Guyana Times Daily

thursday, october 10, 2013 | guyanatimesgy.com

Post office still viable despite digital technology

Guyana Post Office Corporation (GPOC) Chairman Vidiahar Persaud said the entity continues to do well despite advancements in technology that are changing the communications landscape.

Speaking at a ceremony hosted by the agency to mark World Post Day on Wednesday at the GPOC head office, Persaud said while generally the traditional postal service has faded as a consequence of the introduction of new technology, alternative service offers and innovative methods have ensured that there is still a demand for “this traditional operation”.

“This year, the GPOC has implemented its 24-point plan, which is intended to reduce expenditure, increase revenue, to refocus on customer services, efficiency and the quality testing of our service offerings,” Persaud disclosed.

He said apart from the plan, the GPOC continues to

look at new possibilities to bridge new frontiers, including business alliances and the modernisation of its services, highlighting that the emphasis is on computerisation of post offices to facilitate efficiency. “This in-

cludes our interior offices, with the Mahdia office being a prime example. In the last quarter of 2013, plans are for the deployment of information and communication technology to interior offices such as Port Kaituma and Mathews Ridge,” the postal services chairman explained.

INSTAPAY software

He said despite the challenges the postal service will continue to survive, as he restated the agency’s commitment to offering a better brand of service to Guyanese. He disclosed that in 2012, the GPOC handled in excess of nine million pieces of mail, which included bulk postage and bill distributions. This accounted for 23.8 per cent of the corporation’s income last year.

At the event on Wednesday, the GPOC introduced its rebranded and improved payment software, INSTAPAY. Customer Relations Officer

Tiffani Ferrell explained that INSTAPAY has the capacity to offer real-time bill payment and money transfer services at competitive rates. “In this age of advanced technology, GPOC fully intends to be an active member of this technological arena. Our aim is to better serve our valued customers

and in this regard, we have partnered with Roraima Financial Services to coin our bill payment platform.”

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, who addressed the gathering, said he was aware that the corporation needed more money to function effectively and to sustain itself. He noted that the rate of pay for postal workers was below what he would like it to be, and called on the public to transact more business with the agency to ensure it has a steady income.

The GPOC also launched the first series of the “Guyana Women in Aviation” stamp in honour of Cheryl Moore and Beverley Drake, who are Guyana’s first commercial pilots.

World Post Day is celebrated each year on October 9, the anniversary of the establishment of the Universal

Postal Union (UPU) in 1874 in the Swiss capital, Berne.

In 1969, the UPU designated the anniversary World Post Day at its Congress in Tokyo, Japan. Currently, this event is celebrated by 162 countries worldwide. The aim of World Post Day is to create awareness of the role of the postal sector in people’s and businesses’ everyday lives and its contribution to the social and economic development of countries. The celebration encourages member countries to undertake programme activities aimed at generating a broader awareness of their post’s role and activities among the public and media on a national scale.

“The Post, delivering for people and businesses daily,” is the theme under which the day was observed this year.

Woman seeks public’s assistance to find missing sister

Almost three weeks after she went missing, there is still no sign of 66-year-old Lucille Ingram, of Lot 671 B Field, Sophia, Georgetown, who disappeared after leaving the Georgetown Public Hospital.

According to reports, Ingram’s sister, Dorothy Malipen had taken her to the hospital on September 24, registered her to see a physician, and left promising to return after running some errands.

The distraught woman explained that she left her sister in a wheelchair. She returned to the hospital later, but could not locate her sibling. Upon enquiring, she was told that Ingram had absconded. Since then, there has been no word about the woman’s whereabouts.

Malipen said she was not ready for any sad news, admitting that she erred in the first instance.

Malipen reported the incident to the police outpost at the hospital and then to the Turkeyen Police Station where they advised her to

keep checking the hospital. Weeks after, she is still checking but there is no sign of the missing woman. Ingram resides at B Field, Sophia but because of her illness, Malipen had requested that she stayed with her. Guyana Times understands that Ingram suffers from chronic memory loss. Anyone with information that can assist Malipen in locating her sister is asked to call 219-1378 or contact the nearest police station.

Countrywide: Thundery showers are expected during the day, with clear skies in the evening over coastal regions and near inland locations. Temperatures are expected to range between 24 and 29 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Easterly at 3.57 to 3.12 metres per second.

High Tide: 07:59h and 20:16h reaching maximum heights of 2.44 metres and 2.48 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 01:27h and 13:47h reaching minimum heights of 0.84 metre and 0.75 metre respectively.

07 17 01 14 03 20 21

IAC calls for swift action to arrest crime situation

The Indian Arrival Committee (IAC) has congratulated Leroy Brumell, who was on Monday sworn in as commissioner of police, by President Donald Ramotar.

In a statement, the IAC said while not unmindful of the challenges Brumell faces as the country’s police commissioner, “the IAC calls on him to immediately implement mechanisms to deal with the current escalating crime wave”.

Gouveia blasts U.S. direct flight ban

By Leana Bradshaw

Prominent local aviator and businessman Captain Gerry Gouveia said the recent decision by the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) to deny third-party air carriers direct flights between Guyana and New York was a “serious blow” to the Guyanese economy.

Weighing in on the matter of the non-existent direct flights on Wednesday during an interview with Guyana Times, Gouveia said the refusal by DOT to grant the airlines the privilege was questionable. The department’s decision means that both Fly Jamaica and Caribbean Airlines, which ply the route, will have to stop in their respective countries of registration before continuing on to the United States.

Stymied economy

Gouveia believes the department’s move was unjustifiable, given that there was no airline providing direct flights for that route. “If Delta was still on the route, for example, and Delta was saying ‘here, listen, we’re providing it and so we don’t want a third-party country doing it’, that would be understandable, but Delta is not here and I think the U.S. authorities really need to be sensitive to the economic needs of Guyana,” he reasoned.

Gouveia added that “this action by the U.S. authorities will not affect Caribbean Airlines or Fly Jamaica as much as it’s affecting the Guyanese economy”.

He, therefore, views the move as one to stymie the expansion of the local economy by preventing access

to “our tourism product and investors coming directly into Guyana”.

Gouveia also said established airlines such as Fly Jamaica and Caribbean Airlines are the ones that should be granted such privileges, since they are already certified and accredited.

“Unfortunate and unfair”

“We may eventually get chartered services flying directly to Guyana, but chartered services continue to put the flying public in an unstable situation, because we never know when they will stop,” he stated.

The businessman added that established airlines bring to the market a level of reliability.

Hence, he is urging that the government of Guyana and the local

U.S. embassy join in efforts to lobby for the reversal of DOT’s decision, since there is currently no other alternative for local passengers wishing to fly non-stop to New York.

Newly-appointed Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG) President Kit Nascimento has labelled the situation as “unfortunate and unfair”. As such, he said every effort should be made to appeal the decision taken. “As far as tourism is concerned, as president of THAG, I feel that the position taken is wrong.”

Good reason

He said there was every good reason that the airlines should be permitted to fly directly from Guyana to New York and vice versa. Nascimento added that he would seek to initiate a petition to persuade THAG members to object to the decision, making way for it to be appealed.

Meanwhile, according to a government official, the matter is being addressed at the state level.

The official said although the airlines have already applied for permission for direct flights, there cannot be continued back-and-forth on the matter.

All U.S. bound Fly Jamaica flights will have to continue stopping in Kingston, Jamaica while all U.S. bound Caribbean Airlines flights will have to stop in Trinidad and Tobago before proceeding.

The decision handed down by the U.S. DOT is a big win for a number of U.S .airlines that protested the application on the grounds that the move could provide unfair competition and was against U.S. aviation policy. (leanab@guyanatimesgy.com)

According to the IAC, the recent spate of crime has not only the potential to infuse a sense of uncertainty among Guyanese, but can affect the country’s image and its efforts to attract overseas investors and visitors.

“In this context, the IAC reiterates its call for swift action. As Mr Brumell officially begins his tenure as commissioner, the IAC takes this opportunity to wish him much success in his endeavours.”

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

The new Guyana Constitution

As the country reflects on its democratic status 21 years after the latter was returned in the wake of decades of struggle against rigged elections, there are allegations by opposition forces that the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government continues to use the 1980 Constitution, which had confirmed the existential dictatorial rule of the People’s National Congress (PNC).

Such charges ignore the fundamental changes in that Constitution wrought by the constitutional reform process initiated in 1999 and implemented in 2000. The alterations were so far reaching that for all intents and purposes, a new Constitution had been created.

The government had commenced the process for constitutional change as early as 1995, when a Constitutional Reform Commission (CRC) was formed and hearings were held across the country, as well in a Parliamentary Select Committee. The process was interrupted by the 1997 elections, which the PPP/C won according to all foreign and domestic observers.

The PNC, however, claimed that the poll was flawed and launched massive street protests that segued into ethnically directed riots and violence. The Caribbean Community (Caricom) – brokered the Herdmanson Accord of January 17, 1998, which included an agreement to complete the reform of the 1980 Constitution.

A new 20-person CRC, acceptable to all parliamentary parties, was assembled and included individuals drawn from the widest possible cross-section of society. For six months, the CRC conducted hearings and took submissions from every Guyanese individual or organisation that expressed a wish to do so.

Their submissions were reviewed by a parliamentary Joint Select Committee, which then furthered the 182 recommendations (drawn from 32 subject areas) to the Oversight Committee of the National Assembly.

The final changes were approved unanimously in 2000 by all the parties in the National Assembly, including the PNC. Surely, 182 alterations in the 1980 Constitution proposed from such a diverse body of national opinion, could not have resulted in “the same old 1980” Constitution after 2000.

The most criticised feature of the 1980 Constitution had been the powers allocated to the presidency: he was a de facto dictator, who for the first time in the history of the Commonwealth had complete veto power. He could be president for life and could hire and fire at will most public officials (Article 232) and determine the length of tenure of others whom he might not have even appointed.

In the new Constitution, the powers of the president are diminished considerably, while those of the opposition leader (who had been derided as “Minority Leader in the 1980 Constitution) and the Parliament, are increased.

The president is now limited to two terms and his power to fire is now restricted only to those individuals not appointed by the service commissions. Even on those offices he created, if their salaries are charged to the Consolidated Fund, the appointments must be reviewed by the National Assembly.

In critical constitutional appointments such as the commissioner of police, the chancellor of the judiciary and the chief justice, the opposition leader has veto power, since his agreement is necessary for confirmation. It is for this reason that some constitutional offices have been occupied by individuals in an “acting” capacity.

The Elections Commission had been the vehicle for rigging elections in the past, but the president can now only appoint its chairman from a list submitted by the opposition leader. Under the 1980 Constitution, the president merely had to call the Minority Leader and that was considered as a “consultation” to satisfy that requirement.

Now, the term “meaningful consultation” has been constitutionally defined to ensure that the president obtains the opinion of the opposition leader. Parliament also obtained a greater share of power in the new Constitution, with four sectoral committees now scrutinising all areas of governmental policy and administration in real time.

Finally, the president can also now be impeached and cannot dissolve Parliament to evade such a sanction or circumvent it by appointing the tribunal to investigate the charges.

All in the new Guyana Constitution.

Guyana’s financial climate is healthy

Dear Editor,

Without the right support infrastructure, the manufacturing sector cannot reach its full potential. This was expressed recently by President Donald Ramotar at the Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association’s (GMSA) 50th anniversary dinner. The president went on to lambaste the opposition for the unjustifiable rejection of key pieces of legislation that would have cleared the way for the construction of the Amaila Falls Hydro Electricity Project (AFHEP).

As we all know, this caused the renowned international developer and partner, Sithe Global, to pull out from the venture, and thus we have a further setback in the realisation of cheap energy for all Guyana.

The GMSA is touting the

training of small agro-processors in the Essequibo region, bringing them to international standards in handling, labelling and packaging of coconut and fruit juices. This is so needed in Guyana. We just cannot continue to be an agrarian society, giving away our hard labour to other nations, who then take our stuff, do a little bit of work, and then sell by-products back to us. We have to produce and package.

Something like this is happening within the fishing sector. We have exporters who sell their products to markets in the U.S. and Canada. The cleaning, packaging and freezing are done here. This allows for employment. However, a basic thing like electricity can be a setback. Currently, it fetches a high cost and adds to the overhead expenditure which remains ex-

orbitant. The AFHEP project realised will mean a big boost for this industry.

We have fruits galore in Guyana, but I do not see our local fruit juices in tins and boxes. I do see local street vendors selling them in plastic bags and this suffices for us here.

We mostly choose local drinks when we eat at food stalls here. So now the onus is on our farmers and agroprocessors to go that extrabit and make our juices and drinks exportable.

This is where processing, preserving and packaging come in. Whether or not we have the Amaila project, we cannot wait. Let the waiting time be used to still forge ahead. I feel very confident that this drive for cheaper electricity will be realised.

In 2012, manufacturing output grew by 2.4 per cent; some products, such

as beverages, recorded increased output; value added output in the services sector increased significantly; many industries achieved positive growth; wholesale and retail trade grew by 6.7 per cent; information and communication by 4.2 per cent; electricity and water output by 5.7 per cent; transport and storage by 18.9 per cent; finance and insurance by 13.8 per cent; and rental of dwellings by 4.5 per cent.

Optimism is high and the projection is that the manufacturing sector is likely to record a stronger growth performance of 4.4 per cent this current year. Some of us have dreams and visions for this land. Our leaders must whip up support from these and move the country ahead.

Yours faithfully, Dionne Wilkins

Small shops must be inspected regularly

Dear Editor,

The police must make inspections on these little small shop owners which are springing up. We have many of them operating from their bottom-houses, in shacks in their yards, and in front of their gates. They have noth-

ing much on display. I see a few loaves of bread, some cigarettes and maybe a pack or two of mints. Are these people licensed to sell? This should be checked out. I have seen quite a few fights by these spots too. They do not pose a

healthy environment at all. Usually, it is a case where a few guys hang out, smoking or drinking, and they normally make lewd remarks at girls.

On many occasions, I smell the odour of pot being smoked. That is why I am cu-

rious as to what is obtaining. I am calling for more police work. People hide behind all kinds of fronts doing dirty business. So it is best to see what is happening behind.

Yours truly, Bernard Heskith

Move forward with SWAT

Dear Editor,

When you do, you are damned and so too when you don’t. That is how many in the opposition camps are dealing. They complain about crime escalation and yet they oppose efforts to fight the issue. What is wrong with these people?

Mind you, one of the untenable propositions from these enemies of the state is that unemployment is a major cause for criminal activities. Yet they block projects which will create employment.

Guyana has free education all the way through high school and yet I do not hear of opposition members

Traffic

Dear Editor,

imploring for people to stay in school. Education is a great tool in fighting crime.

Now with this Special Weapons And Tactics (SWAT) team, why are these people complaining? One member opined most fallaciously that he hates to state the obvious, but a SWAT team will not prevent or reduce crime.

SWAT teams and similar law enforcement tactics are an integral part of effective policing.

In the battle against violence, gangs, and terrorism, they are law enforcement’s most potent weapon, and over the years have saved many innocent lives, accord-

ing to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which has earned the reputation of the world’s best trained, most professional, and most effective law enforcement agency.

I hope that nothing and no one will stop this move and I call on the opposition parties to quit endorsing criminals and offering silly reasons. These criminals must be busted and that is how we will get an even better Guyana. Too much has been gained and too much is at stake.

Yours respectfully, Mark Francis

hazards in Mahaica

Please allow me to highlight two extremely dangerous traffic situations that exist in the Mahaica area. The first hazard exists at the junction of the De Hoop Branch Road and the main highway.

Large delivery trucks are parked, on a daily basis, in front of a business next to the main highway delivering goods. This is a very dangerous practice, since the view of drivers exiting the De Hoop Branch road is completely obscured – thus, there is no way of telling if a vehicle is ap-

proaching along the main highway.

As a result, there have been many accidents in the past, in fact, as recent as a few days ago. Numerous complaints to the police have yielded no results. A major accident is going to occur here very soon if no action is taken.

The second situation exists at Chelsea Park, Mahaica. Lorries laden with paddy are parked on both sides of the road, reducing the road to one lane. In fact, these lorries even park on the pavement built by the government

of Guyana to facilitate the safety of those students attending the Bygeval Secondary School. These students are now forced to walk in the middle of the road. It is only a matter of time before a fatal accident occurs here.

In view of the forgoing, I would like to use this forum to plead with the relevant authorities to take the necessary action, urgently, to correct these two traffic hazards and prevent a major disaster.

Name withheld by request

Opposition not mindful of developing Guyana nor making life better for Guyanese

Dear Editor, It is evident that one opposition party has continued to withhold support for the Amaila Falls Hydro Electricity Project (AFHEP), and I can’t help but feel the need to castigate them for being a dubious group of individuals. The AFHEP was anticipated to take Guyana into an era that would have offered tremendous benefits for the entire nation. Sadly, I feel as though APNU are only playing the role of opposers for opposing sake.

I thought to myself that maybe I needed someone else’s opinion and so I decided to approach an engineering friend of mine, who holds absolutely no political interests. He shares full support

for this project, particularly since it depicts several positive factors.

These include a huge labour force during the project time, continued employment after the project for a significant number of specialised workers, cheaper electricity, expansion of many companies, and the spawning of new ones.

I couldn’t help but notice throughout our conversation how distressed this topic made him. He just could not understand, with all the advantages of the AFHEP, why there would be so much dillydallying by the opposition. As Guyanese citizens, we all know that there is no loss in having access to an

adequate and affordable source of power in Guyana. With all that said, would I be wrong to say that maybe this party is not prepared to offer Guyanese a better life?

I am most certain that my friend and I aren’t the only two persons who feel that the AFHEP has so much to offer Guyana, and as such, all effort should be made to ensure that this project is a successful one. AFHEP will bring much needed inexpensive energy to Guyana and will boost the operations of Guyana’s processing and manufacturing sectors.

Yours faithfully, Beatrice Cummings

Search students before they enter schools

Dear Editor, A constant vigil is needed where our schools are concerned. The talk all over the world is that students have to be searched. Here in Guyana, this will mean that their haversacks and pockets must be examined. School safety and the laws that govern safety are not that easy to implement. But this is the way many schools

are going.

Some students have opposed this kind of talk, saying that they have the right to privacy. However, schools must realise that they have to provide safe environments for all the students. This means that searches will be the norm.

Guyana is pumping a lot of money into the education sector and to have violence

militate against this kind of investment is utter nonsense. We have to remove the bad apples. Many children may be young but they act out of order.

If it means sending them to correctional facilities, then so be it. I see nothing wrong in this.

Yours truly, Nirmala Persaud

Page Foundation

The early years of a child’s life are critically important. Research tells us this, as does experience. They are important in their own right, and as the foundation for success at school, in making friends and relationships, and for all adult life. Schools, social services, health services, and youth workers do great work in giving children second chances, but wouldn’t it be better if mothers, fathers and all those who care for babies and young children in their foundation years could build on their instincts with evidence of what makes a difference and give support where it’s needed?

A vision for the foundation years

Family-friendly environments for all children to grow up in, where families are welcomed and supported, children are safe, and childhood is celebrated and enjoyed should be created. It is recognised that families come in all shapes and sizes, have different needs at different times, and are constantly changing.

Mothers and fathers play the most important part in raising children but many other people make a vital contribution: grandparents and the wider family, friends, neighbours, teachers, and early years and health professionals. We need to value and support all those who make a contribution to helping children grow up healthy, happy and ready to learn. Families and professionals should be enabled to have the information, skills and confidence they need to help all our children develop well and fulfil their potential.

High-quality health services, early education, and care for young children and their families make a real difference. A coherent framework of services for families, from pregnancy through to age five which focus on promoting children’s development and help with all aspects of family life should be developed.

Choices should be offered for all families, while also providing more targeted help for those in greatest need. Some families may need more support than others to offer their child the best possible start. For children growing up in disadvantaged families, their early experiences can either embed disadvantage, or give them the opportunity to break free of this cycle.

Professionals working in the foundation years should have the freedom to be able to meet the needs of the whole child, providing the right help at the right time, and recognising the importance of social and emotional development as well as more formal learning. This is vital if children are to be healthy, happy, safe, and successful.

The realities of modern family life mean that services and professionals need to engage with both parents as individuals and together as a parenting team. Any barriers that make it difficult for mothers and fathers to choose how they share their parenting and earning roles need to be removed. The nature of the parenting partnership is changing to reflect the reality and aspirations of both mothers and fathers to share earning and caring roles more equally.

High-quality, flexible childcare plays an important part in supporting working parents, including parents with disabled children, so that they can be confident they are making a positive choice for their child.

Giving children the best possible childhood involves all parts of society: it is not something that a government can or should do alone. communities, voluntary groups, businesses, social enterprises and public services should be encouraged to play their part. Businesses selling goods and services to families, employers enabling parents to balance work and family life, and local communities designing public facilities like transport and recreation should

all have children’s best interests at the heart of what they do.

What research tells us There is a growing body of evidence that supports what most parents know by instinct – the early years of a child’s life are critical to their future chances, and what parents and families do makes a big difference. Evidence suggests five critical factors during the foundation years:

• Children’s health in early life : this includes factors such as low birth weight and affects well-being, development and behaviour. A child’s health is strongly influenced by their parents’ health and behaviour, particularly that of their mothers. Smoking and nutrition in pregnancy, breastfeeding and immunisations are key predictors of children’s health in later life

• Good maternal mental health : mothers’ mental health is significantly associated with child development outcomes, particularly social, behavioural and emotional development

• Quality of parenting and parent-child relationships : children do better when they have a close and positive relationship with their parents, and mothers and fathers work together to provide warm, authoritative, responsive, and sensitive parenting

Throwing it all away: when good children make bad choices

(ConClusion)

IBY DEBBIE PINCUS

want to make it clear that if your child is doing something unsafe, destructive, abusive or risky, like cutting herself, bullying others, or doing drugs, she has crossed a line. You need to respond immediately with very strong interventions. Because you care for your child and love her, you will not sit passively by. If you have evidence that she is doing drugs, for example, you need to do whatever it takes to intervene. If it requires calling other parents, calling the school or authorities or a crisis team, or getting her into counselling and rehab, you will do that. If what is hap- pening is serious enough, then you may have to risk hurting your relationship with your child in order to keep her safe.

Hang in there I’m not going to sugar coat it:

• Learning activities : the things that parents help children to do at home, like reading and playing, are key predictors of future development and readiness for school

• High-quality early education : making a difference to children’s achievement in the early years is crucial. Pupils who start off in the bottom 20 per cent of attainment at age five are six times more likely to be in the bottom 20 per cent at key stage one. (education.gov.uk)

Some children will have a dif- ficult journey. But no matter what, you should try to hang in there the best you can. You can keep your rules in place even though your teen is constantly breaking them. Always remind him that the rules are for his welfare. He may eventually mature, but there is a chance he will throw a lot away. What ultimately counts is not whether you are able to perfectly control your teenager, but whether you can hang in there through the tough times and come back for more the next day. Accept the reality that there is a good chance that your child may throw many opportunities away despite all your good influence. Ultimately, you will need to grieve the losses and the disappointments of your own hopes and dreams. But hang in with your child and continue to move forward together. To quote James Lehman again, “Parent the child you have – not the child you wish you had.”

Enjoy your connection

Enjoy those good moments with your child. Be the adult, maintain your boundaries, be firm and clear about your bottom line and then enjoy your teen.

Focus on what is positive between you and don’t define your relationship around the problem. Share your interests, discuss politics or topics outside of your relationship and really get to know your teen.

See them through lenses that are not clouded with distrust and negativity. See them for all they are – not just their bad choices.

So first, recognise your emotions so that you don’t react by judging yourself or judging your child.

Then step back and try to understand what might be going on –and if there’s any part you might play that you can change. And then, take charge instead of trying to control: start closing the fence.

Once you put all of that in place, remember that there’s a whole other part of your child’s personality that you can relate to and enjoy. (Excerpt from empoweringparents)

Building a NEW GPC INC: products…

Celebrating almost 10 years of manufacturing Sprinkles to prevent anaemia in Guyana

The NEW GPC INC is celebrating almost 10 years of manufacturing Micro-nutritional Supplements (Sprinkles) under the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)funded Ministry of Health of Guyana Basic Nutrition Programme, according to General Manager Ravie Ramcharitar.

This programme, which was introduced in 2004, aims to meet the UN Millennium Goals by reducing child mortality and improving maternal health. At the launch, the then Minister of Health, Dr Leslie Ramsammy, noted that newborn babies in the transition from breast milk to solid foods are subjected to certain micro nutrient deficiencies. The then Project Coordinator, Dr Frank Anthony, also added that results of studies have found that there is a problem of anaemia in children, particularly between the ages of six and 24 months. He further mentioned that there is also a problem of anaemia in women during pregnancy.

“The NEW GPC INC manufactures two types of micronutrients, Ante-Natal and Infant Sprinkles, which are distributed free of cost by the Ministry of Health to children under five years old and pregnant women nationwide,” explained General Manager Ramcharitar.

These micronutrient supplements have been proven to reduce overall cases of anaemia by around 30 per cent among pregnant women and children less than five years old.

To date, over 41,000 infants in 79 health centres around the country have benefited from the programme, according to IDB statistics. Anaemia is also more prevalent in rural Amerindian communities.

In June 2012, the U.S. Treasury of Department presented an award to IDB President Luis Alberto Moreno in recognition of the Basic Nutrition Programme of Guyana. In his acceptance Moreno mentioned that he was pleased that the U.S. Treasury chose to rec-

ognise the Basic Nutrition Programme in Guyana because the programme tackles a problem that often stays below the radar.

According to the IDB, the Guyana programme has been featured in its new online platform called Map Americas.

Dr Stanley Zlotkin of Ped-Med Limited, Canada, is the creator/inventor of Sprinkles through support from HJ Heinz Company LP, USA. The infant Sprinkles contain iron, vitamin A and vitamin C, while Sprinkles for pregnant women has folic acid, iron and vitamin C.

Both types are tasteless and odourless and are produced under licence at NEW GPC’s manufacturing facility at Farm, on the East Bank of Demerara.

“We are proud to be part of this programme for so many years,” said Ramcharitar. The general manager noted that this programme, which was conceived and undertaken on a cost recovery basis, is another collaborative effort much like the ARV’s programme designed to make a meaningful contribution towards the country’s health and overall development.

thursday, october 10, 2013| guyanatimesgy.com

Clothes vendor remanded on narcotics charge

Aclothing vendor was on Wednesday remanded to prison after she appeared before Magistrate Fabayo Azore at the Georgetown

Magistrates’ Courts to answer to a possession of narcotics charge.

Twenty-eight-year-old Candace Brown of Lot 119 Cesar Street, Agricola, East

Bank Demerara pleaded not guilty to the charge which stated that on October 6 at the Sophia Exhibition Centre, she had in her possession 20 grams of canna-

bis for the purpose of trafficking.

According to Prosecutor Vishnu Hunte, Brown was seen by police ranks at GuyExpo collecting money from persons and in return giving them something from a black plastic bag. The ranks approached her and identified themselves. A request was made to conduct a search in her presence. In the bag, leaves, seeds and stems suspected to be cannabis were found. She was subsequently arrested and charged.

Attorney Paul Fung-AFat, who represented the defendant, said the substance was found 15 feet away from his client and that she was indeed collecting money, but it was not for cannabis.

Prosecutor Hunte objected to bail stating that there were no special reasons put forward by the defence for bail to be granted to the defendant. Bail was refused and the matter stands adjourned to October 23.

GTI student on bail for damaging glass door

On Wednesday, a Guyana Technical Institute student was brought before Magistrate Judy Latchman at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts to answer to the charge of damage to property.

Twenty-two-year-old Andel Younge of Lot 22 Calendar and James streets, Albouystown, Georgetown pleaded not guilty to the charge which stated that on October 2 at South Ruimveldt, Georgetown, he damaged a glass door valued $300,000; property of Norman Carter.

According to the facts, the accused had an argument with his girlfriend. During the argument, Younge threw a lug spanner at the glass door and broke it. The matter was reported and he was subsequently arrested and charged.

Attorney Paul Fung-AFat who represented the defendant said that his client has no prior convictions and made a request for an early trail date.

The complainant was represented in court by his 22-year-old son who said that his father wished to be compensated and if not, he would leave the defendant at the mercy of the court.

Magistrate Latchman stated that the complainant will have to come forward and give that statement. There were no objections to bail and it was granted in the sum of $100,000. The matter stands adjourned to October 25.

Eyew tness

Brinkmanship...

...in the U.S.

The U.S. government might as well hang an “out to lunch” sign on its front door. It’ll be better than announcing the truth – that it’s broke and the two warring parties have no clue as to how to get their economy back on track. Almost a quarter of what the U.S. government spends comes from debt...and the Republicans are scared stiff that if they keep adding to the present debt load of US$16.7 trillion, they’ll soon fall off the cliff. (It doesn’t matter, what cliff – just pick one, fiscal or otherwise.)

So the Republicans, who’re in control of the House, have refused to pass Barack Obama’s 2013 budget – unless he backs off his health care (“Obamacare”) bill as a quid pro quo for raising the debt ceiling on October 17. And if the debt ceiling isn’t raised, the U.S. will default. Now while Greece and Cyprus can default – even though it does cause some problems for their neighbours – if the U.S. tanks, you’re talking of them taking the rest of the world down with them.

Most people are betting that someone’s going to blink pretty soon...but in the meantime a whole lotta people are getting quite nervous. The Chinese for one. They’re holding a cool US$1.5 trillion of the U.S.’s debt and they’re not too excited about the prospects of seeing those assets take a nosedive. And if the U.S. nosedives, it’ll be steeper than a kamikaze pilot heading into an aircraft carrier.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank and G-20 finance ministers are huddling next week to read their tea leaves as to what’ll happen. In an understatement of the century (albeit it’s a very young century), the IMF said that a U.S. default would cause “serious damage” to the world’s economy. Obama was a bit more realistic: such an eventuality would be “catastrophic”.

After all, the U.S. dollar and its Treasury bills, among other things, form the backbone of the international financial system. Everybody has a piece of this pie which is going to shrink drastically in a default. What’s most likely is that the Republicans might blink because they wouldn’t want to go down as the fellas who brought on a financial Armageddon. But in the meantime, as they’re playing “chicken”, the emerging economies will now hurry up their efforts to find an alternative global currency.

The Yuan, anyone?

...in Guyana?

Well, back in our dear land of Guyana, the National Assembly reconvenes today. Yes, boys and girls, their annual recess is over and they’ll be back spending $1.7 million per sitting just for food. And remember there’s only 65 of them. Looks like those fellas could EAT!

If the past is any guide to the present (we don’t know about the future), we’re sure to see our version of brinksmanship. That’s all we’ve been seeing since November 2011, no? Brinksmanship on the Speaker, ditto on control of the committees and their chairs, and insistence on lopping off whole chunks of the budget.

But our Guyanese version does get a bit more extreme – what with protests in Linden and Agricola trapping thousands of citizens and billions of dollars lost – not to mention lives snuffed out. From some quarters, we’re hearing that the voice of reason might be heeded. But what we have to be careful about are the fringe parties who’re fighting for a toehold in the Assembly. If for nothing else than for getting their duty-free cars.

As occurred in Linden, expect the Alliance For Change (AFC), after having almost committed hara-kiri with the Nigel Hughes affair, to stir up trouble. Exploiting race, of course.

...in the courts

And the Muckraker’s owner, Mook Lall, continues to play brinkmanship with the people’s money. With the $1 billion they now owe from their steal of Guyana Stores Limited, we could at least have paid the Government Information Agency (GINA) workers who’ve been forced on the breadlines by the opposition budget chops.

Lack of street lights, slow police response hindering Canje crimefight

Under pressure to control spiralling crime in Berbice, police hit another snag, this time the unavailability of street lights in communities is the problem.

The Guyana Power and Light (GPL) said it would not fund the provision of the lights, as this was a matter for the local authorities or residents.

Lighting to auxiliary streets plays a major role in the prevention and fight

against crime. However, GPL said it cannot afford to bear the cost for this, according to Canefield/Enterprise Neighborhood Democratic Council (NDC) Chairman Jaipaul Kuldip.

According to the NDC official, persons who dwell along auxiliary streets in villages will have to fund the cost and pay for the electricity if they require having lights along those streets. Kuldip made those comments during a face

the community meeting at Betsy Ground, East Canje on Thursday, organised by the Police B Division.

At the meeting, residents raised the question of street lighting. The residents say while they are appreciative of the fact that the major access roads are well lit in the entire East Canje, they would like the auxiliary streets to have lights as well.

Funding

Given the opportunity to respond, Kuldip said he had raised the issue with GPL before and was told that communities should get together and fund the cost for the street lights.

“GPL has asked the NDC to get the people together and take their names and addresses into GPL.”

Meanwhile, last Thursday’s meeting was part of a series being conducted by the division with various communities across the region. Deputy Commander, Superintendent Steven Mansell in addressing the

meeting, said the police will be working closely with communities in the fight against crime.

Residents took the opportunity to raise several issues with the senior officer, among them was the slow response to reports of criminal attacks. Residents also said that on many occasions, there is only one officer at the Reliance Police Station, and therefore it is impossible for the police to respond in a timely manner. However, Mansell said officers are always at that station. He noted that there are ranks in the barracks and senior officers are housed in the compound.

Ranks available

“Once you need them, they have to come out. You wouldn’t like to know what will happen if you go to the station and you are told that there are no officers there to assist. We always have back up.”

The superintendent made his personal phone numbers available and asked persons to call him immediately if such a situation occurs.

On the question of slow response, he noted that the police are responding to calls on a 24-hour hour basis, and if the patrol in Reliance is being engaged, there is back up that comes from New Amsterdam.

“I don’t think that they would be elsewhere when they are needed because they know of the action that will be taken against them if they were to attempt to do so.”

He was not hesitant to admit that the force is under staffed. However, he said new ranks are expected to graduate from the Felix Austin Training School at Adventure, in time for the Christmas season.

Mansell added that all the community police officers are now required to be in their communities during the day. “And at nights, they have to go out on patrol. Everyone will have to be out one or two nights every week.”

Among others issues raised were domestic violence, noise nuisance, the use of drugs and unlicensed liquor restaurants. These reports are being investigated.

Rum Jhaat and Nagga Man lose corn and husk

Some people don’t know how good dem deh in life.

When that happen, dem does operate like de dog whah had de bone in he mouth, and yet he want de bone whah he see in de shadow in de water when he walkin ovah de bridge. As soon as he open he mouth, he lose de bone whah he already got in he mouth and he leff wid nutten.

One man who write a letter in de papers de other day is like de dog. He complain that he gettin low voltage from G-PEE-Hell. This man vex like hell wid G-PEE-Hell that he get five days of low voltage. Whah this man fuhget is that it got other people who G-PEE-Hell givin more hell wid no voltage at all. So while he bulb lightin dim, a lotta people bulb not lighting at all!

But this man friken to give he name, so he must be one of dem G-PEE-Hell wuk men who can’t bad talk G-PEE-Hell or de boss. As old people seh, he gotta tek whah he get till he get whah he want.

Another man write bout all de texts whah he gettin from Digicel. Well if he ever switch ovah to G-TEE & TEE, he gon give away both of he cellphones, because both of de cell companies doin de same **it. Every time yuh send a text, dem does done send yuh one back in return, even before de person who yuh send de text to reply.

These two men whah writing letters sound like de Nagga Man and Rum Jhaat. Dem was two men who tink dem was seein another bone in de water. Dem wasn’t satisfied wid whah dem had. Both of dem wanted to be leader and prezzi at de same time. Now dem lef wid nutten just like how dem is nutten.

Ting-a-ling-a-ling…friend tell friend…mattie tell mattie! Even some of de people who was wid dem start runnin from dem. Old people seh whah goes around does come around, and when yuh scraven yuh does lose corn and husk!

PPP/C dismisses Nagamootoo’s no-confidence motion threat

The People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) has dismissed the threat by Alliance For Change (AFC) Member of Parliament Moses Nagamootoo of moving a no-confidence motion against the administration.

In what can be seen as a desperate and most impulsive utterance, the AFC MP clearly has forgotten that his party only has seven seats in the National Assembly, and it is therefore constitutionally impossible for them to bring down this government on their own, the PPP/C said in a statement.

“The People’s Progressive Party finds this statement to be reckless and irresponsible which confirms that Nagamootoo is now speaking for Mr David Granger and the APNU. It seems too coincidental that while Nagamootoo and the AFC are threatening to move a vote of no-confidence against the administration, APNU’s Joseph Harmon is making similar erroneous statements, suggesting that the PPP is ‘on its way out’.”

According to the PPP/C, it does not take “a rocket scientist to figure out that these two political par-

AFC MP Moses Nagamootoo

ties are having back-room talks and planning strategies together. Unwittingly, Nagamootoo let the cat out of the bag”. The PPP/C said it has always declared that this unholy alliance existed since the last election campaign in November of 2011. The PPP/C called upon all Guyanese, especially stakeholders and supporters of the AFC, to be cognisant of this deceptive alliance between the AFC and the APNU that is constantly using their one-seat majority to impede progress and to stymie the economy.

Agriculture back in spotlight

– Ramotar warns of growing food import bill

By Samuel Sukhnandan

President Donald Ramotar said that agriculture is finally getting the recognition it deserves in the Caribbean. The president made this remark while addressing the official opening of the 12th Caribbean Week of Agriculture (CWA) being hosted here after 10 years.

Ramotar said there are many challenges that confront the Caribbean and the world at large, but one of the most important challenges is the quest for food.

The Guyanese head of state told the international guests and delegates gathered here for the week of activities that the quest for food could only be solved if governments start investing heavily in the agriculture sector.

He also lamented the current multibillion-dollar food importation bill of the region, which could be significantly lowered if a collective approach towards agriculture is taken by regional governments.

Ramotar said the funds that are being spent on the high food import bill could be otherwise utilised for many development projects.

While admitting that there are other challenges that the region faces, especially in attaining certain Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), he said improving agriculture could have a trickledown effect on how fast these goals are achieved.

Land issues

Special attention should, therefore, be placed on improving food and nutrition security, but this would mean special emphasis will have to be placed on improving agriculture.

The head of state highlighted that, indeed, there is high demand for land and great competition as this becomes limited within the region, especially for agriculture and energy purposes.

This situation is likely to persist especially with the high cost that is attached to oil and gas.

Ramotar stated that based on agri-

culture’s current trajectory, there will be a greater need for agriculturists and persons working in the sector to be more educated. This will help to improve agricultural practices and promote stronger and more viable business development strategies. The president did not fail to mention the constraints affecting agriculture, including climate change, which has caused major disasters such as flooding.

He said the region is losing more land due to rising sea levels and there is a need to have more improved science and technology to help in this regard.

Ramotar pointed out that the world population is growing rapidly and there will be a greater demand for food in the future.

He advised that regional governments start thinking ahead and working towards developing strategies that will help them to feed their people.

Food insecurity

Food insecurity could create many other problems and affect social stability like it did in the Middle East. Such occurrences must never be allowed to happen in the Caribbean and so governments should start thinking critically of

National security and press freedom key concerns at IAPA meeting

National security at the expense of freedom of the press in the United States will be one of the leading issues that the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) will be discussing at its general assembly to be held next week in Denver, Colorado.

Associated Press (AP) President and Chief Executive Officer Gary P Pruitt will address the matter on October 19 from the perspective of one of the most prestigious news agencies in the world, which has had to fight against the intrusion of the U.S.

Department of Justice into the telephone records of its journalists and sources.

In a release, the IAPA said it will also take up the issue from the standpoint of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.

Its executive director, Bruce Brown, will speak on October 20 after The Guardian columnist Glenn Greenwald, who will discuss his vicissitudes in revealing Edward Snowden’s leaks concerning the spying and vigilance programme carried out by the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA).

ways to make the region food secure.

The president also pointed to the many successes Guyana has enjoyed over the years in improving and boosting agriculture, a major pillar of the Guyanese economy.

Further, Ramotar said he was pleased that the region was now taking the Jagdeo Initiative more seriously and was moving swiftly to implement the strategies set out in the initiative. He said this was key to moving forward towards a path of sustained development and growth.

The CWA began on October 2, with 43 workshops planned for the week, much of them science and research related. The aims of the workshops are to improve the agriculture industry and trade in the region.

The topics covered include sanitary and phytosanitary standards, the coconut industry, pest control in a changing environment and projects that are supported by Canada’s Agriculture Ministry.

The event is being observed under the theme: “Linking the Caribbean for Regional Food and Nutrition Security and Rural Development.” (samuelsukhnandan@guyanatimesgy.com)

Agricultural extension providers’ network launched

The Caribbean Agricultural Extension Providers Network (CAEPNet) was on Wednesday launched as part of the Caribbean Week of Agriculture (CWA) activities.

Agriculture Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy speaking at the launch reminded the participants of the importance of the Jagdeo Initiative on agriculture, which remains vital to the sustained growth of regional economies.

He stated that there has been too much talking and little action in the region on a number of issues. This, Dr Ramsammy, said must change if there is going to be growth in the agriculture sector. He pointed out that extension officers play a critical role and as such, it is time that their efforts are better acknowledged as a mechanism in advancing agriculture.

Capacity building

According to Minister Ramsammy, it is important that agriculture is not only transformed to become a pillar of the country’s development but to propel the country’s development. He also charged the participants and those responsible for the launch of CAEPNet to ensure that the extension network becomes one of the most effective in the region aimed towards sustained growth.

University of the West Indies Faculty of Food and

Agriculture Dean, Isaac Bekele noted the initiative played an integral role in the transformation of agriculture in the region. He said with the establishment of CAEPNet, effective agricultural planning will be better formulated. He said the launch of this extension unit serves as an opportunity for serious work and for capacity building throughout the region.

St Lucian Agriculture Minister John Baptiste, in his remarks, said agriculture has been significantly transformed and can no longer be regarded as a luxury that is placed on a shelf. Baptiste expressed optimism that the initiative will go a long way in further expanding and promoting the sector. He said that his country will give its full support to ensure that it prospers and agriculture within the region is improved and sustained for generations to come.

CAEPNet is an initiative that came out of the UWI Faculty of Food and Agriculture, through a collaborative approach with extension service providers of Caricom. The initiatives hinges on extension officers playing a more integral role in ensuring farmers are better aware of best practices to enable greater productivity and returns. The network comprises extension service providers from Guyana, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Grenada, Jamaica, St Kitts and Nevis, and St Lucia.

Women charged for contract killing attempt at Industry

Deandra Grenville and Grace Ramrekah who are charged with attempted murder appeared before Magistrate Alex Moore at the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court, East Coast Demerara on Wednesday.

The charges resulted from their alleged attack on Linda Phillips of Industry, ECD last Friday. Police said on October 3, Grenville, 22, a student of the University of Guyana, unlawfully and maliciously wounded Phillips

after she was reportedly contracted by Ramrekah. Grenville had allegedly told police that Ramrekah had promised her the sum of $130,000 if she killed her ex-lover’s current girlfriend, Phillips.

The duo was not required to plead to the charge. They reside at Lot 25 Princes Street, Wortmanville.

Bail was set at $175,000 bail each by the magistrate, who adjourned the matter to November 15.

Attorney James Bond represented Grenville, while Attorney Sanjeev Datadin represented Ramrekah.

Phillips is still hospitalised nursing five stab wounds to her back. She has alleged that Grenville posed as a medical student to gain entry into her home, along with a male accomplice.

Phillips said the young woman held her down while the accomplice inflicted the stab wounds.

The second suspect in the attack has still not been captured.

thursday, october 10, 2013

ILO calls for greater resolve to fight child labour

– global estimate stands at 168 million

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) said the number of child workers across the world now stands at 168 million, a one-third drop since 2000. But this is still a worrying sign, the ILO said, adding that if all the child workers were grouped in a single country, this would be the world’s eighth most populous nation.

Writing in an op-ed column to coincide with a major child labour conference being held in Brazil, UN International Labour Organisation Director-General Guy Ryder said the latest figures on the scourge is both encouraging and worrying. “It is encouraging because 11 year-old boys have been rescued from being child soldiers in Myanmar, girls in Malawi no longer work from dawn till late at night doing domestic chores and can now attend school, and children forced to beg in Romania are now safe in rehabilitation centres.”

Ryder said delegates at the third global conference on child labour have a unique opportunity to show what determined international effort and national political will can achieve. “

They must renew their commitment to rid the world of the worst forms of child labour by 2016 and to eliminate it completely by 2020,” he asserted.

Ryder said that even with the progress of recent years, the world will not, at the present rate, meet the target to eliminate the worst forms of child labour by 2016, which was agreed by the international community in 2010 in The Hague. He said according to the latest global

estimates from the ILO, there are 85 million five to 17-year olds around the world doing work that directly endangers their health, safety and development.

Sad situation

The vast majority work in agriculture but they are present in other sectors too, working in mines, being trafficked or abused in the sex trade, made to beg, exploited in domestic work, and forced to join militias or armies.

“Just under half of child workers are between five and 11 years of age and most are boys (although the figures may underestimate the involvement of girls in less visible forms of work such as domestic work),” Ryder said, adding that Asia-Pacific has the most child workers (78 million) and sub-Saharan African has the highest incidence of child labour (21 million). “But this is not a poor or de-

veloping country problem: there are child workers too in rich countries, including the U.S. and Western Europe.”

Ryder reiterated that child labour is a global problem that needs a response from all sides. “This means measures to help reduce poverty, improve education, enforce laws, improve employment prospects for adults and ensure there are no benefits in employing children under working age. With the right policy choices and technical cooperation and donor support where necessary, child labour can be tackled.”

He cited Malawi, one the world’s poorest countries where about 30 per cent of children aged five to 15 are trapped in child labour.

“Children like eight-year-old Ethel, who has to miss school to help her parents pick the tobacco harvest, and suffers from headaches and stomach pains,” Ryder said.

He noted that Malawi has a national action plan combining a monitoring system, investment in infrastructure and community involvement, from district child labour officials with the power to inspect farm fields and arrest landowners who exploit children to traditional chiefs who promote the eradication of child labour.

The plan has been funded by the U.S. Department of Labour since 2009 and has already freed 5500 child workers. “And yet, even as we need to redouble efforts, countries may feel less encouraged to fund programmes to combat child labour precisely because numbers are dropping,” he said.

Latter-day Saints donate milk, school kits to Food For The Poor

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Tuesday handed over a container of non-fat milk and a quantity of school kits to Food For the Poor (FFTP) Guyana Incorporated for distribution to schools, children and geriatric homes.

Head of Food for the Poor (Guyana) Inc Kent Vincent, in brief remarks lauded the church for its collaboration with the nongovernmental organisation over the years and was very thankful for the donation. He said the good gesture will be of great benefit to

children, especially those who attend school without a proper meal.

Elder of the church, Robert Beecher said it was an honour to represent the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at such an occasion and was very grateful to partner with FFTP (Guyana) Inc. He said his organisation always emphasises the importance to help and distribute items to those in need. Elder Beecher thanked the management and staff of FFTP for their hospitality. The distribution of the items has already commenced.

Local farmers to benefit from first-ever dairy plant

– through Guyana-Canada cooperation

Guyana’s dairy, small ruminant industries are to receive a major boost through technical and other assistance from Canadian farmers.

This is being realised through a government collaboration facilitated by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA).

At a recent meeting in the boardroom of the Agriculture Ministry, Canadian High Commissioner to Guyana Dr Nicole Giles and a delegation of Canadian farmers met with Agriculture Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy.

The meeting saw the areas of cooperation drafted which will shape and form the initial cooperation among the two countries.

State-of-the-art

Among the areas discussed was the establishment of a state-of-the-art dairy processing plant, which is expected to become operational within one year’s time, a comprehensive solution to agricultural opportunities of which Guyana presents among others.

Speaking at the end of the meeting, Dr Giles expressed her delight at the outcome of the meeting between the government and its Canadian counterpart, describing it as a productive one.

“The commitment that we have certainly made is to have a plan, to do so within one year, but we all agree that we don’t want perfection to be the enemy of progress and that we will work together on a step-by-step basis to come up with a comprehensive approach from data management to production, to quality to market,” she said.

With respect to high quality system, enhanced technology, Ambassador Giles stated that this is one such area of which the Canadian agricultural industry has a lot to offer.

Shortly, a team will be

established comprising of the various sectors, according to the ambassador, to fully develop the plan.

“The Canadian High Commission is also pleased and proud of the showing from the Canadian agricultural sector here at the Caribbean Week of Agriculture and we are also pleased with the outcome of this meeting, and I would once again like to thank all the participants from the Canadian agricultural industry for coming down to Guyana and for participating in these discussions,” the ambassador said.

Crucial

Meanwhile, Dr Ramsammy welcomed the move, which will significantly boost the sector. He added that the establishment of a dairy industry in Guyana is crucial and something which will be well received by society at large, especially farmers.

“We (Guyana government), are very happy to be collaborating with Canadian farmers… Canadian farmers have ensured that Canadians are not only well

fed but Canada is one of the world’s leading exporters, Guyana can benefit enormously from Canada,” he said.

Lloyd Wicks, an Ontario farmer, who headed the delegation on their first meeting with Minister Ramsammy, pointed out that the collaboration will pave the way for Canada to introduce some of the mechanisms presently being used to Guyanese farmers.

According to Wicks, Trent University, Canada, is also part of the collaboration with respect to research and will be working handin-hand to ensure high quality genetics is developed.

“There is tremendous po-

tential for improved genetics with new management system to have a significant impact on the wider dairy industry, but in particular on individuals,” he said.

Technical officers from the Agriculture Ministry will also be working with the Canadian Farmers Association to strengthen Guyana’s improved breeding programme, particular in its artificial insemination and embryo transfer programme.

When completed, this will see Guyana benefiting from the transfer of frozen embryos’ and semen for its artificial insemination programme, which will significantly lower the cost of acquiring genetic stocks.

PPP/C welcomes setting up of SWAT team

The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) said it has welcomed the announcement by the Home Affairs Ministry to establish a SWAT Unit within the Guyana Police Force.

The party in a release said that this move will significantly contribute in the reduction of crime in Guyana.

The party said it fully supports the initiative and believes that once the SWAT Unit is functional, a more unified approach to dealing with specific threats to law and order in Guyana will be realised.

“The PPP/C urges the Ministry of Home Affairs to do all that is lawfully and legally necessary to fight crime and criminality within Guyana, with the aim of restoring higher levels of security for all citizens. We also urge the leadership of the Guyana Police Force to also work feverishly with the ministry to advance the aims and objectives of the SWAT Unit which is to be established,” the release said.

The PPP/C also condemned strongly the spate of unjustified political attacks being hurled at the ministry for its policy decision to establish this unit.

The party said it has noted the shameful ramblings of A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Member of Parliament Winston Felix, who history has so far recorded as Guyana’s worst police commissioner.

“No amount of misinformation about the need for the establishment of this unit will stand in the way of accomplishing its mandate. Felix

and his People's National Congress (PNC)/APNU cannot say in one breath they want a safer Guyana and then in another they are opposed to a unit that will assist in this process.”

The PPP/C has thus called on all Guyanese to condemn what it said is the opposition’s attempts to undermine government's attempts to fight crime and criminality here.

Danniram Samaroo, 31, of Maria’s Lodge on the Essequibo Coast was fined $30,000 and three years imprisonment for possession of cannabis when he appeared before Magistrate Sunil Scarce on Wednesday at the Anna Regina Magistrate’s Court. According to the prosecution's facts presented by Krishna Datt Ramana, on October 8, police were on patrol duties at Maria’s Lodge

when Samaroo was seen acting in a suspicious manner in front of a Chinese restaurant. He was stopped and searched and a quantity of seeds and leaves were found under his felt hat. Samaroo was subsequently arrested and put before the court. He was not represented, but told the court that “Ah does tek a smoke and sleep in the night”.

Prime minister opens QualiTEST medical laboratory

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds and his wife Yvonne Hinds on Tuesday evening officially launched QualiTEST Brand Laboratory in Alberttown, Georgetown, which is aimed at providing quality medicine, diagnosis and patient management.

The lab is designed to fulfil and maintain compliance with local standards, ethics, laws and regulation, the Government Information Agency (GINA) said.

It promises that the testing process will be correctly preformed by competent personnel using validated equipment and methods that assure valuable and safe medical decision-making which is effective for patient care. The technical staff at the lab comprises five females.

Prime Minister Hinds said health is the most important asset and that as persons grow more prosperous in society, more is spent on health, and there

is also a need for more of those services.

“I’ll take this opportunity to point out in society that each of us have something to do with the service or the exchange with each other and the quality of life that we enjoy… we have to get better as a nation of people in doing whatever we do and providing that and sharing that to other members in our society with having a long career in the area of medical laboratory sciences,” he said.

The prime minister added that persons have been able to obtain various certifications in this particular area, noting that the improved medical services in the country, reflects the growth and development that it has been experiencing.

QualiTEST Brand Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Yvette Irving pointed out that research has shown that 80 per cent of diagnosis is made based on testing laboratory data while

20 per cent is for medical decisions, which is due to emergency or absence of laboratory facilities.

“The path of our work flow begins outside the laboratory’s boundaries with the provided request for laboratory examination. This ends outside the laboratory’s boundaries as well when the laboratory results support a provider’s decision-making,” she said.

Irving added that as the lab moves to fulfil an international standard, quality care will be the priority, and they are going to be seeking ways to improve their experience through feedback.

Canadian External Quality Assessment Laboratory Managing Director, Dr David Seccombe said he has been working with several labs in the Caribbean, and is now collaborating with the Health Ministry to improve health-care facilities in Guyana and the QualiTEST Brand Laboratory.

Power shortfall squeezing businesses in Lethem, Mahdia

BY SVETLANA MARSHALL

Regions Eight and Nine continue to suffer from shortage of electricity supply which is severely affecting residents, but in particular the commercial sector officials there say.

After months of receiving 12 hours of electricity, Mahdia, Region Eight is now receiving 18 hours of electricity as of Tuesday. This is according to the Regional Executive Officer (REO) Ronald Harsaywack. “It’s much better now,” he said, adding that “I don’t know how long it will last for.”

Mahdia Power and Light (MPL) since the commencement of the year has been experiencing a major shortfall in revenues, resulting in severe power shortage. It was explained that the MPL has been losing millions of dollars since the implementation of the metering system within the subdistrict in late 2012.

Revenues

The REO said prior to 2013, the power company raked in “millions of dollars in revenues” from approximately 75 government buildings within Mahdia, ranging from education to health facilities and regional offices.

The fixed revenues garnered at the time were complemented by revenues paid by the more than 400 consumers in the area. But the financial status of the company went downhill following the installation of meters within the district.

In the 2013 national budget, $15 million in subvention was allocated to MPL and another $15 million to Port Kaituma. According to a high ranking official, MPL has received $13 million to date; however, the company is hoping to receive the remaining $2 million at the end of the year in an effort to continue this trend of 18 hours.

But the provision of 18 hours of electricity to Mahdia will also depend on the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) paying its electricity bill for 2013. According to a source, the RDC is claiming that $12 million was paid to the power company, but there is no record indicating such. “They need to provide the records; we are still waiting for them to do so.”

However, the REO said in December 2012, following

the installation of meters, the RDC paid the company more than $12 million; an advanced payment for 2013. To date, the council has not utilised all of the $12 million in electricity. The next bill might due in December, he posited.

Although the government through Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) is providing the company with a grant of $25 million to purchase a 355 kva generator set, the company is hoping to secure higher funding from the Donald Ramotar administration.

“I think if the RDC pays its electricity bill in 2014 and the government give us like $40 million in subsidy, I think only then we would be able to provide 24 hours of electricity, until then we are trying to maintain the 18 hours.”

Electricity concerns

Currently, a 650 kva generator set and a 355 kva generator are the main source of electricity in the mining community. With only $5 million of revenues garnered from residents, the high ranking official said the company at this time could only provide 18 hours of electricity. “From the $5 million, $4 million goes towards the purchasing of 100 drums of fuel and the other million for maintenance and salaries, this 100 barrels of fuel could only last us 23 days at 18 hours.”

Meanwhile, in neighbouring Region Nine, residents of Lethem are reportedly experiencing a shortage of electricity as well. Region Nine Chairman Wilson Lorentino complained bitterly to Guyana Times, claiming that the shortage of electricity in Lethem is taking a toll on residents and the evolving commercial sector.

According to Lorentino, the

two generators that are currently supplying the community are “totally insufficient” for a growing community.

“Yesterday (Tuesday), we got 24 hours, today (Wednesday) we got none,” the regional chairman complained, noting that there were days when the community was only supplied with eight hours of electricity. “I don’t know how long we are going to experience this level of power outage or fluctuation.”

Since July 2012, residents of Lethem have been making their voices heard, as it relates to fluctuation of electricity supply.

Generators

In April 2013, Lethem Power Company Incorporated (LMPCI) Chief Executive Officer Silverious Perry said from a total of three generator sets, only two are working. He subsequently explained that the two generators were too small to provide 24 hours of electricity to Lethem and neighbouring communities. But when contacted on Wednesday by Guyana Times, a high ranking official at the power company refuted all the claims made by the Region Nine chairman. According to him, for the last month, Lethem has been receiving approximately 23 hours of electricity. He said two generator sets are currently in operation while another is on standby.

In mid-September, Prime Minister Samuel Hinds informed residents of Lethem and neighbouring community that their electricity system will be drastically improved early next year. It was explained that two new 750 Kva power generating sets, which costs $25 million each, would arrive in Guyana by December.

Mechanic sentenced to 36 months for stealing Kindle tablet

Atwenty-five-year-old mechanic was today sentenced to 36 months imprisonment after he appeared before Magistrate Judy Latchman to answer to the charge of simple larceny.

Wendell Thornton pleaded guilty to the charge which read that on October 6 at Tucville, Georgetown, he stole one Kindle tablet valued $55,000; property of Anailie Matheson from her dwelling house.

Prosecutor Vishnu Hunte said that the complainant se-

cured her home about 18:45h and left, leaving the Kindle in her room. Around 20:30h, the complainant’s brother-inlaw, the defendant, and four other men went to the house to remove some of her sister’s furniture. Upon returning at 23:00h, Matheson found the article missing and made a report to the police station. An investigation was carried out and Thornton was subsequently arrested. He was told of the allegation and admitted to removing

the article from the complainant’s home. Thornton told the police that he gave the Kindle to a man by the name of Jose Hopkinson. Hopkinson was contacted and handed over the item to the police.

Prosecutor Hunte also made an application for the article to be returned to its owner.

Magistrate Latchman considered that fact that Thornton pleaded guilty at the first instance and the prevalence of this offence in society before she made her ruling.

UAE health minister meets Ramotar for cooperation talks

United Arab Emirates (UAE) Health Minister Abdulrahman Alowais met President Donald Ramotar at his office for brief talks on Tuesday focusing attention on cooperation in various fields.

In the company of a small UAE delegation, the two officials pointed to opportunities for cooperation in the commercial sector.

They recognised the importance of support at the top level to make these ideas a reality.

Joining the meeting were Foreign Affairs Ministry Director General Ambassador Elisabeth Harper and Guyana Energy Agency (GEA) head Dr Mahender Sharma.

Former President Bharrat Jagdeo had visited the UAE health minister during a tour of the Middle East as he sought new allies to further promote the economic development of Guyana.

The UAE is located southeast of the Arabian Peninsula on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Iran.

Its foreign relations are considered liberal and the states within the bloc have encouraged diplomatic and commercial cooperation with other countries. The economy has been ranked favourably over the years. Guyana and the UAE are both members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), an international organisation with permanent membership in the United Nations (UN) that advocates for the interest of the Islamic world, and

also peace and harmony. Guyana was first granted observer status within the organisation on September 27, 1995 and became a member on October 1, 1998.

Guyana and Suriname are the only two Caricom countries which are members of the OIC.

Rekha is new GPHC board chairman

Health Minister Dr Bheri Ramsaran on Tuesday announced that Nirmal Rekha has been appointed the new chairman of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation’s (GPHC) board of directors, following the resignation of Colonel Mark Phillips on September 26.

Rekha was appointed a member of the new board in July, along with Dr Mahendra Carpen, Dr Dalgleish Joseph, Bibi Zaheeda Hack, Chief Medical Officer Dr Shamdeo Persaud, Renata ChuckA-Sang, Norma Semple, Kempton Alexander and Dr Sheik Amir.

Minister Ramsaran, who was at the time speaking at a press conference at his Brickdam office, expressed appreciation to Phillips for his stewardship of the board over the past year and congratulated him on his new appointment as chief-ofstaff of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF).

Rekha was subsequently elected as chair of the board’s Finance Audit Committee and is also actively supporting the investigation into the recent discovery of fraud at the GPHC’s cashier station.

Minister Ramsaran stated that the investigation is being conducted by

the Office of the Auditor General, which was called in immediately after the fraud was discovered.

Thus far, $4.134 million miss yet to be accounted for. Immediately after the discovery, the cashier was placed in police custody and is currently on bail.

The ministry has been closely monitoring the investigation and Minister Ramsaran said he is looking forward for the investigation to end soon, which will allow the ministry to benefit from the findings. “I fully support the comprehensive approach of the investigation,” he said.

Minister Ramsaran

Guyana’s chances of achieving MDG on maternal mortality fragile – Dr Ramsaran

Health Minister Dr Bheri Ramsaran on Tuesday said while some Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have already been achieved by Guyana, the issue of maternal death is a fragile one when dealing with small numbers.

Guyana’s work towards the MDG relating to maternal and child mortality will hopefully see that it is achieved by 2015. Referring to recent cases of maternal deaths, the health minister stated, according to a Government Information Agency (GINA) release.

National tragedy

“The investigation of any maternal death is treated by the ministry and the current administration as a national tragedy, so we are investigating what transpired. This is not the first unfortunate incident that is happening and there will be a full investigation and the chief medical officer has been stern with the institution to meet the deadline of the investigations”, the release said.

Guyana identified MDGs four and five as the goals for prioritisation and towards this end, the maternal, neonatal and child health strategy 2011-2020 was developed.

Goals, targets Guyana’s goals and targets are to reduce the maternal mortality ratio from 320 per 100,000 in 1991 to less than 80 per 100,000 by 2015; reduce under five mortality rate from 75 per 1000 in 1990 to less than 20 per 1000 by 2015; reduce infant mortality rate from 45 per 1000 from 1990 to less than 16 per 1000 by 2015; and reduce Mother To Child Transmission (MTCT) of HIV prevalence from 7.1 per cent in 2001 to less than two per cent by 2015.

pointed out that the ministry is working on improving its control and auditing systems in other areas. He disclosed that the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation is now actively involved with the Pan American Health Organisation/ World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO) in setting up systems and its principals learning how to better manage procurement, inventory and distribution, which predominantly apply to pharmaceuticals, medicines and medical supplies because this section takes up a large chunk of the hospital’s budget, the Government Information Agency (GINA) said.

Minister Ramsaran explained that Cuban-trained Guyanese doctors who were infused into the medical system have been trained in weak areas such as alarm, advances in labour room risk management and obstetric emergencies. While some of these doctors have been sent to the Department of Internal Medicine which was understaffed, some were also sent to the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

According to GINA, over the years, the Health Ministry has been making much needed interventions towards ensuring Guyanese women, countrywide, experience safe motherhood before, during and after childbirth. Since the launch of the MDGs, there has been significant progress with respect to both child health and mortality and maternal health and mortality.

MDG Four seeks to reduce by two-thirds, between 1990 and 2015, the less than five mortality rate. There has been some achievement in this regard, including scaling down child mortality by 50 per cent in the past decade, and in Guyana’s progress report 2011, the country has already met the target of reducing the under five mortality rate by twothirds, and aims to further improve its record of reducing child mortality.

Other achievements were had in the areas of immunisation, nutrition and reduction of MTCT of HIV and integrated management of childhood illness. In relation to MDG Five: Improving Maternal Health, the target is to reduce the maternal mortality ratio by threequarters by 2015. According to the MDG Progress Report 2011, Guyana has the potential to meet the MDG target of reducing the maternal mortality ratio by three-quarters and has a mixed outlook on the target to achieve universal access to reproductive health. The MDGs were set at the 2000 Millennium Summit, to accelerate global progress in development.

Caribbean Africa

TT judge

calls

for ethics in business

The corporate world must develop new ways of doing business that include morality and ethics, Justice Vasheist Kokaram, a judge of the Supreme Court of TT, urged on Tuesday.

“We have seen how corrupt practices have become part of our society. We are losing the meaning of building a culture of corporate responsibility. There must be the recognition we do not wield power or influence in isolated spheres. We are

North America

all connected. We must create an ethos of corporate responsibility or what I would call conscionable capitalism,” he said in his address at the opening of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of TT’s (ICATT) two day conference at the Hyatt Regency in Port of Spain.

Justice Kokaram said cases like Enron, General Motors and local corporate failures like the CL Financial collapse highlight the need for ethics in the way business is conducted.

“The public inquiries into Clico and HCU are human stories. There is the story of a depositor, his grandfather deposited all his life savings into HCU and on discovering money was lost, in shock he died of a heart attack,” he said.

He said the law and accounting professions must be “gate keepers” of ethics and morals in business practices: “Accountants must be seen as reliable in a trustworthy market.” (Trinidad Guardian)

Janet Yellen nominated by Obama to head U.S. Federal Reserve

U.S. President Barack Obama has officially nominated Federal Reserve vice-chair Janet Yellen to be the next head of the U.S. central bank. He called her one of the nation’s foremost economists and policymakers. Yellen said if confirmed by the Senate she would do her utmost “to promote maximum employment, stable prices and a stable financial system”.

Europe

She said more needed to be done to strengthen the U.S. economy although progress had been made recently. The president praised Yellen’s ability to build consensus and listen to competing views.

He added that she was “committed to increasing employment and understands the human costs when Americans can’t find a job”. If the nomination is confirmed

by the U.S. Senate, Yellen, 67, would replace Ben Bernanke, who has held the post for eight years. She has been his deputy for the past two years, and would become the first woman to head the Federal Reserve. She has taught at Harvard University and the London School of Economics, as well as holding a series of senior administrative positions in the U.S. (BBC News)

RBS releases documents over alleged currency manipulation

Royal Bank of Scotland has handed the city regulator messages sent by one of its former traders in the latest twist in an investigation into potential manipulation of currency rates.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) began an investigation into the £3 trillion a day foreign exchange market in June following allegations that traders at major banks had found ways to manipulate a closely followed currency benchmark.

Swiss regulators have also begun to scrutinise the for-

eign exchange markets, regarded as among the most liquid in the world, sparking speculation that a number of major banks are facing questions about the way they traded leading currencies.

“It’s a fact that foreign exchange manipulation was committed,” Swiss finance minister Eveline WidmerSchlumpf said. The investigations are the latest attempts to clamp down on potential abuses of financial benchmarks, first highlighted by the Libor rigging scandal in June 2012 when Barclays was

fined £290 million for manipulating the key interest rate. RBS has also been fined for Libor rigging, as has Swiss bank UBS and more recently the broking firm Icap run by former Conservative party treasurer Michael Spencer.

The potential involvement of a former RBS trader in currency manipulation was reported by the Bloomberg news agency, which had first reported the potential for abuse of a currency benchmark operated by WM/Reuters and used by fund managers to value their investments. (The Guardain)

South African bill to grant small-scale fishing rights

South Africa’s Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson has described as “historic” a new amendment Bill which will give small-scale fishers collective fishing rights for the first time, helping to root out poverty and poaching in South Africa’s 150 fishing communities.

The Marine Living Resources Amendment Bill, which is expected to come before the National Assembly’s portfolio committee on agri-

Asia

culture, forestry and fisheries next Tuesday, allows for the allocation of fishing rights to identified small-scale fishing communities, which have previously been excluded from the commercial fishing rights allocation process.

The Bill intends to bring into force the department’s small-scale fishing policy, which supports the setting up of community-based legal entities – in the form of cooperatives – by small-scale fishers to allow fishing communities access to fishing rights.

Under the policy, the department proposes that certain areas along the coast be demarcated and prioritised for small-scale fishers. Desmond Stevens, the department’s acting deputy director-general of fisheries, said the department had so far engaged with about 80 per cent of stakeholders – including small-scale fishing associations and large fishing companies – and that a broad consensus had been reached on the need for fishing rights for small-scale fishers.

Samsung phones and tablets face U.S. import ban

Some older Samsung gadgets look set to be banned in the U.S. following a patent row with Apple. In early August, Apple won a case at the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) that found Samsung had infringed two patents covering mobile technology.

That victory called for an import ban on some Samsung products but this was postponed pending an appeal. A U.S. official overseeing the

Middle East

patent row has now rejected Samsung’s appeal, meaning the ban will come into force.

“After carefully weighing policy considerations, including the impact on consumers and competition, advice from agencies and information from interested parties, I have decided to allow the commission’s determination... to become final,” said U.S. trade representative Michael Froman.

The patents in dispute cover detecting fingers on a

touchscreen and the workings of the audio jack on smartphones and tablets. In August, Samsung was cleared of violating four other patented technologies. So far, it is not clear which products will be banned from sale. In its appeal, Samsung said it had, for newer products, developed its own technologies that did not draw on Apple’s patented ideas. The ITC has already approved the workarounds for the disputed technologies. (BBC News)

Doha will rival Dubai as the Gulf’s top shopping hub

Qatar has the potential to rival Dubai as a destination shopping hub, according to one of the executives spearheading the US$820 million Mall of Qatar project.

Mall of Qatar deputy managing director Shem Krey said while Doha had some way to go before it surpassed Dubai, which had faster population growth, it was current-

ly under-supplied for regional, large-scale malls and therefore had enormous growth potential.

However he said he wanted Qatar to challenge Dubai’s reign as the leading shopping hub in the region.

“A number of features are going on in the entire country right now, which will make it a much greater destination,” he told Arabian Business at

the Cityscape Global property exhibition in Dubai.

“The US$200 billion which is going to be spent over the next 10 years [to stage the 2022 World Cup]... people think that’s all going into roads and infrastructure. It’s not, a good share of that is going into private investment and enhancing the destination of the whole country. (Arabianbusiness)

Maintaining solid corporate ethics in international business

Even though your company may escape prosecution in your home country, expanding into lawless lands in hopes of increasing your revenues may come at steep environmental and human costs. Although your company might not have a soul, your investors would probably like to keep theirs, and may avoid your company if it is steeped in human misery.

Themes to consider Since the 1990s, it has been increasingly popular for

companies to assemble ethics committees in order to avoid the train wrecks mentioned above. General themes to consider include, but are not limited to:

* Understanding different cultures and nations, and that their code of ethics and values may differ vastly from Western ones.

* Localising, through a regional corporate structure, the acceptable labour practices for each region.

* Making sure that your regional corporate structure is dominated by locals, who

have a better understanding of acceptable business practices in the region.

* Constantly checking to see that your outsourced operations are operated ethically.

* Quickly cutting ties to abusive and dishonest subsidiaries.

* Avoiding lawless and unstable nations if possible, to avoid human rights nightmares. Responsible ethics and self-policing will keep your business safe in the unpredictable arena of international business. (Business Dictionary)

Business concept – Teamwork

The process of working collaboratively with a group of people in order to achieve a goal. Teamwork is often a crucial part of a business, as it is often necessary for colleagues to work well together, trying their best in any circumstance. Teamwork means that people will try to cooperate, using their individual skills and providing constructive feedback, despite any personal conflict between individuals.

Speaker observes elections in Azerbaijan

Speaker of the National Assembly, Raphael Trotman is among several international observers monitoring the presidential election of Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Known for its wealth of crude oil and natural gas reserves, Azerbaijan is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the north-west, Armenia to the west, and Iran to the south.

According to a Trend news report, Trotman told reporters that a very active voting process was being observed at the Azerbaijani presidential election. According to him, the election was highly organised.

Voting processes

“I previously participated in voting processes in other countries too. I can say that these elections are being held in accordance with all norms,” Trotman said.

Polling stations opened at 08:00h and were expected to close at 19:00h. Ten candidates are contesting the election, including the incumbent President and New Azerbaijan Party Chairman Ilham Aliyev; Umid Party Chairman Igbal Aghazadeh; self-nominated candidate, Member of Parliament (MP) Zahid Oruj; United Azerbaijan Popular Front Party

(UAPFP) Chairman Gudrat Hasanguliyev, MP; Modern Musavat Party Chairman Hafiz Hajiyev, Azerbaijan Social Democratic Party (ASDP) Chairman Araz Alizadeh, National Revival Movement Party Chairman Faraj Guliyev, MP; the candidate nominated by the initiative group of voters of the ‘National Council of Democratic Forces’, Jamil Hasanli; Adalat Party Chairman Ilyas Ismayilov, MP; and Azerbaijan Democratic Party (ADP) Chairman Sardar Jalaloglu.

The Central Election Commission of Azerbaijan has registered 5,145,643 voters. In connection with the presidential election, the commission has established 5273 permanent and 219 temporary polling stations. In total, 52,000 people

are observing the election in Azerbaijan, nearly 1400 of whom are international observers.

Landslide re-election

Online reports late Wednesday said President Aliyev appeared headed for re-election to a third five-year term by a landslide amid allegations by the opposition of massive fraud. Aliyev’s supporters began celebrating his widely-anticipated victory within hours of the closing of polls on Thursday, gathering in front of the ruling New Azerbaijan Party headquarters in Baku.

Deputy party head and executive secretary Ali Ahmadov said, “Ilham Aliyev’s victory is the Azerbaijani people’s victory.” Partial results released by the election commission late on election night showed Aliyev receiving nearly 85 per cent of the vote. The united opposition’s leading candidate, Camil Hasanli, was a distant second with around five per cent of the vote.

Earlier exit polls had put Aliyev’s support at between 81 and 84 per cent and Hasanli’s at around eight per cent. The opposition had previously dismissed the polling organisations that were permitted to conduct surveys during the vote as having ties to the government.

Men freed of vigilante killing

police fire shots as accused flee court after decision

BY ANDREW CARMICHAEL

Pandemonium broke out at the Whim Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday when seven men were set free by a Berbice magistrate on a joint murder charge. They sprang out of the courtroom when the decision was handed down, surprising police officers who believe they were escaping.

The seven men, who were on trial for the for the vigilante-style killing of Alfred Monroe called “Guana Man” of Manchester Village on May 9, had the case against them discharged.

Insufficent evidence

Magistrate Rabindranath Benn found that there was not enough evidence to commit the men to stand trial in the High Court.

After making his ruling and informing the men that they were free to go, they all made a dash through the door and down the stairway to get to the bottom as fast as they could. Within seconds, they were through the gate of the Whim Police Station compound. They all hopped into a waiting car which sped away.

Officers, who were not in court at the time of the ruling, saw the men leaving in haste and called on them to stop. However, after they were paid no heed, the officers fired at the vehicle, hitting it at least

three times. They later chased the vehicle through several villages, but the car stopped at Port Mourant, and the men exited and disappeared.

A policeman said no one was injured by the shots fired. However, where the car was left abandoned at Portuguese Quarter, Port Mourant, there was blood and broken glass on the back seat.

No-case submission

Magistrate Singh had set Wednesday to rule on a nocase submission made by the defence lawyers during the preliminary inquiry (PI). The defendants were represented by attorneys Sanjeev Datadin, Mursaline Bacchus and Charles Ramson Jr, while the state’s case was presented by Police Corporal Sherlock King. Mursaline Bacchus, who had represented 18-year-old Zafar Seetaram during the PI and had successfully argued that there was no evidence against him, also represented the number one accused Randolph Samuel called “Rudy”.

He told the court that the medical evidence was insufficient to establish that the injuries could have caused the death of Monroe. He also argued that there was no evidence that Samuel was acting in collusion with the others at the time. Witnesses for the prosecution had testified that Samuel lashed Monroe with a

GWI signs on to GT&T Mobile Money service

The Guyana Water Inc has signed on to the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T) Mobile Money service, paving the way for consumers to pay their water bills using their cellular phones.

GT&T welcomes GWI and is pleased to offer this easy payment alternative, the telephone company said in a statement. Mobile Money customers can now pay their GWI accounts using this very convenient and affordable bill payment method for only $40. Customers should have their GWI account number available when making payments using Mobile Money.

“Mobile Money has proven to be very convenient and affordable, and we make it available to everyone in Guyana. Not only can payments be made safely from ANY cellphone on the GT&T network, you can also pay at any of our 80 plus agent locations. We want our customers to see bill payments as an easy option; hence we welcome both GPL and now GWI on board.

We anticipate great response from our customers and newcomers to Mobile Money,” Mobile Money Director Eshwar

black stage stick.

“The evidence is that the others subsequently and without any instruction from Samuel, attacked the diseased.” He noted that there was also no evidence of a prearrange plan, hence the blame cannot be laid at the feet of the number one accused.

Prosecution’s failure

He also said the prosecution failed to prove that there was a common intention between Samuel and any of the other accused.

Bacchus also challenged the identification of those who were on trial. “There was no identification parade held. Two witnesses claimed to know the accused before the incident.

However, they did not tell the court for how long they knew him; neither before nor on how many times they saw the accused prior to the incident.” He also pointed out lapses in the prosecution’s case, noting that it did not get evidence of any of the witnesses with a facial view of the accused. “The evidence of identification is week,” Bacchus argued.

On trial were Samuel, Arif Cecil also called “Shark”, Richard Griffith also called “Brick Head”, Michael Lewis also called “Monkey”, Khruhnaraj Jagdeo, Zafar Seetaram who was freed a few days earlier, Jamir Akadulasy and Darwin Anthony Trim.

Thakurdin said.

“Improving customer services by offering more convenient payment options for customers remains a critical priority at GWI,” stated GWI Corporate Services Director Nigel Niles. “GWI is pleased to partner with GT&T to offer the ease and convenience of paying for water service charges via their mobile phones.”

Training

GT&T conducted a training exercise with the Customer Services Team of the water utility on Tuesday to ensure that customer queries about Mobile Money can be dealt with by GWI.

GWI customer representatives are now fully prepared to offer guidance for customers seeking the more convenient option of paying GWI bills via their GT&T mobile phones.

Since Mobile Money became a payment agent for the Guyana Power and Light (GPL), the response has been overwhelming and the same is expected for GWI payments.

It allows GT&T mobile customers to deposit cash in their mobile wallet (cellular phone), make withdrawals, pay various bills including

GT&T, GPL, GWI and IPED bills, transfer money, and buy GT&T Credit.

Mobile Money is the only payment service which gives the customer real-time access to buy their pre-paid tokens for GPL service any time, day or night, at home or on-thego. Once registered, customers dial *123#, press 2 to ‘Pay Bills’, enter the meter/account number, amount and PIN. It’s that simple.

Customers receive an electronic receipt in the form of a text message which provides all the pertinent information including reference number for tracking, date, amount, fee, and account number. The process is safe as it uses PIN security. Further, it checks the meter or account number being entered against GPL and GWI files to reduce the likelihood of errors. Mobile Money transactions can be done from any handset on the GT&T network. Registration is free and can be done at any GT&T Business Office or agents countrywide. Similarly, deposits, withdrawals and bill payments can be done at GT&T or Mobile Money agents. Since its launch in March this year, the service has been rapidly expanding across Guyana.

Police seek fake car importers

The police on Wednesday issued wanted bulletins for Khemraj Narine and Tashini Sitaram, who are being accused of fraud committed on a number of persons.

They are wanted for questioning in relation to obtaining money by false pretence.

Guyana Times understands that Narine and Sitaram are close associates and operated out of a Robb Street address, claiming that they could import vehicles for prospective customers. Both of the suspects’ addresses were given as Lot 7-8 Robb Street, Bourda and Lot 55 Austin Street, Campbellville.

The duo reportedly collected millions of dollars from a number of people promising that they could import the vehicle of their choice.

One man claimed that he gave Sitaram $800,000 to import a Toyota Allion car in March and was promised that the car would have arrived in Guyana in July.

In addition, he stated that Sitaram called him again and requested another $600,000, claiming that the vehicle was on the wharf

and she needed the money to clear it. He said as time elapsed, he attempted to make contact with Sitaram, but calls to her phone went to voicemail.

The man who asked to remain anonymous explained that he then went to the office at Robb Street and to his surprise, the place was abandoned. Upon enquiring, he was told that no one occupied the premises. The man stated that after several weeks passed and he did not hear from the couple, he made several reports at the Brickdam Police Station. He also noted that he started to post flyers of the couple at strategic locations and more so, notices in the press.

After the advertisement was published, he noted that at least five other persons contacted him and related that they suffered the same experience. The couple is now on the run and it is believed that they never operated a car dealership. It is also believed that they took large sums of money from other persons on the East Coast of Demerara.

Anyone with information that may lead to the arrest of Narine and Sitaram are asked to contact the police on telephone numbers 2256411, 225-2227, 226-7065, 227-1149, 911, or the nearest police station. All information will be treated with strict confidence.

SUDOKU

Stick to your principles and refuse to be bullied. The choices you make will change the way people view you and contribute to what you are offered in the future.

By Bernice Bede Osol

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

Put love and friendship first and avoid anyone trying to come between you and the people, places and things you enjoy most. Strive for change and search for innovative ideas.

You’ll attract a lot of attention if you share your more daring thoughts and plans. Set a high standard and you will maintain control. Greater popularity will lead to more opportunities.

You’ll come up against opposition and demands today. Take care of your responsibilities quickly and move on to more enjoyable activities with someone you love.

(Aug. 23Sept. 22)

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

Take a serious approach to business, and network with people who can contribute to your goals. Determination and persistence will get you where you want to go.

(March 21-April 19)

Don’t make hasty decisions. A wait-and-see approach to any matter that concerns work, travel or your home would be best. Improved health and finances are apparent.

(April 20-May 20)

Communication is the key to getting what you want. Stand behind your beliefs, and you will gather momentum and followers. Don’t argue when action, not just a show of good faith, is required.

(May 21June 20)

Keep business and personal matters separate. Emotional deception could be an issue, and you will have to handle such situations with care. Ask pertinent questions and react accordingly.

Share your thoughts and consider taking a trip that will lead to adventure. Interacting with accomplished individuals will inspire you to explore new possibilities.

(Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Offer your services to a wide variety of venues. Negotiate what you want in return and use your expertise to get a fair deal and plenty of perks.

(Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Take it upon yourself to take charge and follow through with your promises. You will not please everyone, but you will turn heads and make a difference in something you feel is worthwhile.

(Nov. 23Dec. 21)

Try not to attract too much attention today. You are better served to make changes while no one is looking, to avoid interference. Romance is mounting, and special plans should be made.

YELLOW PAGES

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“Addo Boy” wanted for Enterprise murder

Police have launched a man hunt for “Addo Boy”, also called “Jack”, for the stabbing to death of Chattergoon “Fat Boy” Persaud of Lot 458 Church Street, Enterprise, East Coast Demerara on Tuesday evening.

Persaud was stabbed once in the chest by the suspect and managed to run some distance before collapsing on the parapet besides Marigold Street. The incident occurred at the Imax Housing Scheme, Enterprise, East Coast Demerara, a short distance from where Persaud is constructing his home.

The suspect is reportedly a U.S. deportee, who was sent back to Guyana some years ago and has been creating problems in the community. From all indications, residents are fearful when the man is around. Now that Addo Boy is at large, the wife and daughter of the victim are even more fearful that he might hunt them down.

One customs clerk with at least three subjects CXC including English Language, mathematics. Applicant must be computer literate. Please submit application before the October 11, 2013 to email: windsortechhomes@ gmail.com or call 669-6874 or 682-3481

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Dead: Chattergoon “Fatman” Persaud

saw the suspect in the upper flat of the house, and upon inquiring what he was doing there, the man reported told Persaud that he started a fire.

“My father apparently didn’t believe, so he ignore and asked him to leave… soon after he heard neighbours calling out the him, pointing to smoke… my father put out the fire with a bucket of water,” she said, noting that he got way.

Loggerheads

Christine Persaud, a daughter of the dead man explained that the stabbing incident may have stemmed from a previous grievance as her father and the suspect are always at loggerheads.

She said her father and one of the suspect’s friends, Bobby, who is also a deportee, became friends, and Bobby would call upon him to assist in the yard and moreso during the construction.

She added that after Jack realised that he was not welcomed at their place, he stated to become envious.

On Tuesday, she explained that her father went out and upon his return; he

However, a neighbour told Guyana Times that on Tuesday afternoon, he and a friend were sitting in front of the yard when they saw Persaud, who told them that he was going to order hollow blocks. The man stated that he went out and as he returned, he saw a man lying in the corner.

Killer

He immediately contacted the man’s wife, and within minutes, they arrive d on the scene, along with the police. Everyone in the area claimed they did not see anything, but later learnt that Addo Boy was the killer.

Meanwhile, at the home of dead man, relatives gath-

ered, expressing their concerns about the incident.

One relative, Nadira (only name given) told Guyana Times that about 18:00h, she received a telephone call from her sister, informing her that Persaud was stabbed and she was heading to the scene.

“I left right away and we talked on the phone until she reached the area where my brother-in-law was lying… I reached a few minutes after and the police were there… He was lying on the stomach and when the police turned over him, he was covered in blood.”

Wound

The woman added that the detective inserted his index finger into the wound and from what they saw, it was deep. She added that the police subsequently removed the body.

Nadira also confirmed that the suspect had lit a fire in the upper flat of the house under construction, and this resulted in a heated argument between the two men. Guyana Times understands that Persaud worked with the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) for the past 17 years and was described as faithful worker. He might have been under the influence of alcohol when he was stabbed. The murder weapon was not retrieved, but the police are continuing their investigations.

His body was taken to the Lyken’s Funeral Home and is awaiting a post-mortem examination. Persaud is survived by his mother, wife, a daughter and four siblings, among other relatives.

Alleged child killer to stand trial in High Court

Magistrate Clive Nurse has ruled that enough evidence was presented in court for the Linden man accused of killing a four-year-old boy back in February this year to be tried in the High Court.

The prosecution closed the preliminary inquiry into the case against Rawle Samuels when the defendant made yet another court appearance at the Christianburg Magistrates’ Courts on Tuesday.

Samuels, 25, of Buck Hill, Wismar, Linden, is accused of stabbing to death Jamal Narajan on February 6. The defendant declined to say anything in his defence when the presiding magistrate asked for his defence on Tuesday.

Samuels also allegedly raped a relative of the child at knife point before killing the toddler.

In the same court, another Lindener was granted bail in the sum of $200,000 after he appeared on two separate charges of break and enter and larceny.

Kevin Meyers, 20, an interior worker, of 1036 First Alley Hill, Wismar, Linden, was charged with break and enter and lar-

ceny of two dwelling houses with intent to commit a felony.

It is alleged that the accused on the night of Thursday, July 4, while at Blueberry Hill, broke and entered the house of Abiola Thom. For this offence he was granted $50,000 bail by the presiding magistrate.

It is also alleged that on Monday, September 23, while at Blueberry Hill, he broke and entered the house of Michelle Marsfield and stole a gold band valued $100,000; a pair of gold earrings valued $35,000; a gold ring valued $33,000; US$900 equivalent to G$180,000 and Bds$900, property of Marsfield. For this offence, he was granted bail in the sum of $150,000. He is scheduled to return to court on Tuesday, October 29.

Bangladesh hit back after Williamson century

Kane Williamson and Peter Fulton were looking quite comfortable, until the Bangladesh spinners found their mojo in the final hour on Wednesday.

New Zealand went to stumps on 280 for 5, having lost their last three wickets in 10.1 overs in the first Test in Chittagong.

After controlled batting had kept all three spinners out of the game on a newlylaid pitch, the fourth and the fifth wickets came in the last two overs, when Williamson, having made 114, and captain Brendon McCullum were adjudged leg-before to Shakib Al Hasan and Abdur Razzak respectively.

The visitors’ progress throughout the day was a fair reflection of the conditions. There was no pace in the wicket even at its freshest, and it didn’t change much throughout the day. But the two batsmen, as well as Hamish Rutherford and later Ross Taylor, made friends with the straw-coloured surface quicker than the bowlers would have hoped.

Bangladesh included Abdur Razzak for his first Test match in more than two years in hopes of fielding a more rounded attack and just after the first hour, all three spinners had been brought in. But the wickets did not materialise.

The swiftness with which the New Zealand top four acclimatised must have been encouraging for the next batsmen. Williamson was

the most impressive, adjusting quickly as if he suddenly remembered how he had scored his first ODI hundred in Dhaka. Even then, his timing was noticeable.

Patience

Wednesday he was as tight in defence as he was forceful when the ball was off line. Coming at the back of a first wicket which was needlessly given away by Rutherford, Williamson avoided rash strokeplay. A backfoot dab through mid-on off the first ball he faced, from Shakib Al Hasan, was perhaps the most elegant shot of the day, but the best one of his 12 bounda-

ries came four balls later - another light punch off the back foot to turn the ball past midwicket. The two shots set him up for the rest of the innings, as the Bangladesh spinners struggled to push the ball through, or use the slow nature of the wicket to their benefit.

Williamson’s next seven boundaries were all examples of how a batsman’s patience is more often than not rewarded. A majority of them were off short balls, as the bowlers lost their discipline, and soon he reached his half-century off 94 balls.

Fulton struggled early on when he repeatedly tried to

work the ball in front of the leg side. But after surviving some close calls, he too reached his first fifty since his twin centuries against England in Auckland. His 73 came off 198 balls, with seven fours and a six as he became increasingly comfortable knocking the spinners around, finding the gaps and bringing out the sweep shot once in a while. It was a slow innings, but one that laid the foundation for New Zealand’s dominance on the day.

Mistake Their 126-run stand - New Zealand’s highest for the second wicket in Bangladesh -

Build team around Chanderpaul – Gibbs

Former West Indies offspinner, Lance Gibbs, believes that the West Indies need to build their current team around Shivnarine Chanderpaul, the West Indies batsman, if Test success is to come into the frame once more, as November’s India tour looms.

Gibbs indicated that Chanderpaul’s experience and talent are the right ingredients to nourish younger batsmen such as Kirk Edwards and Darren Bravo in the subcontinent. “Chanderpaul is one of our premier batsmen - the premier [one] actually,” Gibbs said.

“We need to bat around him and mature these inexperienced players in his presence. That maturity is not there right now but, as with many teams, we all have our ups and downs, but now we need to turn that proverbial corner which everyone always speaks of, every time we do well.”

He backed Darren Sammy as Test skipper but noted that for Dwayne Bravo to continue the strides of West Indies’ T20 world title last year, and in hopes of improving their results in the 50-over game, Bravo needs to improve as limited-overs skipper.

“Dwayne tries to do too much. He needs to focus on certain areas and not try to do so much. We saw his death bowling exposed in the CPL, but I have faith in him as

much as I know Sammy will deliver in India. The squad’s a good mix. Hungry and young too.”

With the likes of Kirk Edwards and Narsingh Deonarine impressing during the present A team tour in India, Gibbs reiterated that there was a good blend of youth and experience in the Sammy-led 15-man squad, which also faces New Zealand in a hectic run-in to end 2013.

“We haven’t played Tests in a while but the state of our cricket and Test team isn’t too bad. Zimbabwe and Bangladesh were good to practice against in the last year, and we did improve. Each nation goes through these motions in the sport and

we as a team need to move from strength to strength. Let’s play good cricket and get the fundamentals right. You can see a team like England and say they’re the best, but it’s only in the past few years they’ve stepped up so I’m confident in the Windies.”

Hampering progress

When asked if T20 cricket had hampered the progress and development of the region’s youngsters, and even star players such as Kieron Pollard, Sunil Narine, Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo, he said that players should play all disciplines. With the aforementioned players still to make Test waves in recent months,

Gibbs added that he didn’t think the lore of Tests or romance of ODI cricket had dissipated. “It’s an evolution of the game. Test cricket is the ultimate, but we have to roll with the times for the sake of the crowds. T20 has given exciting cricket as seen in the IPL and CPL, but remember, Test cricket stands on its own.”

“We all start off in the Caribbean playing 10, 20 or 40-overs, then we develop our 50-over game, our county cricket and as first-class players. Things change and we can’t look back, only forward. Players make a living from this now and back in the day, footballers, cricketers, boxers and such were barely making money but now, all kinds of sports are lucrative once you have the talent.”

He indicated that once the talismans of the sport gave back to the game, things would bode well. He referenced the CPL’s youngsters rubbing shoulders with various West Indies and international stars, which acted as a nursery to their learning and growth earlier this year.

“CPL had stars from Pakistan, Bangladesh and New Zealand come over so I think we’re well-prepped for what’s to come ahead.”

West Indies will play two Tests and three ODIs, with the first Test match set to start on November 6. (First published on Cricinfo)

ed to his innings the most.

Along with Ross Taylor, he added 61 runs for the third wicket, which ended when Taylor’s flick found a leading edge and fell safely into cover’s hands while Rutherford, the day’s first wicket, was another batsman being defeated by his own impetuousness. Williamson was dismissed for 114, having batted more than four hours. His forward prod at Shakib missed the bat, and he was given out legbefore in the penultimate over of the day. McCullum fell in the final over, having played back while trying to flick a ball off Razzak, who was bowling quicker than he had done all day. (Cricinfo)

wasn’t exactly unexpected because the hosts are used to being on the backfoot when bowling first. But given their attack, it was expected that the pair would be forced into a mistake, which eventually came off Nasir Hossain’s part-time off spin. Fulton had a century in his sights when he smashed a half-tracker straight to cover and walked off the field looking very distraught. Williamson reached his century off 175 balls, a confident knock that was pleasing to the eyes, particularly when he punched the ball off either foot. But it was his strongwilled defence that contribut-

New Zealand 1st innings P Fulton c mominul haque b nasir hossain 73 h rutherford c abdur razzak b sohag gazi 34 K Williamson lbw b shakib al hasan 114 r taylor c sub (naeem islam) b abdur razzak 28 b mcCullum* lbw b abdur razzak 21 b martin not out 0 Extras: (b

hossain

13-1-44-0, abdur razzak

31.5-4-100-2, sohag gazi 23-4-56-1, shakib al hasan 8-2-34-1, marshall ayub 2-015-0, nasir hossain 2-0-5-1

Hot Spot axed from Ashes series

Hot Spot will not be available to third umpires during the Ashes in Australia after Channel Nine chose to remove the technology. Decisions will now be subject to analysis by the Eagle Eye ball-tracker, audio from the stump microphones and slow-motion replays in case of a review.

Warren Brennan, the inventor of Hot Spot confirmed the development, saying the decision had been finalised as far as the use of technology was concerned. “It’s their decision and that’s what has been communicated to us. As far as I’m concerned, it is final,’’ Brennan told the Sydney Morning Herald. ‘’We’re just moving on with things. Channel Nine have got a new deal with Cricket Australia, which I know has cost them a lot more money. I gather there had to be some restructuring of costs.’’

The costs of installing Hot Spot are around $10,000 a day for a four-camera system installed by Nine, which uses infra-red imaging to determine contact between the ball, bat or pad - that puts the series cost of Hot Spot at approximately $250,000. While the cost was a major determinant, the poor performance of the technology, especially during the Ashes in England, earlier this year was also a factor. Hot Spot came under criticism during the Ashes series for various reasons, includ-

ing the silicon-tape controversy. Before the fourth Test in Durham, a Channel Nine report alleged that a few England batsmen used silicon tape on the edge of their bats to evade Hot Spot - charges that were denied by England captain Alastair Cook and the ECB. Brennan released a statement and called for protective coatings to be removed from bats.

He conceded that these issues were a factor in Channel Nine’s decision to axe Hot Spot, and reiterated his claim of bat coatings hampering the effectiveness of the system. “The point that I was trying to make was that it does significantly affect us,’’ he said. ‘’The testing that we’ve done, and I haven’t released that testing yet, is that when the coatings are on it does affect the Hot Spot signature.”

Brennan expressed his disappointment at Cricket Australia’s refusal to intervene, or to subsidise the cost of the technology. “I don’t have a beef with Channel Nine,’’ Brennan said. ‘’The disappointing thing for us is that Cricket Australia didn’t engage at all with us to try and come on board and help with this situation. They just said, ‘No, it’s got nothing to do with us. It’s Channel Nine’s responsibility.’ What’s disappointing is we work in four countries at the moment - well, until recently. (Cricinfo)

Bangladesh U-19 level series with 63-run win

By Rajiv Bisnauth

Bangladesh youth team produced a superb all-round team effort to beat West Indies by 63 runs in the second limited overs game at the Georgetown Cricket Club ground, Bourda on Wednesday to level the seven-match series 1-1.

The tourists defended their total of 259, as the Windies finished on 196 for 9.

The West Indies were throttled by the spin attack of Bangladesh and never looked in the hunt after they scored just 70 runs in 24.1 overs for the second wicket.

Left arm spinner Rahuttul Ferdous Javed scalped five wickets and Jashim Uddin and Mossadek Hossain Saikat hit attractive half-centuries to emerge as the star performers for Bangladesh.

Earlier, Bangladesh skipper Mehedi Hasan Miraj won the toss and decided to bat first on a seemingly batting-friendly Bourda pitch. Uddin’s and Saikat’s approaches were in complete contrast to their style of batting in the first game.

Both batsmen were positive while the Windies bowlers were ragged, a far cry from their first game performance. Saikat topscored with 70, inclusive of five boundaries while Uddin, who was later adjudged Man-of-the-Match, made 63 with eight fours.

The visitors lost Joyraj Emon early as he played a loose shot and was caught behind off Jerome Jones in the third over at 15-1.

The West Indies failed to capitalise on the early breakthrough as the decision to use Barbadian fast bowling pair, Jofra Archer and Jerome Jones, did not pay off. Jones (2-60) and Archer (2-49) were wayward, allowing Sadman Islam Anik and Jashim Uddin to get involved in an excellent partnership of 46 runs.

The West Indies U-19s made five changes from the first game on Monday with Tarryck Gabriel, Ramaal Lewis, Marquino Mindley, Ray Jordan and Alazarri Joseph, making way for Jofra Archer, Preston McSween, Bryan Charles, Jerome Jones and Shimron Hetmyer.

The hosts finally broke the partnership with the left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie dismissing the impressive Anik off his first delivery for 23, much to the relief of his teammates.

Saikat joined Uddin and the pair grew in confidence. The shot-making improved as both batsmen used their feet well against the spinners, either coming down the track or using the crease to their advantage.

The third wicket stand came to an abrupt end

though, but not before the pair scripted a 92-run partnership. Uddin was trapped leg before by Bryan Charles.

The Bangladeshis were given another purposeful partnership between Saikat and Nazmul Hasan Shanto.

The pair displayed some sensational strokeplay at the business end of the innings and added 62 runs to put their side in the driver’s seat.

However, the Windies bowlers struck back late in the innings with four quick wickets, including Saikat, Shanto (42), Mehedi Hasan Miraj (4) and Abu Saeed Sarker (4). Spinners Bryan Charles claimed 2-40 and Motie-Kanhai completed an economical spell of 1-32 off his 10 overs.

Chasing an imposing 260-run target to win, the young Windies side lost opener Leroy Lugg (1) early as he was caught by wicketkeeper Jashim Uddin off pacer Sarker.

However, spin was the factor that caused serious

trouble for the Windies batsmen as Jeremy Solozano and fellow opener Tagnarine Chanderpaul could only manage just 70 runs in 24.1 overs, which ultimately allowed the spinners to dominate proceedings.

Solozano was the more attacking of the two, hitting 44 while Chanderpaul made 25, but both batsmen were dismissed in quick succession.

At that stage, West Indies had required a further 176 runs from the last 24 overs and the pressure of scoring at almost nine runs per over got to both Tristann Coleman and Hetmyer. Both batsmen were dropped once before curtains were drawn on their short cameos of 21 runs each. Jofra Archer hit a fighting 35 at the end.

For the Bangladeshis Sarker, Miraj, Saikat, Nehad and Likhon all picked up a wicket apiece.

The third game is scheduled for Friday at the Guyana National Stadium from 13:30h.

SCOREBOARD

Bangladesh innings

Joyraj Emon c wkp b Jones 1

Sadman Islam Anik b Motie-Kanhai 23

Jashim Uddin c McSween lbw

b Charles 63

Mossadek Hossain Saikat c Archer

b Charles 70

Nazmul Hasan Shanto b Jones 42

Mehedi Hasan Miraj c wkp b Archer 4

Abu Saeed Sarker c wkp b Archer 4

Abu Haider Rony not out 8

Rahuttul Ferdous Javed not out 3

Extras: (b2, lb9, w26, nb4) 41

Total: (for seven wickets;

50 overs) 259

Fall of wickets: 1-15, 2-61, 3-153, 4-215, 5-236, 6-240, 7-249

Bowling: Jones 9-0-60-2 (w12, nb2), Archer 8-0-492 (w9), McSween 9-0-47-0 (w3, nb1), Motie-Kanhai 10032-1 (w1), Charles 10-040-2 (w1), Allen 4-0-21-0

RHTY&SC cricket teams host E-Network/ANSA McAL “Tribute to Head Teachers” programme

Ten outstanding head teachers from the Corentyne district were honoured on Monday by the cricket teams of the Rose Hall Town Youth & Sports Club (RHTY&SC) under its annual E-Network/ ANSA McAL “Tribute to Head Teachers” programme. According to a press release from the club, the teams hosted the programme as part of World Teachers Day that is usually observed on October 5.

The head teachers honoured were President of the Guyana Teachers Union Colin Bynoe, who is also head teacher of Port Mourant Secondary School, Nirmala Hussain of Corentyne Comprehensive High School, Barbara Hamilton of J.C. Chandisingh Secondary School, Marlyn Benjamin of Central Corentyne Secondary, Paul La Cruz of Lower Corentyne Secondary, Sandra Whyte of Rose Hall Town Nursery

West Indies innings

L Lugg c wkp b Sarker 1

T Chanderpaul b Javed 25

J Solozano c&b Miraj 44

T Coleman st wkp b Javed 21

S Hetmyre c Miraj b Javed 21

F Allen c Saikat b Likhon 3

J Archer c Miraj b Javed 35

J Jones c Miraj b Javed 17

J McSween st wkp b Nehad 1 B Charles not out 6

G Motie-Kanhai not out 7

Extras: (b4, lb2, w8, nb1) 15

Total: (for nine wickets; 50 overs) 196

Fall of wickets: 1-2, 2-72, 3-84, 4-116, 5-118, 6-124, 7-179, 8-182, 9-183

Bowling: Rony 5-0-34-0, Sarker 3-0-8-1 (w2), Miraj 8-4-15-1, Saikat 8-1-10-1, Anik 2-0-8-0, Nehad 8-1-291 (w2), Javed 10-1-55-5 (w1, nb1), Likhon 6-0-31-1 (w3)

and Mrs Dean of Rose Hall Town Primary School.

According to release, Secretary/CEO of the RHTY&SC Hilbert Foster, hailed the head teachers as “pillars of the educational sector” surrounding Rose Hall. He also urged them to maintain their high standards of ensuring that all youths are educated properly.

He stated that the RHTY&SC was grateful to the awardees for the roles they played in nurturing the minds of all its members and for developing a culture of discipline and commitment. The long-serving secretary also expressed gratitude to Vishok Persaud of E-Network and Beverley Harper of ANSA McAL for their sponsorship of the event and pledged that the RHTY&SC and its cricket teams will continue to invest in educational programmes.

Meanwhile, Paul La Cruz expressed gratitude

to the cricket teams of the RHTY&SC for honouring him and his colleagues and noted that it felt special to be honoured. Nirmala Hussain of Corentyne Comprehensive High School described the RHTY&SC as a unique organisation and hailed its outstanding contribution to schools in the Corentyne area.

Noting that it was a pleasure to work along with the RHTY&SC, Hussain stated that the club’s strict discipline structure produced national Under-19 players Shawn Pereira and Phaffiana Millington, who are students at her school. The programme was organised by the RHT Pepsi Under-19 and Intermediate, Farfan & Mendes Under-15, Bakewell Under-17 and Second Division, Metro Female and Gizmos & Gadgets First Division and Under-21 Cricket teams. Each of the awardees received a special gift.

Tillakaratne Dilshan retires from Test cricket

Sri Lanka opening batsman Tillakaratne Dilshan has retired from Test cricket.

The 36-year-old made 16 Test centuries, including a career-best 193 against England at Lord’s in 2011, and scored 5,492 runs in 87 Tests.

“I have decided to take this decision to allow Sri Lanka cricket to groom another youngster in my place,” said Dilshan.

“I was to announce my retirement after the Zimbabwe Test series but unfortunately the tour was postponed.”

The opener, who made

his debut in 1999 against Zimbabwe, will hold a news conference on Thursday.

Dilshan will continue to play in the shorter 50-over and Twenty20 formats.

“I will discuss my future with the national selectors and if they need me I will play till the 2015 World Cup,” he added in a statement. (BBC Sport)

Stall Softball

Competition…

Several teams win in latest action

The Guyana Floodlight Softball Cricket Association (GFSCA)/ Trophy Stall softball cricket competition continued last weekend with several teams chalking up victories at various venues in the country.

Below are the summarised scores from the games:

Park Rangers defeated Floodlights by nine wickets. Floodlights made 80 all out (Wayne Jones 18. Dennis Mangru 3-5, Eon Abel 2-12, Ramjit Singh 2-17); Park Rangers scored 80-1 from 10 overs (D. Mangru 38*, Danny Mohanram 30*).

Wellwoman defeated Karibee Strikers by six wickets. Karibee Strikers made 74-9 from 10 overs (P. Parks12, Latoya Smith 3-5, Zola Telford 3-9); Wellwoman scored 79-4 from 7.2 overs (Kanata Mentore 24).

Krishna Deosaran

overs (Mohamed Rafeek 50, A. Lovell 31, J. Boje 3-20).

Trophy Stall defeated Success Warriors by four wickets. Success made 1278 from 20 overs (S. Boodram 28, Surendra Ramnauth 2-18, Fazal Rafeek 2-24); Trophy Stall scored 128-6 from 16.4 overs (F. Rafeek 45, Krishna Deosaran 43, Dianand Singh 3-21).

Samlall 30*).

Industry Super Kings defeated Enterprise Legends by 29 runs. Industry made 152-8 from 20 overs (Suraj Salikram 34*, Kennard Luke 29, Mukesh Persaud 26, D. Salkarran 3-20, S. Kumar 2-28); Enterprise scored 123 all out (N. Seebarran 27, S. Kumar 27, Jagdesh Persaud 2-24, Rupert Basdeo 2-22).

Universal DVD T20 Competition…

Bermine, West Bermine seal semi-final berth

Success Masters defeated Parika Defenders by five wickets. Parika scored 140-8 from 20 overs (R. Rambarose 40, K. Ramnauth 3-17) Success replied with 1435 from 16 overs (S. Budhu 45, H. Samad 30, D. Kannan 2-15).

4R Lioness and Fazal Kayume Angels played to a tie. 4R Lioness scored 61 all out (Amanda DeFreitas 17, Z. Skelto 3-5, K Persaud 2-2); Fazal Kayume responded with 61-7 from 10 overs (L. Semple 20).

Buddy’s XI defeated Brickery Super Stars by 66 runs. Buddy’s scored 208-6 in 20 overs (Leon Persaud 66, Anan Bharat 49, Mahendra Lildar 35, Roscoe King 3-36); Brickery replied with 142 all out (R. King 49, Patrick 31, Davanand Singh 2-6, Chatram Singh 3-33).

Frontliners Masters defeated Regal Masters by seven wickets. Regal made 150 all out (M. Arjune 27, L. Adams 24, R. Sankar 3-24, Gary McCoy 2-19); Frontliners 152-4 from 16

Wellman defeated Savage Masters by five wickets. Savage scored 148 all out from 18 overs (Falim Mohamed 38, R. Samaroo 26, Greg DeFrance 3-15, Kenneth Deibdyal 3-20); Wellman responded with 151-6 from 17 overs (G. DeFrance 39*, Nandram

Karibee Strikers defeated Trophy Stall Angels by two wickets. Trophy Stall put on 101-7 from 10 overs (Kavita Yadram 61, June Ogle 15, N. Toney 2-13, M. Henry 2-14) Karibee Strikers responded with 102-8 from 10 overs (T. Leonard 37, Erva Giddings 22, Amanda Roberts 2-21).

Windies A bowled out after Johnson misses century

All of India A’s quicks contributed to justify Cheteshwar Pujara’s decision to field, as West Indies A were bowled out for 268 on Wednesday.

Zaheer Khan did not have the wickets to show, but there was improvement from Shimoga, both in intensity and in the discomfort he caused the batsmen.

The Mumbai duo of Dhawal Kulkarni and Abhishek Nayar took seven wickets between them as West Indies A went from 240 for 5 to 268 all out.

Most of the West Indies A specialist batsmen got starts - Leon Johnson made 81 - but once again they failed to take them further.

The most disappointing part for them was that they saw off the new ball when the pitch was moist, and lost wickets when the ball had become soft on a slow surface.

“Disappointed after the partnership between myself and [Narsingh] Deonarine,” Johnson, who fell nine short of a century in the last match, said. “We shouldn’t have lost seven wickets after tea. Not taking anything away from Nayar and Kulkarni who managed to swing the ball even after tea.”

This was no demon pitch, but it was expected to be at its most bowler-friendly on the first day. Needing to win this match to level the series, Pujara took that chance. West Indies

A rested Kirk Edwards, Chadwick Walton and Veerasammy Permaul, with Fidel Edwards injured. India A beefed up their pace department, and an injured Mohammad Kaif made way for Paras Dogra. The focus was squarely on Zaheer after India won the toss.

Even as Ishwar Pandey drew edges from Kieran Powell at the top of the innings, Zaheer worked Kraigg Brathwaite out. From the moment, Brathwaite followed one delivery wide outside off, Zaheer was all over him. The next ball squared Brathwaite up as it seamed away after pitching within the stumps. The next one was floated wide again, and Brathwaite duly edged it through to Uday Kaul. The cautious start had now taken a turn for the worse: 8 for 1 after 6.3 overs.

In Kirk Edwards’ absence, Johnson batted at No. 3, and started cau-

tiously. Powell, though, was squared up and bowled by Kulkarni, who angled the ball in and got it to hold its line after pitching. Johnson and Deonarine broke the shackles, benefiting from some lackadaisical fielding - Johnson was dropped by Dogra on 51. They had to negotiate a testing second spell by Zaheer, though, when the leg cutter that leaves the left-hand batsmen made a prompt appearance.

That extra enterprise, though, proved Deonarine’s demise. Nayar had fallen back on the old Ranji Trophy ploy of bowling wide outside off, but in one over, Deonarine went chasing three deliveries, managing to edge the third to end the 70-run partnership.

By now, Johnson had become more fluent, and with Assad Fudadin, he gave West Indies A the most assured spell of day. There was a period when they hit at least one boundary in six successive overs, without taking a risk. As he approached the hundred, though, Johnson was adjudged lbw to Nayar bowling from round the stumps, making it 175 for 4.

Pandey came back to get Jonathan Carter, who drove loosely outside off. Fudadin too went for a back-foot drive off Kulkarni, and the ball got a bit big on him to take the edge to second slip. In between the two dismissals, Kulkarni got Jamhar

Hamilton with one that stayed low.

The rest fell one after the other, although it took two superb catches. The first was Kulkarni running backwards at point to get Delorn Johnson, and the second was Dogra’s leap high at gully to send back Nikita Miller, who had played two superb backfoot drives in his 23-ball 18. Gautam Gambhir and VA Jagadeesh saw off the remaining 18 minutes of play without any incident. (Cricinfo)

SCOREBOARD

West Indies A 1st innings

K Brathwaite c †Kaul b Khan 1

K Powell* b Kulkarni 21

L Johnson lbw b Nayar 81

N Deonarine c †Kaul b Nayar 35

A Fudadin c Jagadeesh b Kulkarni 47

J Carter c †Kaul b Pandey 17

J Hamilton† b Kulkarni 15

N Miller c Dogra b Nayar 18

A Nurse lbw b Bhatt 4

D Johnson c Kulkarni b Nayar 0

M Cummins not out 0

Extras: (b 12, lb 11, w 4, nb 2) 29

Total: (all out, 77.4 overs) 268 Fall of wickets: 1-8, 2-53, 3-123, 4-175, 5-199, 6-240, 7-251, 8-265, 9-268, 10-268

Bowling: Z Khan 15-5-33-1, I Pandey 16-4-44-1, D Kulkarni 16-4-60-3, A Nayar 20.4-661-4, B Bhatt 10-1-47-1

India A 1st innings

V Jagadeesh not out 8 G Gambhir not out 2

Total: (0 wkts, 5 overs) 10

Bowling: M Cummins

2-1-5-0, D Johnson 2-12-0, J Carter 1-0-3-0

Bermine and West Berbice won their last two preliminary matches over the last weekend to emerge as winners and runners-up of Group B of the Universal DVD first division T20 cricket competition in Berbice. By virtue of their wins, both teams have advanced to the semi-finals.

Bermine ended with 21 points, while West Berbice and Young Warriors Universal DVD were tied with13 points each, but with West Berbice being the winner of the head-to-head between the two, they earned the right to advance.

In Bermine’s match against Bush Lot Rising Star, Berbice born and former Demerara left-arm spinner Damien Vantull took 3-21 from four overs to restrict Bush Lot Rising Star to 94-9 in 20 overs.

Berbice batsman Anthony D’Andrade with 40 not out (6x4s, 1x6) and former Guyana opening batsman Shemroy Barrington 39 not out (5x4s) added 75 runs to steer Bermine home with just one wicket down.

The following day in their match against Young Warriors Universal DVD, Barrington slammed 67 not out (2x4s, 4x6s) and D’Andrade 29 to steer Bermine to 141-6 in 20 overs.

After that Vantull took 3-18 from four overs and former Guyana Under-19 all-rounder Joemal La Fleur 3-19 from 3.3 overs to restrict Young Warriors Universal DVD to 91, despite a fighting 37 from Kevin Ramdeen.

Meanwhile, after former Berbice batsman

Arthley Bailey scored 35 to steer West Berbice to a tense three-wicket victory over Upper Corentyne on Saturday, the following day, their Guyana pacer Keon Joseph took 4-14 from four overs and former Test pacer Brendon Bess 2-8 from three overs to bowl out Edinburgh for 78 in exactly 20 overs. West Berbice struggled to 81-5 in 18 overs in reply.

The semi-finals of the competition are scheduled for this weekend. On Saturday, Group A winner

Albion Community Centre will take on Group B runnerup West Berbice at Albion, while on Sunday, Group B winner Bermine and Group A runner-up Rose Hall Town Gizmos and Gadgers will clash at Port Mourant. Both matches are scheduled to begin at 13:30 hours. Below are the summarised scores:

At Albion: Bermine beat Bush Lot Rising Star by nine wickets. Bush Lot Rising Star 94-9 from 20 overs (Brentnol Woolford 21, Paul Dipnarine 21, Damien Vantull 3-21) Bermine 95-1 from 10 overs (Anthony D’Andrade 40*, Shemroy Barrington 39*).

At Cumberland: Bermine beat Young Warriors Universal DVD by 50 runs. Bermine 141-6 from 20 overs (Shemroy Barrington 67*, Anthony D’Andrade 29, Balram Samaroo 2-19, Kevin Ramdeen 2-35) Young Warriors Universal DVD 91 all out from 18.3 overs (Kevin Ramdeen 35, Seon Hetmyer 23, Damien Vantull 3-18, Joemal La Fleur 3-19). At Number 69: West Berbice beat Upper Corentyne by three wickets. Upper Corentyne 117-8 from 20 overs (Monesh Lalu 34*, Naeem Yacoob 29, Rendell Bobb 2-18, Andrew Dutchin 2-18) West Berbice 1217 from 19.4 overs (Arthley Bailey 35, Sherwin Mc Pherson 22, Raffiel Estriado 22, Omesh Khemraj 3-18). At Edinburgh: West Berbice beat Edinburgh by five wickets. Edinburgh 78 in 20 overs (Denny David 24, Keon Joseph 4-14, Brandon Bess 2-8, Rendell Bobb 2-14) West Berbice 81-5 in 18 overs (Andrew Dutchin 18*, Raun Johnson 18*, Shafeek Khan 2-8).

At Cumberland: Police beat Blairmont Community Centre by 56 runs. Police 125 all out from 19.5 overs (Rocky Hutson 20, Michael Newland 20, Waqar Hassan 2-23, Kevon Jawahir 2-21, Daniel Harrinarine 2-18, Rameshwar Somwaru 2-31) Blairmont Community Centre 69 from 16.1 overs (Avishkar Sewkarran 24, Albert Sinclair 3-24, Quesi Mickle 2-11).

Toronto Police Cricket Club to tour Guyana

…win warm-up match against Sugarcane Thunderbolts

Toronto Police Cricket Team strikes a pose just after the match

By Ravendra Madholall in Toronto

Toronto Police Cricket Club, in conjunction with Sugarcane Thunderbolts Cricket Club, will be embarking on an inaugural tour to Guyana early next year.

They are set to participate in several limited-over matches across the country during their two-week visit. In addition, the side commenced their preparation with an empathic fivewicket win over Sugarcane Thunderbolts Cricket Club recently at the Police ground in Scarborough.

The team of lawmen will be comprised of players from the army, ambulance, airport security and civilian personnel. Notably, Toronto Police Club was formed in 1992 by retired Deputy Chief Keith Forde and Superintendent Dave McLeod.

According to the current president of the club, Mansoor Ahmad, the team is excited to make the trip a reality but is awaiting an approval from Guyana Police Force Commissioner Leroy Brumell.

He further stated that tour that will feature match-

es against the GPF and other tours to tourism destinations will be beneficial for both countries.

“We [are] very excited about making the trip to Guyana; I am confident the guys will make an impression because we have begun preparations and keenly looking forward to it,” Ahamd declared.

President of the Sugarcane Thunderbolt team, Raj Singh, also reiterated the significance of the tour to his native country in May and also feels it will generate greater unity and interest.

“We firmly believe that interaction with our fellow officers from different parts of world in the form of sports leads to lasting friendship, camaraderie, exchange of ideas and meaningful dialogue that will be of benefit for our official duties,” Constable Singh related.

Singh, who is also a founding member of Toronto Police Cricket Club, took the opportunity to mention that the team featured in several international tours, including visits to Australia, England and Barbados over the years and has gained tremendous exposure.

“Our previous tours were

fantastic and now going to Guyana I think we will be more than happy to play cricket in Guyana; a country that has a rich tradition for the game and going there to play with cricketers who have done well for their country and clubs will be of great pleasure,” Singh mentioned.

Meanwhile, at the practice match, 48-year-old opening batsman Nadeem Khokhar stroked an attractive 80 to lead the Toronto cops to the victory. Thunderbolts took first strike at the invitation of Toronto Police and only managed an insufficient 165-7 from their allotment of 35-overs.

Khokhar, the left-handed and man-of-the-match, hit seven fours and four sixes during his innings as his team surpassed the total in the 30th over. He was supported by skipper Asad Khan with a steady innings of 20.

Earlier, Richard Moore, a retired officer and former Toronto Police club captain, topscored for the visitors with 38, which included two fours and a similar number of sixes, while veteran officer Dwarka Rampersaud and Deo Ramlochan chipped win

with 25 and 22 respectively. Barbadian and retired Toronto Police Officer Arthur Jones grabbed 3 for 17 runs from five overs of offspin while another off-spinner Zappy Greaves claimed 2 for 27 off seven overs.

At the presentation ceremony after the match, several players were given trophies for their outstanding performances, courtesy of the two teams.

Singh told the gathering that they were all delighted to have matches played in such friendly manner as they are enthusiastic to play on a regular basis. He said that Toronto Police Cricket Club plays friendly matches with various communities throughout the GTA to promote awareness with the police while Sugarcane Thunderbolts participated in the Etobicoke and Brampton Cricket League annually.

Tour Chairman Feizul Ally also stated that they have been working feverishly to make the trip a success. He was in Guyana recently and spoke to several senior individuals, including Cammy Ramsaroop and Police Sports Coordinator Colin Boyce to organise the games.

Little Diva Flames FC commences training Saturday

The newly-formed Little Diva Flames female FC will commence training on Saturday at the Georgetown Football Club (GFC) from 09:00h.

According to a release from the club, coaches Joseph “Bill” Wilson and Sheron “Sherry” Abrams will be taking the girls through the sessions. Wilson

had coached the Scotiabank female All Stars team to victory in a specially arranged tournament that involved Berbice and West Demerara last December.

Abrams, on the other hand, recently returned to Guyana after successfully participating in a D License coaching programme in Aruba, conduct-

at GFC

ed by CONCACAF, according to the release.

The Little Diva Flames FC was formed to harness and develop the potential football skills of talented young females, desirous of playing football at the club level and representing Guyana. Opportunities will also be available for those with the academic qualifica-

Singh leads Better Hope to win over Lion’s XI

All-rounder Ravi Singh turned in a fine allround performance to lead Better Hope to a resounding 88-run win over Lion’s XI as action in the East Coast Cricket Board 40-over cricket competition continued last weekend.

Playing at the Better Hope Community Centre ground, the hosts batted first and posted a hefty 1779 after the game was reduced to 25 overs per innings. Singh hit two sixes and three boundaries in a joint topscore of 30 with A. Dindyal, while S. Singh contributed 22.

Ravi Singh

A. Barry claimed 3-19 for Lion’s XI, who were routed for 89 in 19.4 overs. Former national all-rounder Dion Ferrier topscored with 27, as Singh, Nazim Khan and Suresh Budhu picked up two wickets each.

Goodluck wins recorded shoot ahead of national championships

The country’s leading rifle shooters resumed training last weekend ahead of the National Senior and Junior championships scheduled for next month at the Timehri rifle ranges.

In action last Sunday, Ransford Goodluck recorded an aggregate of 148 points and 17 V-bulls to win the X Class category at the recorded shoot held over the 300, 500 and 1000 yards ranges under hot and windy conditions.

He pipped current national and Caribbean individual champion Lennox Braithwaite, who also recorded 148 points, but had 12 V-bulls.

National vice captain Dylan Fields shot 145 points with nine V-bulls, recording scores of 49.2 at 300 yards, 49.3 at 500 yards and 47.4 at 1000 yards.

National captain Mahendra Persaud placed fourth with 144 points and 12 V-bulls. He shot 47.5 at 300 yards, 49.5 at 500 yards and 48.2 at 1000 yards. Lt. Col. Terry Stuart was the best shooter in O Class with an overall aggregate of 133.6 with scores of 44.3 at 300, 46.2 at 500 and 43.1 at 1000 yards.

tion to be offered scholarships in the Caribbean, Central America, North America and possibly Europe.

In the release it was also noted that steps will be taken to ensure that training is conducted in a disciplined and safe environment. Life skills will also be addressed amongst other things as the club grows in stature.

Goodluck shot 49.3 at 300 yards, 49.7 at 500 yards and a possible 50 with 7 Vs at 1000 yards.

Braithwaite shot two “possible” at 300 and 1000 yards (50.7 at 300) and (50.4 at 1000 yards) and dropped two points at 500 yards to end the range with a score of 48.1.

There will be another recorded shoot on Sunday at the Timehri rifle ranges. The local shooters have also started preparations early for next year’s West Indies Fullbore shooting championships, to be held in Jamaica in April.

The Guyanese marksmen shared the regional long and short range titles with the Jamaicans at this year’s regional championships hosted by Barbados.