Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

Herstelling block maker’s murder…

S

uspected hired hit man Oswald Yaw allegedly collected a miserly $10,000 from his female client minutes after beating blockmaker Nathan Persaud to death with a hammer.

This is according to police sources, who said that the 22-year-old also told investigators that the woman also paid him $30,000, and $35,000, as an advance payment from the $1.7M she had promised him.

Police said that Yaw had also told them that the woman had promised to pay him in weekly ‘installments’ of $100,000, after she sold a pool table.

The new revelations came even as one of Yaw’s sisters portrayed him as a

Client paid killer $10,000 after ‘job’ was done

hard-working individual who was being wrongly accused.

The East Ruimveldt resident was arrested last Thursday in the city and is to appear in court tomorrow.

“He and the woman (who allegedly hired him) are to be charged jointly with murder.

She was the brain and he was the hand,” a source said.

But a sister of the suspect said that she is convinced that Yaw is innocent. The woman said that Yaw is gainfully employed as a painter and even has his own business.

She said that during a brief conversation after his arrest, Yaw admitted that he was hired to kill Persaud, but claimed that he did not carry out the deed. While police

said that Yaw wanted to use some of his money to visit his girlfriend, who is overseas, the sister said that her brother’s girlfriend lives in Guyana and is pregnant.

He said that the family is stunned by his arrest, since he has no criminal record.

“My brother is not a violent person. He could never be a killer. We grew up in a good home. We go to church; we know about throwing offerings.”

Ya w ’s s i s t e r t o l d Kaieteur News that he said that a woman had asked him to kill Persaud, since Persaud was trying to hire someone to kill her. She claimed that Yaw said that he collected some money from the woman. However, her brother said that after going

Food for thought Mommy the Angel

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Kaieteur News

nce upon a time there was a child ready to be born. So one day he asked God: “How am I going to live on earth being so small and helpless?”

God replied, “Among the many angels; I chose one for you.

She will be waiting for you and will take care of you.”

“But tell me, here in Heaven, I don't do anything else but sing and smile, that's enough for me to be happy.”

“Your angel will sing for you and will also smile for you every day. And you will feel your angel's love and be happy.”

“And how am I going to be able to understand when people talk to me, if I don't know the language that men talk?”

“Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will teach you how to speak.”

“And what am I going to do when I want to talk to you?”

“Your angel will place your hands together and will teach you how to pray.”

“I've heard that on earth there are bad men. Who will protect me?”

“Your angel will defend you even if it means risking its life.”

“But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore.”

“Your angel will always talk to you about me and will teach you the way for you to come back to me, even though I will always be next to you.”

At that moment there was much peace in Heaven, but voices from earth could already be heard, and the child in a hurry asked softly: “Oh God, if I am about to leave now, please tell me my angel's name.”

“Your angel's name is of no importance, you will call your angel: Mommy.”

to Persaud’s home, he realised that he knew the block-maker, and told Persaud on the plot on his life.

According to her, Yaw said he visited the block maker’s home twice, but did not harm him.

According to the sister, her sibling was never in hiding; he was picked up by police at a bus park.

Police have said that they arrested Yaw last Tuesday after having him under surveillance for some time.

They claimed that the alleged hit-man gave them details about the plot and Persaud’s demise.

The youth reportedly told detectives that on the day the deed was to be carried out, he travelled with his client by bus from Diamond, East Bank Demerara to Herstelling.

According to the killer, the woman attempted to direct him to Nathan Persaud’s house, then instructed him to meet her in Georgetown.

Yaw said that while she headed to the city in the bus, he headed to Persaud’s residence, at Lot 66 Herstelling New Housing Scheme.

When he eventually located Persaud’s house, the

Nathan Persaud block-maker was in his yard.

He reportedly managed to lure Persaud inside the house by asking to use the victim’s washroom.

Police said that on entering the house, the hit man struck Persaud in the head with a clay brick and stabbed him behind the head.

But when the wounded Persaud put up a fierce fight for his life, the killer reportedly “lashed him continuously on the head with a hammer until he was convinced that Persaud was dead.”

The killer then left.

Residents recalled hearing Persaud screaming

in his two-bedroom apartment. Some claimed that they attempted to contact ranks at the Providence Police Station but no one answered the phone.

Some neighbours said they later observed a “strange” man walking calmly out of the block maker’s yard while waving at a neighbour with a smile.

According to reports, Yaw then caught a bus and headed to Georgetown to meet his client and collect his $10,000.

Persaud’s estranged wife, Beverly Persaud, has already been charged in connection with his murder, which was allegedly motivated by a property dispute.

She is to return to court on October 13.

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

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Kaieteur M@ilbox

Kaieteur M@ilbox

KN should use the Freedom of Information Act to request information on Jagdeo’s salary

Constable Dawson’s death is another reminder of the dangers of the profession

DEAR EDITOR, To the ‘Concerned reader’ who asked, “Is it that difficult to determine Jagdeo’s earnings versus accumulated wealth?” (KN, September 19),the answer is no. However, my follow-up question is: What would anyone in Guyana do if it can be proven his earnings were not the source?

KN may request that information through the Freedom of Information Act, but even if the coalition balks at the request, we can use basic logic to have an idea what Jagdeo earned and what he may be actually worth.

Although former AttorneyGeneral Anil Nandlall earned the second highest salary atGY$1.6m a month, the GY$597,000 monthly salary former Home Affairs Minister, Clement Rohee, said he earned may be the better standard by which we can help determine what Jagdeo earned as Junior Finance Minister and Senior Finance Minister in the 90s, using inflation to factor into the figures.

Without burdening readers with a hypothetical breakdown of my math, I would be generous in my estimates and say that over the course of Jagdeo’s active service in government, starting at State Planning in 1990 and ending in the

presidency in November 2011, he legally pulled in a grand total of between GY$300M and GY$350M or between US$1.5M and US$1.75M in salary and allowances. It could be more, but with that kind of money, and living in State House and off the State, he should have been able to build his first mansion at Goedverwagting for US$100,000, which he never lived in.

That he then sold it for US$600,000 was an amazing piece of real estate feat given the house appreciated astronomically in a rather short space of time to the extent of an oceanic profit margin.

We don’t know if he paid capital gains taxes on that profit, but why would the buyer, Trinidad-based advertising executive, Guyanese Ernie Ross, spend over half a million US dollars on a house in Guyana, even though he still lives and works in Trinidad?

I can show Guyanese photos of US$600,000 houses in parts of the US that make that Goedverwagting house look like a guest house. And in which country does a sitting President build a brand new house, never lives in it, and sells it to a diplomat he appointed to represent his government’s interests abroad? How is that not a

conflict of interest that deserves a probe by the legislative branch, if not law enforcement?

Anyway, while Jagdeo probably could have afforded the US$100,000 Goedverwagting house, it boggles the mind that the reason he offered for proceeding to clear away Sparendaam so he would build a second bigger ranchstyle house at Pradoville II was because the first one did not have a library.

What was wrong with an addition to the first house?

The fact is he built two luxury houses while President of Guyana on his reported income and that is unheard of in the Caribbean.

Except for Forbes Burnham, who had his private Belfield residence and also spent time at his official Vlissengen Road residence, all of Guyana’s past presidents lived in reasonably priced private houses for many years.

At the time of his death in August 1985,Burnham’s reported net worth was around GY$860,000 and the US exchange rate was around 4 to 1. That meant Burnham’s net worth was around US$215,000 in 1985,but while Burnham nationalized assets and placed them under his government’s control, Jagdeo Continued on page 6

DEAR EDITOR, The line of-duty death of Police Constable Antonio Dawson is yet another stark reminder of the dangers of a profession where our young people make a deliberate choice to serve their nation.

Only an after action review of that incident will determine if the ranks on mission acted within the dictates of the standard operational procedures for situations of that nature.

Dawson’s senseless loss of life leaves his young wife to cope in this cruel world while raising his two young children.

I think that it is quite fitting that the surviving ranks who participated in that ill-fated patrol will be counselled for post stress trauma or other related psychological issues. I recall suggesting that course of action in 1994 and I am encouraged to see that it is finally being implemented.

Editor it should not only be on sad occasions such as line-of-duty deaths for an interaction between relatives of deceased ranks and the

police to take place. I recall several years ago a father had cause to inquire about an allegation which was made against his son who was in the army.

It so happens that the wife of a senior noncommissioned officer levelled a false allegation out of fear by because her husband’s friend saw her on the seawall with the young soldier.

It turned out that there were witnesses who confirmed that the wife was a regular visitor to the young man at a BQ in his home village.

A senior officer was so impressed that he commended the father for maintaining an interest in his adult son’s welfare – an occurrence which caused all of the facts to come out. I said the foregoing to make the point that service organisations like the GDF, GPF, GFS, and GPS should consider family days at least in the early stages where relatives can get an opportunity to gain an insight into the organisations where hopefully, their young can

make a lasting career.

Editor earlier I mentioned after action review (AAR) and would like to touch on this very important activity. An AAR is a structured approach for reflecting on the work of a group and identifying strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement.

The underlying principle of AARs can be used as a guide to assist the administration of any police force in its reflections upon the conclusion of an operational event. Blandly saying that SOPs were or were not followed without a review exercise is not useful.

Organisational learning requires continuous performance assessment to identify and learn from successes and failures. This simply means that it would be better able to actively review experiences and lessons learned to develop successful strategies and avoid strategic, and tactical pitfalls. My condolences are extended to the bereaved family and relatives of Antonio.

Patrick E. Mentore

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Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur M@ilbox

Kaieteur M@ilbox

What the dying gold industry really wants

Our best days are ahead of us

DEAR EDITOR, Any new Government that takes office is allowed a honeymoon period. With many new faces on the APNU/ AFC coalition, it would only be fair.

Four months have passed since the new administration took office. The people of Guyana have expectations.

We voted for change. It is only natural. Nowhere in the world would any rightthinking persons want less.

I have been following the current gold mining situation in Guyana. Two years ago, there were praises being sung.

The miners could do no wrong.

The PPP/C Government was happy as the significant foreign exchange left the country looking pretty.

Then it all came crashing down. The world prices fell and miners, many of them with heavy commitments to the banks, suppliers and other creditors, were left holding the bag.

Many miners went out of business.

Many big operations reduced their activities. Excavators were repossessed and parallel to this we saw a surge in crime.

The miners have been asking for relief. They want duty free pickups, relief on spares and a slash in the fuel taxes.

Editor, we have been examining the situation and know now that GGDMA and others want a reduction in the land rentals charged by the

Guyana Geology and Mines Commission.

The reality is that Government appears hardpressed to make certain concessions.

We have been talking for years now with the past PPP/ C government. All we heard were promises and more promises.

I humbly submit that the reduction of land rentals from GGMC is not something that would benefit Government which needs all the revenues that can be brought in.

Rather, this would only benefit a few big miners that controls the hinterlands, acting as landlords and collecting billions in “rent” from small miners (landlordism).

What miners want is an immediate reduction in the cost for fuel.

We, the small and medium scale miners, are asking for the same level playing -10 percent taxes on fuel charged on large foreign companies.

If one is to check, they would find that we have the same competing equipment, if not more, than these large, foreign miners.

More than a year ago, according to data, the mining industry was using about two-thirds of the fuel in Guyana. This translated to 9M gallons.

Today, we have plummeted down to half of that.

Back then, the fuel tax was about 15 percent. Earlier this

year, the previous administration raised this to 45 percent before the elections.

Today, Editor, miners are suffering tremendously. Ask GGDMA and they will tell you that many operations are being closed. They will tell you of the thousands of workers that have been sent home.

Fuel in the biggest expense in gold mining. It brings money to the coffers of the Government.

With sugar doing badly and the rice market uncertain, there is a sure fire way that Government can stimulate the economy.

We are not asking for alms.

Dropping of the fuel taxes will allow the miners to restart operations. Workers will be rehired. Royalties will be paid.

Other spinoff effects will include the vendors from whom vegetables, chicken, rice are being bought; the tolls at the crossings in Linden and the waterways; VAT from spares; the shopping from families of workers, the rise in fuel sales…need we go on?

Gold still has it shine. We just need to think out of the box. All Guyana should benefit.

The answer is not dropping rental price for our mining properties…the answer is the immediate reduction of that 45 percent fuel tax. It is killing miners.

The increase should only benefit miners who are legitimately selling their gold to the Guyana Gold Board and other recognized dealers who have the receipts to prove it.

We can go on and on but here is quick fire way to halt the downward spiral. It will reverse the problem facing the economy.

We are not asking for alms.

We are asking for a level playing field and some smart thinking. The economy will naturally do the rest.

T. Jason

DEAR EDITOR, The changing of government, accompanied by the level of activism and involvement that brought about this change, bears testimony to this. Guyanese, whether living at home or abroad, want better for themselves and country. This desire for betterment is often seen in criticisms of things that appear contrary to aspirations. Such criticisms bode well for this country’s body politic because they come from a healthy desire of what we are capable of being and achieving.

As heated conversations take place in the communities among citizens and on social media, a common trend is noted in few threads. One, the people want the government to succeed and do better. Two, the people, having lived through the years of bad governance, and are leery of this ever happening again and any sign that indicates the possibility of such, voices of condemnation will be heard. Three, whether persons are living in Guyana or abroad, the positives they see happening in other countries they want same to

happen here. And four, the people want a responsive and caring government.

Some recent happenings are bringing this clearly home.

With much admiration, awe and identity Guyanese celebrated the athletic prowess and successes of our CARICOM brothers and sisters in Jamaica in the just concluded World Athletics Championships. As this created conversations about the Jamaica government investment in its people and once glory days when Guyana too shined on the international sporting arena, many are asking, ‘Why not us,’ or are clamouring to unleash Guyanese’s potential.

Trinidad and Tobago recently came out of an election and while the People’s Partnership has lost the confidence of the people and the PNM has been returned to office, Guyanese expressed their admiration for the quality of the electoral process, swift announcement of results and swearing in of the diverse new Cabinet.

When CARICOM was formed, considered More Developed Countries

(MDCs) were Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados and Jamaica.

Guyana can still retain its place among this group doing the right thing.

In the USA, where African-Americans are carrying out activism under the banner that ‘Black Lives Matter’ in reaction to indiscriminate police racial profiling, this is used as lesson that race matters and remains of political significance and only equally before the law can end racism.

Guyanese, at home and abroad, joining the conversation and in support of their fellow man are too drawing nexus and feel same must happen here if we are to make real our motto One People, One Nation, One Destiny.

And as conversations continue on our admirations for the positives in other societies, which are influenced by the desire to improve our lives, I am convinced that our best days are ahead of us, as words will lead to actions and bring about desired results. Yes, we can.

Sharma Solomon

From page 5 sold off state assets to his best friends and then did hundreds of millions of US dollars in government business with his best friends and PPP-friendly contractors.

New GPC alone reportedly did over US$200M in government business the last seven years, and with overpricing or failure to deliver on hundreds of millions of dollars on supplies for which New GPC was paid, one can easily appreciate the magnitude of the wealth Jagdeo’s best friend accumulated since he acquired New GPC in 1999.

Jagdeo may be a tricky politician, and he may well be worth more than the natural, naked eye can see, but he has to be reminded that everyone

of Guyana’s past presidents left this earth with nothing in their possession.

And world history is replete with examples of rulers who became wealthy by ripping off their country’s finances and resources, even enjoying the influence purchased with the wealth taken illegally from the state.

Some died and left everything.

Others went to jail and lost everything. In subSahara Africa, three oil rich nations -Equatorial Guinea, Congo and Gabon - today represent what could have become of Guyana had the PPP retained power with Jagdeo as Chairman of the National Economic Council and the oil find off Guyana’s coast had taken off with the help of the Chinese.

We have not even begun to scratch the surface of the iceberg of accumulated wealth from the state by corrupt politicians from the PPP era, but I urge readers to Google “Rich Presidents of Poor Nations: A story of oil and capital flight,” on triple crisis.com to get an idea what blatantly corrupt leaders have done to enrich themselves while their people suffered.

Editor, to me, Jagdeo should not be in Parliament, but before Commissions of inquiry into both pervasive government corruption and unsolved murders on his watch.

Only after inquires, audits and probes are completed should he be considered as a candidate for Parliament or, God forbid, even a candidate for shared executive leadership in a unity government.

But since the PPP picked him and kicked Donald Ramotar, and since the Granger-Nagamootoo regime seems strangely enamored of the unity governance concept featuring the Jagdeoled PPP, then that may be how the cookie crumbles.

Nevertheless, Guyana can only hope and pray that wisdom prevails upon the Granger-Nagamootoo regime and allows them to make informed decisions that cater for preventing the government from reverting to Jagdeo-era practices that saw the rulers and their a s s o c i a t e s use political power to gain financial power while the ‘masses catch their asses’.

Emile Mervin

KN should use the Freedom of Information Act...

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

East European leaders in war of words as migrants pour across borders

Migrants fight against each other at the Croatia-Slovenia border crossing at Bregana, Croatia, yesterday. Reuters/Laszlo Balogh

Reuters - Hungary and Croatia traded threats yesterday as thousands of exhausted migrants poured over their borders, deepening the disarray in Europe over how to handle the tide of humanity.

More than 20,000 migrants, many of them refugees from the Syrian war, have trekked into Croatia since Tuesday, when Hungary used a metal fence, tear gas and water cannon on its southern border with Serbia to bar their route into the European Union.

EU leaders, deeply divided, are due to meet on Wednesday in a fresh attempt to agree on how and where to distribute 160,000 refugees among their countries, but the noises from some of the newer members of the bloc were far from friendly.

Hungary, where the rightwing government of Viktor Orban has vowed to defend “Christian Europe” against the mainly Muslim migrants, accused Croatia of “violating Hungary’s sovereignty” by sending buses and trains packed with migrants over

their joint border. It warned it might block Zagreb’s accession to Europe’s Schengen zone of passportfree travel.

“Croatia’s government has continuously lied in the face of Hungarians, Croatians, of the EU and its citizens,” Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto told a news conference. “What kind of European solidarity is this?”

Croatian Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic said that, unlike Hungary, he would not use “brute force” to keep people out, nor would his government make them stay against their will.

The buses and trains would keep running to Hungary, he said.

“We forced them (to accept the migrants), by sending people up there. And we’ll keep doing it,” he told reporters.

Croatia, a country of 4.4 million people forged as an independent state in a 199195 war, has suddenly found itself in the way of the largest migration of people westwards since World War Two. On Friday, Milanovic said the country could not cope, and would simply wave the migrants on.

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Sunday September 20, 2015

Pope exhorts U.S. and Cuba to push detente further Reuters - Pope Francis told former Cold War foes Cuba and the United States yesterday to set an example for the world by deepening the recent rapprochement that he helped broker.

His zucchetto skullcap flying off in the Caribbean breeze at the start of a nineday tour of Cuba and the United States, the Argentine pope used his arrival speech at Havana airport to praise this year ’s normalization of diplomatic relations.

“I urge political leaders to persevere on this path and to develop all its potentialities ... on behalf of the peace and well-being of their peoples, of all America, and as an example of reconciliation for the entire

world,” he said before riding in his open-sided popemobile through streets thronged with well-wishers.

Better sensitized to the issue than predecessors because of his Latin American roots, the 78-year-old pontiff facilitated a back channel for talks and sent missives to Presidents Raul Castro and Barack Obama at a delicate stage in the secret negotiations in 2014.

That bore fruit with a prisoner swap, the opening of embassies, and an easing of some travel and trade restrictions, although a halfcentury-old economic embargo is still in place, only removable by the U.S. Congress.

Pope Francis is welcomed by Cuban president Raúl Castro upon landing at Havana’s international airport. Photograph: Filippo Monteforte/AFP/Getty Images

Francis is a popular figure in Cuba and thousands of people lined the streets of Havana as he was driven in, cheering, waving Cuban and Vatican flags, and holding banners with the slogan: “Missionary of mercy, welcome to Cuba!”

As on previous papal visits, Cuban authorities rounded up some political opponents to prevent them from attending events around the visit, a dissident human rights group said.

Raul Castro - who like his brother and former

revolutionary leader Fidel Castro was baptized a Catholic and educated by Jesuits - met the pope after his 12-hour flight from Italy.

It was the third papal visit to Cuba in less than two decades.

Raul Castro thanked the

pontiff for his help with the U.S. rapprochement, but also used his welcoming speech to criticise Wa s h i n g t o n ’s embargo and its occupation of the Guantanamo naval base on the eastern tip of the Caribbean island.

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

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Govt. aiding swift completion Guyana full of of CHI’s stalled Cath Lab Dem boys seh...

bloodsuckers

Bloodsuckers. That would include bats, Bar Rat and some other politicians. Dem boys ain’t certain bout all of de present crop but dem know nuff from de last crop. Bar Rat was de lead bloodsucker.

Brassington ain’t deh far behind and is only because he fat and he belly does hold him back.

Dem is de planners fuh nuff of dem projects—de Berbice Bridge wha sucking de life of dem poor Berbicians and fulling dem pocket.

De Marriott was another one, designed fuh dem same people to live like kings and queens. It was also designed fuh dem to own it and full dem pocket and dem Pees.

Brassington and Babbie and Bar Rat had special rooms designed fuh dem alone.

As fuh de Amaila Falls, if it did kick off dem woulda own it too and our grand children would’a end up paying dem grand children. That is de kind of life dem was setting up fuh dem and dem grandchildren after sucking de blood of de ordinary taxpayer.

Now dem out of office dem planning disruption and confusion. Dem boys hear dem saying some things that dem want to know if Guyanese suh stupid fuh believe.

One of de things dem seh is that Charity and Suddie hospital falling apart. Who mek it falling apart today? De coalition? This was reported in Jagdeo own newspaper.

Another headline got Jagdeo claiming how he challenge de new administration to declare dem assets when he is still to tell de nation wheh he get de money to build de mansion and buy dem other property he got.

Dem boys always know that when he can’t answer he does run and tun things around. He couldn’t handle questions bout de sugar because he bring a corn flour factory and name it sugar factory.

He and Brassington dem couldn’t find market fuh rice all dem years now dem blaming de new government wha just go in office de other day.

Dem boys hear he telling de rice farmers to bring out dem machines and park dem up in Georgetown next to Soulja Bai office.

Dem boys got a message fuh de farmers. Dem can come toward Georgetown but dem must stop at Pradoville 2 wheh Jagdeo got he mansion and nuff yard space fuh hold all dem machines.

Dem boys hear bout a story wha match dem suckers. A lady pun a bus and trying to breastfeed she baby and de baby refusing to suck de breast.

De mother tell de baby if you don’t suck she gun give it to de man next to she. De baby still refuse. After half an hour de woman repeats de threat. De man clears his throat and seh, “Lady mek up you mind. I was suppose to get off six bus stops ago.”

These are de suckers—Jagdeo, Brassington, Ashni, Babbie, Bee Kay, Irfaat and Rob de Earth and all dem other Bees. What a bunch of suckers.

Talk half and put things in dem mouth fuh mek dem stop sucking.

A Cath Lab for the Caribbean Heart Institute (CHI) is expected to be completed within a matter of weeks. This development comes months after an unfortunate delay of the project.

Reports reaching this publication had suggested that the holdup was a deliberate tactic to frustrate the operation of CHI. This development was reportedly linked to a fall out between the administrators of CHI and the former People’s Progressive Party/Civic Government. It was alleged that persons associated with the then Government were advocating for the project to be stalled with the expectation that CHI’s operation would have collapsed.

However, with the elections of the coalesced A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) Government, support for the project was fast-tracked with immense support being channeled through the Ministry of Public Health.

In fact, an official close to the project told this publication recently that “CHI will even be in a position to guide and spearhead the finalization and development of this project.”

This publication understands that the support already being injected into the project will be detailed in a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that CHI is set to ink shortly with the Public Health Ministry.

“It is not surprising that this project has moved along quite quickly with the help and support of the Ministry…It is part and parcel of the new agreement that will be soon met,” explained the official.

The official pointed out

A section of the Cath Lab which is swiftly being completed after being stalled for over a year. further that while it is all good and proper to have brand new equipment it is, however, important for the population in need of specialize care to

be able to access this.

“That is precisely why we are working towards not just the development of the physical development of the

infrastructure but there are negotiations for the MOU to reflect the needs of the general population and not Continued on page 67

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Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

The tale of two police brothers

The question is still being asked: what was going through the mind of Police Constable Antonio Dawson when he lowered his firearm and tried to apprehend an armed suspect? That action caused him to be fatally stabbed.

Maybe the answer could be found in what transpired two years ago with his brother Constable Ocquana Dawson, whose circumstances ended up quite differently when he too confronted a criminal suspect in a place called Globe Yard, Georgetown.

Unlike his brother, who has now become the latest cop killed in the line of duty, Constable Ocquana Dawson was found guilty of three charges after he discharged rounds at a man he was pursuing on February 28,

2013. He was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment.

The conviction has since been appealed but the incident left an indelible impression in the minds of the entire Dawson family that almost certainly influenced the late Constable Antonio Dawson’s actions on Friday last.

The late Constable was among four siblings who are all members of the Guyana Police Force, and his mother Yvonne was determined that none of the others suffered the same fate that befell her eldest son, Ocquana.

“I always warned him…Just lately I was warning him. I tell him if you see something east, turn and go west. I know the system how it goes,” said Yvonne Dawson. She did not hide the bitterness she still feels for the

One jailed for using his gun, other killed for not treatment meted out to her other son, Ocquana.

“You see the trouble I had with my (other) son? Now today his brother come and died trying to avoid that pitfall,” she added.

Antonio Dawson, who was stationed at Impact Base, Brickdam, went to the Gafoor’s Shopping Complex area in Houston, East Bank Demerara, where he encountered a suspect who was behaving in a threatening manner.

Although the ranks were armed, they showed tremendous restraint in the process of apprehending the suspect.

Kaieteur News understands that Constable Antonio Dawson bravely took on the task of arresting the suspect but he made a tragic mistake when he lowered his weapon.

It now seems clear that the late constable was reluctant to use his firearm, not wanting to end up like his older brother. And for that he paid the ultimate price.

Yvonne Dawson is questioning the role played by her son’s colleagues during Friday’s operation.

“I want to know what happened to the people who were there to back him up,” Yvonne Dawson said.

But according to eyewitnesses, the other ranks could have hardly done anything to save Dawson, because, “This thing happen so quickly. And besides, if they de shoot, they might’a de hit other people.”

“I heard that the ranks were debating who was to shoot; none of them wanted any trouble,” Mrs. Dawson told this newspaper.

“What can I do about this now? Nobody is forgetting the incident with his brother,” she added. As for police ranks in general, the incident has added further controversy to the topic “To

Dead: Antonio Dawson

Convicted: Ocquana Dawson

shoot or not to shoot.”

There is a usually a frown whenever the police fatally shoot someone and the subsequent explanation is that the ranks were attacked with a knife.

One Subordinate Officer told this newspaper that in the current climate, he always advises his ranks not to shoot if they are not being confronted, even if it means that a murder suspect would get away.

“Because is either you feel it by jail or by death.”

At present two ranks are staring at a possible murder charge after they shot and killed a mentally challenged man at Strathavon, Cane Grove, East Coast Demerara.

The ranks had come under attack when they initially went to arrest the man who was threatening residents of the community.

The ranks were forced to

retreat and they returned to the station, uplifted weapons and went back to the scene where they confronted the suspect.

There are different versions of what transpired that led to the shooting of the mentally ill man, with family members claiming that he was unarmed while the police are maintaining that he again tried to attack them with his cutlass. Yesterday, a relative of one of the ranks chimed in on the issue.

“What would have happened if he had managed to kill one of the ranks? Now, because they shot and killed him, the policemen are staring prison in the face,” the relative said.

He however expressed the hope that the police will address this delicate problem so that the situation will not get out of hand and result in trigger happy police ranks.

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 11

‘Landlordism’ rampant in mining industry - powerful miners grab up hundreds of thousands of acres, evidence of little monitoring As the new government continues to battle smuggling, safety breaches and a number of irregularities, it appears that yet another challenge has emerged in the gold mining sector.

A significant portion of the mining lands has fallen into the hands of a few powerful businessmen, raising concerns over the extent of what is known as “landlordism”.

Insiders within the regulatory body, Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), as well as from the sector, are now insisting that the practice of landlordism is widespread despite what is being said.

A key report by GGMC earlier this year warned that reforms are needed to allow a level playing field for Guyanese as availability of mining lands continue to dwindle.

According to the list of persons benefitting from large plots of mining lands are Chinese logging companies and even a serving Consul General stationed in the US.

President David Granger Landlordism is the practice where holders of mining or prospecting licences rent their land to smaller miners in return for percentage of proceeds from the activities.

By regulations, the practice is supposed to be frowned on. The issue has been raised time and again but played down by miners and even the previous Government with few persons willing to talk about it.

The situation, going on for years, is said to be highly

organized with a few large miners even selling grocery, spares, fuel and other things in return for a percentage (average 10 percent) of what is found by their tenants.

These supplies, including barrels of fuel, are sold at exorbitant prices, placing even more pressure on the small miners who are forced to operate in slave-like conditions.

Special rangers are employed by the businessmen to monitor the camps of small miners- which include Brazilians and Venezuelans- to check their wash-downs to ensure the correct declaration.

Many of these landlords, despite the vast lands they hold, are just minimally involved in mining but collect the percentage of gold from their tenants and then declare it to the Guyana Gold Board as coming from their legitimate dredging operations.

Many of the small miners who operate as tenants reportedly have little protection against their

The recently sworn in executive of the GGDMA landlords, many of whom have rangers and security personnel who are heavily armed.

EJECTED There have been reports of miners being removed from areas where they spent time and money to prospect, only to be told they are in the wrong area. Shortly after being removed, the landlord miner would move in with his equipment to cash in on the gold lying in the ground.

Earlier this year, a GGMCcommissioned Management and Systems Review Inception Report spoke of

the situation, noting the practice where persons were holding on to mining lands for extended periods.

There is little monitoring in these “landlorded” areas resulting in gold being sold to illegal buyers and even being smuggled out.

Some medium scale miners were even allowed hundreds of Prospecting Permits Medium Scale (PPMS) and Mining Permits (MP) at a time.

One of them had more than 700 PPMS between him and family members (over 800,000 acres).

PPMS are only supposed

to be used for exploration purposes and precede the granting of the MPs which allow for full operations. How one set of businessmen was allowed to grab control of the lands would speak volumes of GGMC’s monitoring of the industry.

The GGMC report, prepared by Dr. Grantley Walrond, L. J. L. Heesterman and J. Goolsarran, noted that given the high interest in the mining sector, there are very little prime areas available for prospective applicants.

“In addition, the majority (Continued on page 72)

Page 12

Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

GGMC methodology for conducting sweeps to be overhauled

By Jarryl Bryan Following a further meeting on Thursday at the Department of Natural Resources boardroom on Brickdam between the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) and Minister of Governance Raphael Trotman, several initiatives have been earmarked for immediate implementation.

This meeting comes against the backdrop of the release of the report on the Commission of Inquiry (COI) launched, following the recent flurry of deaths in the mining sector.

The report contained several recommendations geared at making the industry more compliant with existing regulations and reducing mining related deaths.

Among these steps, GGMC will now be conducting regular sweeps (investigations) in all mining districts in order to ensure compliance with the mining and safety guidelines already established.

It is expected that during these sweeps, baseline information will be collected and analyzed by warders in order to determine the level of competence of the camp’s

Even near and potential accidents are expected to be reported.

general manager and other key personnel within the operation.

There are also plans for sensitization exercises to be conducted for the benefit of miners and other stakeholders within the industry.

The exercises are meant to encompass mining deep deposits, soil types, ground water level and other geotechnical (geological

engineering) parameters.

It is also expected that a simpler system of reporting mining accidents and deaths will be developed for operators reporting to GGMC field stations. In fact, operators are expected and are to have systems in place to report even near misses or slumping pit walls.

And finally, more comprehensive guidelines are

expected to be developed, dealing with the removal of overburden with or without excavators, clearing of trees and debris from the rim of the pit.

In addition, prohibiting the undercutting of pit walls is also expected.

Guidelines are also to be implemented in relation to avoiding high pit walls and establishing stable slopes.

According to GGMC Commissioner, Rickford Vieira, these guidelines are all practical and enforceable and would address measures taken by operators when there is stripping (removal) of overburden and when exploitation of the gold occurs, as is often the case.

It is expected that the work of the technical team will conclude by mid-October

after which, a stakeholder workshop will be held to discuss strategies and further implementation.

The mining COI, which was chaired by Dr. Grantley Walrond, operated from July 1 to July 31.

It was ordered by President David Granger after what was arguably the worse mining accident in recent memory, the collapse of a Mowasi, Potaro mining pit that killed 10 miners.

There had already been quite a few accidents leading up to that.

The COI revealed that 25 deaths have been recorded in 16 accidents within the past 12 months; 75 per cent of which were due to the collapse of mining pits.

Among the findings, was that the principal cause of pit failure accidents was the neglect of safe mining practices. In addition, there was evidence that shortcuts were being taken in an effort to maximize production.

It has also been noted in the report that from 2010 to 2015, a total of 62 miners, particularly young men, died in the industry.

The COI also found that there is a laidback culture to safety and as such, clear rules must be applied and enforced.

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 13

Integrity Commission will be empowered to investigate all statements of assets – Minister of State The Integrity Commission will soon be able to do more than just collect statements from politicians regarding their accumulated wealth.

Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, told the media on Friday at his post cabinet press briefing that the coalition government is currently examining the mandate of the Commission with the aim of giving it powers to investigate the truthfulness of such declarations.

Harmon said that there is still some work to be done at the Commission which he visited last week. He said, too, that he held discussions with the entity’s Chief Executive Officer.

The Minister asserted that the government is of the opinion that the Commission does not have enough power to enforce any of its decisions.

He said, “Public officials would just submit statements to the Commission and there was no clear procedure as to what happens after that. We need to ensure that there is some mechanism within the law to allow for follow ups.

“I discussed this matter with the CEO. I told him that there are models in Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados and all across the Caribbean region where submissions to the Commission are subjected to further scrutiny.”

Harmon continued, “So

Minister of State, Joseph Harmon when you go and say you got one house when you actually have 12 others across the country and the Commission does not have the capacity to investigate that, then it is a waste of time. This is what we had in the past.

Statements are taken to the Commission and then there is no follow up.

“We want a Commission that has the capacity to follow up when statements are made by public officers and action needs to be taken.”

The Minister of State added, “I can assure you that it is something that we are very concerned about. So people who are in public life cannot start making demands that you declare before I do and then he declares and she declares.

“It will be required that by a certain time of the year, you declare your assets and if you don’t then the Commission has certain powers to do something about it.”

Harmon said that the Commission has been operating without a Chairman and Commissioners for years.

He informed the media that discussions on this matter were held with the CEO as well.

He reminded that there were some names of Commissioners recommend during the Tenth Parliament but they were not appointed by the then President, Donald Ramotar. He said that in such a case, the matter will therefore have to go back to the National Assembly for new persons to be recommended and appointed.

Harmon said that for the time being, the Integrity Commission is functioning with a very small staff with a very limited budget.

When the coalition government served in the opposition, it had made it pellucid that it would not respond to the calls of the Integrity Commission for the declaration of assets until the body was equipped with a Chairman.

In a published advertisement in this newspaper on August 20, 2014, the Integrity Commission called on all

public officers who are required by law, to submit their 2014 declaration forms to the Office of the Integrity

Commission.

It reminded, too, that all defaulting public officials are to submit their outstanding

declaration forms from1997 to 2013 to the Commission as soon as possible.

Continued on page 72

Page 14

Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

Harmon defends appointment of Land Court registrar Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, has come out in defence of the recent appointment of Land Court Registrar, Rosalie Robertson.

In response to questions surrounding the

appointment, the Minister has said that Ms. Robertson is suitably qualified to fill the post.

According to Harmon the new Land Court Registrar possesses the necessary

credentials suited for the job.

Speaking on Friday, Harmon disclosed that Robertson was most qualified for the position.

He said that the job requires that the selected

person must be an Attorney at- Law with working knowledge of the department. Of all the applicants, he said Robertson was selected since she possessed these key

qualities.

The Minister of State held that the aforementioned criterion is essential to the functions and improvement of the Land Court Registry.

Robertson was selected to serve as Land Court Registrar, several weeks after former head of the Land Registry, Juliet Sattaur, was sent on leave.

Sattaur was sent on leave amidst accusations of nonperformance and slothfulness in the processing of transactions at the registry. The Land Court Registry was also plagued with reports of corruption and backlog in recent years.

While the government had signaled intention to have Sattaur replaced and the department restructured, there has been no indication that the former Land Court Registrar had been permanently relieved of her duties.

Robertson was officially sworn to serve as Registrar of Lands, before Chief Justice, Ian Chang, at the Supreme Court of Judicature on August 28 last.

Many persons have since condemned the appointment noting that there was no public announcement or advertisement, inviting suitably qualified persons to fill the vacancy of such an esteemed public office.

While in opposition, members of both APNU and AFC parties had widely criticized and condemned the PPP/C administration over the manner in which persons were selected to fill key positions in public offices.

Questions have since been raised about APNU+AFC administration commitment to

Minister of State Joseph Harmon

Recently appointed Land Court Registrar, Rosalie Robertson transparency and ensuring that equal opportunity is given to all, those who applied for public offices.

Attorneys -at- Law, Christopher Ram and Leon Rockcliffe, especially, criticized the move by Government deeming it an act of “illegality.�

In expressing his disapproval Ram cited the lack of amendment to the Land Registry Act. The Guyana Continued on page 67

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 15

Govt. instructs Brassington to explain all NICIL-funded Projects

NICIL CEO, Winston Brassington

By Kiana Wilburg For years, the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) has been touted to be a parallel treasury in the country.

It was used by the former administration to invest millions of taxpayers’ dollars into highly risky development projects.

NICIL reportedly also spent tens of millions of dollars to build roads, drainage and culverts, and to lay pipelines and in some cases, underground power cables. The developed house lots, complete with infrastructure, were then sold to former President Bharrat Jagdeo, several ministers and Government officials and friends.

With a new board and Chairman in place, the government has instructed the company’s Chief Executive Officer, Winston Brassington, to explain

NICIL Chairman, Dr. Maurice Odle NICIL’s investments into all projects over the years.

He must also honestly state the position of the company’s assets.

This is according to NICIL’s new Chairman Dr. Maurice Odle. Dr. Odle said that there has been one meeting thus far at which Brassington was told to prepare a “position paper” to say what policies and strategies were employed to justify investments made by the company into certain projects.

When this report is prepared, the economist said that it will be examined to inform the future decisions to be taken with the company.

Dr. Odle said that Brassington has until month end to submit the “position paper.”

He explained that the paper is expected to give good reasons for investments into the Marriott Hotel, the Berbice River Bridge Company and Pradoville Two scheme.

Dr. Odle said that the Board is already aware of some of the financial assets of the company which are held in several accounts. He reiterated that the Board is particularly interested in this “special business model” that was used to inform the types of investments made by the company.

The NICIL Chairman added that the Board has several concerns.

“We have an issue with the dividend policy, the manner in which assets were transferred to persons, what really happens with the proceeds for privatization, the misuse of state lands, the degree to which funds are

transferred from NICIL to the Consolidated Fund and one would also like an indication about what really goes into the selection process for certain projects,” the NICIL Chairman expressed.

He added, “In any case, NICIL was just holding too much money and Brassington will have to say why this has been happening. Another concern of the board is the whole business of risk taking.

With some of these projects, the former government in joint partnership agreements took most of the risk.

“How is the private investor not made to take any risk? So naturally, we are also concerned with some of the

public-private partnership agreements NICIL got into and we want to know everything about it. We want to know why the state was made to take a lot of risk.”

Dr. Odle said that he is also worried about NICIL’s shareholder control in certain companies especially since it has made huge investments while minor investors are given controlling interest.

He confirmed that he was speaking in this context about the Berbice River Bridge Company.

Experts very close to the Bridge have disclosed that the current contractual arrangements allow for two entities to control 50 percent

of the company: The NEW GPC and Hand In Hand Trust Corporation.

New GPC, a company owned by Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop has close relations to former President Bharrat Jagdeo and, according to an article on chrisram.net some time ago, that company has two Directors on the Berbice Bridge Board.

The structure of the company allows equity shareholders whose investment is less than five percent ($400 million) of the total funds of the company to exercise controlling interest over the company. Of the $400 (Continued on page 66)

Page 16

Kaieteur News

Rice harvesting begins in Region Two As rice harvesting continues on the Essequibo Coast, an estimated 1,404 acres of paddy have already been harvested for the autumn crop.

An estimated 37,783 acres of rice was been cultivated for the season.

One excited rice farmer, Naresh Narine, of Anna Regina said that he received 123 bags of paddy from the three acres he cultivated.

Narine said his crop was indeed bountiful.

Region Two Vice Chairman, Nandranie Coonjah, speaking on the current rice situation in

Region Two (Pomeroon/ Supenaam) said that the rice crisis in the Region has reached “Rock bottom”.

Coonjah stressed that the cost of production is higher than what the average farmer is receiving for a bag of paddy.” One thing we have in Essequibo is rice. Coconut is failing.”

Coonjah added that some millers are purchasing paddy while others are not purchasing either because they are unsure of sufficient markets for the rice they have already purchased or they do not have markets for the rice they have remaining in stock.

Farmers in Region Two have been receiving between $1600 and $2000 a bag for paddy.

Meanwhile, a total of 150 dams have been ploughed and upgraded by the Annadale/ Good- Hope and Charity/ Zorg-en-Vlught Water users Association with further assistance from the Region Two Administration to assist farmers to transport their paddy out of the fields.

Region Two has approximately 2,400 rice farmers. Rice farming is the main economic drive in the Region.

(Yannason Duncan)

Sunday September 20, 2015

Bullies force child to climb electric pole, touch wire Bullyism has been identified as a social phenomenon sweeping the school system, but the experience of the now 14-yearold Bhojpaul Ramjass is one of particular cruelty.

In fact, Bhojpaul, of lot 31, Number 54 Village, Corentyne, Berbice is so emotionally scarred that at one time he reportedly begged his parents for poison in order to end his suffering.

Then 12 years old, Bhojpaul attended Number 56 Primary School. On June 17, 2013 Bhojpaul is reported to have been beaten by four older boys who compelled him to climb a utility pole. Half way up, he tried to retreat but his tormentors forced him back, telling him that if he did not touch the wire, he would be beaten even more.

This the terrified child did, sustaining burns to 36 per cent of his total body surface area. Even worse, he was reportedly ordered to enter a nearby stream, directions which the traumatized youth obeyed. After going through this ordeal, Ramjass was told by his tormentors to lie about his injuries and instead say that he was burned by a stove.

According to his mother,

- two years later he is still bedridden

14-year-old Bhojpaul Ramjass 40 year old Kamini Ramjass, Bhojpaul had been targeted ever since his Uncle gave him a remote control car. He was consistently approached by the children who demanded that he hand it over. He would normally refuse and when he told his mother, he was instructed to give the car back to his Uncle.

This move angered the boys even more, and they subsequently accosted him while on his way to his Uncle’s residence and committed the act.

In the subsequent weeks of his hospital stay he

underwent two surgeries during which skin had to be grafted.

Discharged in July, his condition deteriorated owing to severe malnutrition. In addition, the wounds to the torso and left upper limb were bleeding. He was promptly re-admitted, where nutritional treatment, multi-vitamin and iron therapy and physiotherapy were optimized.

According to Mrs. Ramjass, the matter was reported to the Number 51 Police Station, but after a police rank took statements nothing came out of the matter.

In the meantime, the mother is hoping to have her son sent overseas for further corrective surgery, something that was advised by local health officials.

Her son is still at home with her, but is reportedly in considerable pain and cannot walk or attend school. While Kamini, who is a mother of four, is expecting to have an audience with the Minister of Health Dr. George Norton next week, she is also asking for public assistance for her child.

She can be contacted on 695-4660.

Sunday September 20, 2015

Page 23

Kaieteur News

A WHITE PAPER ON TAXES IS NEEDED

T

h e m o s t interesting revelation made recently is not about who has abandoned their job. It is about the loopholes in the tax collection system, or at least the belief by the government that there are loopholes.

This has long been known in Guyana. There is a high degree of informality in Guyana's economy. The tax net does not cover everyone and there are supposedly high levels of evasion.

But that in itself raises a conundrum. If large numbers of persons remain outside of the tax net even though they are earning income, then it means that those who are within the tax net are shouldering the heavy burden of the large amount of taxes collected.

Companies for example will in 2015 pay about $55 billion in income tax, a burden that is unevenly shared because the big companies pay a large portion of this tax. Private individuals are expected to contribute over $19 billion in taxes.

Yet the base for the $19 billion is too narrow, with large numbers of incomeearning persons believed to be excluded. What this means in reality is that persons who pay are paying too high taxes because of the large numbers who do not pay.

The GRA now has a substantial database to go

after those who are outside of the tax net rather than to continue to milk those who already pay.

Every citizen, at some time or the other, is required to conduct some form of business with the government. In order to do so a TIN certificate is required. It means that the GRA has a database of everyone who does business with the government. They can match this with the persons who actually pay taxes to find those who are outside of the tax net.

Tax rates are already high in Guyana. Personal income tax beyond the threshold is 30 percent of one's income.

This is way too high for a country in which we constantly hear reports of poor social infrastructure.

However, it is not high considering that people receive free education and free health care.

Reducing the burden of the taxes on those who pay should begin by asking those who do not pay, to pay first.

In this context, the revelation that there are loopholes at the GRA is encouraging. It means that if those loopholes are plugged, more taxes can be collected and the overall burden on those who pay can be reduced.

One way of reducing the burden is to reduce the overall tax rate. Reducing the tax rate will encourage those outside of the tax net to

be compliant.

This is why it makes more sense to reduce income taxes which are on income rather than VAT which taxes consumption.

No doubt these imbalances in tax collection will be one of the things that the Tax Review recently established will be examining.

Finally, the other major revelation concerns the high cost of collecting the taxes.

This is a major problem and has to do with the

complexity of the tax system.

The tax structure is too complicated. This structure increases the cost of administration. The tax structure needs to be simplified.

Things such as concessions and mortgage relief and other allowances need to be taken off the tax books. The system should be simplified so as not to increase the cost of collection. Instead of a

threshold, the tax rate should be slashed from 30 percent to 25 percent.

In this way everybody will pay and all those calculations are simplified to make collection easier. It should be the same with other taxes.

One of the big drawbacks, however, is that there is no White Paper on Taxes. Indeed this should have been a precondition for any tax review committee.

Instead what is likely to

happen is that it will be the committee rather than government that will end up determining tax policy rather than trying to make recommendations for the improvement of tax administration based on a White Paper that details government's intentions.

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 25

Removing foreign objects from patients: The myths we are often told

By Dr. Zulfikar Bux Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine There are often cases carried in the media where patients and relatives complain bitterly of doctors not removing foreign bodies from them right away.

A picture of cruelty by the physician is usually painted and we all go away with the wrong message.

Movies sensationalize the notion of “removing the bullet and saving the life” to the point where it is an expected norm by society.

As it turns out, removing the bullet is not the main goal when you are trying to save someone who is shot.

Attempting to remove foreign objects stuck in ones tissue can be more dangerous than thought.

Today I wish to debunk some myths associated with

foreign bodies stuck in tissues.

The Bullet must be removed Removing the bullet in a person who is shot is not the action that saves their life. It’s the meticulous team work of consummate professionals who respond with many life saving interventions too numerous to mention.

If we find the bullet during surgery then we will take it out but the main goal is to repair the damage it caused when it was active. Bullets are sometimes lodged in complex parts of patients and searching for it may cause more harm than good for the patient. If it’s left in our body, our tissues will encase it leaving little to no room for any complication.

The object can travel through your blood and kill you At times objects such as

metal, glass or wood are lodged in patients’ tissues and their main worry is that it will travel through their blood to their heart.

Our body will either push these objects out or wall it off with tissues. There is no chance of a foreign body lodged in someone traveling up to their heart and we should not let such thoughts overcome us.

The foreign body can slow poison you Bullets, everyday metals and glass usually do not release any chemicals that can poison us. The most common complication usually comes from wood and debris particles which can cause a localized infection that is easily treated. We should not worry that our body will be poisoned slowly by a foreign body that is lodged in our tissues.

Every foreign object needs

There is more madness because the concentrate and the collision would send people of little intellect are dominating the even more people to the hospital. society. They are the people who commit the ** gun crimes without thinking of the Who can understand the ways of the consequences. Yet another group would world? A businessman is going to come face embark on a crime and the to face with some young men community would react with who are convinced that they deadly intentions. are invincible. They would Fortunate for the society, have just planned a robbery not everyone is a killer. on a city business house but ** one of them would see Speeding cars are something that would cause increasingly becoming a them to go for the perceived threat. There were the crashes easy target. this past week and more are The police would not be on the way. Another driver too far away. There would be would be unable to injuries from gunfire.

to be removed right away If a decision is made to remove a foreign object lodged in a patient tissue, it is usually a planned surgery after careful examination of xrays, ultrasounds and scans of the foreign object.

There is more risk involved in removing the object as the chance of injuring important nerves, blood vessels and organs is always present. It is therefore advised that such surgery be planned properly to minimize risk to the patient. This is one instant where emergency surgery is not the best and first option.

Remember Doctors put screw and plate in us all the time Putting foreign body like

screws and metal plate in persons is a daily occurrence and an art that has helped so many patients with broken bones.

Orthopedic doctors do this daily during important surgeries to help patients that have broken bones that cannot heal properly by themselves. These patients live for years and lifetimes with screws and plate in their body without any problems. These plate and screw are of similar composition to the regular screws and metals used to make other products.

Medicine is an art that can only be fully understood by trained medical professionals.

Movies, media and hearsay will never be able to depict this art of practice as accurate and

Dr. Zulfikar Bux appropriate as the ones practicing it. The myths about foreign bodies have caused unnecessary hype in our society. Both physicians and patients need to improve their communication with each other. Otherwise we will continue to have theories and myths of medicine that are sensationalized in the media and cause unnecessary public anxiety.

Page 26

Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

THE TOMB OF Chester Williams - Who is this mysterious man buried beneath the National Stadium’s parking lot?

The mysterious tomb in the National Stadium parking lot. Inset: the inscription on the book tombstone

By Michael Jordan The man who accompanied me to see Chester Williams was a strapping ex-soldier who loved contact sports and who had lost part of a finger while fighting off a charging bull.

But this man wanted no part of Chester Williams…even though old Chester had been dead and buried for over two hundred years…two hundred and fourteen, to be precise.

He remained at a respectful distance as I entered the little picketed area that enclosed the tomb. I knew that he thought me to be either brave or foolhardy to have stepped so close, to have taken this chance. It was a plain white tomb with the inscription: Chester Williams: 18 Nov. 1801 on a book tombstone. Someone had taken pains to paint the old tomb, and enclose it in a white picket fence, and to plant palm trees in the enclosure.

But the most intriguing thing about that tomb was its location: the parking lot at the National Stadium at Providence.

What was it doing there?

And why did its presence

seem to evoke so much fear?

I first learned of the existence of the tomb about five months ago from the same man who had followed me to the Stadium. It was he who had told me of the legend of Chester Williams, and what they claimed happened to those who failed to respect his resting place.

The area where the tomb and stadium are located was once Plantation Providence; where rows of sugar cane stretched for miles. It was quite likely that Chester Williams was once some senior estate employee.

Intrigued, I set out to find out who Chester Williams might have been…and came up blank. No one seemed to know anything about the tomb; not officials from the National Trust of Guyana or officials at the National Archives, not noted Professor of History, Dr. Winston McGowan, or Director of Culture, Dr. James Rose. In fact, many of the experts to whom I spoke had no idea that the tomb existed.

But the older residents of Providence had known about the tomb since they were children. Some had worked

on the estate in their younger days, and none of them had anything good to say about the tomb and its long-dead occupant.

Despite the English name engraved on the tomb, they were all adamant that Chester Williams was ‘Dutch.’ And to them, that seemed to explain why any sensible Guyanese should steer clear of the old tomb.

I was taken to the home of one of the oldest residents of Providence. He claimed that there was no name engraved on the tomb back then, and he didn’t believe that ‘Chester Williams’ is the occupant’s real name.

He had worked on Estate Providence in his younger days, and even back then, workers blamed the ‘Dutch’ tomb for what they claimed were bizarre things that happened to those weren’t careful in its proximity.

“The tomb was there and all around was cane,” he said.

“They would cut canes around the tomb and avoid their bundles touching it. You would cut the cane around it and not trouble the tomb. If yuh spirit weak and yuh go near yuh fall down. It bruck

tractor plough. One man go to lift bundle and he left stiff, till they took him to the dispenser. You got men carrying new cutlasses, and the cutlass would disappear and only the handles would lef.”

He spoke of workers falling ill after breaking ‘Dutch’ pottery in the area. He also blamed the presence of the tomb for an incident in which two workers were reportedly struck dead by lightning.

The old man claimed that between noon and 1.00 p.m was the most dangerous time to work in that location.

According to him, estate workers would sometimes see horses and huge black dogs that would mysteriously disappear.

He is convinced that the entire Providence area is haunted. He claimed that employees at a building near the Princess Hotel would sometimes “hear people walking and groaning,” or hear doors slam.

And he says that he was the reluctant participant in one such unusual experience.

The elderly resident’s story is that a few years ago, he rode his bicycle to an area

behind the stadium, and was cutting grass for his cows when he suddenly began to feel unwell. This sudden illness so overwhelmed him that he dropped the bundles of grass and rode home.

“But when I reach home I tell myself that this (experience) was Aesop’s fables (nonsense), so I decided to go back to the same spot.” This time, he said, the same agony struck him the minute he began to cut the grass. Again, he was forced to leave the bundles of grass and hurry away from the area.

“It’s a dangerous place.

It’s haunted; it’s very evil,” he says.

Even men whom I felt would not be prone to superstitions hinted that odd things indeed happened in proximity of Chester Williams resting place.

“In this world, good and evil exist in equal measure,” one respected engineer who worked at the site said. “I told them (during construction) that I would not desecrate it (the tomb) or break it. We know we got our superstitions. So anyone who thinks they brave enough (to remove it) I wish them all the best.”

Former Minister of Public Works Anthony Xavier, who was appointed Site Manager when the stadium was being constructed, cleared up the mystery of who had enhanced the surroundings around old Chester’s tomb.

“When we built the stadium, and we found the grave, we did nothing to touch (trouble) it. We built everything around it. We cleaned it up and painted it and planted trees and kept it clean all the time.

“I don’t believe that you should disturb the dead. I did not trouble it when I was Minister, and when I was manager. Everybody that comes to the stadium has respect for the area.”

Like others, he had no idea who Chester Williams was, but suggested that he might have been an estate manager.

And yes, there were some rather odd happenings back then, too, he said.

He recalled that during the early days of construction, workers, for some unknown reason, covered the tomb with a length of tarpaulin. “Once this was done, the rain began, and someone said that if you unpin (uncover) it the rain would stop, and it was unpinned and the rain stopped.”

Mr. Xavier also recalls the

day that the stadium lights kept flickering on and off. But he suspects that a glitch at the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) caused the lights to malfunction. He feels that most of the other ‘supernatural’ incidents can also be logically explained.

“Guyanese tend to blow things out of proportion. I never had any experience, and as far as I know, the gentleman (Chester Williams) is lying peacefully.”

But Mr. Xavier also told me the story of the contractor who had, “in a fit of anger,” reportedly urinated on the tomb. Within a week the contractor was dead.

The victim was actually the son of the land preparation contractor, Mr. Khemraj Singh. Mr. Singh told me that while the medical diagnosis was that his son had a pancreatic ailment, “the old people ‘check book’ and say that he (the son) interfere with the tomb and it tek life.”

Mr. Singh said that the tomb was “broken up,” and that workers repaired it.

The old Providence resident with whom I spoke believes that the Indian nationals who were involved in the stadium project did something to ‘quiet down’ the ‘entity’ in the tomb.

If that is so, it doesn’t seem as if they did a good job, since some claim that, occasionally, odd things still happen near Chester Williams’ tomb.

There’s a persistent rumour that a young woman who went to a show at the National Stadium not too long ago fell into a fit after urinating near the tomb.

Though they claim to have never had any odd experiences, some stadium employees say they steer clear of the burial site.

“He deh in he corner and ain’t bothering nobody,” one staffer said. “Them (the ‘Dutch’) is funny people. “ They also caution visitors to give old Chester his space, and to never, ever, answer a call of nature near his tomb.

If you have any further information about this or any other strange case, please contact us at our Lot 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown location, or reach us on telephone numbers 22-58458, 2258465, 22-58473, or 2258491.

You can also contact Michael Jordan on his email address mjdragon@ hotmail.com. You need not disclose your identity.

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 27

== THE FREDDIE KISSOON COLUMN ==

Notes on a journalistic journey After the PPP came to power in 1992, the Catholic Standard board enunciated a policy that the newspaper should go back to its original mandate of serving its Catholic parishioners. Its great editor, Father Andrew Morrison had indicated that to me.

He informed me also that he received from the board’s chairman, Mr. Albert Rodrigues, the request to drop my column because the Standard was now a different newspaper. I later found out that Mr. Rodrigues, an architect, had other reasons for wanting the Standard to go in a different direction. As an architect, Mr. Rodrigues could secure contracts with the new government There are times contrasting emotions would rivet my mind when I am in lonely, pensive moments. I would be enraged when I think of some of the things done to me and at the same time I would laugh because looking back, they were so funny.

I was asked to leave the Standard after a particular column of mine focused on corruption within the new PPP Government in 1994.

It was about custom duty evasion by an Eccles businessman. First Lady, Janet Jagan complained to Father Morrison and no doubt Rodrigues himself. Rodrigues

subsequently got many contracts from the presidency of both Cheddi and Janet Jagan I heard Anna Benjamin former Sunday editor of the Stabroek News is writing a book on the history of the Stabroek News.

Will it be a work of scholarship or emotional propaganda? Anna Benjamin has the distinction of perhaps (I say “perhaps” because I haven’t done the research) being the only editor of a newspaper anywhere in the world that didn’t rise through the journalistic ranks. It is virtually impossible to become the editor of a newspaper without prior practice of journalistic reporting.

Ms. Benjamin came straight from the Queen’s College classroom into editorship duties at the Stabroek News. That was the way the crème de la crème – David De Caires and Miles Fitzpatrick – of Guyanese society operated.

As we are on this topic, I could remember attending a symposium at the Catholic Centre in Oronoque Street in which “Kit” Nascimento said that that De Caires and Fitzpatrick were not media people so he couldn’t understand how they could be editing a newspaper. I have never been a fan of Nascimento but I will always remember those words and

they will find themselves in a paragraph once I do my memoirs. Nascimento was so right.

One year during the Easter break, De Caires went to his holiday home in the UK and left the lawyer, Miles Fitzpatrick to edit the newspaper. The very first column Fitzpatrick looked at from me, we had a huge disagreement.

He didn’t understand a damn thing about editing a newspaper and should have stuck to court room histrionics.

I still have his correspondence to me in which he asserted to me that if he had his way the Stabroek News would not carry columnists. I will always remember Miles Fitzpatrick as

one of the few persons in this life who think he was the best intellectual Guyana produced.

I laugh when I look back at such times.

Would Ms. Benjamin be objective in her history of the Stabroek News? I wonder if my days at Stabroek News would find a paragraph in her book and the reason why I was asked to stop writing.

One should not envy Ms. Benjamin.

She has to balance her legacy as a Queen’s College teacher and what her past students would think of her work if it is propagandistic and her loyalty to the newspaper.

I hope her book comes out soon I was no longer at the Stabroek News and the Catholic Standard. Then one

day, I got a call from Glenn Lall.

He said to me; “I want to make my newspaper better than all others, I know you can write.

I want you to write for the Kaieteur News.” I remember the words of Glenn Lall very well. I always will. There is a foolish man who is afraid to use his whole name when he signs his name to his letters in the newspapers. He signs as GHK Lall. Lall has information on me that according to Lall, in three letters in the Stabroek News, makes me a contaminated media operative.

I suspect that some of the Stabroek News resentment of me rubbed off on Lall because he is close to the Stabroek News editor, Anand Persaud.

I saw them one day years ago, lunching together at German’s.

Frederick Kissoon I don’t know who or what has contaminated me but the editor-in chief of the Kaieteur News, Adam Harris and my lawyers including Nigel Hughes and Moses Nagamootoo can tell anyone that I have had huge disagreements with Lall. I have never been anybody else except me.

Page 28

Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

What is your Health Worth and your Best Medicine?

No medicine is completely safe, but you have a hand in your health with the safe and effective use of your medication.

The cost of quality drugs, its side effects, availabilities and convenience can make it even harder to get proper care, so before taking any prescriptions or over the counter (OTC) drugs, speak up, ask questions, know the facts, read the label and clearly follow the directions.

I remember as a child growing up in South America every time I went to the doctor regardless of what type of illnesses I had I was always given a few small white pills in a tiny envelop with no written instructions or patient guide.

There is an old saying, “if we do not take care of ourselves, who will?” With an increase in health concerns and the supply of medications at every corner store, how do you know that the drug you are taking is good for you?

Has it gone through the proper quality assurance process that is designed to produce a safe and effective product, or it is a counterfeit version that is unsafe or even completely ineffective?

Some medicines, although widely available in some

Halima Yusuf markets and countries, may have ingredients that have not been evaluated for safely.

These products may be additives or contain dangerous substances.

For those who cannot avoid taking medications due to health concerns and other risk factors, be aware of what you are taking and do not be afraid to research and ask questions. Remember, it’s up to you to take charge of your health.

The use of medication, coupled with your body’s normal changes with aging, can increase the chance of unwanted or harmful drug interactions.

For example, changes in

digestive system can affect how fast medicines enter the blood stream and changes in your weight can influence the amount of medicine you need to take and how long it stays in your body.

Your circulation system may slow down, which can affect how fast drugs get to the liver and kidneys.

The more you know about your medicines and the more you talk to your health care professionals, the easier it is to avoid problems with medicines.

Know your medications: a checklist Drug-condition interactions.

Some interactions can happen when a medical condition you already have makes certain drugs potentially harmful.

For example, if you have high blood pressure or asthma you could have an unwanted reaction if you take a nasal decongestant.

Drug-food interactions.

These can result from drugs reacting with foods or drinks.

In some cases food in the digestive track can affect how a drug is absorbed. Some medicines also may affect the way nutrients are absorbed or used in the body.

D r u g - a l c o h o l

interactions. Interactions can happen when the medicine you take reacts with an alcoholic drink.

For instance, mixing alcohol with some medicines may cause you to feel tired and slow your reactions.

It is important to know that many medicines do not mix well with alcohol.

Know the side effects.

Some medicines can interact with other medicines, foods, drinks or health conditions.

Side effects are unplanned symptoms or feelings you have when taking a medicine.

Keep track of side effects to help your doctor know how your body is responding to a medicine.

Take only your own medicines. Taking someone else’s medicine may hide your symptoms and make diagnosing your illness more difficult for your doctor.

Expiration dates matter.

Using expired medical products is risky and possibly harmful to your health due to a change in chemical composition and decrease in potency.

Know about your medicines. If you take more than one medicine, be able to tell them apart by size, shape,

colour, number or name imprint, form (tablet or capsule), or container.

Plan for medicines you need to take during the night. If you need to take more than one medicine try not to keep them by your bedside.

If you must and there are no small children or pets in your home place the pills you will need during the night on your bedside table. Turn on the light and make sure you’re taking the right medicine at the right time.

Before you travel. Ask your doctor or pharmacist how to adjust your medicine schedule to account for changes in time, routine and diet. Take the phone numbers of your doctors and pharmacists with you.

When flying, carry your medicines with you; do not pack them in your checked luggage. When traveling, always keep medicines out of heat and direct sunlight.

Be conscious if there are children in your home.

Remember to put medicines out of their sight and reach, and don’t take medicines in front of them.

Get your prescriptions refilled early. Avoid running out of medicine, which may cause problems with your medicine schedule.

Organize your medicines

at home. Many people use a chart or written schedule to keep track of their medicines.

Is your medicine cabinet full with expired or unused drugs?

Properly disposed in a safe manner.

Keep medicines in a cool, dry place, away from bright light. A kitchen cabinet or bedroom shelf may be good storage places.

Medicines should not be kept in places where heat and moisture can alter their effectiveness. Do not keep medicines in the refrigerator, unless your doctor or pharmacist, or the label, tells you.

Always keeps medicines in their original containers.

Also never put more than one kind of medication in the same container.

Taking over-the-counter (OTC) medicines. Today’s medicine cabinets contain a growing choice of over-thecounter medicines to treat a growing number of health problems.

Remember, these drugs should be taken with care and always read the instructions and warnings on the label.

Some OTC medicines can affect the way prescription medicines work or are used by the body.

Always talk with your doctor about all OTC medicines you take.

So remember, all prescriptions and over the counter drugs should provide recommended instructions for use, warnings, ingredients, general health statements and more importantly secure packaging for OTC drugs with tamper resistant seal. What is your health worth? Your life and the best medicine is knowing all the facts.

(Halima Yusuf is the CEO of FRXID-America Pharmacy Solutions to Health Facilities and Patients Worldwide www.frxid.com)

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 29

MY COLUMN

Oh for some healthy kidneys I happened to be sitting at my desk when a news item about a kidney transplant by a Guyanese doctor hit my eyes.

Immediately my mind raced back to so many years ago when a Guyanese with renal failure was condemned to die.

I remember it so well that these days of dialysis in Guyana make such things look like a bad dream. There was Bibi Narine who was ill.

She needed a kidney transplant but the thought of such a medical procedure was unthinkable. She found a donor but she did not have the money. She reached out to the government of the day and was all but ignored.

Guyana has good people and they stepped up. Bibi Narine is alive today but the government of the day did not help and she is still bitter. She is only one.

Many years later there came the 5G Dialysis centre.

People began to get a new lease on life. Guyana did not have a dialysis centre until then because the then Health

Minister, Gail Teixeira, said that there were not too many cases of renal failure in Guyana and in any case storing the chemicals in Guyana was difficult. She was wrong. I have visited the dialysis centres in Guyana and I am not really surprised at the number of renal failure that exists in Guyana.

Some of the people are so young that I wonder what could have caused the kidneys to fail.

A doctor said that some of the people are predisposed to renal failure because of family.

A year ago I thought that I would be heading in that direction. I had just come out of the gym when I suddenly felt dizzy. It was a Thursday. By the time the newspaper went to bed I was feeling worse. I went home and watched the ceiling spinning above my head.

The next day was Valentine’s Day. My friend rode his motorcycle under a truck and I had to leave my bed to get the report. I suffered all weekend and went to the doctor on Monday.

Lo and behold my sugar level had reached 522, a level that should

have placed me in a diabetic coma.

I remember the technician after taking my blood remarking that my kidneys were alright as though they should have been damaged.

To cut a long story short, I got my blood sugar level back under control and reduced the extent of renal failure.

But many others were not so fortunate. I have heard somewhere that about nine per cent of the population would suffer renal failure. A team headed by Dr Rahul Jindal came and performed many kidney transplants.

Guyana depended on him.

Now there is a local doctor who can perform the surgery.

But he is only one.

There are others who need to specialize but this is a costly programme and many Guyanese do not have the money to pursue such a post graduate study. I know that because I see many Guyanese struggling to put themselves through law school. These are ordinary people who want to become qualified but they

simply do not have the money. We all look to the government to sponsor such programmes because we have been conditioned to look to the government for just about everything. People say that they are prepared to take loans but they simply do not have the collateral although I do believe that the commercial banks, with their liquidity are prepared to make those loans.

There are many who approach people in the society for help, no matter how small.

And to make things worse, the cost of training is mounting. At the same time, there are schools that are prepared to offer scholarships but the students themselves are their worst enemies. After being trained they simply walk away without even considering repayment.

This past week the Finance Minister said that about 10 per cent of the students who took loans have considered repaying. And so we come back to the need for trained people in the medical field. This young doctor,

according to reports, has attempted one kidney transplant.

Guyana needs more. In fact it needs the facilities to allow for such operations. At present the Georgetown Public Hospital which is the only option for the ordinary people has limited operating facilities.

If we take a step back we would want to examine the changes we have made in our lives. All of a sudden we are hooked on fast foods and we drink more coca cola (coke) than at any time in our lives.

We are less active and we pay less attention to our health. Many of us do not drink enough water, choosing to drink a soda laden with sugar.

I am not going to tell anyone to deny themselves the right to do the things they enjoy but when I see the suffering around me I wonder whether I can’t make people cut back just a little bit and avoid the need for the expensive medical procedure

Adam Harris that we can’t afford.

Given the growing incidence of the various lifestyle diseases we also need our schools to focus on a curriculum that would have us produce more doctors.

Many of us are chasing money and there is no better way to make money than by being a doctor. Let us focus on the sciences at school. We need those doctors to undertake kidney transplants.

And for Ms Teixiera, the incidence of renal failure is far more common that you wanted to believe.

Page 30

Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

The challenges of building AN INFORMATION SOCIETY

By Lance Hinds In the interest of information and guidance, an information society is an environment in which the creation, distribution, and manipulation of information has become the most significant economic and cultural activity.

An information society may be contrasted with societies in which the economic underpinning is primarily Industrial or Agrarian. The machine tools of the Information Society are computers and telecommunications, rather than lathes or ploughs.

I have always however, found this description a bit too tedious. A more succinct one comes from the IBM Community Development Foundation: ‘A society characterized by a high level of information intensity in the everyday life of most citizens, in most organisations and workplaces; by the use of common of compatible technology for a wide range of personal, educational and business activities, and by the ability to transmit, receive and exchange digital data rapidly between places irrespective of distance” The aim of the information society therefore is to gain

competitive advantage through the creative use of information and communications technology.

As part of an effort to achieve this goal, in 2002 the Caricom Heads of Government launched the Caricom Connectivity Agenda and Platform for Action. In the executive summary it states the heads: “Recognised the potential of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for enhancing and integrating our societies in areas such as education, health, poverty reduction, delivery of public information and governance – all objectives well articulated in the CARICOM Charter of Civil Society.”

After signing to the principles of the goals and objectives of World Summit on the Information Society in 2004, Caricom formed the ICT Steering Committee in 2005.

The committee was created as a primary mechanism for addressing regional information society and ICT issues. It is envisioned that this committee would serve as a ‘think-tank’ for the Caricom Secretariat and would coordinate the advancement of ICT and the information society. The target date then for Caricom member states to

become fully functioning information societies was 2015. Needless to say this objective has not been met.

While most studies agree that much work has been done there is still a significant amount left to do.

These studies show while most Caribbean States have formulated strategies and policies, implementation has lagged. In some cases there have been no implementation plans. In the case of the promulgation of ICT, the fundamental pillar of the creation of the Information Society, results have been mixed. In many parts of the region there has not been a holistic approach to ICT for development.

While it is recognized that there is a complete convergence in the ICT Sector, in many instances there are still distinct ministries for the ICT subsectors.

This has led to insularity, causing a lack of collaboration and coordination. Some governments have no portfolio for ICT and despite the lip service, show no indication in doing so. There are no vibrant regional and national private sector or civil society bodies to advocate for the delivery of an information society and participate in the regional and national agendas.

The CARICOM region

and its leadership, with communiques over the years affirming, reaffirming, committing, ratifying and recognizing the importance of information technology and the purpose of the Information Society, have moved from the Connectivity Agenda to the Regional Digital Development Strategy (RDDS). Outputs from this initiative are now the concept of a regional single ICT space and Digital Agenda 2025.

The impact of these initiatives to date are still being evaluated and debated.

It is easy, if not instinctive, to blame the Secretariat for any perception of lack of progress.

Many regional governments however, have not helped matters with their less than complete commitment to the overall effort.

There are, of course many reasons for this state of affairs. Any plans by governments in the region pertaining to building information societies would have been simply derailed by the effects of the world economic meltdown in 20089. There were simply other economic priorities at this time. The lessons certainly learnt from that period include the need to diversify and focus on information technology as an economic and developmental pillar.

There are however other fundamental reasons. In Guyana for example, I believe that stakeholders and policymakers paid little more than lip service to the concept

of information technology and creation of the information societies to improve our social and economic standards of living.

I would argue that the absence of telecommunication liberalization, the lack of updated intellectual property legislation or any other ICT related supported legislation is testimony to the lack of commitment to the overall concept in the first instance.

The catastrophe of the cable to Brazil, and the events surrounding it, is a clear indication of a level of political self-interest that continues to be disturbing.

On the business side, we stubbornly clung to the traditional production sectors that now hang like around our neck like an anchor, heading straight for the bottom.

There is also the matter of understanding and appreciation. Some years ago, I was in a meeting fretting about the fact there was no telecommunication liberalization, no intellectual property modernization, and no eCommerce legislation.

I recall stating that Guyana will continue to remain behind our brothers and sisters in the rest of Caricom unless we get our act together. After the meeting a colleague pulled me aside and asked why am I getting worked up.

Why I can’t understand that Guyana is simply not ready for the kinds of things that I am demanding? He said if he was in my position he

Lance Hinds would pack his bags and go somewhere like Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica or even further afield. This is Guyana, he reminded me, and “dem ting don wuk haysuh” I was quite upset then and still get irritable every time I remember the conversation. Even more galling was that this was a private sector leader of long standing.

It is clear that we have a lot of work to do in making sure the dream of the information society becomes a reality. We to begin the foster education, awareness, marketing and acceptance of this paradigm shift of our society. This is not only a government responsibility.

The private sector, civil society and academia must recognize that this is of tremendous benefit of the nation and therefore advocate aggressively for the success of this critical initiative.

In 2015 we as nation are now recommitting to the effort of building a modern society.

This time we must not fail.

(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 September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 31

Women in Guyana- The unfinished business of achieving women’s equality (Part 2)

By David A. Granger ELIMINATION OF VIOLENCE Your government aims at eliminating violence against women. Men have been abusing and killing their wives and partners with frightening frequency.

The elderly, children and men have also been victims of abuse. Domestic violence “ physical or psychological abuse “ is becoming more pervasive.

It does not respect race, religion, or class and has penetrated every corner of the country and every stratum of society.

Domestic violence, despite popular belief, is not necessarily caused primarily by drunkenness, drug abuse or everyday disputes. It is more likely the result of a complex interplay of cultural, psychological and social factors which have combined to create an imbalance of power between persons in a relationship.

Where there is domination, or where that power imbalance is abused, domestic violence could occur.

When society becomes tolerant of such abuse and when law enforcement agencies fail to act against offenders, domestic abuse could flourish and degenerate into violence.

Violence in essence, arises out of the real or perceived inequality and subordination of women (and children), which extends beyond the individual or family to the wider society.

Domestic violence is a serious crime which should be treated as such. Guyana’s National Policy on Domestic Violence correctly sees the root of the problem as a power play among persons in a relationship. Such ideas of inferiority and bias because of gender must be challenged if we are to tackle all of the chief sources and causes of domestic violence. Domestic violence should be seen and treated as the violation of fundamental individual and collective rights.

Any campaign to eradicate domestic violence, therefore, must aim at nothing less than changing deepseated cultural attitudes and behaviour that have been learnt from time immemorial.

The National Policy on Domestic Violence aims, ambitiously, at the “transformation of attitudes that condone or normalise such violence such as gender stereotyping and discrimination.” Central to the counter domestic violence campaign is the Domestic Violence Act of 1996 that provides for a raft of measures including protection, occupation and tenancy orders and allowing for custody and maintenance, among other things. Passing laws and promulgating policies is one thing; enforcing them, punishing offenders and ending abuses are another.

The Guyana Police Force, the main law-enforcement agency with responsibility for suppressing domestic violence, is gradually responding to the challenge

President David Granger of the crime by training hundreds of officers locally and overseas on how to deal with domestic violence.

Some police stations still need to be modified to provide privacy to complainants.

More female officers need to be deployed to handle sensitive cases and court prosecutors need to understand the gravity of the crime.

Domestic violence is rife in Guyana. Family feuds are culminating in severe injuries and fatalities. Happy people do not kill themselves. Happy people do not maim each other.

There are troubled families in our country that need help. Your government cannot solve the problems of every troubled family. We can, however, and we will, promote policies that improve gender and family relations.

EDUCATION ACCESS

Fifthly, your government aims at improving girls’ access to primary and secondary schools.

Increased access to education by girls can be a step towards greater equality.

Women have narrowed the educational gap.

They have made considerable strides because of access to education and because of their performance in education.

Your government wants to magnify these successes particularly for disadvantaged women. We are keen on ensuring that those women who have not benefitted from a formal education, who dropped out of school or for some other reason did not complete their schooling can have access to

remedial programmes that focus on numeracy, literacy and matriculation.

This access will allow them to improve their situation and enjoy employment opportunities.

We will also actively encourage women to enter technical professions such as architecture, agriculture and engineering in which women are under-represented.

NATIONAL POLICY Your government, over the next five years, will remain committed to achieving the objective of building happy families and happy households throughout our country. We want people to be happy. We want families to be happy. We want households to be happy. The

proposed National Gender Policy should contribute to promoting greater equality of women.

As we pursue this new National Gender Policy, let us bear in mind that the struggle for equality is a national one.

Let us join hands with our sisters in all 10 regions to promote greater equality for women.

Let us consolidate these efforts in the years ahead by together crafting a National Gender Policy that would be relevant to our own circumstances but which also embraces the high ideals that women have struggled for the last century.

We celebrate women’s achievements. They deserve a good life. God bless Guyanese women!

Page 32

Kaieteur News

SUNDAY SPECIAL HERSTELLING BLOCK MAKER MURDER… WIFE OFFERED KILLER AIRLINE TICKET TO ‘TAKE OUT’ HUSBAND The estranged wife of Herstelling block maker, Nathan Persaud, could find herself in court as early as Monday after confessing to police that she had indeed paid a hit man to kill her husband.

The woman was arrested hours after Persaud’s body was discovered in his house at 66 Herstelling New Housing Scheme, East

Murdered: Nathan Persaud

Bank Demerara with a stab wound to his chest and the back of his head bashed in.

The cracking of this murder is the latest in a series of recent successes by investigators of the police Criminal Investigations Department. Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum told this newspaper that the woman gave investigators a detailed account of how she contracted the killer, who is still at large, to eliminate her husband with whom she was having a bitter dispute over a property at Diamond, East Bank Demerara.

Kaieteur News was informed that the property in question is a two-storey house that once housed a business on the bottom flat.

While the matter is engaging the court, Persaud had moved to his mother’s house in Herstelling with his three sons. It was there that he met his death even before the court matter could have been completed. The Crime Chief said that while the woman and another relative are in police custody, the hunt is still on for the actual killer.

This newspaper understands that the woman claimed that she had felt threatened after Persaud expressed confidence that the court matter would end in his favour and had told her that when it was over, she will have to live on the road.

She initially told detectives that while she had nothing to do with Persaud’s death, she was informed that her former spouse had concocted a plot with two men to execute her.

GGMC HAS NO CAPACITY TO REGULATE MINING OPERATIONS – INQUIRY FINDS – CITATIONS USUALLY IGNORED The Commission of Inquiry (COI) into mining deaths has concluded that the regulatory agencies, in particular Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) did not have the focus, capacity or strategy to ensure that mining operations fulfilled their legal responsibilities under health and safety laws and requirements of the Mining Act.

After an examination of GGMC, the COI findings revealed that even when GGMC performs its normal monitoring functions and flags a non-compliant operator, operators do not take them seriously and would continue their dangerous practices while the Commission looks the other way.

The COI into mining deaths was ordered

by President David Granger following Guyana’s worst mining accident in recent memory- the collapse of a Mowasi, Potaro mining pit that buried 10 miners alive. It was conducted by Chairman Dr. Grantley Walrond, Colin Sparman, of Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners’ Association (GGDMA), a representative of the Ministry of Social Protection, with Jo Bayah as the Technical Advisor.

The work of the COI commenced on July 1, with a one-month time span and when their work, which included extensive field work, was concluded, their report was submitted to the Minister of Governance.

According to the report, Geotechnical parameters-which have to be done by the engineer on the mining pit- to examine the pit height, slope, material competency, etc must be done to support miners. The report went on to note that GGMC with its available trained professionals must be the leader in this endeavour.

In fact, the report noted, some miners surveyed during the investigative period were willing to defray the costs in order to benefit from this essential and technical but lifesaving service.

The COI found that GGMC “was not focused and has not been doing its work properly.” It also stated that legal interference and interpretations which threatened to subvert the Commission’s work must be resisted.

MONDAY EDITION WOMAN’S BODY SPOTTED AT BOTTOM OF KAIETEUR FALLS The agonizing wait appears to be over for the relatives of Laleta Sivanand, who disappeared during a visit to the majestic Kaieteur Falls.

Dead: Laleta Sivanand

A body strongly believed to be that of the missing woman was spotted by the Kaieteur National Park Rangers late last week Saturday afternoon below the falls, in an area that had previously been submerged due to high water levels.

According to information, over the last week water levels have dropped at the falls, with the rocky area becoming exposed for the first time since the search began for the

Sunday September 20, 2015

there should be no objection to this. It should not only be tabled in the National Assembly but also published in the papers so that it can reach a wider audience, it can be subjected to constructive criticism and confidence in the system and the process can be restored.”

Also in agreement with Dr. Thomas’ suggestions is Chartered Accountant, Anand Goolsarran. He expressed that such a recommendation by the Economist should be supported and welcomed, as the concessions being published in the newspaper would readily bring the information to the ordinary folk.

TUESDAY EDITION RAMROOP’S LEARNING CHANNEL CONTRACT WILL NOT BE RENEWED NCN WILL FILL THE GAP– GOVT. Dr. Clive Thomas woman.

Initially all of the trails in the Park were searched and binoculars were also used to view the area below the falls and along the sides of the gorge. However, there was no trace of the woman.

This newspaper was told that a team comprising ranks from the Guyana Defence Force and the Guyana Police Force was dispatched Sunday to assess and potentially recover what appears to be a body from the base of the Kaieteur Falls.

The Special Forces Team will be working with the Park Rangers in this new operation.

The Department of National Resources and the Environment in a statement said that due to the logistics required and considering the sensitive nature of the operation, the Park has again been closed until the assessment and recovery effort is complete.

Sivanand disappeared two Tuesdays ago while on a tour to the Kaieteur National Park.

The benefits that some have been able to reap from possible insider trading will soon come to an end. Instead of paying Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop $3.6M per month to facilitate the Guyana Learning Channel, the government has decided to make the necessary investment to establish a satellite uplink facility.

The Learning Channel is intended to reach all communities in Guyana by way of satellite.

But, apparently that is not what is happening.

One of the reasons given by Education Minister, Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine, for not renewing the contract, is the need for wider reach.

PUBLISH CONCESSIONS GRANTED TO FOREIGN COMPANIES IN THE MEDIA – PRESIDENTIAL ADVISOR In the season of transparency and accountability under the coalition government, Presidential Advisor on Sustainability, Dr. Clive Thomas believes that concessions granted during the year should not only be tabled in the National Assembly as the law stipulates, but also published in the newspaper.

In fact, the Economist feels so strongly about this that he intends to make recommendations to the Minister of Finance and President David Granger for this to be done.

He told Kaieteur News that the “secrecy” and “level of unaccountability” which prevailed under the previous administration in that regard should remain as a mere characteristic of that “dark past.”

Professor Thomas added, “Under the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), you had the former Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh and the Auditor General, Deodat Sharma, showing disregard for the laws in this respect,” Professor Thomas said. “Sharma failed in tabling in the National Assembly, the concessions which would have been granted to foreign companies as stipulated by the country’s Investment Act. I am of the belief that all concessions must be published in the newspapers so that the people can see what is really being granted and then they will be able to later assess if the nation was properly compensated.”

Dr. Thomas continued, “I certainly believe that the people have a right to know this and

Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop

The Learning Channel is transmitted by TVG at a monthly cost of $3.6M. TVG is owned

by Dr. ‘Bobby’ Ramroop – former President Bharrat Jagdeo’s best friend. The Learning Channel initiative came into being four years ago, during the tenure of then President Bharrat Jagdeo.

Even though it was lauded as a good initiative, many criticized the fact that Dr. Ramroop was the sole financial beneficiary.

Monday evening, Minister of Education, Dr. Rupert Roopnarine, indicated that Dr. Ramroop’s contract comes to an end in December and his government has no intention of renewing it.

Dr. Roopnarine said that the matter has already attracted the attention of Cabinet. The Minister noted that it was at the level of Cabinet that “strong recommendations” were made to discontinue the relationship with Ramroop and move towards self- sufficiency.

When Ramroop was given the contract, his television station was the only one in the country with the capacity to facilitate the Learning Channel. Therefore, the previous Continued on page 33

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

From page 32 government, to which he had close ties, placed the hefty contract in his hands.

Politicians, who were sitting on the opposition side at that time, had opined that Ramroop benefitted from insider trading.

Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum told Kaieteur News Tuesday that police arrested Oswald Junior Yaw, called ‘Leow’, of East Ruimveldt Back Circle, in an area in the city that detectives had staked out, due to information they had received.

RELATIVES ID BODY FOUND AT KAIETEUR FALLS – REMAINS TO BE TRANSPORTED TO CITY

CLIENT PROMISED TO SELL POOL TABLE TO RAISE FEE

A Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Special Forces team has located and secured the body of Laleta Sivanand, the woman who vanished at the Kaieteur National Park (KNP) two weeks ago.

The body, which was first spotted by a KNP ranger late last week Saturday afternoon, was found in a rocky area at the base of the Falls. High water levels had previously kept the remains submerged.

Kaieteur News understands that a relative identified the remains by the victim’s clothing.

A release from the Ministry of the Presidency stated that the body will be transported by aircraft to Georgetown for a post-mortem examination.

Meanwhile, the Park remained closed for the completion of the recovery operation and was expected to be re-opened by Wednesday September 16, 2015.

“As the recovery operation continues, the Ministry of the Presidency expresses sympathy to the family of the tourist during this difficult time. Thanks are expressed to all officials and agencies that supported the work of the GPF and the GDF during the search and now the recovery operation,” the release added.

Sivanand, a Human Resources Manager at Singers, had booked a flight to the Kaieteur Falls the day before she vanished. She was among eight people who joined the Air Services Limited flight to the Falls. She was travelling unaccompanied.

Reports are that the woman was seen crying and talking on her phone during the flight.

When the aircraft landed at the falls the woman appeared to be in a better frame of mind.

However, Sivanand was discovered missing when the tour guide was distributing chits to the passengers for snacks, at the Kaieteur airstrip before they boarded the aircraft back to Ogle.

WEDNESDAY EDITION QUESTIONS RAISED OVER QUALIFICATIONS OF GPL’S INTERIM BOSS Almost three weeks after naming Colin Welch as the interim Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Power and Light Inc. (GPL), it appears that there may be questions over his qualifications.

Welch, a deputy CEO in charge of operations for the state-owned company was left as the top man after Bharat Dindyal was sent off in August. He was one of two deputies along with Ash Deonarine, the deputy CEO of Administration.

Deonarine was sent on administrative leave after an audit found that he was instrumental in giving himself a $27.8M back pay.

Sources Tuesday told Kaieteur News that auditors working on GPL found some questionable things while reviewing Welch’s university qualifications. Some ministers were reportedly notified late last week.

The matter will be probed deeper when a new Board of Directors for GPL is appointed.

Colin Welch

Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson, who has responsibilities for the electricity sector, could not be reached for a comment, Tuesday.

Last month, Minister Patterson, questioned about an internal GPL probe ordered by Dindyal into a number of money claims made by Welch, said that is a matter for a GPL committee.

Welch clashed with his former CEO last month after he visited the Sheriff Street office with a police rank, seizing the office keys and company phones. He reportedly issued letters to Senior Loss Reduction Manager, Loaknauth Singh, and Senior Investigator David Kaladin.

Those letters ordered the officials to proceed on administrative leave, while the security was instructed not to allow the two managers back into the office.

Dindyal subsequently sought to revoke the order on the same day, leading to a heated exchange which was captured on video.

On August 14, last, Dindyal was sent home after that video made its rounds in the news and on social media.

MURDER OF BLOCKMAKER…CAPTURED KILLER SAYS HIT WAS ON CREDIT Police have captured a 22-year-old man, who has reportedly confessed that he beat Herstelling block-maker Nathan Persaud to death with a hammer.

He also confessed that he agreed to collect his $1.7M fee in installments when the job was done.

Oswald Junior Yaw

Kaieteur News understands that Yaw has told police that the woman who had hired him to kill Persaud agreed to pay him $100,000 in weekly installments.

He claimed that the client explained that she would raise the money by selling a pool table at her Diamond, East Bank Demerara establishment.

The killer reportedly told detectives that he had planned to use some of the money “to pay a surprise visit to his girlfriend,” who is overseas.

Last week Thursday, he and his client reportedly traveled by minibus from Diamond, East Bank Demerara to Herstelling. According to the killer, the woman attempted to direct him to Nathan Persaud’s house, then instructed him to meet her in Georgetown. Yaw said that while she headed to the city in the bus, he disembarked and headed to Persaud’s residence, at Lot 66 Herstelling New Housing Scheme. But from all reports, he took some time to find Persaud’s home.

Some Herstelling residents recalled that a strange man, whom they described as “red skin, about six feet tall with afro-hair style,” was in the area enquiring about Persaud’s address.

THURSDAY EDITION UN HAD MANY PROBLEMS WITH PPP/C-LED ADMINISTRATION ON ANTI-CORRUPTION RESPONSE – UNODC REP. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has said that numerous problems were encountered with the previous People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C)-led administration when the body had pushed for anti-corruption measures to be implemented in the country.

Regional Representative of the Regional Office for Central America and the Caribbean for the UNODC, Amado Phillip de Andrés, Wednesday told the local press, that they had never received any response from the previous government on corruption, despite it having signed onto the United Nations Convention Against Corruption some years ago.

“It is also important to mention that with the previous government the UN (United Nations) had a lot of problems because the Government of Guyana is party to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption.

“Now we are reviewing the implementation by the Guyanese authorities of this convention. We never obtained any response, and now with the new government we are obtaining strong responses that the fight against corruption is real,” de Andrés intimated.

These disclosures were made to the media shortly after a UNODC team comprising de Andrés and Programme CoordinatorOperations and Programmes for the UNODC, Olivier Inizan, and United Nations (UN) Resident Coordinator and United Nations Development Fund (UNDP) Resident Representative Khadija Musa met with Minister of Legal Affairs and Attorney General (AG) Basil Williams at the Ministry of Legal Affairs, Wednesday.

Both parties said that the meeting was on

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Minister of Legal Affairs and Attorney General (AG) Basil Williams

a series of issues, with specific emphasis on anti-corruption, aspects of assets recovery, anti-money laundering and transnational crimes, including Trafficking in Persons (TIP).

BORDER CONTROVERSY… VENEZUELAHALTSACCREDITATION OF NEW GUYANESE AMBASSADOR An angry Venezuela has suspended the accreditation process for a new Guyanese ambassador to that country, saying remarks made by Foreign Minister, Carl Greenidge, in Florida over the weekend were brutal attacks.

This latest development would come amidst tense relations between the neighbours after an oil find in waters of Guyana.

The new Government had admitted the recall of Ambassador Geoffrey da Silva.

Former Ambassador to Venezuela, Cheryl Miles, is now tipped for that position. She has served for 10 years as Ambassador to Brazil and Venezuela- the latter for seven years.

She was the first female Director General of the Guyanese Foreign Ministry.

According to a statement from Venezuela’s

President Nicolas Maduro

Foreign Ministry website published Tuesday, President Nicolas Maduro during his weekly televised programme said that he decided to suspend the negotiations to grant approval for a new Guyana ambassador in Venezuela.

Maduro was incensed because Minister Greenidge allegedly used “epithets, adjectives and attacks against Venezuela” during the Florida trip where the Venezuela border controversy was discussed.

However, Minister Greenidge Wednesday Continued on page 34

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Kaieteur News

stabbed himself. He died not long after at the scene. Police sources said ranks recovered a quantity of cocaine; marijuana, condoms and ecstasy from the dead man’s pockets. A knife was also recovered.

Kaieteur News understands that police had received information that Frederick James was selling ecstasy, and at around 09.00 hrs, ranks from the Police Marine Patrol spotted him sitting on the wharf at Houston.

According to a source, the ranks approached James and requested that the suspect subject himself to a search. Instead, James reportedly grabbed one of the ranks, pressed a knife to his body and said “Al you search me nuh?”

It is alleged that the suspect then released the policeman and was heading to an area near Gafoors Shopping Complex, when an Impact Base patrol, which had been alerted, approached him.

From page 33 evening made it clear that Guyana will not be silent. “I regret President Maduro’s fondness for broadcast diplomacy which Guyana will not follow. Guyana will not be silent where its rights under law continue to be denied. The path of peace is the path of law, and Guyana will continue to pursue it.”

FRIDAY EDITION WORRYING LOOPHOLES EXIST AT GRA – FINANCE MINISTER While the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) contributes the bulk of revenues intended for the Consolidated Fund, Finance Minister Winston Jordan has said that there are worrying loopholes which have been found.

He said that the coalition government is making “serious moves” to remove the identified weaknesses.

Jordan said that an analysis of the problems and challenges facing the entity shows “heavy top management of the authority, coupled with low staff morale and a lack of succession planning, both vertically and horizontally.”

He added that the GRA lacked transparency and accountability since it was

Finance Minister Winston Jordan

politically compromised under the previous administration. The Finance Minister said that policies and procedures were poorly enforced, and there was limited intelligence gathering.

He said that the cost of conducting transactions was high, which often led to involuntary compliance. He said that it is, therefore, imperative that GRA’s organizational and managerial capacity is strengthened and enhanced in a sustainable manner.

Jordan said that the Inter-American Development Bank has been asked to lend assistance in strengthening the entity.

The Finance Minister also said that as a result of declining external inflows to Guyana, due in part to debt relief given under the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative and the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI), the GRA has assumed added importance over the last decade in generating resources to meet Government expenditure programmes.

He expressed that this role will expand, in the medium term, as the government accelerates its programmes and projects to enable Guyanese to experience the good life.

JAGDEO’S REFUSAL TO DISCLOSE WEALTH, SPEAKS VOLUMES OF ITS SOURCE – VICE PRESIDENT RAMJATTAN

Sunday September 20, 2015

Bharrat Jagdeo Allegations that Guyana has been robbed blind by some politicians are still to be put to rest. Those accused of the wrong are still to answer questions on their accumulation of wealth.

Recently, former President Bharrat Jagdeo was, for at least the fourth time, asked about his wealth and the source of it.

He told the press, last week, that he is finally ready to make the necessary disclosures but will only do so if these will be done across the board. Jagdeo wants all Members of Parliament (MPs) to make similar disclosures.

Vice President (VP), Khemraj Ramjattan, has described Jagdeo’s new condition as “wholly outrageous.”

Ramjattan said that Jagdeo is missing the point. “None of us, and I can boldly say this, none of us in the government are even half as wealthy as Jagdeo.

So it is not about us, the public has no reason to be interested in our wealth; he is the billionaire. Guyana wants to know about his wealth.”

Ramjattan said that Jagdeo’s move to set conditions highlights two issues; he still thinks he is in control and is authorized to outline how things are to be done, and that he has something to hide and has therefore decided to use delaying tactics.

Addressing the first issue, Ramjattan said that it has long been a character trait of Jagdeo to want to take control of things even when they are not really in his authority.

Jagdeo is also in denial that he has lost power, Ramjattan said. “He is yet to come to grips with the fact that he is no longer the boss.”

SATURDAY EDITION PETTY DRUG DEALER KILLS COP, SELF DURING BUNGLEDARREST A knife-wielding drug dealer stabbed a 26year-old policeman to death then slashed his own throat and stabbed himself to death, during a bungled arrest attempt at the Houston Fishing Complex, Friday.

Police Constable Antonio Dawson, an Impact base rank, was stabbed at least four times to the chest, while trying to arrest the suspect, identified as Frederick James. This happened shortly after 9:30 hours.

Dawson, a father of two of Lot 100 Murphy Street, Good Intent, West Bank Demerara (WBD), was stabbed to the neck, chest and abdomen.

He succumbed at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation some hours later.

His killer slashed his own throat and

GANG WAR ESCALATES IN CAMP STREET PRISON Police and prison authorities were called out Friday night to quell a brawl between rival

Opening a new frontier in transplant surgery at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), local surgeons, for the first time, have completed a kidney transplant surgery.

The surgery was done last Tuesday. All expenses for the operation were borne by the GPHC. A team of certified surgeons led by Dr. Kishore Persaud successfully performed the kidney transplant on 24-year-old Kiran Hardyal.

In the past, patients who would have had to undergo kidney transplants would have had to pay close to $7M to private hospitals or seek overseas treatment.

During a press conference Friday, Dr. Persaud, who completed his studies at the University of Calgary in Canada, said that the surgery was a collaborative effort between the Ministry of Health, GPHC and the University of Calgary.

He explained that a few years ago, it was decided to improve the services being offered to patients with kidney disease in Guyana. It was then that he (Persaud) was offered the opportunity to specialize in kidney transplant

Remanded prisoner Romel Ross

gangs in which inmates set mattresses alight and which left a 19-year-old prisoner hospitalized with stab wounds.

The vendetta is said to be between inmates from Agricola and East Ruimveldt, and has resulted in at least two recent executionstyle killings.

Injured Friday night was remanded prisoner Romel Ross, 19, of Agricola, East Coast Demerara. He was rushed to the GPHC with what appeared to be multiple stab wounds, but did not appear to be in a critical state. Relatives said that Ross has been in prison since January. He has reportedly been attacked twice before, and a relative said that they had pleaded with prison authorities to have him isolated for his safety.

Kaieteur News was told that members of one gang has threatened to harm inmates from Agricola, and that this stems from the recent murder of 23-year-old Kellon Hinds, called ‘Baige,’ who was gunned down a few weeks ago in East Ruimveldt. He was killed hours after being released from custody.

Hinds himself was a suspect in the murder of Sherwyn Barrow, who was slain in ‘warlock’, East Ruimveldt last May. LOCAL SURGEONS COMPLETE KIDNEY TRANSPLANTAT GPHC

at Calgary.

After completing his studies in Canada, Persaud returned home and later formed a team which will now be working together to perform kidney transplants.

Police Constable Antonio Dawson

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Lucille feeds her...

From page 24 his hands. “You need to wash up and then I have another surprise for you.”

She led him to a table with a large basin. The water appeared to contain some sort of scented perfume that reminded him of the girl's smell.

They dried their hands on a towel on the table.

He undressed, thinking that now they would make love, but when the girl came back to the bed she was holding a small earthenware bottle. She uncorked it, and a strong, fermented odour came to him.

Sitting with knees beneath her, she put the bottle to her lips and tilted her head back for a moment. She lowered the bottle and he saw that some sort of colourless liquid had trickled down the edges of her mouth.

Smiling, she gave him the bottle. Again, he smelt the strong, fermented odour. He hesitated. He had been drinking a lot lately.

“What's it?” he said, in what he hoped was a casual tone. He suddenly felt extremely immature; out of his depth. The girl sitting on the bed with her hair loose and in unselfconscious nakedness suddenly seemed light years ahead of him in maturity.

“It's cassiri. I made it.”

“Oh,” he said. He tried to recall whether this was the Amerindian wine that was made with cassava that was chewed and spat into a pot.

The thought that the wine might have been made from Lucille's juices caused a stirring within him. He raised the bottle to his lips. The taste was not unlike the homemade wines that his mother made at Christmas. A little stronger, though. He swallowed, and felt the liquid burning a warm path to his stomach. He took another sip, and another, before passing the bottle back.

His lips felt numb. The warmth in his stomach seemed to have travelled to his groin.

She switched off the light

and returned to the bed. He reached for her. He felt lightheaded and strangely reckless. She laughed in his face; her voice seeming to come from a distance. He gave a startled yelp as she gave him a sudden nip on the chest. He felt her gloriously smooth thighs encircle him; felt himself sinking … * He had been sleeping, and now he was awake, and the bedroom light was on and the girl was not in the bed. He felt light-headed, and strangely listless, and he was wondering where the girl had gone to when he saw her standing by the mirror. She was too preoccupied to notice that he had awoken. He thought of calling to her, but didn't because his limbs and tongue felt heavy, and because a little voice within him told him not to.

She stood close to the mirror, as if short-sighted. She ran her hands through her hair. She caressed her face, touched her breasts. Now, she bent to stare at her thighs, examining them in that same short—sighted, careful manner.

Suddenly she straightened and stared into the mirror again. Her body shook, and he was puzzled until he realized that she was laughing. He watched her, feeling suddenly cold. He wanted to cover with the sheet but that little voice told him to remain still. Around him was a heavy silence as if he and the girl were the only people left in the world.

She turned to him suddenly, and instinctively, he shut his eyes, breathing shallowly like someone asleep. He felt a throbbing in the centre of his forehead, as if someone was watching him.

Eventually, he heard a click, and the light that was seeping beneath his eyelids receded. He sensed her standing beside the bed. Then her lips closed around him, bringing him to life, despite the unease he felt….

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Sunday September 20, 2015

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Need for international aviation standards...

From page 42 in1944 and works with the Convention on International Civil Aviation's 191 member states and aviation organizations from around the world, in order to develop International Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs).

These regulations are usually referenced by countries when they are developing their own regulations.

However, the Government side did highlight changes in its approach to aviation including allocations from the national budget that are projected to lift Guyana's aviation standards to a more compliant level.

The President revealed several targets including; ensuring independent aircraft accident investigations, enhancing the capability of the GCAA, expanding the hinterland aerodrome rehabilitation programme and establishing a permanent national 'search and rescue' agency.

The President committed to boosting the institutional and technological capacity of the GCAA, for greater aeronautical surveillance, as well as to enforce rigorous safety and security standards.

Granger also highlighted that the upgrading of hinterland airstrips would be a focus of the administration,

something that would help eradicate mishaps during the landing of aircrafts.

Granger also paid tribute to Eugene Francis Correia, a pioneer in the local aviation sector. Correia, formerly a prospector, was later elected a member of the Legislative Assembly and became the first Minister of Communication, Shipping and Civil Aviation in Guyana's first post-independence government.

He thus urged the Director of Ogle International Airport Incorporated, to rename the facility the Eugene F. Correia International Airport.

Minister of Public Infrastructure David Patterson, who is the subject minister on aviation matters, also pledged his support to the aviation sector, noting how important the sector is to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of developing countries.

The Minister also noted that a large Budgetary allocation has been made for improving Guyana's ICAO compliance, a move towards attaining Federal Aviation Administration Category One status, as so many of Guyana's neighbours have already done.

Patterson also spoke of the rehabilitation of hinterland airstrips and new equipment for Air Traffic Control, while

pledging that further provisions will be made in the 2016 budget for development of the sector.

The new 19-seat aircraft, which is pressurized and has a twin turboprop engine and

fixed wings, is expected to be available for both day and night international charters and its Lethem services from October 1st. According to projections from the company, it will reduce the present

Cessna Caravan flight time to Lethem from one and a half hours to 55 minutes.

TGA is also looking at providing international connecting flights direct to Boa Vista Airport in the future.

Night operations at Ogle International Airport are also on the cards. As of Wednesday, it was announced, the airport will be opened up to 11pm every night to accommodate LIAT's daily Trinidad flights.

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Not all of 2016 Mash activities shifted to May

By Mondale Smith Persons who look forward to Mashramani celebrations need not be upset over decisions to shift the

costume and parade to May 2016 says Minister within the Ministry of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport, Nicolette Henry.

While some may have ran

away with the idea that Mashramani 2016 will not be totally the same the Minister told this publication that in addition to the flag raising ceremony all other events

such as the calypso competition etc. will remain as part of the Mashramani activities.

“The shift t is mainly for independence and we are only shifting the costume and float parade,” she asserted.

Following Kaieteur News’ report during the past week that there will be no Mashramani float parade on February 23, 2016, comments of disapproval began making the rounds on social media.

One such comment came from media personality Gordon Moseley who wrote, “These folks going on as if the whole world coming in just the month of May (2016)...if you have a year of activities why move these events especially when they are private sector driven...Trinidad had its 50th anniversary and you think they were moving carnival parade...nooo...they are

- Minister Henry assures people who might want to come home in February for mash (Mashramani) and not in May and they need to start talking with people and consulting on these issues rather than the servant master way of doing things.”

But according to Minister Henry, “Every government has got its objectives and ours may not necessarily be the same as the previous Governments.” On the subject of consultation the Minister noted that “We have consulted with some of the main private sector and corporate players who support Mashramani and they are not opposed to the idea of the float parade being shifted to be part of the 50th independence celebrations next year.”

Minister Henry also said

that the government is not stopping nor discouraging persons who want to come home for Mashramani activities , “it’s just that if they wish to see and be part of the float parade they could also make plans to come home for May and they will see much more floats and costumes on display.

The Minister has therefore encouraged that all hands are being invited on deck to make Guyana’s 50th independence anniversary celebrations as grand and all inclusive as possible. She disclosed that with an approved budgeted sum of $65 million in the recently presented National Budget, the planning has commenced for the one year observance.

However, while Guyana (Continued on page 50)

Mashramani costume parade scenes

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

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Farmsup collaborates with LTI to offer crucial training The Linden Technical Institute and Farm Supplies Limited (Farmsup) last Friday officially launched the Heavy Duty Operator Training room at the Linden Technical Institute (LTI).

Operations Manager for Farmsup Schelte Van Dijk said that the training room will facilitate the training of participants in safety, environment, equipment maintenance and operations.

He added that they would also be trained in operating excavators, articulated dump trucks reloaders and bulldozers Van Dijk said.

“This project is to support the request that we are getting for trained operators for mining, construction and agriculture, which are the main industries right now in Guyana.

This is the first of its kind, there no other institutes in Guyana offering equipment operator training other than private entities,” he added.

He pointed out that the training programme is partially sponsored by the Government of Guyana, Farmsup and the Linden Technical Institute.

The training courses are expected to run for eight weeks, and although it will be integrated into the current LTI curriculum, additional classes will be implemented to

accommodate persons not attending the institution.

Ten students are expected to graduate every eight weeks from the programme. Approximately G$7million has been expended on the project so far Van Dijk explained.

Deckland Belle, a senior lecturer at LTI, and Kebron Singh have been earmarked to train participants in the equipment operator training programme.

Belle said that persons 18 years and older are eligible for the programme.

Another Senior Lecturer, Dinelle Boyce, who has the responsibility for the mechanical Department of LTI said that the programme aims to train persons in heavy equipment operating.

“This programme is being sponsored by LTI in collaboration with Farmsup and Troy Resources mining company. And our aim is to train persons in heavy equipment operating- not only persons from within this community but from across Guyana as a whole,” said Boyce.

He added that “We have a brand new facility here which was done by Farmsupthat is the internal works, and they have also put in some simulators to facilitate the simulator aspect of the

training.”

The simulator training will precede the actual live training, where the trainees will be engaged on the machines.

Among those addressing the gathering at the launch of the training programme were: Chairman of the Board of Governors of LTI, Mr. Gordon Gumbs; Principal of the Institution, Mr. Dennis Jaikaran, as well as senior lecturers and trainers.

Both Gumbs and Jaikaran applauded the project and thanked all those involved in its launching.

Farmsup Operations Manager Shelte Van Dijk, Principal of LTI Dennis Jaikarran and the two trainers for the heavy duty equipment training programme inspect one of the simulators.

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Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

Not all of 2016 Mash activities shifted...

(From page 48) has grown accustomed to witnessing or participating in the annual Mashramani float parade on February 23, those looking forward to the big costume spectacle will have

to wait a bit longer as most of the big activities have been shifted to May of 2016.

“Preparatory works for independence have begun to ensure that our celebrations will hit the ground running

from January of 2016,”said Minister Henry.

The year-long activities have been planned but the main events will culminate in the week of May 26, 2016 and the Minister said it is official

that a mega float parade will be held on May 27, 2016 instead.

“We are aiming to have 50 floats on the streets for Independence but as it relates to the Mashramani 2016 plans

things like the traditional flag raising ceremony will be held, but most of the big activities have been shifted to May, 2016,” the Minister intimated.

To make this event as grand as can be, the Government has established the National Commemorative Commission in addition to advisory units that are focused on areas of ceremonial, security, academia etc. that will be spread out in various regions.

Minister Henry made it clear that, the 50th independence observations are not just for Georgetown, “It’s to be spread out countrywide as a national activity that offers a chance for our peoples to do introspection of how far we have come from over the last 50 years and where we are heading in the next 50, and the events planned will highlight that kind of thinking.”

According to the Minister too, the Commission has already met and a secretariat has been formed as the working arm to execute the functions and they have already established subcommittees.

“Those sub-committees have begun work to the extent that at the end of August we have concluded a logo competition. From that competition we had 68 entries and we are now down to a short list of four.”

The Independence Logo, according to the Minister, will be launched in a week’s time.

The $65 million that has

been approved in the 2015 budget will be used for among other things, the production of stamps and coins which require advance payments. The money allotted also includes costs for venues preparation and ordering of memorabilia, tokens, medals etc.

But the $65 million is just a drop in the ocean for preparatory works as much more monies will be needed and budgeted for in the 2016 national budget to make the nations 50th Independence anniversary what it needs to be the Minister assured.

Additionally, a Facebook page will soon be launched aimed at attracting Guyanese in the Diaspora as well as to get suggestions.

The schedule of activities will also be posted shortly once a decision has been arrived at. As part of having universal involvement the Minister confirmed that she has dispatched letters to every organization, Ministry and Agency that exists inviting them on board.

“I’m also asking the public to start to look at their environment in terms cleaning up and decorating. I would like to see every Guyanese involved because this is our celebration and there is a lot that unites us as a people that we need to celebrate and we should do it as a people.”

While itemized activities have not yet been made there are lots of activities planned the minister said.

A mini health check is the first step to donating blood

Sunday September 20, 2015

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Hundreds swarm Rupununi Music and Arts festival address, at the opening of the event, Minister Hughes highlighted the importance of music in the development of the local tourism sector.

It is the diversity of the Guyanese culture that provides the blueprint for music as a driver for tourism, she said.

According to Hughes, the creations from local musicians would help Guyana as a unique place that will naturally attract others.

“When visitors hear our music, they would want to see who created it, where it was created and what were the spectacular forces that A cultural display Indigenous Peoples Affairs Minister, Sydney Allicock, proved that he had not lost touch with his roots when he arrived at the Second Annual Rupununi Music and Arts Festival, on a horse.

The three-day festival which is being held at the Rock View Lodge, Annai, North Rupununi, saw hundreds of Guyanese and foreigners, enjoying the colourful variety of exotic sights and sounds of the Guyanese Indigenous culture amidst the splendor of the Rupununi Savanahs.

The event kicked off on Friday with indigenous groups displaying their way of life, through music, dance, poetry and storytelling.

Minister Allicock captivated the crowd with his grand entrance on a horse, while telling his story on “Cattle Rearing.”

Performing also were JJ Kent, a native Indian from the United States; the Samba Group from Brazil; Maya of Suriname; a rock band from Georgetown, and other groups portraying Indian customs, reggae and jazz

music. There were also booths displaying local craft, paintings and food.

Present also were Minister of Tourism, Cathy Hughes; Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson; Minister within the Ministry of Communities, Dawn Hastings-Williams and members of the Diplomatic Corps.

During the feature

contributed to such creation.

Music sells our image and makes people want to see more of our products.”

She said that the Tourism Ministry is intent on adding the festival to its calendar of activities, as an eco-festival.

The aim is to attract more visitors from all around the world.

Hughes also spoke of creating an enabling environment in which the talents of Guyanese, involved in the creative industries, can grow. Already, music has been enshrined into schools’ curriculum, so that persons, from a very small age, can get

involved.

The festival also hosted workshops on craft and paintings. These workshops were conducted by representatives from the EU Delegation in Guyana and other groups from Georgetown.

Minister Allicock pointed out that the event allows for Guyanese, especially the Indigenous population, to showcase their way of life, and at the same time provide the opportunity for the exchange of cultures, both local and overseas, through art, craft, music, dance and food.

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Sunday September 20, 2015

Govt. instructs Brassington... ‘Lazy’ man stabs father-in-law (From page 15) million, the Ramroop Group owns 40 percent and the Hand-in-Hand Group owns 10 percent.

The contract also provides for the equity shareholders to receive 23 percent on their investments.

The coalition government, in the lead up to the May 11, 2015 elections, had accused the previous administration of hijacking the Berbice Bridge Company Inc. (BBCI), deliberately structuring operations in a manner that allowed investors and their close friends with disproportionately small investment to control the company.

Chartered Accountant, Chris Ram, earlier this year, wrote that Government, inclusive of the NIS, owns 76 percent of the issued shares of the company. NICIL, Ram said, owns what is called a Special Share in the company and according to the Articles of Amendment of the company, “No action can be taken by the Bridge Company, without the

affirmative vote” of NICIL. The NIS has $950M in Preference Shares and is entitled to fixed dividends.

The equity shareholders are Secure International Finance Company ($80 million); Demerara Contractors Limited ($40M); Hand in Hand Motor & Life Insurance Company ($40M), the Ramroop Group ($160 M) and the NIS ($80 M).

Ram has lamented the fact that despite having some 70 percent of the issued shares as well as a Special Share, control of the company is exercised by less than a handful of entities.

As for the Pradoville Two deal, the Ministry of Housing had called on the country’s State Asset Recovery Unit to investigate that special arrangement as it speaks of abuse of state resources by the previous administration.

The matter is also being examined under forensic audits being carried out at both the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) and NICIL. Minister within the Ministry of Communities,

A mini health check is the first step to donating blood

Keith Scott, had disclosed that the area situated at Parcel 172 Plantation Sparendaam and Parcel 237 Plantation Goedverwagting, known by citizens as Pradoville 2 was “mutated” and sold, subject to a Cabinet decision during Bharrat Jagdeo’s last term in office.

The state-owned NICIL/ Privatisation Unit was authorized to do all acts necessary to ensure the vesting of the new development project in the CH&PA, the body which is tasked with overseeing housing developments in Guyana.

According to Scott, the allocation of parcels of land to several former ministers, senior Government officials and friends close to the PPP administration, and the method to determine the prices paid, were not assessed by the CH&PA. He said that CH&PA seemed not to have been in the loop. The infrastructural works were contracted to Atlantic Construction by NICIL/Privatisation Unit.

There is no evidence that the house lots sale was advertised or what procedures were used in the allocations of the parcels of the ocean-front properties.

when asked to move out Latchman Narine Persaud is hospitalized at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) after he was stabbed to his abdomen by his son-in-law.

The man said that he was attacked when he asked his daughter’s husband to move from his home.

“He living by me for 10 years and not one day he went out to work. He doesn’t make an effort to go out and look for a job,” Persaud said.

According to the farmer, who resides at Vergenoegen, West Coast Demerara, he asked his son-in-law to move from his home Friday afternoon.

However, around 07:00 PM, his daughter’s husband ignored his request.

“I see him by the gate and I ask he why he here. I tell him that I don’t want him and

A wounded Persaud at GPHC yesterday

when I was going to lock the gate, he plunge on me with the knife and stab me,” Persaud recounted.

He said that the angry man was going to stab him again but ran when he screamed for help.

“It is my only daughter so

I tolerated a lot of things with him.

He beats her and when I ask her, she would tell me that she fell,” the wounded man stated.

Up to press time Persaud’s son-in-law was still at large.

Is a new crime wave on the...

From page 20 it is because I don't want others to know the amount of money I normally get or it will give others (robbers) ideas."

These robbers, who transverse 'their targeted area' on motorcycles, no longer target wealthy individuals.

“These boys are like hungry animals, just roaming the streets looking for prey. At first, if you had a lil cheap phone, you were safe but now, them men robbing and shooting you if you refuse to hand over a $2000 phone,” a security guard said.

There are also robbers, who are well equipped with the right tools to break and

enter homes.

“They trail your movement and enter your homes with heavy duty nippers that they use to cut your grill works and this is happening a lot.

Sometimes people go home to an almost empty house,” a woman said.

She added, “The other day we catch one of dem and he end up in court pleading not guilty while wearing me friend shoes.

This was pointed out to the magistrate yet he was sent to jail for a measly two years.

Something got to be done about the laws to fix these li'l boys who got people always looking over their shoulders

all the time.”

Recently, two youngsters broke into a local cyclist's home and carried away more than $4M in high end racing bikes as well as laptops. They were caught trying to sell the items “People are living in fear more than ever because of these li'l boys who think people owe them a living.”

Among the recommendations were that persons caught selling stolen items should be jailed or made to pay triple the cost of the stolen goods. Also, parents, who encourage their children to steal, should be penalized.

“It got parents, who are quick to say, 'Not my son. He is not a thief' but yet he taking home money and other people things at his mother home and he not working. If he didn't thief, where did he get them from?” one woman questioned.

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 67

Govt. aiding swift completion of CHI’s stalled...

From page 9 just the paying population,” asserted the official.

This therefore means that while CHI will afford paying

patients its regular services, the collaboration with the Public Health Ministry will allow for some services will be considerably subsidized

Harmon defends...

From page 14 Bar Association had pointed to Sections 7(1) of the land registry Act Cap 5:02, which stipulates there shall be a Registrar of Lands and Deputy Registrar of Lands, who shall be the person for the time being holding the offices of Registrar of Deeds and Deputy Registrar of Deeds respectively.

However Attorney General (AG), Basil Williams, in a recent address to the National Assembly noted that the provision is a temporary one.

“Lawyers must read the section; they will see that the section they are referring to is a sunset clause. When they read it they will see the words “for the time being.” After you appoint the registrar for the land registry that is the end of the provision so you don’t need to repeal anything; it’s a sunset clause,” he asserted.

Williams posited that Robertson’s appointment was necessary due to the backlog of cases at the Land Court.

He claimed that she was chosen through the normal process of employing people.

He had disclosed that Robertson was among several persons, who had applied for the post. The AG subsequently referred all questions regarding the appointment to the Ministry of Presidency, which now holds the responsibility of overseeing the department.

In a further response to the criticisms on Friday, Harmon debunked the claims of illegality. Underlining the fact that Robertson was sworn in at the Supreme Court by Chief Justice, Ian Chang, he exclaimed “if that process is illegal, I don’t know what is legal.”

While he did not detail the points of reference used to employ the new registrar or the identity of other applicants, Harmon maintained that Robertson was most suitably qualified for the position since she is an employee of the Land Registry’s office. She has been working in a senior position, for a number of years.

Questioned further about government’s failure to tender public notices for the post, Harmon disclosed very little about the process.

He essentially claimed that the persons who applied had been following the news.

“Once they are following the news, they would have seen that Ms Sattaur was spent off,” he added.

He said that Robertson was selected from applicants, to allow for the adequate redress at the Land Court Registry.

The APNUAFC Government had promised to look into the functions of the Registry. The government had expressed optimism that with the appointment of a new head and adequate management, the conditions at the registry would improve.

Since her appointment, the new head had promised to make the Land Court Registry a model department delivering excellent service.

Given the history and complains of fraud surrounding the Registry, Robertson has vowed that corruption will not thrive under her watch. She said that she will ensure that all matters are dealt with as quickly as possible.

As a long term objective, the new Land Court Registrar revealed plans to have the systems at the Land Registry digitized.

or even be free.

Although the MOU has not yet been finalized, the official intimated that the details thus far have been accepted by both sides (the Ministry and CHI).

“What is known is that CHI is comfortable with what is on paper and so are the Ministry of Health and the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation,” added the official.

Once completed in the anticipated matter of weeks, it is expected that technicians from General Electric (GE- a United States based company) will visit in order to set up a Hybrid machine in the Cath Lab allowing for it to become operational.

It is expected that the Cath lab will be the primary operating room for all CHI operations.

The multimillion hybrid

machine was for months stored on the ground floor of the Georgetown Public Hospital covered with a tarpaulin gathering dust.

Based on an agreement between the former Government and GE, which supplied the machine, a suitable room, in this case the Cath Lab must be completed to accommodate the machine which will be transported and installed by GE technicians.

And should the conditions of supply and installation not be adhered to, Government would be expected to stand any additional cost.

“There is no telling whether the machine has developed any problems because it is sitting unused in conditions that it was not intended to be,” one official close to the former administration had told this publication.

Concerns regarding the completion of the Cath Lab were brought to the attention of this publication by founder and Chief Executive Officer of CHI, Dr Gary Stephens.

He, last year, expressed concerns to this publication that the delay of the lab was one that could very well jeopardise the existence of CHI, which represented a crucial public-private partnership aimed at catering to a variety of heart complications in patients.

This publication was informed that the works on the lab could have been completed in two months but well over a year later, it was still not completed.

The alleged reason for this, was to create a void with a view to bringing on board an overseas- based medical practitioner (name withheld) said to be a “friend” of the

then ruling administration.

It is alleged that a senior health functionary of the former ruling administration was instructed to ensure that CHI flopped in order to accommodate the individual.

The friend in question, a Canada-based assistant surgeon, was earmarked for a position similar to that held

by Dr. Stephens. But, unlike Dr. Stephens (a well-trained and established Cardiac Surgeon who has successfully completed hundreds of heart related procedures at the reputable Brooklyn Maimonides Medical Centre as well as CHI), the “friend” in question based on his qualifications was not permitted even in Canada to operate without guidance.

“It was all a ploy to put a less than qualified person to head CHI,” intimated a reliable source.

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Kaieteur News

CONSUMER CONCERNS

By Pat Dial Sometimes consumers come to us with Landlord and Tenant problems or regarding the purchase of house lots or other real estate.

Though such matters are not strictly within the remit of the Guyana Consumers Association, or for that matter of Consumerism, we do, with the help of our pro bono legal adviser, try to give them guidance. In today’s offering, we would give some basic guidance as to the purchase of landed property.

In Guyana, there are three avenues open to ordinary folk for saving. There are the various saving accounts in the banks which bear

BUYING YOUR OWN PROPERTY IS EASY AND ADVANTAGEOUS

interest, and the endowment policies of Insurance.

At this moment, the saving rate interest which the banks pay is much less than the inflation rate. The present inflation rate would greatly erode the value of the amount to be paid at the maturity of an endowment policy.

In other words, keeping money in the banks and in Insurance endowment policies at this time actually eat into a saver’s capital.

The other avenue of saving is the Stock Market but in Guyana, it is so small with only five or six companies actively trading that this avenue could be discounted.

The third

avenue of saving is buying real estate.

Buying or investing in real estate is the safest and easiest way of saving for ordinary folk. Real estate (“properties”) tends to increase in real value with the effluxion of time or at least tend to keep up with inflation.

The various public and private housing schemes have been offering fairly affordable properties which grow in monetary value with time as well as the house lots distributed b y G overnment such as those, for example, distributed at Diamond, EBD. Many would like to take advantage of those

offerings, but are inhibited from so doing because they are not quite clear about how to begin the process, many thinking that they have to have the full purchase price in their possession before making the purchase.

In buying a property, the first thing to do is to inspect the property taking into account such factors as location, condition of the building and type and quality of the building material used.

With regard to the house lots distributed by Government, one has to take what one is allotted, and though some lots in a scheme may be more valuable than others, any lot allotted does

FARM FISHERMAN REMANDED ON WOUNDING CHARGE A charge of unlawful and malicious wounding was read to a 45- year-old fisherman when he appeared in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Thursday.

Appearing before City Magistrate Faith McGusty was Mohan Deonarine, of Farm Sea Dam, East Bank Demerara.

Deonarine is accused of unlawfully and maliciously wounding Brian North, on August 24, at Stabroek Market. He pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Police Prosecutor, Corporal Seon Blackman, did not relate any facts about what transpired on the day in question.

Blackman, however, objected to bail

Sunday September 20, 2015

Mohan Deonarine citing the nature of the offence and punishment it attracts.

Further, the Prosecutor

pointed out that the defendant should not be granted pre-trial liberty because he has no fixed place of abode and might not return to court.

Blackman also noted that if the defendant should be granted bail there is a likelihood that he may tamper with the prosecution’s witness (North).

When given a chance to explain his side of the story, Deonarine told the court that North had assaulted him several times before. He said that the incident occurred three weeks ago.

The defendant added that on the day in question, “He (North) cuss me up about me mother, put two cuff in me

face and tek way me $100.”

Deonarine continued, “I had a knife in me hand and the knife cut he. He had an umbrella in he hand and he keep advancing to me.”

After listening to his explanation the Magistrate requested Deonarine to provide the court with an address. He told the court that he lives in a squatting area close to the Demerara River. The defendant was subsequently remanded to prison after the Magistrate upheld the prosecutor ’s request.

In addition, the prosecutor requested two weeks to serve statements in the matter, which was adjourned to October 2.

give one value for money.

The next step is raising the money to pay for the purchase price and legal expenses. This part of the transaction tends to scare many prospective buyers because they do not have the entire purchase price.

But they could obtain the purchase price by means of a mortgage on the property. A mortgage is a loan to pay for the property, the collateral being the property itself.

For this loan, the borrower, that is the purchaser of the property, must pay the lending institution interest.

The Government has been able to negotiate with the commercial banks and other lending institutions such as the New Building Society, their willingness to offer loans to first-time property owners at much cheaper rates of interest than they would ordinarily have to pay. This, of course, is a great relief to buyers when paying their installments on the loan.

And the time of repayment of the loan is often up to 20 years.

In buying a property, in addition to raising the money for the price, there are some legal requirements which have to be satisfied. The first of these is that an Agreement of Sale has to be made between purchaser and vendor.

That Agreement identifies the purchaser and vendor; accurately describes the property being purchased; price is stated and the down payment made; terms of payment of the rest of the price; and the time the

transport is to be passed, that is the time the legal title to the property is to be transferred.

The next step after the Agreement of Sale is for the vendor and purchaser’s lawyers to file the necessary legal documents to effectuate the transfer of ownership and the award the title of ownership, the transport, to the purchaser.

The Deeds Registry is the Government Agency which transfers ownership and keeps the records of the transaction. On receiving transport, the purchaser becomes the full owner and is then able to do whatever he wishes with the property.

There is a common myth that lawyers’ fees and the cost of transporting a property are oppressively expensive.

This is not so. The fees paid to the Deeds Registry total 2.5 per cent of the purchase price. The lawyer’s fee is 1% of purchase price.

All this may appear complicated, but once one begins the process of purchasing a property, one would find that one action follows the other in logical sequence without confusion.

Above, we mentioned that the acquisition of real estate was a hedge against inflation and also as a means of saving and increasing the value of one’s saving.

But holding a transport has many other advantages such as it could be used as collateral for loans or prove to foreign embassies when applying for visitor’s visa that one has ties to the country.

Sunday September 20, 2015

Standards in Focus The Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) in its continuing efforts to ensure that products falling under its purview comply with the respective standards and guidelines recently discovered that there are quite a number of non-compliant brands of cigarettes being imported and offered for sale in Guyana.

Recent complaints have caused the GNBS to further intensify its surveillance activities on this commodity.

The result is the seizure of a quantity of inadequately labelled cigarettes.

This is a major concern for the Bureau in light of the harmful effects tobacco and its by-products can have on consumers.

Some of the brands seized by the GNBS so far include BOLTON, RAY, PALACE, COOPER, KARELIA and GORILLA. A closer examination of the labelling requirements on these seized packets of cigarettes revealed that they failed to comply with many of the requirements stipulated in the Guyana Standard Specifications for the Labelling of retail packages of cigarettes (GYS 9-3: 2004).

There is no mention of the

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Page 69

Non-compliant cigarettes found on the local market ingredients nor is there any declaration of the amounts.

The health warning is also in violation.

As a result, the GNBS wishes to advise all vendors, shopkeepers and users of cigarettes that the said brands should not be sold nor consumed.

Consumers, vendors and shopkeepers are urged not to purchase the said products, and in cases where they were already purchased, u r g e n t efforts should be made to return them to the wholesalers or distributors for refunds.

Failure to do so will result in their seizure by the GNBS when they are found.

Importers of cigarettes need to ensure that the product complies with requirements.

This means that prior to importation they must be registered with the Bureau, acquire a copy of the national standard and ensure that the product conforms to the specifications.

They should also submit a sample of the product to be checked by the Bureau prior to importation.

It is only after these requirements are met that the GNBS will allow the sale of such products in the marketplace.

Apart from the tar group designation a n d h e a l t h warning specifications, every retail pack of cigarettes that is manufactured, packaged and/or imported into Guyana for sale, must be labelled legibly in English language.

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Sunday September 20, 2015

Are you prepared to die, do you have a living will?

By Ralph Seeram As the patient lay there comatose, it was obvious she was only being kept alive by the assorted tubes and other equipment attached to her. It was an agony no one would want to experience; it was the kind of suffering the patient herself did not want.

It was clear to all the brothers and sisters, that the oxygen that was being forced down her lungs to feed the heart was the only reason she was alive.

Uppermost in everyone’s mind was when and how can we “pull the plug” to eliminate the suffering my mother was experiencing. Who will make the decision?

First it’s not a decision that the family can make immediately. The various doctors, specialists to be exact, had to verify that all the vital organs are failing or have failed, that there is no hope of recovery. I did not need a doctor to tell me that. One look at my mom and I knew that she was not coming out of that hospital alive. After 91 years, her spirit was ready to leave her body.

Still it was not the relatives’ decision yet; those doctors had to be sure.

One of the things I have learnt from this experience is that a doctor will never come out and tell you for sure the patient is going to die. They always leave that small percentage of hope that the patient can recover. One may argue this is so because they are not God, and cannot predict the time of death.

One doctor assured us that he had seen patients come off life support, and recover in hospice care, thereby giving you a glimmer of hope.

It was clear to us, however, that this will not be the case. My mom was not walking out of that hospital, and we are not going to prolong her life in hospice.

One senior nurse explained to us that she had seen cases where selfish families prolonged the life of relative just for the sake of coming to see them, oblivious to the suffering the patient is going through.

Which brings me to another issue, and this is more relevant here in North

America than Guyana.

So doctors after deciding that nothing can be done, medically, to “bring the patient back, sometimes recommend the patient go to a hospice, a facility where you are supposed to go “die with dignity” as one sales person from a hospice told us.

In reality it was to prolong the suffering of your loved one to make more money from a dying patient. There are some exceptions in terminally ill cancer patients, but in the main it’s all about making extra cash on a dying patient.

The family was in the waiting area, still trying to accept the inevitable. Some were still in denial, still cannot accept the reality of the situation.

Up comes this woman. Or I should say a saleswoman, brochure in hand, in the room.

She seated herself in the middle of the room, telling us how beautiful her facility is, its location and how the patient will die with dignity etc, etc.

Then she threw in the primary doctor’s name, as if the doctor recommended her.

On close questioning by me, it was nothing of the sort; the

doctor never spoke to her. We were about to chase her out the room for her dishonesty.

It would appear that employees at the hospital would tip them off if a patient is dying; sort of “touts” for these facilities.

Needless to say she was asked politely to leave the room. Later a talk with the administrator revealed that they never gave her permission to come and speak to us. So as we are mulling the decision of ending the life support, when the hospital asked if my mom had a Living Will, which basically is, you determine how you want your medical care to be if you lapsed into unconsciousness or become brain dead etc.

This is where I would like your attention, since a Living Will is a very important document. Some years ago the fight over whether family can “pull the plug” on a loved one, reached the Supreme Court of the United States.

The woman was from Florida, and had lapsed into a “vegetative” state, The husband and her relatives battled all the way to the highest court of the United States. A simple piece

of document could have saved that. We should all have not only a will, but a living will also, so there can be no family fights over your dying body.

A Will only talks about distributing your assets and it important to have one.

There are many cases where even before the body goes into the ground, the family starts fighting for the dead person’s belongings.

One lawyer told me that you will be surprised to know that people fight over down to the plates and spoons.

Make a will to avoid that, make a Living Will so no one but you determine on what terms you die.

In the midst of life there is death, we all know that, we know tomorrow is not promised, but somehow, we don’t accept that it applies to us, it is the other person. We humans are always in denial of death. Most if all of us are not prepared for death.

Everyone should be prepared for death, like my mother. You won’t believe this but we had nothing to do with her funeral, no planning etc.

My Mom had a living will and when the hospital saw it,

they knew what they had to do. The nurse told us that we should not feel guilty about removing life support systems, it was not our decision. My mom made the decision, and it’s what SHE wanted.

However her planning did not end there, she pre-paid for her funeral, had paid for her burial plot, had the stone already placed on the spot, leaving only the date of death to be etched onto the head stone. Don’t think it ended there. She wrote out her funeral service down to hymns and bible reading, and to top it all catered for the repast.

Being a family of seven siblings, one can expect diverse opinions, on life support to burials to division or property. My mom in her great wisdom eliminated any decisions we would have bickered over.

As in life, in death she also decided to go on her own terms. No one was going to make a decision for her, even in death.

Ralph Seeram can be reached at email: ralph365@hotmail.com and on Facebook

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

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PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY, ETC. CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 216-1043; 677-6620 One upper flat, one self contained master bedroom + 2 bedrooms @ Diamond EBD -$90,000 –Call: 688-0980; 6668767 Vacation Rental: cool and comfortable fully-furnished 2 bedroom vacation apartment.

Call: 678-6690; 687-3365 House and land at Canal #2 Polder -$35,000 monthlyContact: 613-1860; 685-9721 2 Self Contained rooms; water (hot & cold) A/C & phone$US1500 @ Vlissingen RoadContact: 660-9478; 672-0865 One four storey building at Lot 14 Croal and Longden Street to rent- Contact 6631876 Lodge (Vlissengen/Durban): Professional/office/business (no food retailing) spaceCall: 677-9638; 629-1093 Three Storey 75ft’X30ft’ bldg, open floors, 2 offices, 2 washrooms, driveways, 25B Princess St, Charlestown.

Call: 223-0654; 225-0605 Two -2 bedrooms apartment @ 35 Howes Street- Contact Pet Boy Shop, between the hours 11am-6pm - $45,000 & $50,000 monthly 1-3 Bedrooms upstairs, 1-2 bedrooms downstairs for rent @ Cornelia Ida W.C.D – Contact: 277-0108 2 Bedroom apartment in Charlestown, available October, 1st -price $50,000 – Tel: 681-4275 Apartment for rent @ Parfaite Harmonie, WCD-Call: 601-5058 Three bedrooms apartment for rent at Section ‘A’ , Diamond E.B.D. For more information please call: 954479-7454/ 685-5023 Two bedroom apartment for rent Section A Diamond. For more information please call: 954-479-7454/ 685-5023 3 Bedroom upper flat for rent at Vreed-En-Hoop JunctionCall: 661-0162 GT TOOL RENTALS: COMPACTOR; CHIPPING HAMMER RANSOM & FLOOR SANDER, JACK HAMMER, CONCRETE SAW & MORE- CALL: 6750767, 627-5098 WANTED Female domestic to work in Trinidad- Call 1868-683-1528 Experienced General Managers for land dredge at a hinterland operation.

Experienced operators for a crusher. Applicants should contact 644-4284 or 225-8130 Attractive salaries offered

VACANCY Male & female workers, accountant, checkers, bond clerk @ RA Soda Factory Rosignol West Coast Berbice: Tel: 330-2399; 6235920 Joiners and semi skill joinerCall: 699-9671; 642-5797 Drivers, Drink machine operator, anyone with mechanical ideas @ RA Soda Factory Rosignol West Coast Berbice: Tel: 330-2399; 623-5920 One Driver; apply @ Technical Services Inc, 18-23 Industrial Site, Eccles E.B.D Accounts clerk: experienced in QuickBooks, accounting software, managing VAT NIS & PAYE, apply @ Technical Services Inc, 1823 Industrial Site, Eccles E.B.D 1 Driver to driver delivery truck – apply at Alabama Trading Georgetown Ferry Stelling.

Branch manager wanted to work in New Amsterdam, attractive salary –Call: 6093650 Diesel Mechanics to work at Mining Firm must have knowledge of Perkins engine & excavators- Contact: 2269768 One experienced driver/ purchaser. Must have recommendations, must between35-45years old – Contact: 226-9768; 661-5307 Indoor Salesman with sales skills, secondary education, customer friendly @ Key Food Trading, Mc Doom, next to Post Office .

Immediate vacancy- 1 cook $18,000 weekly, 4 waitresses $17,000 weekly, free meals & accommodation, EBD-Call: 684-2119 One experienced hair dresserContact Magic Touch SalonTel: 225-6492 Salesgirl, send written application & passport size picture to Survival Shopping Complex, 173 Sheriff Street, Cambellville-Call: 227-5286-9 Handyman, room attendant, security guard-male –Call: 225-0198 or 233 South Road, Lacytown Engineer for road work contact 223-5273/4 Hauler operator contact 2235273/4 Foreman for road work contact 223-5273/4 Motor grader operator contact 223-5273/4 Compactor operator contact 223-5273/4 Security officers wanted by security company-Contact: 672-1920

Page 71

SALON Make Up Courses with Mac, Bare Minerals, Black Opal and Sacha cosmetics. 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

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

Playstation 4 with 2 Controllers and Games, XBOX 360 250 GB with games and 2 controllers -Call: 6838386 Land at Schoonord (Next To Demerara Harbour Bridge), 45' X 100' $ 6 M, 60' X 100' $ 7.5M- Contact 650-0402 / 260-4988

TO LET Flat house, two bedroom with toilet and bath -$35,000 a month –Call: 684-8877 One two bedroom apartment (near University of Guyana) free Wi-Fi available –Tel: 6186544 or 695-8485 Three bedrooms executive concrete top flat in South Ruimveldt Gardens –Call: 218-1949 Lodge apartments (Vlissengen/ Durban): Unfurnished $40,000$90,000 monthly & furnished (for visitors) from $500US monthlyCall: 677-9638; 629-1093 One bedroom apartment Grove New Housing Scheme, EBD -$36,000 –Tel: 642-1956 Furnished 2 bedroom apartments in Nandy Park, parking available. For further information – Call: 619-4824 Eccles apartment furnished, including AC. Cable, Internet, Etc – Call: 233-3974

VACANCY Neil’s Body Work- Call: 6490659; 670-1637 Head Chef and Chef Carnegie training or grilling experienced would be an asset. Call: 600-7388, 225-7933 Male supervisor to work in Housekeeping Dept. Call: 225-0198 or 233 South Road Lacytown E&N Beck Establishment: experienced milling machine & late operator, experienced driver with police clearance & reference-Call: 225-6272; 2275273 WANTED Two experienced General Managers for a hinterland operation.

One experienced General Manager for a crusher.

Applicants should contact 664-4284 or 225-8130 Attractive salaries offered

Canadian made, white bath tub Jacuzzi - $275,000, baby food processor, stroller/car seat -$20,000-Call: 666-4634; 644-2646 Great Deals on video games & all gaming consoles. PC, phone games & applications. Delivery also – Call: 672-2566; 265-3232 Rottweilers, German Shepherds and Huskies for sale: Contact Frank:6645401, Elizabeth : 680-6426 One Pool Table for sale contact 223-5273/4 Ducks @ $500 per lb (live), free plucking & roasting, free delivery on EBD with purchase of 2 or more- Call: 684-2877 1 Aqua Sol water heater price- $150,000 negotiable, interested person can contact: 264-2946 Transported property in Tuschen Scheme, Main Road/ bank loan available$10.M negotiable-Call: 6848231 4 Gold claims located in Mining District #5, Wanamu Calalu, area Barama River – Contact: 690-7932 Spare for washing machine, microwaves, fridges, stoves, timers, gearbox, motors, etc Call: 225-9032, 647-2943 2 Canters going cheap, owner migrating –Call: 6281756, 228-5655 Reduced Prices: Dell/HP laptop & desktop computers complete, from $49,000, free games and educational software @ Future – Call: 231-2206 Mazda Axela: 2008 service, excellent condition, price $1.5M negotiable, serious enquiries only-Contact Shawn: 668-3412, Farida: +1868-318-0650 1 Motor Car, 1 Toyota Corolla (AE91), PGG3474Call: 684-4094 5 Toyota Coaster, 1 Mitsubishi 30 seater, 1-320C bucket, must be sold- Call: 648-0121; 628-1832 Continued on page 72

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Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

‘Landlordism’...

EDUCATION Princeton College Forms 1-5 (5000) CXC adult classes $1,500 a subject, Phonics/ Grade 2,4,6,9 lessons Call: 231-1209, 690-5008,657-7398 Register now! 6 weeks course, pedicure & manicureCall: 618-8536; 696-2295 Makeup Classes @ La Vie Est Belle. Come register and be apart, its life changing!

Call:682-9699; 218-2092 Learn to cut from elementary to advance @ Enid Dressmaking Classes, sewing also done here-Contact: 6437966; 223-9106 Lessons: Maths, English, Accounts, Physics, Social Studies and office Administration, Location: Campbellville –Contact: 6106087 International Language Institute Classes for adults & Children, Spanish, English as Second Language, Portuguese, Dutch –Call: 2233556

ACCOMODATION Inner Retreat Hotel Restaurant & Bar, Retreat Road Parika. Indoor /Outdoor bar in Picturesque setting – Phone: 260-4504; 685-6934 Saturdays & Sundays after lunch @ Inner Retreat Hotel Parika: Bar-B-Que & games: pools, darts, table tennis etc – Phone: 260-4504.

Harmony Inn apartments, furnishing (Kitchenette, bath tubs, hot & cold, TV, Wi-Fi, AC) –Tel: 668-0306; 6947817; 218-1400 $5,000-$8,000

LAND FOR SALE $1.2M & $1.5M Parfaite Harmonie-$2.8M (130ftX46ft) main road, corner lot Parfait Harmonie, Eccles -$5M –Call: 611-7223; 604-2207 Professional Realty: we buy/ sell/rent/value your real estate –Call:694-3875; 6490353; 654-6198 FOR SALE German shepherd and pit bull (mix) puppies -$30,000 each –Tel: 269-0711 or 621-7842 1-Ford F250 truck, manual and lifted, 1-4-Stroke 40HP Yamaha Outboard – Call: 684-3248; 662-9603; 6530266; 696-0712 1-100 KVAGenerator on trailer, 1-40HP, 2 Stroke Yamaha outboard. Call: 684-3248; 6629603; 653-0266; 696-0712

From page 71

VEHICLE FOR SALE 1 AE100 Toyota Sprinter: AC, CD, Mag fully powered never worked hire in excellent condition $875,000 –Call: 619-1047 1-AT192 Carina (private), automatic, fully powered, A/ C, mags, CD Player, price $850,000 Contact Rocky 2251400,621-5902 1 Isuzu canter open back (diesel engine), manual, short base, price $1.3MExcellent condition- Contact Rocky 225-1400,621-5902

VEHICLE FOR SALE 1 Mazda Axela, PTT series, low mileage, e x c e l l e n t condition -owner migrating Tel: 649-0956

PROPERTY FOR SALE Property for sale, Grove $20M / Rent: $50,000 per month. Tel: 625-5461.

Toyota Rush- Unregistered $3M negotiable; Honda CRV 2003 model PSS 2018- $3.1M negotiable, pre-order any vehicle. Call: 655-3400 1 Unregistered 2006 Toyota Rush -$2.8M negotiable , unregistered 2007 Mitsubishi Convertible, both fully loaded -$2.8M negotiableContact:629-2314

1-Toyota Extra cab pick-up 4X4 automatic, AC, Crash Bar, immaculate condition, price -$2.3M –Contact Rocky: 621-5902

2 Storied transported concrete property upstairs 2 bedrooms, downstairs 2 bedrooms, fully grilled, block ‘8’ MonRepos, E.C.D -$18M- Call: 625-1514; office 231-7255 Property @ West Minister W.B.D, 3 Bedrooms, 1 bathroom & 2 Verandahs Property Vacant Toyota AT150, excellent possession- Call: 660-9478; condition, price negotiable- 672-0865, see T&T Realty on FaceBook.

Call: 226-1751; 616-9345 House & Land located @ Lot One Honda CRV Immaculate 17 Pike Street Kitty, location Condition 17" mags, CD, AC, perfect for business & price -$1,850,000 negotiable – residence for more info call Call: 626-2884 Anwar Rahaman on Tel: 638Kaw a s a k i N i n ja 650R, 8513 or 600-8513 excellent condition, lime Business Property for sale green $650,000 asking price @ Friendship Public Road Tel: 655-2561 –Call: 621-6878 Unregistered pit-bull bus 2 Storey building with bond, (3M) Noah, Voxy (1-8)-Call: fully grilled with modern 603-9700 amenities @ Tuschen. Owner leaving Country. Call: 614One 1.5 Ton Toyota Toyoace 1030 Canter, good working condition-Contact: 623-1202 One-two storey house with four bedrooms at 160 Stewartville, Toyota Starlet Glanza Turbo, land -50’X120’, building 24’X60’ PPP series –price -$1.350M – price $10.5M –Call: 220-9419; negotiable –Call: 624-7155 627-9794 Pitbull minibus-Call: 688- Brand new 2 storey 6316; 603-4494 concrete building in 5th Avenue, Diamond, E.B.D, all modern amenities - Call: 662-9335; 612-3244

1- Mazda Axela (2005) PSS series automatic, fully loaded, TV, Price$2.5MContact Rocky: 621-5902

2 Storey 45x35 concrete property, lower flat incomplete. Land 65x120 @ Diamond N/S 5th Avenue,E.B.D- Call: 664-5052

1- Toyota RZ (excellent condition) manual, CD player, mags, 15 seater, price -$1.1M – Contact Rocky: 225-1400, 621-5902 1-AT212 Carina (private new model), automatic, fully powered, A/C, mags, CD, alarm, Price $1.350M Contact Rocky 225-1400,621-5902 1- Toyota Land Rover (Discovery) manual , fully powered, alarm , 4X4 Diesel (2700 cc) Price -$6.7M 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 1-Ford Ranger extra cab (4x4) automatic, fully loaded, AC, alarm. Price $1.8MContact: Rocky: 225-1400, 621-5902

1- Mitsubishi Pajero (7seats) auto, fully powered, mags, hardly used –price $2.8M Contact: Rocky: 621-5902 1-Honda CRV (immaculate condition) automatic, fully loaded, mags. Price $1.9MContact: Rocky: 225-1400, 621-5902 2007 RAV4-$5,800,000, 2007Allion-$2.9M, 2009 IST $2.8M, 2007 Duelis -$4.6M, 2007 Fielder -$2.4M – Call:226-8953

CAR RENTAL DOLLY’SCARRENTAL-CALL: 225-7126/226-3693 DOLLYSAUTORENTAL@ YA H O O . C O M / W W W. DOLLYSAUTORENTAL.COM PROGRESSIVE AUTO RENTAL: CARS & SUV FOR RENTAL- $4,000 & UP PER DAY- CALL: 643-5122, 2193900, EMAIL: PRO_AUTO RENTAL@YAHOO.COM

House and land for sale, situated at lot 95 La Penitence Street Albouystown. Call: 6875851; 1-604-589-1852 Business place @ Anna Catherina, Road side. Call: 661-9880 House for sale Versailles W.B.D five minutes from Harbour Bridge, price neg.

Call: 616-0111

Aidan’s Car & 4WD Vigo pick up, cheapest rate, low security- Call: 698-7807

2007 Premio - $3.3M, 2006 Ractis - $2.2M, 2006 Escudo $4.3M, 2006 Rush -$3.0MCall:609-3650

Wing’s Car & 4WD Vigo pick up rental , all models- Call: 690-6494

BMW 320I –AT212, Raum, Tundra, Hilux 4-Runner & Pick-up, L-Touring Wagon, Nissan March & 4-Door Pickup- Call: 644-5096; 697 -1453

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

MASSAGE Relaxing massage servicesCall: 674-8147 LAND FOR SALE Lot 12 Mon Repos E.C.D Tel: 220-7330, 203-850-5235

(From page 10) of properties are held by few persons, who hold prospective miners to ransom. The current laws do not allow a cap on aggregate land ownership, but does allow properties to be challenged. However, challenging a property claim is onerous and time consuming, and may not be worth the effort, while consuming significant regulatory time and resources.”

The report noted that if there is a cap on individual ownership of a specific title type, a mechanism to “upgrade” and amalgamate titles to a higher class would allow an individual to “move up the title scale”.

It would significantly reduce the tendency to “landlordism”, which has taken over the mining industry.

EXCESS LANDS The GGMC report was also highly critical about the state of ownership of Prospecting Permits (Medium Scale) and Mining Permits (Medium Scale). These could only be described as “scandalous”. “Note that a Mining Permit Medium Scale has size of up to 1200 acres. Yet in this format, there are persons holding in excess of 500 Prospecting Permits Medium Scale and 100 Mining Permits Medium Scale.”

The industry, the country’s biggest foreign currency earner up to two years ago, has fallen on hard times with world prices hovering at a four-year low.

The result was a drastic drop in declarations last year, which wiped out a significant amount of revenue for Guyana.

Miners have been agitating for a slash in the fuel tax of 45 percent to help revive the sector. They want the fuel taxes to be reduced to 10 percent – the same level enjoyed by foreign miners.

Thousands of workers have been sent home and with banks and suppliers moving in to seize equipment and assets.

President David Granger and his administration have warned of tougher measures to ensure higher declarations and reduce mining accidents.

The Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) earlier this year had denied that its members were involved in landlordism.

The mining body, instead, demanded the Government to release more lands for mining.

Integrity Commission...

From page 13 It added that failure to file a declaration with the Commission is an offence under the Commission’s Act and is subject to Section 22 of the said Act. When President David Granger served as the Opposition Leader, he had said, “When there is an appointment of a chairman to a properly constituted Integrity Commission, only then will the APNU members declare their assets.”

Some public officials had told this newspaper that they view the then call by the Integrity Commission for the declaration of assets from 1997 to 2013 as a mere joke.

Leader of the Alliance For Change, Khemraj Ramjattan, was also firm position on this matter. He had said that if the assets declared by the Parliamentarians and other public officials are found to be untruthful they should be jailed.

He had called attention to the fact that many highranking public officials have assets that are unequal to their salaries.

The Vice President had noted that the Commission is “half baked” and needs to step up to the task of verifying FOR SALE/RENT American pool tables –Call: 277-0578 One 2 storey 5 bedroom concrete and wooden house with two large self contained rooms, well secured –Tel: 692-8923

the truthfulness of declarations, and particularly if there are foreign bank accounts.

In addition, he had said that proper investigations should be conducted to ascertain how Government Ministers and other public officials acquire their wealth.

Under the laws, public officers including the President, Permanent Secretaries, Director of Public Prosecutions, Auditor General, Commissioner of Police, the Army Chief, Heads of the Services Commissions, Foreign Affairs officials, Judges and Magistrates and Department Heads are required to declare their assets.

Also required to submit declaration forms of their earnings and gifts received are Regional Executive Officers, the Chief Elections Officer, Mayors, Chairpersons and Chief Executive Officers of state companies, Registrars of Lands and the Commissioner of Guyana Revenue Authority, along with Presidential Advisors, and Heads of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission and Guyana Forestry Commission.

The idea behind the declarations is to ensure that no official has suddenly acquired large amounts of cash or property without proper justification. At this point, the Commission is just seen as a toothless poodle.

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

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Sunday September 20, 2015

Rogue Bankers - Chairman Blames Troubles On Defiant Directors, Chung Cites Lack Of Leadership The Gleaner - There were early signs that directors of the board of the National People’s Co-operative (PC) Bank were operating as a law unto themselves and defying repeated efforts by the Agricultural Credit Board (ACB) to rein in their misuse of millions of dollars of depositors’ money.

An ACB audit of the entity revealed that the directors and board members allocated loans to each other, at times in contravention of stipulated rules.

“We did see the signs. In fact, warning letters were issued from as early as March (2015), and there are issues, for instance, with the PC Bank submitting timely information because it is on this information that we base certain situations, so due process did take place,” Hugh Graham, chairman of the ACB, told Friday’s press conference, which was hosted by the agriculture ministry at its Hope Gardens head office in St Andrew.

“We gave the PC Bank an opportunity, in fact, to become compliant with our request for information on other things.

It was not forthcoming, and when it came for a renewal of

their registration, it was denied,” he disclosed.

Even the threat of deregistration of the PC Bank did not bring the delinquent directors in line, and it was only after Audley Shaw, opposition spokesman on finance, raised the matter at a recent meeting of the Public Administration and Appropriations Committee that the misuse of $665 million came to light.

“A situation existed before where some of these directors sat on certain committees, and that was a breach of the governance process. They have been dismissed. For instance, we have directors who were in arrears who were part of the credit committee.

Now, that can never be acceptable in any jurisdiction,” Graham pointed out. He charged that the ACB then “immediately removed those directors, and the collections are ongoing as we speak.” Derrick Kellier, minister of agriculture and fisheries, however, dismissed as frivolous news about the use of the $665 million, which he insists is not missing, but was used “inappropriately”.

He noted that the sum was “unaccounted for” based on

the preliminary findings of an ongoing audit.

“I am pretty positive, based on my preliminary advice and information, that this is not any lost funds or any misappropriated funds.

As far as we know, up to this point in time, no money has been misappropriated in this exercise. The findings have not said so, and based on what is coming out, I await the finalisation of the audit before making any further comment on that issue,” Kellier declared.

Dennis Chung, president of the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica, however, has come out strongly against the absence of a corporate governance policy, a situation he believes led to the breakdown in fiduciary operations at the bank, allowing for the directors to operate in open defiance of the regulatory agency.

“We see it as a big issue,” the chartered accountant told The Gleaner Friday. “This thing is unacceptable, and if you have a proper corporate governance framework, it definitely would have ensured that many of these things don’t happen.”

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Venezuela’s opposition protests ‘wicked’ Lopez sentence

Opposition supporters chant and wave flags as a mannequin representing judge Susana Barreiros, who sentenced Lopez, holding a briefcase stuffed with dollars is paraded around during a rally in support of the political leaders in prison in Caracas, Venezuela yesterday. REUTERS/MARCO BELLO

Reuters - Venezuela’s opposition staged small protests in the country’s main cities yesterday to decry the near 14-year jail sentence handed to politician Leopoldo Lopez and galvanise support for the December parliamentary elections they are forecast to win.

Hardline opposition leader Lopez was convicted on Sept.

10 of inciting 2014 antigovernment protests that led to violence and killed 43 people.

Opposition activists rallied in Chacao, an affluent Caracas district where Lopez was once mayor, to denounce what they consider a sham trial and a sentence protestor Beatriz Plana called “wicked.”

Hundreds of activists chanted and waved flags, while some paraded around with a mannequin representing judge Susana Barreiros — who sentenced Lopez — holding a briefcase stuffed with fake dollars.

“This sentence is the most unjust thing that has happened in the country,” said Nancy Suarez, 58, an English teacher who showed cuts and bruises she attributed to being pushed during a clash between Lopez supporters and government activists the day he was sentenced.

“We’re not scared, we want to fight for a free Venezuela. People are sick of queuing up, of brazen theft, of corruption.”

President Nicolas Maduro’s socialist government, which says Lopez is a U.S.-supported coup-plotter posing as a martyr, is facing increasing discontent over the snowballing economic crisis that has goods including toilet paper and cancer drugs running short.

However, the opposition, fragmented and up against a formidable state propaganda machine, is struggling to fully capitalize on the malaise.

Though admired by some in the opposition, Lopez is seen by wary moderates as an impetuous self-promoter whose 2014 protests backfired. His sentencing, while condemned by the entire opposition, failed to bring masses to the streets.

“Venezuela hasn’t woken

up yet, perhaps because of fear,” said Frankys Henriquez, 36, a father of two who had never protested before because he was scared of violence.

“The opposition needs to project itself more strongly, with a better message,” added Henriquez, who makes around 25,000 bolivares a month, or roughly $35 dollars on the black market.

Opposition campaigns have centred on freedom for jailed politicians, rather than daily difficulties that have rendered Venezuela an exhausting, dangerous, and costly place to live.

“What do you achieve with these rallies?” said Esteban Salas, 32, who was walking around Chacao trying to buy scarce international airfare tickets.

Page 75

Greeks vote on whether to give leftists another chance Reuters - Alexis Tsipras, the firebrand Greek leftist who lost his bitter fight with Europe’s establishment to end its harsh economic austerity against his country, seeks reelection today a month after he resigned as prime minister.

His Syriza party is in a tight election race with the conservative New Democracy party of Vangelis Meimarakis, who accuses Tsipras of incompetence in dealing with international creditors who have been bailing out the debt-strapped country.

Opinion polls suggest Tsipras may have the edge, but so narrow a one that a win for Meimarakis would not be surprising.

Neither party, however, is expected to get the roughly 38 percent of the vote generally seen as needed for a clear majority in the 300-seat parliament.

That means whoever gets the most votes - and a 50-seat bonus that goes with it - will need to form a coalition, probably with one or both of the small centrist To Potami and socialist PASOK parties.

The election is being watched closely outside Greece because the winner will

need to oversee deep economic reforms required for an 86-billion-euro ($98-billion) bailout Tsipras was forced to broker in August with Athens’ euro zone partners.

The new government will also have to arrange a recapitalisation of the country’s banks, and the unwinding of capital controls imposed in June to prevent an implosion of the financial system.

Both Syriza and New Democracy have pledged to do that - but there are differences on the margins over such issues as labour reform.

Today’s vote will be the third national ballot this year after the general election in January that brought Tsipras to power and a referendum in July on whether to accept a new bailout deal and austerity plan from the European Union.

The answer to the latter was a resounding “no”, but with Greece close to tumbling out of the euro zone, Tsipras went ahead and agreed a new deal he did not want.

He then resigned and called a snap election.

Multiple trips to the ballot

Alexis Tsipras

box and disappointment at being rebuffed by Europe, however, have sapped the energy of many Greeks for this election - which has been relatively low key.

“It would have been better not to have these elections. Three elections within the same year is quite hard on the people but as a citizen I will do my duty,” said Athens resident Yannis Partidas.

On the eastern Aegean island of Kalymnos, a taxi driver who gave his name only as Manolis was less tolerant of the situation and the years of economic hardship Greeks have endured.

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Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court warning for attorneys ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada - CMC – The Chief Justice of the Eastern Caribbean Court, Dame Janice Pereira, has warned attorneys in the subregion that the court will show them no mercy if they are found guilty of misappropriating the funds of their clients.

Addressing the start of the new law term in the OECS region, she said that the issue has become one of “great concern” for the judiciary.

“Great responsibility is placed on an attorney at law who has been put in charge of client’s funds. It is very disconcerting that in an overwhelming number of cases these funds are inappropriately managed by attorneys at law. The court will show no tolerance for such behaviour,” she said.

Justice Pereira said that in many of the member states of

the Eastern Caribbean, disciplinary committees have been established to whom litigants can lodge complaints against an attorney.

“Such indiscretion can be very costly to the client and quite damaging to the attorney not only financially but also professionally,” she said, noting that countries like Barbados and Jamaica “have of late shown zero tolerance for such behaviours and we have seen cases of disbarment.

“In our jurisdiction as well, we have seen a few cases of some attorneys being struck off the robe,” Justice Pereira said, adding “I will not say much more on this in this forum except to say that attorneys should always remember and view the duties to which they owe to their clients and to the profession as sacrosanct and uphold

Daily Nation - Jamaican attorney at law Michelle Brown, upset about not receiving US$1million in legal fees for the Shanique Myrie case against the Barbados Government, says she is taking the matter back to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ).

“I don’t know if they [B’dos Government] are disobeying the order of the court, but I have to try to collect my fees. “This is not fair to me, it’s been going on for two to three years now,” Brown told the SATURDAY SUN Friday in a telephone link-up from her law chambers in Kingston. “They are not paying and I don’t think that they want to pay, but I’ve now asked the court [CCJ] to order payment. I’m awaiting a date, but I’m hoping it doesn’t come to that,” she added.

Attorney adamant

them at all times”.

In her address, the Chief Justice stressed the need for a holistic approach to safeguard the individual and institutional independence of the judiciary.

She said that the existence of an independent, effective and competent legal profession is a key element in safeguarding and promoting the independence of the Judiciary.

“This is significant because the role played by the legal profession is critical to the proper functioning of the justice system.

Whether the wheels of justice move along a smooth and effective pace or they grind as if along a gravel path depends to a considerable extent on how well the legal practitioner performs his or her role in the conduct and pursuit of the causes before the court.”

She said that the service of the legal profession to society is very critical and important but lamented that, over the years, it has come under much scrutiny and criticism. “ D i s b a r m e n t , suspensions and other sanctions against members of the legal profession are becoming all too common place. This begs the question, what happened along the way.

It is the solemn obligation of every member of the profession, individually and collectively, to safeguard the integrity of the profession.”

Sunday September 20, 2015

Elder lone local in Jack’s case…

FARIS FIRES TEAM Trinidad Guardian Attorney General Faris AlRawi has fired almost the entire legal team hired to represent the State in the extradition case of corruption accused former Fifa vicepresident Jack Warner.

The T&T Guardian was reliably informed that Al-Rawi held a meeting at his Cabildo Chambers, St Vincent Street, Port-of-Spain, offices Friday afternoon, where he informed three lawyers from the eightmember team—Jagdeo Singh, Gerald Ramdeen and Brent Hallpike—that their services were no longer required. The other lawyers who were relieved from the case but were not present at the meeting were Allan Newman, QC; Israel Khan, SC; and Wayne Sturge.

Though Singh had returned his brief for the case earlier this week he was still invited to the meeting.

British extradition expert James Lewis, QC, and local Senior Counsel Pamela Elder were the two kept on by the AG. A source told the T&T Guardian that Al-Rawi told the lawyers the decision was taken because the team of private lawyers chosen by his predecessor Garvin Nicholas was too large and their duties could be handled by state attorneys working within his ministry.

Before assuming office after two week’s general election, Al-Rawi was critical of Nicholas’ selections after it

Jack Warner

was revealed the team had billed the State for a combined total of over $12 million for preliminary work in the case, which is yet to start before Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar. However, the source revealed the AG’s office was yet to pay the invoices the lawyers had submitted.

The T&T Guardian attempted to contact the lawyers involved Friday but they all refused to make a public statement.

In a brief telephone interview Friday, Al-Rawi also refused to comment on any matter related to the case.

“I do not propose to conduct state litigation in the media. I must be guided by my constitutional and statutory remit and certainly intend to bring a measure of discipline and coordination to the Office of the AG,” Al-Rawi said.

The lawyers’ last work on this case was on Wednesday, when Hallpike wrot e t o Ayers-Caesar on Al-Rawi’s behalf seeking an extension of the deadline for him to sign off on the authority to proceed in the case. The authority to proceed is required to kick off the proceedings before Ayers-

Caesar.

In asking for the deadline to be extended to Monday, the next scheduled hearing, Hallpike said Al-Rawi needed additional time to consider the case file sent by United States authorities and to give Warner ’s legal team an opportunity to make representations before he signed the document.

Nicholas, who was in charge of the case since Warner was indicted in May, repeatedly denied Warner that opportunity. Hallpike added that Al-Rawi reconsidered Nicholas’ decision because while it was within his discretion, it opened the door to a possible judicial review challenge from Warner.

Hallpike noted that AlRawi’s offer was being complicated by Warner’s attorneys, who refused to participate initially as they described the roundabout turn on the issue as an “attempt to barter with the liberty of one of its citizens.”

Ayers-Caesar is expected to pronounce on the request for an extension next week. In the event she refuses it, Warner will be discharged and the US will have to start the process afresh.

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 77

Jumbo Jet, Bush Lot United Turf Club BOXING AMBASSADOR... to stage Horserace meet Nov. 01 In an effort to keep horseracing alive, Guyana biggest horseracing entity, the Jumbo Jet Auto Sales and racing stables has teamed up with one of the most progressive racing clubs in Guyana, the Bush Lot United Turf Club (BLUTC) in their first collaborative effort to bring Bush Lot alive.

The event is slated for Sunday, November 1 at the Club’s track Sea View Park West Coast Berbice. Eight races are slated for the day with prize monies totaling over $5M in cash, trophies and other incentives up for the taking.

The main 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 6 Furlongs 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 6 ½ 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 horseracing action expected to unfold on the track there will also be added attractions for both adults and kids. Beverage Giants Banks DIH Limited has already committed sponsorship for the event.

The Might Crown Vibes sounds system has been contracted to provide musical vibes for the day.

Incentives will be available for the top Jockey and runner up, the top stable and champion trainer among others compliments of the organizers.

For information contact can be made with coordinator Nasrudeen (Jumbo Jet) Mohamed Junior on telephone number 654-4060. Race time is 12:00 hrs. (Samuel Whyte)

Pele edge GFC to take lead...

From page 80 young brigade including Clive Matthews Jr., Jamal Codrington and Captain Daniel Wilson.

Slingerz were being led by Captain Tichard Joseph, Vurlon Mills, Dwayne Jacobs, King Solomon Austin, Colin Nelson, Domini Garnett and Devon Millington among other former and current national players.

Both sides served up an entertaining brand of football and while chances were created at both ends, the goalkeepers played their roles in keeping the scoresheets clean. What is for sure is that the other teams in the league have got to be at their best in order to keep either Alpha or Slingerz at bay. Both teams collected a point each.

Sunday September 20, 2015 ARIES (MAR 21 - APR 19): A change in career could be in the works for you, Aries.

It might be within the scope of your current job or an entirely new one. **************************** TAURUS (APR 20 - MAY 20): An unexpected opportunity to go on a long journey, perhaps businessrelated, could come to you soon, Taurus. **************************** GEMINI (MAY 21 - JUN 20): Too much hard work and stress could be taking a physical toll on you today, Gemini. But it isn’t likely to stop you from working intently and energetically on a project that fascinates you. **************************** CANCER JUN 21 - JUL 22): If you’re single, Cancer, today you could fall in love at first sight. **************************** LEO (JUL 23 - AUG 22): Have you been considering working at home, Leo? If so, today you might decide to do just that. **************************** VIRGO (AUG 23 - SEP 22): A visit to a sibling or neighbor could see you make a new friend today, Virgo, probably someone who works in a creative profession.

LIBRA (SEP 23 - OCT 22): Changes taking place at home could lead to more income, Libra. Perhaps a new housemate moves in, reducing your housing costs. **************************** SCORPIO (OCT 23 NOV 21): A walk through your neighborhood, perhaps with friends, could put you in the middle of an unexpected, interesting event, Scorpio. **************************** SAGITTARIUS (NOV 22 DEC 21): Some books you’ve been reading lately might excite your desire to study astrology, numerology, alchemy, or some other occult science, Sagittarius. **************************** CAPRICORN (DEC 22 JAN 19): Boredom might stimulate your rebellious streak today, Capricorn. **************************** AQUARIUS (JAN 20 FEB 18): A class or lecture of some kind could bring you exciting new information today, Aquarius. **************************** PISCES (FEB 19 - MAR 20): A journey may be in the works right now, Pisces.

Many changes have been occurring in your life for a long time, and they continue today.

From page 83 soon. “We are contemplating a bout with Tanzee Daniels who is the number one ranked fighter but we are still to finalize things,” confided Mr. Boyce.

He also revealed that Boxrec, a reputable international firm that analyses fights and rates fighters, has ranked O’Neil as number one in the world.

Though Boxrec is not the authority for the ruling world boxing body, its rankings are heavily weighted. “This is by no means a casual accomplishment and we intend to use it to the forward thrust of our world champion,” said Mr. Boyce when asked to give a view of the ranking.

The team is aspiring to enhance O’Neil’s life in a rounded way and even as plans are underway for her future and they are focusing on international stardom, Mr. Boyce feels that O’Neil’s interaction with her country folks is vital to her development owing to the strong fan base here coupled with O’Neil’s strong sense of nationalism.

To that extent the group is working assiduously to have her come to Guyana for a future fight, maybe during the Independence celebrations next year. “We are toying with the idea and so far the possibility of that happening seems real,’ Boyce assured.

Another member of O’Neil’s management team, Aneil Arthur, believes that Gwendolyn has lifted the bar and the time is ripe to agitate for better purses for members of the distaff group. “We need to keep agitating for realistic improvement of women’s purses,” he said.

His contention is that women are fighting hard and producing crowd pleasers and should be given concomitant treatment as their male counterparts.

Mr. Arthur made mention of the multi millions that fighters like Mayweather takes home even as he scoffs at the pittance of the distaff group.

He plans to continue sounding his concern over this sore issue.

But what of Gwendolyn who is now in her mid-forties; does she still have the verve, alacrity and the willpower to carry on even in the face of her advanced age? “I am feeling even better than when I first entered the ring,” she confided.

As a matter of fact, O’Neil boasts that she is forced to spar among the men since the women are unable to keep up with her pace and most of them refuse to engage in sparring sessions. “The women shy away from me and I can tell

you that many afternoons after I spar with the men, they are black and blue,” O’Neil confided to chuckles from her management team.

O’Neil has since switched camps from the Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn and currently works out from the Green Studios Gym in Williamsburg, also in Brooklyn.

She said that her morning sessions are conducted in Prospect Park in Brooklyn and here she concentrates on heavy conditioning exercises.

O’Neil disclosed that she relaxes for a few hours before engaging in weight lifting activities before returning to the gym for the afternoon sessions.

Indeed, her muscles appear well toned even as her physique compliments the hard hours of work in the gym and in the Prospect Park.

She looks ready for combat and when asked, affirmed

this to be so.

Gwendolyn says that wherever she may be, she remains a proud Guyanese and her country’s development is always foremost in her mind.

She lives in New York but keeps abreast of the local news and is well aware of the deviancy among the youths.

As such, she believes that she could use her experiences to enhance their fortunes. “I believe that I can be a role model for young people to walk the narrow path and I intend to use my status to support my belief,” confided the multiple world champion even as she vows to press on until she achieves this goal.

Coming from someone that has walked the walk, Gwendolyn will obviously enhance the confidence of local administrators, perplexed by the volume of crime among the youths and battling for a solution to this scourge.

LABA executives meet at LTI to discuss plans for end of the year programme The Linden Amateur basketball Association (LABA) will this afternoon have a meeting with its executives from 1:00pm at the Linden Technical Institute. Important matters pertaining to the end of year plans for the game is high on the agenda among others. It is expected that all executive members make a special effort to attend.

The association will also discuss the recent lifting of the ban on Retrieve Raiders centre Dwayne Roberts.

Page 78

Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

“Creating a culture of leadership

FOR WEST INDIES CAPTAINS!” Colin E. H. Croft

Judging from noises emanating from media, insular cricketing personnel and representative cricket boards too, West Indies present cricket captaincy came down to being nearly a mano-ymano affair, at least an imaginary one, featuring Barbados’ young fast bowling all-rounder Jason Holder and Trinidad & Tobago’s seasoned wicket-keeper batsman Denesh Ramdin.

Even in cyberspace that would be a no-contest but that supposition of one versus the other is also far from the truth. This recent captaincy appointment of Holder to lead WI to Sri Lanka and onwards is all about efficiency, complete effort, hopeful and anticipated success, and most importantly, the future of what could positively transpire in WI teams over the next decade or so.

Paraphrasing actor Michael Douglas in the film “The American President” describing attitude, fight and determination needed when acquiring American citizenship, these are also required to be good present WI ODI, Tests and T-20’s captains. You have to want it bad but it is not at all easy!

As Douglas suggested about citizens accepting another US citizen’s right to burn USA’s national flag –

“Star Spangled Banner” which is legal in USA, accepting appointments for WI captaincy could also present conundrums of emotions, especially in still conflicting Caribbean.

In Delta Airlines “Delta Sky” September 2015 magazine, which I recently read on a cricketing trip to Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, two highly revered, supremely successful, fully legendary university coaches are featured - Ohio State University’s football/gridiron coach Urban Meyer and Duke University’s (North Carolina) basketball coach Mike “Coach K” Krzyzewski.

For US collegiate sports followers, Ohio State University’s teams are called “Buckeyes” while teams representing Duke University are called “Blue Devils.”

Having won their third and fifth national championships last season respectively, Coach Meyer and Coach K gave their takes on how they go about creating champions, setting personal priorities, creating a collaborative team culture, even determining fair compensation for studentathletes, the latter not yet condoned, accepted or legal in USA’s higher education system.

But does all of that not sound familiar?

Are appointed WI captains not

also supposed to create cultures that highlight the attributes as these two stellar coaches have earmarked as their bulwark, main pieces of foundation, for success?

Has WI had any of those over the last few years of continuous bickering and yearning? Nah! Coach K: “I do not micromanage as much, but I also made sure that I got accustomed to having people say ‘no’ when that was the right answer, instead of being pressured into saying ‘yes.’”

“What you do not change are values you try to teach - trust, courage, loyalty, honesty. You look for players who would identify with those values, but as a leader, you also try to communicate those values by how you teach them, according to the cultures players are accustomed to.”

Coach Meyer: “If what you do in your position as leader does not help your family, your subordinates and especially your present players, then you do not have to do it, regardless of what other people might think.”

“My expectations of my student-athletes have not changed but what I have cultivated is that all of the necessary resources must be out there for my players to make educated, quality decisions. That is where I spend my most important and

Sydroy Nedd Inter Ward/Village 7-a-aside KO football starts today A number of the leading players on the Westside will be in action from today when the Mayor’s Cup Organizing Committee and the family of the late Sydroy Nedd, led by Nedd’s younger brother Superintendent of Police Nigel Hoppie, stage an Inter Ward/ Village 7-a-aside knockout football tournament to coincide with what should have been Nedd’s 60th birth anniversary.

The tournament is fixed for the Den Amstel Community Centre ground with action starting at 14:00hrs with eight matches.

The scheduled fixtures for today will see; Tuschen will battle with Grove followed by Sara Lodge against Agricola. Goed Fortuin will then oppose Mocha moments before Stewartville throw down the gauntlet on Sophia. In other action, Crane will oppose Wales, Pouderoyen tackle Dekindren, Uitvulgt play Bagotville, while Den Amstel and Kuru Kururu will bring the curtains down on that day’s activities.

The tournament will conclude on Thursday September 24 at the same venue with the respective winners being matched against each other with the two top teams battling for the championship trophy.

The teams will battle for a first prize of $100,000, second $50,000, third $30,000 and fourth $20,000. Among the leading Westside

players expected to turn out for their respective teams are; Marvin Josiah, Detroy Adams, Deon Terrence and Nathan Allicock for Pouderoyen. Den Amstel will depend on Delon Lanferman, Jeffrey Perriera, Kester Dundas and Dwayne Wilson. Uitvlugt will have national player Trayon Bobb, Charles Stoby, Jamaal Petty and Marlon Brandis.

Goed Fortuin have the Harding boys, Anthony and Ashley, leading their charge, while Grove have another sibling duo to head their challenge in Clive and Lloyd Matthews.

Mocha have the Stewart brothers, Clive and Orville carrying their attack, while Kuru Kururu will feature Cordel Johnson, Deon DeHaart and Dellon Roberts and Bagotville will be led by Dellon Wayne and Kerywn Wrights.

Nedd was a former President of the West Demerara Football Association as well as the Uitvlugt Football Club and footballer. He was also Manager of the Guyana Football Federation and Assistant coordinator of the Mayor’s Cup Organizing Committee before he passed away in September 2011.

No entry fee is required but teams are asked to be at the venue at least one hour before the prescribed starting time. The tournament will be conducted under the auspices of the GFF and by extension FIFA and all relevant rules will apply.

productive time these days.”

When I read that article, my blood ran cold. In 1976/7, when Barbados’ Joel “Big Bird” Garner and yours truly, Guyana’s Colin Croft, became No. 160 and No. 159 WI international cricketers respectively, then WI captain Clive Lloyd, almost word for paraphrased word, said all of what Coach Meyer and Coach K repeated in 2015. Totally uncanny!

“Each player in this team”, intoned Lloyd before our 1st Test at Kensington Oval against Pakistan, ‘is a captain onto yourself. I can only guide you but you must know yourself and understand the culture of WI cricket and its teams. All of us are not from the same countries and are from different cultures. Not only must we play well, but most importantly, be at our

best and win!”

Then WI vice-captain Deryck Murray handily supported. “Crofty and Bird, you are joining a team that has become accustomed to winning and may be setting records as we go along, who knows. You do not have any time to settle in. Either your produce or you can be gone, as we in this room, now including you two, must work not just for good cricket but for total excellence!”

After those two speeches, and while trembling, we knew that we had to produce. We did. But do you get the impression from recent WI teams that such situations still exist. Again “Nah!” Instead, WI’s recent cricket has become so bogged down in individual personalities and insularities that all we do now is squabble

about “our” individual country’s players, not the collective whole of prioritizing the team’s culture for better efforts, hopefully huge successes too.

Jason Holder may not be universal choice for WI captaincy for the future, but if he can cultivate some of Coach Meyers’, Coach K’s, Lloyd’s and Murray’s philosophies, he will succeed! Enjoy!

E-mail address = c.e.h.croft@gmail.com

= = = Letter to Sport Editor = = =

National 13-14 swim champion AMY GRANT UNDER FIRE GASA, Ministry of Sports to clarify Cuban coach duties DEAR EDITOR, Amy Grant, Girls 13-14 National Long Course and Short Course Freestyle and Butterfly Champion returned on Monday, September 14 to the National Aquatic Centre, Liliendaal after a five-week layoff from swimming due to illness.

She swam on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday with Cuban Coach Isabel Couso Fals who is in Guyana via the Government to Government, Coach Swimming initiative where she assists schools and helps swimmers from clubs.

On Thursday I received a call from Colin Beaton, President of Amy’s club, Silver Sharks.

I was told by Mr. Beaton that the coaches are refusing to coach Amy and so when I go to the pool I should expect that.

I asked who were the coaches since an official letter should have been sent to him stating on what grounds the coaches were refusing to coach her but he did not say who they were. He also stated that the matter has to be sorted out and that he can’t leave it like that because Amy is a member of Silver Shark Swim Club.

However he added that he had to wait for someone to come back from overseas and the situation will be dealt with. Later that afternoon when I arrived at the pool with Amy I went to Amy’s Coach Isabel Couso Fals who was sitting with Ms. Elke Rodrigues – Guyana Amateur Swimming Association Vice President of Administration/Fund Raising and Orca’s Swim Club representative and Coach, Sean Baksh.

I enquired of Ms. Couso Fals twice if she has refused to Coach Amy and she shook her head from side to side which I interpreted as a no. I then proceeded to ask Mr. Baksh if he said so and he replied with a resounding, yes.

Since I was already at the pool, I approached Ms. Stephanie Fraser of Dorado

Speed Swim Club and asked for Amy to train with her for the afternoon and she gave her approval. Two weeks ago Amy and her mother met Ms. Couso Fals on Regent Street and she told them that swimming was going to resume on September 1st.

Amy’s mom told her Amy is not well and was awaiting the doctor’s approval to get back into the water. Ms. Couso Fals came from Cuba through the Guyana Government to train school children and she was also asked to assist the members of the swim clubs.

Amy is coached by Ms. Couso Fals and her mother. Since Amy is not coached by Mr. Baksh and Ms. Fals came to assist with swimming via the Government, Amy’s parents would like to know from the Minister of Sports how it is possible that Amy who is both a school child and a club member isn’t privileged to benefit from Ms. Fals expertise.

Only two weeks ago the story of Amy challenging GASA on the Girls 13 - 14 50m Short Course Butterfly record was in the news.

The record was held by Noelle Smith with a time of 33.74 and Amy surpassed it with a time of 33.56 but to date it has not been ratified or acknowledged by the GASA. Since then Amy has been faced with adversities and GASA has not responded to a letter which was sent by Amy’s mother regarding the 50m butterfly record since July.

Sean Baksh is not Silver Sharks coach and he does not coach Amy. There is no National Swim squad and GASA does not have a Head Coach. How then is it possible for Mr. Baksh to stop Amy from training with Ms. Fals? The Minister of Sports being the representation of the Ministry that brought Ms. Causo Fals to Guyana and GASA being the federation of swimming in Guyana need to shed some light on this matter.

Respectfully, Rudy Grant, Father of Amy Grant

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 79

CAPTAIN CHRIS NURSE: ‘’Golden Jaguars need to be competing regularly!’’

By Santokie Nagulendran Guyanese football has been occupied with various developments over the past few weeks, with the Guyana Football Federation focusing on the FIFA appeal against Saint Vincent and the Grenadines use of an alleged ineligible player, the launch of the inaugural GFF Elite League and also the impending GFF Congress on November 14th.

However, whilst one always welcomes activity aimed at bettering Guyanese Football, recent events have masked the fact that Guyana’s National Team, the Golden Jaguars, failed to play an International game during the FIFA International Window in September and with no matches for future windows announced…have the Golden Jaguars been sent back into hiding?

With the next round of World Cup qualifiers having taken place earlier this month, it almost certainly spells the end for Guyana’s hopes of being re-instated into the World Cup qualification process.

The GFF are now pursuing the case with the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Zurich, and should they be victorious, it is likely financial compensation will be given to Guyana rather than World Cup reinstallation.

It is therefore now time to

focus on the immediate development of Guyana’s National Team and begin the post-World Cup journey for the Golden Jaguars.

The domestic Elite League is desperately needed in Guyana and will develop players endlessly through providing regular competition, however, it is important that the National Team is also active during this period, playing regular games during the FIFA-allocated windows, utilising the local players who will be fitter and better experienced due to participation in the Elite League, as well as calling on overseas-based players such as Christopher Nurse, Neil Danns, Brandon Beresford, Matthew Briggs and Sam Cox. The 2016 Caribbean Cup is only a year away and should be what the National Team prepares for as of now, with the objective being to finish in the top four of the cup and reach the coveted 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup, where opponents such as USA and Mexico will feature.

Should Guyana qualify for the Gold Cup, they would be the first Men’s team in the history of the country to reach a FIFA tournament and this should be a realistic target for a strong Golden Jaguars side.

This time last year, Guyana exited the Caribbean Cup in humiliating fashion, failing to score a single goal in their three games, a result

of the National Team being inactive for nearly two years beforehand. Whilst it would be unfair to compare the resurgent GFF under the Normalisation Committee to the dire state of the GFF last year under Christopher Matthias, it is important not to under-estimate the value of the National Team playing regularly and not getting complacent in the process.

Already Guyana has missed out on utilising the September window to play an International game, and with only two more windows left this year, the Normalisation Committee needs to arrange competition for the Golden Jaguars before they leave office on November 14th or else risk the Golden Jaguars development stifling once again.

When contacted, GFF Director of Marketing and Communications, Rawle Toney, was unable to clarify the Federation’s position on arranging future friendly games for this year.

National Team Captain Christopher Nurse spoke to me about the issue of inactivity: “We (the players) spoke with coach Jamaal Shabazz regarding the inactivity of the Men’s national programme once again and the Normalisation Committee have informed him that right now the finances of the federation have been restricted so it has been difficult to arrange fixtures on

Courts 10km Road Race, 3km Walk/Jog on today

Cleveland Forde will be in repossession mode this morning when the Courts 10km Road Race gets underway from 6am outside Courts Main Street Branch, following his non– participation in the race last year that surrendered the title to Cleveland Thomas.

Among the women, there is a looming battle among United States-based, Euleen Josiah-Tanner and Alika Morgan. JosiahTanner is the defending champion. Either which way, today makes for interesting rivalries with revenge at the back of the minds of Forde and Thomas eager to retain his title.

Forde, who is renowned in the Caribbean, will be looking for a sub-30 minute time since his only rival in road races recently has been the clock; the race today, with Thomas and Nathaniel Giddings chasing him, should be a personal test for Forde.

The prizes for the male and female senior category include $100,000 for the winner; $75,000 for second place; $50,000 for third; $30,000 for fourth and $20,000 for fifth place.

The prizes in the Masters category (Women 35 years and over and Men 40-54) are $60,000, $40,000 and $25,000 respectively.

A total of $200,000 in vouchers and hampers will be handed out to the Juniors, male and female, with the top prizes being

- Forde in repossession mode $60,000; second gets $40,000; third $30,000; fourth $20,000, and fifth $10,000.

The first 20 Masters, who finish, will each receive a hamper. The race will start in front of Courts’ Main Street Office, proceed north to the Seawall Road, east along the Seawall Road and continue east along Rupert Craig Highway’s northern carriageway to turn at Church Road on the Rupert Craig Highway.

It will then proceed on the Rupert Craig Highway’s southern carriageway into Kitty Public Road; south on Vlissengen Road; west on Lamaha Street, south on the eastern carriageway into Main Street, before turning around at the Cenotaph to finish on the western carriageway of Main Street in front of Courts.

The 3km ‘Health Run’ will start outside of Courts on Main Street, proceed north to the Seawall, continue along the Seawall, turn right on to Camp Street, continue to Lamaha Street, turn left on Lamaha Street, proceed west to Main Street, turn left onto Main Street.

The race will continue in the southern direction to the Bank of Guyana before turning right onto Main Street (western side) and finishing at Courts.

the international dates.”

Nurse went on to suggest this has been a problem within Guyanese Football over the past few years, “We have been in too this position too many times before in the past, when we miss FIFA dates, we fall in the FIFA rankings, which in turn is detrimental to future positioning for tournaments.”

“There is frustration due to a repeat of old habits, whereby we play tournaments and then become dormant until the next tournament arises. That cannot continue with any aspirations of being successful, consistency is key and that means we need to be playing as a nation and competing regularly. The Caribbean Cup begins in a few months’ time and preparation for that tournament should have begun 2 months ago.”

After November, when the newly elected Executive Committee takes charge of the GFF, there will be no further International windows until March 2016, meaning if the Golden Jaguars do not play again until then, there would have been nine long months of inactivity since their World Cup qualifier in June, which would put the

team at a disadvantage in the 2016 Caribbean Cup when facing the likes of Jamaica, Haiti, Trinidad & Tobago, teams which have played regularly together over the past few years and also have significant games to look forward to, due to still being in the World Cup qualification process.

Arranging friendlies is notoriously difficult for Caribbean sides, with high air fares and lack of direct flights between islands making it logistically difficult to organise, yet the top teams in the region manage to play regular friendly games.

Barbados, themselves eliminated from the World Cup in June, took part in a friendly game against St Vincent last month.

St Kitts and Nevis have also recently announced they will be touring Europe in the November International Window to play friendlies, a first for the island, and a move which means Guyana will be playing catch-up if they fail to arrange games.

The launch of the Elite League this past Friday has been great for Guyanese Football and will kick-start long-term development of local football, as Nurse points

out: “It was great to see the Domestic Elite League kicking off on Friday, I will be keeping a close eye out for team mates.

Congratulations to everyone who contributed to making it happen. We now have regular domestic football playing in Guyana and that is progress.

We need to keep the momentum going with football relentlessly and finally make this game reach its full potential in this country.”

With attention focused on the league however, it is important that the National Team is not left neglected on the side-lines during such a critical period of time or history will ultimately repeat itself.

Page 80

Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

Stag Elite League March Past...

SEL offers window of opportunity to transform football to next level - Minister Henry

By Franklin Wilson “Even as government commits to increase funding in sport, it is important that we do not rely on government funding alone because the development of the sports eco system cannot be driven by just government, we need all partners; companies and society at large to do their part to help us take sports in Guyana to the higher level.”

U n d e r s c o r i n g government’s support for sports development during her feature remarks was Minister within the Ministry of Education with responsibility for Sport Ms. Nicolette Henryfollowing a colorful march past of the eight competing teams of the Stag Elite League which kicked off on Friday evening last at the Leonora Track and Field Facility Football Field.

The Guyana Football Federation (GFF)

Normalisation Committee, sponsors and clubs were complimented for combining efforts towards realizing the Stag Elite League.

Taking the salute at the march past along with Minister Henry were GFF NC Chairman Clinton Urling, Imran Khan, Director of Public Information – Prime Minister’s Office, Director of Sport Christopher Jones and other officials.

Minister Henry said that the league offers a window of opportunity to transform the sport in Guyana to the next level while noting that athletes do not become champions on their own pointing out that it takes a holistic approach and team effort to earn athletic success.

“It also takes collaboration with different stakeholders. One important partner is the media, they help to promote and support local

sport through their coverage in the print, broadcast and online media. They help to profile our local sporting heroes and they enable Guyanese to better understand the challenges which our athletes go through to pursue their sporting dreams.”

While thanking the media, Minister Henry challenged them to offer even more coverage to local sports going forward. The efforts of those who work behind the scenes to support athletes including parents were recognized the Minister.

“There are a few things in life that rally the emotion and fire up the true Guyanese spirit like sport. It is a language that everyone can understand; at its very best sports can bring people together no matter our background or race. It bonds our communities and it fosters national pride.”

Corporate Guyana was encouraged to step up its support and involvement in sports and to use it as a platform to build camaraderie.

Khan, who represented Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo, who was on official duty at the Berbice Expo, conveyed best wishes to the GFF, sponsors and players for a successful tournament.

“I would like to support the comments of Mr. Urling that this is the start of something very historic. This is the start of seeing the Golden Jaguars in the World Cup. It is something that is in the infancy stages and phase, we wish you the very best and we ask you to acknowledge and recognize

the historic importance of this particular event.”

Khan told the players that they are collectively taking football in Guyana to the next level whilst wishing the team’s success.

GFF’s Urling, while acknowledging the partnership of main sponsor Ansa McAl, also praised Courts Guyana Inc., ENetworks and the others that have made the league possible.

He described the tournament as a monumental one for Guyana’s football.

“The elite league is the most important element in our entire football calendar over the next year and going forward over the next decade and beyond.

Without consistent football

being played we cannot develop our next generation of footballers, tonight this is the beginning of Guyana’s football future.”

Twined with infrastructural development that is on the cards with a state of the art facility at Providence, East Bank Demerara, Urling shared that it represents the pinnacle of the nation’s football.

Ms. DarshanieYussuf, Ansa McAl’s Public Relations Officer said that it is amazing to see the eight teams lined up as they embark on a historic journey, one that will define the future of the sport in the Land of many Waters.

She also reminded that Ansa McAl has been fulfilling its role in the developmental landscape of sports in Guyana and not just football.

Stag Elite League...

Pele edge GFC to take lead following rousing first day; Alpha &Slingerz draw

By Franklin Wilson Goals either side of play from Deon Alfred and Jumane Summerset propelled Pele to a 2-1 win and a position at the top of the leader board when the historic Guyana Football Federation organized Stag Elite League kicked off on Friday night at the Leonora Track & Field Facility, Football Filed.

A sizable crowd witnessed a contrasting evening of football and got a good indication of what is to come as the feature game petered out into an exciting 0-0 draw between the nation’s top clubs sides, Alpha ‘The Hammer’ United and Slingerz Football Club.

Pele, led by the experienced duo of Gregory ‘Jackie Chan’ Richardson and Travis ‘Zorro’ Grant ably backed up by Omallo Williams and Deon Alfred initiated their team’s triumph and a full share of the points by dominating GFC in the early exchanges.

While their experience paid off, GFC, led by another seasoned campaigner, Shad Fernandes displayed signs of being a force to reckon with as this league matures.

Orchestrating many of the Pele raids in GFC’s attacking third were Grant who

controlled the engine room (midfield) with Richardson and Williams along with Alfred piling on the pressure up front.

This combination it was that would hand Pele the lead 38 minutes into the match. On Grant’s assist, Alfred clinically hit the ball past custodian Derrick Carter to his left in the 38th minute following another of Pele’s final third runs.

It was the first goal that heralded the beginning of a new era in league football here. A new era in every regard from organising to how the teams would have been composed and the level of emphasis placed on preparation; clubs also having to be licensed in order to make the grade.

GFC in this new dispensation have come a long way and showed that they deserve to be in contention. Their young side made many runs of their own but were kept at bay by the opposition’s defence led by the formidable Shemroy Arthur.

After the break, Pele wasted little time in doubling their advantage when Jumane Summerset found the back of the nets three minutes into the second half. While it was a comfortable position to be

in for the leaders, GFC did not let up and kept pushing forward.

Both teams made substitutions the same time (47, 76, 81) but it was GFC that looked the more dangerous in the final quarter of an hour.

They did reduce the deficit on the stroke of full time when Lennox Cort blasted home.

And even as GFC were closing in on neutralizing Pele’s advantage, time was certainly not on their side as the referee blew the final whistle to end proceedings; Pele 2 GFC 1.

The feature game between two sides that have been going at each other ever since the younger of the two, Slingerz came on the scene about two years ago, produced action end to end at a blistering pace.

Pound for pound, Slingerz featured a more experienced line up of players but Alpha United matched their rivals play for play much to the delight of the animated fans who came out in reasonable numbers to be a part of history.

Alpha’s most recognized players were the trio of Quincy Madramootoo, Philbert Moffatt and Grenadian National player Kithson Baine along with their (Continued on page 77)

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Annual Heritage Games...

Page 81

Fitness Express maintains support of Mr. Guyana for CAC

Mainstay overcome Moraikobai to secure semi final spot in male volleyball Laluni, Madhia triumph at softball Mainstay of Region Two defeated Moraikobai of Region Five to cement their place in the final four of the male volleyball competition when the Ministry of Indigenous People’s Affair Annual Heritage games continued yesterday at the Everest Cricket Club.

Mainstay, one of the tournament’s favourites dominated their rivals as they won the contest in two straight sets 15-6, 15-6.

Region Nine North beat Campbell Town of Region Eight 15-8, 15-3 to advance, while Orella Siparuta of Region Four thumped Region Nine North 15-8, 1510 to secure their berth in the final four. However Region Nine North rebounded to trounce Moraikobai of Region Five 11-15, 15-11, 15-7 to claim their place.

In the female category, Orella overcame Moraikobai 15-10, 15-9 to join St. Cuthbert’s Mission of Region Four, Region One and Region Nine North in the semi finals.

Defending male softball champions Laluni have secured their place in the semi finals with a 29-run victory over Moraikobai.

Laluni batted first and scored 88-5 off their allotted eight overs while Moraikobai replied with 59-4.

C a m p b e l l To w n o f Region Eight, Region Two United and Mahdia have also secured their places in the final four. Campbell Town beat Santa Aratak of Region Three by eight wickets.

Batting first, Santa Aratak managed 69-4, while Campbell Town responded with 71-2.

Orella lost to Region Two United by nine wickets.

Orella made 74-5 before Region Two United replied with 78-1. Mahdia defeated St. Cuthbert’s Mission. St Cuthbert’s scored 75-6, batting first, while Mahdia replied with 78-5 in 7.5 overs. Laluni will take on Mahdia in the first semi, while Region Two United will play Campbell Town in the second.

Muritaro of Region 10 beat Region One by 35 runs

Part of the action between Central Region 9 (blue) and Moraikobai of Region 5.

Kerwyn Clarke (right) receives his sponsorship cheque from Jamie McDonald of Fitness Express.

M

Moraikobai (pink) and Orella female teams battle during their contest.

in the female division.

Muritaro took first strike and posted 94-6 off their allocation of eight overs to which Region One responded with 59-4.

Moraikobai went down to St. Cuthbert’s Mission by eight wickets. Batting first

Moraikobai managed 72-3; St, Cuthbert’s Mission scored 73-2 in 7.3 overs in reply.

Region Two United defeated Santa Aratak by eight wickets. Santa Aratak mustered 64-8, while Region Two United responded with 65-2. Orella lost to Swann of

Region Four by nine wickets. Orella scored 64-3; Swann replied with 68-1 in 6.4 overs. Laluni will face Wiruni of Region 10 in the final preliminary round game when the games continue today. (Zaheer Mohamed)

r. Guyana Kerwyn Clarke will be going all out to win the overall CAC Body Building and Fitness Championships when he enters the stage at the Atlantis Paradise Resort, Nassau Bahamas from this year’s championships from September 24 - 27.

Clarke’s attendance has been made possible through the continued support of Manager / Owner of Fitness Express Jamie Mc Donald through sponsorship of his airline ticket to the Bahamas.

Mc Donald said that Fitness Express was more than pleased to continue its support of Clarke and the sport of bodybuilding.

“We are happy to be backing Guyana’s top bodybuilder yet again. We are confident he will do well for us since he is a committed and disciplined athlete.”

Clarke, who expressed gratitude to McDonald for his entity’s continued partnership, will leave Guyana on Wednesday said that he would be competing in the Light Middleweight category. He informed that preparations have been going according to plans and he is looking forward to doing his country proud.

Page 82

Kaieteur News

Sunday September 20, 2015

GCA’s Carib Beer t20 cricket...

GNIC & GCC win at Bourda

By Sean Devers On a day blessed with glorious sunshine GNIC beat GDF by five wickets and GCC defeated UG by eight wickets on an underprepared pitch which offered prodigious turn for the spinners as action in the Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA) Carib Beer t20 first division cricket competition continued at Bourda yesterday.

In the morning encounter, GNIC won the toss and restricted the Soldiers to 96-6 off their 20 overs and replied with 100-5 from 16.1 overs.

Damion Ross (11) and

Leon Andrews, who hit four fours and a six in 38, put together 33 for the first wicket before Ross missed a wild swipe at Collis Butts and was bowled before the left-handed Andrews was caught and bowled by 58year-old former West Indies off-spinner Clyde Butts, who even at this age continues to torment the young generation of batsmen who seem incapable of negotiating balls that are flighted and ‘turned’.

From 64-1, the Butts clan of father (Clyde) and son (Collis) troubled the batsmen with bounce and turn before Marcus Watkins, who was dropped off the Ex-

Top scorer Leon Williams strokes Raymond Reifer, who had 3-18, through the covers.

WICB selector, was well caught and bowled by the veteran off-spinner for 19 at 79-3 and nobody else except Keeper Dexter Solomon (10)

who got himself in a dreadful tangle from Butts and ended on his back, reached double figures as Jermaine Grovsner took two quick

NBS 40-over 2nd div cricket...

Imlach unbeaten 76 spurs DCC to win W

est Indies under-19 right-hander Tevin Imlach fashioned a high class unbeaten 76 to spur DCC to a five-wicket win against Police at the DCC ground yesterday in the New Building Society (NBS) Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA) 40-Over second division cricket competition.

Imlach, who dominated a 72-run fifth wicket stand with Larry Smith (16), struck seven fours and four sixes in his cultured knock, while Raymond Perez hammered seven fours and a six in 56 before National U19 big hitter Sherfane Rutherford weighed in with 23 to take DCC to 211-5 from 35 overs in reply to Police’s 209 all out.

Kelvin Leitch clobbered two fours and two sixes in 41, while Rocky Hutson reached the boundary twice and cleared it four times in

West Indies U-19 batsman Tevin Imlach was classy during his unbeaten 76 at DCC yesterday.

38 but only Troy Benn (22) and Daniel Barker (21) of the other batsmen reached 20 although Vishal Jaigobin (14) shared in a 41-run stand with Leitch and 46 for the ninth wicket with Hutson in a losing cause for the Cops.

Police were given a 31run opening stand involving Benn, who was severe on the fast but erratic Rutherford,

thumping him for two fours and a six, before stroking pacer Carlton Jacques. But once he touched a short ball from Rutherford to the Keeper, the innings started to unravel as Barker, Leitch and Hutson all failed to build on good starts.

Off-spinner Denis Squires (3-44), GCA’s most successful second division

Captain Linden Lyght (2-8) and Rutherford (2-23) bowled well for the home team who were set on course to victory by Imlach who played an array of audacious shots and Perez who also looked confident in his half century. Leitch turned in a useful all-round performance by taking 2-39.

(By Sean Devers)

wickets.

Butts had 2-13 from his four overs, while, Grovsner took 2-4 from two overs and Collis (1-16 from 4).

GNIC lost former National youth batsman Quincy Ovid-Richardson, who never suggested permanence and was LBW to left-arm spinner Ravi Persaud for six after being dropped by the keeper off the previous delivery.

From 20-1 GNIC slipped to 32-2 when Persaud, who extracted bounce and turn with the new ball, bowled Ronale Bourne (5) but the 30-year-old Fudadin, who has played three Tests, batted responsibly to hit a four and two sixes in 36 before he was taken at short-fine-leg as he ‘scooped’ Jeremiah Harris who he has previously lofted for six.

Harris then had David Dick (4) and National Selector Rayon Griffith (2) was caught behind off Randy Lindore, but David Dick (22*) and Ryan Shun (5*) remained to the end as Persaud took 2-17 and Harris 2-31.

In the afternoon game, UG, who have been very competitive this season, opted to bat first and were dismissed by 64 in 18.4 overs against a team which included two players who have represented other Countries in Raymond Reifer (Barbados) and Gavin

Singh (Suriname) as Refier (3-18), Gavin Singh (2-9) and National U-19 player Renaldo Mohamed (2-2) did the damage for the Bourda Boys.

Guyana Captain Vishaul Singh looked fairly accomplished in his new role of Keeper; holding a catch and effecting a stumping to add to UG’s woes.

Leon Williams looked promising in his 16 before he was stupendously caught at long-off after Raj Nannan took the ball and overbalanced over the boundary board, but displaying excellent presence of mind, threw the ball into the air and returned to playing area to complete the catch to give Gavin Singh the first of his two wickets.

After that, only Devon George (15) got into double figures as left-arm seamer Refier showed he is a good exponent of the ‘slower ball’ as two batsmen skied the ball ‘miles’ into the air to orchestrate their demise.

When GCC began their reply pacer Ray Newton rocked back the stumps of Jeetendra Sookdeo (15) and Vishaul Singh (1) in the space of two runs but Test player Leon Johnson (8*) and opener Robin Bacchus, who hit three fours and a six in a commanding undefeated 31 saw their team home with ease.

Sunday September 20, 2015

Kaieteur News

Page 83

BOXING AMBASSADOR EXTRAORDINAIRE Gwendolyn O’Neil seeks to consummate her mission

By Michael Benjamin The dictionary defines ‘stealth’ as something secret or surreptitious and further goes on to define ‘bomber’ as an aircraft equipped to carry and drop bombs.

It is these words that five times women’s world boxing champion, Gwendolyn O’Neil, has conjoined to form her boxing sobriquet.

Indeed, the ‘Stealth Bomber’ has sent chills down the spines of her opponents even as she stealthily unleashes her bombs on their hapless bodies. The rewards were great and she has managed to bring fame and glory to the land of her birth after clinching, not one, two, three or four, but a record breaking five world championship belts.

Many have labeled her as ‘Guyana’s Boxing Ambassador’ and after even a surreptitious glance at her accomplishments, even the uninitiated will agree with this tab.

It all started on May 29, 2004 when O’Neil was billed to take on American pugilist, Cathy Rivers, for the Women’s International Boxing Association (WIBA) Light Heavyweight title that had been vacated by Jacqui Frazier-Lyde, daughter of another boxing great, Joe Frazier. That card was promoted by Carwyn Holland and was a landmark achievement in local promotions.

O’Neil pounded out a majority decision over the American and instantaneously became a national hero.

The people rejoiced and in recognition of the feat, the Government and people of Guyana gifted O’Neil a plot of land and a $5m grant to facilitate the construction of her house. She was also the recipient of a duty free concession for a car.

Most people would have felt contented by such an accomplishment and even become lax in their careers but not Gwendolyn; she applied herself diligently to her tasks and compiled a fearsome reputation after defeating Trinidadians, Crystal Lessy and Kim ‘Bonecrusher’ Quashie. The former fight earned her the WWBC light/heavyweight title while she successfully defended against the latter fighter.

O’Neil also won a tenround unanimous decision over her local counterpart,

Gwendolyn O’Neil (2nd right) and her management team on a visit last week to Kaieteur News displays her latest title belt.

Veronica Blackman, for the vacant WIBA Heavyweight title and the GBU Heavyweight title.

She followed this up on September 11, 2010 at Fort Myers Stadium in Fort Myers, Florida, with an eight round unanimous decision over American, Laura Ramsey, for the WIBA Heavyweight title.

There were many

disappointments along the way none more debilitating than her loss to Laila Ali in South Africa but even before that the two were scheduled to meet in Abuja, Nigeria in a six-round light/heavyweight affair but Ali’s entourage encountered traveling difficulties and canceled at the last moment.

Notwithstanding, O’Neil’s redeeming moment

of the South Africa trip was her meeting with the great freedom fighter, the late Nelson Mandela.

Most fighters would be deflated by such turn of events and many would opt to retire but not Gwendolyn; she continued to ‘stealthily’ address her mission and such perseverance has eventually borne fruit and she has now added another world

accolade, the UBF women’s heavyweight world title, to her bulging collection after defeating Greek fighter, Sonya Lamonakis, the #1 ranked heavyweight in the world.

Maybe, it is not just the winning of the title that makes the achievement so meritorious but the fact that Gwendolyn came off a three and a half years layoff from the sport to shake off ring

rust and the adverse comments of her detractors to once again rise to the top of the heap.

Unlike her ‘stealthy’ approach when stalking her opponents and landing her bombs, O’Neil returned to Guyana amidst much fanfare and engaged Kaieteur Sport in discussions of her immediate and future plans in the fistic sport. Mr. Basil Boyce is the CEO of Golden Bow & Arrow Promotions, LLC in New York and also manages O’Neil’s technical and other boxing affairs.

He is supported by several other individuals including Jamaican nationals, Jillion Richard and Aneil Arthur. This unit is quite ecstatic and believes that O’Neil, despite her age and length of time spent engaged in bruising battles, still has a few productive years in the fistic sport.

Mr. Boyce revealed that plans are already in train to have O’Neil pit her skills against another top ranked fighter as early as December.

He said that his team is carefully scrutinizing its options and will narrow down to the best choice (Continued on page 77)

t r o Sp

Pele edge GFC to take lead following rousing first day; Alpha & Slingerz draw Gregory Richardson #11 and Deon Alfred (centre) working in tandem against a GFC player in the Stag Elite League opening match on Friday night.

Dwayne Jacobs (left) on the prowl against Slingerz.

SEL offers window of opportunity to transform football to next level - Minister Henry

Stag Elite League March Past...

Minister Henry (4th left) flanked by GFF NC Chairman Clinton Urling (4th right) and other dignitaries at the March Past of Stag Elite League teams on Friday night at Leonora.

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