Kaieteur News

Online readership yesterday 97,600

March 12, 2013 - Vol. 6 No. 11 - Price $80

Email: kaieteurnews@yahoo.com Online: http://www.kaieteurnewsonline.com

Guyana’s largest selling daily & New York’s most popular weekly

Marudi confrontation...

'Illegal' miners did not declare gold, to face charges - GGMC Don't drink and drive here!

A few months ago this situation was highlighted at Nabacalis, E.C.D. There has been no action.

Linden businessman dies after Two fingered in $14M crashing into lumber truck Hand-in-Hand fraud Jagdeo/Kissoon libel hearing ...

Bickering during cross examination forces premature adjournment

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Kaieteur News

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Backer wants all airport details made public - Asks for loan agreement to be laid in National Assembly O p p o s i t i o n Parliamentarian Deborah Backer is pushing government to make public the details behind the expansion of the country’s lone international airport.

The project began in secrecy when it was signed without the knowledge of the Guyana public. Guyanese became aware of the project when it was announced in a Jamaican newspaper.

Backer, a front-bencher with opposition coalition APNU, has asked for the Minister of Finance Dr Ashni Singh to make available the US$130 million loan agreement signed with China for the expansion of the airport. Her formal request is due at Thursday’s sitting of the National Assembly.

According to Backer, the loan agreement was signed on or around October 31, 2012.

In addition, Backer wants other agreements laid in the National Assembly, such as the $998 million economic and technical co-operation agreement signed on or around December 28, 2012 with China.

With the Chinese loan and local funding, the project will add up to $150 million.

Opposition parties have been arguing against the need for the project and the manner in which it is being executed.

On November 11, 2011, the Ministry of Public Works and Communications and the contractor, China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) Limited of Beijing, China, inked the agreement for a Design and Build project at the airport.

After vehemently denying claims that it approves contracts, the government conceded that it approved the airport expansion project for which it signed a deal with a Chinese company.

It was only after this newspaper and the privatelyowned Stabroek News ran an online Jamaica Observer story about the project that the government confirmed that it had approved the project. The government here had chided the company for releasing details of the project and blocked it from speaking further to the media.

CHEC had also announced on its website that it had signed a contractual agreement with the Guyana Government to be the official contractors for the

The proposed new Guyana airport Cheddi Jagan International Airport expansion. The company said that the project will be funded by the China Exim Bank to the tune of US$138 million.

It was only in August 2011 speaking with Caribbean Business Report, Regional Director of CHEC, Zhongdong Tang, said that the company had a team in Guyana, and other countries,

“looking for opportunities.”

According to the contract, and in justification of the project, the Guyana government said it has identified tourism as a priority in the country’s economic development plan and “recognizes that improvement of CJIA is of paramount importance in order to promote a sustainable tourism

industry.” “The existing airport terminal building is not currently capable of meeting peak traffic demand or of expanding to meet the desired growth in passenger volume. It also cannot accommodate state-of-the-art terminal systems for passenger comfort, convenience and efficiency.

The present one-storey buildings cannot

accommodate aircraft boarding bridges forcing passengers to walk to and from the aircraft along the apron. The ability to generate revenue from concessions, airline office space and ticket counter usage is also extremely limited. Expansion capabilities of the existing terminal are compromised due to current terminal configurations.

DO YOU KNOW THAT JAGDEO’S BEST FRIEND IS THE ONLY PERSON IN GUYANA TO OWN THREE MEDIA HOUSES ...

Radio, Television and Newspaper?

Dr. Bobby Ramroop

1) Channel 28 now TVG 28 2) A radio station - 89.5FM 3) Guyana Times newspaper

Former President Bharrat Jagdeo

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Kaieteur News

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Marudi confrontation ...

‘Illegal’ miners did not declare gold, to face charges - GGMC Miners who were operating at Marudi Mountains, Region Nine, are to face charges for illegally being there and for not declaring their gold.

According to the government regulators, Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), it is preparing to file charges against “several raiders” that were engaged in illegal mining activities in the Marudi Mountain.

The Marudi Mountains incident has been an explosive one after a video surfaced of a police rank using a stick to badly beat a miner who was protecting a female.

An investigation has been launched by the police and GGMC. “The GGMC with support from the Guyana Police Service (GPS) is currently removing the more than 14 illegal dredges and other mining equipment from the area. The operators of these dredges were engaged in the removal of Guyana’s minerals and evasion of payment of royalties and taxes on the minerals extracted,” a statement from that body said yesterday.

“To date, not a single gram of gold has been declared by any of the operators and there are no records of production which is a breach of the Mining Regulations.

The Commission is of the view that all the minerals removed were illegally sold.”

GGMC said that the recently forced removal of the illegal miners is the final step after several other requests for the raiders to voluntarily remove failed.

The Commission said that in December 2012, it received a formal complaint from the legal licence holders about excessive illegal mining operations on their land and ordered action to be taken, in keeping with its mandate.

“The GGMC responded

and the raiders were given official notice, as early as February 14, 2013, and instructed to stop their illegal operation and remove from the land which has been licenced to Romanex Guyana Exploration Ltd under a mining licence (ML 1/2009).”

GGMC said that its Commissioner, Rickford Vieira, along with a Manager of Mines and other officers, further met with the illegal miners on February 22, ordering them to remove from the area. “After these steps failed, the GGMC officials with support from the Guyana Police Service proceeded to the area to remove the illegal occupants.

The GGMC wishes to state, categorically, that none of the raiders had permission to mine or paid any royalty to be on the land as it was already allocated to as a mining concession.”

Additionally, GGMC said it made no promise to have the miners allocated any portion of the lands legally held by Romanex Guyana.

“Mr. Vieira noted that this is not the first such exercise being undertaken by the GGMC. However, it is the first time that it has led to a confrontation. The GGMC is normally accompanied by the Police who are the legal authority to arrest and clear illegal occupants.”

The Commission also stressed that it is constantly engaged in active monitoring and, where necessary, removal of illegal occupants.

“Mr. Vieira noted that the unfortunate confrontation that took place during this recent activity was a first and regrettable. Despite this disappointing incident, the Commission will continue to fulfil its mandate to fairly regulate and manage the natural resource wealth of Guyana, regardless of the personalities involved.”

The alleged beating incident featured on a widely circulated video was said to

have occurred two weekends ago.

Vieira, according to the release yesterday, explained that the Marudi incident highlights the dangers that the officers of the GGMC face in executing their duties. He pleaded for greater cooperation.

“In response to claims about the land being neglected, the GGMC said that this is fictitious, as there is an active review of the Romanex operations, as is the norm. The company is in keeping with the timeline established for development and exploitation which is the pertinent aspect of their licence. The exploration programme to establish the mineral reserve of the property prior to issuing the licence was completed.”

The Commissioner emphasised that the lack of areas to mine or the fact that another individual is already

Up to late last night the police were on the hunt for three men in what purported to be a Green Ice taxi HB 9532 after they had committed a daring robbery on a Stabroek Market businesswoman.

The woman was relieved on $2.2M in cash and other articles by one of the men just as she was about to enter her yard at Atlantic Gardens, East Coast Demerara, around 17:55 hours.

From all indications, the bandits trailed the woman from her business in the city

all the way up to the East Coast where they used the opportunity to strike.

Reports reaching this newspaper stated that Amin and her husband had arrived at their home and her husband exited the vehicle to open the gate.

According to a source, the businesswoman who was carrying a bag with the cash also exited the vehicle and was standing near the door when a gunman exited the taxi which had driven up and rushed up to her.

The woman screamed while her husband remained transfixed by the suddenness of the attack.

The bandit placed a gun to the back of the woman’s head and ordered her to shut up while threatening to shoot her. He then took away the bag, her cellular phone and some other valuables before returning to the car which sped away.

The matter was reported to the police but by the time they went into action, the men had already fled the area.

Police, GGMC officers and miners during a square off at Marudi Mountains, Region Nine, two Saturdays ago.

Gunman snatches $2M from Stabroek Market businesswoman

mining in a particular area does not give anyone the right to raid or remove the resources which are legally being paid for.

Vieira said that there is a process which has to be followed and he challenged the raiders to follow the legal system and put themselves in

order.

The GGMC, he noted, remains willing to help all those who wish to follow the legal avenues into mining.

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Kaieteur News

Kaieteur News Printed and Published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd. 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, Guyana.

Publisher: GLENN LALL Editor: Adam Harris Tel: 225-8465, 225-8491. Fax: 225-8473, 226-8210

EDITORIAL

The power company cannot cope Last week Guyana Power and Light released some interesting figures about electricity theft. There were also some revealing figures about the extent of convictions. The power company stated that over the past six years it arrested 2,490 people for illegal activities pertaining to the supply and distribution of electricity.

In Guyana there are about 200,000 households so the figures would suggest that one in every 10 homes had someone who was arrested for an illegal activity involving the power company over the past five or six years.

But the figures are more startling when one looks at the number of illegal connections that were found and removed from private residences one can only conclude that electricity theft is more widespread than one could imagine in a country. For a six-year period the Guyana Power and Light Company removed 49,298 connections. Each connection should have led to an arrest, unless the home would have been unoccupied. If it is an active residence then the power company has the authority to revisit the home with the necessary notices of prosecution.

When one looks at 49,298 illegal connections being discovered and only 2,490 persons arrested one gets the impression that something is not right, that some people are being let off the hook.

Indeed given the number of illegal connections one must conclude that many of these are repeat offenders.

Of those arrested 541 were convicted. This indicates that for every four persons that the power company apprehends, one is convicted.

It goes without saying all is not well. The power company claims that it is losing money through the illegal connections but the truth is that it is not. Those who do pay their electricity bills are the people who are paying for the stolen electricity.

We are all bearing the burden of the dishonest and will continue to do so because people simply would wish that they do not have to pay for anything while there are those who for one reason or the other, would seek to abide by the law. And these very law-abiding citizens would never report an illegal connection because they refuse to be caught up in some conflict or the other with neighbours.

And even when there are reports, the power company does not have the resources to track the reports in a timely manner. This is what actually encourages electricity theft and causes others to join the ranks of those performing illegalities. The reason for growing band of illegals is simply because one man sees another apparently getting away with an indiscretion and he feels that the fates would favour him in the same manner. Thus, the task of GPL becomes more burdensome.

A power company, aware of its limitations, would ensure that there are adequate numbers of technical crews. In fact, these are the last to be laid off in a properly run power company. In the event of a crisis and Guyana always seems to have a power crisis, the more the need for technical crews. In Guyana most of these are contract workers but there are others in the company.

The records show that there were nearly 8,000 complaints over the past six years. It is not clear how many of these have been addressed and if all are not addressed then once more we see the need for increased technical crews.

We know that there are not enough because transmission lines are not cleaned as frequently as they should. We also know because some communities remain in darkness for long periods whenever some system failures occur.

Indeed, some of these system failures occur because people who steal electricity overload systems. It matters not to these people how many homes are destroyed. They always believe that they are the exceptions. Some die while making the connection but again there are those who pay precious little attention to this fact. The solution to the problem lies somewhere between underground cables and constant security checks. There were a mere 2,746 security checks in the six years. This translates to just under 500 security checks a year or less than two per day.

Therein lies almost all the problems.

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Letters... Where your views make the news

Our education system should focus on the elimination of obstacles to Guyana’s development DEAR EDITOR, The recent controversies concerning the use of Chinese workers on construction projects in Guyana are stark illustrations of how various postindependence policy makers have failed to adequately prepare Guyanese workers for the twenty-first century.

With the exception of Dr. C.B. Jagan who established the University of Guyana, Mr. L.F.S. Burnham during whose tenure six multilateral schools were built in different Regions, all church and private schools were nationalized, free education introduced from the nursery through to the university or tertiary levels, and the Community High Schools established, most of our postindependence education policy makers failed to realize that the colonial school system we inherited was not designed to educate and develop individuals, or to make education relevant to the needs of the colony.

The school system that we inherited was designed for the domestication, and evangelization of freed slaves.

As a consequence education policy makers have failed to develop the required education policies that would have focused on the elimination of obstacles to Guyana’s development and modernization. Our school system has remained essentially academic and elitist. As I have said before, the mantra of Guyana’s school system could be summed up as: “train the best and shoot the rest”.

Although there exists a

substantial body of evidence that suggests that the health and viability of the Guyanese society and economy have been more dependent upon those little recognized talents other than on traditional academic (verbal and numerical) pursuits, the curricular emphasis within the Guyanese school system continues to be overwhelmingly academic to the point where other emphases are almost totally excluded.

This absence of opportunities within the existing school system for the development of the varied potentials of young Guyanese represents a most serious deficiency that continues to have far reaching consequences.

This deficiency has resulted in: 1) limited avenues for the beneficial employment of youthful energy, particularly male; 2) absence of scientific and technological traditions in the common culture; 3) a severe shortage of critical technical skills in areas relevant to existing environmental needs in Guyana; 4) lack of preparation for industrial development; 5) an abysmal lack of civic interests on the part of Guyanese citizens in their adult years; 6) lack of progress towards an integrated national culture; 7) unproductive and debilitating lifestyles; 8) high unemployment; and, 9) a birth rate that continues to outstrip the economic growth rate.

Together, these nine listed consequences of an inadequate school system make a most potent recipe for

economic marginalization and social unrest.

The imperative to have a system of education that is responsive to environmental needs cannot be overemphasized.

This is of paramount importance if wholehearted support for public education is to continue. However, to reiterate, two of the consequences of having a school system that is elitist, and emphasizes academic excellence to the point where it excludes educational excellence are: 1) a critical shortage of higher-level technical skills in the Guyanese workforce; and, 2) the lack of preparedness for industrial development.

This academic emphasis together with the lower social status accorded to workers in technical and applied fields are part of our colonial cultural heritage. But, there is another more mundane reason that has contributed to the above conditions in more recent times.

Guyana’s meager postcolonial economy could not, at the same time, support both the huge expenditures required for mass education and the purchase of the equipment necessary for viable higher-level technical and vocational programs, much more to retool or re-equip ever so often to keep pace with the rapid changes taking place in industry.

Because of the great costs involved in keeping up, it is imperative that the Ministry of Education and educators, reach out to businesses, industry, private and nongovernment organizations, and seek out their

cooperation, collaboration and assistance in launching cooperative or sandwich TVET programs.

The major challenge envisaged, would be to get the private sector to see the value of participating in this initiative. It would definitely require great flexibility, changes in attitudes and in the way things have been done.

Establishing and nurturing links between schools and private sector agencies to offer appropriate training for learners is a key area for development that will require strong coordinating skills between and amongst all stakeholders.

The desirable outcomes of well managed cooperative TVET programs include: 1) a more efficient and effective TVET system which is better able to respond to current labour and market demands; 2) greater scope for the development of a wider variety of student potentials; 3) reduction in the rate of male dropout; 4) enlargement and enhancement of the talent and higher-level technical skill pool of the Guyanese workforce; 5) attraction of investment, and an end to economic marginalization; 6) creation of more youth employment; 7) increased productivity and creation of wealth; and, 8) the reduction of poverty.

Finally, a word of caution: these TVET programs should not be seen as terminal.

Students should be encouraged and be able to continue their education as far as their individual potentials permit.

Clarence O. Perry

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Kaieteur News

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Letters... Where your views make the news Letters... Where your views make the news

The AFC has failed to deliver on its promise to Berbicians DEAR EDITOR, We remain deeply disturbed and concerned about the fact that it has been more than two months since the AFC promised Berbicians and all Guyanese that it would table a motion in Parliament calling for a reduction of the Berbice Bridge toll. Well, so far this has not materialised and Berbicians are still waiting.

The AFC Berbice MP, Dr Veersammy Ramayya even went so far as to publicly announce in Kaieteur News, the AFC’s plans concerning the reduction of the toll. So, why no movement on the floor of the Parliament on this issue from the AFC? The AFC has been unwilling to put its reputation on the line for the Berbicians who voted en masse for the party in the 2011 general elections. Reduction of the Berbice Bridge toll in particular has and continues to be a vexing problem for most Berbicians, irrespective of their party affiliation. Bottom line, the toll is too expensive and must be reduced.

Today, just a couple of weeks before the reading of the 2013 National Budget, we

heard the Minister of Public Works announce that he has “no plans to reduce the toll on Berbice Bridge.” It seems as though he is prepared to risk the political future of the PPP. Further to that we were also advised that the APNU MP for Region Five will be working on a motion to reduce the Berbice Bridge tolls. Is the AFC not sharing its legislative agenda with the the leaders of APNU? Or is APNU tired of waiting for the AFC to bring this motion to the floor of Parliament? Either way, the people of Berbice will welcome such a motion with open arms, whether it comes from APNU or the AFC. The nation’s Budget will be with us in less than two weeks and the administration has made it abundantly clear that it is not interested in reducing the economic oppression on the Berbicians, so why is the AFC not stepping up and doing the right thing for Berbicians who continue to face the brunt of the inept policies of the PPP? In politics we have learnt that a party’s political shelf life is as good as the last good act it does for the people; that is why 16 years after his

death, Dr. Cheddi Jagan continues to be loved by thousands all over Guyana.

His legacy will be with them forever because he has walked with the people, he ate with the people, he advocated for the people, he went to prison for the people, and he lived for the people. Dr. Jagan’s people are the poor and the working class.

It is time for the AFC to answer the call by all Berbicians for relief on this excessively high Bridge toll. When will this motion calling for a reduction be introduced?

In a Parliament that continues to meet twice per month plus the budget period, this year is shaping up to be the worst for the Parliament, whose MPs are going to meet for only 19% of their opportunity days this year.

We believe that it will be fair to the taxpayers to give the Parliamentarians value for their money by offering them 19% of their salary. MPs, think about it! Not much of the people’s work can be accomplished this way. This is not what the people elected you to do!

Dr. Asquith Rose and Harish S. Singh

My dear countrymen, you need to wake up and smell the garbage DEAR EDITOR, In the year 2010, former president Bharrat Jagdeo was the recipient of the “Champion of the Earth” award for his contribution towards preservation of Guyana’s forest and related Low Carbon Development Strategy.

Thus; he imitated American architect and pioneer in field of computeraided design and founder of OLPC, Nicholas Negroponte whose concept of giving out “One Laptop Per Child” (OLPC) became known globally and voila “One Laptop Per Family” (OLPF) in Guyana was established.

Here I would like to point out that the XO laptops of (OLPC) given out to the children across the globe in countries such as India, Rwanda, Afghanistan, Madagascar, Paraguay, Peru and Kenya t o n a m e a f e w, w e r e specially built to withstand the adverse effects of sun, rain, accidental drops and are basically childresistant (yet still childfriendly). It must be noted that the XO laptops are solar-powered.

I am certain there are others who share my opinion that giving out netbooks to low income families (OLPF) is a total waste of time; most certainly the majority of these devices are gathering dust in the recipients’ homes. A percentage may also be broken or ‘misplaced’.

Why is the money given

by Norway to Guyana not put to better use; where it would have benefitted all of Guyana; and I mean all of Guyana, not just the citizens and visitors but the aesthetics of this once beautiful land.

Guyana is stifling under the increasing and endless garbage generated each day by all who inhabit these soils.

What a great oversight by this noble champion not to see the urgent need in erecting recycling plants/factories for glass, plastic, aluminum and paper in this once upon a time paradise (as many liken this country to).

These factories would have provided jobs for the unemployed and solved most

if not all of the gross garbage problem that ravages the landscape of Guyana.

The icing on the cake here would have been solving two burning issues in Guyana – unemployment and the insurmountable garbage woe.

In closing I would leave you the readers of this letter with this question: “Do you really believe that Guyana in its present garbage-polluted state can attract tourism, especially those of the elite whom the new Marriott is being constructed for?”

Then my dear countrymen, if you do, you need to wake up and smell the garbage.

I would also like to encourage you to be kind to the environment, please refrain from littering and discourage others from this gross malpractice. You may not receive an award for “Champion of the Earth” but you will be blessed by the Creator of Earth.

C. Azeez

Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools suffers harm.

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Kaieteur News

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Letters... Where your views make the news Letters... Where your views make the news

Political leaders and commentators must use appropriate language DEAR EDITOR, This is in response to personality attacks of others by political leaders and a columnist and a few letter writers in KN (re comments that appeared in KN in recent weeks). Those speakers and writers must be assailed for their comments.

Speakers and writers are urged to use appropriate language and not to belittle or derogate others with whom they disagree. One can have differences and still be respectful. Some writers just don’t know how to be civil and respectful to others. They

love name calling and character impugning as their writing style making intellectual exchanges difficult if not impossible.

In a competitive political system like ours, it is expected that leaders would critique and even attack (tear apart view of) their nemesis to win support. In a multi-party democracy as ours, political differences and rivalries between top leaders in the country are common. But these cannot be allowed to degenerate into personal vilification of opponents by calling them jackass, etc.

Character assassination of one’s adversary does not raise one’s stature. One must show decorum and class in public behaviour and respect one’s opponents, no matter how much the disagreement is between each other.

Politicians should not use derogatory terms and name calling for their opponents.

Such language does not appeal to voters and in fact turns off potential supporters as what happened in the election campaign in November 2011 when a lot of a party’s supporters were turned off by the viciousness

of the tone of the campaign.

The kind of language one uses at public meetings is a measure of a person’s intellectual, political and moral upbringing and position. There is no room for coarse personality-driven language.

In many campaigns, one’s electoral prospects are tied to one’s language usage. If any leader thinks he is endearing himself to voters by denigrating political opponents, he is living in a fool’s paradise.

While it was acceptable and fashionable to attack those who were with the

dictatorship between 1966 and 1992 because of the political opportunism of those unsavory characters, such type of attacks don’t have much appeal in today’s modern environment when we have experienced 20 years of democratic rule.

Guyana’s democracy is maturing and voters are increasingly ignoring demagogy and counter demagogy as experienced in November 2011. Not all voters vote blindly or reflexively by race any more. The educated voters are making a difference and are looking for sensible policies and programs and/or a critique of policies pursued or not pursued by the government in order to cast their ballots - so one has to be careful with one’s tone of language.

A national leader unleashing a vicious attack on a former colleague with the expectation of getting political mileage is in bad taste and unacceptable.

Leaders have enough verbal and political ammunition outside of using crass words

to describe opponents.

Saying things to get applause from party workers, colleagues, and supporters simply throws political decency to the wind and in so doing creates an adverse impact on people’s minds on voting for you.

Instead of attacking people personally, tackle their policies and programs and show how they are mistaken in their views and why yours is superior to theirs. That is a better way to express displeasure with another person’s position.

Politicians are doing a disservice to themselves and their party by using unkind language to paint others and making the public think otherwise of them than decent souls. The same can be said of individuals who write regularly in the press – be kind with words and refrain from attacking people – stick to issues not name calling or a person’s profession or line of work. One must be kind with the use of political language.

Vishnu Bisram

DEAR EDITOR, I thank KN for bringing to the fore the plight of the Bangladeshis who have been languishing in the lock ups more than 10 months. This incident has reminded me of some Nepalis who suffered a similar fate some years ago in Georgetown.

It seems as if there is always a knee jerk reaction when confronting illegal aliens who have traversed our land.

This is so ironic considering the huge amount of Guyanese who have gone the ‘illegal’ route to accomplish their goals, whether be it in New York, Boa Vista or Port-of-Spain.

We should not take the easy way out and just simply throw every person in jail just because they don’t have the right papers (as in the case of these Bangladeshis who were

refused entry in Barbados, and returned to Guyana). If the illegal Indian or Nigerian or any other has been involved in criminal activities, then that’s a different ball game.

I remember a policeman (whom I met at the Indian High Commission) telling me in 2003 that there was an illegal Indian (national) in jail who was experiencing worse than hell, as he was not used to the food, culture and language of Guyanese, and consequently, was literally gasping for breath, trying to survive from day to day.

I am pleased to know that some Muslim organizations have rendered some assistance to the Bangladeshis. We need to have a firm, yet humane modus operandi in dealing with our fellow human beings.

Devanand Bhagwan

The plight of those Bangladeshi illegals

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Kaieteur News

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Kaieteur News

Tuesday March 12, 2013

ECD Four-lane expansion

Dipcon signs new $522M contract Government has awarded a $522M contract to Dipcon Engineering Services to expand the East Coast Demerara Public Road into a four-lane roadway between Better Hope and Montrose.

This section was originally undertaken by Falcon Transportation and Construction Company to the tune of $468M. That contract was terminated but a sum of $207M was already expended on the section.

With this new contract Government is expending about $729M to erect this section.

This amount could increase since the first contractor, Falcon Transportation and Construction Company, whose contract was terminated by the Public Works Ministry, has sent legal documents to the Ministry signaling his intentions to take the matter to Court.

Minister of Transport and Hydraulics, Robeson Benn, confirmed last week, that the issue of Falcon Transportation and

Construction Company is still engaging the Office of the Attorney General.

“Whatever is necessary to be done will be done,” he declared.

The Ministry claimed that it terminated the contract because of poor performance and forgery but the contractor rejected this and claimed that it was because he refused to make gifts.

The Ministry said that it would have sent the matter to the police, based on advice from the Attorney General in July 2012 but that was not done.

But, even with the extended problems the Ministry claimed that it had with the contractor, a total of $207M was spent on the project. Apparently, the advance payment on the bond was $140M. According to an Engineer of the Public Works Ministry, when the project was awarded to Falcon Transportation and Construction Company in 2011 it did not include all the works needed for the expansion of the road.

Section of stalled East Coast Demerara Road widening project in Better Hope

Apparently, the idea was to amend the contract as the contractor executed works.

However, the contract valuing $522M awarded to Dipcon includes incomplete works on the contract awarded to Falcon and those that were not included in the contract in the first place.

According to Benn, works are being executed on the site

but villagers say differently.

Dipcon Engineering Services is also carrying out works in Lot Two of the roadwidening project from Montrose to Golden Grove to a tune of $671M. The construction firm was also awarded a $328M contract to construct Lot Five (Triumph to Mon Repos). The Engineer ’s estimate was $231.1 million.

Courtney Benn Contracting Services Limited will be constructing Lot Three of the road widening project from La Bonne Intention to Beterverwagting to a tune of $349M. The Engineer ’s Estimate was $264.2 million.

Meanwhile, Lot Four, from Beterverwagting to Triumph, was awarded to Compustruct at a value of $322M. It was advertised at an estimated

cost of $241 million. And, Lot Six, which extends from Mon Repos to De Endragt was awarded to Talbot to the tune of $345M. The estimate was $$246.4 million.

The bidding was conducted through the National Competitive Bidding procedure specified in the Procurement Act 2003. The works should be completed within a year.

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Kaieteur News

Page 9

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO A TRUE CHAMPION Today, this column extends belated 5oth birthday greetings to the publisher of this newspaper. In tribute to this great man, today we reproduce extracts about the man himself, published in this column over the years.

Glenn Lall is known throughout Guyana for his humanitarian efforts, even though he is the type of person who does not go around showcasing the many causes to which he contributes.

His newspaper, Kaieteur News, has created history in Guyana by its fund raising drives for a number of disasters, including the Pakistan earthquake, the South East Asia tsunami, the victims of the Lusignan massacre and the terrible earthquake that rocked Haiti in 2010.

Glenn has raised millions of dollars for these and other causes, and he has gone further than most and accounted for every cent collected by publishing on a daily basis, whenever funds are collected, the amount collected and from whom the proceeds originated.

Privately also, Glenn continues to help many persons in a significant way.

He is a kind person who regularly helps others without seeking attention or recognition.

He is someone who has never forgotten his own humble beginnings and who is always willing to come to the rescue of those in need.

He is a great humanitarian.

There is also a side to him that we have been seeing over the past years. It is a side, which shows his deep love

for Guyana.

He is always concerned when things go wrong within our society. He has a sense of what is right and what is wrong. And he believes that when something is wrong it must be described as wrong.

He believes in calling a spade, a spade.

Because of this attitude, because of his strength of character, because of his fearlessness in calling a spade a spade, Glenn is also one of the foremost defenders of democracy in Guyana without having to belong to any political movement. If he sees something that he does not like he says so.

He may not be in the forefront of any struggle but he will one day be regarded as the people’s champion because of his defence of the right of the people to receive information.

In this regard, Glenn Lall is without comparison because unlike others who see press freedom solely in terms of the right of the press to operate unhindered, Glenn Lall places the right of the people to receive information as far more important than the survival of his newspaper. He is prepared, if it comes to that, to run his newspaper bankrupt, so long as the people’s right to information is respected.

He wants the people of this country to know what their government is doing. He wants them to have value for their money.

It is well-known that Glenn Lall is someone who cannot be bought. He has a mind of his own and he is fearless in expressing loudly his opinions. He has seen

Dem boys seh...

Some people planning fuh thief again When stupidness was sharing some Guyanese tek all. A lady go to de hospital to get she baby. When dem discharge she a nurse tell she to go to GRA to register she baby. And de lady go.

Now Khurshid know that he got other problems. He can’t tek on baby wuk.

But dem boys seh that de people at de hospital know what they was doing. Dem mekking sure that de baby pay tax from de day it born.

But another man seh that he now know why nuff people does dead at de hospital. Wha de nurse and doctor did mean to tell de lady was GRO—General Registrar’s Office. Well if de hospital don’t know de difference between ‘A’ and ‘O’ how dem gun know de difference between a scalpel and a trowel?

Was de same hospital did cut off a man good foot and lef de one that dem had to cut off. De surgeon write ‘left’ foot but how he expect dem to know right from left?

De same problem exist in some quarters. De boss man birthday party had more people than anybody coulda count but some people claim how dem didn’t see anybody. Dem boys now understand how de thiefing suh widespread.

When some of dem thief dem feel dem know is nuff but dem does tell people how dem tek li’l bit or that dem ain’t thief at all. Everybody now know who does thief. Dem is de same people who does write nice things bout dem thiefing friends and bad bout de people who ketch dem.

And dem boys got a close eye pun de budget. Dem expect fuh see some strange votes to cover up fuh wha thief already.

Talk half and keep close watch

enough of what is taking place in the country to know that there is rampant corruption in the country and this corruption is not restricted to low-levels of the public sector.

He knows that political decisions are encouraging the wrong things in Guyana and he is determined to expose what is taking place and have those involved identified.

Those involved are rich and they are powerful. They have enormous resources at their disposal and they were always prepared to silence those who were against them since this would prevent them from further stealing from the public purse.

Glenn Lall thus became the enemy of those who want to continue their wicked and dishonest ways. He has been a thorn in their side.

He has exposed weekly,

sometimes daily, the substandard work, the overpriced work, the political favours that are being handed out, the disposal of state property and the connections between those benefiting and the political elite.

The publisher of this newspaper is a very charitable man. He has been known to be very freehanded in helping others, including offering assistance to many causes within our society.

He is also someone who is very concerned about the state of social development in the country. If there is anyone that I am certain is genuinely concerned about Guyana and is willing to do all that he can to make this country a better place, it is Mr. Glenn Lall.

He has done so much for communities over the years

that the list is too countless to recall. He would be driving along the road and see a problem and he would stop to enquire what can be done.

And if it means he has to push his hands in his pockets to help out, he would willingly do so. ...........................

Glenn Lall has made a name for himself. He has proven himself. Without any background in the newspaper business and without any expert help he turned the Kaieteur News into the country’s top daily.

He understands this business better than some of those who feel that they were born to be in the newspaper industry. He is a maverick.

Glenn Lall is not interested in making money. He is interested in making a difference. He loves his country. He wants to see

progress and development.

He has principles; he has character; he has fortitude.

He tells you things as he sees it. He is not ever going to be diplomatic or evasive.

When he sees wrong he will call it by its name; when he sees good, he will do the same.

This is the kind of person that Guyana needs. The former President of Guyana himself once admitted that Guyana needs more Glenn Lalls.

Page 10

Kaieteur News

Tuesday March 12, 2013

=== THE FREDDIE KISSOON COLUMN ===

Dictatorship does not recognize mistakes Clement Rohee as the chairman of the event at last Sunday’s death anniversary of Cheddi Jagan in Berbice said that the PPP knows the mistakes it made that cost it the parliamentary majority and that would not happen in the next elections.

I honestly believe that given my poverty background, I should be the last person to comment on the lack of intellectual depth in another human being, therefore I apologize if what I am about to write in the next line comes over as chauvinistic.

I do not believe Clement Rohee has or will acquire, soon, the capacity to intellectually understand the mistakes of the PPP that caused it to lose a majority in the last general elections. The party did get the largest single bloc of votes.

I don’t want to single out Mr. Rohee only. I don’t believe Donald Ramotar can do so too.

It is beyond the collective leadership of the PPP to comprehend the magnitude of its erroneous ways. The political theorists have an explanation for it – dictatorship cannot mend its ways. If rulers with

authoritarian instincts could have faced the reality of wrong paths chosen, history would have completely, not partially, but completely different from what it is the past hundreds of years.

George Bush Jnr, made an Obama victory possible.

Despite a gargantuan screen in front of his face showing him that the American people and the world wanted less war, Bush wanted more war.

If Bush had turned away from his disastrous policies and had come across as someone who learnt his mistakes, maybe Obama’s aura would not have glowed so phenomenally.

Cuba remains a poor economy because Fidel Castro is so massive a chauvinist and narcissist that he refused to see the light decades ago.

We don’t have to travel all over the world to learn how foolish autocrats are.

President Forbes Burnham literally and scientifically kept Cheddi Jagan alive to the point where Jagan could easily have toppled him.

Comparing the two men, Burnham was millions of miles smarter and intellectually wiser but recognizing his mistakes was

Burnham’s untergang.

Burnham would listen when you tell him about his mistakes but in the end he didn’t recognize that what you were talking about were his mistakes.

For every error Burnham refused to acknowledge, Jagan’s power base grew stronger. A powerful policeman with political experience told Hoyte that it was too early to hold free elections because the PPP would win. Hoyte was advised by several close friends to do popular things then hold the free poll. Hoyte didn’t listen.

Look at the tragedy that Guyana is today, maybe a country beyond redemption, simply because Forbes Burnham and Desmond refused to see the wrong directions in which they went.

Clement Rohee is the PPP leader that spoke about the mistakes the PPP made, not Ramotar and PPP kings, so let us stick with Rohee. I can anticipate what Rohee would say if you were to ask him to enumerate these mistakes.

Here goes.

The PPP didn’t do sufficient work in Berbice. The PPP didn’t do sufficient work among African Guyanese.

The PPP’s management team made logistical errors. The PPP didn’t counter the opposition’s lies.

Rohee is too intellectually daft, maybe dishonest, to see that these were not the reasons the PPP lost. Rohee will not and cannot acknowledge the mistakes his party leadership made.

Here is just a sample of the mistakes the PPP made that cost it the parliamentary majority in the last election and that it will be unable to correct because dictatorship does not accept that it makes mistakes.

A person in the AFC’s leadership told me that a well placed businessman knows that the asking price for a newly built house by a female

in the corridors of power is one million American dollars.

If you know this female’s recent political evolution, there is no way she could have afforded that construction.

On reading this, Rohee will dismiss it. It is propaganda against the PPP. The swimming pools in the compound of the mansions are propaganda in the minds of Rohee and other PPP princes.

Is it not a mistake when sugar workers have to strike for basic things while some young “white boys” from abroad were paid, as late as 2011, US$3 million monthly.

Does Rohee believe that he and his party could counter that opposition lie? They

Frederick Kissoon cannot because it isn’t a lie.

It is not a mistake when poor drivers have to chauffeur the new colonial leaders of Guyana from morning until the next morning from Monday to Sunday and the overtime is fixed at $15,000 a month. Isn’t that exploitation?

Isn’t exploitation a wrong thing? I mean a mistake that should be corrected?

Two children injured ...driver after hit by car arrested

A driver was arrested yesterday shortly after 08:00hrs in New Amsterdam after hitting two school children while reversing his car.

The incident occurred at the corner of Shoe Lane, New Amsterdam. According to an eyewitness, the driver Jason Thomas, of Number Two Village, East Canje, who was reversing his car, PMM 1258, out of Shoe Lane, “reversed in full speed and knocked down a school child on her bicycle”.

Ten- year-old Raheem De Mendonca sustained head injuries and was quickly admitted to the New Amsterdam Hospital. He is currently still a patient at the facility.

Nearly everyone around concurred that the driver was drunk.

The eyewitness also stated that another pedestrian, a child, was also hit by the vehicle.

Ten- year- old Christopher Abrams was also hospitalized but was released later.

“He [the driver] came out and walked away but was quickly brought back to the scene by the girl’s relatives”.

He was arrested and taken to the Central Police Station, where charges are expected Injured Raheem De Mendonca at the N/A Hospital shortly.

DAG elects members The Deaf Association of Guyana (DAG) at its second Annual General Meeting on Sunday last at Carifesta Sports Complex elected Sabine McIntosh, as President; Quincy Richards as Vice President; Dionne KcKenzie as Secretary; Charmayne Martin as Treasurer; and Nicola Collymore as Assistant Secretary-treasurer. The

committee members are Shawna Estwick, Jerimiah Williams and James Williams.

The Non-GovernmentalOrganization also presented representatives of the three recently formed deaf clubs with a set of games.

They are David Rose, Diamond and New Amsterdam Deaf Clubs.

According to the NGO, the games were purchased

on-line with proceeds from last year’s cultural show at the National Cultural Centre, ‘Tales and Legends of Guyana’.

The clubs had previously received chess sets from the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports. DAG is planning a first inter-school competition in chess, scrabble, draughts and Chinese checkers in May.

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Kaieteur News

Page 11

Page 12

Kaieteur News

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Jagdeo/Kissoon libel hearing

Bickering during cross examination forces premature adjournment Defendant in the Bharrat Jagdeo libel suit, Fredrick Kissoon, was having a hard time accepting and answering questions yesterday, when lawyer for the plaintiff Bernard De Santos (SC), put certain questions to him pertaining to his dismissal from the University of Guyana (UG).

As a result of Kissoon’s continued “philosophical” explanations and “difficulty with answering questions in monosyllabic words”, as Justice Brassington Reynolds had put it, the matter was prematurely adjourned after the judge decided that the matter could not continue on that course.

Kissoon rejected questions that were put to him by the Senior Counsel, stating that what he was being asked was incorrect, irrelevant or untrue. Yesterday saw the commencement of De Santos’s cross examination and the Judge saw that he was happy that what he saw happened in the early stage so that he could allow Kissoon’s lawyers to explain

to him what he should do at this stage of the case.

The case was rocky from the beginning. Kissoon and De Santos went head to head when the lawyer asked Kissoon if he was dismissed from the university. When Kissoon did not give a straight answer, De Santos yelled at the witness, charging that the answer to the question is either “yes or no”. The court had to intervene and ask De Santos to calm down.

Kissoon then agreed that he was dismissed by the university before stating that according to the document from UG, he had interpreted that his services were terminated. De Santos asked Kissoon how many times he had mentioned the word dismissed in his opening statement, before informing him (Kissoon) that he did so four times; and De Santos later highlighted it.

Arguments continued when De Santos asked Kissoon whether he had asked for his contract to be

renewed. But Kissoon argued that he could not answer the question since the issue of renewing his work contract never arose. He charged that the question was irrelevant since at the time of his termination his contract still had a long way to go.

The Court then informed Kissoon that on issues of relevance, fairness and fact, it was the court’s call. But Kissoon insisted that renewing his contract never came up and the court and De Santos again expressed frustration at Kissoon’s insistence in explaining his answer instead of answering straight forward.

At one point, Kissoon even asked the court to intervene to protect his dignity when De Santos told Kissoon that he (De Santos) intended to make him very unhappy with questions he had to ask. Questions continued with Kissoon being asked to state where he worked before the last contract he had. The former UG lecturer said prior to that,

he worked at UG since he had worked at the university since September 1, 1987.

Questions then came in relation to who holds power at the university to employ lectures. Kissoon said on his behalf, UG registrar, Vincent Alexander, had signed his contract. He affirmed, when asked whether he was familiar with UG’s status, and denied De Santos’ suggestion that the registrar did not have power to sign any contracts to hire lecturers.

Kissoon said De Santos’s suggestion was untrue, since the registrar signed all contracts to hire lectures. He said at the time of his contract being signed, he was aware that the registrar was legally entitled to sign contracts to employ lecturers.

Kissoon later said when asked, that he is aware that now, the UG Council is entitled to hire lecturers. De Santos reiterated a previous question, which was whether Kissoon knew at the time of his contract being signed, that the UG Council alone had the power to hire lecturers.

Kissoon answered that

he was aware that the Vice Chancellor was the one in whom that authority resided.

The answer, however, came after more bickering.

Justice Reynolds then decided “enough is enough.”

The Judge said that in all his years in court he never faced such a situation. The matter was adjourned until next Monday when Reynolds said he hopes that Kissoon’s lawyers would have briefed him and instructed him on how to deal with the cross examination in a court of law.

Reynolds continued that he would not want to have to take drastic steps if Kissoon does not answer the questions directly because he would deal with it by law.

Kissoon is being sued along with Kaieteur News publisher Glenn Lall and Editor-in- Chief Adam Harris for $10 million. The outspoken Kaieteur News columnist wrote in one of his columns that the former president Bharrat Jagdeo is an ideological racist.

So far, Kissoon has presented his personal study into the allegations he made.

The information was tendered as evidence and Kissoon, through his lawyer Nigel Hughes, explained his process he used to reach his conclusion. Hughes was absent yesterday and Attorney at law Christopher Ram took charge.

In an attempt to address the ever prevailing solid waste problem plaguing sections of the country, Government through the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, has been putting in place intervening measures.

Recently, Cabinet approved the sum of US$464, 212 for the procurement of two large waste rear-loader compactor trucks.

According to Minister within the Local Government Ministry, Norman Whittaker, during a recent press briefing, the trucks are being acquired from Dax Contracting Services through a bidding process that has been completed.

Each of the waste compactor trucks has the capacity of 21.1 cubic meters which will be used to support the work of the Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) along the East Coast and East Bank Demerara corridors of Region Four.

In Region Four too, he said that work continues on the construction of the Haags Bosch site and work has been continuing there in terms of the operations at the site.

Minister Whittaker

disclosed that there are also plans for the acquisition of a smaller compactor truck with the capacity of 6.7 cubic meters.

However, the procurement of this smaller vehicle has been delayed since, according to the Minister, it has to be retendered.

In even earlier attempts to address the solid waste dilemma Cabinet had approved the acquisition of a number of bins which, according to Whittaker, will be located at specific public spaces such as school and hospital compounds, health centres and market places across the East Coast and East Bank Demerara corridors.

A total of 788 bins have been procured with 708 having the capacity to hold 1100 cubic meters each.

The remainder will hold 240 cubic meters. But according to the Minister, “We are not only in Region Four but across the other Regions with the NDCs and the municipalities to bring about improvements in the collection and the disposal of solid waste.”

He said that Permanent Secretary in the Local Government Ministry, Collin Croal, had previously met with

the waste disposal contractors who had won bids to provide solid waste services in the other nine administrative regions.

“We discern that while some of them had commenced and made a lot of progress, for example Puran Brothers in Region Two, in some of the Regions the contractors requested more time in some instances to build access roads.

“In other instances they requested more time to prepare landfill sites, and in a few instances too those who had ordered vehicles they requested a little more time to acquire these.”

He disclosed that with the exception of Regions Seven and Ten, where no plans were put forward by the contractor and no timeframe set to commence work, as in the case of the others, both regions will have to commence work by the end of March.

Addressing solid waste countrywide is deemed as strategic by the Minister since according to him “one of the areas we continue to focus on because, as I pointed out before, we want solid waste to be managed in an effective and efficient manner throughout the 10 regions of this country.”

Bharrat Jagdeo

Fredrick Kissoon

Govt streamlines intervention measures to address solid waste

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Kaieteur News

Cash-strapped CGX loses Pomeroon, Georgetown petroleum licences Government has repossessed two concessions granted to Canadian-based oil explorer, CGX Energy Inc, (CGX).

According to a CGX statement yesterday, its Pomeroon Petroleum Agreement (PA) expired effective November 19, 2012.

The Pomeroon PA was issued to Century Guyana, Ltd. in November 1997 and was purchased by CGX in January 2004.

Additionally, the company’s Georgetown PA expired November 25, 2012.

CGX ran into financial problems after two offshore wells…one off Corentyne and another off Georgetown… came up dry last year. The Corentyne concession was fully owned by CGX while the Georgetown block was a partnership drilling with Repsol.

CGX ended up owing Repsol Exploración S.A some US$15M, representing its stakes in the operating expenses to hire a rig, among other things.

According to CGX, in relation to the Pomeroon PA, its expense to date is US$2M while US$51M was spent for its Georgetown PA. “As has been reported since 2007, the company has been in discussions with the Government of Guyana regarding modification of the Pomeroon PA that would have extended the PA to November 2013. During these discussions the company was advised that the November 1997 Pomeroon PA reverted to the Government effective November 19, 2012,”

Kerry Sully, President and CEO of CGX CGX disclosed yesterday in a statement.

“As a result of these licences having expired in November 2012 and the company’s current uncertainty relating to these licences, the company may record an impairment of the full carrying amounts in its year end 2012 financial statements. In the event that the company secures the renewal of the licences, the Company will revisit any impairment previously recorded,” said Kerry Sully, President and CEO of CGX. Recently, CGX announced that after being faced with enforcement proceedings by Repsol who wanted its money, CGX managed to enter an agreement with GMP Securities L.P. (“GMP”) in connection with a proposed private placement of a minimum of Cdn$35M. CGX also has an agreement with Pacific Rubiales Energy Corp.

(“Pacific Rubiales”), another Canadian company and a current shareholder, which could effectively give the latter up to 70 per cent control.

There will be a shakeup of the directors and other CGX officers of the Company.

However, the deal is subject to approval of the Canadian authorities…TSX Venture Exchange… and other customary closing conditions.

According to CGX, approximately US$15M will be used to meet the company’s current default payment obligations owing to Repsol Exploración S.A. (“Repsol”), Tullow Guyana B.V. and YPF S.A. who were all partners of the Georgetown well.

Current Executive Chairman, Dr. Suresh Narine, a Guyanese, will become a nominee of Pacific Rubiales on the new CGX Board of Directors. CGX also said yesterday that Pacific Rubiales intends for CGX to remain a public company after completion of the financing.

CGX has licences to explore in the GuyanaSuriname Basin, an area in which the United States Geological Survey estimated a Pmean oil resource potential of 13.6 billion barrels in their Assessment of Undiscovered Conventional Oil and Gas Resources of South America and the Caribbean, 2012.

Guyana badly wants its own oil wells, especially knowing that its neighbours, Suriname and Venezuela, have found oil.

Boat captain claims stabbing due to provocation

The boat captain accused of stabbing 43-year-old Nawab Mohamed on Friday at the Stabroek Market Stelling said that the event was sparked by constant provocation.

The man is refuting the article under the caption “Colleague stabs boat captain” which was carried in last Sunday’s Edition.

According to the boat captain, Richard Griffith, after listening to insulting remark pertaining to his family from Mohamed, it finally became unbearable when Mohamed moored his boat in between his and another and tried to loose his mooring rope without permission.

“He (Mohamed) told his bowman to loose my rope and I told them they can’t loose it. Then he said ‘Don’t worry with them; dem is cross! I say boy is me you talking to, and he say no is another captain! Then I say

Richard Griffith like you behaving like I owe you something and he told me no that I owe he meh wife and meh two daughters. “ Adding that it’s the third occasion that he was told about his wife and children, Griffith said he made complaints to the monitor assigned to Stabroek Market stelling previously.

A scuffled ensued. “I went into his boat and we had a scuffle, and as a seaman I always have a knife to cut ropes and stuff like that. And during the scuffle he got stabbed.”

After the ordeal, Griffith was taken to the police outpost where he was transferred to the East La Penitence Station and was placed on station bail.

Meanwhile, Mohamed was taken to the hospital for medical treatment.

Underscoring that he has been a speed boat operator for the past 15 years, Griffith said he compensated Mohamed $125,000 yesterday for his injuries.

“But the thing I don’t understand is why he said I say the police can’t do me nothing, I didn’t say that.”

A receipt was produced that was signed by a Justice of Peace that $125,000 was paid over to Mohamed.

Page 13

Linden businessman dies after crashing into lumber truck Leon Barrett, popularly known as ‘Junior,’ and ‘Bryan’, a 61-one-year old Businessman, and APNU Region 10 Councilor of 29 Bruce Alley Christianburg died yesterday morning at the Linden Hospital Complex, despite the valiant efforts of doctors and nurses at the institution to save his life.

He was rushed there shortly after slamming into the back of a lumber truck on the Soesdyke-Linden highway, in the vicinity of Amelia’s Ward.

According to Barrett’s son, Seon, his father” had left home shortly after 5:00 hours, to take his wife, Paulette, to the Georgetown Public Hospital.

Seon said that his mother Paulette called him about 15 minutes later, informing him that they had been in an accident.

“She said that she and me father de gaffing normally when they observed a car coming from the opposite direction- so is pull he pull over in the corner and slam into this truck that was going up the hill. My mother said that they didn’t see the truck, all they see was the car. And

Dead: Leon Barrett they just feel this heavy impact.

The woman reportedly lost consciousness immediately.

They were both rushed to the Linden Hospital.

The distraught young man said that based upon his “deductions” the rear lights on the truck’s trailer were obscured by the lumber, which would have been hanging downward as the vehicle climbed the hill.

Added to that, he pointed out, was the fact that the place

was very foggy.

Paulette Barrett fortunately escaped with a cracked head and minor lacerations to the face. She is presently under observation at the Linden Hospital Complex.

Her husband on the other hand reportedly suffered severe head and facial injuries.

Up to the time of his death, Leon “Junior” Barrett had operated a thriving variety business in the Mackenzie Market with his son Seon’s assistance.

He was a member of the board of Directors of the Linden Utility Services Coop Society Limited and Vice President of the Mackenzie Sports Club Committee of Management. He leaves to mourn his sons, Seon, Adrian, Colin, and his wife Paulette and other relatives.

The most horrific accident to have occurred involving a lumber truck was a few years ago when ten persons lost their lives after the minibus they were travelling in slammed into a laden lumber truck, also in the vicinity of Amelia’s Ward.

(Enid Joaquin)

Page 14

Kaieteur News

Two escape fiery death as garbage truck explodes

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Boy, 18, accuses police of shooting

The burnt out remains of the garbage disposal truck

The injured Cort

A garbage disposal truck driver and his colleague yesterday narrowly escaped death after the truck on which they were working, burst into flames.

According to the truck driver, Gavin Griffith, of 20 West La Penitence, the incident occurred around 15:00 hours in the vicinity of

the Richard Ishmael Secondary School, Woolford Avenue. Griffith said that he was driving along the Avenue toward the US Embassy when he noticed the vehicle overheating.

The man added that a section of the inside of the truck got “red hot” so he and his colleague quickly exited

the truck to get water when within seconds the truck burst into flames. No one was injured.

Two fire tenders quickly responded to the scene. The entire front of the truck was destroyed by the fire. One man was seen with a fire extinguisher trying to quell the blaze even before the

tenders arrived.

The blazing truck caused a traffic jam in the busy Woolford Avenue.

Fortunately most of the schools through the area had just closed for the day.

Fire tenders were able to save the back of the truck but from all indications the entire engine has been destroyed.

An 18-year-old gold miner is at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) nursing a gunshot wound to the right side of his face.

Injured is Abdool Cort, of Lot 960 Section B South Sophia. Cort explained that he was the pillion rider on his cousin’s motorcycle heading home when he felt a hard impact on his face.

According to Cort, he was at the bridge which joins ‘B’ and ‘C’ field Sophia when the incident occurred.

“When we were going I see the police vehicle at the back of us but it was not speeding or showing any signal. We slow down at the bridge and is then when I felt the impact, no noise or anything,” Cort emphasized

He added that after he felt the impact on his face, he lost consciousness and “the next thing I remember was waking up in the wheel chair at the hospital.”

Kaieteur News understands that the officer accused of the shooting is a cadet officer attached to the Brickdam Police Station.

When Cort’s relatives went at the police station; the said officer denied firing at Cort although there are eyewitnesses.

The bullet passed through the 18-year-old’s face and through his cousin’s shirt.

The family was told that the officer alleged of the act is under close arrest and an ID parade will soon be conducted.

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Kaieteur News

Page 15

Bishops’ High awards high performers

Kaleshwar Singh received the best performer in Chemistry, physics and Social biology

Tevera Franklin was awarded the best student in law for the sixth form.

Several students were awarded at the recent Bishops’ High School annual prize giving ceremony at the Oswald Parry Hall of the school.

The event saw students who were awarded in 2012 receiving their prizes this year.

The event was chaired by a past student who attended eight years ago Dr. Sulan Fung DDS. Prizes were handed out to the winners by Mrs. Asha Ojha of the ParentTeacher Association. The feature address was delivered by another past student, Dr.Vivienne Mitchell.

In addition, the Parent Teachers’ Association through its President Sondra

Low honoured all teachers who had achieved 10 years service and more. Bouquets were presented to them by selected students.

At the event students with five or more distinctions at CXC 2012 were honoured with small trophies. High fliers from Forms One to Six in individual subjects were honoured and received prizes and trophies. Olympian swimmer Brittany Van Lange was also praised for competing regionally.

The best regional performers in 2012 for the school were Deowattie Naraine in Science Subjects and Tamisha Maraj in Business Subjects.

They received their

awards in Anguilla earlier this year. The Bishops’ High School was certainly proud.

They received additional trophies at this prize - giving ceremony.

It was further noted that the school continues to give whatever little it can to the Ptolemy Reid Rehab Centre from funds raised locally by its current students.

The Bishops’ High School had an overall pass rate at CXC 2012 of 97.5 per cent with each student attaining five subjects and over (Grades 1-3). In 17 subjects, Bishops’ High School had a 100 per cent passes with grades 1-3. - At CAPE, The Bishops’ High School had a 95.5 per cent pass rate.

‘Intimidated’ victim refuses to testify after being robbed It was quite strange that after Vikash Gafoor of 879 Belle West, Canal, West Bank Demerara reported that Warren Mc Kenzie was one of the three attackers that robbed him, he suddenly decided to change his story.

Warren Mc Kenzie of Brutus Street, Agricola, appeared yesterday at the Georgetown Magistrates’ court before Chief Magistrate Priya Beharry to answer to the allegations of robbery under arms with a knife. He pleaded not guilty.

Police reports stated that on March 9, in the vicinity of Mc Doom, about 16:30hrs the victim who is employed at Prettipaul Investment received his salary and on his way home , he was approached by three guys , one of whom was the defendant , Mc Kenzie.

The victim was able to recognize Mc Kenzie due to the fact that the defendant was once employed at his current place of employment.

At this time the three guys robbed the complainant of two lunch bowls valued $500, a bottle of perfume worth $500 and his salary of 13,000. The assailants then hit the victim in his head causing him to fall unconscious. The victim was picked up by a passerby who took him to the hospital.

What was also troubling to members of the court was that after the victim positively identified Mc Kenzie as one of the robbers, on the day of court he stated “your worship, he wasn’t the one that robbed me; was the other two.”

The victim added that he does not wish to proceed with this matter.

Mr. Paul Fung -A-fat who represented Mc Kenzie stated in his defense, that he is only a little boy who is 19-yearsold and has never had any brushes with the law. Based on the victim’s response, he requested for bail at an affordable sum.

Prosecutor Kerry Bostwick feared that the victim may have been terrorized and objected to bail on the grounds that the victim positively identified the assailant as one of the individuals who robbed him when the report was made. He also cited the seriousness of the offence and contended that if granted bail the defendant would further intimidate the victim.

The Magistrate remanded Mc Kenzie to prison and adjourned the matter to Friday.

Tamisha Maraj was awarded the best student in science (best regional performer) for the fifth form.

Page 16

Kaieteur News

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Failure rate at UG to be scrutinised - as improvement measures are engaged Even as attempts are being made to rebrand the University of Guyana as a high quality institution, efforts are intrain to closely examine its failure rate.

Speaking at a press conference last week, recently appointed Vice Chancellor, Professor Jacob Opadeyi, said that any programme that sees a more than 25 per cent failure rate will warrant the lecturer writing a report explaining such an occurrence.

“There are several reasons why people will fail and we want to address those reasons directly,” said Professor Opadeyi.

He expressed his conviction that while failure may not initially be the fault of any lecturer the lecturer must be able to ascertain the cause for such an outcome especially “if I am teaching the whole semester and 50 per cent fail my course...I need to find out why. We will need to have dialogue and then the Department will tell us what to do to improve the pass rate,” the Vice Chancellor emphatically stated.

Professor Jacob Opadeyi, UG Vice Chancellor He spoke of plans to have all examinations scrutinised by external examiners and reviewers. This, he explained, would ensure that after a lecturer would have prepared questions for an examination these questions must be sent to a suitably qualified person outside of the university who would be tasked with ascertaining whether the questions are adequate for a degree.

This individual, according

to the Professor Opadeyi, will also determine whether the questions are in accordance with the syllabus that was approved.

The resulting feedback will be sent to the Vice Chancellor and the examiner who will be expected to look at and respond accordingly.

In addition, when the examiner is finished marking examination papers he or she will again be expected to forward these to the external examiner who will determine whether the lecturer has been fair or too generous in awarding marks.

“More particularly we want to see the marks of those who get 80 (per cent) and above and those who fail so that we can know if those who do well if they really deserve it and if those who fail deserve it,” said Professor Opadeyi.

“What is instructive is to find out if those who did very well, (performed) because of who they are in terms of their background, qualifications and attendance of classes.

Something that I have asked all faculties is to provide me with failure rates,” disclosed the Vice Chancellor.

According to him the first move in improving the quality of the university is to improve the quality of its offerings

while at the same time improving the relationship with the wider community even as a strong partnership with the private sector is developed.

“This is a very critical area...We want to invest in higher education in order to improve the quality of life...education is not something ‘I’m bored and I want to do it’, it is an investment in future life and therefore where do you want to put your money? Do you want to invest in a university that is of low quality or one that is of high quality?”

Professor Opadeyi noted that there is need to urgently address the offerings as a

whole and “see how we can improve it.”

He said that one of his instituted mandates to the University’s Faculty since taking up his post has been to implement a curriculum review.

“In this university we are going to do curriculum review every five years no matter how good that programme is.”

According to him every faculty and every department must sit back at the end of four years and determine some of the new things that should be introduced in the various programmes offered.

This, he said, would be based on what society wants

at the end of five years and it is expected that they will be able to derive a revised curriculum and that curriculum must be supported or approved by an external university.

This undertaking, according to Professor Opadeyi, should never just be the decision of the university alone insisting that “it is not just on our own where we say okay we want to make these changes and these are the changes.

In fact that tone was set on my very second day at work and a proposal was sent back because it did not receive external review,” the Vice Chancellor disclosed.

Shevon Rodrigues, of 20 West La Penitence, appeared yesterday before Chief Magistrate Priya Beharry, to answer to the charges of possession of firearm and ammunition without a licence.

To the allegations, the defendant pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutor Sean Blackman stated that on March 8, in the Albouystown area, the police pulled up alongside a vehicle

when they noticed the defendant putting an instrument at the back seat of the car. The police then instructed him to pull over. A search was conducted on the vehicle and a .38 revolver that carried five live rounds was discovered. The accused was arrested and taken to the station where the charges were read to him.

Chief Magistrate Priya

Beharry subsequently transferred the matter to another court where it was taken over by Magistrate Judy Latchman.

Prosecutor Renetta Bentham held firm to the objection of bail which was also put forward by prosecutor Blackman.

Rodrigues was remanded and the matter continues on March 18.

Man remanded for possession of .38 revolver

Tuesday March 12, 2013

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Tuesday March 12, 2013

Pressure mounts for Govt to clear air on radio, TV licences Prime Minister Samuel Hinds this Thursday in the National Assembly is being forced to come clean on the allocation of radio and TV licences.

In fact, Parliamentarian Cathy Hughes has asked the Prime Minister to dish out all the details regarding the issuing of TV and radio licences since the current PPP/C took office in 1992.

Hughes wants the Prime Minister to say which channels and radio frequencies have been allocated for television and radio broadcast in Guyana.

Further, she has asked the Prime Minister to provide the names of the individuals and companies, including their directors, or entities that have been allocated or are using each allocated frequency/

Parliamentarian Cathy Hughes

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds

channel and the numeric frequency/channel assigned from 1992 to 2012.

Further, Hughes is asking the Prime Minister to state the

date of granting of the licences for each of the frequencies/channels assigned.

In addition, Hughes has

Two fingered in $14M Hand-in-Hand fraud Senior officials at the Hand-in-Hand Insurance Company Limited have confirmed that an investigation is ongoing into a $14M fraud at the entity.

Kaieteur News understands that two former staff members are at the centre of the probe. According to reports, the fraud involves

banking of company cheques and cash.

“There is such a fraud and we are investigating it,” said a senior official of the company who was contacted by this newspaper.

The official disclosed that the two employees fingered in the fraud, a Senior Clerk and a Junior Supervisor from the

company’s Accounts Department, have since been dismissed.

“Since the discovery of the fraud we have terminated the services of the two staff, and as soon as our internal investigations are completed, we will hand it over to the police,” the official explained.

asked for a listing of the frequencies that are currently available for television and radio broadcasts.

The Prime Minister has also been asked by Hughes to state whether NCN is receiving monetary remuneration or fees for managing the entity, CCTV, on behalf of the Government of China.

Hinds has also been tasked with detailing the procedure that was followed

by NCN to obtain the relevant licence for the CCTV operation and to say what fees were paid to the National Frequency Management Unit.

Veteran broadcaster, Enrico Woolford, has been pressing for the National Frequency Management Unit (NFMU) to reveal who has been allocated what frequencies in Guyana, but to no avail.

“The government of

Guyana gave China a 24-hour channel on Guyana’s ‘limited electro-magnetic spectrum’ ahead of its own and CARICOM Citizens under the CARICOM Single Market and Economy mechanism,” Woolford recently charged.

Woolford has argued that aside from frequency allocation, the fact that Guyana has Chinese content TV on a frequency paid for and essentially operated by a foreign Government through a State to State mechanism, ought to raise eyebrows in any normal sovereign democratic nation.

According to Luncheon, in 2001, Jagdeo and former Opposition Leader Desmond Hoyte established a Task Force to ascertain how media houses operate and the entire question of granting licences for media houses.

He said that the embargo was instituted following recommendations from the

Task Force.

According to Woolford, who was part of the Task Force, he is concerned that the State has given a foreign state, in fact an emerging superpower, access to a frequency without a fair, equitable and transparent public process, while not displaying the same alacrity to issue licences to Guyanese and CARICOM nationals.

He pointed out that granting licences to a foreign country has to be done with full public knowledge, complete and transparent disclosure, since part of the country’s limited resources is being utilised. Woolford said that it is important that the public should know what the existing frequencies are and what is available. He made reference to the fact that prior to the embargo, requests were made for local television, and to date nothing has been done.

Man stabbed by bandits in a futile robbery

A 44-year-old man is battling for his life at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC); this was reportedly after he was stabbed multiple times about his body by bandit(s) who were waiting on him at his lot 114 Prashad Nagar home.

Clifford Ifill who lives a few doors from the Prashad Nagar Police Outpost was stabbed in his abdomen, back and multiple times on both his hands around 09:30am yesterday.

The bandits gained entry to the property by taking out a few louvers from Ifill’s bedroom window.

According to the man’s wife, Sharon Ifill, her husband took her to work and their two children to school early yesterday morning when she received a call about an hour later from a neighbour who informed her that her husband was stabbed by bandits and that he was at the GPHC.

The wounded Clifford Ifill “I went straight to the hospital and they were preparing to take him to the theatre for surgery,” Sharon Ifill stated.

She added that when she returned home, she saw her husband’s car parked in front

her neighbour’s gate, “he use to work taxi and he does normally take out my neighbour whenever she wants to go anywhere so like he bring her home and like he notice something strange in our house and he come over to see what happen.”

The woman said that when she returned home, her house was completely wrecked, her wardrobe was empty and the clothes were scattered; her living room was ransacked. The bandits had already packed two One Laptop Per Family computers, a DVD player and a few phones in a bag but did not take them.

“Somebody tell me he (Clifford) was screaming and like when they done stab he they run out but nobody ain’t see who,” Mrs. Ifill stated.

Up to press time yesterday, Ifill was undergoing surgery and no arrest has been made so far.

GRA honours students in third COTA essay competition As part of its Corporate Social Responsibility, the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and the CARICOM Secretariat recently honoured 12 secondary school students from all across the country for their outstanding performance at the third Caribbean Organisation of Tax Administrators (COTA) Essay Competition.

The Competition was held under the theme “The Tax Administration plays a critical

role in my country’s development. How can I use Information and Communication Technology to enhance my country’s tax administration’s capabilities so as to generate greater resources for national development?”

In a charge to the students, Commissioner General of the GRA, Khurshid Sattaur, noted that the GRA has been facilitating the local aspect of the COTA competition in the hope that it will continue to give the students a chance to research the Tax

Administration of Guyana and the vital role the GRA plays in the development of the country. This understanding would no doubt foster a culture of Tax compliance for generations to come. Mr. Sattaur urged the students to continue working hard to ensure a successful future for themselves and Guyana, while noting that “as individuals you should never settle for mediocrity in anything you do.”

Also addressing the (continued on page 25)

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Jamaica inks new US$300M Don’t jail Ian - Lawyer infrastructure deal with China (Jamaica Gleaner) For the second time in just over three years, Jamaica has secured a multibillion-dollar infrastructure development programme with China, a government insider has revealed.

The US$300-million agreement was negotiated by Works Minister Dr Omar Davies during his visit to China last month, according to the government source.

In February 2010, Jamaica signed a US$340-million loan agreement with China Exim Bank. Those funds, along with US$60 million provided by the Jamaican Government, were used to finance the controversial Jamaica Development Infrastructure Programme (JDIP).

Davies confirmed Sunday that an infrastructure development project would be “an integral part” of the 2013-2014 Budget, but declined to discuss the details.

“I have heard those numbers,” he responded when asked about the new multibillion-dollar agreement with China.

“Let me put it this way, my trip to China achieved all I went for and a bit more,” he added.

But Davies bristled at suggestions that the new project would be ‘JDIP part two’, insisting that any project to be undertaken by the current administration would be handled in a far more “transparent” manner.

“JDIP is not a word I would be using ... the connotations are not good.

JDIP was characterised by too many unanswered questions or issues which created concerns about the implementation of government projects,” Davies said. “Let me just indicate that any new project is going to be

properly handled ... it is going to be brought through the Budget and it will be totally transparent,” he insisted.

Added Davies: “Anything I will be doing, I want to ensure that in the future, the transparency which the Parliament should be accorded, it is accorded.”

Speaking in Parliament last January, nearly two years after the JDIP loan agreement was signed with China Exim Bank, Davies disclosed that almost all the funds earmarked for the projects had been used up.

Davies said his investigations, since taking over as works minister, have shown that work orders for which payments have been committed, as well as certified payment for work orders, totalled US$398 million.

This means that only US$1.8 million remains to fund the US$400-million road programme.

An audit report produced by the Auditor G e n e r a l ’s D e p a r t m e n t found that the programme

SCARBOROUGH, Tobago (CMC) – Police said an 85-year-old Swiss national drowned at the Culloden Bay on Sunday even as the Meteorological Office had warned people to stay away from the beaches in Trinidad and Tobago due to “large battering waves”.

Police said that Albert Deichsi left his hotel and boarded a kayak, despite strong objections by the resort’s management.

Eyewitnesses said that a large wave overturned the kayak and according to the Coast Guard public relations officer Lieutenant Commander Kirk Jean

Baptiste, Deichsi body was found off Culloden Bay later on Sunday.

Over the weekend, the Met Office warned that “long period swells will produce large battering waves, affecting both the near shore and onshore areas of Trinidad and Tobago over the next 24 hours”.

The swells are being generated by high wind speeds accompanying a frontal system, which is associated with a lowpressure centre presently over the central North Atlantic Ocean, the release said.

Works Minister Dr Omar Davies

Swiss national drowns in T&T

has been characterised by numerous breaches.

From unaccounted to unapproved spending and the withholding of information from the auditors, the report raised serious concerns about the JDIP. In one of the more damning findings, Auditor General Pamela Monroe Ellis said her team found that the Road Maintenance Fund could not identify any work to account for a $23.2-million road project, which the National Works Agency (NWA) had certified as being satisfactorily completed.

At the same time, she found that the NWA used $102 million in JDIP money to refurbish its offices.

But the biggest concern for Davies was the fact that the JDIP was omitted from the national Budget by the then administration.

“For a project that was the biggest governmentsponsored infrastructure project to have been deliberately kept out of the Budget ... is a fundamental violation of the role of Parliament,” the works minister asserted.

“Why would the biggest project be routed through the Road Maintenance Fund?” he questioned.

Davies said these concerns were not raised during his recent discussions with the Chinese.

(Trinidad Express) The lawyer for CCN TV6’s Crime Watch host Ian Alleyne asked the court yesterday not to impose a fine or prison term against Alleyne, who pleaded guilty to airing a video on three separate occasions during his programme in October of 2011, that showed the rape of a 13-year-old girl.

Attorney Om Lalla told Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayres-Caesar that Alleyne was not malicious in his intent, and was seeking justice for the girl.

Lalla said that due to the nature of the work being done

by Alleyne, his family was living in the United States and a severe sentence would affect his ability to travel to see his loved ones.

However, State Prosecutor George Busby countered that the offence that Alleyne was guilty of, had caused mental torture to the 13-year-old, who, as a result of the airing of the video, was now known to friends, neighbour and members of the public.

Magistrate Ayres-Ceasar said she would sentence Alleyne on March 19 after considering the arguments of defence and State.

Under Section 32 (2) of the Sexual Offences Act, it is an offence to reveal the identity of a rape victim.

The legislation reads “A person who publishes or broadcasts any matter contrary to subsection 1 is guilty of an offence and liable

CCN TV6’s Crime Watch host, Ian Alleyne on summary conviction to a fine of twenty-five thousand dollars and to imprisonment for five years.”

Alleyne was also charged with resisting arrest but has maintained his not guilty plea. CNN TV6 is facing the same three charges and six additional charges contrary to the Telecommunications Act. The company has however maintained its not guilty pleas on all nine charges.

When he reappeared before Chief Magistrate Ay e r s - C a e s a r last Wednesday, Lalla asked that the charges be re-read, before Alleyne entered guilty pleas.

Asked by Ayers-Caesar for the facts in the matter before she passed sentence, Busby said he

was unaware Alleyne had decided to change his pleas and as such he was not in possession of the facts at the point when the matter was called.

Busby requested a short adjournment yesterday, in order to have the State’s case presented.

The evidence was read to him yesterday morning, before Lalla made a plea in mitigation.

He said although Alleyne admitted to broadcasting the video, he did not purposefully identify the girl, and it was the act of an overzealous person reacting to the many cases in which women were being raped and no one was being arrested and prosecuted.

Lalla noted that within 48 hours of the airing of the video, information came to Alleyne and a person was arrested and charged with the rape of the 13-year-old. He said the very video was in the hands of police weeks before Alleyne aired it.

Lalla said as a result of the incident, other media houses had reviewed their policy regarding the identification of sexual assault victims.

However, Busby said he was “sick and tired” of persons making a plea in mitigation about the danger of their travel visas being taken away.

He said the offence was not just about the airing of the video, but the effect on the life of the girl, who now had to live with the exposure for the rest of her life.

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Tuesday March 12, 2013

Shot in the grave - Violence follows killer Dad to burial ground (Jamaica Gleaner) A brother of the Trelawny father who last month murdered his two children before committing suicide is now facing the possibility of several charges after a bizarre incident at the burial in the Trelawny community of Woodgrove late yesterday afternoon.

The brother, whose name has not been released, reportedly went berserk as Pastor Jeffect Watson was committing the body of Kenville Mullings to the ground and fired several shots in the air before pumping several more into the coffin.

The brother is not known to be a licenced firearm holder.

“I was standing right there,” said Watson. “It was a bit frightening, about four or five shots went into the vault.” Watson said he was not sure if the brother’s action was out of vengeance or anger but noted that the shooting sent several people scurrying for cover.

Paul Patmore, the independent councillor for the Lorrimers division in Trelawny, was among those who dashed for safety. “I ran back up to the hearse when I saw him shooting,” said Patmore who is also the operator of Patmore’s Funeral Home, the undertakers for yesterday’s funeral.

Patmore said people who were near the graveside reported that as the brother fired into the coffin, he uttered words to the effect, “You shouldn’t do it, you shouldn’t do it.”

The shooting brought an ugly end to a “beautiful” service which began at a nearby chapel before the procession headed to the family plot in Woodgrove.

But Watson said even throughout the shooting, he stayed put, completed the burial proceedings, signed the death certificate and then left the family plot. He said on leaving the family plot, he saw the police speaking with the man.

NO DETAILS FROM COPS Last night, the Wait-A-Bit police confirmed that there was an incident at Mullings’ funeral in Woodgrove, but would not provide details.

However, they confirmed Mullings’ brother was taken into custody for reasonable suspicion of committing an offence.

On the morning of February 26, the community of Wait-A-Bit in Trelawny woke up to the shocking news that Mullings had earlier slit the throats of his two children then hanged himself at their home in Woodgrove.

Mullings had a dispute with the children’s mother, who later packed up and left the home saying she was going back to her mother’s house in Coleyville, Manchester.

It is reported that he went to Coleyville and tried to persuade her to return home.

However, she refused. He then went back to Trelawny and committed the double murder-suicide.

Kenville Mullings in happier times with his common-law-wife, Tamara Smith, and their two children, two-year-old Tessone and four-year-old Chrisanne

Building code boss calls for structural checks (Trinidad Guardian) National Building Code Committee chairman Shyankaran Lalla says a national structural assessment programme is urgently needed in Trinidad and Tobago to determine the earthquake readiness of all public institutions and relief centres. He is also calling on citizens to implement their own emergency evacuation plans and begin rehearsing them in the event of a major disaster.

Lalla’s call comes in the wake of five earthquakes, ranging from 3.8 magnitude to 4.9 magnitude, striking T&T within the last six weeks. The University of the West Indies’ St Augustine Seismic Research Unit recorded the last earthquake, a 4.8 magnitude, on Saturday morning, mere days after the fourth earthquake, a 3.8 magnitude, last week Monday.

Yesterday, Lalla said the increased seismic activity was serious and citizens needed to heed the warning signs.

“It is incumbent on each and every citizen to follow the recommendation by the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management (ODOM) and ensure that they perform drill simulation in their own homes and ensure that they are prepared in the likely event that a major disaster occurs,” he said.

“We should be concerned. The national

…as five quakes shake T&T in six weeks community should be concerned. They should be focused and be prepared in light of what happened recently,” Lalla said. He called on the Government to partner with the T&T Board of Engineering, Association of Professional Engineers and T&T Institute of Architects to embark on a national structural assessment programme to test the earthquake readiness of buildings.

“Our major facilities, such as the hospitals, are underprepared and structurally unsafe,” Lalla said.

“As such, it is strongly recommended that a structural assessment of the major hospitals and the buildings to be used as earthquake shelters, schools and public buildings be undertaken, to ensure that these buildings can withstand the impact of a major seismic event and if not, a major retrofitting exercise can be done based on the recommendations of the organisations,” he said.

He added that 80 per cent of the country’s buildings, as well as the petro-chemical sector, are vulnerable. Lalla suggested that T&T, like India, establish a disaster relief fund to ensure we have resources to rebuild if a disaster strikes.

“If we have to learn from the lessons of Haiti the establishment of a disaster fund will certainly ensure that we have the necessary resources to deal with a disaster. So you can cushion the impact on the national economy,” he said.

Contacted for comment via text message yesterday, Housing and Environment Minister Dr Roodal Moonilal admitted that “the frequency of earthquakes in the region is increasingly unsettling.”

He said, “The relevant agencies of Government, academia and private sector must launch a joint operation to ascertain our readiness and institute the full range of policies and programmes to mitigate the full effects of any impending challenges.”

The minister assured Government is preparing.

“We are preparing by ensuring that evacuations and emergency escape procedures are in place,” he said. “We have been focusing on strengthening existing housing stock while ensuring that future building assets are earthquake resistance.” South West Regional Health Authority (SWRHA) chairman Anil Gosine also Sunday assured they were getting the San Fernando General Hospital disaster and earthquake ready.

Tuesday March 12, 2013

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Corruption Prevention Commission to handle Whistleblower issues

(Jamaica Observer) Minister of Justice Senator Mark Golding has confirmed that the Corruption Prevention Commission (CPC) has been named the designated authority to carry out the statutory functions of the Protected Disclosures (or Whistleblower) Act. Senator Golding made the confirmation in the Senate Friday as he responded to questions tabled by Opposition member Senator Kamina Johnson Smith.

He said that the necessary ministerial orders

to bring the Act into effect, and to make the CPC the designated authority were signed on August 3, 2012 and gazetted four days later.

He explained that the decision to name an existing agency as the designated authority was influenced by the fact that the majority of members of the joint select committee which studied the bill in 2011 felt that there was no need for a new body, and therefore an existing body should be designated as such.

“I agreed with that view,

particularly given the paramount need for the efficient use of public resources,” the minister said.

He noted that the Office of the Public Defender and the Integrity Commission were also considered, and advice sought from the Legal Services Unit of the ministry and the Legal Reform Department.

He said that the Cabinet Secretary was consulted and confirmed support for the CPC on the grounds that “there appeared to be a greater functional

IDENTIFY YOURSELF

Rowley: Minister whose son is under probe must come forward (Trinidad Express) The government minister whose sons are allegedly under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the United States must come forward and identify himself or herself.

This is the position of Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley who told the Express, by telephone Sunday, the country must not be left in a state of speculation.

“I think the minister should be identified and the public shouldn’t be left to speculate, and at that stage we would determine the nature of the problem,” said Rowley.

He said he sees the issue as a family problem and, depending who the minister is, then it could become a matter of national interest.

“It is not fair to be left to speculation against the whole Cabinet... whoever is involved should come forward and identify himself or herself because there is a lot of speculation and rumour, and in the public interest a matter like this should not be left as a speculative manner.”

Rowley added that if money laundering issues are involved, this could be a matter of public interest.

He said the People’s Partnership Government is one that governs under a cloak of secrecy.

“Unfortunately, it has been the very nature and issue of the Government. This Government has distinguished itself in one particular area, and that is not being truthful and forthright with the public, and they tend to fool the public on matters of public interest and, in fact, they take the public for fools,” he said.

“So when matters arise that require explanation or

Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley acceptance of truth and so on, you are forced to draw information from the Government like pulling teeth,” he continued.

He added that the joint police-army patrols proposed by the Government pose a threat to the good order of the nation.

“And in all issues, the one common thread is that the Government is not being forthright and truthful with the population and continues to destroy our good order,”

said Rowley.

And Prakash Ramadhar, political leader of the Congress of the People (COP), said more information was needed concerning the Minister and his family.

“I wait with bated breath for more information on this matter because it is extremely serious and I imagine quite urgent,” said Ramadhar.

“Having read the (Sunday Guardian) article, we are waiting on the foreign authorities’ decision as to how they go forward and what is disclosed to us.

“I do not want to comment at this point in time, but rest assured once there is material supporting one way or the other this serious allegation, the COP will not remain open to embrace those silent on that matter.”

Ramadhar was speaking during a news conference at the COP’s head office in Charlieville, Chaguanas, Sunday.

Attorney General Anand Ramlogan was also contacted on the issue, but he declined comment.

National Security Minister Jack Warner also declined comment.

relationship between the functions of the designated authority under the Act and those of the CPC, than in the case of the other entities”.

The Ministry of Finance also confirmed for the CPC, and the Attorney General’s Department offered no legal objection.

Golding told the Senate that he was surprised to find that the Act, which had been signed by the Governor General from March 2011, had not yet been brought into effect up to when he assumed office, requiring him to take the necessary steps and inform the Cabinet of his decision last July.

However, he explained that the CPC is not currently equipped to take on the added assignment, as it does not have in place adequate staff. The CPC has since met with the Cabinet Office and the ministry to discuss adjustments to its organisational structure so that it can perform its new functions.

He disclosed that the

Ministry of Finance and the Cabinet last week confirmed approval for the strengthening of the organisational structure of the CPC, to enable it to proceed with operationalising its role under the Act, subject to available budgetary support.

He said that in terms of the procedural guidelines regarding the making, receiving and investigation of disclosures under the Act on an ongoing basis, the CPC has advised that this will depend on regulations being promulgated pursuant to section 25 of the Act. “I have had further discussions with the commission and urged them to commence work on developing the procedural guidelines without waiting or the regulations,” he said, pointing out that in the meantime, the ministry is willing to assist the CPC in developing the guidelines, including the supporting regulations, if necessary.

“I am not able to project a date for the completion of this

Minister of Justice Senator Mark Golding exercise, because of competing priorities being attended to by the available human resources within the commission and the ministry,” he admitted.

“The commission has also advised that until the changes to its organisational structure have been operationalised to enable it to perform its statutory role under the Act, it does not have the machinery to undertake public awareness programmes at the national level with respect to the Act, but will be seeking to increase public awareness at the local level,” the minister said.

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Capriles, Maduro at each other’s throats in Venezuela election (Reuters) - Presidential candidates Nicolas Maduro and Henrique Capriles have begun Venezuela’s election race with scathing personal attacks even as mourners still file past the late Hugo Chavez’s corpse.

Maduro, who was sworn in as acting president after Chavez succumbed to cancer last week, is seen as the favourite to win the April 14 election, bolstered by an oilfinanced state apparatus and a wave of public sympathy over Chavez’s death.

Chavez made clear before his fourth and last cancer operation in December that he wanted Maduro to be his Socialist Party’s candidate to succeed him if he died.

Maduro has vowed to continue the socialist policies of Chavez’s 14-year rule in the South American OPEC nation, including the popular use of its vast oil revenues for social programs.

But Capriles is promising a tough fight.

that he is,” a visibly furious Maduro said, alleging that the opposition was hoping to stir up violence.

“His aim is to provoke the Venezuelan people.”

At stake in the election is not only the future of Chavez’s socialist “revolution,” but the continuation of Venezuelan oil subsidies and other aid crucial to the economies of left-wing allies around Latin America, from Cuba to Bolivia.

Venezuela boasts the world’s largest oil reserves.

CHAVEZ’S WISHES

Acting President Nicolas Maduro “Nicolas, I’m not going to give you a free passage ... you are not Chavez,” Capriles said in a combative speech late on Sunday. He also accused Maduro of lying to minimize Chavez’s medical condition while he prepared his

candidacy.

“Nicolas lied to this country for months,” Capriles said. “You are exploiting someone who is no longer here because you have nothing else to offer the country ... I don’t play with

Opposition Leader Henrique Capriles death, I don’t play with suffering, like that.”

Within minutes, in a latenight address to the nation, Maduro said his rival was

playing with fire, offending Chavez’s family and risking legal action.

“You can see the disgusting face of the fascist

Both Maduro and Capriles were to formally register their candidacies with Venezuela’s election authority on Monday.

Thousands of Maduro supporters, dressed in socialist-red and waving Continued on page 24

With death of Chavez, Castro says Cuba has lost its best friend (Reuters) - Cuba’s Fidel Castro praised the late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez yesterday as a champion of the poor and said Cubans had lost their best friend ever, in his first comments on the death last week of his socialist ally.

Castro said the news, although not unexpected, had been a hard blow.

“On the 5th of March, in the afternoon hours, died the best friend the Cuban people had in their history,” Castro wrote in a column published in Communist Party newspaper Granma.

“We have the honour of having shared with the Bolivarian leader the same ideals of social justice and of support for the exploited,” said the 86-year-old Castro who led Cuba’s 1959 revolution, ruled the country for 49 years and still plays a behind-the-scenes role.

“The poor are the poor in any part of the world,” he said.

During Chavez’ years in power, he and Castro forged a close personal and political relationship that resulted in extensive Venezuelan aid to the communist island and a shared strategy for promoting Latin American unity against U.S. influence in the region.

Chavez helped rescue Cuba from desperate economic times that followed the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union, its former top ally, by

The late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez (L) and former Cuban leader Fidel Castro providing two-thirds of its oil in a barter deal for the services of Cuban professionals, most of them doctors and nurses.

He also signed a number of joint ventures aimed at integrating the two countries’ economies.

Chavez, 58, was diagnosed with cancer in the pelvic region in June 2011 by Cuban doctors and underwent four surgeries on the Caribbean island, which has an extensive medical system and provides free care to its people.

Except for a set of photographs, Chavez was never seen in public again following his last operation in December and he died last Tuesday in Caracas.

Castro said he had received a phone call via satellite notifying him of what he called “the bitter news.”

“The significance of the phrase used was unmistakable. Although we knew the critical state of his health, the news hit us hard,” wrote Castro, who resigned as Cuba’s president five years ago because of his own health problems.

“I remembered the times he joked with me saying that when both of us finished our revolutionary work, he would invite me to spend time by the Arauca River in Venezuelan territory, which reminded him of the rest he never had,” Castro said.

Raul Castro, who succeeded his older brother as Cuba’s president, represented the island on Friday at Chavez’s funeral.

Chavez’s death has raised worries in Cuba that Venezuelan aid will cease to flow to the island.

Tuesday March 12, 2013

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Key accused in India gang rape found dead in cell (Reuters) - The driver of the bus in which a young Indian woman was gangraped and fatally injured in December hanged himself in his jail cell yesterday, prison authorities said, but his family and lawyer said they suspected “foul play”.

Ram Singh, the main accused in India’s most highprofile criminal case, killed himself just before dawn in a cell he shared with three inmates in New Delhi’s Tihar jail, prison spokesman Sunil Gupta said.

Singh fashioned a noose from threads torn from the mat he slept on and hanged himself from a grille in the ceiling before dawn. While there were closed circuit cameras throughout Tihar, India’s highest-security prison, there were none in individual cells, Gupta said.

Gupta could not say how long it would have taken Singh to make the noose or how he had managed to loop it through the grille, which was eight feet above the floor.

He may have stood on a plastic bucket, Indian media reported.

Singh’s lawyer, V.K. Anand, said his client had been composed and calm when he spoke to him in court on Friday and “didn’t have any complaints”. Singh, who faced the death penalty if convicted of murder, had not been on suicide watch, Anand and Gupta said.

“I know he had a few complaints of jail authorities torturing him, but nothing that would make him take his own life. We can’t rule out foul play. Nothing is adding up,” Anand said.

Anand has previously always denied that his client was being maltreated in prison. He would not

repeatedly. The parents were headed to a hospital to see their son’s body.

BLOOD-STAINED SCHOOL BUS

Mange Lal Singh (L) and Ram Bai (R), father and mother of Ram Singh, the driver of the bus in which a young woman was gang-raped and fatally injured three months ago, sit inside their house at Ravi Das camp in New Delhi yesterday. (REUTERS/Mansi Thapliyal) elaborate on the “torture”.

Federal Home (Interior) Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde called the incident a “major lapse” in security and said an inquiry had been launched.

Police have described Singh as the ringleader of five men and a juvenile on trial for the December 16 attack on the 23-year-old trainee physiotherapist in the Indian capital. The assault triggered nationwide protests, a toughening of rape laws and an intense debate about rampant crime against women in India.

All six accused have pleaded not guilty to rape and murder.

The remaining five accused could try to use Singh’s death to their advantage in the trial, said Supreme Court lawyer Ravi

Kant.

“The others accused in this case will now take the opportunity to say that Ram Singh was the main conspirator and they were forced into it and as a result they can get lighter punishments,” he said.

Singh’s father cast doubt on the official version of events.

“He confessed about his mistake, then why would he commit suicide? He was prepared for any punishment the government would have given him,” Mange Lal Singh said.

“Ram Singh did not commit suicide, he was murdered. He was first murdered and then his clothes were torn off to hang his corpse in his cell,” he said.

Singh’s mother cried

Two U.S. soldiers killed in “insider” attack in Afghanistan (Reuters) - Two American soldiers were killed in a socalled insider attack when a person in an Afghan military uniform turned his weapon on U.S. and Afghan forces at a joint base in the restive east of the country, coalition forces said yesterday.

Three policemen and two Afghan army officers were also killed in the attack, said a senior police official.

The attack took place as a deadline expired for U.S. Special Forces to quit the eastern province of Wardak, after Afghan President Hamid Karzai accused them and Afghans working for them of overseeing torture and killings in the area.

An Afghan interior

ministry official said the attack occurred in Jalriz district of Wardak. It was not immediately clear if it was directed at U.S. Special Forces.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, who left Afghanistan early yesterday after a three-day visit, raised the sensitive issue of Wardak when he met Karzai.

U.S. forces have denied involvement in any abuses in Wardak.

Hagel sounded hopeful that a deal could be reached on their continued deployment, but acknowledged no breakthroughs were made in his talks with Karzai.

Afghans are divided over

their expulsion, saying the departure of the U.S. Special Forces could leave a vacuum for insurgents to fill, which would pose a security risk for nearby Kabul.

Incidents involving Afghan security forces turning their weapons on t h e N AT O - l e d f o r c e s who train them and fight Taliban insurgents have increased sharply over the past year.

The insider, or green-onblue, attacks have seriously eroded trust between coalition and Afghan forces, who are under mounting pressure to contain the insurgency before most foreign troops leave by the end of next year.

uncontrollably and beat her chest as her husband helped her into an auto rickshaw in the Delhi slum where they live. “He left me,” she said

The trial of the five adult men started last month while the juvenile’s trial began last week. Ram Singh’s brother Mukesh Singh, gym assistant Vinay Sharma, bus cleaner Akshay Kumar Singh and fruit vendor Pawan Kumar are the other men on trial.

Under Indian law, the juvenile cannot be named.

The attack generated headlines around the world, but the case has since largely disappeared from public view, in large part because authorities have barred reporting on the trial, which resumed in a fast-track court yesterday.

Police allege the six attacked the woman and a male companion on the bus as the couple returned home after watching a movie.

The woman was repeatedly raped and tortured with a metal bar. The couple was also severely beaten

before being thrown onto a road.

The woman died of internal injuries in a Singapore hospital two weeks later.

The police report used to charge the accused draws a picture of Ram Singh as the ringleader.

On the night of December 16, the accused gathered at his house for dinner, where he came up with the plan of taking the bus out to look for a victim to rape, the report said.

The police say they found him sitting in the blood-stained school bus, wearing a bloodied teeshirt, the morning after the crime. A DNA test revealed that the blood belonged to the rape victim, the report said.

The physiotherapist’s brother said he was “not very thrilled with the news that he killed himself because I wanted him to be hanged ... publicly.”

“Him dying on his own terms seems unfair. But, oh well, one is down. Hopefully the rest will wait for their death sentence.”

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Tuesday March 12, 2013

Cardinals hold last discussions before Vatican lockdown (Reuters) - Cardinals held final discussions on the troubled state of the Roman Catholic Church yesterday, the day before they seclude themselves from the world to elect a new pontiff, with no clear frontrunner in view.

Stunned by the abdication last month of Pope Benedict, the red-hatted cardinals have met repeatedly this past week, sketching out the qualities of the man they need to lead a Church plagued by scandals of sex abuse and mismanagement.

“Last time around there was a man of stature, three or four times that of any other cardinal,” French Cardinal Philippe Barbarin told reporters, in a reference to Germany’s Joseph Ratzinger, who was elected pope within 24 hours in 2005.

“That is not the case this time around. Therefore, the choice has to be made among one, two, three, four ... a dozen candidates. We still don’t really know anything.

We will have to wait for the results of the first ballot.”

Vatican-watchers say

Italy’s Angelo Scola and Brazil’s Odilo Scherer are in pole position. A vote for the former would bring the papacy back to Italy for the first time in 35 years, while the latter would be the first nonEuropean pope in 1,300 years.

However, a host of other candidates from numerous nations have also been mentioned, all of them theological conservatives, leaving the secretive contest wide open.

The 115 cardinal-electors from 48 countries will start filing into the Michelangelofrescoed Sistine Chapel at 4:30 p.m. (1530 GMT) today and will hold an initial vote shortly afterwards.

“There is a dynamic that takes over once they’re in the Sistine Chapel. The first vote kind of lays out the names.

We will have a pope by the end of the week,” said Father Tom Rosica, the Vatican spokesman for the Englishspeaking media.

No one in the modern era has won the necessary twothirds majority on the first ballot, and the cardinal-

electors will hold up to four ballots a day thereafter - two in the morning and two in the afternoon - until they elect a new pontiff.

The average length of the last nine conclaves was roughly three days and none went on for more than five days.

BYZANTINE POLITICS In preparation for the election, workers hung up crimson curtains on the central balcony of St Peter’s Basilica, ready for the moment when the new pontiff makes his first appearance before crowds gathered in the vast cobbled piazza below.

The 266th pope will face an array of problems - from sexual abuse scandals to the dysfunctional bureaucracy, known as the Curia, and accusations of wrong-doing at the Vatican bank.

The Vatican’s top administrator, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, made a longawaited presentation to fellow prelates yesterday, outlining efforts to improve transparency at the bank.

Workers put up a red curtain on the central balcony, called the Loggia of the Blessings of Saint Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican. (Credit: REUTERS/Eric Gaillard) Both Benedict and his predecessor John Paul were criticized for failing to reform the Curia and some churchmen believe the next pope needs to be first and foremost a strong manager.

Vatican insiders say Scola, who has managed two big Italian dioceses, might be best placed to understand the Byzantine politics of the Vatican administration - of which he is not a part - and therefore be able to introduce swift reform.

The Curia faction is said by the same insiders to back Scherer who worked in the Vatican’s Congregation for Bishops for seven years

before later leading Brazil’s São Paulo diocese.

His elevation would represent a sea change for the European-dominated Church and recognition of the growing power of Latin America, which is home to 42 percent of the world’s Catholics. If neither man can draw the necessary support, a compromise candidate would have to come to the fore, with Canada’s Marc Ouellet, U.S. cardinals Sean O’Malley and Timothy Dolan and Argentina’s Leonardo Sandri often cited.

The conclave itself is held in great secrecy, with cardinals taking a vow never

to reveal the details of their ballot.

Vatican staff who might come into contact with the socalled princes of the church, including lift operators, caterers and cleaners, took a vow yesterday not to reveal anything they might hear in the coming days.

The cardinals will stay in a simple Vatican hotel during the conclave, crossing over to the Sistine Chapel for the twice-daily voting sessions.

Smoke signals from above the chapel - black for an indecisive vote, white for a new pope - will tell the outside world how the ballot is proceeding.

From page 24 photos of Chavez, milled in the streets at the election board’s headquarters in downtown Caracas. “I’m backing Maduro because Chavez asked us,” said law student Marliely Lopez, 22.

Shaken by Chavez’s death and now immersed in an ugly election campaign, Venezuelans saw some semblance of normality return on Monday as most schools and shops re-opened after being closed for most of last week.

The official mourning period for Chavez ends today.

Several million have paid their respects at his coffin at a military academy in a dramatic outpouring of grief.

Though criticized by many for his authoritarian tendencies and handling of the economy, Chavez was loved by millions, especially the poor, because of his own humble background, plain language, attacks on global “imperialists” and the domestic “elite,” as well as his welfare policies in Venezuela’s slums.

In death, he is fast earning a near-religious status among

supporters, perhaps akin to that of Argentina’s former populist ruler Juan Peron and his deeply loved wife Eva Peron.

State TV has been playing speeches and appearances by Chavez over and over, next to a banner saying “Chavez lives forever.”

month-long election campaign to the many day-today problems afflicting Venezuelans, from electricity cuts to crime and an inflation rate that is among the world’s highest.

Maduro, 50, a burly onetime bus driver and union leader who echoes Chavez’s anti-imperialist rhetoric, is sure to make his former boss the centerpiece of his campaign while casting himself as the only heir.

Two opinion polls before Chavez’s death gave Maduro a lead of more than 10 percentage points.

“This is going to be a really tough campaign for us, we know,” said an aide at Capriles’ office in Caracas.

“It’s hard to get everyone enthused and pumped again, we’ve only got a month, and we’re fighting Chavez’s ghost, not Maduro. But believe me, we’ll give it our best.”

Chavez’s death and the imminent vote have eclipsed other pressing issues in Venezuela, including a raft of economic austerity measures the government h a d b e e n expected to announce.

Capriles, Maduro at each...

OPPOSITION’S UPHILL RACE Chavez’s many detractors are keeping a low profile. But they say his memory is being burnished to forget less savoury parts of his rule like the bullying of opponents and stifling of private businesses with nationalizations often announced on a whim.

Capriles, a 40-year-old centrist governor who describes himself as a “progressive” and an admirer of Brazil’s model, ran in the last presidential election in October, taking 44 percent of the votes, but was unable to prevent Chavez’s re-election.

While attacking Maduro’s handling of the crisis over Chavez’s cancer, Capriles will try to turn the focus of this

Tuesday March 12, 2013

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Non- perishable items can be returned-CAA - Businesses providing goods, services must adhere to Consumers’ Act Non- Perishable items

The Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission says that under the Consumer Affairs Act 2011 (CAA), all enterprises providing goods or services to consumers in Guyana MUST adhere to the CAA. The Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission (CCAC) noted that it may take corrective action against any enterprise

in violation of the CAA. The CCAC is empowered to apply the CAA. The organisation stated that the reference of “GOODS” is determined to mean “All Non- Perishable Items.”

The consumer has the right to return a good purchased from any store in Guyana no later than seven days from the date of

purchase, provided the good is accompanied by the original receipt received at the time of purchase; the good is in its original packaging; the supplier has the right to charge up to a ten percent restocking fee on certain goods and the goods shall be fit for resale at original value.

In addition, if a defect is found by the consumer during usage the supplier

From page 18 students was Enid Bissember, Deputy Programme Manager, Economic Development Policy and Research, CARICOM Secretariat.

Ms. Bissember urged the students to continue to do their research and participate in such events in the future since it not only gives them the opportunity to learn about their country but it also opens the door for them to learn about regional tax systems and how these systems

benefit the Caribbean people.

Ms Bissember noted that Guyana placed sixth in the regional leg of the competition and based on the quality of research and writing skills demonstrated by the participants she believes that in the ensuing competition that ranking will greatly improve.

The first, second and third place essays were submitted

by Nyana Evans, Hema Ramdass and Kenny Bisnauth respectively.

Nyana Evans and Kenny

Bisnauth represented Queen’s College while Hema Ramdass represented Abram Zuil Secondary school.

Other participants of the competition were Calisa DeFlorimonte also of Queen’s College, Dorielle Retemyer of Bishops’ High, Deon Allen, and Ryan Jagnarine of Bladen Hall Multilateral, Mahendra Phagwah and Nigel McPherson of Berbice High and Amella Shaw, Uvannie Roopram and Anjelie Karamchand of Rosignol Secondary School.

GRA honours students in third COTA essay competition

MUST: at no cost to the consumer replace the good within 14 days, repair the good or defective part, if the previous is not possible, the consumer shall receive a refund of the entire value. If a supplier contravenes Section 22 of the CAA, he/she commits an offence.

Penalties can be imposed for a breach of any provision of the Act; this may range from $20,000 to $1 million and up to one year imprisonment.

The Bill provides for the promotion and protection of the interests of consumers in relation to the supply of goods and services and renames the Competition Commission as the Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission, which will administer the Competition and Fair Trading Act 2006, as well as the Consumer Affairs Act. The Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission is empowered, with the approval of the Tourism Minister, to make regulations binding in law, an industry, trade or profession,

and all participants into its code. Once this is done, noncompliance by the industry, trade, or profession subject to the regulation, constitutes a breach.

This body will be tasked with monitoring compliance with the law, and carrying out other enforcement activities such as responding to consumers’ complaints and ensuring that adequate information is available so that consumers can make informed choices.

The Bill brings all businesses under tight scrutiny to ensure that they comply with the provisions of the law.

The Bill imposes on suppliers, duties such as giving consumers information about various

goods, providing measuring equipment that meet the standards imposed by law for use by consumers when selling goods and services, issuance of receipts and explicit warranties to consumers, compensation for damage, replacement and repairs in the case of defective goods, refunds for goods and services different from those requested, and accuracy with regards to claims for payment and installments by consumers among other duties.

It further establishes safeguards for consumers when entering contracts for goods and services by means of distance communication including electronic means, mail order, and house-tohouse selling.

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Tuesday March 12, 2013

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Guyanese youth shot dead by NY police New York (New York Times) -Two plainclothes police officers shot and killed a teenage boy late Saturday night on a Brooklyn street, after he pointed a handgun at the officers, the police said.

The police said the officers, patrolling in an unmarked car in East Flatbush, came upon the teenager, identified as Kimani Gray, 16, in a group of men just before 11:30 p.m. The teenager separated himself from the group and adjusted his waistband in what the police described as a suspicious manner.

As officers got out of the car to question him, Mr. Gray turned and pointed a .38caliber Rohm revolver at them, the police said; two officers fired, hitting the teenager. He was pronounced dead a short time later at Kings County Hospital Center.

Mr. Gray did not fire the handgun, which was recovered at the scene. Paul J. Browne, the chief spokesman for the Police Department, said the six-shot revolver was loaded with four live rounds. “After the anticrime sergeant and police officer told the suspect to show his hands, which was heard by witnesses, Gray produced a revolver and

pointed it at the officers, who fired a total of 11 rounds, striking Gray several times,” Mr. Browne said.

Mr. Gray’s sister, Mahnefah Gray, 19, said that a witness to the shooting told her that her brother had been fixing his belt when he was shot. She, among others who knew Mr. Gray, said they had never known him to have a gun. Even if he had one on Saturday night, he would not have pointed it at police officers, Ms. Gray said.

“He has common sense,” she said. A woman who lives across the street from the shooting scene said that after the shots were fired, she saw two men, whom she believed to be plainclothes officers, standing over Mr. Gray, who was prone on the sidewalk, clutching his stomach.

“He said, ‘Please don’t let me die,’ ” said the woman, 46, who gave her name only as Vanessa. One of the officers, she said, replied: “Stay down, or we’ll shoot you again.”

A cousin of Mr. Gray’s, Malike Vernon, 17, said that Mr. Gray had been at a party Saturday night in the area where he was killed. Mr. Gray, who was of Guyanese and Jamaican descent, grew up in the neighborhood, Mr. Vernon said.

Dead: Kimani Gray, 16

Mr. Gray was the second youngest of seven children; an older brother, Jamar, died in a car accident two years ago, Mr. Vernon said. He said Mr. Gray’s mother, Carol, had fainted at the hospital, and was having heart problems.

“She’s going crazy,” Mr. Vernon said.

The shooting came little more than 10 hours after officers shot a man on Staten

Island, in a traffic stop that turned violent. In that case, officers had information indicating that the driver of the car, a white Toyota Camry, had a gun in his possession, the police said.

As a pair of plainclothes detectives, their shields displayed, approached the car, near Manor Road and North Gannon Avenue around 1:15 p.m., the driver

accelerated in an attempt to flee, pinning one officer against another car, the police said. The second detective then fired his gun after he saw the driver, identified as Clinton James, 33, of Staten Island, reach for a weapon, the police said.

Mr. James, struck at least once in the torso, continued to pull away but collided with several vehicles and then

crashed into a utility pole. He was arrested and was sent to Richmond University Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition.

The police said the driver had an extensive arrest record. A .44-caliber Taurus revolver was recovered from his car, the police said. Mr. James was arrested on a list of felony charges that included assaulting an officer.

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Tuesday March 12, 2013

Tuesday March 12, 2013

DTV CHANNEL 8 08:25 hrs. Sign On 08:30 hrs. This Morning 09:00 hrs. Live! With Kelly and Michael 10:00 hrs. Roseanne 11:00 hrs. The View 12:00 hrs. Prime News 12:30 hrs. The Young and the Restless 13:30 hrs. The Bold and the Beautiful 14:00 hrs. The Talk 15:00 hrs. Criminal Minds 17:00 hrs. Charmed 18:00 hrs. Awakening 18:30 hrs. Nightly News 19:00 hrs. Greetings and Announcements 20:00 hrs. Alliance on the

Kaieteur News

Move 20:30 hrs. DTV’s Festival of Biblical Movies for the Lenten Season: “Joseph of Nazareth” 23:00 hrs. Sign Off NCN CHANNEL 11 05:00 hrs - Inspiration 05:30 hrs - Newtown Gospel 06:00 hrs - NCN Late Edition(R/B) 06:30 hrs - Kala Milan 07:00 hrs - Guyana Today 08:00 hrs - GINA Feature 08:30 hrs - Pulse Beat(R/B) 09:00 hrs - Remembering Dr. Cheddi Jagan 10:00 hrs - 1st International

Home Test 17:00 hrs - Rise & Be Healed 17:30 hrs - Feature 18:00 hrs - NCN News Magazine – Live 18:30 hrs - Insight 19:00 hrs - Al Jazeera 19:30 hrs - Close Up 20:00 hrs - 3d/daily millions/ play de dream/lotto draw 20:05 hrs - NCN Newsbreak 20:10 hrs - Feature 21:05 hrs - XI Interface 21:35 hrs - Feature 22:05 hrs - NCN News Late Edition 22:35 hrs - Caribbean Newsline 23:00 hrs - Movie

Guides are subjected to change without notice

Tuesday March 12, 2013 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) No one is certain about what you’re going to do next because you are ready to take back control of your life.

Although your fantasy world has been overactive for the past few weeks, it’s time to move your dreams out into the real world.

TAURUS (Apr. 20–May 20) You’re shifting gears to move into a phase where your imagination becomes just as important as reality.

Daydreaming can be a creative process today, but there are problems with losing yourself in fantasy.

GEMINI (May 21–June 20) Hang on tightly ... because you’re about to get a jolt of energy in the form of eager Mars entering your 11th House of Friends.

CANCER (June 21–July 22) If you are thinking about a career move, it’s time to put your plans into action.

Luckily, you’ll have more energy to apply to your job over the next few weeks, but you still must be cautious with your time.

LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) Red-hot Mars enters a fellow fire sign today, prompting you to take a risk to make the most of this time in your life. You have a renewed sense of enthusiasm for the next several weeks and are eager to plan your future, to travel or to begin a new course of study.

VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept. 22) The need to redefine a current relationship may begin to subside, but new experiences deepen these issues ... even if they become more subtle.

LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) Now that warrior Mars has entered feisty Aries and your 7th House of Partners, you could become more assertive in all types of relationships.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) Your current spunky attitude may bring some tricky issues to the surface now. External circumstances require you to work hard and to perform at a high level of expertise while doing your job.

SAGIT (Nov. 22–Dec. 21) You are now entering a particularly playful and creative period as irrepressible Mars skips into your 5th House of Spontaneity.

You can experience excitement through activities with children, or you may set aside your responsibilities and seek new ways to enjoy yourself by connecting with your inner child.

CAPRI (Dec. 22–Jan. 19) You may not be able to avoid the big changes in your personal life, yet you’re secretly excited about the prospects.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20–Feb. 18) Interactions with close friends and co-workers begin to raise the noise level of your daily routine. You are more direct and expressive than usual, and your eagerness to converse might unintentionally initiate more conflict.

PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) Be wary of making impulsive decisions today, especially relating to how you spend your money. You’re inclined to purchase something you don’t really need, or you might buy it for the wrong reasons.

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Tuesday March 12, 2013

Jets fly by Raiders; Kings take Royals’ crown Excitement was aplenty on Sunday last, as basketball fans in Linden witnessed two closely fought games on night two of the New Era Ent/ Cell Smart Super-8 basketball tournament at the Mackenzie Sports Club Hard Court.

The Amelia’s Ward Jets handed Retrieve Raiders their first loss of the tournament, edging them 52 – 49 in nail biting game, while Kings had the better of one of their arch rivals, Victory Valley Royals 71 – 63.

In the first game of the double header, Kevin ‘Two Feet’ Joseph sunk what turned out to be the game winning three point shot when the scores were tied at 49 with 30 seconds remaining to lift the Jets over Raiders who were playing their second game in as many nights.

Joseph, who finished with a team high 19 points, was the main stay of his team offence as the Jets had to withstand a sensational shooting display

from the Raiders’ captain, National forward Neil Marks a he poured in a game high 22 points.

Raiders led throughout the game, first leading 15 – 11 at the end of the first quarter and 28 – 21 at half time.

However, with his teammate at the last CBC Championship Shane Webster (11) guarding him, Marks went cold in the fourth quarter after he had helped his side to sit on a 42 – 37 point lead to close out the third period.

The Jets turned on the defensive pressure on the Raiders, forcing guard Coolie Hercules to make some critical turnovers that were converted into baskets mostly by Joseph.

Taking the game into his own hands, Joseph scored most of the Jets’ 15 points in the final verse of the game including the go ahead basket after Marks had tied the game at 49 following a base line jumper.

No other Raiders player

Orin Rose - Kings

Kevin ‘Two Feet Joseph – Amelia’s Ward Jets

reached double digits – Geoffrey LaRose and Omar Sam each had eight and the other top scorer for the Jets was Alister Webster with nine.

Meanwhile, the Victory Valley Royals’ Chris Williams scored a game high 22 points but did so in vain since his side fell to a Kings team that went on a scoring rampage in the fourth quarter.

Former Junior National player Orin Rose, lived up to his reputation for being one of the most dangerous shooters in Linden from beyond the arc, leading his team in scoring 18 points, inclusive of five from ‘down town’.

Both sides shared the lead during the game but it was Kings who led at the end of every interval; 8 – 15 to close out the first, held on to a three point lead at the half (33 – 30) but then entering the final period, the scores were leveled at 44.

But apart from restricting Williams to only six points in the fourth quarter, Kings stepped up and displayed the type of basketball that once saw them being the supreme ruler of the game in Linden and one of the top teams in Guyana. National Captain Steve Neils Jr and his wingman Marvin Hartman each ended the game with 12 points, along with Omally Sampson (16) as they led the Kings’ attack in the final chapter of the contest.

Royals guard Julius Carter 11 and Harold Adams 12 were the other top scorers for their team.

When the tournament continues on Friday, Amelia’s Ward Jets will look for win number two as they face the New Era 12 and in game two, the Victory Valley Royals will be desperate to come up with a ‘W’ against a sturdy looking Wismar Pistons unit who have already chalked up a win in the tournament.

Trophy Stall / WDFA U-17 Tourney...

Den Amstel, Eagles, Wales & Bagotsville/ Nismes into semis Defending Champions Den Amstel are closer to retaining the title following their qualification for the semifinals of the 2nd annual Trophy Stall / West Demerara Football Association Under17 tournament.

Den Amstel in their final group game on Saturday last at the Den Amstel Community Centre Ground, disposed on Wales 2-0 but despite the

loss, Wales are still through to the final four. Omari Haynes in the 25th minute and Gavin Graham in the 80th were the scorers for the winners.

The other teams through to the semis are Eagles of Stewartville and Bagotsville / Nismes who will face Den Amstel in the feature game on Saturday from 15:30hrs with the first semi between Eagles and Wales from 13:30hrs.

Pacesetters remain...

From page 34 Joaquin 12 points and Lennox Thornhill 11 points. Bentick had 21 points for Jammers with Quincy Gibson scoring 10 points.

Eagles soared above Panthers in the other Division III game 79-70 with Neil Gordon adding 19 points and Courtney Taylor 11 points for Eagles. Jonathan Pooran scored 29 points and Orlando Gibson 14 points for Panthers in the GABA League.

Tuesday March 12, 2013

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Fourteen years after an unsuccessful attempt, Joseph Harmon goes after the GFF Presidency - Michael Benjamin speaks to GFF Presidential hopeful Joseph Harmon on his aspirations

Joseph Harmon

The year was 1999 and the football affiliates were preparing for the Annual General Meeting of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) and the election of office bearers for the new dispensation.

The incumbent, Colin Klass, was highly tipped to be returned to the position but he had to firstly get past Joseph Harmon, whose ambitions were on par with the support for his elevation; many felt that he had the ideas to transcend the sport to another level.

Few could forget those nerve-tingling seconds during the voting process when one of the voters claimed to have experienced a nauseous spell that tampered with his faculties and forced him to opt out of the process.

That was the vote that would have made the difference and propelled Harmon to the helm of the GFF. Instead, he was forced to concede a 9-8 defeat and once more Klass had prevailed. Now, fourteen years later, Harmon has once again thrown his hat into the ring as he attempts to clinch the coveted position that fate had once deprived him of.

While his optimism is high, Harmon would be

required to secure a nomination and someone to support it if he is to contest for the prestigious position.

This appears to be easier said than done as already, another contestant, Christopher Matthias, has received the blessings of the Georgetown Football Association (GFA), the largest sub association, after securing 9 votes; Harmon barely managed one vote while Bruce Lovell clinched 2.

Yet Harmon is confident that come nomination day he will be able to satisfy the criteria and come Election Day, he will ascend to the helm of the Guyana Football Federation.

Harmon, a former Colonel in the Guyana Defence Force, said that he has played football as a youth and continued during his early tenure in the GDF. He said that he has also competed at the veterans’ level but has never played at the national level.

He does not view this as disadvantageous and as he put it, “Administrative skills are far more important in the proper administration of the sport.” He said that what he lacks in actual participation is compensated for in his passion to improve the lot of the affiliates. “I am cognizant

of the benefits that could be accrued by the youth and the ability of the sport to transform their lives and that knowledge coupled with my desire to apply it for the betterment of local footballers would adequately compensate,” he said.

Harmon reflected on his failed attempt in 1990 and his reasons for contesting in the first place, “I recognized then that football was going nowhere under Colin (Klass); that the structures were compromised by an incompetent executive incapable of managing the game.” Harmon said that back then a core of reputable businessmen had confided in him that they were reluctant to support a sport devoid of personnel with integrity.

The aspiring president admitted that since then there have been some positive changes in the management policies but not enough to adequately impact on the developmental process.

“Those changes have resulted in the reinstatement of support from some members of the corporate community but to my mind the game is yet to realize its full potential and this might just be because of the laxity of past executives,” bemoaned Harmon. He asserts that the money required to effect the changes are available but members of the corporate community need to be encouraged by competent leadership and accountability, two variables he said that are sadly lacking in the GFF. “A Harmon led GFF will restore that confidence by employing an all inclusive tact that engages the players, corporate community, members of the Diaspora and other relevant

stakeholders in the developmental plan,” advocates Mr. Harmon.

He is adamant that there is a need for a paradigm shift that entails stringent focus on the club structures, better administered and structured clubs and intense efforts to harness the skill of players from as early as the Pee Wee stages right up to the senior and veteran players. “The veteran players still have an important role to play in the development of the sport; they could provide moral support for contemporary players,” exhorted Harmon.

He also spoke of the need to provide adequate opportunities for local ball weavers and even hinted at the installment of a local professional or semiprofessional league.

Mr. Harmon is quite aware of the quality of the other aspirants but has already begun to conceptualize on the needed changes for a better fraternity. He feels that

the job should start internally and he will implement those changes starting from his executives. “We will need to reexamine the modus operandi of the executives; the way things are done at that level; it cannot be business as usual,” he said.

Among his projections are independent audits which would foster internal accountability and by extension, encourage adequate corporate support.

He also plans to dole out grants to the various clubs to facilitate their development instead of plugging most of the funds into the administration of the sport.

“You cannot ignore the needs of the footballers; they are important to the development of the sport and any planned initiative must incorporate their input,” exhorted Mr. Harmon.

He is a bit peeved over the minimal returns from the FIFA grant saying that the past

executives are unable to show tangible returns for the millions of dollars doled out over the years. “Much could have been attained but unfortunately there isn’t much evidence that local footballers benefitted from the grant,” lamented Harmon.

Consequently, he aims to focus on architectural and social changes that will also see the vibrancy of the sport in the schools even as he works towards the establishment of a well organized and functioning Federation with a firm club structure.

“This is but a minute aspect of what is necessary to propel Guyana from its dismal position to a decent world ranking,” said Harmon.

He feels he has the necessary tools and desire to do the job.

He will just have to wait until April 12 to ascertain the effect of his outlined plans and projections and if the electorate will buy into them.

The Trophy Stall / EBFA U-23...

From page 35 Stall has always been contributing to sports and not just football. We would like to make this an annual one and as we go on, we would like to do so for other tournaments. I would like to thank Mr. Franklin Wilson and the East Bank association for allowing us to be a part of this tournament.”

Francois expressed gratitude to Mr. Sunich and Trophy Stall for fulfilling the earlier commitment made by the owner, that he would be working along with the EBFA for the development of the sport in that association.

“Mr. Sunich has walked

the walk and we would really like to thank him for being there for us again. This would really add some life back into the game at the senior level and we are grateful.”

Francois informed that eight teams will battle for the honours; Kuru Kururu Warriors, Kuru Kuru Lions, Yarrowkabra FC, Timehri Panthers, Soesdyke Falcons, Grove Hi Tec, Mocha Champs, Diamond United and Agricola Red Triangle.

The above named teams according to Francois were involved in a recent knockout competition that was organised by the Grove Hi Tec Club which coincided

with Mashramani celebrations. The Trophy Stall competition Francois opined would be an added incentive for teams ahead of the association’s senior league which will kick off in the near future.

Trophy Stall is currently sponsoring the West Demerara Football Association Under-17 Inter Club tournament which is at the semi final stage. This is the second year they have been sponsoring this tournament. Last year’s winners, Den Amstel received a new set of gear from Trophy Stall as an added incentive for winning the competition.

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Tuesday March 12, 2013

Shane Watson one of four dropped by Australia for discipline breach BBC Sport - Australia have dropped vice-captain Shane Watson and three players for the third Test in India for a breach of discipline. Mitchell Johnson, James Pattinson plus Usman Khawaja will also sit out. The four failed to make a presentation on how to improve the team following defeats in the opening two Tests.

Watson left the tour after the decision, although, with his wife pregnant, there was always a contingency for him to leave early.

Talking about his decision to drop the four players, coach Mickey Arthur said: “This is a line in the sand.”

Australia, who play England in back-to-back Ashes series later in 2013, have endured a miserable time

on their latest tour, suffering heavy defeats in the opening matches of the four-Test series. They lost by eight wickets in Chennai in the opening Test to an Indian team inspired by Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s 224 runs off 265 balls in the home side’s first innings.

The manner of their second Test defeat was even worse, with Australia losing by an innings and 135 runs after being bowled out for only 131 in their second innings. Worried about his team’s form, Arthur asked each member of his squad to produce, by email or in person, three ideas about how the team could improve.

The players had five days to provide their views but the quartet failed to make their

An already struggling Australia will be further weakened in Mohali, minus Watson, Johnson, Khawaja and Pattinson © ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Shane Watson, Mitchell Johnson, James Pattinson and Usman Khawaja have been dropped (Getty Images) points at a team meeting.

Although all-rounder Watson, 31, has returned home, pacemen Mitchell Johnson, 31, James Pattinson, 22, and batsman Khawaja, 26, will be considered for the fourth Test.

South African Arthur, Australia’s first overseas coach, told a news conference: ‘’I asked the players at the end of the last game to give me an individual presentation. “I wanted three points from each of them technically, mentally and team - as to how we were going to get back over the next couple of games, about how we were going to get ourselves back into the series. ‘’I believe those four players unfortunately did not meet my requirements so those four players are not available for selection for this Test match.’’

He added: “We’ve given an expectation that is spelt out and although this incident might seem very small in isolation, this is a line

in the sand moment for us as a unit in our quest to become the best in the world. ‘’This has been the toughest decision that myself, manager Gavin Dovey and captain Michael Clarke have ever had to make. ‘’It’s a tough, tough decision, but the ramifications for that within our team structure and the message that it sends to all involved in

Australian cricket is that we are pretty serious about where we want to take this team.’’

Arthur ’s stance has drawn criticism from former Australia players.

Ex-captain Allan Border told Fox Sports News: “I’m surprised that’s the penalty for something so mundane. It seems like it was on a schoolboy tour or something.

It’s an over the top reaction.”

Mark Waugh added: “I’ve never heard anything so stupid in all my life. It’s not under-sixes - this is Test cricket.” Australia now head into the third Test at Mohali on Thursday with 13 players to choose from - and that could drop to 12 if Matthew Wade fails to recover in time from an ankle injury. The first Ashes Test begins on 10 July at Trent Bridge.

Milo / Petra Organisation Under-20 Schools Football Competition...

Tucville, South Ruimveldt, Bishop’s High into quarter-finals Tournament favourites Tucville were among the latest winners as action in the Round of 16 of this year’s Milo / Petra Organisation Under-20 Schools Football Competition ended on Sunday, at the Ministry of Education ground, Carifesta Avenue.

Playing in the first game of a triple header, Tucville led by single strikes from Shawn Hughes (18th), Roland Mayers (37th) and Darwayne Filter (70th) easily disposed of North Ruimveldt 3-0.

In the second encounter, South Ruimveldt hammered North Georgetown 8-1 thanks to a hat-trick from Martin Adams (16th, 35th and 78th) and a double from Keith Caines (62nd and 64th).

Davis George (36th), Shaquan Simon (67th) and Colin Peters (76th) completed their tally.

The final matchup of the day saw Bishop’s High squeeze past Dolphin by a 21 margin.

Shamel Lewis’ brace in the 21st and 46th minutes of play proved enough for the winners, while Samuel Hunte’s 29th minute strike had levelled the proceedings at one stage.

In the day’s full results:

Action in this year’s Milo / Petra Organisation U-20 Schools Football Competition.

Tucville Secondary School beat North Riumveldt 3-0 Tucville Secondary School.

Shawn Hughes 18th min Roland Mayers 37th min Darwayne Filter 70th min Game 2 South Ruimveldt Secondary School crushed North Georgetown 8-1 South Ruimveldt Secondary Martin Adams 16th, 35th & 78th min David George 36th min Keith Caines 62nd & 64th min Shaquan Simon 67th min Colin Peters 76th min

North Georgetown Tiatun Tiatun 73rd min Game 3 Bishop’s High School edged Dolphin Secondary 21 Bishop’s High School Shamel Lewis 21st & 46th min Dolphin Secondary School Samuel Hunte 29th min Meanwhile, Chase Academy defeated New Campbellville 1-0 thanks to a solitary goal off the boots of Steven Sanker (79th).

The competition continues this weekend with quarter-final action at the same venue.

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Kaieteur News

Page 33

Guyana Football Referees Council Central E’bo T\20 cricket...

LALL, ROHIT, GREEN, honours former FIFA officials SINGH HIT FIFTIES

Three of the officials –Lawrence Griffith, Roy Mc Arthur and Collin Aaron (holding plaques) with GFRC President Alfred King, Treasurer Dwayne Lovell and Secretary Troy Peters last Saturday.

Four former FIFA match officials were honoured by the Guyana Football Referees Council (GRFC) in recognition of their contribution to the development of refereeing in Guyana at the Annual General Meeting of the GFRC held last Saturday at the Carifesta Sports Complex.

The four retired officials Lawrence “Sparrow” Griffith, Collin “BL” Aaron, Abdulla

Hamid and Roy McArthur were presented with plaques at the meeting. Griffith served as an assistant referee on the FIFA list from 1993 to 2003, Aaron who hails from Linden (Upper Demerara) served as an assistant referee from 19962004.

Hamid also a Lindener, was also an assistant referee from 2002 to 2012, while McArthur served as a referee

from 2002 to 2009.

Hamid was absent but his award was received by current FIFA referee and GFRC Committee member Stanley Lancaster.

Vice President of the GFRC Dion Inniss said the awards were timely as the Council seeks to honour its outstanding members.

According to Inniss there are more officials to be

honoured by the GFRC at an appropriate time including Diane Ferreira-James, Guyana’s highest ranked female FIFA referee who retired at the end of last year.

Thirteen local referees and assistant referees are currently on the FIFA list for 2013 including four women officials. The plaques were presented by GFRC President Alfred King.

Half centuries by Yougeshwar Lall, Latchman Rohit, Herrell Green and Eshwar Singh highlighted the opening round of matches in the Central Essequibo Twenty\20 cricket competition last Sunday.

At Imam Bacchus ground in Affiance, the home team beat Queenstown by 56 runs.

Imam Bacchus SC batted first and scored 232-5 in their allotted 20 overs.

Yougeshwar Lall top scored with 98, while Latchman Rohit supported with 52 and Navendra Persaud 25.

Navendra Madholall took 335 for Queenstown who replied with for 176-7 in 20 overs.

Herrell Green led the scoring with an unbeaten 90 and Randy Bridgemohan assisted with 28. Lall snared 3-33 and Kulraj Persaud 230.

Affiance Sports Club defeated Police by 7 wickets.

Police took first strike and were bowled out for 149 in 20

overs. Extras contributed 22 and S. Paul made 18; Lallbachan Narine 2-18, Leroy Goddett 2-20 and Kumar Kissoon 2-27 were the main wicket takers. Affiance responded with 150-4 in 19.4 overs. Eshwar Singh made 59 not out, while Parmesh Parasotam chipped in with 30 and Hemant Boodnie 23; Fazeer Khan picked up 230.

Meanwhile, Imam Bacchus over-40 defeated Buck Char over-40 by 3 wickets in a feature T/20 match played last Sunday at the Imam Bacchus ground.

Batting first Buck Char made 139 for 6 with R. Bishop scoring 42 & H. Singh 16, Extras contributed 41.

Bowling for Imam Bacchus Gansham Deonarine claimed 2 for 22 & Lakeram Persaud 2 for 28.

In Reply Imam Bacchus made 149 for 7 in 18 overs with Kassim Bacchus getting 37 & Seenauth Balbadar 28; T. Stephney got 3 for 38.

Page 34

GABA Division I and III Leagues...

By Edison Jefford Trinity Grid Holdings (TGH) Pacesetters remained unbeaten in the Division I segment of the Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association (GABA) League, while Colts won both Division I and III games Sunday night on the Burnham Basketball Court.

Pacesetters overcame a second quarter offensive slump to recover in the second half, inflicting a 73-55 beating on Pepsi Sonics for their third straight win.

Shooting guard, Stephon Gillis fired Pacesetters to the win with clinical sharpshooting from downtown.

Gillis had 20 points while forward, Royston Siland scored 14 points and guard, Travis Burnett 13 points. Kurt Elias had 10 points in a good all-round performance from Pacesetters after they were down at the half time break.

Jason Squires had 22 points for Sonics, while

Kaieteur News

Tuesday March 12, 2013

PACESETTERS REMAIN UNBEATEN; COLTS WIN TWICE IN ONE NIGHT Marlondo Mickel had 11 points. Pacesetters took a 136 lead in the game with backto-back layups from Gillis, but a fast-break finish from Squires allowed Sonics back in the contest.

Burnett consistently broke down Sonics’ defence with his speed, opening up the court for Gillis and big men, Elias and Siland. Elias finished a put back to close the first quarter 19-13 in favour of TGH Pacesetters that broke down offensively in the second quarter.

Squires landed a threepointer to commence the offensive lull from Pacesetters. Sonics increased its zone defensive pressure and forced early pacesetters turnovers. Squires then completed a fade away jumper off the glass for five unanswered points.

The run continued for Sonics that equalised at 21 points off a three-pointer from Squires. Sonics seemed to be ticking offensively when a backdoor finish and

consecutive three-point jumpers off high screens from Squires and Ryan Melville gave them a 29-23 lead.

Pepsi closed out the second quarter with a healthy 35-25 points’ lead. However, Burnett finished an up-andunder move and Gillis drilled a three-pointer to cut lead to five, 30-35. Burnett went to work in the lane consistently, forcing Pepsi that held a now slim 37-36 points’ lead to foul him in the paint.

Then for the second straight game, the last half belonged to Pacesetters. Gillis opened the third period with a three-pointer, before Pacesetters employed a suffocating 3-2 zone defence that forced many Pepsi turnovers.

Pacesetters capitalised on the offensive end for 10-2 run that put them up 46-39. The Pacesetters run continued with back-to-back fast-break plays that helped them take a 52-41 points’ lead that was extended to 56-45 at the end of the penultimate period of

TGH Pacesetters Guard, Stephon Gillis blows pass Jason Squires to lay-up two of his 20 points Sunday night against Pepsi Sonics.

regulation time.

Pacesetters offensive rampage continued in the final period that became just a matter of formality for Pacesetters that gave Pepsi no chance of recovery.

Earlier in the night, Colts had demolished Knights 8366 in another Division I

contest with scoring machine, Shelroy Thomas putting up 21 points and Dave Causway 17 points. Sheldon Thomas scored 15 points while Marvis Hilliman had 14 points.

For Knights, Owan Walton finished with 22 points while Devon Bacchus

had 13 points. Colts also won its Division III game on a night that saw four basketball games being played at the outdoor venue.

Colts won its 3rd D game 73-57 against West Side Jammers with Evans Johnson scoring 18 points, Teon (Continued on page 30)

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Kaieteur News

Page 35

FIFA Appreciates Recent The Trophy Stall / EBFA U-23 Football Progress of Pakistan Tourney to kick off Sunday - eight teams to contest

Pakistan Football Team

On 7th March, 2013 FIFA published the applauding performance of Green Shirts (PAK SHAHEENS) during their recently concluded successful friendly football matches against Nepal wherein the PAK SHAHEENS has fixed their sights on to the forth coming AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers being played in Kyrgyzstan from March 17 21, 2013.

While appreciating PFF performance FIFA has explained on their website that the Pakistan Football Team, began their build-up for this qualifying campaign in early March with a pair of warm-up matches in Nepal, when Zavisa Milosavljevic’s visitors claimed back-to-back 1-0 wins, with Hassan Bashir and Muhammad Mujahid grabbing the all-important

goals. The victories also ensured the Pakistanis were rewarded with timely moralebooster in the shape of a 19place rise to 170 in the FIFA/ Coca Cola World Ranking and becomes the Asia’s biggest movers in the world ranking of February, 2013.

The President PFF “Makhdoom Syed Faisal Saleh Hayat” is pleased with the gradual progress of our national team and is hopeful that PAK SHAHEENS who are already on their way to Kyrgyzstan would be able to qualify for the AFC Challenge Cup. The competition in Kyrgyzstan will now provide PAK SHAHEENS with a chance to make further progress in the global pecking order. And should they make it through to their second AFC Challenge Cup in 2014 in

Maldives, their next target will undoubtedly be to win the tournament and book a historic place at the 2015 Asian Cup. Two opening wins will all but seal Pakistan’s progression either among the group winners or the two best second-place finishers, and a good result in the closing game against Macau – a team they have never lost to should be within their grasp.

“If we continue our form and the level of our technical displayed during the recent friendlies, we can expect to get results,” added Milosavljevic, whose side left for Dubai in the United Arab Emirates for a week’s training before heading to Kyrgyzstan. “We should keep fully focused on our preparation and our play.”

Imam Bacchus and Sons Ltd Schools 50-over cricket - E’bo Coast

Sewnarine stars as ARMS beat Abrams Zuil Keron Sewnarine stroked a fine half century as Anna Regina Multilateral defeated Abrams Zuil Secondary by 62 runs when play in the Imam Bacchus and Sons 50-over Secondary Schools cricket competition commenced recently on the Essequibo Coast.

Playing at Imam Bacchus ground in Affiance, Anna Regina batted first and scored 251-9 after the game was reduced to 40 overs.

Sewnarine led with 93 and got support from Parmesh Parasotam 75 as Kevin Martinborough picked up 325.

Abrams Zuil replied with 189 all out in 32 overs.

Omvindra Persaud made 52, Jonathan Gopaul 28 and

Shaquille Haynes 26; Xavier Mc Donald and Siddiq Mohamed claimed 2 wickets each for the winners.

Cotton Field overcame Charity by 7 wickets. Charity took first strike and were bowled out for 90 in 14 overs.

Extras contributed 32 while Suresh Persaud got 25 not out. Essequibo inter county pacer Mark Tyrell bagged 425, Ricardo Joseph 2-2 and Deolall Persaud 2-11. Cotton Field responded with 93-3 in 19.3 overs. Christopher Bacchus was their leading run scorer with 33 while Extras assisted with 27.

Pomona United Secondary got the better of Johanna Cecelia by 29 runs.

Pomona posted 250 before they were bowled out in 39

overs. Anthony Adams made 56, Andy Dass 53 and Kevin Chaitram 40. Bowling for Pomona Stephan Peters snared 3-29, Javid Azeez 3-55 and Akieni Adams 2-28.

Johanna Cecelia in reply mustered 222 all out in 34 overs. Ricardo Peters made 48, Stephan Peters 44 and Javid Azeez 28; Rovindra Parasram grabbed 5-43 and Andy Dass 2-34.

Each secondary school is allowed to play three former students under the age of twenty three.

The Competition continues next Saturday with Anna Regina Multilateral playing Cotton Field Secondary; the winner will play Pomona Secondary in the final on the 23rd March 2013.

The Trophy Stall Managing Director Ramesh (centre) holds one of the trophies with EBFA President Wayne Francois in eth presence of other WDFA members.

Football at the senior level will get cracking on the East Bank of Demerara on Sunday with the start of the inaugural Trophy Stall Under-23 tournament at the Grove Community Playfield.

Yesterday at the main branch of The Trophy Stall,

Bourda Market, Managing Director Mr. Ramesh Sunich handed over the trophies to President of the East Bank Football Association (EBFA) Wayne Francois in the presence of other executive members.

Sunich in brief remarks

after handing over the trophies said he was happy to continue his company’s commitment of being a good corporate citizen aiding in the continued development of the youth.

“As promised, Trophy (Continued on page 31)

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Tuesday March 12, 2013

Tuesday March 12, 2013

Kaieteur News

GAPF Novices & Nat. Junior C/ships...

TROPHY STALL ON BOARD

Sales Representative of The Trophy Stall Carissa Bamfield hands over the trophy to GAPF’s Denroy Livan. At left is GAPF VP Edwin Gordon Spencer.

The Trophy Stall of Bourda Market has continued to lend a corporate hand to sports associations / federations in Guyana. The entity has come on board with sponsorship for the upcoming Guyana Amateur Powerlifting Federation (GAPF) Novices and National Junior Championships set for New Amsterdam on March 17 at the New Amsterdam Multilateral School.

At a simple presentation, Trophy Stall Sales representative Carissa Bamfield handed over a trophy to Denory Livan, Organising Secretary / Public Relations Officer of the GAPF. Bamfield said that it was not the first time

that The Trophy Stall would have been supporting powerlifting and they intend to continue in this regard.

“Our policy is to support sports across the board and we have been fulfilling that mandate as we have been doing our bit for cricket, football, boxing and horseracing among so many others.”

Livan expressed thanks to Bamfield and The Trophy Stall for their continued commitment and assured that their contribution will continue to aid in the continued success of the sport in Guyana.

Weigh-in time is set for 08:00hrs and lifting time is set for 11:00hrs.

Page 37

Hand-in-Hand on board GMR&SC March 24 Meet Hand-in-Hand Fire, Life and Motor Insurance Company with a reputation of being a reliable supporter and sponsor of motor racing, has once again come forward and offered its support to the upcoming Guyana Motor Racing & Sports Club (GMR&SC) Meet which is scheduled to be staged on March 24, at the South Dakota Circuit.

Yesterday, during a simple ceremony conducted at the Company’s Head Office on Avenue of the Republic, staffer Jamall Hinds presented a cheque for an undisclosed sum to Manager of the Club Rayon Samaroo.

Samaroo in response thanked the Company on behalf of the Club for its continued support towards the sport, adding that the entity has stood steadfast in its commitment to aid in the development of motor racing.

According to Samaroo, some 22 races are carded for the day and competitors will line up in all the different categories in what is already

Hand-in-Hand on board GMR&SC March 24 Meet being touted to see some exciting racing.

The first race is set to

begin at 09:00 hrs with the lineup of competitors set for 08:30 hrs.

t r o Sp West Indies v Zimbabwe, 1st Test, Barbados...

West Indies seek to extend rare winning run ESPNcricinfo - The last time West Indies won five Tests in a row was back in the late 80s, when they were still the reigning kings of world cricket. Viv Richards was the captain, leading a side strewn with legends to comprehensive series victories in England and

Australia. West Indies have fallen so far from those peaks that in the seven years Prior to the start of their home season last year, they had been victorious in only five Tests.

Through a quirk of scheduling that pitted them against some relatively

lightweight opposition, West Indies are currently on a four-Test winning streak, with two matches against the Test irregulars Zimbabwe coming up.

The Kensington Oval was a fortress for West Indies for much of the 20th century but, although the record has

dimmed in recent years, Darren Sammy’s experienced side will be confident of extending their successful stretch to six games.

While the home side chase some impressive numbers, for Zimbabwe the chance to play Test cricket is a rarity.

They haven’t played a fiveday game since they were trounced in Napier by an innings-and-301-runs by New Zealand more than a year ago. This will only be their fifth Test since ending their six-year exile from the longest version of the game i n 2 0 11 . B e s i d e s t h e crippling shortage of experience, they will be up against unfamiliar conditions as well, in what will be their first Test in the Caribbean since 2000.

Additionally, they are without the assuring presence of two Zimbabwe stalwarts from the coaching set-up, Grant Flower and Heath Streak.

PLAYERS TO WATCH In his second coming, Marlon Samuels has quickly became West Indies’ most influential batsman across formats. He was missing in the limited-overs leg of the series as he completed his recovery from the eye injury he suffered in the Big Bash.

His first match since early January was the tour game against the Zimbabweans last

week and he hit his stride with a brisk 55. He’s in a rich vein of form in Tests, having scored six half-centuries and three hundreds in his past nine matches.

Brendan Taylor is among Zimbabwe’s most important batsmen, but he hasn’t quite

Shivnarine Chanderpaul managed to find his form in this series so far. A string of single-digit scores in the limited-overs matches meant he hasn’t been able to carry the touch that made him one of the standout players in the Bangladesh Premier League last month.

The West Indies batting is slowly beginning to acquire a settled look, with three senior batsmen in the top five and two promising youngsters in Kieran Powell and Darren Bravo as the other two specialists. One of their decisions to be made will be whether to play two specialist spinners, or to go in with one slow bowler and the part-time offerings of Narsingh Deonarine as back-up.

Marlon Samuels (AFP)

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