Guyana Times Daily

DEA to probe discovery of narco-smuggling submarine

saturday, august 16, 2014 | guyanatimesgy.com

Understrength Police Force seeks another 1546 ranks

Woefully short of its established strength of 3410 ranks, the Guyana Police Force has been granted permission to increase this by another 1546, the Home Affairs Ministry said on Friday.

“The Ministry of Home Affairs has been successful in receiving the approval of Cabinet for an increase in the establishment of the Guyana Police Force from 3410 to 4956,” the release stated, adding that the Force’s establishment of 3410 was in existence since 1977.

“With this increase, a total of 1546 ranks would be added to the Force’s strength. This upward adjustment of the strength of the Force has become necessary because of the additional functions that the Police Force has had to perform over the years. Those added responsibilities have resulted in the Force creating additional specialised units.”

Further, the Ministry said because of the development of new housing areas and the expanded economic activities in the interior and other areas in Guyana, the current strength of the

Force has been found to be inadequate to man the existing and new Police Stations that are to be constructed. The follow-up administrative procedures that are required to move the process forward, are currently being undertaken.

Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee earlier this year had acknowledged the manpower shortage in the Force, but the Government was cognisant of the issue and was taking steps towards its resolution.

According to Rohee, the Government had sought the aid of the Capita Symonds Consultancy firm, which

was charged with determining attributing factors and alleviatory methods.

“Capita Symonds Consultancy was engaged to do a study on this matter and they have produced what I would say something like a blueprint to address this matter,” the Home Affairs Minister said.

He pointed out that the Police Force has never been able to reach its maximum human resource capacity, but this factor did not majorly affect the Force in the discharge of its remit.

“Based on enquiries that I have made, the Guyana Police Force has never ever been up to its full strength in respect to its field establishment… It has always been an uphill task… to acquire the full strength of the Force,” he explained.

However, he opined that with the acquisition of the “blueprint” from the consultancy firm, the Government would be able to address the situation. He said too that most ranks would leave the Force during their second or third year of assignment and this would be due to various factors, including the fact that those years are the most trying years for an officer.

It's Assemblies of God Religious Institution

It was incorrectly reported in our Wednesday edition under the caption “First Assemblies gets $41.7 million from EU to build training centre” that the First Assemblies of God Church located on D’Urban Street, Georgetown, had received $41.7 million from the European Union to construct a centre to teach life skills and build capacity

among youth and seniors in the East Ruimveldt area.

The aid was actually granted to the Assemblies of God Religious Institution and not the First Assemblies of God Church. Guyana Times regrets the error and apologises to the two churches for the inconvenience the article may have caused.

Dubbed the “Ruimveldt Life Improvement Initiatives

(RLII) Multi-Purpose Business and Recreational Centre,” the project is funded under the European Union’s Non-State Actors and Local Authorities in Development (NSA/LA) thematic budget line aims at encouraging non-state actors and local authorities, both from the EU and in developing countries, to get more involved in development issues.

GDF hosts US military doctors

Nine military doctors from the USA on Friday toured the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Medical Corps at the end of their two-week visit to Guyana.

According to a release, the visiting group consisted of four United States Air Force (USAF) Aerospace Medical Residents, two Preventative Medicine Physicians (one Army and one Navy), two prospective Flight Surgeons, and their team leader, Specialist in Infectious Diseases, Dr Mary Bavaro.

Welcoming the visiting medical team, Colonel Administration and

Quartering, Captain John Flores, conveyed a warm welcome on behalf of Chiefof-Staff Brigadier Mark Phillips and noted that it was always a good thing when the Force had such distinguished visitors.

He noted too, that such visits presented an opportunity for sharing important information. He then invited the team to tour the Medical Corps facility at Base Camp Ayanganna and expressed the hope that their stay in Guyana would be fruitful. Officer Commanding Medical Corps, Major Parmeshwar Netram accompanied by the Force Medical Officer, Dr Frederick Deane

and other Medical Corps Staff, escorted the team through a tour of the facility. Apart from Captain Bavaro, the other members of the team are students of Military Tropical Medicine at the Uniformed Services University (USU) in Bethesda, Maryland.

“In order to fulfil the requirement for their mandatory field exposure, the team requested to visit Guyana. The Guyana Defence Force is pleased to have facilitated a visit to its facilities since it places a very high premium on military- to- military co-operation with Guyana’s allies,” the release concluded.

Police complaints body to get investigative arm

Cabinet has granted permission for the establishment of an investigative arm of the Police Complaints Authority (PCA), the premier watchdog agency

against Police excesses.

In a statement, the Home Affairs Ministry said the approval was granted as a result of representation made by the Ministry.

“This approval will result in the employment of four qualified investigators to conduct investigations on behalf of the Police Complaints Authority, independently of the Guyana Police Force,” the statement said. The Ministry noted that the assignment of an investigative arm to the PCA was one of the recommendations that arose from the Disciplined Services Commission report. The Home Affairs Ministry said it welcomes the development.

PCA Chairman, retired Justice Cecil Kennard had told this newspaper recently that for the past few years, it had been suggested the complaints authority be equipped with its own investigators, but that had not materialised. He said as he had put in the department’s annual reports, this shortcoming was one of the major challenges for the unit.

“There is dire need for these skilled people who will be independent and investigate without fear or favour. Once we get our own investigators, we can prioritise reports and act upon them,” Kennard has said.

75 held during massive Police raids

... guns, drugs and motorbikes seized

Massive raids in Georgetown, East Bank Demerara (EBD), Berbice and on the East Coast early Friday morning saw Police arresting 75 people and seizing a quantity of drugs as well as guns and two motorcycles.

In a statement, the Police said that cordonand-search operations were carried out in A, B and C Divisions. In A Division (Georgetown/ East Bank Demerara), a total of 26 buildings were searched in Georgetown, Sophia, and at Kaneville, EBD.

Fifty men and six women were arrested pending investigations into various offences, including robbery under arms, trafficking in narcotics and break and enter and larceny.

Additionally, an un-

licensed 16 gauge sawnoff shot gun, 695 grams of cannabis sativa (marijuana) and nine grams of cocaine were found during the operation.

In B Division (Berbice), six buildings were searched in the Alness, Limlair, Nurney and Salton area, Corentyne, during which an air rifle was recovered.

Seven men were arrested pending investigations into robbery under arms and break and enter and larceny. In C Division (East Coast Demerara), a total of 26 buildings were searched in the Sophia, Vryheid’s Lust, Cummings Lodge, Turkeyen and Better Hope South areas.

Nine men and three women were arrested pending investigations into robbery under arms and break and enter and

larceny. Two motorcycles that are suspected to have been stolen or unlawfully obtained have been seized by the Police.

Friday’s raids come on the heels of an increase in murders and gun crimes. For this week, there have been several murders across the country as well as a number of gun robberies.

Earlier this month, the Police had reported that there has been an eight per cent drop in serious crimes for the first seven months of the year. According to the Police Force, the total number of reports of serious crimes made between January 1 and July 31 was 2134 compared to 2317 for the same period in 2013.

However, by the end of July, over 80 murders had been recorded which represents a 10 per cent increase in the murder rate

over the same period for the previous year.

“Of the 80 murders committed onto July 2014, three were of the execution type; 16 were committed during robberies; 21 were domestic related; 17 were of the disorderly type; and 23 are so far undetermined,” the Police Force said in a statement.

Additionally, at the end of July, robbery under arms increased by 16 per cent with 679 reports compared to 585 for the same period in 2013.

“The statistics indicate an increase of 27 per cent in the number of armed robberies involving the use of firearms and a two per cent decrease in armed robberies, where instruments other than firearms were used by the perpetrators,” the statement said.

New alternative by-pass from Diamond to Ogle in pipeline

The Housing and Water Ministry has commenced work on a massive outlay of road infrastructure across the country. One of the main projects that the Ministry is at present focusing on for the immediate future is a new alternative by-pass road stretching from Diamond, East Bank Demerara, all the way to Ogle.

This project is currently being designed, according to Housing and Water Minister Irfaan Ali. He explained that a feasibility study has been completed for this project and has since been submitted to the Indian Government for financing.

As the Ministry awaits the decision from India, it has been completing all surveys and designs for the project in the meantime. The Minister explained that the Ministry has been putting itself in a state of readiness to go out to tender.

Notwithstanding this, the Ministry is working on and has completed a number of road networks leading to Diamond and also constructing a number of primary connectors (roadways), that will establish a link between the existing East Bank Demerara Road and the new alternative highway/by-pass that is to be constructed.

Thus far, primary connectors have been com-

pleted in the following areas: Eccles, Providence, Herstelling, Perseverance, Mocha, Covent Garden, according to Minister Ali, while work is in progress at Little Diamond.

In addition, there is also the construction of secondary connecting roads, and

Minister Ali said at least five of these have been completed and are being used.

These stretch from Eccles to Herstelling, he said.

The Ministry in support of urbanisation of the new housing developments, with the support from community and regionally based projects, has been putting in place infrastructure such as schools and multi-purpose centres. It is in this regard that the Ministry has executed and completed a very important road in Region Three that offers an alternative access to a number of new and developing schemes, including the Parfaite Harmonie, Schoonord and the Rect-Door-Zee Housing Schemes.

Editor: Nigel Williams

Tel: 225-5128, 231-0397, 226-9921, 226-2102, 223-7230 or 223-7231. Fax: 225-5134

Mailing address: 238 Camp & Quamina Streets, Georgetown

Email: news@guyanatimesgy.com, sales@guyanatimesgy.com

Editorial

UG student loans

There seems to be no definitive solution to the financial problems being faced by the administration of the University of Guyana (UG) as they relate to student loans for new and continuing students. The new academic year is fast approaching and there is a high level of uncertainty amongst the student population regarding their ability to access loans.

Although 40 per cent of the student population acquired loans in the last academic year, this percentage is expected to skyrocket with the increase in tuition fees that will take full effect this September.

During consideration of the 2014 National Budget, $450 million which was budgeted by Government for the Student Loan Fund was disapproved after it was lumped with items the Opposition had deemed objectionable.

By June, the Finance Minister moved to the House with a Statement of Excess on the Current and Capital Estimates totalling $4.5 billion for the period ending June 16. This sum included $225 million for the Student Loan Fund.

Vice-Chancellor (VC) Dr Jacob Opadeyi called a press conference where he updated the media regarding the financial problems being faced by the institution.

Dr Opadeyi said if the Finance Ministry does not signal its approval for the disbursement of student loans, the university will temporarily freeze operations. He explained that the nonresponsiveness from the Loans Department and by extension the Finance Ministry could trigger a total shutdown on both campuses at Turkeyen, East Coast Demerara and Tain on the Corentyne, Berbice.

The level of impatience and perhaps frustration on the part of the VC may be acceptable in some quarters, but the utterances made by him, who is in effect the Chief Executive Officer of the institution in relation to shutting down UG are out of order. His ill-conceived comments were premature and reckless, considering the fact that the issue of student loans is currently engaging the attention of Cabinet.

As head of one of Guyana’s premier learning institutions, he should have known that such statements have the potential to lead to further stress and confusion amongst the student population, who at the moment, are very unsure about their academic futures.

To begin with, students are dissatisfied with the present conditions on campus where they sometimes have to settle for sob-standard services and facilities offered by the institution. Added to this, students are also bracing themselves to deal with the increase in tuition fees and other costs associated with acquiring their degrees: these include transportation, textbooks, photocopying, and lab fees, etc.

Ordinary Guyanese students who do not have access to the kind of finances needed to pursue higher education would certainly find this burdensome.

Even though the VC has since clarified that his comments didn’t mean there would be a total shutdown of the institution if the monies for student loans are not approved, it would be wise if he were to carefully think through the likely impact of such statements before making them public in future.

That aside, we wish to underline what we had said some time ago, that is, the demands of UG are significant and everchanging, and to continuously meet them, there must be a sustainable source of financing – and this goes beyond the annual subvention it receives from Government.

UG cannot and should not depend solely on central Government or donors for its finances. It would need to explore alternative ways of raising funds to sustain itself as other international learning institutions are doing in order to remain competitive and relevant.

In the meantime, we urge both the Government and Opposition parties in Parliament to do all that is necessary to ensure that the sum budgeted for student loans is approved as soon as possible, as thousands of students stand to be affected.

This is an issue of national importance and a bipartisan, nationalist approach must be adopted to ensure a solution is found soon.

Open letter to the membership of GMSA

Dear Colleagues,

It appears as if the advocacy measures which I undertook on behalf of the membership as it relates to the allegations by the local press (Kaieteur News) has now taken on a political agenda.

This is evident by consecutive deliberate leakages, first of the contents of the meeting that was held two days ago, and secondly the contents of a draft

letter circulated, intended to be sent to the Minister/ Commissioner of Forests, which was circulated to the membership for comments.

It is quite obvious that these leakages have been deliberate with the obvious intention of preventing the GMSA from taking on a transparent and unbiased, and hence an objective, approach to the allegations made.

In the circumstances, I

would find it very difficult to continue to engage the subject Minister and/or the Commission on this matter, particularly because from the inception, when consulted, I refused to recuse myself from pursuing this matter as President of the GMSA.

However, in light of the circumstances whereby information continues to be leaked to the very press which made the allegations,

even before the mandate that was given to me has been communicated to the concerned Government institutions, I would have no other option than to withdraw from any further engagement and/or consultations on behalf of the GMSA on this matter.

Respectfully,

Clinton Williams Chief Executive Officer

The issue of illegal firearms and gun-related crimes

Dear Editor,

The PPP/C wishes to bring to the attention of the citizens of Guyana, the deceitfulness of the PNCR/ APNU when it comes to the issue of illegal firearms and gun-related crimes.

It is David Granger who on countless occasions criticised the PPP/C Government, accusing the party of not doing enough to tackle the issue and of not providing adequate resources to tackle trafficking of illegal firearms and the use of these firearms in the commission of crimes.

Notwithstanding all the talk and propaganda it was at the PNCR Biennial Congress on July 27, where an individual known to be one of the security detail attached to Congress Place

was armed with a firearm and who discharged a round at no less a place, than the headquarters of Granger’s Party.

This exposes the double standards practised by Granger, who while pretending to be serious about tackling the trafficking of illegal firearms in Guyana is yet to explain the presence of a gunman openly brandishing and firing a loaded firearm at a crowded place.

Incidents such as this lends us to believe that this may very well be the reason why the PNCR voted against the Firearm Amendment Bill when it was first tabled in the National Assembly and after internal and external pressure was exerted on the AFC and APNU to review their positions.

It is perhaps not co-incidental that the PNCR continues to find themselves in the company of criminal elements. It was just a few weeks ago, a photograph surfaced of Granger in the company of Kevin Fields, a suspected criminal, who was eventually shot and killed by a businessman while committing a robbery on Sheriff Street, Georgetown.

We can never stop reminding that it was the PNCR that draped the notorious bandit Linden “Blackie” London casket with a Guyana Flag. Moreover, it was the PNCR that supported the criminal elements who held Guyana under siege following the Mash Day 2003 jailbreak.

Further, it was the PNCR who supported the criminal

enterprise who held Buxton captive for almost three years. It was the PNC which described criminal elements as freedom fighters.

We in the PPP/C and by extension every right-thinking Guyanese can draw no other conclusion but that the PNCR is on the wrong side of the law as was the case since the 1960s. They continue to find themselves in the company of criminal elements.

We urge Guyanese to be wary of the wolves in sheep’s clothing who preach as though they are the only saviours of this country; while in the same breath continue to nestle comfortably in the company of criminal elements.

Sincerely, PPP/C, Freedom House

Is GRA paying attention?

Dear Editor,

Some things are just not adding up. Latchmin Gopaul and her husband said they were tied up and robbed of millions on their way to the airport and yet they were able to be rescued, give a Police report and still board their flight to travel.

Most people going to the airport go at least two hours before flight time since check-in closes and hour before. Is this possible? Are they so prominent that a plane was delayed for them? Are the Police truly involved in the alleged robbery and therefore had people on standby to rescue them?

The robbers claimed to be Police officers, therefore, their faces were visible to the trio so why did

they leave them alive and not take their travel documents. Why take only the cellphones. Who paid for their departure taxes. Do they have friends in high places that their taxes were waived due to their ordeal?

Who are paying for their vacation since it is assumed that all their monies were taken? Why were they in such a rush to go?

For people running a private school, where did they get all that money from and why were they taking cash?

What is the GRA doing about these things? Do these people pay their share of taxes?

Sincerely, David Persaud

Some benefits of the AntiMoney Laundering Bill

Dear Editor,

The rise of global financial markets makes money laundering easier than ever – countries with bank-secrecy laws are directly connected to countries with bank-reporting laws, making it possible to anonymously deposit ‘dirty’ money in one country and then have it transferred to any other country for use.

Money laundering happens in almost every country in the world, and a single scheme typically involves transferring money through several countries in order to obscure its origins.

In this letter, we’ll learn exactly what money laundering is and why it’s necessary, who launders money and how they do it and what steps the authorities are taking to try to foil money-laundering operations.

Money laundering, at its simplest, is the act of making money that comes from source A looks like

Thanking exemplary individuals of Courbane Park

Dear Editor, It is often remarked that our past has contributed a lot to our present way of life, which is true, since without specific actions performed in the past we couldn’t have attained the status and posts that we hold at present.

Many persons were fortunate to have had their grandparents living with them to tell them about their way of life, stories of their struggles, teach them about their religion, culture, norms and morals, etc.

But for those of us who didn’t enjoy that aspect of

having our grandparents around, we had to rely on our parents (who most times were busy working to make a decent living for us, so no time for long stories), our respective pandits, priests and the selfless, humble individuals of our community.

I and numerous others were and still are truly lucky to still have some of these persons available to guide us in life along with some recently added individuals who selflessly contribute to enhancing the knowledge of others and supporting them to achieve what some of

us might have considered mere dreams.

In this regard, I and many others I know would like to thank, besides our parents, the many role models who have assisted in sculpting our characters and our life. To name a few of these role models:

Panditji Inderpaul Tiwari of Annandale Mandir, Ms Indira Anandjit, Mr Butisingh (renowned poet and teacher), The late Vincent Morgan (musician and singer), The late Ramdhani (renowned dholak player), Dr Doobay (Doobay Analysis Centre),

Donald Morgan (guitarist and MC), Rohan Persaud (CPG Chairman) On behalf of the numerous others, I express our heartfelt thanks and gratitude to these persons and the many others from the Courbane Park community who have helped in the upbringing of many children, by simply encouraging them on the right path of their studies, changing their behavioral patterns, or by just being there to listen and advise!

Yours truly, Ms Kerut

“Claims and Objections” at GECOM

Dear Editor,

The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) calls on GECOM to ensure every eligible Guyanese is on the final Voters List especially with the possibility of an early General and Regional Elections looming following the Opposition’s floating of a “No-Confidence Motion” in the National Assembly.

munities especially in the hinterland regions during the Sixth Cycle Registration.

during this very critical period in our country’s history.

it comes from source B. In practise, criminals are trying to disguise the origins of money obtained through illegal activities so it looks like it was obtained from legal sources. Otherwise, they can’t use the money because it would connect them to the criminal activity, and law enforcement officials would seize it.

Having a law that will eliminate crime will always be beneficial. Ask yourself these questions: why is the Opposition against this Bill? Are they involved with ‘dirty money’?

Do they have a lot to lose if the Anti-Money Laundering Bill is passed? Why don’t the APNU/AFC want to make Guyana a secure place to live? Don’t be misled, or misinformed. It is therefore important that we turn to the law to stop the corrupt fraudsters.

The PPP/C remains dissatisfied with the poor public relations done by GECOM during the Claims and Objections period thus far. Time and again we have voiced our concerns over the inadequate time mobile units have spent in com -

We also pointed to the lack of proper and timely notification to residents as regards mobile units visiting their communities. Much thought must be placed too on identifying convenient days and times unique to each community based on the diverse culture and way of life of our people.

It is our expectation that GECOM will act now to correct these deficiencies since the Claims and Objections period will conclude soon. It is our hope that no Guyanese will be disenfranchised

The PPP/C calls on all Guyanese to make good use of this period in ensuring everyone of voting age is registered, persons who would have changed residence must take transfers, correct particulars where necessary and of course make bonafide objections to persons listed on the PVL but would have died, imprisoned for a lengthy period, medically challenged or under the voting age.

Sincerely, PPP/C, Freedom House

Sincerely, R

Persaud

Page Foundation

Page Foundation

Dirty words and obscenity

Shyama Dalal was horrified when her five-yearold son, Vinay, called her a b*@#h in the middle of a routine argument.

It is quite common nowadays to see children as young as eight or nine years of age use the kind of foul language you would only hear in B-Grade movies. What has brought about this change in our children? Most adults today would not even know the meaning of most of these swear words! But the children clearly do. So let’s take a look at what influences your child to use swear words and what you can do to put a stop to it.

What makes children swear? The biggest reason for children using foul language is peer pressure. A lot of children swear to imitate the popular children in school or in the local neighbourhood. This sort of behaviour begins mostly with feelings of rebellion. The children feel that swearing brings them on par with adults. And children imitate their peers without much thought, therefore taking up this bad habit.

The other reason children use bad language, is because of popular culture. A lot of movies and music videos today have ‘cool’ characters that use swear words freely. And children are easily influenced by such antics on television and they adopt this behaviour to seek attention and acceptance among peers. Uncensored television viewing can therefore be really harmful for your child.

Influences for foul language. There could be a number of influences that make your child pick up the bad habit of using foul language. Some of them are:

* Elder children in the neighbourhood

* School friends

* A relative or family member who does not watch his language in front of children

* Uncensored movies

* Any environment that he is part of regularly, eg the clubhouse, trains, buses, etc

All these situations and places could be the cause of your child’s behaviour. What you need to do is; firstly, identify the place and person from whom he is learning such words. Once you have done this, either

remove that influence completely or tackle the cause as best suitable. For example, if it’s a foul mouthed relative, you can speak to him. If elder children are using bad language, you can discuss the situation with their parents.

Talk to your child

Remember that the habit of using bad words is mostly a phase that disappears with time. But if not tackled right away, it could be a permanent fixture on your child’s personality. The best way to take care of this situation is by giving the child what he wants most – to be treated as an adult.

Is that Obscene?

Four-year-old Sonu was engrossed in looking at colour photographs in

a glossy. The picture was of a woman in the nude. His mother was visibly disturbed.

Obscenity is defined in the dictionary as something “offensive to one’s feelings, or to prevailing notions of modesty or decency.”

This is an adult definition and it has no meaning when applied to children. It is cruel to thrust ideas into their heads. If one believes that “beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder”, it is also to be believed that “obscenity is what one sees and not what it is.”

You need to sit down and explain to him what harm bad language could do to him and the rest of the family. Tell him how abusive language is not a sign of rebellion but one of bad upbringing. Children will not have trouble understanding the situation once you explain to them the ill-effects of foul language on their character. Tell him how difficult it is to undo what people think of him once they have seen him use bad language.

Thus, you can control the language that your child uses. All it takes is a

bit of love and attention and your child will soon quit the habit!

It does not produce the same effect on the minds of children between the age of three to 10 as it does in the case of an adolescent or an adult. It is not necessary for parents to panic when they find their children exposed to these things. In the modern world of books, literature, television, and computers, we cannot shield our children from everything. If we try it, we may be wrong. Children know how to cope with what they see or hear.

Irrespective of whether the child is a girl or boy such images produce the same effect. A nude picture of a woman or a man is the same to them. It may at best induce giggles in three-yearolds, a mischievous sidelong glance from a five or six year old, and a quick look away from the 10-yearold. For

them they are just pictures. They are not connected with reality. They live in an innocent, uncorrupted world and adults need not interfere with their amusements.

Parents who panic and protect their children from everything from death to obscenity should learn that it is natural for a child to be curious. Parents are misguided if they attempt to shroud everything in a hazy cloud and make their children feel guilty of the many questions they ask.

Once children shed their childhood and reach adolescence, they depend less on their parents and rely more on friends and books (if they can read). Many parents ask how to protect them from obscene literature. It is not necessary. Children who read from childhood have a taste for good literature. There are some extreme

cases where parents do not allow their children to read even harmless fantasy and romance. It is these children that are likely to go astray in their reading habits. They are forced to hide and cover their books with brown paper and shove them inside along with their school books fearing censorship. This is unhealthy. When children are given the freedom to read what they want, they will ask for suggestions. Overcensoring of children’s reading interests is more harmful than useful.

We are quick to pounce on children whenever we see them reading or looking at something that is meant for adults without finding ways and means to keep their minds entertained and occupied. No amount of coaxing and cajoling will help. The best we can do is to set them a good example. We must read good books and watch clean, good movies along with them. Make available a number of good books at home. If we behave in a way that they can be proud of, then there is no necessity for any kind of censorship. They will know how to cope with life. (India

DEA to probe discovery of narco-smuggling submarine

… President says well organised drug syndicate at work

BY VAHNU MANIKCHAND

anks of the Customs

RAnti Narcotics Unit (CANU) and the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) on Thursday seized a semi-submersible craft in a creek off the Waini River in the northwest.

The vessel is the latest innovation in the decades-old drug war. And President Donald Ramotar has announced that agents of the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will help local sleuths probe the discovery, which presents one of the biggest challenges to this country in its counternarcotics efforts.

Trafficking networks

With the use of these craft on the rise, US officials have said that they fear that the trafficking networks are moving away from so-called fast boats, the high-powered fishing and leisure boats that can carry about a tonne of cocaine and are easier to spot, to semi-submersible and fully submersible vessels that can surreptitiously carry many more tonnes of drugs, which are unloaded in shallow waters or transported to shore by small boats.

areas that we want to put our money into, but certainly already we are spending quite a bit on security,” the President remarked in response to a question by a reporter.

In a statement, the Customs Anti Narcotics Unit (CANU) said based on intelligence from an ongoing investigation, officials of the unit and the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Special Forces, Coast Guard and Air Corps conducted an operation along the Waini River in the North West District.

Workshop area

During a search of one of the creeks branching off from the Waini, a blue vessel (later identified as a SPSS) was discovered about two miles in, along with a camp consisting of three structures – accommodation, workshop area and generator. According to the CANU statement, the accommodation had the capacity to sleep approximately 12 persons. Additionally, there was also a kitchen area located within the accommodation. The workshop consisted of pulleys, power tools, paint, and several fibre- glass materials. Based on the items

sels with cocaine in the Caribbean during operations in the past year. In one raid back in 2012 for more than 24 hours, a Coast Guard helicopter and speedboat pursued drug- traffickers and their contraband across the Caribbean Sea. When they caught up with the improbable vessel – the latest innovation in the decades-old drug war – it was a submarine.

The New York Times had described the vessel as a low-slung, diesel-propelled vessel, painted a dark shade to blend with the water. In that raid the submersible’s crew scuttled the vessel and abandoned ship and

Briefing members of the media at his office Friday afternoon, Ramotar, who is also Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, said lawmen have already secured the area and will be moving in with “our experts and DEA people to examine so we can have a better picture of what is there and have more information in the near future on this matter.”

He said the administration will spend whatever is necessary. “We can’t spend unlimited amounts because we have limited resources and we have competing

present, it is evident that this area was used to build the SPSS found in the creek, CANU asserted.

“The SPSS upon closer inspection was already fitted with a diesel engine and steering wheel, navigation and other machinery to deem it serviceable. There was no contraband on board the SPSS,” the release added. Investigations are in progress, along with discussions with foreign counterparts as it relates to information-sharing and assistance.

United States drug enforcement officials have seized similar types of ves-

the Coast Guard was able to salvage only two 66-pound bales of narcotics.

The New York Times had said then that this is the new challenge faced by the US and Latin American countries as narcotics organisations bankroll machine shops operating under cover of South America’s triple-canopy jungles to build diesel-powered submarines that would be the envy of all but a few nations.

“After years of detecting these craft in the less trafficked Pacific Ocean, officials have seen a spike in their use in the Caribbean over

the last year. American authorities have discovered at least three models of a new and sophisticated drug-trafficking submarine capable of travelling completely underwater from South America to the coast of the United States,” the newspaper had reported.

According to the newspaper, the vessel involved in the September chase was an older model that was only semi-submersible. That model presents a silhouette above water barely larger than a kitchen table, but requires a snorkel to bring in air for the diesel engine, which has a range of about 3000 miles. The three newer, fully submersible vessels already captured were capable of hauling 10 tonnes of cocaine and, by surfacing at night to charge their batteries off the onboard diesel

engine, could sail beneath the surface all the way from Ecuador to Los Angeles.

Meanwhile, weighing on the matter at his news conference, Ramotar said: “This is a big blow to the criminal enterprise that has been there, so I want to applaud the work our security forces have been doing particularly CANU in drug trafficking.”

The operation was conducted by CANU and the GDF. When asked if the Police were excluded to preserve the intelligence of the operation, President Ramotar responded: “I don’t think so at all, I think CANU and the Police constantly work in cooperation with each other... so I won’t encourage you throwing all these assertions against the Police. I don’t think that’s a fair comment. Security forces around the world work on

the basis of “need to know” and that’s generally the rule in security forces.”

The President said too that initial reports suggest it is believed to be the work of drug- traffickers. “In fact, the area has been secured and there are also going to look and do a more proper and thorough investigation. They found the area where this thing was manufactured, that’s the report I got. I don’t know if anymore was manufactured before.

International cooperation

“You can understand and appreciate more the need for international cooperation in this fight. I am sure this is not only a local operation but has links outside as well. We will continue to spend money to fight against crime and criminal elements of all sorts in our country. If the need be for us to put more money on crime- fighting, we will do that.

“This is one of the global problems that exist in the world and therefore we need to work with partners in this area and that is one of the ways we hope we can be able to control cost by working in cooperation with other forces, because all of us got interest and all of us got benefits by trying to eradicate this scourge in protecting our people and so forth,” the President said.

saturday, august 16, 2014| guyanatimesgy.com

Ramotar says Bai Shan Lin's operations above board

By Svetlana MarShall

ecent attacks on

RChinese firm Bai Shan Lin are part of an “orchestrated” plan by the Opposition to stymie development in Guyana, President Donald Ramotar said on Friday as he defended the company’s operations here as being aboveboard.

At the time, he was addressing the press at his office on a wide range of issues currently engaging the Government.

For about two weeks now, the Kaieteur Newspaper has been making some damning allegations against the Chinese logging company, among which are claims that the company is raping the country’s forest through a series of illegal operations.

But President Ramotar said the Opposition with the support of sections of the media has developed a trend of launching unwarranted attacks on investors and developmental projects. Bai Shan Lin, he said, is just one of many investors that are suffering at the hands of the Opposition as it engages in an anti-development campaign aimed at crippling the country’s economy.

Orchestrated attacks

“Let me tell you what I am convinced about, I am convinced that there are a lot of orchestrated attacks on investments in our country,” he said, noting too that the pattern can be traced back to the beginning of 2013.

“It is not one act we are talking about, how do you explain the Opposition to the Amaila Falls Project? How do you explain the expansion of the airport?”

Reference was also made to the construction of the Specialty Hospital, the Marriott Hotel and the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (Amendment) Bill which have received stern objections from the Opposition.

According to the President, the Opposition is now shifting its attention from Government-led initiatives to private investment. Zooming in on the conten-

tions surrounding Bai Shan Lin, President Ramotar said the Natural Resources Ministry, along with its supporting arms, including the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC), appeared before the Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on Natural Resources and responded to the questions posed by both Opposition and Government officials.

“They answered every single question,” he pointed out, noting too reports submitted to him have indicated that there is no breach in the rules and regulations governing the forestry sector. “There is no raping of our forest… in fact, the exports of logs is still way below what we can export,” he said.

President Ramotar further urged that the Opposition and its elements to desist from their constant attacks on investment, particularly Chinese investment in Guyana.

“We need investment to develop this country. Chinese’s investment has played an important role in Guyana, in Jamaica and in the Bahamas.” Reference was also made to the continent of Africa where Chinese are contributing to the five per cent growth of the economy on an annual basis.

In response to the allegations that there are rampant, illegal harvesting and export of logs from Guyana, the GFC on Tuesday provides a list of facts as it overturned the allegations peddled by the per-

ceived Opposition-inclined newspaper. “The GFC has a very robust system to monitor and control harvesting of forest produce. Illegal logging in Guyana is less than one per cent. All forest produce exported are verified through the Forest Monitoring Chain to establish legal origin before they are actually exported,” the Commission explained.

The argument that the GFC is taking back seat was also rubbished. According to the GFC, the fact that illegal logging is less than one per cent underscores the intensity and robustness of the monitoring system for both logging and exporting activities. It was pointed out that in Guyana, there are 70 local community logging groups/ associations which have access to 126 State Forest Permission (SFPs) with a total area size of 483,944 hectares (1,195,852.67 acres) of State land. In addition, local individuals and companies at the small and mid-scale level have been allocated more than 400 state forest permissions covering in excess of three million hectares.

“The only forest concessionaire that has access to one million hectares of forest is Barama Company Limited issued in 1991. As stated earlier, Bai Shan Lin has State Forest Exploratory Permits (SFEPs) for only 344,849 hectares. But have agreements with a number of community forestry organisations in Region 10,” the Forestry Commission further explained. These agreements have been established through joint venture agreements which are in keeping with the Forest Act.

Huge investment

Meanwhile, Bai Shan Lin said it has invested over US$160 million in Guyana since it commenced operations here in 2007, even as it put to rest the allegations peddled by the Kaieteur Newspaper, saying that the entity has been misinformed. Over the period 2011–2013, the Chinese firm applied through the GFC forest allocation process and was granted two State Forest Exploratory Permits (344,849 hectares).

According to the logging

company, following discussions with and approval by the GFC, joint ventures were established with local companies. It was disclosed that the area size under these agreements total 274,053 hectares.

In some cases, “our joint venture partners were not meeting the maximum sustainable level of harvest that was allocated by the GFC. Some of them were indebted even to the GFC. Through the various partnership arrangements, our company has invested substantial financial and capital resources into these operations. This investment includes road construction and rehabilitation, harvesting and trucking equipment, and human resources,” Bai Shan Lin further explained.

Employment

The company noted too that currently it employs close to 200 Guyanese in various areas of operation, including in harvesting, heavy-duty equipment operation, field teams and administrative personnel. Additionally, the company said it has always been its intention to process logs in Guyana.

It said by 2008, they had applied to the Government of Guyana through Go-Invest and other agencies to lease lands to set up a factory to process logs and engage in value-added production, such as the making of furniture, craft and hardwood flooring.

“Because of the fact that our value- added operation is currently in development, the processing of raw materials is currently being done in China. Our products are sold in Europe and North America in addition to China and India,” the company explained.

“We were granted that lease for the construction of our processing plant four years after we applied for it. The lease is around 200 acres of lands located in Region 10.”

Bai Shan Lin said for strategic reasons, it would have preferred lands closer to port Georgetown, but the Government insisted that the factory be set up in Region 10 to provide employment to the people of Linden.

NA dancer “Antics” found murdered in Canje house

Popular street dancer, Allan Gobin called “Antics,” was found murdered in a house at Moore Street, East Canje, Friday afternoon.

The body had several marks of violence, including what appeared to be a hit to the head. The discovery was made by his uncle, Davis Ramdial. According to the 52-year-old Ramdial, he had been in search of Gobin since Friday morning. “Ah look everywhere I know he does drink.”

Gobin had not been seen for two days. According to his cousin Lalita Indranarine of New Street, East Canje, where Gobin also lived, the unemployed man who was a habitual drinker would normally be out for as many as three days whenever he goes on a drinking spree.

She said the 47-year-old Gobin left home on Wednesday about 14:00h and on Friday morning after he had not re-

turned home, she asked her uncle to try to locate him.

According to her, Gobin would some-

times sleep at an abandoned house which is owned by his mother who is currently overseas. Ramdial noted that he had earlier in the day seen the front door to the house at Moore Street opened, but decided to check there for Gobin only after all other possible locations were checked.

“I stand up in the yard and call and I ain’t got no answer so I decide to go upstairs and that is when I see he lie down on de bed dead.”

At the time, it was believed that Gobin might have suffered from a heart attack as there was blood on the bed, which appeared to have come from his mouth.

When Police checked the body, the marks of violence were discovered. There were also marks of violence on the foot. He was found lying on his back with his feet off the bed and resting on the ground. No arrests have been made as Police continue their investigations.

Eyew tness

Education...

...delivered??

Your humble Eyewitness is in danger of being accused of ruining some education officials’ parade. Here they are -ttcelebrating the success of the top 50 of the 13,374 students who wrote the CSEC... and he’s going to pick on his annual bone again.

Not that he has anything against celebrating. Your Eyewitness is as excited as anyone else at five or so kids writing and passing between 17 to 20 subjects at CSEC.

That has to mean something. But the nagging question your Eyewitness just can’t shake is whether it means we have the “best” education system in the Caribbean, or that we’re even doing good in Guyana.

Point is, our educational achievements aren’t like track and field. That’s for a few select individuals who believe they have some aptitude for their sport and put themselves up for the competition.

We cheer the winners because that’s what the games are structured for. On the other hand, our education system is for ALL children – to prepare them for life - or if we’re less ambitious, for a job. By this measure, the 50 “winners” - less than 0.5 percent of the entire batch – who secured 11 or more grade 1s of course will go on to become doctors or lawyers or engineers or astrophysicists or whatever they want to be. But this has absolutely no bearing on the future of the 13,334 other students.

Shouldn’t we at a minimum pay as much attention to their situation (predicament?) as the top 50?? We don’t even have to be utilitarians who believe that justice is found in the “greatest good for the greatest number”. We just have to be pragmatic. Just look around as, see what’s happening to the thousands and thousands of our youth who fall into the bottom quintile of the 13,324. They tend to hang around the streets and slide into delinquency.

In addition to celebrating the success of the top .5 percent, all this Eyewitness is asking is that at least our education whizzes should spare a thought as to how the remaining 99.5 percent can “get a life”. Shouldn’t we have some figures of that cohort who couldn’t even scrape together a single pass in a single subject?? We have to find out “why” and then what’re we gonna do about it??

The other question that’s swept under the rug, is why is it overwhelmingly boys who fall into this category - the cohort that’s most prone to committing anti-social behaviour.

The rest of society will suffer the consequences of this neglect. Shouldn’t we take note now??

...withheld??

So the 13, 374 students who wrote the CSEC exams were waiting to get their results as promised at 10 PM on August 12. The announcement was so precise, because in this age of instant communications, facilitated by thousands and thousands of internetready laptops provided by the government, CXC was making the results accessible to candidates right on their website!! All the students needed was to punch in their candidate numbers and voila!! their results would pop right up!

That was at least the theory. After biting their nails for weeks, when the students did hit the site - most of them got a message “This site is blocked by your Ministry of Education.” Can you imagine how those students felt?? In addition to having that more than a sneaking feeling they were not going to be among the celebrated “top 50”, they had to now feel like barbarians locked out at the gate.

The reason?? Well, school books mightn’t have been returned by SOME students. So why were ALL students blocked? In this day and age couldn’t only the candidate numbers of the errant students be blocked?? Oh well.

...irrelevant

Now we learn that after all the hoopla, “Entrepreneurship” – the educational tool most needed by Guyanese students – won’t be offered at CAPE until 2015. We’re still churning out French graduates, though.

Volunteerism is bedrock of community policing – Rohee tells CPG inaugural award ceremony

The Home Affairs

Ministry on Friday hosted the first-ever award ceremony to recognise outstanding members of Community Policing Groups (CPGs) and of the business community, who have significantly assisted those groups – monetarily and otherwise – to conduct patrols and other policing activities in communities across the various Police divisions.

Plaques and trophies were handed out to 12 CPGs, 17 members of individual groups, five businesses and two officers who performed creditably in liaising with the groups in their respective divisions and the National Community Policing Executive body, and by extension the Home Affairs Ministry.

This inaugural event is the brainchild of Taajnauth Jadunauth and MajorGeneral (retired) Norman McLean who are honorary members of the Community Policing Organisation of Guyana (CPOG). These awards were given out for outstanding performance in 2012. The 2013 list is being refined Jadunauth commended the leadership and com-

mitment of Home Affairs

Minister Clement Rohee to ensure that the necessary resources are made available to CPG members to execute their functions.

The process by which the awardees were selected was transparent: questionnaires were sent out to the various divisions for the identification of persons who are deemed fit to be recipients. Jadunauth said that on the next occasion, the appraisal forms will be sent directly to the individual groups.

Meanwhile, Minister Rohee expressed the hope that this recognition will

serve as an incentive for members. Unlike traffic wardens, rural constables and neighbourhood Police, CPG members offer their services voluntarily. The Minister said that this spirit of volunteerism is the bedrock of community policing.

“This voluntary aspect where people are prepared to give back something to their communities and their country is what really matters,” the Minister said.

He explained that if citizens are prepared to give their services for one hour, it can make a tremendous difference because in many in-

stances crimes are committed and innocent people are robbed and killed in a matter of seconds.

“So one hour of commitment and dedication manifested through the ranks of community Policing is precious… I believe that community policing in this country has come a very far way from when we first started,” the Home Affairs Minister stated.

He informed the audience too that Guyana is the only country in the Caribbean that has such a vibrant, functional and well-organised community policing organisation.

This, he said, was made possible as a result of first, the political will on the part of the Government of Guyana and second, the commitment, dedication and passion from citizens themselves.

The 17 CPG members were drawn from the following groups: Festival City, South Ruimveldt Gardens, Bath-WaterlooExperiment, Shieldstown, Bush Lot, Vigilance-Bladen Hall, Vryheid’s Lust North, Lusignan Pasture, Good Hope-Supenaam, Anna Regina North, and Sarah, Belle Plaine and Eastern Wakenaam.

CPGs are tasked with keeping vigilant watch by patrolling in and around their respective communities, working with religious leaders and other NGOs to promote the development of moral values in communities, engaging youths in meaningful activities and equipping women to assist in crime-fighting and detection.

The CPOG currently has a membership of 4424 citizens across the country, making it the largest volunteer-driven body in Guyana.

In March this year, this body celebrated its 38th anniversary.

Amerindians protesting a lot in hinterland communities – Dr Norton

APartnership for National Unity (APNU) Shadow Health Minister, Dr George Norton, has claimed that even though Amerindians are protesting in the hinterland region, the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) seems not to pay attention.

“The PPP/C has deliberately underfunded the physical infrastructure needed for real hinterland development. It has deliberately undermined democratically elected regional and local councils needed to administer the vast territory. There is abundant evidence of increasing anti-PPP protests by residents,” Dr Norton said, at the coalition’s weekly

press conference on Friday. Many of the protests have been reportedly staged by APNU supporters

Dr Norton explained that in the BarimaWaini region, parents of pupils of the Port Kaituma Primary School were forced to protest against the deplorable conditions of the school’s toilets and environs, which they said posed a health problem.

“Residents, fed up with the state of a roadway being built to link Oronoque and Port Kaituma, held protests last October; holding placards, they chanted: “We need a road!”.

On other occasions, in Mabaruma -- the regional administrative centre --residents

continued to protest against the unstable electricity supply.

Mabaruma has been without adequate or reliable electricity for several years.

He cited the experiences of residents in the Cuyuni-Mazaruni region, where scores of people protested outside the Amerindian Affairs Ministry last August to mark International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.

According to him, the residents had called for a revision of the 2006 Amerindian Act and for their rights to be respected. He said their concerns were related to the growing pressure from external mining and logging interests on the people’s traditional lands and the

presence of these extractive industries often had negative social impacts on the local populations.

In Bartica, at the regional administrative centre, Dr Norton said residents protested being without power for several days last month. Bus operators also protested the delay in the reconstruction of the BarticaPotaro Road.

He said that in the Potaro-Siparuni region, several Members of Parliament of APNU revealed, in May this year that secondary school children were being forced to fetch water to their dormitories after the well had broken down.

No decision made yet on no-confidence motion – President Ramotar

While both Opposition parties have indicated that they are ready for the holding of General and Regional Elections,

President Donald Ramotar has said he has not made any decision about calling elections.

The President said that any decision with respect to dissolving the National Assembly and issuing the Executive Order for snap elections will be taken at an appropriate time.

President Ramotar speaking at a late afternoon press conference at the Office of the President, said the no-confidence motion is “ahead of us (his administration)” and they will be dealing with it when the time arises.

“I like to make decisions when the time has come for me to make the decisions, that time has not reached yet for me to decide if I should wait on the no-confidence vote or I should call the elections myself... who knows things change... in life – in politics even faster. I will make my decision when the time is appropriate.”

The President reaffirmed

that his administration is ready to face the consequences of the no-confidence motion that has been filed in the National Assembly by minority Opposition party, the Alliance For Change (AFC).

Recently, there have been several issues raised by the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) and its members about the ability of the Guyana Elections Commission to remain impartial.

The President said that the body seems to be more ready for national elections rather than the long

overdue Local Government Polls.

He said from what was explained to him by GECOM officials, the body would require some six months to prepare for local government polls, whereas, the same prerequisite would not apply should the order be given for General Elections.

He said officials from the PPP/C are currently conducting investigations into how the number of registered voters in some areas have skyrocketed, which should not be when contrasted to the population census, which shows a de-

cline in the population.

Only Wednesday, PPP/C General Secretary Clement Rohee had levelled accusations of list padding against the Commission, identifying several areas where the suspected padding is taking place.

He explained that the irregularities with the names surfaced while checking the Preliminary List of Electors (PLE) for some communities, which are traditionally People’s National Congress Reform/ A Partnership for National Unity (PNCR/ APNU) strongholds. Rohee said from all indications, it appears as though the PLE is padded.

“GECOM needs to explain to the nation the surge amounting to 78,000 plus new registrants appearing on the PLE, whereas the pattern over the years has been approximately 11, 000,” he stated.

New Registrants

The General Secretary is demanding a complete breakdown of the new registrants and their areas of origin. These irregularities, he noted, came from Regions Four, Three and One.

But, newly appointed Deputy Chief Elections Officer (DCEO) Vishnu Persaud said that while he is defending the institutions database, he will not be responding to allegations of a “might be” nature.

Persaud said that GECOM will await the report that is to be forwarded to them by the PPP/C, before making any formal response to the allegations of list padding.

Persaud in a telephone interview with Guyana Times on Thursday, said that GECOM will await the report that is to be forwarded to them by the PPP/C before making any formal response to the allegations of list padding.

“In the interim, in the absence of any official report, I would safely say we stand by the accuracy of our systems,” noting that GECOM is “open to any concerns about GECOM’s database by any political party”.

Meanwhile, APNU Leader David Granger told Guyana Times that his party did not arrive at the same conclusion as the PPP/C.

He said the coalition has not colluded with GECOM to pad the lists for any given areas, contending that he does not find the increases in those areas to be odd.

De Kiss man goin after de Poll man

Some time ago, Freddie de Kiss man had try to kiss somebody at a party. Although he get a hard slap, he still try de same ting again at a s*ity council meetin in GT a while after, and he almost get another hard slap. But that ain’t stop de Kiss man.

As soon as de Pee-P-P had win de election in 1992, he right away start tryin to kiss de new Guvament. He end up gettin thru and start kissin de Nagga man. Well, Nagga had like de kissin, so de two of dem went pun a honey moon. No body sure if de honey run out or if day ketch de moon, but de kissin stop after a while.

Since then, de Kiss man try to kiss a whole long list of people. From de Guvament to de Opposition to plenty of dem in de media...State and private. He try pun some U-Gee students too. One woulda tink de Kiss man had some pride, but he ain’t got no shame. When he get tired kissin he would start lickin.

Now he start talkin bout de New York Poll man poll. And is not by chance that de Poll man is also a ram. But dem is de kinda people and names whah de Kiss man like. Any ting to do with pollin or rammin is right up de Kiss man alley.

De Kiss man never poll any body, but yet he talkin bout de Poll man poll. So de Poll man challenge de Kiss man to show he poll, but de Kiss man ain’t had any poll. De Kiss man admit that he see nuff other poll, but fuh some reason he don’t trust de New York man poll, even though that man poll a lotta people.

Ting-a-ling-a-ling…friend tell friend…mattie tell mattie! Whenever it come to a poll, de Kiss man is a expert wheh he mouth concern. That is why every body who know he, know he as a good Kiss man after all.

Guyana secures new rice market in Panama

A local team has been deployed to Panama to negotiate the terms under which the sale of rice could materialise

Guyana has managed to secure yet another market for rice. This announcement was made on Friday by President Donald Ramotar during a press conference at the Office of the President.

Recently, President Ramotar was in Colombia where he engaged Panamanian Head of State, Juan Carlos Varela in talks regarding that country being a possible market for Guyana’s rice.

On his return, President Ramotar deployed a team to Panama to negotiate the terms under which this arrangement could materialise.

“The team just returned with Copa Airlines and the mission was successful… we have managed to get a new market for rice in Panama,”

the President said. The Agriculture Ministry will be disclosing more details on the agreement reached, the Government Information Agency (GINA) said President Ramotar said his Government is aggressively pursuing additional markets in Central America and Africa so as not to restrict the massive growth in production that the country has been witnessing, but rather to encourage even greater production.

Guyana’s rice industry has seen repeated bumper crops, with a record production of 535,000 tonnes of rice of which 395, 000 tonnes was exported. This year, the country is expected to produce over 600,000 tonnes of rice by the end of 2014.

Linden IMC in dire financial straits

Linden Interim Management Committee (IMC) Chairman Orrin Gordon, said the current financial situation at the Council is a very dire one, as the municipality continues to be plagued by cash issues.

Gordon related that the cash flow situation has become so serious that the municipality will be embarking on initiatives to curb it.

In an effort to once more secure funds at the cashstrapped municipality, he disclosed that fares for motor vehicles with the exception of cars crossing the Mackenzie-Wismar Bridge will be increased as of September 1.

Increase

Minibuses and 4x4 vehicles, which currently pay $60 to cross, will now pay $80, a $20 increase, in addition to varying increases for other motor vehicles.

The IMC Chairman noted that the crossing fee for cars, however, will be reviewed sometime later.

The IMC Chairman stressed that the municipality is currently finding it quite difficult to pay workers’ salaries. As a matter of fact, Gordon said some staff have not been paid for last month. In addition, he stated that a recent move by the Council to be granted Government subsidy was rejected.

“Since the end of last year, we would have submitted our budget and at the end of the exercise, the Ministry of Local Government would

not have approved the budget, and so, the Council would have made strenuous efforts to get the Minister of Local Government to agree on the Council’s budget... the Minister made it clear that he was not in favour of submitting or giving a subsidy to the municipality. We had asked for a subsidy of $33 million and it was said clearly that the Government was not in a position to agree on the subsidy,” he said.

No money

Gordon added: “That meant then that the Council would have found itself in serious financial straits, and as a consequence, at the moment, there is no money to pay the workers.”

He related that a meeting was held with Local Government and Regional Development Minister Norman Whittaker and other representatives on August 11 to discuss the Council’s proposed 2014 municipal budget deficit of approximately $36 million.

The figure was however disapproved by the Minister and reasons were outlined in a response letter addressed to Gordon days later.

It stated: “The Council must live within its means... work to reduce its significant debt while controlling its huge and increasing liabilities... reduce its employment costs which had increased appreciably as a consequence, inter alia of the Council’s unilateral decision to grant salaries/wages increases to workers who were already earning above

the minimum wages/salaries and to Council’s filling some 14 vacancies; contrary to the advice proffered by me...”

Additionally, Whittaker stated in the letter that he had undertaken to review the Council’s cash flow situation during the fourth quarter of this year.

He also stated that possible ways of enhancing the municipality’s revenue inflow were examined by the Ministry, which advised the Council to work out repayment plans with the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and the National Insurance Scheme (NIS), in respect of its huge statutory debt.

Whittaker also pointed the municipality to other sources of revenue, including the Linden car and minibus parks and “more than $9 million of infrastructural works that would soon be made available to the Council by way of extensive rehabilitation of its market

Man on bail for simple larceny charge

A24-year-old Bagotstown, Greater Georgetown, resident made an appearance at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts before Magistrate Ann McLennan on Wednesday after he was charged for simple larceny.

The charge read that on August 10 at Agricola, Greater Georgetown, Winston Hinds stole one gold ring valued $25,000, which belonged to the Virtual Complainant (VC), who is a seven-yearold child.

Hinds who was unrepresented told the

court that a lady, presumably the child’s mother, came to the station and showed the Policemen the ring.

There were no facts presented, however according to Prosecutor Gordon Mansfield, the defendant and the VC are not related and the statement given to the Police by the VC’s mother did not state whether the item was recovered or not.

There were no objections to bail, hence it was granted in the sum of $500,000 and Hinds is to return to court on September 15 before the Chief Magistrate.

Grove resident accused of break and enter, larceny; remanded

At the Georgetown Magistrate’s Courts, on Wednesday in the courtroom of Magistrate’s Ann McLennan’s appeared Kamana Cadogan, 38, of Lot 267 Grove Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara, who faced two unlawful offences; break and enter and larceny.

The charge which was read by the Magistrate alleged that between July 26 to August 11, at Republic Park, East Bank Demerara,

Cadogan broke and entered the dwelling house of the Virtual Complainant (VC) Michelle Howard, and stole the following items –a drill set valued $160,000, electrical fittings totalling $260,000, one microwave valued $180,000 and three ceiling fans amounting to $120,000; a total value of $720,000.

The defendant and the VC share no relationship; however, the defendant

works for the VC’s husband, Andre Howard. Police Prosecutor Dinero Jones objected to bail on the ground of the prevalence of the offence, the difficulty the Police experienced in finding the defendant and the fact that he is a known character who has committed similar offences.

Bail was refused and the defendant was remanded until October 16 when his case will be recalled.

infrastructure at the Linden Market, under the IBSA (India, Brazil and South Africa (IBSA) Trust Fund) project”.

The Local Government Minister further stated that he found it difficult to accept that the (workers’) Union Branch Chairperson, who is also a member of staff of the Linden Town Council, had allegedly affixed her signature to a notice to the union of a strike or sit-in of IMC workers over the issue.

“I would expect that while the Council engages the union on the issue of the workers’ salaries and union dues owed to it, records are being kept of the hours and the days that staff sit in at the office without offering any services to residents,” the letter added.

Whittaker also stated that while he empathises

with the payment issues involving municipal workers, he finds it difficult to understand the Council’s lack of effort to address its inadequacies and inefficiencies.

He advised the IMC to cut employment costs and disengage non-productive employees, focus on a debtcollection drive and expand legitimate revenue resources.

Resources

Noting that the Council’s resources are presently not being efficiently utilised, Whittaker said the ineptitude of the Council and some staff has led to the current situation.

In response to the letter, however, the IMC Chairman said he disagrees with everything stated in the letter by Minister Whittaker, noting that he has not made any effort to assist the Council.

Gordon said the situation is no fault of the municipality, which has been “making do of whatever” funds it accumulated for over 10 years without requesting assistance.

He said the Linden municipality would have been under serious pressure during these years.

“I do not agree with any of what he has written there, because we have been making strenuous efforts to get resources into the organisation,” Gordon said.

In an effort to secure funds last year, the IMC had set up a toll booth at Kara

Kara to collect tolls from logging trucks passing through Linden.

The booth was soon after ordered closed by the Local Government Ministry, which said it was illegitimate. Gordon added that the evaluation of properties in Linden was also done in an effort to raise funds to offset municipality expenses last year; however, that move was also a failure since properties were still being evaluated at the 1976 level.

He noted that the Ministry had also promised to provide attorneys to assist in the process of taking persons who were in arrears to court, however, the services were not provided.

Income

The IMC Chairman said despite all this, the municipality has been doing its best under the circumstances. He said while all income from the Mackenzie-Wismar Bridge was initially expected to go to the Council, he stands against that position since the IMC is incapable of managing the facility and its cash flow issues, this would have prevented it from taking on the constant repair issues, which the bridge is subjected to.

The IMC currently receives a percentage of the revenue from the bridge, which is partly managed by the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL).

saturday, august 16, 2014

Guyana’s estimated external debt pegged at US$1.2B

declines by 1.6 per cent from 2013

Guyana’s external debt is estimated at US$1.23 billion, down 1.6 per cent over the 2013 figure

Guyana’s external debt is estimated at US$1.23 billion, down 1.6 per cent over the 2013 figure, according to the 2014 mid- year economic report.

The report showed that the decline in the debt stock follows the conclusion of a fourth Debt Compensation Agreement with Venezuela under the Petro Caribe deal and the Wind-up Agreement of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) Multilateral Clearing Facility (CMCF), during the first quarter of the year.

Under the fourth Debt

Compensation Agreement with Venezuela, Guyana’s debt was reduced by US$55.5 million corresponding to the value of rice and paddy shipped under the Guyana-Venezuela Rice Trade Agreement from October 2013 to February 2014.

According to the report, under the CMCF Wind-up Agreement, Guyana secured additional enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) debt relief through the cancellation of the outstanding US$35.9 million debt.

A Government statement

said that in addition, principal repayments to external creditors increased by 10.8 per cent to US$16.9 million as at June.

“Actual external debt service payments totalled US$24.8 million, which was 12.6 per cent greater than the US$22 million as at June 2013. The increased total debt service payments for the first half of 2014 is mainly the result of higher principal and interest payments to multilateral creditors,” the statement said.

It said that at the end of June 2014, Guyana’s domestic debt stock stood at US$422.7 million, which was 11.8 per cent below the end 2013 position. The decline was primarily due to a reduction in Treasury Bills issuance by the Bank of Guyana.

The report noted that as at June 2014, actual domestic debt service payments totalled US$3 million, a significant reduction by 67.1 per cent compared with the US$9.2 million made during the first half of 2013.

(Caribbean360)

US, Canadian investors interested in petroleum ventures

Nexen Energy ULC, headquartered in Calgary, Canada and ESSO Exploration and Production Guyana Limited have expressed an interest in opportunities for petroleum ventures in Guyana. This was communicated to Natural Resources and Environment Minister Robert Persaud during a meeting on Friday. The US and Canadian investors also have on their agenda, meetings with key agencies and commercial sector stakeholders as they seek to become acquainted with the various aspects

GRDB arms Region 2 rice farmers for bug invasion

BY INDRAWATTIE NATRAM

Amid complaints from farmers north of the Essequibo Coast about a paddy bug invasion, the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) has been sensitising farmers to eliminate the pest.

The GRDB has drafted a plan under the National Paddy Bug Management Unit to eradicate the bugs, and thus far, 16 sensitisation exercises have been completed.

Leading the GRBD team, Entomologist, Dr Viviane Bharally has been deployed to Region Two for two days to work with the farmers.

She brings to the table more than 10 years of research work on the paddy bug, having recently suc-

cessfully completed her doctorial studies of the pest.

Dr Bharally, who met with farmers from the north of the coast in La Resource and Paradise, held discussions with them.

She spoke to farmers on the importance of monitoring their fields, field sanitation and using of the “correct” amount of pesticide/ water mix when spraying, so as to keep the bugs at bay.

The scientist said the sit-

uation is not alarming and once farmers adhere to the necessary recommendations prescribed, the bugs could be controlled.

Speaking in a rice field at La Resource, Dr Bharally spoke on the method of better control and application of chemicals in an effort to eradicate the spread of paddy bugs.

She said the paddy bug follows its instinct and breeds where there is red rice. At the moment, she

said the rice crop is in its flowering stage and the bugs could be controlled.

Dr Bharally warned that rice farmers need to continue monitoring the rice crop and with the assistance of GRDB’s field officers, they could determine the economic threshold of the bug population.

She said sweeping should be done regularly and if there is a bug in two sweeps, then that farmer still need to spray his field.

The expert said an alternative host for the paddy bug is grass seeds (weeds) and farmers need to practise good field sanitation, and controlling the weeds on the dams surrounding the rice field.

Meanwhile, one farmer, Roop Chand, from New Road said the bugs are affecting him; however, he did two sprayings early in the mornings and managed to control the bugs.

Chand extended gratitude to the GRDB for sending resource persons to assist farmers in helping to curb the paddy bug and encouraged farmers to come out to the technical sessions hosted by the GRDB, as it will enhance their knowledge in improving production.

Trade, Connect Americas Expo opens on September 3

Trade Americas and Connect Americas Expo will bring together hundreds of companies from the sector on September 3-4 in Miami

Trade Group are organising “Trade Americas and ConnectAmericas Expo: Building the Americas”, which will be held September 3-4 in Miami, Florida.

companies that wish to go international; and information about sources of financing.

of policy and the business landscape in Guyana.

Meanwhile, ESSO Exploration and Production Guyana Limited are operators for the Stabroek Blocks offshore Guyana, where exploration activities are being undertaken.

Latin American and Caribbean countries are expected to invest more than US$1.5 billion in infrastructural projects over the next 10 years, opening up many opportunities for companies that provide goods and services in the sector.

In order to facilitate the flow of information about these prospects, the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB) and the Latin

During this event, the IDB will launch a virtual business community for the infrastructural sector, as part of the recently created platform ConnectAmericas.

Here, businesses will find partners and providers of goods and services; upto-date information on various tender offers for infrastructural projects around the Region; learning tools for small-and medium-sized

The seminar will be attended by Government and business leaders as well as contractors, finance companies and businesses that offer goods and services in the infrastructural sector.

There will be discussion panels on opportunities to invest in projects involving renewable energy, energy efficiency, transport and logistics, urban infrastructure, public-private partnerships and financial innovations.

Maintenance of Linden/Lethem Road commences

Maintenance to critical sections of the Linden/Lethem road has commenced with the intent to reduce travel time by four hours, the Public Works Ministry has disclosed.

Of recent, commuters have been complaining bitterly over the deplorable state of the road which has not only increased the travel time, but also has resulted in significant damage to vehicles plying the route.

In a reactive mode, the Public Works Ministry on Friday said repairs are being executed to critical sections, noting that works will be completed by midSeptember.

“The critical sections will be resurfaced with lateritic material and compacted.”

Currently, it takes approximately 16 hours to commute to Lethem from Georgetown using a minibus, but when repairs have been completed, the travel time will be cut to 12 hours, the Public Works Ministry said.

Troy Resources, Omai Gold Mines (OGM), Demerara Timbers Limited (DTL), Mekdeci Machinery and Construction (MMC) and Vevakanand Dalip Enterprise (DALIP) are the contractors that have been employed for the project, which will be executed in phases.

In a release, Public Works Minister Robeson Benn indicated that his Ministry was awaiting improved weather conditions before commencing repairs. “Any works before

Lightning causes blackout in Demerara Interconnected System

The Guyana Power and Light Inc (GPL) has reported that around 07:58h, the link between Garden of Eden (GoE) and Sophia was disconnected when both sections of the two transmission lines from Golden Grove and Garden of Eden were struck by lightning.

The utility company in a release said that simultaneously, the transmission line linking the Demerara and Berbice systems, from Onverwagt to Canefield, also tripped.

The sudden loss of generating capacity from our GoE stations and the capacity available from the Skeldon Factory resulted in overload and trips on machines at the New Kingston Station.

“As a result, there was a total shutdown within the Demerara Interconnected System, while one feeder from Canefield to Auchlyne was taken out in East Berbice.

“The first set of customers – sections on the East Bank of Demerara, was repowered at 08:45h and the link with Berbice re-established at approximately 09:00h. By 09:45h, power had been restored to all consumers.

“GPL apologises for the inconvenience caused.

Customers are again encouraged to report any localised fault(s) in their areas, as the company may not be aware of same,” the company related.

this would have been lost to the rains,” he posited.

He also used the opportunity to signal his Ministry’s intention to establish toll stations on the critical hinterland roads, explaining that revenues garnered will be used to support the year-round maintenance efforts required and to limit abuse of the road from the aspect

of load carriage and safety. It is also proposed to establish a basic toll with escalation or overloading and wet passage conditions.

The Linden/Lethem road is among projects that fall under the Hinterland Road Rehabilitation Programme. For 2014, the Ministry has set aside G$1.08 billion to facilitate road repairs countrywide.

However, the Linden to Lethem Road also falls under a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on infrastructural development that was signed by Guyana and Brazil on December 5, 2012.

Through the MoU, a Guyana-Brazil Joint Technical Working Group has been established with the mandate to craft proposals for concrete action.

Subsequent to the hosting of four meetings, three in Georgetown and one in Boa Vista, the Joint Technical

Working Group submitted a report to President Donald Ramotar and President Dilma Rousseff on July 2013. It was recommended that an engineering design be done for the LindenLethem Road. This is necessary for the project to be accelerated, complementing work already done. This disclosure was made in the National Assembly in February this year by Foreign Affairs Minister Carolyn RodriguesBirkett. Contractor Length of road (miles) Date of commencement Troy Resources0 – 26August

More than US$25M for 500 homes in 500 days

Prime Minister

Gaston Browne says Government now has more than US$25 million for its 500 homes in 500 days.

And land development has started in Villa, with the acquisition of other plots underway. He says efforts are on to secure more money for the housing initiative for which over seven thousand residents have applied.

“We have approached the Government of Mexico for a loan of US$40 million and a grant of US$5 million and already they have agreed in principal, in fact they will have a group of technicians there within 14 days that initiative will help us again to build at least another 700 homes.”

Prime Minister Browne said Government has to resort to buying land from Social Security and a private owner because much of the sub-urban lots earmarked, were transferred to an investor. He’s refer-

ring to Bau Panel which signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the previous administration to build hundreds of affordable houses.

The Prime Minister put that project on hold shortly after taking office with the intention of taking the matter to court. Browne says there has been a change of plan, for now.

“I had a call from an agent of the principal of Bau Panel who has requested a meeting with me on the 24th, I will be on my way to China but I will stop in New York for a few hours to meet with him to discuss a way out of it with the understanding that whatever decision we take will be in the best interest of the people of this country...”

(Excerpt from Antigua Observer)

Montserrat to elect new Government on September 11

Voters in the volcano-ravaged British Overseas territory of Montserrat will go to the polls on September 11 to elect a new Government, Governor Adrian Davis announced Friday.

He said Nomination Day will be August 25 and that the Legislative Assembly has been dissolved, adding that the Chairman of the Electoral Commission, Sir Howard Fergus, will serve as Supervisor of the elections, with Claudette

Weekes as Returning Officer.

“Sir Howard and Mrs Weekes have performed the roles of Supervisor of elections and Returning Officer on previous occasions and they bring considerable knowledge and expertise to their roles,” Davis said in a radio broadcast.

Nine seats are stake in the polls and the ruling Movement for Change and Prosperity (MCAP) has already announced its candidates, campaigning under

the theme “Team to fulfil the dream”.

In the 2009 general election, the MCAP led by Premier Reuben T Meade won six of the nine seats with independent candidates including the former premier Lowell Lewis, winning the other three seats.

The MCAP and a new party, the People’s Democratic Movement (PDM), are the only two that have indicated an intention to contest the September polls. (Excerpt from Jamaica Observer)

UN troops disperse Haiti protesters supporting Aristide

UN peacekeepers in Haiti have clashed with supporters of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince. Dozens of Aristide’s supporters had set up barricades outside his home, fearing he could be arrested.

UN troops fired smoke grenades to disperse the protesters after a car carrying UN staff was attacked. Aristide faces charges of money laundering, but his supporters say the investigation is politically motivated.

On Wednesday, a judge issued an arrest warrant for him after he failed to appear in court for questioning about the charges, which also include corruption and drug trafficking. However, Aristide’s lawyer said his client did not go to court because he did not receive the summons.

A crowd of demonstrators, said to number around 150, blocked the route to his home with rocks and burning tyres on Thursday to prevent his arrest. Some protesters threw stones at a car carrying UN personnel, forcing them to run

Venezuelan nabbed at Madrid airport with cocaine in her breast implants

Spanish Police say they have arrested a woman who landed at Madrid’s international airport with 1.7 kilos (3.7 pounds) of cocaine hidden in her breast implants.

Narcotics agents grew suspicious when the 43-year-old Venezuelan woman exhibited unspec-

ified strange behaviour during a routine screening of passengers who had just arrived from Bogota, Colombia.

A luggage search showed nothing unusual. But a frisk by female officers revealed irregularities and deformations in both of the suspect’s breasts.

The passenger then “became nervous and confessed to carrying cocaine implants,” a police statement said Friday. The suspected drug smuggler was transferred to a hospital where she was detained for an alleged crime against public health, the statement says. (Jamaica

Brazil crash: Black box did not record Campos flight

The black box recovered from the wreckage of the plane crash that killed Brazilian presidential candidate Eduardo Campos did not record his flight, Brazilian Air Force (FAB) says.

It said the audio recording FAB experts had analysed was not related to the flight that crashed on Wednesday. A spokesman said they were trying to determine what the recording was.

Campos and six others died when his private jet crashed in bad weather in the port city of Santos near Sao Paulo. Experts from the Centre of Investigation and Prevention of Aeronautical Accidents in the Brazilian capital, Brasilia, have been trying to reconstruct the audio files from the black box in search for more clues as to what happened in the lead up to the accident.

“The two hours of audio, the maximum recording capacity of the equipment, which were received and validated by certified technicians, were not of the flight of 13 August,” air force spokesman Pedro Luis Farcic said in a statement (in Portuguese).

“It is not yet possible to determine the date of the dialogue recorded in the CVR (Cockpit Voice Recorder),

given that this equipment does not record this information,” he continued, adding that an investigation would determine what may have happened.

Shortly after the accident, President Dilma Rousseff declared three days of mourning and halted all her re-election campaign activities for October’s presidential poll. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Suriname couple jailed for prostituting underage girls

Acourt has jailed a husband and wife team for five years each after they were found guilty of exploiting underage girls while operating an escort service from their home.

Judge Sieglien Wijnhard sentenced 47-year-old husband, identified as Birju K and his 40-year-old wife Nirmaladebie to five years in prison for human trafficking. They were also fined US$1500.

The judge also sentenced a “customer” identified only as Soerish R, 43, to two years in prison, while another customer, 28-yearold Nalini A was given a 21-month jail term

after she was caught in a local hotel with one of the teenage girls.

The judge said the actions of the adults had been “destructive” and that the husband and wife team had taken advantage of the trust the girls put in them when they handed them over to adults to engage in sex.

The girls, whose names were not given during the trial, told the court that they had been forced into prostitution by the couple and that they were also tortured with burning cigarettes when they dared to refuse to engage in sexual activity, smoke or drink alcohol. (Jamaica Observer)

TT’s Education Minister on 2014 CXC results: Best results ever

Eto a nearby home.

“We can confirm that the UN security team rescued the two UN staff, and then peacekeeping troops cleared the protesters and their barricades, and retrieved the UN vehicle using smoke grenades and armoured vehicles,” a UN official told the BBC. (Excerpt from BBC News)

ducation Minister Tim Gopeesingh says this year has produced the best examination results in TT’s history. Speaking at a post-Cabinet press conference on Thursday at the Office of the Prime Minister, Gopeesingh spoke about the results of the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) and the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC). He said there had been improved results in both units of the CAPE exam as compared to 2010. He said unit one of the CAPE exams, which was taken by 8245 candidates saw over 65 per cent of students obtaining Grades One to Three, while over 93 per cent of students achieved Grades One to Five. He said that was the first year a digital me-

dia exam was written. Students achieved greater than 90 per cent scores in 19 out of the 25 subjects in the exam, he said. “There has been an incremental improvement in academic importance since 2010,” he added.

Gopeesingh said that 93.1 per cent of students who wrote unit two of the exam got Grades One to Five, with 68.1 per cent of students achieving Grades One to Three. “The performance in CAPE continues to improve and get better each year,” he noted. He announced that of the 21,829 people who did CSEC, 64.6 per cent received Grades One to Three. “Almost two out of every three students writing the exam received Grades One to Three,” he said. (Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

Prime Minister Modi speaks out against rape in India Independence Day speech

India’s recently elect-

ed Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke out against rape in his first Independence Day speech on Friday, saying the country was shamed by increasing reports of sexual violence against women and girls.

“Today when we hear about these rapes, our heads hang in shame,” said Modi, from the ramparts of the 17th century Red Fort in old Delhi on the 68th anniversary of the country’s independence.

Newspapers and television channels in India carry daily reports of the rapes of women and young girls,

some murdered by the perpetrators to cover the crime.

The high-profile gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old student on a bus in Delhi in December 2012 led to countrywide protests for better security for women and sparked national debate about gender inequalities in India.

This has helped embolden more victims to come forward and report the crime, police say. The number of reported rapes in India rose by 35.2 per cent to 33,707 in 2013 from the previous year, according to the National Crime Records Bureau.

However, even these figures are under-reported

because victims - who are frequently blamed for the sexual attack and stigmatized and shamed in their community – often keep silent, activists say.

Modi, wearing a white Kurta and saffron-coloured turban, said it was time to question the rapists, rather than the victims. “I want to ask parents when your daughter turns 10 or 12 years old, you ask, ‘Where are you going? When will you return?’”, Modi said. “Do the parents dare to ask their sons, ‘Where are you going? Why are you going? Who are your friends?’ After all, the rapist is also someone’s son.”

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Iraq crisis: Sunni leaders propose deal with new PM

Some leaders of Iraq’s Sunni Muslim minority have said they may work with the new Prime Minister, a move that could help break political deadlock.

The mainly Shia Muslim Government is locked in a fight with Islamic State (IS), an extreme Sunni group leading an insurrection in the north.

Late on Friday, reports emerged of IS militants

killing at least 80 men and taking women and children captive. In New York, the UN Security Council has imposed sanctions on IS members.

Six people associated with IS or the Syria-based Nusra Front will now be subject to an international travel ban, asset freeze and arms embargo, while backers of the two groups may also face sanctions. In Iraq, reports and

Kurdish officials said rebels targeted a village called Kocho, 45km (28 miles) south-east of Sinjar, killing men of the Yazidi faith and abducting scores of women and children.

“They arrived in vehicles and they started their killing this afternoon,” one Kurdish official Reuters news agency. “We believe it’s because of their creed: convert or be killed.” (Excerpt from BBC News)

North Korea fires three short-range rockets as Pope visits South Korea

North Korea fired three short-range rockets off its east coast on Thursday, South Korea’s Defence Ministry said, shortly before Pope Francis arrived in Seoul on his first visit to Asia.

The rockets were fired from multiple launchers in the North Korean port city of Wonsan and travelled 220 km (135 miles) before landing in waters east of the Korean peninsula, a Defence Ministry official said.

The last rocket was fired

35 minutes before Pope Francis was due to arrive at an air base in Seoul, where the pontiff started a five-day visit to South Korea.

The launches came ahead of US-South Korean military exercises scheduled to start on Monday. Seoul and Washington say the exercises are defensive in nature but North Korea regularly protests against the drills, which it sees as a rehearsal for war.

North Korea last fired short-range rockets in late

China opens US$2B extension of controversial Tibet railway

China on Friday officially opened a US$2 billion extension of its controversial railway into Tibet, state media reported, linking the Tibetan capital of Lhasa with a key Buddhist site.

Tibet is a highly sensitive region, not just because of continued local opposition to Chinese control, but because of the region’s strategic position next to neighbours India, Nepal and Myanmar.

In 2006, China opened the railway to Lhasa, which

passes spectacular icy peaks on the Tibetan highlands, reaching altitudes as high as 5000 metres (16,400 feet) above sea level, as part of government development efforts.

Critics of the railway, including exiled Tibetans and rights groups, say it has spurred an influx of long-term migrants who threaten Tibetans’ cultural integrity, which rests on Buddhist beliefs and a traditional herding lifestyle.

The new 13.28 billion yuan (US$2.2 billion) exten-

sion goes to Shigatse, the traditional seat of Tibetan Buddhism’s second-highest figure, the Panchen Lama, and reduces travel time from Lhasa to around two hours from four hours by road now, the official Xinhua news agency said. At a cost of 50,000 yuan per metre, the railway lines is the most expensive ever built in China, because of the harsh terrain it traverses, making it necessary to build numerous bridges and tunnels, the agency said. (Excerpt

Boko Haram militants kidnap scores in northern Nigeria

state in mainly Muslim northern Nigeria, has been accused of kidnapping hundreds of people in the northeast to use as conscripts, wives and slaves

Boko Haram Islamists kidnapped scores of people from fishing communities in Nigeria’s extreme northeast, hauling some of the hostages away on boats across Lake Chad, witnesses said Friday.

Several people were also reportedly killed in the militant raids on a number of villages in the Kukawa Local Government area in Borno state, a Boko Haram stronghold.

The remote area has poor mobile phone coverage, and details of the Sunday attacks took days to emerge.

A few survivors travelled to Borno’s capital Maiduguri, where they briefed reporters on the latest mass abduction by the insurgents, who are accused of killing more than 10,000 people since 2009.

“At first we thought (the attackers) were soldiers... But when they began shooting at people and setting fire to homes we realised they were Boko Haram,” Halima Alhaji Adam, from the Doron Baga village.

Adam said the militants kidnapped roughly 100 young men aged between 15 and 30. Her account

was supported by two other women who also reached Maiduguri as well as a leader of a vigilante force which is helping the military in the counter-insurgency fight. The hostages “were forced into motorboats and taken into Chad,” Adam said.

Another woman who escaped, Fatima Suleiman, said locals feared the hostages would be used as “foot soldiers” by the extremists, who regularly carry out strikes on military and civilian targets in the impoverished area. (Excerpt from France24)

Scientists create giant sponge to combat global warming

July but has since said repeatedly that the launches are specifically designed as counter measures against those drills.

“Given that the US and the puppet forces of South Korea continue staging nuclear war exercises against us in particular, we will take countermeasures for self-defence which will include missile launches, nuclear tests and all other programmes,”

a statement carried by North Korean state media last Friday said.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Scientists have created a new sponge-type material that absorbs carbon dioxide, which is believed to play a key role in global warming.

The polymer – a large molecule used in plastics – is thought to have the potential to bridge the gap between the use of fossil fuels and new energy sources such as hydrogen, and could be integrated into power plant smokestacks in the future.

Carbon dioxide adsorbents are already in use to

remove greenhouse gas pollutants from smokestacks at power plants where fossil fuels like coal or gas are burned.

But it is envisaged that the new substance would be a part of an emerging technology called an integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC), which can convert fossil fuels into hydrogen gas.

Hydrogen is widely considered to have great potential for use in fuel-cell cars and electricity generation because it produces almost no pollution. IGCC is a bridging

technology that is intended to jump-start the transition to hydrogen fuel, while the existing fossil-fuel infrastructure is still in use.

Addressing the 248th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS), Dr Andrew Cooper of Liverpool University said: “The key point is that this polymer is stable, it’s cheap and it adsorbs CO2 [carbon dioxide] extremely well. “It’s geared toward function in a realworld environment...” (Excerpt from Caribbean360)

saturday, august 16, 2014 | guyanatimesgy.com

Jam Zone delegates meet President Ramotar

Senior Police officers complete leadership course with US group

The delegates for the Jam Zone

International Pageant were warmly received by President Donald Ramotar when they paid a courtesy call on him at the Presidential Complex on Friday.

The delegates were urged to do their best and were thanked by the President for their efforts at promoting tourism.

There are eight contestants in the competition which gets under way on Friday evening at the National Cultural Centre, and according to trainer and Consultant Clive Prowell, everything is in place for a spectacular event.

“We have the Guyanese artistes ready to perform. Of course, there are special performances by Kwasie Ace,

Tenicia De Frietas and the Classique Dance Company. We have eight fantastic delegates and the show starts at 20:00h of course, it’s Jam Zone and we always have the energy,” Prowell said. Since the event expanded several years ago to accommodate international contestants, Jamaica and Trinidad have taken the winner’s crown.

OAS Culture Ministers’ meeting concludes in Haiti

The VI Inter-American Meeting of Ministers of Culture and Highest Appropriate Authorities, focused on “Cultural Interdependence in the Context of Globalisation,” concluded on Friday in Portau-Prince, Haiti, in a ceremony that featured the participation of the Minister of Culture of Haiti, Monique Rocourt, and the Executive Secretary for Integral Development of the Organisation of American States (OAS), Sherry Tross.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the participants adopted the Declaration of Port au Prince on Cultural Interdependence in the Context of Globalization, which describes culture as “an essential component of development that favours social inclusion, the fight against poverty, cooperation, exchange and local development through enhancement, protection and promotion of the traditions, values, and identity of the peoples of the Americas.”

In the Declaration, the cultural authorities committed to working with partner ministries, the OAS and other concerned institutions to establish the Citadelle Cultural Cooperation Program, which will “offer training opportunities and cultural exchanges for young entrepreneurs working in the area of development of cultural products and services.”

In her closing statement, the Haitian Minister of Culture said that “at this

meeting, we discussed several topics that are of concern to us all, which enables us to design a roadmap for permanent exchanges in the future. We are certain that the ideas expressed during this meeting will serve as the foundation for numerous cultural projects and cooperation agreements among the different nations of the Americas represented here.”

For her part, Executive Secretary Tross said: “The Declaration of Port-auPrince which the Ministers of Culture and Highest Appropriate Authorities have approved reflects the importance that countries in the Hemisphere attach to preserving and promoting intercultural dialogue, respect for diversity of cultural expres-

sions, and culture’s role in supporting sustainable development in our communities.”

She also noted that “culture is also a big contributor to local development, to economic growth and to social inclusion.”

Ministers and senior officials with responsibility for Culture from 23 OAS member countries took part in the two-day meeting, as well as representatives of the private sector, academia, civil society and high-level experts, who emphasised the intrinsic value of culture as a distinctive, unique and inseparable feature of communities and its role as a common denominator for the integral development of the peoples of the Americas.

Attendees discussed various issues such as cultural entrepreneurship as a tool for innovation and social inclusion, how culture impacts local development, and culture and its inter-sectoral linkages, particularly, the linkages between the culture and tourism sectors. The meeting saw the election of the new Inter-American Committee on Culture (CIC) authorities. Haiti was elected to serve as Chair with Guyana, Paraguay, Argentina and Barbados as Vice Chairs.

At the meeting Barbados offered to host the Seventh Inter-American Meeting of Ministers of Culture and Highest Appropriate Authorities in 2016 and Paraguay the Eighth Meeting in 2018.

The United States Department of State, in partnership with the Guyana Ministry of Home Affairs, provided a course on Leadership and Professional Ethics to 19 senior members of the Guyana Police Force (GPF).

This intensive course was taught by Staff Lieutenant Heidi A. Marshall and Lieutenant Matthew Hamilton from the Office of Professional Standards at the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

The course focused on organizational behaviour,

ethics in policing, communication and leadership, relationship and team -building, and community policing.

Included among the participants of this week’s course were three GPF trainers who will teach the course next week to a new class of 20 students. The Ohio Highway Patrol officers will be on hand to offer assistance and ensure a smooth transition as GPF trainers teach the course. This is in preparation for broader delivery of the course to the more junior ranks in the force.

The course is funded by the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) division within the United States Department of State. It is part of a wider initiative designed to support the Guyana Police Training Academy and enhance the bilateral security relationship between the United States and Guyana. One of the primary goals is to create a more robust partnership to combat crime and to develop stronger security institutions in Guyana.

At clean-up consultation… Tucville residents voice environmental concerns

The community of Tucville, Georgetown, was the latest one engaged on the Clean-up Guyana Project that is being executed by the Local Government and Regional Development Ministry, in collaboration with several other stakeholders.

The exercise which was held at Tucville Secondary School on Wednesday evening was aimed at familiarising residents with the objectives of the targeted $500 million city clean-up project.

It also was meant to make authorities au fait with regard to the concerns of residents from the different communities within the city, while trying to provide solutions to those concerns.

Residents took full ad-

vantage of the chance that they were given to voice their concerns about the environmental state of their community.

Although 90 per cent of the residents’ main concerns was the garbage situation and the constant flooding that many believe is caused by the dumping of waste in drains and canals, a few of them had other concerns such as the placement of streetlights, new roads, recreational centre maintenance and bridge linkage to neighbouring communities.

Representatives from the Local Government and Regional Development Ministry assured the residents that many of their concerns will be taken into consideration, but because

this project’s main goal is to seek and address the environmental concerns, all may not be dealt with at this time. They also urged the residents to be patient and to continue to work side by side with the Government, since they would have a better understanding of what needs to be done.

The Local Government and Regional Development Ministry will continue to meet with residents from different communities within the city, while trying to provide solutions to their environmental concerns.

Meanwhile, several areas have already begun to benefit from the clean-up activities.

Billions spent on infrastructural projects

– mid-year report

Billions of dollars were spent on the improvement of drainage and irrigation and other infrastructure during the first half of this year, according to the Finance Ministry’s mid-year report.

A total of $2.2 billion has been spent on improving drainage and irrigation systems. It was stated that construction and rehabilitation works commenced and continued on sluices, revetments, pumps and pump stations; while works continued at the Northern Relief Channel and its related structures.

In addition, the Hope/ Dochfour Public Road Bridge has been completed and was commissioned in

February.

“Moreover, drainage pump stations at Number 66 Village and Paradise have been completed, while works are ongoing at the Windsor Forest, Canal Polder and Pine Ground pump stations and designs are completed for pump stations at Eversham, Number 43 Village, Gangaram and Lima. Designs have also been completed for intake structures and sluices at Ann’s Grove, Hope, Annandale and Nancy,” the report stated.

Of the $13.7 billion which was allocated in 2014 to further improve Guyana’s roads and bridges network, $2.4 billion was expended during the first half of the

year with $2.3 billion being spent on roads and $21.8 million on bridges.

Furthermore, the sum of $551 million was expended towards the completion of the four-lane access road leading to the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), and the East Bank Demerara four-lane highway.

In addition, the report said advancement has been made towards the commencement of the West Coast Demerara Road while stating that the supervision consultancy contract has been awarded, and the design review is ongoing.

Also, the report stated that works on the East Coast Highway are progressing,

and designs have been completed for road reconstruction works for the upgrading of Better Hope to Belfield and for the first half, $788.4 million has been expended on the improvement on rural and community roads.

In the area of Air and River Transport, a total of $1.2 billion was expended on CJIA from a budget of $6.6 billion to continue extension works on the CJIA runway in the first half of the year, while the sum of $25.8 million has been directed towards the maintenance of hinterland airstrips out of a total of $46.1 million.

Critical Sea and River Defence works are ongoing in Regions Two to Seven, according to the mid-year report.

It was reported that with respect to the mangrove restoration and replanting programme, 24 community nurseries were established in Buxton and Mon Repos to produce 50,000 seedlings, and five sites were identified for spartina grass planting in Regions Two, Four and Six.

In the first half of the year, the sum of $527 million was spent towards the further strengthening of the sea and river defence infrastructure from a total budget of $1.9 billion.

Caribbean fine-tuning system to detect harmful products

Caribbean Community (Caricom) countries are implementing a new system aimed at protecting consumers from acquiring dangerous goods on the regional market.

The Guyana-based Caricom Secretariat is assisting member states in implementing the Caricom Rapid Alert System for Exchange of Information on Dangerous (non-food) Consumer Goods (CARREX), as the Caribbean seeks to boost consumer protection and confidence as well as improve the quality of products entering and trading on the regional market.

“CARREX will act in the interest of regional consumers regardless of the origin of these dangerous goods, whether of community origin or imported into the community; once there is an inherent threat to the health and safety of consumers, said Philip McClauren,

the Deputy Programme Manager at the Barbadosbased Caricom Unit.”

The programme functions as an alert system and is designed to operate as a regional mechanism for sharing information among member states and the Caricom Secretariat when a dangerous product is detected.

McClauren, addressing a

CARREX in-country consultation Thursday, said that the system must be seen as a critical mechanism for the Region. It was designed in response to concerns of persistent product dumping on the regional market.

McClauren said the international agencies in the Region are primarily concerned about their markets and are not obligated to act

saturday, august 16, 2014 |

School uniform material distributed in Upper Mazaruni

Villages in the Upper Mazaruni sub-district were presented with school uniform material during the past weekend. Amerindian Affairs Minister Pauline Sukhai, during a visit to Region Seven, distributed the material to representatives of more than a dozen villages.

While the raw material was distributed to the hinterland communities, contracts for the sewing of the uniforms have been awarded to residents of the respective villages.

Government’s hinterland school uniform programme was initiated in 2003 to boost school attendance and to ensure children acquire an education. This

conducted jointly by the Ministries of Education and Amerindian Affairs. Parents residing in hinterland communities have noted that Government’s initiative to provide uniform material and sewing tools is a great help.

This programme also creates job opportunities for residents of hinterland areas. The women are given the task of sewing the uniforms for the various schools, for which they are paid, allowing them to earn incomes. The Ministry of Amerindian Affairs pays the sewing cost in an effort to promote income -generation.

To date, over 200,000 vouchers have been distributed across the country,

or “issue alerts if the dangerous goods are in a foreign market,” including the Caribbean.

He told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) that “consumers would now be made more aware of the goods on the market that inherit risk or problems”.

Adding that “the media is very critical as a vehicle to help us inform the public at home, the diaspora and consumers generally wherever they are”.

CARREX software would function as a webportal system for sharing information and the Caricom Secretariat is using the in-country missions to fine-tune and address the technical concerns associated with the system, so as to ensure it is user friendly and accessible to all stakeholders.

Barbados is the fifth Caricom country visited by the team. (Caribbean360)

programme has now become national.

The administration’s goal is to ensure that every child, despite their geographical location, is afforded the opportunity for an education.

The uniform voucher distribution exercise nationwide, ensures all students who are recipients encash them at pre-identified merchants and suppliers in the various regions across the country.

About 200,000 vulnerable families benefit from the programme which is

while over 29,000 hinterland students stand to benefit from the distribution of school uniforms.

In 2011, Government spent $266 million for the school uniform programme for which over $63 million was directed to the purchase of uniform material for Regions One, Seven, Eight and Nine and the remainder for the six other administrative regions.

In 2012, $296.7 million was spent and in 2013, $208 million, benefiting 139,000 children.

SUDOKU

Follow through with your plans. If you become sidetracked, you will lose ground. You will capture the interest of someone who has much to contribute to your success.

By Bernice Bede Osol

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

Romance and relationships should take top priority. Express your desires honestly and be clear regarding your intentions and dreams. You can build a strong and stable future.

You need to take care of your responsibilities. An important opportunity will slip through your fingers if you are too distracted by emotional issues to pay attention to what really matters.

Don’t let emotional issues hamper your work. Mooning over personal disappointments will cause you to fall behind, making you appear to be unprofessional. Do your best; success is the sweetest revenge.

(Aug. 23Sept. 22)

(July 23Aug. 22) (Feb. 20-March 20)

You will feel the need to make personal changes. If someone in your life is causing you grief, stress or worry, consider taking a time-out to reflect on the state of the relationship.

(March 21-April 19)

Your charisma will gain you favorable attention. Get out, mingle and enjoy being in the spotlight. You have the winning touch today and you should make the most of your popularity.

(April 20-May 20)

Your stubbornness can lead to difficulties. Rather than get frustrated with friends or family, spend time doing your own thing. Mull over what’s transpired and let it go.

(May 21June 20)

Don’t let anyone hold you back. Rely on your knowledge and ability to get ahead. Act on your instinct, and refrain from believing everything you hear.

Your game plan will work out better if you are secretive about it. The element of surprise will be the determining factor that will propel you into a better position.

(Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Don’t hesitate to form a partnership. You will be inspired by an offhand comment or suggestion. Express your thoughts and plans with passion, and you will gain support.

(Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Work issues will prove difficult if your emotions get in the way. Avoid hasty outbursts or accusations. Be conscientious in order to gain the support of the people who matter most.

(Nov. 23Dec. 21)

Avoid an unsavory situation with anyone in an authoritative position. If the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence, it’s likely that someone is coloring your view to manipulate you.

5 weeks of pulsating action boils down to Amazon Warriors/Tridents clash today

– Captains Kieron Pollard and Denesh Ramdin upbeat ahead of game at Warner Park

ieron Pollard’s

KBarbados Tridents will take on Denesh Ramdin and his Guyana Amazon Warriors on Saturday in a match that will see two in form teams square off to be crowned the Limacol Caribbean Premier League (CPL) champions.

The big-hitting Tridents will be looking to replicate their group stage form and make the most of their week-long preparation as they come up against a confident Warriors team fresh from their dominant display in the semi-final against the Jamaica Tallawahs.

Barbados Tridents captain, Kieron Pollard, said; “The Warriors played very well last night, but I am not

worried. We will do our preparation and get ourselves ready for playing them, but we are going to concentrate on our strengths rather than worry too much about theirs.”

He continues; “They beat us at home a few weeks ago, so we know we will have to bring our ‘A-Game’ on Saturday to win. They do have dangerous bowlers in the form of [Sunil] Narine and [Krishmar] Santokie, however, when the bad ball comes, we will look to capitalise on it and it should be an exciting match.”

Guyana Amazon Warriors captain, Denesh Ramdin, said; “After last night’s game, the players who did not get a chance to

bat yesterday will be working hard in the nets today so we are all fully prepared for tomorrow’s final. Santokie and Narine have been bowling well so we will also be looking for them to carry their good form into tomorrow’s match.”

Barbados Tridents coach, Robin Singh, said; “Preparations have been good this week and we have welcomed the break after playing so many games in quick succession at the end of the group stages. We have some players who have done really well throughout the tournament such as Jason Holder and Kieron Pollard, but we will be looking to prepare all of our players to be their best in the final.”

TCamp Road.

The Guyana and Windward Islands players were left to watch a covered pitch and an outfield

with pools of water as the ground staff fought a losing battle to get the venue in readiness despite the sun coming out in its brilliance after noon.

By virtue of accumulating the most points in the League stage, the Guyanese were adjudged champions, making a clean sweep of the titles this year.

Guyana won all six of

On being asked how they will try to do things differently from last year’s final, where they lost in the last over, Guyana Amazon Warriors coach, Roger Harper, said; “This time around we will be looking to produce our best cricket when it counts. We will not necessarily be looking to do anything different to what we have done previously in the tournament, but we will think about the Barbados Tridents today [Friday] and fine tune our plans so we are ready….”

The Limacol Caribbean Premier League will take place on Saturday August 16 at 16:00 at Warner Park, St Kitts.

Guyana claim historic U-19 double after washout

their games prior to the final, finishing on 36.4 points, while the Windward Islands had amassed 21.9 points.

The victory meant Brian Sattaur became the first captain to lead Guyana to the double, winning the Three-day and 50-over title in the same year.

At the presentation ceremony which followed,

Sattaur and the Guyana team were presented with the 50-over trophy by WICB Youth Development Officer, the former Test legspinner Rawle Lewis.

Guyana and West Indies Under-19 opener Shimron Hetmyer carted off the bulk of the individual awards having dominated the tournament with the bat.

The Berbician left-hand-

er racked up 321 runs in six innings, the most by a single batsman. He was also rewarded for the highest individual score (123), as well as the being adjudged the Most Valuable Player.

Akeel Seetal of Trinidad and Tobago was the highest wicket-taker while Romaine Morris of Jamaica was the wicket-keeper with the most dismissals.

Guyana’s Kemo Paul was given a trophy sponsored by the National Sports Commission for being the best all-rounder of the Three-day competition. Quite strangely, the WICB did not put up an award for that category, neither a trophy for the runner-up of the 50-over competition despite hosting a final.

There is a reason why the SSC pitch is notorious for its reputation as the graveyard for bowlers. In the last five years and through the course of five matches, batsmen have collected 30 scores - 14 centuries and 16 fifties - of 50 or more in the first two innings. The pitch that was laid for this Test, Mahela Jayawardene’s last, was no different. However, 16 wickets went down and only three batsmen were able to put up significant runs in the first two days here.

Herath’s five put Sri Lanka ahead SCOREBOARD

Whereas the failure of the Sri Lankan batting on the first day was triggered mostly by disciplined bowling from the Pakistan seamers, Pakistan found themselves in familiar strife due to a mix of some unlucky dismissals and a few inevitable rippers from Rangana Herath.

After a confident start, led by a half-century from Ahmed Shehzad, Pakistan’s middle order stumbled again. The slide was briefly arrested by an enterprising 93-run sixth-wicket stand between Asad Shafiq and Sarfraz Ahmed. The pitch, as the two showed, was still good for batting. But by the end of the day, that stand was broken and Herath had yet another five-wicket haul - his 20th in Tests.

Khurram Manzoor was caught behind off Herath in the last over before lunch for 23. Azhar Ali used his feet smartly against the spinners and was playing solidly till he mistimed an attempted drive through off to midwicket to be dismissed for 32. Shehzad, who had 20 runs to show for his outing in Galle,

Youth Olympics implement

Ebola ban

Youth Olympic Games athletes from areas of Africa affected by the Ebola virus will not be allowed to compete in combat sports or in the pool in Nanjing, China.

The Games start on Saturday, but the ruling will only impact two athletes from Guinea and one Nigerian.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) say that there are currently no suspected cases and the risk of infection is “extremely unlikely.”

Athletes will undergo regular checks.

The measures were implemented after the IOC and local organisers of the Youth Olympic Games consulted with the World Health Organization (WHO).

A statement from the IOC added: “In accordance with WHO guidelines the Chinese authorities are fully prepared should any outbreak occur.”

Sierra Leone and Liberia had previously opted not to travel to China.

was caught down the leg side off Dilruwan Perera in the penultimate over before tea, after scoring an aggressive 58 that had led Pakistan past 100 at a scoring rate well over three an over.

Then came the two big strikes soon after tea, the first of which was solely due to some excellent presence of mind from Kaushal Silva. Younis Khan defended Herath down on the pitch only to see the ball bounce off his boot. An alert Silva at silly point dived forward and slid his hand low, grabbed the ball one-handed, but realising he was not going to be able to control it, he parried it to the wicketkeeper for a simple chance. Younis didn’t spot it, but the third umpire did, cutting his innings short on 13.

Misbah didn’t have a chance against a flighted delivery from Herath that lured him forward and turned sharply to take the outside edge. It was the bowler’s 250th Test wicket. From 110 for 1, Pakistan were down to 140 for 5. This, after the team had their best start in three innings. The openers added 47 in 8.4 overs and the second-wicket pair remained largely untroubled during their 63-run stand.

Pakistan were 180 short of Sri Lanka’s total at that stage but the scoreboard pressure hardly made an impression on Sarfraz. Coming on the back of two fifties in Galle, Sarfraz was light-footed against the spinners and was always on the lookout for runs. He often employed the sweep, sometimes made room by moving towards leg

Fletcher to lead Grenada vs Bangladesh

West Indies opening batsmen Andre Fletcher will lead a 16man Grenada squad in a 50-over warm-up match against the touring Bangladesh team on Sunday, the Grenada

Cricket Association (GCA) announced on Friday.

The match will be played at Progress Park in the eastern parish of St Andrew’s ahead of the two One Day Internationals between West Indies and Bangladesh at the National Stadium next Wednesday and Friday.

The team also includes fellow West Indies players Devon Smith and Nelon Pascal as well as Under-19 medium pacer Preston Mcsween.

The full squad: Andrew Fletcher (captain) Devon Smith, Nelon Pascal, Herron Campbell, Preston McSween, Ronald Ettienne, Keone George, Rudolph Paul, Imran George, Akim Alexis, Denis George, Nickozi St. Hillaire, Eamon Alexander, Josh Thomas, Roland Cato and Ryan John. (CMC)

Shehzad, however, continued playing with positivity, frequently using the sweep to unsettle Herath, whose first spell read 8-2-321. He went on to complete his second Test half-century in 68 balls but continuing with the theme of the match, he was dismissed after looking set.

Pakistan’s batting took the sheen off Junaid Khan’s effort that had helped them roll Sri Lanka out for 320. Junaid’s unrelenting perseverance fetched him his

fifth five-wicket haul, all of which have come against Sri Lanka, but the home team would have been satisfied with their tail’s effort.

The last two wickets ate up more than an hour in the morning and added 59 runs, taking Sri Lanka past 300. Herath was the last batsman to be dismissed as he edged one off Abdur Rehman to slip where Younis took his 100th catch - the first Pakistan fielder to reach the figure. (espncricinfo)

stump and was comfortable playing the late cut to rotate the strike. The fifty of his stand with Shafiq took 63 balls. He remained the aggressor while Shafiq held the other end, scoring just two boundaries in his 42. Shafiq was however beaten by an arm-ball from Herath ten minutes before the close of play.

The start to the innings had been positive though. Manzoor drove Dhammika Prasad for consecutive boundaries in the first over and Shehzad bettered it with a hat-trick of boundaries off Chanaka Welegedara. Herath, who came in as early as the fifth over, made the breakthrough in the last over before lunch as he found turn to kiss the outside edge of Manzoor’s bat.

Sri Lanka 1st innings WU Tharanga c Azhar Ali b Wahab Riaz 92

JK Silva c †Sarfraz Ahmed b Junaid Khan 41

KC Sangakkara b Wahab Riaz 22

DPMD Jayawardene

lbw b Saeed Ajmal 4

AD Mathews* c †Sarfraz

Ahmed b Wahab Riaz 39

HDRL Thirimanne c †Sarfraz

Ahmed b Junaid Khan 20

N Dickwella† lbw b Junaid Khan 24

MDK Perera lbw b Junaid Khan 0

KTGD Prasad lbw b Junaid Khan 13

HMRKB Herath c Younis Khan b Abdur Rehman 17

UWMBCA Welegedara not out 27

Extras (b 8, lb 7, nb 6) 21

Total (all out; 99.3 overs) 320 (3.21 runs per over)

Fall of wickets 1-79 (Silva, 32.5 ov), 2-144 (Sangakkara, 47.5 ov), 3-167 (Jayawardene, 54.6 ov), 4-177 (Tharanga, 59.3 ov), 5-215 (Thirimanne, 74.3 ov), 6-249 (Dickwella, 82.2 ov), 7-249 (Perera, 82.5 ov), 8-261 (Mathews, 85.1 ov), 9-284 (Prasad, 92.5 ov), 10-320 (Herath, 99.3 ov)

Bowling: Junaid Khan 27-6-

87-5, Wahab Riaz 20-3-883, Abdur Rehman 19.3-4-531, Saeed Ajmal 33-5-77-1 Pakistan 1st innings

Khurram Manzoor c †Dickwella b Herath 23 Ahmed Shehzad c †Dickwella b Perera 58 Azhar Ali c Mathews b Herath 32 Younis Khan c †Dickwella b Herath 13 Misbah-ul-Haq* c †Dickwella b Herath 5 Asad Shafiq b Herath 42 Sarfraz Ahmed† not out

Abdur Rehman not out 1 Extras (lb 3, nb 1) 4 Total (6 wickets; 70 overs)

(3.48 runs per over)

To bat: Saeed Ajmal, Wahab Riaz, Junaid Khan Fall of wickets 1-47 (Khurram Manzoor, 8.4 ov), 2-110 (Azhar Ali, 31.3 ov), 3-122 (Ahmed Shehzad, 34.5 ov), 4-131 (Younis Khan, 38.6 ov), 5-140 (Misbah-ul-Haq,

253-98-5, AD Mathews 7-1-13-0, MDK Perera 14-1-52-1

Brathwaite aims to conquer spin attack

West Indies cricketer Kraigg Brathwaite says he is hard at work seeking to improve his ability to conquer spin bowling after achieving a batting milestone in Barbados.

The 22 year old Barbadian batsman says his current work ethic forms part of his plans to cement his spot on the regional side.

Some West Indies cricketers have often faced crit-

icism for their batting performances against the spinners.

“I know I will never be perfect, but I am still working very hard,” declared Brathwaite in an interview with Barbados Today.

“I have been doing a lot of work against the spinners trying to play them as best as I can. I am trying to be more confident. Also my defence is quite good now”. Brathwaite recent-

ly became the first player to score six hundreds in the Barbados Cricket Association’s Sagicor Cup 50-Over Tournament. He went past the five each scored by former Spartan, Barbados and West Indies opener Philo Wallace, the Windward Islands and University of the West Indies’ Romel Currency and Barbados and West Indies batsman Dwayne Smith. (CMC)

YELLOW PAGES

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GVF taking volleyball teams to Lethem this weekend

Lethem is the place to be this weekend when sizzling volleyball action will take place as male and female teams from Georgetown will travel to the border town of Lethem in the Rupununi to face off against teams from Lethem and Boa Vista, Brazil. This trip was promised by John Flores earlier this year after he was appointed President of the Guyana Volleyball Federation

(GVF).

The objective of this trip is to bolster the developmental process of players, exposing them to more competition, different playing conditions and also providing them with the opportunity to play teams of a higher calibre in order to fine-tune their mental and physical preparation, especially playing against their Brazilian counterparts who are known the world over

for their brilliance in the sport. This trip is also geared towards preparing local players for the annual International Club Tournament which will be held in Guyana for the third consecutive year in November. This tournament attracts clubs from Trinidad and Tobago, Suriname, Brazil and hosts Guyana.

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England dominate in final Test

England’s resurgence continued with another devastating bowling display in helpful conditions on day one of the final Test against India. After winning the toss and putting India in to bat on a green-tinged surface at The Oval, England took five wickets before lunch and bowled the tourists out for 148.

A spirited 82 from Mahendra Dhoni saved the tourists from total ignominy, the captain hauling his side from 90-9 in a last-wicket partnership of 58 with Ishant Sharma.

But England, leading the series 2-1, cemented their advantage with an unbroken opening partnership of 62-0 to close just 86 runs behind.

Sam Robson, who has not scored a fifty since the first innings of the first Test, struck two confidence-boosting cover drives on his way to 33, while Alastair Cook has 24. The England captain should have been given out lbw on nine by umpire Paul Reiffel when he missed a Bhuvneshwar Kumar outswinger, but it is symptomatic of the transformation in both teams’ fortunes over the course of the series that he survived with his hopes of ending a 30-innings wait for a century intact.

batted at the end, it was a great day for England,” Woakes told BBC Sport.

“It was nice to bowl on a wicket that was a little bit helpful to the seamers. Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad set the tone perfectly as they have done for the whole series, so it was nice to back them up and pick up a few wickets.”

In the previous Test at Old Trafford, Dhoni walked out to bat with his team on 8-4. On Friday, India had managed 28 runs before he confronted another crisis. After rain delayed the start of play by half an hour, it only took four balls for James Anderson to land the first blow on a desperately fragile India.

Left-hander Gautam Gambhir attempted to leave a ball shaping away from him but got the toe-end of his bat on the ball and presented a routine catch to wicketkeeper Jos Buttler.

Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli have been billed as the natural successors to India legends Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar, but both are enduring miserable series, with only one halfcentury between them in 18 innings.

Stuart Broad, playing only six days after his nose was broken by a Varun Aaron bouncer

at Old Trafford, bowled Pujara via his pad and arm, while Kohli was lbw shouldering arms to Jordan.

Ajinkya Rahane tamely served up a return catch to Jordan and a near-perfect morning session for the hosts was rounded off when Murali Vijay was caught by Joe Root in the gully for 18 to leave India in a mess on 43-5. The afternoon session brought a same old story as Stuart Binny, recalled in place of Ravindra Jadeja, nicked an Anderson outswinger to slip, Woakes accounted for Ravichandran Ashwin and Aaron, and Jordan had Kumar caught behind.

India should have been bowled out for 95, but Ian Bell, diving to his right, shelled a sharp chance to his right at second slip to reprieve Ishant. Sensing the need to accelerate, Dhoni went into limitedovers mode either side of tea, most notably when driving Jordan for longoff for six.

However, with a century in his sights, he hooked Broad to Woakes at long leg.

Despite the captain’s efforts, it had been another feeble India batting display and one that may have sealed their fate in the series.

(Cricinfo.com)

Cook will resume in the morning confident in helping his team take another stride towards a third victory in a row to complete a remarkable turnaround since they were heavily beaten at Lord’s to go 1-0 down in the series.

India 1st innings

M Vijay c Root b Woakes 18

G Gambhir c †Buttler b Anderson 0

CA Pujara b Broad 4

V Kohli lbw b Jordan 6

(Vijay, 18.5 ov), 6-44 (Binny, 30.3 ov), 7-68 (Ashwin, 36.4 ov), 8-79 (Kumar, 39.1 ov), 9-90 (Aaron, 44.5 ov), 10148 (Dhoni, 61.1 ov)

While the hosts appear to improving with every match - there were three wickets apiece on Friday for seamers Chris Woakes and Chris Jordan - India are in freefall. For the fourth innings in a row, they failed to reach 200 as their batsman failed to cope with the moving ball.

“To bowl them out for under 150 is fantastic, and with the way the boys

AM Rahane c & b Jordan 0

MS Dhoni*† c Woakes b Broad 82

STR Binny c Cook b Anderson 5

R Ashwin c Root b Woakes 13

B Kumar c †Buttler b Jordan 5

VR Aaron c & b Woakes 1

I Sharma not out 7

Extras (b 6, lb 1) 7

Total (all out; 61.1 overs) 148 (2.41 runs per over)

Fall of wickets 1-3 (Gambhir, 0.4 ov), 2-10 (Pujara, 5.6 ov), 3-26 (Kohli, 13.4 ov), 4-28 (Rahane, 15.6 ov), 5-36

Bowling: JM Anderson 17-451-2, SCJ Broad 15.1-4-27-2, CJ Jordan 14-7-32-3, CR Woakes 14-7-30-3, MM Ali 1-0-1-0 England 1st innings

AN Cook* not out 24

SD Robson not out 33

Extras (b 4, w 1) 5

Total (0 wickets; 19 overs) 62 (3.26 runs per over)

To bat: GS Ballance, IR Bell, JE Root, MM Ali, JC Buttler†, CR Woakes, SCJ Broad, CJ Jordan, JM Anderson

Bowling: B Kumar 7-1-25-0, I Sharma 7-2-12-0, VR Aaron 3-0-14-0, STR Binny 2-0-7-0

Overseas athletes ready for Boyce/Jefford Classic

By TreisTon Joseph

Anticipation is in the air as the Boyce/ Jefford Track and Field Classic kicks off today from 12:00h at the Mackenzie Sports Club ground in Linden.

The event has become Guyana’s biggest and most lucrative track and field meet and will bring international athletes to compete against the talented locals of Guyana.

Among some of the international athletes is Trinidadian Mark London, who is a defending champion at the two- day event and who is making his third

appearance at the meet. London said he is confident ahead of his races today.

“It’s always nice to be here for this competition, it’s always welcoming, a nice environment here in Guyana… in Linden it’s always a nice environment as well, a nice crowd at the games.

“This year I’m just looking to go out there do my best, have a nice competition and hopefully win,” the tall, lanky middle- distance Trinidadian noted.

Another Trinidadian, Tonya Nero who is well known for her exploits in the 10k is also in high spirit for the women’s 15OO metres.

“I was here before for the

1500 metres, not really my kind of race…I’m more use to the distance running, but I have been training hard whole year and I just plan to go out and do my best.

“I don’t know all of the girls that are competing, so I don’t know what to expect of them but I just want to go out and do my best,” Nero further told Guyana Times Sport.

Meanwhile, overseasbased Guyanese Brenessa Thompson, who is expected to provide a spike to the female sprints, is also in Guyana and fully expects her sprint competition to bring it.

“I expect them to put on

a good show and to push me and I know they wanted the competition from outside to come and help them run faster too; and I hope I can push them also into running their personal records, but I’m looking forward to breaking the 100 and 200 metres record,” Thompson told this publication.

Thompson is expected to clash with overseas- based Surinamese Danielle Clark, overseas- based Guyanese Alita Moore and the likes of Tirana Mitchell and Leota Bobb in what is expected to be one of the biggest finals of the two-day meet.

GDF athletics championships rained out

The final day of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) athletics championships had to be postponed due to the inclement weather.

The event, which was scheduled for Friday, will now be held sometime next week with a date yet to be confirmed.

Some of the events were completed during the week, but unfortunately could not have completed the final day of the championships which is normally held over three days.

The championships pit some of the best military men against each other and is often the yardstick for selection to the army team for the Inter Services Athletics Championships, also known as the Joint Services Sports.

GOA supports local boxing coach

– to participate in certification course in Cuba

By TreisTon Joseph

The Guyana Olympic Association (GOA)

has come forward to support amateur boxing coach Seibert Blake’s quest to become a three-star coach

Blake will be the only Guyanese to participate in the Extraordinary APB/ WSB certification course in Cuba.

At a simple handingover ceremony on Friday, President of the GOA KA Juman Yassin was pleased to support Blake on his journey to become a better coach.

“I think it’s only fitting we continue his development so he can do us well?,” Yassin told media operatives at the handing-over ceremony.

Blake, who was grateful for the sponsorship, thanked Yassin and the GOA for the contribution to his success.

“I want to use the opportunity to thank the GOA

and I will go there to learn as much as possible, so that I can come back and share it with the coaches and the boxers.

“My dream is to one day be able to coach and produce an Olympic medallist and hopefully 2016 will be that time,” Blake highlighted.

Meanwhile, President of the Guyana Boxing Association, Steve Ninvalle, was also appreciative of the assistance by the GOA to boxing in general.

“It’s extremely pleasing to have the GOA on board with us again. The GOA has been a major factor in the development of amateur boxing and I think that Yassin has a soft spot for the sport in his heart.

“In the Region there are only six three-star coaches and once Blake is successful Guyana will have two of them,” Ninvalle confidently stated.

Blake is expected to

leave for Cuba sometime next week.

The only three-star coach

presently is longtime coach Terrence Poole.

Essequibo Volleyball Association re-established

Yet another momentous achievement for the sport of volleyball in Guyana was created last Sunday July 11 at Onderneeming, Essequibo Coast, when the Essequibo Volleyball Association (EVA) was re-established, followed by a competition involving four male teams. On hand to witness the proceedings was President of the Guyana Volleyball Federation (GVF) John Flores, along with other executives.

The newly resuscitated Essequibo Volleyball Association comprises persons from several teams and active community members.

Heading the association is Captain of Mainstay Village, Joel Fredericks as President.

There five committee members.

The newly elected President, a sport enthusiast, emphatically expressed his willingness to fasttrack the development of the sport in the Cinderella County and said will try his best to ensure the sport is elevated to a very high level in order to compete with the two other counties. He also stated that he will work closely with the sports coordinators in the regions.

President of the Guyana Volleyball Federation John Flores was very elated at the resuscitation of the association, since this was one of his many plans - to get all the associations established and functioning. He charged the committee members to help spread the game and be actively involved in supporting the executives.

After the business end of the meeting, the competition got started on the outdoor courts where four teams tried to outdo each other, but the eventual winner was the Mainstay Village team which demonstrated much fitness, determination and a winning attitude, a GVF press release stated.

Fifa’s Sepp Blatter reiterates call for video challenges

Fifa president Sepp Blatter has renewed his call for the use of video challenges during matches. In Fifa magazine The Weekly, the head of world football’s governing body wrote how managers could have two “calls” per match to contest decisions.

However, the calls could only be used once play had come to a halt and would “barely disturb the flow of the game”.

Blatter first made his surprise move for video challenges at Fifa’s annual congress in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in June. It was at a time when Fifa was receiving negative coverage surrounding the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

His position opposes that of Uefa president Michel Platini, his possible rival candidate in next year’s Fifa presidential election, when the Swiss will be standing for a fifth term.

Platini has, in the past, been opposed to technological advances, such as goal-line technology, but has now softened his and Uefa’s stance.

Goal-line technology was used introduced in the Premier League for the 201314 season and was also used at the Fifa 2014 World Cup this summer, along with vanishing spray.

Blatter now believes the time is right for another change. “I too rejected technological aids in the past. But there is no use sticking to entrenched positions and clinging to principles for the sake of it. Our objective must be to make football more transparent and credible and to support referees in their difficult task.”

Any change would require agreement from the International Football Association Board (IFAB), who serve as guardians of the game’s rules. (BBC Sport)

saturday, august 16, 2014

Guyana Cup Horse Race Meet…

Overseas-based Guyanese on board

Overseas-based Guyanese have come on board the Guyana Cup horse-race meet by providing the trophy for the cofeature 1,600-metre event for three-year-old horses bred and born in Guyana and the West Indies. That race has a first-place purse worth $2M.

The gigantic Zeneyatta Memorial trophy for the three-year-old Derby race was presented to the organisers from the Tickaram family of the USA.

The Jumbo Jet Auto Sales and Racing Stables organised Guyana Cup horse race event set for Sunday August 24, in collaboration with the Port Mourant Turf Club, has a total of $25M in prize money to be handed out, by far making it the biggest prize money to be available for a local sporting event.

Most of the top horses in the country have already been signed up for the feature C1 and Lower event which has a hefty $4M and the Guyana Cup Trophy as the first prize. A total of $7.5M will be at stake in the 1,800-metre event.

The E Class and Lower 1,400 metres event has a first prize of $800,000 and the G1 and Lower $600,000. That race will be over a distance of 1,200 metres.

There will be a Two-year old event for Guyana-bred horses over a distance of 1,000 metres. The top prize in that race is $600,000.

The H and Lower 1,000 metres race guarantees the winning horse a purse of $450,000 while the ‘I’ and Lower race also goes the same distance with the winner receiving $350,000.

Editors note

Use of photos to highlight young amateur athletes at Inter-Guiana Games

Firstly, let me give much praise to Mr Trevor Pemberton for diligently providing full photographic coverage of the recent InterGuiana Games and posting those photos on social network Facebook for others who may not have made it to the events to see.

Mr Pemberton, it seems, shares our vision of trying to give our athletes the necessary exposure to further motivate them to keep aiming for success and maybe even reaching international acclaim as athletes such as boxers Andrew Lewis, Wayne Braithwaite and Vivian Harris and athletes Aliann Pompey and Marian Burnett have done.

Sports, we also believe, is one of the platforms that could help to further develop our economy and put our small country on the map. Sport tourism has now become serious business in many countries and we feel as a news entity we must do our part to help convince the nation and Government to also head in that direction. The building of the synthetic track at Leonora is very encouraging.

Every little action that helps to motivate our athletes and further encourages Government to put more emphasis on sport is most welcome.

The J and Lower race will be 1,200 metres with the winner getting $250,000.

The top jockey, along with the runner-up, the top stable and champion trainer will all be presented with trophies and other incentives, compliments of the organisers.

The activity, which has become a calendar event, has been organised also to capture the thousands of overseas-based Guyanese, holiday seekers and tourists who will throng the country at this time of the year.

Entries closed on Saturday, August 16. The organisers have also have put together some interesting incentives for lucky patrons and participants that will be unveiled later, especially for those early entrants and patrons on race day. The event will be held under the rules of the Guyana Horse Racing Authority.

Interested persons can contact Chandu Ramkissoon (624-9063 or 232-0633),

Mr Pemberton’s contribution in this regard, whether consciously or not, is most appreciated.

It was noted in one of the daily newspapers that Mr Pemberton, however, was upset that this publication had used four of his photos of swimmers from the Inter-Guiana Games. Those photos were of two swimmers who had won gold medals for Guyana.

We are aware that under Facebook’s "Statements of Rights and Responsibilities" which states: “When you publish content or information using the public setting, it means that you are allowing everyone, including people off of Facebook, to access and use that information, and to associate it with you (i.e., your name and profile picture).” We did give the credits to Mr Pemberton/Facebook.

We are, nevertheless, apologetic that in courtesy we did not seek to get permission from Mr Pemberton for the use of those photos.

Here is hoping, however, that going forward we would have a cordial relationship as we all seek to play our part in developing sport in this beautiful country we call Guyana.

Regards, Reuben J A Stoby Sport Editor

– Captains Kieron Pollard and Denesh Ramdin upbeat ahead of game at Warner Park