23rd July 2013

Govt mulls legal action to revive hydro project

LIAT lands first flight at Ogle

Trade

ARCC urges opposition’s reversal on hydro project Whittaker urges Rupununi residents to focus on farming

Packed emancipation programme for Berbice

GTA expects increase in tourist arrivals during JulyAugust season

Caricom, UN discuss development issues in New York

Out-of-service steamer drives up food prices in Mabaruma

The lack of an adequate steamer service plying the North West District is having a negative impact on the lives of residents of Region One.

The prices for basic commodities have been on the rise as a shortage in supply is pushing prices upwards. According to some consumers, prices for some basic food items have risen as much as 30 per cent in some parts of the region over the past two months, leading to wide spread panic. “Some of these businessmen are now bringing the things from Venezuela and it is more expensive for flour and so. Basic sugar is now $150 a pound now,” one woman in the Mabaruma Market told Guyana Times

She said that there is need for a larger ferry so that more goods can get to the community in a timely manner. For several months, the MV Kimbia has been out of service and a smaller vessel, the MV Lady Northcote has replaced it. Meanwhile, Region One Chairman Paul Pierre has expressed concerns over the lack of an adequate service. He said since the MV Kimbia was taken out of operation, an adequate ser-

vice has not been provided. “From time to time, food stuff is not getting to the region in the quantities required. It is just that the quantity may be limited. If you have the boat coming here every six weeks, you will have the basic items being limited…”

According to Pierre, with the boat not visiting as regular as needed, foodstuff is in short supply and prices have started to increase in the region. He added that there are several private vessels plying the North West District route, but the cost to use those services is much higher resulting in food items being acquired at higher costs. Consumers are therefore being asked to pay increased prices for food items.

“There is not much the administration can do because it is a free market trade system.” He said at this time, all that the administration can do for residents is to recommend that the smaller vessel make more frequent trips to Region One. Meanwhile, Pierre noted that the Public Works Ministry has committed to get the MV Kimbia back into operation as soon as possible.

Digicel considering 4G, LTE network

By Danielle CampBell-lowe

Digicel’s Chief Executive Officer Gregory Dean said the telecommunications company is intent on upgrading its network to one consistent with a 4G and Long-Term Evolution (LTE) service, as Guyana awaits the passage of the Telecommunications Bill.

During an interaction with the media on Monday, Dean noted that the upgrade to 4G and LTE network is currently being stymied by the lack of certainty in the local market. He explained that such an upgrade would obviously require much more capacity at an affordable price.

Dean divulged that Digicel is interested in moving beyond being a mobile service provider to a comprehensive telecommunications provider with a full range of communication services, including Internet and fixed lines. He added that there are many “grey areas” and problems with the sourcing of bandwidth.

Data services

“There are issues in terms of who can bring in cables and this has even driven the government to bring their own fibre so that they can have bandwidth. In a liberalised sector, every operator will be looking to see from where they can get bandwidth, because once you start offering more and more data services, the key factor is bandwidth into and out of the country,” the CEO said.

Addressing the issue of rates, Dean vowed that with full and open competition, Digicel will guarantee a reduction in international call prices. He noted that rates will come down if competition is alive. “We have seen what happened on the domestic rates when Digicel came in, and we believe the same will occur in an environment of true liberalisation. There’s no reason why this wouldn’t happen.”

Commenting on whether those rates would be on par with those in Caribbean countries, Dean said the major difference between Guyana

and other countries is the population spread in relation to geography and providing services in remote areas. He pointed out that outside of the difference in geography, while other countries may have larger populations, Guyana may have a larger percentage of people in the diaspora.

Liberalisation

Dean explained that liberalisation would translate to open regulation and a simple modus operandi for all companies with no particular party having rights or benefits which other companies cannot access. “In terms of GT&T’s current arrangement, what we expect to see in a liberalised sector is that arrangement being no longer in place. Everyone is on a level playing field with no one having an advantage over the other,” he detailed.

The Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T) currently has a monopoly on landline and international services. Digicel is still awaiting a ruling on the constitutional motion filed in the High Court to decide the constitutionality of that monopoly. Questioned on whether the court ruling can impact other government utilities such as the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) and Guyana Water Inc (GWI), Dean said although those companies do not have a specific monopoly arrange-

ment, this is possible.

In relation to the current legislation before Parliament, Dean noted that the Telecommunications Bill was previously deferred after government had agreed to meet the providers in the market. A consultation was initiated, and the Digicel CEO described the discussions as fruitful. He disclosed that all parties have engaged government on the legislation, as well as the manner in which the sector will be operationalised postmonopoly.

“The bill is now at the parliamentary stage where we expect this to move as quickly as possible,” Dean said. He revealed that Digicel is comfortable operating with the proposed legislation and has had a chance to provide feedback.

“It’s a major step up from where we are currently and as time goes on, we would still like to see flexibility in the legislation, because, as the sector evolves, there would be areas that require further consideration. We would like to see that aspect of the legislation evolving with the sector.”

Expansion of service

The CEO stressed that Digicel is looking to expand services in Guyana’s remote areas and has recently added cell sites in Tumatumari and Micobi as well as along the trail leading to Mahdia.

Another site is expected to be commissioned next month in Matthews Ridge, and a few more sites before the end of the year. Dean explained that the objective of the company has always been to get as much population coverage as possible.

The company is, therefore, placing great focus on expanding the service and upgrade of data services which are poplar and remain in demand. “We remain ready for a liberalised sector; we would like to have certainty in the way we are moving forward. Everyone recognises that there are many benefits, so the sooner the next phase can be completed, the better it is for everyone”, he said.

Govt mulls legal action to revive hydro project

Housing and Water Minister Irfaan Ali said government was examining possible legal recourse to revive the Amaila Falls Hydro Project, following the opposition’s rejection of it last week in Parliament.

Ali, who is also the acting tourism, industry and commerce minister, was at the time addressing a People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) news conference at Freedom House on Monday. He said A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) leader David Granger recently made public statements that the bill could be brought back to Parliament. “If he is honest with his statement, then he has a dutiful ball in his court to bring back the bill, if he believes that they made an error of judgment,” Ali said.

Legal recourse

The minister said Attorney General Anil Nandlall, Government Chief Whip Gail Teixeira and Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh are currently examining legal recourse to get the project back on stream.

The minister said the PPP/C has always held the view that issues of national development and those that seek to improve the lives and living conditions of the people must be dealt with in an unbiased and nationalistic manner. These issues must not be subjected to politicians who seek to use them as a tool to achieve political outcomes.

“It is unthinkable that a project like the Amaila in which almost all Guyanese

and policymakers, historically and present, have unanimously deemed to be beneficial to our people would receive the non-support of the AFC [Alliance For Change] and APNU,” he added.

According to Ali, the opposition’s refusal to speak on the issue in Parliament and to give the people of Guyana a plausible explanation for its actions is not only disrespectful to the country but also abusive of its parliamentary power.

National development Government, he said, believes that the joint intention of the AFC and the APNU is to stymie national development.

“Indeed when their queries are dismantled and explained by the government, they shift their goal post in relation to their support for these projects,” Ali stated.

He said the joint attacks by the AFC and the APNU on national development put in jeopardy not only this project but also the ability to build national consensus.

Ali explained, “A family

paying a $5000 per month for electricity would see a minimum of $1000 reduction in their electricity bill per month as a result of the hydro project.” He said a family paying a bill of $8000 per month would see a minimum reduction of $1600 per month on their bill. Commercial consumers would save $91.3 million monthly or $1.1 billion annually

For example, an average small business spends $15,000 a month on electricity. As a result of the hydro project, this small business would save a minimum of $3000 per month. Industrial consumers would save $84.1 million monthly or $1 billion annually. It is estimated that with the Amaila Falls Hydro Project electricity tariffs could be reduced by as much as 40 per cent.

Public Works Minister Robeson Benn said there was no link between the Amaila Falls Hydro Power Project and government’s support for the local government bills as is being said by the opposition.

Benn said the opposi-

tion’s “non support” of the Amaila Falls project is a real downer and the party is looking forward to any opening that may see the hydropower initiative going forward successfully. He also appealed to the joint opposition to take a position in the interest of the nation with regards to the realisation of the project.

Clarification Minister Benn recalled several meetings were held with the opposition to provide clarification on the project and a site visit was even arranged. He noted that all along there was a general agreement for the project and that suddenly vanished. The government, he said, now gets the impression that the opposition sees the project as one cheap political bargaining tool. “When we did all we need to do and we bring this project to the Parliament, we thought we had the support of the opposition to realise the project, the financing in place, and the contractors. Here, we are being turned aside,” he stated.

Editor: Nigel Williams

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Editorial

Caricom transportation

There are some who advise that it does not serve any purpose to discuss the relevance of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) in the present era. We disagree vehemently. As we were reminded at the 34th Heads of Government meeting at the beginning of this month in Trinidad and Tobago, Caricom was founded 40 years ago with some very specific objectives in mind.

While it may have imitated integration moves in Europe, the founders of the regional integration movement were quite explicit that the litmus test for success or failure would be whether, in the end, the lives of the ordinary Caribbean citizens had been improved by its work.

And to be very candid, by that test, based on the effort and resources expended on the venture, the results have been very paltry. We do not have to conduct any retrospective review to reach this conclusion or to maintain it. Apart from the backslapping that had been scheduled for the 40th anniversary, the leaders gathered for the four-day meet had solemnly promised that “transportation” would be the main item on their agenda.

In fact, Caricom’s Secretary General Irwin LaRocque had emphasised that the summit would specifically consider recommendations from a special Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED), comprising transport ministers from the region who had met in June to discuss the issue.

From the very beginning, with even Caricom’s precursor, the Caribbean Free Trade Association (CARIFTA), transportation challenges had loomed very large for the effort to tie together an archipelago strung along more than 1000 miles of sea – including at the beginning, two on the mainland of South and Central America. The removal of this constraint becomes even more urgent since the raison d’être for the organisation was trade –which was soon ratcheted up to a single market and economy. In the months leading up to the summit, the air transport situation in the region became even more dire and we can utilise this subset to evaluate Caricom’s response to just one challenge.

Since the launch of Caricom, most of the larger territories continued to focus on establishing their own airlines – Trinidad with “British West Indies Airways (BWIA)”, Jamaica with “Air Jamaica”, Guyana with “Guyana Airways Corporation (GAC)”, and new member Suriname with “Suriname Airways” – all servicing mainly the old metropolitan countries. It was left to St Vincent and the Grenadines, Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, and Dominica, to push the sole “regional” airline Leeward Islands Air Transport (LIAT) focusing on intra-regional transportation.

During the four decades of Caricom’s existence, the airline industry had demonstrated time and again that it was one of the most competitive and cutthroat in the world. Even globe straddling pioneers such as Trans World Alliance (TWA) and Pan American World Airways had long disappeared. Air Jamaica foundered and was absorbed by Caribbean Airlines Limited (CAL), which had succeeded the bankrupt BWIA – but was itself on the ropes. The GAC had folded at the beginning of the millennium and its private successors had also crumbled.

Before the meeting, Prime Minister of St Vincent, Ralph Gonsalves had pointed out the deleterious effect Trinidad’s subsidies to CAL (US$40 million last year) was having on LIAT’s bottom line and promised to bring this up. The subsidy was, of course, against the principles of the Caricom Treaty and its Common Air Services Agreement.

Imagine then, the sentiments of regional observers at the blandness, not to mention baldness, of the final communiqué of the summit on transportation:

“Heads of government with regard to the re-introduction of the Single Domestic Space (SDS) in the interest of hassle-free travel in the region has mandated the Caricom Secretariat in collaboration with Caricom Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS) and other relevant agencies to coordinate and commence discussions on the strategy for the reintroduction of the SDS. They referred a number of issues in this sector to the Bureau of Heads of Government, including better coordination among airlines in the region, with a view to providing a better service.”

If this does not make Caricom irrelevant, what else does?

Feelin hot, hot, hot!!!

Police should check for marijuana cultivation

Dear Editor,

After reading what took place at the farm in Aradio Creek, I think police need to raid, or at least make searches in more areas, where it is likely that marijuana can be planted. I get the impression that a lot of small scale marijuana farming is taking place in Guyana. It bothers me that quite a few people

are seemingly doing nothing, but yet they make good money, always flashing it around.

The police must be street savvy. A lot of people seem to be going this route – they get a piece of land and they plant the stuff. Some of them even employ a hand or two. The end result is that the stuff is being peddled in

our streets. This is where the street sense comes in.

Police need to act on tip-offs and they even need to encourage it.

I think that if people own farms and have friends and relatives utilising them, there must be some kind of monitoring to make sure that nothing illegal is taking place. If owners want to dis-

tance themselves, then they should not allow anyone on the farm.

Who knows, it could be that many of these owners know what is happening and are indeed a part of the whole scheme. It is worth checking out.

Yours sincerely, Genevieve Collymore

Wheelchairs for the disabled is just one small step

Dear Editor,

A single manual wheelchair can run up to 100 U.S. dollars. So I am very elated that the minister of health received 30 of these from the Sai Baba organisation. These will soon be handed over to various persons living with disabilities. I know that of recent, a lot of strides have been made, where helping the disabled is concerned. I have to admit, that infrastructurally, a lot has to be done, but some things can happen in a short space of time.

Any wheelchair user, in

any part of the world needs a wheelchair-accessible vehicle, to facilitate travel. This is an area that we can look at here. Our roads, driveways and buildings may take some time getting ready for wheelchair users, but for sure, we can do some kind of accommodation, where vehicles are concerned. We have to find a way to get these physically challenged people to and from their destinations, especially when it comes to their visiting places of necessities. I think of the banks, hospitals, etc. The limitations of inad-

equate and ineffective vehicle and infrastructure design impact terribly on disabled people. They feel doubly frustrated at times.

I know that in many developed countries, a kind of regular and periodic visiting time is arranged, where a government vehicle, equipped to transport wheelchair victims, comes and helps out. This is some food for thought. I think that, depending on the size of the private taxi companies, some kind of discussion can be planned. These companies can help out by converting just a few of

their vehicles, so that they can accommodate wheelchairs. Like I said, many of the considerations that we are toying with (as regards wheelchair victims) are most difficult to deal with. So we have to start small. Yes, we visit their homes and do a lot of stuff, both medically and recreationally. However, these people want to go out of their homes too. We can start with just a few vehicles.

Yours, Khamrul Baksh

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Opposition manoeuvring

Dear Editor,

On that august date of July 18 when the Amaila Falls Hydropower Projectrelated matters were scheduled for approval in our 10th Parliament, the joint opposition came to Parliament with the intent to manoeuvre out of dealing with the Amaila matters.

These matters were scheduled for debate since June 27, but were pushed back on the request of the opposition. During June and July, multiple meetings were held with the opposition at the Office of the President to address concerns of the opposition on passing the Amaila matters.

The focus seemed to be on dealing with other nonrelated matters on which the government had already given the opposition its view. On July 17, one day before the scheduled debate, no less that the Caribbean country director came to Guyana and engaged the opposition on the importance of dealing with the matters on hand, stating that such matters have to be resolved before the matters can go to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) board.

It was stated that Amaila was slated for the October 30 board meeting (last Wednesday of October) and various internal approvals on Amaila were scheduled for August. As such, there was no longer any buffer in terms of time to proceed with the legislative matters.

Delaying tactics

But on that July 18, the opposition started to manoeuvre again to avoid dealing with Amaila. So without notifying the government, it sought to use its one-seat

majority to have a motion to re-order the sequence of business. The published order paper of the format and order for matters to be proceeded on, provided for the Amaila matters to be voted on prior to the four local government bills. But Basil Williams on behalf of the opposition put forward a motion to re-order the business, so that the local government bills could be debated first.

In essence, a tactic to delay Amaila yet again. Despite the local government bills being deemed to be government business and requiring government to lead on this, the opposition by changing the order, was seeking to force the government to bring this forward, ahead of Amaila.

Abuse

This is despite knowing the importance of Amaila and the urgency of addressing this matter. So our opposition passed by one vote a motion to change the order of business.

But the government side held its ground. This abuse of the parliamentary majority would not be allowed to go through. The government members of Parliament sat in stony silence when the local government bills were called by the Speaker of the House. The Speaker made reference to a U.S.-USSR engagement, where the USSR said it was willing to wait until hell freezes over for an answer.

But again no one from the government benches rose. The continued silence eventually forced the Speaker to call for a recess. The silence continued after the recess. A first in the Parliament of Guyana. Clearly not contemplated by our Constitution.

Finally, the Speaker made reference to a text called “Parliamentary Practice” by Erskine Mays, a text widely regarded as the authority on parliamentary practice in Westminster parliaments, and stated that in such a situation, the local government bills would be deemed “dropped”.

Horse trading

The bills that the opposition sought to foist on the government ahead of the Amaila matters were dropped from the agenda for that day. Chief Whip Gail Teixeira said that the government would be willing to come back on July 19 to deal with these matters. At day’s end, the bills are scheduled for debate on Thursday, July 26.

And so Amaila came back up. The prime minister started off the debate. At 16:15h, the Speaker asked for the break/recess with the intent to return to Parliament at 17:15h. And so the horse trading started in the back rooms of the Parliament. The opposition wanted support for the local government bills; the government said it opposed two of these – a position that the government as the executive was again being sidestepped, like the proposal on the Public Procurement Commission.

But the government, despite being held hostage, in the nation’s interest, conceded that if it got support for the Amaila matters, it would support all four local government bills, despite its reservations.

The opposition was not willing to commit. At best, it wanted the local government bills to come first, and then it would deal with Amaila. And it would not agree to

deal with the motion.

So the back-room negotiations on seeking compromise resulted in government saying that it would support the bills for local government (all four) in exchange for Amaila, but the opposition parties were not willing to support Amaila. These details were revealed by the chief whip during the parliamentary debate.

And so, on what could have been an important date for our Parliament, cooperation was scuttled by the refusal of the opposition parties to give support to Amaila. Despite their utterances, on the day in question, their actions showed that they were not interested in national development.

On July 18, the opposition voted down the Amaila Falls matters by using its-one-seat majority. A parliamentary day punctuated with opposition maneuvering, and when confronted face to face with

the Amaila matters, the opposition simply voted “no”. They could not even care to debate Amaila, one of the most important projects of our country.

Lost opportunity

A lost opportunity of years of cooperation and discussions. On that day of July 18, the opposition by voting “no”, made that blow to Amaila that could very well cost Guyana the project, as currently configured. In the wake of the opposition vote, Opposition Leader David Granger is reported to say the following day (July 19) that the matters can come back to Parliament, but does he not know that a Standing Order prohibits matters rejected from coming back to that Parliament. But for the public at large, a small ray of hope, to bring Amaila back from the brink.

As the dust settles and the window of time closes

for realising the IDB board approval and the Amaila transaction this year, there are rallying calls from all private sector groups to get Amaila back on track. Our opposition leaders need to stand up and state clearly what they will do.

Let’s put aside our differences, compromise, and pass the four local government bills and the motion and bill for Amaila. A position that the government said it would support on July 18, despite its strong reservations on two of the four local government bills. When July 26 comes around, can we cooperate and say “yes”. Can we not find a way around the standing order and bring back these two Amaila matters? Let’s work to do this please. Time is running out quickly.

Respectfully yours, R

Thomas

Time to up the ante in crime fighting

Dear Editor,

There has been a spate of incidents of break and enter and larceny in Berbice. However, the whole thing is beginning to look ludicrous, as now the home of a serving member of the Guyana Police Force was broken into, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and jewellery were stolen.

Now must be action time. When police are targeted, it is time for a concerted and constant response, bordering on an emergency situation. I shud-

der at the thought that lawmen here have to cringe in fear because of criminal elements. Crime must not be the norm.

I was told that, in some places, right here in Guyana, police know what the happenings are, but it is as though these dangerous zones are offlimits to them.

Even the Guyana Police Force is admitting that it got stumped with the recent crime spate. So one thing I can suggest is more patrols and even a curfew in some areas. This curfew thing is not being outlandish. In India, security forces are enforcing a strict one in Srinagar and other major towns of the Indian administered Kashmir so as to stymie protests that may lead to all kinds of criminal acts. The move is very preventive, and this is always the better way to go. It is time to try something different when traditional methods are being bested.

Respectfully, Cedric Wills

Page Foundation

BY AMY DYCK

One of the constant struggles that pet families deal with is keeping the house clean. With pets, if it’s not copious amounts of hair, it’s muddy paws, drool, poo in the backyard, or nose prints on the windows. Here are 10 tips on how to keep your home (relatively) clean with pets.

Leave messes at the door

Pets got out. Messes come in. But your pet isn’t going to wait for you to run to the cupboard and grab a rag every time they come in. So keep your house clean by having something ready right at the door. There are many microfibre towels on the market specifically for pet paws. They are great for paw messes because they remove more dirt and water than standard towels. Also perfect for removing water quickly from wet pets.

Or use a multi-use premoistened wipe like Earth

friendly products pet cleaning wipes. I love these because they are easy to store and use wherever you need them.

Tackle dirty paws before they happen

Another effective way to keep pet paws (and your house) clean? Use pet boots in messy seasons. Everyone knows there are dog boots for winter, but did you know there are boots you can use in the warmer months, too?

Use furniture covers

There are convenient furniture covers out now that make it easy to keep pet hair (and other messes) from your couches and chairs. These washable covers are easy to remove when guests visit unannounced.

Does your pet have a favourite spot on the couch? No need for a special furniture cover. Just use a thin pet mat or bed to designate “their spot”. Your pet will probably love the extra

comfort.

Vacuum and sweep often, brush more

There’s no quick fix to shedding pets. Most pets shed. But, there are some things you can do to control the mess. First, brush, brush, brush your pets. Invest in a high-quality deshedding brush such as the Furminator. I can’t stress how much a quality brush decreases the time spent brushing and improves your results. Brush frequently at first – even daily – until the amount of shed hair decreases substantially.

Vacuum and sweep. Invest in a good vacuum and microfibre broom. Check Consumer Reports – not always the best vacuums for pet hair mention pets in the title at all. For pet hair, microfibre is just a necessity.

Use enzyme cleaners

For the best clean, use an enzyme cleaner from the

How to

keep

your house clean with pets

start. I can’t sing enough praises for Nature’s Miracle Stain and Odour Remover. Use on any organic messes – pet urine and faeces, vomit, drool, blood, grass, dirt, and even food. A good enzyme cleaner can also help you house train effectively. If your pet smells an old mess, they are more likely to poo or urinate there again. (Other pets may follow suit, too!) Enzyme cleaners actually eat away the proteins that make up the mess, so there’s nothing left to smell.

Say no to tracking Does your cat track litter all over the house? I’m surprised how far away from the box litter can actually make it. Even socalled trackless litters find their way out of the box. Place a specially designed litter track mat, or a textured mat, like many welcome mats, in front of your cat’s litter box. I’ve seen quite a few DIY projects that include a manda-

tory walkway for your cat to tread that will remove any litter stuck to their paws.

Keep air fresh

Keeping air fresh – really fresh – means more than lighting a candle or spraying an aerosol. If you have pets, investing in a quality air filter is a good idea.

HEPA air filters are downright essential if someone in your family has asthma or mild allergies. Remember to replace filters often.

For incidentals, enzyme sprays eliminate smells at their source, without lacing your air with nasty chemicals. Make sure your litter box has a carbon filter to keep bad smells in. Remember to replace it every one to three months to keep it fresh.

Keep bathing to a minimum

Unless your pet is really dirty, keep bathing to once every two weeks or less for dogs. Most cats can bathe themselves and do not need

baths. Too much bathing can dry out the skin causing even more shedding as well as skin flaking, which contributes to dust.

Pick up poo

Okay, so this may technically fall outside of your house, but don’t underestimate the value of a clean yard. Nothing like stepping in poo to ruin the mood of an outdoor party. Instead of cleaning up poo only in the spring and fall, do a quick once a week pick-up. It will take much less time and won’t seem like an overwhelming task. If you can, get your pet to poo in only one area. Use a Pee Post or collect your pet’s poo and place it in one area of the yard. Pets like to go where they’ve gone before, so your pet may just like his private potty. Another option? Porch potties.

And, to keep your neighbourhood clean and your neighbours happy, always, always pick up your pet’s poo while going for a walk. Earth Rated Poop Bags can attach to your leash. They smell great, too, so your walk doesn’t have to be tainted with a smelly reminder of your dog’s business.

Wash your pet supplies

Washing your pet’s bed regularly keeps hair from tracking, reduces the likelihood of pest contamination, and keeps your house smelling fresh. Wash your pet’s bed in the laundry machine (check the fabric first) or spot clean using an enzyme based cleaner. Use a cleaner that is gentle and won’t irritate your pet’s skin. There are pet-friendly laundry detergents such as Earth Friendly Products ECOS detergent that are both tough on stains and odour and sensitive on skin. This is especially helpful for pets with skin allergies. Don’t just stop at the bed – most pet blankets and toys can also be washed.

Also, rinse bowls and food dishes at least once a week. Many dishes are dishwasher safe, but always check first. Keeping your pet’s food mat and the surrounding area clean decreases the risk of bacterial infection. (Homes Alive)

LIAT lands first flight at Ogle

– Benn says operations will help regional connections

By SaBatini DanielS

IAT Airlines land-

Led its inaugural official flight at the Ogle International Airport on Monday at 15:30h which departed Grantley Adams International Airport at 12:30h filled to capacity.

Present to witness touchdown of the 50-seater Dash 8 aircraft was Transport Minister Robeson Benn, who stated that one of the barriers for the Caribbean has been regional connections.

He noted that LIAT’s operation out of Ogle will help to address this issue. “So, not only are we resolving the problem with respect to Ogle and the Caribbean region, but we are also laying basis and foundation for reaching further afield into South America with these types of aircraft”.

The minister cited northern Brazil, Venezuela, Suriname and French Guiana as possible destinations. He posited too that

miles away from the airport and business meetings are constantly held there.

The minister also thanked all the developmental partners especially the European Union for making the project possible.

“I remember the interest from former President Bharrat Jagdeo in this project, and Finance Minister Ashni Singh and I want to

countered, but the ministry; the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority; airport employees; and relevant authorities such as the Customs AntiNarcotics Unit (CANU) will work together to ensure persons do not get away with breaking the law.

Ogle Airport security consultant Harold Hopkinson said the airport has learnt from the Cheddi Jagan

with the upcoming football world cup and Olympic Games in Brazil, the transportation issue needs to be tackled aggressively.

He said the Ogle International Airport is a transformational initiative that the government and private sector came together to accomplish, with the aim of enhancing air transportation in and out of the country.

Benn disclosed that there has been great interest at the level of Caricom with respect to this particular project, since the regional bloc’s headquarters is not more than three

acknowledge their efforts, contributions and foresight with respect to having the realisation of this transformational project,” he added.

Turning to security at the airport, the transport minister has ensured that all basic steps have been taken to make sure the airport is a secure facility.

“There are over 30-something cameras around the facility with respect to being able to access both air side and land side… I also noticed the dog which sniffs substances,” Benn noted.

He stated that persons who want to engage in illegal activities will always be en-

International Airport’s security mishaps: “We will not make those basic mistakes, and we have a competent team of persons that will stem the tide of illegal narcotics and drugs; we have CANU and the police… we have a constant report and we share information; therefore, we have a good thing going.”

He reiterated that the cameras are effective, adding that they work 24 hours and have backup systems in place, in case something goes wrong. “If so, we can go and find what that mistake is, and go and deal with it condignly,” he assured.

Local Adventists hosting women’s congress from Wednesday

Guyana will host the 2013 Women’s Ministries Congress of the Caribbean Union of Seventh-Day Adventists from July 24 to 28, a forum which will tackle several key issues, organisers said.

ence, but with meeting people from different cultures.”

This publication also took the opportunity to speak to several passengers who gave their opinion on LIAT’s new operation out of the Ogle Airport.

Pansy Raphael said, “The flight was very smooth, it came on time which I am happy for and it came close to where I am living, I live in Campbellville, so I just have a five minutes drive to get home.”

Andrew Mitchell, who is a visitor from Antigua, said, “It was an excellent flight; the pilot did a great job and it was very nice to come in this side of the country.” (sabatinid@guyanatimesgy.com)

The highly anticipated event which is expected to attract over 400 participants from overseas will be hosted under the theme, “Love in Action”. Caribbean Union, Women and Children Ministries Director, Pastor Claudette Andrews said the main aim of event is to showcase the love of God and motivate the attendees to follow God’s teachings.

“If people young and old, rich and poor recognise how much God loves us, they would have more fulfilling lives and they will relate to others better… we are going to be teaching strategies, we want people to know how to reciprocate love of God.” She stated that a lot of opportunities will also be provided for fellowshipping and networking for persons at the event.

Andrews encouraged persons to come out and support the various events, while promising a life changing experience for all those in attendance. “Your philosophy of life is going to be positively impacted, so come and enjoy this enriching experience not only with the theme of the confer-

The event will open on Wednesday evening with the feature address being delivered by Human Services and Social Security Minister Jenifer Webster. On Thursday, persons will engage in mission activities; hence, they will visit the Davis Memorial Hospital Paediatric Ward, the Millicent Greaves Memorial Senior Citizens’ Home and the Enterprise Primary School to carry out these duties. On Friday, the conference will host a seminar. While on Saturday at 9:00h, there will be a grand worship service and on Saturday afternoon, participants will go to the Eccles area to do a community outreach for neighbouring communities.

At this event, the Davis Memorial Mobile Unit will be present to do health screening; there will also be a puppet show for children, story time and a street concert. On Sunday, persons at the conference will have an Amerindian experience as they will travel to Bethany Mission to do a health screening and distribute hampers.

Among topics to be addressed are domestic violence, the intellectual growth of the human being, health issues, diet and spirituality and preparing for retirement.

tuesday, july 23, 2013|

ARCC urges opposition’s reversal on hydro project

The National Association of Regional Chambers of Commerce (ARCC) has registered its utter dismay at “the irrational and anti-investment action” of members of the combined parliamentary opposition by their rejection of the Hydro-Electric Power (Amendment) Bill. The opposition on

Thursday night voted down the hydroelectric bill and the motion to raise the debt ceiling on loans – legislation necessary to the advancement of the multibilliondollar Amaila Falls hydro project. The opposition was angered by government’s refusal to take forward the four local government reforms bills when that matter came up for debate ear-

lier in the day.

The ARCC said, “These lawmakers have by their deafening inaction: undermined solid efforts by government to catalyse the rotation of our wheels of industry; stultified structured attempts to leapfrog business growth; and retarded Guyana’s competitiveness together with the nation’s modernisation trajectory.”

The grouping is calling for an urgent revision and reversal of this stance through open-minded dialogue and a speedy return to the established parliamentary process to unanimously pass the measures contained in the amendment, in the interest of non-partisan politics, unfettered patriotism, and a bright future for all Guyanese.

Mason remanded for stabbing ex-girlfriend

Aman appeared before Chief Magistrate Priya SewnarineBeharry in the Georgetown Magistrate Courts on Monday charged with unlawful wounding.

It is alleged that on July 19 in Port Kaituma, Seon Jones unlawfully and maliciously wounded his former girlfriend Yonette Barrington. He pleaded not guilty to the charge read against him.

According to Prosecutor

Vernetté Pindar, on the day in question, around 19:45h, the virtual complainant was standing at a shop when she saw the defendant. She called out to him and he became annoyed that she had returned to Port Kaituma without informing him.

He dealt her a punch to her face and pulled a knife from his pants waist before stabbing her repeatedly about the breasts, forearms, and other parts of her body. Barrington sought

medical attention at a hospital in Port Kaituma and was transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital where she is still a patient. When the allegation was put to the defendant, he admitted orally to the offence and was arrested and charged, the prosecution added.

Jones was represented by Attorney Trenton Lake, who stated that his client is a mason and has a fixed place of abode at 48 Neems Public Road, West Bank Demerara.

In applying for reasonable bail, the defence attorney said his client has no previous convictions or any pending matters in court.

The prosecution objected to bail on grounds that the virtual complainant is still hospitalised and that the defendant has another domestic violence matter at Matthews Ridge involving the VC.

Bail was refused and the matter was transferred to Matthews Ridge for August 6.

Dangerous driver jailed for five years

Aman was convicted of causing death by dangerous driving and sentenced to five years in prison by Magistrate Judy Latchman on Monday at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

On November 15, 2011, at Abary Barker Road,

30-year-old Kevin Hope, of Lot 12 M Lamaha Springs, Georgetown drove minibus BMM 9334 in a manner dangerous to the public. On the day in question, around 10:00h, the defendant was driving the minibus east along the northern lane of Abary Barker Road and had

started to overtake two cars at a fast pace. In doing so, he ran down 40-year-old Patrice Welcome who was on motorcycle CJ 197 which was proceeding west along the southern lane. Welcome fell to the road’s surface, sustaining injuries about his body and died on the spot. Hope first appeared before Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry and got bail in the sum of $200,000 on November 17, 2011. The matter was transferred to Court Three and had the court’s attention for some time.

Eyew tness

Indelible stripes...

...of the PNC

The People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) just held its second General Assembly for the year. Its leader declared that the party has to serve its “constituents” and in alliterative language of the military it must “rebuild, recruit, and reorganise”. While unsaid, there was no doubt that all of this was towards the old goals, as articulated by then PNCR executive, Raphael Trotman, to “oppose, expose and depose” the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government. Some things never change – excepting rhymes to alliteration. It’s just semantics.

But in a way, that’s not bad in itself – we all need some constants in life. Otherwise life would be just too unpredictable, won’t it?? Take some of the recent moves of the PNCR. At the general assembly, Regional 10 Chairman Sharma Solomon was rewarded for his role in the protest at Linden to block the bridge by getting a seat on the central executive committee.

Just last week, the PNCR had made two moves designed to rally its “constituents”. It moved the commemoration of the sinking of the Son Chapman (during the 1964 “disturbances”!!) 18 miles from the spot where the tragedy took place to the centre of Linden. So every day, the PNCR’s Linden constituents can be reminded of that event. Nothing wrong in that...but as we’ve said before, “what about the 3000 plus men, women and children who were driven from Linden the week before the Son Chapman sank?

Because they weren’t the “PNCR’s constituency”, they ought not be remembered? Did they not also bleed and suffer and cry? How do we “forget” such an ethnic cleansing when, in addition, over 200 houses and businesses, owned by those who fled, were burnt to the ground? Then last week the PNCR also organised a monument to those who were killed last year – even though the Commission of Inquiry declared that the PNCR organisers pushed them into an illegal act. Exactly what signal is the PNCR sending to the rest of Guyana? Seems to us it’s saying it only represents one section of Guyana. And it doesn’t give a hoot what anyone else thinks. They used to at least go through the motions pretending it was “multi- racial”. But with the passing of the eternal bridesmaid but never bride, Chairman Winston Murray, seems they’ve dumped that line.

All of this atavism that harks back to the darkest period of our nation’s history doesn’t bode well for our country’s peace much less its development. Imagine if the insurance for “political risk” for the Amaila Falls Hydro Electric Project was US$50 million, what’s it going to be with the PNCR in its old war mode?

...of the AFC

As Macbeth committed his foul deeds in his obscene quest for power, he had his three witches (the “weird sisters”) stirring the foul cauldron, chanting, “Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and cauldron bubble”. They promised, “Fair is foul, and foul is fair” as they greeted Macbeth: “All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter!”

Well, the Alliance For Change (AFC) only has two witches – Rose and Singh – but they stirred their cauldron vigorously as they saluted Nigel Hughes and his call for street protests to remove the PPP/C government. “All hail, Nigel, who shall be king” –after presumably getting silk. We say once again: what manner of creatures are we, when we allow an opposition-controlled legislature to kill the biggest investment the government proposed – yet call for removal of a government through protests?

Will even seizing the reins of government satisfy such men? We doubt it. Look where such over vaulting ambition got Macbeth. The AFC and its witches aren’t concerned about the consequences of street protests. They must be stopped.

...of the faithful

We’re not sure whether its poignant or pathetic but did you catch Aubrey Norton plugging away in Linden for them to throw down their buckets – even as he was barred from attending the PNCR’s General Council? Is he even a member?

Women are more vocal against domestic violence – WAD

Limacol CPL tickets going fast – events operations manager …

as final week approaches before inaugural tournament

Women Across Differences

(WAD) Coordinator Clonel SamuelsBoston believes more Guyanese women are becoming aware of the need to speak out against domestic violence to put an end to the scourge.

She gave her views on the issue during an interview with Guyana Times Samuels-Boston, who has worked with women of all ages and backgrounds across Guyana for a number of years, said more women are being empowered to raise their voices without fear of further abuse.

This, she said, is as a result of awareness programmes being conducted countrywide by various institutions. “Women are being empowered and they understand their rights. That is the reason why they’re speaking out now, so I must say there is a change,” she noted.

“The whole issue of domestic violence is no longer a private matter, it is now becoming a public matter, and the women understand and they would not stay in an abusive relationship.”

Samuels-Boston also pointed out that WAD has, and continues, to play its part in a number of Guyana’s regions to highlight the need for women to speak out, in order to draw

WAD Coordinator Clonel Samuels-Boston

attention to authorities to address such matters.

“Our focus really is on a number of areas. We focus on the area of personal development; we also focus on the area of gender development, entrepreneurial development, leadership skills, gender-based violence, community development, and positive parenting skills,” she pointed out. However, while efforts are being made to educate women, Samuels-Boston said more work needs to be done with young boys and men, who are mostly listed as perpetrators, according to media reports and statistics. The WAD coordinator noted that reports of the scourge occurring in today’s society are evidence that “it is not wholly under-

stood as yet”.

As such if agencies continue to work in collaboration to address the issue, the wider population will be sensitised, she posited.

Head of the Medical Council of Guyana, Dr Vivienne Mitchell-Amata, earlier this year condemned the increase in domestic violence in Guyana and called for greater collaboration among doctors, therapists, and counsellors.

Dr Mitchell-Amata said the root cause of domestic violence within society is experiences faced in childhood; therefore, more emphasis needs to be placed on children.

In its 2012 Human Rights Report on Guyana, the United States government said domestic violence and violence against women, including spousal abuse, was widespread, and crosses racial and socioeconomic lines.

Court records show that there were 279 domestic violence cases filed during the year, with 143 persons convicted.

According to the United Nations, globally 603 million women live in countries where domestic violence is not yet considered a crime. Up to 70 per cent of women in the world report having experienced physical and/or sexual violence at some point in their lifetime.

Packed emancipation programme for Berbice

New Amsterdam will come alive on July 28 as the Council for Friends of New Amsterdam (COFONA) kicks off two weeks of emancipation activities to observe the commemoration of the Berbice Slave Rebellion.

On Sunday, all roads lead to the opening ceremony of the 250th anniversary celebration of the Berbice Slave Rebellion at State House Berbice. COFONA President and Founder, Dr Leonard Lewis said this year is a special year for people of African descent and Guyanese as a whole.

“This year is a special year, because we are celebrating our 250th anniversary slavery rebellion, 175th emancipation anniversary, and several other anniversaries,” Lewis said. He noted that a number of significant anniversaries will be celebrated during this year, all of which reflect on the struggle to end slavery.

“We have planned, two

weeks of activities through the COFONA and this will be more special, because we will be hosting the activities in Berbice, the place where the rebellion actually happened,” he added.

Even while the Berbice Slave Rebellion is celebrated nationally, Lewis said this will be even more significant when held in Berbice.

Additionally, an international conference will be hosted in commemoration of the Berbice Slave Rebellion.

Meanwhile, playwright Leon Saul explained that the COFONA group will be guiding the two-week long activities. Charmaine Blackman, Bonny Alves, Cliver Atwell, and Max Massiah are among those participating in the play that will be staged during the event.

“It’s going to see a mix of people, young and old, who all worked together to make sure that the play revitalises and show off the

culture of the event,” he said.

Some of the other activities include panel presentations on the rebellion, morning services, workshops, and fun days.

With the inaugural Limacol Caribbean Premier League (CPL) just about a week away, ticket sales for the local leg of the tournament are going at a rapid rate, according to local Events Operations Manager Alex Graham.

Graham said the Limacol CPL, as expected for the Twenty20 (T20) format of the game, is attracting a multitude of fans. He said tickets are on pace to be sold out probably before July 31, when the first game is slated to be played at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence, East Bank Demerara.

Opening game

Graham also urged cricket fans to secure their tickets early, as two of the stands are almost sold out. With time drawing nearer, Graham expects the stadium to be sold out, as more persons are likely to rush to purchase their tickets closer to the opening game in Guyana and over the coming weekend, which also happens to be the month-end.

In an exclusive interview with Guyana Times on Monday, the event operations manager also provided an update on preparations for the Limacol CPL in Guyana. He said more than 90 volunteers from across the country gathered at the National Stadium on Sunday for a training session, aimed at ensuring

their readiness for the greatest party in sports.

Graham said the volunteers, most with experience from previous similar events, were trained in nine functional areas for the matches, including cricket operations, event support, media and accreditation, customer service, hospitality, and entertainment.

Some 135 volunteers will be placed in the different job areas to ensure spectators have a comfortable and wonderful time.

The tournament will bowl off on July 30 and conclude on August 24. Guyana Times reporter Treiston Joseph spoke with Graham earlier today. All matches in Guyana will be played at the National Stadium on July 31, August 2, and August 4.

Tickets The Limacol CPL ticketing office is located on Middle Street at the former Del Casa Restaurant building, or two buildings east of Mario’s Pizza/Camex Restaurants Inc and is open for transactions every day.

The ticket office is open from Monday to Saturday from 09:00h to 18:00h and on Sunday from 10:00h to 14:00h. Tickets are also available at the Courts Main

Street, Georgetown and Diamond Public Road, East Bank Demerara locations, as well as at the Digicel Avenue of the Republic, Georgetown office and at its New Amsterdam, Rose Hall, Corriverton, Parika, and Anna Regina locations during normal working hours.

Tickets for Guyana’s Amazon Warriors’ first two games on July 31 and August 2 against Trinidad and Tobago’s Red Steel and Jamaica’s Tallawahs are: South West Stand (Green Stand) – $2500 (US$12.50); North West Stand (Red Stand) – $2000 (US$10); South Stand (Orange Stand) – $2000 (US$10); and Grass Mound/Party Stand – $1500 (US$7.50). Both games start at 20:00h.

Ticket prices for the double header on August 4 are: South West Stand (Green Stand) – $3500 (US$17.50); North West Stand (Red Stand) – $3000 (US$15); South Stand (Orange Stand) –$3000 (US$15) and Grass Mound/Party Stand –$2000 (US$10). Antigua Hawksbills will play Jamaica Tallawahs from 15:00h while Guyana Amazon Warriors will clash with St Lucia Zouks in the feature game from 20:00h.

Whittaker urges Rupununi residents to focus on farming

Junior Local Government and Regional Development Minister Norman Whittaker last weekend told residents of South Rupununi that there is more guarantee in farming than mining and that they should get back to planting.

Whittaker was among several government ministers who had embarked on another outreach into South Central Rupununi, Region Nine, where they met with several communities. These meetings gave the ministers and, by extension, the government insight into progress in the communities and the residents, in turn, had the opportunity to share their concerns and suggestions, the Government Information Agency (GINA)

reported. Whittaker and his team met residents of Katuur, Baitoon, Potarinau, Parikwarunau, Kumu, and Haiwa during July 20-21. From the onset of his engagements, Whittaker emphasised that investments are being made to develop Guyanese, based on the principles of the founder of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), the late Cheddi Jagan, who while in office, sought to meet the needs of the working class people, the poor and vulnerable, and the indigenous people.

Minister Whittaker stressed that this principle was instilled in those who served in the PPP/C government and is still being promoted by the current presi-

dent, Donald Ramotar. He added that the meetings function as consultations for the 2014 budget cycle, since preparations for next year’s budget will commence shortly. In this regard, residents were urged to make suggestions as to what should be priority projects.

Education

The minister also highlighted that education is one of the key elements that take people out of poverty and can be considered as a liberator.

“In the process of educating our children, some of them will go on to bigger things, some of them may come back to visit, but you should take pride in knowing that whilst the presidents of

the past did not make provisions for your children’s education and elevation in life, under the PPP/C government you have been able to realise this dream,” he said.

Minister Whittaker explained that while these developments are ongoing, the government cannot undertake them all at the same time. In this regard, he urged the residents to get more involved in agriculture which would not only provide food for the family, but also serve as a means of income.

These practices, he noted, ensure sustained livelihoods. The minister explained that with farming, there is more certainty of outcome, but with mining, there is not; hence, the importance of farming.

Development

Minister Whittaker emphasised that regardless of the challenges, the government is committed to working with the people to continue their development. He illustrated that in relation to the road linkages between Regions Eight and Nine, for the 2014 budget, consideration can be made to give the communities, which include Turuka, Monkey Mountain, Tusening and Cheiong Mouth, funding for them to build sections of the road.

He also identified the developments that have occurred in the villages, and commended the residents for their contributions to the realisation of the projects.

FAO making progress, but still has work to do – UK

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has made good progress in the last two years, but much remains to be done, according to a new report published by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID).

The DFID’s update report on FAO comes just over two years after DFID’s Multilateral Aid Review (MAR), which rated FAO as “poor value for money” for the British taxpayer. The report recognises the complex challenge of implementing long overdue changes to FAO and the considerable progress made in the last two years.

Weaknesses

DFID released summary MAR Update reports on 24 agencies on Thursday. Eighteen more will be published later this year. Each report shows how well DFID thinks agencies have done to address weaknesses identified by their original MAR in 2011. FAO and 11 other

agencies have made “reasonable progress” since 2011, according to DFID, while 12 organisations have made “some progress”.

Particularly satisfying is that the DFID report embraces the vision underpinning the changes being made at FAO. It understands that the aim of change is to maximise the ability of all FAO staff to make a difference to hunger through their work, regardless of location or job description.

Focus on results

“Organisational change is introducing a new focus on results across the organisation from headquarters to country offices, which is unprecedented in FAO... increased focus is being placed on the greater effectiveness of country offices to ensure strengthened results and impact at the country level,” says the report.

Commenting on the new strategic framework and the work of the strategic objectives teams, DFID’s report observes that “FAO’s norma-

tive work has too often been planned, programmed, and implemented in silos, which reduced cohesion and complementarity across normative work”.

“FAO is addressing this problem through the shift to five cross-cutting strategic objectives with integrated strategic objective action plans for greater synergy and alignment. The matrix management structure proposed for 2014 is also intended to introduce a new cross-sector way of working to break down current organisational silos. This will require a fundamental shift in business practices and culture,” the update states.

Tough choices

The report recognises that large-scale organisational change can involve tough choices: “Management is committed to changing the organisation to improve performance and has taken some difficult decisions, including in human resource management. This represents significant change in

FAO and is helping to create a renewed culture, with a greater focus on results.”

DFID welcomes the “greater culture of value for money... being introduced across the organisation”, but recognises that it will take time to become embedded fully. It also applauds the work done by staff throughout FAO to implement the new Global Resource Management System, noting that “the new system represents a step-change in the quality, timeliness, and transparency of financial information...”

The original MAR was weak in its consideration of FAO’s technical and normative work. This has been recognised and the MAR Update gives good recognition to FAO’s excellence in many areas: “FAO continues to build on its good reputation for technical work in agriculture, forestry, fisheries, livestock, plant health and natural resources management; as well as in the global monitoring and reporting on food and agriculture”.

Plenty more hydro problems in de country

Is big buse-in goin on ever since de opposition get expose wid de big problem dem have wid de big hydro project. De guvament always tinkin big, but it look like de opposition friken big tings. Is every ting that big dem does want to cut down de size. From de budget, to de airport, to de Marriott hotel, to Public Works, and now to hydro.

De hydro problem so big that it even weighin down de opposition. Is so big it big. De Bell Crier know a long time ago that plenty KFC and FLAPNU people sufferin from lack of hydro, even though dem have hydro. Some of dem don’t want more hydro. Some of dem want to give hydro but dem don’t have. Some of dem want hydro but dem not gettin de right kind.

It look like de A-GEE also find out bout de opposition hydro problem. Whether he peep de health minister notes in Parliament, or he see fuh heself, is up fuh debate. Normally, de A-GEE would only look into de legal tings, but de opposition hydro problem so big that every ting gettin expose. No wonder some of dem does walk so funny.

Or it could be one of dem same cameras de opposition seh ain’t wukkin that de A-GEE use to see that de KFC and FLAPNU members got a big hydro problem. De A-GEE must be need new spectacles by now. Plus he gon have to find a legal solution to a medical problem. That gon call fuh a miracle. But is only a miracle could help de opposition anyway.

Ting-a-ling-a-ling…friend tell friend…mattie tell mattie! At de same time, GWI not givin enough hydro. Dem seh dem need power from G-PEE-L to give hydro. G-PEE-L powerless because dem have problem wid wood. So dem changing from wallaba wood to pine wood. Hopefully de new wood gon give G-PEE-L enough power fuh GWI to give enough hydro!

Suddie police distribute food hampers to elderly

Officers from the Suddie Police Station on Monday distributed five food hampers to the less fortunate in various villages on the Essequibo Coast.

According to Inspector Bharrat Persaud, the distribution of the food hampers coincided with the Guyana Police Force (GPF) 174th anniversary. Persaud said the Essequibo police have planned many activities to commemorate the force’s anniversary and listed the distribution of the hampers as one.

Persaud said July is designated the month to celebrate the force’s anniversary. He explained that the police force recognised that persons from the community play an integral role, and as such, the distribution of the hampers serves to build stronger ties between the community

and the force.

Persaud said an interfaith church service, Day of Sport and fun day have also been planned for anniversary celebrations.

Food hampers were distributed to Darris Persaud, 81, of Golden Fleece Estate; Vashti Skeete,87, of Johanna Cecila; George Beharry,65, of Suddie; Parbattie (only name given),87, of Onderneeming and Liloutie Persaud,54, of Sand Pit village on the Essequibo Coast. The hampers were handed over to the recipients by Inspector Bharrat Persaud and Sergeant Alfred Madray. One of the recipients of the food hampers, Darris Persaud thanked the officers for the hampers and encouraged them to continue their good works. Other recipients expressed similar sentiments to the police officers.

Education forum to be held in Linden on Wednesday

The Linden Education Forum, another initiative of the Linden Community Forum organised by the Linden Fund Trust (LFT) is expected to be held in Linden on Wednesday at the Watooka Complex, Mackenzie.

According to a release from the LFT, this is yet another forum which is intended to shed light on issues affecting Linden and Region 10 before a panel of journalists. This time around, the forum will be centred on issues affecting education in the community and will be held under the theme “Education in Linden/Region 10: Crisis or Opportunity?”

Chief Education Officer Olato Sam is expected to

give a national perspective on the issue at the event, according to the release.

It added that the forum will be divided into five sessions, with one session for each of the following focus areas: State of education in Linden/Region 10; schools reflection in the community, model schools/ vision; products of education and schools and the environment/infrastructure.

The release added that the forum is envisioned as the first of a series of initiatives that will inform the Linden/Region 10 education plan.

Each session will include presentations and panel discussions followed by a questions and answer

segment. The presenters are expected to be practitioners and experts in the relevant fields/disciplines while the panel will comprise of stakeholders with a particular interest or influence in the area of focus.

Target groups and participants will include the Region 10 Education Department, Region 10 Chairman Sharma Solomon, the Guyana Teachers Union (GTU), Region 10 Parent Teacher Association (PTA), among others. The forum is expected to commence at 08:30h and the first session entitled “State of education in Linden/Region 10” is expected to commence at 09:00h.

IDB launches contest for best government programmes

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) launched “Gobernarte: The Art of Good Government”; a contest that will recognise the best examples of innovation in public administration in states, provinces, regions, and other sub-national entities in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Gobernarte contest will be carried out over three years with a specific thematic focus for each year. In its first year, the IDB will make awards available for six innovations in two categories: government security: preventing crime and violence and smart government: eliminating red tape for citizens and companies.

As countries increasingly decentralise the delivery of government services to its citizens, states and provinces must address complex issues such as violence and the need to eliminate excessive bureaucratic red tape. At the

same time, citizens are demanding better government services.

Latin America and the Caribbean also are experiencing a wave of violence.

Countries are responding with citizen security programmes that include different approaches to the problem, such as rehabilitation, community policing, and the needs of youth, among others.

While Latin America still has excessive bureaucracy and unnecessary delays in carrying out administrative procedures, a number of leaders in the region have implemented innovative programmes that use technology to accelerate the process of approval and delivery of services.

“Through Gobernarte, we wish to identify and reward innovative best practices in government management, and document and disseminate these experiences, so that we may learn from them,” said IDB President Luis Alberto Moreno.

“Clearly, our lives will improve as our public institutions become more creative, intelligent, open, and effective.”

Provinces and other sub-national levels of government have until September 15 to submit their projects on the Gobernarte website. A panel of internationally recognised experts will select the three winners in each category.

The competition is open to sub-national government jurisdictions, such as states, regions, departments, provinces and others. The competition does not include municipal governments. Applicants can learn if they meet contest requirements on the website.

Inquiries can be made at gobernarte@iadb.org. The panel will announce the winners by the end of the year and the bank will document and disseminate their innovations through an information campaign as well as on the web.

GLDA, U.S. embassy conduct veterinary outreach in Region Three

The Guyana Livestock Development Agency (GLDA), in collaboration with the U.S. embassy’s Humanitarian Assistance Programme (HAP), conducted a two-day veterinary training seminar and a livestock veterinary treatment outreach

in Region Three from July 15 to 20.

During the veterinary seminar, the HAP team provided GLDA veterinarians with refresher training in areas such as basic microscopy techniques, deworming strategies, and basic parasitology.

The session served as

an excellent forum for information exchange on such topics and effective husbandry techniques.

GLDA Region Three veterinarians and the HAP also conducted on-site, livestock, clinical assessments and on-site treatments for gastro-intestinal nematodes and ecto-parasite infestations in West Coast and West Bank.

Region Three GLDA veterinarians provided educational awareness to livestock owners on animal husbandry practices, basic parasitology and the economic value of preventive veterinary care.

According to GLDA Chief Executive Officer Dr Dindyal Permaul and the HAP Director Melanie Collins, both entities are looking forward to future collaboration between the U.S. embassy and GLDA to provide livestock clinical and treatment support to local livestock owners in Guyana.

Drivers handed coffee in road safety initiative in Linden

Members of the Wismar Police Station Management Committee, along with police officers of the Wismar Police Station, on Saturday conducted an initiative aimed at promoting safe driving while making themselves known to members of the public.

Members of the team were present at the Wismar intersection along Winifred Gaskin Highway, the major roadway to the hinterland, and handed out coffee/tea and sandwiches to drivers who drove along the stretch of road.

Members of the team disclosed that this was simply a humanitarian exercise aimed at making members of the community familiar with the two groups and the roles they play, while encouraging drivers to be safe along the roadway.

The theme of the exercise was “stay awake and don’t be late”.

“It’s to sensitise members of the community that there is a management committee, it’s working, it’s active and it’s doing great things,” Wismar Station Management Committee Chairman Basil Jaipaul said. He noted that the committee, which is tasked with overseeing the dayto-day activities of the Wismar Police Station, is currently in the process of setting up its office in the police station compound.

The office is being constructed through self-help.

“This office will also be used by the police to conduct training and also by us to conduct meetings and any other activity,” he explained.

Jaipaul noted that the committee will be responsible for the management of the Wismar Police Station, including record keeping and infrastructure. Other functions include overseeing economic and youth welfare, he disclosed.

Committee Vice Chairman Vernon James said the committee hopes to see a reduction of crimes within Linden and therefore, programmes targeting delinquent youths are high on its agenda.

“We are trying to bridge the gap between the community and the police, because we all know that the police hadn’t a good record with the community because of issues.

What we would like the community to know is that we are our brothers’ keeper and the police are there to enforce the law. We [the Wismar Station Management Committee] are here as a go-between the community and the police. We are trying to bridge the gap so that persons can understand the purpose for the police,” James said.

The committee consists of members of the Linden community, including the businesspeople.

tuesday, July 23, 2013

GTA expects increase in tourist arrivals during July-August season

Guyana is anticipated to surpass tourists’ influx into the country for the July-August season compared to last year, despite the exit of Delta Airlines.

During an exclusive interview with Guyana Times , Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) Director Indranauth Haralsingh said the highest number of tourists was recorded in July last year as the country received 24,000 visitors while in August that year, the number was 22,000 visitors.

“This year, because of the Limacol CPL and other planned activities such as Jamzone and celebrity artistes coming to Guyana, we are looking to see by the end of July over 29,000 visitors and in August over 32,000 visitors.”

Compared to last year, the influx of tourists here will be up by 115 per cent despite Delta's exit earlier in the year. Haralsingh said all flights are currently booked and Caribbean Airlines (CAL) is also looking at putting on extra flights.

He expressed hope that

Fly Jamaica will start operations towards the end of July so that it can transport tourists to the country.

“So that would increase airlift and the capacity of seats and available flights to Guyana as well.”

According to the director, the exiting of Delta from Guyana has affected the influx of tourists into the country to some extent, but asserted that the slack has been picked up by CAL and Suriname airways. “Both airlines are flying now with higher numbers in terms of load factor.”

According to Haralsingh, while Delta was in the country, CAL was flying at 50/55 per cent load factor while currently it is flying at full capacity. He stated that the country now has healthy cross border traffic from Brazil and

Suriname, which is also impacting tourists’ arrival in the country.

Subsequently, he disclosed that this is making a significant impact on hotels in the country since bookings have risen at the hotels and occupancy is very high as is usual for this period.

The spike in tourist arrivals will have a severe impact on Guyana’s economy since more jobs are being created and more foreign currency is coming into the country, Haralsingh noted.

Meanwhile, government has also approached COPA Airlines, which is based in Panama to examine the possibility of having that airline operate in and out of Guyana as well. It was also disclosed that from October, Fly Guyana Airlines will launch scheduled operations out of Guyana.

U.S. embassy establishes Youth Action Network in Guyana

The U.S embassy’s Public Affairs Section has established a Youth Action Network (YAN), bringing together approximately 50 young Guyanese leaders from around the country, the embassy said in a release.

The embassy’s YAN was officially launched on July 20 through its first event –a conference on service and leadership under the theme: “Ready to Serve, Ready to Lead”.

This is the first of many opportunities for Guyanese YAN members to participate in networking and training to enhance their leadership skills, professionalism, and implementation of community service and development activities. The network also serves to facilitate the embassy’s interaction with young Guyanese leaders, so embassy officers can better understand the unique perspective of Guyana’s young people and

discuss ways to address the needs and challenges they face.

The July 20 YAN conference offered training sessions for youth leaders on public speaking, organisation and life skills, creativity, community resource mapping, and project management. On July 27, the group will reconvene for a day of service, where members will team up with visiting U.S. military cadets to take part in community ser-

vice activities in Linden.

The youths selected to participate in the YAN are exceptionally motivated, and many of them have already demonstrated their passion to give back to society through distinct youth outreach activities. Some of the organisations represented at the YAN conference include the embassy’s Youth Ambassadors Programme (YAP), Youths for Guyana and the One World Youth Project.

MPs impressed with improvement at Region Three health facilities

Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on Social Services Chairperson Indranie Chandarpal on Friday has expressed pleasant surprise at the total transformation at both the Leonora Diagnostic Centre and West Demerara Regional Hospital on a follow-up visit to the health facilities there on Friday.

According to a report from the Parliament Office, the purpose of the committee’s visit was to evaluate the improvement of the standards of the hospitals following the committee’s recommendations and findings during its first visit on June 15. Chandarpal noted that all the concerns raised by the committee were addressed which is testament to the fact that having a well organised and proper functioning health facility is quite “feasible”.

During the first visit, the committee, which comprised of members from both the government and opposition sides, found that the hospitals were faced with a number of failures and challenges which, it was believed, was a result of poor administrative performance by various senior personnel.

The Social Services Committee chairperson said she was heartened by the fact that the management of both

the hospital and the diagnostic centre did not just take measures to implement the recommendations made, but took further measures to improve their respective facility’s overall functioning. She said that the region’s administrative and health officers as well as management of both facilities should be congratulated for the swiftness with which they acted in response to the committee’s previous visit.

Chandarpal opined that all that is needed to ensure that Guyana’s health sector functions efficiently is proper, efficient and proactive management. She said this is evidenced by the vast improvement that can be seen at the Leonora Diagnostic Centre and the West Demerara Regional Hospital. As enshrined in the Constitution, the Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on Social Services has a responsibility to scrutinise and examine policies and administration for each sector under its purview and to determine whether they are in consonance with the principles of good governance. In exercising this function, the committee must also visit government organisations, activities or projects and report to the National Assembly.

New NGO in school reading, writing initiative

The Benab Foundation, a newly-established non-governmental organisation with the objective of empowering youths as they seek ways to progressively make Guyana and themselves better, has embarked on a project which seeks to improve reading and writing skills in two city secondary schools.

The initiative also seeks to enhance the thinking and reasoning capability of approximately 60 students from the Campbellville and Dolphin secondary schools. The programme will be executed during the August vacation and is intended for students who will be transitioning from second to third form. Students will be required to attend classes for three days per week at a maximum of three hours per day.

The initiative will begin with a one-off test in general mathematics and English, as required by the syllabus at that level with the scores being used to measure and ascertain student capabilities before undertaking the programme. A second assessment will be done at the end of the programme. In addition, the project administrators will procure an independent assessment from a reputable body.

For this project, 10 volunteers will be involved in the tutoring programme, all of whom are currently under-

taking advanced studies or have completed these studies. The high volunteer to student ratio will allow for more tailored learning based on each student’s weaknesses (as identified in the initial test).

The syllabus will emphasise understanding concepts, not just methods, so that students are more flexible and can thus answer more varied and complex questions. This will allow them to answer more questions correctly in each future examination they take, thereby boosting test scores. This initiative is undertaken against the backdrop that there is much evidence that English and mathematics are problematic subject areas here, given the poor pass rate at the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations.

The objective of the initiative is to improve the test scores of the students. The Benab Foundation aims to provide space for the intellectual thought necessary for Guyana’s growth and development.

The objective of the group is to provide quality ideas which have the potential to positively impact the lives of every Guyanese; to empower youth as they seek ways to progressively make Guyana better and themselves better; and to use applicable ideas to provide relief now, and in the future, to those in need.

Woman charged with obstructing justice

A56-year-old woman appeared before Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Monday after she was charged with attempt to obstruct justice.

It is alleged that on October 1, 2012 in Georgetown, Suerani Rampersaud, of 692 Cummings Lodge made an attempt to obstruct the course of justice. She pleaded not guilty to the charge read against her.

The case was prosecuted by Attorney Glen Hanoman, who was specially appointed by the director of police prosecutors (DPP). According to Hanoman, on the day in question, the accused called the sister of prosecution witness Mohini Seemangal, and threatened to kill her and her family if her brother testified against her son, Hardat Kumar.

Hanoman added that the day before, which was September 30, 2012, Kumar made a call to the same person, making the same threat.

Kumar, 23, is one of the suspects in an armed robbery. It is alleged that he and others robbed Malcom Panday and his wife, Anne Ramsood. The robbers entered the home on July 12, 2011 and carted off $7.4 million.

Magistrate SewnarineBeharry asked if Attorney Hanoman was objecting to bail and he replied in the affirmative. He objected to bail on the grounds that this matter is connected to an armed robbery and since charges were filed for that matter, Rampersaud has been the fourth person to be charged with an attempt to obstruct justice.

The other persons who were charged with obstructing the

course of justice were the former prosecutor of the case, Lionel Harvey who has fled the jurisdiction, and Detective Inspector Odell Percival who attempted to obstruct justice by contacting Constable 19911 Liverpool and offering him $100,000 to pervert justice.

Kumar was charged with two offences – attempting to obstruct the course of justice and threatening Ramsood who is also a witness in the robbery under arms case.

The specially-appointed prosecutor also objected to bail on grounds that the accused might further attempt to tamper with the matter, which is almost finished, if granted her pre-trial liberty. He added that she may not return to court.

The chief magistrate refused bail and the matter was transferred to Court Five for July 26.

Haiti: Protesters threaten to burn down the parliament if gay marriage is legalised

Organisers say they are pleased with the turnout on Friday as more than 1000 people took to the streets to protest homosexuality and a proposal to legalise gay marriage in Haiti.

The protesters carried antigay placards and chanted songs in which they threatened to burn down parliament if its members make same-sex marriage legal.

A Haitian gay rights group has said it plans to submit a proposal allowing homosexuals to wed, but a coalition of religious groups said it opposed recent laws in other countries supporting gay marriage.

The demonstration was organised by several religious groups, including one calling itself the

Caricom, UN discuss development issues in New York

Caribbean Commu-nity (Caricom) Secretary General, Ambassador Irwin LaRocque is at the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York, USA, articulating the community’s position on a slate of developmental issues.

The discussions are being conducted within the framework of the two-day seventh general meeting of the Caribbean Community, its associated institutions and the United Nations system, which began on July 22. Speaking at the opening ceremony to an audience that included UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, LaRocque said Caricom-UN interactions were not ritualistic, but involved “vital working sessions” that were “strategic, pragmatic, forward-looking and results-oriented”.

He said the two organisations were meeting at a time when the world was contemplating the future beyond the global development compact represented by the Millennium Development Goals, and fittingly when a Caribbean national, Ambassador John Ashe of Antigua and Barbuda was preparing to assume the presidency of the 68th session of the UN General Assembly. That session will consider the post-2015 development agenda. Secretary General LaRocque said the community had great interest in developments in relation to the elaboration of the development agenda, and would take an “active role” in ensuring that the region’s interests were adequately and effectively addressed.

“We seek an integrated, comprehensive and flexible de-

velopment agenda building on the lessons learned from the MDGs and which is responsive to the diverse development realities with which individual countries and regions are confronted,” Ambassador LaRocque stated.

Secretary General LaRocque said Caricom and the UN had been forging an “enduring and important partnership” on a number of critical issues including security. He said that Caricom showed solidarity with the global community in adopting the landmark Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) – a crucial intervention to stem the illegal trade in small arms and light weapons.

However, he noted that Caricom was “fully seized” that crime in the Caribbean could not be solved only by those interventions and had therefore acknowledged the necessity of doing its part in addressing the impact of crime on the region. He advised that the region had developed a targeted approach

within the framework of the 2013 Caricom Crime and Security Strategy, which he described as an “important weapon” in the Caribbean’s arsenal to fight the war against crime. He said he looked forward to the UN’s full support in its implementation, including through the long awaited re-opening of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime in Barbados.

Even as Caricom grappled with the threats posed by crime, the secretariat general said it was also dealing with the effects of a protracted global financial and economic crises that had held many of its small developing economies in a near stranglehold.

He told his audience that economies like those of Caricom had structural and institutional characteristics which increased their vulnerability to external events and limited their capacity for adjustment. This vulnerability was exacerbated by onerous debt, unwarranted restrictions on new growth sectors and graduation from access to concessionary development

funding on criteria such as GDP per capita, which did not take due account of vulnerability, the secretary general explained.

He said that while the prognosis for Caricom economic resilience was unfavourable, Caricom member states had placed confidence in the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME) as the “best means for attaining sustainable development in the region”.

With respect to climate change, the secretary general stated that the community’s advocacy regarding the implications of the phenomenon was a fight for the region’s very survival.

“Our call for reliable, accessible and sufficient climate financing through mechanisms such as the UNFCC Green Climate Fund to allow us to build capacity to adapt and mitigate, is a critical factor in our pursuit of sustainable development,” the secretary general said, while expressing the need for the region to access to credible expertise, which the UN, through its relevant institutions, had been pivotal in providing.

Secretary General LaRocque pointed out that Caricom was anticipating engaging with the UN on the new coordination mechanism for the UN’s assistance to the region, and a more effective Caricom-UN partnership. He said that the community was deeply appreciative of steps taken to ensure that the UN system gave priority to supporting the implementation of the political declaration on the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases, which was adopted in 2011.

TT opposition leader ready to disclose all on email scandal

Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley has written to the Integrity Commission indicating that he is prepared to “immediately disclose all and/ or any relevant material information, documentation and/ or devices” that may be of assistance to it in its investiga-

tion of the “emailgate” scandal. Dr Rowley had in May read 31 emails in parliament purporting to show that that members of the Trinidad and Tobago government, including Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Attorney General Anand Ramlogan, Local Government Minister

Suruj Rambachan and security advisor Gary Griffith, were engaged in efforts to undermine the judiciary, the DPP and the media.

The issue has raised a storm with the government vehemently denying the accusations and the police investigating the matter.

Acting Police Commissioner Stephen Williams had said the documents presented by Rowley were false. Williams, who is in South Africa and is due to return over the weekend, told the Trinidad Express newspaper that the emails were not genuine.

Haitian protesters carried anti-gay placards and chanted songs in which they threatened to burn down the parliament if its members make same-sex marriage legal

Haitian Coalition of Religious and Moral Organisations.

It came 48 hours after watchdog groups held a news conference to condemn what they say is an increase in threats against homosexuals in the country. (Caribbean360)

Man shot in face

Aman was Monday night shot to his face and is currently being treated at the Georgetown Public Hospital.

According to a release from the hospital, around 21:40h on Monday, a male, 43, of African descent was taken to the institution. He had sustained a gunshot wound to the face and laceration to the hands. He is fully conscious and is being treated, the hospital release stated, without giving any more details on the victim.

Security guard charged with assaulting daughter-in-law

Aman was brought before Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry on Monday at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts after he was charged with unlawful assault.

It is alleged that on July 18, at North Ruimveldt in the Georgetown Magisterial District, Kirk Hinds unlawfully assaulted Shasanti Mangru. He pleaded not guilty to the charge read against him.

The accused was represented by Attorney Paul Fung-A-Fat who stated

that Hinds is a 57-year-old security guard and resides at 3794 Beaver Street, North Ruimveldt. He said the virtual complainant, who was the defendant’s daughter-in-law, did not wish to give any evidence against him. The defence lawyer also made an application for reasonable bail.

Hinds was placed on a bond to keep the peace pending the outcome of the matter and fined $20,000. The matter was transferred to Court 10 for July 29 for report and fixture.

Pope Francis leaves for Brazil visit

Pope Francis has left Rome for Brazil for his first foreign trip, which will be taking place amid high security.

The pontiff will be greeted by some two million young people from all over the world at the Roman Catholic World Youth Day festival in Rio de Janeiro.

The first Latin American pope will also celebrate Mass on the famous Copacabana beach and visit shanty towns.

Some 22,000 security staff will be on duty during the visit of the pope, who is not using his armoured Popemobile.

On his way to Brazil, Pope Francis said the global crisis risked creating a lost generation of jobless youth.

“We run the risk of having a generation that hasn’t worked,” even though work confers dignity, he told journalists on the plane.

He also criticised what he said was a “culture” of socially rejecting the elderly who were “thrown away” as if they had nothing to offer.

Ahead of his week-long trip, the 76-year-old pope from Argentina called on his followers to join him spiritually on his journey through prayer.

The pontiff is due to arrive in Brazil – the world’s most populous Catholic country – later on Monday, and huge crowds are expected to greet him at Rio airport. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Royal baby: Kate gives birth to boy

The Duchess of Cambridge has given birth to a baby boy, Kensington Palace has announced. The baby was delivered at 16:24h BST on Monday at St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington, west London, weighing 8lb 6oz. The Duke of Cambridge said in a statement the couple

“could not be happier”. He and the duchess will remain in the hospital overnight. The news has been displayed on an easel in the forecourt of Buckingham Palace in line with tradition. A bulletin – signed by the Queen’s gynaecologist Marcus Setchell, who led the medical team that delivered the baby – was taken by a royal aide from St Mary’s to the palace under police escort.

The document said: “Her Royal Highness, the Duchess of Cambridge was safely delivered of a son at 16:24h today. “Her Royal Highness and her child are both doing well.” When the news was announced, a large cheer went up from well-wishers and journalists outside the hospital while a large crowd greeted the posting of the bulletin outside Buckingham Palace.

The Kensington Palace press release said the Duke of Cambridge was present for the birth of his son, who will be known as the Prince of Cambridge. “The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Harry and members of both families have been informed and are delighted with the news,” it said. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Deadly clashes break out in Egyptian capital

Supporters and opponents of deposed Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi clashed near Cairo’s Tahrir Square on Monday, leaving one person dead and 26 others injured, an emergency official said.

In one incident, a gunman opened fire near the square with an automatic weapon, and at least two people dropped to the ground, a witness told CNN. It was not clear which side the gunman belonged to.

At least some of the clashes occurred when Morsi supporters who had been marching toward the U.S. embassy shifted toward the square, where some Morsi opponents were, witnesses said.

Some Morsi supporters had gathered outside the U.S. embassy on Monday but were dispersed by Egyptian security forces, who fired tear gas at them, state-run EGYNews reported. The embassy is about one kilometre from Tahrir Square. (Excerpt from CNN)

Quake hits north-west China; 89 dead

Rescue teams are scrambling to reach the site of Monday morning’s strong and shallow earthquake in northwestern China that has killed at least 89 people, according to state media.

Another 584 people were injured and 17 were believed missing after the quake tore through Gansu Province, state media reported.

The quake hit along the border of two counties –Min and Zhang – at around 07:45h local time, according to state news agency Xinhua.

Emergency services are converging on the area, in-

cluding the Red Cross Society of China, which is sending 200 tents and other supplies to shelter and sustain those left without homes.

According to state broadcaster CCTV, Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged crews to prioritise the rescue of survivors and minimise casualties.

The original quake and powerful aftershocks caused roofs to collapse, cut telecommunications lines and damaged a major highway linking the provincial capital of Lanzhou to the south, according to the China Daily newspaper. (Excerpt from CNN)

Around the world

Morsi’s family accuses Egypt’ s army of “kidnapping” him

The family of ousted president Mohamed Morsi said Monday they plan to sue Egypt’s army chief, General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, for having “kidnapped” the elected Islamist head of state.

Hundreds of Morsi’s supporters, meanwhile, marched to the public prosecutor’s office and the Defence Ministry in Cairo, chanting anti-military slogans and carrying pictures of the toppled president.

On Sunday, the interim cabinet held its first meeting and urged all parties to keep protests peaceful after weeks of demonstrations across the country and a day of violence in Sinai that killed four security forces personnel.

Shaimaa Mohamed Morsi, the toppled president’s daughter, told a press conference that the family was planning to take legal action in Egypt and abroad.

“We are taking local and international legal measures against Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the leader of the bloody military coup, and his putschist group,” she said.

She voiced dismay at “the silence of rights organisations and civil society over the crime of kidnapping the legitimate pres-

ident,” who was voted into office last year.

The family held Sisi and his “putschist group” responsible for Morsi’s safety. Morsi has been detained at an unknown location since his overthrow by the army on July 3 following mass protests against his presidency across the country. (Excerpt from France24)

WHO had asked India to ban toxin that killed children

The pesticide that killed 23 Indian schoolchildren last week is a nerve poison banned by many countries because of what the World Health Organisation (WHO) describes as its “high acute toxicity”.

As early as 2009, the United Nations health agency urged India to con-

sider a ban on the pesticide monocrotophos, the substance said by a magistrate investigating the deaths to be the cause of the poisoning. It had also warned that in India – against strong international health warnings – many pesticide containers are not thrown away after use but recycled

and used for storing water, food and other consumables.

In last week’s case in the Indian state of Bihar, the children fell ill within minutes of eating a meal of rice and potato curry in their one-room school. They were vomiting and convulsing with stomach cramps – symptoms that

experts say would be common in poisoning with such a toxic chemical.

The lunch was part of India’s Mid-Day Meal Scheme, which aims to tackle malnutrition and encourage 120 million poor children to attend school. It had already drawn widespread complaints over food safety. (Excerpt from Reuters)

30 million face female mutilation

More than 30 million girls are at risk of being subjected to female genital mutilation (FGM) over the next decade, a study by UNICEF has found.

It said more than 125 million girls and women alive today had undergone a procedure now opposed by the majority in countries where it was practised.

Ritual cutting of girls’ genitals is practised by some African, Middle Eastern and Asian communities in the belief it protects a woman’s virginity.

The UN children fund

survey, described as the most comprehensive to date on the issue, found that support for FGM was declining among both men and wom-

en. FGM “is a violation of a girl’s rights to health, wellbeing and self-determination,” said UNICEF Deputy

Executive Director Geeta Rao Gupta.

“What is clear from this report is that legislation alone is not enough.”

The report, “Female genital mutilation/cutting: A statistical overview and exploration of the dynamics of change”, was released in Washington DC.

The study, which pulled together 20 years of data from the 29 countries in Africa and the Middle East where FGM is still practised, found girls were less likely to be cut than they were some 30 years ago.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

U.S. Navy may recover bombs on Barrier Reef

The U.S. Navy said on Monday it is considering salvaging four unarmed bombs dropped by U.S. fighter jets into Australia’s Great Barrier Reef Marine Park last week when a training exercise went wrong.

The two AV-8B Harrier jets launched from the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard during joint exercises with the Australian military each jettisoned an inert, concrete-filled practice bomb and an unarmed laserguided explosive bomb into the World Heritage-listed marine park off the coast

of Queensland state on Tuesday. None exploded.

The Great Barrier Reef,

the world’s largest network of coral structures, is rich in marine life and

stretches more than 3000 kilometres (1800 miles) along Australia’s northeast coast.

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, the government manager of the 345,400 square kilometre (133,360 square miles) protected marine zone, said in a statement that identifying options for the “rapid recovery” of the bombs so that they could pose no risk to the marine park was “a high priority”.

But the authority also said the ordnances posed a “low risk to the marine environment”. (Excerpt from France24)

Hyatt to enter the Caribbean all-inclusive resort segment

Awholly owned Hyatt subsidiary plans to enter the all-inclusive segment in partnership with Playa Hotels and Resorts BV. Playa was created with the goal of becoming a leading owner, operator and developer of all-inclusive resorts.

Hyatt expects to invest a total of US$325 million, consisting of US$100 million for an approximate 20 per cent ownership stake in Playa

and US$225 million for convertible preferred stock in Playa.

Playa’s hotel portfolio will include 13 resorts totalling approximately 5800 rooms across The Dominican Republic, Mexico and Jamaica. In connection with the Hyatt investment, Playa will enter into franchise agreements with Hyatt for six of the 13 resorts, or approximately 2800 rooms, which will operate under

Hyatt brands following the completion of significant renovations.

Under an agreement with Hyatt, Playa will pursue the acquisition or development of new all-inclusive resort opportunities under Hyatt’s brands and it will also have certain rights to operate Hyatt-branded allinclusive resorts in five Latin American and Caribbean countries on an exclusive basis through 2018. (Caribbean News Now)

Kimberly-Clark upholds forecast despite second quarter figures

Kimberly-Clark Corp

added a cautious tone to its full-year outlook on Monday, saying the stronger U.S. dollar might hurt results more than expected, even as the maker of Kleenex tissues posted a bigger-than-anticipated rise in quarterly profit.

Kimberly-Clark, which also makes Huggies diapers, said it still expects 2013 earnings per share of US$5.60 to US$5.75, excluding items.

Europe

The forecast includes expectations for a bigger hit from the stronger U.S. dollar, which eats into sales from international markets.

Currency is now expected to reduce full-year sales one per cent to two per cent, versus a prior view for a hit of less than one per cent. The company said it should be able to cut more costs this year than it previously expected, but if currencies hold at recent rates it would be less likely to post

earnings in the upper half of its forecast. In the second quarter, KimberlyClark earned US$526 million, or US$1.36 per share, up from US$498 million, or US$1.26 per share, a year earlier. Excluding restructuring costs related to changes in its European business, earnings were US$1.41 per share. On that basis, analysts on average were expecting US$1.39 per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. (Reuters)

jaguar to launch mass market range in 2015

British luxury carmaker Jaguar will launch new affordable models from 2015 in a bid to emulate the success of lower cost luxury vehicles made by its sister company Land Rover, two sources close to the

company said on Monday. The new cars will include a compact saloon and crossover SUV – currently the fastest-growing models in terms of global sales – and be available in the second half of 2015, one of the sources said.

Jaguar, part of the Jaguar Land Rover group owned by India’s Tata Motors is currently known for two-seater sports cars and large saloons. It will make an offi-

cial announcement about the new range at the Frankfurt International Motor Show in September, the other source said.

A JLR spokesman said the company would not comment its future product plans at this time. The cheaper versions of Land Rover’s Evoque small SUV and Freelander are currently among JLR’s top selling models and analysts said Jaguar’s move made sense. (Reuters)

Africa

Realising the dream of greater intra-african trade

How to break the colonial legacy of exporting goods ‘overseas’ and raise the level of trade between African countries? This has been an issue the African Union (AU) has grappled with since it devoted its January 2012 summit to the issue of ‘Intra-African trade’. The annual Economic Development in Africa report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) launched in Ethiopia last Friday, July, 11

2013, gives interesting answers to some of the questions African governments and the AU have been asking.

African governments are increasingly aware that socio-economic development is an essential pillar of securing a peaceful and stable continent. Former Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi often spoke about the pursuit of greater cooperation among African countries in this regard. During last year’s debate at the AU summit in Addis

Ababa, he reprimanded his peers for being too short sighted. One couldn’t simply scrap tariffs and speed up bureaucracy at border posts to ensure intra-African trade, he believed. If every country in East Africa produced ‘tea and coffee’ why would they export to one another, he asked. Zenawi and a number of other heads of state also complained at that debate that the AU’s plans for creating a continental free trade area in 2017 was, at best, unrealistic (allAfrica)

GlaxosmithKline says senior China staff may have breached law

British drugs firm

GlaxoSmithKline on Monday said senior staff at its China unit appear to have breached Chinese law, after authorities alleged employees had bribed state officials to lift sales.

“Certain senior executives of GSK China who know our systems well, appear to have acted outside of our processes and controls which breaches Chinese law,” said Abbas Hussain, GSK’s President International − Europe, Japan, Emerging Markets & Asia Pacific.

Middle East Asia

Abu Dhabi

P“We have zero tolerance for any behaviour of this nature,” he added in a statement issued after meeting with authorities.

Earlier on Monday, Chinese police had urged the company to “fully cooperate” with a bribery investigation at the recent meeting with Hussain. Chinese authorities say GSK employees bribed government officials, pharmaceutical industry groups, hospitals and doctors to promote sales.

“I want to make it very clear that we share the desire of the Chinese authorities to root out corruption wherever it exists.”

Hussain said the company fully supported efforts by Chinese authorities to reform its medical sector. (Times

The London-listed pharmaceuticals firm on Monday said it was taking the matter “extremely seriously” and pledged to “root out corruption”. Hussain added: “We have had a very constructive meeting with the Ministry of Public Security, and we are very grateful for their time. GSK is taking this situation extremely seriously and that is why we are here.

property prices rise by five per cent in Q2

rime residential sales prices in Abu Dhabi increased by five percent during the second quarter of 2013, according to a new report by Jones Lang LaSalle.

The rise followed an eight per cent increase during the first quarter as regional investors have been lured by the UAE’s “safe haven” status following political unrest in the wider region, the report said.

Jones Lang LaSalle added that other demand driv-

Online

Typically, the more education you get, the larger salary you command. A masters degree in business, (MBA) is highly respected throughout corporate America. One Graduate Management Admissions Council survey concluded the average Chicago based, MBA holder earns US$7500 more annually than was earned three years ago. While an MBA can boost your earning power, finding time to attend school can be difficult. If scheduling or distance conflicts get in the way of pursuing your MBA, you might consider an online degree programme.

ers include Abu Dhabi being at a time lag to market recovery in Dubai and, as government progresses its major economic development and city building initiatives, this has led to increased job stability and liquidity.

The report also showed that during Q2 prime residential rents remained stable, following eight percent growth during the first quarter.

“This can partly be attributed to the government regulations to reduce the

level of commuting from Dubai, together with government economic development initiatives leading to further job growth,” the JLL report said.

“In addition, as new residential districts within master-planned areas obtain better amenities and achieve critical mass, this is leading to rental premiums for higher quality product. Rents in secondary quality residential stock have continued to fall,” it added. (Arabianbusiness)

Online MBAs have become more popular in recent years. Unless you want to work on Wall Street, where the name of the school is as important as the degree itself, an online MBA can help you achieve your career goals.

In determining whether an online MBA is worth attaining, compare the cost to the potential. Currently, the cost of a typical MBA programme is approximately US$100,000, which is less than one year’s salary for most MBA achievers. If, however, your plan is to open your own small business, or work in the family’s

cafe, the cost of attaining such a high degree may not be worth it for you. What online school you attend also makes a difference in the degree’s value. For example, schools that are solely designed for profit and accept any applicant willing to pay tuition, will not carry as much clout as a school that is selective in its acceptance process. While any MBA is going to be better than not having one at all, the earning potential for an online MBA. holder will be increased if the degree comes from a recognised school or respected programme. (Business Dictionary)

Trade unions back new labour regulations

Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC) President Norris Witter and National Association of Agricultural, Commercial and Industrial Employees (NAACIE) General Secretary Kenneth Joseph on Monday rejected arguments put forward that the Ministerial Order providing for a 40-hour work week and a minimum wage of $35,000 is highly flawed. Former Chief Labour Officer Mohamed Akeel has argued that the order is defective and that it did not comply with the laws of Guyana. He explained that the order was made under the Labour Act, Chapter 98:01, Section Eight, which stipulates that the labour minister, if deems it convenient to regulate the wages paid in any occupation in Guyana, may appoint an advisory committee to investigate and make recommenda -

tions based on consultation following publication. However, Akeel argued that the Private Sector Commission, the Guyana Manufactures and Services Association and the chambers of commerce were not consulted.

The former labour chief contended that the order would have been valid if it was done under Section 9A which gives the labour minister the power to make an appointment without an advisory committee. In his final at -

tempt to oppose the ministerial order, Akeel said that a National Minimum Wage with a five-day work week could be “self-defeating”.

Misleading

“Can a developing country afford to have the wheels of production by overtime payment and risk limiting the access to overseas markets?” the former labour officer asked.

However, Witter and Joseph said Akeel is attempting to mislead the

nation. According to the union representatives, Akeel continues to show his preference for “big business interests and subtly attacks a minimum wage of $35,000 and a five-day work week.” According to the trade unionists, Akeel in the local newspaper was attempting to make a case out for garment manufacturers. “It should be mentioned that garment manufacturers had a free reign for in excess of 10 years, and even when wage increases were announced

for certain categories of workers, they were not affected since it was felt that this group was at an initial stage of job creation and tapping into the overseas market.”

Addressing Akeel’s position that the Ministerial Order was not in keeping with the Labour Act, Chapter 98:01 Section Eight, Witter and Joseph said consultations were held. They pointed out that in May 2012; a sub-committee of the tripartite body

was formed to deliberate on the National Minimum Wage. Additionally, it was pointed out that the Consultative Association of Guyana Industries Limited (CAGI) held regular consultations with the business community. The minimum wage issue at the level of the Tripartite Committee which comprised representatives from NAACIE, CAGI and GTUC was approved in February. At the level of Cabinet, the union representatives said they were advised that a Ministerial Task Force was established to tackle the matter. All along, they argue that the steps to implement a national minimum wage were made public.

Early announcement

“On May Day, the minister in an address to the GTUC conference at which leading trade unionists and opposition politicians were present that he had draft regulations on his desk which he was looking at for implementation of a new minimum wage order.”

President Donald Ramotar has made reference to the minimum wage and the 40-hour work week on the eve of Guyana’s Independence on May 25, 2013, in addition to government’s decision to ratify the International Labour Organisation’s Convention 189 on domestic workers.

“Those positions were followed by advertisements in the national newspapers and the Official Gazette more than a month before the July 1 deadline for implementation,” the trade unionists posited.

In a united voice, they reinforced their position for the 40-hour work week and a minimum wage of $35, 000, noting that they will prevent resolutely any attempt to derail the process.

In a separate letter, Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) President Patrick Yarde back his colleagues in the union fraternity, noting that the government of Guyana should be applauded for the introduction of the National Minimum Wage and the 40-hour work week.

According to Yarde, government’s decision is an indication that it is moving in the right direction to bring economic relief to the working class.

“I wish to state that that his (Akeel’s) expressions are of no surprise to the GPSU, since it is nationally known that we rejected his involvement in the 1999 strike which led to the formation of the mediation team of the Guyana Council of Churches, the Guyana Bar Association and others, to bring back professionalism in this industrial relations matter which resulted in its satisfactory conclusion.”

(svetlanam@guyanatimesgy. com)

SUDOKU

By Bernice Bede Osol

Although you’re usually exceptionally lucky where your material interests are concerned, you’re not always necessarily so in other areas. So, keep your mind on making money, and don’t worry about other things, today. This could be an exciting day, especially regarding a joint endeavour of some kind. An extraordinary happening might develop that you’ll want to be a part of.

(June 21July 22) (Jan. 20Feb. 19) (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

Don’t be reluctant to discard any old, unworkable methods in favour of newer and better procedures. This might be one of those days when it pays to switch horses in midstream.

Although you usually fare better when you have lots of time to ponder a decision, a snap judgment will turn out quite well today. Don’t second-guess yourself.

(Aug. 23Sept. 22)

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Someone you treated very considerately in the past has been very eager to repay you, and today might bring that chance. Accept this person’s attempt at reciprocation with a glad heart and open arms.

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It would behove you to socialise with some progressive thinkers today. You’ll easily recognise clever ideas when you hear them, and you’ll know exactly how to put them to use.

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Be on the lookout for some innovative ideas, especially some that may apply to an area that has been causing you concern. Make your move quickly, however; time may not be your ally.

(May 21June 20)

A person of foreign heritage or one born in a distant place is likely to play a constructive role in your affairs. Be alert, so you can take full advantage of this person’s help.

You are in a brief, favorable cycle where your financial affairs are concerned. Be alert and ready to move quickly should an unexpected, potentially profitable development come your way.

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A number of little things that you failed to finish will demand some attention. However, you’ll enjoy sweeping the deck clean. Sometimes, it’s nice to have a clean slate.

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Something quite fortuitous could develop through a friend you run into by chance. You and this person have always been able to help each other quite well.

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he police star witness in the Lusignan massacre trial on Monday said that it was the ‘Fineman’ gang that executed eight miners at Lindo Creek during the murderous crime spree back in 2008.

The witness also said that the Lusignan massacre was revenge for the disappearance of Rondell “Fineman” Rawlins’ girlfriend, Tenisha Morgan and the Bartica killings for the death of a gang member.

Dax Arokium, Cedric Arokium, Compton Speirs, Horace Drakes, Clifton Wong, Lancelot Lee, Bonny Harry and Nigel Torres were murdered at a mining camp at Lindo Creek in June 2008. Dwayne Williams called “Small Friend”, took the stand on Monday to testify against the two murder accused. The accused, Mark Williams called “Smallie” and James Hyles called “Sally” are jointly indicted with the murder of the 11 persons who were killed in the wee hours of January 26, 2008 at Lusignan, East Coast Demerara.

Dwayne Williams, 20, of Friendship/Buxton, East Coast Demerara, is the sixth witness to be presented by the prosecution, led by Senior State Counsel Judith Mursalin. He said that in January 2008, he was 15-years-old. The witness told the court that he has known “Smallie” since 2006 and “Sally” since 2004. He pointed out both men in court.

different houses. “Dem boys start shoot up wild, wild,” he said.

Williams went on to say that about 15 minutes later, the men returned and they proceeded to a camp between Buxton Backdam and Crown Backdam. He further stated that “Smallie” and “Capone” then left the camp and returned about five hours after with newspapers, clothes and grocery. He said that it was then that he read in the newspaper that 11 person were killed in Lusignan.

Arrested and charged

The witness noted that he was arrested on June 16, 2008 at Ituni, Region 10 and was charged in relation to this matter. He was then told on July 15 last, that the director of public prosecutions had withdrawn the matter against him on the previous Friday.

However, under cross-examination by Attorney Roger Yearwood representing the first named accused, Mark Williams, the witness maintained that his evidence is true even when the attorney pointed out several inconsistencies between his evidence in court and that from statements he gave to the police.

Williams admitted to the attorney that he and “Fineman” were “tight”. Hughes then went on to ask if he was also with the gang for the Bartica and Lindo Creek massacre, which took the lives of 12 and nine persons respectively and he said “yes”. He told the attorney that it was just after the Lindo Creek massacre that he was arrested.

The witness, under crossexamination, related that during the Bartica massacre, he did not have anything and was just waiting while the others committed the killings. He further disclosed that this massacre was revenge for the death of a gang member. He then continued that during the Lindo Creek killings, he just looked on while “Fineman” did the killing. He also stated that the massacre in Lusignan was carried out because “Fineman” claimed that his girlfriend, Tenisha Morgan, was kidnapped; however, when he was asked if he knew that the woman had left “Fineman” and moved to Barbados, the witness said that it was the first time he was hearing about it.

Lindo Creek massacre

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Williams told the court that on January 25, 2008 around 13:00h, “Smallie” approached him and told him that they have a “wuk” to go on and to meet him at Middle Walk, Buxton at 23:00h. He said that when he got there, he saw Rondell “Fineman” Rawlins, the two accused, Robin “Chung Boy” Chung, “John I”, “Capone” and “Papa Willie”.

“Tek pay”

The witness said that “Fineman”, “John I” and “Papa Willie” then told the rest of them that they are going to “tek pay” for “Fineman” child mother. He continued that “John I” then give Ak-47 firearms to “Smallie” and a shotgun to “Chung Boy”. The witness noted that he knew the type of guns because he used to “roll with the gang” for about three years.

The young man added that they then went to the backdam and walked through some cane fields until they reached a dam. He recalled that “Fineman” told them that he wants everybody to take a different house and then told him (witness) and another person Otis “Mud up” Fifee to stay on the dam with cutlasses in their hands.

The witness recounted that he saw “Smallie” and “Chung Boy” jump a fence into a yard and then “Fineman” and others went further into the area. He noted that about one and a half minute after he heard gunshots coming from

Williams told the attorney that this was the only matter he was charged with and after the charges were withdrawn, he give a new statement to the police on Monday last. The attorney enquired from the witness about some inconsistencies as it relates to the time he met with “Smallie”, since the statement said they met in the night, but he told the court it was day. It was later revealed that the witness met with the accused twice that day, once just around noon and the other in the night.

The witness told the attorney that he was at Ituni for about a month and two weeks before he was arrested and only he was arrested. He then denied having told the police in a statement that “We wait till de place get late and then we walk on de linetop and went to Lusignan.”

ID parade

Yearwood went on to question the accused about why he did not tell the police that he was in Lusignan and the young man responded saying that he did not know where they had gone. He also disclosed that after he was arrested, he was taken for an ID Parade to pick out some of the persons whose names he gave to the police. He noted that there were seven persons on the lineup, but later disclosed that the two accused persons were not present.

Meanwhile, under crossexamination by Attorney Nigel Hughes who is representing Hyles, the witness revealed a lot about events following the January massacre.

The attorney asked him if he was captured around the same time that “Fineman” was killed to which the young man replied saying that he was arrested and his gang leader was subsequently killed.

The young man recounted to the attorney that after the Lindo Creek massacre, he was separated from the gang and had to walk for 10 days in the Savannah and survived buy drinking creek water.

He continued that he then met a “dragline man” whom he lied to about his truck breaking down and that he caught malaria while looking for help. He stated that the man put him onto a “truck man” who assisted him out of the area, but they were confronted by the police and that was when he was arrested and airlifted to the city. Hughes asked the witness whether he enquired from the police about when he would be released since the charges were withdrawn against him and the man responded saying he did not.

The attorney then asked Williams to explain the logic of him and “Mud-up” remaining on the dam as look-outs but were armed with cutlasses. He clarified that they were told to stay on the dam and were given the cutlasses to chop anyone who came in their direction. The attorney continued by asking the man if he knew the gang members’ first name to which he answered in the negative, stating that he only knew them by their call names.

Williams was then asked whether, being 15 years old at the time, if he was scared of “Fineman” or ever opted to get out and he replied saying that he was not afraid of the gang leader, but could not have left because if he did, he would have been killed. The young man then agreed with the suggestion made by Hughes that he was present in 34 killings, including the murder of soldier Ivor Williams, and had gotten off. (vahnum@guyanatimesgy.com)

Pattinson ruled out of remaining Tests

Australia fast bowler James Pattinson will miss the rest of the Ashes series against England after suffering a stress fracture of the lower back.

The 23-year-old complained of soreness in his hip and back at the end of the second Test at Lord’s.

Cricket Australia confirmed Pattinson would miss the rest of the tour after a scan revealed the extent of the injury.

“Unfortunately he will not take any further part in this Test series,” said Australia team doctor Peter Brukner.

“Scans have identified an early stage low back stress fracture.

“He will commence a rehabilitation programme with the aim to have him back for the Australian summer.”

The tourists say they have no immediate plans to call up a replacement for Pattinson, which could mean a recall for Mitchell Starc.

Starc was left out of the side which was thrashed by 347 runs by England at Lord’s on Sunday.

James Faulkner and Jackson Bird are also available as back-up to frontline seamers Peter Siddle and

Ryan Harris. Josh Hazlewood,

Nathan Coulter-Nile and Chadd Sayers are among those who could potentially be called up from the Australia A squad currently playing in South Africa.

Cricket Australia general manager Pat Howard said: “While we are obviously disappointed for James, the selectors have five bowlers fit and ready to perform in England, providing them with many op-

tions.

“It is also important to note that several players have been performing for Australia A and are available to be called up at any stage if the national selection panel [requires] them.”

Pattinson took seven wickets in the two Tests at a cost of 307 runs, and almost helped Australia pull off an unlikely Trent Bridge victory with a gritty 25 not out in a thrilling climax to the first Test. (BBC Sport)

Delhi police file chargesheet in 2000 fixing case

Hansie Cronje is the only cricketer named in the chargesheet filed by the Delhi Police relating to the match-fixing case of 2000. The chargesheet was filed in a trial court on Monday, more than 13 years after the scandal broke.

When the issue first came to light, Delhi Police had charged the then South Africa captain Cronje with fixing his team’s ODIs against India in March 2000 for money. Cronje had confessed to accepting money from bookmakers in June that year, while being cross-examined by the King

Commission in Cape Town, and was banned for life in October. On June 1, 2002, Cronje was reported to have died in a plane crash near George in South Africa’s southern Cape.

“There are six accused in this case, three of them are on bail while two are abroad,” Inspector Keshav Kumar, the investigating officer in the case, told the court. “The sixth is Hansie Cronje, who is dead.”

The others are bookmakers and gamblers Rajesh Kalra, Krishan Kumar and Sunil Dara, who are all out on bail, and Sanjeev Chawla and Manmohan Khattar,

Warne retires from cricket as he opts out of Big Bash

Shane Warne has retired from all forms of cricket after announcing he will not play at this year’s Big Bash tournament with the Melbourne Stars.

who are overseas.

Delhi Police have alleged that Cronje persuaded some of his teammates to agree to underperform in a one-day match in 2000. Batsman Herschelle Gibbs and bowler Henry Williams were both banned for six months and fined by South African authorities for their admissions in the scandal, which broke when the police, working on an unrelated extortion case, tapped a telephone conversation between Cronje and Chawla. He is believed by the police to be in the UK and they hope to seek his extradition now that the chargesheet has been filed.

“We will now request the court to grant approval to seek extradition of Chawla from the UK to India,” Ravindra Yadav, additional commissioner of police (crime), told AFP. “The UK government does not allow extradition without the chargesheet. We are almost sure Chawla is in England.

“This is criminal conspiracy. People went to the ground to watch the games thinking they would be played in the true spirit. They did not know the outcome was fixed. That’s why we have filed the charges.”

(Cricinfo)

Warne, who retired from Test cricket in 2007, featured in each of the last two seasons of the Twenty20 Big Bash event.

The 43-year-old Australian is the secondhighest Test wicket-taker of all time with 708 in 145 Tests, as well as 293 more in 194 one-day internationals.

“I think the time is right for me to hang up my Big Bash boots,” he said.

“Juggling business, family and commentary commitments across two continents is not easy.

“I’ve always loved the game but now it’s time to observe.”

Warne bowed out of Test cricket after helping Australia to a 5-0 Ashes whitewash of England in 2007.

The Australian retired from the first-class game in 2008 after a spell captaining English county side Hampshire.

Warne quit all forms of cricket in May 2011 when he left Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League but announced in November of the same year that he would feature in the Big Bash tournament. (BBC Sport)

Fabregas is not for sale − Barcelona

Barcelona have told Manchester United that Cesc Fabregas is not for sale.

United confirmed on Monday that they had submitted an improved bid - understood to be £30m plus add-ons for the midfielderbut reports in Spain claim that has been turned down.

“Fabregas is not for sale,” a Barcelona source said on Monday. “The president (Sandro Rosell) has been very clear with Man United.”

Old Trafford boss David Moyes earlier said he may be forced to admit defeat.

When asked whether he would give up on Fabregas were the deal to drag on, Moyes said: “I think a point does come but I think when you are interested in good players you want to give it every opportunity to materialise. And I’ll do that.

“I’ll hope that things can continue to try to move forward.

“At this moment I can only tell you that Ed Woodward (United’s executive vice-chairman) is working hard to make the deals happen and we’re hoping some of them will fall into place shortly.”

United confirmed they had made a £25m offer for the 26-year-old midfielder last Monday, with Woodward leading the negotiations.

“As I understand it, Ed had a response [to the first

bid],” said Moyes at a news conference in Yokohama, Japan.

“We have made a second offer, but Ed is dealing with it rather than me.”

Two days after United’s initial offer was confirmed, Woodward returned from the Australia leg of their pre-season tour to attend to urgent transfer business.

Barcelona have not made any official comment, but the situation has reportedly been complicated by the managerial vacancy created at the Nou Camp by Tito Vilanova’s decision to step down because of ill health.

It is not clear whether Chelsea’s pursuit of United striker Wayne Rooney has any bearing on the club’s attempts to sign Fabregas.

The Spaniard came through Barcelona’s La Masia academy before Arsenal signed him as a 16-year-old in 2003.

He developed as one of the Gunners’ key players under manager Arsene Wenger before taking over the captaincy in November 2008.

Fabregas spent eight years with Arsenal, playing 303 games and scoring 57 goals, but returned to Barcelona in a five-year deal worth £25.4m in 2011 and has helped them win the Copa del Rey in 2011-12 and La Liga last season.

He has played 96 times in total for Barcelona, including 60 league games,

but has rarely featured in his preferred midfield role, with Xavi, 33, and Andres Iniesta, 29, ahead of him in the pecking order.

He has made 83 appearances for Spain, winning the 2010 World Cup and the European Championship twice.

In addition to Fabregas, United have a reported interest in Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo and Tottenham attacker Gareth Bale.

Left-back Leighton Baines and midfielder Marouane Fellaini, both of whom worked under Moyes at Everton, have also been linked with moves to Old Trafford - where the transfer record remains the £30.75m they paid Tottenham for striker Dimitar Berbatov in 2008.

But none of those moves have materialised as yet and when asked if he appreciated why some United fans were becoming anxious, Moyes replied: “I can understand that feeling.

“But there have been quite a few changes. Other managers have changed their clubs, too, and everybody thought this might be the summer when transfers are done later in the month.

“That was always the thought I had when I came into the club. You have to remember I only started on 1 July, so in truth I have only been in the job three weeks at this present time.”

Young Amazon Warrior Trevon Griffith is “coming to play”

Trevon Griffith may be the youngest player on the Guyana Amazon Warriors team, but what he lacks in years, he definitely makes up for in confidence and fighting spirit.

The Under-23 cricketer is convinced that the Amazon Warriors can win the inaugural Limacol Caribbean Premier League, and he plans to play a significant part in making that happen.

For 22-year-old Trevon Abashai Griffith, playing in the inaugural Limacol Caribbean Premier League T20 tournament is a chance to put the doubts about his form to rest; in fact, he relishes the challenge.

“I always take delight in representing my country at any level of cricket and because this is the first ever LCPL tournament, it will serve as a major benefit to me as a player,” Griffith said.

With a left-handed batting style often described as pugnacious, Griffith shot to prominence in 2009 as the

top scorer in the TCL Group West Indies Challenge tournament, amassing 406 runs at an average of 40, even scoring a century against the Leeward Islands on his home ground.

His excitement level is at an all-time high with the knowledge that he will face his idol, Chris Gayle of the Jamaica Tallawahs, on August 2 in Guyana.

“I am definitely coming to play,” said Griffith. “I plan to display my best abilities and make my contribution to the Guyana Amazon

Warriors and consequently to the entire league but I’m also hoping to advance my career and entertain fans throughout the Caribbean.”

Griffith has already been getting a lot of attention from both selectors and fans alike, and come 31 July there will be a posse of excited supporters in the stands, there specifically for him when the Amazon Warriors face the TT Red Steel. His family will be there too.

“My family is always supportive of every step I take in life. They are all incredibly proud that I have been chosen to play in the Limacol CPL and plan to give me a lot of encouragement throughout the tournament.”

No doubt if the Amazon Warriors live up to the high expectations that Griffith has, they will come out victorious in the inaugural Limacol Caribbean Premier League. Matches in Guyana will take place on July 31 and August 2 and 4. (CPL)

Bounty Colts clinch nail-biter in top tier final

By TreisTon Joseph

Ravens squandered a fourth quarter 11-point lead and were out tipped 67-69 in the dying seconds of the Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association (GABA) top tier playoff first division final by the Bounty Colts on Sunday evening at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.

Ravens, who led the entire game until final seconds of the encounter, choked and allowed Bounty Colts to capitalise with an offensive tip in by Shelroy Thomas to snatch the game away from Raven with less than two seconds left.

In the final 40s Ravens led by four and put the ball in the hands of their star Akeem “The Dream” Kanhai who committed two crucial turnovers on consecutive plays.

It was a fast-paced game with Colts missing their shots early on

while Ravens howled on the fast break opportunities to open a handsome 13-point lead by the end of the first half with the score on 38-25.

However, Colts rebounded in the second half, limiting their outside shooting by attacking the paint and creating more mid-range shots. This gave them a smooth offensive flow despite Ravens’ tough inside defence.

Colts in the final period then went on a 9-0 run to cap off the thrilling game that had the fans in the arena screaming.

Thomas scored 14 points in the game while Dave Causway added 17 points in the close win.

Kanhai had 15 points in game and Ryan Gullen chipped in with 12 points.

In the third division final, Pacesetters topped Buxton 70-61 to take the title from their East Coast rivals.

Ruel Ritch was phe -

nomenal with his leadership skills and dropped 15 points in the process as his ability to call plays and direct his team on offense proved crucial. Ryan Cummings added 14 points while Tariq Cave, Ryan Wilson and Joslyn Crawford added 12, 13 and 10 points respectively.

Meanwhile, in the supporting game Kwakwani topped West Side Jammers 70-63 in another high-paced encounter. Kwakwani’s Dominique Douglas dropped a game high 27 points as he sank shots from all parts of the court during the exhibition display.

Elvis Thompson contributed 18 points while Clevon Donjon added 12 points in the win. West Ralph was the top scorer for the Jammers with 22 points while Samuel Hollingsworth added 14 points.

Basketball camp opens in New Amsterdam

Several youths in New Amsterdam and its environs are being introduced to the fundamentals of basketball through a three-week camp being hosted by the Berbice Amateur Basketball Association (BABA).

The camp opened on Monday at the municipal court at Vrymen’s Erven. Secretary Treasurer of the Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation (GABF) and President of BABA, Kirk

Fraser said the camp caters for junior players between the ages of seven and 18.

At the end of the three weeks the players will travel to Kwakwani to participate in games that will enable BABA to do an evaluation to deter-

More than 80 youths will be exposed to the basics of football while also learning essential life stills in the Heart Of Oak “Teach Them Young”football camp now in its second week.

mine the success of the camp.

“We are not only focusing on the physical aspect of basketball, we will enforce certain fundamentals of the sport, including the importance of teamwork.”

He noted also that ses-

sions will also be conducted on social topics like HIV/ AIDS.

Meanwhile, Fraser has made an appeal for more corporate support for the camp.

“At the moment, we don’t have the support of any group;

we are encouraging corporate bodies to assist us in developing the sport throughout the region,” The camp runs from Monday to Friday between from 9:00h to 12:00 noon and is catering for sixty youths.

(Andrew Carmichael)

The annual camp caters for beginners of the game and exposes them to the rules, techniques as exercises. Organiser and facilitator Neil Humphrey says the main focus is discipline however.

“In any sport that one wants to get involved in

there is need for discipline. Even in the classroom and when they go to work they will have to be disciplined if they are to be successful,” Humphrey noted The camp’s youngest participant is four years old and caters for persons up to 18

years. During the five weeks of instructional activity, participants will be exposed to lectures on life skills, HIV/ AIDS, the laws of football and etiquette in the home. Already they have received lectures from a dentist.

Today a senior officer

from the Guyana Prison Service is expected to interact with the participants.

Humphrey expressed his gratitude to several individuals and organisations. Among those are Yikes Depot, Republic Bank, Stretch D Dollar, J’s

Swimming camp attracts record participation

GCB female InterCounty tournament starts on

Wednesday

The Guyana Cricket Board senior female Inter-County 50-Over cricket competition bowls off on Wednesday with the first of three rounds from 09:30h.

All three rounds are scheduled for the Everest Cricket Club ground with Essequibo playing hosts Demerara in the first round.

Round two will be played on Thursday and will see Berbice against Essequibo, while round three is fixed for Friday and will involve Demerara and Berbice.

As numerous holiday camps are being rolled out across the country, the swimming fraternity is quietly making inroads into the future of the sport, training over 100 youths at the National Sports Commission’s (NSC) annual programme at the Colgrain Pool on Camp Street.

According to Administrator of the Colgrain Pool and the National Aquatic Centre, Abraham Watson, the camp has attracted a whopping 137 persons, the largest in its history.

Of that number, 91 of

the youngsters had never attempted swimming prior to attending the camp. This, Watson said, is a step in the right direction, as it will help to expand the pool of talent available for national selection.

Watson said the NSC is enthused by the large turout, and as such, will put systems in place to ensure follow-up prgrammes are held to facilitate the process of development.

Currently, 11 coaches, spearheaded by Cuban Isabel Maria Couso Fals, are conducting the programme, which is being held from

09:00 to 12:00 hours on weekdays at the Colgrain Pool on Camp Street.

Watson said participants have been drawn from Georgetown, West Bank, Soesdyke and Berbice among other areas.

The administrator also pointed out that the current camp will be extended to facilitate a higher level of training later in the year at the “Learn to Swim” programme at the National Aquatic Centre at Lilliendaal.

Meanwhile, coach Isabel said she has already identified a dozen young, aspiring

swimmers who are primed to make the transition to the next level.

According to Isabel, the swimmers have all shown significant improvement over the past three weeks and she is satisfied with progress made so far.

While the younger group is being edified on the basics of the sport, the older participants, who already have an idea of swimming, are being given an opportunity to sharpen their skills.

The camp is one of several being hosted by the NSC across the 10 regions of Guyana. (Avenash Ramzan)

Digicel semi-finals billed for Uitvlugt, BV grounds

The third annual Digicel schools football championship will enter its penultimate day on Wednesday when the semifinals are contested at two venues in Demerara.

Both games are slated to kick off at 15:30 hours with Covent Garden taking on 2012 champions Wismar/Christianburg at the Beterverwagting ground on the East Coast of Demerara and St George’s tackling last year’s runnerup Waramadong Secondary at the Uitvlugt Community Centre on the West Coast of Demerara.

The teams earned the right to contest the semi-finals after emerging with contrasting victories in Sunday’s quarter-finals.

Waramadong Secondary,

one of the pre-tournament favourites, prevailed 4-0 over Santa Rosa to book their place among the competition’s top four teams.

Playing at the Ministry of Education on Carifesta Avenue, the Waramadong and Santa Rosa lads played to a nil-all stalemate at the end of the opening half, before Wazir Bascombe singlehandedly led Waramadong to victory with a helmet-trick in the final half.

Bascombe scored the opening goal in the 62nd minute and then continued on a rampage, netting in the 66th, 71st and 82nd minutes to take the game away from the Santa Rosa boys.

As expected, the Waramadong coach Delon Bissoon was delighted with the victory. He warned the

other teams that this year his boys are determined to better their runner-up position of 2012. “We are coming stronger this year, and our only aim is to win this tournament,” he said.

Reigning champions Wismar/Christianburg Seconday also notched up a 4-0 win to keep their chances alive of successfully defending their title.

A double from Joshawn Moore in the 31st and 73rd minutes, followed by goals from Shane Luckie in the 64th and Godwin Mitchell in the 84th minute accounted for Wismar/Christianburg goals at the Wisburg ground. In other action, Covent Garden bounced back twice to edge Leonora Secondary 4-3 at the Grove playfield. Scoring for Covent Garden

were Trevon Gaskin (45th), Kevin Agard (73rd), Roddick McKenzie (75th) and Ricky Dass (80th), while Leonora’s goals came from Aubrey Greene (23rd), Jamal Pereira (60th) and Gavin Graham (85th).

In the other quarter-final at Burnham Park, St George’s edged New Amsterdam Technical Institute two goals to one. Azuma Small and Orin Moore were on target for St George’s in the 34th and 65th minutes, with Royston Darolyn netting New Amsterdam Technical Institute’s consolation in the 47th minute.

The grand final and third place playoff are billed for Sunday at the Police Sports Club ground, Eve Leary. The third annual competition has attracted 147 schools.

Meanwhile, the players who will be representing Demerara are: June Ogle, Akeze Thompson, Kavita Yadram, Hema Singh, Johan Vansertima, Haseena Mohamed, Tracey Glasgow, Jannette Daniels, Leana harris,

The Manger is Malyane Ramdular while Orin Bailey is the coach

FIFA lifts global ban on Cameroon for government interference

FIFA has lifted its global ban on Cameroon after a normalisation committee began its work on Monday to run the country’s football federation.

It is being headed by former Minister of Education, Sports, Joseph Owona.

Earlier this month, FIFA banned Cameroon for governmental interference into the running of the country’s football.

The condition for the lifting of the ban was that the committee was allowed to begin work.

The team will be working under the supervision of FIFA’s Primo Carvaro and Confederation of African Football (CAF) representative Prosper Abega.

It means Cameroon will be free to play their crucial 2014 World Cup qualifier away to Libya in September, with the winner advancing to the final playoff round.

Meanwhile, club side Coton Sport will also be allowed to continue their African Champions League campaign - having failed to take part in their opening Group B match this weekend because of the ban.

The move follows a recent visit to meet FIFA president Sepp Blatter by a delegation from Cameroon that included current Sports Minister Adoum Garoua.

The normalisation committee will now act as the electoral body and will revise the statutes of the Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot).

It will also organise federation elections to be held by 31 March next year.

Members of the committee will not be eligible for any of the open positions at Fecafoot.

There had been confusion within Cameroon football before the ban with federation elections postponed

on several occasions. When the elections did go ahead, Iya Mohamed was re-elected president despite the fact he is being detained by the authorities in Cameroon.

He is being investigated after being accused of embezzling money at stateowned Cotton Development Company.

Soon after the election results were announced, Fecafoot’s elections appeals committee declared them void.

In the aftermath, John Begheni Ndeh announced himself head of the federation and started work with the help of police, which was deemed as political interference by Fifa.

Normalisation Committee Members: President: Joseph Owona - former Minister of Education, Sports and experts on constitutions; Vice- President: Emmanuel Ngassa Happi - President of the Committee for professional side Union Douala; Members: Michel Kaham - former indomitable Lion, Director of Kadji Sport Academy, Ebenezer Mouloke - former director of norms at the Ministry of sports and Physical Education, Ephraim Gwafor - former Minister and Rector of the University of Yaounde II, Owona Pascal Bialongformer Indomitable Lions captain, and ex-president of Fecafoot, David N’Hanack Tonye - Lawyer, former Secretary-General of the Ministry of Sports and Physical Education, James Moungue KobilaLawyer, head of law department university of Douala, Jonathan Fombe – Lawyer, Amadou Evele - Lawyer, former Director of Semry, Adolphe Minkoa She - Lawyer, faculty of political sciences University of Yaounde II. (BBC Sport)

CABOFE/GBBC president concerned by AIBA’s move

President of the Caribbean Boxing Federation (CABOFE), Peter Abdool, has signalled the Federation’s grave concerns with respect to the Amateur International Boxing Association’s (AIBA) plan to launch their own league of professional boxers which will be allowed to compete in the Olympics.

He said that Olympic boxing has traditionally been closed to professional boxers for many reasons, principal among them are the obvious safety issues.

Abdool reasoned that unlike many other professional disciplines admitted to the Olympics such as basketball, the vast difference in experience between the pros and the amateurs results in at worst, a great disparity in points.

In boxing however, this difference could result in serious bodily injury, permanent disability and death, according to the CABOFE boss.

Quite apart from this, the pro league that AIBA is advocating for is hinged on amateur and professional boxers being able to compete in the Olympics provided that they sign with AIBA.

However delicately AIBA puts it, Abdool feels that it amounts to little more than AIBA using the authority granted to it by the International Olympic

Committee (IOC) as its International Federation for boxing, to impose its will on young amateur fighters and seasoned professionals alike by the granting or withholding of access to an opportunity to participate in the Olympics.

In return for that access, the fighter must sign with them. Notably, an Olympic gold medal remains a coveted prize for all athletes. In the global arena of ethical and fair competition, this would be regarded as extremely manipulative and coercive behaviour and in his opinion cannot be categorised as less than a most unfair trading practice.

Abdool said, “This is particularly so as it seeks to completely monopolise both aspects of boxing to the detriment of professional boxing promoters and professional boxing organisations the world over.”

In light of this, the Guyana Boxing Board of Control (GBBC) head admitted to being startled that the IOC has not stepped in to arrest the process as he feels that at the end of the day the issue has the potential to eventually bring them (IOC) into great disrepute.

While recognising that the eventual outcome will likely be decided by various courts across the world, Abdool said that CABOFE

GBTI Tennis Open… Andrews’ win sets up clash with top seed

Jason Andrews has progressed to the second round of the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry (GBTI) Tennis Open, setting up a clash with defending champion and doubles partner, Anthony Downes.

In latest action from the bank’s recreational facility at Bel Air Park, Andrews breezed past junior second seed, Craig Campbell, 6-2 6-4.

The unseeded Andrews, known for his powerful serves and booming ground strokes, easily won the first set in 20 minutes. Campbell tried to stay toe to toe with the strong Andrews, but lost the battle quickly as the eventual winner broke the player twice to close out the first set.

Campbell, who is known to be a fighter on the tennis court and one of the young talents to look forward to, quickly lost the set to Andrews 6-4.

There were also wins for the mother/daughter combination, national coach Shelly Daly-Ramdhyan and Nichola Ramdhyan. They defeated Tanya Niamatali and Carol Humphrey 6-0, 3-0.

The Ramdhyans now lead the Women’s doubles round-robin group, with the other team in the threeteam group being junior players Jamaali Holmer and Afruica Gentle.

and the GBBC must join with the World Boxing Council (WBC) and its President Jose Sulaiman, the European Boxing Union (EBU), the African Boxing Union (ABU), the British Boxing Board (BBB), the North American Boxing Federation (NABF), the Asian Boxing Council, the WBO, Don King, Gary Shaw and numerous other concerned boxing promoters and boxing organisations worldwide in condemning the intended admittance

of professional boxing to the Olympics, as well as AIBA’s monopolistic behaviuor and apparently unconcerned approach to the well-being of amateur fighters.

“Amateur boxers are our children and their protection is everybody’s business,” he concluded.

King, Fields concerned Popular American promoter, Don King, was also not in support of the move.

“I am a promoter of the

people, by the people, and for the people; and my magic lies in my people ties,” he said.

“In the interests of the people, I totally reject the notion of pitting professional fighters against amateur fighters. I am frightened, shocked and appalled that the AIBA and the IOC could support such a harmful policy against human interest and public interest.

I strongly advise that the AIBA and the IOC dismiss their efforts to emasculate the boxers in their monopolistic practices and circumnavigate the boxing organisations and the professional promoters, giving the AIBA and the IOC veiled control over the sport of boxing, competitive wise, as well as business wise, under the so called auspices of ‘we are doing the best thing for the athlete (boxer).’ I am prayerful and hopeful that they change their minds.”

According to Dr Allan Fields, who is a leading ringside physician and one of the most highly recognised certi-

fied ringside physicians in the world, “This is ludicrous! By definition alone, an amateur is one who engages in a pursuit, or a study, or a science for a sport, as a past time rather than a profession. On the other hand, a professional, by definition, is a highly talented experienced expert, who receives money, and does this for a living.”

Dr Fields continued, “You’re upsetting the balance if you let a highly experienced person fight against an amateur who is certainly not a professional and is lacking experience. Therefore, the IOC’s first rule is broken, which is the safety of the fighters. No safety of a fighter can be guaranteed when you place a professional fighter in the ring with an amateur fighter. In order for them to try to equal the scales, it should be one professional versus. another professional in the Olympics. Even so, it’s no longer the Olympics; instead, it’s just another boxing show.”

Also making a move on was Rudy Grant, who on Sunday got an easy path through after playing just four games. He was leading 3-1 when his opponent Avinash Panday retired.

Meanwhile, action from Saturday evening saw Mario Niamatali ousting Kris Jugdeo in three sets, 2-6 7-5 6-4 in Men’s Singles play.

In the Ladies Open, Carol Humphrey booted Efanne Doobay 6-2 6-2 and the pair of Godfrey Lowden/ Omar Persaud defeated Steve David Longe/Albert Madramottoo 6-1 6-2 in the Men’s 35 and Over category. The competition will run until August 3.

Global Bank Group sponsors Antigua Hawksbills

Global Bank of Commerce Ltd and its affiliate Global Processing Centre, have signed on as a founding sponsor of the Antigua Hawksbills team which will be competing in the inaugural Limacol Caribbean Premier League (LCPL) T20 competition.

“Our management team is very pleased to have the opportunity to support the Antigua Hawksbills as its second founding sponsor, especially as the team is being coached by our very own Sir Vivian Richards,” said Brian Stuart-Young, chairman and CEO of the Global Bank Group.

“Given Antigua’s strong heritage in producing great cricketers, there is every expectation that the Hawksbills will reach the finals. In addition, the Hawksbills have a well-rounded team led by

Young

Ponting will perform exceptionally to mark his retirement from professional cricket.”

Global Bank of Commerce has been a regular corporate sponsor for various local sporting events and individual athletes. It has also worked in collaboration with the Antiguan government’s Sport Ministry, but this partnership with the Limacol CPL will be its most significant sports sponsorship.

“We are delighted to have the Global Bank Group on board for the inaugural Limacol Caribbean Premier League,” said Pete Russell, commercial director to the Limacol CPLT20. “The management team understands the impact that this tournament will have not only on Antigua but across the

Caribbean and we are delighted the bank is part of what promises to be an exciting spectacle that captures the imagination around the world.”

Global Bank of Commerce is an Antiguan owned, 30year old institution providing international financial services, wealth management and investment guidance. Its affiliate, Global Processing Centre, is a certified data centre providing an electronic financial transaction platform with multiple payment channels for cards, electronic wallets and mobile payments.

The Antigua Hawksbills play their first game against the Barbados Tridents on August 1 at the Kensington Oval. Home games will take place on August 13, 15 and 17 at the Sir Vivian Richards National Stadium.

Bounty Colts clinch nailbiter in top tier final