Kaieteur News

Oil Minister unable to say how much $$$ ExxonMobil deducting per barrel for clean-up of ocean floor

Exxon took US$3.5 billion

– financial statements from oil profits for drill rigs in four years

…while Guyana earned US$2B in three years

Opposition Leader, Aubrey Compton Norton

Vanessa Kissoon

Exxon took US$3.5 billion – financial statements from oil profits for drill rigs in four years

…while Guyana earned US$2B in three years

Over a four-year period, some US$3.5 billion was expended by ExxonMobil Guyana Limited (EMGL) from oil profits to cover the cost of drill rigs used for its operations in the Stabroek Block.

Guyanese leaders, as wellasindustryexpertshave a

ng Agreement (PSA) Guyana signed onto as lopsided benefitting Exxon and its partners: Hess and China's CNOOC more than the country Because of that deal, Exxon is allowed to recover75%oftheprofitsto cover cost before the remaining 25% is shared between the oil companies and Guyana; that includes the mere 2% royalty and profit.

As such, what Exxon spends on drill rigs, the company recovers that cost fromtheoilprofits. Exxon's financial statements reveal

that from 2019 to 2022 over $700billion(US$3.5billion) was expended on drill rigs, andothers.Itshouldbenoted that while the document states 'others', it did not specify what those costs were.

In 2019, $17 billion was spent on drill rigs, in 2020, the sum increased to $127 billion, in 2021, it increased to$203billionandin2022,it further increased to $366 billion.

In contrast, within three years, Guyana earned some US$2 billion (over $400 billion) from oil sales and royalty. In 2020, Guyana received$41billion,in2021, Guyana got $85 billion, and in 2022, Guyana got $294 billion. Kaieteur News had reported, according to Liam Mallon, ExxonMobil Upstream President, the company is operating six

One of Noble drill ships working offshore

Man dies after losing control of ATV

drill rigs in the Stabroek Block daily costing

US$500,000 (GYD$100M) per day based on current market-rate. He made that statement back in February at the 2024 Guyana Energy Conference and Supply ChainExpo.

Exxon is utilising four vessels from American drilling company Noble Corporation and two from StenaDrilling.

A 39-year-old man died onTuesdayafternoonafterhe lostcontrolof hisAll-Terrain Vehicle(ATV),hewasriding at the IfillAccess Road/Trail at Eyelash Backdam, North WestDistrict,RegionOne.

Dead is Devon Moralis, whowasaresidentofWauna, RegionOne.

Police reported that the accident occurred at about 15:30hrs Investigations disclosed that Moralis was riding alone on a route to Providence Backdam, when he lost control of the ATV, while negotiating a left bend

onthetrailatafastrate.

As a result, the ATV endeduponthesouthernside of the road whilst Moralis was reportedly flung to the northern side and remained motionless Thereafter, public-spirited persons alerted the police, and ranks responded immediately The rankswereaccompaniedbya doctor, who examined the body and pronounced the victimdeadatthescene.

The body is at the Port Kaituma Public Hospital's Mortuary, awaiting a postmortemexamination(PME).

Dead: Devon Moralis

Govt. now wants jewellers to keep records of who sell them gold

...minister says

Apart from being compliantwiththerulesand regulations under which their licences were granted, the government now wants goldsmiths, jewellers and gold dealers to keep records ofwhosellthemgold.

Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat made this known during a

m e e t i n g w i t h t h e stakeholders at the Roraima Duke Lodge located in Kingston Georgetown. The minister was joined by the Head of the of Guyana Geology and Mines

this will help track production data

During the discussion, Bharrat said, “The other thing that we need to introduce with your system, your collaboration, is the issueofpeoplebringinggold to you” before adding, “Theremustbesomeformof record keeping, there must besomerecordkeeping”. He stressed that records must be kept for the importanceof“traceability”.

According to the Bharrat, some systems are already in place to ensure that this is done. “If that becomes a

Commission (GGMC) Newell Dennison and the GuyanaGoldBoard's(GGB) General Manager, Eondrene Thompson.

One of the stakeholders raising his concern at Tuesday's meeting

criterion, for your licence, then you have your records toshowtoGGMC”,hesaid.

“You have to ensure that systems are in place, I can only put systems in place to ensurethatyoucomplywith

187 money laundering cases pending in court - Nandlall

Some 187 cases of money laundering are still being heard in the courts here,AttorneyGeneral,Anil Nandlallhasdisclosed.

He made the comments during his programme 'Issues in the News' on Tuesday Theinformationhe said is part of the update provided to the Caribbean FinancialActionTaskForce (CFATF)atthe58thPlenary and Working Group Meetings held in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago fromJune2toJune7,2024.

The AG said: “persons donotknowandperhapswe should be making these more public but we have a totalof187casespendingin the criminal justice system in relation to money laundering type offences Now I had to explain to the plenary that we do not control the speed at which these cases are heard and determined, but you can't fault us for not fighting the cases and be in a state of readinesstoprosecute.”

Nandlall said that Guyana was able to show thatthreeaircraft,oneluxury yachtandashipwhichwere all involved in drug trafficking offences were seized. “We were able to show that we confiscated three aircraft, one luxury yachtandashipallinvolved in drug trafficking offences, that persons were charged and in most of the cases convicted.”

The AG stressed that Guyana cannot be faulted,

“for its lack of attempts and its commitment to deal with organized crime across borders. Hence we have a menu of amendments to out extradition laws currently pending in the national assemblyallthesethingsare connected.”

He also said that the government is forfeiting assets that are deemed to be the proceeds of crime or connected to the conduct of criminalactivities.Allofthis is being put out in the public's domain to establish “whenGuyana'ssystemwill be reviewed again you will have firm evidence of firm action taken by the government in response to the type of disclosures that wehavehadfromtheUnited StatesofAmerica.”Nandlall boasted that during scrutiny of Guyana at the forum, there was “no evidence whatsoever that there was a lack of such a commitment from Guyana and all the sectors. None at all and we were scored heavily in that regard.”

Back in 2021, the US DepartmentofStatehadsaid that unregulated currency exchangehousesanddealers in precious metals and stonesposeriskstoGuyana's AML/CFT system Other sectoral vulnerabilities includethebankingindustry and unregulated attorneys, accountants, real estate agents,usedcardealers,and charities. Guyana has made significant progress on the AML/CFT front, but more

Attorney General, Anil Nandlall.

successful prosecutions are necessary However, the US had said too that the government has shown strong political will to combat money laundering andhasmadeprogressonthe AML/CFT front Guyana still needs to increase its training for the judiciary on matters pertaining to the

prosecution of financial crimes. A national strategic plan for combatting money laundering should be

legislation passed for the facilitationandregulationof

transactions. Reporting and investigating entities should

interagency coordination, and the GRA should report suspicious transactions to SOCU.

the law We have that system in place where you must have that log book to showthatyouhavereceived x, y, z 1, 2 ounces of gold”,continuedtheNatural ResourcesMinister

This move comes after Vice-President Bharrat Jagdeo at one of his weekly press conferences noted that hisgovernmentisconcerned at the continuous decline over the years in gold declaration. At the meeting, the natural resources minister reminded the stakeholdersthatthedecline

began after 2016. While he told the stakeholders, that extreme weather conditions might have contributed to low gold production in recent years, Jagdeo at his press conference said that smugg

responsibletoo.

He had issued a stern warning that all those involved in the smuggling and under-declaring of gold willfacethefullbruntofthe lawoncetheyarecaught. A few days after he issued the warning, the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets

Control (OFAC) slapped sanctions on Guyanese billionaire Nazar Mohamed, his son Azruddin Mohamed andgovernmentofficialMae Thomas after alleging that they were involved in corruption and gold smuggling. On the sidelines of an event at the U.S. Embassy in Georgetown, AmbassadorTheriotsaidthe sanctions are as a result of over two and a half years of investigations by US authorities.Priortothat,two women and a man were busted at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport on Tuesday June 4 with U S $ 5 6 0 , 0 0 0 (GYD$117,001,604) gold disguised as silver plated jewellery Customs Officers of the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), seized the gold jewellery from three passengers,twoofwhomare US citizens, after they were (Continuedonpage6)

KaieteurNews

PrintedandPublishedbyNationalMedia& PublishingCompanyLtd. 24SaffonStreet, Charlestown,Georgetown,Guyana.

Publisher:GLENNLALL-TEL:624-6456

Editor:NIGELWILLIAMS

Tel:225-8465,225-8491. Fax:225-8473,226-8210

EDITORIAL

Demand and supply

The International Energy Agency (IEA) just threw a wrench into Bharrat Jagdeo’s oil model. According to the IEA,demandisprojectedtopeakin2029anddeclineinthe decade following. Competitive pressures from clean energy and electric vehicles will lead to a deep cut in demand for oil. Along with new oil projects coming on stream,theaggregateresultisaprojectionbytheIEAofan oversupply of eight million barrels daily This is not favourabletoGuyana’soilvisionsandstrategiesjustwhen theywerepoisedtocometogreaterfruition.

To begin with, Guyana’s leading oilman has settled for a model that combines new oil projects and rising levels of production, for greater (maximizing) oil revenues in a few years ThoughnotspecificallyidentifiedbyJagdeo,hispresent modelofoilrevenuemaximizationmustoccursooner,asinthis decade,ratherthanlater Thismustbeso,ifGuyaneseareto start enjoying the standard of living enhancements and economic wellbeing of citizens repeatedly identified as beingtherichestperpersonintheworld. NowwiththisIEA projection,Jagdeo’smodelisinjeopardyofdelivering,for anythinglaterthanthisdecadeislikelytobetoolate.

Slowingdemandisoneproblem,withan8-million-barrel dailyoversupplybeingtheother Whenthetwoarefused,this couldbecripplingtooilproducers,fromthoseintheUSshale patchtoOPEC+torelativelynewnationalproducers,suchas Guyana Inanyscrambleformarketshare,thenewcomerinthe oilfirmament,Guyana,couldloseouttothemoreheavyweight producers With excess supply squeezing world market prices, it would be a huge fight to maintain the flow of national oil revenues to bolster national budgets. With oil prices hit by the two-fisted hammer blow of declining demand and increasing supply, all the plans and models must be revisited, if not scrapped altogether Oil prices, neverastableanimal,couldskidfromtheircurrentUS$80+ dollars a barrel to below US$70, then below US$60, to anywhere below US$50 a barrel in an environment of sustainedoversupplyanddwindlingdemand.

Puttingthemostpositivelightonthesescenarios,such developments in the medium term could put a crimp in Jagdeo’srevenuemodel(s). Lookedatmorerealistically,they could strangle the local economy, notwithstanding the talk about Guyana’s nonoil economy and its underpinnings For hopefulGuyanese,thestringonwhichtheyhavebeendangled forsolongbythelikesofJagdeoandotherpoliticalleaders,just got longer, even shakier Another bright-eyed, brass-faced leader,anditisthesamegrimeconomicstoryattheindividual andnationallevel Waitalittlelonger,thingswillbebetter,the oilmoneywillberoaringin,ringsratherhollow,considering thissoberingIEArelease This is one of the reasons that we keep pushing this nation’s oil champion to start fighting from now for more money from ExxonMobil now For sure, oil is not a perishable commodity, but it does suffer from time to time with demand hernias and supply hemorrhages. Guyanese are struggling on different fronts: the need for a livable wage, diminishing savings, a battle with cost of living, difficulty with paying bills and providing for their families. Jagdeo’soilrevenuemodelof more later was demanding too much of Guyanese from the beginning TheIEAprojectiondoesnotgivehismodelaboost butripsahugeholeintoit TheGuyanesepeopleoilleadermust humblehimselfandrecognizetheseverehandicapslooming Guyanaisproducingapproximately650,000barrelsofoildaily and collecting close to US$16B yearly By 2027, with new projectsfullyoperational,dailyoilproductionissettoriseto around 1.2 million barrels a day There could be some improvements for ordinary Guyanese, if the PPP/C Government allows real money to reach them. But what happens after 2029, when the confluence of negative oil circumstances takes effect, as predicted? All things being equal, Guyana could be whipsawed by producing twice as muchoilonlytocollecthalfasmuchinoilearnings,should theworryingIEAvisionsoccur. WeurgeJagdeotorevise hisoilmodelformoremoneynowforGuyana.

CongratulationstoNASecondarySchool

DEAREDITOR

Congratulations to the NewAmsterdam Secondary School for being recognized b y t h e C a r i b b e a n Examinations Council (CXC)asamodelsecondary institution for Caribbean Vocational Qualification (CVQ).

This speaks to the hard

work by the management of the school with the support oftheMinistryofEducation. The need for technical and vocational education connot be overemphasized especially at this time of rapid economic and technological advances in thecountry

Theeducationsectorhas s e e n s i g n i f i c a n t

improvements over the past years thanks to greater access to secondary education and enhanced deliveryofqualityeducation throughoutthecountry Itis not surprising therefore that Guyanese students are now topping the Caribbean in a number of subject areas, a

significant turnaround from the days when our students were underperforming due to severe underfunding of the education sector In this regard, credit must be given to the PPP/C administration for making education a top nationalpriority

Sincerely HydarAlly

Plugging the gold under declaration haemorrhage

DearEditor,

Ihavea9-pointroadmap to plug the gold under declaration haemorrhage It’s inconceivable for gold declaration to be declining overthepastfiveyearswhen goldpricehasbeenbreaking all records!This is not good businessacumen!

The Guyana Gold Board andtheMinesDivisionhave e m b a r r a s s e d t h e Government of Guyana big time...Unless of course they worked under instructions? At such high levels, ethics ought to prevail round the clock.My50yearsofglobal mining, two decades in the

gold belt of Central Africa, experiencerecommends:

Visit each gold camp for a week under the guise of rendering gold-recovery support to establishing true production This will be compared with declared production.

Encourage the miners to declare true production Such figures can be used to obtain a loan from the lending agencies. This will form the basis of an annual goldproductioncertificate. Stimulate the miners to declaretrueproduction/sales as this will be the modus operandi of a possible sale,

or merger The formula being: valueofasset=3x annualsales

Check on workers who suddenly take a day’s leave and stay in camp. Are they taking a laxative while in camp? Some workers have been known to swallow nuggetswhilediving! Can the mine afford a bodyscanner?Itcanbeused to scan each worker leaving theproductionarea.

Ban the flight of drones over the mining areas apart from those on medical missions and forestry surveillanceduties.

All motor vehicles must

be thoroughly searched at the borders Examination rampsmustbeconstructedat such borders to check vehiclesforfalsebottoms.

Body scanners must be installed at all borders. A mining camp should be a restricted area Entry of outsiders should be prohibited, unless by prior arrangement. By corollary, employed miners should be debarred from leaving the camp between the hours of 18:00 and 06:00 Such curfew should be rigorously enforced.

Yourssincerely, KenSeecharran.

Board of Industrial Training refusing to pay part-time lecturers

DEAREDITOR

I am writing to express my deep concern and disappointment regarding the unethical conduct of the Ministry of Labour’s Board ofIndustrialTraining(BIT).

This government body, tasked with overseeing and supporting fair labour practices and workforce development, has recently demonstratedbehaviourthat is both unprofessional and unethical. BIT boasts and publicizedwidelythat4,444 individuals graduated in 2023.

Whatisnotknowntothe public is that BITrefused to pay selected lecturers who were responsible for teaching those graduates BIThasemployednumerous tactics indicating that the body will not compensate selected lecturers for work that was satisfactorily completed under its programmes. These instances of nonpaymentarenotisolated,but rather part of a troubling pattern that undermines the credibility of an institution meant to protect workers’ rights and promote ethical

labour standards. What is even more upsetting is that the Contract of the lecturers who were not paid was not renewed for the academic year 2023/2024 and new lecturerswereemployed.

TheMinistryofLabour’s Board of IndustrialTraining is entrusted with the responsibility to lead by example,fosteringajustand fair working environment. When this very entity engages in practices that exploit workers, it not only violatesthetrustplacedinit by the public but also sets a dangerous precedent that could embolden other employers to follow suit. Attempts to resolve these issues through proper channelshavebeenmetwith bureaucratic delays and dismissive responses. Such behaviour is unacceptable, especially from an organization that should be the standard-bearer for labour rights. The affected lecturersmanyofwhomrely on these earnings to help support their families deservebettertreatmentand timelyremuneration.

I call upon higher

authorities within the government to investigate these claims thoroughly and to hold those responsible accountablefortheiractions. Immediate measures should be implemented to ensure thatallowedwagesarepaid promptly and that such misconductisnotrepeatedin thefuture.

A resolution to this

matteris long overduesince morethanayearhaselapsed. Itiscrucialthatwemaintain the integrity of our labour institutions and ensure that they operate transparently andethically

The trust of the public and the well-being of our workforcedependonit.

Sincerely, FrustratedLecturer

To postpone congress now is to further

fracture the PNCR

DEAREDITOR

Imadeitpellucidthatno matterwhat,thePNCRmust be firmly united after Congress,fullstop!Aunited and invigorated opposition is needed to defeat the PPP dictatorship. Therefore, the call for Congress to be postponed after the process of Nominations has been concluded is mischievous and smacks at the air of further division in the P N C R T h i s i s unacceptable.

The party has brilliant minds in its leadership and would not have allowed Nominations to go ahead if

there were concerns about thetimeframeforCongress. TheissueofCongressbeing calledonshortnoticecanno longer be a matter to be discussed much less addressed.

Had Roysdale Forde or Amanza Walton clinched the most nominations, would this issue arise? I have serious issues with Norton; some of it personal but this must be a matter of fairness. We cannot slight themanortheprocessnow No matter what we think or feel about him, it is the membersandsupporters

(Continuedonpage06)

OAS INVITED TO HOLD 2025 GENERALASSEMBLYIN ANTIGUAAND BARBUDA

DEAREDITOR

The Organization of American States (OAS) has beeninvitedtoholdthe55th Regular Session of its General Assembly in AntiguaandBarbudainJune 2025.

This invitation was extended by Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the US and the OAS, Sir Ronald Sanders, during a

meeting of the OAS Permanent Council in WashingtononJune18.

Ambassador Sanders

emphasized that his government issued the invitationduetoAntiguaand Barbuda’s steadfast support for the OAS and its commitment to advancing shared ideals of freedom,

equity, and justice He highlighted the country’s capabilitytohostsignificant international gatherings, as demonstrated b

successfulhostingofthe4th UN Conference on Small Island Developing States lessthanamonthago.

“

U N conference, and now inviting the OAS to come to Antigua and Barbuda, underlines the pride of our

cooperation,” said the veterandiplomat The invitation was met with sustained applause from the Ambassadors and

senior diplomats of the Organization’s member states, indicating a formal acceptance of the invitation b

Assembly, which will be heldinParaguaynextweek.

Sir Ronald concluded his remarks by stating, “Antigua and Barbuda

hostingavibrantassembly thatwillnotonlyfacilitate dialogue but will inspire decisive action and foster stronger bonds among the OAS nations, for the benefit of all, both large andsmall ” Regards

Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the US and the OAS, Sir Ronald Sanders

When will it end?

DEAREDITOR, Once again the Minister of Education has posted a video showing the progress in the building of a school that shows workers not following safe work practices. The Ministry of PublicInfrastructureandthe Ministry of Labour are clearlynotonthesamepage whenitcomestosafety Itis obviouslynotduetoalackof awareness.

The Minister of Labour made it clear on national news the importance of occupational health and safety He even sent people toinspectvariousworksites. If his peers are not making safety a priority then the attitude of the workers will remain noncommittal Whereistheconcernforthe workers? Where is the level ofresponsibilityexpectedof those in charge of a Ministry? This is why

teachers are still on strike and infrastructure projects are not getting completed. Thereisalackofownership when it comes to getting thingsdonethecorrectway

The government is already under tremendous scrutiny for the lax attitude towards corruption and the safe guarding of our financial system If the Ministries and those in charge of them do not get their act together the entire

country’s development could come to a screeching halt Exxon could be required by the U S government to shut down operations and our government could face sanctions if corruption and money laundering are found throughout the financial system.Theattitudeofthose in government must change andthefollowingoftherules mustoccur Itisnolongeran

(Continuedonpage06)

DEAREDITOR

Sometime in 1993-94, I was a taxi driver in NY I picked up a gentleman at JFK and drove him to his hotelinManhattan.

He discovered I was Guyanese-andthereuponhe began calling out several names, asking me if I knew those men [I will not mention the names here but standreadytodisclosethem totheCID].

Allthenamesareoffolks whodidworkforacompany dredgingforgoldinGuyana - they are mostly head of

securityandlawyers.

Iturnedtothegentleman in the back seat, and asked, “Who might you be, a US Embassyemployee?”

And, he answered, in a sort of deadpan manner, “I am the guy they hired to smuggle the gold out” He later told me he made over 50suchflights.

The GoG as well as the Guyanese people ought to know that gold companies had been smuggling much of the gold - undeclared gold-outofthecountry They have been

cheating the nation of millions of dollars If you think the Nazar Mohamed story is a bombshell, my revelation here is a much bigger bombshell Gold smugglinghasbeengoingon with impunity in Guyanaandhasbeenforaverylong time.

If a CID officer or Cabinet official would like to talk to me, I would be happy to serve up full details of that pilot’s conversation

Sincerely Mike

Persaud

To postpone congress now...

Frompage04 that must decide who the nextleaderwillbe,fullstop. Wedon’tknowwhowillwin the leadership and fear must not overtake us because the nomination process favouredacandidate. However, my greater concern is defeating the PPP and saving Guyana for all Guyanesetoenjoyagoodlife I have, in the past, rubbished the idea of a consensus candidate and the national newspapers have carried my viewonthat I now wish to humbly

reconsider It is my firm belief that for us to remove the PPP at the next general elections, the presidential candidate should not come from our party but must be identified from a wider coalition.

That leader is right before us, present, qualified and ready; a statesman without a doubt, a reformist and a national figure that all of us would rallybehind

We must be reminded that the Aubrey Norton we are castigating has

made it public that he would not rule out a consensus candidate The PNCR must therefore show that it has what it takestoputGuyanafirst

The reality is, that the infighting in our party is doing no good to its image and a consensus candidate must come from without, within the relatively short space of time that we have beforethenationalpolls

Sincerely

NormanBrowne

Social and Political Activist

When will it end...

Frompage05 option.Ithasnowbecomea requirement for the country tocontinuetodevelop.How difficult is it to have an inspector on site to ensure that the safety requirements

are followed during construction? How difficult isitforaMinistertogotoa construction site and see unsafe practices and ensure thatitisproperlyaddressed? Seeing something being done in an unsafe manner andignoringitshouldnotbe anoption. Then to post it without any c o n c e r n f o r t h e embarrassment that it could bring to an already embarrassed government shows total disregard and insensitivity for the current serious situation that the

PPP/Cisfacing. Thisisverysimilartothe same level of disregard and insensitivity that has been expressedbytheGTUwhen theycommentedonthelack of respect and lack of r e s p o n s e t o t h e i r communications with the Ministry Clearlytheremust be an adjustment in the attitude of those in key leadership positions Additionally, there is continuous mention of infrastructure projects not being properly completed. Howdifficultisittohavean inspector and project manager on site to ensure that things are being done correctly? Howhardisittoensure that the rules are followed and the agreed upon

requirements are met? Just recently we saw a bridge being washed away after a large sum of money was spenttoputitinplace.Isthe PPP/Ctiredofgoverning?Is the PPP/C enjoying embarrassing themselves and the country? I would thinknot!

ThePresidentmustshow leadership and regain control of those Ministers who are making it very apparentthattheycouldcare less about how things get done.

Thehowisasimportant if not more important than whatgetsdone.IfthePPP/C doesn’t clean up its act, the development of the country willbeatrisk.

Withconcern, Mr JamilChanglee

WorryingAFCNominationsProcess

DEAREDITOR, I am writing to bring to light a concerning incident within the Alliance For Change(AFC)thatdemands urgentattentionandscrutiny from the public and party

m e m b e r s a l i k e

Recently, during the nominations process for the upcoming 2024 National Conference of the AFC, a serious breach of trust and potential fraud has come to light As per the AFC’s protocols, the General Secretary is entrusted with handling delegate and nominationforms.However, it has been revealed that delegate forms were improperly disseminated to regions where the party chapters were nonfunctioning,suchastheUK, Canadian, and Caribbean chapters.

The situation took a disturbingturnwhenasenior party member shared purported nomination forms from the Caribbean chapter via various communication channels. These forms were allegedly signed by individuals claiming association with the nonfunctioning Caribbean

chapter and nominated persons for the party leadership position This revelation, coupled with the s u b s e q u e n t m e d i a announcement raised serious questions about the integrity of the nomination p r o c e s s Upon questioning by the General Secretary regarding the legitimacy of these forms,itwasuncoveredthat the forms had not been officially issued or authorized by the General Secretary, leading to allegations of fraudulent a c t i v i t y W h i c h subsequently lead to the GS’ssafetybeingthreatened byanAFCmember Despite these serious allegations, senior members of the AFC appeared to have dismissed the gravity of the situation, effectively sweeping the matterundertheruginabid to maintain a semblance of p a r t y u n i t y What is particularly concerning is the apparent resurgence of factionalism withintheAFC,pittingwhat has been termed as the “upper middle class entitled members”againsttheparty’s grassroots and ordinary

members. This divide has become glaringly apparent following the decision of Khemraj Ramjattan to withdraw from the leadership race, sparking a renewed power struggle within the party ranks It is crucial for the AFC to address these issues transparentlyanddecisively

The allegations of fraud and the mishandling of nomination forms not only undermine the democratic processes within the party butalsoerodetrustamongits members and supporters

The party’s reputation as an inclusivepoliticalentitythat values all members equally isatstake.Inconclusion,the AFC must take immediate steps to investigate this matter thoroughly, hold accou

ny wrongdoing,andreaffirmits commitment to fair and t

ansparent internal processes. The integrity of the upcoming National C

e credibility of the party’s leadership hinge on swift and d

on

Yourssincerely DavidFitzgerald

Govt. now wants jewellers to keep...

Frompage3 attempting to leave on an outbound American Airlines flight for New York. The operation, which was fully supported by officers of the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR), and the Customs Anti Narcotic Unit (CANU), led to the discovery of

approximately 240 ounces of virtually pure gold disguised as silver plated jewellery, that was being transported out of the country without the necessary permits and declaration to Customs Officials, with a value of over US$560,000 (GYD$117,001,604).

Those individuals were charged with the offence of Exporting Gold without a Licence – in contravention of Section 8 of the Guyana Gold Board Act, Chapter 66:01,contrarytosection23 (a)ofthesaidGuyanaGold Board Act, Chapter 66:01 andareouton$600,000bail each.

BLUNT BLUNT BLUNT BLUNT

Pres. Ali speaks

It is time.

Time that President Ali comported himself as the man in charge.

The President today is holding his own press conference to address critical issues raised by the US GOVERNMENT.

That is presidential.

It makes sense for the national leader to kick aside the usurper, Bharrat Jagdeo and manifest bold leadership.

It should not be lost on Guyanese that President Ali's press engagement is on the same day as Jagdeo's.

Get lost, 'Dr'. Jagdeo.

Take the lead, Dr. Ali.

Face the nation and speak to the people.

Let Jagdeo find a corner to sulk and curse!

Oil Minister unable to say how much $$$ Exxon deducting per barrel for clean-up of ocean floor

One week after Kaieteur News reported that oil giant and operator of the Stabroek Block ExxonMobil took US$51M from Guyana's oil profits in 2023 to pay for oceanfloorclean-upin2039, Minister of Natural ResourcesVickramBharatis unable to say how much the oilcompanyisdeductingper barrelfortheexercise.

This 'ocean floor cleanup' is the decommissioning phasethatoccursattheendof thelifeofanoilproject.Ata press conference held on Tuesday at the Duke Lodge, theministerwasaskedbythis publicationtogiveafigureof how much money was deductedperbarrelbyExxon

to go into the decommission fund Bharrat said that, “ T h e r e w i l l b e a decommissioning fund, and this is in the technical discussionongoingnowsoif Igiveyouafigurenow Imay be inaccurate because it has to come out of those discussions and the budget and everything that will be presented by Exxon which we will scrutinise and approve before we can pronounce on a figure. So it mightbeabittooearlytodo so.”

Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo was asked last Thursdayathisweeklypress conference by the Kaieteur News, “Do you have an idea

at this time how much the company has been setting aside per barrel for decommissioning?” He said that, “I don't know the exact figurebutyoushouldbeable togetthatfromtheministry” (Ministry of Natural Resources). For last year alone, a whopping $US51M wasdeductedforsuchfuture activities.

Decommissioning activities involve the safe pluggingofwells,removalof the Floating, Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel, purging and detachment of risers and removal of the subsea umbilicals, risers, and flowlines (SURF). Notably,

this process will be conducted at the end of each project's life, which is estimated to be in 20 years' time Guyana's first oil project, the Liza One, commenced production activities in 2019 This means that the project is e x p e c t e d t o b e decommissioned in 2039 Two other projects, the Liza Tw o a n d P a y a r a , subsequentlycameonstream in 2022 and 2023, respectively As such, those p r o j e c t s w i l l b e decommissionedin2042and 2043respectively Be that as it may, ExxonMobil is already deducting the country's oil

revenues for the future activities. According to the company's financial statementfor2023,atotalof GYD$60,647,587,579 or US$288.8Mintotalhasbeen deducted to date by Exxon f o r t h e f u t u r e decommissioning activities. Presently, the funds are held by the company and will be madeavailabletothecountry when needed Numerous concerns were raised in regardtoExxonholdingonto the funds to facilitate decommissioning, however the government has passed a new Petroleum Activities Law that seeks to, among otherthings,addressfearsof thecompanywalkingoutand leaving Guyana to clean up theenvironment.

TheLawwhichcameinto effect in 2023 sets out strict rulesforcompaniestofollow on the decommissioning of oil projects. The company would have to submit to the

minister for approval, a proposed decommissioning planandbudgetnolaterthan two years before the expiration of a petroleum licence or no later than two years before the anticipated endofproduction.

Once that plan is approved,theministerwould i n s t r u c t t h a t a Decommissioning Fund is created.Thecompanywould make contributions to that fund to ensure that when the time for “clean-up” arrives, there would be adequate fundstocovertheassociated expenses. Importantly, the law states that the minister will dictate the terms and conditions of the fund for deposits and disbursements. Government previously made it clear that ExxonMobilwillberequired to comply with the administrative clauses in the Petroleum Activities legislation.

Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat

Outsourcing health services has its risks

In recent years, the government’s approach to tackling the deficiencies in thepublichealthsystemhas increasingly leaned towards outsourcing services to privatesectorproviders.But this approach to privatizing public healthcare services hasitsflaws.

While outsourcing certainhealthcareservicesto theprivatesectormightoffer immediate relief from backlogsanddeficiencies,it is a short-sighted strategy

that undermines the development of a robust public health system. The government’s current approach reflects a philosophical inclination towards privatization, prioritizing private sector empowerment over public sectorinvestment.

L a s t y e a r , t h e announcement of a new initiative to engage private hospitals in reducing the backlog of diagnostic tests. Amongthosetestsforwhich there was said to be a huge backlog was CT scans. The government’s decision was met with minimal public dissent. This seeming acceptance largely stemmed from the urgent need to address prolonged waiting times and clear the backlog that had overwhelmed publichealthfacilities.

However, with this strategy now extending to otherareaslikeeyetestsand spectacles for children and the elderly, there are serious concerns about the longterm impacts on the public health system. The latest initiative involving vouchers for eye tests and

De

spectacles follows the same pattern of outsourcing

Whilethesemeasuresmight offer immediate relief, they are symptomatic of a broader government philosophy that prioritizes empowering the private sector over investing in and enhancing public health

infrastructure This approach not only reflects a transfer of public funds to private healthcare providers but also undermines the potential growth and capability of the public healthsystem.

Outsourcing health servicestoprivateproviders

can offer short-term solutions, but it poses several long-term risks and drawbacks. By outsourcing essential services, the government will create a dependency on private entities This dependency can lead to increased costs over time as private providers may raise prices, knowing the public sector lacks the capacity to offer t h e s e s e r v i c e s independently.

The reliance on private sector solutions diverts attentionandresourcesaway from necessary investments

i n p u b l i c h e a l t h infrastructure Instead of equipping public hospitals with advanced diagnostic toolsandadequatelytraining staff,fundsarefunneledinto private hands, which does little to address the root causes of the public health system’sdeficiencies.

It must also be recognized that private healthcareservicesareoften moreaccessibletowealthier

individuals This can exacerbate existing inequalities, leaving lowerincome populations reliant on an underfunded and under-equipped public health system.Thefinancial implications of outsourcing healthservicesareprofound. The government’s decision to allocate public funds to privateprovidersforspecific services amounts to a transfer of wealth This strategy supports the business models of private healthcare providers at the expenseofbuildingarobust publichealthsystem.

For instance, the costs associated with outsourcing diagnostictestsorproviding vouchers for eye care services could be redirected

necessary equipment,

expanding the capacity of publichospitals.

T

’s currentapproachalignswith a

s philosophy that prioritizes privatesectorempowerment

philosophy is evident in the healthcare sector but also reflects a wider trend across various public services However, this overlooks the critical role of the public sector in p

oviding equitable, accessible, and comprehensivehealthcare.

The move to build 12 new hospitals seems contradictory to this outsourcing trend If the government genuinely believesintheefficacyofthe private sector to handle

DEM BOYS SEH

hand dat holding de pen

So, de government

threatening big big companies ‘bout dis thing call fronting Dem seh serious action coming fuh dem who think dem smart enough to bypass local contentlaws.

Butwaitaminute,wha ‘bout de fronting going on rightinsidedegovernment?

Is it true dat we got big figureheads who looking nice in dem high seats but ain’treallycallingnoshots? Wordpondestreetisdatde realdecision-makershiding in de shadows, pulling de strings like dem is puppeteers.

You ever wonder why some big shots looking so calm while all de action

happening around dem? Is like dem sitting in dem comfortablechairs,sipping on dem imported coffee, while some unseen hand writingdescript.Demboys seh is time fuh serious action to put an end to this internalfronting. Look,desamewaydem threatening companies fuh playing smart, maybe dem should check demselves first. You ever notice how some of dem high officials always looking confused when things go wrong? Is likedemonlyfindout‘bout de decisions after de media break de news. Dem boys seh is high time we start askingwhoreallycallingde shots.

overflow and specialized services,whyinvestbillions in constructing new public h o s p i t a l s ? T h i s inconsistency highlights a lack of coherent health sector strategy It suggests that the government’s primary motive might be more about short-term fixes rather than a genuine c o m m i t m e n t t o strengthening public health infrastructure. Rather than outsourcing,thegovernment should allocate funds to modernize and expand existing public health facilities This includes purchasing state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment, r

constructing new facilities where necessary Ensuring thatpublichealthfacilitiesare staffed with well-trained and well-paid professionals is crucial Investment in education and continuous professional development for healthcare workers will improvethequalityofcareand reducedependencyonprivate providers To truly improve healthcare outcomes and ensure equitable access for all citizens, the government must shift its focus towards building the capacity of the publichealthsystem. This requires substantial and sustained investment in infrastructure, training, and

management, ensuring that the public health system is equipped to meet the nation’s healthcare needs independently and efficiently. Outsourcing health services is not the answer

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and

not necessarily reflect the opinionsofthisnewspaper.)

You hear ‘bout dat big c o n t r a c t g o n e t o somebody? And who sign offondatdeal?Notdeman in de big seat, but de one behind de curtain, whispering sweet nothings in his ear. It mek you wonder, if dem really want to tackle fronting, maybe dem should start cleaning housefirst.Demboyssehif serious action coming fuh dem companies, it should be coming even faster fuh deonesrightingovernment whoplayingdesamegame. Nextthingyouknow,wego heardebossmansaying,“I was just holding de pen, I ain’t know who write de script!” Talkhalf.Leffhalf.

H@RD TRUTHS

The jagged edge

For some reason, Vice President Jagdeo has fooled himself,cavortshappilyover where he is. It is a pretense, the angles and fandangoes that he subjects himself to everyThursday Heiscaught on the edges of a jagged dilemma, a product of his owndistortedmind.

Heopenshismouth,and hefallsintoahole. Hekeeps itclosed,andhisownpeople perceivethatinBharrat“Iam Guyana” Jagdeo is a man whohasdugholestoburyhis many secrets into which he againtumbles.

He makes himself look weakandcontemptiblewhen he speaks; and when he refuses to answer questions ('Idealtwiththatalready'),he registersasamanontherun, one fleeing from his own odor

Whenthenationaloilman stands in what he believes is robust defence of the 2016 Exxon,heisExxon-shaming himself. Like those cruelly and unthinkingly humiliated for their obesity condition, Jagdeo does that to himself,

through his greasy, slippery state with his latest best friend, the Exxon contract. Whenthebigmanrisestothe level of local defender-inchief of Exxon, to the grim detriment of his fellow Guyanese, before his own dwindling crowd of voters, he reduces himself to a forlorn figure jagged and shreddedbyhisfrailties.

The insecurities of the man surface in the public domain, and his groping, stuttering uncertainty is a spectacletobehold.

He tied bundle with Exxon; therefore, he must nowpickuphisbedandwalk with it. Oh yes, I know! I know that I mixed and mangledmetaphors,butthey hold true, because he can't walkthetalk.

Talkhedoes,andthatisa mouthful that no Listerine nor black sage nor vinegar can sort to the right state of hygiene. Something smells, the air is laden with what is suspicious, what does not makesense,whatspeakstoa leader who has done more

thanmissedafewsteps. Itis of a national caricature, a formerheadofstatewhohas fallenflatonhisface.

ForthoseGuyanesewho still care about the most principled oil stewardship andwithresponsestomatch, I recommend the nearest statue in the Promenade Gardens. Jagdeohasnotone thatrings,onlythestonethat he has become, and which staresandsnarls.

'I am ah gonna get you'…teach you and your kindalesson...Itisthesignal for the PPP not-so-secret weapon, Live in Guyana, to be lined up and spring into action at the defiant, the deviationists, and the undefeatable in this society This is what a press confab hasdegeneratedto:adisease packaged into an hour or so, and where each is the most peculiar form of 60Minutes programing that Guyanese willeverview CBS would be in the television ratings doghouse, ifnotgrave,ifitwereBharrat Jagdeo at his mouth-

foaming, lip-hissing and throat-spitting best that was aired.

My Gawd! How does Guyana keep delving in its genes and producing for public consumption people like Jagdeo, that is the question?

Thelustforpowerbyany means led to the 2019-2020 bargains. There are none better at horse-trading than those that the Confederates used to call 'Goddamn Yankees.'

I think that they still addressthemthatway,butin a more muted and selective manner Part of Jagdeo's bargains from the last electionswasthathedefends to the death both Exxon and itsexcrement.

That would be the revolting 2016 contract PoorBharrat! Forthereheis forcedtopaintanuglyhouse without paint, or paintbrush, while it is raining cats and dogs, and the occasional viper stings him where he is most exposed and sensitive. Did some smart Guyanese

say that the day of reckoning and delivering can be leadership castration? If that is still too uncivilized, then how about the brawls that are now the jagged,ragged,nakedJagdeo of weekly press conference infamy?

The truth of the national oil patrimony has become this twisted, this demented: curses that cure nothing; political webs that trap its maker; and tricks that hustlers would swiftly recognize.

C o u n t G r i g o r i (Rasputin), Houdini, Ponzi and Machiavelli would all havebeenproud.

If I were a soulless barbarian, a ruthless capitalist, a mindless, heinouspartisan,thenImust say that I would have been awed at Jagdeo's antics, his tantrums, and his bum rushes.

ButnotasaGuyaneseof poor roots, the product of humble beginnings, with an ear and an eye to my peers

who are limping, dragging, andallbutstoppedhoping.

I should distance myself from the unsteady and the unready

But there is something, thatfirewhichburnsbrightly thatjustwon'tletmebe.

Perhaps, it is the sum of all the injustices. It is the jagged edges of Bharrat Jagdeo, Chief Minister, Oil Minister, Minister of Exxon, a n d M i n i s t e r o f Diminishment. Not on just theissues,butofhimselfnow sliced and scalded and soaked in brine. It couldn't have happened to a better fellow, a finer Guyanese gentleman Guyana! Guyana!

(Theviewsexpressedin this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the o p i n i o n s o f t h i s newspaper.)

CCTV footage presents as evidence in court of the Ian Mekdeci accident 2022

CCTV footage of the fatal accident causing the death of 27-year-old former Squash player Ian Mekdeci back in 2022 was presented as evidence on Wednesday duringthetrialinthecase.

The defendant, 39-old RobertoNarinewascharged for the fatal accident. The chargeallegesthatonMay1, 2022 at the intersection of Sandy Babb Street and Vlissengen Road, Kitty, Georgetown, he drove in a manner dangerous to the public, thereby causing the death of Mekdeci. Senior Magistrate Leron Daly on Tuesday at the Georgetown Magistrates' Courts ruled that CCTV footage is admissibleasevidenceinthe case in spite of Narine's defence lawyer, Siand Dhurjonobjecting.

During the hearing, a video footage capturing the accident was shown, in which Video Analysist Karon Cole explained that the dark coloured car which was at the time driven by Mekdeci's friend Sheik Baksh was given the green light to proceed west along Sandy Babb Street. As he approached the intersection at Vlissengen Road, he slowed down his car and proceeded to cross at the intersection when a jeep coming from south collided intothecar

'Based on what I have seen in the video after reviewing it, I would have

observed the traffic signal which showed red… based on further observations, before the accident, I have observedtrafficlightsignals showing green, given to traffic heading east to west. Aftertheaccident,thetraffic lightatthesaidintersections remains green for a short periodoftime”hesaid. Special Prosecutor Latchmi Rahamat informed thecourtthatotherwitnesses are yet to testify and the defendant has not yet been crossed examined. Narine's Lawyer was not present at the trial which posed a challenge Hence, Narine was instructed by the magistratethatifonthenext occasion his lawyer Dhurjon, is unable to attend trial,hewouldhavetodohis own cross examination or seek out a new lawyer She

Dr.Dukhisaysheisnotresponsible

Dr Amarnauth Dukhi, Head of the Neurosurgery

Department at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) has denied allegations of culpability as it regards the deathofDeAndraLiverpool, apatientwhorecentlypassed away at the institution while undergoing treatment for braintumour

Liverpool,31diedatthe hospital where she was diagnosed and being treated for a brain tumouronJune10last. Her grieving relatives have since raised accusations of neglect

also inferred that the case must not be further delayed duetothecommencementof election fraud cases. The matter was adjourned until June23-24,2024.

Police had reported that Baksh was driving at the time and they were heading west along Sandy Babb Street. When they arrived at the intersection at Vlissengen Road, the traffic light at their end was green and Baksh proceeded to drive across but as he was doing so, a jeep heading south alongVlissengen road jumped the red light and crashedintothem.Asaresult of the accident, both Baksh and Mekdeci were severely injured. An ambulance was called and they were both rushed to GPHC where Mekdeci died while receivingtreatment.

According to Dr Dukhi, the woman was told to get an MRIandothertestsdoneand she returned on May 15, 2024 at the private hospital afteronlyhavingsomeofthe testsdone. He claimed that the

and malpractice against staffers of the institution They specifically questioned the accuracy of the brain tumour diagnosis after autopsy report revealed woman died as a result cerebral cyst. Speaking to members of media during a press conference hosted by themanagementofGPHCon Wednesday, Dr Dukhi explainedthathefirstsawthe patientonApril24,2024ata privatehospital.

At that time, the doctor said that the patient was accompanied by her mother and another relative

family of the now deceased patientcreatedaruckusatthe private institution before requestingtojointheclinicat GPHC.

According to the doctor, the patient's first visit to GPHCwasonMay20andit was during that visit, the

medication should be used and the number of tests that she must undergo before surgery is done.

However, Dr Dukhi claimed that the patient's ondition deteriorated quickly, after just two visits to GPHC. He said that this was largely because she failedtotakethemedications prescribed to treat her condition.Dr Dukhidetailed thatonthefirstoccasion,the patient was seen, examined and advised that she must undergoanMRIandaseries of other tests before the (Continuedonpage16)

Versailles businessman granted

$600k bail for exporting

gold without licence

A US-based businessman was on Wednesday granted bail in the sum of $600,000 for exporting gold without a licence.

The accused, Saffee Ahmadwasapprehendedbya member of the Major Crime Investigation Unit and was formally charged on June 18, 2024. The charge brought against him is for the offence of "Exporting Gold Without

Licence," which violates Section8oftheGuyanaGold Board Act, Chapter 66:01, and is contrary to Section 23(a)ofthesameact.

Ahmad appeared before Principal Magistrate Judy Latchman at Diamond Magistrate's Court #2, where he entered a not guilty plea. Subsequently,hewasgranted bail in the amount of $600,000. The case has been scheduledforstatementstobe presentedonJune24,2024.

Saffee Ahmad

Former squash player, Ian Mekdeci

Defendant, Roberto Narine

Deceased: Deandra Liverpool

Dr.Amarnauth Dukhi, Head of the Neurosurgery

Sod turned for $231M Jawalla Secondary School

The Ministry of Education, on Wednesday, turned the sod for the construction of the $231 million Jawalla Secondary School in RegionSevenwhichissettocater forupto250students.

Accordingtoareleasefromthe ministry, the school building will be constructed by Sheriff ConstructionInc.whohasaperiod of eight months to complete the project. It was reported that the school, when completed, will be equipped with facilities including Chemistry, Biology, Physics, and Information Technology laboratories, Technical and VocationalEducationandTraining (TVET) laboratories, a Home Economics room, library space, teachers' quarters, spacious classrooms and a small dormitory justtonameafew

Plans to have a secondary school constructed in the community of Jawalla were made last year when Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand andotherseniorofficerswithinthe ministry visited the community in March2023todeterminetheideal locationfortheschool.Speakingat the simple yet significant ceremony, the Minister highlighted that after the successful completion of the school, the students of the community will no longer have to wonder how they are getting

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand and a representative of Sheriff Construction Inc. alongside students and officials turning the sod to commence the Jawalla Secondary School project.

education,andiftheyhavetoleave theirregiontoattainsame.

“Asyoucansee,we'retraining teachers right from the village... thisisthefirsttimeinthehistoryof Guyana,wehaveasmanyteachers training.Weusetobeabletotrain about535teachersperyear We're now training just under 2000 teachers per year Many of them are coming from hinterland regionswheretheyarereturningto serve,”shesaid.

The Minister explained that

theseinitiativesarebeingtakento ensure that teachers and students canthriveregardlessofwherethey areinthecountry

It was reported that the secondary school will be the second of its kind in the Upper Mazaruni District and will help to ease the overcrowding at the DC Caesar Fox Secondary School in Waramadong. The ministry stated that this school will provide students in other communities, including Quebanang, Kako,

Imbaimadai, Kambaru, Ominike, Abbou, and Eladupai, with the opportunity to receive a sound secondary education Kaieteur News understands that these students are currently either not receivingasecondaryeducationor arebeingeducatedinprimarytops whichisasecondarydepartmentin aprimaryschool.

InadditiontoJawalla,Phillipai Village which is located in the sameregionwillsoonbenefitfrom a secondary school. Bids were

openedonTuesdayattheNational P

Administration Board (NPTAB) officefortheproject.

As reported previously, the ministry has embarked on an aggressive programme to ensure that the nation's children have access to secondary education by constructing several secondary schools across the country The Government has set 2025 as the target to achieve Universal SecondaryEducation(USE).

Paramakatoi to get another dormitory for $267M

The Ministry of Education is preparing to use from its $74.4 billion budget, approximately $267,001,500 to construct another students' dormitory in Paramakatoi,RegionEight.

This is according to information obtained from the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) website, which revealed that the $267millioncontractwasawarded to I Khan Contracting Service just recently. Kaieteur News understands that the new dorm is beingconstructedtocaterformore students that would have to come from nearby villages for their education.Currently,studentsfrom Monkey Mountain, Taruka, and Bamboo Creek villages would occupythepresentdormitorythere.

In addition to constructing this building, NPTAB had awarded another contract in May which

valued $353 million to rehabilitate andextendthecurrentParamakatoi dormitory That project will be executed by NK Engineering Services.

Kaieteur News had reported last year that concerns were raised about the state of the present dormitory during the National Toshao's Council (NTC) conference.

Toshao of Monkey Mountain, Region Eight, Lincoln Singh who spokeonbehalfoftheParamakatoi and Kato Villages at the time, revealed that the Paramakatoi dormitories are in a state of disrepair and requested that action betakentoremedythem.

Subject Minister Priya

Manickchand had committed to have a full assessment of the facilitydone.

“The Paramakatoi dorms, we just had a full assessment of this

Minister of Health Dr. Frank Anthony and other officials alongside the 31 new Community Healthcare Workers. (Photo courtesy, Ministry of Health)

dorm,andweintendtorepairitata cost of more than $300 million,” the Education Minister said in August2023.

Minister Manickchand had announced that works on the facility would be rolled out in

Section of Paramakatoi Village in Region Eight. (Photo courtesy: Paramakatoi Secondary School/ Facebook)

phases since the ministry does not wantthechildrenhousedtheretobe displaced. Meanwhile, at a recent pressconferenceearlierthismonth, the Education Minister had mentionedthatthegovernmenthas started a massive programme to repairallschoolsanddormitoriesto ensure children's safety and comfort. A number of dorms will also be constructed given the new secondaryschoolstheministrywill be building in the hinterland regions.

Another31personsgraduatedasCommunityHealthWorkers

A total of 31 persons from Regions Three, Four, Five and Seven graduated on Tuesday from the Ministry of Health's Community Health Workers ( C H W s ) T r a i n i n g Programme According to information provided by the Health Ministry, the training went for eight months and provided the graduates with essential skills and knowledge in areas such as Anatomy and Physiology, Logistics ManagementSystems,Disease Surveillance, Pharmacology, and Maternal and Child Health.Minister of Health, Dr Frank Anthony in his brief remarks expressed the ministry'shighexpectationsfor the new Community Health Workers and noted the importance of serving patients withapositiveandkindattitude and providing excellent care and treatment to all who visit health facilities.“It's easy to buildandequipahealthfacility, but the hardest part is having peoplewiththerightattitudeto provide the needed services. If people are not treated properly

when they visit the health facilities, that's the impression theywillleavewith,”hesaid.

“If you begin at the communityhealthworkerlevel and gain some experience, we hope you will create a career path in health care,” he added Also present at the simpleceremony,wasDirector of the Health Sciences

Education Division, Chandroutie Persaud who urged them to serve their respective regions with diligence and excellence. “I wantyoutoreflectontheword Community The training you underwent was to make you competent enough to provide quality service to members of your community People will remember you for how you treatthem,”shestated.

Kaieteur News understands that the ministry has been rolling out the training programme in a number of hinterland regions Just recently, 35 persons graduated in Region Eight, representing the first ever batch of CHWs there.

Nigel Hughes accepts nomination for leader of AFC ...David Patterson for chairman

Prominent Attorney, Nigel Hughes has accepted the nomination for leader of the Alliance For Change, w h i l e M e m b e r o f Parliament, David Patterson will contest the post of chairman.

“We express our profuse gratitude to those groups within the Alliance For Change (AFC) that have nominated David and I as candidates for various positions within the managementstructureofthe party and to the many delegateswhohavecalledto pledge their support,” HughesandPattersonsaidin a joint statement.According to the gentlemen after lengthy and robust discussions, “we are of the opinion that in the best interests of the AFC and country that we ought not to compete against each other but,presentaunitedfront.In thiscontexttherefore,David and I have agreed that Nigel Hughes will accept the

Man remanded for attempted murder

victimonceintheneck.Mohabirfellontohis back and Bruce is further accused of giving the victim another stab to the neck and also cuttinghisneck.

Hughesasthebestcandidate to lead theAFC at this time asweheadinto the 2025 Regional and General Elections I am confident that with his leadership,ourvictoryat

A50-year-old man from Hibiscus Street, West Ruimveldt, was remanded to prison when he appeared before Magistrate Faith McGusty to answer to the charge of "attemptedmurder."

Thedefendant,WinstonBruce,isaccused of attempting to murder Narine Mohabir According to the court proceedings, the incident occurred on June 14, 2024, around 00:00hrsMohabirwasatBruce'syardwhere they were gambling and playing poker An argumentensuedbetweentheaccusedandthe victimoverasumof$2,300.

A friend of the victim helped him to his feetandMohabirplacedaclothonhisneckto prevent the bleeding. He was taken to the GeorgetownPublicHospitalaround01:30hrs thesameday

Attorney, Nigel Hughes

nominationforLeaderofthe Alliance For Change while DavidPattersonwilldecline nomination for that position,” the statement read. Patterson will, with humility and gratitude, accept the nomination for Chairpersonoftheparty,the statement added. “This we agreeisinthebestinterestof aunifiedAFC.”

“I fully endorse Nigel

Patterson said. “I am deeply appreciative of the great sacrifice made by David Patterson to decline the nomination for Leader. Davidhasgivenoutstanding service both at the party and national levels. I look forward to our joint united collaboration in building a strongerAFC and a modern Guyana.TheAFCisandhas always been the most inclusivepoliticalpartyandI am humbled to accept the nominationtoleadthisgreat party,” Hughes responded. “Wereiterateourgratitudeto the members of theAFC for nominating us and look forward to their continued support,” the statement concluded.

Guyanaanticipates350,000visitors

in2024amidrapidtourismgrowth

Guyana is poised to welcome350,000visitorsin 2024,reflectingasignificant increaseinitstourismsector

AccordingtotheGuyana Tourism Authority's (GTA) Tourism Statistical Digest 2023, the country's tourism industryhasreboundedfrom the pandemic and surpassed its pre-pandemic visitor numbers. Director of the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) Kamrul Baksh highlightedinthereportthat

international tourism reached88percentofitsprepandemiclevels,withglobal arrivals nearing 1.3 billion, as noted by the UNWTO WorldTourismBarometerof 2023.

Baksh projected a full recovery of international tourism by 2024, driven by factors including pent-up demand, expanded air connectivity, and a strong resurgenceinAsianmarkets.

“Guyana's tourism industry is part of this global trend, which can be attributed mainly to the support received from both the private and public sectors,” Bakshstated.

In 2023, Guyana saw an 11 percent increase in visitors compared to 2022,

with a total of 319,147 tourists,markinganaddition of 4,420 arrivals. Visitor numbers from January to April 2024 have shown a 12.4 percent increase over the same period in 2023, accounting for 112,751 visitors. The projection for 2024 is 350,000 visitors, bolstered by the addition of 595 new hotel rooms and major calendar events such as the Rupununi Rodeo, Mashramani, and Cricket Carnival.

Other contributors to the anticipated growth include ongoing oil production, increased marketing efforts, product development, and majorconferences.

The trend is expected to continueinthecomingyears with more hotels being completed and a robust l i n e u p o f e v e n t s , significantly expanding the country's accommodation capacity The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) noted that in 2023, Guyana's tourism industry supportedover18,000jobs.

Visitor demographics reveal that the majority of arrivals in 2023 came from the United States (47 percent), followed by the

Caribbean (27 percent), Canada (nine percent), Europe (six percent), and South/Central America (six percent).Notably,45percent (144,307) of these arrivals werediasporavisitors,while 55 percent (174,840) were non-diaspora tourists, predominantly from the Caribbean and the United States.Leisuretravelwasthe main purpose for visits, accounting for 69 percent (220,549) of total arrivals, followed by business travel at17percent(53,377).“Iam confident that we are on the right path to achieving remarkable success with support from all key stakeholders, including the Government of Guyana through the Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce.Guyanaisonan undeniable path to greatness,”theGTAdirector stated.

The last year's edition of the Tourism Statistical Digest provides essential tourism information and statistics to stakeholders, guiding policy decisions, m

, product development, and investment opportunities (DPI)

It is alleged that Bruce attempted to take $2,300 Guyana dollars from Mohabir, but wasunsuccessful.Brucethenallegedlytooka knife from his pants pocket and stabbed the

The weapon used by Bruce, a pair of scissors, was found in the victim's bedroom, and the victim confirmed that it was the weapon used in the attack to the police. MagistrateMcGustyrefusedtograntbailand WinstonBrucewasremandedtoprisonuntil the next court date, which is scheduled for July3,2024.

WANTED VACANCY

14 work place deaths in six months

- majority in mining sector

The Ministry of Labour has re corded 14 deaths in work places thus far in 2024, majority of which occurred in the mining sector.

prevent similar recurrences in the future.”

Safety and Health Day, saying that the majority of fatalities occur in the mining and construction sectors.

“This situation causes me great concern, and should be the same for our tripartite partners and key stakeholders.

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The Labour Ministry related to this publication that from January to June, 2024, fourteen fatalities have been recorded. Notably, 45 percent of 14 accidents occurred in the mining sector, 27 percent in the construction sector and 28 percent shared among agriculture, shipping, commerce, oil and gas and fishing. Seven fatalities occurred in Region Four; one in Region One, one in Region Three, two in Region Seven, one in Region Nine and two in Region 10. Taking this into account, the Ministry underscored, “All fatalities are investigated to

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Only recently the Department of Public Information (DPI) reported that Guyana so far this year has recorded more work places deaths than the previous three years.

The government-run agency said that in 2020, there were 32 workplace deaths; in 2021, the number decreased to 27 deaths and then in 2022, there were 21 deaths, 20 were recorded in 2023.

It then quoted Minister of Labour Joseph Hamilton, in his message on Occupational

Indeed, it is quite obvious that we need to act now. Decisive actions need to be taken to prevent workplace accidents and safeguarding well-being of the workers in this beloved country of ours,”

Minister Hamilton stated.

This, he said, will require concerted efforts from the government, trade unions and employers’ organisations who

need to collaborate closely to develop, implement and maintain comprehensive strategies for safety and health protocols, adequate training the enforcement of safety and health regulations, proper equipment maintenance and fostering culture of safety among all stakeholders.

“Let us rise to the challenges and reduce our efforts to create safer and healthier workplaces for all together we can make a difference and build a future where every worker can go to work and return home safely at the end of the work day or work period,” Minister Hamilton stated.

Dr. Dukhi says he is not responsible for death...

From page 12 medical team can move forward with treatment.

According to the doctor, the patient was told to have the test done and return within a week but she returned three weeks later without some of the tests still not done. He explained that “In the case of anyone who has a brain mass before surgery can be done that patient has to be studied extensively before taking any action.” The doctor also emphasised on the reasons for the tests to be conducted.

“We saw from the previous MRI that there is a mass in the brain, but more tests needed to be done to determine what was happening, cause, etc. … a contrast MRI needed to be done. As such, a second MRI was ordered …because this is standard in neurology, if you are suspecting a mass legion you order an MRI and an MRI was ordered together with that series of tests including tests to determine the infectious causes.”

The Neurosurgery Department head said that by the time he saw the patient on June 10 last, her condition had worsened; she was experiencing discomfort and severe headaches. He noted that she still had not carried out all the tests as instructed and was not taking the medi-

cation as prescribed for her.

“She was experiencing severe headaches; I asked the mother of the patient whether she was taking the medication and her mother said to me that ‘I didn’t give her this medication because I could not find it.’ We did some research and found that was the medication that treats swelling in the brain.”

The doctor said that he recognised that the patient’s situation was declining and therefore he ordered that she be admitted for emergency care. “At the time, I recognised that the patient was not doing well; her situation was declining so I recommended that she be admitted…unfortunately, she suffered a seizure and passed away while there…,” Dr. Dukhi added. He cautioned that the public should not jump to conclusions in such cases. According to the doctor, offering neurosurgical care requires much study care and consideration. As it regards the difference between his diagnosis and the autopsy report which revealed that the patient died as a result of a cerebral cyst, the doctor clarified that the two conditions are related.

Meanwhile, Chief Executive Officer of GPHC, Robbie Rambarran called on the public to be more considerate on how they label the institution.

“It is often that these incidence cause GPHC to get the worse image when we handle so many cases and have some many positives, only the negatives receive traction.” As it relates to the neurosurgical patient, Rambarran noted that the woman was examined at two other hospitals before she was treated at GPHC—the West Demerara Regional Hospital and a private facility. “It was actually a relative of that patient that called me and said that they have a relative at the private hospital and the relative is seeing Dr. Dukhi and he knows that the doctor works at Georgetown Hospital and he asked if we could accommodate her and I said yes.

The relative never reached out back to me to coordinate when the patient should come or call to say that the patient is coming,” Rambarran said. He noted however that the relative later called to request a letter for the patient to go to the US Embassy to access the treatment overseas. The CEO said that the relative was told that doctor could not facilitate such a letter. He said too that he told the relative that the hospital could have given them the patient’s records if they wished but the relative never followed up with that option.

Putin and Kim pledge mutual help against ‘aggression’

(BBC NEWS) Vladimir PutinandKimJongUnhave signed an agreement pledging that Russia and North Korea will help each other in the event of “aggression” against either country

The Russian president made the announcement followingtalkswithMrKim during a lavish visit to Pyongyang, his first since 2000. Mr Kim said it took their relationship to “a new, high level of alliance”. The pact cements a rapidly blossoming partnership that has worried the West. It could also have significant ramifications for the world, sayobservers.

Any kind of mutual defence treaty could possibly see Moscow assisting Pyongyang in a futureconflictontheKorean peninsula, while North Korea could openly help RussiainitswaronUkraine. Mr Kim is already accused of supplying Russia with weapons, while Mr Putin is thought to be giving the North Koreans space technology that could aid their missile programme. ThetwolastmetinRussiain September. On Wednesday t h e y s i g n e d a “comprehensive partnership agreement” that included a clause where they agreed to provide “mutual assistance in the event of aggression” against either country, said Mr Putin. He did not spell out what would constitute aggression.

Mr Putin has in recent months faced difficulties on

the battlefield in Ukraine, particularly with depleting weapons. During their last face-to-face meeting in September, when Mr Kim visited Russia, the two had discussed military cooperation and were suspectedofstrikinganarms deal. Since then there has been growing evidence that Russia has been deploying North Korean missiles in Ukraine.

In the last few weeks however, the US and other Nato countries have given permissiontoUkrainetouse

Western weapons on Russiansoil,inasignificant movethatKyivhopeswould turnthetidetoitsfavour Mr P u t i n w a r n e d o f consequences and earlier this month said he was

considering arming adversaries of theWest with long-range weaponssomething that North Korea

The two leaders were all smiles at the welcoming ceremony on Wednesday

has been developing. He criticisedtheWest’sdecision again onWednesday, saying it was “a gross violation” of restrictions under internationalobligations.He alsotookissuewithWestern sanctions on Russia and North Korea, saying that theyboth“donottoleratethe language of blackmail and diktat” and would continue to counter the West’s use of “sanctions strangling” to maintain“hegemony”.

Mr Kim meanwhile praised their treaty as marking a significant and historic moment in their relation.

He also expressed “full support and solidarity” for RussiainitswaronUkraine. The treaty is likely to anger Seoul, which had ahead of the meeting warned Russia against going “beyond a certain point” National Security adviser Chang Ho-

jin had told his Russian counterpart that Moscow “should take into consideration which among North Korea and South Korea will be more important to it, once Russia endsitswarwithUkraine”.

Rachel Lee, a senior fellowattheStimsonCenter think tank’s Korea programme, said any such treaty would have “significant implications for the region and the world”. Besides the possibility of Russian intervention in a fresh conflict between the twoKoreas,“ifNorthKorea continuestosupplyweapons to Russia, and Russia provides advanced military technology to North Korea, we can face an even greater g l o b a l [ w e a p o n s ] proliferation problem ” Chad O’Carroll, a North Korean specialist from NK News, said on X, formerly

Twitter,thattheclausecould open the door to conflictrelated co-operation, including the possibility of North Korean soldiers assistingRussiainUkraine.

Mr Putin’s visit kicked offwithalaterthanexpected arrival in Pyongyang which sawhimtouchdownatabout 0300 local time (18:00 GMT). Once he stepped off the plane, Mr Kim greeted him with an embrace and a red carpet welcome where apparently no expense was spared As the Russian leader was ferried to the Kumsusan guesthouse, the sameplacewherefellowally ChinesepresidentXiJinping stayed previously, North Korean state media showed the capital ablaze with light from streetlamps and buildings. It was a striking image for an impoverished country suffering from a chronicelectricityshortage.

At the welcoming ceremony later on Wednesday, Mr Putin was greeted by a spectacle of enthusiastic devotion choreographed to its minutest detail and rife with North Korean propaganda imagery.

Typical of the North Korean regime, it featured a cast of hundreds of thousands, many of whom would have been told to participate.

Accompanied by police on motorbikes riding in perfect formation, his motorcade glided through the streets of Pyongyang lined with people waving Russian flags, bouquets of

flowers and pictures of Mr Putin They chanted “welcomePutin”and“North KoreaRussiafriendship”.

At Kim Il Sung Square, named after the regime’s founder and Mr Kim’s grandfather,acrowddressed in the two countries’ flag colours and evenly spaced out on the square waited for Mr Putin’s arrival. As he stepped out of his car, they cheered and released balloons into the sky Little children dressed in white, the colour symbolising the purity of North Korean society, greeted the Russian leader MrPutinandMrKim walkedpastrowsofsoldiers mountedonwhitestallionsanodtothehorseMrKim’s grandfatherwassaidtohave ridden while leading his armyagainsttheJapanese.

The two men then surveyed goose-stepping soldiers while standing in front of solemn, metres-tall portraits of themselves which adorned a nearby building and loomed over thefestivitiesbelow

Later, Mr Putin attended a gala concert and state reception with banquet, where the menu featured dishes such as cod in the shape of a white flower, Koreannoodlesandchicken soup with ginseng and pumpkin The festivities ended with Mr Putin flying off late on Wednesday for Vietnam, but not before the twoexchangedgifts.

MrPutingaveMrKima second luxury Aurus carandeventookhimforaspin init.

Canada lists Iran Revolutionary Guards as ‘terrorist’ group

(AL JAZEERA) Canada has listed Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)asa“terrorist”entity andurgeditscitizensinIran toleave.

T h e C a n a d i a n government made the a n n o u n c e m e n t o n Wednesday, saying that the move will help Ottawa with “countering terrorist financing”.

“The decision to list the IRGC through the Criminal Code listing regime sends a strong message that Canada will use all tools at its disposal to combat the terrorist activity of the IRGC, conducted both unilaterally and in knowing association with listed

terrorist entities such as Hezbollah and Hamas,” the Canadian government said inastatement.

There was no immediate comment from Tehran. For years, the opposition Conservatives in Canada have urged Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to blacklisttheIRGC.

O n We d n e s d a y, Dominic LeBlanc, Canada’s minister of public safety, cited Iran’s human rights record as one of the reasons behind thedecision

“The Iranian regime has consistently displayed a complete disregard for human rights, both inside andoutsideIran,aswellasa

willingnesstodestabilisethe international rules-based order,” LeBlanc said in a statement.

“Listing the IRGC builds on the Government of Canada’s broader efforts to ensure that there is no impunity for Iran’s unlawful actions and its supportofterrorism ”

Foreign Minister Melanie Joly urged Canadians not to travel to Iran, citing a heightened r

“

ary detention”

“For those in Iran right now, it’s time to come back home For those planning to go to Iran, don’t go,” she told a news conference.

‘Listing the IRGC builds on the Government of Canada’s broader efforts to ensure that there is no impunity for Iran’s unlawful actions and its support of terrorism,’Ottawa says [File: AFP]

Norton accused of sexual harassment by party member

...calls on victim to deny allegations, but she confirms

“If I put this [gun] to your head and rape you, what would you do?”- Vanessa Kissoon

Longstanding People's National Congress Reform (PNC/R) member Vanessa Kissoon, on Wednesday cameforwardandconfirmed thattheallegationsofsexual harassment against her by Leader of the Opposition AubreyNorton,asdescribed in a social media post, are

true On Wednesday morning, Norton addressed the allegation in a video

statement posted on Facebook The allegation originatedfromsocialmedia commentator Egland Gomes,whorecountedwhat VanessaKissoonsharedwith him about being sexually harassed by the Opposition Leader

The allegation is that Nortonwasaskedbyanother party member Sharma Solomon to give Kissoon a ride to Linden after a PNCR campaign meeting It is alleged that Norton stopped his motor vehicle in the vicinity of the Ruimveldt Industrial area roadway and showed Kissoon his firearm before sexually harassing her Addressing the post, Norton labeled it as “malicious and false.” He underscored that at no time washeaskedbySolomonto give Kissoon a drop to Linden. “Secondly, at no time Vanessa Kissoon and I were in any vehicle alone heading to Linden. All of these claims are false and malicious, ” Norton continued.

The Opposition Leader also disclosed that he has sinceinstructedhislawyerto take legal action against the social media commentator Duringhisstatement,Norton called on Kissoon as well as Solomon to address the issue.Hesaid,“Failuretodo so will suggest that they are complicit in this false and malicious post ” While Nortonsaidthatheviewsthe

allegationsaspartofawider political plot, coinciding with his party's upcoming congress and elections later this month - Kissoon issued her own statement on Wednesday afternoon addressing the social media post, as well as the comments made by the OppositionLeader She stated, “There is a social media story that is taking on various proportions and shapes after a statement was released by one Egland Gomes whom I acknowledge to have had conversationsometimeback with a third party being present. I did not in said conversation approve of Mr Gomes taking my story public for any purpose whatsoever.”

Kissoonsaid,despiteher story being publicly shared by Gomes without her permission, she feels obligated to address the comments made by the Opposition Leader She said shedidtravelinNorton'scar, despite him denying that ever happened Kissoon disclosed, “Mr Norton stopped his car, locked it, showed me his gun in his foot and asked me, if I put this to your head and rape you, what would you do. I responded by saying, I ain't afraid of you or that s#u&t and you will have to $u&kingkillme.”

Moreover, the PNCR member noted that while Norton did not carry out his threatsordesires,forseveral years, she has carried the burden of the threat, disrespect and violation. “I did tell a few of my close confidantes. Mr Norton has neverbeenanythingmoreto me than just a political comrade.Sincemystoryhas gone public without me initiating it, as it was my right,Istatethatwaswrong,

regardlessofmotive. Being forced to deal with this publicly as a result of the actionsofanotherhurts,”the womanadded.

Additionally, Kissoon urged other victims to avoid hermistakesandtakecontrol

of their experiences before others do it for them. “Mr Nortonmayhavemissedthe timesweareinandthevalue placed in protecting women and girls. No one should be s

advances and threats. To those men and women who haveallowedpoliticsandnot what is right to influence your judgment of the situation, you have a lot to learnaboutabuseandsexual misconduct. I recall how

vigorouslysomeofyouwent after other accused but how youletdownyourown. Our party,ournation,needsmore enlightenment and a nonpartisan approach to actions of this nature,” she concluded.

Opposition Leader, Aubrey Compton Norton

Vanessa Kissoon

Cristiano Ronaldo breaks Euros record as Portugal beat Czechia

Onefootball - Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player to appear at six EuropeanChampionshipsas Portugal began their Euro 2024 campaign with a 2-1 winoverCzechia.

The legendary forward had just seven caps to his name heading into his first continental tournament, Euro 2004, but entered this summer’s tournament with no fewer than 207 appearances for his country

under his belt Ronaldo couldn’t get on the score sheet to mark his 208th cap, however,ashisPortugalside madehardworkoftheir2-1 win over Czechia on Tuesdayevening.

Portugal enjoyed plenty of possession early on, with BrunoFernandespullingthe stringsfromdeepandRafael Leao constantly looking to getindowntheleftwing.

Ronaldo failed to make the most of an early header

Cristiano Ronaldo breaks Euros record as Portugal beat Czechia.

GOAPCInterMinistries’Domino& CricketcompetitionsetforJune21-22

In addition to that, the ‘Bat Your Own’Tape Ball Cricket Competition will take place the following day; Saturday, June 22, starting at 9:30 AM at the National Culture Center Tarmac

the coordinator, James “Uprising” Lewis, at the

Thursday June 20, 2024

ARIES(Mar.21–Apr.19)

Overall,theforecastfortoday is fairly good. The aspects seemtofavorfiguringoutthe meaning of all that's transpired over the past several weeks It's an opportunity for you to take a leisurely

TAURUS(Apr.20–May20)

Have you felt somewhat lost forthepastfewdays?Thefog maylifttodayandenableyou to situate yourself at last. You'reprobablyeagertosettle a question that has nagged at you and interfered with your judgment.

GEMINI(May21–June20)

You may have been feeling somewhat disillusioned. Perhapsyoulostsightofyour goals or misplaced your faith in yourself. You'll feel some reliefbeginningtoday

CANCER(June21–July22)

Youmightbetemptedtosettle certain matters by radical means. The visionary part of you means you're painfully aware of the world's wrongs. You see no reason not to take actiontocorrectthem.

LEO(July23–Aug.22)

Today will be fairly calm in terms of outside events, but yourinnerworldislikelytobe in a rush of activity Today you wish you could find the solutiontoyourheartachesas well as your career predicaments.

VIRGO(Aug.23–Sept.22)

You have a lot of thinking to do about your professional goals, Virgo. You'll go over the elements to see if there isn't some way to approach thingsdifferently

Spaceislimited,tobea part of this competition c

coordinator,JamesLewis.

LIBRA(Sept.23–Oct.22)

Youjustcan'tdoeverythingat once, Libra. How do you expect to reduce your stress and recuperate while at the same time continue to be a superstar performer in every areaofyourlife.

SCORPIO(Oct.23–Nov 21)

Thisisagoodmomenttoadapt your logic and reason to reality, Scorpio. If you don't, you're going to run into some

Everyone knows that you find newideasplentiful.

SAGIT(Nov 22–Dec.21)

It'sgoingtobealittledifficult t

ou to

y, Sagittarius. You, who can be easily influenced by others, will be listening to and criticizing everything that peoplesay

CAPRI(Dec.22–Jan.19)

Haveyoubeenreviewingyour

m

y h

o

y lately, Capricorn? Of special interest is your cultural background. What educational, social, and religious environment were you born into? What are its values?Intheend.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20–Feb. 18) It's time to elevate your senseofself,Aquarius.You're justasgoodasanyoneelse,so why don't you believe it? The problem is that you're very sensitiveabouthavinganego. Even though you know everyonedoes.

PISCES(Feb.19–Mar.20)

Today your intellectual and expressive abilities should receive a boost from the planets.It'sanexcellenttimeto organize your thoughts about presentingaproject.

and drew an excellent reaction-stop from Czechia goalkeeper Jindrich Stanek, although replays soon showed that the Al Nassr superstar had failed to beat theoffsidetrap.

Stanek denied Ronaldo onceagainshortlybeforethe interval, with Portugal on top but clearly struggling to find any clear-cut chances behind Czechia’s solid defence. This was the first time at Euro 2024 that a gamehadbeentied0-0atthe break.

Portugal had a clear focusoncrosses,whipping the ball into the box the bestpartof20timesbefore the break, and that trend continued into a second half which saw Roberto Martinez’ssidepushforan opener

However, they’d find themselves chasing the game on the hour mark as Lukas Provod curled home fromtheoutsideofthebox to set up another potential shock

Portugal wouldn’t be chasing for long Nine minutes later, the score was tied up as Stanek pushed Nuno Mendes’ headerrightintothelegsof the retreating Robin Hranac, who could only watch on in horror as the ball rebounded into the backofthenet.

As the clock ticked on, Portugal thought they had found a winner as Liverpool’s Diogo Jota tappedhomeareboundfrom a Ronaldo header, but the semi-automated offside technology quickly confirmed the 39-year-old hadstrayedaninchoffsideagreatadvertforthesystem.

Devastationsoonflipped to elation as, in the 92nd minute, debutant Francisco Conceicao pounced on a fortunate deflection to thunder home from close range and steer Portugal to victory

2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup… West Indies vs. England Salt, Buttler script massive 8-wicket win for England

Opener Phil Salt

crunched an unbeaten 87 as his England gunned down a hugetotaltowinlastnight’s Super Eights battle by 8wickets versus West Indies, attheDarrenSammyCricket Stadium.

Windies batting first made a strong 180-4, courtesy of some aggressive

batting from the likes of ; top-scorer Johnson Charles (38), Nicholas Pooran (36), Rovman Powell (36), Sherfane Rutherford (25*) andBrandonKing(23).

Fast-bowlerJofraArcher (1-34) and spinner Adil Rashid(1-21),ledEngland’s bowlingwithhelpfromparttimespinnersMooenAli(115) and Liam Livingstone (1-20).

In reply, England stormed to 181-2 after the unbroken97-runpartnership between Salt, who pummeled 87* off 47 with seven fours and 5 sixes and Jonny Bairstow, who was strandedon26-ball48*with 5 fours and a pair of sixes;

emphaticwin.

OpenersSaltandCaptain JoeButtler(25)providedthe idealstartforachaseofsuch magnitude,adding67before off-spinnerRostonChase(119) had the latter trapped LBW

Ali(13),fellatthehands of veteran seamer Andre Russell (1-20) as England reached their 100-run tally afterthe12thover

But Salt turned up the heat as he pushed past 50 beforeafewlustyblowstook him into 70’s as Bairstow eyedahalf-century

The duo kept their cool and reversed the run-rate which was increasing, eventually seeing England homewith15ballstospare.

Earlier,CharlesandKing shared a 50-plus run partnership after the five overpower-playended.

When King retired hurt, Pooran sped up proceedings after his arrival with a handfulofboundaries.

Alongside Powell, both batsmen had explosive

Roston Chase wheels away after trapping Jos Buttler (Getty Images)

knocks, with the skipper launching 5 sixes before fallingtoLivingstone.

WithArcher bagging the wicket of Pooran, West Indiesfoundtheirfinalspark inRutherford.

TheGuyaneseclobbered two sixes and a four as he

helpedspikehisteam’stotal to almost 200-runs again, as theinningsended.

Scores: England 181 for 2 (Salt 87*, Bairstow 48*) beat West Indies 180 for 4 (Charles 38, Powell 36, Rashid 1-21) by eight wickets.

Madhoo, Fitzgerald ready to compete at 2024 BetVictor World Cup of Darts

Guyanese darts

players Norman Madhoo and Sudesh Fitzgerald out of the ForeignLinkDartsClub,are set to make their second appearance at the 2024 BetVictor World Cup of Darts. The event will take placefromJune27-30atthe Eissporthalle in Frankfurt, Germany

Madhoo and Fitzgerald made their debut at the World Cup of Darts in 2023 after triumphing in the inaugural qualifier, which was open to countries from Central and South America, as well as the Caribbean. They secured their spot for the 2024 competition by winning the qualifier again inApril,heldinSanJose.

M a d h o o , w h o participated in his fourth World Darts Championship in December, will team up with Fitzgerald, who also represented Guyana in the World Championship back in 2009. The pair will once again represent Golden Arrowhead in this popular doublesevent.

The Foreign Link Darts star, Fitzgerald told us at Kaieteur News that, “My hard work and dedication

has paid off yet again.” He explained, “It is an awful shame that, we (the sport) aren’t recognized, as the other sports by the local SportsCommissionbutIam also pleased to be representing my country on this stage, once again. I am happy that I am part of this group, and my only hope is to change the way this sport is seen in my country, in comparison to other parts of the world.” “I am feeling a w e s o m e , m y s e l f (Fitzgerald) and Norman Madhoo is in a ‘decent’ form, and we hope to give ourbestandputourcountry on the world map. We are honoured be representing Guyana,aswellastheentire Caribbean/Latin and South America, and that’s a lot to carry but we know all the countriesandislandarewith us,”Fitzgeralddeclared.

M e a n w h i l e , t h e r e v a m p e d f o r m a t , successfully introduced in 2023, will be back in 2024.

The tournament will feature both group and knockout stages of all Doubles matches over four days of competition. The top four ranked nations, determined by the lowest cumulative

PDCOrderofMeritranking of their players, will be seeded and will enter the competition in the second round.

The remaining 36 teams will be divided into 12 groups of three for the round-robin first round, which includes 12 seeded nations. Each group winner will advance to the second round, where the last 16 nations will compete in matches spread across two sessions on Saturday, June 29. The quarter-finals will take place on Sunday afternoon, followed by the semi-finals and final on Sundayevening. Seeds 1-4, comprising England, Wales, the Netherlands, and Scotland, will automatically qualify forRoundTwo.Thewinners of the tournament will receive £80,000, while the runners-up will earn £50,000. Semi-finalists and quarter-finalists will receive £30,000 and £20,000, respectively Teams exiting inthelast16willbeawarded £9,000, second-place group finisherswillget£5,000,and third-place group finishers will receive £4,000, with a totalprizefundof£450,000.

Preparation underway for July 14 Port Mourant Turf Club Horse Race meet

Horse owners and trainers across G u y a n a commenced preparation for the July 14 Port Mourant Turf Club horse race meet. This event will mark the club’s annual CARICOM race.

With the bigger picture being the Guyana Cup, which is slated for August 11,theJuly14racemeetwill be the final competitive preparation for horses running at this year’s horse racing showpiece, the GuyanaCup.

Horses have already beenworkingoutatthePort Mourant Turf Club and the horses are acclimatizing to conditions.

The provisional programme set out for Port Mourantracemeethaseight races on the cards and close to 10 million dollars in cash and prizes will be up grabs. Thefeatureracewillbeopen

to all horses running at an approximate distance of 1350 metres, where the top horsewillbagG$1,500,000.

The three-year-old Guyana and West Indies bred horses will run at 1350 metres and the top horse will be rewarded$500,000.

HorsesintheH&Lower will run at 1500 metres and thetophorsewillbeawarded G$400,000.

Other races on the cards include the E Class Non earner last start & F and Lower, the two-year-old Guyanabred,theJ&Lower, the L Open, and the J/K/L Maiden.

All races will run under the guidance of the Guyana Horse Racing Authority Rules, and races are subjected to change. Horses wouldneedtoshowproofof vaccinationattimeofentry

Entries for the July 14 CARICOM race meet will close on July 8 The

organisers are asking for horsestoproperlybeentered through the way of entries form.

Contact for entries are Dennis on 640 6396, Fazal on 611 1141, Buju on 6 5 8 7 6 3 7 , Shazeena/Rose/Vanessa on 322-0789, and Ginjo on 618 7278 For additional information or queries, contact should be made via Ginjoon6187278.Alltwoyear-old horses will need to present a Vet Certificate (Verifydateofentry).

The Port Mourant Turf Club CARICOM meet will serveasthefinalcompetitive preparationfortheAugust11 Guyana Cup meet, which is organized by the Jumbo Jet Thoroughbred Racing Committee.

GuyanaCupwillbeheld atRisingSunTurfClub,and newhorsesfromnearandfar will be battling for supremacy

Government pledges two-year support for Kares One Guyana T10

Through the

Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, the Government of Guyana has pledged its support for the Kares One Guyana T10 Tapeball Blast forthenexttwoyears.

Following a wellreceived inaugural edition in 2023, Minister Charles Ramson Jr confirmed continued funding for the fast-paced cricket competition.

Recognising its potential for growth, the Ministry has solidified its sponsorshipforthenexttwo tournaments.

The Minister foresees the tournament as having thecapacitytogrowfurther into a mega sporting event involving people from communitiesnationwide.

His sentiments echoed thoseofPresidentDr.Irfaan Ali, who hailed the 2023 tournamentasatremendous platform for grassroot sport activities and a catalyst for attracting international exposure. According to the

organising team: “Tapeball is certainly the community sport, and we saw last year thatwhentheteamscameto r e p r e s e n t , t h e i r communities were in support, which was most evident in the massive crowd at the National Stadium.”

The organisers further elaborated that with keen interest from persons from Pakistan, the United States of America, Trinidad, Barbados and Dominica, there is undoubtedly immense potential for exponential growth with morecorporatesupport.

Additionally, the tournament has another humanitarian impact. The Cricket For Charity match, led by President Ali, raised over G$20M in 2023, and that number is expected to rise with the continued support of a critical stakeholder in the private sector.

Once again, 32 of the best Tapeball teams in Guyana will vie for

lucrative cash prizes and year-long bragging rights, withactionsetforAugust3, 4,11,and25.

The semi-finals, final and Cricket for Charity matchreturntotheNational StadiumonAugust25.

With the increased interest from teams, the organisers indicated that with essential corporate support,theywillventureto have more teams in the competitionfrom2025.

The first prize has increasedtoG$1.5M,while second cops G$500,000, and the two losing semifinalists pocket G$250,000 each.

Cash and other prizes will be given to the Playerof-the-final and the Most Valuable Player, as well as the ones scoring the most runs and taking the most wickets.

Last year, Eccles AllStarsdefeatedV-NetVipers in the final, while Team Corruption and Tarmac were the losing semifinalists.

Trinidadian Jockey Rico Hernandez on the saddle during an early morning workout at Port Mourant Turf Club this week.

De Kock and Rabada provide cutting edge as SA beat USA

Andries Gous

ESPNcricinfo - Another game, another close one for South Africa and they seem to be making a habit of sneaking over the line at the T20 World Cup 2024. This time, they were pushed by USA,whogaveanexcellent account of themselves in theirfirstSuperEightmatch.

On a batter-friendly pitch, USAkeptSouthAfricatounder 200from126for1inthe13th over Quinton de Kock’s first half-centuryofthetournament set South Africa up, before Saurabh Netravalkar and Harmeet Singh took 3 for 15 between them, but the rest of the attack could not provide enough support Heinrich Klaasen and Tristan Stubbs shared a fifth-wicket partnershipof53togiveSouth Africa a competitive total to defend.

USAwereofftoabrightstart thanks to Steven Taylor but Kagiso Rabada’s double strike in the Powerplay kept thingseven.KeshavMaharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi squeezed USA through the middle but South African born Andries Gous very nearly had a decisive say on proceedings. His unbeaten 80andhis91run-standwith Harmeet - the second-

made an unbeaten 80 for the co-hosts but in the end it wasn’t enough

Kagiso Rabada struck twice in the powerplay. (AFP/Getty Images)

highest for the sixth wicket or lower in all T20 World Cups-tookUSAtowithin28 runs of victory, with two overs left Ultimately, Rabada and Anrich Nortje kept USA at bay and South Africa earned their first SuperEightpoints. Onlyamatteroftimeforde KockIthadtobeAfterscoresof 20, 0, 18 and 10, de Kock, in what could be his last international assignment, finallybroughtoutthebigguns Hedidn’thitSouthAfrica’sfirst boundary - that was Reeza Hendricks’sixovercover-and waited until the fourth over before he properly got hold of onebutwhenhedid,hedidnot stop. De Kock pulled Jasdeep Singh through midwicket and thenhithimforthreesuccessive sixes,allwiththewindintothe

legside Jasdeep’sfirstovercost 28 runs, just 10 fewer than South Africa’s highest Powerplayof the tournament before this match, and set themupforascoreof64for 1 at the end of the fielding restrictions. De Kock went ontobringupfiftywithasix off Corey Anderson, off the 26th ball he faced and to his highest T20 World Cup score:74.

Catching on point. The bowling?Notalways.USA’s fielding got them back into the game from Anderson’s excellentjudgementtotakea skier off Hendricks’ topedge in the third over to Shayan Jahangir judging his distance from the boundary ropewellatcowcornertoend deKock’sknock ButitwasAli Khan,whodivedforwardashe

raninfromthedeepbackward point fence and held on to the grab that could have changed the innings Aiden Markram wason46andhitthelastballof the15thoverinAli’sdirection HetookastunnertodenySouth Africa’s captain the chance to push the score above 200 Despiteallthat,USAstillgave away 53 runs in the last five oversandwillnot be entirely happy with some of their bowling. While Netravalkar and Harmeet’s eight overs cost just 45 runs with four wickets and only four fours, the other five bowlers delivered 12 overs for 148 runs, took no wickets and gaveawayninefoursand10 sixes.Rabadaroarsback Rabada has operated somewhat inthe shadows in the group stage of the T20

WorldCupandtookjustfour wickets for 84 runs in four matches. With South Africa looking at using two specialist spinners, the debate ahead of this match was which of the three seamers to leave out. On form,bothNortjeandOttneil Baartmanmadestrongcases to stay in the XI ahead of Rabadabutthedecisionwas made to leave Baartman out in favour of Rabada’s experience. He repaid that call by removing an aggressive-looking Taylor with his third ball, in the fourthover,andseemedtobe ramping up his pace as his spell developed. In his next over, Rabada had Nitish Kumarcaughtatdeepsquare leg off a length ball on the padsandputSouthAfricain frontwithUSA53for2after the Powerplay He came backtobowlthepenultimate over, with USA needing 28 runsoffthelast12ballsand broke the partnership that threatened to take the game away. Gous and Harmeet shared a sixth-wicket stand of 91 before Harmeet hit a RabadafulltosstoStubbsat midwicket and departed, alongwithUSA’shopes.

Gousgetsaholdofsomeof

homeWelkom’sAndriesGous isfromthesameplaceasDean Elgarandwaspartofthegroup ofSouthAfricanswhotookup offers to play in the Minor League just as the Covid-19 pandemic hit He made his international debut three months ago and relished the chance to play against the countryofhisbirthandletthem haveit Hegavehimselfsome timetogethiseyeinandhithis firstboundaryoffthesixthball hefaced,offRabada He sent Marco Jansen for six over long-on and then laid into Nortje, 18 runs off the last four balls of his third over That included back-to-back sixes; the second was over midwicket and also brought upGous’half-century,off33 balls. But he saved the best forthe18thover,whenhehit Shamsi for successive sixes to keep USA in the game. Theyneeded50fromthelast three overs and then just 28 off the last two Gous finished unbeaten on a career-best80.

Scores:SouthAfrica194 for 4 (de Kock 74, Netravalkar 2-21, Harmeet 2-24) beat United States of America 176 for 6 (Gous 80*, Rabada 3-18) by 18 runs.

Archibald ready to take 100m crown at AP Invitational

BYRAWLETONEY

The country’s fastest man over 100 metres, Emanuel Archibald, is settinghissightsonwinning his event at Saturday’s AP Invitational Track and Field Championship.

The National Track and Field Centre in Edinburgh will host the return of the Aliann Pompey Invitational forthefirsttimesince2019, with an international cast of athletes all looking to book their ticket to the Paris OlympicGames.

Archibald will line up against Alexander Ogando of the Dominican Republic, who has a personal best of 10.09 seconds in the 100m, clockedin2022.

Archibald erased Adam Harris’ 10-year-old 100m nationalrecordinastandout performance at theAthletics Association of Guyana (AAG) Senior National Championship, marking the highlight of the two-day event.

Archibald crossed the finish line in 10.09 seconds,

shattering Harris’ record of 10.12secondssetatthe2014 HamptonGamesinTrinidad andTobago.

“Breaking the record gives me confidence to compete with the level of athletes coming in this weekend, and I am ready to give my best effort against theseguys,”Archibaldsaid.

Speaking with Kaieteur News, Archibald admitted thatwinningagainstthelineupattheAPInvitationalwill beaherculeantask.

“TheAPInvitational has put together a great field of athletes in the 100m this year, and it will take a ninesecondperformancetowin,” Archibaldstated.

Archibald’s success extends beyond local competitions; he has also excelledontheinternational stage.

He represented Guyana withdistinction,winningthe country’s first-ever Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games 100m gold and earning Guyana’s first 100m medal at the Pan Am

Guyana’s fastest man, Emanuel Archibald, is ready to battle in the men’s 100m at Saturday’s AP Invitational Track and Field Championships.

Games with a third-place finishinSantiago,Chile,last year Meanwhile, the 24-year-

Paulino,andAnabelMedina to finish second (3:10.21) at theTokyoOlympics,behind Poland (3:09.87) and ahead oftheUSA(3:10.22).

Ogando again linked with Feliz, Paulino, and Fiordaliza Cofil to win the 4x400m mixed relay at the 2022 World Championships with a time of 3:09 82, beating the Netherlands (3:09 90) and the USA (3:10.16).

Also featuring in the men’s 100m at the AP Invitational is St Kitts and Nevis’ former national champion, Jason Rogers, who was the starter in his country’s third-place finish inthemen’s4x100mrelayat t h e 2 0 1 1 W o r l d Championships.

Rogers partnered with the legendary Kim Collins, AntoineAdams,andBrijesh Lawrence to run 38 49 seconds, but it was the Jamaican quartet of Nesta Carter, Michael Frater, YohanBlake,andUsainBolt thatseta(then)worldrecord timeof37.04secondstowin

gold. France finished third withatimeof38.20seconds. Trinidad and Tobago’s Kyle Greaux, better known forhis200mability,willalso competeinthe100m.

Greaux secured a second-place finish with Trinidad and Tobago in the 4x100m relay finals at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, where Guyana finishedfourth.

He was also part of their 2017 World Relay Championship silver medal team and featured on the team that finished second in the4x100mrelayatthe2019 PanAmGames.

Akeem Stewart and Arinze Chance are the other Guy

hletes competinginthe100matthe AP Invitational. The event will also include Yohandris

Marcelino (Dominican Republic), Carlos Palacios (Dominican Republic), Ronal Longa (Colombia), a

(Nigeria).

old Ogando also found success in the mixed relays, teaming up with Lidio Andrés Feliz, Marileidy

Petterson-Griffith set

to

rock the world again today; confident of being #1

C a r l o s ‘ T h e

Showstopper’ PettersonGriffth will be taking on lifters from 32 other countries from just around 13:00hrs today when he’ll make a strong claim to win the 93kg division at the ongoingWorldClassicOpen P o w e r l i f t i n g Championships taking place inDruskininkai,Lithuania.

Ending the 2023 edition with a bronze and silver medal in the squat and deadlift, Petterson-Griffith will be pushing even harder this year despite the challengesfacedingettingto thecompetition.

Hewillactuallyarrivein Lithuania about 7 hours before the weigh-in and this is due to the fact that his Schengen visa was only received on Tuesday afternoon, he commenced his journey on Tuesday night. A similar challenge was experienced last year but it did not deter the

Guyanese strongman who said that he is very focused on making himself and Guyanaproud,onceagain.

”I am becoming used to thesekindsofchallengesand am mentally and spiritually preparedforthetaskathand. I’d like to thank all my sponsors including the Ministry of Sport and the G u y a n a O l y m p i c Association for assisting in makingthistrippossible.I’d like to say to all of Guyana, rest assured you be welcoming home the world Champion.”

Petterson-Griffith, who turned in a magical performance at Sheffield24 earlier this year in England, also broke the world squat record (332.5kg) which was eventuallytakenbackbythe USA’s Gavin Aiden with a squatof337.0kg.

While Aiden did not makethecutforWorldsthis year, Petterson-Griffith is ranked third based on

UpperMazaruniDistrictBoysandGirls

nominations behind USA’s Brandon Pitre and Gustav Hedlund of Sweden, winner of Sheffield’s Powerlifting Championship.

A mouthwatering showdown of the world’s best strongmen in this fiercelycontested93kgclass is anticipated today against competitors from USA, Sweden, Bulgaria, Great Britain, Canada, Norway, Italy Netherlands, Brazil, Cameroon, Ireland, Malaysia, Algeria, Iceland, Netherlands, Japan, Singapore, Cyprus, China, Jamaica,Belgium,Slovenia, Latvia, New Zealand, South Africa, Quatar, Singapore, andtheUSVirginIslands. Guyanacoppedabronze medal through Dominic Tyrell who made an encouragingseniordebuton Tuesday in the 83kg division,Tyrell,theyoungest competitor in that division, also ended 6th in the world outof25athletes.

U18Footballchampionship Semifinals action set for today

Day Three of the 2nd Annual Upper Mazaruni District Boys and Girls

Under-18 Football Tournament concluded on

Tuesday, showcasing impressive performances from the competing teams.

The defending champions, Paruima Boys, maintained their unbeaten streak with a narrow 1-0 victory against Jawalla Boys. In the Girls’ division, Jawalla and Paruimaendedina1-1draw

Jawalla’s Cezanna Reuben opened the scoring in the 34th minute with a penalty kick, giving Jawalla Girlsa1-0leadinmatch#8. Just three minutes later, a foul on a Paruima defender resulted in another penalty, this time for Paruima

L e z a n d r a H e n t i o successfully converted the penalty,levelingthescoreat 1-1, which remained until thefinalwhistle.

Over in match #9, Paruima Boys secured a 1-0 win over Jawalla Boys thanks to Nadir Williams’ 12th-minute goal. Despite Jawalla’sdeterminedefforts, Paruima’s defence held

Carlos Petterson-Griffith (right) with IPF President Gaston Parage and GAPLF President, Franklin Wilson at Sheffield 24 in February this year. Paruima’s scorer Nadir Williams

strong,preservingtheirslim lead. Another match of the day saw Waramadong Boys andPhillipaiBoysplayingto agoallessdraw.

The tournament continues today with two semifinals. In the Female category, Kamarang will face Jawalla at 15:00 hours, followed by Paruima Boys

takingonWaramadongBoys intheMalecategoryat16:30 hours.

Yesterday’s semifinals featured Kako versus Waramadong in the Female category and Kako versus Kamarang in the Male category Details of these matcheswillbeincludedina futurepublication.

All of Quinton de Kock’s boundaries were outside the V. (Getty Images)

Minister of Culture,Youth and Sport, Charles Ramson Jr. (right) with one of the organisers,Akeem Greene, after a recent meeting at his office.

Nicholas Pooran got hold of a Mark Wood delivery. (AFP/Getty Images)

Phil Salt flicks off his pads as England begin their chase. (ICC via Getty Images)