Guyana Chronicle E-Paper 11 07 2016

Ray of hope No. 104609

MONDAY, JULY 11, 2016

Price: $80

(VAT Inclusive)

–– mothers of victims welcome re-opening of cold cases

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Guyanese in US murdered in home Page

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Guyana eyes key conventions Page 2

–– to improve trade and human rights

Linden Councillors zero in on substandard work Page 8

Businesswoman Radica Thakoor sits close to her television stand which is decorated with pictures of her daughter, the late Sheema Mangar

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

GUYANA EYES KEY CONVENTIONS –– to improve trade and human rights

AS GUYANA prepares to host the Hague Conv e n t i o n C o n f e re n c e from July 13-15, Attor-

Attorney General Basil Williams ney General Basil Williams has said Guyana would consider becom-

ing a member of the Hague Conference on Private and International Law (HCCH), so as to access pertinent legal conventions that would benefit the country’s trade and human rights’ interests. Facilitated through a collaborative effort of the Ministry of Legal Affairs and the Attorney General’s Office, in partnership with UNICEF Guyana and the HCCH, the Hague Convention Conference will be held at the Pegasus Hotel under the theme “International Family Law, Legal Cooperation and Commerce, Promoting Human Rights and Cross-Border Trade in Guyana through the Hague Convention.” In an interview with the Guyana Chronicle,

Secretary General of the HCCH, Christophe Bernasconi, said this is the third conference that has been held in the Caribbean, and there is hope that Guyana would become the first country within the region to become a member of the HCCH, so as to access the benefits of the organisation. He said the purpose of this conference is to promote the work of the HCCH in the field of human rights in regard to the protection of children in cross-border situations and other child abduction and child protection matters; as well as strengthening the rule of law, which would enable commercial operators to have legal certainty before they decide to do business in foreign jurisdictions, thereby fostering international trade and business. THE APOSTILLE CONVENTION One of the most important conventions held with the HCCH is the Apostille Convention, which Bernasconi said helps to promote trade and congress among countries by providing an internationally recognised certificate that confirms the authenticity of public documents that are used in foreign jurisdictions to conduct trade. “We have dozens of stories where foreign

investors potentially wanted to invest in a jurisdiction, until they realised that they have to go through all this paperwork, (wherein) they are asked to produce a document several

HCCH Secretary General Christopher Bernasconi times before they establish business in another jurisdiction. The Apostille Convention cuts all of those formalities; and so, many of them decide to put their money in a state that is party to the Apostille Convention, to avoid this,” the Secretary General said. Such a document, Williams said, can provide much benefit for Guyana in terms of trade relations, and is therefore one of the interests that Guyana holds in hosting the conference. “We are on the threshold of breaking out economically, and we want to know that our business people will have the opportunity to do business with ease,” Williams said. He added: “You get points in the economic

world when people know that you are a signatory to conventions and, better yet, when you’re a member; it makes you an attractive place to do business with.”

CHILD PROTECTION CONVENTIONS Bernasconi added that the conventions relating to child protection, abduction, and other children’s rights’ violations can help to operationalise the rights within the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), which are also embedded in the Guyana Constitution. “The UNCRC outlines establish a list of fundamental rights and principles in the best interest of the child, but I always like to say that you haven’t protected a single child by signing on to this convention, because it doesn’t come with the machinery that puts these fundamental rights into operation,” Bernasconi said. And even without specific statistics relating to child abduction and other such matters in Guyana, Williams said, these cases do exist, thereby making signing on to these conventions important. “We are a cross-border country; we have Guyanese in Suriname, Venezuela and Brazil, and we even have Guyanese in Caricom countries as well; and there are many such cases of parents taking children away to other countries while the other parent remains. So these are very relevant conventions (in regard) to these issues,” Williams said. Moreover, signing on to these conventions would allow for awareness that such protections for children exist, and promote more reporting of cases of abduction of children

and other violations of children’s rights, Bernasconi said. THE HAGUE CONFERENCE The HCCH was established in 1983; to date, it has 81 member states. With the freedom to sign on to the conventions without taking up membership, however, the conventions under the HCCH have been signed by 148 states (members included). Bernasconi has said that the benefits of becoming a member are twofold, in that Guyana can serve as a key decision-maker when new conventions are being negotiated, thereby impacting international issues; and Guyana can access the support provided by the network provided by the organisation. The upcoming conference will address certain conventions, like the Apostille Convention, the Child Abduction Convention, the Chile Protection Convention, and the Adoption Convention, among others. Even without becoming a member, Guyana can sign on to specific conventions, and gain access to international laws that would assist in the solving of critical matters relating to trade and human rights’ issues provided under these conventions. Moreover, the HCCH also provides an International Hague Network of Judges, which provides direct judicial communications among the signatory states to these conventions in aiding to provide rulings and other determinations for cross-border issues. Williams said Guyana intends to appoint two of its judges to be part of this network; this announcement will be made during the three-day conference.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

–– mothers of victims welcome re-opening of cold cases

NEWS that the Major Crimes Unit of the Guyana Police Force will reopen several murder cases has brought hope to relatives of designer Trevor Rose, shot and killed by a lone gunman in January 2014. The Rose family still has several lingering questions, including the whereabouts of a firearm that was found at the scene of the crime. At the same time, Sheema Mangar’s mother is of the view that the investigation into her daughter’s death “is in the right hands now”, and she has full confidence that Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum and his team of crack sleuths will solve her daughter’s “cruel” death. The Crime Chief confirmed on Saturday that detectives will analyse the evidence in the cases, and determine the way forward based on the advice of the Force’s legal adviser. Speaking to the Guyana Chronicle from her East Street, Georgetown home on Sunday afternoon, Rose’s mother Lillian Browne expressed optimism that closure would be brought to the family regarding the death of her only son. She said it is “disheartening” to know that the person/s responsible for her son’s death is/ are “going along their merry way”. Browne said she spoke to the police on the matter several weeks ago, and has been following the recent spate of cases which the police have been able to crack and bring before the courts persons held responsible for the crimes. “It gives me hope,” she said, noting that she has not overcome the death of her son. “The void that is there cannot be filled by anyone,” Browne said. She said that persons within the Police Force have informed the family that her son may have been killed over a woman. In addition, she questioned the whereabouts of a firearm which the police had recovered at the scene of the crime. “What happened to that gun?” she asked. She said that based on their own investigations, family members were told that the firearm belonged to a licensed firearm holder, and it may be in that individual’s possession. “What happened to that gun?” she asked repeatedly. GRATEFUL Roxanne Rose-Beckles, Trevor Rose’s sister, told this publication that she was grateful that the police have reopened the case. “I can’t imagine why it was closed in the first place. But I hope that this time around there is a thorough investigation,” she added. She said that while closure will not bring back her brother, “At least, please let justice be served”. At Mangar’s Block 8, Mon Repos ECD

home, Radica Thakoor sat next to several photographs of her daughter as she recounted the six years which have passed since the young Demerara Bank employee was killed. She believes the police were “prolonging” their investigations into her daughter’s death, and added that the Force had enough evidence to solve the matter.

had finished school at Queen’s College, her daughter had taken a year’s break before starting to work at Demerara Bank. She described Sheema as an “all-rounder” at the bank. At the time she was killed, the woman said, Sheema was working as a teller.

his body. He died shortly after while being treated for his wounds at the Georgetown Public Hospital. Mangar was killed on September 11, 2010 when she was run over by a car in which a man who had snatched her cellular phone was escaping. The incident occurred on North Road, close to Camp Street, Georgetown.

Dead: Trevor Rose

Dead: Monica Reece

Dead: Sheema Mangar

On Sunday she seemed optimistic. “Well I feel relieved that the case reopened. I feel that it in the right hands now,” Thakoor said. She also expressed optimism, based on the recent ability of the police to crack several high-profile murder cases. “So much cases the Crime Chief has solved, I know he gonna do a just job,” she said. While noting the amount of time since her daughter’s death, Thakoor added that “maybe they (the police investigators) take six years, but in six minutes they can solve it”. She said that on the last few occasions she had heard from the police, the officers repeatedly told her that clothing samples taken from her daughter -- which were taken on the night of her death -- were sent overseas for analysis. Thakoor noted that, last year, after the Government was changed, she wrote Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan on the matter. But why was Sheema killed? “To tell you the honest truth, many nights I wonder why. (She was) just a young girl, they demanded she phone,” she said in a sad voice. “Why you got to be so hard and cruel on a young girl who just start her life?” Thakoor asked. She said Sheema was the eldest of her two children; her son is several years younger. Giving a background of Sheema Manger, the woman said that after Sheema

CANNOT RECALL ANY PROBLEMS Thakoor could not recall her daughter experiencing any problems with anyone. She said the phone at the centre of the matter was relatively new, and she cannot connect it to the crime. She said her daughter had been in a friendly relationship with a young man; but, according to her, it was not serious. The Guyana Police Force said on Saturday that it has decided to reopen investigations into five murder cases, including those of Trevor Rose, Sheema Mangar, and security guard Monica Reece. According to the Crime Chief, the decision was made to reopen the cold cases following numerous requests from relatives who have lost loved ones. Rose had been a popular designer. He was fatally shot on the morning of January 26, 2014 after a lone gunman in a heavily tinted vehicle opened fire on the car in which he was travelling at Eccles, East Bank Demerara. Two other persons sustained injuries in that incident, including car driver Troy Nieuenkirk and Rose’s companion Latoya Towler, mother of one of his children. The police had said that Nieuenkirk was driving his car when another vehicle drove up alongside and the driver accosted him about how he was driving. Following an argument with Nieuenkirk, the gunman opened fire on the car’s occupants, and Rose was shot several times about

Crime scene investigators had submitted samples of her clothing to the Forensic Laboratory for analysis. The samples were subsequently sent to Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and Brazil; but it is not known whether detectives had received the results of those tests. Attempts to reach Monica Reece’s relatives for a comment on Sunday proved futile. Reports are that Reece’s mother, Shirley Reece, is in Barbados, having reportedly been threatened, along with other relatives, on several occasions following the murder, described as one of this country’s most sensational. Threats were allegedly made on occasions soon after Reece’s mother had made queries or provided information to the police. On April 9, 1993, the body of 19-yearold Monica Reece was discovered on Main Street. The autopsy report done by the now late forensic pathologist Dr Leslie Mootoo had established that Reece had suffered a savage beating which had left her with a broken jaw and other injuries before she was dumped in Main Street. Several samples, including those from the pick-up vehicles police had impounded, were reportedly sent overseas; and, weeks later, Reece’s body had been exhumed to facilitate the taking of more samples, which were reportedly also sent overseas for analysis. The results, according to police, were all “inconclusive,” leaving detectives no closer to catching the killer.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

Protests rack major cities across US

PROTESTS against the shootings of two black men by police officers shut down main arteries in a number of US cities on Saturday, leading to numerous arrests, scuffles and injuries in confrontations between police and demonstrators. Undeterred by heightened concerns about safety at protests after a lone gunman killed five police officers in Dallas Thursday night, organisers went ahead with marches in the biggest metropolis, New York City, and Washington DC, the nation’s capital, among other cities. It was the third straight day of widespread protests after the fatal shooting of Alton Sterling, 37, by police in Baton Rouge on Tuesday and the death of Philando Castile, 32, on Wednesday night in a St Paul, Minnesota suburb, cities which both saw heated protests on Saturday. The most recent shooting

Demonstrators protest the shooting death of Alton Sterling near the headquarters of the Baton Rouge Police Department in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, US July 9, 2016. REUTERS/Jonathan Bachman deaths by police come after several years of contentious killings by law enforcement officers, including that of

Michael Brown, a teenager whose death in the summer of 2014 caused riots and weeks of protests in the St Louis

suburb of Ferguson. On Saturday evening, hundreds of protesters shut down I-94, a major thorough-

fare linking the Twin Cities, snarling traffic. Protesters, told to disperse, threw rocks, bottles and construction rebar at officers, injuring at least three, St Paul police said. Police made arrests and used smoke bombs and marking rounds to disperse the crowd. Protesters at the scene said police fired tear gas and rubber bullets. Police said early on Sunday they had begun clearing the highway of debris in preparation for re-opening it. A march in Baton Rouge saw scuffles between riot police and Black Panther activists, several of whom carried shotguns. Louisiana law allows for weapons to be carried openly. After a short standoff later in the evening, riot police arrested as many as 30 demonstrators and recovered weapons. Prominent black activist and former Baltimore mayoral candidate Deray

McKesson was among those arrested. Protests also took place Saturday in Nashville, where protesters briefly blocked a road, and in Indianapolis. A rally in San Francisco also briefly blocked a freeway ramp, according to local media. Hundreds of protesters marched from City Hall to Union Square in New York. The crowd swelled to around a thousand people, closing down Fifth Avenue. Some chanted “No racist police, no justice, no peace” as rain fell in New York. “I’m feeling very haunted, very sad,” said Lorena Ambrosio, 27, a Peruvian American and freelance artist, “and just angry that black bodies just keep piling and piling up.” New York police said they arrested about a dozen protesters for shutting down a major city highway. (Reuters)

Dallas killer ‘prepared for larger attack’

THE man who shot dead five police officers in Dallas and wounded seven more was planning an even larger attack, the city’s police chief says. Micah Johnson, 25, was angry with the recent killings of black men by police and wanted to kill white officers, police say. Police chief David Brown said he was “con-

vinced” Johnson had wider plans. He told CNN that Johnson, a military veteran, appeared to have practised detonating explosives. Brown also said police were trying to find the significance of the letters ‘RB’ that Johnson had written in his own blood, near where he was killed by a remote detonation by police. Officers were also reading a journal found in Johnson’s house that Brown said was proving “hard to decipher”.

Micah Johnson

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Johnson launched his attack in Dallas as a protest was taking place against the deaths of black men at the hands of police. The deaths of Philando Castile in St Paul, Minnesota, and Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, last week led to more protests across US cities on Saturday. Hundreds of people were arrested in the demonstrations nationwide. While most passed peacefully, fireworks, bottles and rocks were thrown at police in St Paul in clashes

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along a main interstate highway. Close to 100 people were arrested there as 21 police officers were injured. In Baton Rouge, several hundred protesters gathered outside the police department shouting “No justice! No peace!” and also at the convenience store where Alton Sterling was shot. There was also tension as armed members of the New Black Panther Party stood face to face with officers in riot gear. Louisiana law allows weapons to be carried openly. Among the 100 people held was DeRay Mckesson, who has become a national voice for the Black Lives Matter movement, and three journalists. (BBC)

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

Venezuelans flock to Colombia for food

THOUSANDS of people have crossed to Colombia after Venezuela opened their common border to allow its people to buy food and medicine, officials say. The frontier, closed by Venezuela last August as part of a crime crackdown, was to open for 12 hours. Venezuela is going through a deep economic crisis and many say they struggle to feed their families. Last week, about 500 Venezuelan women broke through the border controls in search of food.

Many wore white T-shirts as a sign of peace, they said, denying it had any links with the opposition

DURING the first half of this year, Venezuela’s staterun oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA) has slashed its oil exports to Cuba, where some joint ventures and state-owned firms were recently ordered to reduce power usage as a result. Cuba, long reliant on Venezuela as its top energy supplier, has received some 53,500 barrels per day (bpd) of crude from PDVSA this year, a 40 per cent decline from the first half of 2015, according to the company’s internal trade data, Reuters reported. PDVSA said this month its sales revenue fell more than 45 per cent in 2015. The dramatic decline may signal an unraveling of the PetroCaribe oil diplomacy agreement pioneered by Venezuela’s late socialist leader Hugo Chavez to win political support by sending oil on advantageous terms to a number of Latin American and Caribbean countries. Cuba, which receives some four per cent of Venezuela’s total oil exports, has been the biggest beneficiary of the PetroCaribe programme and until this year was spared the fallout from PDVSA’s growing cash flow problems, which have already undermined oil supplies to Jamaica, The Dominican

Republic and its refinery in Curacao. Venezuela has partially offset the smaller crude shipments to Cuba by boosting exports of refined products such as fuel oil, diesel and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). But overall shipments to Cuba, including both crude and refined products, still declined 19.5 per cent to 83,130 bpd in the first half of this year. Given a slump in oil prices and a mounting economic crisis at home, PDVSA is struggling to keep up investment and production and some oil analysts believe the country’s oil output this year will fall to its lowest level since a devastating strike at the company in 2002 and 2003. Meanwhile, Venezuela’s proven oil reserves of 297 billion barrels, the world’s largest crude oil reserves, may have to be reassessed in the light of the decline in oil prices. However, not all of that oil can be technically or economically recovered. The portion that is technically and economically recoverable is the proven reserve. There are many variations of the definition of proven reserves, but most of them are similar to that of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC): “Proved oil and gas reserves are those quantities of oil

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro ordered the border closure because, he said, the area had been infiltrated by Colombian paramilitaries and gangs. The measure also prevents subsidised goods from being smuggled from Venezuela into Colombia. Some 35,000 people crossed the border between San Antonio del Tachira, in Venezuela, and Cucuta, in Colombia, a Colombian official told the BBC. An unnamed woman who crossed with her husband

and two young children told the Efe news agency it was “unfair” to keep the border closed. “We are from San Antonio, and the reality is that we do not have any food to give to our children.” Venezuelans who want to cross into Colombia in states where the border has been closed need a special permit to do so. But as the scarcity of food gets worse in Venezuela, many have crossed the porous border illegally. (BBC)

Venezuela slashes oil exports to Cuba

and gas, which, by analysis of geoscience and engineering data, can be estimated with reasonable certainty to be economically producible – from a given date forward, from known reservoirs, and under existing economic conditions, operating methods, and government regulations.”

It was the first time in a year that Venezuela opened the border

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Editor-In-Chief

Nigel Williams Editor

Godfrey Wray

Editorial: 227-5216; 227-5204 guyanachronicle.com wnigel10@hotmail.com gnnleditorial@gmail.com

Editorial

Race, Justice and Peace

THANKS to information communications technology, the United States (U.S.) -- and by extension the world -- last week witnessed disturbing news of two separate accounts of police shootings, and the shooting of police officers by an ex-US military veteran of the Afghanistan war. In the instances of the police shootings, two black men were fatally shot by white officers. In the other instance, a black man using a sniper rifle launched an attack on the police, fatally shooting five and injuring nine other people. The police were providing protection to a protest in Dallas, Texas occasioned by police shootings of the two black men. Persons both within the leadership and rank and file of America have posited that race is that country’s original sin, given that it played a significant role in the nation’s founding and evolution. The U.S. was built on systems of exploitation and notions of racial superiority and inferiority that saw enslavement of Africans, decimation of Native Americans, and entrenchment of inequality. These unsavoury characteristics, evident in that country’s DNA, are daily being manifested, notwithstanding laws and institutions being established to eliminate them. Issues of race and police brutality have not escaped the attention of that country’s first black president, although that society prides itself in making decisions based on scientific evidence, and responding to the needs and outcries of its people. As President Obama has often said, dealing with race is a complex issue that requires continuous work; and though that society has made progress in race relations, there still remains much work to be done. Obama has also rejected claims that his ascension to office has realised a post-racial society. Last week’s shootings proved him correct, and have highlighted the need for more work to be done in achieving the latter condition. Given continuous outcries to the killings from people across the racial divide -- inclusive of the White House, lawmakers, academia, media, aspirants to political office, and celebrities, to name some, though the task is steep and requires courage, political commitment and will, one senses that advocacy and activism will not wane, but would intensify. Among the chants of demonstrators marching across cities in the U.S. in protest against the profilings and killings are ‘No justice, no peace, no racist police,’ ‘Stop killing us’, and ‘Black lives matter.’ The problem has also taken on a global life of its own,

GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

The WPA was not needed to secure the majority for Dr. Jagan in 1992 Dear Editor, I REFER to a letter from Mr. Ralph Ramkarran captioned “It was the mistake of the WPA…” published in the SN of July 9th, 2016. It is most disturbing that one Tacuma Ogunseye seems to be mixing up his facts, and thus I want to point him specifically to the SN front page article written by Anand Persaud (now Editor, but who was then a reporter) dated October 22, 1992. People like Dr. Roger Forbes Luncheon and Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine were in the thick of things during those faithful negotiations, and are still around today; so why are we not asking them for guidance on the facts? Rather, a very determined effort is being made to publicly distort these facts. Is this how Ogunseye plan to close his innings: castigated as a historical revisionist?

Under the 1980 Constitution, 53 MPs were directly elected with national seats, 2 MPs came from the National Congress of Local Democratic Organs (NCLDO) through the Supreme Congress of the People, and 10 came from the Regional Democratic Councils (RDC), totalling 65 MPs. The PPP/C won 28 of those 53 national seats plus 5 regional seats, and was confident of winning one of the 2 NCLDO seats by the fact that it had won 53.5% of the popular vote. This would have brought the PPP’s total in the Parliament to 34 seats. Basic arithmetic illustrates that 34 is a comfortable majority of 65. Under the then 1980 Constitution, any party with 33 seats and more could have formed a government and pass laws in the Parliament. So let us bury that myth that the WPA was needed to secure the majority for Dr. Jagan in 1992. The PNC won 23 of those

53 national seats (with 42.3% of the popular vote) and 3 regional seats, totaling 26 seats. The WPA, with 6,068 votes, won one national seat. That left one national seat, 2 regional seats (Regions 8 and 9), and 1 NCLDO seat to be decided upon; but this process had nothing to do with the PPP securing the majority. GECOM, under Rudy Collins, allocated the 53rd national seat to the TUF based on a process of the highest leftover votes. The TUF got 0.55 of that 53rd seat compared with the PNC 0.42, PPP/C 0.33 and WPA 0.06. This entire process was scrutinized by one of Guyana’s most brilliant sons –- Haslyn Parris -- on behalf of the PNC, who had a front seat in the entire process. Upon winning that one seat, Mr. Manzoor Nadir immediately facilitated a process that allowed Eugene La Cruz from the PPP/C to secure the Region 9 (Ru-

pununi) seat, giving the PPP its 35th seat. The WPA also reached an agreement with the PPP/C on the Region 8 seat and the remaining NCLDO. The PPP supported the WPA in order for Bagot Paul from the WPA to sit in the Parliament on behalf of Region 8. In return, the WPA supported the PPP to secure the final NCLDO seats. The final tally from the 1992 elections was: PPP/C 36 seats; PNC – 26 seats; WPA – 2 seats and TUF -1 seat. Let the record show that Guyana was saved from Zimbabwean status because sons of Guyana like former President Desmond Hoyte, Rudy Collins and Haslyn Parris served with the highest level of integrity, professionalism and honesty during those critical October days in 1992. Yours sincerely, SASE SINGH

Remembering the Son Chapman Massacre Dear Editor, LAST Wednesday, 52 years passed since that fateful day -- Monday, July 6, 1964 –- when, at 16:00 hours, more than forty of Linden’s own were massacred on the Demerara River as they travelled home on the “Son Chapman” launch. It has been said that “To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die.” How very true! The men, women, and children who died on the Son

Chapman 52 years ago live on in the hearts and minds of their families and friends, AND in the hearts and minds of the people of Linden. Many of us alive today never knew the men, women, and children of the Son Chapman Massacre, yet we remember them and reflect on their experience, because by their deaths we have an example of what hatred and brutality can lead to: the senseless loss of life, and endless suffering. Incidents such as the

with a solidarity protest and march being held in the streets of London, Britain. On both sides of the divide, the killings were senseless. On the part of black America, the incidents reinforce their concerns for the devaluing of black lives; the need to rein in police excesses; weed out racist and underserving cops from the force; and address racial profiling and criminal justice reform. Statistical evidence also shows that black and brown Americans are disproportionately profiled and targeted by police, and are incarcerated based on the types of offences considered criminal vis-a-vis the penalties they attract. On the other hand, as black America justifiably cries out for parity and respect in the society, the shooting of white police officers by a black man -- though he reportedly was not part of the protest and was acting on his own -- is bound to have white America asking this question: ‘Doesn’t white lives matter too?’ Their concern will be made stronger with the sniper’s reported rant that he wanted “to kill white people.” The answer in both instances is a resounding yes: All lives matter! But saying all lives matter has to go beyond the affirmative, to taking action through institutional strengthening via laws; reforms; the races taking time to talk with each other, as against talking past each other; being prepared to listen and empathise with the lens through which the other

Son Chapman Massacre and the July 18 Tragedy of 2012 must never again occur. We must take the lessons taught by tragedies such as these to guide our actions in the here and now. For our society to allow such tragedies to recur would be indicative of our collective unwillingness to learn and grow as a society. The survivors of the Son Chapman -- six crewmen and 26 passengers -- must also be remembered, for they represent God’s never-ending

mercy and the resilience of the people of Linden. This experience has made us stronger. The people of this region are known for staring adversity in the face and overcoming. May God rest the souls of the men, women, and children of the Son Chapman; and may God bless the people of Linden and Region 10. Yours sincerely, SHARMA SOLOMON

views the world; and where skepticism of the other exists, work together to fix same. And what makes the U.S. story one with which we here can identify is that ours is a society of similar experiences, having similar negative characteristics that still remain today, and are equally deserving to be addressed -- from the highest tier of leadership to the ordinary man and woman. Race and racial issues are matters that some prefer to sweep under the carpet rather than move to have open, honest and frank discussions about, along with strengthening institutions to ensure respect and equality. Police excesses have also marred our society, though it is fair to say that, within recent months, not much so. But cessation of police excesses needs to be a guaranteed, with an attached condition that should it ever recur, it would be dealt with within the framework of laws. And while Europeans, once enslavers and colonisers, are not here in the majority, taints of racism and cries for justice among the six races are evident. Given the similarities that obtain in both Guyanese and American societies, it helps not only to make what is presently taking place in the U.S. the focus of attention and conversation, but also teachable moments in the process of our development. For the truth is that where isms and injustices exist, there can be no peace.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

GuySuCo is a business, and will be managed as such Dear Editor, THE Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) wishes to respond to a former President in what he describes as a ‘missive’ in one of the political parties’ weekend newspaper publications. In his attempt to vilify the Government, this statesman only exposed his own confliction in respect of what was his headline, ‘ethnic cleansing in GuySuCo.’ Based on the expressions in the publication, it was obvious that the former President has accelerated his descent to unthinkable levels. This ethnic headline is set above a ‘missive’ which incoherently charges the current administration with closing GuySuCo – literally the whole sugar industry – a highly imaginative notion that is unrelated to any semblance of truth and is known only to the former President. Having naively admitted that previous crises in the industry were overcome ‘long before the present political parties in this country were formed -- obviously by the private owners of the day -- he seeks to lay claim to reviving the industry from its crisis in ‘1990’, when in fact it was the Desmond Hoyte regime that invited Booker Tate to effect the rescue of the industry. The former President also continued to make the

assertion of a surge past 300,000 tonnes of sugar annually for several years, which is hardly supported by the actual records -- which show in the table below that, during almost twenty-five years, there were four years when more than 300,000 tonnes of sugar were achieved. Further, what is interesting is that the former President’s management team did not appear to heed the advice he is now giving; for example, ‘proper investment’. Nonetheless, the statesman has now become fond of providing advice on projects such as co-generation; fuel alcohol – ‘an area’ in which he asserts that ‘GuySuCo can make a great contribution immediately’. How then does he explain the sale of the Skeldon Co–generation Plant to Skeldon Energy Inc., the co-generation plant is the life of the factory on the estate. Additionally, the former President was a member of the Board of Directors when a feasibility study was done that showed producing ethanol from sugar cane was not practical due to the high cost of cultivating and harvesting sugar cane. An important point to note here is that, at the time when the study was conducted, the price for oil was much higher. While the current finan-

cial indebtedness of G$82 billion, unearthed by the current management of the Corporation over the past year, was not created by them, the management has taken responsibility for that debt, and is navigating the Corporation out of its mire. In addition to the financial vacuum discussed above, it is by no means inappropriate to mention the severe loss of skills that the industry suffered up to 2015 -– even without ethnic cleansing, to use the former President’s words. He might find it informative to learn that GuySuCo has since been faced with dozens of lawsuits from many of those summarily dismissed by the previous administration of GuySuCo. Further, to validate his claims of ethnic cleansing, the former President mentioned some of our former employees. Regrettably, the details of our employees and our relationship with them, good or bad, are confidential, and the Corporation does not view such as a matter for public debate. Our concern, however, is that the former President continues to expose these individuals to fulfil his own narrow agenda, while not considering that certain matters should be treated delicately. Having said the foregoing, it is important to correct the palpable untruth

about the industry being closed. The facts are that the prospects for sugar as the only core business of GuySuCo are not promising. The Corporation has to cope with the increasingly unsustainable high cost of production, which has resulted from a gradual deterioration over the years; and the unions’ continuous demand for more from an entity that simply cannot afford to give more. The following Table provides an indication of increases gratuitously made over the past five years. What is interesting is that, to a large extent, these increases have contributed to the present state of financial non-viability of the sugar industry, since they were and are beyond the financial capability of the corporation. It is obvious that the former President is becoming comfortable with being a stranger to the truth when communicating about the sugar industry. This has therefore exposed the limitations of his paradigm through which he processes and then seeks to transfer this limited perspective to vulnerable minds. Any good leader should have the maturity to take responsibility for poor decisions which were made under their watch. Additionally, the former President has chosen to no longer be subtle or send hid-

den messages in his rantings about GuySuCo and the sugar industry, hence it would be instructive for him to note that GuySuCo does not have the luxury of playing games, political or otherwise; the corporation runs a business that will be managed from here onwards as a business. It has 17,000 employees on its payroll and communities which are dependent on the

efficiencies of the estates, and this campaign by the former President would not go unnoticed. Finally, it would be good for the former President to note that respect is earned! COMMUNICATIONS UNIT OF THE GUYANA SUGAR CORPORATION (GUYSUCO)

Year Tonnes Years Tonnes 1993 246,522 2005 246,071 1994 256,657 2006 259,549 1995 253,919 2007 266,482 1996 280,116 2008 226,267 1997 267,537 2009 233,736 1998 253,871 2010 220,818 1999 321,438 2011 236,505 2000 273,317 2012 218,068 2001 284,470 2013 186,745 2002 331,052 2014 216,350 2003 302,379 2015 231,070 2004 325,317 Years Increases % 2010 5 2011 5+3 2012 5 % for piece rated, Job Elevation and an additional 1% for time rated

2013 2014

4 4

Remarks Across the board Additional 3 % Job evaluation cost approximately G$1.3 B ( above 20% increase) for 7,214 time workers Across the board Across the board

Guyanese in U.S. murdered in home By Shirley Thomas THE body of a 62-yearold Guyana-born American citizen was last Friday found dead in her Landover Hills home in Maryland, bearing marks of violence, King George’s County Police have said. Dead is Lenise Fredericks, formerly of 245 Luckhoo Street, Lodge Housing Scheme, where she (an only child) lived with her mother, Mrs Beaulah Fredericks before migrating to the United States of America about 25 years ago. Prince George’s County police said the 62-year-old

Dead: Lenise Fredericks-Mangal Fredericks was discovered dead inside the home located in the 4000 block of 71st Avenue around 18:00 hrs Friday, after they were called to her house for a welfare check.

When found, she was suffering from trauma to her upper body, and was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Meanwhile, Prince George’s County Police have since arrested a man, Robert James Crosby, in connection with Fredericks’s death. Police said Crosby and Fredericks were neighbours and that the motive was robbery. Police confirmed that Crosby, 61, also of Landover Hills, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and robbery. He is being held on a no-bond status. Meanwhile, the dead wom-

an’s husband, Russel Mangal, devastated on making the discovery, told her relatives that he had just finished working and was waiting for her to pick him up. They would both drive home. However, after not seeing nor hearing from her, he made a few calls but they went unanswered. Mangal said he eventually decided on taking a bus home and on entering the home, he got the shock of his life. His wife was lying dead on the floor. The distraught husband said he immediately thought that she might have suffered a heart attack and so he called

the PGC Police. On arriving, they examined the body and also searched the house. That is when they broke the shocking news to him that his wife had been murdered. The husband began to scream and immediately phoned the caregiver taking care of his mother-in-law who also lives in the United States. But the hardest three days later and they are still pondering how to break the news to his 96-year-old motherin-law who in the meantime is daily asking “Where is Lenise? Why isn’t she coming to see me? She never

does that.” Meanwhile, all plans being made by Lenise to host a surprise 96th birthday party for her mother on August 3 have been shattered. Back in Guyana, her only surviving aunt, Beryl Godette, and her husband Dr Lloyd Godette are devastated by the news but are trying to stay strong. Lenise Fredericks, while in Guyana, was employed at the University of Guyana as a Cartographer,at Lands and Surveys and finally at the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission after securing her Master’s Degree in Holland.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

Being a parent BEING a parent is a special responsibility, and parenting is a very important role. There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to parenting, but there are some principal factors that can help every parent do a reasonably good job of parenting. If you are a parent, how do you rate on the PARENTING CHECK LIST? Answer the questions below and score yourself from 1 to 3. If your answer is NEVER, you circle (1); if your answer is SOMETIMES, you circle (2); and if your answer is ALWAYS, you circle (3): (1) Do you spend quality time with your child/ren, talking to them, listening to them and encouraging them? (1) (2) (3) (2) Do you accept that children (and people in general) make mistakes and therefore find alternative ways to reprimand them rather than beat them? (1) (2) (3) (3) Do you make sure that your child

attends school regularly, and do you help with homework? (1) (2) (3) (3) Do you show your child love and affection with hugs, kisses, praise and encouragement? (1) (2) (3) (4) Do you build your child’s self-esteem and confidence by pointing out his/her positive attributes rather than ridiculing his/ her negative ones? (1) (2) (3) (5) Do you have, and stick to, clear guidelines and boundaries for your child; but sometimes need to adjust, depending on the circumstances? (1) (2) (3) (6) Do you think you are a consistently good role model for your child? (1) (2) (3) (7) Do you make sure that your child feels safe and secure at all times? (1) (2) (3) (8) Do you talk to your child in a respectful manner? (1) (2) (3) (9) Do you ask for, and consider, your child’s opinion when you are making decisions that will affect that child? (if the child

is old enough to make a valid contribution) (1) (2) (3) (10) If you are separated from your partner, do you encourage your child to have a healthy relationship with his/her other parent (mother/father) despite your personal feelings? (1) (2) (3) (11) Do you teach your child morals, values and manners of a high standard that will help them through life? (1) (2) (3) (12) Does your child speak openly to you about the things that go on in his/her life? (1) (2) (3) Now, add up your score. If your total is between 12 and 18, you could be missing out on the chance to nurture and maintain a good relationship with your child/ren. Try sharing in the small things that matter to them, and do so with an open mind. Do a parental self-assessment; be honest, which areas can you improve? If your score is between 18 and 27, you

seem to have positive attributes that make you a thoughtful parent. However, you may need to modify your approach in some areas as your child/ren grow older and the dynamics of your relationship change. Be prepared, remember to grow with your child. If your score is between 27 and 36, you seem to be doing a good job with your child/ren, from which you should reap the benefits as they grow older. Remember to stay ‘in tune’ with your child/ren, and not become complacent or take for granted that things are okay. Always keep the lines of communication open. PARENTING TIP: Parenting is not about wrong versus right; it is about being effective or ineffective. If you are concerned about the welfare of a child, call the Childcare and Protection Hotline on 227-0979, or write to us at childcaregy@gmail.com

Linden councillors zero FFTP signs off Silver Jubilee celebration with in on substandard work ‘Walk of Champions’ By Vanessa Braithwaite

Participants of the walk that culminates Food For The Poor Silver Jubilee anniversary FOOD For The Poor’s (FFP) month-long Silver Jubilee celebration culminated with a ‘Walk of Champions’ Fitness Walk and Health Fair held recently. The walk, which commenced at 07:00hrs in front of the Bank of Guyana building, Main and Church Streets, proceeded east along Church Street,

north along Albert Street and into the National Park where the Health Fair was held. Some of the health services provided included dentistry, optometry and health awareness tips. The walk, which was well supported, attracted a wide cross-section of the community, including the Mayor of Georgetown, Ms

Patricia Chase-Green. FFP in a release said it thanks 93.1 Real FM, 94.1 Boom FM, Banks DIH Limited, Jermin’s Enterprise Inc, Alleyne & Company Inc, The Garage, Fit-Rex, Saint Joseph Mercy Hospital and Star Party Rentals for their tremendous contributions to making the event a success.

COUNCILLORS of the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) of Region 10 continue to voice their concerns over the haphazard way in which construction of Government buildings is being carried out by contractors, in addition to acts of skulduggery on the part of these contractors. These concerns were voiced at the statutory meeting held last Thursday and councillors bemoaned the situation of contractors purchasing far more materials for a job that is stated on the bill of quantities. Councillor Charles Sampson, who is also a member of the Works Committee, alluded to several inspections where a large quantity of materials was purchased for the job that are not even needed. In some cases, the bill of quantities, stating far more that is needed. This, he said, “I don’t understand how this is happening.” “You can’t look at a building and say it needs 248 yem of wood and when you check the quantity, you don’t even need 1/5th of that…. Mr Chairman, we have to tighten up,” posited Sampson. He recommended that drawings be completed, so that the contractors and clerk of works can accurately calculate quantities so as to avoid over-purchasing. Regional Chairman Renis Morian posited that a

solution to the problem is to hire clerks of work and to secure his/her payment through budgetary funding. He revealed that the previous clerk of works that was sent on administrative leave pending an investigation was paid through savings which should not have been. “We want it in the bud-

Region 10 Chairman Renis Morian get and it wasn’t happening for the past 15 years, we’ve been trying to get budgetary money set aside for this and it never happened and we will have to up our game to make sure it happened,” Morian said. Councillor Douglas Gittens stressed that the clerk of works should be paid well so that they would not be tempted to be involved in skulduggery.

LOW AND UNDERBIDDING Low and under-bidding for contracts were deemed another issue of concern for the councillors, who stressed that this results in substandard work being carried out. Councillor Gittens explained that when a contractor underbids for a contract and wins it, the quality is often very poor and has to be redone shortly after. This was echoed by the regional chairman, who revealed this being the case, especially in the outlined areas where there is little or no supervision while the work is being carried out. Currently, several washrooms of schools on the Demerara and Berbice Rivers are out of service, even though they were constructed in less than two years. Students and teachers of Muritaro Primary School were forced to build a pit latrine toilet, since the newly constructed lavatory facility constructed by a contractor in Linden was no good for use. Morian stressed that more supervision is needed on the ground to alleviate the problems the region is facing as it relates to construction of Government buildings. Currently, the region’s Works Department is understaffed as three employees there have been sent on administrative leave pending an investigation.

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Guyana will continue to strengthen continental cooperation ––says President Granger at Argentina’s Independence celebrations

PRESIDENT David Granger has reiterated Guyana’s commitment to establish, deepen, and strengthen ties with countries across the various

us to diminish these differences through the pursuit of common objectives. Continental cooperation allows us to find common ground, to build consensus, and to

President David Granger delivering his speech at the reception to mark the Bicentennial Independence Anniversary of the Argentine Republic at the Marriott Hotel, Georgetown hemispheres, so that trade, cooperation, and the exchange of ideas for the benefit of all involved can be accomplished. The Cooperative Republic of Guyana and the Argentine Republic established relations on October 6th, 1972, 44 years ago; and Argentina has a permanent embassy in Guyana. Delivering an address at the bicentenary celebrations of the Independence of the Argentine Republic, hosted by the Argentine Embassy at the Marriott Hotel in Guyana, President Granger noted that while great distances and disparities separate the two countries geographically, they remain united by the idea of a more integrated South America. “We adhere to the ideals of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), the Common Market of the South (MERCOSUR), the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), and the Organization of American States (OAS). Guyana and Argentina belong to a continent of cultural, political and social diversity. The common membership we share in these organisations allows

security. The President added that Guyana will seek to capitalise on, and strengthen, its relationship with Argentina. “Guyana understands that it plays an important role as the ‘gateway’ between the Caribbean and the continent (of South America). We are convinced that, with a common vision and a common voice, we can avert conflict and overcome threats to our individual and collective security. Guyana avails itself of the opportunity to iterate its commitment to maintaining our continent as a zone of peace. The countries of South America can be an example to the world by creating a community where our peoples and nations co-exist in peace. The possibilities for increased cooperation between Guy-

national parks; increasing renewable energy use in remote communities; implementing sustainable forestry and solid waste management; and introducing measures for the restoration of mined-out areas. We are keen to learn from Argentina’s experiences in environmental security; we are keen to pursue discussions on extending the protected areas and national parks,” he said. Commenting, Argentine Ambassador to Guyana, Luis Martino, said the Argentine Government is committed to starting a new phase of bilateral relations, since it believes that a lot can be achieved for increased levels of cooperation. “This vision applies not only to Government agencies, but also to the

Argentina is currently in discussion with the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Protected Areas Commission for the latter to embrace opportunity to participate in a course dealing with Protected Areas and National Parks. This course, an on-line and on-site three-month course in Buenos Aires, would be designed to upgrade knowledge in the field of Protected Areas and National Parks, and would see participation of experts from throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. RESTORATION OF ARTWORK The Embassy is also working with the National Gallery on a project that involves the eventual restoration of approximately

From left are: President David Granger, Mrs Martino, First Lady Sandra Granger, and Ambassador Luis Martino confront the challenges we face,” the Head of State said. In confronting these challenges, Guyana will continue to work towards deepening and strengthening continental cooperation, he disclosed. Guyana and Argentina share common values, such as mutual respect for each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty; mutual non-interference in each other’s internal affairs; cooperation for mutual benefit; respect for treaties and international law; and the maintenance of peace and

ana and the Argentine Republic are encouraging,” the President said. GREEN ECONOMY Since his assumption to office, President Granger has been pushing for a ‘green economy’. He believes that cooperation between Guyana and Argentina can help to achieve this vision, since Argentina has a similar commitment. “We share a commitment to ‘green’ growth. Guyana notes the steps that Argentina has taken in improving the infrastructure of its

private sector -- to work closer together to identify and strengthen the potentialities that already exist. We are looking at a project (that is) dealing with public security on a wide range of issues: such as criminology, forensic studies, environment, piracy, fishing and anti-smuggling, forensic medicine, among other areas. The proposed package is now under review of the different agencies in Argentina, so that we can draft the plan on the way forward,” Ambassador Martino said. The ambassador said

45 pieces of artwork belonging to the National Collection and forming part of the Guyanese cultural patrimony. “By no means least, we are also engaged in a lively discussion in the area of sports, in coordination with the Ministry of Education and the Guyana Olympic Association, to bring to Guyana a rugby coach from Argentina for an intensive training of the National Team, ‘The Green Machine’, in preparation for the final of the Rugby Americas North Championship, to take place in Mexico City at the end of July,” he said. The ambassador said that as Guyana commemorates its Golden Jubilee and Argentina its bicentennial, the wish of the Government of Argentina and his personal wish is that the year would bring nothing but closer links between the two countries, in the spirit of friendship, solidarity and peace. The bicentenary Independence celebrations of the Republic of Argentina were attended by First Lady Sandra Granger; former President Donald Ramotar; Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carl Greenidge; and other ministers of the Government as well as members of the diplomatic corps and the National Assembly. (Ministry of the Presidency)

Ambassador Martino makes a point to President Granger during the Embassy’s reception

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

–– overseas-based Guyanese gives backpack, other supplies to top performers of Lichfield Primary By Clifford Stanley

NEW YORK-BASED Guyanese Marcia Nicholson, a former resident of Lichfield, West Coast Berbice and pupil of the Lichfield Primary School, has rewarded that school’s top 11 pupils at the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) examinations with backpacks and other school supplies; and has given similar gifts to the three top pupils at the Grade 5 examinations, in order to encourage them to work hard preparing for the Grade Six examinations next year. These incentives were given to recipient pupils during the school’s graduation exercise held recently, where Nicholson reminded parents, teachers and pupils that her father -- the late Alwyn Nicholson, also known as Alwyn Prince – had, in recent years, been donating prizes to the school’s NGSA top performers before his death last year; and that her mother, Cynthia Nicholson,

The top 11 pupils with their backpacks and other gifts had been a Senior Mistress at that very primary school. “I am hereby taking up the slack left by my father’s death. I am committed to encouraging you, children in the village and

its environs, to excel in your school work; and to support the work of the teachers who nurture you. God willing, I will do this every year. I will continue where my father left off,”

Overseas-based Guyanese Marcia Nicholson (right) and Grade Six teacher Shawn Thompson with some of the gifts she donated to the top performers at the school at the recent National Grade Six Assessment

she said. Marcia Nicholson was a Senior Mistress at the Bladen Hall Multilateral School on the East Coast of Demerara before she migrated to the USA in 2002, where she

is still engaged in teaching. She visits Guyana regularly. Her visit this year was timed to coincide with the graduation exercise of the Lichfield Primary School. She said that when she

returns to New York, she is committed to sending additional reading materials to the school through a Guyana/America friendship group based in the USA.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

‘The harder the battle, the sweeter the victory’

–– says Guyanese who graduated from Russia’s Friendship University By Svetlana Marshall “DON’T ever succumb to a little challenge, the harder the battle – the sweeter the victory,” 27-year-old Patricia Anthony said as she offered a word of advice from a distant country. Anthony, a Lindener by birth, is among five Guyanese students who were offered an opportunity to fulfill their academic dreams at the People’s Friendship University of Russia, compliments of the Bauxite Company of Guyana (BCGI). After five long years of intense studying, Anthony was the lone Guyanese and CARICOM national to have graduated from the People’s Friendship University of Russia on July 30, 2016. She graduated with a Bach-

Patricia Anthony, who hails from Linden, Region 10 being presented her certificate after successfully reading for a Bachelor of Economics at the People’s Friendship University of Russia

elor of Economics in Finance and Credit. Her colleagues Kiefer Bacchus, Tenesha LesFlores, Kollis Smith and Dendre McGarrel will complete their studies in 2017 and 2018. But the former Mackenzie High School (MHS) student is not ready to come home just yet – she has decided to seize yet another opportunity to make herself even more marketable. Come September, Anthony will return to the People’s Friendship University of Russia to move onto the next level -- to do her Master’s in Economics. But the big question is: Will she specialise in Finance Management or Business Management? “I am still stuck between the decision of ‘Finance Management’ or ‘Business Manage-

ment.’ Finance Management would be an ideal specialty, but I’ve always had great interest in Business Management. One day in the not too distant future I wish to have my own business, and Business Management would be of absolute value to me. So even though I haven’t completely decided, come September it’s very likely that I’ll be pursuing Business Management,” Anthony told Guyana Chronicle during an online interview, while sitting in her room in Moscow. CHALLENGES While it is a ‘blessing’ to study in Russia, she said the journey has been one of many challenges as she alluded to

the change in the weather pattern and the initial language barrier when she first arrived in September 2011. “The journey has been tough from the very beginning. When we arrived in Russia during autumn, so it was already cold, the leaves had already fallen from the trees and the skies were always a gloomy grey, it made me feel sad every time I looked outside. The biggest challenge was the cold followed by the language,” she said. After the first year, she had gotten use to the language but the winters were still “brutal.” “Even after five years, I still don’t think I can see page 12

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‘The harder the battle...

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say I’m used to it,” she posited. However, after one year of trying to master the art of speaking Russian, the former MHS student commenced her studies in Economics. “The first two years were just general economics I would say; the most valued courses were Micro and Macro Economics. At the end of second year, we had to choose our desired specialty, for me it was “finance and credit”, and that’s where the courses got more specific,” she explained. Finance, Finance Manage-

ment, Market Stocks and Bonds were among the courses Anthony would have done as she pursued her Degree in Economics, which included both theoretical and practical knowledge. However, in her final year, she focused on Guyana’s Monetary Policy as she crafted her thesis. Dubbed “Monetary Policy in Guyana,” Anthony successfully drew an analysis between the policies in Guyana – a third world country and those of Russia – a developed nation. NEVER GIVE UP

As she prepares to start another chapter in her ‘book of life,’ the Russian-based Guyanese are telling young people like herself, “never to give up.” “Don’t ever succumb to a little challenge – the harder the battle, the sweeter the victory. It has been one battle after the other for me, bad living conditions, prejudice teachers, harsh weather, language and culture barrier. But it’s not until you’ve reached the end, the wonderful feeling you get makes you realise that if you had to do it all over again the same way, you

Patricia Anthony and her mother Grace Craig (in the middle) with other Guyanese pursuing higher education in Russia would, because it was absolutely worth it,” she said with a feeling of accomplishment. “Stay focused and reach for your goals. When you add your stars to your crown, no one can take them away!” Anthony added. Her mother, Grace Craig, who recently returned home after visiting Russia to witness her daughter’s graduation, told

Guyana Chronicle she feels a sense of pride and joy. “I am proud of her and the decision she has taken to go even higher to complete her master’s,” Craig said, as she sang praises to the Almighty. “We are backing them all the way, not just Patricia but all the other Guyanese students and Caribbean nationals studying in Russia. It is not easy for them you

know, they leave their homes and adapt to what they have in Russia, it is a struggle but it is a sacrifice and at the end of it all, they will be proud of themselves and we will be proud of them,” she added. Craig said she hopes that, BCGI, which forms part of Russian aluminum company RUSAL, will continue to offer scholarships to other Guyanese.

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THE VILLAGE ECONOMY

–There is now much hope for the village of Victoria By Margaret Burke IN Part 1 of this feature, some of the issues facing Victoria were discussed, and it was noted that the villagers were experiencing a somewhat slumbering village economy. The CDC Programme is geared primarily to assist rural and urban communities as well as organisations to become much more structured; in some cases, broken up into smaller,

Mr Ernest Elliot, CDC Assistant Director more manageable units for greater efficiency. Essentially, this programme was set up as a bridge between Government and community, with the Government providing monetary grants and technical support, while the community provided human resources and largely volunteer services. In simple terms, it is written that the mission of the CDC should be viewed as: Assisting the needy; Bonding the people, and connecting the community. Thus the CDC has emerged, determined to identify and address community needs -- which include caring for the vulnerable; taking care of the environment; promoting and advancing community development through economic activities, social and cultural ventures, education and training; and also by way of construction or maintenance of public infrastructure for the

benefit of the community. Mr. Ernest Elliot, Assistant Director of Community Development, noted that the programme was first established in Guyana as a Government-led programme under the Forbes Burnham Administration prior to independence. It was created as a department under the Ministry of Local Government, and was then headed by Mrs Sybil Patterson. However, the programme has gone through several changes under different administrations, and is now at a stage of being reorganised for more effectiveness. Mr. Elliot, representative for the East Coast Demerara communities stretching from Abary Bridge to Conversation Tree, and for certain communities in Regions One and Two, said the CDC was established to strengthen the home and, by extension, the community. VISION OF THE VILLAGE LEADERS Victoria is a village with many leaders, some of whom are considered elders of the village; all have a focus on different aspects of the community. Some of them are currently not living within the community, while others are overseas. Nonetheless, they all desire to see the village regain its prosperity, and would do whatever they can to see this materialise. Mr Errol Luke, Chairman of the Victoria CDC, is one such leader and elder within the village. He spoke of his vision to see the restoration of the village economy, which in turn would foster greater social change; enhance cultural activities; and encourage greater involvement in sports, education, training, and faith-based advancement through engagement and meaningful participation of members of the community. Mr. Luke, a part-time lecturer at the University of Guyana at Turkeyen and Tain campuses and a lecturer at the Guyana School of Agriculture, besides being a board member of the President’s College and being very involved in leadership within his church, still finds time to invest in plans and programmes which would see the community being a better place. Among the great lineup of Victoria leaders who are worthy of mention because of their concern and high hopes and expectation for the village are Messrs. Joseph Barlow, Claude Saul, Abraham Poole, Donald Ainsworth,

CDC Chairman for Victoria, Mr. Errol Luke (first from right), along with other members of the community engaged in discussion down in the village Attorney Rexford Jackson, renowned Land Surveyor Rutherford, Ivor Thom; and Mrs. Sharon Wickham and Vona-Lou Caleb-Drayton. In the final part of this feature, readers will get a better understanding of the part some of these people play in the village. CDC AND THE EAST COAST COMMUNITY Ever since commencement of the programme, Victoria and many other communities along the East Coast of Demerara have become beneficiaries of this programme. Outstanding in Victoria is the Middle Walk Road, which was built by self-help. Day after day, the villagers volunteered their services to build the road. For a prolonged period of time, many of them went to do self-help work on the road in the afternoons after a hard day’s work on the farm or elsewhere. More than a mile long, this road remains as the main road in the village; and though not now in the best condition, it still stands. The technical know-how and the necessary materials were provided by the government of the day. There were many other benefits derived for the village from the CDC. Many other villages on the Demerara East Coast have benefited from infrastructural development effected by the CDC. Outstanding among these are Golden Grove for its secondary school and Melanie Damishana for its housing scheme. All these infrastructural developments were done by self-help, aided by the Government. VICTORIA AS A BENEFICIARY There is much work yet to be done before Victoria and Victorians can begin to feel some amount of economic liberation as a people. However, there is hope, with a lot to look forward for, although expectations would depend on the village leaders being able to motivate their people to become involved and then ensure that there is a high level of sustainability. The village of Victoria is deep, like so many of the villages on the Demerara East Coast. It stretches for many miles inland, starting from the seawall at the front and ending way down into the backdam.

Victoria farmers in the farm-land

Part 2

CATTLE DEVELOPMENT PLAN

The contract specifically provides for a ten-year cattle development plan for meat and milk production within the village. This programme entailed the documentation of over 500 acres of common state land for development of the beef and dairy cattle industry. This programme, for which budget preparation has already been done, involves clearing and excavating farm land for growing of crops, rearing of small and large ruminants and fish farming, as well as the development of over 500 acres of common state land. INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT Among the work already started for the village through the CDC is a six-month contract for the cleaning and maintenance of the main irrigation and drainage canals and streets in the community. This contract was awarded by the NDIA to the CDC, and has been successfully completed. Some of the main activities are empoldering, bridge construction, pasture establishment and fencing, construction of cattle facilities and ranch house; the furbishing of drains, bridges and all-weather roads, and the installation of proper water systems. ANIMAL HUSBANDRY AND COTTAGE INDUSTRY Plans are also afoot to improve and revitalise the breeds of livestock, the rehabilitation of coconut plantation, as well as the resuscitation of other permanent crops. In addition, there are also plans on stream for the establishment of a cottage industry for value-added production of farm produce; the establishment of a dairy milk plant, and a slaughtering unit. Included in the entire programme is also a plan to establish a community market where not only villagers would benefit, but also extended communities. RECREATIONAL FACILITIES It is said that too much work and no play makes “Jack a dull boy”. The Victoria decision-makers may have given thought to this, and so have on stream great expectations to see their plans come to fruition with the establishment of a recreational see page 14

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

From page 13

park between GRECO and the kindergarten school, and renovation of the Victoria Community Centre and Park -– all with decorative and other amenities. THE INFERENCE Successes in the villages such as Victoria are primarily based on a well-consulted, moti-

Some of the densely forested land way down in the back of the village

Farmers at work at the back of the village vated set of people in the village, who may then influence those who do not understand. There are always those in the latter category. Studies have proven that rural areas are often some of the most deprived in the country, and therefore should always be supported by experienced community development systems. Most rural communities in Guyana are farmbased, and many are seen as underprivileged and sometimes extremely poor; yet, in many case, within these communities

livelihoods. It must be that, as the promoter of social change, the CDC has the capabilities to achieve sustainable change in the lives of the people for whom they make provision; the promotion of marketable and sustainable farms; the economic empowerment of the families, especially for women and girls; creating an atmosphere of social cohesion and general education‌leaning towards the academics, moral education, domestic violence, illicit drug use, sex education, and the value of life. These

Farmers clearing the way as they traverse through the back of the village lie some of the greatest resources for development. Therefore, a range of approaches and activities which are aimed at improving the welfare and livelihoods of these people must be addressed. To this end, people of these villages must not be allowed only to express their concerns, but be empowered to make decisions for the improvement of their lives and

positive changes must be accomplished, and that within the shortest space of time. The final part of the feature will look at how the people of Victoria spend their time; forms of relaxation, including sports, culture and drama‌ the role some of the significant people of the village play in sports, art and drama will also be dealt with.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

Grieving teen commits suicide By Shauna Jemmott

THE tragic death of a mother that broke a strong bond with her youngest daughter is now being seen as the motive which triggered the suicidal death of a teenage girl in Berbice Saturday night. Marissa Singh, the 16-year-old student of JC Chandisingh Secondary School in Berbice, drank more than 80 blood pres-

sure pills which belonged to her grandmother, at their Number 2 Village, Corentyne, home soon after entering her room and locking the door, a relative said. But this was not her first attempt at taking her life. A relative of the dead teen told the Guyana Chronicle that sometime after the death of her mother, Anita Jodhan, Singh drank several of the pills but survived.

Dead: Marissa Singh

H e ex p lain ed th at Singh was the last of Jodhan’s three children and the two were very close, with Singh accompanying her mother almost everywhere she went, while the two spent much quality time together. He said two years ago, the mother received severe burns about her body in a fire that razed a house. After spending

two weeks at the Georgetown Public Hospital, she succumbed to the injuries. Since then, Singh became a changed individual, showing signs of depression. While still grieving for her mom, she encountered conflicts with schoolmates at the New Amsterdam Multilateral School, and as a result was transferred last Sep-

tember to JC Chandsingh Secondary. “Her mom was burnt alive in a fire and after then that’s when everything went haywire with them,” the relative told the Guyana Chronicle. He added, “Personally I feel she did it because of depression. They were very close. She used to be with her mother all the time. Their mother had third degree burns.

She survived two weeks and then she died at the GPHC.” He said Singh was “the prettiest girl around here, she is in Mandir and she dances and she goes up for the Diwali (motorcade) every year and she wins every year. She was so young, she had so many plans, and she took part in so many cultural events.”

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

St. Therese Primary student achieves perfect score in –– at National Grade English Language Six Assessment

ELEVEN-year-old Latannie Shultz of St Therese Primary in New Amsterdam is the lone Berbician to have gained the highest points in a single subject at the recently-released National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) results, formerly referred to as the Common Entrance Examination. She achieved the highest possible standardised score of 138 points in English Language, and her overall performance has caused her to be awarded a place at the Bishops’ High School in Georgetown, one of the premier secondary schools in Guyana. She proved to be top of her game in Reading; Comprehension; Vocabulary; Structure and Mechanics; Content; Focus; Language and Organisation. Even though she is the Ancient County’s lone pupil to have gained the highest points in English Language, this position was shared with Annalisa Charles and Marissa Mal of Leonora and Providence Primary schools respectively; along with Jordon Nelson and Bhanaymattie Harnauth who respectively attended the privately-owned New Guyana School and Success Elementary School. Although a Ministry of Education (MoE) release has noted that this year’s performance in English Language has been consistent with what obtained in previous years, the MoE has since commenced collaboration with the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) to improve the quality of all primary grade assessments. The objective of this consultation is to ensure that all assessments conform to regional and international test development and administration standards and expectations, in order to facilitate consistent, reliable measurement and tracking of pupils’ performance. When the Guyana Chronicle caught up with this pre-teen at the office of her Headmistress, Surya Mahadeo, where she was summoned moments earlier, Latannie expressed relief that she was not about to

be disciplined by the head teacher for being errant in some way. Moments earlier, teachers had gathered at the head teacher’s office with their ears pressed to a mobile phone to listen to the NGSA results during a live online broadcast, as it was not being aired on the

LATANNIE SHULTZ National Communications Network in Berbice, as was promised. On hearing the name of their student mentioned among the top five English Language

performers, they became jubilant and summoned the child to the office, where disciplinary action is taken quite often. CELEBRATION However, on this occasion, it was a time for celebration for the 11-year- old, who says she was greatly motivated after not placing at a regional spelling B competition which was held earlier in the year. “After not securing a placement during the second term, I had to reassess my priorities. I had to study; I had to open those textbooks which were kept closed; I started to work on the past exam papers until about 11 pm each night. But it was not always study: there were instances when I cycled, and I love reading,” she mused while rubbing her palms together. She had studied hard and had expectedly performed well, having secured 540 marks; but she was a tad disappointed at not being awarded a place at the prestigious Queen’s College, which required a minimum of 541 marks. Her marks have afforded her the sixth position in Region Six. Recalling her performance at the exams, the Vryheid Village, West Canje resident noted that Mathematics Paper Two had been a challenge, as the formulas were not taught by her teachers. Nevertheless, she strategized to get at some of the answers. Therefore, she is encouraging her peers to “never say you can’t do it”. “I used to do so, but with encouragement from my parents and teachers I did it, and so can anyone else,” she concluded. Her mother, Glenda Shultz, who had hurried to her daughter’s school on hearing the good news, was so overwhelmed that she shed tears of joy as she embraced the younger of her two children. And Headmistress Surya Mahadeo and class teacher Denise Christian both wished the high-flier well in her future endeavours.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

Guyanese fashion designer honoured at Caribbean event

WE all like being rewarded when our hard work is publicly recognised and when that moment arrives we’re so proud, knowing that we deserve it. That’s exactly how Guyanese designer Sidney L. Francois feels as he continues to bask in the glow of his recent award from Karib Nation Inc. Karib Nation, Inc., incorporated in 1992 in the U.S. state of Maryland, is a non-profit organisation dedicated to the economic empowerment of small and local Caribbean-owned businesses and professionals in the Maryland, Virginia and Washington, DC Metropolitan areas. A dynamic designer, François was one among a number of Guyanese who were honoured last month at the 7th Annual Caribbean Style & Culture Awards & Fashion Showcase event at the Samuel Riggs Alumni Center, University of Maryland campus. “Wow, with tears in my eyes I was giving God thanks and praise for His blessings and his recognition for my hard work after 16 years and I tell myself that I’m going to be

One of Sidney L. Francois’ designs from his ‘Garden City’ collection

unstoppable,” the 29-year-old fashion designer said. His first major accolade since becoming a designer, Francois was surprised when he was contacted by Karib Nation and told that they had been observing his work in the Caribbean for some time and wanted him to be a part of the event. “I did not know they were looking at my work for more than four years now, I did not know that. But I always tell myself to let my work speak for itself, and I would be unstoppable.” Though this is his first, a confident Francois says “look out because it won’t be my last.” “I felt as though I’m being appreciated for my hard work over the 16 years I’ve been working in the fashion industry and it’s only now begun for me; and I know that the best is yet to come for Francois Designs to get out there even more. That’s my dream.” BEST GOWN PRIZE On a path to becoming a designer since he was 12 years old, Francois first came to the fore some years ago when his evening gown designed for the eventual 2010 Guyana Miss Universe, Tamika Henry, won the ‘Best Gown Prize’. Since then it has been a ‘domino effect’ for him as clients just keep coming, looking forward to being decked out in a one-and-only Francois original. Most recently, Francois attired overseas-based Guyanese Hollywood actress, CCH Pounder with some of his pieces from his ‘Garden City’ collection. “I started big when I won Miss Guyana Universe Best Dress on 2010 then talented teens. Then there was Miss Jamzone, Caribbean Hibiscus and in 2011 there was Miss Universe, also 2015 Miss Universe Winner and the list goes on. I recently did dresses for Guyanese-born Hollywood actress CCH Pounder.” Having his design win Best Gown that auspicious night six years ago was even more memorable as there were many, he said, who did not believe he could pull it off. But thanks to pageant enthusiasts Pamela Dillon, who believed in him all the way, Francois made his mark. “It was my first pageant. A lot of people did not believe I could have done it, but thanks to one remarkable woman Ms. Pamela Dillon, who always believed I could. She gave me that push to become the person I am today.” BEHIND THE SCENES Prior to 2010, Francois worked behind the scenes with a number of respectable de-

Francois received his award at the 7th Annual Caribbean Style & Culture Awards & Fashion Showcase last month signers, while sharpening his craft for two years at the E. R. Burrowes School of Art. It was really as a young boy just out of primary school that Francois realised that fashion designing was his calling. And he always wanted to make his mark on the world and he believes that by being a fashion designer he is doing just that. “At age 12 after doing ‘Common Entrance’ (National Grade Six Assessment) that’s when I knew I wanted to become a fashion designer. I realised that I want to become a fashion designer when I started to feel very artistic at a young age,” Francois recalled. “I always grew up in my life hearing that you must be somebody in society to make a significant impact, to contribute to the world and its environment in a good way and I always said to myself I’m going to be a fashion designer.” Francois is all about doing what he loves. “I love after my sketch bringing it into reality, and knowing my client feels very happy about my designs, how it fits them, how it looks, because that’s the most important thing to me as a fashion designer. Because in the end those clients even further (would) recommend clients to me, and I love to be recommended.” As for the challenges that come with the industry, Francois says he refuses to focus on that as he prefers to “leave bitterness in

someone else’s cup.” But that’s not to say that the designer has been without his fair share of challenges. Francois recalls how even as supportive as his family was when he became a fashion designer, many of them advised him to develop his art outside of Guyana. However, he believed he had the skills to make it right at home, and has continued to prove that he can. “The road was not easy, but my family have been very supportive when it comes to my career in terms of wanting to become a fashion designer, but they used to say you will not make money here in Guyana - you have to go somewhere else and all these things, but I believe in good marketing and good strategies you would do what you have to do and it takes one to be outstanding for the rest to follow and that’s what I’ve always lived for.” Francois is currently out promoting his latest collection, the ‘Garden City,’ which he did specially for Guyana’s 50th Jubilee Independence Anniversary. The collection has already been on display at several fashion shows, including the Red Cross Tea and Fashion Show at State House in February and the Jubilee Fashion Extravaganza Fashion. He is currently focusing on completing the pieces that he will be displaying at this year’s Guyana Fashion Week, even as he continues to impress clients with his work.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

Guyana is the answer to CARICOM food security –– says President Granger, hails Region Three as agriculture powerhouse

GUYANA’S abundance of land and freshwater supplies for agricultural purposes place it in an enviable position to take advantage of the increased demand for food globally and in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). This was the view of President David Granger, who last Friday officially opened two farm-to -market roads in Parika, Region Three. He described the region as a “power house” in the agriculture sector. The roads, which were officially opened, are two of four farm-to-market roads that make up the Access Dams/Roads Rehabilitation Project funded under an agreement between the Government of Guyana and the CARICOM Development Fund (CDF), which was initially signed in July 2013 to the tune of US$9.09M. In November 2015, that agreement, which is the largest one in the Region to date,

was amended from the original figure to US$11.87M, of which US$3.49M is considered a grant. This was made possible by Guyana making its agreed contribution of US$3.5 million to the CDF. The roads,

which were constructed and upgraded, include the two in Parika; Ruby Paved Road and Parika Paved Road and the Laluni All-Weather Road and the Onverwagt Paved Road. These roads are expected to benefit more than 9,500

President David Granger helps this little girl cut the ribbon to mark the opening of the Ruby Paved Road, which is 7.7 km long. This project also includes a reinforced concrete bridge and culverts

President David Granger delivering his address at the Access Dams/Roads Rehabilitation Project ceremony last Friday

Students of the Parika Primary School help the President to cut the ceremonial ribbon for the opening of the Parika Paved Road, which is 8.2 km long

farmers and enable them to get a larger amount of their production to the markets in a timelier manner and in better condition. President Granger indicated that he has received reports that the Ruby Road has already resulted in a 25 per cent increase in acreage of cash crops under cultivation from 2014 to present, whilst in Naamryck-Parika Back, there has been a 50 per cent increase in acreage under cash crops cultivated from 2014. This, the President said, emphasises the importance of investments in infrastructural development in the agriculture sector. He added that Government will continue to work in concert with farmers, residents and the regional and local administration to ensure that development

projects in the sector are successful and benefit the Region and the country as a whole. AN INVESTMENT FOR FARMERS “Without infrastructure, there will be an increased cost for farmers to get your produce to market… so infrastructure is essential and that’s why we know that this road and the other roads that are being built will help you to become richer. Infrastructure such as these roads will facilitate greater access by our farmers to markets. The roads are a means to stimulate the rural non-farm economy, catalyse the development of communities, and facilitate the integration of rural areas into national economies…. We will continue to invest in agricultural infra-

structure,” the Government Information Agency (GINA) quoted Mr Granger as saying. The President also announced that Agriculture Minister Noel Holder would be looking into why the The Hubu cassava mill and the Parika Packaging Facility, both planned as innovative investments to help farmers and manufacturers gain higher prices for their produce and products, were not successful. The minister, he said, will explore whether a private enterprise model for similar programmes would be more feasible. The President also said that investment, whether through members of the diaspora or from States in the Region, is required if Guyana is going to be able to take advantage of opporSee page 19

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

Guyana is the answer to CARICOM... From page 18

tunities in CARICOM and beyond, presented by the need for food security. “Guyana hosted, this past week, the 37th Regular Meeting of the Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community. I have invited regional leaders to invest in Guyana, including investing in Guyana’s vast agricultural potential. The countries of the Caribbean have the capital. We have the land and freshwater. There is no reason why we should not engage in a partnership aimed to increasing agricultural output to help achieve food security in the Caribbean,” he said. Expertise, knowledge and information, the President said, are also key to the development of the sector and declared that Guyana can provide the answers to the Region’s large food-import bill. “International food prices have been declining for the major traded agricultural products and are at the lowest levels since 2009. Yet, the food-import bill of CARICOM has been rising and stands, today, at over US$4 Billion annually. CARICOM’s food insecurity must be reversed if the Caribbean is to survive. Guyana’s farmers can contribute to regional food security by increasing agricultural output. Caribbean leaders are looking to Guyana as the new horizon for agricultural development,” he said. A PRIORITY Minister Holder, in his

remarks, said that when the current Government took office, addressing the deplorable and underdeveloped infrastructural facilities, with particular reference to farm-to-market roads, was placed at the top of the agenda. “Rest assured that we are actively working to provide the necessary investments in infrastructure to raise your quality of life, through proper drainage and irrigation, and improved farm-to-market access roads. While there is much more to be done, I can assure you that our Government is resolute in ensuring that the livelihood, of our people is safeguarded, so ensuring a good life for all,” he said. Chief Executive Officer of the CDF, Rodinald Soomer, who also spoke at the event, said that he is happy “to speak at this occasion where there is the delivery of tangible evidence of the gains that CARICOM integration is delivering to a member state; vitally needed concessionary financial resources for practical projects like these access roads that redound to the benefit of ordinary citizens.” He added that the purpose of the CDF programme is intended to directly increase agricultural production in Regions Three, Four and Five with the long-term objective of increasing incomes from farming as well as food exports to CARICOM and farther afield. The CDF was established under Article 158 of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, signed in January 2001. The Agreement Relating to the

Monday July 11th, 2016 - 09:30 hrs Tuesday July 12th, 2016 - 10:30 hrs Wednesday July 13th, 2016 - 11:30 hrs

Operations of the Fund was signed in July 2008 and the CDF began operating on August 24, 2009. The purpose of the CDF is to provide technical and financial assistance to disadvantaged countries, regions and sectors. The mandate is to assist member states in reducing disparities, promote convergence and compensate for any negative impact and dislocation that may result from the implementation of the CSME. The CEO added that Guyana has already submitted its Country Assistance Programme to the CDF for the current Second Cycle and is the first country to do so. TAKE OWNERSHIP Soomer called on farmers and residents to continue to take ownership of the roads as a key component of the programme was community participation. This call was eagerly accepted

by Farmers’ Representatives Hemraj Ragnauth and Shamir Baksh. Baksh, who is from Ruby, told the gathering, “I want to say that in the coming years, we the farmers know of our responsibility to care what you have given to us because it has cost millions and millions [has] to be borne in the repayment and taxpayers, not only we the farmers but other taxpayers will have to face that burden,so it is the duty of us the farmers to ensure that we maintain our roads.” The Ruby farmer also

said that the benefits of the upgraded roads can already be seen, but farmers need more support from the Government. “It has caused the land values of these areas to go up. Apart from that, when we look at the farming population within these communities and that is between Good Hope and Lookout. We find that 70 per cent of our farmers are young people; people who aggressively work the land, but whilst they work the land, they need assistance and here is where I would like to ask our Honourable Minister of Agriculture to see what assistance, especially in terms of finance, in terms of technical advice, so that we can educate them much more. We also need marketing strat-

egies,” he said. Ragnauth emphasised the value of community involvement in the implementation phase of the project. “Let me say how happy we the farmers are to have roads, which were really a “suffering” for us. When we were given the opportunity to sit as representatives on the board, for the planning aspects for this road, it was really an honour for me. I specifically want to say thanks to the Government of Guyana for giving us this opportunity to have two beautiful roads. I specifically want to emphasise that we the people here are the beneficiaries and we should really, really take precaution to care these roads,” the farmer said.

The 8.2 km Parika all-weather road and bridge project

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

ARIES A tightly packed schedule isn’t as restrictive as it appears today. Although your activities can certainly keep you busy on the outside, you’re travelling far and wide within the unrestrained realms of your imagination. Others might not realise what you’re up to now, allowing you to explore the edges of the cosmos in your fantasies. Thankfully, your inner journeys are spiritually rejuvenating and everyone will benefit from your mental excursions, even if they don’t understand the twinkle in your eye. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it. TAURUS Although you see extraordinary possibilities in ordinary experiences today, manifesting your visions isn’t as simple as you might think. It’s misleading when beauty seems within your grasp, yet it vanishes when you tighten your grip. Surprisingly, the solution to many a problem is contained within this paradox. Trying too hard has a reverse effect and satisfaction remains elusive as long as you struggle for it. But relaxing your need to control the outcome allows your dreams to flourish. Happiness isn’t out there; it’s within you. GEMINI You wish you could let the world go by without your participation today. In fact, you might cherish the idea of just putting your feet up and giving your body a chance to recuperate from the recent stress. However, your overactive mind still seeks something to do. Peace and quiet may need to wait if you get caught up in running errands or finishing projects around the house. Nevertheless, you’ll feel more energised if you balance your activities with a bit of well-deserved rest. All work and no play is rarely a good idea on the weekend. CANCER It seems as if there’s never enough time to catch up on all your networking and today is no exception. But devoting your day to phone calls, texts, email and social media doesn’t leave you any time to connect with your soul. Do something special for yourself now and unplug from technology. Play some music, read a book or take a hike; going offline for a while creates space for your inner wisdom to shine through. Journalist Sydney J. Harris wrote, “The best time to relax is when you don’t have time for it.” LEO It’s ironic that you have a fixed idea of what you want today, yet you encounter trouble putting it into words. Of course, people can’t read your mind, making it unlikely they will assist you on your quest. Nevertheless, you’re ready to go off on your own in search of your dream. But try not to alienate others just because they’re not joining you. Maintaining solid connections with those you love enables you to travel even further while on your spiritual pursuit. Sharing your experience with your friends after the fact is still cause for celebration. VIRGO Your powerful mood changes are both a strength and a weakness today. Your gut reaction to each situation is clear enough to reveal your inner truth, but you know your current thinking is not permanent. You also have an antenna tuned toward the distant horizon that makes you recognise the limitations of your immediate feelings. Nevertheless, you can’t live in one world without also being acutely aware of the other. Sometimes it’s the unsolvable dilemmas that fuel the most creative solutions. LIBRA Your dreams have broken free from the restraints of reality and it sounds like fun to follow them wherever they lead. However, those closest to you have other ideas in mind and you’re unable to ignore their wishes today. Thankfully, with a little cosmic magic you can do it all with very little effort on your part. Enjoy your time with friends and family but don’t give up on your dreams since they have the power to transform your world. SCORPIO Your social life is suddenly taking off in unexpected ways and you don’t know whether to celebrate or mourn. Although you may need to sacrifice some personal freedom to participate in group activities, it will be well worth the detour. It’s healthy to open your heart to new experiences now. Don’t worry about being distracted from more important tasks since they will still be there upon your return. Putting your priorities in order allows people to come first. SAGITTARIUS Unexpected opportunities offer you the chance to connect with an entirely new cast of characters now. It’s quite exciting when your dreams come true and you can’t tell the difference between them and your real life. But there’s also danger in the air when your power of discernment is malfunctioning. Making long-term decisions is tricky because today’s treasure can turn into tomorrow’s prison. Accept invitations to play, but make sure you have an escape plan and a way home for when you need it. CAPRICORN You’re not limited to your regular choices today. It’s as if your blinders were removed and there’s a variety of roads leading from the present moment into the rest of your life. Although this jolt of awareness is thrilling, it’s also daunting. You don’t necessarily enjoy being overwhelmed with so many alternatives. Nevertheless, you can still apply your methodical analysis to the situation and weed out the most unrealistic options before picking your path. Your potential is unlimited now; the only thing that restricts your future is your mind. AQUARIUS You’re likely to encounter a few surprises today no matter how meticulous you are in your planning. But you’re not willing to put up with anyone’s restrictive ideas because people’s plans that are built on fear seem ignorant to your progressive thinking now. It’s as if a strike of lightning has lit up your entire brain and you can see everything from a more cosmic perspective. Where others want to erect walls, you see opportunities to build bridges. Living in your fantasy world is easy; the hard work begins when you commit to taking action in the real world. PISCES It’s nothing new if people accuse you of being a dreamer, but the dynamics change if you’re not motivated to defend your practicality today. Instead of arguing with anyone, you probably just see their criticism as a distraction from your magical thinking. You don’t want to waste time engaging doubt, no matter where it originates. Instead, you are obsessed with creating your own version of Utopia, even if it’s temporarily contained within your imagination. Sowing the seeds of the future begins in your mind.

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South Africa Racing Tips Flamingo Park 08:20 hrs Jaguar 08:50 hrs Duchess Catherine 09:25 hrs Triumvirate 09:55 hrs Captured Wind 10:25 hrs Cute Lady English Racing Tips Ayr 09:00 hrs Eldorado Creek 09:30 hrs Beautiful Stranger 10:00 hrs Azzir 10:30 hrs Balance 11:00 hrs Rio Deva 11:30 hrs Sophie P 12:00 hrs Cape Hideaway Chemsford City 09:15 hrs Rosabelle 09:45 hrs Lonely The Brave 10:15 hrs Barnacle 10:45 hrs Foxtrot Knight 11:15 hrs Miniaturist 11:45 hrs Sylvette 12:15 hrs Vastly Windsor 13:00 hrs Hardy Black 13:30 hrs Tis Marvellous 14:00 hrs Brasted 14:30 hrs Kyllang Rock 15:00 hrs Intermittent 15:30 hrs Mytimehascome 16:00 hrs Icebuster Irish Racing Tips Killarney 12:50 hrs Boyfriend Brian 13:20 hrs Hatton Cross 13:50 hrs Earring 14:20 hrs Dixie Highway 14:50 hrs Screaming Rose 15:20 hrs Duke Cass 15:50 hrs Arbor Des Champs American Racing Tips Parx Racing Race 1 White Bluff Race 2 Giroux Race 3 Asian Moonlady Race 4 Follow the Rainbow Race 5 Gretna Graeme Race 6 Shuffle Up Race 7 Mr Canada Race 8 Not a Chance Race 9 Casino Dude

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

Murray delivers again to win a second Wimbledon title By Martyn Herman

LONDON, (Reuters)-Cometh the hour, cometh the man -- Andy Murray proved himself the bastion of British tennis once again as he outclassed Canadian powerhouse Milos Raonic to claim a second Wimbledon title in masterful fashion yesterday. Three years after a nation held its breath, more in hope than expectation, as Murray took on and defeated ironman Novak Djokovic to end 77 years of pain, the 29-yearold delivered another command performance, winning 6-4 7-6(3) 7-6(2). It was more comfortable than the scoreline suggested as a razor-sharp Murray dictated play from start to finish. He committed a miserly 12 unforced errors, blunted the 140mph first serves whizzing his way and even reduced the normally Zen-like Raonic to venting his frustration. The near hysteria of 2013 turned to expectation this time as defending champion Djokovic, Murray’s bogeyman who beat him in this year’s Australian and French Open finals, lost early. It left the door open for Murray and when sixth seed Raonic knocked out seven-times champion Roger Federer to scupper hopes of a dream finale, many appeared to take for granted that the Scot would be hugging the Challenge Cup again before he walked on Centre Court to contest his 11th grand

Great Britain’s Andy Murray celebrates winning the men’s singles final against Canada’s Milos Raonic with the trophy Reuters/Stefan Wermuth slam final. Understandably so, seeing as he had started the previous 10, all against Djokovic and Federer, as underdog. That created its own pressure but Murray hid it well in a near-faultless two hours 48 minutes in the Centre Court sunshine as he added a second Wimbledon crown to his 2012 U.S. Open title and gold medal from the London Olympics. He is expected to head to Serbia next week for a Davis Cup quarter-final, having almost single-handedly won the trophy for Britain last year. Then it’s on to Rio to defend his Olympic crown. No wonder the player once regarded as a surly

teenager with bad hair is now a British sporting icon. DELIRIOUS MURRAY When Raonic shoved a backhand into the net to end the contest, a delirious Murray roared to the sky before bursting into tears as his latest achievement sunk in. “I feel happier this time. I feel like this was sort of more for myself,” Murray, who became a father in February with wife Kim, who watched from the front row of his box, told reporters. “The last time it was just pure relief and I didn’t really enjoy the moment as much. “I’m going to make sure I

enjoy this one more.” For Raonic, who had been hoping to become Canada’s first grand slam singles champion, there were no regrets. He knew he had been beaten by the better player, although there was much in his grand slam final debut to admire. “This one is going to sting so I’m going to make sure that as long as these courts are green I’ll do everything I can to be back here for another chance,” the 25-yearold said on court. “Andy has been playing great and he deserves to be winning here for the second time. “I was keeping up with him. But when it counted, I wasn’t able to get on top.” FINAL SHOWDOWN The final was billed as a showdown between one of the world’s biggest servers and arguably the best returner. Raonic did blast one down at 147mph, the fastest delivery of the tournament, but the free points he usually enjoys were missing as Murray sent the ball hurtling back time and again. Murray only broke serve once but always seemed in control as the Canadian struggled to apply any sustained pressure. The first chink in Raonic’s armor came in the seventh game when Murray went 15-40 ahead. The Scot just missed with one attempted pass but converted his second break point when a powerful forehand forced a Raonic volley error.

Fury claims Klitschko re-match will take place on October 29

TYSON Fury has claimed his re-match with Wladimir Klitschko is set to be rescheduled for October 29. The WBO and WBA heavyweight champion was previously in line to make the first defence of his titles on Saturday at the Manchester Arena, until an ankle injury forced the fight’s postponement. Shortly after that development, the Sunday Mirror

Tyson Fury

reported he was the subject of a doping investigation - an allegation Fury denied in a statement. October had long been discussed as a potential new date, and posting a picture in which the 27-year-old looked - by his standards - to be in impressive condition, he wrote on Twitter: “Sixteen weeks Saturday ‘till I blast Klitschko spark out. (Eurosport)

Trinbago Knight Riders ... From back page boundaries, as Trinbago Knight Riders shook off a wobbly start to post a decent total. Put into bat, the visitors made a poor start as they were reduced to 36-1 in the sixth over, but a fine contribution from Amla and a late flurry from Bravo took them to a fighting total in their crucial match. The visitors added 54 runs in the final five overs to reach the 150 mark after they were placed at 97-2 at the end of the 15th over. Bravo, who hit a four and three sixes in his eight-ball knock, took the responsibility of taking the defending champions to a decent total after Amla’s departure as he played some exquisite shots towards the end in his 25. The Trinbago Knight Riders were denied a strong start with medium pacer Rayad Emrit (2-32) claiming the wicket of Anton Devcich (7) in the fifth over. However, Amla and Colin Munroe had an unconquered second wicket stand of 42 in 6.2 overs as they frustrated the Warriors bowlers who had done a fine job till then. The pair, during that period, threatened to take the fight against the Warriors with a few lusty blows, before Permaul removed Munroe (18) in the 12th over. Amla, who took the responsibility of first steadying the innings then, shared another crucial partnership

with Umar Akmal, adding 43 runs in six overs before he was bowled by leg spinner Adam Zampa in the 18th over. Bravo was dismissed in the final over, but Denesh Ramdin helped himself to two boundaries off the four deliveries he faced while Akmal hit a single boundary in his unbeaten 23. Devcich then sent jitters through the Warriors dugout with the wickets of Dwayne Smith (0) and Chris Lynn (21) as the home team scored 28 runs in the Powerplay overs. With Guptill standing firm at one end, the Warriors lost Jason Mohammed (19), Anthony Bramble (4) and Sohail Tanvir (1) in the middle overs with the 73 runs needed off 36 balls. The pressure mounted, and Christopher Barnwell, who joined Guptill, hit one six, but played almost every other shot straight to a fielder as the dot balls piled on. However, the Warriors failed to keep up with the asking rate, and lost Barnwell (10), Emrit (12) and Guptill in quick succession. With 30 needed off two overs, Permaul smashed Bravo for two fours and a six in the 19th over, but the task in the final over was too much for the Warriors lower order. The Warriors will play St Lucia Zouks in their final home game tomorrow from 19:00hrs.

Portugal snatch glory ... From back page heap on the floor. FAST START Prior to his departure, it had been a fast-paced start with France’s Moussa Sissoko a bullish presence in midfield, frequently charging through tackles and bursting into the box. His 34th-minute shot was well-parried by Patricio, but by that point the match had settled into a pattern of France probing and pushing but struggling to break down their more defensively-minded opponents. Without Ronaldo, Portugal seemed in no hurry to rush the ball forward, happy to see the game descend into a cagey, tactical battle. They had a scare, however, in the 67th minute when Kingsley Coman’s cross found Antoine Griezmann unmarked

six metres from goal, only for the tournament’s top scorer to head a golden opportunity over. Minutes later, Olivier Giroud, fed by sprightly substitute Coman, forced a diving save from Patricio, who then parried away a pile-driver from Sissoko as France turned the screw. France’s best chance of the night arrived in stoppage time when substitute Andre-Pierre Gignac turned his marker inside out before scuffing a shot past the keeper and against the post, with the ball bouncing across the face of goal and then out of harm’s way. While Portugal continued to sit back in extra time, they had the better chances with Eder’s header parried by Hugo Lloris and Raphael Guerreiro striking the crossbar with a free kick before Eder’s moment of magic.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

Hamilton delights home fans, Rosberg penalised By Alan Baldwin SILVERSTONE, England-(Reuters)-An ecstatic Lewis Hamilton won his home British Grand Prix for the third year in a row yesterday and his Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg’s overall lead was slashed to a single point. The triple Formula One world champion, who turned crowd-surfer after the podium celebrations, basked in the adulation of a 130,000-strong crowd as he took the winner’s trophy at Silverstone for the fourth time in his career. The Briton’s 47th victory added to his momentum in a championship that Rosberg started off dominating with four wins in a row but has since turned in Hamilton’s favour. “I’m catching him, so let’s keep going,” he told

Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton celebrates with fans after winning the race Reuters/Andrew BoyersLivepic reporters. “I remember the first time that I got to stand up there with it (the trophy) in 2008 and the feeling today is just as great, if not actually greater.” Rosberg finished as runner-up but, four hours after the race had ended, was handed a 10-second penalty and demoted to third place behind Red Bull’s Dutch teenager Max

Verstappen for a breach of radio regulations. Mercedes, who had advised Rosberg to avoid seventh gear because his car’s gearbox was failing, said they intended to appeal. The German had suffered a gearbox problem five laps from the end and crossed the line 6.9 seconds behind Hamilton, with Verstappen a further

1.3 back. The rules bar teams from giving drivers assistance during the race, except in certain circumstances. The stewards ruled that some of the instructions relayed to Rosberg were permitted but others were not. In a race that began behind the safety car after heavy rain, before starting properly at the end of the fifth lap, Hamilton led from pole to become the first driver to win three times in a row at Silverstone. There were a few anxious moments when the slippery surface caught him out but he was never threatened by any of his rivals. “I don’t know if you guys can be as happy as me. I’m really happy,” Hamilton told the crowd that stood and cheered him all the way round the final lap with the sun shining at last.

The Briton got even closer to the fans, who flooded on to the track after the finish. “That wasn’t planned,” said the Mercedes driver as images of him falling back into the sea of people, smiling serenely with his body supported by raised arms, travelled around the world. “I could see the crowd there and I just wanted to connect with them in some way.” RADIO RULES Hamilton is now the closest he has been to Rosberg this season and can take the overall lead in Hungary in two weeks’ time. Red Bull principal Christian Horner said the radio rules were “pretty clear” and questioned where Rosberg, who was booed by some in the crowd as he stepped on to the podium, would have finished

had Mercedes not given him their advice. Rosberg, who had a stirring battle with Verstappen that involved each overtaking the other, said he was confident the team had acted within the rules. Australian Daniel Ricciardo was fourth for Red Bull, 17.9 seconds behind his team mate, with Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen fifth. Mexican Sergio Perez was sixth for Force India, with British-based team principal Vijay Mallya attending a race for the first time this season after India withdrew his passport. His German team mate Nico Hulkenberg seventh. Spaniard Carlos Sainz was eighth for Toro Rosso and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel ninth after being handed a five- second penalty for forcing the Williams of Brazilian Felipe Massa off the track.

Klishina’s was one of 136 appeals to the IAAF under the neutral athlete provisions and most of the applications had been reviewed, the IAAF had said on Saturday. Russian doping whistleblower Yulia Stepanova’s application to compete as an individual was accepted by the IAAF on July 1. She competed in the 800 meters at the European Athletics Championships on Wednesday although she pulled up injured. The former drug cheat’s revelations helped expose the massive doping problem in her country and she left Russia and went into hiding after disclosing the issue. She is still waiting to hear from the International Olympic Committee whether she can participate in the Rio Games.

against the IAAF’s decisions and added that the country’s athletes were continuing to prepare for the Olympics, which start on Aug. 5. “The ARAF does not agree with the decision taken by the IAAF’s Council from June 17 (to extend the blanket ban) and the decision from the IAAF’s Doping Review Board on July 10 in regard to the Russian athletes,” said the ARAF statement. “The ARAF will use all legal possibilities in order that Russian athletes will get the chance to take part in the Olympics. “Russian athletes are continuing to prepare for the most important event in four years, and together with the Russian Sports Ministry and the Russian Olympic Committee we will take all the necessary technical and organisational steps in order to prepare the Russian track and field team for the Olympic Games.”

“The federation is fighting for the right of clean sportsmen and is waiting for a decision from CAS,” ARAF added. Klishina’s best performance at a senior global event was fourth at the world indoor championships in Istanbul in 2012. She has finished seventh twice at the world outdoor championships - in 2013 in Moscow and in 2014 in Sopot. “The IAAF Doping Review Board has agreed that Russian long jump athlete Darya Klishina meets the exceptional eligibility criteria to compete in international competition as a neutral athlete,” the IAAF said on its website (www.iaaf.org). “Darya Klishina’s participation as a neutral athlete in international competition is still subject to acceptance by the organizer of the competition in question, in accordance with the rules of that competition,” it added.

IAAF turns down 67 Russian applications to compete as individuals By Dimitriy Rogovitskiy

MOSCOW, (Reuters)-The IAAF’s Doping Review Board has turned down applications from 67 Russian athletes to compete internationally as “neutral” individuals, following a blanket ban on the country’s track and field athletes for systematic doping. The All-Russian Athletics Federation (ARAF) said in a statement yesterday it was informed by the sport’s world governing IAAF that only one application had been approved, from long jumper Darya Klishina, out of 68 requests made. “The rest of the 67 athletes who have been approved by the ARAF’s board as they have fulfilled the federation’s criteria to compete in the Olympics have been refused,” ARAF said on its website (www.rusathletics.

Russian world champion long jumper Darya Klishina

com). The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) suspended Russia’s track and field athletes last year after a World Anti-Doping Agency

(WADA) report uncovered systematic state-sponsored doping in the country. The ban was extended last month, which ruled Russia’s athletes out of next month’s Rio Olympics, although ARAF has appealed against the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.. CAS is due to rule on the case by July 21. Individual Russian athletes, however, could apply to the IAAF for exemptions to compete as a “neutral athlete” if they could prove they were not involved in the system and were subjected to drug tests outside the country. However, the 25-yearold Klishina, who finished 10th in the long jump at last year’s world championships in Beijing, was the only one of the 68 athletes approved by ARAF who has been cleared by the IAAF to compete internationally as a “neutral”.

LEGAL POSSIBILITIES ARAF said yesterday it would carry on fighting

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

Wahab targets England’s ‘fragile’ middle order

WAHAB Riaz has said that England’s middle order is “fragile”, ahead of the first Test at Lord’s, and believes Pakistan can put pressure on them. Wahab felt much rested on the shoulders of Alastair Cook, and Joe Root, who has been promoted to No. 3, with the next two positions being filled by James Vince and the recalled Gary Ballance. Vince managed just 54 runs in four innings in his debut series against Sri Lanka, while Ballance is set to play his first Test in a year, having earned a surprising call-up as England reshuffle their order. “We know that England is struggling with their middle order, Joe Root is one of their

Pakistan pacer Wahab Riaz

best players and he has to take the responsibility, so that’s why he is at No.3,” Wahab said. “But I think the other batting is fragile. If you get Cook and Root quickly, you can really

put pressure on them, but you can’t take things easy against them.” While Wahab, who went a long way in cementing his Test spot with a fiery spell of reverse swing on

the second afternoon against Sussex, is correct to pinpoint the uncertainty around the No. 4 and 5 positions heading into the series, England’s lower middle-order has been prolific of late. However, they are likely to be tested more by Pakistan’s attack - sharp left-arm pace complemented by the legspin of Yasir Shah - than they were by the Sri Lankans. Jonny Bairstow, who has been in stellar form, has led the way, while Moeen Ali struck a career-best 155 against Sri Lanka at Chester-le-Street. Moeen will be followed by Chris Woakes who has made half-centuries in Tests and ODIs this season. Ben Stokes, who was left out of the squad for the first Test as he con-

tinues his return from knee surgery, is expected to be back for the second Test at Old Trafford. The statistics back up the recent divide between England’s top order and the security provided by those lower down: since May last year, their average for positions 1-5 is sixth in Test cricket (Pakistan’s batsmen average 14 runs more per wicket, albeit in far fewer Tests, and all of them in Asia) but for positions 6-11, England are top of the pile. Ahead of the squad being named, there was a suggestion that Stokes could be included to play as a batsman while Jos Buttler’s name was also linked to a batting position following his impressive

limited-overs form. Buttler subsequently broke a finger playing for Lancashire, so will now not be an option during the Test series, but Pakistan’s coach Mickey Arthur said he had been preparing for that duo to be in the line-up. “We obviously looked at the squad with a lot of interest,” Arthur told ESPNcricinfo. “Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler are guys that can take the game away of us, so, though it’s not a relief, we were preparing for an England middle order of Bairstow, Stokes and Buttler. But the guys that have come in have earned their opportunity and must have done something right, so certainly won’t take them lightly.”(ESPN Cricinfo)

Watson, Kontinen win Wimbledon mixed doubles on debut (REUTERS)-Britain’s Heather Watson teamed up with Henri Kontinen of Finland to win the Wimbledon mixed doubles crown and give her country its second title at the grand slam yesterday. The unseeded Watson and Kontinen, playing in

their first event together, beat 15th seeds Anna-Lena Groenefeld of Germany and Colombian Roberto Farah 7-6(5) 6-4 on Centre Court after Andy Murray had clinched his second men’s singles crown. “I guess this is the tournament that every player

has in their mind, the prestige and everything... It’s a special place to win,” said Kontinen, whose previous best in mixed doubles was reaching the 2015 French Open semis with Zheng Jie of China. “I’ll remember this forever,” added British number two Watson. “It’s been a dream of mine since I was a little girl to be a grand slam champion. I would take anything, singles, doubles, mixed doubles... I’ve got one of those now.”

Quarter-final Futsal action on tonight Hope hits century against India for President’s XI Great Britain’s Heather Watson and Finland’s Henri Kontinen celebrate winning the mixed doubles final with the trophies as Britain’s Prince William and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge applaud Reuters/Toby Melville

QUARTER-final action will take place this evening in the Ministry of Public Health/Stop Gender-based Violence Futsal competition at the Parade Ground. In the first game from 21:00hrs, Sophia will take on North- East La Penitence after which Kitty Weavers will go toe to toe with Broad Street. Tucville and Globe Yard will play from 22:30, while Queen Street Tiger bay and Sparta boss will close off the evening’s proceedings. The winning team will collect $300,000 and the championship trophy, while the second-placed side will receive $200,000 and the runners-up accolade. On the other hand, the third-placed side will receive $100,000 and the respective trophy, while the fourthplaced finishers will pocket $50,000 and the corresponding title. Other sponsors on board include: GTT, Lucky Dollar, Nigel’s Supermarket, Junior’s Jewellery, Star Party Rentals and 2-J’s General Store.

BARBADOS batsman Shai Hope made his case for inclusion in the West Indies team for the upcoming series against India with an outstanding century for the WICB President’s XI on the final day of their two-day match against the visitors at Warner Park, Basseterre, in St Kitts yesterday. Batting at number three Hope, who made an unbeaten 118 shared in a 122-run

Shai Hope

second-wicket partnership with Guyanese opener Rajendra Chandrika. The Guyanese compiled 69 in 142 balls with 10 boundaries before he was dismissed by leg-spinner Amit Mishra. Hope then stood as wickets around him tumbled. Other Test hopefuls Jermaine Blackwood, Roston Chase, Vishaul Singh and Shane Dowrich all failing to make an impact.

Blackwood was dismissed by Mishra first-ball after the departure of Chandrika. Hope, however, found a steady partner in left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican who made an unbeaten 50 batting at number nine. He hit seven boundaries in 102 minutes at the crease where he faced 75 deliveries. The two added an enterprising 104 runs. (Sportsmax.com)

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

Froome carries lead into rest day as Dumoulin cops ninth stage By Julien Pretot

ARCALIS, Andorra (Reuters)-Tom Dumoulin of the Netherlands attacked near the foot of the final climb to win the ninth stage of the Tour de France in extreme weather conditions as Alberto Contador pulled out of the race yesterday. Giant Alpecin rider Dumoulin, sixth in last year’s Vuelta, was the strongest of the day’s breakaway riders, taking a solo victory in a deafening hailstorm after riding most of the day in temperatures nearing 40 degrees Celsius. The Dutchman completed his set of grand tour stage wins after prevailing in the Vuelta and the Giro d’Italia. Briton Chris Froome retained the overall leader’s yellow jersey after controlling his closest rivals in the ascent to Arcalis, a 10.1km effort at an average gradient of 7.2 percent. The Team Sky rider leads compatriot Adam

Team Giant-Alpecin rider Tom Dumoulin of The Netherlands reacts on the podium. Reuters/Juan Medina crashed on the two opening Ya t e s ( O r i c a - B i k e E x “There were a lot of at- stages and had a fever in change) by 16 seconds tacks in that final climb, I was the morning, called it quits and Ireland’s Dan Martin hoping to gain more time as 104km from the finish line (Etixx-Quick Step) by 19. well. I just made sure to close after trying his luck one last “It’s still a very open race any gaps and at least finish time with a vintage early at this point, I’m really happy in the same time as my rivals move. “I have not recovered to come into the first rest day today.” from the crashes, I’ve been as leader,” he said. C o n t a d o r, w h o h a d

sick overnight, that’s why I made this decision. I could not continue,” said the Spaniard. Other top favourites had a tough time with Alejandro Valverde (Movistar), Italian Fabio Aru (Astana) and American Tejay van Garderen (BMC) losing ground in the ultimate climb of the first summit finish of the Tour. Overall, Froome, who made a few brief attacks in the finale, could not distance himself from last year’s runner-up Nairo Quintana (Movistar), who rode conservatively, keeping his cards close to his chest. The Colombian is fourth overall, 23 seconds behind Froome. Froome’s former team mate Richie Porte (BMC) of Australia, Yates and Martin also managed to hang on to the defending champion’s wheel. Frenchman Thibaut Pinot, who lost all hope of a decent overall finish in Paris in the

first Pyrenean stage, snatched the polka dot jersey for the best climber with a strong ride in the breakaway. Contador and Valverde launched an old school attack early on, pulling away from the pack and catching a big group of breakaway riders on the climb to the Port de la Bonaigua. Both were seen as threats to Froome and Team Sky upped the pace before the second ascent of the day to the Port del Canto. “My team mates did not panic and I think I owe it to them to still be in yellow today,” said Froome. Valverde dropped off as the breakaway group’s lead, which had risen to two minutes, was under one minute. He slid back into the peloton as Contador, who had been distanced earlier, was struggling, rolling down to his team car four times before getting off his bike for good. Today is a rest day on the Tour.

Under-17s 50-over tournament starts today in Trinidad and Tobago ST. JOHN’S, Antigua – Some of the best young players in the Caribbean have started to assemble in Trinidadand Tobago for the Regional Under-17 Tournament, starting today. The event will be used as a feeder for the West Indies Under-19 team to defend the ICC Under-19 World Cup title which Shimron Hetmyer’s side won last February in Bangladesh. WICB High Performance Coach Graeme West will be watching the tournament with an eye on selections to participate in the next ICC Under-19 World Cup in early 2018 in New Zealand. One of the players featuring in this event is Trinidad & Tobago batting all-rounder Kirstan Kalli-

Kirstan Kallicharan

charan, a member of Hetmyer’s successful team at the last Youth World Cup. “This Under-17 tournament is crucial in the development of players in West Indies cricket,” said West, who was head coach of the World champion side. “It is a chance to identify play-

ers to form part of the future of the game in the region. “We played well to win the ICC Youth World Cup earlier this year and we want to continue that success as it brought great joy to the people of the Caribbean. We have Kirstan coming back and he has done well in previous tournaments – and has the benefit of playing at a higher level, so we expect him to demonstrate his immense talent. “A lot of good players have come through this tournament. We also want to make sure we look at all the players, as they move up towards playing in the Professional Cricket League and for the West Indies at the senior international

level.” The RU17 is part of the WICB’s Summer of Cricket which also featured the Regional Under-19 Girls’ Tournament in Trinidad, as well as the ongoing Regional Women’s Tournament in Guyana, along with the upcoming Regional Under-19 Tournament in St. Vincent and the Regional Under-15 Tournament in Grenada. The Under-17 tournament will take place from today, July 11 to Sunday, July 17, with a round-robin format featuring 50-over matches. The matches will be played at Queen’s Park Oval, the National Cricket Centre, Gilbert Park and Inshan Ali Park.

SCHEDULE OF MATCHES Monday, July 11 Trinidad & Tobago vs Windward Islands – Gilbert Park Barbados vs Jamaica – National Cricket Centre Guyana vs Leeward Islands – Island Ali Park Tuesday, July 12 Jamaica vs Trinidad & Tobago – National Cricket Centre Leeward Islands vs Windward Islands – Gilbert Park Guyana vs Barbados – Island Ali Park Thursday, July 14 Trinidad & Tobago vs Leeward Islands – Island Ali Park Jamaica vs Guyana – National Cricket Centre Windward Islands vs Barbados – Gilbert Park Saturday, July 17 Guyana vs Trinidad & Tobago – National Cricket Centre Barbados vs Leeward Islands – Island Ali Park Windward Island vs Jamaica – Queen’s Park Oval

Sunday, July 18 Trinidad & Tobago vs Barbados – Queen’s Park Oval Guyana vs Windward Islands – National Cricket Centre Leeward Islands vs Jamaica – Gilbert Park

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday July 11, 2016

Minister Henry urges development of women in sports as GOA seminar concludes

MINISTER responsible for sport, Nicollette Henry, yesterday implored the women who completed the “GOA Women and Sport Seminar” to go back into their communities and be a beacon in the development of women in sports, while Director of Sport Christopher Jones promised that funding will be made available to the women for such activities Henry and Jones were at the time speaking at the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) Headquarters on High Street at the closing ceremony of the seminar. The seminar was conducted at the National Resource Centre, Woolford Avenue. Henry, who was also present at a panel discussion earlier during the day, noted that while the issues facing women in sports still have some way to go before they could be remedied, each of the participants now has to play her part to help. “I hope that you take away valuable learnings that you can execute and share with your colleagues and charges when you return to your respective communities. Yes, we have a lot of work to do, but I’m confident with you forging forward and tackling the sometimes difficult subject that has risen, progress will be made.” Meanwhile, even as one of the participants noted,

The participants pose with their certificates, sitting are (from left) GOA President K. A. Juman-Yassin, GOA VP, Dr. Karen Pilgrim, UNICEF Representative to Guyana and Suriname, Marianne Flach, and Minister responsible for Sport, Nicollette Henry

her hopes of reviving certain sports such as hockey in the Linden area, Jones assured all those in attendance that the government is especially committed to assisting women’s activities in sports. According to Jones, the problem is not so much getting the funding, as it is finding persons or entities eager to use it. “You can come knocking on my door, the funds are there awaiting you. The government through the 2016 budget has made those allocations available, we place specific emphasis on women and the differently abled to participate

CRICKET QUIZ CORNER

(Monday July 11, 2016) COMPLIMENTS OF THE TROPHY STALL-Bourda Market & The City Mall (Tel: 225-9230) & AUDREY’S TASTY SNACKETTE-176 Charlotte Street, Georgetown (Tel: 226-4512) Answers to yesterday’s quiz: (1) Sulieman Benn (30 runs) (2) Paul Nixon

Today’s Quiz: (1) Who is the captain of the St. Kitts/Nevis Patriots? (2) Which wicketkeeper effected the first stumping in Hero CPL 2016? Answers in tomorrow’s issue

in sports. The challenge, however, that we have at the National Sports Commission is having female representatives coming to the Sports Commission to access those funding.” Jones remarked. Several participants in the event took the opportu-

nity to commend the seminar on how informative and enjoyable it was, and thanked the GOA for making it possible. “The seminar was very informative, I’m happy that I was selected to represent my region, I can now take this information back. The part that especially caught

my attention was the nutrition aspect, now that will be something that I will be looking at come this year Nationals,” said one participant who travelled all the way from Region Five to attend the seminar. The GOA made a particular effort to ensure that participants at the event

were as decentralised as possible, and managed to achieve this aim with the event seeing the participation of persons from nine of Guyana’s total 10 regions. A total of 57 women took part in the seminar which covered women-specific topics such as “Re-positioning Sports to Women,” “Abuse within the Sporting World,” “Benefits of Physical Exercise for Girls and Women.” Yesterday’s session included a presentation by Justice Roxane George on “Abuse Within the Sporting World,” and a motivational address by Top End Training Centre CEO Kezqweyah Yisreal . The day’s activity concluded with a panel discussion on “Barriers that contribute to the gender gap in sport and how to overcome them.” At the head table was fitness instructor Noshavyah King, volleyball coach Leota Langford, Attorney-at-Law Emily Dodson, and Minister Henry.

GAPLF partners with Buddies Gym

BUDDIES gym has committed to the sport of powerlifting by signing on to the remainder of the 2016 calendar with the Guyana Amateur Power Lifting Federation (GAPLF). The partnership will see the gym hosting upcoming events of the GAPLF. Under the new arrangement as well athletes who were selected to represent Guyana at the 14th Annual North American Regional Powerlifting Championships /9th Annual Caribbean Powerlifting Championship (NARPC/CPC),will be able to train at the entity. The NARPC/CPC will be held in St.Croix, US Virgin Islands, from August 14-19. Meanwhile the GAPLF has already sought to use their new agreement to host a bench press competition on July 31 at the Gym. In this event, there will be three weight categories, lightweight (up to and including 66kg), middle-

PRO of the GAPLF collects the letter of partnership from Buddies Gym representatives weight (over 66kg- 93kg) and heavyweight (over 93kg). Competitors can compete individually or as a team, consisting of four males and two females with the competition featuring three judges with a head judge initiating the start and rack commands. Two attempts are al-

lowed per lifter and bouncing the weight from the chest is being allowed, according to Tyron Eusebio, the Public Relations officer of the GAPLF. Athletes and teams who are interested are asked to pay a fee of $2000 per athlete who are competing individually and $3000 per team.

Subsequent to that event, the body will host its R AW c o m p e t i t i o n s l a t e d for September 18 at a venue that’s still to be decided. This RAW event will see athletes in sub-juniors (1419 years), juniors age (19-23 years), open class and masters’ division 1 to 4 competing without full gear.

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Bahamas blowout Guyana 84-57 to lift CBC U16 trophy By Daniel Haynes

THE final game of the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) U16 came to a furious end with the Bahamas closing the tournament storming through the finish line with a blowout 84-57 win over hosts Guyana. Guyana battled back from a monstrous 40 point lead in the fourth quarter in front of the near capacity Cliff Anderson Sports Hall crowd to cut the deficit by 13 points. With that, the game finished with a score of 84-57 and with the win, the Bahamas held onto the gold they had won in the last

championships held in Antigua and Barbuda in 2008. The second place was history for Guyana, who finished with their highest finish after first competing in 1999 when the tournament was also held at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall. The Bahamian side dominated the game from the whistle with their fast pace in transition game. Also playing a huge role for Bahamas was the size the team had in the post. Bahamas opened the highly anticipated matchup with an up-tempo game for a quick 9-1 lead before Kevon Wiggins scored eight straight points for Guyana to tie the game 9-9.

However, the height advantage for the visitors on the offensive end of the court along with their early perimeter shooting gave the Bahamians momentum going into the second quarter with a 30-18 lead. There was nothing Guyana could do despite Wiggins’ 12 first quarter points. The second quarter saw the Bahamas continuing to pound the ball in the paint, with an inside out style of basketball that extended the lead to 28 points by the end of the half. The Guyanese had no answer on defence for the Bahamian while not being able to score on offense and the game went

CBC U16 Male tournament winners Bahamas

into the half 54-26. The third quarter was much of the same, however a change came at the beginning of the fourth quarter with Guyana fighting back to salvage their pride. With the home crowd behind them, Guyana scored 24 fourth quarter points while holding the Bahamians to their lowest quarter total all tournament with 11. “This win was for the fans back home, we came and we did what we had to do” was the Bahamian coach Quentin Hall, commenting on the win. For the Guyanese it was bittersweet, losing in the finals but winning so much

more. According to coach Lugard Mohan and Kenny Avent getting into the FIBA Centro Basket Championships in 2017 was their main goal. “We as a coaching staff are proud of what these kids did today and they defied expectations, Guyana basketball won tonight and we will come back stronger” stated Coach Lugard. For the Bahamas Domnick Bridgewater dropped a game high 34 points to go along with eight steals and received the Most Outstanding Player trophy. Samuel Hunter was the next best contributor with 10 points.

Kevon Wiggins had team-high 25 points and 14 rebounds while Nigel Bowen was the only other player in double digits with 10 points. Meanwhile, Jamaica finished third in the tournament defeating Barbados in a close matchup that saw Jamaica coming back from 10, to win by 8 points 66-58. The male version of the tournament has come to a close and the Bahamas, Guyana and Jamaica have all qualified for the FIBA U17 CentroBasket Championships. The female leg of the CBC U16 Championships l begin tomorrow.

The history-making Guyana team

‘Teach Them Young’ cycle coaching clinic starts today By Michael DaSilva

NATIONAL cycle coach Hassan Mohamed’s 40th annual `Teach Them Young’ cycling coaching clinic gets under way from 09:00hrs today and will be held at the National Park. The three-week programme is one of many `Teach Them Young’ programmes that were initiated in 1976 by then Minister of Sport, the late Shirley Field-Ridley, but cycling is the only such programme that has survived to this date. Back then, there were other `Teach Them Young’ programmes for disciplines such as table tennis, basketball, football, volleyball and

Geron Williams

cricket among others. And it was through this initiative that former Guyana and West Indies cricket captain and former International Cricket Council (ICC) number one cricketer Shivnarine Chanderpaul was spotted by former national off

spinner, the late William Jeffrey, when Chanderpaul was a mere 12-yearold youngster. Another cricketer that was spotted by Jeffrey was former Guyana and West Indies captain Ramnaresh Sarwan. Today there are quite a number of other top sportsmen and women who have benefited from these programmes, but over the years, these programmes with the exception of cycling fell by the wayside. Through Mohamed’s consistency and knowledge, Guyana has been able to produce cyclists that can hold their own at the regional level and even on the international circuit.

Raynauth Jeffrey

Some names that readily come to mind are; Geron “The Lone Soldier” Williams, Scott Savory, Raynauth Jeffrey, Jamal John, and Hamza Eastman. These cyclists over the past year or so have been holding their own on the United States circuit and these very cyclists are products of Mohamed’s `Teach Them Young’ programme. Reeling back the “hands of time,” Mohamed’s programme also produced other national champions, the likes of Hector Edwards, Raymond Newton, the Fiedtkou brothers – Marcus and Noel -, Dwayne Gibbs, Godfrey Pollydore, Linden Dowridge, the James’ brothers – Bertram and

Byron and the list goes on. At the moment, Geron Williams is Guyana’s first and only professional cyclist. He is based in the United States where he is riding for Team Foundation. However, Mohamed’s programme will commence from 09:00hrs to 11:00hrs during the week for another three weeks and persons desirous of being a part of the programme or even parents desirous of having their child or children being involved in the programme, can make contact with Mohamed at the National Park during the training sessions, but those interested must have protective gear.

Bahamas blowout Guyana 84-57 to lift CBC U16 trophy (See Story on page 31)

Trinbago Knight Riders edge Warriors in CPL thriller By Rajiv Bisnauth AN inspiring bowling effort from the Trinbago Knight Riders gave the visitors a morale-boosting seven-run win over the Guyana Amazon Warriors in match eleven of the HERO Caribbean Premier League (CPL) last evening at the National Stadium, Providence. Defending a challenging target of 151 on a difficult pitch, the visitors’ bowlers restricted the Warriors to 144-9 in the stipulated 20 overs. With spinners accounting for thirteen overs it became a herculean task for the Warriors batsmen to negotiate. Left-arm spinner Anton Devcich had 2-17, Sunil Narine 2-25 and Sulieman Benn 1-25, did the damage in the spin department

Man-of-the-Match Hashim Amla drives down the ground (Adrian Narine photos) while Dwayne Bravo and Kevon Cooper also did a commendable job, claiming two wickets apiece. Barring skipper, Martin Guptill half century, the ability to fight was simple not there in the Warriors remaining batsmen whose campaign was unbeaten until this game. The target wasn’t big enough, but the slowness of the track definitely made

things difficult for the home team. With 14 runs needed in the last over, allrounder Cooper held his nerve in ensuring the comfortable victory. Earlier opener and Manof-the-Match Hashim Amla top-scored with an impressive 64 off 54 balls, with six See page 26

The Trinbago Knight Riders celebrating the dismissal of another Warriors wicket.

Euro final..

Portugal snatch glory as Elder stuns France with late strike By Toby Davis PARIS, (Reuters)-Substitute Eder’s thunderous finish deep into extra time secured Portugal’s first European Championship title after they overcame the early loss of Cristiano Ronaldo to snatch a 1-0 smash-and-grab victory over hosts France yesterday. Eder picked the perfect moment to score his first competitive goal for his country, marauding forward before letting fly with a bullet shot from 25 metres in the 109th minute. It was a cruel blow for France, who had dominated the match from and squandered a number of chances, in front of their devastated home support, who arrived at the Stade de France hoping to celebrate a third European crown. The trophy was lifted by Ronaldo, who broke down in tears at the final whistle but whose game had come to a frustrating end after 24 minutes when he was carried crying from the pitch on a stretcher with a knee injury.

“There was a lot of suffering, a very intense game. We fought very hard,” Portugal defender Pepe said. “We had to work very hard and be more humble than the other team, that’s the only way to win. We left it all out there, it’s the only way to win. We represented Portugal, a beautiful country of immigrants and we represent every one of them. This goes out them,” he added. “It was tough to lose our main man. The man who could at any moment score a goal.” So much of the build-up had focused on Ronaldo and his hopes of crowning a glittering career with the only achievement missing from his CV, a piece of international silverware. The script had been written for him to produce a performance to match his status as one of the game’s truly great talents, but he had to settle for a back-stage role after Dimitri Payet’s challenge left him in a

Cristiano Ronaldo (C) of Portugal of lifts the Henri Delaunay trophy at the end of their UEFA EURO 2016 final match against France

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See page 26 MONDAY, JULY 11, 2016