Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

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Kaieteur M@ilbox

Kaieteur M@ilbox

GT&T shares and the Chinese connection

The value of sociology in providing solutions for the new political order

DEAR EDITOR, I read the write-up about GT&T shares and the Chinese connection, and was struck by the sentence “When the shares were initially placed on the market, GT&T employees had offered to buy them but this was rejected by the then government which was adamant that the shares had to be purchased en bloc.”

While in Guyana in the 1990s, I attended a political meeting and sat next to Mr. Christopher Ram and his wife, and at one point asked them why did not the Government sell shares to their employees? I think they were probably taken by surprise and could not

answer. I am almost sure they would recall the moment. Now my question has been answered.

Incidentally, one of the most successful companies in Britain is run by share-holding employees. Also, when I added together the disappearance of fibre cables, the building of the towering structure close to a well-known hotel, floors earmarked for casinos and other forms of entertainment, the top floors signalling other purposes, I instantly formed my own conclusions and made them known to the people in the communication business in Guyana. I think they too will remember this. I thought at the time “Mischief, thou art

afoot......................”.

A married chap once told me that “women have the sort of intuition that men do not seem to have.” I think the Government should pay more attention to what their women colleagues have to say. Their instincts are strong. Get rid of the attitude of “Don’t you worry your pretty little head”. In London, I said that to a boss, when I acted as relief secretary to him while his ‘regular’ was away for a week and he could not find an important and urgent document. He laughed his head off, when I promised to hunt it down. I did successfully.

Geralda Dennison

DEAREDITOR, As a former staff member of the CARICOM Secretariat I am saddened to witness the decline of the little influence this body had in regional and international affairs. The aborted rice deal between Guyana and neighboring through the Venezuela PetroCaribe agreemen has brought to the fore the continued self interest member states pursue within the integration movement.

It was disappointing that Suriname has recently sealed a

rice deal with Venezuela under the said agreement, a slap in the face of CARICOM, whose membership includes Suriname.

In his quest to weaken the regional movement and increase his influence, Venezuela’s President Maduro has been dishing out various forms of assistance to several Eastern Caribbean countries including Dominica, Antigua and Barbuda, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Suriname’s recent decision to revive its claim of Guyana’s New

River Triangle along the eastern border is yet another sore point in the relations of member states .It’s opportune for Guyana, headquarters of CARICOM, to use its leverage and latent fire power to propel the regional body into action.

Dhanraj Bhagwandin

Suriname Venezuela rice deal is a slap to CARICOM

DEAR EDITOR, The study of sociology underscores an integrative understanding of the behaviours of individuals, dynamics of social groups and the functional settings of social institutions. This three dimensional approach is applied to understand the systemic relationship that fosters social relations and pushes social change. The acquisition of this understanding is derived from the use of sociological theories to account, explain and describe human social existence purely within the social perspectives.

To this end, the political discourse that surrounds a modern public service which is strongly articulated by the President David Granger led administration must be placed within the sociological context for substantial application. In so doing, the political agenda that is liked to transformative public institutional arrangement can be accomplished with the introduction of trained personnel in the area of

sociology in the various ministries, departments and agencies.

Equally important, Mr. Editor, permit me to mention that there is a pervasive misconception of the academic value of a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology; hence, graduates who have specialized in this discipline of study are not appropriately placed in social positions in the labour market. In some cases, graduates may have difficulties becoming employable in the labour force given the fact that employers might not be necessarily familiar with what graduates in sociology are trained to offer. Mr. Editor, a sociology graduate can unpack the structural complexities that can render an institution dysfunctional or nonfunctional and can judiciously

shape the institutional relationships that form the operational standard for productivity. In addition, a sociology graduate can dispense the correct institutional needs that can transform the public sector into a responsive, functional service led agency. In sum, a sociology graduate can generously add transformative value to the operations of the ministries, departments and agencies.

Therefore, it is my respectful submission that the President David Granger led administration become discipline conscious in the configuration of the new institutional order; thus, integrating sociology graduate into the institutional setting to support the agenda of the administration.

Kelston Cort Developmental Sociologist

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Kaieteur News

Kaieteur M@ilbox

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur M@ilbox

URP Objects to Government’s I have suffered too much to let APNU-AFC destroy Guyana salary increase DEAR EDITOR, the three treason accused – Dr. Roopnarine for assigning

DEAR EDITOR, The URP has remained silent over the last five months as it gives the new AFC coalition government a chance to rule during its honeymoon period. But the coalition seems hell bent on abusing ours and public silence to its policies and actions leading to this public rebuke of several policies.

The government disappoints on several fronts: large cabinet, square pegs in round holes, appointments of Ministers and other personnel, the budget, handling of rice prices and farmers, firing of thousands of workers on account of ethnic and political affiliation, racial discrimination in appointments, arrogance on the part of several ministers, and the latest salary increase of Ministers. The latter comes after the government called for wage sacrifices and the public was told the treasury is almost empty with public servants and pensioners being given only a 5% increase.

It is also noted that people are surviving under very harsh social and economic conditions with this government cancelling $10K voucher for children for

uniform and books that has been a rite of passage over the last several years.

It is incredible that the government has almost doubled their salaries a mere four months after coming into office. It is even more galling that Ministers are criticizing those who oppose the hefty salary increase with the government justifying it as a move to curb corruption among Ministers.

As other have commented, this cabinet is characterized by self- interest and nepotism. It is built around friends and family for self-enrichment.APNU-AFC is practicing exactly that which it criticized its predecessor. This is the exact opposite of the meaning of good governance which is about service to humanity and not of serving self. A government should be more prudent about its actions and treatment of citizens.

This government has done the same things that it criticized the PPP breaking its promise never to do them. It promised, for example, to guarantee rice farmers some $9,000 a bag for paddy. Today farmers are getting between $850 and $1500 a bag and some paddy have been

From page 4 a salary and an ATV to do his personal rounds.

These may be some things that the Regional authorities could look into rather than ‘supporting positions’ that were sticking in the eyes for the entire period of the PPP reign.

The truth is that the people in the North West are losing their patience waiting on the new government to look into Region 1 and not leave them to the mercy of those of the PPP who still behave like they run the country.

North West resident

Strange that Mr. Ashley is now...

refused by millers. Rice producers and other farmers are operating at a loss – a violation of the commitment given by APNUAFC. On every policy undertaking, there is little, if any, consultation with stakeholders.

The government basically does what it wants because it is in charge”. The government’s policy announcements are underscored by sheer arrogance and excesses, worse than what existed under its predecessor.

People, including those who voted for this regime, feel a strong sense of betrayal. It gives an impression that the government officials are not genuine about public service commitment. Public service and or serving as a Minister should be seen as acts of and commitment to nation and not as acts for self-enrichment or a career. It really should be a call to purpose and not chasing after money. Ministers want massive personal gains while the people whose lives politicians pledge to improve cannot boast of any significant betterment. Love for our country cannot be expressed through self-gains.

The URP objects to this ministerial salary increase and other policies found wanting.

Our party calls on the government to pursue policies that will benefit everyone and not hurt anyone. We urge the government to reverse course on the salary and on its discriminatory policies and put the nation’s interest above self and party interests.

Vishnu Bandhu President, URP

I begin my response to Dr. Lomarsh Roopnarine’s letter in yesterday’s Kaieteur News in which he called upon me to apologize for my reference to some Indian Guyanese as Indian supremacists. I am afraid I cannot do that. If there was an accusation of mine against Dr. Roopnarine that he is an Indian supremacist then I would suggest he deny it and offer his analysis why the label is wrong. It would appear that Roopnarine wants an apology from me for so describing him. He has to convince me he is not. If and when he does that I will execute my moral obligation to him I would be willingly in my obligation to apologize to Roopnarine for any egregious mistake I made against him but in this situation I cannot see how I can apologize to him for a character trait he denies he possesses. I honestly don’t know if that is so. I would expect people to reject things about themselves that are true but they find embarrassing to acknowledge. Roopnarine describes me as an extremist supporter of the Government.

I will not request an apology.

My route is to deny that claim of Roopnarine. And I am rejecting that painting of me.

I have suffered more than any human being in the present government, including Moses Nagamootoo, for my social activism.

I have suffered more than any human being in Guyana except Mark Benschop and

the Monroe couple and Mr. Warton. Those four persons were jailed. But there were two attempts on my life. Even my family was victimized. The reason my daughter was refused a journalist opening at the Stabroek News was because her father was Freddie Kissoon. My innocent wife lost her job at GOINVEST just before the 2011 elections. My point is I have given Guyana all my life and I am not going to sit back and watch the new government of APNU-AFC do what the PPP did to my country. I will never allow that. I will speak out. I will fight.

I have done that. I have criticized the new government in ways that the new government cannot respond.

I have done so in columns, letters to the newspaper editors and on several television shows for different channels. I published my accusation of hypocrisy of the new government extending the barriers around Parliament when in 2011 they voted against the existence of the barriers. I denounced the erasure of the Ministry of Youth. I denounced the continued exclusion of the general public to the four swimming pool the Government controls. I cannot support the 50 percent increase at this time. I wrote that in two columns.

My point is that I am not an extremist in my support of the APNU-AFC Government.

I don’t want an apology from

me that label. My task is to defend myself. I am doing so now. If this government makes mistakes that I consider are based on power obsession I would let my voice and body be heard. Dr. Roopnarine does not live in Guyana so he doesn’t see the television programs. As a guest of Handel Duncan on the “First Look” morning show on channel 9, in response to a question on the Government whopping salary increase for Cabinet members, I told him that no matter how critical was the APNU-AFC politicians of the PPP regime, they are in power now and power does bad things to people. In my appearance at the Commission of Inquiry, I told the Commissioners I believe in anarchism. I explained to them that it is a philosophy that is extremely suspicious of human’s ability to possess power without it harming the psyche of its possessor. This country needs transformational leaders if Guyana is going to go into the future. If you want my deeply honest opinion, apart from the political culture and political history of maybe just one or two but certain not four or five of the person in authority now, the people in power in the Government of Guyana are not endowed with the political culture and philosophical values that would make them transformative leaders. I hope I am wrong. I would like to be wrong. But I am not wrong.

Frederick Kissoon

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Scottish leader Sturgeon says Cameron a threat to UK's place in Europe

Scotland's First Minister and leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) Nicola Sturgeon acknowledges delegates at the party's annual conference in Aberdeen, Scotland, yesterday. REUTERS/RUSSELL CHEYNE

Reuters - Scottish leader Nicola Sturgeon told British Prime Minister David Cameron yesterday Scotland alone would decide whether to become an independent country, seeking to build support for her nationalist party ahead of a possible future independence bid.

Sturgeon used her Scottish National Party's (SNP) annual conference to send two stark messages to Cameron's London-based Conservative government: don't deny Scotland a second independence referendum if it wants one and don't take Britain out of the European Union.

"The prime minister's attitude to Scotland betrays the worst characteristics of this government - arrogant, patrician and out of touch," First Minister Sturgeon told party activists.

"It is not you (Cameron) who will decide the future of Scotland, it will be the people of Scotland who decide the future of our country," said Sturgeon, 45, who is known affectionately as just 'Nicola' among party supporters.

Scots rejected independence by 55 percent to 45 percent in a referendum in September 2014 but the popularity of the SNP, whose long-

term aim remains an independent state, has since surged.

Cameron has said he considers the issue settled and is focused on devolving new policymaking powers to Scotland. But Scottish nationalists are hoping that a shift in public opinion will, in the long term, force him to reopen the debate.

Although not among the topics debated on the podium at the Aberdeen conference, independence, and the question of how and when a second referendum could be held, has bubbled just beneath the surface during the event.

"The second referendum... that's the pinnacle of what's going on here, everything else is just domestic stuff," said Robert Wilson, 77, a party supporter for the last 50 years.

"I'll go away from this with the message that we've got a lot of convincing to do of other people."

That view, shared by other conference delegates interviewed by Reuters, reflects Sturgeon's efforts to refocus the party on the n e e d t o c o n solidate its powerbase in elections for the Scottish parliament due next May. "There are no shortcuts,"

she said. "We must ... persuade a majority of Scots of what we already know to be true. Independence is the best future for Scotland."

Sturgeon, who has won a reputation as a wily and often fierce political opponent, criticised Cameron over his plans to renegotiate the terms of Britain's EU membership.

"We despair at the failure of leadership of a prime minister pandering to Eurosceptics in his party, but unable to articulate clearly and precisely what it is he is seeking to renegotiate," Sturgeon said.

Cameron's renegotiation and referendum strategy is designed to address divisions among Conservatives as well as rising Euroscepticism in the party's powerbase in England.

Last week, Cameron sought to defuse the frustration of fellow EU leaders over a lack of detail in his renegotiation demands by promising to send them a list of proposals in writing in early November.

"David Cameron might play fast and loose with our place in Europe, but be in no doubt - the SNP will campaign positively for Scotland, and the UK, to stay in the European Union," she said.

BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel pressed Ukraine yesterday to tackle corruption and roll back the influence of oligarchs, saying German businesses are ready to invest there if the right conditions are in place.

Merkel made her remarks ahead of a visit to Berlin by Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk next Friday, when the two leaders are due to open a German-Ukrainian economic conference at which investment opportuni-

ties will be explored.

Praising Ukraine for being on a "courageous path", Merkel said the country still had a lot to do to attract business and needed to put the right legal framework in place.

"The dominant role of the oligarchs needs to be reversed, people need to be given transparency, corruption must be fought," she said in a podcast.

Merkel added that she did not see Russia's supply of natural gas to Ukraine as be-

ing threatened.

On Thursday, Merkel said she saw a "glimmer of hope" for a political solution to the Ukraine crisis, but insisted sanctions against Russia could be rolled back only once the Minsk peace plan was fully implemented.

The European Union and United States have imposed sanctions against Russia because of its annexation of Crimea and its support for separatist rebels in Ukraine's eastern regions.

Merkel offers German investment if Ukraine tackles corruption

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Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

Moscow protest against Russia role in Syria

Russian demonstrators hold an anti-war rally in central Moscow, yesterday. (AFP Photo/Vasily Maximov)

Moscow (AFP) - Around 200 people demonstrated in Moscow yesterday against Russia's campaign of air strikes in Syria, with one protester arrested by police.

The rally by people mainly in their 50s and 60s in a small central park passed off amid tight security as the authorities threw up a strong security cordon.

The demonstrators oppose Moscow's decision to carry out air strikes which began targeting assorted Syrian rebel groups on September 30.

One opposition party,

Solidarnost, had called for a protest -- but the majority of those who showed up wore pacifist badges rather than any suggesting political allegiance.

Less than an hour into the demonstration, police arrested a woman waving a banner reading "Putin assassin, don't bring shame on Russia," and bundled her into a van.

Police then blocked access to the site to prevent more people joining, but despite their efforts, protesters continued to chant slogans against the military interven-

tion as well as against corruption in Russia.

Some brandished banners promising to visit "hell upon those who bomb in the name of peace."

Organiser Svetlana Kravietz, 42, told AFP that "war is not what we need in our country -- we already have many problems to solve.

We are going through a serious economic crisis."

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said yesterday that Russia is fighting for its national interests in Syria, not for President Bashar al-Assad.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Pradoville Two deal…

Page 9

Dem boys seh...

SARU requests Public Security Brassington tasting Ministry to investigate criminal aspects nuff bitterness

The State Asset Recovery Unit (SARU) over the weekend, made a formal request to the Ministry of Public Security to investigate the criminal aspect of the Pradoville Two deal.

Earlier this week, SARU completed a report which stated, that in 2010, the Bharrat Jagdeo Cabinet made a decision authorizing the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) to privatize state lands. NICIL is the body tasked with overseeing the privatization of state assets.

It reportedly spent more than $200M to develop the sea front community without the knowledge and blessings of the National Assembly and other relevant bodies.

The said lands were then secretly sold to the former Ministers and known friends and associates of the previous regime. At the time of the sale, the report said, the lands were grossly undervalued and sold at a price substantially below the market value thereby depriving the state of its full benefits.

SARU said, “There is a direct link between the misconduct and the abuse of powers and duties of their position. The former Cabinet members knew they were doing a wrong in transferring state lands into their names and that of their acquaintances for undervalued market prices for the land. The lands were sold for $114 per square foot at the time.”

“Public officers ought to carry out their duties not for the benefit of themselves but for the benefit of the public as a whole. If they neglect or misconduct themselves by their actions in the course of

SARU Head, Dr. Clive Thomas

Public Security Minister, Khemraj Ramjattan

their duties this may lead to a breach or abuse of the public’s trust. The act of the Cabinet members for their benefit is serious enough to amount to an abuse of the public’s trust.”

In a letter addressed to Public Security Minister, Khemraj Ramjattan, SARU said that based on its findings, it is requesting that Ramjattan’s Office proceed to further investigate unlawful aspects of this matter, with the aim of establishing whether criminal action should be instituted.

“It is the duty of this Unit in the Ministry of the Presidency to ensure that no Minister of Government in Guyana would be the beneficiary from any acts of misconduct or unlawful conduct while being holders of Public Office.”

SARU also informed the Public Security Minister that it has also forwarded its report to the Attorney General (AG) and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams, along with a copy of a Legal Opinion on the potential misconduct in Public Office by the former Ministers.

The document on the Legal Opinion says that there is legal scope for the argument of willful neglect by the former ministers in performing their duties without reasonable excuse or facilitation to an extent amounting to an abuse of the public trust.

Further, based on the Cases cited, the document outlines that the Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, has Legal Standing on this matter.

Once sufficient

information and evidence is gathered by his Chambers, Williams has said that a civil action against the former Cabinet Ministers will be instituted. He had explained to the media that former President Bharrat Jagdeo could face prosecution.

The AG argued that Jagdeo may be immune from prosecution for certain decisions he may have taken as President, provided these were legal actions.

Misappropriating state lands may not be within his purview, Williams said.

“The (Pradoville Two) matter however, also raises the question of potential unlawful conduct. A case in point: two former Ministers (Priya Manickchand and Robert M. Persaud) bought lands and resold them at $100 million and $90 million respectively, which is well over fifty times the price they paid for the said lands, in a space of three and four years r e s p e c t i v e l y , notwithstanding the following limitation Clause in the Agreement of Sale,” the Unit informed the Minister.

The Clause being referred to states, “The transferee shall not be at liberty to sell, lease, transfer or part possession of the said property within ten years of Continued on page 64

When dem boys would talk about jail picking some people and dem name Jagdeo and Brassington and Babbie, people use to think is joke. But dem boys did know something that nuff people didn’t know.

De same Brassington did carry some of dem reporters pun a tour of de Marriott and after de walkabout he allow dem to ask he some questions. Uncle Adam been deh and he ask Brassington wha gun happen when de Pee Pee Pee lose de elections. He stammer then he tun to Kit who been next to him. Kit whisper that it ain’t gun happen.

Well he and Kit telephoning one another ever since May. When Kit call him Friday Brassington couldn’t answer de phone because he cry till he choke. Clive Thomas done send de recommendation to charge Brassington.

And Brassington know. From de time he hear he start searching fuh lawyers. Wid lawyers a dime a dozen, everybody would expect that Brassington gun find nuff lawyer to represent him. Dem and Brassington wrong. Some of dem don’t want de case because dem believe that people gun hate dem and that gun cost dem cases in de future.

Some lawyers wouldn’t tek de case because dem seh that dem want to see Brassingon in Jail. In fact, dem seh that dem would prosecute de case if de government can’t find a good prosecutor. But dem got one lawyer who might tek de case because he want to spend Brassington money in de same way Brassington use to spend de taxpayers money.

This lawyer seh that Brassington can’t seh that he ain’t got money. And he can’t expect de Chat-3 gun tek de case because he is a man who gone back to hustling. He don’t mek joke when it come to money.

And de way things heading it look like Brassington intend to drag some people wid him. Marcie who was he woman in business now looking fuh lawyer because she believe that Brassington gun want to see company when he facing de judge and de magistrate.

What is sweet in thy mouth does be bitter in you tail.

Brassington got a lot of bitterness to taste not only because he got a big tail but because he enjoy de sweet and he think he woulda enjoy all de sweet all de time.

Talk half and watch how Brassington gun now lose weight.

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Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

Motorcycle thieves captured on CCTV footage Having secured the CCTV footage from the Demerara Harbour Bridge, the Guyana Police Force is now on the hunt for two suspected motorcycles thieves.

The two men reportedly visited a Schoonord, West Bank Demerara, man’s home while he was away at work on Monday last, having left his motorcycle in his yard.

The man who asked that his identify be withheld, told this publication that on Monday last when he returned home around noon, he discovered his motorcycle missing. Its ignition switch had been dislodged and left lying on the ground.

He told Kaieteur News that when he discovered that the bike was missing, he enquired of his neighbour.

The neighbour, he said, informed him that there were indeed two men in the yard doing something with the motorcycle.

The man said that his neighbour told him that he was under the impression that it was a mechanic sent to repair the motorcycle.

This was not the case as the men allegedly ‘hotwired’ the motorcycle and made off with it.

Both men reportedly went to the Schoonord WBD residence on one motorcycle with one of the thieves as a pillion rider.

The man said that after he realized what had transpired, he immediately made a report to La Grange Police Station after which he went to the DHB authorities to seek if he could obtain the CCTV footage which he did.

In the CCTV footage the men were observed crossing the Demerara Harbour Bridge heading towards the West Bank, while on a motorcycle with no number plates but on

The suspected thief while escaping with the motorcycle

The accomplice

the return trip they were using separate motorcycles including the stolen one.

This has since been turned over to the police to assist with their investigations.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 11

Bushy Park tragedy…

Eyewitness refutes mother’s story A woman, who claimed that she witnessed the drowning of 14-year-old Charles Anthony Pross, at Bushy Park, East Bank Essequibo, two Sundays ago, is refuting the story that is being narrated by the teen’s mother.

Pross, of Lot 676 La Parfaite Harmonie, West Bank Demerara (WBD) died around 16:30 hrs.

According to reports, the teenager and his relatives had gone on a family outing at a resort in Bushy Park, Parika when he was spotted in the water. He eventually succumbed at the Leonora Cottage Hospital.

His mother, Shellon Henry, claimed that when her son’s body was pulled from the trench, his feet were tied together with twine.

Also, the mother stated that she believes that “strange happening” was responsible for her son’s death. She alleged that the teenager was sacrificed.

However, the eyewitness said that she and her relatives were at the resort when Pross drowned.

While his mother claimed that the teenager was nowhere near the water, the eyewitness said that the teen was swimming with some other children and the adults were consuming what looked like alcoholic beverages under a benab.

“He was swimming but like he plunged and hit his head on a rock and fell into the water and the current was heavy and pushed him further into the ocean,” the eyewitness claimed.

Recently released prisoner burns house after gun disappears A recently released prisoner early yesterday set a house on fire in ‘D’ Field Sophia and stood in front of the yard with a gun in his hand, threatening to shoot if neighbours tried to extinguish the blaze.

According to police, a man had hid two weapons in his girlfriend’s yard. When he went back to collect his guns, he observed that one of the guns was missing.

He confronted his girlfriend and when she failed to tell him where the weapon was, he allegedly dealt her a sound thrashing and threatened to burn her house if the gun wasn’t returned.

It is alleged that around 01:00 hour yesterday, the man went to the property and set the house on fire.

There were reports that the man’s girlfriend was inside the house when it burnt to ashes but upon further investigation by police and firefighters, it was revealed that no one was in the building when it burnt.

Since the fire, the man and the woman have disappeared.

Kaieteur News was told that when neighbours called the ranks at the Turkeyen Police Station, the police were reportedly scared to go to the scene. They waited on backup from Sparendaam Police Station.

A police source told this newspaper that the ex-prisoner has threatened to burn other buildings if his weapon is not returned. The residents were given up to last night to return the weapon.

A police source confirmed that ranks are monitoring the

situation. It is alleged, too, that the ex-prisoner had previously torched the house.

She alleged that while she did not see when Pross hit his head, when it happened, his smaller sibling ran and informed his relatives but they did not pay much attention to what the child was saying.

“They knew he could swim so they didn’t pay attention to what the little boy was saying. It was a lady who come and say that a boy drowned. But when we run to see, we didn’t see anything so we thought it was a prank,” the woman said.

She further claimed that

after a while, when Pross’ relatives realized that he was missing, they began searching for him.

“There were two men standing on a rock catching fish and when they threw their rods, it hooked on the boy’s pants and when they pulled, it was the boy,” the woman stated.

She claimed that the teen’s feet were not tied but instead, the twine from the fishing rod was hanging from his pants.

According to the woman,

people at the resort did their best to save the child. She said that based on what she witnessed there was no foul play in his death, that it was simply a drowning case.

“His mother said that they were the only ones who paid for the benab and to use the washroom but everyone had to pay, including us. It is a resort and that is how the people make their money,” the woman claimed.

A Port Mortem into the teen’s death revealed that he died by drowning.

Dead: Charles Anthony Pross

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Kaieteur News

Government to initiate Styrofoam ban from January Government, in its thrust to promote a green economy and environment, is moving ahead with plans to ban the importation and use of closedcell extruded polystyrene foam, popularly known by the trade mark brand, Styrofoam, as of January 1, 2016.

The Department of Natural Resources and the Environment has begun implementing a series of measures to address waste management and to promote the utilisation of biodegradable materials. The proposed Expanded Polystyrene Ban Regulation is being finalised before the effective date to ensure the ban is legally reinforced.

Cabinet has already granted approval for the immediate development of a legal framework to implement the ban on the importation and use of polystyrene foam products, as well as a public awareness programme to educate the public on the consequences of its usage and the benefits of the alternatives.

This decision follows a series of consultations, which were held previously with industry operators, importers and other key stakeholders.

However, more consultative

sessions are planned for the duration of the year, before the ban fully takes effect in January.

It is hoped that this initiative will see a significant reduction in the effects of polystyrene foam products on solid waste management in Guyana and its negative impact on the environment, while leading to the further development of new enterprises in the alternatives sector. With the ban, Guyana will become one of few countries in the world to ban the product.

In Guyana, polystyrene foam makes up about five

percent of the waste stream and is most popularly used in the food service industry. The improper disposal of the single use item has been, and remains a threat to human health and the wider environment, incurring clean up and disposal costs amounting to millions of dollars, a cost borne by the taxpaying public.

The Department of Natural Resources and the Environment will be collaborating with the Ministries of Business, Legal Affairs, and Finance via the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), to implement the ban.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Venezuela agrees to take “cheaper” Suriname rice Venezuela has signaled intentions to take excess rice from neighbouring Suriname, putting a dent on any hopes that Guyana may have had about reviving an oil-for-rice deal.

Suriname media reported yesterday that the Venezuelan leader, Nicolas Maduro, during a visit there on Friday, spoke to President Desi Bouterse about the possibilities of taking some rice.

The rice silos in Nickerie are reportedly full and Bouterse has asked Venezuela to take off some.

The commitment is one of the concrete outcomes of the meeting Friday.

“We have decided to deepen trade relations and will intensify the implementation of the rice agreement,” Maduro said at a news conference Friday.

Venezuela is a major rice market, stressed Bouterse. ”The foreign ministers have an explicit mandate to deepen trade relations and to ensure the import of rice from Suriname,” he added.

President Bouterse noted that it is irrelevant whether Suriname can cover the total rice requirement of Caracas.

“What we have…we should try to sell it.”

Similar to Guyana, Suriname would be hoping that Venezuela

would pay for the rice under the PetroCaribe arrangements.

That decade-old arrangement had been seeing Venezuela supplying oil on concessional terms to states around the region. The countries are required to pay a percentage of the monies owed on the oil upfront. In Guyana’s case, for over five years now farmers and millers have been supplying rice with the monies owed to Venezuela for oil discounted.

But Venezuela has not signaled any intentions to renew the deal with Guyana when it expires at the end of November.

The two countries are at odds over a revived claim by Venezuela of Essequibo and sections of the maritime areas under Guyana’s control.

Already Guyana has eased on taking oil under the Petro Caribe arrangements from Venezuela and is now receiving supplies from Trinidad and Tobago.

Guyana is now actively seeking new markets but with harvesting ongoing for the last crop, there is real worry about the excess rice.

Rice has been the biggest foreign currency earner for Guyana within the last year after gold slipped from world prices.

The Venezuelan rice market this year itself has not been

without troubles.

More than 800 containers of rice have been stuck at the congested wharves there.

Guyana may still have some shipments remaining from this year’s quota.

Under this year’s agreement, some 120,000 metric tonnes (Mt) of paddy along with 84,000 Mt of white rice have to be supplied to Venezuela. The deal was worth around US$113M. But the Government of Guyana is resigning itself to the fact that the rice deal with Venezuela may be over, especially with the Suriname arrangement that is now more than likely to be in place.

Reportedly, Suriname is agreeing to take half of what Guyana was getting for the rice and paddy shipments.

Venezuela itself is facing food shortages with Maduro’s refusal to renew the deal seen as placing pressure on the recently sworn-in administration of President David Granger.

Both Guyana and Venezuela have agreed for the United Nations to intervene in helping to resolve the border controversy.

Already a technical assessment team from the UN has visited both countries and will be returning next month for more talks.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 13

GTUC calls for systematic and structural change to refine Public Service General Secretary of the Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC), Lincoln Lewis, has made several recommendations to the Commission of Inquiry, into the Public Service for the overall improvement of the sector.

In a written presentation, to the Commission on Thursday, Lewis recommended a number of systematic and structural changes to optimise public sector performance.

Outlining there should be distinct variances between the various sectors, the GTUC head noted the Public Sector has a regulatory and managerial role which public servants are expected to deliver within the laws, using check and balances and cannot be equated to the private or a n y o t h e r s e c t o r, s i n c e they have a special role on many occasion to conduct the State’s business.

In this regard, Lewis asserted that ensuring efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of such service do not require privatisation; what is required is revisiting an examination of the present structure and putting systems in place to optimise performance.

Currently, there exists a skewed political position in favour of the private sector. This is evident in the establishment of a Ministry of Business, and

...increase to Government ministers/ parliamentarians can be barometer for public servants wages

GTUC General Secretary, Lincoln Lewis the removal of Ministries that specifically attended to the Public Service and Cooperatives.

Lewis also suggested that the commission recommends that the process of collective bargaining commence and the recent increase to Government ministers and parliamentarians be used as the barometer to arrive at a Wage Package for public sector employees.

The dismantling of the Wages Policy in the public sector must be revisited by way of introducing a Comprehensive Job Evaluation, which will determine the content of the job and the remuneration it deserves, Lewis also requested that attention be paid to the workers’ fundamental rights and freedoms.

“GTUC is mindful of

pronouncements made by government officials that this commission is vested with the authority to address wages and salaries, and also by trade union leaders that this commission will be given a proposal on wages and salary increases.

“This is not within the remit of the power of the commission to do so and the commission is urged to address this matter, consistent with the law.”

Speaking specifically on institutional strengthening and appointments, the GTUC representative called for immediate appointments of constitutional bodies that impact on the functioning and delivery of quality public service and the upholding of professionalism and integrity in the service.

He noted that GTUC requires the appointment of Public Service Appellate Tribunal and the Integrity Commission.

Lewis said that “GTUC desires strengthening of the Office of the Ombudsman by way of law and other resources in order that this institution can be given the requisite teeth to deliver to workers and citizens who may not be covered under the trade unions or want to have access to this service.

He held that the appointment of the tribunal is important not only because it is enshrined in the constitution, but moreso because of the spirit and intent that led to its establishment.

“This institution is tasked with the responsibility of addressing grievances within the public service and its employees. This is important to ensuring an environment that is just and fair where workers can operate under the circumstances where they

are assured that justice will always prevail.”

GTUC sees the establishment of an Industrial Tribunal/Court as important to expediting grievances and impasse between unions and employers, which is hinged to a stable industrial environment.

Lewis also made extensive presentations on improving the working conditions, remuneration, job availability, contracts and healthcare benefits within the public sector

He noted that GTUC is encouraged by the Government of Guyana’s expressed desire and commitment for an improved Public Service.

“It is evident in this Commission of Inquiry into the Public Service, which signals the first step in the right direction. From this backdrop GTUC urges this commission in its work to pay due diligence to this n a t i o n ’s c u l t u r a l a n d economic circumstances, and more so ensure that the Laws of Guyana are upheld as are the fundamental rights,” Lewis stated.

Page 14

Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

Mining responsible for 87 per cent of deforestation in 2014 Mining in recent years has served as a major boon to the Guyana economy but it is also being recognized as one of the country’s main contributors to its deforestation rate.

This is according to the Guyana REDD+ Monitoring Reporting & Verification System (MRVS) Year Five Report, which pegs mining as being responsible for 87 per cent of the nation’s deforestation last year.

The report was prepared as a result of the Memorandum of Understanding (M0U) signed between the Guyana

Government and the Kingdom of Norway, to keep its forest standing in exchange for some US$250M. The country’s overall performance has been creditable and as such it is on track to secure another tranche of the monies agreed to under the Low Carbon Development Strategy and the Guyana Agreement with the Kingdom of Norway.

According to the Report, the area of forest degraded in 2014 was just about 4,231 hectares which is a slight decrease from 4,352 hectares (ha) as reported in the previous year.

“It was pointed out that

the fluctuation in areas mapped as degraded does not track with the associated deforested area…It is thought this is due to significant areas near mining sites being degraded in initial activities and then deforested once the site is fully operational.”

On the 87 per cent deforestation rate in all degradation mapped it was found that “this is expected as mining also accounts for the largest area of deforestation.”

The Report found, too, that the established trend is that forest degradation impacts are largely detected

…but Guyana on track to receive more Norway money

An example of a local mining operation. around mining areas.

The remaining contributors to degradation are from fire (6%) and newly established (pioneer) shifting agriculture areas (4%).

Infrastructure and forestry related activities such as degradation during road formation contribute approximately one per cent each to total year 5 degradation.

According to the 2014 Report, during the mapping process, areas of historical degradation are revisited and the review checks for any changes in the forest cover

and for any expansion.

The monitoring process identified that more than 300 hectares had been deforested during the Year 5 reporting period.

The changes recorded, all occur around existing mining areas, according to the Report. It was pointed out that initial evidence suggests that forest areas are degraded during the initial activities.

“If the areas are fully operationalised then it is probable that these areas recover…Alternatively, if mining proceeds, the areas are converted to

deforestation.”

The results of the yearfive report will be further vetted by an independent third party before any monies can be paid over for use by the Guyana government from Norway.

The MRVs reports on forest change, both deforestation and degradation, by change driver through the interpretation of a national coverage of high resolution imagery.

The same dataset has also been used to improve the Continued on page 64

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 15

Workers protest dictatorial practices at Lusignan Gold Club A group of angry former employees of the Lusignan Golf Club are in consultations with their attorneys following their involuntary removal from the entity.

The workers, some of whom were fired and others who decided to walk are blaming their woes on a top executive member of the club, Omcar Ramroop, who they accuse of operating in an undemocratic and insulting manner.

They also claim that the executive member’s appointment to his current post at the club is unconstitutional and are eagerly anticipating the next election of office bearers.

Among the workers affected are a supervisor, the club’s barman, a grounds man and a senior cook at the canteen.

Their absence has left the club in a spot of bother, with patrons and other club members being slightly inconvenienced.

Speaking to this newspaper, one of the employees described the executive member as more than a dictator who is making the mistake of micromanaging the club.

The employee explained that the executive member has taken it upon himself to be the sole checker of financial transactions at the club without any other person to cross check after he is done.

He is also being accused of arbitrarily breaking the

credit rules of the club in favour of friends.

“He is deciding by himself who to go after and who we must allow to go over their (credit) limit, and when we object, we are being verbally abused,” one of the affected employees told this newspaper.

The Lusignan Golf Club which is the only such facility in Guyana caters to top business executives, such as bankers and CEOs as well as members of the diplomatic corps.

Another worker who said that she “could not take the pressure anymore” complained of being belittled in the presence of club members and their guests.

“The Ministry of labour should look into this situation because the persons who he took over from never treated us like this,” the former kitchen staff lamented.

But not everyone sees the executive member in the same light the employees are portraying him.

Former Club President Jerome Khan told this newspaper that he is surprised that the employees would make such allegations against Ramroop.

According to Khan, Ramroop does not strike him as a person who would engage in such behaviour.

The former President however noted that since he left the club’s executive committee a few years ago for personal reasons, the entity

has been mired in controversy.

He acknowledged that most of the current executive were not elected but were merely appointed, which he hinted was unconstitutional.

This confirms the

concerns of the workers about Ramroop’s position.

But according to Khan, there appears to be something sinister in the making since he said that Ramroop has been

instrumental in bringing some level of transparency with regard to the functioning of the Lusignan Golf Club.

Nevertheless, the workers are calling for a full audit of the club and they are also

appealing to the labour ministry to look into the labour practices there too.

“This man has employed some teenagers to work there,” an aggrieved worker lamented.

Page 16

Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

Open Bible Church hosts successful health, financial fair Churches are well known for being a spiritual sanctuary to many and for the education they provide. But yesterday, for the Guyana Open Bible Church, it was all about healthy bodies.

The Guyana Open Bible Church is the only of its kind in Guyana. It is a branch of the Open Bible Standard Churches in Trinidad.

The spiritual body in collaboration with The

Region Three Health and Wellness Club hosted a Health Fair at the church’s Lamaha and Oronoque Streets, Georgetown location.

Many persons from in and around the community

From L to R: Dr. Delroy Pile, Dr. Adrian Ali, Dr. Penelope McCallum, Dr. Baldeo Singh, Dr. Shazeema Shaw, Dr. Nigel Alexander, Dr. Kezia Gordon, Dr. Whitney Monroe and Dr. Erron Ramdass. assembled at the church to take advantage of free blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose testing. They were also various booths set up which allowed persons to check their Body Mass Index (BMI), have HIV testing and counseling, screening for breast and cervical cancer. In addition, there was a blood drive.

There was a special section which allowed persons to speak with doctors about health problems they were experiencing.

Eight doctors - two Trinidadian and six Guyanese were on board delivering exemplary health services.

The doctors along with several medical technicians and counselors made yesterday’s event a success.

Apart from the health

aspect of the fair, persons received free financial advice from Republic Bank’s staff.

Legal advice and career guidance services were also offered from various personnel. The event was coordinated by Trinidadian Doctor, Erron Ramdass.

In an interview with Kaieteur News Dr. Ramdass said that the church wanted to give back to the community. He explained that he is a member of the church and has been doing charitable and missionary works through the spiritual body.

“We (the church) try to reach out to the community in sporting activities and health,” said Dr. Ramdass as he pointed out that several corporate entities also contributed to the event.

“Republic Bank is here

and they are giving financial advice to the community free of charge. They are offering advice in terms of loans…”

The University of the West Indies trained doctor said that the fair was also aimed at promoting healthy eating and the church.

Adrian Ali, another Trinidadian doctor, shared similar sentiments to that of Dr. Ramdass. According to him, he sees the initiative as the church being a centre that can offer services to the community whether it be in health, advice on fitness and financial decisions. Dr. Ali has been practicing in the profession for the past two years.

Meanwhile, Dr. Penelopey McCallum, a Cuban trained Guyanese doctor related that she was very pleased to be a part of the event. She noted that it is a great feeling giving back to her fellow Guyanese.

Dr. McCallum, continued, “I personally love to give and serve. This is a good thing for me to give back to the Guyanese people. In Cuba, it was the tax payer’s dollars that paid our stipend and everything else.”

She disclosed that she enjoys serving the people and is actively involved in outreaches organized by the Health and Wellness Club.

Dr. McCallum is attached to the National Care and Treatment Programame (NCTP). She works mainly with persons living with HIV/ AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.

Reverend of the Guyana Open Bible Church, Sandra Rousseau, said that the event was well attended. When questioned on her personal take on the health fair, the spiritual leader expressed, “It’s a fulfilling feeling”.

Rev. Rousseau has been conducting religious worship and performing other function at the church for close to four months.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 25

What really is sickle cell anemia?

By Dr. Zulfikar Bux Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine Life with sickle cell anemia is literally very painful and debilitating. It is a lifelong condition and is more common in Guyana than we may think.

Being undiagnosed with sickle cell anemia leads to unexplained repeated bouts of illness than can leave those affected by it in a conundrum. Knowing about this disorder is an important step in ensuring it is diagnosed because appropriate treatment will improve quality of life with sickle cell anemia.

What is sickle cell anemia?

Sickle cell anemia, also called sickle cell disease, is a condition that affects the red blood cells. The red blood cells carry oxygen to organs in the body. Normal red blood cells are round.

When people have sickle cell anemia, some of their red blood cells can have an abnormal shape. They look like a crescent (or an old-time tool called a “sickle”). The abnormal red blood cells get stuck in the blood vessels easily, and so they don’t bring enough oxygen to the body’s organs. This can cause pain or organ damage.

Sickle cell anemia is a lifelong condition that people are born with. It is caused by an abnormal gene. To get the

disease, people need to get the abnormal gene from both their mother and father. If people get the abnormal gene from only one parent, it’s called “sickle cell trait.”

People with sickle cell trait do not usually have any of the symptoms of sickle cell anemia. Patients with sickle cell anemia tend to have a life based around regular hospitalizations for treatment of the many different complications that can arise with this illness. Their lives are shortened and sadly they rarely live past the 5th decade of life.

What are the symptoms of sickle cell anemia?

Symptoms usually start after a baby is a few months old. Most commonly, people

This dry weather is not helping the cause of careless people. Fires will continue to spring up, especially in areas where people indulge in burning whatever they do.

In one case the embers from a fire that the starter thought he had put out would threaten a house. This would send the Guyana Fire Service racing to the scene but fortunately, people would be able to access water and save the day. ** It is rather monotonous to keep warning about the same thing. People have been using the roads all

with sickle cell anemia have episodes of pain. Some doctors use the term “sickle cell crisis.” The pain can be in the bones, chest, or other parts of the body. It can be mild or severe, and last hours to days. People can have other symptoms with their pain, including: Fever, Swelling (for example, in the hands or feet) and Trouble breathing normally.

Most episodes of pain just happen because of the abnormal red blood cells, and can’t be predicted. But sometimes, the pain can be related to other things, such as: Infection – People with sickle cell anemia are more likely than others to get certain infections; Dehydration – Dehydration is

their lives but for some reason they go haywire sometimes. One of these lapses would result in the death of two people during the coming week.

Speed and carelessness would cause a crash initiated by an escaping criminal. ** The police are going to solve an age old murder because they would arrest the killer soon after he returns from a neighbouring country.

The man is going to believe that because his appearance has changed somewhat he would be in the clear.

when the body loses too much water; Weather or air conditions; Travel to highaltitude places – These are places where there is less oxygen in the air, such as mountains. Flying in an airplane might also cause symptoms for people with sickle cell anemia.

Sickle cell anemia can also cause many different health

problems, including: Anemia – Anemia is a condition in which the body has too few red blood cells. It makes people tired or weak; Getting a lot of infections; Lung problems – Symptoms can include trouble breathing or chest pain; Strokes – A stroke is when a part of the brain dies because it goes without blood for too long; Open sores on the skin (usually on the legs); An erection that lasts too long and is very painful (in men).

Who’s at risk?

Sickle cell anemia is an inherited illness and is more common in certain ethnic groups, including: · People of African descent, including AfricanAmericans (among whom 1 in 12 carries a sickle cell gene) · Hispanic-Americans from Central and South America · People of Middle Eastern, Asian, Indian, and Mediterranean descent Is there a test for sickle cell anemia?

A blood test can show if

Dr. Zulfikar Bux someone has sickle cell anemia. Some parents choose to test their unborn baby for sickle cell anemia. The most common test done is called Hb Electrophoresis and will tell if you have the abnormal red blood cells associated with sickle cell anemia.

Because sickle cell anemia is one of the most common blood disorders, every newborn in the US is tested for it.

Babies with unexplained recurrent illnesses should be tested for sickle cell anemia in our setting. Life with sickle cell anemia can be a bit easier if it is diagnosed.

Page 26

Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

Ballad of the sad-eyed waitress

By Michael Jordan There always seemed to be a touch of mystery and sadness in her eyes, and looking at her standing behind the counter of the Chinese restaurant I sometimes visited, I sometimes wondered what her story was.

I never knew that I would write Debra Blackman’s story one day, and that it would be such a tragic one, and that it would be intertwined with the stories of two other waitresses.

The first victim was Kulmattie Singh. Friends called her ‘Cathy’, and misfortune seemed to follow her.

Her first husband, with whom she had a son, was killed in an electrical accident. She remarried, had three other children, and separated.

With four children to take care of, the 36-year-old mother took a job as a waitress at a Kitty night-spot.

When Kulmattie’s mother expressed concern for her daughter’s safety, the waitress would reply: “Who would give me the money to take care of my children?”

On Friday, January 8, 2010, Kulmattie Singh left her home in North East Cummings Lodge, East Coast Demerara, to work the night shift at the Safraz Sports Bar in David Street, Kitty. She arrived at around 15:00 hrs and was scheduled to work until morning.

At around ten o’clock, night club patron John Ramdhan was sitting with his wife, Andrea, and about five other friends, including some from England, when he saw a man enter the premises. ”Nobody move!” the man shouted. Just someone pulling a prank, Ramdhan thought.

But then the visitor pulled out a handgun. Two other men, also brandishing handguns joined him. Shorty after,

Jagwandai Ramnauth the gunfire started.

Ramdhan saw a Caucasian man, later identified as 36-year-old Australian Jason Montgomery, kneeling on the ground and crying out in pain.

He had taken a bullet to the chest. The gunmen also shot patron Ronald Dhanraj, called ‘Lar’, under the arm.

The first gunman then went over to Ramdhan and relieved him of a gold chain and $60,000.

Ramdhan’s wife was also relieved of a diamond ring and cell phone. The terrified couple then fled to a nearby washroom. Others managed to flee to the back of the sports bar.

Going further into the nightclub, the bandits also relieved the bartender of the day’s sales.

Police would later say that waitress Kulmattie Singh was trying to lead some patrons to a room at the back of the bar when one of the gunmen shot her in the head. The gunmen reportedly fled in a goldcoloured car.

Kulmattie was pronounced dead on arrival at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation.

Although a closed circuit monitor at the sports bar recorded the brazen attack, police officials said that the poor quality of the images made it practically impossible for in-

Kulmattie Singh

Debra Blackman

vestigators to identify the three gunmen behind the rampage.

Later, police would discover that a 9mm bullet casing retrieved from the scene matched a spent shell that detectives had recovered from an execution-style killing in Alberttown on the night of January 12, 2010.

The victim was 29-yearold Nicholas Hoyte called ‘Ziah’. Hoyte, sitting in a car, was riddled with bullets by the occupants of a white Toyota Carina AT 192. His killers were never caught.

Kulmattie Singh’s family received $50,000 from the sports bar proprietor. They got nothing more.

ASIMPLE HIT; A COMPLEX STORY It was a hit…plain and simple. That’s what the man I met last week said about waitress Jagwandai Ramnauth.

Turns out the story behind her death wasn’t quite that simple.

You don’t often hear about a barmaid owning and selling property. But that was the case with 46-year-old Jagwandai Ramnauth.

They called her ‘Selena’ and she worked as a waitress at the Country Club Restaurant and Bar in Chateau Margot, East Coast Demerara.

It was said that the Bath Settlement, Berbice resident also served as cook and manned the night spot whenever her employer was not around.

Most of the other staff of the failing business had reportedly quit due to non-payment of salaries.

What happened on the night of Wednesday, April 23, 2014, is still unclear. It is alleged that at around 10.00 p.m., Jagwandai Ramnauth was involved in an argument with some patrons when one of them pulled out a firearm and shot her in the head. He then escaped.

According to reports, the

owner was not at the bar when his waitress was shot.

He reportedly told investigators that he received a call shortly before 11.00 p.m. from a worker, who said that the barmaid had a “problem” with some people.

According to police sources, the owner claimed that he immediately went to the bar and found Ramnauth lying in a pool of blood behind the counter with a bullet wound to her forehead.

Police immediately ruled out robbery and it didn’t take them long to come up with possible motives.

They learned that sometime in 2005, Ramnauth sold a property for $6M to a Cummings Lodge resident. It is alleged that the man gave Ramnauth $300,000, moved into the property, but then failed to complete the transaction. Ramnauth took the man to court.

But according to another report, after collecting the down-payment, Ramnauth sold the property to another man. The new owner allegedly began making attempts to evict the original buyer and his family.

Detectives were also told Ramnauth had loaned her employer $500,000, but that the man had not repaid the loan. There are also reports that hours before her death, the barmaid and her boss had quarreled after she threatened to quit her job due to months of unpaid salary. This information led detectives to detain the manager and two of his brothers. They were all subsequently released. ”We were working on the theory that she sold a property to a man, and he only paid part of the sum. The theory was that he put a hit on her,” a police official told me this week about the unsolved case. “We were unable to identify the shooter.”

THE SAD-EYED WAITRESS I first saw Debra Blackman around 2002, when she was working at a Chinese Restaurant, located a short distance from Kaieteur News.

Maybe it was the satinbrown skin, or the hint of sad-

Face of a killer: A closed circuit image of the man who shot Debra Blackman (gunman) ness and allure in her eyes, that reminded me of the actresses who played those femme fatale roles in old black and white movies.

In reality, Debra Blackman was just a hard-working, struggling mother.

At around 8.00 p.m. on Saturday, August 22, 2014, one of my contacts called to say that a waitress had been shot dead in the Delicious Restaurant, located in D’Urban Street, between Haley and Hardina Strets.

The next day, there was my sad-eyed friend staring out of me from under the newspaper headline: ‘WAITRESS SHOT DEAD AT BAR’.

They say it was around 7.30 p.m., and 48-year-old Debra Blackman was standing behind the restaurant bar when two men on a motor cycle rode up to the D’Urban Street restaurant.

According to police, the pillion rider entered the restaurant paid for a meal, then shot Blackman in the neck before escaping.

Footage from a security camera shows a man of African ancestry in a black cap, with red peak, going up to the counter and apparently making a purchase. Two other men then come to the counter, and one of them gives Blackman a $5,000 note.

The footage shows the apparently nervous men constantly glancing around.

According to investigators, all clues indicate that the gunman had entered the restaurant with the sole aim of killing Debra Blackman.

Police came up with a number of motives. One was that Mrs. Blackman was slain for some-

thing someone else had done.

Blackman’s children insist that they know of no reason for anyone wanting to kill their mother. ”My mother doesn’t own her own house, she doesn’t have jewels, she is not a rich woman, she doesn’t have life insurance, she doesn’t have anything for anyone to want to kill her for, just her life and children,” one distraught daughter told me.

This daughter says that security footage they saw shows the gunman tossing what appears to be a moneybag at their mother before shooting her.

She says this suggests that the gunman had come to rob the restaurant and had ended up killing her mom.

Another suggestion made to me was that one of the bandits was connected to a previous robbery at the restaurant.

With the investigation stalled, police released a photograph of the shooter, whom they identified as the man in the black and red cap.

Kaieteur News has also placed part of the security camera footage on facebook.

Surely, somebody out there knows him, and why he killed Debra Blackman.

If you have any information about this or any other unusual case, please contact Kaieteur News by letter or telephone at our Lot 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown offices. Our numbers are 2258465, 22-58473 and 2258458. You need not disclose your identity.

You can also contact Michael Jordan at his email address: mjdragon@hotmail.com.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 27

== THE FREDDIE KISSOON COLUMN ==

On this day 20 years ago, I saw death I really wanted to be like a father to Nicholas Hoyte but I was simply too busy with UG work, my political activism, my journalism and related activities to take on that role.

But the fundamental deterrent in going in that direction was money. I had saved his life in 1995 when I had a six-year-old child to bring up.

Money was just not there to be a father to Nicholas given my ugly UG pay. That was my only source of income but Khurshid Sattaur of the Guyana Revenue Authority went after me for the extra I earned as a KN columnist.

Sattaur knew fully well, it wasn’t a glorified stipend but he was more a politician than a professional.

I asked my daughter several times for us to visit Nicholas, take a photograph or two so she can keep it to remember who I was, what I believed in and how I saw life.

We never got around to it. We will never do it because Nicholas died in tragic circumstances.

I met Nicholas Griffith who also carried the last name, Hoyte 20 years ago this month when in trying to save him from drowning in the Atlantic, I came close to

drowning myself (see the Stabroek News of April 17, 1995; “Fourteen year old drowned off Kingston Seawall” by Alim Hassan).

I was on the Kingston seawall directly behind what is now the Marriot Hotel. It was such an eventful day for me I will never forget the clothes and runners I wore, the music I was listening to on my discman. I can distinctly remember it was “The Best of Bread.” I grew up with the soft rock music of Bread whose songs were huge international hits. The first time I went into the house of my future wife in 1978, the Bread album was on the table.

My wife loved the voice of Bread’s frontman, David Gates.

I was sitting on the large sewage pipe outside the Coast Guard office of the GDF that takes the Georgetown waste into the Atlantic when I heard the sounds of many voices yelling out, “maan drowndin, maan drowndin.” I ran towards the end of the Kingston jetty and saw the waves taking a young teen to his path of death. I saw another teen really fighting to survive. But no one will jump into the Atlantic. All you heard

Freddie Kissoon and Nicholas junior against a portrait of Nicholas Hoyte.

were loud shouts. I know that I couldn’t just stand there. I wasn’t a fantastic swimmer but I could swim. With philosophical emotions (if

there is such a thing) and uncontrollable adrenalin I jumped into the Atlantic.

I brought him to the shore line and then I began to go

down with him. We were so close but yet not quite there.

He was going down and I had no more energy left. A man jumped into the water and dragged us to the point where out feet could touch the sand.

I never knew who that gentleman was; never heard of him after. The thought of the nearness to death I did not handle well.

I drove home in my wet clothes and collapsed into the arms of my wife. There are two lessons I learnt from the drama on the Kingston seawall. Saving a drowning person has a special method to it. You just don’t grab the person and drag them through the water. Afterwards I learnt the technique of how to rescue a person going down.

The second lesson was that I now understood how humans react in situations of war and desperation. I could well imagine how countless soldiers lost their lives in wars.

They disregarded the danger right in front of them only to save their colleagues. You simply have no realistic connection with the world around you when the emotions take hold of you.

You simply get into the zone that you have to be in to save

Frederick Kissoon the person I never got close to the 15year-old boy I saved though I wanted to. But Nicholas Hoyte never internalized the meaning of life.

He didn’t build on the opportunity he got when he was saved in 1995. Fifteen years (in 2010) after my rescue of him, he died in a hail of bullets one night at the junction of Sixth and Light Streets, Georgetown one block from where he grew up and lived.

There is a term Guyanese are accustomed to use when a young man goes astray; “He followed bad company.” Did Nicholas Hotye travel on the wrong pathway of life? My research on him told me that.

But I never got to hear his side of the story. I never will.

Page 28

Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

PREPARING BARTICA FOR TOWNSHIP STATUS … converting Region 7 into a model for sustainability From the point where Guyana, Brazil and Venezuela meet, stretching eastward and to the north for some 47,213 km², is the second largest Administrative Region of Guyana, the Cuyuni-Mazaruni district. This region is arguably the richest in natural resources – gold, timber, manganese, rare earths, diamonds and water. Mount Roraima stands tall at 2,810 meters at this tri-juncture.

Dense forests with many common and lesser-known species of wood blanket the area. Rivers, creeks and tributaries form intricate patterns and very often cascade over rocky ledges into breathtaking waterfalls.

The natural wealth of Region 7 is rivaled only by the resourcefulness of its people.

This is where Guyana’s first ‘Green Town’ will be

established. Our Government’s vision is to transform the entire Region into a model for sustainable development. The plan will see the administrative centre, Bartica, achieving the status of a ‘Green Town.’

These plans will see the Bartica Stelling transformed into a modern docking facility with numerous attractions for tourists. A state-of-the-art mall will also be constructed to bring into one place the wide variety of art, craft, agricultural products and tour-related trappings that the people in this green region produce. It will house restaurants and entertainment centers complete with seating facilities strategically placed to overlook the fast-flowing Essequibo River.

GREEN TOWN The Green Bartica will

employ renewable energy sources to power the entire community. Feasibility studies will be commissioned for a large hydro electric facility in the Mazaruni district which, it is anticipated, would be built in partnership with Brazil. Tumatumari will also be powered by a smaller hydro electric plant.

The option of solar energy has also been drafted into this undertaking. The plan is to provide the facilities to enable residents and business places to self generate using solar panels during daylight hours.

At night they will connect to the existing community power grid that is supplied by Guyana Power & Light Inc. The pre-feasibility studies for this undertaking have already commenced and highly skilled technical teams are currently assessing the

region’s total energy needs and drawing up the blueprints for the necessary facilities.

INFRASTRUCTURAL UPGRADE Infrastructural upgrade plays an integral role in any development of this nature.

With respect to roads, the existing rutted track from Parika-Goshen is currently being upgraded to a paved road. It will connect with the new bridge that is to be built over the Essequibo River and will add another point of access to this Green community. In addition, the Government’s mobile asphalt ‘plant’ will support the upgrading to Double Bituminous Treated Surface (DBST) standard of the community’s internal road networks as well as those leading to satellite communities and the mining districts.

The Bartica - Potaro Road will be resurfaced as will be the Agatash, Byderabo Front and roads at Track X, Caribese Hill North and Mora.

A $6M allocation will support the construction of a new bridge at Wax Creek, Upper Mazaruni, while the sea defense at Byderabo will be fortified.

TOURISM Tourists have already begun to experience the bountiful beauty of the Region. Bartica plays a significant role in the rally of Yachters that has now become an annual event.

The community provides customs and immigration, health and related services to the

yachters who sail into Guyana via the Essequibo River.

October 2015 marked the third annual yachters rally that included boats from as far away as New Zealand.

The yachts docked at Bartica on the third leg of the 2015 Nereid’s Rally to the Guiana Shield. They had sailed from Trinidad to Suriname then to Guyana before ending the rally in French Guiana.

One of the organizers revealed plans to construct a full-service Marina on the Essequibo River in the vicinity of Bartica. This investment could see numerous foreign yachts berthing here throughout the year for repairs, maintenance and re-fitting. Here they have almost guaranteed safety from the raging storms and hurricanes that plague the Caribbean Sea after mid-year.

HEALTH SERVICES This new Green town is going to be equipped to offer a much wider range of medical services at high standards which will remove the need for residents to be referred to the main Public Hospital in the city. The Bartica Hospital is to undergo extensive rehabilitation with construction of new wings that will be equipped with state-of-the-art medical equipment, operating theatres and modern facilities for patients, staff and specialist doctors.

Hospitals in nearby communities are also part of this extensive medical upgrade. The operating theatre at the Kamarang District Hospital will be enhanced along with in- and outpatient health care facilities and accommodation for nurses and doctors here and at Imbaimadai. This will

address a long existing need for quality resident health care professionals. According to the Government Information News Agency, at least eight (8) resident doctors will be posted to these communities

by November 2015.

LIFTING THE STANDARD OF EDUCATION Budget 2015 has allocated significant sums of money for the execution of special projects to boost the standard of education delivery from the nursery to secondary levels.

Living quarters for teachers and students will be constructed, rehabilitated and expanded where necessary.

Because of the remoteness of the region special packages of emoluments will be offered.

There are three secondary schools in the district and a number of primary and nursery schools.

Recognising the gaps existing between the nursery and primary, and the primary and secondary levels, the Education Ministry recently launched a US$1.7M Early Childhood Project at St. Anthony’s Primary School.

The project, funded by the World Bank, aims to improve the level of literacy and numeracy from the level of nursery. This programme also has a component for parents and teachers as well. The main objective is to boost students’ performance at the National Grade Six Assessment, the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE).

Over $100M was slated to be spent on the education sector this year. Of this amount $72.24M will go towards construction and extension of schools and living quarters, and to complete the Chinowieng and Kartabo Primary School buildings. The Agatash Primary School and living quarters at Waramadong Secondary school also come under the programme. A further $15.6M has been earmarked to enhance teaching facilities and accommodation, with $4.5M for transportation, i.e. the procurement of a boat with outboard engine and an All Terrain Vehicle (ATV).

This administration’s thrust to restore public and educational infrastructure and the general aesthetics of Region 7 will not be confined to this area. The Region, Bartica in particular, will be used as the model for improvements in other regions especially Regions 1, 8 and 9. (GINA)

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 29

MY COLUMN

A simple explanation of the Ministers’ salary increase These past few days saw comments, demonstrations and angry conversations involving many Guyanese both at home and in the Diaspora. This is not to say that this is anything strange because as a people we do these things ever so often.

Someone always has a grouse that he needs to bring to public attention.

But this particular issue grabbed attention because it is rather unusual for the nation to learn that Government Ministers actually do get a pay rise. But they have been getting pay rises for as long as there has been inflation and as long as there have been governments.

The first thing that grabbed the attention was that the Ministers had received a 50 per cent pay rise.

Immediately I did my research to ascertain the veracity of this statement. I concluded that if this were the case then what was happening was that some Ministers were being made filthy rich and others were being given money to make them comfortable.

I soon found out that there was no 50 per cent across the board increase.

Instead, some Ministers got a 50 per cent increase while some got five per cent and some got more than 50 per cent. But I couldn’t help but notice that the 50 per cent claim seems to have stuck.

When the Granger-led administration came into office Ministers were earning in the vicinity of $579,000 per month.

But they were not always earning this kind of money.

When the People’s National Congress demitted office the pay of a senior Minister was $20,483.41 per month. The Prime Minister was earning $28,725.83 and the Deputy Prime Minister was earning $24,329.84. The Attorney General was earning $78,100 per month.

The Opposition Leader was getting $14,988.41. A Junior Minister was getting that same pay.

At the start of this year the Prime Minister was earning $1,549,389 while a Minister was earning $579.951. The Opposition Leader was getting the same pay as a Minister and the Attorney General was earning $1,630,935 per month.

A lot of people hate having to read figures but the same figures have catapulted many of them onto the streets and have them writing letters to the press.

I hasten to say that the pay did not jump to what it was in January by magic. About four

months after Dr Cheddi Jagan came to office the pay of a Minister jumped to over $40,000. He recognized that he had to pay his ministers well so he hiked their pay by more than 50 per cent almost immediately.

That pay is a far cry from the $579,951 that they were earning right up to the announcement of this increase. There were steady increases but these were not broadcast because people somehow seemed not to care.

Indeed, the media did not race to report on these things and even if they did, the late Janet Jagan always asked them not to do anything to threaten the fledgling democracy. We shut our mouths.

For the Prime Minister to have his salary jump from $28,000 to $1.5 million was no ordinary thing in a country like Guyana and go unnoticed. But there were no protests or complaints.

This is not to say that what was happening during the tenure of the People’s Progressive Party should be copied by the present administration. Yet I remember the then President Donald Ramotar saying to me that he was contemplating paying his Ministers more because their earnings were inadequate.

Perhaps that is why he is silent on this issue at this time.

When I heard of this increase I called the Minister of Finance and asked him about the veracity of what was being said. He told me that there was a review of the

salary structure because there were anomalies. He told me that Ms Sandra Jones was conducting the analysis and that she would submit her findings when it was over.

It turned out that Ms Jones recommended more than is actually being awarded to the Ministers but the administration thought that the recommendation could not be adopted for the same reasons that the people are protesting today.

The anomalies of which he spoke were the difference in pay between the Attorney General and the other Ministers, and the fact that there were now Vice Presidents who would have to be paid more than the Ministers.

The People’s Progressive Party had done well to ensure that the huge gap between the Prime Minister and the Attorney General ($28,725.83 to $78,100) was closed to the point where there was not much difference in their salaries. We heard nothing about that. It did not matter that the salary of the Attorney General is tax free while the Prime Minister must pay his taxes.

The fact is that there had to be a salary structure between the Ministers and the Vice Presidents. There also had to be an adjustment for the Junior Ministers.

My intention is not to defend anyone because I am certain that they can defend themselves but I could not help notice that the matron of

the Georgetown Public Hospital was earning more than a Minister. There was also the fact that there were contract employees, some of them retirees who were taking home million-dollar salaries.

How can one justify the salary paid to the head of Guyana Power and Light, in excess of $3 million per month and his deputy who was earning more than $2 million per month and still lambaste a Minister for being paid a proper salary for a thankless job? Some of us then look at what was paid to public servants, contending that they were paid a ‘measly’ five per cent. The pay they received was more than five per cent but I am not going to split hairs. Suffice it to say that the public servants are being addressed.

There is another mathematical computation

that needs to be done. It is a far cry from paying monumental increases to more than 5,000 people than it is to pay the same increase to no more than 15. The numbers would be far different in the end.

I remember when the government was required to pay a 50 per cent increase to public servants at the culmination of the Armstrong tribunal in 1999. Three years later the public servants were no better off because rampant inflation took what they had got and celebrated. Ever since then public servants have been asking for more.

As for the Ministers, I do not begrudge them because there are so many others walking around and earning as much as three times what the Ministers earn, although that does not mean that these Ministers should get super

Adam Harris salaries.

In 1992 when Mr Bovell who headed the Guyana Electricity Corporation was earning $140,000 a month, Cheddi Jagan deemed that he was earning a super salary and terminated his service. He then moved on to pay his ministers the same super salaries.

In any case, Raphael Trotman hit the nail on the head when he said that any pay to Government would incur the ire of the public. Yet one should let commonsense prevail.

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Kaieteur News

SUNDAY SPECIAL PPP Govt. hid satellite uplink equipment in NCN storeroom – paid Ramroop’s TVG millions monthly for Learning Channel In a major development last week, the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) launched an investigation into the discovery of special satellite uplink transmission equipment that has been sitting unused in boxes at the National Communications Network (NCN) Headquarters for the last two years.

Sunday October 18, 2015

with TVG and recently approved $23M for the purchase of transmission equipment for NCN so that it can take over the satellite uplinks for The Learning Channel.

This was before the Cabinet of Ministers received the shocking news that all the required equipment, to the tune of millions of dollars, had already been purchased by NCN since 2013, and were still in its unopened boxes at the NCN Homestretch Avenue headquarters.

Deliberate?

“What this means is that the previous government had been knowingly paying $3M a month to the Ramroop Group (owner of TVG) when these monies could have been paid to NCN instead,” an incensed senior Government official said.

Grenades, ammunition and army’s Major badge found in Lama Canal

Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop During those two years, the Donald Ramotar administration released tens of millions of dollars to Television Guyana (TVG), a company controlled by Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop, for transmitting the Learning Channel across the country. But all the time NCN had the capacity to do so.

Ramroop is a close friend of former President Bharrat Jagdeo under whose watch the Learning Channel was started up.

The present coalition Government, when they were in the Opposition until the May 11 General and Regional Elections, had accused the previous administration of deliberately positioning TVG and Ramroop to receive $3.6M monthly ($43.2M annually) for transmitting the signals.

Why NCN did not install the equipment since acquiring it in 2013 is what officials at OPM want to know now.

President Bharrat Jagdeo

The matter has reportedly also been brought to the attention of the Cabinet of Ministers.

According to NCN officials familiar with the investigations, the new David Granger administration had been reviewing the contract

Police on Saturday October 10, 2015 found 11 fragmentation and four concussions grenades, two blank and one live 7.62X39 ammunition, seven 9MM rounds, a firearm cleaning kit and an army Major badge.

These explosives were discovered in the Lama Canal on Mandela Avenue. They were found in a green grenade box and appeared to be almost brand new.

Kaieteur News understands that just after 15:00 hrs on the same day a City Constable noticed a box in some bushes almost in the Lama Canal on Mandela Avenue.

According to reports, he was about to pull up the box when its content fell into the water.

When he realized what it was, the police was immediately informed.

When this newspaper arrived at the scene, the area was cordoned off and a rank could have been seen diving into the water to retrieve the explosives.

It is believed that the items discovered came from the army since a Guyana Defence Force (GDF)’s badge of major rank was among the items.

Investigations are ongoing.

to continue discussions relating to the controversy resulting from Venezuela’s contention that the 1899 Arbitral Award is null and void.

According to Foreign Affairs Minister, Carl Greenidge, this is a follow up to the visit paid by a UN Technical Mission in July, and is in accordance with the programme of activities laid out by the UN Secretary General following his meeting with the Presidents of Guyana and Venezuela in the margins of the United Nations General Assembly on September 28, last.

The controversy between the two South American countries stems from an 1899 arbitration ruling that required Venezuela to relinquish an undeveloped but resource-rich jungle territory called the Essequibo that now constitutes about two-thirds of Guyanese territory.

MONDAYEDITION

50 percent salary increase for MPs…

UN Secretary General, Ban Ki Moon visits Guyana

Decision suggests political naivety, arrogance, insensitivity –Political Activist

Secretary General of the United Nations, His Excellency Ban Ki-Moon made a brief stopover in Guyana last week Sunday en route to New York, USA after attending the Peoples World Conference on Climate Change and Defence of Life in Cochabamba, Bolivia on October 10. That Conference was hosted by President Evo Morales.

The Secretary General was met on arrival

by Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carl Greenidge.

They took the opportunity to discuss issues arising out of the Bolivia meeting and related matters on climate change.

They also discussed the upcoming Summit to be held in Paris in December.

The UN Resident Coordinator Ms. Khadija Musa was also present to greet the Secretary General. The Foreign Minister took the opportunity to express the appreciation of the Government for the valuable contribution of the UN Agencies based in Guyana to the national development agenda.

The follow up process outlined by the Secretary General at his meeting with the Presidents of Guyana and Venezuela in the margins of the United Nations General Assembly on September 28, was reiterated.

Meanwhile, a six-member team led by the Chef de Cabinet of the Office of the Secretary General of the United Nations, Ms. Susana Malcorra was slated to be in Guyana Monday

Political Activist and University Professor, Dr. David Hinds believes that government’s recent decision to increase the salaries for Members of Parliament (MPs) and Government

The box containing the explosives Ministers will go down as its “second, big misstep.”

Dr. Hinds said that the decision should have been influenced by a number of crucial social factors. He said that the fact that it was not, suggests “political naivety, arrogance, insensitivity” or all of those.

He expressed this sentiment, among others, on his blog, www.guyanacaribbeanpolitics.com, under the heading, “Hinds’ sight.”

The 50 percent increases were published in the Official Gazette of September 25. The Prime Minister ’s salary was listed as $20,580,000 per annum, while the salary of every Vice-President was listed as $11,135,064 per annum.

Cabinet Ministers’ salaries were listed as $10,439,124 per annum while the Junior Ministers were listed as receiving $8,346,492 per annum.

Dr. Hinds contended in his column that while those salary increases would not dent the Treasury, it is not the increase that is fueling the public outrage but rather, “the politics and the principle which underpin it.”

He believes that there are three crucial factors at work.

Continued on page 31

Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and Foreign Minister Carl Greenidge

Sunday October 18, 2015

From page 30 He explained, “First, the government just gave poor people a reasonable but not spectacular salary increase. Second, thanks to the PPP’s track record in government, the issue of government as a source of unjust enrichment for Ministers has become part of popular rage against government. Third, the PPP is aggressively moving to silence its excesses while in government by pining them on the current government. These factors should have influenced the decision on the increases.”

The University professor said that what is worse is that the decision to increase the MPs salaries by 50 percent suggests that “in five months the government may already be out of touch with the realities of life on the ground.”

TUESDAYEDITION NCN satellite uplink can be operational within 2 weeks …$20M in equipment was left still wrapped in plastic for two years Satellite uplink facilities purchased by the National Communications Network (NCN), two years ago and capable of broadcasting ‘The Learning Channel’ can be made operable in as little as two weeks.

This is according to a senior official in the Department of the Director of Public Information, a unit that has since taken on oversight of NCN. According to the official who spoke to this newspaper on the condition of anonymity, the equipment which was purchased at a cost of in excess of $20M only requires a ‘base station’ and a ‘hut’ to house it at which point in time it can be brought online.

Kaieteur News

it is also capable of having any event occurring locally broadcast live not only across Guyana but throughout the Caribbean Region and even in North America.

This publication was told that while there is currently not in train any plans to have the equipment brought online with any haste, it will be made operational by the end of the year.

GRA stamp likely for imported liquor, cigarettes as review of tax begins The Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) is in the process of reviewing how it taxes alcoholic beverages.

The revenue collection body also announced tougher measures to reduce the smuggling of not only liquor but of tobacco products.

According to the body, the appraisal of the Excise Tax on alcoholic beverages is being done with the aim of streamlining the regime in accordance with regional and international best practices.

“The Ministry of Finance has approved the Revenue Authority’s proposal for the review which would include among other things, changes to the application of the tax from Ad Valorem (a tax based on a fixed percentage of the product value) to Specific (a tax calculated based on alcoholic strength).”

GRA said that assessments show that several other sister Caribbean Community (CARICOM) states are collecting Excise Tax based on the Specific Tax, and it is the GRA’s view that same should be adapted by the local administration.

It is unclear what impact this would have on the price of liquor as consultations with stakeholders have to be held.

Shame: More than two years and after $20M, the unused satellite uplink equipment in boxes at NCN’s premises, Homestretch Avenue

Kaieteur News, over the weekend, broke the news that NCN had purchased the equipment two years ago but the then government instead of using it, opted to continue to pay TVG 28, now owned by Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop, a whopping $3.6M monthly, to broadcast The Learning Channel.

The insider told Kaieteur News that while it is difficult to ascertain specifically on whose instructions the equipment remained idle, the fact is that it is only a small circle in the then government that could have effected such a situation.

It was pointed out too that a $23M purchase of equipment had to be approved at a senior level. As such the previous administration cannot claim ignorance. It had to have known that the equipment was lying idle.

Further this publication has since learnt that not only does NCN own its satellite uplink,

Page 31

“The GRA plans to meet with local manufacturers and importers to discuss the impending changes and most importantly, the implications of the reform process on those who will inevitably be subject to the tax,” the statement assured.

Meanwhile, as efforts continue to curtail smuggling and establish greater control of the flow of imported tobacco, spirits and beer imports, plans are in the making to introduce high-security Excise Stamps, GRA disclosed.

The agency currently partners a foreign company to facilitate what it said is the timely and successful introduction of the stamps, and the accompanying legislation, software and other support initiatives that will be required.

WEDNESDAYEDITION Finance Minister justifies salary increases – Govt. will not reverse decision

Finance Minister, Winston Jordan, said Tuesday that the salary increases for Members of Parliament were necessary for three reasons; to outline an income for Vice Presidents which did not exist before, to correct anomalies in the payment structure and finally, because the work load has increased.

Jordan said, “We inherited a system where the President was receiving a salary of about $2M non-taxable. The Prime Minister was receiving a taxable salary of some $1.5M while the Attorney General, the Chancellor and the Chief Justice were receiving $1.6M. “There was no allocation for Vice Presidents; this position did not exist under the PPP. But the senior and junior ministers were receiving the same pay of about $579, 000. What do you notice?”

He continued, “It is clear that there are huge anomalies there. The President, Prime Minister and AG are receiving massive salaries and your seniors and juniors are at the same level.

Nowhere in the Caribbean does such a system exist.”

The Finance Minister explained that for junior ministers, the $579, 000 was increased by 12 ½ percent while for senior ministers it was increased by 50 percent. As for the Vice Presidents, he said, they received a 60 percent increase on the $579,000.

He noted that the $1.6M salary for the Attorney General was increased by five percent while the Prime Minister’s salary was increased by 10.7 percent.

He confirmed Tuesday that President David Granger stands to benefit from the increase as his salary will be raised by five percent. The salary increases were published in the Official Gazette of September 25.

Jordan said, “I am not sure why people were saying that it was 50 percent increase across the board because it was not done in that way. The increases were calculated based on fixing the anomalies which do not exist in the public service system. “The percentages were also used to widen the gap between the payments so that you can be able to have a scale which differentiates between the various positions. There are also some super ministries which we have now and the work load has increased immensely.”

Several agencies and letter writers have criticized the government for increasing the salaries at this time stating that no evaluation was done to show that it is deserved.

There have also been criticisms that the salary increase was done at the wrong time, especially when the government had said that the country’s revenue earners are not performing and that the Consolidated Fund was in heavy overdraft.

Only Fuzzy, 3 others knew about NCN’s satellite uplink …no trained personnel to operate sensitive equipment – Hassan The staff of the National Communication Network (NCN) at most levels, with the exception of four persons, had been kept in the dark about the presence of satellite uplink facilities lying still in plastic wrapping in the compound.

According to an audit, it was only the former Chief Executive Officer, Mohamed ‘Fuzzy’ Sattaur, then Programme Manager Martin Goolsarran, the Finance Controller and a technician Kenneth Jones, who were aware of the presence of the multi-million dollar equipment.

Sattaur resigned from his post at NCN following a massive corruption scandal that rocked the entity. The scandal involved millions from the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T).

Goolsarran was also suspended after it was discovered that he had deposited millions of dollars from the GT&T transaction, into his personal bank account. He subsequently resigned his post.

Recently appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of NCN, Molly Hassan, has since said that there was no plan documented for the use of the equipment which also includes nine satellite dishes.

The dishes, used in the down link aspect of the project, are currently lying in the compound.

The monies for the purchase, according to Hassan, came from NCN’s 2013 Capital Budget but the equipment was identified in 2012. It began arriving early 2013. Ms Hassan when contacted for an update into the brouhaha, said that there is currently no staff at the NCN that can operate the sensitive equipment.

According to Hassan, the company will now have to conduct an evaluation of the pieces of equipment and secure the services of competent personnel to bring the facility online.

THURSDAY EDITION Pradoville Two scandal…Jagdeo, former ministers face criminal charges Former President, Bharrat Jagdeo, and several of his Cabinet Ministers who benefitted from the Pradoville Two housing scheme back in 2010 are likely to face criminal charges, following a damning report completed this week by the State Assets Recovery Unit Continued on page 32

Page 32

Kaieteur News

From page 31 (SARU). SARU’s report noted that in 2010, the Bharrat Jagdeo Cabinet made a decision authorizing the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) to privatize state lands. NICIL is the body tasked with overseeing the privatization of state assets.

It reportedly spent more than $200M to develop the seaside community without the knowledge and blessings of the National Assembly and other relevant bodies.

The said lands were then secretly sold to the former ministers and known friends and associates of the previous regime.

At the time of the sale, the report said, the lands were grossly undervalued and sold substantially lower than the market value for the land thereby depriving the state of its full benefits.

Jagdeo himself paid only $9.8M, giving himself two acres of lands that overlooked the Atlantic Ocean.

Misconduct SARU argued that the former Ministers could be held liable for misconduct in public office and in the absence of legislation for the unit, that the Attorney General, Basil Williams, may institute proceedings against the former Ministers.

The unit said that the actions of the former cabinet Ministers have shown that they willfully neglected to perform their duties without reasonable excuse or justification to such an extent that it amounted to an abuse of the public trust in the office holders, hence its belief that criminal charges are indeed warranted.

FRIDAYEDITION Pradoville 2 scandal… Jagdeo not exempt from prosecution – Attorney General Once sufficient information and evidence is gathered by his Chambers, then Attorney General, Basil Williams, may institute a civil action against former Cabinet ministers. And former President Bharrat Jagdeo could face prosecution, said Attorney General Basil Williams. He may be immune from prosecution for certain decisions he may have taken as president, provided these were legal actions.

Misappropriating state lands may not be within his purview, Williams said.

Questions on this front have been overwhelming. SARU confirmed with this newspaper Wednesday night that former President Bharrat Jagdeo is not exempt from the charges.

Adding his opinion on the matter, Williams said, “Yes the Constitution does provide immunity for him but it is a question of interpretation. Already we have had cases where they (Presidents) can justify their decision if they are acting within their powers, but if they acted outside of their powers then they cannot be protected.”

He continued, “The Constitution does say something to this effect about his immunity but it is all a question of interpretation in the courts. Even though you have power, you have to exercise it judiciously. And if you operate outside of it and you do so excessively, then you lose that protection.”

The Minister of Legal Affairs said that the only action that can be brought by his chambers on this matter is a civil action of misfeasance in Public Office, and once he is satisfied with it what they have gathered to make their case, his chambers will act accordingly.

“Once I find that we have sufficient evidence and I believe we have , then we will pursue the case because we have former ministers who knew that they were buying

Sunday October 18, 2015

state lands at an undervalued price and then sold it for a profit,” said Williams.

Time’s up! Gun amnesty comes to an end Time’s up! We’re now coming after you! That was how Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan, summed up the end of the one and a half month amnesty for persons with illegal firearms and ammunition to turn them in.

With 175 weapons and more than a thousand rounds of ammunition turned in since September 1, when the amnesty started, the minister as well as the Guyana police force has described it as very successful.

The police last week received three sniper air rifles and a .38 revolver as well as fifty-five .38, twenty nine 9mm and thirty one .30 carbine ammunition.

According to the police figures, approximately 80 percent of the weapons received are shotguns.

Now that the amnesty period is over, the law enforcement agencies will be relentlessly pursuing illegal weapons, which is one of the major strategies to halt a crime rate that was threatening to get out of control.

Last month, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo declared that there should be no discretion in imposing sentences under the law for persons found in illegal possession of firearms.

The Prime Minister while lauding the success of the amnesty had urged the country’s Magistracy and Judiciary to take judicial notice of the prevalence of crime involving the use of firearms and deal condignly with offenders.

“As a judicial officer, myself, I’m of the view that our courts must review granting of bail involving repeat offenders (who are) arraigned for illegal possession firearms, or the use of firearms in the execution of robberies,” the Prime Minister stated.

Presently the maximum penalty that can be imposed by a Magistrate for the illegal possession of a firearm is five years.

Minister Ramjattan had warned of a crackdown to rein in all unlicenced firearms as soon as the amnesty would have ended.

SATURDAY EDITION ExxonMobil ramps up preparations for possible 2018 operations US-owned ExxonMobil is said to be examining bids from floater contractors aiming to supply the company with a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel for the fast-track development of its deepwater Liza project off Guyana.

Industry sources said that at least five players are battling to land a contract to lease a “vessel of opportunity” to handle 60,000 barrels per day of crude or more, plus significant quantities of gas. First oil is being targeted as soon as 2018, according to a report Friday on upstreamonline.com.

The four-company group chasing the FPSO order, said sources, comprise Bluewater, BW Offshore, Modec, Saipem and SBM Offshore.

The news would spell good ones for Guyana after ExxonMobil announced the find back in May. It was the first major oil find for Guyana which has been heavily dependent on imported oil to meet energy and transportation needs.

However, neighbouring Venezuela has since revived its claims to Guyana’s territory, including the waters where ExxonMobil found the oil.

According to Upstreamonline.com, reporting on ExxonMobil’s plans, Friday said that this early production system could be the forerunner of a full-field project, tentatively based on a larger FPSO with capacity in the range of 150,000 to 200,000 barrels per day (bpd).

However, industry sources cautioned that the US Company has not yet taken definite decisions on its preferred strategy for Liza, and that how it will move to full field development is not yet clear.

Nevertheless, ExxonMobil, is said to be enthused by the potential of Liza, a playopening frontier wildcat which was completed in May. “It’s a huge field,” said one source, adding that ExxonMobil thinks that this area “could be a second Angola.”

Pradoville 2 expose…Jagdeo, Fmr. Ministers purchased land at 2000% below market value The Pradoville 2 lands, sold to former President Bharrat Jagdeo and several Ministers of the previous administration were undervalued by almost 2,000 per cent. They were sold at $114 per square foot. Independent appraisals have pegged the price closer to $2,250 per square feet.

The State Assets Recovery Unit (SARU) has completed a report into the conversion of some 15 acres of land at Sparendaam, East Coast Demerara (ECD). The probe found that

key members of the past administration were involved in transferring state lands to their names and that of their acquaintances for undervalued market prices.

The independent appraisal was conducted against 10 acres of land on which the Georgetown Marriott was built.

While that land was actually sold to Atlantic Hotel Inc (AHI) for $200M, an audit into that transaction had valued that tract of land to be worth some $980M. This converts to $2,250 per square feet of the prime ocean front lands.

The Pradoville 2 land is located along the same strip of Guyana’s coastland, a few miles eastward.

At a rate of $114 this would mean that Government would only earn a meager $74.5M for the entire 15 acres of land set aside at Pradoville 2.

Had government sold the land at the market value—as appraised by independent evaluators—it could have earned a $1.4B. This figure also excludes the almost $300M which was plugged into developing the project, monies expended by the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL).

According to the report prepared by SARU, the land at Sparendaam, ECD, was once deemed Communal Lands and was thereafter owned by Demerara Sugar Estates prior to independence.

The report states further that after independence in 1966 the land was owned by the state until 2010 when the Central Planning and Housing Authority (CHPA) privatized the land which was then sold to a number of former ministers and associates of the Jagdeo/ Ramotar regime.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

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Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

Citizens’ rights and Open Government

By Lance Hinds Amidst all the yelling and screaming in the dailies about whether or not ministers should get an increase in salaries, and even more noise about how this increase was going to be effected, there were two articles which also caught my attention and triggered more than a passing interest.

The first one was about the Government plans to table a bill that seeks to amend Article 63 of Financial Institutions Act. This amendment will allow financial institutions to disclose customer information to the Guyana Revenue Authority when it makes what is described as a ‘lawful request or demand for information’.

Further reading and

general enquiries revealed that the primary reason was apparently to help the GRA as it investigates individuals and entities that are not, in biblical terms, “rendering unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s”.

There was related news about the State Assets Recovery Unit awaiting specific legislation to support their efforts in recovering presumably stolen state

assets. I imagine this legislation will also have clauses requiring financial institutions to provide information upon official demand.

I must confess that my first thought after reading this was a humorous one. In my mind’s eye I saw citizens making even more deposits into the Cooperative Bank of Under-My-Mattress. Further thought about this however, caused my antennae to buzz with mild concern.

I understand that the Government’s efforts at law enforcement, compliance and assets recovery are ultimately supposed to be for the benefit of us all. I am well aware that there is already sharing of customer information, especially as local institutions and countries seek to comply with global laws like the United States’ Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).

My fear, however, is that in the zealousness to investigate, prosecute and send to jail, we may inadvertently put pressure on the rights of citizens as regards the stewardship and protection of the information that they place in the hands of institutions.

It is really time for a balanced, overarching framework that comprehensively addresses this issue as opposed to dealing with it in separate silos of individual legislation.

I am speaking specifically about data protection legislation.

A Data Protection Act would govern how citizens’ personal/private information would be used by businesses, government agencies and other organisations.

Such legislation would be guided by a series of principles that would protect the interest of individuals whose private information is being utilized.

A useful guide for this would be the Data Protection Act in the United Kingdom.

Under this act, eight principles are established in the interest of good practice and procedure.

These principles define the lawfulness of the information that is being processed, the adequacy of the information provided, specific purposes for which

the information is being used, the accuracy of the information being shared, rights of the citizens with regard to information sharing and the conditions for the sharing of private information outside the country’s jurisdiction.

It would mean that any other legislation that seeks as part of its mandate to collect and analyse information about our citizens would have to defer and be guided by the properties and principles of this proposed legislation. It would certainly give everyone comfort and reduces significantly the chance of overreach as we move more and more towards an information and knowledgedriven society.

The other piece of news that caught my attention is the visit of the Mexican Ambassador to the Prime Minister, to engage in discussions on the upcoming Global Open Government Partnership Summit in Mexico.

Hosted by Mexico in late October, the summit will allow participants through workshops and plenary sessions to share experiences and examples about how openness can improve public services, drive economic growth and make governments more accountable. The Open Government Partnership was launched in 2011 to provide a platform for reformers committed to making their respective governments more open, more accountable, and responsive to its citizens. In over 60 participating countries, government and civil society are working together to develop and implement open government reforms. It is expected that Guyana will participate in this summit. Nice.

Let us therefore get down to basics.

Open government is defined as one in which high levels of transparency, mechanisms for public scrutiny, and government accountability are in place, either by legislation or at minimum general policy.

Transparency is a core pillar of any open government, and means that citizens must be able to access government held information and be advised of government proceedings.

Lance Hinds

In recent years, this concept has even expanded further to include the expectations of increased citizen participation and collaboration on government affairs through the use of information technology.

If the government is going to sign on to this level of governance, I hope they are conceptually aware of what that entails. This is a different type of high grass that we will be walking in. Over these many years I have always gotten the impression that when the authorities and subject agencies here give you information it is almost as if they are bestowing a favour upon your good self.

This mind you, is information that you are entitled to as a taxpayer. As a matter of fact it can be well argued that a lot of the corruption that exists has to do with the difficulty of getting information that is rightfully ours in the first instance.

I also believe that over almost 50 years, governments here, like others in the developing world, preferred to have significant control over the information that is provided to the public.

What, in my opinion, also does not help matters, is that from the public’s perspective, there is not yet a general appreciation of what information they have a right to access. Again, we would be walking on very rare earth.

This will be of course a complex exercise. Formal mechanisms about the consistent access and distribution to all government information and proceedings will need to be reviewed and updated.

The internet has now become almost ubiquitous, so we would need to develop a series of open data standards to facilitate structured and responsible electronic access.

This will more than likely be a long, bumpy ride. At the end of it all, however, it will be of tremendous benefit to the democratic evolution of our society.

(Lance Hinds is the President of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He is also the Chief Executive of the BrainStreet Group, an Information Technology and Content Development Company.)

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

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Small Scale Farming is the Answer to feeding the world On October 16, World Food Day was observed. The theme for this year’s observances was ‘Social Protection and Agriculture’.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), the choice of topic aims to highlight the role social protection plays in reducing chronic food insecurity and poverty by ensuring direct access to food, or the means to buy food. Social protection is, moreover, a viable alternative for stimulating agriculture. In this context, the role played by farmers is crucial. Farmers are the key actors in the fight against hunger and finding the concrete remedies to address food security and nutrition.

A recent report, published by the Commission on Trade and Development, states that ‘small scale farming is the answer to feeding the World’.

FAO has stated that agricultural production must increase by 60 percent globally to meet the food demands that will be required to feed the 9.2 billion people, who will inhabit our planet in 2050. In order to guarantee this result it will be essential to ensure that farmers, especially small rural and hinterland farmers have access to infrastructure, credit and functioning markets. Small farmers also need to have access to science and technology, innovation and knowledge, which are essential for the development

of the agricultural sector.

Guyana must be packaged as a serious agricultural player.

A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) is on record advocating for the support of small–scale farmers and the creation of strong local food systems, nationally. It is our belief that a fundamental consideration for the future success of our agricultural sector must be the effectiveness of the decisionmaking structure from the highest level and its consequential vertical impact.

We must work to create, in Guyana a flexible broadbased, integrated and environmentally sensitive agricultural sector that will meet the demands of the domestic, regional and international markets. We must create sustainable enterprises through the application of cost-effective management of traditional and modern technologies, in order to increase the volume and quality of diversified agricultural produce. We must establish programmes for technical and financial support; improved land tenure arrangements; meaningfully involve our young men and women in the sector; and disseminate knowledge and skills to farmers and other organisations and individuals through efficient extension services.

Cash crop farmers have been leaving the land because of poor drainage. Intensive and urgent action must be

taken to rehabilitate/expand as necessary, current drainage and irrigation deficiencies, especially the Demerara and Potaro rivers, but including the Mahaica and Abary rivers and the Lama Conservancy management.

The hinterland regions of Guyana (Regions 1, 7, 8, 9, 10) cover 76.62 percent of the country’s land mass. The population, mostly indigenous people, is about 113,000, 15 percent of the population. Our vision is for all hinterland communities to be food secure. A food security policy for the hinterland will also result in savings in transportation costs for staples in many hinterland households thus reducing the cost of living.

Traditionally, the nine indigenous peoples of Guyana met their food needs through subsistence agriculture, hunting and

fishing. However, with the upsurge in mining and, to a lesser extent, logging contiguous to many of their communities, these traditional food sources have been severely compromised by environmental degradation and habitat loss. To compound matters, young men especially have been leaving their villages for more lucrative jobs in mining and forestry. The result has been an increase in hinterland poverty, especially in villages and communities distant from Regional centres. This trend must be reversed by building and sustaining a vibrant and region-specific agricultural sector.

Over the next five years, government policy will promote environmentally sensitive food production systems based on agricultural diversification, water management and efficient land

use along with the establishment of wellresourced extension services to facilitate technology adaption, especially by small farmers.

New agro-industries must emerge. Traditional beef cattle rearing must be placed on a scientific footing to take advantage of the international demand for ‘organic’ beef, while the nascent sheep and goat rearing enterprises will be strengthened to address the dietary animal protein needs in villages, in the first instance, as flocks are built up to meet local and Caricom demands for sheep and goat meat.

The Intermediate savannahs, Upper Demerara and Berbice Regions, long touted as the ‘next frontier for agricultural development’, can effectively be used for integrated industrial crop and livestock production and

agro-processing. The focus must be on the production of substantial portions of the local and regional food needs.

Small farmers must be encouraged and given incentives to return to the land. Regional Agricultural Institutes must be built. A modern Agricultural Research and Development Institute must be a priority. This will not only have regional, but also a national remit to address the production concerns of small and medium scale operators, who do not have the resources to conduct their own on-farm research and technological innovations.

With its bountiful waterways, rich arable lands and favourable environmental conditions, Guyana can produce quality, safe food that will be in urgent demand in the coming years, to feed an ever growing World population.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

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Kross Kolor brings Christmas cheer with new album and Dwayne Hackett all contributed to the project’s success. “Producers and arrangers Burchmore Simon, Simeon ‘LilJay’ Browne and Drew Thoven added an effortless magic on the project,” KKR

Some of the members of the Kross Kolor team

With the simple aim of creating music that represents the unique Guyanese Christmas experience, Kross Kolor Records (KKR) has produced a new Christmas album, packed with a host of stars.

The new album, “Christmas with Us”, is the brainchild of popular local artiste, Melissa ‘VANiLLA’ Roberts and Simeon Brown. The entire project was spearheaded

by Burchmore Simon, the founder and the man running things over at KKR. Besides presenting the unique Guyanese Christmas, the album also seeks to be collaborative.

It was infused with the empowerment of youth. According to KKR, the album introduces the power of “working together”. It shows what the Guyanese music industry represents.

“This project did not only include popular singers like

VANiLLA, B52, Tennicia DeFreitas, Jovinski, Gavin Mendonca, Shawn English, and Ossie O, but it also embraces unknown singers like Randy Kirton, T’Shanna Cort, Shivanie Bhola, Sueann ‘China’ Campbell, Romichelle Brummell, Daniel Dondre and Shaundelle ‘JP’Alleyne, courtesy of Vizion Sounds,” KKR said. KKR also revealed that poet Leeanna Alleyne,

steelpan player Andrew Tyndall, keyboard Trevor John and saxophonist Roy Stewart, all added an infectious Christmas vibe to the album.

Additionally, KKR said that the incorporation of makeup artist Renee Chester of Bromeliad Inc., designer Keshia Edwards of ShaSha Designs, and photographers Azikiwe “Ziggy” Denheart

During the National Awards Investiture ceremony of 2015 at the National Cultural Centre (NCC) on October 6, last, Kaieteur News erred in identifying an awardee receiving the Golden Arrow of Achievement as Walter Leyland Francis Morris, Lieutenant Colonel (retd), Guyana Defence Force.

In actuality, that awardee was Maurice Bertwinsdel Henry, former Deputy Clerk of the National Assembly and Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Regional Development and Ministry of Legal Affairs.

Kaieteur News apologizes for the inconvenience caused.

APOLOGY

added. “Kross Kolor Records has always been a frontrunner in Guyana’s music industry and with the festive season quickly approaching, we encourage companies and the public at large to give the gift

of music. What better way to celebrate than with the sounds of sweet Guyanese tunes? After all, the season just wouldn’t be complete without some good musical vibes.”

Page 58

Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

Yoruba Singers performs for Palms residents

Scenes from the Palms Geriatric Centre during a performance from the Yoruba singers In observance of Month of the Elderly, the Yoruba singers on Tuesday performed for scores who gathered at the Palms Geriatric Centre.

The gathering consisted of elderly citizens who reside at the Palms as well as those from other geriatric homes across the country.

The energy filled performance was done free of charge as the band, which has been in existence for 44 years, wanted to “give back to those who once supported them.”

“They cant come to us now,” stated band leader Eze Rockcliffe, “so we go to them.”

The band has over the years held performances free of cost at various institutions and has plans of continuing this if they are able to garner sponsorship. The band members stated that they have been invited to perform again at the Palms Geriatric Centre for the Christmas season and are hopeful that they would be able to make it.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 59

300 families to benefit from FFTP Food Drive especially those affected by poverty has been saving lives, transforming communities and renewing hope for over 23 years, said Davis. To this end, he said that FFTP has had significant achievements in encouraging agricultural food production.

“We have distributed a quantity of agricultural tools, and see d s t o s t i m u l a t e agricultural production to families. In the past, Guyana School of Agriculture and NARI have also benefited from seeds and agricultural equipment distributed by FFTP,” he disclosed.

For a number of years, FFTP has been consistent in supporting a number of school feeding programmes and assisted groups and other organizations with food supplies to help eliminate

Food Drive recipient, Amanda Welch, and her children in the company of FFTP’s Field Officer, Compton Giddings, (at centre), and Senior Manager, Jimeel Davis, (at extreme right).

Three hundred families are slated to benefit from a food drive recently launched

by Food for the Poor (Guyana) Incorporated (FFTP). The initiative, which is intended to be the organisation’s way of observing World Food Day, will see food hampers being provided to needy families throughout Guyana during the Christmas season.

The food drive kicked off on World Food Day with the distribution of a food hamper to a single mother of four, Amanda Welch. Welch, 32, occupies a plot of land on a dam beyond 17th Street,

Paradise, East Coast Demerara.

During an interview with FFTP, she explained that she has been unemployed for many months but was previously employed at Universal Janitorial Service, attached to the Georgetown Public Hospital.

Since being unemployed she has sent out numerous job application letters. She is currently awaiting responses from potential employers.

Welch said that her children often go to school without a meal. Her greatest desire is for a “proper home” for her children and a job.

According to FFTP’s Senior Manager, Jimeel Davis, Welch is just one of many needy families in need of support. He said that observing World Food Day is a tremendous opportunity for highlighting the need to end hunger and alleviate poverty globally.

In an effort to raise awareness about hunger, Davis urges individuals and the business community to join in the fight against this global problem as it is significant in eliminating the issue of hunger and poverty.

FFTP in keeping with its mandate of helping people,

hunger. The organisation has also provided hot meals for destitute persons on the streets through its Meals on Wheels programme and to the senior citizens in shut-ins through its Elderly Care programme.

FFTP, Davis added, is however encouraging persons to take action and to help make a difference in the lives of the poor as it will make a significant difference in helping to eliminate the issue of hunger and poverty.

Davis also stressed the need for continued support from the business community and kind-hearted donors whose donations have been supporting its efforts.

“Essentially, without the support from donors, Food for the Poor will cease to exist,” Davis asserted.

“World Food Day is known

as a day of action against hunger, so for this reason today we are providing a food hamper to a needy family, to declare our commitment to the poor by helping one person, one family at a time.”

Last year, the organisation was able to distribute over 100 food hampers during the Christmas season with donations from NAMILCO, Edward Beharry and Co. Ltd., Continental Agencies Ltd., Federal Management Systems, Metro Office and Computer Supplies, Sterling Products Ltd., Precise Printing, Top Brandz Distributors, Ricks and Sari, among others. The food hamper distributed on Friday was made possible with support from generous individuals, Silvie’s General Store, Nigel’s Supermarket and Len’s.

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Bandits shoot Bath man in home invasion

Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

Education Dept. spearheads suicide awareness initiative

A 26- year- old Bath, West Coast Berbice man has been admitted to hospital after he was shot in the foot by bandits who invaded his parents’ home early yesterday morning.

According to a police report, at about 01:30 hours yesterday, Umgrie Parmanand, 55, of Bath, WCB, was aroused by the sound of persons in his home.

Two men, one of whom was armed with a firearm, had entered the home through an open window and held him up, along with his wife Chandroutie Parmanand, 52 and son Latchman Parmanand.

The men demanded cash and jewellery and during the incident Latchman Parmanand was shot to his left foot.

The perpetrators took away an undisclosed sum of cash and a quantity of jewellery and escaped.

The wounded man was taken to the hospital while the matter was reported to the police.

No one has been arrested so far.

— gets support from Miss Guyana-World

Lisa Punch interacts with students at Thursday’s forum.

In an attempt to help tackle suicide, a mental health challenge which too often manifests in the society, the Department of Education of Region Three has introduced a Suicide Awareness programme.

The initiative, according to Guidance and Counselling Officer, Kevin Reddy, of the Guidance and Counselling Unit of the Education Department, is one designed to help students learn to

recognise the signs of depression and other indicators that can lead to suicide.

At a forum hosted at the East Bank Essequibo Parika/ Salem Secondary School on Thursday students were enlightened to where counselling and other help could be accessed.

Thursday’s forum was graced by Miss GuyanaWorld, Lisa Punch, and her POTS team. POTS is the acronym for Prevention of Teen Suicide, a platform that Punch has embraced as part of her ‘Beauty with Purpose’ campaign.

Punch and team, according to Reddy, were able

to highlight a number of crucial factors that can help to arrest the suicide challenge.

“They highlighted the importance of talking to someone if they are facing any personal problem...” said Reddy as he disclosed that students were also granted

photo opportunities with the Beauty queen as a bonus.

Similar activities spearheaded by the Region Three Department of Education were held at the Vergenoegen and Zeeburg Secondary Schools and also gained support from Punch.

Habits are not the product of one decision — They’re the result of repeated choices that eventually become automatic responses. How can you know your true spiritual condition? By the company you keep and the choices you make. When you’re free to go, where do you choose to go? Whose company do you prefer?

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

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CONSUMER CONCERNS

NOISE POLLUTION DANGEROUS TO HEALTH - THE POLICE NEEDS TO ACT PAT DIAL Noise pollution is one of the dangers to the environment. It is little noticed in the media or officialdom as compared with garbage accumulations everywhere on coastal Guyana, and in particular in the City of Georgetown.

The problem of garbage accumulations and disposal is being addressed but very little has been done to address the noise problem.

Noise pollution is one of the concomitants of Modern Civilization and, accordingly, affects the Developed World, especially its cities, more than

the Developing Countries.

But though the Developing Countries do not have the constant noise of aircraft, motor traffic and trains and large industrial machines, they do have their share of noise pollution.

In Guyana, so far, the main source of noise pollution comes from loud and raucous music played on the streets, on the public transport and “after hours”.

The dangers of noise pollution are many: 80 decibels and below was what the human ear had been designed to comfortably hear; the human ear could hear up

to 140 decibels. Noises above 100 decibels could definitely be considered noise pollution and is harmful to health.

Chronic exposure to noise may result in hearing loss or deafness. Thus those who regularly play loud music or performers in the loud jazz bands very often suffer hearing loss or deafness.

There are other dangers to health from noise: it could induce high stress levels, aggressiveness to others, annoyance, forgetfulness, sleep disturbances and severe depression.

High noise levels could lead to increased blood

Standards in Focus

Understanding the usefulness of International Standards I n t e r n a t i o n a l standardization is wellestablished for many technologies in such diverse fields as information processing and communications, textiles, packaging, distribution of goods, energy production and utilization, shipbuilding, banking and financial services.

International standards, which can be applied globally, will continue to grow in importance for all sectors of industrial activity for the foreseeable future.

International standards can facilitate world trade by effectively removing technical barriers to trade, leading to new market opportunities and economic growth. Simply put, a component or system manufactured to an international standard in country A can be sold and used in countries B through to Z once these countries have adopted the same international standard.

International standards provide industry and users with the framework for achieving economies of design, greater product and service quality, increased interoperability of products, and improved production and delivery systems. At the same time, international standards also encourage an improved quality of life by contributing to safety, human health and the protection of the environment.

The World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) explicitly recognizes that international standards play a critical role in improving industrial efficiency and facilitating world trade. The number of standardization bodies that have accepted the

Code of Good Practice for the Preparation, Adoption and Application of Standards presented in Annex 3 to the WTO’s TBT Agreement also underlines the global importance of standards that help, not hinder, trade.

There is a diversity of bodies involved in the preparation of standards used globally. These include governmental or treaty organizations, nongovernmental organizations, and organizations that are either specialized in standardization or involved also in other activities. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO), the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and the I n t e r n a t i o n a l Telecommunications Union (ITU) are familiar examples of organizations that develop standards used globally.

Standards developed by some U.S.-domiciled (headquartered) organizations such as American Standards for Testing and Materials (ASTM) have gained direct international acceptance in specific sectors and serve as de facto global standards.

These standards are developed with input from international participants, in some cases on an individual basis, in others on an organizational basis.

In certain technology sectors, consortia organizations are popular means for the development of global standards.

Consortium technical categories include areas such as ecommerce, the Internet, multimedia, web services and so on. Through its collaboration with international standards developers such as the ISO, the Guyana National Bureau of Standards has adopted a number of international standards that are utilized by a number of companies and businesses locally. With the implementation of these standards, there is increased confidence in the quality of our locally manufactured products, which makes them acceptable on the overseas markets.

For further information, contact the GNBS on telephone numbers: 2190062, 219-0065 or 219-0069 or visit the GNBS Website: www.gnbsgy.org

pressure, sometimes leading to high blood pressure and can contribute to cardiovascular disease.

Among young children, it could hamper cognition and language development resulting in their being low achievers at school.

In Guyana and particularly in Georgetown, loud music is the main noise pollutant.

Several stores, for example one on the northern side of Stabroek Square, have boom boxes on the pavement outside the store, blaring loud and raucous music all day.

But the greatest offenders are the minibuses. All the minibuses are equipped with disc players and the music

they play is vulgar, mostly Jamaican lower-life songs.

These discs are played at the loudest levels and many of the “songs”, in addition to being noise pollutants and harmful to health are explicitly sexual, racist, especially anti-Indian, anti-African and anti-White, and are generally contemptuous of and derogatory of women.

When one speaks with the drivers and conductors of these minibuses, they invariably claim that the passengers desire such music.

Actually, the majority of commuters find the loud music disturbing but the conductors and drivers would aggressively threaten any

passenger who complains.

The response to this is that those who wish to listen to music while traveling should have their own ear phones and music.

There is legislation passed in Parliament with the enthusiastic support of all political parties allowing the police to seize or ban all disc players from minibuses.

Radios are allowed but not disc players. Also, the police were enjoined to begin prosecuting minibus drivers and conductors who infringed the Law. Would the Police now act and free minibus travelers from the scourge of noise pollution?

Page 62

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Kaieteur News

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Sunday October 18, 2015

VACANCY

SALON

Work from home earn $5,000-$20,000 monthly. Call monday-friday (9am-5pm): 233-6517; 638-0595 or www.jobfairworldwide.com Male supervisor to work in housekeeping dept, room attendant- Call: 225-0198 or 233 South Road Lacytown.

-Make Up Courses with Mac, Bare Minerals, Black Opal, Mabelline.

-Nail Technician Course Call: 647-1773/660-5257 Affordable salon services: pedi, mani, wash & blowout, facials, etc $2,500 each. Vogue @ Kalyan Mall, Lamaha Street. Tel: 647-1773/660-5257 Earn a certificate in cosmetology. Enroll now at Artee’s School of Cosmetology and Beauty Salon-Call: 680-0156; 2750267

Accounts clerk: experienced in QuickBooks, accounting software, VAT NIS & PAYE, @ Technical Services Inc, 18-23 Industrial Site, Eccles E.B.D Agent require for preparing document and quotes for regional contracts. Email: mozatart@yahoo.com/ 6919383 M.A.X Consultancy & Accounting Services urgently need: field sales agents.

For more information-Contact: 2231855/ 609-0623 1 Experienced cook & 1 female bartender at Tajoe’s Sports Bar @ Pouderoyen W.B.DContact: 264-0041, 684-1838 or apply in person.

One sales representative for furniture store in Georgetown-Call: 254-1801

CAR RENTAL DOLLY’SCARRENTAL-CALL: 225-7126/226-3693 DOLLYSAUTORENTAL@ YA H O O . C O M / W W W. DOLLYSAUTORENTAL.COM PROGRESSIVE CAR RENTAL: CARS& SUV FOR RENTAL- $4,000 & UP PER DAY- CALL: 643-5122, 656-0087 ,EMAIL:PRO_ A U T O R E N T A L @YAHOO.COM Aidan’s Car & 4WD Vigo pick up, cheapest rate, low security- Call: 698-7807 Wing’s Car & 4WD Vigo pick up rental- Call: 690-6494

LEARN TO DRIVE Soman Son & Outar Driving School at Maraj Building- Tel: 644-5166; 622-2872; 6150964; 689-5997

MASSAGE Relaxing Massage Therapy Service- Call: 674-8147

PROPERTY FOR SALE Large 4 bedroom concrete house for sale at Ruimzeight Garden W.C.D, Residential Area- Call: 269-0189; 268-3214 Brand new 2 storey concrete building in 5th Avenue, Diamond, E.B.D, all modern amenities –Call: 662-9335; 612-3244 Property for sale, Grove $20M / Rent: $50,000 per month. Tel: 625-5461.

Property at 172 Parafield Leonora, W.C.D,1 wooden and concrete building –Call: 619-3503; 227-7675 Property in Prashad Nagar; top and bottom flat, land size 100X50. Contact Dennis & Nanda: 223-5934; 648-9226; 627-3557 Pearl: Well Built 1,995 Sq. Ft concrete structure 45X165 lot, formerly meeting hall 13.5M. Call: 649-1670 #53 Village: East Berbice, concrete house and land for sale, please submit offers, Call: 674-2155 Property at Diamond New Scheme: 1-Three bedroom flat concrete house, price $9.5M negotiable. Call: 2663962; 667-1240 Property Includes furniture and fixtures; $95M negotiable, for more information call: 652-8696 One 2 storey 5 bedroom concrete and wooden house with two large self contained rooms, well secured –Tel: 6928923 One Roadside, 2 storey house @ V/Hoop, ground floor, in excellent condition for restaurant or other businesses. Call: 692-8923; 614-0107 Two bedroom wood house for sale; located at Stwertville, W.C.D, serious inquiries one only –Call: 6841838

FOR SALE LARGE QUANTITIES OF HIGH PURITY MERCURY (QUICK SILVER) 99.99995% PURITY$19,000 PER POUND CALL: 592-227-4754.

One 52ft, complete snapper boat and one 38ft bore cruiser in excellent condition.

Call: 654-2817; 648-6815 ‘One Manual Two-Function Home Used Hospital bed.’

Excellent condition Call: 6836200 Toyota AT170 Carina powered by Toyota 35 Engine, asking price $500,000 negotiable. Call: 659-1004 Pool Tables and business property for sale- Call: 6216878 Earth Delivery to spot (garden earth) also excavator & bobcat rentals. Call: 6267127 Wardrobe, Wall divider/ cabinet, single & double bed & more- Call: 622-6334 GMC Savana; fully loaded, 5M negotiable, for more information call: 652-8696 One Imported Pools Table contact 223-5273/4 1-38 Gal/4500W electric water heater, 220 Volts, brand new$60,000 – Call: 233-3690; 2615280 33.6 Acres Farm Land @ Kuru Kururu, Linden High Way. Call: 225-7794; 679-1151 MILL CUT AND DRESSED GREENHEART FROM $160BM AND KABUKALLI FROM, $180BM- TEL: 6886579/653-9752 One flat bottom boat 32 feet, one 15 Yamaha, one hundred & seventy five (175lb) banga seine. Call: 691-7775 One Nissan Z20 Engine with gear box in working order.

Call: 667-7337 2 Canters going cheap, owner migrating-Call: 6281756; 228-5655 1 Complete music system, 6 base-Call:221-2817; 699-5790 1-Ford F250 truck, manual and lifted, 1-4-Stroke 40HP Yamaha Outboard – Call: 684-3248; 662-9603; 6530266; 696-0712 1-100 KVA Generator on trailer, 1-40HP, 2 Stroke Yamaha outboard. Call: 6843248; 662-9603; 653-0266; 696-0712 Clean Garden earth, Trucking Services and Builders Waste, also bobcat rental, excavating, clearing, leveling- Call: 627-9977; 6160617; 663-3285 Continued on page 63

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

DENTAL CHECK-UPS Ask some people when their last dental check-up was and they will look at you bewildered. “Check-up?”, “My teeth don’t hurt” or “I don’t have problems with my mouth”. These are some of the usual responses. Yes, some people are blessed with good genetics, good health and the ability to practise good oral hygiene so they might get away with only having an occasional checkup.

For most of us, however, this is not the case. You should not wait until you have a problem in order to have a dental check-up. Like a medical check-up, it is to your advantage to catch small problems before they turn into bigger ones.

There are two types of check-ups: a comprehensive exam and a routine examination.

The comprehensive exam is done when you first visit your dentist and periodically throughout the years and includes a thorough medical and dental history, examination of your head and neck as well as examining your mouth and taking of dental x-rays. A routine exam is usually done every six months and may not be as detailed. During your routine check-up, your dentist will: · Examine for loose or broken teeth, tooth decay, damaged fillings, plaque and tartar. · Check the fitness of existing dentures, crowns, bridges, and braces. · Look for signs of gum disease such as gingivitis and periodontitis. Your gum can be a big indicator of your overall health. · Check your mouth for any indications of oral cancer, diabetes or vitamin deficiencies. · Ask about your general health and any problems you’ve had with your teeth,

mouth or gums since your last dental visit. · Ask about, and give you advice on, your diet, smoking and alcohol use, and teethcleaning habits. · Discuss with you a date for your next appointment.

It is recommended that you visit your dentist twice a year for check-ups and cleanings. Even if you take excellent care of your teeth and gums at home, you still need to have regular exams.

Your dentist can check for problems that you may not see or feel. Many dental problems don’t become visible or cause pain until they are in more advanced stages.

Examples include tooth decay, gum disease and oral cancer. Regular visits allow your dentist to find early signs of disease so that they can be treated at a manageable stage. Also, the cost of a check-up can be minimal and oftentimes a far cheaper investment than trying to fix bigger problems later on.

The twice yearly appointments will work well for many people. Some can get away with fewer visits.

People with very little risk of tooth decay or gum disease can do fine seeing their dentist just once a year.

Others may need more frequent visits. People with a high risk of dental disease might need to visit every three or four months, or more. This high-risk group includes: · Smokers · Pregnant women · Diabetics · People with current gum disease · People with a weak immune response to bacterial infection · People who tend to get cavities or build up plaque The time between checkups can vary from three months to two years

Little progress as private...

From page 54 the office on September 10. There he made it clear that infrastructural works have to be completed by February.

The land was sold by CH&PA in 2011 to Sunset Lakes Inc., owned by Tiwarie, to build homes.

All the homes and infrastructural works were supposed to be in place within 24 months.

The developers meeting with Minister Scott last month included representatives from Baishanlin, Courtney Benn Construction, Bradford Enterprises, Dax Construction, Sun Set Lakes and Odinga Lumumba.

A reported 16 developers were allocated large plots of lands between Providence and Little Diamond by the previous administration under unclear circumstances.

Some developers have been selling the lands and not building homes, prompting Scott to wonder whether the allocations were done to allow a few businesses to “speculate”.

Under agreements, the developers could be fined 25 percent of the market value of the land if they fail to meet deadlines.

Page 63

From page 62 LAND FOR SALE 1500 Acres Transported land 4 Miles from Bartica, 2 Miles River front, sand, loam, forestry, rock quarry, farming, resort-Call: 603-1266; 625-9788

Dr. Neromini Fagu depending on how healthy your teeth and gums are and your risk of future problems.

The schedule for any person may change during their lifetime and in times of stress or illness you may need to see the dentist more often than usual. Leaving problems untreated could make them more difficult to treat in the future, so it’s best to deal with problems early, or, if possible, prevent them altogether.

Remember, by seeing your dentist on a regular basis and following good daily oral hygiene practices at home, you are more likely to keep your teeth and gums healthy.

Your goal should be to address small issues early so as to avoid costly treatments later.

Knowing what is happening in your mouth is important for your overall health. If you haven’t done so recently, take some time, visit your dentist, get a checkup. You may be surprised at what you learn. After all, prevention is better than cure.

For more information contact Dr. Neromini Fagu at Omni Dental on Tel: 2270025, 260-3133 or email questions and comments to nerominifagu@hotmail.com.

ACCOMODATION Inner Retreat Hotel Restaurant & Bar, Retreat Road Parika. Indoor /Outdoor bar in Picturesque setting – Phone: 260-4504; 685-6934

VEHICLE FOR SALE

Guyana’s 1st 5-Star Community, modern amenities, luxurious, recreational & business facility, security entry and more- land @ US$ 7.2SqFtCall: 650-0978 80X40ft. Land at B Field, Sophia. Well-developed and ready to build on. Call: 6836200

1 Isuzu canter open back (diesel engine), manual, short base, price $1.250M- Excellent condition- Contact Rocky 225-1400,621-5902

365 Acres cultivated, 1135 acres-unclean, house 20X60 (porch)- Call: 657-0992 Land at Parfaite Harmonie: $1M, $1.4M, $1.6M, Tuschen 8th Street - $2M & 2nd Street -$1.4M. Call: 604-6724

1- Toyota Land Rover (Discovery) manual , fully powered, alarm , 4X4 Diesel (2700 cc) Price -$6.7M Contact Rocky: 225-1400, 6215902

$1.2M & $1.5M Parfaite Harmonie, Lowlands (East Coast) -$1.8M, Herstelling (110ftX61ft) -$4.5M, Dairy $3.2M (100ftx50ft) Tel: 6117223; 604-2207 Corner lot with foundation @ 20th Street Diamond – Contact: 216-2364; 6952377 One plot of land for sale situated at 3167 Spurwing Drive, South Ruimveldt (corner lot), (size of land: 59’X90')-Call: 625-0356 Professional Realty: we buy/ sell/rent/value your real estate –Call:694-3875; 6490353; 654-6198 North half lot situated at lot 108 Third Street Agricola, 3,200 Sqft. Sale price -$2.5M. Call: 697-8963 Back, South half, lot situated at 108 Third Street Agricola, 3554.50 sqft, sale price $2.5M. Call: 697-8963

Saturdays & Sundays after lunch @ Inner Retreat Hotel Parika: Bar-B-Que & games: pools, darts, table tennis etc – Phone: 260-4504.

EDUCATION Princeton College Forms 1-5 CXC Adults Classes, Grade 1-6 Lessons: Phonic lessons @ East Street-Call: 690-5008; 619-7911 TOURS Suriname Tour: Shopping, Tours, site seeing November 26th -29th.Old years into New Years December 30th – January 3rd –Call: 639-2663; 665-5171

International Language Institute Classes for adults & Children, Spanish, English as Second Language, Portuguese, Dutch –Call: 2233556

Rock Stone Fish Festival: fish catching off all types, day of excitement 24th NovemberCall: 639-2663, 665-5171

Obtain a guaranteed distinction in CSEC Principles of Accounts. Call: 654-1723 for more information

1- Toyota RZ (excellent condition) manual, CD player, mags, 15 seater, price -$1.3M (hardly used) – Contact Rocky: 225-1400, 621-5902

1- Toyota Picnic (7 Seater) 4 doors, automatic, fully powered, A/C, mags, alarm CD –Price -$2.3M –Contact: Rocky: 225-1400, 621-5902

VEHICLE FOR SALE Sale! Sale! RZ Minibus, BLL series – $1.250M Negotiable, Serious enquiries only.

Owner migrating. Call: 6623073 2- Unregistered new model Tacoma, Step, crash bar, alarm, bed covering, mag rimCall: 695-6461 or 639-7758 1 NZE Fielder Silver Gray, HC 5916, 17" rims, price $1.5MCall: 675-3186 or 621-7236 Land Cruiser Prado in Mint condition, fully loaded, PNN Series-Call: 601-0053; 2750264 2013 Mercedes C250 turbo AMG coupe, retractable glasstop, mileage 15K, alcantara leather interior, brush aluminum acc- Call: 650-5136

1-Ford Ranger extra cab (4x4) automatic, fully loaded, AC, Ducati 1098cc alarm. Price $1.8M- Contact: One motorcycle in excellent Rocky: 225-1400, 621-5902 condition, will negotiate best 1- Mitsubishi Pajero (7seats) offer-Call: 617-6934, 674-0137 auto, fully powered, mags, Recently registered RZ VVTI hardly used –price $2.8M - mini-bus- Tel: 668-5792 Contact: Rocky: 621-5902 Model M Truck with Winch 1-Toyota Extra cab pick-up & Spares- GRR. Call: 6624X4 automatic, AC, Crash Bar, 6045 immaculate condition, price - 2008 Ford F-150, 4X4 JVC $2.3M –Contact Rocky: 621- Stero, 64,000 miles, running 5902 boards, push bars, led lights.

Call Tony: 614-8018 1- AE110 Toyota Sprinter, automatic, fully powered, One 1.5 Ton Toyota Toyace mags –price $975,000. – Canter, GLL Series good Contact Rocky: 621-5902; 225- working condition –Contact: 623-1202 1400 Unregistered Fielder Wagon, new shape Spacio, fully loaded, rims, camera, bodykit, HID, dark interior-Call: 617-5536 Black Nissan Bluebird 2006 $2.5M –Call: 681-3462 or 6925447 FOR SALE AT192, 212, Allion, CRV 2000 Model, 1998 CC unregistered Premio, Hilux PLL5892, Burgundy, Surf, BNN, RZ & Pit-bull, 7 immaculate condition- Call: seater super custom. Cash / 684-5868 terms- Call: 680-3154 Prado 2000 model, 2700CC, We buy & sell vehicles for PPP2872, pearl white & silver, cash, also parts available & next to new- Call: 684-5868 30 seater buses; Extra Cab One Suzuki swift, PDD Series pickups; 2006 Tacoma“As is, where is”. For more Call:680-3154 information. Contact: 676- Suzuki Escudo. Recently 3283 registered in excellent condition.

Lady d r i v e n . $ 4 . 3 M negotiable. Contact: 609 8425 1 AT-170 for sale $800,000.

Call: 627-2897; 220-0904 HEALTH Herbal treatment; get rid of your diabetes, get instant reliefs, stop using insulin & other doctor’s medication.

Call: 651-3560

1 Pit-bull 15 seater, 4 thousand series- $3,600,000. Call: 6123456; 618-1828 AT170 Toyota Carina Wagon, price $400,000-Call: 628-4386

Page 64

Kaieteur News

Mining responsible for 87 per cent...

From page 14 historical (1990) delineation of forest and non-forest areas.

The total forested area used in the year-five assessment is 18.48 million hectares (ha).

Guyana currently records a comparatively low deforestation rate, reported in its Interim Measures MRVS Report, as ranging between 0.02 per cent and 0.079 per cent per annum.

Deforestation rates typically expand along with economic development, thus prompting the formation of the United Nations Collaborative Programme on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest

Degradation in Developing Countries (UN-REDD programme), the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) and the REDD+ Partnership, among others.

Guyana has already received four tranches of money totaling almost US$200M under the forest protection agreement with the Kingdom of Norway Guyana.

Norway has committed to providing Guyana with up to US$250M by 2015, depending on Guyana’s delivery of results from avoided deforestation.

On November 9, 2009, Guyana and Norway entered into a Memorandum of Understanding to foster

cooperation on issues related to the fight against climate change.

Since then, the monies released have been utilized to support the implementation of several projects under the LCDS, including the Micro and Small Enterprise Project, Amerindian Development Fund and the strengthening of key institutions.

The Amaila Falls Hydro project was also slated to be one of the beneficiary projects with some US$80M earmarked but Government has already indicated that it will discontinue pursuing that proposed 165MW project.

SARU requests Public Security...

From page 9 transfer without the written consent of the Minister responsible for Housing ...”

Williams had said that the very nature of this situation is on par with others from the UK and Belize as outlined in the SARU report. He said, “It is a case where they used their office to profit unlawfully and at the expense of the state.”

The Legal Affairs Minister said that while the law may state that individuals could have brought the case of misfeasance in public office before the court, the Caribbean Court of Justice extends that power from individuals to the AG. “So the AG could bring

such an action but also criminal charges could be laid and that is misconduct in public office. That would be swifter while the civil side would take a while.”

The AG also made it clear that he cannot institute charges in this case; the person constitutionally empowered to do so is the DPP. He noted that while the Guyana Police Force can also institute such charges, should it act without the advice of the DPP, then she also has the power to intervene and take over the prosecutions started by the police.

“SARU sent its findings and I would recommend that

they be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and the Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan.

That would be for the criminal side.”

The SARU report however lists the DPP, Miss Shalimar AliHack as a beneficiary of the controversial Pradoville Two deal. The report said that on September 7, 2011, the DPP bought Lot 184 Sparendaam, ECD, Block IV, which is 0.2767 acres of land.

Asked how this looming situation of conflict of interest would be dealt with, Williams had said, “She would have to recuse herself in the determination of the matter.”

Sunday October 18, 2015

Increase in ministers’ salaries must be contextualized

By Charles L. Griffith, BS (Ag. Eng.) MS (Ag. Proc. Eng.) PE The increase in Ministers salaries could have been placed in the public domain with different support for such actions, to include indisputable parameters associated with increased workload. The fundamental rudiments associated with the diverse workloads could have been presented for each Ministry for public debate if needed as well for public consumption.

Even without the increased work load public presentation, this new Government of Guyana (GOG) is faced with a humungous task, to correct the multiplicity of existing manmade designed anomalies, of which many may be irreparable, and simultaneously create sustained developmental strategies that would facilitate in time, increased participation in the decision making process that would affect the livelihood of all Citizens of Guyana, in an improved manner.

The increase in salaries for each Minister of the GOG is not catastrophic, and very reasonable, as direct function of their respective work-loads.

Ministers of the current government work a minimum 16 hours each day for seven days a week and are on call each day. It does not stop there, the nature of their responsibilities are extremely and cognitively dense. These heavily weighted responsibilities are attached to the general management of individual sector of the service and productive sectors of the COUNTRY. The analysis of the Ministers salaries must capture the internal what, why and how mechanisms or machinery within administrative law upon which NATIONAL DECISIONS are made, and such an evaluation requires in-depth understanding of the design and analysis of public domain policies of which labour is an intrinsic component.

The multiplicity of sometimes immeasurable performance oriented stresses sustained in the ministerial portfolio, to provide visionary, applicable, unique and easy to understand policy structures, considering multilevel factorial with several tiers of substructures considerations and possible interactions associated with main inputs such as technical, globalized, managerial, specification based, legal, availability, conformance, economic, crossed by myriads of block variable features for utility by the

end-user (citizen) to facilitate measurable outcomes, must be primary considerations.

These above mentioned comprehensive quality policy considerations provide for the legitimate, diverse, bottom up, moral with builtin flexibilities, to generate multiplicities of alternative, definitive cost effective solutions to whatever policy oriented mechanism under consideration.

These are the meticulous deliberations that must be laid out for operationalization with quantitative measurements, in order to improve the standard of living of all Guyanese, and therefore may be considered each Minister’s primary core responsibility.

This approach to analyze existing public domain policiesas well the formulation of new policies is no easy cut and dry task, since it requires considerable multi-depth deliberations within open as well as closed doors. These above mentioned considerations form the envelope which encloses the what, why and how Ministers generate public domain policies to affect the Citizens well-being, and especially those areas that facilitate improvement of the standard of living of all Guyanese.

Many mistakes will be made to create the appropriate policies that may be able to transverse along this obstacle laden journey for unity among all races in the Guyana Space (GS), but, the said mistakes can surely be minimized in magnitude and frequency of their occurrences.

During the Ministers deliberations due care must be exercised especially in those areas that are intimately attached to the industrialization of the mind boggling multiplicity of marketable natural resources of Guyana.

In other words, I submit that the planners (Ministers) have to develop realistic and flexible policy oriented strategies within ID to secure the necessary, and almost reliable streams of revenues to finance the diversity of programs across Economic Development; Environment; Industrialization; Foreign Affairs; Institutional; Integration; and Physical Infrastructure.

Other areas that will place competitive demands of same revenues are Security; Social Services to include Culture, Education, Health Services, Housing, Labor and Social Welfare Services; Legislature; Commissions and the Judiciary, in an effort to satisfy the outlined requirements for the desired improvements.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 65

Page 66

Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

Agreements Between Antigua and Venezuela Daily Observer - The government of Antigua and Barbuda and the visiting Venezuela president Nicolas Maduro have agreed to several areas of cooperation.

Prime Minister Gaston Browne describes the proposed construction of the Simon Bolivar resort as the most exciting of them all.

“That resort will be owned jointly between the government of Antigua and Barbuda and Venezuela. It promises to create significant social and economic opportunities for both our peoples. It will be part of that economic para dime in which we seek to introduce a form of entrepreneurial socialism”.

Prime Minister Gaston Browne, speaking shortly after the exchange of share certificates for West Indies Oil Company of which the Venezuela government officially owns 25 per cent.

Browne says the leaders also discussed utilizing the former US base as a base of Peace, to be used to create what he refers to as a superior economic benefits for

Antiguans and Barbudans.

They also to establish a regional training facility as well as a sub-regional facility to assist with adaptation and the mitigation of the effects of climate change.

There is also commitment to advancing the cause for the creation of a petro Caribe economic zone.

“In keeping with the vision of El president. And we’ve also agreed to create a regional bank domicile here in

Trinidad Guardian - A National Heliport Services Ltd (NHSL) accountant was a member of a 2014 tender committee that approved a $500 million contract for Bell Helicopter to provide four helicopters and the construction of a hangar.

Bell Helicopter, a Fort Worth, Texas, US, company founded in 1935, specialising in the design and production of fighter aircraft, was chosen by the committee out of a shortlist of two—the other being a UK helicopter firm, Eurocopter.

Bell, which fit all the criteria, got the nod after it tendered $12 million less than Eurocopter.

The disclosures were made by former national security minister Gary Griffith, who served under the last administration, in response to statements made in Parliament

by Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley.

Rowley described it as a dubious contract the NHSL refused to be involved with.

Griffith, denying this, said the NHSL was involved in the contract and Rowley might not have been properly briefed on the details of the transaction.

He said the tender committee that approved the tender included NOC personnel, ex-

ternal legal counsel and a NHSL accountant.

He said the then finance minister tendered to financial institutions to bid on a loan to finance the transaction and was able to secure an $81 million loan from a bank.

“The Office of the Prime Minister wrote the NHSL instructing them to finalise the loan.

“The tender procedures were all done and approved by the permanent secretary in the ministry of finance.

“Cabinet Note 1002 states that the National Security Council agreed that the purchase of the helicopters will be done through the NHSL and the loan will be guaranteed by the government.

“The contract was signed in March 2015 with Bell for the delivery of the helicopters and the building of the hangars,” Griffith said.

The T&T Guardian was unable to get confirmation from NHSL. An employee transferred us to the general manager who he said was the best person to talk to.

But there was no answer from that extension, even after repeated calls.

Efforts to reach National Security Minister retired Major General Edmund Dillon were also fruitless. Dillon’s cell phone remained switched

Nicolas Maduro

Antigua and Barbuda to facilitate Petro Caribe investments in the future. I thank el president for buying into our vision and our vision is to transform Antigua and Barbuda into an economic powerhouse within the Caribbean. The initiatives we have agreed to in this declaration will help us to position Antigua and Barbuda as an economic powerhouse in the Caribbean”.

The delayed arrival of Venezuelan President Nicholas into Antigua Friday resulted in him having to extend what was to have been a one day visit. He was scheduled to be in Antigua around 3.30 Friday but did not land at the V.C Bird International airport until about 8 PM. After inspecting the guard of honour, he visited the Mount St. John’s Medical centre as scheduled in connection with the Miracle Mission programme.

Fourteen thousand patients have received screening for eye diseases, with 368 benefitting from cataract surgery.

No bobol in helicopter deal -Griffith off.

Griffith, giving details of the Bell contract, said the then national security ministry was not involved in the tender arrangements, which were handled by the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), but he was well aware of what went on.

He said the National Operations Centre (NOC) gave the OPM the go ahead to purchase the four helicopters because they were needed in assisting with national security operations.

The tender arrangements for another $500 million contract with Chinese firm, Huawei Technologies Ltd, for the implementation of the Safe City System, was done at the Office of the Prime Minister in March 2013.

Griffith said he was also aware of that contract and claimed Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley was again not properly briefed on the matter. Rowley, in his budget presentation, said this was “another troubling matter”.

He added, “I am told that this Chinese company is putting in some system which will allow us, electronically, to look on television screens over the whole of T&T.” Rowley said he was concerned about “a security breach to our sovereignty”.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Squandered money to be recovered, says St Kitts-Nevis PM

BASSETERRE, St Kitts (SKNIS) -- Prime Minister Dr Timothy Harris has claimed that the former St Kitts and Nevis administration squandered EC$11 million (US$4 million) in the Small Enterprise Assistance Fund (SEAF) project, which he said would be recovered.

The SEAF Project was financed by the citizenship by investment programme and funding was purportedly made available to small business investors. It was managed by Roselyn Hazelle of the St Kitts Investment Promotion Agency (SKIPA). But Harris said at his weekly press conference on October 13 that the program was not properly managed and persons who received money were not held

accountable. He also suggested nepotism among the beneficiaries of funding.

“It was a pre-election gimmick to win votes. No serious effort was made to hold beneficiaries accountable for repayment. There were cases where candidates, their families, friends were preferred to get funds purported to open businesses, and for other purposes,” Harris disclosed.

“A candidate, his sister, his aunt, his nephew and niece were all offered large sums. No viable business is there to show for their largesse to any of these beneficiaries. Collections have been horrible. We intend to recover the people’s money. We are not opposed to publishing the names of those owing and are yet to make proper repayment arrangements,” he added. Harris also questioned the logic of paying persons who presided over SEAF hefty payments, considering some were already employed in public service.

“While SEAF collections were disastrously non-existent, we are hard pressed to rationalize the need to pay persons already in the public sector hefty sums while they presided over our SEAF that was neither meeting the test of accountability nor transparency. We have difficulty with the payments to such

public officials as Ambassador Steve Wrensford of $50,000 and Rosalyn Hazelle of $76, 000,” the prime minister said.

Harris suggested that some who received funding have already begun repaying and urged those who have not done so yet to begin repaying or face “strong arm of the law.” He said: “We thank those who since the new day dawned on February 16, 2015, have begun repayments, and we invite those who are delinquent to urgently take steps to repay before the strong arm of the law takes hold.”

As of Tuesday, October 6, 2015, the prime minister said only 75 out of 300 persons had repaid any of their indebtedness. These repayments are a mere $171,130 from $11 million in disbursements, Harris noted.

In light of these revelations, the prime minister turned his attention to foreign investments coming to St Kitts and Nevis, suggesting that some “investments” under the previous administration were not real investments. He said foreign investments must benefit the country and should not be a case where investors come with “ideas” that are funded by the government. (Caribbean News)

The Gleaner - Attorneyat-law Jade Hollis, who is facing fraud charges, has lost her bid to get a stay of a disciplinary hearing by the General Legal Council into a complaint against her.

Hollis had contended that the hearing should be put on hold in light of the fact that a criminal case is before the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate’s Court.

She contended that the complaint before the legal council is the same matter

before the court. Attorney-atlaw Daniella Gentles-Silvera who represented the council, objected to the application.

She argued that the application should have been filed within seven days after the committee’s ruling.

The court was told that the disciplinary committee had refused the application on July 7 this year and Hollis filed an appeal on August 17.

Court of Appeal judge Justice Hilary Phillips upheld the submissions and refused

the attorney’s application.

The judge said Hollis may seek to file a new appeal seeking an extension for it to be heard by the Full Court.

Hollis is facing four counts of fraudulent conversion.

It is reported that she fraudulently collected more than $12 million while she was being retained as a carriage of sales of a real estate company.

Hollis is out on bail in the sum of $3 million with surety.

Dr Timothy Harris

Attorney facing fraud charges loses battle with general legal council

Page 67

Page 68

Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

Croatia diverts migrants to Slovenia after Hungary closes border

A migrant family walks to a registration center at a Croatia-Slovenia border crossing in Lendava, Slovenia yesterday. REUTERS/ANTONIO BRONIC

Reuters - Migrants streaming across the Balkans reached Slovenia yesterday, diverted overnight by the closure of Hungary's border with Croatia in the latest demonstration of Europe's disjointed response to the flow of people reaching its borders.

Hungary's right-wing government declared its southern frontier with Croatia off limits to migrants, blocking entry with a metal fence and razor wire, just as it did a month ago on its border with Serbia.

Croatia began directing migrants west to Slovenia, which said hundreds had arrived already and more were on their way.

Slovenia said they would be registered before continuing their journey to Austria and Germany, the preferred destination of the vast majority, many of them Syrians fleeing war.

But their movement had slowed visibly, with dozens of buses lined up at Serbia's border with Croatia through the night and into yesterday as Croatian police controlled their entry, a Reuters reporter

said. Slovenia suspended rail traffic with Croatia, saying it needed "complete control" over the flow.

Aid agencies are concerned about backlogs of migrants building in the Balkans, battered by autumn winds and rain as temperatures drop before winter.

Hungary said it had reinstated border controls on its frontier with Slovenia, effectively suspending Europe's Schengen system of passport-free travel though it said it was acting within the Schengen rules. Both Slovenia and Hungary are part of the Schengen Area while Croatia is not.

A government spokesman said Budapest had taken the step because "migrants appeared" on the Slovenian side of the border.

Hungary says it is dutybound to protect the borders of the European Union from the tide of migrants, most of them Muslims who Hungary says threaten the prosperity, security and "Christian values" of Europe.

With several other exCommunist members of the

EU, Hungary opposes a plan by the bloc to share out 120,000 refugees among its members. That is only a small proportion of the 700,000 migrants expected to reach Europe's shores by boat and dinghy from North Africa and Turkey this year, many of them fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East, Africa and Asia.

Hungary dismissed as insufficient a proposal at an EU summit on Thursday to give Turkey 3 billion euros ($3.4 billion) in aid and the prospect of easier travel visas and "re-energised" talks on joining the bloc if it helps stem the flow of migrants across its territory.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, one of Europe's most vociferous opponents of immigration, wants the formation of a joint force to protect the borders of Greece, where most migrants arrive across the Aegean Sea from Turkey before heading north through Macedonia and Serbia. Without that, his government said it was left with no choice but to seal the border.

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea yesterday rejected the idea of resuming talks to end its nuclear programme, saying previous such attempts ended in failure, and reiterated its demand that Washington come to the table to negotiate a peace treaty.

The statement by the North's foreign ministry came a day after U.S. President Barack Obama and South Korean President Park Geunhye said in Washington they were open to talks with North Korea on sanctions but that Pyongyang needs to show it was serious about abandoning its nuclear ambition.

"If the United States in-

sists on taking a different path, the Korean peninsula will only see our unlimited nuclear deterrent being strengthened further," the North's foreign ministry said in a statement.

North and South Korea remain technically at war under a truce it signed in 1953 with the United States, which led U.N. forces backing the South, and China, which fought for the North.

North Korea walked away from the so-called six-party talks involving the United States and four other countries in 2008 and went on to conduct two more nuclear tests.

It said only a peace treaty with Washington can permanently resolve the conflict on the Korean peninsula.

Obama said the United States was open to negotiations that could ease sanctions imposed on the North, just as it had done with Iran, which reached a deal in July with major powers.

"We haven't even gotten to that point yet, because there has been no indication on the part of the North Koreans as there was with the Iranians that they could foresee a future in which they did not possess or were not pursuing nuclear weapons," he said.

North Korea rejects more nuclear talks, demands peace treaty with U.S.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

India, US and Japan hold naval exercises under China's gaze NEW DELHI (AP) — Naval warships, aircraft carriers and submarines from the U.S., India and Japan steamed into the Bay of Bengal yesterday as they took part in joint military exercises off India's east coast, signaling the growing strategic ties among the three countries as they face up to a rising China.

The sea drills, part of the six-day-long Malabar exercises, will cover the full spectrum of naval maneuvers, including military-to-military coordination and anti-submarine warfare, according to a joint statement.

The U.S. has deployed the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, a missile cruiser and a nuclear-powered submarine for the annual exercises, which end tomorrow.

"India and Japan both are

fantastic partners of the United States," Capt. Craig Clapperton, commanding officer of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, told reporters on board the ship.

"We share a great deal in common, and we certainly have very strong economic, military and political relationships and friendships with India and Japan."

A Chinese state-run newspaper, however, cautioned India to guard against being drawn into an anti-China alliance.

"The China-India relationship is on a sound track, and healthy ties are beneficial to both countries," the Global Times said. "India should be vigilant to any intentions of roping it into an anti-China camp."

Almost simultaneously,

China's People's Liberation Army and the Indian army are conducting joint counterterrorism exercises in southwestern China.

China has long been wary of joint maritime exercises between India and the United States, but is especially concerned now, with Beijing involved in a host of disputes with Japan, South Korea and several of its Southeast Asian neighbors in the South China Sea. This year's Malabar exercises are being held against the backdrop of expectations that the U.S. might directly challenge Chinese claims in the South China Sea by sailing a Navy ship inside the 12-nautical-mile (21kilometer) territorial limit surrounding an artificial island built by China.

Iran rejects criticism of its missile test Tehran (AFP) - Iran said yesterday that its recent test launch of a long-range missile does not violate UN Security Council resolutions as claimed by the United States and France.

"Our missile tests have nothing to do with Resolution 2231, which only mentions missiles designed to carry nuclear warheads," Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told a news conference.

Speaking in Tehran alongside his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier, he added: "None of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s missiles have been designed for nuclear capabilities."

Iran announced it had suc-

cessfully tested a new domestically produced longrange missile without specifying its exact range.

Defence Minister Hossein Dehghan said the new missile "can be guided and controlled until hitting the target."

The US ambassador to the UN Samantha Power on Friday said the missile launched

by Iran is a "medium-range ballistic missile inherently capable of delivering a nuclear weapon". "This was a clear violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1929," she said, echoing similar criticism from the French foreign ministry, adding that the US would seek action at the Security Council.

Resolution 1929 prohibits

Tehran from conducting ballistic missiles tests.

Resolution 2231, which was adopted a few days after Iran struck the July 14 landmark nuclear deal with world powers, bars Iran from developing missiles "designed to carry nuclear warheads".

The nuclear deal reached with Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States aims to limit Iran's nuclear program in return for lifting international sanctions.

Page 69

In time, Guyanese will see the merits of the salary increase- President Granger The Government’s decision to increase the salaries of the Prime Minister, Ministers, Members of Parliament and the Opposition’s yearly allocation, has been described

by President David Granger as an investment in efficiency, quality and good governance.

Speaking during the Ministry of the Presidency’s “Public Interest” programme on Friday, President David Granger said that while the decision was a difficult one, it was decided on in the best interest of the country.

“As far as the salary increases are concerned, we had to make some choices, and choices were made in order to assure the public of the efficiency and commitment of the Ministers … It was a difficult choice in the first place. It was not something that we did recklessly. We had to consider all of the options and in the final analysis we felt that this was the best means of ensuring that the work of the

Cabinet would continue,” he said.

The Head of State added that in order to attract the best qualified people to serve at this level, certain sacrifices have to be made.

“Many of the members were professionals and some came from private enterprises.

We are trying to ensure that the coalition’s Cabinet is such that there is a high level of efficiency. The changes have been an investment in quality governance,” President Granger told the journalists on the panel.

While there are criticisms, President Granger said that he is confident that in time to come, Guyanese will see the merits of regularizing and upgrading the income of the country’s senior officials.

“I am aware of the criticisms but we have to make choices every day and the choice was made in favour of having a stronger Cabinet and allowing those persons who have been selected to fulfill their functions and I am confident that this will be done. In the middle term, I believe people will see that as a good decision… I believe that in time to come, evidence would emerge that we made the correct decision,” he said.

President Granger noted that it is now his job to ensure that his Cabinet does the work that is necessary to bring about transformative change in Guyana. He also urged all Guyanese to continue to hold their leaders’ feet to the fire to ensure that they serve the country well.

Page 70

Kaieteur News

C'bean exports decreased in first half of 2015 - Study

Sunday October 18, 2015

Key Brazil impeachment figure accused of hiding $16M

KINGSTON, Jamaica — A new study conducted by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) says exports of Latin American and Caribbean goods fell 10.9 per cent in the first half of 2015 compared to the same period in 2014.

The study, Trade and Integration Monitor 2015, noted that it is the “steepest drop” since the 2009 trade collapse.

The IDB’s said that the contraction in exports, which had begun in mid-2014, has worsened this year as a result of a substantial decline in China’s demand and steep reductions averaging 37.1 per cent in the prices of commodities between June 2014 and June 2015.

The drop in the region’s exports also reflects the overall contraction in global trade, according to the study, presented in San José, Costa

Rica at a seminar organised by the IDB and INCAE Business School.

“The favourable conditions that fuelled the region’s exports over the last decade have waned, and so it is crucial to diversify our exports through the implementation of trade promotion policies as well as policies to make use of trade agreements and enhance productivity,” said Paolo Giordano, Principal Economist of the IDB’s Integration and Trade Sector, and coordinator of the report.

Giordano said that, in 2014, the region’s exports had dropped by 2.8 per cent, adding that, in the first half of 2015, “numbers deteriorated further”.

The IDB said the South American countries were the most affected (-17.7 per cent) due to a fall in the price of raw materials and a shrinking re-

gional manufacturing market.

The Caribbean countries (-14.9 per cent) experienced this deterioration in a context of overall economic vulnerability, the IDB said.

The report analyses the region’s overall economic situation, characterised by greater exchange rate volatility and prospects of higher international financing costs, and underlines the urgent need to implement public policies aimed at promoting trade diversification.

The report compiles the most recent statistics, analyses the trade performance of the region, and includes a chapter on the evolution of export diversification over the last decade.

The analysis is based on the indicators provided by INTrade, the IDB’s trade and integration database. (Jamaica Observer)

Brasília (AFP) - A key figure in the push to impeach Brazil's president hid nearly $16 million in illegal funds, prosecutors said weekend in a new twist to the political battle gripping Latin America's biggest country.

Fugitive Mexican drugs lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman suffered face and leg injuries as he narrowly evaded a police operation to recapture him, officials have confirmed.

The operation happened in north-west Mexico in recent days but few details have been released.

Guzman, head of the Sinaloa cartel, escaped from

a high-security prison in July through a specially dug tunnel. His escape was an embarrassment for Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto.

The government said in a statement that efforts to recapture Guzman had been focused in the north-west of the country, not far from Guzman's native Sinaloa state. "As a result of these actions, and to avoid his cap-

ture, in recent days, the fugitive engaged in a hasty retreat, which, according to the information received, caused him injuries to one leg and the face," the statement said.

"It's important to clarify that these injuries were not a product of a direct clash," it added, without giving further details.

The statement added: "The security cabinet continues to conduct all actions that will allow the recapture of this criminal."

The Gleaner - Attorneyat-law Jade Hollis, who is facing fraud charges, has lost her bid to get a stay of a disciplinary hearing by the General Legal Council into a complaint against her.

Hollis had contended that the hearing should be put on hold in light of the fact that a criminal case is before the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate’s Court.

She contended that the complaint before the legal council is the same matter before the court. Attorney-at-

Mexico's 'El Chapo Guzman injured in recapture bid'

Eduardo Cunha

Eduardo Cunha, the speaker of the lower house of Congress, has been at the center of attention as he prepares to rule on whether petitions to impeach President Dilma Rousseff should go ahead.

However, he is also fighting for his own political life after being accused of taking millions of dollars in bribes during a massive corruption scheme in which leading Brazilian executives bribed politicians and embezzled from state oil company Petrobras.

Prosecutors fleshed out those allegations Friday, saying Cunha enriched himself more than had been previously reported and hid money in Swiss bank accounts.

"There is sufficient proof that the foreign bank accounts were not declared and that at least in relation to

Eduardo Cunha the money was the result of crimes," the prosecutor's office said in a statement.

"His estimated holdings... were approximately $16 million."

Prosecutors specified that Cunha has declared only about half a million dollars from that amount. The funds have all been frozen.

Cunha faces the threat of being stripped of his speaker's post and with that the powers to launch impeachment proceedings. His possible ouster throws into doubt a long-running drive to force Rousseff from office.

Rousseff, who began her second term less than a year ago, is deeply unpopular and has been found by a court to have fiddled government accounts to mask budget shortfalls.

law Daniella Gentles-Silvera who represented the council, objected to the application.

She argued that the application should have been filed within seven days after the committee’s ruling.

The court was told that the disciplinary committee had refused the application on July 7 this year and Hollis filed an appeal on August 17.

Court of Appeal judge Justice Hilary Phillips upheld the submissions and refused

the attorney’s application.

The judge said Hollis may seek to file a new appeal seeking an extension for it to be heard by the Full Court.

Hollis is facing four counts of fraudulent conversion.

It is reported that she fraudulently collected more than $12 million while she was being retained as a carriage of sales of a real estate company.

Hollis is out on bail in the sum of $3 million with surety.

CARACAS, Venezuela — A Venezuelan opposition leader who was arrested when he returned from exile will be held in jail as his trial gets under way.

An attorney for former Gov. Manuel Rosales said late Friday night that a judge had ordered the 63-year-old to remain in custody until a verdict is reached. His trial is set to start Nov. 12.

Rosales was arrested last week Thursday after returning to the socialist South American country after six

years as a fugitive from corruption charges.

He w a s g o v e r n o r o f the western state of Zulia and ran for presid e n t i n 2 0 0 6 , l o s i n g to Hugo Chavez. Before his arrest, he vowed to continue fighting the country’s 16year-old socialist administration.

Rosales fled in 2009 after prosecutors accused him of stealing public money. He says the charges are politically motivated. (Associated Press)

Attorney facing fraud charges loses battle with general legal council

Venezuela opposition leader to be jailed during trial

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Preparations begin for Jumbo Jet Bush Lot Utd Turf Club horserace meet November 8 With the horseracing season experiencing an unexpected lull in activities due to a number of unforeseen circumstances, the move by the Jumbo Jet Auto Sales and Racing stables in collaboration with the Bush Lot United Turf Club to organize an event for the 8th November is seen as a good one.

The horserace meet dubbed “bringing Bush Lot Alive” will be held at the club’s track Sea View Park West Coast Berbice and is the first collaborative effort between the two entities.

The event is coming at a good time and is geared to keep the animals fit and in action for the end of year events which are expected to see about three races staged.

Eight races are slated for the day with prize monies totaling over $5M in cash, trophies and other incentives up for the taking.

The feature event is for animals classified E1 and

lower and four year old animals for a top prize of $600,000 and trophy over one mile.

The Co-feature event is for three year old West Indies bred animals also over a mile for a winning take of $400,000 and trophy.

There is a race for two year old West Indies bred animals over 6F for a winning pocket of $300,000 and trophy. Animals classified G1 and lower will be racing over 6 ½ F for similar winnings.

The rest of the races are all over 6½ F and will see the H1 and lower horses galloping for a first prize of $250,000 and trophy.

The I1 and lower horses will be looking to take home the $200,000 top money and trophy available for the winner.

There is a race for J1 and lower horses for a pole position taking of $150,000 and trophy.

The final race is for animals classified K and lower with the winner set to take home $100,000 and trophy.

Apart from the fascinating horse racing action expected to unfold on the track there will also be added attraction for both adults and kids.

Incentives will be available for the top Jockey and runner up, the top stable and champion trainer among others compliments of the organizers.

Nasrudeen (Jumbo Jet) Mohamed Junior is the coordinator and can be contacted on telephone number 654-4060.

Race time is 12:00 hrs.

Meanwhile, the Jumbo Jet racing stable has a number of top race horses for sale at reasonable prices. According to the owners they have replenished their tock with a number of new imports and new born animals.

They are hoping that those interested in the horseracing business, especially Guyanese, can make use of the offers and cash in so that the racing family can be extended.

(Samuel Whyte)

Sunday October 18, 2015 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) The main things you need to do today are relax and enjoy your day. You may be feeling a bit under the weather and have a trip coming up that doesn't exactly thrill you.

TAURUS (Apr. 20–May 20) Cupid may have struck you unawares. Your libido could be in high gear today and you're ready for love. You look and feel great.

GEMINI (May 21–June 20) Today you may come down from your recent high with a thud. If you feel irritable dealing with everyday chores, you're not alone.

LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) OK, the party's over. Time to put away the sinful pleasures, the champagne, the chocolate truffles, and who knows what else.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) You may be experiencing a wonderful openness to new ideas and grand plans. You're enjoying an active imagination and your intuition is sharp.

SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21) If you're feeling restless today, don't fight it. Use your energy to do something physical. Go for a walk or play tennis. Anything that helps you release the excess energy will feel good.

CANCER (June 21–July 22) Today may be taken up with doing a lot of last-minute errands. You may be called on to referee a dispute among colleagues, relatives, or neighbors.

CAPRI (Dec.22–Jan.19) You don't want to sit still for a minute. You may make people dizzy with your energy, and you're itching to get away.

LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) Are you experiencing a shopping hangover today?

Are you worried that you outdid yourself despite your best intentions?

AQUARIUS(Jan.20–Feb.18) This would be a good day to pursue some new interests.

Perhaps you've recently discovered a book that opens up new areas for you.

VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept. 22) Today's planetary aspects may have you experiencing a little cabin fever. If you have the urge to go off by yourself for a while, do so.

PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) Are you fed up with everyone around you now? Are you fantasizing about walking out the door and not returning?

Go ahead - just for today!

Page 71

GCA’s Carib Beer t20 cricket

DCC take title with 30-run win over GCC

By Sean Devers Twice Bridesmaids but never the Bride, GCC, like they did last year when they lost to Police in the final at Eve Leary, lost by 30 runs to host DCC in yesterday’s final of the GCA’s Carib Beer t20 cricket competition.

Watched by the largest crowd for a GCA match in recent times, Man-of-the-Match Sherfane Rutherford’s brutal 20-ball 37 and a ball-a-run 40 from the inform Kevin Boodie rallied DCC to 170 all out from 19.5 overs.

Guyana Jaguars’ pacer Ronsford Beaten (3-36) and Leon Johnson (2-29) did the most damage with the ball for GCC who could only reach 140-8 when their 20 overs expired after requiring 36 from the final over with seven wickets down.

Bajan Raymon Reifer, one of nine left-handers in the GCC unit, top scored with a 30-ball 38 while Robin Bacchus made 21 from 19 balls and Elon Fernandes (20) all reached 20 in a losing cause as Rutherford, who finished with the most wickets in the tournament, Dennis Squires and 14-year-old national under-15 and U-17 left-arm spinner Ashmead Nedd had two wickets each for the new champions.

On the small ground with fast and parched outfield, the vocal fans which included a contingent of GCC supporters under a tent and equipped with a large GCC flag, pulsating music from the sound system, Bar-B-Q chicken being sold, live commentary on NCN’s Radio and several blue

GCB/Banks DIH/Digicel...

(From page 66) runs. However, Houston Secondary were eventually dismissed for 181 in 20 overs.

Paul Thomas smashed 63 and Jermaine Scott made 35. Bowling for Friendship Secondary Dhanpaul Bissoon grabbed 6 late wickets to remove all hopes of a successful batting chase by Houston Secondary. Friendship secondary won the match by 87 runs.

The GCB/ Banks DIH/ Digicel National Secondary School Cricket League continue on Tuesday, October 20, 2015 in the West Berbice District and on Wednesday, October 21, 2015 in the Georgetown, East Coast and East Bank Districts.

and yellow Carib Beer Banners around the ground, created a fantastic atmosphere while those on the field produced entertaining cricket.

Brian Sattaur, dropped off a skier by Anthony Adams off his own bowling on eight after hitting the bowler for six off the previous ball, was run out for 10 at 19-1, while Jamal Hinckson (1) was removed by Beaton three runs later.

When Barnwell, the leading run scorer in the eightteam tournament and who along with GNIC’s Krishna Arjune scored the only centuries in the competition, was bowled by left-arm spinner Devon Lord for 10, DCC were in trouble on 43-3.

But Rutherford, a West Indies U-19 selectee, joined forces with Boodie and featured in a 63-run stand before Rutherford edged Johnson to Keeper Vishaul Singh after hitting three fours and three sixes.

Boodie, who played some delightful shots and reached the boundary three times and cleared it thrice, missed a wild swipe to Johnson and was bowled one run later at 110-5 while Paul was eventually bowled by Beaton for a 15-ball 36.

When GCC began their reply they lost Singh (4) and Johnson (5) with only 19 runs on the board and when Jeetendra Sookdeo (8) fell to the versatile Rutherford GCC never really recovered.

Bacchus and Reifer were beginning to offer some fight but they were both removed by the experienced Squires, while Renaldo Mohamed (0) was bowled by Nedd three runs later as GCC slipped to 80-5.

Raj Nannan (17) and Fernandes (21) offered slim hope for the boys in blue but when Rutherford struck again to remove Fernandes the fat lady was already beginning to sing.

Page 72

Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

“West Indies cricketers need more steel!”

Says Colin E. H. Croft West Indies v Sri Lanka 1st Test, at wonderfully reconstructed Galle Stadium, one of many important Sri Lankan venues totally devastated by that terrible tsunami on Boxing Day, 26 December 2004, which killed at least 250,000 people, one of the ‘top ten’ of all-time natural disasters, has produced a study in steely attitudes and massive recoveries akin to Lankan Tigers.

Steel, despite its widely varied usefulness, is not one of the specific “Periodic Table of Elements”, that table which is so essential to chemistry, physics and wealth, even construction. Instead, steel is a combination “alloy” of elements in that table, mostly iron (Fe – Atomic No. 26) and carbon (C – Atomic No. 6), with other original trace elements from that “PTE” thrown in.

Thus, steel is extremely hard, strong, and particularly tensile, with great flexibility and stretch ability, all characteristics that that wonderful alloy should share with cricketers.

For anyone to play cricket anywhere successfully, he or

she must have that special mixture of strength, toughness, supreme flexibility, ability to be stretched, then to rebound, in thought and deed, when things do not go well in the field or during lead-ups to important cricket series.

Unfortunately for WI, that flexibility, especially cranially, was severely lacking, after the commotion-filled preview to this tour. One has to wonder as to what WI’s coaches actually do achieve when completing pre-match speeches and directives.

Going backwards from the end of WI’s first innings, after SL had managed a reasonable 484 all out, which should have been nearer 600, after those two big centuries, WI fast bowler Shannon Gabriel came to the crease with WI at 251-9, still needing only another 34 runs to get to 285.

That was the minimum total needed by WI to avoid being asked to bat a 2nd time immediately; to save the follow-on; if or when SL would have led by over 200 runs, per cricket’s general rules.

So what did Gabriel do?

He simply swiped at his very first ball, missed, and was

bowled. There are many words to describe that effort, but one that readily comes to mind is “brainless!”

Look, Gabriel is not a good late-order batsman, but at least he could have tried to last out for those needed 34 runs, with Davendra Bishoo, who had played well for 23 no., putting on an ironic 34, with another fast-bowling tailender, Kemar Roach; a really good effort too; before Roach was inadvertently stumped.

One could only wonder what could have been Gabriel’s explanation to coach Eldine Baptiste, captain Jason Holder or Chairman of Selectors Clive Lloyd, rumored to be in Sri Lanka.

Having played for Lloyd and severely impatient (Sir) Vivian Richards, and our team’s designated “night watchman”, even though I normally batted at No. 11, and with a Test batting average of only nearly 11.00, it would have been very difficult for me to explain that swipe to Lloyd or “Uncle Smokie.” My highest Test score – 33 – took nearly three hours; yes; as night-watchman!

As was recently quoted

from late great ‘Yogi’ Berra; “Baseball is 90 percent mental, the other half is physical”.

Superimposing cricket for baseball, the same ratio obtains, but only if one indeed has a brain!

So, WI were forced to follow-on, but that should not have even been a consideration had our front-line batsmen used their heads and abilities too, per progress of that 1st Test.

All of WI’s batsmen except Gabriel made double figures, but many were culpable too in their dismissals, with Darren Bravo making a fighting half century, before he too swiped when he should have understood ‘game sense’, and the absolute necessity for him to be at the crease to innings’ end.

Late WI player Steve Camacho would have suggested; “Bat on, lad, bat on!”

No longer can most WI top-line batsmen hide behind that smoke-screen of inexperience. This is Bravo’s 38th Test, Marlon Samuels’ 60th,

and Denesh Ramdin’s 70th.

This is Kraigg Brathwaite’s 23rd Test, while Jermaine Blackwood is in his 11th.

That is more than enough experience for our top-line batsmen to cope with any eventualities and Sri Lanka’s bowling, if our representatives really thought the entire game through properly. Only Shai Hope, in his 4th Test, could claim that his experiences do not yet match everyone’s expectations.

Did any WI supporter, former international cricketer, player agents or critics, not to mention our region’s cricket hierarchy, or politicians, get any feeling of real steel in any WI batsman’s belly in that first WI innings in Galle?

I did not think so! WI 1st innings batting looked quite listless!

That was disappointing, after WI’s bowlers had stemmed SL’s 1st innings relatively well, even if no WI bowler could claim that he is a “five wickets for spit” performer. The absence of a qual-

ity left-arm spinner was quite glaring in WI’s attack, considering the control shown for SL’s Rangana Herath’s six wickets, and the herculean effort by WI’s right-arm leg-spinner Davendra Bishoo.

WI’s present players cannot hide anymore. They definitely need more steel in their bellies to make better foundations and building blocks for the future. Check that periodic table. Enjoy!

E-mail address c.e.h.croft@gmail.com

GCB/Banks DIH/Digicel National Secondary School Cricket League commences …Marian Academy, Annandale Secondary and Friendship record wins

The Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) inaugural National Secondary School Cricket League sponsored by Banks DIH’s Coca Cola and Rainforest Water, along with Digicel, commenced Friday and saw Marian Academy, Annandale and Friendship recording victories.

At the Everest ground, Marian Academy won the toss and sent Kingston Practical Instruction Centre (PIC) into bat. The Kingston PIC opening batsmen got off to a steady start, reaching 50 runs before Meshack Sofleigh was caught at cover for 24.

Shortly, thereafter his opening partner Keon Williams followed suit when he was caught at short mid-wicket for 20. The two dismissals were the genesis of a batting collapse as Kingston PIC were bowled out for 75 runs within the 16th over.

Bowling for Marian Academy, Jonathan Mangru took 3 wickets for 20 runs, Joshua Klauty took 2 wickets for 13 runs, and Arvinda Gainda grabbed 3 wickets for a miserly 2 runs.

Marian Academy set 76 runs to win, reached their tar-

get comfortably in the 10th of their allotted 30 overs. Opener Jonathan Mangra handsomely contributed with 29 runs before being bowled by medium pacer Joel Best. Captain Arvinda Gainda had a good all-round performance in the match, finishing with a 6 to end unbeaten 37 runs, as Marian Academy finished on 78 runs for 1 wicket, to win the match by 9 wickets.

Over at the Enterprise ground on the East Coast of Demerara, Annandale Secondary came up against Balden Hall Multilateral.

Bladen Hall Multilateral won the toss and elected to bat first, but was only able to manage 119 runs off 21.3 overs. Bhaskar Yadram was caught at short cover for 25, while Reaz Ali and Vikash Mangru made 15 apiece.

Bowling for Annandale Secondary, Mike Persaud took 3 wickets for 8 runs and Tameshmar Motiram grabbed 3 wickets for 17.

In reply to the 119 runs set

by Bladen Hall Multilateral, Annandale Secondary made heavy work of a favorable target, reaching 122 for 7 off 21.3 overs. Mike Persaud contrib-

uted 27 runs with the bat, and Kenduce Kooper made 16.

However, Bladen Hall Multilateral greatest challenge in the field was their Extras, having conceded some 52 extras, an aspect which greatly assisted Annandale Secondary to attain victory – as Annandale Secondary won the match by just 3 wickets.

At Thirst Park, Houston Secondary won the toss and inserted Friendship Secondary to take first strike. Friendship Secondary made good use of batting first on the pitch by amassing 268 runs for 9 wickets off their allotted 25 overs, as the match was reduced by 5 overs aside. Orlando Ghisiawan hit 57 runs, Lorenco O’Neil made 51, while Sunil Tulsidas supported with 39 runs. Bowling for Houston Secondary Shaquelle Theusdee took three wickets, while Travis George took two wickets.

Chasing 269 for victory, Houston Secondary were well placed on 106 runs for two wickets at the end of the 10 over, with Paul Thomas and Jermaine Scott putting on a 3rd wicket partnership of 75 (Continued on page 65)

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 73

12th edition of Busta Champion of Champions / RHTY&SC tourney, SEALED

By Franklin Wilson Cricket clubs in the Ancient County of Berbice will welcome the news that the Guyana Beverage Inc. (GBI), in association with the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTY&SC) has finalized sponsorship for the 12th edition of the Busta Champions of Champions 40-over competition.

Set to bowl off shortly, the champion team will pocket $100,000 and the Busta trophy with the losing finalist taking home $50,000 and a trophy. Individual prizes will go to the Player-of-the-final, Best all-rounder, Best bowler, and Best batsman.

Friday afternoon’s launching which took place at the Headquarters of Guyana Beverage Inc., was attended

by General Manager Mr. Robert Selman, Marketing Manager Ms. Shameeza Yadram and RHTY&SC Secretary/ CEO among other officials.

Selman in justifying his company’s continued support for the tournament stated that they are very satisfied with the way the tournament have been going over the past years in Berbice, Essequibo and Enterprise on the East Coast of Demerara.

He informed that GBI has in-

vested over 3 million dollars collectively in the three tournaments. Selman expressed gratitude to the public of Guyana for support the Busta brand which has enabled them to give back towards the development of sports and Guyana’s youth. ”We try to keep the youth off the streets and one of the ways to do that is to get them involved in sports. We had tremendous response from Berbice, from Essequibo and from Enterprise; words cannot express the professional manner in which these tournaments are administered.

They have kept the good name of our company and that is why we continue to invest.”

It was also noted by Selman that they are happy to know that through the tournaments, they have been able to produce national and West Indies players.

Foster commended Selman and the GBI for their continued investment in the tournament which he said has grown into one of the leading competition and the best promoted one. ”The Busta brand enjoys its best promotion in Guyana when this tournament is held as the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club strongly be-

A smiling Robert Selman, GM of Guyana Beverage Inc., hands over the winning trophy to a member of the RHTY&SC Executive in the presence of other officials. lieves that all sponsors deserve special treatment once they invest in our development.”

This year’s Busta Champion of champions will bowl off on Saturday November 14 with the finals set for November 28 under lights. Eight (8) teams will be vying for the top prize and bragging rights in the knock-out format, they are; Rose Hall Town Gizmos and Gadgets, Young Warriors, Tucber Park, West Berbice, Police, Upper Corentyne and Blairmont. One other team is to be confirmed.

Players the caliber of Sewnarine Chattergoon,

Herath spins Sri Lanka to big win over Windies (Reuters) - Sri Lanka needed less than four days to thrash West Indies by an innings and six runs in the opening test at Galle yesterday with Rangana Herath leading the victory charge by claiming his fifth 10-wicket haul.

The touring side, who have never won a test match in Sri Lanka, were bundled out for 227 in their second innings in the afternoon session, after being asked to follow on by the hosts.

Herath added three wickets to his previous day’s removal of opener Kraigg Brathwaite (34) after claiming six victims in the first innings to finish with match figures of 10-147.

Three of the 37-year-old’s landmark hauls have come at Galle, the venue for his test debut against Australia more than 16 years ago.

“When I play here, there is always something for me as a spinner,” Herath said after picking up the man of the match award. “That’s the main reason (for my success).”

Debutant all-rounder Milinda Siriwardana and

paceman Dhammika Prasad picked up two wickets apiece in the second innings for Sri Lanka.

Jermaine Blackwood played some delightful shots and showed nimble footwork against the spinners during his knock of 92, his second highest score in tests, but was the last man out.

After resuming on 67-2, West Indies lost nightwatchman Devendra Bishoo (10) in wily left-arm spinner Herath’s third over and then experienced batsman Marlon Samuels was out lbw off the first ball he faced.

Samuels did not offer a shot to a straight delivery and more surprisingly, decided to waste a review by challenging the umpire’s decision. The bowler’s hattrick ball was fended away

by Blackwood.

West Indies’ hopes of avoiding a heavy defeat rested on Darren Bravo (31), who scored a 50 in the first innings, but the left-hander edged Nuwan Pradeep behind after captain Angelo

Mathews’ decision to allow the paceman one more over was vindicated.

“We had a lot of things to learn,” West Indies captain Jason Holder, leading the side for the first time in tests, said.

“We did not put enough runs in our first innings total and struggled again in the second innings.

“We did create chances but we j u s t d i d n ’ t t a k e them. If we had held our chances I think the game would have been lot different.”

Blackwood and wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin (11) stitched together a dogged 48-run stand for the sixth wicket before Siriwardena ended the pair’s resistance when Ramdin edged a catch to Kaushal Silva at second slip.

The second match of the two-test series starts in Colombo on Thursday.

Scores: Sri Lanka 484 (Karunaratne 184, Chandimal 151, Bishoo 4143) beat West Indies 251 (Bravo 50, Herath 6-68) and (f/o) 227 (Blackwood 92, Herath 4-79) by an innings and 6 runs.

Narsingh Deonarine, Veersammy Permaul, Shimron Hetmyer and Divendra Bishoo have all graduated through the ranks of the Busta Champion of Champions.

Thanks was expressed by Foster on behalf of the club to Selman, his management and staff for the unflinching support that they have been receiving even beyond the tournament.

Special mention was made of Marketing Manager, Ms. Shameeza Yadram.

Meanwhile, Foster had shared his concern in relation to the rapid decline of the sport of cricket pointing out that the interest in the sport is rapidly declining in Berbice, Guyana and the West Indies.

He noted that the number of clubs and players have dropped by over 50% dating back to when his club was formed in 1990.

“To make matters worse, the number of dedicated administrators and sponsors of the game have dropped by

90% and the game just seems to be sailing along.

The experienced administrator noted that sponsorship is the stimulus of any sport and apart from his club, the Berbice Cricket Board and the Georgetown Cricket Association, obtaining sponsorship seems a tough proposition for others to garner. It was against this backdrop that Foster posited that the Busta Champion of Champions tournament was all the more important.

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Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

NSC supports Police Youth Stag Elite League continues today Elite League g r o u n d , C a m p which would be preceded Group Athletics Competition is setThe toStagcontinue today Ayanganna . at 18:00hrs by a clash bewith two matches at the Pele and the GDF will tween Buxton United and G u y a n a D e f e n c e F o r c e square off in the feature match GFC.

4th Annual Courts Pee Wee Schools Football Competition

Favourites register emphatic victories as third round ends Director of Sport, Christopher Jones (second, left) hands over the sponsorship cheque to Division ‘A’ Commander, Clifton Hicken in the presence of Banks DIH Water Manager, Errol Nelson and Coordinator, Colin Haynes last week.

The National Sports Commission (NSC) has extended support for the Commander of ‘A’ Division Inter Youth Group Track and Field Classic, which commenced yesterday and will continue today with the athletics competition at the Police Sports Club Ground, Eve Leary.

The competition today starts at 9:30am. The Police Youth Groups will take the names of various ranks assigned to the groups; the teams are Barrington, Timmerman, Pareshram,

Persaud, Handy, Beckles, Lewis, Jupiter, Griffith and Vanderhyden.

Director of Sports, Christopher Jones, handed over the sponsorship cheque to Commander ‘A’ of Division, Clifton Hicken. The winning group will receive $100,000 toward a community project while second place pockets $60,000 and third place $40,000 towards a community projects.

The NSC sponsored the prizes.

Banks DIH will be providing refreshments for the offi-

cials and athletes over the two days period.

Hicken reiterated his Division’s commitment to fostering community relationships with members of the public and the Guyana Police Force.

Meanwhile, Jones stated during the simple presentation ceremony that his ministry is pleased to support such ventures and applauded the organisers for such initiatives, especially within those communities often categorised as “depressed”.

It was a day the favourites reinforced their billing as such after registering emphatic victories during the third round of action in this year’s Courts Pee Wee Schools Football Competition currently being played at the Banks DIH ground, Thirst Park.

Headlining the day’s lopsided victories was unbeaten St. Angela’s who cruised past School of Nations 10-0, while St. Pius and St. Margaret’s ran out 6-0 winners over their respective opponents.

Also, in winner’s row was defending champion Stella Maris, who scored a narrow 1-0 triumph over Winfer Garden to keep their chances alive to make it to the latter stages.

In the day’s full results: Game-1 F.E. Pollard-2 vs Marian Academy-1 F.E. Pollard Scorers Terrence Pearson-4th Jamal December-19th Marian Academy Scorer Malik Barker-33rd

Game-2 St. Margaret’s-6 vs St. Ambrose-0 Makhi Adams-3rd, 5th, 20th and 32nd Josiah King-7th and 28th Game-3 Comenius Primary vs East La Penitence Comenius won via walkover Game-4 Stella Maris-1 vs Winfer Garden-0 Keshawn Andrews-29th Game-5 Enterprise Primary-3 vs St. Gabriel’s-0 Martin King-26th Garfield Caesar-27th Seon Archibald-28th Game-6 Smith Memorial-0 vs St. Agnes-2 Daniel Pollard-6th Mwange Smith-23rd Game-7 School of the Nations-0 vs St. Angela’s Primary-10 Keyon Douglas-11th, 15th, 16th and 32nd Antonio McArhur-7th and

18th Nickone Dover-12th and 20th Kenroy Cadogan-13th Seon Carto-39th Game-8 West Ruimveldt Primary-4 vs J.E. Burnham Primary-0 Justin Persaud-10th Michael Oie-15th Delon Eastman-30th Tyrese Payne-38th Game-9 North Georgetown Primary vs St. Sidwell’s North Georgetown won via walkover Game-10 St. Pius-6 vs Rama Krishna-0 Sherwin Nelson-13th, 25th Sherwin Jones-14th, 34th Brandon Sellman-7th Kishawn Fraser-40th Game-11 South Ruimveldt-1 vs St. Stephen’s-0 Justin Bovell-3rd Game-12 Tucville Primary-2 vs Sophia Primary-0 Rayheem Marques-33rd Shaquille Sargeant-35th

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 75

GBA receives equipment from USA Boxing, seeks assistance for November tourney President of the Guyana Boxing Association, Steve Ninvalle, who recently attended the International Amateur Boxing Association (IABA) Extra Ordinary Congress in Doha Qatar, has indicated that the association has benefited from the goodwill of the United States of America Boxing Association.

Nivnalle informed that the organization donated boxing equipment. Senior official Ray Slivers and Mike Martino acquiesced to provide boxing equipment for Guyana. Ninvalle now has to arrange shipment of the gear to Guyana. He expressed gratitude to the Americans for their goodwill.

Ninvalle informed Kaieteur Sport that he spoke to the President of AIBA concerning assistance for the impending ‘Back to the Future’ Caribbean Goodwill

Development tournament, scheduled to be hosted by Guyana, November 26-29.

He was informed that he should write to the Regional body AMBC detailing what assistance GBA was in need of in staging the tournament.

Ninvalle is in the process of dispatching the necessary communication to facilitate possible assistance.

Meanwhile, the AMBC has already committed to supplying equipment to Guyana and the necessary documentation is being forwarded.

Following the AIBA meeting Ninvalle travelled to the US to solicit assistance for the November 26-29 ‘Back to the Future’ Caribbean Goodwill Development tournament.

On his return more details on his attendance to the AIBA Congress in Doha and his US sojourn will be forthcoming.

Meet Guyana’s team to the CCC Elite Championships 2015 The 15th edition of the Elite Caribbean Cycling Championships will climax today with the female and men’s road races. Guyana will be represented by a four member team led by Alanzo

Name: Alanzo Greaves Club: Roraima Bikers Experience: CCC Juvenile 2004; CCC Senior 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 1012, 1013, 2014.

Name: Geron Williams Club: Continental Cycle Experience: CCC 2011, 2012, 2014

Greaves (Roraima Bikers Club) and includes Geron Williams (Continental Cycle Club), Orville Hinds (Team Evolution) and debutant at this level, Michael Anthony of Team Evolution.

Name: Orville Hinds Club: Team Evolution Experience: CCC 2012, 2013

Name: Michael Anthony Club: Team Evolution Experience: CCC Juvenile 2012 (Gold Medal), CCC Junior 2013 (Bronze Medal) and 2014, CCC Senior Debut this year.

Meanwhile, local boxers are in heightened preparations for the National O p e n B o x i n g Championships slated for October 23. These boxers will hope to gain the nod on the team to represent Guyana at the November event.

Already, 11 countries have indicated that they will be sending teams to the championship. Among them are Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Jamaica, Bahamas, St

Maarten, St Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago, French Guiana and Martinique. Those countries still to confirm their participation are Venezuela, Belize, Aruba, US Virgin Islands and Cayman Islands.

The GBA were still out four million dollars of the over six million dollars budget to stage the event, hence him soliciting funds in the US. He was also hopeful that more local businesses will chip in.

GBA President Steve Ninvalle shares a light moment with world rated boxing Amir Khan at a dinner at the Grant Hyatt Hotel in Doha during the AIBA Congress.

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Kaieteur News

Sunday October 18, 2015

Steve’s Jewellery presents MVP Bracelets for “Guyana Softball Cup 5” Steve’s Jewellery of Church St, Georgetown has presented yet again for the fifth time, two 14 carat, 10 penny weight gold bracelets with diamond studs to be added for the MVP of “Guyana Softball Cup 5”. The best player in the Open and Masters category will each receive one of these bracelets.

This 3 day annual Tournament will be played on October 30th, 31st at various venues in Georgetown, with the two finals playing on Sunday November 1st at the DCC Ground, starting 11am. Admission to the finals only is $500.

Entry to games being played on Friday and Saturday at different venues is free. Fans stand to win many prizes with their half ticket. Three return tickets to Barbados and twelve hampers will be up for grabs at the finals. There will also be many giveaways.

Wolf Warriors and Floodlights are defending champions. Twenty four teams, 10 overseas and 14 local teams are confirmed to play. A total of 42 matches will be played in the three days. Three female 10/10 games are also scheduled on the day of the 2 finals.

Riveting football action anticipated for Mayor Hamilton Green 81st birth anniversary Proprietor of Steve’s Jewellery, Steve Naraine (left), presents the bracelets to GFSCA member Dharam Persaud in the presence of GFSCA Vice-president, Ricky Deonarain.

Mayor Hamilton Green will soon be celebrating his 81 birth anniversary and in commemoration of the event, former national coach, Lennox Arthur, will stage a 7-a-side InterWard/Village Knockout soccer tournament that gets underway Sunday November 8 and concludes one week later.

When the first day’s action commences at 16:00hrs at the Victoria Community Centre Ground, East Coast Demerara, Lima Dam will tackle Grove just before Kuru Kuru take on South Sophia. North Sophia then play Plaisance before Haslington match skills with Mocha. This match will be followed by a showdown between Buxton and Agricola and before the afternoon is done fans will be treated to 4 additional matches.

These include a showdown between Betterverwagting and Kitty, a potential thriller between Mahaica and Newton Kitty, another exciting fixture between Ann’s Groove and st

Mayor Hamilton Green Herstelling with Victoria and Diamond bringing the curtains down on activities for that day.

The players will rest until November 11 when another set of matches will be played.

The winning team will take home $200,000, donated by John Fernandes Ltd with the second place finisher pocketing half that amount donated by the Department of Youth and Sports. The 3 and 4 place prizes are $70,000 and $40,000 and they are donated by China Trading rd

th

and the Business School, respectively.

Several other business entities have donated handsomely towards the success of the tournament including A H&L Kissoons Ltd whose administrators have donated one three piece suite and Ricks and Sari (10 food hampers each to the winner and runner up teams).

Other corporate assistance came from Beepat and Sons, CB Mining Aruwai Enterprise Inc, MaCorp, International Pharmaceutical Agency, Kennav HDL, Guyana Beverages Inc, EC Vieira Investment, BEV Processors, Guyoil, Colonel Larry London, Gaffoors, Vincent Thakur, Ramchand’s Auto Supplies, Guyana Bank for Trade and Industries, Starr Computers and Winston Rambarran.

The matches will be played under the auspices of the Guyana Football Federation and by extension FIFA and all rules will apply.

Sunday October 18, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 77

‘A’ Division, Police Commander, Clifton Hicken is GFA President Police Commander ‘A’ Division, Clifton Hicken, was unanimously elected to serve as the President of the Georgetown Football Association (GFA) when that entity staged its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the Sleepin International Hotel, Brickdam, yesterday afternoon.

The highly anticipated stiff race for the top spot fizzed out like a damp squib when, moments after the ballots were cast, Mr. Christopher Matthias cited several discrepancies in the voting process and, joined by his nominee for the position of Assistant Secretary Treasurer, Charmine Wade, withdrew his slate and left the venue.

In an invited comment just after exiting the voting room, Mr. Mathias explained that he was forced to take such actions after he realized that the process was flawed.

He said that he had identified several clubs that had breached Article 14 of the

GFF Constitution and former President (GFA), Lavern Fraser, had earlier voiced similar concerns. Mr. Mathias identified Rhythm Squad, Guyana Police Force, Northern Rangers and Houston Stars as the delinquent clubs. He also said that his protests failed to find favour with the Returning Officer and he (Mathias) had no other option but to withdraw.

Mr. Urling responded to Mathias’ concerns in a letter earlier dispatched to Ms Fraser and circulated at the meeting. In that correspondence he argued that there were no specific reasons or violations that were breeched by the identified clubs to support claims of ineligibility in the decision making process.

Matthias is not in agreement with this interpretation and chose to opt out of the elections process.

Meanwhile, shortly after his installation, Mr. Hicken thanked the affiliates for the

Commander Hicken (4th L) enjoys a victory pose with Chairman of the Normalization Committee, Clinton Urling (5th L) and other elected executives.

confidence placed in his ability to lead the organization. “Today I want to express my appreciation to the football clubs that expressed confidence in me and elected me to the helm of the Georgetown Football Association,” he said. He

further pointed out that he intends to manage the affairs of football in Georgetown transparently and inclusively.

He also quelled any misconception that might have been drawn of his leadership style; “I’m not a

boss; I’m a leader and I promise that collectively we will make decisions towards the development of the sport,” he assured. Mr. Hicken further said that he welcomes criticism as in the past it has proven to be directional. “My only

request is that these criticisms must be positive and fair,” he said. Kaieteur Sport will conduct a more detailed interview with Mr. Hicken shortly to garner a more comprehensive view of his plans and projections.

Guyana NRA Fullbore Section focusing on Nationals Following the World, National Rifle Association ofAmerica (NRA) and Canadian National championships where a

number of Guyana shooters competed, the Guyana National Rifle Association (GNRA) is now focusing its

sights on the National Fullbore Championships.

Shooters will enjoy a day of practice at the Timehri Ranges

Competitors at the 2014 National Championships at the Timehri Ranges.

today before engaging in a recorded shoot next Sunday which would be followed by the National Championships on

November 1st, 7th and 8th at the same venue.

Defending senior champion is Lennox Braithwaite who is

also the Caribbean Individual champion. Peter Persaud is the reigning junior champion.

t r o Sp Herath spins Sri Lanka to big win over Windies

Jermaine Blackwood cracks one through the off side, Sri Lanka v West Indies, 1st Test, Galle, 4th day, October 17, 2015 ©Associated Press

Rangana Herath was impressive for Sri Lanka as they beat West Indies in the 1st Test in Galle. (AFP)

4 Annual Courts Pee Wee Schools Football Competition th

Favourites register emphatic victories as third round ends

Part of the action in this year’s Courts Pee Wee Schools Football Competition currently being played at the Banks DIH ground, Thirst Park.

‘A’ Division, Police Commander, Clifton Hicken is GFA President

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