandir, where he interacted with members and listened to issues within the community.

During the visit, he also held several meetings with residents of Leguan and had a walkabout in the community

Another 163 officials fail to make declarations to Integrity Commission

…slapped with robbery charges

Page 9

Schools vaccination programme

…GPL, GNBA, GO-Invest, GCAA, GL&SC Heads among defaulters

Head Teacher, Medical Officer breached protocol P12

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news

SUnDAY, march 10, 2019 | guyanatimesGY.com

Over $188M in seized drugs destroyed by CANU, Police

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illions of dollars’ worth in illegal drugs and illicit substances that had been kept in storage by both the Guyana Police Force’s Narcotics Branch and the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) were destroyed on Saturday morning at Yarrowkabra, LindenSoesdyke Highway during a destruction exercise sanctioned by the Public Security Ministry.

Head of the Police Narcotics Branch, Senior Superintendent of Police Corlay Simon told the me-

602 grams of an unknown substance. With the help of the National Forensic Lab and our overseas counterparts, we could not have determined what that substance was.”

The street value of the cocaine and cannabis

checked by security at the CJIA before boarding the US-bound flight.

The illicit drugs and illegal substances were destroyed by way of fire by representatives from the GPF, CANU, the National Anti-Narcotics

CANU and GPF ranks taking the drugs to be destroyed

dia that 74.74kg of cocaine with a street value of $67,498,347 and 373.272kg of cannabis worth $57,483,888 was destroyed by the Police Force.

He explained that these substances were already used as evidence in matters that have reached finality in the courtrooms.

Meanwhile, Deputy Head of CANU Lesley Ramlall stated that the agency destroyed more than cocaine and cannabis that it had been storing.

“CANU is destroying 30.7kg of cocaine and 210.2kg of cannabis today (Saturday). In addition to that, there were 304 grams of heroin and also

The drugs being burnt at Yarrowkabra, Linden-Soesdyke Highway

destroyed by CANU was $29.1 million and $33, 600,000 respectively.

According to CANU’s Deputy Head, the unknown substance had been seized in March last year at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA).

The discovery was made when a teenager, who was heading to the United States, was

Agency (NANA) and the Guyana Forensic Science Laboratory (GFSL) in the presence of the media.

This is the second such joint operation conducted by the security forces.

The first was done five months ago, on November 9, last year, where over $513 million worth of ganja and cocaine were destroyed, also by way of fire.

3 Opposition to engage more women in politics – Jagdeo O news

SUnDAY, march 10, 2019 | guyanatimesGY.com

BRIDGE OPENINGS

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Sunday, March 10 – 05:30h-07:00h and Monday, March 11 – 05:00h-06:30h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Sunday, March 10 – 06:10h-07:40h and Monday, March 11 – 06:40h-08:10h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY Cloudy skies in the morning are expected to give way to sunny intervals that will last the day, followed by clear to partly cloudy skies in the evening. Overall temperatures will range between 21 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius.

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

High Tide: 06:41h and 19:03h reaching maximum heights of 2.69 metres and 2.66 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 12:36h reaching a minimum height of 0.50 metre.

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pposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has committed, on behalf of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), to placing more emphasis on pushing the empowerment of women, as well as addressing issues at the societal level that hinder their growth.

He was speaking at a symposium held by the party’s Women’s Progressive Organisation (WPO) to mark International Women's Day 2019 on Friday.

“Often these occasions have to be used to answer the tough questions that face our people, particularly women… Women are much more complex beings and they face more complex issues outside of business.

Because they live in societies, the societal problems are their problems too… So

Philomena Sahoye-Shury, one of the long serving women within the PPP, was surrounded by other party members on Friday

30 per cent now, and that’s great of women’s involvement in the National Assembly or the Cabinet; and now we hear about 50 per cent… (While) we have

Further, Jagdeo underscored that the PPP/C, from the very beginning, was established on the basis of equality. It is a party that treats both men and women

A section of the gathering at the WPO’s International Women's Day event at Freedom House, Georgetown

the issues we have to overcome in this country deal with orthodoxies,” he said.

Jagdeo noted that during that party’s campaign leading up to the impending general elections, Guyanese will see a significant focus on getting more women involved in activities at the level of the state, so as to have them play a greater role in the decision making and decision implementation processes.

According to the Opposition Leader, a particular focus has already been placed on women in business and on creating a supporting environment with the necessary tools for women to advance in business.

Further, Jagdeo stressed it is important that there is an increase in the ratio of women’s involvement in politics.

“We have gotten about

a large number of women in the current Government, this Government practises policies that continuously erode the wellbeing of Guyana and particularly women,” he said.

The former president posited that it is not just about getting women in leadership positions, but also ensuring that the framework within which they work is progressive.

“You can have greater women’s involvement, but if they don’t stand up for a whole range of issues when they are involved, then you’re back to square one, and women’s rights don’t move forward… You have to have a progressive framework for the advancement of women’s rights and women’s causes, and women’s wellbeing in any country,” he explained.

equally. In fact, he asserted that the PPP has treated all races and religions in Guyana as equal. This, he noted, has helped guide the PPP/C over the years – whether as Opposition or in the Government.

“In the 23 years that we managed (the country), we passed a slew of legislation that advanced the wellbeing and the rights of women; not just the acts against domestic violence and sexu-

al violence against women.

But we had a constitutional body – the Women’s Gender and Equality Commission – that we enshrined in the Constitution… and we took policies that would advance the rights of women,” he said.

On the other hand, Presidential Candidate Irfaan Ali, in addressing the gathering, spoke of how, by creating 50,000 new jobs, a PPP government would be able to help women’s advancement and empowerment in society.

“We have to add more women to our workforce; job creation needs to be gender neutral,” he said.

Ali mentioned the great work and sacrifices Guyanese women have made, and how their contribution propels development in Guyana. He noted that while women have endured “tremendous struggle” in the country, under the PPP regime, they were given many opportunities for advancement.

“We saw enrollment of female children (in schools) growing to 97 per cent, and this was a tremendous accomplishment of the People’s Progressive Party in advancing the academic aspirations of our young girls… We saw, during this period, women’s participation in the labour force growing by 25 per cent. We saw a decrease in female mortality below the age of 60… We saw an improvement in the estimated gross national income per capita… We saw employment of females in non-agriculture areas increasing by 25 per cent during PPP in government,” Ali detailed.

According to Ali, these achievements did not happen by accident, but were as a result of the priorities of the PPP, which will continue to push women’s empowerment in Guyana.

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SUnDAY, march 10, 2019

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

Editorial

The US and Guyana

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new US Ambassador to our country has arrived. She is Ms Sara-Ann Lynch, who described herself to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations as “serv(ing) as a Peace Corps volunteer in Morocco…(then) in international affairs as a USAID Foreign Service Officer, serving for the past 25 years overseas in Bangladesh, Peru, Afghanistan and Iraq; and in Washington, most recently as the Senior Deputy Assistant Administrator in the Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean.”

There is no question that Ambassador Lynch brings a tremendous wealth of knowledge and, more importantly, experience to her new posting after that background, which should advance the mutual interests of our countries at this critical juncture. As she promised later in that hearing: “I will proudly promote US values and represent the United States in Guyana, a melting pot of ethnic and religious diversity. I pledge to work with Guyana in areas of mutual interest as we seek to: (1) support the Government of Guyana as the country emerges as a petroleum producer and leverages its newfound revenues to expand economic opportunities and social services for all its citizens; (2) increase fair and reciprocal bilateral trade and investment, including promoting opportunities for US businesses; and, (3) work with the Guyanese Government and people to build upon gains in democratic governance, the rule of law and citizen security. A secure, democratic and prosperous Guyana will be a key ally for the United States for years to come in the region that we share.”

Ambassador Lynch would have been briefed on the clear and present danger posed to our “gains in democratic governance, the rule of law and citizen security” by the refusal of President David Granger to adhere to the pellucid command of the Constitution to schedule elections three months after the successful passage of the no-confidence vote on Dec 21, 2018. The transparent manoeuvres of the PNC-led Government to cling to power outside the ambit of the Constitution betray their reversion to their historic contempt for the rule of law. This doctrine demands that no one is above the law, not even a king or a president.

Ambassador Lynch continued: “This is a particularly momentous time for Guyana, a country the World Bank currently identifies as middle-income. However, the discovery of significant reserves of oil in recent years could alter the equation for this small nation. It is estimated that Guyana holds over 4 billion barrels of offshore oil reserves, which could put it into the top twenty oil producing countries in the world. As such, it is critical the country not fall into the trap of the “resource curse.”

“Guyana must continue to look for opportunities to diversify its economy, improve its governance, and strengthen its civil society. If confirmed, I will look for ways to build upon the work that Guyana has already done to chart a productive course for its future.”

Her warning about avoiding the “resource curse” trap is especially apt in view of the Government’s strangulation of the agricultural sector in a world faced with growing food insecurity. Their refusal to utilise the 40,000 acres of drained and irrigated land made available by the closure of four sugar estates, by leasing them to the fired workers and transitioning them from field workers into cash crop farmers, is a case in point.

Finally, she concluded, “We only have to look to Guyana’s west – to Venezuela - to see how poor governance and corruption have destroyed what should be one of South America’s most prosperous economies. Venezuelans are fleeing their country in droves, with thousands now entering neighbouring Guyana.”

This is a cautionary tale that this newspaper has consistently emphasised in this space, as the PNC-led Government has become overrun with corruption and has demonstrated a studied contempt for the need to diversify the economy by encouraging value-added agromanufacturing, for instance. Yet they emphasise only “oil revenues”, as exemplified by Minister of Finance Winston Jordan’s recent boast of one million barrels per day by 2025.

More than 70,000 people gathered in Rio de Janeiro’s huge concrete arena known as the Sambadrome, where samba schools compete to be crowned champions of Brazil’s famous carnival celebrations, which ran from March 1-March 9 (BBC)

Rival rallies held in Caracas as Venezuela crisis intensifies

Opposition supporters demonstrating in the capital, Caracas [Matias Delacroix/AFP]

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housands of people have once again hit the streets of Venezuela’s capital, Caracas, in the latest rival displays for and against President Nicolás Maduro amid a deepening political crisis.

As a major blackout continued affecting much of the country for a third day, anti-Government protesters on Saturday heeded the call of the Washington-backed Opposition Leader Juan Guaido for renewed rallies demanding Maduro step down.

Opposition supporters on Victoria Avenue, in western Caracas, pushed against the shields of riot Police, who eventually withdrew, but maintained a large presence in the area.

“I am tired [of this situation],” Rosa Soriano, an Opposition demonstrator, told Al Jazeera. “We can’t continue like this; I lost hope before, but now I believe a change is possible.”

Conversely, red-shirted Maduro supporters turned out for a rival rally near the Miraflores presidential palace, demanding the United States stop “sabotaging” and intervening in the country’s internal affairs.

“We are continuing the battle and victory over the permanent and brutal aggression against our people,” Maduro wrote on Twitter.

“Today, more than ever, we’re anti-imperialists. We will never surrender!”

Government supporters attend a rally in support of President Nicolás Maduro in the capital, Caracas [Reuters]

His supporters said they wanted to let the “imperialism” forces know that they were ready to defend the country.

“This is a project of life and hope for Venezuelans, the message we want to send to the world is that socialism is the [only] way in the country” Anibal Figueroa, 48, an employee in the Education Ministry, told Al Jazeera.

Major blackout

The oil-rich nation fell in darkness on Thursday evening, with Government critics blaming the blackout on decades of mismanagement and corruption, but the ruling Socialist party saying it was an act of US sabotage.

On Saturday morning, power went on and off in parts of Caracas, but other parts of the country continued being without power.

Hospitals in Caracas reported major problems over the past three days, while Julio Castro, who leads a NonGovernmental Organisation (NGO) called Doctors for Health, said at least 13 people died amid the blackout. His statement could not be independently verified.

Meanwhile, hundreds of passengers on Friday were left stranded after flights were cancelled at the capital’s Maiquetia airport.

In Puerto Ordaz, in southern Venezuela, people said they were struggling to deal with rising temperatures amid

the blackout.

“Yesterday, it was difficult to be without power,” a resident, who did not wish to be identified, told Al Jazeera on Saturday.

“We could barely rest as the temperatures were really high; we [practically] didn’t sleep all night, in all darkness, and just waiting with anxiety for this problem to get solved,” he added.

Still, Government supporters accused the anti-Maduro front of not acting fairly.

“The Venezuelan Opposition does not understand democracy,” Ricardo Leon, editor of El Silbon Information Agency, told Al Jazeera.

“When they have tried it, they have emerged winners – they even won the control of the National Assembly,” he added, referring to polls in 2015.

“We need to talk and through elections call for changes; we can’t solve our problems by letting external powers intervene. We do not accept an interference of that type.”

The growing political crisis comes against the backdrop of major economic uncertainty, exacerbated by years of recession and hyperinflation and widespread shortages of food and medicine.

Tensions escalated in January, when Guaido declared himself interim President and called Maduro a usurper following last year’s

presidential elections, which were largely boycotted by the Opposition.

The President, on the other hand, argues that Guaido is a puppet of Washington, dismissing his claim to the presidency as a plan from US-led external powers to control Venezuela’s resources. Around 50 countries, including many Western States, have thrown their weight behind Guaido.

US President Donald Trump, an opponent of Maduro, has said a “military option” is on the table. Opposition leaders in Venezuela have also said all options are considered, but a number of Latin American neighbours have opposed the idea of a US intervention as a way of resolving the turmoil.

Meanwhile, as the crisis keeps lingering, some analysts such as Javier Buenrostro argue the Opposition is losing momentum internationally.

“I believe that international leaders are recognising that they rushed with this decision, and that maybe the conditions were not set for generating the change they were aiming for,” Buenrostro, a professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, told Al Jazeera.

“Maybe a solution for this is for both sides to compromise. The Opposition might need to accept that they can’t have an ‘all-or-nothing’ situation. Both of them might need to reach to a middle point,” he added. (Al Jazeera)

guyanatimesgy.com

SunDAY, march 10, 2019

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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

Crisis and unchartered territory GECOM is supposed to be neutral Dear Editor, Our dear country is in crisis and unchartered territory! The threats of an unmanageable police state are obviously imminent, as the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) plays a zero-sum game on one side. The fallen David Granger-led APNU/ AFC coalition Government plays ignorance to the constitutional obligations on the other.

The call for a meeting turned out to be another publicity stunt, which the President and his cohorts would have used as an excuse had the Opposition Leader refused to meet.

It is widely known that President Granger stepped outside the tested and proven Carter constitutionally agreed formula and legitimate public expectancy in his widely condemned unilateral appointment of James Patterson as the Chairman of GECOM. He now pathetically uses the self-created contamination as a pretence-laden sham, in attempting to camouflage the dictatorial quest for power at all cost and lawless ineptitude to good governance.

The indecency of Patterson seems limitless, as he proves himself daily, a creature of infiltration and imbalance created by and operating under the whims of the David Granger’s PNC/R political party. His decisions as Chairman of GECOM flagrantly contradicts the rules of establishment of the organisation, as he uses his role to advance party paramountcy over the Constitution as the supreme law of our land.

It is indeed most contemptible that the fallen coalition Government Commissioners at GECOM would shamelessly exercise such constitutional

defiance of the timeline and actions necessary for the holding of elections since the passing of the No-Confidence Motion.

Following the coalition’s failed efforts at achieving delays approved by the Legislature and the Judiciary, their Commissioners at GECOM have taken on the mantra of creating a backdoor solution to the extension of power and fraud.

Led by Vincent Alexander, they are proffering all sorts of illogical excuses about the organisation not being ready, finance needed to conduct elections, and the need to conduct house-to-house registration. Under the ill-fated and deliberate delaying guile of Patterson, it took this cabal more than 50 of the constitutionally prescribed 90 days to falsely inform the public that they needed up to July to be ready. Alexander perhaps hopes to gain forgiveness for his fallout with Granger over his previous challenge for leadership of the PNC/R. It also took international engagements of foreign diplomats for CEO Lowenfield to pronounce that the List was clean and valid up to the end of April 2019 and that updates through the 10 Continuous Registration, Claims and Objection processes, had served this purpose. I wish to emphasise that the process of validation of the Voters’ List complied with a process according to law, and not under the fantasy of the PNC/R, Alexander and his cohorts.

It is a fact that without actions to savour an extension of the constitutional timeline for the mandatory election, the Government becomes illegal after March 21, 2019. This

has damning consequences for the country at large and international partners are likely to invoke sanctions which put Guyana further into the doldrums of underdevelopment by the time corrective actions are accepted.

In context, the myopic view or pretence of the President puts in public view, the illegal business as usual approach of his Government, contrary to the intent of the amendment of to the Constitution to include Sections 106 and 107.

Accordingly, through the explanatory memorandum of Bill 14 of 2000, which is instructive to this effect, the drafters sought to ensure that the preservation of the President’s status quo for 90 days with the main purpose of ensuring the effective conduct of free and fair elections within the period.

The situation cannot be more obvious that a legal and clean Voters’ List as pronounced on by the CEO of GECOM’s Secretariat is inconvenient to the fallen APNU/ AFC coalition.

The Government Commissioners and its secretariat staff are aware of the basis for its legal mechanism governing, as well as the process implemented towards its continuous update. The Government is aware that its cabal has conducted a number of egregious acts against the people and is now taking steps to try to buy citizens influence.

The arguments for house-tohouse activities, therefore, merely serves to illegally grant the coalition time at the citizens’ detriment.

Sincerely, Neil Kumar

Dear Editor, I read with intrepid interest, the daily newspapers of Saturday March 9, 2019, of the situation faced by GECOM which, as all Guyanese know, is tasked with holding elections particularly in relation to the position of house-tohouse registration taken by a few Commissioners, and of the passing of Senior Counsel Bernard De Santos, with a heavy heart.

There could be a simple solution and a rather straightforward one to the situation faced by GECOM. The Commissioners should be looking at how other election officials deal with the Guyana situation in their jurisdictions and scrutinise the local pertinent three legislations affecting its work, and make a decision concerning a specific date which must be reasonable, while simultaneously addressing the issue of the more than 40,000 new voters.

GECOM is supposed to be neutral and make decisions based on fairness or else Guyana can be seen as undemocratic, which is truly not in Guyana’s best interest.

I would, therefore, suggest viewing the decision-making processes employed of the personnel attached to decision-making of their respective countries when it came to the very important time of the calling of their national elections, and in identifying a suitable day, except any Sunday, which is always set aside as the Lord’s Day, in particular, some of the English originated countries like Zimbabwe, Zambia, Somalia, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago, Nevis and Anguilla,

GECOM Chairman has been seduced by Govt

Dear Editor, First, President David Granger anointed Retired Justice James Patterson as Chairman of GECOM and then GECOM refused to hold General Elections, due

by March 19, 2019, after the

No-Confidence Motion was passed against the APNU/ AFC Government, citing one lame excuse after another.

This shows that the GECOM Chairman has been seduced by the APNU/AFC Government of President

David Granger much like the AFC has been seduced by the PNC/R. I suggest that Guyanese start standing up for their rights and take to the streets.

Let these wannabe dictators know that Guyanese do not

want Guyana to regress to the dismal days of pre-1992.

Affirmative action is needed to oust these wannabe dictators.

Yours faithfully, Sean Ori

No child should be vaccinated without parents’/guardians’ consent Dear Editor, I recently heard reports of staff of the Public Health Ministry, in collaboration with the Education Ministry, vaccinating underage children with the anti-HPV vaccine without first obtaining parental permission. In some areas, parents/guardians who do not want their child/children to get this vaccine are being tasked with writing and sending letters to the authorities – the ‘opt-out’ approach; otherwise their child will get vaccinated. Especially troubling, are reports from the hinterland regions about parents only receiving information about this vaccine after their children have already been vaccinated. This is a clear violation of both child and parental rights, as well as a potentially very dangerous approach – children’s medical histories, potential allergies, etc, are not being taken into proper consideration. It is important to have this information as it can determine whether or not the child should receive the vaccine and alert caregivers to potential negative side effects.

The fact is that every drug/medicine/ vaccine has side effects, some more serious than others, depending on each individual’s genetics, medical history, etc.

Gardasil, the anti-HPV vaccine, is no exception. While most of the reported side effects have been relatively minor thus

far, some more serious effects have been reported. Responsible and ethical healthcare providers would inform people – including the adults and guardians of underage children – of these, allowing them to make an informed decision. Responsible and ethical healthcare providers would also follow up and provide treatment for side effects that children may experience.

It is not clear that this is being done in Guyana, especially in the hinterland areas. This vaccine is a relatively new one, and although some amount of safety testing has been done by its manufacturer, research is still being conducted. Some side effects may not show up immediately but after some time; when side effects aren’t tracked properly, the long-term safety of the vaccine becomes questionable.

Vaccine side effects and safety concerns aside, the issue of consent remains.

Consent is, theoretically, a very simple concept - giving permission, saying yes or no to things affecting you. In sexual matters, not getting consent from someone equals rape. Consent is something we train youth – and adults – to ask for and obtain, as responsible and ethical persons. This is especially necessary in a nation like ours that’s suffering from an epidemic of sexual abuse. Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) is also a very important right of indigenous people in

particular. It has been recognised in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and highlights the importance of respectful inclusion of indigenous people in decision making on issues affecting them. Key to FPIC is not being coerced, threatened, or manipulated, and of being informed before any decision is made. Administering the anti-HPV vaccine to underage children – indigenous and non-indigenous – without parental permission is a clear violation of FPIC, as well as potentially dangerous, health-wise.

This action of the Public Health and Education Ministries needs to be stopped immediately. Parents/guardians of children nationwide, but especially in the hinterland regions where indigenous languages - not Standard English - often predominate, must not be forced to write ‘opt-in’ letters to the authorities. All information about potential vaccine side effects must be provided to parents/guardians and no child should be vaccinated without their parents’ free, prior, and informed consent. To do otherwise is to disrespect child and parental rights, and potentially harm children. Surely this is not what the caring authorities intend.

Sincerely, S Nageer

and Jamaica.

The Charter expresses the commitment of member states to the development of free and democratic societies and the promotion of peace and prosperity to improve the lives of all peoples of the Commonwealth.

The Charter also acknowledges the role of civil society in supporting the goals and values of the Commonwealth.

On a personal front, I have worked with the elections commission in Canada since 1978 in various roles during all three strata of electoral elections, ie, municipal, provincial and federal, and would suggest that GECOM cater for the (expected to be at least 40,000 voters) persons who are not on the List of Electors

by Special Ballot.

This process would allow Guyana to avoid house-tohouse registration yet cater for these aforesaid voters.

For example, Canada has been using Special Ballot. It takes an additional 5 minutes for that particular voter (as such a voter is directed to a special table set up beside the Returning Officer or Deputy Returning Officer which is manned by a Special Poll Clerk who is tasked with taking particulars of the voter – ie, things like driver’s licence, utility letter showing name and address, etc) to get authenticated, and then issued a ballot. Also, a period of one week is usually set aside prior to the date of election to allow any of those desirous to vote from either stream Special Ballot or regular ballot to cast an advance vote.

Whatever the route GECOM takes, I am not perturbed in any way, as I see seven excellent persons grappling with the issue of completing the elections in a reasonable speed, some being former Ministers of Government.

According to our cur-

rent law, which is based on a Westminster model from our former mother country, England, Guyana needs to hold an election any time after March 20, so a date must now be set by the said seven persons.

In this way, whichever date is chosen whether in early July 2019, which seems to me, a reasonable one, given the current stalemate between the GECOM Commissioners, the date of the elections will be set, and thus, all candidates can then get themselves into campaigning mode officially.

Guyanese are very lucky people because in some countries, several people who are responsible for holding elections either get fired immediately or dismissed shortly thereafter when they do not perform diligently at their paid job functions. If the Honourable Chief Justice Chambers, tremendously busy as those Chambers are, could have ruled in the relevant court case due to the aftermath of the NCM, within a mere 25 business days, why can’t the relevant official in his/her neutral and non-partisan capacity and tasked with the job of holding elections not do so I ask.

I was under the impression that those two wonderful politicians, Amna Ally and Gail Teixeira, were supposed to have sorted out this matter by now, as the two major parties in Parliament try to find headway in our nation’s affairs.

Perhaps, the seven persons dealing with this matter should consider having a tri-partite Meeting with themselves, Ally and Teixeira.

Yours truly, M Shabeer Zafar, Barrister and Solicitor (Ontario) Former Berbice attorney-at-law

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By Rae Jacobson

“H

ey beautiful, gimme a smile.”

“Why won’t you text me back???”

“I know you like me, even if you won’t say it.”

Sound familiar? If you’re female, the answer is probably yes.

Unfortunately, for the majority of women, unwanted sexual and romantic attention is a fact of life. Often beginning around puberty, it can range from awkward to annoying to downright terrifying. Many girls struggle with how to decline a romantic or sexual advance because they’re afraid of hurting someone’s feelings. And when the attention is aggressive or comes from someone older, it can be hard to know how to push back.

Parents can lay the groundwork to help girls protect both their safety and their boundaries by making sure they’re armed with healthy coping strategies.

Take it seriously

The first step to getting girls geared up to deal with unwanted attention is taking it seriously.

“What parents have to acknowledge is that from the moment their daughters hit puberty they’re likely to get attention,” says Dr David Anderson, a clinical psychologist at the Child Mind Institute, “and that some of that attention, whether it’s a lewd comment from a stranger, or a boy who won’t take no for an answer, is going to be unwelcome, uncomfortable or even scary.”

While most parents, he says, are aware that unwanted

guyanatimesgy.com

Foundation

attention happens, what some parents – especially dads who probably haven’t experienced it themselves – may not realise is how common, and how upsetting, it can be.

“We have a tendency to downplay these experiences,” says Dr Stephanie Dowd, a clinical psychologist. “But when we say, ‘Oh that’s no big deal, it happens to everyone,’ or suggest that it’s just part of life as a female, we’re implying that girls who feel victimised or upset are overreacting.” Instead, she says parents should send girls a clear message: “their feelings and boundaries are valid, and deserve to be respected.”

But don’t catastrophise

On the flip side, Dr Anderson says, it’s also important to fight the urge to overreact.

“As parents it’s natural to want to protect your child, but realistically you won’t be able to be by her side every day for the rest of her life,” he says.

Tempting as it may be to hire a full-time bodyguard, parents should focus on empowering girls to become their own advocates.

“Part of staying safe and feeling comfortable is having the ability to recognise when something is making you feel uncomfortable or unsafe,” says Dr Dowd, “And having the confidence to say, ‘What you’re doing is making me feel bad, and I don’t deserve that.’ ”

Ditch the blame

“One of the biggest mistakes we make when discussing unwanted attention is suggesting that women have somehow brought the problem on

themselves,”’ says Dr Anderson.

“Girls who are sexually harassed are not causing the harassment, sexual harassers are. But many end up feeling that without knowing it, they’ve somehow brought this negative interaction on themselves by wearing the wrong outfit, or being ‘too nice.’”

One thing that makes girls more likely to feel they are to blame is the implication that their bodies are somehow dirty or shameful. “Body positivity is so important,” says Dr Dowd. “If a girl gets the message that her body or sexuality is a bad thing, and then gets attention for it, she’s very likely to feel ashamed, or humiliated.” Likewise, she says, she is less likely to seek help if she experiences sexual harassment or assault.

In the end, Dr Anderson says, the message needs to be, “This is not your fault and it should not be your problem, but in case someone behaves badly I want to make sure you have the tools to deal with it in a way that helps you feel, and stay, safe.”

Help her set boundaries

When it comes to setting boundaries parents should start – but not stop – with the basics. “First things first,” says Dr Dowd. “No one has the right to touch you if you don’t want them to. Whether it’s an arm around your shoulder, a kiss or any kind of sexual contact.” Adds Dr Anderson: “It’s important for parents to help girls get comfortable with saying no, even if they’re experiencing pressure from friends – or from the other person.”

For many girls, not being mean, or being perceived as

mean or unfriendly, is a major concern – and a major pitfall, Dr Dowd explains. “For example, if a boy has a crush on a girl but she doesn’t feel the same way she might think, ‘He’s a nice person, and I really don’t want to kiss him, but I don’t want to be mean…’” Or maybe she does have a crush on him, but she isn’t ready for the kind of relationship he wants. Telling him no can be hard because she might be afraid he’ll think she’s a prude, or won’t like her anymore..

Girls often get the message that to be liked they have to be nice and accommodating and pleasing. This, Dr Dowd explains, results in “a struggle to feel like we’re deserving of our boundaries, especially when someone is questioning them.”

It’s important to help girls understand that they don’t owe anyone attention, no matter how nice, or popular, or pushy a suitor may be. And any boy worthy of your attention should respect your feelings.

To help your daughter assess her feelings when things get tricky, try coming up with a mental checklist she can run through: Does this feel good or bad?

Are you saying yes because you’re worried about hurting this person’s feelings?

Does spending time with this person make you happy?

Do you worry that asking this person to leave you alone could have consequences?

Are your friends pressuring you to hang out with this person even though you’re not that interested?

Is this person asking more from you – socially, romantically or sexually, than you feel

comfortable giving?

Another important way to empower her is to help her find – and practice – the words to use if someone isn’t respecting her boundaries. For example, she could say, “I don’t like that and I want you to stop.” Or “I’m just not interested” or “I’m not comfortable doing that.”

Pay attention to what she’s watching

“A lot of girl-oriented media focuses on the narrative that being liked or getting attention from boys is something girls should aspire to and be grateful for,” says Dr Dowd. “We want girls to take a second look at that and ask, ‘But…wait. Does she like him? Is she having any fun?’ ” Parents, she says, should work on helping girls become savvy consumers by teaching them to take a critical eye to media messaging. For example: Make time to watch your daughter’s favourite movies or shows together, and use the chance to point out examples of negative (and positive) romantic interactions. For example, “It seems to me like she’s said no a lot of times, but he won’t leave her alone. Does that seem okay to you?”

Spotlight shows, books and movies that have an empowering message.

Talk with her about what she reads, posts and watches on her social media feeds.

Talk about street harassment

According to the organisation Stop Street Harassment, by the time most girls are in their teens up to 99 per cent have experienced some form of public sexual harassment.

“Being catcalled on the street may seem like no big deal, but for a lot of girls the harassment can be deeply unsettling,” says Dr Dowd.

Parents should be careful not to normalise or dismiss harassment. “Street harassment may be common, but that doesn’t mean it’s okay,” notes Dr Dowd: “If something happens, make sure your daughter understands that it’s not her job to grin and bear it. Parents can help by talking openly about street harassment and working together with girls to come up with a plan for how they’ll react if it happens. Some ideas could include: Asking another woman or a family to walk with her until she’s out of range. “These guys are yelling at me and making me feel uncomfortable. Could I walk with you to the end of the block?”

Calling a friend or family member and staying on the phone until she feels safe.

Going into a store or restaurant.

Crossing the street.

Taking a picture of the

harasser with her phone.

Calling the behaviour out, if she feels safe responding in the situation, for example: “That’s disgusting and it makes me feel really bad.” “Actually, women hate this!”, “Would you talk to your own daughter like that?”

The dad dilemma

While most moms are likely no strangers to unwanted attention, the learning curve may be steeper for dads.

“Culturally, men just don’t get the same messages as women,” says Dr Dowd. “They’re less likely to have experienced the scary side of unwanted attention, and for a lot of them, hassling or hitting on women might even be something they thought was just fun, or complimentary in the past.”

The reality, she says, is that for a lot of fathers, having a daughter may be the first time they find themselves having to imagine what these experiences are like for women. If dads find themselves struggling to understand why unwanted attention can be so upsetting, they can start by asking the women in their lives if they’d be willing share their own experiences of sexual harassment or unwanted attention.

Staying safe

As girls get older, it’s important to talk honestly about staying safe when they’re hanging out with their friends.

Some common sense ground rules include: Avoiding alcohol and drugs.

If she’s going to a party or concert, attending with a group of friends, and making an agreement to watch out for one another.

Making sure her phone is on and charged, in case she needs to call for a ride or ask for help.

Not accepting rides from strangers, even ones her own age.

If someone is making her feel unsafe, make a scene: Get loud, and get out. Do whatever it takes to get away from the person and keep yelling until someone comes to help.

Be supportive

If something does happen – whether it’s a boy who won’t take no for an answer, a pushy friend or a stranger making lewd comments in the street – let your daughter know you have her back, even if she’s not ready to talk about it right away.

“Let your daughter know that it’s okay not to feel okay,” says Dr Dowd. “It’s common to have residual feelings about being harassed, and sometimes it takes a little while for the feeling to set in.” When she is ready to talk, take her seriously and make it clear that you love and support her, no matter what. (childmind.org)

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PPP spent over $2B from sugar levy to keep bauxite industry alive – Nandlall

Former Attorney General Anil Nandlall

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oth the sugar and bauxite industries were given priority statuses in their times of crises by the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) when it was in office amidst claims by the APNU/AFC Government and their supporters that this was not the case.

This is according to former Attorney General and PPP Member of Parliament, Anil Nandlall, who made his position clear on Saturday during a live broadcast of Globespan24x7.

Globespan24x7 hosted a discussion on bridging national unity in Guyana for which Nandlall and People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) executive, Aubrey Norton were the panellists.

“Every country has industries that ails over time.

It is the responsibility of the Government depending on the magnitude of that industry, its impact on the economy, its impact on the citizenry to do that which is necessary to ameliorate the situation to aid the industry…the PPP has done that with sugar as we have done with bauxite,” Nandlall said in response to attacks by Norton that it was the PPP who destroyed the sugar industry in Guyana.

According to the PPP

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PNC executive Aubrey Norton

MP, when former President Desmond Hoyte was giving one of his last speeches shortly before general elections in 1992, he declared that the bauxite industry would be closed but it was the PPP that kept this industry alive for many years.

To date, the bauxite industry is active but its workers are facing difficulties with their foreign employers.

Nandlall noted that this Government should be able to do much more than it presently is doing and has done for the workers in the bauxite industry as the PPP, during its tenure, never gave up on the same industry despite the challenges it faced.

“Over $2 billion was taken from sugar levy and pumped into bauxite industry to keep it alive until the divestment came… the PPP had a whole regime of poverty alleviation programmes designed, not on a racist or a racial basis, but targeting the various communities in Guyana because we did not craft policies or propagate initiatives based on ethnicity and race. We did it based on the economic environment and needs of these various communities.”

He further stated that the PPP gave over 1000 small logging concessions to

Guyanese because they were affected with the bauxite industry being taken over by Guyana Bauxite Company Inc – owned by RUSAL and the Chinese company, Bosai, in previous years.

However, though it is the responsibility of the Government of the day to keep such vital industries alive and protect its workers’ rights, bauxite workers are still encountering major problems with working conditions and measly salaries and wages.

Recently, 61 workers were dismissed by the Russian-owned bauxite company, RUSAL, after they led a strike action, objecting to a one per cent salary increase.

Subsequently, another 30 employees at that company were dismissed after the company had to temporarily close its operations in that department. The workers are all presently protesting against the company which they say has violated the laws of Guyana.

Their protests and picketing, along with those members of the Guyana Bauxite and General Workers Union as well as other unions in Guyana, are geared at having them reinstated with a higher salary increase.

These dismissed and displaced bauxite workers have blocked off the access road from the Berbice River leading to the company’s operations and they have no plans of removing the blockages until their voices are heard and the Government takes action against RUSAL. Since the issue arose, Government has been unable to resolve the issue and has even threatened to shut the company down if an amicable solution cannot be reached.

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Cops cannot refuse to take report from victims – Minister …says officers will be disciplined if found culpable

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ublic Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan has announced that all police stations are capable of taking statements and reports from persons, regardless of the situation or jurisdiction where the incident occurred since it can be forwarded to the relevant authorities.

This is in light of reports by frustrated victims of various crimes who are denied an opportunity to make a report or statement at some police stations since the offence reported did not occur within their jurisdiction. This has been an ongoing issue as members of the public have complained bitterly about being turned away or told to go to another police station to make a report.

Ramjattan, when asked about the issue, said that it is completely wrong for Police officers to do that and they can be disciplined for such practice.

“That is absolutely wrong on the Police Force and for a policeman to say that. The report ought to be taken and especially in the emergency na-

ture by the police that the person first went to, even if it is a telephone call to tell the other station that a report was taken here,” Ramjattan said.

According to him, the present system allows for all police stations to be informed immediately of any offences that they should be aware of within their jurisdiction. This means that if the statement is taken, it can be conveyed to the station that has to deal with the matter.

“That is what happens. If a murder is committed…almost all the police station can get to know immediately what is happening. So the report must be taken so that even though the relevant and more central police station that has to take it, which will be conveyed to the police station,” he said.

The Public Security Minister referred to this act as lethargy on the part of law enforcement officials, who are culpable of doing such. He further stated that in the process of eradicating these occurrences, those who are guilty will be disciplined.

“I think that might just be lethargy and laziness on the part of the policeman who was told about the report. That is what we’re trying to professionalise. We are in the process of ensuring and those cases where that happens, I would like to get a little short complaint from the citizen so that I can send it to the office of professional responsibility.

The policeman or station sergeant that does that will certainly be disciplined,” said

Ramjattan.

Just recently, a University of Guyana student was robbed at the Stabroek Market, where he fainted due to strangulation. Subsequently, the police outpost informed him that he should visit the Brickdam Police Station. There, the officers on duty reportedly jotted down his information and referred him to the Criminal Investigation Division (CID) which is responsible for such crimes.

36 new immigration officers recruited

The new recruits with senior officials of the Guyana Police Force

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he Guyana Police Force has recruited some 36 new immigration officers after they would have completed a rigorous six-week training programme.

The 10 males and 26 females were extracted from the ten administrative regions and completed the course on Friday.

According to the Force, this training covered several critical aspects as it relates to the daily demands of an immigration officer such as records management, data protection, profiling, interview techniques and trafficking in persons.

Assistant Commissioner Clifton Hicken told the new recruits that customer service is demanded at all levels of any organisation. Hicken commended the new officers, whom according to him, have transformed over a short period of time under the challenging circumstances.

Adding to that, Deputy Commissioner Paul Williams cautioned the new immigration officers of greater challenges ahead.

“As leaders, you will make mistakes, but it’s about what you do when you fall down that matters most,” he said.

Williams, who was also part of the team of facilitators for the immigration course, was taught extensively on ethics in law enforcement and social media among others.

In 2018, the Central Immigration Office issued 150,000 passports to citizens locally and abroad.

Through a screening process, it has recorded over 800,000 persons on entry and departure. In light of the decentralisation mechanism, the office has seen much more effectively managed operations, living up to the Force’s mandate to serve and protect.

Democracy betrayed…

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…again by PNC t’s said that “justice delayed is justice denied”. And in that context, the observation of philosopher of Liberal Democracy, John Rawls, that “Justice is the first virtue of social institutions”, is very apt; as David Granger, leader of the PNC and President of Guyana, tag teams with GECOM to delay the elections that were constitutionally mandated on March 21, 2019 by the successful no-confidence vote of Dec 21, 2018.

Elections are the very lifeblood of democracy, since quintessentially they facilitate its prime virtue: for the people, in exercising their franchise, to be able to say, “We, the people, in constituting a government….” And if that power is delayed, then we have to conclude that “a franchise delayed is justice denied”.

Just as it was when, for almost three decades, they turned us into an international pariah by rigging elections so blatantly that any mention of their government was invariably flagged with an asterisk!

In the last elections rigged by Burnham in 1980, the British Parliamentary Group of Observers described it as “more crooked than barbed wire”!! In those riggings, Burnham always started by corrupting the institution in charge of elections, GECOM, by first having a chairman – first Sir Donald Jackman and then Sir Harold Bollers (both ex-Chief Justices, not so incidentally!)- under his thumb, and then by fiddling with the voters’ list.

And so, when the US decided in 1990 to stop underwriting Burnham’s rigging and usher in “free and fair” elections, the first thing their proxy, the Carter Center, did was to come up with a GECOM Commission that would be fair, so as to deliver justice to the Guyanese people’s right to choose their government. The formula of three Commissioners nominated by the Government and three by the Opposition obviously demanded that the Chairman, with the casting vote, be neutral, or the whole mechanism would be biased.

And this is where Art 162 (2) comes in, since it was changed to demand consensus in choosing the Chairman between the President (Government) and the Opposition Leader– that it must come from a list submitted by the latter.

So when Granger was allowed to get away with unilaterally choosing the 85-year-old Justice James Patterson, it didn’t take even a whit of cynicism to conclude the PNC were up to their old tricks.

So this insistence by Granger that there can’t be elections until “GECOM” (read Patterson) is ready is just nonsense on stilts!! While Art 61 says the President sets the “time for elections”, Art 106 MANDATES that elections MUST be scheduled 3 months after a successful NCM. GECOM ain’t mentioned.

GECOM just has to do its goddamn job – run elections!! …phase 2 Back in the early days of Burnham’s rigging, a declassified file from the US archives showed that he’d proposed to the then US ambassador that he was planning to bring in “small islanders” from the Caribbean to neutralise the PPP’s advantage in numbers, after ditching the UF. While he did bring in some, they didn’t like the interior where they’d been sent to be kept under the radar.

The plan fizzled and he used “other means”!

Fast forward to the present, where the PNC also want to ditch their junior coalition partner (the AFC “dead meat”) and not surprisingly, they’re cogging from Burnham’s playbook to boost their numbers. So when it was revealed that thousands of Haitians who’d entered can’t be found – and now they’re automatically allowed to stay for six months -- rigging antennae are raised!!

Immigration Minister Felix says not to worry…the President’s directive is just executing a Caricom HoG decision. But that decision demanded they show the Haitians have the means to sustain themselves for that time!!

Was Immigration so instructed? …or saved?

New US Ambassador Sarah-Ann Lynch told the confirming Senate Committee on Foreign Relations she’s planning to “work with the Guyanese Government and people to build upon gains in democratic governance, the rule of law, and citizen security.”

Like constitutionally mandated elections???

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

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Another 163 officials fail to make declarations to Integrity Commission …GPL, GNBA, GO-Invest, GCAA, GLSC Heads among defaulters

GCAA Director General Egbert Field

GLSC CEO Trevor Benn

GNBA Chairman Leslie Sobers

Guyana Chronicle GM Sherod Duncan

GO-Invest CEO Owen Verwey

Guyana Power and Light CEO Albert Gordon

he Integrity Commission has published the names of 163 public officials who failed to make declarations as mandated by Section 19 of the Integrity Commission Act. The list of delinquent public officials was made public on Saturday in The Official Gazette of Guyana dated March 9, 2019. Among the defaulters on the list are General Manager of the Demerara Harbour Bridge Corporation, Rawlston Adams; Chief Executive Officer of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), George Lewis; Director General of Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), Egbert Field; CEO of the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GLSC), Trevor Benn; Chairman of the Guyana National Broadcasting Authority (GNBA), Leslie

Sobers; General Manager of the Guyana National Newspapers Limited, Sherod Duncan; CEO of the Guyana Office for Investment (GOInvest), Owen Verwey and CEO of Guyana Power and Light, Albert Gordon among others.

A breakdown of the list includes officials from the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA); Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE); Bureau of Statistics; Dependent Pension Fund; Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); GPHC; Guyana Gold Board; GuyOil and GPL among others.

The Integrity Commission was established with the aim of improving the public’s confidence in the integrity of persons in public office by ensuring that they submit their declarations in compliance with the Integrity Commission Act. However, over the years, the

Commission would have to publish the names of delinquent public officials in an effort to have them make their declarations. Under the law, any public officer who fails to comply with the Commission is liable upon summary conviction, to a fine of $25,000 and imprisonment for a period of not less than six months or more than one year.

Just over two weeks ago, Chairman of the Integrity Commission, Kumar Duraisami stated that there were 716 public officials who have not submitted their declarations to the Commission. As such, five lists of the various categories of public officials were published.

The Chairman noted that while there is a need for awareness on the Integrity Commission, most public officials have a general idea of the Commission’s functions

and their obligations. His contention was that there are some individuals who are willfully withholding declaring their assets to the Commission.

He noted that there are some defaulting officers, particularly in the Judiciary, who are questioning whether the function of the Commission is infringing on their constitutional rights by publishing their names.

“I am in no position or this Commission is in no position to use a discretion as

to whether or not we should publish the names. If they think that they ought not to make their declarations to the Commission, then they can go the court and say ‘my position is secured by the Constitution and I’m not obliged or obligated to submit to the Commission’…

This Commission has no discretion. We will have to publish their names if they don’t submit,” the Chairman insisted.

The Integrity Commission Act was assented to on September 24, 1997.

The Act provides for the establishment of the Integrity Commission and makes provisions for the purpose of securing the integrity of persons in public life. The Commission has the power to do anything for the proper performance of its function and in discharging its function; it is not subject to the direction or control of any other person or authority.

The Commission also has the authority to regulate its own procedure and may make rules for that purpose.

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Traffickers finding innovative ways to ship drugs – CANU

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hose involved in trafficking illicit drugs through the postal services in Guyana are no longer sticking to the “traditional” method of mailing the substance inside of an envelope or package but have now come up with innovative ways.

This is according to Deputy Head of the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU), Lesley Ramlall, who told the media on Saturday that traffickers are being innovative and creative in the illicit trade.

According to Ramlall, of recent, traffickers are concealing small amounts of drugs underneath the stamps attached to mails and packages.

Ramlall pointed out that this is a worrying trend that can pose serious problems to curbing the issue of traffick-

ing of illicit substances in Guyana. He added that the only sure way of law enforcement officials being on top of the situation is to have continuous training both locally and internationally.

“So you have the envelope and then you place the stamp on the envelope but the narcotics was placed under the stamp and then placed on the e n velope. So, it was really small amounts b u t when y o u look at over 2 0 0 mails and then you take out a gram or a gram and a half from each one

then you realise the amount.

So, people, traffickers are finding all sorts of ingenious ways…if you are accustomed as a law enforcement officer and you are not trained and you do not have that skill set obviously, they (traffickers) are going to beat you all the time,” Ramlall said.

Regional

Meanwhile, with regard to cannabis being shipped to Barbados, C A N U

does not have any reports of the illegal substance going further than to that country.

“If from Barbados it is going further afield we have not been able to ascertain that neither our colleagues in Barbados have been able to ascertain that but certainly there is a lucrative market in Barbados…while we have the local consumption, we are also seeing the importation of cannabis coming out of Jamaica and of recent, looking at what is coming through the ports now with the legalisation of cannabis in some developed countries, we are already seeing the importation of that into Guyana,” CANU’s Deputy Head further stated.

He said that quite recently, there was a seizure of cannabis at a popular

Lesley Ramlall

shipping company, and that cannabis came to the country from the United States.

“Even last year we had a seizure coming from Canada so that is something law enforcement we now have to

be aware of and it certainly poses another challenge for Guyana and all other law enforcement agencies. So it is no longer looking at cannabis coming from Jamaica and seeing that fine deal with cannabis from here and Jamaica. The importation from cannabis from the developed countries certainly poses a threat and here again it is not only for law enforcement but those other couriers.”

Ramlall noted that agencies involved in trading, as well as importers, need to be much more careful, now more than ever, with commodities that they want to bring into Guyana because there is a possibility that folks can attempt to put illegal substances within containers or shipments.

(Kristen Macklingam)

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Porter crushed to death by container truck

A The PNC and the Armed Forces

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s Guyana appears headed for another round of rigged elections under the leader of the PNC, this time Brigadier (Rtd) David Granger, history stands in danger of repeating itself. But as Marx warned, while the first time (under Burnham, in our instance) it is “tragedy”, the second time it will be a “farce”, since it is a caricature of the first. Which is really of no consequence to the folks under the new jackboots.

But the tragedy can recur only when those who suffered the first time around did not deal with the reasons for their tragedy.

In the case of a new PNC dictatorship, these were the triad of institutions that Burnham controlled, which formed the pillars of his regime – the PNC party, the Bureaucracy/ Civil Service, but especially the Armed/Disciplined Forces, which allowed him to do whatever he pleased – especially rigging elections.

In contrast to the other institutions, the Disciplined Forces were transmuted in form and size after 1969, when Burnham had Ravi Dev already rigged elections; seized sole control of the Government by jettisoning the PNC’s erstwhile coalition partner the UF; and launched the Guyana Defence Force (1965). By then he had no need to make concessions to internal opposition forces, and the development of the Disciplined Forces provided a very reliable guide to Burnham’s political ideology, which interestingly was entrusted to a very junior officer: David Granger, who has vowed to fulfil Burnham’s legacy, and revealed he was “always PNC”.

Using as the rationale an aborted secessionist uprising in the remote Rupununi -- which was put down by the 2nd Battalion of the GDF), in which now President Granger served as Adjutant; and proactive actions by Venezuela and Suriname in their border claims, all in 1969 -- Burnham boosted the manpower of the armed forces from 2,631 in 1966 to over 21,000 by 1976.

The resulting ratio of one soldier to every thirty-five civilians was one of the highest in the world.

Burnham though, could never even offer an explanation, at least publicly, why this new, massive armed force was 90 per cent Creole/African in a nation with over 53 per cent Indians.

Burnham envisioned that the armed forces, with their rigid hierarchical command structure, were the most efficient vehicle for the mobilisation of the African/Creole youth. The GDF, formed just before Independence, and the Guyana Police Force (GPF) were joined by the Guyana National Service (GNS) in 1974 and the Guyana People’s Militia (GPM) in 1976. The women and youth arms of the P.N.C., the Women’s Revolutionary Socialist Movement (W.R.S.M.) and the Young Socialist Movement (Y.S.M.) were also armed.

The Forces were extensively politicised by a unit headed

by David Granger, with the expressed mandate granted to involve the army in the “total development” of the country and the people. There were very meagre developmental accomplishments, but the army’s ubiquitous presence among the population, their seizure of ballot boxes during elections (1973), their use as intimidators and strike-breakers, and their unswerving loyalty to Burnham were “accomplishments” crucial to the survival of his regime.

When the PPP acceded to office in 1992, it seemed logical to most that they would have attempted to make the Armed Forces more representative of the country’s populace, if for nothing else than their own security against what ex-President Desmond Hoyte had described as “kith and kin” in the said forces. But with no action taken excepting to allow the GPM and GNS to wither, veteran PPP stalwart Ashton Chase futilely asked this question openly, since he pointed out that, before Burnham seized power, this was a burning issue with the PPP. Especially since Burnham had demanded not “any abstract loyalty”, but the military’s involvement and unswerving support - which he called the policy of ‘Non-Neutralism’. They committed their total allegiance to the ideology of the P.N.C., “and not to any other Government’. This meant that if the P.N.C. were somehow to be removed from office, the army would not necessarily have to support the new Government.

Burnham, as Chairman of the Defence Board, also personally appointed all officers, who swore a personal oath of loyalty to him; and senior officers participated in the Biennial Congresses of the P.N.C. Granger has appointed ex-military officers to a majority of Government departments; reintroduced the People’s Militia and the Cadets Corps, and boosted the manpower of the other forces.

The new Public Service College has followed suit.

We can expect Granger to continue following Burnham’s authoritarian footsteps if he is allowed to rig the upcoming elections. Be warned.

porter was killed on Saturday after he was crushed by a container truck in the vicinity of Karakara and the Guyana Forestry Commission toll booth at Mackenzie, Linden.

The dead porter has been identified as J Anthony. According to police, the motor lorry, GSS 1407 along with trailer TMM 2242 which was driven by a 28-year-old man of Ogle Street, Triumph, East Coast Demerara (ECD), was proceeding east along the northern side of the Karakara public road when the porter disembarked to pay the toll.

The police said that after doing so, the porter reportedly jumped back on the lorry’s gas tank, which is situated on the left side of the front portion of the truck while it was still in

The container truck which ran over the porter

motion.

The porter reportedly lost his grip, causing him to fall onto the roadway between the lorry and the trailer and was run over by the trailer. As a result, the porter received injuries about his body.

After the incident, the body remained on the roadway for some time before

a doctor from the Linden Hospital Complex went to the scene and pronounced him dead.

Speaking with this publication, an employee at the toll booth said that some drivers of container trucks, in an effort to avoid paying the exact toll, would usually send their porters to the toll booth with less money.

The employee alleged that the drivers would then drive slowly while the porter pays and afterwards the porter would quickly make their way back to the truck which would then drive off.

The driver was taken into Police custody where he is said to be assisting with the investigation.

Alleged bandit drops cellphone with photo at crime scene …slapped with robbery charges

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30-year-old man was on Friday slapped with two counts of robbery under arms and made a court appearance at the Albion Magistrate's Court, Berbice.

Christopher Haynes, of Number 41 Village, Berbice, appeared before Magistrate Renita Singh.

It is alleged that on

October 26, 2018, Haynes, while armed with a handgun, assaulted and robbed a 60-year-old cattle and rice farmer along with his wife at the couple's home in Corentyne, Berbice.

The pair were robbed of a shotgun, jewellery and cash. Following the robbery, it was reported that the two gunmen made good

their escape. However, a cellular phone was recovered at the crime scene, containing a photo of Haynes.

Police began a hunt for the man since last year but were only able to nab him on March 6, 2019.

Reports are that persons contacted the police saying that a suspicious person was staying in an abandoned house at Number 72 Village, Corentyne.

Upon visiting the abandoned home, the police found Haynes there and he was subsequently arrested.

The young man denied the allegations while at the Number 51 Police Station, however, he was hauled into the court on Friday.

He was also charged for

Charged: Christopher Haynes

another robbery that he allegedly committed on another man in Berbice. Bail was refused, and the case will continue on March 27, 2019.

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Teen allegedly beaten by Police …suffers broken jaw, several missing teeth

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teenager was on Friday admitted a patient at a city hospital after he was allegedly beaten by police ranks on patrol in the vicinity of America Street, Georgetown.

Shamar Tanner, 19, remains a patient of a city hospital nursing a broken jaw, several missing teeth and other injuries.

According to the teen’s relatives, the incident occurred at about 19:00h on America Street. The relative noted that the teen saw the police on patrol and ran away after he knew he had

a “joint” (a quantity of marijuana) in his possession.

“He had a joint on he and he was going to light it and then he see the police and start to run and then they start chasing he,” the relative claimed.

Tanner’s relative related that as he was being beaten, the police ranks kept asking him “where is the weed?”

When contacted, Commander of A Division Marlon Chapman said he is aware of the incident and assured that the matter is currently under investigation.

“At this time, I would

Schools vaccination programme

Head Teacher, medical officer breached protocol

…disciplinary actions recommended

A

The injured teen Shamar Tanner

not discuss what happened but what I can say is that the matter is currently being investigated,” the Commander said.

Meanwhile, a source close to the investigation told this newspaper that the ranks on patrol have since submitted statements denying the beating.

The ranks, according to the source, claimed that a metal object was thrown at the teen by someone after he was being chased.

According to them, that was the reason for the injuries he sustained.

n investigation into the recent incident where several pupils of the Lochaber Primary School in West Canje, Berbice, were given vaccines without the consent of their parents has revealed that both the school’s Head Teacher and the medical officer who administered the vaccines did not adhere to protocols set out by the Education and Health Ministries.

Head of the Regional Education Committee Zamal Hussain presented a reported to the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) late last week during which he stated that the acting Regional Education Officer Bhagmatie La Cruz had reported to the Education Committee that two children from Lochaber Primary School fell ill after they were given HPV vaccines.

This publication had reported last Sunday that the vaccines were administered on Tuesday and by the next day, several pupils had to be rushed to the New Amsterdam Hospital for treatment. While it is normal for persons to have some side effects to vaccines, the parents of the children had contended that they never gave

permission for the vaccine to be administered.

Several parents reached out to the media after they were forced to rush their children to the hospital after they fell ill. It was after this occurred that they were informed of the vaccination programme.

Hussain told the RDC that the head of the Lochaber Primary breached the protocol whereby she did not ensure that the parental consent forms were signed by parents before the HPV vaccines were administered.

Hussain, who also heads the Regional Health Committee, said it was also found that the health worker who administered the vaccines also breached protocol by not seeing the medical cards of the pupils.

He said recommendations will be made as it relates to disciplinary actions for both public servants.

Director of the Regional Health Services, Jevaughn Stephens said that in collaboration with the Education Ministry, all Head Teachers were invited to a meeting at the Berbice High School, where they were told about the vaccines and given consent forms to give to the parents.

NEWS

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SUnDAY, march 10, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Business Minister admits political climate affecting local investments

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n light of the ongoing uncertainty created by the non-compliance of Guyana’s Constitution for the announcement of an elections date following the passage of the no-confidence resolution on December 21, 2019, Business Minister Dominic Gaskin has admitted that investment is being affected by the political situation.

In an interview with Guyana Times on Saturday, Gaskin said that the state of affairs is impacting local business investments.

While the situation is affecting local investments, the Minister claimed that foreign investors, especially those in the oil and gas sector, are not detoured.

“I know that generally, local investors, if they sense that there is any sort of political uncertainty, they are not the foreign investors, not the oil and gas sector or anything like that but a lot of our local investors who may be planning a project or something,” Gaskin said.

He added, “Some of them will tend to want to wait and see just in case. It’s always, it’s unfortunate but it’s always been the case where too much emphasis is placed on politics and sometimes when politicians are at war or are battling each other, the business community allows itself to

be impacted. I don’t really think it should I don’t see any cause for concern or for panic because we are a mature democracy by now and we are capable of handling these situations without it spilling over into our economy”.

Although Gaskin assured that the ongoing political situation in Guyana will not affect foreign investors, the members of the American, British, Canadian and European (ABCE) diplomatic community recently met with officials from the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) during which concerns were raised about the impact the current political situation can have on potential investment opportunities.

The diplomats met with GECOM’s Chairman, Commissioners and members of the Commission’s secretariat after Chairman of the entity, retired Justice James Patterson used his deciding vote to pass the motion to inform the President that General Elections cannot be held by the constitutional March 19, 2019, deadline.

A major businessman, Derek Chin, Chairman of MovieTowne has previously told this newspaper that he was awaiting the outcome of the no-confidence

Business Minister Dominic Gaskin

motion’s legal issues before opening for business.

In February, the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) said it had conducted a study following the passage of the December 21, 2018, no-confidence motion and found that the looming political uncertainty has caused some 64 per cent of businesses to register some sort of decline.

The Chamber said it was concerned about the effect of the impact of the associated uncertainty on the business community, adding that it was that level of uncertainty which prompted the survey to gauge the effect of the political environment on business performance.

“From the results, 64 per cent of respondents (or about two in every three

businesses) experienced some form of decline due to

uncertainty over the state of political affairs in Guyana.

For those businesses which registered a decline in activity, approximately 85 per cent experienced a 25 to 50 per cent drop in the level of commercial activity. The remaining 15 per cent experienced 75 to 100 per cent decline in business,” the GCCI said.

The passage of the December 21, 2018, no-confidence motion saw the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government being toppled. The motion

was moved by Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo and carried in a 33-32 vote, with AFC MP Charrandas Persaud defecting in a vote of conscience in favour of the motion.

Meanwhile, with less than two weeks remaining before the country heads into a constitutional crisis, the David Grangerled Administration on Friday shot down a People’s Progressive Party (PPP) proposal to have elections held before the current voters’ list expires on April 30, 2019.

14 news

SUnDAY, march 10, 2019| guyanatimesgy.com

Businessman builds mortuary, bridges for Hururu residents

International Day of Forests

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uyana has vast forests, which cover more than three-quarters of its landmass and contain numerous tree species. Additionally, Guyana has a very low deforestation rate, which is often used as an excuse for mismanagement of forest resources.

However, our forests provide invaluable services, and the importance of protecting and conserving our enormous forest resources cannot be over-emphasised.

Therefore, Guyana will be joining the rest of the world, on Thursday, March 21, 2019, in celebrating this very important and diverse ecosystem: the forest.

Ameer Bacchus

The Hururu Village Mortuary

Crabwood Creek, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) saw miller has invested millions of dollars to assist residents of Hururu Village along the Berbice River in

Region 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice).

A mortuary is among the projects built by the businessman for the community.

The mortuary was handed over to the village coun-

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cil. According to saw miller Ameer Bacchus, this will see the phasing out of the old village practice of having to dig a hole in the ground into which the deceased and ice were placed until the funeral.

The $4.5 million mortuary will also benefit the neighbouring villages of Aroaima, Wikki-Culcuni, Tacama, Ituni, and Waruni and many other villages along the Upper Berbice River.

According to Bacchus, the nearest mortuary is situated at Kwakwani, which is some distance away.

He said electricity was provided to the facility but while it does not have a freezer, facilities are in place to preserve the bodies until the families decide on the final resting place.

Hururu has 700 residents. It is the community to where Bacchus brings out his logs to ship them down river.

Bacchus said the initiative was part of his social responsibility to the people of Hururu Village since he has a logging concession in the community and has invested millions of dollars as well as offered employment to persons there.

According to the businessman, he has also invested in ensuring that the children and adults are educated and has donated books to the village library also.

In addition, three bridges have also been constructed by Bacchus in the area to benefit schoolchildren.

“Last month, I build three bridges in the Village to assist with crossing over the creeks. The ones that they had had been destroyed and crossing was very difficult and during the rainy season some children could not get to school,” Bacchus told <<Guyana Times>>> during a visit to the area.

“It was bad for the children going to school. They have all kind of things to cross. This one was not here; I know they are glad for that. The two that he build over there were really bad; anything could have fallen down,” 84-year-old Edmund Mittelholzer, a resident of Hururu, told this newspaper.

Another resident, Hansul Vandenburg said that Bacchus has contributed immensely to the village and it was good to see people fulfilling their social responsibility.

Bacchus, however, said that he was happy to give back to the community and has indicated that his next undertaking would be to build a church for the community. (Andrew Carmichael)

International Day of Forests March 21 has been designated as the “International Day of Forests” by the UN General Assembly. The goal of this observance is to help us to appreciate the importance of forests and of trees to our world, and to raise awareness of the threats. Each year, a theme is selected to highlight a specific area of interest. This year’s theme, ‘Forests and Education’, seeks to raise awareness on how sustainably managed forests provide a wide array of contributions in this area. Therefore, education is vital for proper management of forests.

The Importance of Forests Forests not only provide livelihoods for more than 1.7 billion people and over 2000 indigenous cultures, they provide more than 50 per cent of the shelter for species such as insects and animals. They also balance out the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide (CO2) in the environment; protect the watersheds which supply fresh water to rivers; provide food for a variety of insects, mammals, birds and reptiles; and can cool the air in urban areas by as much as between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius.

Why should you be concerned?

Over 32 million acres of forests are lost with every passing year. This removes vital habitats for numerous plant and animal species, lowers carbon dioxide absorption and oxygen production, and increases the world’s collective carbon footprint. In fact, almost as much CO2 is emitted during deforestation efforts as is by the world’s transportation industry. Forests still cover around 30 percent of Earth’s land mass, but these important natural resources are shrinking day by day.

Did you know?

Forests cover 1/3 of the earth’s surface and contain an estimated 3 trillion trees.

The most common pressures causing deforestation and severe forest degradation are agriculture, unsustainable forest management, mining, infrastructure projects, and increased fire incidents and intensity. These are all issues which can be addressed with proper management of forests.

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

15 Guyana’s lone zoo filled with empty cages news

SUnDAY, march 10, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Considerations for a modular oil refinery

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n light of recent revised estimates of recoverable oil reserves offshore Guyana by ExxonMobil, it is time to revisit the feasibility of an oil refinery. The Government of Guyana had contracted an international consultant to conduct a feasibility study of an oil refinery in Guyana.

That presentation concluded that an oil refinery (a conventional refinery) would not be feasible in Guyana against the backdrop of the capital investment it would require, which was estimated at some US$5 billion.

Indeed, Guyana cannot afford such an investment, even if the capital were to be mobilised through a public/ private partnership; because US$5 billion is greater than Guyana’s GDP, which is merely close to US$4 billion, and real GDP is about US$2 billion.

However, there are refineries that are far less costly to build, which are known as “modular refineries”. These refineries are usually capable of producing between 5,000 and 30,000 barrels of crude per day. These types of refineries have also experienced a trend in growing demand, largely driven by government initiatives in countries such as Nigeria and Indonesia for example, to add local refining capacity to offset continued growth of importing finished products for growing consumer demand (UOP, 2017).

The advantages of the modular refineries include: lower investment costs; being sized for lower local demand; modular fabrication offsite for higher quality, shorter schedule; and possibility for future relocation.

The disadvantage in comparison to the traditional larger refineries is that traditional refineries have improved economies of scale, can produce a wider variety of refined products, can be integrated into petrochemical operations, and offer more flexibility (UOP, 2017).

In order to determine the viability of a modular refinery with a production capacity of 30,000 bpd, it is prudent to first establish what is the current demand or consumption of refined crude oil products, particularly fuel. To do so, data is readily available on the Guyana Energy Agency website, as illustrated in the table below: PRODUCTS

BBLS

C.I.F. VALUE US$

MOGAS: Unleaded

1,174,006

143,806,446

GASOIL/DIESEL

2,139,198

260,334,967

KERO

86,930

10,819,182

AVJET

70,196

8,744,200

FUELOIL

1,257,255

116,133,335

AVGAS

9,774

2,011,612

L.P.G

201,497

19,783,956

TOTAL

4,938,855

561,633,697

Given the above data for 2014, total imports of refined crude products, inclusive of C.I.F (cost, insurance and freight) values, amounted to US$561.6 million; and in terms of quantity, is close to five million barrels. So we can safely say Guyana’s average annual consumption is about five million barrels of crude annually, which works out to 13,700 barrels of crude per day.

Therefore, a modular refinery with production capacity of 30,000 barrels per day would be able to satisfy Guyana’s local consumption needs of refined crude products, which would also save a hefty import bill of in excess of US$500 million annually, and the excess production can easily be exported to other CARICOM countries.

In fact, this is more reason why Guyana should start considering a modular refinery, given that Petrotrin in Trinidad & Tobago was recently closed down, which thus prompted CARICOM countries to have to secure new suppliers of fuel. This is therefore a strategic opportunity that Guyana, becoming the next oil producing country in the region, should position itself to advance these avenues and maximise profit.

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

One of the many empty cages in the zoological park

By Davina Ramdass

G

uyana’s only zoo, which is located within the Botanical Gardens that many would recall as one of the most exciting places to visit as a child has deteriorated over the years to become a habitat for birds and some reptiles.

During a visit to the once “magical” destination on Saturday, Guyana Times observed that the spark was missing in the children’s eyes, as well as the excitement in their voices shouting, “Mommy look at the lion!”

Speaking of the lion, there is none at the country’s lone Zoo, Lama Avenue, Georgetown.

The cages are occupied by a few birds, exotic cats, including the Jaguar and about two others. Huge snakes, caimans, turtles and monkeys were among the few animals that could have been seen in the dull environment.

Over at the petting zoo, within the park were a few donkeys, turtles and goats along with a few disappointed children, who never even bothered to touch the animals.

As this newspaper toured the facility, visitors were complaining of the state of the zoo even as some regretted paying their monies to enter the facility.

Persons were even expressing worry over the condition of the animals, specifically the exotic cats which seemed to be sick. Persons told Guyana Times that the animals appeared to be unwell as they recall the animals were quite active a few years ago.

Concerns would have been raised over the years about the limited space the animals are usually confined to, especially since in their natural habitat, they would be allowed to run about and climb and jump.

Walking into the park, one would usually first stop at the manatee pond, which was once a major attraction at the zoo.

That too has dwindled to become nothing but water covered in overgrowth, as none of the mammals could have been spotted.

On the note of marine life, one would recall the zoo having quite an excit-

ing aquatic building with a range of fish. That building was closed during Guyana Times’ visit. It was unclear what the situation was that led to it being shut.

Upgrade coming

With the small number of animals in the zoo, Business Minister Dominic Gaskin, who has the responsibility for Guyana’s tourism told this newspaper that plans are in the making for a better zoological park.

According to him, the Guyana Wildlife Conservation and M a n a g e m e n t Commission (GWCMC) is considering a safari type zoo.

“We would like to be able to showcase some of our

The condition of the manatee pond

wildlife but in conditions that are internationally acceptable, if that means moving the zoo to somewhere where there is more space or having a more safari type facility then so be it but I am not sure what the long-term plan is, I only know that it is being looked at and that there are regulations specifically dealing with zoological parks.”

The Minister said although the Government is considering to move the zoo, no new location has been identified to his knowledge.

The Minister would only say, “I know that there are plans to do some, well to implement some new regulations concerning the treatment of wildlife as well as how zoos or a whole set of regulations for zoos and a

few other areas related to wildlife activities”.

He added, “All I know is that it is modern regulations and it is designed to really change the way we do things when it comes to the zoo. I’m not even sure whether the zoo, as it is, is going to continue or how it is going to be operated after the regulations take effect”.

The zoo officially opened its gates to the public back in 1952. Its grounds have been used as the Botanical Gardens since 1895.

The filled cages with harpy eagles and hungry lions once managed to transform a child’s face in seconds from being excited when the eagles flew around to say hello to afraid when the lions roared to ask for some food.

16 news Former AG Bernard De Santos hailed as legal luminary T SUnDAY, march 10, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

ributes and condolence messages have been pouring in following the passing of former Attorney General Bernard De Santos on Friday evening.

De Santos was 80 at the time of his passing. He was appointed Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister under the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration following the October 5, 1992 elections.

After serving in those positions for five years, Senior Counsel De Santos returned to his illustrious private practice.

On Saturday, President David Granger, in a brief statement, extended condolences at the passing of De Santos. He was joined by former President and Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo, who on behalf of the PPP/C, also offered his heartfelt sympathy to the family, relatives, and friends of the former AG. Meanwhile, PPP Executive Member Anil Nandlall, also a former Attorney General, took to his social media page to express his sadness at the passing of De Santos.

“I awoke this morning to

said the legal fraternity is mourning the loss of one of its stalwarts.

“Mr De Santos was one of the leading Senior Counsels in the country and, while he was an experienced and knowledgeable lawyer in every field of practice, his specialty was in the field of criminal law, and more especially in jury trials of the most serious offences.

He was also an expert at

Former Attorney General Bernard De Santos, SC

the tragic news that Bernard Celestino De Santos, SC, has departed this world. That we have lost a towering giant, who has distinguished himself at both the criminal and civil bar over the last 40 years, is to merely state a truism. Like every one of those of his pre-eminent ilk, his was a style unique to him and carefully chiselled to coincide with his effervescent personality: it was an admixture of intellect, charm, elegance and smooth but emphatic aggression when necessary,” Nandlall stated.

According to Nandlall, “Only a few weeks ago, he gifted me a red tie which he insisted that I wear when Parliament resumes. I cer-

tainly am privileged to have known such a giant and will surely miss him. Rest in peace, Celestino!!”

In addition, Attorney-atLaw Sanjeev Datadin also hailed De Santos in a post on his Facebook page. “…the world stands still for you. A legend in your own time; there was no better “storyteller” in the legal profession. Thank you for showing me the ropes of the profession when I started and for starting me on the path which I am on today. Say it ain’t so, Gringo. I can’t believe you have gone home...

RIP Gringo…” Datadin said.

Meanwhile, the Bar Council of the Guyana Bar Association in a statement

cross-examination and could often be seen in the courtroom skilfully and patiently breaking down the evidence of witnesses opposing his clients’ cases,” the statement outlined.

According to the Bar Council, De Santos was also a gifted raconteur and was frequently at the centre of a group of lawyers on the courthouse corridors, as he regaled them with stories of

cases and judges from days gone by.

“He was kind and patient with younger lawyers and he mentored many junior lawyers who were new to intricacies of the profession. Mr De Santos’s passing leaves a vacuum in the profession and he will be sorely missed.

The Bar Council extends its deepest condolences to the family of Mr Bernard De Santos,” the missive stated.

news

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SUnDAY, march 10, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Flying Doctors of America complete Tunisian Health Minister medical mission in Guyana resigns over 11 baby deaths

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The Flying Doctors of America medical mission team along with Ministers Volda Lawrence and Dr Karen Cummings

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fter completing their seven-day medical outreach here in Guyana, the Flying Doctors of America were sent off with a farewell reception hosted by the Public Health Ministry.

The 13-member team comprising of a rheumatologist, emergency room doctors, family physician, paediatrician, dermatologist, orthodontist, paediatric dentist and dentist spent their time in Guyana tending to residents in the Rupununi, Region Nine.

The Public Health Ministry’s International Desk on Friday collaborated with the Flying Doctors of America for a small ceremony at the Marriott Hotel in celebration of the successful completion of their mission.

While delivering brief

remarks, Chief Medical Officer of the Flying Doctors of America Dr John Arledge thanked the team for their outstanding work during the outreach here.

Dr Arledge assured that his team will be returning to offer similar services based on the Ministry’s recommendation.

The Flying Doctors of America medical mission began in Region Nine (Upper Takatu-Upper Essequibo) and was able to provide medical services at the various health centres and health posts in Annai, Surama, Iwokrama and Fairview from February 23 to March 02.

Junior Public Health Minister, Dr Karen Cummings had previously emphasised the importance of close collaborations with

international agencies in order to meet the healthcare needs of Guyanese, especially those in the hinterland regions where specialist care might not be readily available.

Cummings wants earlier engagements between international agencies and the Regional Health Services to determine the priority areas where specialist services and care are needed The need for capacity-building in the health sector is high on the Ministry’s agenda, Cummings said emphasising the current need for foreign specialists, especially in the country’s sprawling interior.

Further, she thanked the Flying Doctors of America for choosing Guyana and making it a part of its medical missions.

he Tunisian Health Minister Abderraouf Cherif has resigned following the deaths of 11 newborn babies at a hospital in the capital, Tunis.

Tunisia’s health ministry said evidence suggested they had all died from septic shock between 7-8 March.

Prime Minister Youssef Chahed said investigations have been launched into the state-run facility’s medical, pharmaceutical and hygiene practices.

Cherif’s resignation comes just four months after his appointment.

In a Facebook post, Tunisia’s paediatrics society said the infection may have been caused by an intrave-

nous product.

The group also criticised “precarious conditions in which health professionals work”.

Tunisia’s public healthcare had a reputation as one of the best in North Africa, and medical tourism is a

source of considerable revenue for the country.

But since the overthrow of President Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali in 2011, the system has been hampered by management and financial problems, along with recurrent drug shortages. (BBC)

14 killed in Colombia plane crash

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ourteen people were killed in a plane crash in the Colombian plains province of Meta on Saturday, the country’s civil aviation agency said.

The Special Administrative Unit of Civil Aeronautics said there were no survivors of the crash,

which occurred after the DC-3 aircraft made a distress call at 10:40h local time (15:40 GMT).

The plane, which is owned by Laser Aereo airlines, was en route from the southern city of San Jose del Guaviare to central Villavicencio, the agen-

cy said.

It crashed about midway through its flight, in San Carlos de Guaroa municipality.

The airline said it had no immediate comment.

In a later statement posted on Twitter, the agency named those who had died, including the mayor of a small town in the jungle province of Vaupes.

The aircraft’s navigability permissions were up-todate, as were the medical certifications of its crew, the agency added. (Reuters)

18 Around the World SUnDAY, march 10, 2019 | guyanatimesGY.com

Police block Opposition protesters US firm returns $400m as tensions rise in Venezuela fund to Saudi Arabia over Khashoggi murder

Supporters of Venezuelan Opposition Leader and self-proclaimed acting President Juan Guaido, demonstrate in front of a line of National Bolivarian Police Officers in Caracas on Saturday

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iot police blocked protesters as thousands of people took to the streets Saturday with tensions rising between opposition leader Juan Guaido and President Nicolas Maduro after crisis-wracked Venezuela emerged from the chaos of an electricity blackout.

Both Guaido and Maduro, who are locked in a bitter power struggle for the right to lead the oil-rich South American nation, had asked their supporters to fill the streets of Caracas and other cities in rival demonstrations.

“We want to march! Yes we can!” shouted opposition protesters as riot

police prevented them from accessing the street in east Caracas where their demonstration was due to take place.

Overnight, security services had stopped the opposition from setting up a stage in an avenue where their protest was due to take place.

“They think they can scare us but they will get a surprise from the people in the street,” Guaido tweeted.

“They think they can wear us down, but there’s no way they can contain a population that has decided to end the usurpation,” added the leader of the opposition-controlled legislature, who is recognised as Venezuela’s interim president by more than 50 countries.

Guaido is trying to force out Maduro — whose May re-election he deems illegitimate — in order to set up new elections.

Opposition lawmakers denounced the overnight arrest of three people who were setting up a stage at the opposition rally site.

Maduro has asked his backers to march against “imperialism.”

“We’re continuing the battle and victory over the permanent and brutal aggression against our people,” Maduro wrote on Twitter.

“Today, more than ever, we’re anti-imperialists. We will never surrender!” (France24)

US citizens will need a visa to travel to Europe beginning in 2021

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eginning in 2021, United States citizens will be required to have a visa if they travel to Europe.

The visa will be valid for three years, and will allow a holder to enter the country “as many times as necessary,” the European Travel Information and Authorization System

(ETIAS) announced.

Currently, U.S. citizens may travel to Europe for up to 90 days without a visa.

Like many other countries, the decision to require a visa comes in an effort to improve security and “avoid any further problems with illegal immigration and terrorism.”

The requirement includes

the European Schengen-zone — a group of 26 countries, 22 of which are members of the European Union.

When enrolling in ETIAS, a person’s passport must be valid for three months after the intended stay. Passports more than 10 years old may not be accepted as valid forms of documentation for travel.

Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, Poland, Spain, and Switzerland are just a few of the countries affected by the new mandate.

ETIAS is a border control system created by the European Commission, which works to secure borders around the European Union. (New York Daily News)

A

Beverly Hillsbased talent agency, Endeavor, has returned a $400m investment fund to Saudi Arabia and cancelled its contract with the kingdom over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the New York Times reported.

The fund was given to the firm’s chief Ariel Emanuel during a high-profile Hollywood party last spring, which brought together Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), Disney chief executive Robert Iger and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, among others.

The money was meant to fund the growth of Endeavor and diversify the kingdom’s economy through the agency’s work in various industries, including sports and film production.

But following the murder of Khashoggi, the firm returned the fund, protesting the murder, and effectively ending its relationship with Saudi Arabia, according to two NYT sources with knowledge of the deal.

The move came months after several international companies, including Uber and Goldman Sachs, cancelled plans to attend an investment conference in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, in October last year.

It also followed Richard Branson, founder of the

Dead journalist, Jamal Khashoggi

British media and technology conglomerate Virgin Group, suspending talks with Saudi Arabia over potential investment in his business ventures, the NYT reported.

During a tour of the United States last spring, MBS met a number of US politicians and business leaders, seeking deals to develop Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and reduce the country’s dependence on oil.

During the trip, he signed deals with film theatre company AMC and amusement park operator Six Flags to expand into the kingdom and promote its entertainment industry, reported the NYT. Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and critic of the Riyadh government, was killed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2 , 2018. (Al Jezeera)

Royal Caribbean Cruise ordered pay $3.38M to family of Dozens hurt as Japan to deceased passenger

At least 13 killed in Mexico bar shooting ferry hits whale

A general view shows cars near a bar La Playa Men’s Club where at least 13 people were killed and another seven wounded in a shooting at a bar early on Saturday in the city of Salamanca, Mexico (Reuters/Jesus Lara)

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t least 13 people were killed and another seven wounded in a shooting at a bar early on Saturday in Mexico’s violence-wracked Guanajuato state, local media reported.

It was not immediately clear who committed the crime. Before sunrise, a group of armed men pulled up in three vans at the La Playa Men’s Club in the city of Salamanca, burst into the premises and opened fire, local media reported.

Powerful oil theft gangs have stolen vast quantities of fuel from Salamanca’s oil refinery. This week President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador launched a major offensive to cap-

ture local gang leader Jose Antonio Yepez, known as “El Marro.”

A video taken after the shooting from the street near the bar showed a line of police vehicles. A woman wailed uncontrollably in the background as an ambulance drove into the area.

Salamanca lies in Guanajuato state, part of the country’s industrial heartland that was a magnet for carmakers such as Volkswagen AG, General Motors Co and Toyota Motor Corp, but it suffered a doubling of murders last year, making it one of Mexico’s most violent regions, official data shows. (Reuters)

M

ore than 80 passengers have been injured, several seriously, after a ferry hit what appears to have been a whale in the Sea of Japan.

The high-speed hydrofoil ship was en route to Sado Island from the port of Niigata on Saturday.

Ferry operators said the vessel hit an object, leaving a 15cm (6in) crack in its stern.

Public broadcaster NHK quoted a marine expert who said the scale of the impact suggests the ship struck a whale.

In a statement, the ferry operator apologised to its customers and said the ship looked to have collided with “marine life”.

“My throat hit the seat in front of me,” one passenger told local media. “People

around me were moaning [in pain].”

There were 121 passengers and four crew members on board at the time.

Sado Steam Ship Company, which operates the Ginga ferry, says it managed to reach its destination under its own power about an hour behind schedule.

The Coast Guard reportedly said 13 were in a serious condition, although they were conscious. The injured have been taken to hospital.

The boat is powered by jets of seawater and can travel at up to 80km/h (49mph). One of the hydrofoil wings on the ship was also damaged in the collision.

Minke and humpback whales are reportedly migrating through the Sea of Japan at this time of year.

(BBC)

T

File photo: The Royal Caribbean International’s Explorer of the Seas

he family of a cruise passenger who died on board was awarded $3.38 million on Thursday.

Richard Puchalski, a passenger on the Explorer of the Seas in July 2016, died days after following a visit to the ship’s infirmary with medical concerns, as reported by the Miami Herald.

Puchalski, who was celebrating his birthday on board with his family, went to the infirmary on the ship complaining of shortness of breath.

The ship’s doctor, Dr Amanda Saunders, reportedly found “a septal infarction, age undetermined,” and after giving Puchalski medication, sent him back to his cabin, as reported by

the Miami Herald.

A half-hour later, Puchalski collapsed in his cabin and after “significant delay” was transferred to a hospital in Juneau, Alaska in late afternoon.

Four days later, Puchalski died.

Court records show the cruise line, Royal Caribbean, made errors that led to Puchalski’s death.

The cruise line was found by a jury to be 70 percent at fault for $34,000 in medical expenses and $4.8 million in pain and suffering.

Royal Caribbean Cruises was ordered to pay $3.38 million to Puchalski’s family, although they said they plan to appeal the decision.

(New York Daily News)

sunDAY, march 10, 2019

19

Jason Roy in line to replace Keaton Jennings as England opener for Ashes

R

oy is in line to open the batting in this year’s Ashes series against Australia, after England finally lost patience with Keaton Jennings.

Roy has been a regular in England’s one-day team during their rise to No 1 in the world over the past four years, and the 28-year-old has proved he has the temperament to thrive on the international stage.

England on Friday signalled they are taking a new direction with the Test team when they sacked Mark Ramprakash as the batting coach. He will be replaced by Graham Thorpe, who is the lead batting coach in charge of England’s white-ball teams.

While Rory Burns is expected to retain his place for the Ashes, Observer Sport understands that

Jennings, who averages 25.19 in 17 Tests, will be jettisoned, with Roy set to be given his chance for the oneoff four-day Test against Ireland at

Lord’s in July, which acts as a warmup for the Ashes series that follows.

Roy, who averaged 65.33 in first class cricket last summer, is missing England’s T20 series in the West Indies after being given leave to attend the birth of his first child.

Gareth Batty, Roy’s teammate at Surrey, has no doubt he has the ability to make the opening position in England’s Test team his own. “He keeps it very simple,” said Batty. “His

backl i f t , t e c h nique, everything is perfect for Test cricket. He just needs to keep his balance, not get too funky, and play every ball on its mer-

Jason Roy has been a regular in England’s one-day team over the past four years, and now he looks set to be given a chance on the Test stage

Sterling scores hat-trick as Man City beat Watford to go 4 points clear

R

aheem Sterling’s quick-fire second-half hat-trick sent Manchester City four points clear at the top of the Premier League, but there was controversy over the opener that broke down a stubborn Watford side.

With the game goalless at the start of the second half, Sterling was challenged

by Daryl Janmaat as he ran on to Sergio Aguero’s flick and the ball cannoned off him and into the net.

Sterling was clearly offside when Aguero chested the ball into his path and the lineman’s flag went up. But, after long discussion with his fellow official, referee Paul Tierney overruled his decision, to the disbelief of the Hornets players.

There was no disputing the legality of Sterling’s second goal, which came only four minutes later, when he tapped in Riyad Mahrez’s cross at the far post after a flowing City move.

And just before the hour mark, the

its. He’s almost too good at times.

Batty added: “Absolutely he has the temperament to be a Test player. And it’s not just the temperament, he’s got the skill sets.

His skill sets are through the roof. I even think it’s not as big a gamble as when Australia picked David

24-year-old England forward made it 3-0, running on to a David Silva pass and cutting past two defenders before slotting home his 18th goal of the season.

Watford, who had made seven changes ahead of their FA Cup quarter-final with Crystal Palace next weekend, belatedly threw on Troy Deeney and Gerard Deulofeu - two of those to be left out.

The pair combined seconds later to pull a goal back with their first touches, when Deeney flicked on a long ball for Deulofeu to fire home with his side’s first shot after 66 minutes.

It proved to be only a consolation, rather than the start of an unlikely comeback, with City comfortably holding on to clinch their sixth successive league win.

Their four-point lead is their biggest advantage at the top since 4 December, although Liverpool can cut the gap when they host Burnley on Sunday. (BBC Sport)

Warner. People will use that comparison; I think that’s wrong.

“Jason’s record in firstclass cricket at Surrey is very, very good. I know its chalk and cheese, the standard maybe, but he’s able to take the gears down.

His output in four-day cricket has been magnificent, and we have messed him around shunting him around the order. He’s just a very, very unique talent that doesn’t come around very often.

“He’s just a wonderful, wonderful player, and he’s getting better and better. He’s not hit his sweet spot for me just yet. He is maybe a year off that, and when he gets there, watch out; it could be all forms.”

Sam Billings, meanwhile, has backed Joe Root to cement his place in England’s Twenty20 team after the Test cap-

tain made a half-century in the series-sealing win against West Indies in St Kitts on Friday.

Root, not a regular in England’s T20 team, had lobbied hard to be given a chance in this three-match series, rather than being rested ahead of a busy summer containing the World Cup and Ashes series. And he impressed in scoring 55 from 40 balls as England routed West Indies for 45 after they had set the hosts 183 to win.

Billings, who top-scored with 87, said in the buildup to Sunday’s third and final T20: “I’m really pleased for Joe. I think in the past he has been similar to me in this format of the game, where we have probably both tried too hard to force the issue. But it was great to see him get some runs.

There’s no doubt he’s good enough.” (The Guardian)

Lionel Messi has now scored 69 penalties for Barcelona

Messi scores as leaders Barcelona win to stay 7 points clear in Spain

L

ionel Messi scored a penalty as La Liga leaders, Barcelona, came from behind to beat Rayo Vallecano and retain their seven-point lead at the top.

Raul de Tomas, on loan from Real Madrid, had given Rayo a surprise lead with an excellent 20-yard strike.

Gerard Pique headed an equaliser from Messi’s free-kick, and the Barca captain nonchalantly put the treble-chasing champions ahead from the spot.

Luis Suarez tapped home a late third after a one-two with Ivan Rakitic.

Messi is La Liga’s top scorer with 26 goals in 25 games, with Suarez second on 17.

Second-placed Atletico Madrid had briefly narrowed the gap on Barca with a 1-0 win

over Leganes earlier on Saturday, Saul scoring the only goal.

Barcelona were made to work hard

by Rayo Vallecano, who are in the relegation zone after six consecutive defeats, but Ernesto Valverde’s side are now unbeaten in 14 La Liga games, a run going back to November. They have won 13 consecutive league games against Rayo since 2002.

Next up for the Catalan side is a home game against Lyon in the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday, having drawn the first leg 0-0 in France.

Winger Ousmane Dembele picked up a slight hamstring strain against Vallecano and could be a doubt for that match. (BBC Sport)

20

guyanatimesGY.com

sunDAY, march 10, 2019

Guinness “Greatest of the Street” Berbice

Trafalgar thrill on 1st night D

efending Champions Trafalagar displayed their winning intentions at the earliest possible time with a 6 - 2 drubbing of Rose Hall on the opening night of the Guinness Greatest of the Streets Berbice zone on Friday evening at the New Amsterdam Stelling Tarmac.

Olvis Mitchell led the way with a helmet trick, scoring in the 5th, 7th and 19th [GG] minutes with support from Adrian Prince and Odari Miller, who had a goal each. Shaquell Betson accounted for the opposition’s goals with a Guinness goal in the 18th minute.

After that blowout, Lichfield squeezed past Canje 3- 2, but the score line didn’t tell the entire story.

Lichfield dominated Canje with a goal each coming

Part of the action on Friday evening

from Allan Garnett, Shelton George and Carlos Grant.

Canje struck back, but only once, thanks to John West’s 19th minute GG. However, with just a minute left to play, Lichfield easily kept the opposition at bay.

It was a low scoring night after that. Darren Douglas scored the decider for Hopetown, who needled Black Sharks; while Keon Williams played the same role for NA Kings B’s win over Dam Boys. Leonardo

Adams was also in the cast for NA Kings A’s similar win over Fast-7.

Outsiders were tipped on the Goalers and won 3 - 0.

Derrick Taylor’s 8th minute goal and Delroy Ferdinand’s GG were enough to get them

the win.

In the penultimate game of the night, East Bank Gunners got a clear shot at Constab and penetrated twice to win 2- 0.

Mark Wronge and Joseph Giddings were responsible

for those goals.

Twenties seemed to be in as much form as Top Form as they battled to a nil all stalemate. However, Twenties were on target to win 2- 0 in the penalty shootout.

Ramdhani storms into semi- Serena Williams backs US women’s final of Canadian competition soccer team’s discrimination case S G uyanese Badminton sensation, the 20-year-old Narayan Ramdhani, continues to show why he is the best Guyana has to offer in the badminton arena, after advancing to the semifinal rounds in his first National competition in Canada.

Competing in what is considered the top

P a n A m Badminton country, the Guyanese badminton champion represented the Kings University Eagles Badminton Team & Alberta ACAC (Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference) at the 2019 CCAA National Badminton Championships (Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association) in Dalhousie Agricultural Campus in Nova Scotia, Canada from March 6-9, 2019.

T h e Championship saw the top colleges/universities’ badminNarayan Ramdhani ton players in in action Canada battle for national

supremacy. Narayan made Alberta and Guyana proud, as he was the top singles player representing them at the championship when he won the ACAC Championship last month.

The group play-off comprises the six top badminton singles players competing again each other, with the top four advancing to the semi-finals and medal rounds.

In his first game of the championships, Ramdhani made light work of Holland College’s Jonah Wilson in two straight sets, winning 21-8, 21-6.

His second match was a bit of a challenge, with Ramnish Kumar of Humber College putting up a fight in the second set. However, the Guyanese came back well in the third set to take the win 1621, 21-16, 11-21.

Narayan’s only loss came to Nicholas Pittman in a three-set thriller. Pittman took the first with 13-21, but Narayan replied with a win in the second set, 2112. However, Pittman overpowered the Guyanese in the third set 14-21.

On his second day, Ramdhani defeated Jaryd Morrissey of Mount Allison University in three sets, 21-16, 17-21, 2113.

Having entered the semifinal rounds, the Guyanese is well on his way to medalling in the National tournament, after residing in Canada for just 7 and a half months.

erena Williams and other prominent past and present American tennis players have expressed their support for a lawsuit filed by the US women’s national soccer team against their federation, alleging gender discrimination in wages and conditions.

All 28 members of the US squad were named as plaintiffs in a federal court in Los Angeles on Friday, International Women’s Day. Williams said pioneers in her sport had stood up for pay equality in the 1970s, and it was the right time for soccer to level its playing field. “The pay discrepancy is ludicrous,” the 23-time grand slam singles champion told reporters after her second-round victory at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.

“It’s a battle, it’s a fight,” she said. “I think at some point in every sport you have to have those pioneers, and maybe it’s time for soccer. I’m playing because someone else stood up, and so what they are doing right now is hopefully for the future of women’s soccer.”

Billie Jean King also welcomed the lawsuit. “What better day than International Women’s Day for this lawsuit?” the 75-year-old former player, who won 12 grand slam singles

titles, posted on Twitter.

“Sports are a microcosm of society. What is happening with the USWNT [United States women’s national soccer team] is happening in the workplace. The time has come to give these athletes what they deserve: equality.”

The work of King and her allies resulted in equal prize money for women and men at all four grand slams in 2007, when Wimbledon fell in line.

The issue still occasionally surfaces however, and the Indian Wells tournament chief, Raymond Moore, quit under a cloud in 2016 after saying women’s tennis rode “on the coat-tails of the men”.

The former US Open champion Sloane Stephens also sent her encouragement to the soccer team on Friday. “I think there should be equal pay across the board for everyone, male or female,” the world number four said after her second-round loss at a tournament that has offered equal prize money to women and men since 2009. “But I’m happy for them. I hope they win.”

The lawsuit outlines years of alleged institutionalised gender discrimination, claiming travel conditions, medical personnel, promotion of games, and training are less favourable for female players compared to the men.

The US Soccer Federation has yet to comment on the lawsuit. (The

Guardian)

21

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sunDAY, march 10, 2019

Preparations going smoothly as CARIFTA team up for competition

Chelsea Juma at work

A glimpse of the practice session

By Jemima Holmes

W

ith just a month remaining, a junior chess team are ramping up its preparations ahead of the CARIFTA Junior Championships. Guyana Times Sport visited one of the practice sessions and had a few words with the young players and their coach, Wendell Meusa.

The junior players, who are all school aged, would many days head to the Chess board straight after school is finished, as they perfect their moves in anticipation of the challenge they will face in a matter of weeks.

The CARIFTA Junior Championships will be hosted in Curacao, Netherland Antilles from April 19 to 23. Moving from six participants last year, Guyana will be sending fourteen players to the competition this year, and those will contest in the Under 20, Under 16, Under 14, Under 10 and Under 8 categories.

When Guyana Times Sport caught up with the chess team, the students were avidly involved in friendly games, testing their skills against their colleagues.

Wendell Meusa, the man through whose foundation the team will be travelling, told this publication about the team’s preparations.

“So far, training has been good.

We started first twice a week, and then, thanks to the Director of Sport, Mr. Jones, he allowed us to use here (The National Racquet Center) every afternoon; so we’ve been coming here at least four to five days a week. Everyone doesn’t meet at the same time on the same days, given classes and lessons; but whoever comes trains,” Meusa declared.

He explained the Foundation’s reason’s for doubling its participation numbers, whilst expressing confidence in the players’ abilities. “…Not just to focus on winning medals, which we are expecting some medals from these same young ones, and even the senior ones. We have persons like Ghansham Allijohn, Jaden Taylor and Chelsea Juma, they went last year, so they know what to expect, and they have been training right out and they’re looking forward to doing something historic for Guyana,” Meusa also took the time to explain why the Wendell Meusa Foundation has ventured to expose a number of younger players to the

Jacob McDonald

regional competition.

“So, basically, what we have been doing, especially through the Sports Commission, is working with the younger ones, trying to build future champions. So, in this case, we have eight- and seven-year-olds who will be representing Guyana, unlike last year, when we barley had under-14 and under-16. So we’re taking some younger ones to build them for the future of Chess in Guyana,” Meusa explained.

Speaking with a player who participated in Guyana’s first stint at the CARIFTA Chess Juniors in 2018, Chelsea Juma has already outlined her practice areas, and says her preparations are going well.

“Preparations are coming pretty well. I’m always looking to get better,” the soft spoken student of St. Stanislaus College said.

“What I think is important for preparing this year? Definitely a lot of practice! You need to practise openings, moves, tactical stuff; things like that,” she continued.

On the other hand, the youngest player, 7-year-old Jacob

McDonald, has only one concern; juggling school and practice; but is elated to represent Guyana on the regional stage.

“I’m actually pretty excited, because I haven’t been there before.

I’m just practising as much as I can, but sometimes I have homework to do at school. I’m practising as much as possible,” he stated.

Asked if he would be able to stand up to the competition,

McDonald was very confident about his abilities.

“Yes, if I play well enough, Or if my opponents just forfeit,” the seven-year-old said.

Aside from sponsorship on the part of corporate entities, the team will be looking to raise funds through a charity dinner on March 16, which will be held at Cara Lodge. Tickets are priced at US$40.

List of this year’s Participants: Maliha Rajkumar Milan Ramsatuarsing Chelsea Juma Samirah Gobin Sasha Shariff Ghansham Allijohn Jarrell Troyer Jaden Taylor Angel Rahim Rajiv Lee Savir Gookul Joshua Khan Arysh Raghunauth Jacob McDonald Omar Shariff Mahir Rajkumar

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…other games drawn With three game scheduled for the day, the school aged spectators poured in to cheer on their team of choice, which added to the competitive atmosphere at the Ministry of Education ground on Carifesta Avenue.

The first two teams to take to the playing field were South Ruimveldt and Annandale Secondary.

The Georgetown boys found themselves in good stead after it became apparent that the East Coast side was missing some of the key players. The new faces, although equally competitive, were not as fast as their counterparts, which left a hole in the Annandale defence. This allowed for Jamal CrimSouth Ruimveldt and Annandale Secondary Ewing to penetrate the were locked in a fierce battle goal in the 12th minute to take the lead. he Milo Under-18 Schools Clearly having an offFootball tournament contin- day, Annandale missed key passes and ued on Saturday afternoon with clear shots at the goal for the remainavid competition between the second- der of the half. Their frustration was ary school teams, as they fought to stay lifted in the 41st minute after Jerome alive after the quickly expiring round Harrigon connected with the back of robin stage. the net to level the scores. The new-

T

found momentum led to Tiquan Taylor capitalising in the 52nd to score Annandale’s second goal and take the lead.

S o u t h Ruimveldt found the formula once again in the 59th, with Joshua Milo netting their second goal to equalise. Despite both sides hunting for the third and winning goal, regulation time expired with the scores tied for a drawn game.

The result was almost similar in the second game, when St. Joseph’s High and Canje Secondary battled it out. Near misses were seen quite frequently in this encounter, and things went down to a nil-all stalemate.

Lodge Secondary were the only school to register a clear win on Saturday, after their encounter with President’s College. The East Coast team can be commended for putting up a strong defence and sticking to their clear game plan, which held Lodge at bay for the entire first half. The usually quick and high scoring Lodge outfit often found it difficult to get past the President’s College defence; and

even when they did, the attempt was scooped up by the more than capable goal keeper.

Dorwin George was the hero for Lodge, as he was finally able to penetrate the goal in the 44th minute. Five minutes later, George completed a repeat of his first, to put Lodge 2 up in a critical period of the game. Try as they may, President’s College could not keep up, and eventually had to settle for the 2-0 win.

The action will continue today at the Ministry of Education Ground, where academic rivals Queen’s College and the Bishops’ High will take on each other. St. Stanislaus College will battle North Ruimveldt Secondary, while Marian Academy goes head to head with St. Mary’s Secondary. (Jemima Holmes)

22

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SUnDAY, march 10, 2019

Windies seeking consolation win in T2OI series after embarrassment

– Morgan and company a happy camp

W

est Indies and England will play their final T20 International on Sunday, March 10, from 16:00h at the same Basseterre St Kitts venue.

Captain Eoin Morgan expressed his pride after England humiliated West Indies by 137 runs to seal a comprehensive Twenty20 series victory on Friday.

England embarrassed the Windies, who were bowled out for just 45 – the

second-lowest T20 international total – with 49 balls to spare at Warner Park in Basseterre.

Man-of-the-match Sam Billings and Joe Root had rescued England from 32-4 to set West Indies a target of 182-6 in the second T20.

Chris Jordan then took four wickets for just six runs from two overs, to condemn the Windies to their lowest T20 total.

“Extremely proud,” Morgan said. “We didn’t get

off to a great start, conditions were completely different to St Lucia, but one huge positive today and probably our biggest improvement since then is (that) we’ve adapted to conditions really well.

“I thought the partnership between Joe and Sam was outstanding, and then Sam kicked on to get us to an above-par score. From there, we grabbed the momentum.”

Billings produced a star performance after scoring 87 runs from just 47 deliveries

Diamond Mineral Water 11-race Cycling Programme

– combining with Joe Root (55 off 40) to set the tone for England.

“It was a nice situation, in that I could give myself time and cash in at the end. I tried to play the field and put pressure on the bowlers as much as possible,” Billings said.

“We knew that with 165-plus we were in the game, and luckily we got early wickets. It was a great win. We want to win the series 3-0 now. Cricket is a momentum game, and we’ve got to keep

putting in the performances.”

England bowler Jordan added via Sky Sports: “It’s definitely up there. I was glad I could come in and contribute to the team. We didn’t get the best start, but Sam and Rooty batted brilliantly to get us to what was an over-par score.

“My rhythm feels really good at the minute. I’ve done some good work with Shane Bond at Sydney Thunder, then continuing it here with

Chris Silverwood (England bowling coach). I tried to string together a few days and keep building confidence like that. I’m more than happy that it came off.”

It was a forgettable night for the Windies, and captain Jason Holder said: “I think it was just one of those games.

It’s been our worst batting performance of this three-format series so far. We need to regroup and look at a few areas and correct them.”

CONCACAF U-17 Championships

Anthony astounds to ‘NAMILCO Flour Power’ National U-17 team kick-start preparations claim feature title – Crawford makes top 3

Romello Crawford beating Junior Niles to the line for third

M

ichael Anthony’s power proved too much to handle on Saturday when he outsprinted Briton John for the win in the feature race of the 14th Diamond Mineral Water 11-race Cycling Programme, held at the National Park’s inner circuit.

The 35-lap showdown saw Anthony and John break away from a competitive pack with just under 13 miles to go. Their lead kept increasing on the pack, which seemed to be comfortable keeping the fight among themselves.

Anthony stopped the clock at one hour, 20 minutes, 14.68 seconds (1:20:14.68s), which was slower than 2018 when Hamzah Eastman won in one hour, 16 minutes, 39.48 seconds (1:16:39.48s).

Finishing third was the in-form Romello Crawford, who has had an excellent start to the 2019 season. He won the fight in the trailing pack ahead of Junior Niles (4th), Christopher Griffith and Andre Greene, who rounded out the top rewarding spots.

Niles was the first to secure a prime prize, then Deeraj Garbaran claimed the next three, before Griffith and John had one each,

while Anthony accounted for the final two. Sherwin Samson won the Juveniles 10-lap race along with the two prime prizes ahead of Shemaul Younge and Mark Lewis. Samson clocked 28 minutes, 29.48 seconds for victory.

Niles won the veteran under-50 five-lap showdown and the only prize in a time of 11 minutes and 30 seconds, as Jaikarran Sookhai and Nigel London followed in that order.

For the over-50 vets, Ian Jackson reigned supreme, while Kennard Lovell was second and Linden Blackman was third.

Lennox Jackman was the only rider in the boys 6 - 9-year two-lap race. The mountain bikers did not turn out on Saturday, but Uttam Kumar Issurdeen made the only appearance for the wheelchair race which was sponsored by Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL).

Today, the cyclists venture to Berbice for the second leg of the 22nd annual Cheddi B. Jagan Memorial Race, which begins in front of Freedom House in New Amsterdam, proceeds to Number 55 Village on the Corentyne, and returns to Port Mourant for the finish, for a total of 53 miles. (Kizan Brumell)

…team placed in Group G due to higher ranking attained

G

uyana has begun preparations to participate in the 2019 CONCACAF Under-17 Championships scheduled for the IMG Academy campus in Bradenton, Florida in May 2019. A provisional squad is in training, and will continue to have weekly sessions at the GFF National Training Centre under the guidance of the GFF’s Technical Department.

Additional players will be added following scouting in the GFFNAMILCO Thunderbolt Flour Power National U17 Tournament, scheduled to commence shortly.

The squad, known as the “NAMILCO Flour Power National U17” team, has been placed in Group G with El Salvador, Honduras and Haiti; and its seeding is a direct result of Guyana’s upward movement in the CONCACAF Men’s U17 rankings to 18th position.

In an invited comment, G F F ’ s Youth Development Officer, Bryan Joseph, said the upward movement in the ranking is testimony to the investment made in the youth programme.

“We are pleased with the upward movement in the rankings, since it is testimony to all the hard work the Federation has put in place over the past two years with the junior national teams. We’ve managed to play quite a bit of junior games against our Caribbean counterparts, and have produced good results at both U15 and U17 levels. We are elated that

the structure has produced all these positives as we continue to strengthen and reinforce it with all our ongoing and new programmes,” he said.

Commenting on the expected increased competition as a result of the movement, Joseph said it’s a welcome challenge.

“We are happy to face these challenges. This comes with the territory. We’ve discussed how we want to proceed against those teams, and we are not daunted by their status. We will learn a lot about what is required to attain success at this level, so we see it purely as a win/win situation for Guyana’s football. The technical planners are all convinced that we can and will make it to the knockout stage of the tournament, then upset the status quo in the latter stages,” he revealed.

Guyana’s match schedule is as follows: May 1 – El Salvador vs Guyana; May 3 – Guyana vs Honduras; and May 5 – Guyana vs Haiti.

According to CONCACAF, the Final Championship will begin with a group stage in which the top-ranked 16 participating teams, based on the CONCACAF Men’s Under-17 Ranking as of May 2017, will be divided into four groups.

After round-robin play, the top three finishers in each of the groups will join the winners of Groups A, B, C and D from the qualifiers in the round of 16.

The knockout stage of the competition – round of 16, q u a r te r f i n a l s , semifinals and final – will be played in its entirety in a single match elimination format, with the semifinalists automatically qualifying for the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Peru.

The participating Member Associations for the 2019 CONCACAF Men’s Under-17 Championship are: Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Bonaire, Canada, Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Curaçao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Montserrat, Nicaragua, Panama, Puerto Rico, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Martin, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago, United States, and US Virgin Islands.

guyanatimesgy.com

sunDAY, march 10, 2019

23

2018-2019 CWI Regional 4-Day Tournament…

Johnson’s 76 leads Jaguars to 6-wicket win over Red Force in final round

Leon Johnson was at his explosive best

By Brandon Corlette

L

ed by the courageous captain Leon Johnson, the Guyana Jaguars reigned supreme with their seventh win of the season, signing off with 154.2 points, and attaining a probable fifth consecutive Regional 4-Day championship under Johnson’s captaincy.

Sealed with Anthony Bramble’s power and finesse -- a maximum down the ground – Jaguars successfully chased down a target of 162 with six wickets to spare.

Leon Johnson led the way with a classy 76 from 125 balls, and got support from Tagenarine Chanderpaul, who stood tall in his unbeaten 43 from 150 balls.

Jaguars leading run scorer of the season: Anthony Bramble with 580 runs, finished with 20 in the chase, completed within three days. ‘Player of the match,’ Romario Shepherd, finished the tournament with 37 wickets, steamrolling the Red Force opposition by taking eight of their wickets.

It was the penultimate day of the tenth and final round clash between Guyana Jaguars and Trinidad and Tobago Red Force, in the pink ball day/night encounter at the National Stadium at Providence. Jaguars were scenting victory heading into the third day on 69-2, requiring another 93 runs to win.

Tagenarine Chanderpaul and Leon Johnson resumed batting on this day, the former making his intentions clear by hitting a positive cut shot off Bryan Charles to score the first run of the day.

Chanderpaul was solid in his stroke-play, while Johnson reached his fourth half-century of the season in a sim-

Tagenarine Chanderpaul was like a wall in defence

ilar cut shot that went into the boundary off the bowling of off-spinner Charles.

The elegant Johnson reached the landmark in 76 balls in a wicket-less first hour. After adding 111 runs for the third wicket partnership, Johnson was out leg before, attempting to sweep Charles.

After establishing himself to score a possible century, he fell for 76 f r o m 1 2 5 balls, including 14 classy fours in an innings that spanned 126 minutes. The Jaguars captain signed off his roller coaster season with 480 runs.

At 123-3, Jaguars required another 39 runs to win, and

Chanderpaul was accompanied by Christopher Barnwell.

After Barnwell hit two boundaries in his 22ball 12, he became ambitious and was looking for a big shot. He was brilliantly caught by Anderson Phillip at long on off a tempting Imran Khan delivery.

Jaguars leading run scorers this season, Anthony Bramble and Tagenarine Chanderpaul, joined forces, and the 150-run barrier was broken when Chanderpaul swept Charles for a boundary. The duo ensured on fur-

A dejected Red Force team leaving the field after Bramble and Chanderpaul had added the finishing touches (Brandon Corlette photos)

ther wickets were lost as they achieved the target in 53.4 overs, ending on 163-4.

Bowling for the Red Force, Anderson P h i l l i p , Daniel St Clair, Bryan Charles and Imran Khan had one wicket each in a losing effort on a surface that batsmen found difficult to play o n a t

SCOREBOARD

Red Force 1st Innings 120 all out Jaguars 1st Innings 165 all out Red Force 2nd Innings 206 all out Jaguars 2nd Innings 163-4 T Chanderpaul not out . . . . 43 C Hemraj b Phillip . . . . . . . 0 V Singh c Webster b St Clair . . 5 L Johnson lbw Charles . . . . 76 C Barnwell c Phillip b Khan . 12 A Bramble not out . . . . . . 20 Extras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Total 163-4 (53.4 overs) FOW: 1 - 3(Chandrapaul Hemraj, 2.1 Ov) , 2 - 12(Vishaul Singh, 5.1 Ov) , 3 - 123(Leon Johnson, 41.3 Ov) , 4 - 136(Christopher Barnwell, 46.4 Ov) Bowling: A Phillip 12-3-21-1, D St Clair 5-1-21-1, O Smith 4-1-130, B Charles 20.4-8-51-1, I Khan 5-0-23-1, T Webster 7-0-30-0

Anthony Bramble hitting the winning shot for a six

night.

Leeward Islands Hurricanes and Barbados Pride will play in their fi-

nal encounter on Thursday March 14, 2019. It is highly unlikely that the Hurricanes would attain all 24 points,

which is the only way to change the outcome of the Jaguars fifth consecutive triumph.

Speaking at the conclusion of the match, Leon Johnson explained that this season has been one of the Jaguars’ toughest campaigns. He reflected on the defeats, stating that those were the critical moments that Jaguars failed to grab with both hands.

The most successful captain in the region, Johnson heaped praises on his fast bowlers, who grabbed 127 wickets.

He pointed out the impact the impressive Romario Shepherd had with both bat and ball this season.

SUNDAY, MARCH 10, 2019

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

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2018-2019 CWI Regional 4-Day Tournament…

Johnson’s 76 leads Jaguars to 6-wicket win over Red Force in final round

Pg 23 Joy for Jaguars. The five-time champs enjoying the winning moment

Diamond Mineral Water 11-race Cycling Programme

Anthony astounds to claim feature title – Crawford makes top 3

Pg 22

Michael Anthony celebrating his win ahead of Briton John

Pg 22

Windies seeking consolation win in T2OI series after embarrassment

– Morgan and company a happy camp

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

March 10, 2019

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2 Sunday Times Magazine

MARCH 10 , 2019

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World Poetry Day

P

oetry reaffirms our common humanity by revealing to us that individuals, everywhere in the world, share the same questions and feelings. Poetry is the mainstay of oral tradition and, over centuries, can communicate the innermost values of diverse cultures.

In celebrating World Poetry Day, March 21, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) recognizes the unique ability of poetry to capture the creative spirit of the human mind.

A decision to proclaim 21 March as World Poetry Day was adopted during UNESCO’s 30th session held in Paris in 1999. One of the main objectives of the Day is to support linguistic diversity through poetic expression and to offer endangered languages the opportunity to be heard within their communities.

The observance of World Poetry Day is also meant to encourage a return to the oral tradition of poetry recitals, to promote the teaching of poetry, to restore a dialogue between poet-

ry and the other arts such as theatre, dance, music and painting, and to support small publishers and create an attractive image of poetry in the media, so that the art of poetry will no longer be considered an outdated form of art, but one which enables society as a whole to regain and assert its identity.

Held every year on 21 March, World Poetry Day celebrates one of humanity’s most treasured forms of cultural and linguistic expression and identity. Practiced throughout history – in every culture and on every continent – poetry speaks to our common humanity and our shared values, transforming the simplest of poems into a powerful catalyst for dialogue and peace.

World Poetry Day is the occasion to honour poets, revive oral traditions of poetry recitals, promote the reading, writing and teaching of poetry, foster the convergence between poetry and other arts such as theatre, dance, music and painting, and raise the visibility of poetry in the media. As poetry continues to bring people together across continents, all are invited to join in. (United Nations)

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MARCH 10 , 2019

Sunday Times Magazine

3

World Poetry Day

By Lakhram Bhagirat

T

here is something unexplainable about the way she speaks, the way she delivers, the way she shares her experiences. I question whether it is the power in her voice, or the ability of her words to soothe the searing pain of open wounds or the way the words just linger after speaking to our souls.

For the past two years, her face has been gracing social media sites with her words spreading like wildfire. The name Renata Burnette is synonymous with modern-day Spoken Word Poetry in Guyana. The 22-year-old trailblazer is nothing short of inspiring as she speaks her truth which quite often is something a lot of people run from.

Renata, a Communications major at the University of Guyana, never had in mind that her words would have made such an impact on society. Her journey has been, and continues to be, a

learning experience for her as she aims for greater heights.

After completing her secondary education at the Brickdam High School, Renata decided that she wanted to do CAPE Law and gained admission at the St Joseph High School. As usual, there were days when no teachers were available to teach and during that time students were urged to study or work on their own, but Renata and her classmates used that time for grounding sessions.

They would trade advice and have heated discussions along with karaoke among other things. With the majority of students being female, it meant the discussions were almost always centred around relationships. It was during that time she experienced her first heartbreak and to add salt to the wounds the person she was dating almost instantaneously got into another serious relationship.

“I felt as though I really couldn’t say how I felt and I

started writing and then the words were coming consistently and then it started to make sense. It wasn’t necessarily a rhyme scheme, but it started to make sense because that was exactly how I felt. A day in class when we didn’t have any lessons or any teacher, I told my friends ‘yo I write this thing, Y'all want to listen to it and obviously why not’…they did.”

“The first piece I wrote was called "Thank you for hurting me", because it was like a healing process. It was like you hurt me, I was upset, I was angry, but now I see that you really weren’t meant for me, so thank you for showing me that, but you know, of course, in a way that caused me a lot of pain,” she explained.

After hearing what she was capable of, Renata’s friends fell immediately in love with her talent and in an effort to encourage her, they told her to aim high.

They encouraged her to shoot for the stars and said that they would be right there supporting her every step of the way. To date, whenever she performs or hosts an event, they are always there in her cheering section, pushing her to achieve every bit of success possible.

Renata grew up in a family home at Better Hope on the East Coast of Demerara with her mother and sister.

There were other relatives in the house as well. With her sister away at a school that required her to stay on campus and her mother a Sergeant in the Guyana Defence Force, Renata had a lot of free time since she was alone in the lower flat of their home most of the time.

That alone time was spent with her numerous male cousins having a grand time. While growing up, despite being very good at Literature and English Language in school, Renata never felt an immediate connection to poetry. It may have been a work in prog-

ress, but she never connected the dots until she actually started to dip her feet in the poetry world.

Back in high school, while attending mandatory Mathematics lessons, her friend Crystal would be constantly writing several long lines which were not mathematical formulas. Upon inspection of Crystal’s work, Renata thought it was “very sad and painful and deep, but that is how she felt and that was her comfort and I didn’t take heed to it until I started and it was very nice to know that somebody was interested in something I never heard about.”

She also draws inspiration from several poets and artists whose work speak of their stories.

Renata’s work is heavily influenced by her personal experiences since she does

not write without feeling what she is writing.

“I always describe myself as a self-sacrifice when it comes to my poetry. I could never write anything that I don’t feel or experience myself, hence I don’t recite other people’s pieces, you know.

I have never recited anybody’s pieces. I have never really written anything that I have never experienced myself and to me, that’s how my poetry is because everything for me is personal because that is how I feel.”

“Writing about the absence of my father, writing about how my mother saw men, writing about my family, writing about relationships, writing about societal issues and how they are affecting me and the people around me are all the things I felt personally. Things that made me angry, made

me sad, made me feel scared and not in control and those were the easiest to write.

Putting them down, it was hard because I hardly ever speak of these things because that’s where poetry works for me whereby that was my escape to let all of that out and then recite it in the hope of somebody would benefit from it,” she said.

In Guyana, the common view is that a lot of emphasis is not being placed on the development of the creative sector. Renata shares this sentiment since she is of the view that we have failed to create a space where people can come and bask in their own art. She said that the Ministry of Social Cohesion should be placing more emphasis on the holistic development of the creative sector and not just when it sees an opportunity for benefit.

4

Sunday Times Magazine

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MARCH 10 , 2019

World Poetry Day

By Lakhram Bhagirat

K

halil Gibran, one of my absolute favourite poets, said: “The poet is a bird of strange moods. He descends from his lofty domain to tarry among us, singing; if we do not honour him, he will unfold his wings and fly back to his dwelling place.”

Poetry allows us to peer into the poet’s soul and go on their journey. We laugh, we cry, experience immense happiness or gut-wrenching heartbreak. For poets, sometimes writing is all they envision or sometimes it is just something they happen to discover as they mature, and for 19-year-old Faheem Esau, it is something that he described as a fluke.

You see, Faheem started writing poetry a little over a year ago, but writing is something that he has always been fond of. Interestingly enough he found poetry rather boring during his much younger days. Not everyone instantly develops affinity for intricate writings with hidden emotions, sometimes that takes time.

Faheem, in an effort to better express himself, decided that he needed to be more expressive, since he had grown up as a quite shy person. He, like many others who have been lovestruck, decided that more needed to

be done to better express his feelings and he took it upon himself to do that in writing.

So, last Valentine he got out the note pad and began penning his innermost feelings.

He captured not only what he was feeling, but also invoked the feeling of desire, the desire to be better and ever since he has been on an upward trajectory.

“I was never a fanatic of poetry whilst growing up, I actually deemed it to be boring which resulted in (me) never attempting to write (poetry). I was more interested in essays and short stories.

However, for last Valentine's I tried making the day a tad bit more special with a poem alongside the gifts. The first poem I wrote, I did as a gesture and with it came great receptiveness. I composed another after that, which had the same result and so I continued composing.”

Faheem grew up in Corriverton in Berbice and is the youngest child of his parents. He has just one sibling and being the younger has served as somewhat of an advantage for him, because he was allowed to explore more and as times changed, so did his interests. He grew up as the quiet kid and could have been considered as the nerdy one too.

When he sat the National

"Awake" Has he called you?

When last was he near?

He has no interest, In him, why do you invest?

He doesn't love you, Do you even feel special?

Your love, all my life, I've wanted, But All I got was your denial.

Not to be psychotic, But what is it that is so hypnotic?

What did he ever do to you?

Is he that good?

Is he even true to you?

Does he fight?

Buy flowers for you?

Or is it the money, That makes you feel whatever you feel?

Little do you know, all you are to him?

Is a spoke on his wheel?

Maybe I'm paranoid, Maybe I am cynical, Stay with him and I might just become a criminal, Awake! And See the picture, Is it perfect?

Does it worth it?

The loneliness, How unappreciative he is, Doesn't even notice the nails, The hair, Your aroma, Are you in a freaking coma?!

Awake! Please, and finally see, That with me, Is where you were meant to be, He lied, he cheated and he stole, Oh how He tainted your Beautiful heart of gold, Awake! And finally see what I see, Your... Beautiful... Soul.

Grade Six Assessment (NGSA), he was awarded a place at St Rose’s High in Georgetown but because of the distance between that school and his home, his parents decided to send him to the Skeldon Line Path Secondary School where he received his literary groundings.

“Growing up, I was quite the shy and quiet type and as I got older, it remained that way up until I got comfortable around someone. There isn't much to say, I wasn't really athletic, but I played a little cricket. I was more so calm and collective with an obsession to grow up quickly,” he said.

“With my newfound belief, I solely think poetry is an escape. It is a means by which one expresses and releases emotional energy. And with the composition of a poem, it requires thinking ability as well as vocabulary, which is further enhanced by exercising effort and time into a poem. My intention with writing is to cope with my emotions by a creative method which benefits me, opposing the stereotypical approach which involves substance abuse. With the incorporation of the above, I might just be able to inspire someone someday. Perhaps even help break addictions,” Faheem added.

He says with his limited

knowledge, he is hopeful that more emphasis is placed on the promotion of poetry and arts in Guyana. He is hopeful that the arts community gets the recognition and the opportunities required to gain the recognition their work so deserves.

“I believe well-felt emotions are being poured into

my pieces and it’s all derived from my escapades as well as the scenarios my mind construct based on my personal emotions and that's what I think makes my work authentic. In future, I intend having an arsenal of poetry and prose as well as a novel or two; perhaps even a bestseller someday.”

"Matrimony" Lustful and out control, That was what they deemed me to be, An unquenchable thirst, Innate desires, And an Insatiable hunger...

Without doubt I believed it all was true.

Tasteless and compulsive, Lots of coitus with little to no meaning, No spark nor butterflies flew within me, If anything I'd say I was living, But not alive.

However I was willing, Willing to give it a try, True love? I figured not, For I heard was, Love-lost hurts worse than a shot, The world is filled with adulterers anyways, Living tastelessly and with apathy, Safer, I thought I would be, Without any vulnerability.

So spiraling, I was, Completely Out of control, Like a crashing flight, I landed abruptly in your life, You were charming, Insanely Gorgeous, But most importantly, Every day, you became all I see.

Whether you were near or not, Your face was all I sought, Even though I knew you were in matrimony, Deeply I knew that someday you'll belong to me.

Ironically I crashed, with fear and despair, But sedated I was, with the fragrance of your hair.

Loving another's wife, A predicament! It seemed, But ignorance it was, For I knew not! That in that moment, I was redeemed.

My thirst finally satiated, Butterflies were instantly initiated, The phobia of not being reciprocated finally dissipated.

You tore down all walls that I built, Leaving me a great deal of guilt, Guilt that I didn't sought you earlier.

For you, you needed a savior.

Much like me, you never thought you'd be, Hopelessly in love with another, Outside your holy matrimony.

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MARCH 10 , 2019

Sunday Times Magazine 5

World Poetry Day

By Lakhram Bhagirat

Dear society Sometimes I see eyes.

Black, overpowering, commanding.

They stare these eyes.

Gauging my reaction, waiting.

Waiting ever so patiently for me to show signs of incoherency.

Dear society Sometimes I see eyes.

Familiar eyes, nestle in bushy black brows.

Always staring, looking down from their overhead position.

Reflecting an emotion so foreign, so inconceivable to the mind of a child.

Dear society Sometimes I see eyes.

Mostly in my quiet moments.

Surrounded by curly hair, they consume my childish thoughts.

They delude me, convince me- no force me to don a woman’s mind and comprehend their desire.

Society, I stare at the eyes and then at myself.

I disassociate.

Dear society.

Sometimes I see eyes.

Eyes that are accompanied by a touch.

A simple touch. A soft touch.

An intrusive touch.

Not meant for the body of a child.

With enough concentration sometimes, oh sometimes I can feel.

Dear society.

Dear eyes.

I saw you. I see you.

Your dark pupils, almost dilated, forever engraved in the recess of my mind.

Why eyes? Why? Why did you choose to see me?

T

he words are so endearing, invoking a sense of responsibility. The responsibility to make the world a better place, a place where peace and harmony exist within the elements. That is exactly what Kelly Mohan envisions every time she puts pen to paper and does her part to bring

opinions on matters that affected me,” she says.

“If I am to name a poet who has left a lasting impression on me, it would be Martin Carter.

I recalled the first time I read "This is a dark time, my love" and being completely filled with the vivid imagery that stemmed from his words. This poem is what pivoted me in the diWith wild eyes and tangled hair, rection of poetry their feet race across the earth. that I am in toCarrying soft breath against the wind, day. One of the major goals of Whispering fond memories from a dreamlike world. my poetry is to sensitise persons on social issues affecting The fleet across time. our society. It is also my aim to Holding destinies but paying no heed. have the same effect on readEchoing the adult reality with their childish intentions ers as Martin Carter’s "This is and sweet tales of mischief. a dark time, my love" had on me.”

There they go, great paramours of life.

While there has been more Soiled clothing and sun-kissed face. emphasis on art and poetry Bruised knees and sticky fingers. by some entities and instituSpreading their delight through tions in Guyana, Kelly believes the obvious destruction, enough is not being done to fosthrough the unholy fields of modern mankind. ter the growth of creative arts.

For her, art and poetry are perceived by a large section of sociher creativity and motivated her to push her ety as a hobby and not as a career due to lack of financial gain. Persons deem art as scribboundaries.

Much of her childhood was spent explor- bles with splashes of paint and poetry as few ing the limits of her imagination through art, play and books which resulted in her love for poetry and a good novel.

“My initial writings started out as being very clichéd one verses, influenced by the music and novels I read during my early teenage years. However, it wasn’t until I stumbled upon this fascinating book "A World of Poetry" by Hazel Simmons McDonald and Mark McWatt in an English B class did I begin to understand the true power of poetry and develop the content of my writing. Poetry became an emotional outlet for me. Trying to cope with the fast pace of high school, understanding my new role in society as a teenager and at the same time becoming aware of all the social injustice especially towards women in Guyanese society all influenced me into penning my thoughts on a paper. It became the only way for me to comprehend reality and share my awareness while offering a unique perspective of what needs to be addressed.

The 22-year-old nursery school teacher has been writing for as long as she could remember. Fitting the traditional description of a bookworm, Kelly has had an affinity for literature and intricate writings from a pretty young age and that was fuelled by her paternal grandmother who encouraged

The children

lines of rhyming words. However, creative arts allow us not only to express ourselves and emotions, but also aid the young brain in developing analytical and problem-solving skills. The creative arts also can be touted as bridging barriers between cultures, ethnicities and classes.

“I cannot say that my poems are entirely different as somewhere in the world someone has done it or will do something similar, but what I do know is that my poems tell a story and share different perspectives (not necessarily mine) about everything in life.

My dream, in five years, as a poet is to establish myself in the field of local literature.

As a person who has been brought up recognising the importance of education, I also aim to elevate myself by furthering my education at the University of Guyana.”

6 Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

MARCH 10 , 2019

World Poetry Day

By Lakhram Bhagirat

“W

e cling to music, to poems, to quotes, to writing, to art because we desperately do not want to be alone. We want to know we aren’t going crazy and someone else out there knows exactly about you’re feeling it. We want someone to explain the things we can’t,” someone anonymously said.

For Hanani Ben Lewi, there is nothing he enjoys more than combining poetry and music. From a very young age, he has been in love with the stage and the arts. He has done almost everything that is related to the creative field with much success. So when people say that he is multitalented and multifaceted, they know exactly what they are talking about.

Hanani is very expressive, not only with the words he uses but also with his facial expressions. He is not only a poet he is one of Guyana’s foremost steelpan players and watching him play invokes a whole new meaning of what it is to be in love with what you do.

The 21-year-old thinks that he still has a long way to go and looking back on his journey, he explains that ever since attending the North Georgetown Primary School, he has been in love with music.

One argues that music is

poetry, only with sounds and he has been telling his story ever since he discovered the steelpan.

“I started writing poetry in Fourth Form (at the Bishop’s High) and like any 16-year-old - I was writing love poems for the girls I had admired. Then a friend of mine showed me a piece called "To this day" by Shane Koyzcan, a Canadian spoken word poet. This piece was school bullying and it made cry. I didn’t know poetry could be so thought-provoking and inspirational. He taught me how to marry my love for advocacy and the stage.”

Ever since being introduced to spoken word poetry, Hanani has not looked back. He has catapulted himself forward among the best of the best locally and even further afield. Though still in his infancy stage, Hanani shows immense promise to make himself a household name. His style is different from the others, because not only does he tell a story with his pieces, he also invokes familiar emotions and commands

you to introspect. Look deep within and embrace your every flaw because it is the imperfections that make us truly unique.

“I believe that my work is different because I don't tackle popular themes, I deal with the issues we often overlook. The goal of my poetry is get people to feel the emotions of others, to understand their social responsibility and to open their eyes to the social ills that plague our society. I don't think there is enough being done to promote poetry in Guyana. There aren't enough avenues for expression and receive adequate compensation for such.”

Like many local creative minds, Hanani laments about the lack of creative spaces. In the near future, he sees himself creating a space for young creatives where their talents are appreciated and compensated accordingly. He notes that this is a much-needed initiative, which would only serve to expand and reinvigorate the love for literature and the arts in general.

guyanatimesgy.com

MARCH 10 , 2019

Sunday Times Magazine 7

Feature

by

Preserving our literary heritage

Petamber Persaud

G

ideon was a potent warrior for Christianity using the instruments/talents he was blessed with - the pulpit and the pen. Gideon was a warrior on other fronts especially through his letters to the press denouncing immorality, injustice and the disregard for human rights.

He was also a fertile commentator on literature. And with the mushrooming of social media, he would share

his findings and knowledge about so many things literary including copyright issues, literary prizes, publication opportunities, literary workshops, and his accomplishments which he took in his strides, continuing to work without a timeout.

His accomplishments were many for he was never idle, always working and striving at becoming better in all of his endeavours.

Each time he puts his shoulders to the wheels, there was no turning back, especially in his writing.

His books include: Songs of my soul, 2002 Issues of Life, 2003 The Revelation of Love, 2009, republished 2013 in the USA Dreams of a Caribbean Poet, November 2013 Home Memories 2018 In 2014, he edited Twenty-five poems by Guyanese Children, published by The Caribbean Press.

His publications were one part of his accomplishments. His awards includes: Offerings Poetry Award (Guyana) 1997; The Editor’s Choice Poetry Award from 1993-2012 from the International Library of Poetry in the USA; and the Inter-American Press Association finalist Award 1998 for his essay on Press Freedom.

In 2003, he gained an Associate Degree in Theology, in 2004, the Advanced Diploma in Theology, in 2005, a Bachelor of Theology and in 2007, a Master of Arts in Theology, all of which were issued from the Life Christian University, Tampa, Florida.

While studying, he became an ordained minister of the gospel attached to the Word of Faith Ministries and pastor of Word of Faith Healing Ministries. Later he became the Administrator and a Director of the Word of Faith Ministries.

On February 9, 2019, Gideon Cecil was conferred

with an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from the Canadian International Chaplaincy Association, (CICA) University and Seminary. That ceremony was held in Guyana.

However, his greatest achievement was his family which he started when he was married to Deborah Shanti Dyal in 2000. That marriage produced a daughter and a son.

Where did it all start?

Gideon Sampson Cecil was born in 1968 in Rose Hall T o w n , Corentyne, Berbice, to Cecil and Chandai D a v i d .

He credited many sources for his literary leanings. First and foremost, was his father who was an avid reader even as he was a dedicated worker on the estate.

Additionally, his father used to ask Gideon to write stories which the father narrated - jumbie stories, and stories about the sea. His father also kept a journal.

While attending J. C. Chandisingh High School, Gideon made optimum use of its library. He recalled one of the first books to influence him was ‘From Shakespeare to Goldsmith: The Pageant of Literature’.

had a personal library worth millions.

All that reading and all of the above influences led to writing, a worthwhile legacy, his legacy to Guyana.

Responses to this author telephone (592) 2260065 or

Gideon Sampson Cecil

At school, he came under the influence of Basant Raj and after attending school, Gideon came under the influence of Mr. Nauth who

Poem

email: oraltradition2002@ yahoo.com

8 Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

MARCH 10 , 2019

World Poetry Day

Cyril Dabydeen

Abdur Rahman Hopkinson

Cyril Ewart Lionel Grant

Beryl Gilroy

David Dabydeen Ian McDonald John Agard

Mahadai Das

Grace Nichols

Martin Carter

Narmala Shewcharan

Stanley Greaves Wordsworth McAndrew

Rajkumari Singh

Sir Theodore Wilson Harris

guyanatimesgy.com

MARCH 10 , 2019

Sunday Times Magazine

9

Health

G

sighted • Having had an eye injury or certain types of eye surgery • Taking corticosteroid medications, especially eyedrops, for a long time

Overview

laucoma is a group of eye conditions that damage the optic nerve, the health of which is vital for good vision.

This damage is often caused by an abnormally high pressure in your eye.

Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of blindness for people over the age of 60. It can occur at any age but is more common in older adults.

Many forms of glaucoma have no warning signs. The effect is so gradual that you may not notice a change in vision until the condition is at an advanced stage.

Because vision loss due to glaucoma can't be recovered, it's important to have regular eye exams that include measurements of your eye pressure so a diagnosis can be made in its early stages and treated appropriately. If glaucoma is recognized early, vision loss can be slowed or prevented. If you have the condition, you'll generally need treatment for the rest of your life.

Treatment

The damage caused by glaucoma can't be reversed. But treatment and regular checkups can help slow or prevent vision loss, especially if you catch the disease in its early stages.

Glaucoma is treated by lowering your eye pressure (intraocular pressure). Depending on your situation, your options may include prescription eyedrops, oral medications, laser treatment, surgery or a combination of any of these.

Glaucoma treatment often starts with prescription eyedrops. These can help decrease eye pressure by improving how fluid drains from your eye or by decreasing the amount of fluid your eye makes. Depending on how low your eye pressure needs to be, more than one of the eyedrops. (Mayo Clinic)

Symptoms

The signs and symptoms of glaucoma vary depending on the type and stage of your condition. For example: Open-angle glaucoma • Patchy blind spots in your side (peripheral) or central vision, frequently in both eyes • Tunnel vision in the advanced stages Acute angle-closure glaucoma • Severe headache • Eye pain • Nausea and vomiting • Blurred vision • Halos around lights • Eye redness If left untreated, glaucoma will eventually cause blindness. Even with treatment, about 15 percent of people with glaucoma become blind in at least one eye within 20 years.

Causes

Glaucoma is the result of damage to the optic nerve. As this nerve gradually deteriorates, blind spots develop in your visual field.

For reasons that doctors don't fully understand, this nerve damage is usually related to increased pressure in the eye.

Elevated eye pressure is due to a buildup of a fluid (aqueous humor) that flows throughout the inside of your eye. This internal fluid normally drains out through a tissue called the trabecular meshwork at the angle where the iris and cornea meet. When fluid is overproduced or the drainage system doesn't work properly, the fluid can't flow out at its normal rate and eye pressure increases.

Glaucoma tends to run in families. In some people, scientists have identified genes related to high eye pressure and optic nerve damage.

Types of glaucoma include: Open-angle glaucoma Open-angle glaucoma is the most common form of the disease. The drainage angle formed by the cornea and iris remains open, but the trabecular meshwork is partially blocked. This causes pressure in the eye to gradually increase. This pressure damages the optic nerve. It happens so slowly that you may lose vision before you're even aware of a problem.

Angle-closure glaucoma Angle-closure glaucoma, also called closedangle glaucoma, occurs when the iris bulges

forward to narrow or block the drainage angle formed by the cornea and iris. As a result, fluid can't circulate through the eye and pressure increases. Some people have narrow drainage angles, putting them at increased risk of angle-closure glaucoma.

Angle-closure glaucoma may occur suddenly (acute angle-closure glaucoma) or gradually (chronic angle-closure glaucoma). Acute angle-closure glaucoma is a medical emergency.

Normal-tension glaucoma In normal-tension glaucoma, your optic nerve becomes damaged even though your eye pressure is within the normal range. No one knows the exact reason for this. You may have a sensitive optic nerve, or you may have less blood being supplied to your optic nerve.

This limited blood flow could be caused by atherosclerosis — the buildup of fatty deposits (plaque) in the arteries — or other conditions that impair circulation.

Glaucoma in children

It's possible for infants and children to have glaucoma. It may be present from birth or develop in the first few years of life. The optic nerve damage may be caused by drainage blockages or an underlying medical condition.

Pigmentary glaucoma In pigmentary glaucoma, pigment granules from your iris build up in the drainage channels, slowing or blocking fluid exiting your eye. Activities such as jogging sometimes stir up the pigment granules, depositing them on the trabecular meshwork and causing intermittent pressure elevations.

Risk factors

Because chronic forms of glaucoma can destroy vision before any signs or symptoms are apparent, be aware of these risk factors: • Having high internal eye pressure (intraocular pressure) • Being over age 60 • Being black, Asian or Hispanic • Having a family history of glaucoma • Having certain medical conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure and sickle cell anemia • Having corneas that are thin in the center • Being extremely nearsighted or far-

10 Sunday Times Magazine

MARCH 10 , 2019

Fashion

By dressing well, guys can give off the appearance of being confident, attractive, put-together men that any firm would want to hire and anyone would want to date. One's attire is one of the first things noticed by others, and these first impressions are long-lasting. With a few simple steps, any guy can dress to impress every day.

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Ingredients • 2 lbs goat • 1/2 scotch bonnet pepper, seeds removed • 1/2 tsp oregano • 1/2 tsp allspice • 1 tsp paprika • 1/8 tsp cinnamon • 1 tsp salt • 8 sprigs thyme • 1 stalk rosemary • 1 tbsp garlic Combine all ingredients and all to marinate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.

• 1 medium onion diced • 4 tomatoes diced • 1 bay leaf • 1/2 cup tomato sauce • 2 tbsp sugar • 3 cups water • 2 tbsp chopped cilantro/ parsley • 1 tbsp canola oil

Ingredients • 1 lb ground turkey • 1 medium onion • 3 cloves garlic • ½ tsp olive oil • 1 ¾ cup potato cut into small cubes • ½ tsp ground black pepper • ¼ tsp red pepper flakes • ½ tsp turmeric • ¼ tsp geera(cumin) • ½ tsp coriander powder • 1 tsp crushed ginger • 1 cup water

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MARCH 10 , 2019

Home & Cooking

Y

our living room is where the social part of the home life takes place, a space designed to be used as you decide: entertaining, spending time with family, skateboarding, or watching TV. Instead of rummaging through your living room in search of comfort, you could be lounging carelessly in your highly functional living room where there’s a place for everything and everything is in its place. These living room design ideas guide you through the design maze and help you figure out what actually makes you want to LIVE in the living room.

Directions In a large skillet over medium heat, add oil.

When oil is hot add onions and meat and cook until browned. Next add tomatoes and cook for 10 minutes. Add bay leaf, tomato sauce, sugar, water then bring to boil. Cover then turn heat to a medium to low setting. Cook until tender.

Once meat has reached desired tenderness, remove from heat and add chopped cilantro.

Serve over rice. (Jehan Can Cook)

Give Your Room Natural Style

Refinish or install hardwood floors or add wood-paneled walls with a neutral stain to allow the grain of the wood to shine.

Lay Tile

Instead of wood floors, consider terra-cotta tile flooring. It brings warm color and a Mediterranean style note to your room.

• 1 tbsp cilantro • 2 11oz packs frozen puff pastry(4 sheets) • 1 egg yolk + 3 tsp water

To make the filling In a sauté pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add ground turkey and cook until brown then add onion and garlic and continue to cook until onion softens, about 3 minutes. Add potato cubes, black pepper, red pepper flakes, turmeric, geera, coriander and ginger and stir. Cook for another 3 minutes then add about 1 cup water and bring to a boil. Cook until potato is soft but still holds its shape and all the liquid is gone. Remove from heat and cool completely before moving on to the next step. I let it cool for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

To make the Puff Defrost the puff pastry according to directions on the box. On a lightly floured surface roll 1 sheet of puff pastry into a larger rectangle, and cut into desired size. Add a spoonful of filling in the center of one of the puff pastry square leaving a ½ inch border. Mix egg yolk with 3 teaspoons of water and brush on the border then place another puff pastry square on top of the filling. Use a fork to press around the edges to seal. Place into a preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven, then place the puffs on a rack to cool before eating. (Jehan can cook)

Create Architectural Details

Wainscoting, trim and crown molding add dimension to the walls in a formal living room or den.

• • • • • • • • •

Ingredients 2 cups all purpose flour 1 tsp baking powder ½ cup butter ½ cup sugar 1 cup grated coconut ½ cup raisins or currants 2 eggs 1 tsp vanilla extract ¼ tsp almond extract

Instructions 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine flour and baking powder in a container. Add cold butter and rub into flour until it resembles coarse cornmeal. Add sugar, grated coconut, raisins or currants and mix well. Whisk eggs with vanilla and almond extract. Add eggs to dry ingredient and mix using a spoon to form dough.

3. On a large baking pan use spoon to drop the dough on the baking pan to make 8 equal buns.

4. Place in preheated oven and bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool before serving.

(Jehan Can Cook)

Give Your Room Natural Style

Refinish or install hardwood floors or add wood-paneled walls with a neutral stain to allow the grain of the wood to shine.

12 Sunday Times Magazine

MARCH 10 , 2019

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Puzzles

ACROSS 89 Hoarfrost 1 Dissemble

93 Rock tumbler stones 6 Chopin opus

94 Sartre contemporary 11 Luau 95 Charm 16 Quinine water

97 Wallace's "Ben --" 21 Shale, once

98 Hindu mystics 22 Model -- Crawford 99 1960s fashion 23 Earth tone

100 Heard too often 24 Geologic period 101 Prince Valiant's wife 25 No longer wild

103 Before, to Blake 26 Rapidity

104 Dice throw 27 Groovy

106 Thunders 28 Ditto (2 wds.)

107 Meadow plaints 29 Moon or planet 108 Maneuver slowly 30 Hit a home run

110 Osiris' beloved 32 Streisand's "-- We" 111 "Cheers!" in Chihuahua 34 Water source

112 Opposite 36 Naval off.

113 Yma -37 "El Condor --"

115 Gave tickets 39 Polygraph flunkers 116 Donor 41 Grabs a cab

117 When mammoths roamed (2 wds.)

43 Frothy dessert

120 New Orleans pro 45 Potato jackets

122 "The final frontier" 47 Laments loudly 124 Gym org.

49 Actress Dianne -- 128 AMA members 51 "Six geese -- --..."

129 Deadly snake 54 In competition

131 Join, as hands 55 Dollywood loc.

133 Ring-shaped island 56 In -- -- (soon)

135 Sighs of relief 60 Sandy expanse

136 Down the hatch

10 Gazed at 61 Buffalo puckster

58 Austria neighbor 138 X-rated

11 Financial support 62 Cloud-seeding compound

59 Fish stories

140 Move a fern

12 Fixes a manuscript 64 -- -- premium

61 Cloys

142 Lab slide dye

13 Subside 65 Slogan

62 Dome home

144 Links champ Sam - 14 Clique 66 River transport

63 Pierre's school

145 More attractive

15 Run slowly 67 Leggy bird

66 Cattle stalls

146 In plain view

16 Maestros' concerns 68 Seabed formation 67 Spine-tingling 147 Stand of trees

17 Unfold, to Blake 70 Ms. Balin of films

69 Gawker 148 Earth, to Pliny

18 Jots down 71 Eddy

72 Aussie minerals

149 Silent screen's -- Bara

19 Desktop pictures 73 Leather items

73 Liner sinkers

150 Vice follower

20 Picked out 74 Dumbfound

74 Loses hair

151 Less loopy

31 Dirty Harry 75 DEA operative

76 Prickly flora DOWN

33 Pop singer -- Cara 77 Bakery display

1 35mm feature (hyph.)

78 Bantu people 35 Improve upon 78 Round numbers?

2 A moon of Jupiter

79 Aladdin's servant

38 Up till now (2 wds.)

79 Roman ships

3 Poets' feet 81 Della or Pee Wee

40 Step up from the bleachers 80 Haik wearers

4 Verizon predecessor

82 Curry herb 42 Nobel and Garbo 82 Souvenir

5 Jarrett and Sparks

83 Oven gloves 44 Ms. Hagen of films

83 Free-for-all

6 Bouncing off the walls?

84 Check endorser

46 Bolshoi rival 84 Postal deliveries 7 Diadems

85 Mall for Plato 48 Patrick's domain 87 Battle of the -

8 Al of Indy fame

86 Flies off the handle 50 No future -- -88 Get one's second -- 9 Banned insecticide

87 Harmful things

51 Mgmt.

88 Spooky

52 Helmsley of hotels

90 "--You Knocking" KATHLEEN SAXE

53 Wish upon -- - 91 Mongrels

54 Weathercocks

92 Destroy data

55 Unlawful acts

94 Sociology course

57 Canal sight

95 Hoaxes

TODAY'S WORD -- STATURE

WORD GAME

(STATURE: STACH-oor: Natural height in an upright position.)

Average mark 30 words Time limit 35 minutes Can you find 41 or more words in STATURE?

sate saute sear seat star stare start stat state stater statue stet strut suer

suet sure tare tart taste taster taut tear teat test tetra treat true truest

trust tsar aster astute urea user utter rase rate rest ruse rust east

RULES OF THE GAME: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of "s," such as "bats" or "dies," are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a "d" or an "s" may not be used. For example, if "bake" is used, "baked" or "bakes" are not allowed, but "bake" and "baking" are admissible. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

96 Split 99 Flat-topped hill 100 Painted tinware 102 Suspicious 105 Green fruit 106 Screams and shouts 107 Carpentry joint 109 NASA counterpart 111 Rat Pack member 112 Lasagna cheese 114 Where Kampala is 115 Brimming over 116 Swamp critters 117 That is (2 wds.)

118 Heron 119 Organic compound 121 Sudden 123 Cover the walls 125 Bricklayer 126 Spud garnish 127 Lou Grant portrayer 130 Cartel 132 Que. or Ont. 134 Centipede feature 137 Teacup handle 139 "Like, stupid!"

141 Night before 143 Zoologists' mouths

See Solution on page 14

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MARCH 10 , 2019

Sunday Times Magazine 13

14 Sunday Times Magazine

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MARCH 10 , 2019

Bollywood/Hollywood

Sanjay Dutt plays a grand old authoritarian with a powerful voice in Kalank

F

ilmmaker Karan Johar has shared the third character poster from his upcoming production, Kalank. The latest poster features Sanjay Dutt as the patriarch, Balraj Chaudhry. The film also stars Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, Aditya Roy Kapur, Madhuri Dixit and Sonakshi Sinha.

“The most powerful voice of the table, the formidable Balraj Chaudhry,” Karan wrote in his tweet.

“The grand old authoritarian of this grand old world.

Presenting Balraj,” wrote Madhuri in her tweet.

Dutt is seen with a grave expression on his face and large, square spectacles on his eyes. He is also seen wearing a woollen shawl.

Earlier on Thursday, the character posters of Varun and Aditya were also revealed. Varun shared a photo in which he can be seen looking out with intense kohl-laden eyes and sporting an unkempt look. The actor captioned the photo, “It’s been a hell of a journey playing this gem of a character. So guys, meet Zafar!”

Karan on Wednesday penned an emotional note

A

along with sharing the first look for his upcoming production. “A film that was born in my heart and mind 15 years ago... A film I passionately believe in... the last film my father worked on before he left us. It was his dream to see this film come through. I couldn’t fulfil his dream then, my spirit was broken, but today his wish has found a relationship with celluloid. The story of turbulent relationships

A

ctor Farhan Akhtar and TV personality Shibani Dandekar are currently among the most-fancied couples in Bollywood. Along with Arjun Kapoor and Malaika Arora, the audience engagement with these two remains high. Speculation suggests that a possible wedding may be on the cards too. Just the other day, both Shibani and Farhan shared a picture where they can be seen wearing rings on their fin-

gers and holding hands and soon Twitter was congratulating them on their “engagement”.

Now Farhan has cleared the air on the said subject. Speaking to Bhumi Pednekar on the latest episode of TapeCast, he spoke about his relationship with Shibani.

On TapeCast, the participants switch on a tape recorder and pre-recorded voice asks them a question. In Farhan’s case, it was Shibani herself who asked him a direct question. She said: Hey Farhan, are we

and eternal love has found a voice... Set in the 1940s, but its heart lives on. I am excited, anxious and emotional about this one.”

This will be Alia and Varun’s fourth collaboration after working together in blockbusters like Student of the Year, Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania and Badrinath Ki Dulhania. The film is set to hit the big screens on April, 2019. (Hindustan Times)

getting married in April or May? Can you please let me know because I am very confused.”

Introducing Shibani, a smiling Farhan then said: “I think she is having a lot of fun with a lot of news that is going around currently, about us looking for wedding planners.” To which, Bhumi asked: “Are you though?” Farhan replied: “It maybe April or April be ‘May’.”

Farhan confirmed that the two have been dating since one year. Meanwhile, the couple has been sharing pictures and videos of each other on social media for a while now, leading to much speculation. Recently they were in Mexico for a holiday and had shared pictures from the beach, much to the delight of their many fans.

On the work front, Farhan remains busy with Shonali Bose’s The Sky Is Pink, in which he co-stars with Priyanka Chopra and Zaira Wasim. (Hindustan Times)

yan Mukerji’s Brahmastra is perhaps one of the most ambitious films to come out of Bollywood in recent times. The fantasy drama, which revealed its logo at Kumbh on Mahashivaratri, is finally dropping some information. Ranbir Kapoor, who reportedly plays a man with special powers in Brahmastra, is named Shiva while Alia Bhatt’s name is Isha.

Sharing the details, Alia wrote on social media, “Shiva aur Isha #Brahmastra.”

Ayan, who is collaborating with Alia for the first time, shared an anime from his upcoming sci-fi film which shows a cartoon version of the lead pair against a background with several rays of light. “Part 1: Love #brah-

B

enjamin Franklin.

Oprah Winfrey.

Jack Ma. Aside from being some of the world’s most recognizable names, these people share something else in common: they’ve all been described as “self-made.”

Last July, cosmetics mogul and reality TV star Kylie Jenner became one of the latest to receive the distinction.

Jenner dominated the cover of Forbes magazine’s “America’s Women Billionaires” issue and was ranked No. 27 on last year’s list of “America’s Richest Self-Made Women.” On Tuesday, Forbes once again highlighted the 21-year-old’s success, including her in its annual billionaires list and describing her as “The Youngest Self-Made Billionaire Ever.” Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg previously held the title when he reached the 10-figure milestone at age 23.

Jenner is known for being the founder and sole owner of Kylie Cosmetics, which she launched in 2015. In just roughly two years, the company sold more than $630 million worth of products, Forbes reported in July 2018.

Last year, the company’s annual revenue increased 9 percent to an estimated $360 million, according to Tuesday’s announcement.

But Jenner is different from many other famously self-made people — a fact that was not lost on social media users, who have criticized the distinction since Forbes first gave it

mastra (P.S.: going to take some getting used to this new Instagram life),” he wrote.

Brahmastra is a weapon of Hindu God Brahma, who is called the creator of universe. The weapon is considered lethal and like its namesake, the film’s title refers to “ancient wisdom, energies and power”.

Talking about Brahmastra last year, Ayan had said, “It’s a modern-day film set in India as it exists today. But the reason it’s called Brahmastra is because the energies, wisdom, powers in the film come from ancient India. That’s all I would say. There are some costumes, may be not the way you’d expect them to be.” (Hindustan Times)

to her last summer. At the time, the magazine reported that Jenner started her business by investing “some $250,000 of her earnings from modeling gigs to pay an outside company to produce the first 15,000 lip kits."

(Washington Post)

Crossword Solution

guyanatimesgy.com

MARCH 10 , 2019

Sunday Times Magazine 15

16 Sunday Times Magazine

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MARCH 10 , 2019

Fun Times

Archie

Don't let temptation set in when uncertainty is pres(March 21ent. If you listen to your inApril 19) ner voice, you will realize that what's being offered isn't as flawless as it sounds.

ARIES

Think matters through TAURUS and make sure they are sound (April 20- before you make a move. Joint May 20) ventures will not turn out to be as promised. Scale down and do your own thing.

GEMINI (MAY 28June 20)

Be careful what you wish for. Nothing will be as it appears. Keep personal matters to yourself and don't fall for someone's smooth talk.

Personal growth should be your goal.

Take it easy and make practical plans with some(June 21- one you feel safe and at home July 22) with. Putting your physical well-being in jeopardy to prove a point won't pay off.

CANCER

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Dilbert

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Peanuts

Note what others are doing, but don't feel you have to join in. Accept the inevitable changes taking place and keep a low profile. Don't push others to do things for you.

Put your heart and soul into getting what you want.

The people you encounter will reveal helpful information. Know when to cut back, and protect yourself against loss or injury.

Make plans with people who don't judge you. Don't take on challenges that could lead to emotional distress.

Focus on health and improving your lifestyle and domestic situation.

Pay closer attention to SCORPIO your relationships with oth(Oct. 24- ers. You'll learn a lot about Nov. 22) someone if you spend more time with him or her. Refuse to let anyone interfere in your personal affairs.

Look for opportunities, but SAGITTARIUS don't be gullible if someone of(Nov. 23Dec. 21) fers the impossible. You are better off putting your money in a safe place and choosing activities that relieve stress.

Calvin and Hobbes

Stick close to home or atCAPRICORN tend a reunion that will bring (Dec. 22- you in touch with someone Jan. 19) you miss. A change you make won't please everyone. Do what's best for you.

Do whatever it takes to AQUARIUS rejuvenate. Pampering, time (Jan. 20- alone or curling up with a Feb. 19) good book will help you put whatever is going on in your life in perspective.

Past experience will help PISCES (Feb. 20- you decipher if someone is Mar. 20) good for you. Beliefs and lifestyle will play a role when it comes to forming a relationship with someone.