Guyana Times Sunday December 1, 2019

Nationwide coverage coverage from from the the best best news news team team in in Guyana Guyana Nationwide Issue No. 4124 guyanatimesgy.com

THE BEACON BEACON OF OF TRUTH TRUTH THE

PPP promises restoration of …says money earned to go back LCDS to Guyanese through jobs Sunday, December 1, 2019

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WHAT'S INSIDE:

Major adjustments needed for Guyana’s incoming wealth – fmr Jamaican PM P11

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Page 14

2020 elections

Nominations Day is January 10 Prison Officer caught with ganja in haversack Page 13

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See story on pages 7 & 13

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39.2% Guyanese teens use 1

alcoholic drink

monthly – PAHO report

Constable arrested for playing with loaded gun

340 graduate from UG’s distance education programme

…ExxonMobil grants 55 scholarships to outstanding P17 performers

Essequibo to P18 be promoted as Guyana’s newest tourist destination Local complaints over trade relations

Bajan Govt official admits non-tariff trade barriers P7 abnormal

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As preparations commence for the holiday season, this exceptionally elegant Christmas tree stands at MovieTowne dazzling shoppers and visitors at the mall (Dexter Ceres photo)

5 die in WBD, WCD accidents See stories on pages 10 & 18

Small businesses should get tax breaks, better incentives – Business Bureau CEO P17

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

Sunday, December 1 – 08:00h – 09:30h and Monday, December 2 – 09:00h – 10:30h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Sunday, November 24 – 14:45h – 16:15h and Monday, November 25 – 15:25h – 16:55h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

Sunday, December 1 – 07:10 – 08:40h and Monday, December 2 – 07:50h – 09:20h.

WEATHER TODAY Partly sunny skies are expected throughout the day. There will be clear skies at night.

Temperatures should range between 21 degrees Celsius and 32 degrees Celsius.

Winds: North-Easterly to East South-Easterly between 1.78 metres and 4.91 metres.

High Tide: 07:17h and 19:29h reaching maximum heights of 2.34 metres and 2.41 metres.

Low Tide: 24:49h and 13:02 reaching minimum heights of 0.70 metre and 0.91 metre.

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DAILY MILLIONS

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PPP promises restoration of LCDS …says money earned to go back to Guyanese through jobs

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he People’s Progressive Party (PPP) manifesto for the 2020 General and Regional Elections is out and one of the Party’s promises should it return to office is the restoration of the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS).

The LCDS, a brainchild of former President Bharrat Jagdeo, allowed Guyana to earn millions of dollars for deferred deforestation.

When A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance for Change (APNU/AFC) came into power, the programme was scrapped and a less impacting one, the Green State Development Strategy (GSDS), was rolled out.

“Guyana's rich natural resources must be utilised to provide jobs and create opportunities for our people.

They, however, must be utilised in a sustainable manner. Our mineral resources must be used to provide employment to thousands of our people. Our people have a legitimate right to earn from these sectors and to provide for their families”.

The PPP/C, according to the manifesto, is committed to working with miners, miners’ organisations and those who work in the forestry sector and their organisations to ensure that the impact to the environment is minimised.

Highlighting the value of Guyana’s forests, the PPP/C noted its potential to make a positive impact and also impact the fight against climate change. According to the Party, hundreds of millions of US dollars can still be earned using Guyana’s forests.

“We will reinstitute the LCDS to help achieve prosperity for our people by deploying earnings from forest climate services to diversify the economy and create more jobs and opportunities utilising a non-carbon intensive pathway. We believe that we can earn hundreds of millions of US dollars as we have already demonstrated through the Norway Agreement and create thousands of new, clean jobs”.

“We have to ensure that the benefits from the Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) flow to all

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PPP/C Presidential Candidate, Dr Irfaan Ali

Guyanese, particularly Indigenous communities, where the principles of Free Prior and Informed Consent and Opt-In must be rigidly observed,” the PPP/C added in their manifesto.

The Party also noted some concrete measures they will pursue, including establishing an International Centre of Excellence for Biological Diversity. According to the PPP/C, this centre will promote cutting-edge research while developing and exporting educational services.

The Party also promised that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) would have its capacity built, to provide enhanced regulation. In addition, the National System of Protected Areas would also be enhanced.

According to the PPP, steps would also be taken to decarbonise the transport sector by implementing a mixture of ethanol into vehicles to reduce the use of fossil fuels. Other measures the Party touted were renewable energy technologies and providing incentives for biomass-to-energy projects.

The Party promised it would also provide grants for startup businesses for renewable and recycling projects.

Another measure the Party promised was to implement a national landuse policy for residential and commercial interests, as well as establishing an inter-agency mechanism for coordination between the forestry, mining, agriculture, settlements and infrastructure sectors.

“This mechanism will serve to address multiple land-use conflicts, foster fair, transparent and equitable land allocation decisions, and address inter-sectoral issues regarding the implementation of land use policy,” the Party explained.

Even though the GSDS was implemented by the coalition government, it is largely based on the LCDS. The LCDS is a framework that is intended to incorporate economic development programmes with strategies to promote the fight against global warming.

Along the way, these programmes are supposed to be funded from the Guyana Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+ Investment Fund).

But while the LCDS contained concrete measures, the GSDS has been criticised for lacking specificity and tangible goals.

Guyana has always had a track record of low deforestation rates, a fact that led to the actual setting up of the GRIF fund in the first place under the previous government. In fact, a study done by the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) back in 2011 had found that the deforestation rates were a mere 0.06 per cent for 2009 to 2010.

While this minuscule deforestation rate was attributed to primarily to mining activities, it has been acknowledged that mining is a crucial part of Guyana’s economy, representing 21 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2012.

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

PPP manifesto

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he PPP launched what they described as their “minimanifesto” last Friday. Some may be wondering why the Opposition party would “show its hand so early in the game” since elections are three months away and the governing PNC-led coalition might be able to “counter” their proposals. But what the PPP has done is to demonstrate very clearly that they do not consider the future of Guyana as a “game” that should be subjected to political one-upmanship.

They are a party that was in power for 23 years, during which, the policies outlined in their manifestos were deployed strategically to not only remove Guyana from the stigma of being dubbed a “Highly Indebted Poor Country” but to actually elevate it into the ranks of the “Upper MiddleIncome Countries”. The visionary “Low Carbon Development Strategy” (LCDS) formulated by then-President Bharrat Jagdeo, earned Guyana world acclaim for its path-breaking synthesis of eco-friendly initiatives to move Guyana further up the developmental ladder. It demonstrated to the world that “a country could have its environment and eat it too”.

So, we should not be surprised that in is mini-manifesto, the PPP announced, “We will reinstitute the LCDS to help achieve prosperity for our people by deploying earnings from forest climate services to diversify the economy and create more jobs and opportunities utilising a non-carbon intensive pathway”. On the other hand, in 2015, the PNC-led coalition implicitly accepted the low carbon pathway but smallmindedly named it a “Green Strategy for Development” while excising one of the major “green” planks that was embedded in the LCDS. This was the “Amaila Falls HydroElectric Project” (AFHEP) that was praised by Norway for being the most viable power solution for Guyana and had committed US$80M towards its funding. AFHEP would have addressed the major constraint to the industrialisation of Guyana and moving it away from being a primary product price taker: cheap, reliable electricity.

As the manifesto explained: “Energy is key for the economic growth of Guyana and for an improved quality of life for all Guyanese. The PPP/C is committed to providing affordable, stable and reliable energy to benefit both households and businesses. “We will implement a programme with an energy-mix that includes hydropower, solar and wind, which will lead to more than 400 Megawatts of newly-installed capacity for residential and commercialindustrial users”. Unlike the PNC that promised “jobs” in 2015 but actually cut 30,000 jobs, the PPP understands that governments must provide the environment for job creation.

In a modern, globalised world, this means providing cheap electricity for value-added jobs.

As such, with the PPP’s articulation of its policies on electricity generation, we can be sure they will fulfil it expeditiously with oil revenues in the offing since they had already taken AFHEP to a point of launching before it was torpedoed by a vindictive APNU and AFC that held a 33seat majority in the National Assembly during the Donald Ramotar presidency. More concretely, they promised in this area: “The PPP/C is committed to implementing the following policy measures: * Complete the Amaila Falls Hydro Project, moving towards clean, reliable, affordable power supply. * Produce in excess of 200 MW in the interim from natural gas. * Invest in solar and wind systems for off-grid areas. * Expand the Hinterland Electrification Programme. * Replace and upgrade solar panels in the hinterland. * Take urgent action to improve and upgrade the national grid (transmission and distribution). * Develop micro grids for large hinterland villages.”

While the PPP’s manifesto is extremely detailed, with timelines provided, we have used the above examples to illustrate the overarching vision of their development strategy rests on a solid foundation of their achievements in their first 23 years at the helm. The PNC’s boast of “infrastructural development” – the EC and WC highways, the Mandela-Sheriff St bypass, the CJIA, and the stillborn new Demerara Harbour Bridge – were all PPP’s babies.

They were all PPP-conceived projects.

Hinds Establishment- an auto rental and city tour operator- showcases some of Guyana’s historic sites that tourists can visit. These model sites were displayed at the Guyana Tourism Authority’s regional destination launch on Saturday at MovieTowne (Dexter Ceres photo)

GECOM is not proactive enough!

Dear Editor, The emboldened negative and unfit behaviour of PNCR/ APNU Commissioners at the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has had its temporary watershed moments. Albeit, their confidence amplified under the support of Mr Granger’s illegal imposition and biased decisions of James Paterson, resulting in a clandestine and still lingering contributions to ongoing confusion at the institution. The situation necessitates a swift, urgent and assertive cleanup by the new Chairperson, Madam Retired Justice Claudette Singh, to inform an acceptable delivery of free and fair elections by the institution.

At its best, the rearranged tempo by the likes of Patterson, Lowenfield, and the infamous Alexanderled trio can be described as “dominantly regressive and reactionary when forced sufficiently to recognise the outcries of citizens, civil society and the rulings of the Judiciary”. As deliberate and underhanded as it has been, corrective mechanisms through the orders to cease of the unwarranted Houseto-House (H2H) activities together and to commence the Claims and Objections cycle are seen as remedial and have been welcomingly receptive by most. With the latter completed since November 11, 2019, this nation now anxiously awaits the Revised List of Electors (RLE).

It is clear that GECOM must be more proactive and cease accommodating all of the dodging and delaying tactics so that we can have free and fair elections as early as possible. It is an absolute affront to the nation for this critical agency to reflect such measures of uncertainty and indecisiveness in the face of previous precedence and an existing legislative framework. It is also most

disappointing that the approach of Government players who seem to have adopted a mode of the recreation of the wheel at every turn at a level of uncaring and very significant costs.

It is indeed attention-grabbing and provocative that most of the baseless PNC/APNU delaying advocacy strategy which the Lowenfield-headed Secretariat chose to execute had to be judicially condemned and justifiably reversed in some instances. It is, therefore, not only interesting but necessary for the public to know about the costs associated with thousands of persons employed

by GECOM to work during the H2H Registration period and the associated waste of taxpayers’ money given that improved results could have been obtained through the Claims and Objections approach. Is this one of the ways in helping to fund one of the Government’s cross-country trips?

Recent reports reveal an interesting milieu emerged from the cross-matching of fingerprints from the H2H, which indicates some 60,000 unmatched prints. This is indeed a matter of concern for several reasons, which include a clouded image of the scrutiny process; improperly trained evaluators in Mr Lowenfield’s haste to defy the ruling of the CCJ, and as many have argued, the use of expensive (cheap ink) during the exercises. As the sea threatens to overwhelm its walls, Guyana must be the only country in the world where citizens passively look on in a quest for civility. Such obvious and persistent suspicious undercurrents are part of the formula for rift drift and a monstrous uproar, demanding of the most pedantic counter check and audit.

Clearly, it would indeed be a revelation when one looks at the printout of the GECOM “Integrated

Financial Management and Accounting System (IFMAS) report” to identify the reasons for the wastefully expended millions of dollars as a consequence of these unnecessary diversional activities. No wonder GECOM now calls for additional funding after being allocated over G$8 billion between November 2018 and April of this year which consists of G$5.54 billion in the 2019 budget and an additional supplemental of 3.482 billion in May 2019.

GECOM is required to produce an RLE after careful scrutiny of all the Claims and Objection transactions.

It is imperative that all additions and deletions, as a consequence of transfers, be taken into account to address the updated constituency arrangements as updates of the PLE. Regarding new registrants, they will have to be recorded and sent for the appropriate cross-matching before they are placed in the RLE. It has been passionately argued by many, and supported by me, that no data from the H2H exercise should be used in updating the RLE. Others, on the other hand, have stressed that consideration of the first-time registrants who completed registration during the H2H should be addressed. This must be conditional to proper verification scrutiny to the satisfaction of the Political parties before consideration of approval as inclusions due to no faults of the persons.

Mr Lowenfield’s duplicitous nature has served to fertilise these unnecessary weeds in the now conflicting GECOM garden. The need, therefore, for teams of international observers at this time and in the future, cannot be more effectively highlighted and emphasiSed. One would also recognise that GECOM staff will have to look at all the necessary corrections such as change

of names and spelling corrections that took place during the process. Further, GECOM will have to deal with the issuing of ID cards which they must release to the thousands of new registrants who already visited the various offices to uplift their ID cards. This ID card issue is a big problem for GECOM, given that they promised persons to deliver within two to three weeks and have failed to issue a single ID card after more than two months.

Inside sources at GECOM have complained bitterly about the substandard quality of cameras that were bought at very expensive prices and the insufficient training of the GECOM staff to use the cameras. Further, citizens are complaining of the makeshift white ‘cardboard’ that was used as the back-drop for the taking out of the photographs; while the technical staff is also complaining about the ‘fudging’ up of the fingerprints due to the high-cost poor quality of ink-pad that was used for the taking of the finger-prints. It demonstrates Mr Lowenfield is certainly focused outside of the box and certainly not proactive in ensuring a fluent and transparent system.

In this regard, GECOM must produce a work plan with the appropriate budgeted costs to guide the nation, given that we have reached a point where there are little or no confidence and absolutely no trust in the output and reliability of the staff. Further, it will be useful for the RO’s working with GECOM to prepare the supplemental and send it to the office further verification before the RLE is printed, and also make available for the Political Parties and the public to finally peruse before GECOM produces the Official List of Electors.

Sincerely, Neil Kumar

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Elections delay and real politics Dear Editor, After Nigel Hughes’ voodoo mathematics left the world in laughter, sane Guyanese in tears and mathematicians in anger, we have seen, for the first time in five years, senior members of the Government who were riddled with chronic mobility issues step out the comfort of their office for ‘outreaches’ which coincide with an impending elections – it’s all too convenient if you ask me.

For five years, yes, five years, the Government never once thought it was necessary to step out of their offices or Georgetown to do an outreach which, in all fairness to the former administration, was a constant that was taken for granted.

Today, the very leaders who were characteristically inactive are now in streets their feet never touched before.

Editor, there are no co-

incidences in this world and this isn’t the first. The outreach coinciding with the election is a blatantly obvious attempt to pull the wool over the eyes of the masses and dare I say, it won’t work. If the same persons who were uninterested in the wellbeing of the masses for so long are only now concerned, how can anyone take this seriously? Had there not been an election, would we ever see them? It is hard to imagine such efforts are genuine.

However, one point consistently missed by analysts and political commentators on this entire constitutional debacle is that there has been a significant amount of asset transfer to cronies and family members of persons in the executive. Over the past year, since the successful passing of the NoConfidence Motion, there have been numerous trans-

fers of land, vehicle, properties and other State assets that have gone almost unchecked.

Ironically, this works in favour of the political opposition. While elections may not be as soon as they would have liked, the true colours of the current administration are now in full flow and so blatant that even the blind can see. It was alleged that the previous party became corrupt because they were in office for so long, but this administration has only started and it is so much worse.

I cannot speak for every Guyanese citizen, but apart from those wishing to confine to tribal loyalty, this is appalling beyond the ethnic line and party loyalty. The hypocrisy and greed are intolerable!!

Regards Todd A Morgan

Did Mr Granger purposely try to insult the intelligence of the nation?

Dear Editor, When the campaign of APNU/AFC kicked off in 2015 to topple the then-President Ramotar, youth was such a major campaign focus.

So much too that their “vote like a boss” slogan that was promoted almost exclusively by youth— young people under the age of 30. The campaign youth focus didn’t end there, there were many other target policies such as youth jobs, empowerment programmes and leadership roles that were promised. Of course, a politician’s promise is a fool’s gold, and that is exactly what we were fed.

Not long after the elections were won, President Granger gave an ‘interview’ with media participants that were handpicked by the Government.

During the interview, one of the media operatives made mention of the campaign promise and banners that were still to be removed regarding job creation for youth.

Mr Granger’s response then shocked the country, he told everyone that youths should sell plantain chips and cookup rice.

Can you believe this? I couldn’t at the time. Did Mr Granger purposely try to insult the intelligence of the nation?

Editor, even the correct rhetoric seems to be a burden for the current administration as Mr Granger explicitly told the media that there is no plan. Even by third-world standards, this is a silly statement.

The Cabinet, Parliament and other top positions are

comprised mostly of persons just below or over the age of sixty. Some left Guyana decades ago and are now returning to ‘serve’ by monopolising top positions and crowding out youths in the country, even those who were supportive of the Government.

If this wasn’t bad, the obsession with military personnel gives an outsider the opinion that Guyana has a military administration that recently overthrew a Government and there is a need for the military to annex all top civilian posts. Military men are now in control of the Cabinet, individual ministerial portfolios, GECOM (yup, it’s not a joke), the country’s most important medical facility (GPHC, not a joke either) and top diplomatic appointments just to name a few.

If one was to subscribe to this logic, then the ideology would read like this or something similar: military men are special when aged beyond 60, and youths in Guyana with University education are worthless and need to be kept away at all cost. The former is akin to fine wine and the latter a nineteenth-century plague.

I did search profusely, and while I may be mistaken, I could not find anyone aged 35 or under, or even 40 or below that held (for the government) an MP seat, an REO, a Ministerial portfolio, a PS or any other significant position.

To quantify this, people under 35 in Guyana makeup around (it could be more since there is data time-lagged) twothirds of the electorate but hold close to or zero per cent of

top positions.

There was even once a Ministry of Youth, which has since relegated to a department and is being controlled by a pensioner (how fitting!).

This is the sad state of youth involvement in the current Government. For anyone who thinks this is an exaggeration, I implore you to fact check this for yourselves.

Sincerely, Attiya Baksh

A taxi driver under an Irfaan Ali presidency

Dear Editor, Friday was just like any other day in the life of a taxi driver. As a single parent and a father of three, I turned to the hire car business after losing my job at the Wales Sugar Estate following its closure. As someone who witnessed the devastating effect of the closure on surrounding communities, especially at the social and economic level, I would hastily argue that the average life on a man or woman in these communities is worst off.

My new job allows me to interact with many people from different backgrounds and ethnicities and they all have one thing in common: life has become extremely difficult since this new Government came into office. The fact of the matter is, this Government took away our main source of income and livelihood and give us nothing in return.

Instead, everyday prices are on the increase. This has nothing to do with race. In fact, I’m an afro-Guyanese from Albouystown.

Based on my first-hand experience of how this Government could be so heartless to the ordinary man and woman, I’m convinced that under an APNU/ AFC Government, the ordinary man and woman have nothing to look out for. We are just votes who fall for their insidious lies during

the election. We have witnessed it time and time again. We were assured that sugar would stay. And what did we get in return? Not only an obliteration of the estates but nothing to help supplement or sustain our wellbeing. I’m here jumping at every opportunity just to make a dollar. My three kids at home, the eldest – my 14-year old son— is the head while I’m away. He has to look after his two younger brothers, a 4-year-old and 6-year-old. Not surprisingly, due to the distraction, his grades have plummeted.

In this coming election, I urge all Guyanese to vote their conscience. This has nothing to do with race.

Voting for someone of your race does not guarantee you food in your pot or additional money to pay your bills. Take the people of Albouystown for instance.

Literally, tens of children go to bed hungry each day.

The drains are clogged, mosquitoes and other insects are omnipresent. This has to stop. It’s clear, this Government has nothing to offer. The only people who are benefitting are party members. Yes, the PPP did a few wrongdoings. But what we are getting from this Government is on a different level. I’m sure the majority would share this view.

I think if given a chance, Irfaan would make an excellent President. Let’s face it,

it was he who drove the largest housing project in the history of Guyana. It was he who gave thousands of homes drinkable water for the first time. Irfaan has a vision, based on their manifesto, and that is to see everyone prosper.

You don’t need a degree to see that cheap electricity, reduced tax, job creations, free education would bring direct benefit to the people.

For me, that would mean more money in my pocket.

I could even change my job for one that is more stable.

After all, I’m a certified mechanic. For my sons, that would mean improved access to education. For the businessman, that would mean higher profit since less tax would drive up sales.

When times permit, I would read the manifesto in detail. I urge everyone to do the same and make the right and informed choice.

At the end of the day, it does not matter who is in power, what matters is if, we, as the people are better off than we were. On a final note, let us not forget Volda Lawrence’s comment: “My only friend is my party people (not supporters, but party members!)...and right now, I want a doctor who could talk Portuguese”.

I think we should all give the PPP/C another chance.

Sincerely, Roger Samuels

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…delaying immediate gratification is the most important skill a child can have B y D avid J B redehoft , P h D

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hink about it. Be honest.

Is your child an instant gratifier or a patient postponer?

So what? Does it really matter? As a parent, teacher, coach, and mentor, do your actions and interactions make a difference? Can we teach children self-control and shape them into patient postponers rather than instant gratifiers?

The renowned psychologist Walter Mischel, who conducted the famous “Marshmallow Experiment” believed we could teach children self-control.

“This skill set [the ability to delay immediate gratification] is visible and measurable early in life and has profound longterm consequences for people’s welfare and mental and physical health over the life span.”

Why do some children grow up as patient postponers, able to resist temptation and delay gratification, and other children do not (instant gratifiers)? What does this have to do with childhood overindulgence? To test this, we asked 466 participants to answer 128 questions consisting of demographic data and seven psychological scales. My fellow researcher Mary Slinger and I established that delayed gratification is linked to childhood overindulgence.

Our research found that childhood overindulgence leads to: The inability to delay gratification An increase in materialistic values Being ungrateful Being unhappy Conversely, if individuals are not overindulged as children, they are more likely to delay gratification, to not be materialistic, to feel grateful, and to be happy. More specifically, we found significant differences in the ability to delay gratification between those that were overindulged as children, and those that were not.

Participants who were not overindulged as children were more likely to be patient postponers rather than instant gratifiers.

What are patient postponers like?

Patient postponers are very task-oriented.

They plan ahead and complete their work before they allow themselves to have fun.

They are never impulsive shoppers.

They almost always save for things they want rather than buy them on credit and pay for them later.

Patient postponers rarely get frustrated or angry when they have to wait for things or when others interfere with their plans.

What are instant gratifiers like?

Instant gratifiers are not task-oriented.

They rarely plan ahead and routinely procrastinate.

They put off the things they should do for the things that they really like doing.

They are impulsive shoppers. They want things now.

They never save for things they want; instead, they buy them on credit and pay for them later.

Instant gratifiers routinely get frustrated and angry when they have to wait for things or when things do not go their way.

Continued from Saturday B y B lake G riffin E dwards

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t is not my intention nor is it fair to trivialise any aspect of the parenting enterprise or to speak of it in broad strokes as I have here without acknowledging the very real and modern complexities of parenting. I do so acknowledge. That being said...

You're an adult. Go play with a kid!

Getting outside for an hour or two disturbs the monotony of the mundane, the routine, and the digital. The outdoors have a way of cleansing thoughts and emotions, sometimes leading to unexpected conversation and connection. In the best of cases, spending quality time together leads to storytelling, laughter, and other forms of playfulness – relationship-building catalysts that spur not only a deeper sense of connection but also enrich development. And that goes for the adults as well, of course. As we lower our guards and heighten our senses, we all learn and grow.

Like breathing, eating, and sleeping, we all –especially our kids –have a built-in need to be playful. Life is a kind of playground. If a child isn’t good at playful interaction, he or she may be more likely to withdraw from social situations. Being good at playful interaction depends on continual modelling and practice.

Tips for teaching children to delay gratification 1. Model patience and delaying gratification.

2. Teach your children to set goals and develop plans to work toward their goals.

3. Reward delayed gratification and self-control.

4. Play games that emphasise delayed gratification and self-control (eg, Red Light, Green Light).

5. Resist the urge to overindulge (giving children too much, over-nurturing them, and/or not having rules and chores).

Do all things with love, grace, and gratitude. (psychologytoday.com)

Play is critical for healthy development. There are no substitutes. Everything we do can be permeated with an attitude that is playful. Albert Einstein has been quoted as having once stated, “Play is the highest form of research.”

Playfulness also signals safety. Research psychologists from Texas Christian University instructed, “Shared silliness, laughter, and games all demonstrate to a child that you mean no harm (Purvis, Cross, & Sunshine, 2007)."

Playfulness can unlock and promote language-skill development, social skills, and even attachment security. Time dedicated to freewheeling, spontaneous play is eroding, and everything from sadness, worry, boredom, or worse flood in behind. You've seen this in action, right? If we’re being honest, don’t we see it in ourselves?

Many of our lives are too crowded for regular and unadulterated play. To the extent we live playless lives, human aptitudes such as spontaneity, creativity, and cooperation decline. It is our responsibility to catalyse for our children the kind of playfulness we all need in our lives, and let them guide the play whenever possible. By the end of the day, let's give our children the time, space, and resources they need to play well. Let's also be sure we have wasted some time being playful together. (Excerpt from psychologytoday.com)

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SUnDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Local complaints over trade relations

Bajan Govt official admits non-tariff trade barriers abnormal

Economist in the Barbados Foreign Affairs & Trade Ministry, Tyrone De Freitas

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xpressing surprise at reports that his country has barriers that complicate trade with Guyana, Tyrone De Freitas, an economist in the Barbados Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Ministry, noted that Guyanese should not be hindered from trading once the various standards are met.

De Freitas was speaking while taking part in a press conference on Saturday to introduce the Sustainable Caribbean Grassroots Business Alliance (SCGBA) to Guyana. In fact, he accompanied the group which was formed in Barbados four months ago.

The economist was asked by the media about the recent complaints by the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) about non-tariff trade barriers implemented

by a number of Caribbean countries. Barbados was one such country cited.

According to De Freitas, such measures are abnormal, though he noted that all goods should meet certain standards, whether they are agro-processed or of an industrial nature.

According to the economist, trade between countries must generally be guided by Sanitary and PhytoSanitary (SPS) standards.

“Within the region, for the Caribbean community, this is a customs union.

And goods are to be traded, following the revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, it has rules for the items. So, produce items like agriculture have to be guided by sanitary measures to protect the country”.

“So once that is done, agricultural products and meats can travel without hindrance. When it comes to industrial items, there’s a code to guide the production process. So once those things are met, there should be no hindrance”.

The economist noted that the revised Treaty of Chaguaramas plays an important role in ensuring seamless trade. He cited the Caribbean Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) — the forum where such matters can and should be addressed.

“Any complaint should go to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade and officials like myself, we have a good rela-

GCCI Senior Vice President Timothy Tucker

tionship with members of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Guyana and the Caricom Secretariat here.

So we have an ongoing relationship, personal contacts”.

“I’m surprised at this, (reports of) a non-tariff measure in Barbados.

We have seamless trade in Guyana. And in the Caribbean community, we have COTED, where these matters are disseminated and addressed. The last COTED was November 19, so any trade matter would have been brought there”.

Barriers

Earlier this month, the GCCI held a press conference where they zeroed in on non-tariff barriers that seemingly target Guyanese exports within the Caribbean region, with the Chamber questioning the relevance of

the Caribbean Community (Caricom) when little help is forthcoming.

During a press conference at its Waterloo Street, Georgetown office, featuring executives and even a former President, GCCI Senior Vice President Timothy Tucker had noted that over the years, Guyana has been disadvantaged when it comes to regional trade, by a number of countries including Barbados.

“Throughout the history of Caricom, we’ve had situations where we are limited in what we can export to the Caribbean, even to Trinidad. They’ve put non-tariff barriers on honey, they just released the ones on pepper and pineapple. There’s still a lot of barriers on honey, pineapple, pumpkins. Also, you had situations where, when Guyana was exporting coconut water and its products, they themselves shut that industry down”.

“I would have spoken about the suspected hepatitis case in Guyana and then suddenly the ban on all poultry products. When Guyana was approved to export poultry products throughout the Caribbean, we had even Jamaica they used one of their laws talking about water being used. In the height of all of this, why isn’t Caricom un-

ravelling these problems?

Is Caricom still relevant in terms of trade negotiations in the Caribbean?”

Since Guyana is about to become one of the world’s newest oil producers, he expressed the view that Guyana dropped the ball not only with negotiating trade deals but also even developing its local content

framework.

According to Tucker, Guyana’s newfound influence should have been leveraged to help other sectors and remove needless trade barriers. This is a view recently expressed by People’s Progressive Party Presidential Candidate, Dr Irfaan Ali.

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Cop under close arrest for beating labourer with baton

A

Police Constable is now under close arrest after allegations surfaced that he used his baton to assault a labourer at the man’s home in the presence of another cop and

a member of a Community Policing Group (CPG).

Reports are that the incident occurred at the labourer’s Black Bush Polder, Region Six (East BerbiceCorentyne) home on

Wednesday morning when the two Policemen and the CPG member showed up at his residence to transport him to the Whim Police Station.

A senior Police detective in Region Six on Saturday told Guyana Times that the Police Constable is currently being investigated for allegedly assaulting the man after a heated row ensued between the duo.

This newspaper was told that the constable had informed the man that they (Police) were at his home to arrest him following a report of domestic violence.

However, during the argument, the Police Constable allegedly whipped out his baton and dealt several lashes about the man’s body.

After receiving the blows, the CPG member reportedly grabbed the man and pushed him into the trunk of the motor vehicle which the trio had arrived. The labourer was then shackled and the constable allegedly contin-

The beat goes on… ued to use his baton and hit the man several times to his hands and about the upper part of his body.

According to reports, ranks from the Mibicuri Police Station, who were on patrol, were passing and saw what was occurring and intervened.

The injured man was then taken to the Mibicuri Hospital for a medical examination where he was treated for his wounds and sent away.

Afterwards, the labourer filed a report against the Police Constable and the officer was placed under close arrest at the Whim Police Station, pending investigations.

T

…in Suriname he case was brought since 2007; but, at long last, Desi Bouterse was convicted of murder for the execution of 15 Surinamese citizens who’d been rounded up and murdered in 1982. In 1980, he’d been the leader in the “Coup of Sergeants” that had violently ousted the democratically elected President Henk Aaron from office. Suriname had enjoyed only 5 years of peaceful independence from the Netherlands.

Bouterse had appointed himself head of the Military Council, and had proceeded to hand-select pliant presidents for Suriname while he ruled behind the scenes.

It was the same year Burnham had created his “special” constitution, making him a “constitutional” dictator for life. It was the same year also, of course, that he’d organised for his main opposition leader, Walter Rodney, to be assassinated, along with two other members of the latter’s party.

Both leaders of the two Guianas had seized power and had subverted democracy - and by not such different routes. Bouterse was just cruder in his seizure and execution of power, but Burnham ruled with no less an iron hand. There was a failed coup attempt against Bouterse early in 1982, and a few months later, he organised the execution of the 15, whom he insisted were behind it.

It is quite possible that if Burnham hadn’t decapitated the head of the WPA in 1980, a similar coup or a popular uprising might have been organised here. In 1979, a band of WPA activists from West Demerara, led by Ivan Sookram, had been arrested and tortured for collecting weapons and planning such a coup.

It wasn’t until Dec 2007 – 25 years after the murders – that the trial for the “December Murders” was started.

Time longer than twine, especially for murder, which has no statute of limitations. By early 2012, one of the accused persons decided to tell the truth: that Bouterse had actually participated in the killings, but by then Bouterse had entered electoral politics and become President in 2010. His party promptly passed an Amnesty Law before his erstwhile confederate could testify!!

Back in 1999, Bouterse had been convicted in absentia for drug trafficking in the Netherlands, but couldn’t be extradited because of Surinamese law. The threat of a murder conviction didn’t faze Bouterse, who revelled in his outlaw reputation.

The point about all of this for us in Guyana is that David Granger and the PNC were nurtured in the same dictatorial mindset of Bouterse, and really don’t give a damn about their reputation in the international community. They know that once the direct interests of the big powers aren’t affected, they’ll turn a blind eye to all sorts of excesses.

Rigging elections is the least of their fears!! …in Guyana The PPP launched their mini-manifesto on Friday. Your Eyewitness wasn’t surprised it was given short shrift by the dailies - other than this newspaper. Problem is, the PNC and AFC ruined the whole point about manifestos after 2015. The PPP is driven by a programme that’s honed for months by the party, in consultations with all sections of society. Everybody helps to draft the manifesto, including the candidate who’ll be executing it in office.

There are no surprises about what the PPP will do in power; it’s all there in black and white in the manifesto. In the PNC’s first iteration, Burnham crafted grandiloquent “Five Year Plans” with fancy themes like “Feed, House and Clothe the Nation!!” Since all of then invariably failed, no one took them seriously. During the PPP’s 23 years, however, that party faithfully kept to its plans - and rescued Guyana from the PNC’s destruction.

But while the PNC/AFC imitated this in 2015, they deep-sixed all meaningful promises - like constitutional change.

So now the PPP has to overcome this jadedness.

…with PNC’s ineptness Former Jamaican PM Portia Miller advised the PNC Government that they should give local companies priorities over foreigners in the new oil economy.

Doesn’t she realize the PNC sees this as “strengthening their enemies”?

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

news

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SUnDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

Constable arrested for playing with loaded gun although the man was licensed to carry that weapon, the manner in which he had been operating with it was not in keeping with rules and regulations.

Cannabis found in music set

During the search, cops also arrested a 32-yearold vendor of Old Road in Eccles, EBD. A quantity of cannabis

The pistol that the Supernumerary Constable was found playing with in the company of others

A

licensed firearm holder employed as a Supernumerary Constable attached to a mining company has been arrested for allegedly playing with his weapon while in the company of other persons, including a man carrying cannabis.

Reports are that the 34-year-old city Constable of Diamond Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara (EBD) was in the vicinity of the Stabroek Market Square at about 18:15h on Friday when Police swooped down at the location in search of drugs.

According to Police, ranks were acting on information received and as such, conducted a cordon and search exercise. As

The clip and matching live rounds of ammunition for the Supernumerary Constable’s licensed firearm

they swooped down on the area, Police ranks found a firearm holder in the act of exposing his weapon while “playing” with it.

The gun – a pistol – was fully loaded at that time with 16 live rounds of ammunition.

According to the Police,

The 1238 grams of cannabis that was unearthed inside a music set at a wharf in Georgetown

was found in the vendor’s possession.

Meanwhile, ranks from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Headquarters arrested a man at a wharf in Georgetown on Friday after he was found with cannabis and quantity of articles suspected to be stolen or unlawfully obtained.

Among the articles he

was found with, are a large built-in music set, which, when checked by the Police Officers, revealed 1238 grams of cannabis. The suspect, who hails from the Goed Intent village, West Bank Demerara (WBD), is currently in Police custody and said to be cooperating with the Police in their investigations into the matter.

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Republic Bank employee killed in Leonora accident A

n early morning accident on Saturday has claimed the life of Republic Bank employee, 25-year-old Riley Charles Newton, who allegedly fell asleep at the wheel of the vehicle he was driving.

Newton is a father of one, of Lot 76 Third Street, Windsor Forest village, West Coast Demerara (WCD).

Reports are that the accident occurred at about 05:00h in the vicinity of the Leonora Police Station, WCD after Newton lost control of his vehicle PRR 1703.

According to reports, the vehicle veered off the

Riley Charles Newton’s car, PRR 1703, which turned turtle on the grass parapet at the Leonora Public Road, West Coast Demerara (Guyanese Critic photo)

roadway and ended up on the grass parapet on the Southern side of the public road before turning turtle.

Police Commander of Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), Assistance Police Commissioner, Simon McBean, when contacted, told Guyana Times that there were two other occupants in the vehicle with Newton.

Investigations have revealed that the trio was imbibing in Georgetown and was heading to Parika, East Bank Essequibo (EBE), to drop home one of the occupants of the car when the accident occurred.

Following the incident, public-spirited persons managed to pull the three men out of the badly-damaged vehicle and rush them to the Leonora Cottage Hospital.

However, Newton was pronounced dead on arrival.

Meanwhile, his two friends, who sustained injuries, were treated at the medical facility.

Dead: Riley Charles Newton

An investigation has been launched into the incident.

Only a week ago, another Republic Bank employee met his demise after the vehicle he was driving slammed into a bridge rail at the Felicity village, East Coast Demerara (ECD).

Thirty-one-year-old David Matthew Headly, of Lot 370 Powise Close at South Ruimveldt Gardens in Georgetown, was killed at about 05:00h on Sunday last while en route to his home.

NEWS

Major adjustments needed for Guyana’s incoming wealth – fmr Jamaican PM

F

rom tackling inflation to ensuring everyone gets an opportunity to prosper, former Prime Minister of Jamaica, Portia Simpson-Miller, has delivered sound advice for local authorities as they prepare for the oil boom.

Simpson-Miller was at the time delivering the feature address at the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) annual awards ceremony on Thursday night at the Marriott Hotel in Kingston, Georgetown.

Simpson-Miller was the first female Prime Minister of Jamaica, serving from March 2005 to September 2007 and then again from January 2012 to March 2016.

As someone who would have steered the path through some of the most difficult economic reforms in her country, Simpson-Miller cautioned Guyanese leaders that in pursuing this path of economic growth, major adjustments will have to be made.

Inflation

Inflation, she says, is an issue which has to be addressed, particularly, for prices to remain low and stable.

“Since inflation is the greatest tax on the poor,

According to the CDB consultant, while wage increases are desirable, they must be given by the Government in a structured way.

Small businesses

Former Jamaica Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller

low inflation is the best gift any Government can give to its people,” Simpson-Miller stated.

Already, a consultant from the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), Dr Justin Ram, has urged Guyana to guard against the impact that inflation driven by oil can have on the overall economy and exchange rate.

At a forum held in Guyana in October 2019, Dr Ram explained that the oil and gas sectors tend to drive inflation in the economy.

“And that inflation tends to lead to other workers in the economy seeking wage increases,” he had stated.

Meanwhile, SimpsonMiller, addressing a room full of businesspeople, also underscored the importance of achieving stability in the foreign exchange market.

“This is important for reducing inflationary pressures in the economy and also to enable businesses, especially those that must be able to import to plan their transactions in a stable, predictable environment,” she said.

Moreover, the former Head-of-Government suggested that Government implement legislative changes to ensure local and small businesses are able to successfully participate in bidding for government contracts.

“As your economy improves it is vital that local businesses are not disadvantaged in participating and prospering,” she noted.

Government had promised to put systems in place to ensure that 20 per cent of all Government contracts are given to small businesses. It is unclear if this system has been implemented. turn to page 16

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39.2% Guyanese teens use at least 1 alcoholic drink monthly — PAHO report

G

lobally, alcohol consumption contributes to the premature death of millions of persons on an annual basis, and here in Guyana, the excess use of alcoholic substances results in further complications of illness as well as fatal accidents countrywide.

Chief Medical Officer, Dr Shamdeo Persaud, at a recent medical conference held at the Texila American University, stated that Guyana is internationally and locally recognised as a “rum-producing country” but that more stringent measures have to be put in place to safeguard citizens of all ages against the harmful effects of consuming alcohol. “…in our deliberations, with the agreement from the Spirit and Wine industry participants who we encouraged to work together with us, to come up with a strategy. The focus for excessive alcohol consumption will be on avoiding persons, especially underage persons, access to alcohol. So, any sale to minors will be a no-no, we should all be the

sure that we don’t serve alcohol to our underage students,” the CMO urged.

Teen alcohol consumption

PAHO/WHO Resident Representative in Guyana, Dr William Adu-Krow

Police Officers ensuring that this does not happen,” Dr Shamdeo said.

He stated that the culture of many Guyanese is to have alcoholic beverages at social or celebratory events but that adults need to desist from exposing children to such liquids for various reasons.

“I implore on parents to please don’t serve alcohol to your underage children even if it is a birthday party. Now we are in the Christmas season, that will be a regular part of every event to have a few drinks but please make

Meanwhile, Pan American Health Organisation/ World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO) Resident Representative in Guyana, Dr William AduKrow, took the opportunity to disclose startling statistics about the prevalence of children using alcohol on a regular basis in Guyana.

He stated that a recent survey conducted revealed that of the scores of 14-yearold students interviewed, 39.2 per cent of them reported that he/she consumed at least one alcoholic beverage within a 30-day period.

A whopping 79 per cent of the students who participated in the survey stated that they had consumed their first alcoholic beverage before the age of 14.

Additionally, the PAHO/WHO Resident Representative added that even among adults, the statistics focused on alcohol consumption are soaring.

“It is estimated at 36 per cent for us (adults) here in Guyana. That is definitely too high”.

Online initiative

Earlier this year, PAHO, worried that the rates of alcohol disorders among women are much higher in the Caribbean in comparison to other regions across the globe, launched a new initiative online with the hope of providing healthcare workers with technical skills needed to identify and address alcohol consumption in expectant mothers and women in the reproductive ages.

According to a Caribbean media report, this online course, “Women’s health and pregnancy: holistic approaches to preventing problems relating to prenatal exposure to alcohol”, will provide health workers with the latest, evidence-based information on health promotion strategies for pregnancy, the early detection of alcohol use in pregnancy and how to support women to reduce alcohol use.

“Alcohol use in pregnan-

Guyana’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr Shamdeo Persaud

cy presents a significant risk for both pregnant women and their foetus, leading to a number of negative outcomes such as miscarriage, low birth weight and preterm birth, and can lead to foetal alcohol spectrum disorders, which are irreversible,” Senior Advisor on Alcohol and Substance Abuse at PAHO, Dr Maristela Monteiro, had stated.

It is vital, she added, that healthcare workers have access to the latest research in order to implement appropriate interventions before

women become pregnant, as this will ensure the best outcomes for mother and child.

PAHO had reported that historically, men have been the “bigger consumers” of alcohol and suffer from more alcohol-induced consequences but there has been an increase of females who drink larger amounts of alcohol and more often.

“This is particularly significant in the Americas, where 3.2 per cent of women aged 15 years and older are estimated to have an alcohol use disorder, which is two and a half times the global average of 1.3 per cent. This puts them at increased risk of a number of other health problems, including breast cancer, heart disease and stroke. It is more difficult to reduce or stop drinking when a disorder already exists, and even more difficult during pregnancy”.

It said globally, the prevalence of alcohol use in pregnancy among the general population is 9.8 per cent, while in the Americas, including the Caribbean, this figure is 11.2 per cent.

14 NEWS

SUnDAY, december 1, 2019| guyanatimesgy.com

2020 elections

Nominations Day is January 10 T

he Guyana Elections C o m m i s s i o n (GECOM) has announced in a notice published in the media that Nominations Day for the upcoming General and Regional Elections is January 10, 2020.

In the notice published on Saturday, GECOM is calling for all political parties contesting the 2020 General and Regional Elections to submit their symbol for approval. In the notice, GECOM said that the approval of the symbols has to be done before Nominations Day. As such, the deadline for the submission is December 13, 2019.

The notice of Nominations Day comes days two days after Director-General of the Ministry of the Presidency, Joseph Harmon, when asked about the dissolution of Parliament, said that would solely depend

on the needs of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).

“In fact, we have said it is important that GECOM gets all of the resources it needs to ensure that we have credible elections in March of 2020. So what I am saying is those issues will have to be dealt with before the Parliament is dissolved. I can’t say that Parliament is going to meet today, the next day or whatever but these are the matters that are under active consideration in the Cabinet and so that the dissolution of the National Assembly will be determined in principle measure by the need for GECOM to get the additional resources which it says it wants,” Harmon told the media.

In September, President David Granger announced March 2, 2020, as the date for the hosting of the constitutionally-mandat-

ed General and Regional Elections; however, with time creeping up, he is yet to issue a proclamation to dissolve Parliament.

If elections are to be held on March 2, 2020, as announced, then President Granger would have to dissolve Parliament by December 3, 2019.

This is in keeping with Article 61 of the Constitution, which states that election of members of the National Assembly should be done within three months after every dissolution of Parliament.

It has been almost one year after the successful passage of a motion of no confidence against the A Partnership for National Unity /Alliance for Change (APNU/AFC) coalition government and the constitutionally-mandated General and Regional Elections are yet to be held.

This is despite the

Constitution clearly outlining that elections were supposed to be held no later than 90 days after the motion was passed.

Earlier in November, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo told reporters that the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) will resume protest actions if President David Granger does not dissolve Parliament come December.

Having already set March 2, 2020, as the date for the much-anticipated General and Regional Elections and issuing the election proclamation, pressure has been mounting on the President to also dissolve the 11th Parliament.

The APNU/AFC coalition has been acting as a caretaker government for nearly one year since the December 21, 2018 passage of the No-Confidence Motion (NCM) against it.

Manifestos and voting in Guyana

T

he release of manifestos is as much a part of the Guyanese electoral scene as “bottom house meetings”: both are geared to persuade the voting public where to put their X’s on elections day. With the former, the party offers in writing a “plaster for every sore” that afflicts the body politic but hopefully imbued with an overarching, comprehensive vision. “Bottom house” meetings, are more about informing the party faithful why not to vote for other parties and are generally no-hold-barred affairs, exemplified, for instance, by PNC Chair Volda Lawrence’s comment that “her friends are PNC people and she’ll only give them ‘wuk’”.

Like most of our practices, our manifestos hark back to the European/British origins of our institutions – especially after WWII when the pioneering PPP was launched. The programmatic approach came out of the radical leftist politicians’ insistence that “root and Ravi Dev branch” changes were needed across the spectrum to deliver a “brave new world”. In Britain, the Labour Party shocked the Conservatives – with Churchill at their head – and in 1953, the PPP did the same to the older political formations here. Manifestos became de rigueur from then.

Generally, there are three aspects to manifestos: intraparty purposes, electoral purposes, and governance purposes.

Parties typically have dedicated manifesto committees that solicit views from within and without the party, but ultimately the manifesto is ratified by the party. This intra-party process was critical when ideology dominated our political scene and consensus had to be reached among the various “wings” of the party on policy issues. In 1955, Burnham, for instance, split from the PPP to eventually form the PNC, because he claimed that Jagan and his followers were too “leftist”.

But the disappearance of ideological differences between the PPP and PNC after 1989 – when the neo-liberal premises of the “Washington Consensus” were accepted (however reluctantly) by both parties, raises the question of the relative importance of what are called “valency” versus “position issues” in reference to the “electoral purposes” of manifestos.

The term “valence” is used to highlight the significance of consensual issues – those on which there is agreement on the ends of politics by the parties, such as lower crime or economic growth or corruption. This is contrasted to “position” issues, on which voters and parties are divided on the ends of politics – such as delivering economic growth through Government intervention into the economy versus the present market fundamentalism.

From the comparison of the PPP manifesto versus the last one from APNU/AFC, there has clearly been a convergence of the two parties on “valency” issues: they both declare, in effect, they want to deliver “the good life” as represented by the western democracies. So how do we choose between them? In Guyana, it has been generally conceded that voting is overwhelmingly influenced by the ethnic origins of voters: one commentator had aptly dubbed our elections as “ethnic censuses”. But if that is so, what exactly will manifestos – which describe the precise policies the parties will take to deliver the “good life” – do?

The manifesto is supposed to convince electors – especially erstwhile ethnic supporters of another party – of the greater competence of the said party to deliver the “goods” they all agree on. Between 2006 and 2011, for instance, the AFC was able to pull ethnic voters from both the PPP and the PNC because they convinced those voters they were more credible on the valency issues of corruption, security, rice and sugar wages etc, through their strategy of “holding a balance” between the PPP and PNC in the National Assembly.

When they merged with the PNC in 2015, it is conjectured that the AFC brought, as promised, their “Indian” support into the coalition to carry them over the tape. Some saw this as a positive step in Guyanese politics since an African-dominated Government had the opportunity to demonstrate it could move away from ethnic clientelistic politics and bring the “good life” to all ethnic groups. Its blatantly partisan appointment policies immediately upon taking office, however, followed by its callous treatment of sugar workers, destroyed that hope.

It is up to the PPP to convince the majority of the electorate that it is more competent to deliver the consensus valency issues than the PNC-led coalition for governance purposes since the manifesto now becomes a social contract with the entire populace.

To be continued)

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The value of Environmental Nature Clubs

“E

ducation is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Nelson Mandela. Moreover, according to the USEPA, “Environmental education is a process that allows individuals to explore environmental issues, engage in problemsolving, and take action to improve the environment.” As a result, individuals develop a deeper understanding of environmental issues, and have the skills to make informed and responsible decisions.

We often teach children about various environmental issues, but they leave the classroom and perpetuate the same negative habits they were just taught to repulse a few moments ago. Why does this happen? Could it be that, for most children, learning is just abstract, and there is no deep understanding of the issues/problems? Do we stimulate children to become problem-solvers, rather than part of the problem? Do we evoke critical-thinking which would propel them to action?

If your answer is no, then you should examine the core components of environmental education listed below, and analyse the results of this new approach to teaching: * Awareness and sensitivity to the environment and environmental challenges; * Knowledge and understanding of the environment and environmental challenges; * Attitudes of concern for the environment, and motivation to improve or maintain environmental quality; * Skills to identify and help resolve environmental challenges; and * Participation in activities that lead to the resolution of environmental challenges.

Environmental education allows the teacher to facilitate the learning process, and students to analyse the empirical evidence presented from various perspectives to arrive at their positions.

Promoting sustainability through environmental/nature clubs

Environmental/nature clubs within schools, though not limited to schools, is an excellent avenue to develop attitudes, skills and behaviours needed to combat the negative environmental culture in Guyana. One might argue that this is just a small drop in the ocean, but you would concur that several frequent consistent drops can create larger ripples. We are aware that complementary systems and enforcement of regulations need to be put in place to address pervasive issues such as waste management; however, systems can also be ineffective if we are not properly educated on how to make the best use of them.

Brief history of Environmental clubs in Guyana

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), launched an Environmental Education, Awareness and Capacity Building Programme in 1999. One of the major activities of this programme was the involvement of communities and youths in environmental activities through the formation of environmental clubs and groups.

From 2001 to 2002, over sixty clubs and community environmental groups were developed in all the regions of Guyana. The first environmental club to be affiliated to the EPA was the Santa Rosa Conservation Club, in September 2000. These clubs have since grown to over one hundred (100); however, keeping the clubs active and relevant has been a challenge, and the Agency along with its partners continue over the years to provide much needed support to clubs.

Collaboration with the Protected Areas Commission to revive/initiate clubs

The EPA, in collaboration with the Protected Areas Commission (PAC), conducted a two-day training exercise during November 26-27 in Santa Rosa. It was for teachers of schools in the Moruca sub-region of Region 1.

The training aimed to equip teachers with skills to form new clubs, revive existing ones, and share experiences for overcoming challenges and sustaining environmental clubs.

Sixteen (16) teachers from 7 schools, and 5 Rangers attached to the Protected Areas Commission (PAC) were exposed to topics such as: the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Green State Development Strategy; and Education, climate change, waste management, biodiversity loss, water and sanitation, leadership, environmental games, and programme planning, among other things.

Delivering remarks at the simple opening ceremony was District Education Officer, Moruca Sub-region, Ms. Cliva Joseph, who encouraged the participants to make good use of the opportunity.

She also reinforced the value of sharing ideas and being bold about it.

As the Agency continues to underscore the value of environmental education in the early developmental stages of a child’s life, we will continue to work with agencies, groups and individuals who want to see Guyana evolve as a spectacle of sustainability. In order to safeguard our myriad of resources and ensure a promising future, we must take stock of our actions and how we interact with our environment. The time to act is not tomorrow, the time is now!!!

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

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SUnDAY, december 1, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

PPP to bolster technology, intelligence in crime-fighting

…reformation of prison system, increased budgetary allocations promised

T

he People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has dedicated a chunk of its 2020 elections manifesto on crime-fighting – a topical issue in light of the hike in criminal activities in Guyana.

The situation, the Party believes, can be combatted through increased technological and intelligence-based operations.

At the launching ceremony on Friday, Presidential Candidate, Dr Irfaan Ali detailed the Party’s strategy for handling and reducing criminal acts while apprehending perpetrators. According to him, preventative measures take precedence in enabling a safe population.

“Crime and security necessitate the involvement of communities in intelligence gathering, so we’re going to invest heavily in intelligence gathering as an important aspect of crime-fighting because the preventative measures are more important than af-

ter the fact,” the Presidential Candidate stated.

Excerpts from the manifesto give a comprehensive plan of what will be undertaken should the PPP be elected as the next administration.

The provision of more equipment, facilities and training for law enforcement officials is on the top of the list.

There are also plans to improve forensic capabilities, expand the capability of law enforcement agencies and to decentralise crime-fighting resources. As mentioned, investments will be made to broaden the scope of intelligence gathering and operations to bring down criminal networks.

Along with that, strengthening the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and increased budgetary allocations for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) will be undertaken. Under the Party’s governance, expanded training for prose-

cutors for higher conviction rates will further enhance the State’s capabilities to ensure safer communities.

The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) will be equipped with the resources necessary to strengthen maritime and border security. The PPP has promised a reformation of the prison system and expanding the use of modern technologies.

In recent time, there has been a visible spike in crimes across the country. While the Guyana Police Force (GPF) recently reported that there is a decrease in serious crimes, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo had debunked this claim, highlighting instances which prove otherwise.

He referred to the data which showed, “You had murders in Guyana going up last year to this year by 35.7 per cent. They had robbery under arms going up by 27.2 per cent. They had larceny going up by 31 per cent

from last year to this year.

And yet, serious crimes going down…People have gotten to a stage where many of them don’t even report the numerous robberies that take place on the streets or even at their homes”.

Jagdeo, who is also the PPP’s General Secretary, took the liberty of calling out the coalition government for failing to produce a successful plan to address the said increase in criminal activities but the current situation warrants immediate action.

“This is bizarre for a country like ours. The President doesn’t say anything. He says he’s addressing the crime situation. The (Public Security) Minister has gone quiet on the matter and the Police are coming up with these stats and we’re led to believe that crime is down. This is something that requires immediate attention…They’re not paying any attention to the functions that they get paid to carry out and they have no policy to address this rampant crime situation that is wreaking havoc”.

After getting into office in 2015, President David Granger had summoned his top security officials and laid out a five-point action plan that the security sector would use to battle the crime wave, which, at that time, had been rising at an alarming rate.

Since then, despite insisting that the crime rate has reduced, the coalition administration had come under heavy criticism for failing effectively tackle the situation.

Major adjustments needed...

From page 11

Transparency and accountability As she wrapped up her list of advice, Simpson-Miller underscored the importance of developing a system of public accountability and transparency so that there is public trust in Government and national institutions.

The Government has passed legislation for the establishment of a Natural Resources Fund which is intended to safe keep revenues from the oil and gas sector.

However, stakeholders, including the parliamentary opposition, have contended that there is room for too much political involvement in the Fund. In fact, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has repeatedly argued that the mechanisms are not strong enough to prevent politicians from raiding the Fund.

Jagdeo believes that the Fund should be managed by a non-political group, rather than Government, and has since promised to address this matter with urgency, if his party, the Peoples Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C), is elected into Government next year.

In hindsight: the economic implications of the downsizing of the sugar industry

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he last labour force survey indicated that Guyana’s unemployment rate is 12 percent. However, at the time, the report did not consider the massive job losses and the ripple effect thereto. With those taken into consideration, Guyana’s real unemployment rate is anywhere in the region of 20-27 percent.

The closure of the sugar estates would have contributed to losses in foreign exchange; coupled with the extraction of about $40 billion from the economy, from the perspective of the multiplier effect and how an economy works – an economy effectively functions like a web of networks wherein every part is linked in an integrated manner -- the consequence of this economic policy decision to right size the sugar industry, for example, would have taken out $10 billion dollars from the economy from those households in the form of their incomes. Their incomes also help to sustain the village economy, the shops, supermarkets, the vendors in the market areas, to name a few. Moreover, these persons would be unable to pay their mortgages and other loans, which would have implications at the macro level in the banking sector in terms of non-performing loans.

To this end, an examination of some key economic indicators to further

validate the above contentions is illustrated in the graphs and table below. The first graph shows total private consumption expenditure as a percentage of GDP for the past ten years, from 2009 to 2018. The data shows that private consumption accounted for 82 percent of GDP in 2009, which reached a high of 93 percent of GDP in 2013, then went down back to 83 percent in 2014. Notably, private consumption remained above 80% of GDP for six years, through 2009 to 2014, before falling to 73.8 percent of GDP in 2015 and to the lowest of 56.33 percent of GDP as at the end of 2018.

Now, from looking at the level of non-performing loans (NPLs) in the banking sector for the same period, NPLs increased from $7.8 billion in 2009 to $11.3 billion in 2013, representing an increase of 45 percent within that five-year period; and then from $11.3 billion in 2013 to $29.7 billion at the end of 2018, representing an increase of 163 percent increase, which is more than 3 ½ times the rate of increase in NPLs over the preceding five-year period. The sectorial concentration of the

NPLs shows that the Business Enterprise accounted for 79 % of total NPLs in 2009, which then fell to 65 percent in 2013, before increasing to 70 percent in 2018.

Agriculture accounted for 4 percent in 2009, 12 percent in 2013, and 7 percent in 2018. Mining and quarrying accounted for 2.5 percent in 2009, 2 percent in 2013, and went up to 4 percent in 2018. Manufacturing was 35 percent in 2009, went down to 16 percent in 2013, and increased to 17 percent in 2018. The services sector, notably, accounted for 37 percent of total NPLs in 2009, 35 percent in 2013, and then increased to its highest level in ten years -- to 43 percent of total NPLs. And finally, the households accounted for 21 percent in 2009, went up to 36 percent in 2013, and fell slightly to 30 percent in 2018.

Overall, for the year 2018, the business sector, manufacturing, services, and the households sector accounted for the highest levels of NPLs in the banking sector.

The evidence herein therefore suggests that these outturns are as a direct result of poor administration of economic policies; inter alia, the case of GuySuCo, for example, which accounted for massive job losses, significant reduction in consumer spending, owing to higher taxes, less disposable income, or spending power of households to spend in the economy, which helps to fuel economic growth. In terms of the high level of NPLs in the banking sector this would translate to more conservative lending by the banks, which would necessitate access to credit for commercial activities being curtailed.

When lending is curtailed, you have slower growth in the economy, less investment activities; and further, with loss of income and jobs by thousands of households, these people would become ineligible to borrow from the banks; and those who have mortgages stand to lose their properties which had been used as collateral for loans in the banking sector, simply because they would not be able to pay their mortgages.

By: J.C. Bhagwandin, M.Sc. Email: jbbankingadvice@gmail.com (The Author is an experienced Macro-finance and Research Analyst and a Senior Lecturer of BBA/MBA programs at Texila American University, University of Bedfordshire, and the Association of Business Executives (ABE) programmes in Guyana. The discussions and analyses presented are exclusively his own, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper or the institutions he is affiliated with.)

news

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SUnDAY, december 1, 2019 | guyanatimesgy.com

340 graduate from UG’s distance education programme …ExxonMobil grants 55 scholarships to outstanding performers

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total of 340 individuals on Saturday graduated from the Institute of Distance and Continuing Education (IDCE) — a programme by the University of Guyana for acceptance into the courses offered at the various faculties.

The 43rd convocation exercise, hosted at the University’s George Walcott Lecture Theatre (GWLT), saw the graduates successfully completing six programmes.

According to Registrar Dr Nigel Gravesande, the response to this programme has grown significantly

since its establishment in 1976, with over 1000 persons involved altogether.

“From such small beginnings, the Institute of Distance and Continuing Education has grown exponentially with four centres – one at Queen’s College, New Amsterdam, Anna Regina and Linden. During the last academic year, the centres had a total population of 1084 students,” he reckoned.

The programmes currently offered by the IDCE include a diploma in youth in development, industrial relations and management, early childhood education,

Some of the graduates from the IDCE programme

introduction to developmental psychology, language and communication, workplace

health and safety certificate, diploma in administrative professional secretaries or

Small businesses should get tax breaks, better incentives – Business Bureau CEO

I

n terms of the challenges that some small businesses face in launching their operations, Chief Executive Officer of the Small Business Bureau (SBB), Dr Lowell Porter, is advocating for lowered taxes and tax breaks to ensure that small businesses can survive.

Porter was at the time speaking at a press conference to introduce the Sustainable Caribbean Grassroots Business Alliance to Guyana. He explained that many small businesses perceive the cost to regularise their business as too prohibitive and thus opt to remain unregulated.

“The problem is that we have to offer a carrot. So why would I have to improve my business, if I can stay there with just a shed?

And now I have to put a nice wall up and it costs me two years of my revenue. What is the incentive for me? So those are the things we have to talk about”.

“Why would it be better for you to have space to work

in? Would that bring more customers? Maybe, maybe not. Would that increase my revenue? It might put me in debt. That is the reality”.

Porter explained that the bottom line for many small businesses is their profit margins. He, therefore, noted that Government can directly help through friendly tax policies for small businesses.

Another measure that Porter believed would help small businesses was reduced import duties. But he made it clear that the Bureau can only help small businesses if they regularise their operations.

According to Porter, this includes businesses having a tax compliance certificate and being compliant with the National Insurance Scheme. According to the CEO, Guyanese must fix issues with supplying the local market before thinking about exporting.

“We have cases where we have good people, good producers and they say, you know what? We, the Small

Business Bureau cannot buy services or goods if they’re not certified, registered, they don’t have their tax compliance”.

“And they look at it and say, wait for me to pay my taxes, I have to pay GRA $400,000. And that’s their revenue for half the year, so (they say) let’s forget about that and continue to be informal. So we have to fix those before we think about exporting”.

Sustainable business

Meanwhile, Nichole Murray-Broome, the interim Executive Chair for the SCGBA, laid out what the group plans to achieve in Guyana. She said the aim is to facilitate cooperation between small businesses across the Caribbean and to act as their representative to the wider world.

“The SCGBA is an organisation just four-monthsold that was started in Barbados in July. We are a collective of micro-enterprise operators of small business practitioners, who

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The 586 grams of cannabis that Police discovered at the residence of a suspect living in Palmyra, East Canje, Berbice

tricts nabbed four other individuals.

According to a senior detective in Region Six, some of the other suspects were arrested following information the Police had received on Friday.

Those suspects had been under the Police’s radar for some time in relation to robbery under arms offences but had been evading the

cops.

The five remain in Police custody as investigations continue.

During the first quarter of this year, some 12 persons were arrested for various offences after Police conducted a massive raid in several Berbice communities in one day.

Two men and two women were at that time detained

scholarships by US oil giant Exxon Mobil. Prior to this, there was no tuition support initiative for IDCE students.

Vice-Chancellor, Professor Paloma Mohammed announced, “Tuition fees will be refunded to 55 people who have done excellently this year. The reason why this has happened is because the University has recognised that there has not been any tuition support to IDCE through the years and we realise that many of the graduates who apply, just like our university students, need some support”.

This year, UG churned out over 2200 students from within the faculties of Agriculture and Forestry, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Education and Humanities, Engineering and Technology and Natural Sciences.

No narcotics branch rank “turning in” weapons before searches – Crime Chief CEO of the SBB, Dr Lowell Porter Broome

have answered the call in the Caribbean to come together to put our hands and skills and minds together, to make what would have been small projects into something substantial”.

Murray-Broome made it clear that the Caribbean is vulnerable and that together, small businesses have a better chance. She explained that one area in particular that they are looking to collaborate with locals in is agro-processing.

5 nabbed in Berbice for narcotics, robbery under arms ive persons were arrested in Berbice on Friday for questioning in relation to several offences, including armed robbery and possession of narcotics for the purpose of trafficking.

Teams of Policemen working in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), during an intelligence-led operation, swooped down at several locations and spent over three hours searching homes for the suspects and illegal items.

The cordon and search by the law enforcement officials also led to the arrest of one suspect who had 586 grams of cannabis at his home in the Palmyra Village, East Canje, Berbice.

He was immediately arrested and hauled to the police station for further questioning about the illicit substance.

Meanwhile, the Police in the New Amsterdam and Canje Police Station dis-

pre-university English and Mathematics.

Giving the keynote address, former student and Officer-in-Charge of C Division (Anna Regina) at the Guyana Fire Service (GFS), Haimchandra Persaud, encouraged the graduates to achieve greater heights.

“Sometimes we say what’s for a man, he must have it. Every journey towards the ladder of success sometimes starts with many single steps. Whatever you sow, that is what you will reap. If you burn the midnight oil, you will have success at your examination…

Don’t think passes don’t mean anything. You are in a working environment and it is challenging sometimes”.

This year, students who performed exceptionally well during their respective courses were granted

after Police ranks swooped down at their homes and unearthed a quantity of cannabis in their possession.

Meanwhile, during a cordon and search operation by ranks of the Guyana Police Force (GPF), eight other persons were also locked up for questioning in relation to robbery under arms and other offences.

The then-Commander of the former policing B Division — which is now renamed Region Six Policing Division (East CorentyneBerbice)— Paul Langevine, had stated that between 04:00h and 08:30h on April 18, officers from his Division including members of the Police Narcotics Branch conducted the raids and made the discoveries.

Following their arrests, several persons from this group were taken to the Courts where they received sentences for various offences.

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espite claims that ranks attached to the Police Narcotics Branch of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) at the Guyana Police Force (GPF) are being ordered to “hand in” their weapons, those Policemen require weapons in their line of duties.

This is according to acting Crime Chief, Senior Superintendent Michael Kingston, who told Guyana Times on Friday that if Police were being subjected to such requirements, then it would deter them from executing their duties while protecting themselves.

He, however, noted that the GPF is trying to ensure that there are proper record-keeping and monitoring of firearms that are issued to ranks.

This will in no way affect the work of the GPF or the drug-fighting unit and will definitely not result in ranks in the fields or on operations being left vulnerable, Kingston added.

“Nobody is turning in their weapons, everyone has their weapons, it is just that the weapons will be issued in a structured manner on how they are working. So it is not like people’s firearms will be taken away. Persons are still and will still have access to firearms and persons will have access to firearms when going on operations and they will uplift what they were trained to use”.

A few days ago, news spread about narcotics ranks stating their discomfort and unacceptance about them now being required to “turn in” their service weapons.

It was previously re-

Acting Crime Chief, Senior Superintendent Michael Kingston

ported that Deputy Police Commissioner Maxine Graham made the decision to have this move implemented.

But according to the Crime Chief, ranks attached to the Police Narcotics Branch are tasked with combatting the issue of illicit, illegal substances (drugs) as part of their list of duties, and that they need not fear that they will be deployed at locations without the necessary tools.

“Ms Maxine Graham is in charge of the GPF’s Operations and if she observed something and she asks to see the duties according to how the persons are working basically so they can lodge and uplift based on their duties, then I don’t see what is the big issue. I would say this move is to have a more rigid account of the Force’s weapons and how they are being used also,” Kingston added. Previously, Police ranks were allowed to take home firearms that were issued to them by the GPF, providing that their portfolios and duties supported the need for such.

18 news 4 die in WBD accident SUnDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2019 | guyanatimesGY.com

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our persons are now dead after a minibus slammed into a car at Nismes Public Road, West Bank Demerara.

Reports are that the horrific accident occurred at about 19:40h.

One of the dead persons has been identified as

29-year-old Ayesha Sealey, who was a passenger in the minibus. Others that died are the car driver and two other passengers who were travelling in the minibus.

Police Commander of Region Three (West Demerara-Essequibo Islands), Assistant Police

Commissioner Simon Mcbean, when contacted on Saturday night, confirmed that 16 other persons were injured. They were all rushed to the West Demerara Regional Hospital for medical attention. He noted that some of the persons were taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation as a result of the severity of their injuries.

This newspaper was told that the driver of the car turned out of a gas station and without checking for oncoming traffic, turned onto the roadway. According to persons in the area, the driver of the speeding minibus had no time to veer from the car and as such, slammed

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Dead: Ayesha Sealey

into it.

Meanwhile, Police have since said that members of the Guyana Fire Service were summoned to the scene and had to cut the car to rescue the injured persons who were trapped in the vehicle.

Essequibo to be promoted as Guyana’s newest tourist destination

GTA Director Brian Mullis

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he Essequibo County, which is known for its abundance of waterfalls, riverside resorts, historical sites, and dispersed villages, has been named Guyana’s newest regional tourist destination for 2019 by the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA).

This new tourist hotspot is now expected to be promoted through the newly-launched Regional Destination Marketing and Management Organisation (RDMMO) and the Discover

Essequibo Website— which was launched on Saturday

by GTA in collaboration with the Tourism Committees of Regions Two (PomeroonSupenaam) and Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni).

The RDMMO, a non-profit agency, is seeking to promote the Essequibo region collectively by encouraging collaborations among those involved in providing tourism services within the territory, whereas the website, www.discoveressequibo.com, will provide all tourist information similar to that found on the “Visit Rupununi Guyana” website.

During a simple launching ceremony at MovieTowne, Director of the Guyana Tourism Authority, Brian Mullis conveyed that this new initiative was developed after finding that the Essequibo has all the settings a tourist may want to explore in a destination.

“But when travellers think about a destination they don’t think about if I am in Region Two or Six or seven they think about what is

Some of Guyana’s tour operators from hotels and auto rental services providing information at the launch

here, and they’re looking for beaches, nature, culture and adventure experience which, the Essequibo Region, as we all know is very accessible here to Georgetown, has in abundance,” Mullis noted.

According to him, the GTA has been working along with existing and new companies to improve on services and products offered in the tourism and hospitality sector of the region, to capture the attention of local, regional and international tourists.

“What we’ve been doing is working with those different companies and helping them build on their existing

product and working with new companies to create new products…we not only want to appeal to the domestic market but to the international market and the diaspora travellers as well,” the Director disclosed.

Further, a developed action plan for the RDMMO is set to be executed in the near future as the Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG) has already secured funding from Compete Caribbean, a developmental programme to further promote Guyana’s newest tourist destination.

UK PM pressured on jail terms after London

Bridge attack

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he London Bridge attack pushed law and order towards the top of the British political agenda on Saturday, with days to go before a snap election, after police said the assailant had previously been convicted of terrorism offences but freed early from prison.

Usman Khan, wearing a fake suicide vest and wielding knives, went on the rampage at a conference on criminal rehabilitation beside London Bridge on Friday, killing two people. The 28year old Briton was wrestled to the ground by bystanders then shot dead by police.

Police said on Saturday that Khan had been convicted in 2012 for his part in an al Qaeda-inspired plot to blow up the London Stock Exchange. He was released in December 2018 subject to conditions.

Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the main opposition Labour Party, criticized the government’s sentencing policies.

“There’s got to be a very full investigation,” said Corbyn who is seeking to depose Prime Minister Boris Johnson in the election on Dec. 12 but trails in opinion polls.

“I think there is also a question about what the probation service were doing ... and whether the parole board should have been involved in deciding whether or not he should have been allowed to be released from prison in the first place,” he said.

Earlier, Johnson said the attack was a terrorist act and vowed to end a practice whereby serious offenders can be automatically let out of prison early.

“I have long said that

Passers-by who tackled a man wielding a knife on London Bridge during Friday’s attack (BBC photo)

this system simply isn’t working,” he said after visiting the scene of the attack on Saturday.

Those convicted of a serious terrorism offence should face a mandatory minimum sentence of 14 years, he said later.

Islamic State said the attack was carried out by one of its fighters and was in response to its calls to target countries that had been part of a coalition fighting the jihadist group, according to its Amaq news agency. The group did not provide any

Prison Officer caught with ganja in haversack

evidence for its assertion.

A man and a woman were killed in the attack, with local media naming one of the victims as Jack Merritt, a course coordinator for Learning Together, a prisoners’ rehabilitation program which held the conference at Fishmongers’ Hall.

Three people remain in hospital with two victims in a stable condition while a third person is suffering from less serious injuries, according to the National Health Service. (Reuters)

law enforcement officer serving at the Guyana Prison Service (GPS) has found himself in hot waters after he was caught with cannabis in his possession while on duty.

He was detained after the illicit substance, weighing 348 grams, was unearthed.

The 39-year-old officer was performing duties at the Lusignan Prison, East Coast Demerara (ECD).

According to the Director of the GPS, Gladwyn Samuels, the discovery was made after a search was executed on all Prison Officers.

He stated that the GPS would usually conduct such searches on all of their employees who operate at the various prisons and that is done sporadically but regularly.

Meanwhile, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) is said to be investigating this matter.

In recent times, several raids and searches were conducted on the various prisons throughout the country, and numerous contrabands were discovered and seized.

Some officers of the GPS were also fingered in corruption allegations which facilitated contraband to pass into the prison.

Earlier this month, ranks of both the GPS and the GPF conducted a routine search of the Mazaruni Prison where a number of contraband items were discovered.

These included three SIM cards, 10 cellular phones, 59 packs of cigarette, six pairs of scissors, 11 improvised

The 348 grams of cannabis that was discovered inside of the Prison Officer’s haversack at the Lusignan Prison, East Coast Demerara

weapons, eight lighters, two smoking utensils, eight chargers, eight pieces of broken mirrors, and over 1400 grams of cannabis.

Additionally, on November 6, a search operation carried out by the GPF at the New Amsterdam Prison unearthed several improvised weapons among other prohibited items.

Police found three improvised weapons, 65 packs of cigarettes, 19 razor blades, 10 grams of marijuana, six improvised chargers, five grams of fronto (a tobacco wrapper leaf), 20 metal spoons, five bottles and a bucket of locally made wine, Digicel SIM cards, one improvised smoking utensil and two cell phones.

This operation was executed within two hours and thirty minutes and all items were seized.

London Bridge attack victim ID

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ne of the people stabbed to death in Friday's attack at London Bridge has been named as 25-year-old University of Cambridge graduate Jack Merritt.

He was one of two people killed when 28-yearold Usman Khan launched the attack at a Cambridge University conference on prisoner rehabilitation.

Khan, who had been jailed over a terror plot, was shot dead by police after members of the public restrained him.

Merritt was described by his father on Twitter as a "beautiful spirit".

A woman who died in the attack - declared by officers as a terrorist incident - has not yet been named. Three others were injured.

Merritt, from Cambridge, was a course coordinator for Learning Together, a prisoners' rehabilitation programme which was hosting the conference at Fishmongers' Hall, at the north end of London Bridge.

Khan had taken part in the scheme while in prison and was one of dozens of people - including students

Dead: 25-year-old University of Cambridge graduate Jack Merritt

and offenders - at the event.

David Merritt said on Twitter that his son Jack was a "a beautiful spirit who always took the side of the underdog".

"Jack spoke so highly of all the people he worked with & he loved his job," he added. Merritt graduated from the University of Manchester with a bachelor's degree in law in 2016.

He went on to study at the University of Cambridge, where he worked in the criminology department running Learning Together. (BBC)

sunDAY, december 1, 2019

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round-up: Davis, Lakers crush

Wizards for 10th win in row A

Evan Fournier scored 19 points for the Magic, who shot 34.6 percent from the field and committed 22 turnovers, compared with 13 by Toronto. Markelle Fultz had 15 points, and Mo Bamba had 11 points for the Magic. Khem Birch added four points and 12 rebounds, and Jonathan Isaac had eight points and 10 rebounds.

nthony Davis had 26 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks in less than three quarters as he led the Los Angeles Lakers to their 10th consecutive win by crushing the visiting Washington Wizards 125-103 on Friday night.

LeBron James, who also rested in the fourth quarter, finished with 23 points and 11 assists for the Lakers, who captured their 17th win in 18 games. Their lone loss during the stretch was at home to the Toronto Raptors on Nov. 10.

Quinn Cook scored 17 points, while JaVale McGee added 15 and Rajon Rondo chipped in with 13. Danny Green added 11 for Los Angeles, which is 9-1 at home.

Wizards guard Bradley Beal, who entered the contest ranked fourth in the league in scoring at 28.9 per game, scored 18 points and recorded nine assists. Rui Hachimura had 16 points and eight rebounds for the Wizards, who have dropped three of four. Ish Smith and Jordan McRae each scored 13 off the bench for Washington.

Bucks 119, Cavaliers 110 Giannis Antetokounmpo capped a 33-point performance with four key hoops down the stretch, as visiting Milwaukee held off Cleveland for its 10th straight win.

Antetokounmpo completed a doubledouble with a team-high 12 rebounds for the Bucks, who beat the Cavaliers for the second time this season. George Hill chipped in with 18 points, while Middleton had 12, DiVincenzo 11, and Eric Bledsoe and Ersan Ilyasova 10 each.

Rookie Darius Garland went for 21 points, his second-most of the season, to pace the Cavaliers, who lost their third straight.

Fifteen of his points came on 5-for-7 shooting on 3-pointers, helping Cleveland outscore Milwaukee 51-36 from beyond the arc.

Mavericks 120, Suns 113 Seth Curry capped an 11-point Dallas run midway through the fourth quarter as the visiting Mavericks rallied for a victory in Phoenix.

Luka Doncic matched his career-high with 42 points, including four free throws during the late burst that turned a 97-96 deficit with 8:29 remaining into a 107-97 lead with just 5:01 to go.

The Suns never seriously threatened after that.

Doncic’s 42 points, which equalled his total against San Antonio on Nov. 18, included 15for-18 shooting at the free-throw line. It helped the Mavericks gain a 33-18 advantage over the host Suns. Dallas shot 38 foul shots, Phoenix 25.

Doncic also found time for 11 assists, and missed his eighth triple-double of the season by one rebound.

Blazers 107, Bulls 103 In a game that saw neither team shoot better than 46 percent, Portland eked out a win over visiting Chicago, thanks to a historic effort from Hassan Whiteside.

Portland also had another balanced scoring effort in its third consecutive win, led by 28 points from Damian Lillard, 23 from Carmelo Anthony, 20 from CJ McCollum, and 19 from Rodney Hood.

But defense was a key for Portland in the victory, including a franchise-record 10 blocks for Whiteside to go along with eight points and 15 rebounds.

Heat 122, Warriors 105 Miami improved to 8-0 at home this season, matching the best home start in franchise history, and the Heat is also 7-0 against teams with losing records.

Goran Dragic (team-high 20 points), Herro (19) and Kelly Olynyk (15) combined for 54 points off the Heat bench. The injury-plagued Warriors, who have the worst record in the NBA, were led by Jordan Poole (20 points), Eric Paschall (17 points) and Alec Burks (16 points).

Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis (3) blocks a shot against Washington Wizards forward Rui Hachimura (8)

Nets 112, Celtics 107 Spencer Dinwiddie collected 32 points and 11 assists as Brooklyn beat visiting Boston.

The Nets improved to 6-2 without Kyrie Irving, who continued to recover from a right shoulder impingement. Dinwiddie posted his eighth career game with 30 points and third career game with at least 30 points and 10 assists.

Jayson Tatum scored 26 to lead the Celtics, who are 2-4 since their 10-game winning streak.

Jazz 103, Grizzlies 94 Bojan Bogdanovic scored 26 of his seasonhigh-tying 33 points in the second half and finished with eight rebounds to lead Utah past host Memphis.

Donovan Mitchell added 20 points for the Jazz, who improved to 1-2 on a five-game road trip. But Mike Conley struggled for the second time in Memphis this season, hitting 3 of 13 shots for eight points on Friday, to make him 8-for-32 in the two games in his former home arena.

Jonas Valanciunas had 22 points and 17 rebounds for Memphis, which lost its sixth straight game. Brandon Clarke added 13 points, while Dillon Brooks and Ja Morant scored 11 apiece for the Grizzlies, who committed 12 turnovers.

Pacers 105, Hawks 104 (OT) T.J. Warren’s corner 3-pointer with 1:13 remaining in overtime gave Indiana the lead for good, and the Pacers survived a career-hightying 49 points from Trae Young to beat Atlanta in Indianapolis.

With 16 points, Warren was one of five Pacers to score in double figures.

Jeremy Lamb led the way with 20 points, M y l e s Turner and

Domantas Sabonis each added 17 points, and Malcolm Brogdon scored 16 points.

Young’s season-high scoring performance included a high-arching finger roll with 11.5 seconds remaining in regulation, which ultimately forced overtime. Young, who hit 16 of 28 from the floor, 8 of 15 from 3-point range, and 9 of 9 at the foul line, has scored at least 29 points in each of his past four games.

Spurs 107, Clippers 97 LaMarcus Aldridge and Derrick White each poured in 17 points, and six players scored in double figures as San Antonio shocked visiting Los Angeles, who had their seven-game winning streak snapped.

The Spurs, who had lost 10 of their previous 11 games, played some of their best basketball of the season in breaking out from a tie game at halftime to register an 87-71 lead a minute and a half into the fourth quarter.

DeMar DeRozan added 15 points and Patty Mills hit 13, Bryn Forbes scored 12 and Trey Lyles 10 for San Antonio. Former Spurs star Kawhi Leonard, in his second game back in San Antonio after being traded to Toronto prior to last season, and signing with the Clippers in the most recent offseason, led all scorers with 19 points.

Raptors 90, Magic 83 Norman Powell scored 19 of his career-best 33 points in the third quarter, and Toronto overcame an 11-point deficit in the second quarter to defeat hosts Orlando.

Fred VanVleet added 22 points for the Raptors, who extended their winning streak to six games. They have won all three games with the Magic this season.

Pascal Siakam had 10 points and 13 rebounds for the Raptors, who shot 36.9 percent from the field.

76ers 101, Knicks 95 Joel Embiid totalled 27 points and 17 rebounds as visiting Philadelphia rallied again from a double-digit deficit to beat New York for the 10th straight time on a night in which they were without two starters, Al Horford (rest) and Josh Richardson (hamstring).

Reserve James Ennis III added 18 of his 20 in the second half, when the 76ers shot 52.9 percent. Tobias Harris contributed 19 points, while Ben Simmons chipped in 15 points and eight assists. Philadelphia shot 43.1 percent from the floor, hit 32 of 40 free throws, and won for the sixth time in seven games overall.

Julius Randle led the Knicks with 22 points, and Marcus Morris added 20, but New York missed 14 of 33 free-throw attempts, and lost their fifth straight game. Rookie RJ Barrett contributed 18 points for the Knicks, who held a 16-point lead late in the first half.

Hornets 110, Pistons 107 Rookie P.J. Washington had 26 points and Charlotte defeated host Detroit for the ninth consecutive time.

The Hornets downed the Pistons for the third time this season and the second time in three nights. Charlotte pulled out a 102-101 home win on Wednesday.

This one wasn’t decided until the final buzzer, too. Charlotte’s Terry Rozier scored 23 points, Miles Bridges and Devonte’ Graham contributed 16 points each, and Bismack Biyombo tossed in 13 with nine rebounds.

Derrick Rose led the Pistons with 23 points off the bench. Luke Kennard scored 21 points, Blake Griffin had 17, and Andre Drummond added 15 points and 19 rebounds.

Thunder 109, Pelicans 104 Dennis Schroder scored 25 points off the bench as host Oklahoma City defeated New Orleans Pelicans in the first of two games between the teams in three days.

Chris Paul sank the go-ahead jumper with 1:24 left in the fourth quarter, and Steven Adams added a tip-in to stake Oklahoma City to a 107-104 lead. Adams capped the scoring by muscling up a left-handed dunk with 15.1 seconds remaining.Abdel Nader scored 19 points and Danilo Gallinari added 17 for the Thunder, who will vie for a sweep of the homeand-home series when the teams reconvene in New Orleans on Sunday. Brandon Ingram finished with 26 points after shooting 11 of 17 from the floor for the Pelicans. (Reuters)

20

guyanatimesGY.com

sunDAY, december 1, 2019

Diamond Mineral Water Indoor Hockey Festival

GBTI GCC, Pepsi Hikers have mixed fortunes A

fter the longest day on schedule in the Diamond Mineral Water Indoor Hockey Festival, the Pepsi Hikers, Queens Park and TTDF all are poised to secure the top spot in the pool round while George United of Trinidad defeated the mighty GBTI GCC Tigers in the ExxonMobil ladies competition to make them the new favourites. Defending champions Queens Park leads the Lucozade veterans division.

The Pepsi Hikers held off a strong Queens Park challenge in an exhilarating match that ended in a 5-5 deadlock. Queens Park got off to a fast 2-0 lead through Dominic Young and Kadeem Fortune but before the Hikers would reel them in with three goals from Robert France and Jamarj Assanah who scored twice. The scores then seesawed toward the end with the Hikers finding themselves down by a goal when Piers Evan Farrel scored with two minutes remaining

in the match for Queens Park. An Aroydy Branford goal in the final minute however drew the scores at

5-5 to divide the points between the two teams.

The Hikers returned later in the

evening to edge Bounty GCC 6-5 leaving the latter needing a win in their one remaining match to make the semi-finals. The TTDF experienced similar fortunes to the Hikers by drawing 1-1 with Queens Park but beating Bounty GCC by 6-4 and Saints by 5-1. After obliterating Saints by 8–2, YMCA Old Fort then experienced the other side of success going down to Queens Park by 4-1.

George United had to come from behind against the GBTI GCC Tigers as Marzana Fiedtkou put the latter up by a penalty corner goal in the first quarter. Captain Brianna Govia responded with a penalty corner goal of her own then a field goal in each of the next two quarters with Savannah DeFreitas adding a single to give George United a 3-1 lead by the end of the third quarter. With GCC struggling to find a way through the solid George United defence, midfielder Dominique DeGroot

would find the back of the net with two minutes remaining to pull the GBTI girls within one. Time would run out of the locals however and George United celebrated a 3-2 victory.

Earlier in the evening George United had brushed aside Red Wyne by 8-0 while the GBTI GCC Tigers also defeated them 6-0. The placement in the semi-finals was on the line when Saints and the Spartans met in their ladies matchup. Two goals each from strikers Abosaide Cadogan and Sarah Klautky sealed the deal for the Spartans however with the lone Saints goal coming from Clayzia Bobb.

In the Lucozade veterans division, Fatima had a full schedule and their tiredness showed toward the end of the day as they began with a creditable 3-3 draw against defending champions Queens Park. Fatima however then lost their next two matches by 6-2 to Old Fort and 5-1 to Vintage GCC.

Wilson focused Leeward Islands Hurricanes, West on making the Indies Emerging Players battle today most of 2020 Colonial Medical Insurance Super50 Final…

T

he 2019 Colonial Medical Insurance Super50 Final will be a battle of tradition against Innovation, after Leeward Islands Hurricanes toppled hosts Trinidad and Tobago Red Force with a stunning four-wicket triumph.

The Hurricanes, an established regional team but underdogs in recent Caribbean domestic competitions, as a result face off with the strategically created West Indies Emerging Players for regional 50 overs supremacy.

Catches win matches Catches win Matches’ is one of the oldest adages in cricket. During this semi-final run for Trinidad And Tobago Red Force, a profound highlight has been the stylish and aggressive power-play batting of 24-year old Tion Webster. So when Webster on 43, was dropped by Monctin Hodge in the 10th over, the Leewards must have felt they had opened a ‘can of worms’, by giving Webster a lifeline as he and Jeremy Solozano gave the hosts a perfect platform with a 99-run opening partnership, even though they eventually pulled the innings back.

Unfortunately for Trinidad And Tobago however they weren’t that lucky, as the major drop catch of their innings was crucial. With the score 202/4 in the 42nd over and Hamilton on 33, Bravo dropped him at long on via leftarm spinner Akeal Hosein and in the end this proved to be arguably the decisive moment of the match.

Berridge rises to occasion After the aforementioned opening alliance, in order for the Hurricanes to

get back into the game, they needed their bowlers to produce knowing that Darren Bravo and Jason Mohammed were still in the sheds to come. Tournament leading wicket-taker, 29-year old Sheeno Berridge continued his form clinching four wickets as he denied Webster his maiden List A century and Darren Bravo (34) another Super50, fifty plus score, when he was looking ominous. Berridge was supported in the back end overs by muscular new ball bowler Quinton Boatswin and a miserly spell by left-arm spinner Jason Campbell of 10-3-18–1. This meant that while the hosts were able to post a competitive total due to Jason Mohammed’s (59) mid innings stabilizing knock and Anderson Phillip (14) finishing the innings with a six and a four, it wasn’t a mammoth as originally thought for the Stuart Williams coached unit. “Sheeno has been exceptional”, said Leewards Hurricanes captain and player of the match Jahmar Hamilton. “He has bowled well, a lot of overs and is hitting his straps, so I must commend him also.

Hurricane Hamilton With the game live on ESPN 29-year old Jahmar Hamilton could not have chosen a better time to produce his career best List A inning in an onslaught that won’t be forgotten anytime soon. The brutality commenced with he smashed Red Force captain Imran Khan for 25 in his final over. At that point the wet ball in use was difficult for the Red Force spin quintet of options.

T o Jahmar Hamilton

compound that lone main seam bowler Anderson Philip and allrounder Webster were either restricted or couldn’t bowl at all due to injury, Hamilton ably assisted in partnership with Keacy Carty (53), 2016 West Indies Under 19 World Cup winner took full advantage. “My game plan was just to see ball hit ball. It didn’t matter where they bowled tonight I was just in that type of mood”, said Hamilton who recently made his test debut versus India. “From the start of the tournament we have been chasing well.

They (Trinidad) got off to a flyer, but we pulled it back and I congratulated our bowlers for that - but whatever they got I backed my team to this chase it on this (wicket).” “Leewards played well and better on the

day and deserved to win”, said Red Force coach Mervyn Dillon.

He continued: “I don’t like making excuses, but when you loose your only two seamers in Phillip and Webster to niggling injuries and spinners tried their best with the wet ball, it sets you back - but Hamilton played really well and all credit to him. “(Looking back at tournament) We played really good cricket throughout and I’m happy with that. Overall I’m seeing improvement, just need to improve our fielding and running between the wickets.

“Glad to have had Bravo in squad to have helped lead the batting, while Keagan (Simmons) and Solozano showed why they will be the future of our batting.”

(CWI)

SCOREBOARD

Red Force Innings JL Solozano c Warde b Campbell 30 T Webster c Jangoo b Berridge 91 K Simmons run out (Hodge) 14 DM Bravo c Thomas b Berridge 34 JN Mohammed c Carty b Boatswain 59 KYG Ottley b Boatswain 2 AJ Hosein b Berridge 4 I Khan (c) c Powell b Berridge 2 S Katwaroo † not out 3 A Phillip not out 14 Extras 15 (lb 9, nb 1, w 5) TOTAL 268/8 (50 Overs, RR: 5.36) Fall of wickets: 1-99 (Jeremy Solozano, 22.1 ov), 2-133 (Keagan Simmons, 29.1 ov), 3-150 (Tion Webster, 32.6 ov), 4-209 (Darren Bravo, 43.1 ov), 5-214 (Yannick Ottley, 44.5 ov), 6-229 (Akeal Hosein, 47.1 ov), 7-251 (Jason Mohammed, 48.6 ov), 8-254 (Imran Khan, 49.3 ov) BOWLING O M R W QH Boatswain 10 0 69 2 S Berridge 10 0 58 4 JA Campbell 10 3 18 1 T Warde 10 1 46 0 KOA Powell 6 0 45 0 KU Carty 4 0 23 0

Leeward Islands Innings (target: 269 runs from 50 overs) MV Hodge c †Katwaroo b Phillip 15 KOA Powell c †Katwaroo b Hosein 47 AA Jangoo c Ottley b Jaggesar 15 DC Thomas b Khan 28 KU Carty c Bravo b Jaggesar 53 A Saunders c b Khan 11 JN Hamilton (c) † not out 78 T Warde retired hurt 12 JA Campbell not out 0 Extras 10 (lb 1, w 9) TOTAL 269/6 (49.3 Overs, RR: 5.43) Did not bat: S Berridge, QH Boatswain Fall of wickets: 1-33 (Montcin Hodge, 8.2 ov), 2-75 (Amir Jangoo, 15.2 ov), 3-93 (Kieran Powell, 18.5 ov), 4-134 (Devon Thomas, 30.4 ov), 5-185 (Akeem Saunders, 38.3 ov), 6-219 (Keacy Carty, 43.3 ov), 6-264* (Terrence Warde, retired not out ) BOWLING O M R W A Phillip 6.5 1 30 1 JL Jaggesar 10 0 49 2 I Khan 10 1 71 2 AJ Hosein 10 0 50 1 KYG Ottley 10 0 44 0 DM Bravo 0.1 0 4 0 JN Mohammed 2.3 0 20 0

Trojans Coach Warren Wilson receives his award for UG Registrar Nigel Gravesande

By Timothy Jaikarran

T

he UG Trojans basketball team has had many memorable moments for the year 2019. In those moments, there have been some highs and some lows, but coach Warren Wilson has continued to remain focused as he leads his army into 2020.

One of their highlights came in the latter part of 2018 in the Rainforest Water/Malta Supreme/Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association (GABA) League Under 23 Division, wherein they were labelled the black sheep as no one expected them to win. Heading into 2019, they had a see-saw year, but nevertheless continued to press on.

In an interview with Guyana Times Sport, Wilson said, “Well, even though we aren’t competing at the moment, we are still training as per norm. I am currently putting together a budget for the team to be able to travel somewhere next year, probably Trinidad. The window period for that trip should be within the range of January to May 2020, so that is what the preparation is for.

“We have a really good intake of fresh blood that seems to have really good potential. I think that the prospects for us next year are great for retaining the Under 23 division title, and even doing better in the other arenas, such as our senior league.”

Wilson noted there has been drastic improvement in the team’s performance, as compared to 2016 and 2017. He believes the team’s true test will come in competition. He also indicated that, even as a coach, he also is in a growth phase; but he said he has learned from his mistakes to grow as a coach. He added that, before heading into any competition in the future, he would be keen on working on the management of the team during pressure situations, since he observed that at times pressure was responsible for the team losing vital games.

sunday, december 1, 2019

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21

Smalta Girls Pee Wee Football Tournament

West Ruimveldt, Redeemer, Tucville, North Georgetown into semis

D

efending champions West Ruimveldt, Redeemer, Tucville and North Georgetown Primary will be the four schools heading into the semifinals of the Smalta Girls 11 and Under Pee Wee football tournament, after an intense day of competition on Saturday.

The inclement weather over the week had done damage to the playing surface, but nevertheless, the young ladies persevered to see the quarterfinal round being completed with four nail biting encounters.

North Georgetown came up against Smith memorial in the first encounter of the day, and as the saying goes got a ‘run for their money’, before they could pull off the victory. North Georgetown has been quite dominant in the 2019 tournament with

Martha Chance leading her team to win after win. It was Chance who played hero on Saturday as she scored the team’s first goal in the 21st minute of play.

Prior to chance’s equalizer, Smith Memorial’s Fiona Gibbs gave her team the lead when she found the back of the net in the 16th.

As Smith mounted a strong defense, they managed hold out the 1-0 score until Chance joined the scoring party.

The 1-1 score at the end of regulation time, made way for an extended game, where Chance found the back for the net for a second time in the 30+1. As such, North Georgetown pulled off the narrow 2-1 win.

Another close game saw Tucville Primary booking a spot in the semifinal after edging past South

Ruimveldt 1-0. Tucville’s Shania Lovell scored the lone goal of the game in the 29th for her team’s victory.

The battle between Redeemer and St. Stephens primary finished with a similar score. Redeemer’s Leanna Hill found the back of the net in the 15th for the only and winning goal of the game.

Defending champions West Ruimveldt Primary were made to fight for their victory as Timehri held them off for the entirety of regulation and extra time. A goal off the boots of Tyanna George gave West Ruimveldt the advantage in the 8th but their hopes of an easy win were shattered when Timehri’s Rihanna Rhajcoomar levelled the scores in the 18th.

Neither side could find the back of the net during ex-

592 Inter-village

It was an intense battle between St Stephens and Redeemer

tra time and when it came down to the penalties, West

Ruimveldt proved to be the better side, winning 4-3.

RHTYSC/BCB/Busta Champions of Champions…

BV trash Annandale 5-1 Albion storm into T

wo exciting matches will be staged today when the inaugural ‘592 Beer Inter-Village Football Festival’ continues at the Buxton Community Center ground.

The opening match at 19:00hrs will put Brush Dam against Ann’s Grove. In the feature match, Mahaica will engage home side Buxton from 21:00hrs.

Meanwhile on Thursday at the same venue, BV dismantled Annandale 5-1.

Ronnell Gordon broke the deadlock in favor of BV in the 11th minute through a shot from the top of the box into the right side.

Omari Glasgow made it 2-0 in the 34th minute, rifling a powerful shot into the top right corner from the right side of the penalty area.

A penalty conversion into the lower left corner by Deshane Garnett made it 3-0 in the 56th minute.

Glasgow then recorded his second in the 59th minute, dribbling an Annandale player while lashing his effort into the top left corner.

Junior Alleyne completed the tally for BV in the 79th minute, calmly tucking his effort into the back of the net after collecting a right side pass.Annandale would record a consolation goal in the 89th minute as Alco Azore scored to the left corner.

Also Victoria and Friendship battled to a 2-2 stalemate in the second match. Kemroy Alfred handed Victoria the surprise lead with a shot from the top of the box into the right side in the fifth minute.

Shemar Scott leveled proceedings in the 17th minute, blasting a powerful effort from inside the box which burst through the hands of

Busta final Tucber Park, RHT record wins

I

The BV goalscorers

the goalkeeper and crossed the goal line.

However Victoria retook the lead in the 55th minute as Cordell Thomas lashed a powerful shot which rolled under the body of the goalkeeper and into the right side of the net.

Friendship would eventually respond in the 73rd minute as Clive Andries scored from the penalty spot.

The event features 12 teams battling in an initial group format. Group-A comprises Buxton, Plaisance and Mahaica, with group-B consisting of Friendship, Paradise and Victoria and group-C featuring Brush Dam, Melanie and Ann’s Grove.

Group-D comprises nnandale, Golden Grove and Beterverwagting [BV]. The winner of each group alongside the second place finisher will advance to the quarterfinal round. The grand finale is pegged for January 1st.

The eventual champion of the event will pocket $300,000 and the championship trophy. On the other hand, the second, third and fourth place finisher will receive $150,000, $100,000 and $75,000 respectively and the

corresponding trophy.

Similarly, individual prizes will also be awarded for the Most Valuable Player [MVP] and the Best Goalkeeper. Some of the major sponsors of the tournament include Bakewell Guyana Incorporated, ExxonMobil, and the Colin Talbot Construction Services.

Complete Results

Game-1

BV-5 vs Annandale-1 BV Scorers Omari Glasgow-34th and 55th Ronnell Gordon-11th Deshane Garnett-56th Junior Alleyne-79th

ntense cricket continued in the ancient county, Berbice yesterday in the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTYSC) Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) Busta Champion of Champions 40-overs First Division. Albion defeated Yong Warriors at Albion Sports Complex, Rose Hall Town Namilco Thunderbolt humbled Blairmont at Area H while Tucber Park trashed Port Mourant at the Port Mourant Community Centre Ground.

In the match at Port Mourant, Tucber Park Cricket Club (TPCC) defeated Port Mourant Cricket Club by 189 runs. TPCC batting first scored 2894 with Guyana Under-19 batsman, the classy Garfield Benjamin leading the way

with 65. He was supported from veterans Maxie Dejonge 40, and Anthony D’Andrade 46. Cameos came from Martin Singh 27, Damion Vantull 35 and Keon DeJesus 40 not out.

In reply, Port Mourant were dismissed for an embarrassing 91 with off spinner Martin Singh bagging 7 for 29 in eight impressive overs. Right-arm seamer Orlando Tanner took 2-20 and off-spinner, Kwesi Mickle had 1-22.

With Albion drawing bye, the semifinal will feature Rose Hall Town Thunderbolts against arch rivals, Tucber Park, today Sunday December 1. Scores from the RHT and Blairmont and Albion and Blairmont clash will feature in a subsequent report.

Annandale Scorer

Alco Azore-89th

Game-2

Victoria-2 vs Friendship-2 Victoria Scorers Kemroy Alfred-5th Cordell Thomas-55th

Friendship Scorers

Shemar Scott-17th Clive Andries-73rd

Garfield Benjamin

Martin Singh

22

guyanatimesgy.comom

SUnDAY, december 1, 2019

GFF’s Super 16 returns December 15 …final to be contested at the National Stadium

A

fter years of dormancy, yearend football is expected to become a staple on the football calendar as the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) launched its Super 16 tournament on Friday evening.

Defending champions Den Amstel FC will have a lot on their hands come December as they face challenges from 15 other teams for the GFF Super 16 2019/ 2020 title.

This year’s sixteen will include Buxton Stars, Buxton United FC, Den Amstel FC, Eagles FC, Fruta Conquerors, Guyana Defense Force FC , Milerock FC, Pele FC, Police, Riddim Squad, River’s View (Bartica), Santos, Timehri Panthers and Western Tigers and two yet to be decided teams from Berbice and Essequibo.

Speaking at the tournament’s grand launch on Friday evening at the Pegasus Hotel, Guyana Football Federation President Wayne Forde assured football stakeholders and fans alike, that the yearend excitement is here to stay.

“I would like to let you know that the GFF

Super 16 Cup is here to stay. We have challenged ourselves at the GFF to make this tournament a spectacular annual event. We are excited and motivated by the positive response we’ve received from our traditional corporate partners and we’re encouraged by our new partners,” Forde declared.

While disclosing that for the first time the tournament will be making its way to Henrietta I Essequibo and Bartica, Region 7, the GFF boss explained the importance of reaching outlying areas in order to truly embody the term ‘national tournament’.

“This is yet another example of the reach and power of football to connect people and communities. It is our goal to make this tournament a genuine national event in the coming years which will allow the fans and football family to promote and celebrate the passion of the beautiful game,” the GFF president stated.

On a similar note, competitions director Bryan Joseph disclosed the areas that can look forward to witnessing Super 16 games

from December 15. The final is expected to be hosted at the Providence National Stadium, which has not seen football in recent years.

“We’ll be playing in Berbice, Bartica as was mentioned by the President. Bartica and Essequibo will be playing simultaneously on the 21st, we’ll head to the East Coast, then to West Demerara home of the defending champions and obviously Georgetown,” Match days include; December 15, 20, 21 and 22, on which the preliminary round will be contested. December 25 and 26 are set aside for the quarterfinals, while the semis will go down on December 29.The finals are on January 1st.

While an especially casted trophy done

by Brass Aluminum and Cast Iron Foundry (BACIF) will be presented to the first place winners, they will also receive prize monies to the tune of $2M gyd. Second place will pocket $1M gyd.

The tournament is sponsored by Machinery Corporated Guyana (MACORP),

GFF President Wayne Forde

Pegasus Hotel, Tourism and Hospitality association Guyana and BACIF amongst others. (Jemima Holmes)

Unexpected journey: Emerging Players aiming Turf club refurbishment to complete dream season in excess of GY$7M Kennard Memorial Turf Club gears up for December 26 “Boxing Day” Horse Meet…

By Timothy Jaikarran

T

Team Emerging Players (CWI Photos)

T

In addition to his 104 runs, the 20-yearhe West Indies Emerging Players finished the Group stages with four wins and three old Sinclair has taken nine wickets, with the defeats in their eight matches. Following best economy rate in the tournament. The the Guyana Jaguars’ defeat by the USA in a off-spinner has an economy rate of 2.82 and a Group B encounter, the Emerging Players were bowling average of 19.

His Guyanese compatriot, the Under-19 granted a spot in the semifinals. In that semis, the Emerging Players upset the Barbados Pride, West Indis player Ashmead Nedd, has 10 who were arguably one of the favourites to win wickets, including a “player of the match” 4-29 the title. in the semifinal against Barbados Pride.

After storming into the final of the Colonial However, the man with the golden arm for Medical Insurance Regional Super50 Cup, the Emerging Players has been the Bajan Keon Emerging Players will meet the red-hot Leeward Harding, who has taken 17 wickets. A right-arm Islands Hurricanes in today’s final from 13:30h at pacer, Harding has a stunning average of 16.88 the Queen’s Park Oval in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad. bowling the new-ball with an economy rate This Emerging Players squad is one seen as the below six. These youngsters in maroon will be exiled players from across the Region, who aiming to complete the dream season when were unable to make the cut for their Caribbean they meet a strong Hurricanes opponent. country.

Hurricanes, fresh from a Some of the top performers during the big win against powerhouse Trinidad and Tobago Red Force, Emerging Players campaign are Joshua Da Silva, Keon Harding, Justin Greaves, and Guyanese have finished their group stage with duo Ashmead Nedd and Kevin Sinclair. six wins and two defeats. The Hurricanes’ The Trinidadian wicket-keeper/ armory includes the in-form Kieran Powell who has 511 runs leading the batting batsman Da Silva has the most runs charts, while Sheno Beridge is the for the Emerging Players. He sits at the top with exactly 300 runs at an paceman who leads the Super50 charts impressive average of 50. with 21 wickets.

The right-handed Da Silva scored Devon Thomas has 353 runs, and 103* in this tournament, which was Jhamar Hamilton, who blew away Red his maiden List A century. The classy Force in a “player of the match” effort Barbadian Justin Greaves, who scored three in the second semis, has 235 runs. half-centuries in this tournament, has 287 In addition to Berridge’s 21 runs. Roland Cato (151) and Kimani Melius wickets, economical left-arm spinner (121) are the other batsmen with over 100 Jason Campbell has taken 12 wickets runs. for Hurricanes. This final encounter Sinclair has 104 runs in the six outings he promises to be an epic clash, as West had in the lower-middle order. The Berbician, Indies Emerging Players aim to who plays for the Rose Hall Town Youth and Joshua spring another surprise and claim DaSilva Sports Club, has a top-score of 44. a Super50 title. (Brandon Corlette)

he much-anticipated Kennard Memorial Turf Club Boxing Day Horse Race Meet will be held on December 26 at the Club’s facility at Bush Lot Farm, Corentyne, Berbice.

The Turf club has lifted its standards and now boasts an all-weather track among many notable improvements that have cost the club in excess of Gy$7 million.

In an interview with Guyana Times Sport, the Honorary President of the Kennard Memorial Turf Club, Justice (retd) Cecil Kennard, said, “In terms of my expectation for the day, it is very high, as I know we will have an excellent turnout. The feature race is being sponsored

by Metro under the name Metro Million Mile, which is open to all horses. It carries a first prize of $1000,000, while the second to fourth place finishers will earn $500,000, $250,000 and $125,000 respectively.

“We have done extensive renovations to the facility. Among them, we have resurfaced the track, repairing and repainted the rails. We also have done renovations to the main pavilion and painting to the fencing to the tune of $7+ million. The track is in wonderful condition, as we have an all-weather track, parking and road leading into the races, so the weather is not something we will fear.”

Kennard also noted that registration for the race will close on December 15. He is expecting 60 horses to participate, with most of them being the property of big names such as Jumbo Jet Racing Stables, Fazal Habbibulla Stables, Chris Jagdeo Stables, Lenny Singh Stables, Nand Persaud Stables, among others.

It is also expected that horses such as Don’t Over Look, Jus Call Me Bass, Vera’s Finally, Storm Bird, Lucky Star, TNT, Golden Blue Ecko, Not This Time, Justify the Heat, and the newly imported Santa Cruz Lady and Golden Dancer.

Kennard said he owes much of the success for his events to his main sponsors, who have been coming on board every year for many years. “DDL has been on board for over 40 years, Torginal Paint for 25 years, P&P Insurance Brokers for over 20 years, and Metro has been sponsoring the first-place prize for the feature event for the past 10 years,” he said.

“Father of Metro owner Ron Ramnarayan

The refurbishing of the stands

was the former president of the club before he migrated, so in honour of him we have renamed one of the stands after him, The Deo Kharag Memorial Stand,” said Kennard.

The other races scheduled for the day, each will be over 7 furlongs, will see horses seeking to claim the $250,000 first prize money. The other 2-year-old maidens will compete in their 6-furlong journey as they aim to take away a first prize of $200,000. The other 7-furlong race, classified as the J&K Lower, will earn a first prize of $200,000. The second-placed horse will earn $100,000. Animals classified `L Open’ will battle over five furlongs for a first prize worth $170,000. The other five-furlong race is for horses classified `L Non-Winners,’ and the winning stable will receive $150,000.

The race for L-Non-Earner horses will carry a first prize worth $130,000.

These races will be conducted under the rules of the Guyana Horse Racing Authority, and interested owners/trainers and handlers can call the following persons for more information: Ivan Dipnarine (331-0316), Justice Kennard (623-7609 or 235-4818), Fazal Habibulla (6577010), Dennis DeRoop (640-6396) or Compton Sancho (602-1567).

Some of the main sponsors on board are Metro Office and Computer Supplies, Torginal Paint Inc, Dalip Trading Limited, Republic Bank, P & P Insurance Brokers, TSM Inc, MovieTown, Mohamed’s Enterprise, Hand-in-Hand, New Building Society, Silvie’s General Store, C Gobin Agri Sales of Essequibo, Chatterpaul Deo, Nand Persaud and Company, Poonai Pharmacy of Rose Hall Town, Rohan Auto Spares, Rohan Oudit, Kissoon Dyal Rice Mill, Demerara Distillers Limited, among others.

Entries close on December 16, 2019. No late entries will be accepted.

guyanatimesgy.com

sunDAY, december 1, 2019

23

Upcoming India series another chance for players to develop ꟷ Hetmyer must produce

By Brandon Corlette

W

est Indies have recently concluded their series against Afghanistan, and for a majority of the series, they tasted success. Under the new leadership of Kieron Pollard, West Indies in clinical fashion defeated Afghanistan by a 3-0 margin in the One Day Internationals (ODI). Starting the T20I with a bang, West Indies went on to lose the series 2-1 to Afghanistan, but Jason Holder and his troops in white ensured a victory in the Test.

The upcoming series against India, which bowls off on Wednesday December 6, is another opportunity for the players to play and develop as the ICC T20 World Cup looms in 2020. According to Head Coach Phil Simmons, the T20s will be another chance for them to play and develop.

“No disrespect to Afghanistan, (but) this should

be a stronger T20 country, and we will look to see how they perform against India.

The next ICC T20 World Cup is in Australia (2020) and the one after that is here in India (2021), so there is a lot of preparation to be done, first for Australia. We have given the players here a chance in this series, and we know we have players outside who may be coming in later on as well, so it’s good to give those here another opportunity”, Simmons explained.

Misfortunes for West Indies in Afghanistan T20s Reminiscing on T20 performances from the West Indies, only Evin Lewis scored 100+ runs in the three matches, the Caribbean batsmen were inconsistent. Lewis scored 106 runs in three outings; while Shai Hope, who scored 52 runs in the third T20 match wherein he replaced Denesh Ramdin, had the second highest

aggregate for West Indies in the T20 series.

Shimron Hetmyer and Brandon King had the opportunity to bat for all three occasions, but failed to score 50 runs in all three innings.

Hetmyer scored 43 runs in the three innings he played, while King scored 17 runs.

In the bowling department, Kesrick Williams bagged eight wickets in three good outings, while Keemo Paul had four wickets.

Hetmyer had scores of 38 and 30, but failed miserably in the white-ball matches against Afghanistan. With India tour looming, Hetmyer, who was released by the Royal Challengers Bangalore, will be aiming to score runs in the maroon colours.

With Nicholas Pooran available until the second T20, the same players will have opportunity when they meet India. Despite Afghanistan being seen as an easier team

to take on, some players failed to grab their opportunities with both hands against Afghanistan.

Dream return to ODI for Pollard and co Pollard made a grand return to ODI colours for West Indies. He led the team brilliantly in the ODI series, which saw Hope dominating, taking his ODI runs t h i s

Shimron Hetmyer

year behind Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma and Aaron Finch.

Hope ended the ODI series with 229 runs, with one century and a half-century.

Roston Chase scored 145 runs in the series, and took six wickets, the most by a West Indian in that series. Pooran scored 96 runs, including a brilliant 69 for West Indies which brought West Indies their first series win since 2014.

West Indies began the year with a Test series win against Test giants England, and sealed it with a Test win against a blooming

Afghanistan team. Rahkeem Cornwall’s 10-wicket haul and Shamrah Brooks maiden Test century highlighted the stellar efforts of the West Indies, to add the icing to the cake in the Afghanistan series.

T20 Squad: Kieron Pollard (c), Fabian Allen, Sheldon Cottrell, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Keemo Paul, Brandon King, Evin Lewis, Khary Pierre, Nicholas Pooran, Denesh Ramdin, Sherfane Rutherford, Lendl Simomns, Keserick Williams, Hayden Walsh Jr. ODI Squad: Kieron Pollard (c), Sunil Ambris, Roston Chase, Sheldon Cottrell, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Alzarri Joseph, Brandon King, Evin Lewis, Keemo Paul, Khary Pierre, Nicholas Pooran, Romario Shepherd, Hayden Walsh Jr.

December 01, 2019

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2 Sunday Times Magazine

december 01, 2019

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Feature

T

he Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) targets the immune system weakening the defence system against infections and diseases. As the virus destroys and impairs the function of immune system cells, infected individuals gradually become immunodeficient.

Immunodeficiency results in increased susceptibility to a wide range of infections, cancers and other diseases that people with healthy immune systems can fight off. The most advanced stage of HIV infection is Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), which can take from 2 to 15 years to develop depending on the individual. AIDS is defined by the development of certain cancers, infections, or other severe clinical manifestations.

To raise awareness to tackle AIDS, December 1 was designated World AIDS Day since 1988. It is an international day dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection and to mourning those who have died of the disease. Government and health officials, Non-Governmental Organisations, and individuals around the world observe the day, often with education on AIDS prevention and control.

World AIDS Day is one of the eight official global public health campaigns marked by the World Health Organisation (WHO), along with World Health Day, World Blood Donor Day, World Immunisation Week, World Tuberculosis Day, World No Tobacco Day, World Malaria Day and World Hepatitis Day. This year World AIDS Day is observed under the theme “Ending the HIV/AIDS Epidemic: Community by Community�.

World AIDS Day was first conceived in August 1987 by James W Bunn and Thomas Netter, two public information officers for the Global Programme on AIDS at the WHO in Geneva, Switzerland. Bunn and Netter took their idea to Dr Jonathan Mann, Director of the Global Programme on AIDS (now known as UNAIDS). Dr Mann liked the concept, approved it, and agreed with the recommendation that the first observance of World AIDS

Day should be on December 1, 1988. Bunn, a former television broadcast Journalist from San Francisco, had recommended the date of December 1 believing it would maximise coverage of World AIDS Day by Western news media, as that date was sufficiently long after the US elections but before the Christmas holidays.

In its first two years, the theme of World AIDS Day focused on children and young people. While the choice theme was criticised at the time by some for ignoring the fact that people of all ages may become infected with HIV, the theme helped alleviate some of the stigma surrounding the disease and boost recognition of the problem as a family disease.

Key facts HIV continues to be a major global public health issue, having claimed more than 32 million lives so far. However, with increasing access to effective HIV prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care, including for opportunistic infections, HIV infection has become a manageable chronic health condition, enabling people living with HIV to lead long and healthy lives.

There were approximately 37.9 million people living with HIV at the end of 2018. As a result of concerted international efforts to respond to HIV, coverage of services has been steadily increasing. In 2018, 62 per cent of adults and 54 per cent of children living with

HIV in low- and middle-income countries were receiving lifelong antiretroviral therapy (ART).

A great majority (82 per cent) of pregnant and breastfeeding women living with HIV also received ART, which not only protects their health, but also ensures prevention of HIV transmission to their newborns.

However, not everyone is able to access HIV testing, treatment and care. Notably, the 2018 Super-Fast-Track targets for reducing new paediatric HIV infections to 40 000 was not achieved. Global targets for 2020 are at risk of being missed unless rapid action is taken.

Due to gaps in HIV services, 770 000 people died from HIV-related causes in 2018 and 1.7 million people were newly infected. In 2018, for the first time, individuals from key population groups and their sexual partners accounted for over half of all new HIV infections globally (an estimated 54 per cent) in 2018. For eastern European, central Asian, Middle Eastern and North African regions, these groups accounted for around 95 per cent of new HIV infections.

Key populations include: men who have sex with men; people who inject drugs; people in prisons and other closed settings; sex workers and their clients; and transgender people.

In addition, given their life circumstances, a range of other populations may be particularly vulnerable, and at increased risk of HIV infection, such as adolescent girls and young women in southern and eastern Africa and indigenous peoples in some communities.

Increased HIV vulnerability is often associated with legal and social factors, which increases exposure to risk situations and creates barriers to accessing effective, quality and affordable HIV prevention, testing and treatment services.

Over two thirds of all people living with HIV live in the WHO African Region (25.7 million). While HIV is prevalent among the general population in this region, an increasing number of new infections occur among key population groups.

HIV can be diagnosed through rapid diagnostic tests that can provide same-day results.

This greatly facilitates diagnosis and linkage with treatment and care.

There is no cure for HIV infection. However, effective antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) can control the virus and help prevent onward transmission to other people.

At the end of 2018, an estimated 79 per cent of people living with HIV knew their status.

An estimated 23.3 million (or 62 per cent of all) people living with HIV were receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) and 53 per cent had achieved suppression of the HIV virus with no risk of infecting others.

Between 2000 and 2018, new HIV infections fell by 37 per cent and HIV-related deaths fell by 45 per cent, with 13.6 million lives saved due to ART. This achievement was the result of great efforts by national HIV programmes supported by civil society and international development partners. (WHO, UNAIDS)

guyanatimesgy.com

december 01, 2019

Sunday Times Magazine

3

Feature

“This is critical medicine,” SASOD says ahead of PrEP introduction

By Lakhram Bhagirat

G

uyana’s premier Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) activist group, the Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD) is starting its own movement in the fight against the spread of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) in Guyana.

SASOD has been advocating for the introduction of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), to the most at-risk group – the LGBT community, for over three years now.

However, very little has been done in that time, causing the organisation to start its own movement with the introduction of the critical medicine.

Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence SASOD’s Managing Director, Joel Simpson, during an interview with the Sunday Times Magazine, indicated that the intention was to launch the drug during the 2019 World AIDS Week celebrations.

PrEP is a pill that can reduce the risk of contracting HIV in persons who are HIVnegative. The daily pill, under the Truvada brand, can result in 90 to 98 per cent protection against the disease and caters mainly for those whose partners are HIV-positive.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a pre-exposure prophylaxis is for people at very high risk for HIV to lower their chances of getting infected. A combination of two HIV medicines (tenofovir and emtricitabine) is approved for daily use as PrEP to help prevent an HIV-negative person from getting HIV from a sexual or injectiondrug-using partner who is positive. Studies have shown that PrEP is highly effective for preventing HIV if it is used as prescribed. PrEP is much less effective when it is not taken consistently.

When taken every day, PrEP is safe and highly effective in preventing HIV infection.

With that information at hand, SASOD conducted a study on the drug and produced a report, which was submitted to the National AIDS Programme Secretariat as well as the Public Health Ministry in a move to advocate for the introduction of PrEP. The study included 47 persons from Regions Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara); Four (Demerara-Mahaica); Five (Mahaica-Berbice); Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) and 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) targeted the level of knowledge, attitudes and delivery preferences in relation to PrEP. SASOD is considered a pioneer in the fight for human rights, especially those of the LGBT community. According to SASOD, during the study, it was revealed that while a majority of the respondents were interested in the benefits of the pill, they were concerned about the costs attached and the HIV stigma that follows when seeking information about PrEP. SASOD has been in constant contact with the Government in relation to the introduction of PrEP, but, according to Simpson, things have been moving very slowly.

“A huge challenge when working with bureaucratic agencies like Ministries is that things are moving very slow, quite often too slow … this is critical medicine. This is an urgent medicine and we don’t feel the sense of urgency from the health bureaucrats,” Simpson related.

SASOD Managing Director Joel Simpson World AIDS Week officially starts today (December 1), and it is during this week that SASOD will officially launch its service introducing the drug on the local market.

Though, not available in Guyana, many at-risk persons have been travelling overseas and sourcing the drug as a means of protecting themselves against the risk of contracting HIV. SASOD, in collaboration with a private clinic based in Georgetown, will be introducing the medication and is expected to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Monday.

“We are at a place where we decided that it is time for our communities to take action and we are embarking on a partnership with a Private Sector agency to start bringing PrEP at a reasonable cost and making it available for those who can afford to pay for the drugs. PrEP will be available at the private health clinic in Georgetown from Monday to Friday and on Saturday at SASOD’s Duncan Street, Lamaha Gardens office.

“We recognise that everybody who needs PrEP will not be able to afford it, but we also want to show that there is a great deal of demand. We want to demonstrate that it is going to be successful in the Guyanese context in preventing new infections, especially among persons who think they are at high risk for HIV and hopefully that will encourage and inspire the Government to expand their PrEP programme beyond serodiscordant couples,” Simpson said.

Government’s response The Public Health Ministry earlier announced that it would be introducing PrEP to vulnerable groups. The Ministry’s introduction would have targeted serodiscordant couples (a situation where one partner is HIV-positive and the other is not) through a public-private partnership.

“While it is a start, it is not sufficient. It is not enough and we don’t think we can wait any longer to bring critical lifesaving medicines to our communities. So, this is one way we have decided to move ahead to bring PrEP to Guyana and to bring PrEP to a section of the population that can afford to pay the cost for the tablets,” Simpson told the <<<Sunday Times Magazine>>>.

While Government has trained a number of health professionals in the distribution and management of PrEP, it is yet to operationalise its plan to have those target groups catered for.

“In our view, it suggests that it would operationalise till the end of the year and it would take about six months to a year before they decide to expand and we cannot wait any longer.

We have been directly advocating for PrEP for over three years now. We did research extensively and we have decided to move ahead,” SASOD’s Head noted.

A direct effort to reach out to the Ministry for an update on its programme provided futile. However, just last year Chief Medical Officer, Dr Shamdeo Persaud has since indicated that Government was cautious about introducing PrEP, since it may increase risky behaviour.

In August, Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence was quoted in the local press as saying “The Ministry stepping out in this particular venture (introducing PrEP) in terms of creating another space allows persons to have their own choice of access to services. We believe it certainly will work towards the benefit of our people. It certainly will help us in terms of reaching persons and keeping persons in the system and utilising the services available.”

SASOD’s introduction of PrEP will see the medication offered at a cost no higher than $10,000.

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Sunday Times Magazine

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decemner 01,2019

Feature

By Lakhram Bhagirat

“I

remember it as though it was just yesterday when in fact it has been six years now. It was a Wednesday morn- i n g and I went to GRPA (Guyana Responsible Parenthood Association) for an HIV test and there my world shattered. I was nervous as hell and then they drew the blood and sent me upstairs to talk to the counsellor and await the results. I think I waited like about half hour for the results, but it seemed like it was days. When I was called into the room, the counsellor told me I was HIV positive and I was crushed. I don’t remember anything he said after that, but all I know is I got home somehow and cried for days,” James tells me.

I met James about eight years ago while working at Qualfon and we have been friends ever since. He is the father of a beautiful nine-yearold girl. Because of the stigma attached to HIV/ AIDS, James agreed to share his story with me but on the condition of anonymity. Therefore, to protect his identity I changed his name but his story remains the same.

To understand James’s story, you have to go back to his “troubled” childhood. He was born and raised in the community of Albouystown. Now at 29, James tell me when he was just about 10 years old, his mother died and he went to live with an aunt who never paid attention to him, since she had four children of her own. She only took care of him because his father would financially support the family.

He said that although he was given the basic necessities as well as a fair chance at getting an education, he never felt a sense of belonging since no one took the time to ask how he was coping after his mother’s death. He eventually got caught up with the “wrong crew” and began using drugs at the age of 15 and from there, things began going out of control.

Tragedy would strike once again after his father died when he was 19 and he was left orphaned. He would eventually venture off on his own, but with limited passes at CXC, a proper job was hard to come by.

“When my father died, it was tough because I have nobody in my corner so I went and get a place to rent and at that time I was working at a store in town (Georgetown) and I got involved with my child mother.

We move in together and sometime after she get pregnant and get my daughter. I try to be a good father to she and give she all she want,” he tells me.

However, after his daughter was born, the relationship became rocky since they were always pressed for money; there was very little he could have done. He had a friend who was working at Qualfon so he asked him to get a job there for him. Eventually, he got a job at Qualfon as a Customer Service Representative while his common-law wife continued working at the store.

“When I start working at Qualfon, I was on the night shift so when she was at work, I was home and when I home, she at work so we grow apart. I meet this girl at Qualfon that was on my team, and me and she develop a relationship. My girl find out and then she just pack up and went by she mother. I didn’t try to bring she back, because I say is best we separate,” he explained.

Now, if he could have gone back in time, he would have taken a different course of action.

What James did not know was the girl he met at Qualfon was HIV positive.

“After me girl move out and so, lil’ bit after I get sick and I wasn’t feeling right. So I didn’t take it for anything and one day me friend was going to do an AIDS test and he tell me ‘let we go’.

When I go, it was then I find out I had the truck (HIV/AIDS),” he remembered.

When I asked him what he felt after his diagnosis, James said it was all numbness for a few days. He said he could not eat or go to work. He even contemplated suicide, since he knew very little about HIV other than it would lead to death. However, he confided in the mother of his daughter who took him to the hospital where he was put on Antiretrovirals (ARVs) and he made some lifestyle changes.

He said that now he takes care of his body by eating healthy, exercising and making sure that he takes his medication always.

“I want to be around for a long time. I want to see my daughter married and see grandkids.

I want people out there to know that they have to be careful when it comes to sex and if you are HIV positive, just know that it is not the end of the world. You can live a healthy and long life.

You just need to take care of yourself,” he said.

James has since left his job at Qualfon. After leaving, he rewrote CXC and ventured into the accounting world. He is currently a CAT student and working as an accounts clerk for a private company. He does not let his HIV status define what he can and cannot do, rather he strives to achieve all he can while he has the strength just to show his daughter that no matter the obstacle, hard work and determination are the keys to gaining success.

guy-

december 01, 2019

Sunday Times Magazine 5

Feature

H

uman Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) targets the immune system and weakens the defence systems against infections and some types of cancer. As the virus destroys and impairs the function of immune system cells, infected individuals gradually become immunodeficient. Immune function is typically measured by CD4 cell count.

HIV continues to be a major global public health issue, having claimed more than 32 million lives so far. By the end of 2018 there were 37.9 million people living with HIV. Due to gaps in HIV services, 770 000 people died from HIV-related causes in 2018 and 1.7 million people were newly infected. In 2018, for the first time, individuals from key population groups and their sexual partners accounted for over half of all new HIV infections globally (an estimated 54 per cent) in 2018. For eastern European, central Asian, Middle Eastern and North African regions, these groups accounted for around 95 per cent of new HIV infections.

At the end of 2018, an estimated 79 per cent of people living with HIV knew their status. An estimated 23.3 million (or 62 per cent of all) people living with HIV were receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) and 53 per cent had achieved suppression of the HIV virus with no risk of infecting others.

Between 2000 and 2018, new HIV infections fell by 37 per cent and HIV-related deaths fell by 45 per cent, with 13.6 million lives saved due to ART. This achievement was the result of great efforts by national HIV programmes supported by civil society and international development partners.

On this note, in September, Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence revealed that 500 new HIV cases were recorded in 2018. Some 8200 persons are living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) in Guyana.

This was revealed by Public Health Minister, Volda Lawrence on Monda at the launch of World Aids Day 2019, which is to be observed on December 1.

“Our statistics reveal that there are 8200 children, adolescents, youths, women and men living with HIV. In 2018, about 500 new infections occurred in Guyana mainly from key populations and young people.”

The Minister was keen to note that of the 8200 persons living with the virus, 93

per cent of them know their status, making Guyana the only Caribbean country to achieve the first 90 of the United Nation Aids (UNAIDS) 90-90-90 target ahead of the 2020 timeline.

The 90-90-90 target aims to diagnose 90 per cent of all HIV positive persons, provide antiretroviral therapy for 90 per cent of those diagnosed, and achieve viral suppression for 90 per cent of those treated by 2020.

When it comes to the other targets, 73 per cent of infected persons are presently on treatment and 81 per cent have so far achieved viral suppression so they can no longer transmit the infection to their partners.

Finance Minister Winston Jordan, during his 2019 Budget presentation, said that the incidence of HIV appears to be rising, with the 20-29 age group showing the highest incidence – 32 per cent of all newly-reported cases in 2017.

“This disease also relies on our lifestyle choices, specifically our decision to use protection, commit to continuous testing and diligently follow treatment prescribed.

The Government will continue its public awareness, surveillance and follow-up programmes. We have committed to the international 90-90-90 Treat All Policy towards the eradication of HIV,” he said.

To combat HIV and non-communicable diseases, Government has allocated $1.6 billion for family health care services in 2019.

In Guyana, HIV accounts for over 200 deaths annually, with over 8500 people living with the infection. The key populations most affected by HIV in Guyana include sex workers, transgender persons and prisoners.

Government has been making every effort to tackle the increase in HIV cases; however, there are several issues along the way. Because of the disparity between the coastland and hinterland, health care is not accessible to all as was reported when it was revealed that pregnant women in the hinterland regions are not receiving HIV tests. This would have been quickly addressed, as it was exp l a i n e d that the lack of testing i s owed to some lapses in the delivery system resulting in the late delivery of

the testing kits.

The revelation was one of the official findings of the Study on Indigenous Women and Children in 12 communities, conducted by the Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Ministry in collaboration with UNICEF. The study was conducted in villages located in all the administrative regions, including Akawini, Santa Mission, St Cuthbert Mission, Moraikobai, Orealla/Siparuta and River View. The global goal is to eliminate HIV by the year 2030 and achieve the 90-90-90 plan whereby 90 per cent of all people living with HIV will know their HIV status, 90 per cent of the persons who are tested are treated and 90 per cent of those who are treated go into virus suppression.

Youth activists have been calling for a comprehensive sexual education curriculum to be introduced in public schools, noting that it can go a long way in educating children holistically. The Government has made very little strides in the area despite repeated calls from various sections of society.

6 Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

december 01, 2019

Feature

Preserving our literary heritage by Petamber Persaud

(Extract of an interview with Michael Castello, Georgetown, Guyana, July 2019. ‘Robberoadsters’ is his fifth book of stories from the heartland of Guyana.)

P

P The Hinterland, the heartland of Guyana has certain magnetism, a peculiar attraction for writers and through the years many writers have explored and exploited the magic of this area. Going all the way back to the first book on Guyana by Walter Ralegh – ‘The Discovery of Guyana’, followed by writings by W H Hudson, Charles Waterton, the Roth brothers, Evelyn Waugh, David Attenborough, Jan Carew, Wilson Harris and the list goes on…

Now you are bringing a new perspective about the interior by writing about a particular region, what is so peculiar about this place you want to share?

MC Let me give you my version of city of gold, its location… and the female warriors who were guardians of that city…

PP That was some introduction to the hinterland, now let’s turn to your book – what influenced this book, ‘Rubber-roasters’?

MC The rubber road has an interesting history.

PP Where is this rubber road?

MC It is the main street in Mabaruma Town.

It is now called Philbert Pierre Avenue, named after the manager of the rubber estate who in fact planted those rubber trees originally.

Before that, centuries before that, it was the domain of the Karinyas or

the Caribs – they literally ruled the seacoast with their boats etc and when they wanted to hunt, they would come to Mabaruma which they called then Heshangowappo, meaning hunters’ haven, because there were lots and lots of game in that area.

When the Venezuelan Cappuchin Fathers came to Moruca, in fact, when the Spanish sort of invaded Moruca wanting to set up their churches and religion there, some of the Lokonos fled leaving Moruca opting to face the aggressive Caribs instead of the more sublime suppression of the Cappuchin Fathers.

They fled and came to Heshangowappo ....

PP A place of good hunting…

MC Yes, a place of good hunting, here, they found a trail which led to a creek which is now called Kissing Rocks Creek, coming out of the creek they found another trail showing evidence of enemy territory and at a fork in the trail, instead of going north to a set of hills, they went south and founded a village on the highest hill which is now called Hosororo; they called the village Horotokalli - a place of plenty cassava and they flourished and the Karinyas didn’t seem to mind much.

So they stayed and flourished until the Warrao fled from the Orinoco during a Karina/Warrao war and the refugees came and took Horotokalli and made

it into a Warrao village and renamed it Hosororo.

PP Let’s go to the book and see how you made use of all that information by turning out stories, intriguing stories.

MC …one of things I do in my books is to highlight small parts of the history of Region 1 and the road [Rubber Road] in question is one [part] because most of the characters in the book have at one time or the other dwelled there on Rubber Road.

PP Well, introduce us

to some of those characters of Rubber Road.

MC What I did in this book was to take real life incidents and put a spin on them for instance in this story, ‘Shout of the Skull’, is about a Bolivarian gold seeker who denies finding a diary which told of an extraordinary nugget, his friend who related the story is mysteriously killed, and he who later claims to have found a large one is murdered.

I got that incident from a teacher named Robin Williams who came to me one day knowing that I am a writer and told me about the diary and this particular nugget. I asked him if you could get the diary from his friend and he promised to but two weeks later he was murdered – he was found floating in a boat in the river and that was the end of the matter.

However, I did find the guy who had the diary but he denied having it. Later he went to another area, Region 8, and we learned that he struck it rich. His friends from the camp who brought his body out cause he was killed on his way out said that he had found a very large nugget but it disappeared – not to be found again. …

PP Lots of action.

MC Yes, I write about action because I intend to entertain as well as educate.

PP Let’s move away from the book and look at the writer – it is stated that you gave up a full time job in order to write; this is interesting….

MC I started reading

at the age of three and was thereafter hooked on books and I always wanted to be a writer.

I became a teacher but there was no avenue to

write. I wrote a few stories for curriculum development and it was said they were good. The stories were circulated in schools but that was not what I wanted – that was just practice for me. I left there and went to NIS as an inspector – here didn’t give me scope for writing, in fact, here was even worse. Then I went to Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport – well, here I got the opportunity to research folklore; I was very much interested in indigenous folklore of Region one.

As Ray Bradbury said that if you can’t get mileage out of your experience, then it is of no value.

What’s happening: • It is here in Guyana: ‘Kiskadee Days: Village People’ by Gaitri Pagrach-Chandra, please contact me for further information.

• Reminder that closing date for submission to the anthology of oil poems is November 30.

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

The Man with Night Sweats I wake up cold, I who Prospered through dreams of heat Wake to their residue, Sweat, and a clinging sheet.

My flesh was its own shield: Where it was gashed, it healed.

I grew as I explored The body I could trust Even while I adored The risk that made robust, A world of wonders in Each challenge to the skin.

I cannot but be sorry The given shield was cracked, My mind reduced to hurry, My flesh reduced and wrecked.

I have to change the bed, But catch myself instead Stopped upright where I am Hugging my body to me As if to shield it from The pains that will go through me, As if hands were enough To hold an avalanche off.

By Thom Gunn

guyanatimesgy.com

december 01, 2019

Sunday Times Magazine 7

Feature

A

dvent is the period of four Sundays and weeks before Christmas (or sometimes from the 1st December to Christmas Day!). Advent means 'Coming' in Latin.

This is the coming of Jesus into the world. Christians use the four Sundays and weeks of Advent to prepare and remember the real meaning of Christmas.

There are three meanings of 'coming' that Christians describe in Advent. The first, and most thought of, happened about 2000 years ago when Jesus came into the world as a baby to live as a man and die for us. The second can happen now as Jesus wants to come into our lives now. And the third will happen in the future when Jesus comes back to the world as King and Judge, not a baby.

Advent Sunday can be from the 27th November (which it was in 2016) to the 3rd December (which it was in 2017)!

Advent only starts on the 1st December when Christmas Day is on a Wednesday (which will happen in 2019)!

No one is really sure when Advent was first celebrated but it dates back to at least 567 when monks were ordered to fast during December leading up to Christmas.

Some people fast (don't eat anything) during advent to help them concentrate on preparing to celebrate Jesus's coming. In many Orthodox and Eastern Catholics Churches, Advent lasts for 40 days and starts on November 15th and is also called the Nativity Fast. (Advent also starts on November 15th in Celtic Christianity.)

Orthodox Christians often don't eat meat and dairy during Advent, and depending on the day, also olive oil, wine and fish.

There are some Christmas Carols that are really Advent Carols! These include 'People Look East', 'Come, thou long expected Jesus', 'Lo! He comes, with clouds descending' and perhaps the most popular Advent song 'O Come, O Come Emmanuel!'

Advent symbolizes the present situation of the church in these “last days” (Acts 2:17, Hebrews 1:2), as God’s people wait for the return of Christ in glory to consummate his eternal kingdom.

The church is in a similar situation to Israel at the

end of the Old Testament: in exile, waiting and hoping in prayerful expectation for the coming of the Messiah. Israel looked back to God’s past gracious actions on their behalf in leading them out of Egypt in the Exodus, and on this basis, they called for God once again to act for them. In the same way, the church, during Advent, looks back upon Christ’s coming in celebration while at the same time looking forward in eager anticipation to the coming of Christ’s kingdom when he returns for his people. In this light, the Advent hymn “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” perfectly represents the church’s cry during the Advent season: O come, O come, Emmanuel, And ransom captive Israel, That mourns in lonely exile here Until the Son of God appears.

Rejoice! Rejoice!

Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

To balance the two elements of remembrance and anticipation, the first two Sundays in Advent look forward to Christ’s second coming, and the last two Sundays look backward to remember Christ’s first coming. Over the course of the four weeks, Scripture readings move from passages about Christ’s return in judgment to Old Testament passages about the expectation of the coming Messiah to New Testament passages about the announcements of Christ’s arrival

by John the Baptist and the Angels.

There are several ways that Advent is counted down but the most common is by a calendar or candle(s).

There are two types of candle(s) that are used to count down to Christmas Day in Advent. The first looks like a normal candle, but has the days up to Christmas Day marked down the candle.

On the first of December the candle is lit and burnt down to the first line on the candle. The same

is done every day and then the rest of the candle is burnt on Christmas day. I use one of these candles to count down during Advent.

A n A d v e n t Crown is another form of candles that are used to count down Advent. These are often used in Churches rather than in people's homes. The crown is often made up of a wreath of greenery and has four candles round the outside and one in the middle or in a separate place. Sometimes a more traditional candelabra is used to display the five candles.

One candle is lit on the first Sunday of Advent, two are lit on the second Sunday and so on.

Each candle has a different meaning in Christianity. Different churches have given them different meanings, but I was taught the following: • The first represents Isaiah and other prophets in the Bible that predicted the coming of Jesus.

• The second represents the Bible.

• The third represents Mary, the mother of Jesus.

• The fourth represents John the Baptist, Jesus' cousin, who told the people in Israel to get ready for Jesus' teaching.

The middle or separate candle is lit on Christmas Day and represents Jesus, the light of the world. In many churches, the color purple is used to signify the season of Advent. On the third Sunday, representing Mary, the color is sometimes changes to pink or rose.

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Feature

T

he crisp air of the Pakaraimas is just one of the major reasons for living in the picturesque village of Paramakatoi, which is located on the left bank of the Kawa River in the North Pakaraimas. The beautiful settlement is one of the largest and most developed of Amerindian communities in Region 8 and functions as a regional centre for the catchment area.

The village has just a little over two thousand residents from the Patamona, Makushi and Wapichan tribes and is bordered by Kato, Taruka and Tuseneng villages. The villagers is heavily dependent on subsistence farming, hunting and fishing for their livelihoods. In addition, some are also involved in cattle rearing, small-scale trade in local crafts and mining.

The people of Paramakatoi go far out of the title to hunt, fish and gather materials. They know that Siparuni is the key area for those activities and is described by the residents as their supermarket. However, the esidents are worried about the potential threat posed by extractive industries in Siparuni and Tipuru to their future food security.

The Village is a closely knitted one with everyone looking out for each other. Being one of, if not the, largest developed Amerindian settlement, the village of Paramakatoi has schools for their children as well as health care and makes it an ideal place to visit. (Photos by Ajay Mootoosami)

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Sunday Times Magazine

9

Health

V

iral gastroenteritis is an intestinal infection marked by watery diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea or vomiting, and sometimes fever.

The most common way to develop viral gastroenteritis — often called stomach flu —is through contact with an infected person or by ingesting contaminated food or water. If you're otherwise healthy, you'll likely recover without complications. But for infants, older adults and people with compromised immune systems, viral gastroenteritis can be deadly.

There's no effective treatment for viral gastroenteritis, so prevention is key. In addition to avoiding food and water that may be contaminated, thorough and frequent hand-washings are your best defense.

Symptoms

Although it's commonly called stomach flu, gastroenteritis isn't the same as influenza.

Real flu (influenza) affects only your respiratory system — your nose, throat and lungs.

Gastroenteritis, on the other hand, attacks your intestines, causing signs and symptoms, such as: • Watery, usually non-bloody diarrhea — bloody diarrhea usually means you have a different, more severe infection • Abdominal cramps and pain • Nausea, vomiting or both • Occasional muscle aches or headache • Low-grade fever

pecially vulnerable because it takes time for a child's immune system to mature.

• Older adults. Adult immune systems tend to become less efficient later in life. Older adults in nursing homes, in particular, are vulnerable because their immune systems weaken and they live in close contact with others who may pass along germs.

• Schoolchildren, churchgoers or dormitory residents. Anywhere that groups of people come together in close quarters can be an environment for an intestinal infection to get passed.

• Anyone with a weakened immune system. If your resistance to infection is low — for instance, if your immune system is compromised by HIV/AIDS, chemotherapy or another medical condition — you may be especially at risk.

Each gastrointestinal virus has a season when it's most active. If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, for instance, you're more likely to have rotavirus or norovirus infections between October and April.

Complications

The main complication of viral gastroenteritis is dehydration — a severe loss of water and essential salts and minerals. If you're healthy and drink enough to replace fluids you lose from vomiting and diarrhea, dehydration shouldn't be a problem.

Infants, older adults and people with suppressed immune systems may become severely dehydrated when they lose more fluids than they can replace. Hospitalization might be needed so that lost fluids can be replaced intravenously. Dehydration can be fatal, but rarely.

Depending on the cause, viral gastroenteritis symptoms may appear within one to three days after you're infected and can range from mild to severe. Symptoms usually last just a day or two, but occasionally they may persist as long as 10 days.

Because the symptoms are similar, it's easy to confuse viral diarrhea with diarrhea caused by bacteria, such as Clostridium difficile, salmonella and E. coli, or parasites, such as giardia.

Causes

Prevention

The best way to prevent the spread of intestinal infections is to follow these precautions: • Get your child vaccinated. A vaccine against gastroenteritis caused by the rotavirus is available in some countries, including the United States. Given to children in the first year of life, the vaccine appears to be effective in preventing severe symptoms of this illness.

• Wash your hands thoroughly. And make sure your children do, too. If your children are older, teach them to wash their hands, especially after using the toilet. It's best to use warm water and soap and to rub hands vigorously for at least 20 seconds, remembering to wash around cuticles, beneath fingernails and in the creases of the hands. Then rinse thoroughly. Carry sanitizing wipes and hand sanitizer for times when soap and water aren't available.

• Use separate personal items around your home. Avoid sharing eating utensils, drinking glasses and plates. Use separate towels in the bathroom.

• Keep your distance. Avoid close contact with anyone who has the virus, if possible.

• Disinfect hard surfaces. If someone in your home has viral gastroenteritis, disinfect hard surfaces, such as counters, faucets and doorknobs, with a mixture of 2 cups (0.47 liters) of bleach to 1 gallon (3.8 liters) of water.

• Check out your child care center. Make sure the center has separate rooms for changing diapers and preparing or serving food. The room with the diaper-changing table should have a sink as well as a sanitary way to dispose of diapers.

You're most likely to contract viral gastroenteritis when you eat or drink contaminated food or water, or if you share utensils, towels or food with someone who's infected.

A number of viruses can cause gastroenteritis, including: • Noroviruses. Both children and adults are affected by noroviruses, the most common cause of foodborne illness worldwide. Norovirus infection can sweep through families and communities. It's especially likely to spread among people in confined spaces. In most cases, you pick up the virus from contaminated food or water, although person-to-person transmission also is possible.

• Rotavirus. Worldwide, this is the most common cause of viral gastroenteritis in children, who are usually infected when they put their fingers or other objects contaminated with the virus into their mouths. The infection is most severe in infants and young children.

Adults infected with rotavirus may not have symptoms, but can still spread the illness — of particular concern in institutional settings because infected adults unknowingly can pass the virus to others. A vaccine against viral gastroenteritis is available in some countries, including the United States, and appears to be effective in preventing the infection.

Some shellfish, especially raw or undercooked oysters, also can make you sick. Although contaminated drinking water is a cause of viral diarrhea, in many cases the virus is passed through the fecal-oral route — that is, someone with a virus handles food you eat without washing his or her hands after using the toilet.

Your doctor will likely diagnose gastroenteritis based on symptoms, a physical exam and sometimes on the presence of similar cases in your community. A rapid stool test can detect rotavirus or norovirus, but there are no quick tests for other viruses that cause gastroenteritis. In some cases, your doctor may have you submit a stool sample to rule out a possible bacterial or parasitic infection.

Risk factors

Treatment

Gastroenteritis occurs all over the world, affecting people of every age, race and background.

People who may be more susceptible to gastroenteritis include: • Young children. Children in child care centers or elementary schools may be es-

Diagnosis

There's often no specific medical treatment for viral gastroenteritis. Antibiotics aren't effective against viruses, and overusing them can contribute to the development of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria. Treatment initially consists of self-care measures. (Mayo Clinic)

10 Sunday Times Magazine Fashion

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december 01, 2019

Sunday Times Magazine 11

Recipes

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Puzzles

ACROSS 1 6 11 16 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 31 33 35 36 37 38 39 41 42 44 46 51 52 53 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 65 66 67 68 69 71 72 73 74 76 77 78 81 82 83 87 88 89 90 91

Pie shell Monks' hoods "-- Gantry" Smithy's block Where to celebrate Tet Kind of conifer Bete -Tenet -- box Rust or patina "Blowin' in the Wind" singer Raspberry stems Glamorous corsages Rubber city Forest mom Mao -- -tung "-- Gratia Artis" (MGM motto) Remove a renter Be in control Others' suggestions Wheel buy (2 wds.)

Safari boss Adviser Winter sport Joke response (hyph.)

Hong Kong abode Turn down Long-legged waders Brand name Garage contents Hire a lawyer Brought to ruin Virginia caverns Lopsided They're full of dates PBS "Science Guy" Hoosier hoopster Oh, for -- sake!

Like crepes suzette Zingy taste Gouda cousin Made war Tawny predator Watering places His and hers Cake-pan type Beirut locale Divas' offerings Rope fiber Fitness centers Spews lava Commit to memory Boring tool Potential perch or pike Observes

92 93 94 96 97 98 99 100 102 103 104 105 107 109 110 112 113 115 118 119 121 123 125 127 129 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 DOWN 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 30

Mr. Yeltsin Cheers Off-the-wall Banned bug spray Ignited the pilot again Attractive one Sitting Bull's territory Scallion kin Castaway's refuge Arm bone Old pro Wakens rudely Wouldn't hurt -- -"My Gal" of song Process ore Dele canceler Civil wrongs Air rifle ammo Architect's wing Explosive letters Dalai Lama's city Cares (3 wds.)

Alpine moppet Customary Kiwi language Vows venue In the blink of -- -Bloodhound's clue Young raptor Tough-talking coach Founded Kind of pool Thick with cattails Soothed Madrid miss "M*A*S*H" clerk Volts or watts Flue buildup Deed Mawkish City near Monte Alban Watch site PC screen, maybe Former Queens ballpark Gridiron ploy (2 wds.)

Jesuit founder Tigger's creator Big Band -Rip apart Twang or drawl Hunter's org.

Daring That is (2 wds.)

Forfeits Dale or Linda

KATHLEEN SAXE

WORD GAME TODAY'S WORD -- SOPHISTRY (SOPHISTRY: SOF-ih-stree: A plausible but misleading or falacious argument.)

Average mark 35 words Time limit 60 minutes Can you find 54 or more words in SOPHISTRY? TODAY'S WORD -- SOPHISTRY ship shirt shop short shot sophist sort spit sport sporty spot sprit spry stir

stop story strip strop pish pith pithy pity port posh posit post posy prissy

prosit prosy ptosis hiss history hoist horst horsy host hypo hyssop this thrips tipsy

tiro topi toss trio trip trophy troy typo tyro riot ropy rosy

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.

32 34 40 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 54 55 57 58 61 62 63 64 66 67 68 70 72

African village Porkers' plaints Herd of whales Storybook elephant Curds' companion Softens Aplenty, to poets Switch a freight car Where Nairobi is Shakespeare's forest You, to Yvette Midwest st.

Sultan's menage Feinted Gives Novocain Oui and da "Star Wars" director Autumn flower Fraught Protection Galumph Declaims violently Acapulco cash Joyous outburst Less coarse Freak out (2 wds.)

Fan sounds

73 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 84 85 86 88 89 92 93 94 95 97 98 99 101 104 106 107 108 109

Troubadour instruments Cookout intruders Genetic factor Call, as an elk Ivan of tennis Crumble away Some monarchs Hawk's lair "Pretty Woman" of films Earlier Major artery Hardtop Lounges around Hartford competitor Most desirable Festive log Angkor -Barely scrape by Above the horizon Splinter groups Silt deposit Colorful carp First-string team Loosened Within reach (2 wds.)

Vassal's oath Flew high

110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 120 122 124 126 128 130

Fixed-up building Ms. Verdugo Fishtailed Oar fulcrum Hue Quilt stuffing Truck stopper Rare viol.

Boar's tooth Love, to Claudius Director -- Kazan Do batik -- -fi flick Dazzle

See Solution on page 14

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Sunday Times Magazine 13

Tech

W

e knew this was coming, but the first batch of early renders for the upcoming Galaxy S11 show that Samsung might be joining Apple and Google in the trend of sticking massive rectangular camera modules on the back of its phones. The renders come from noted hardware leaker OnLeaks, over at 91Mobiles.

To be clear, these aren’t official Samsung images; they’re renders created by OnLeaks based on the current rumors and leaks going around about Samsung’s latest flagship.

OnLeaks does have a pretty good track record when it comes to their renders, though, correctly showcasing the Galaxy Note 10, iPhone 11, OnePlus 7T Pro, and other phones months before release — so even if the eventual Galaxy S11 doesn’t look exactly like this, there’s a good chance it’ll be pretty close.

The OnLeaks renders show a device that looks fairly similar to the Note 10 from the front, with a bezel-less display and a center-located cutout for a single front-facing camera.

The back is where things look to be a little more interesting, with five camera sensors — one of which is rumored to be the new 108-megapixel sensor that Samsung is developing.

Other rumored upgrades include a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 (or whatever the company’s next flagship chip is called) and a 120Hz refresh rate display as major additions on the 2020 models.

Given that Samsung tends to announce its S-model phones in February, and the flood of leaks that tend to accompany new hardware, expect to see plenty more on the S11 in the near future — which will hopefully confirm (or refute) OnLeak’s renders. (The Verge)

F

acebook has a new market research app called Viewpoints, just a few months after the company introduced an Android data collection app called Study designed to monitor what and for how long users are accessing other software on the Google-owned operating system.

Both apps have a controversial history. In January, Facebook shut down a market research app ostensibly offered as a virtual private network (VPN) provider. It was marketed to teens and used a special software certificate Apple gives out to businesses, designed mainly to allow the distribution of internal apps to employees, but not the public.

Facebook, however, was using it to install software on the phones of teenagers and other survey participants to collect data the company otherwise couldn’t ask for using its primary iOS apps. The app would have been in violation of Apple’s rules for the App Store, but Facebook was using an Apple-provided enterprise certificate to distribute the software outside the standard iOS model. Apple pulled the company’s enterprise privileges for violating the rules, and Facebook shut down the app, called Facebook Research VPN, to appease the iPhone maker. Facebook last year shut down a similar VPN app, called Onavo Protect, after Apple said it violated the standard App Store data collection rules.

Facebook’s research efforts now live on in Viewpoints and Study. With Viewpoints, Facebook isn’t peering into how you use third-party apps. Instead, it’s an app that will give you rewards for filling out surveys, testing new products, and more. According to Facebook, the first survey that’s available is the “Well-Being Survey,” and TechCrunch says that the survey will take about 15 minutes and earn you 1000 “points,” which apparently translates to $5 that will be paid to you over PayPal. Facebook seems to have taken some criticisms of its previous market research apps to heart, as Viewpoints is only open to people 18 and older in the US with Facebook accounts.

However, when I tried registering my Facebook account on the iOS version of the app, a message popped up that said the program is “not available to you at this time,” so it seems that some people might not qualify for the current survey.

Facebook says that it plans to provide “additional ways for people to register” and to expand the program to other countries next year. The company also says it won’t share information from the app to third parties or share your Facebook Viewpoints activity on Facebook. (The Verge)

T

umblr is rolling out a new community hub feature called tag pages to keep people engaged with what they’re following. The new product feature comes not too long after Tumblr announced it was launching group chats to help people connect with others.

The way tag pages function on Tumblr might be recognizable to anyone who used Google Groups in the past. People can follow tags, see the most recent and popular Tumblr posts within a specific tag, and see group chats associated with that tag. Tying in Tumblr’s new group chat feature means that people who are looking for specific tags, like “Marvel Cinematic Universe,” will also see a carousel of active group chats they can request to join.

The biggest upgrade current Tumblr users will notice is being able to directly inject posts from those tag pages into their dashboard, which makes for less searching. By tapping the “Follow” button, which appears in the upper right-hand corner of that screen, many of the posts that surface under that community tag will appear on your homepage.

Star Wars fans might find this especially useful heading into The Rise of Skywalker, as they try to get as many fan art posts of their preferred ‘ship directly on their dashboard.

If a tag is particularly active and popular, like Star Wars is bound to be, the number of recent new posts is displayed in the header.

Tag pages are pulled up by selecting a tag from the homepage dashboard or through search. Tag pages can not be pulled up while visiting someone’s blog. The update requires version 14.6 or higher for both Tumblr’s iOS and Android apps. (The Verge)

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Bollyollywood

A

ctor Varun Dhawan escaped a major accident while shooting for his upcoming film with dad David Dhawan, Coolie No 1. The film also features Sara Ali Khan in the lead role opposite Varun and is directed by David.

A Mid Day report claimed a heavy-duty stunt was being shot in Pune where Varun had to give a few

R

ani Mukerji is returning as super-cop Shivani Shivaji Roy in Mardaani 2, which explores gruesome crimes committed by minors. The actor met Archana Tyagi, additional director general of police and chief of Maharashtra State Reserve Police Force, to discuss the increasing number of juvenile crimes.

In an interaction with Mid-Day, Tyagi said, “We think that because a boy is young, he is not capable of committing a crime. But

B

ritish celebrity chef Gary Rhodes, who hosted the TV show “MasterChef,” has died at age 59, his family said Wednesday.

The Michelin star-winning chef’s family said he died Tuesday evening with his wife Jennie at his side, though no cause of death was provided.

“The Rhodes family are deeply saddened to announce the passing of beloved husband, father and brother, Gary Rhodes OBE,” the family said in a

close-ups in a car hung upside down from a cliff. “After Varun filmed his shot, he realised that the car door was jammed and wouldn’t budge.

Even though the stunt was rehearsed several times under the supervision of the stunt coordinators and all the safety precautions were employed by the director [David Dhawan], things unfortunately, went awry,” it quoted a source as saying.

The source added, “What followed was a few minutes of dread as the stunt coordinators tried to get him out of the vehicle. It was proving to be all the more difficult given how precariously the car was balanced on the edge. Varun kept his calm throughout the episode, and finally, escaped unhurt with the help of one of the stunt coordinators.”

Varun will be paired with Sara for the first time in the

remake of the 1995 comedy film, which was also directed

by David Dhawan. The film is the remake of the Govinda and Karisma Kapoor starrer of the same name. The movie will release on May 1, next year.

The new film will also star Paresh Rawal. “Kader Khan was outstanding, but Paresh is a great actor and I am sure he will portray the character differently,” David Dhawan had said about the new cast, adding about the lead pair, “I want to make a film people can see again and again. Also, Varun and Sara are a fresh pair.” This will be the second collaboration between David and Varun after Judwaa 2 (2017), yet another remake of David’s 90s comedy.

Varun was last seen in the recently released Kalank, while Sara last starred in Simmba. (Hindustan Times)

that’s not true.” She also advised women to never let their guard down and dismissed the notion that such crimes were committed only by those from the lesser privileged section of society.

Meanwhile, Rani will also be visiting colleges across the country to discuss the issue of juvenile crimes.

“College kids, given their age, are quite vulnerable to this threat against them and there is a growing sense of this fear among families because all we want is to protect our children and give them a great, unscarred future. I want to connect with as many students as possible through my campaign and bring as much awareness about the sharp rise in violent crimes committed by juveniles against young women in India,” she told IANS. The actor will be interacting with members of the Women Development Cell in different colleges to understand how they are working towards making the institu-

tion a safe space for students, especially girls. “Students need to be made aware of menace because the threat is all around them, walking with them, sitting around them and constantly looking at them as preys. It’s a tough world that we are living in and raising our children, especially daughters, and we have to protect them at any cost,” she said.

Mardaani 2 is directed

by Gopi Puthran, who wrote the first film. At the time of its announcement, Rani said in a statement, “Mardaani is and will always be extremely close to my heart.

Right since its release, everyone has asked me time and again when I would be doing Mardaani 2 and I am sure that this announcement will come as a pleasant surprise to them all. Gopi has written an extraordinary script that we all love.”

Produced by Yash Raj Films, Mardaani 2 will release on December 13.

(Hindustan Times)

statement.

The chef earned several Michelin stars throughout his career, including his first when he was age 26 while working at The Castle Hotel in southwest England, CNN reported.

Rhodes — who authored several cookbooks and starred on the TV show “Hell’s Kitchen” — was remembered Wednesday by other heavyweights in the food industry.

Fellow UK chef Gordon Ramsay tweeted that Rhodes was a “fantastic

chef” and responsible for elevating British cuisine.

“He was a chef who put British Cuisine on the map,” Ramsay tweeted.

“Sending all the love and prayers to your wife and kids. You’ll be missed.”

Another British chef, Jamie Oliver, wrote on Instagram that Rhodes “was a massive inspiration to me as a young chef.

He reimagined modern British cuisine with elegance and fun.” (Page Six)

Bollywood actor Zareen Khan says she learnt to ignore people who body-shame her and adds that initial failure in her career made her a stronger person.

“People around me made me feel uncomfortable and conscious with their comments. In school, whenever students tried to bully me because of my body weight,

T

he Weeknd is allegedly still inspired by Selena Gomez.

The singer, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, is apparently set to release a new track that name-drops his famous ex.

The “Starboy” performer has registered a song called “Like Selena” with the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, E! News reports.

He also returned to Instagram after a hiatus Monday night to announce new music. “The fall starts tomorrow night,” he posted.

In August, he tweeted that

I would give it back to them.

So, after a point, they were intimidated. So, I would say we should rather avoid those people knowing that they are just negative people. I am a wide structured person and I cannot cut my bones off,” Zareen told IANS. The actor is all set for the release of her new film Hum Bhi Akele Tum Bhi Akele, and says she is happy with the way the film has shaped up. “Right now I am very happy with the kind of work that is coming my way, and I am not limiting myself to only Hindi cinema. I do not understand why, on the one hand, we say that we are living in ‘one world’ and on the other hand, we still look down upon regional cinema.

I have got more interesting offers in Punjabi and Tamil

he was in “album mode.”

This won’t be the first time The Weeknd crooned over his love for Gomez. In March 2018, he released the song “Call Out My Name,” which many speculate is about Gomez.

In the song, he sings, “I almost cut a piece of myself for your life.” In the summer of 2017, Gomez underwent a kidney transplant. Many think that Tesfaye reveals that he wanted to donate one of his to her through this lyric.

Gomez, 27, and The Weeknd, 29, dated from January to October 2017. At

and Telugu film industries,” the actor claimed.

Starting her career in 2010 with the film Veer opposite Salman Khan, Zareen has gone through a tough time after its box office failure. She has also constantly been referred to as a Katrina Kaif clone. “For the longest time since childhood, I was told that I look like my mother. Then films happened and people started telling me that I am lookalike of an actress (Katrina Kaif).

I had no plan to become an actress and then that happened. Initially, I was a lost child and all the comments on me, my looks, my body were quite suffocating. For quite some time, I did not know why things were happening the way they were,” she said. (Hindustan Times)

the time, sources said the couple ended things over scheduling difficulties.

After their split, Gomez rebounded with her onagain, off-again ex Justin Bieber, 25, for the last time.

They parted ways in March 2018. In June, he got back together with his now-wife, Hailey Bieber, 23.

Tesfaye also can’t keep away from one of his other exes, Bella Hadid. When Gomez and The Weeknd broke up, he went back to Hadid, 23. The two have been linked since 2015. Though they allegedly broke up in August 2019, they were seen together at Hadid’s birthday party in October.

Hadid and Gomez got into a social media scuffle last week when Gomez commented on a photo that Hadid had posted of herself.

Gomez is no stranger to singing about old relationships. One of her latest songs, “Lose You To Love Me,” is about healing from her relationship with Bieber. (Page Six)

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Sunday Times Magazine 15

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decEMBER 01, 2019

Fun Times

Archie

ARIES (March 21April 19)

An opportunity to form a partnership looks promising. A quick response and a practical outlook will help you achieve your objective.

Grants or other assistance should be considered.

Avoid personal problems.

TAURUS If you are an sharp observer, (April 20- you will gain insight into the May 20) way others think and how best to counter something you do not like. Don't take chances.

You'll be offered an opGEMINI portunity to learn something (MAY 28- new. Dreams can be turned June 20) into reality if you put in the time and effort. Creative ideas should be developed.

Your home should be comCANCER fortable and convenient. Make (June 21- adjustments that will ease stress July 22) and make you feel safe. A seminar or physical fitness program will encourage self-improvement. Romance is on the rise.

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Dilbert

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

Don't take on responsibilities that don't belong to you.

Your efforts should be put into whatever will benefit you the most. Steer clear of situations that could lead to argument.

Set your sights on what you want to accomplish.

Personal gains can be made if you are determined to finish what you start. Celebrate your success with a loved one.

Stick to the people and LIBRA activities that you enjoy the (Sept. 23most. Refuse to let someone Oct. 23) negative interfere with your plans. Don't share personal information, passwords or secrets.

Peanuts

Consider what you want SCORPIO (Oct. 24- and make it happen. Speak Nov. 22) up and make your wishes clear to those who you feel have something to contribute. Romance is encouraged.

Good things happen to SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23- those who take charge and Dec. 21) follow through. Accept the inevitable and move in a direction that works best for you. A relationship will turn out to be beneficial.

Calvin and Hobbes

Added discipline and CAPRICORN taking care of responsibili(Dec. 22- ties will help you reach your Jan. 19) goal. You will be given an offer that will bring you more power and money, as well.

Explore the possibilities AQUARIUS available to you. The more (Jan. 20- you discover about your herFeb. 19) itage, the better equipped you will be to make good decisions. The future looks good.

PISCES You will have plenty on (Feb. 20- your mind. Consider your Mar. 20) obligations as well as what you really want to do, and ask for help if it will help you achieve both. Romance is featured.