guyana chronicle 03 12 13

The Chronicle is at http://www.guyanachronicle.comGUYANA

No. 103669 TUESDAY DECEMBER 3, 2013 GUYANA’S MOST WIDELY CIRCULATED NEWSPAPER PRICE: $60 INCLUDING VAT

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Georgetown residents have the power to remove City Council - Whittaker

advises

Culture Village and Art Exhibition at Umana Yana to be open until Friday

Science and technology not being harnessed in Caribbean

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand, Prime Minister Samuel Hinds and Professsor Arnoldo Ventura, of Mico University, Jamaica at the Caribbean Science Foundation Workshop

– PM, Education Minister at Caribbean Science workshop

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General Secretary Clement Rohee

Rohee calls for joint

Opposition to undo error in Local

Gov’t BillPage 9

Renovation of some courts completed, to be operational soon

- others are a work in progress

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Prisoner escapes from GPHC

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Queen’s College students view some of the local craft made of coconut shells and wooden clothes pegs

2 GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday December 3, 2013

GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday December 3, 2013 3

By Vanessa Narine

MAYOR Hamilton Green and members of the Georgetown City Council must accept responsibility for the flooding and the destruction it caused last week, says Minister in the Ministry of Local Govern-ment and Regional Develop-ment, Norman Whittaker.

Speaking at the ruling party’s weekly press briefing at Freedom House yesterday, Whittaker, who is also a PPP Central Committee Member, said: “The PPP and Georgetown residents must no longer fetch the burden of their incompe-tence, enough is enough.”

Asked why the Govern-ment has not acted to address what Whittaker described as a “failed” City Council by estab-lishing an Interim Management Committee (IMC), he said this move is in the hands of George-town’s residents.

According to him, residents as well as representatives of the private sector can forward a

petition to the Ministry of Local Government, which will then launch an inquiry and have the outcomes presented at a public meeting before it can act on the recommendations of the inqui-ry’s report.

NEGLECT Whittaker stressed that the

Georgetown residents have the power to remove City Council

- Whittaker advises

The move to establish an Interim Management Committee is in the hands of Georgetown’s residents. Residents as well as representatives of the private sector can forward a petition to the Ministry of Local Government, which will then launch an inquiry and have the outcomes presented at a public meeting before it can act on the recommendations of the inquiry’s report

- Whittaker.

inundation seen last week was largely a consequence of ne-glect.

“This (the flooding) is a consequence of the neglect of the City Council in ensuring timely servicing of its kokers and pumps, in ensuring timely cleaning of canals and drains, in ensuring timely collection and disposal of garbage in the city,” he said.

Whittaker added that he initiated a meeting six weeks ago with the Council, sector ministries and the private sector to address the areas of action that were needed to ensure preparedness ahead of the rainy season.

He said: “In spite of all efforts to get the Council to be proactive and initiate the works that were considered and agreed necessary, nothing was done…we had even made available staff to work along with the Council…we said we will sup-port and assist you, you need to make a start.”

The minister stressed that

the Mayor and Council mem-bers must accept responsibil-ity for the flooding. He said: “The City of Georgetown is under the management of the Mayor and the City Council…this grouping shamelessly refuses to accept the responsi-bility for management of the city. They have wielded con-

trol over the city for the past 19 years. They have received billions of dollars in rates and taxes paid every year by the citizenry of the city of Georgetown, yet garbage is everywhere, yet the drains are blocked, yet the parapets are in an unkempt manner and flooding takes place whenever there is excess rain.”

GOV’T SUPPORT Asked to comment on May-

or Green’s calls for certain types of taxes to be remitted to the City Council, rather than to the Central Government, Whittaker questioned the Council’s ability

to account for additional funds, when it currently has trouble accounting for collections it is already making.

He explained that tax-payers pay their dues and the Council, more often than not, does little or nothing

and when the Government supports the Council, it is taxpayers paying again to do what should have been done in the first place.

Whittaker stressed that the Central Government’s support cannot be doubted, as in the last seven years over $330m has been given to the City Council.

He said: “Central Govern-ment is forced to pump millions of dollars into City Council an-nually, to bail them out of their financial woes.”

Whittaker added that finan-cial support is only one com-ponent of the support the City

Council receives from Central Government, the others being equipment, vehicles and even staff when needed.

“The ineptitude among those managing the affairs of the city is evident and apparent for all to see,” he said.

On that note, Whittaker also addressed the clear divide between the decisions made by the Mayor and the actions of the Town Clerk. He explained that the Mayor’s instruction, as well as that of the Coun-cil’s, must be legitimate and legal.

The minister said: “The Town Clerk is aware and is expected to advise the Mayor and Council when instructions run contrary to regulation…if notwithstanding the advice, the Mayor insists, then the Town Clerk must insist her advice is reflected in the minutes and also is expected not to do ille-galities.”

CORRUPTIONHe added that it is clear that

corruption is rampant at City Hall and there are auditing chal-lenges with financial records related to the Japanese grant.

“The corruption became apparent when the Town Clerk took the brave step of drag-ging a few of them before the

courts recently…one would have thought that the AFC, the APNU, Transparency Interna-tional and people the likes of Anand Goolsarran and Lincoln Lewis, would have been forth-right in their condemnation of these acts of impropriety on the part of the Mayor and Council,” he said.

Whittaker reiterated that the continued trend reflecting the shortcomings of the Mayor and the Council members must see them accepting responsibil-ity for the consequences of last week’s flooding.

BLAME GAME WEL-COMED

The ruling party’s General Secretary and Home Affairs Minister, Clement Rohee, then welcomed what he termed “the blame game” that is ongoing over the flooding.

He said: “Blame game is good. Everybody must have their say because peo-ple will be educated in the process.”

According to him, the po-sition of the ruling party has been clear, the Mayor and the City Council have failed the city.

He questioned the abilities of the Mayor and the Council at a national level, if they are unable to effectively undertake the work of the city.

Rohee said: “The Govern-ment continues to be blamed…the fact, however, is that it is Mr. Hamilton Green and the Council who is in charge of the City. They must accept re-sponsibility…I have seen this city shift from one extreme to the next.”

Last week’s flooding was the worst recorded in George-town since 1892.

From left are Zulfikar Mustapha, Clement Rohee and Norman Whittaker (Photo by Sonell Nelson)


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UN implicates Bashar al-Assad in Syria war crimes

Navi Pillay is the first UN figure to directly implicate Mr Assad in alleged war crimes

(BBC News) THE UN’s hu-man rights chief has said an inquiry has produced evidence that war crimes were autho-rised in Syria at the “highest level”, including by President Bashar al-Assad.

It is the first time the UN’s human rights office has so di-rectly implicated Mr Assad.

Commissioner Navi Pillay said her office held a list of others implicated by the inquiry.

The UN estimates more than 100,000 people have died in the conflict.

The UN’s commission of inquiry into Syria has produced “massive evidence... [of] very serious crimes, war crimes, crimes against humanity,” Ms Pillay said.

“The scale of viciousness of the abuses being perpetrated by elements on both sides almost defies belief,” she said.

The evidence indicated re-sponsibility “at the highest level of government, including the head of state”, she added.

The inquiry has also previ-ously reported it has evidence that rebel forces in Syria have been guilty of human rights abuses.

However, the investigators have always said the Syrian government appears to be re-sponsible for the majority, and that the systematic nature of the abuse points to government policy.

Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad was dismissive of Ms Pillay’s re-marks.

“She has been talking non-

sense for a long time and we don’t listen to her,” he told AP.

Mr Mekdad was in The Hague at a meeting of the Or-ganization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to discuss the effort to destroy Syria’s chemical weapons.

He told the BBC that Syria needed more money and equip-ment from the international community.

He said Syria needed lorries and armoured vehicles to trans-port chemicals to prevent “ter-rorists” attacking the vehicles.

DEATH TOLL ‘OVER 125,000’

Ms Pillay said the UN com-mission of inquiry had compiled a list of those believed to be directly responsible for serious human rights violations.

It is assumed that senior fig-ures in the Syrian military and government are on that list, the BBC’s Imogen Foulkes reports from Geneva.

However, the names and specific evidence relating to them remain confidential pend-ing a possible prosecution for war crimes and crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

She has previously called on the UN Security Council to refer Syria to the ICC.

Syria is not a state party to the ICC and therefore any investigation into the conflict would need to be mandated by the Security Council.

However, Russia and Chi-na have a veto on the council and would be highly unlikely to let such a move pass.

Syria death toll hits nearly 126,000: monitoring group(Reuters) - THE death toll in Syria’s civil war has risen to at least 125,835, more than a third of them civilians, but the real figure is probably much higher, the Syrian Observato-ry for Human Rights said on Monday.

The pro-opposition moni-toring group also appealed to U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and “all people in the international community who have a conscience” to increase their efforts to end the 2-1/2 year war.

The conflict began as peaceful protests against four

decades of rule by President Bashar al-Assad’s family, but under a fierce security force crackdown, turned into an armed insurgency whose sec-tarian dimensions have echoed across the Middle East.

The Observatory, based in Britain but with a network of activists across Syria, put the number of children killed in the conflict so far at 6,627.

It put the death toll among rebels fighting the Assad gov-ernment at least 27,746 rebels, including more than 6,000 cat-egorized as foreign fighters or unknown combatants.

“The number is likely much higher but in many battles, the number of rebels killed is hidden, especially by the (al Qaeda-linked) Nusra Front and Islamic State of Iraq and the Le-vant,” Rami Abdelrahman, head of the Observatory, told Reuters.

He said the observatory had documented 50,430 deaths among the Syrian armed forces and local militias supporting Assad, but said that number too was probably higher.

SECTARIAN CONFLICT“There are at least 40,000

more dead combatants but they

were not included in the toll because the cases were not documented well enough,” Ab-delrahman said.

Both Sunni and Shi’ite mil-itants from around the region have joined the fight on oppo-site sides.

Many Sunni Muslim countries support the rebels, who are led by Syria’s Sunni majority. Shi’ite Muslim states back Assad, who is from the minority Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi’ite Islam.

As well as Syrians, nearly 500 Shi’ite foreign militants have died fighting with Assad’s army, the Observatory said. Around half of those were from the powerful Lebanese guer-rilla group Hezbollah, whose military support for Assad has helped his forces make strategic territorial advances in central Syria.

“The Observatory calls for ... serious efforts (by the inter-national community) to stop the killing in Syria and help its peo-ple transition to a democratic state with freedom, justice and equality,” it said in a statement.

The United Nations does not give regular casualty counts for Syria. It has said for months that more than 100,000 have died.

International efforts have largely concentrated on a planned peace conference in Geneva next month and on the destruction of Syria’s stockpile of chemical weapons.

The West blames Assad for a poison gas attack near Damascus on August 21 that killed hundreds of people, but are now working with his forc-es to remove and destroy such weapons from Syria.

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Two more felled by the bullet

(Trinidad Guardian) GANG warfare in Diego Martin claimed the lives of two men in separate incidents Sunday and Saturday night. Police said around 9.45 am yesterday, Darwin Garvin, 32, of Pierre Felix Road, Diego Martin, was found dead. Residents heard loud explosions and saw him lying on the road and contacted the police. Cpl Lynton and PCs Kernanham and Campbell responded and found his body in a drain.

On Saturday night around 10 pm, Odary Rahim Joseph Phillip, 20, of Upper Mercer Road, Alvarez Lopez, 46, of Store Drive, Petit Valley, and Stephen Khan, 50, of North Post Road, were shot by gunmen. The men were liming when they were approached by three armed men who opened fire on them. Phillip died at the scene. Investigators said Phillip was a suspect in several murders and the other men may have been bystanders.

Homicide officers believe both killings were gang-relat-ed. Investigations continued into several other killings which occurred this weekend. Corie Charles, 30, a “PH” driver, of Chocolate Alley, was shot dead on Duke Street and Marion Delpesche, 18, was killed in Point Cumana on Friday. On Saturday, the body of a man was found on Blanchisseuse Road, Arima, and an unknown man was murdered at Upper Thomasine Street. There has been an average of 36 murders a month since August.

This makes probable the prospect of December’s body count hitting the 19 required to make 2013 an even bloodier year than 2012. This weekend brought the mur-der count for 2013 to 360, which dampens the hope for a reduction from last year’s total of 379 murders. This spike in the toll comes as the nation mourns six-year-old Keyana Cumberbatch, brutally murdered and sexually assaulted by her killer before being placed in a barrel in her mother’s apartment.

Up until August, the statistics told a different tale. Reports showed an alleviation in the murder toll with an average of 30 murder a month: a modest improvement from the average of 34 for the same period in 2012. The murder rate in 2012 had already shot up 12 per cent from 2011. If the killing continues, 2013 could be the second year in a row that the annual toll has risen.

MEMBERS of a Child Protection Task Force were announced yester-day, and will be charged with reviewing all exist-ing policies, legislation and protocols in place to protect children. The task force will meet this week, bringing together the nation’s top advocates for the rights, protection and well-being of children.

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar Sunday announced the formation of the unit, after following last week’s murder of six-year-old Keyana Cumberbatch. In her dying moments, Key-ana was sexually assaulted by her killer, an autopsy

revealed on Friday. She died as a result of massive cerebral trauma. She was found in her apartment at Building 4, Maloney Gar-dens, D’Abadie, in a barrel, beneath articles of clothing, days after she was reported missing.

Last Friday, Persad-Bis-sessar described the killing as “a tragedy that is sim-ply too horrific to imag-ine.” Sunday she met with Keyana’s mother, Simone Williams, and other rela-tives. She was accompanied by Gender, Youth and Child Development Minister Clif-ton de Coteau. During the visit, the PM gave the assur-ance that “the State will pro-vide every possible support to the family in their time of grief and anguish.”

She said: “It is very hard to imagine the depth of agony being experi-enced by Ms Williams, as well as her relatives and friends. This is not a moment that any parent or any person can ever be prepared for. And what happened to Keyana is something no child must ever have to experience.”

Kamla forms Task

Force

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar

Jamaica just ‘scratching the surface’ on energy

conservation — TomblinMONTEGO BAY, St James — President and CEO of light and power company Jamai-ca Public Service Company (JPS), Kelly Tomblin, has given Jamaica a failing grade on energy conservation.

Citing that “a recent study shows that Jamaica’s energy conservation is seven times the global average”, Tomblin contends that the country has only barely begun to be energy efficient.

“I mean seven times worse. And I want to underscore that. Because whenever I talk to customers who are hurting very badly, they tell me, ‘Kelly I have done everything I can. I am as

energy efficient as I possibly can be’. I promise you we are just scratching the surface on energy conservation and energy efficiency,” she concluded.

“We cannot spend one more dollar on fuel than we have to. When I see people ironing for three hours a day with the inefficient irons... when the dryer is being run with only four items... same thing for a washer, that’s not energy efficiency,” she emphasised.

She said having listened to customers, the light and power company has embarked on an “energy revolution” with the opening of the E-store that sells

energy-efficient products.“Customers weren’t asking

us for ecumenical changes. They were asking us for some-thing grander, something bigger, something different; a real ener-gy revolution, and we think we are the people to help lead that,” Tomblin stated.

She was speaking at the launch of the company’s flag-ship E-store, located at the Bay-west Centre in Montego Bay, St James, on Friday.

She recalled the initial apprehension with which the E-store initiative was met.

“There were sceptics when we started. People felt JPS won’t do that, JPS won’t be that. And I hope, every day, that we give you a sample or some evidence that yes, we can, we mean it and we are going to be a different service provider for you [so] that in 2014 your customer experience will be different,” she added.

“I want to thank every customer in this room for your business. Trust me, we rise and fall with you. JPS, like you, is facing its own challenges. But I promise you, yes, we can; we can beat our challenges and we can rise together,” she stressed.

Guest speaker, Minister of State in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce Sha-ron Ffolkes Abrahams — who commended the utility company — reiterated the significance of energy conservation in lessening the country’s oil importation bill.

“I know some of you may be thinking: Why is the JPS trying to make us spend less for electricity? Would it not be in their interest for us to spend more? The reality is that con-servation is critical for all of us, and that include the JPS. The less we spend on imported oil, for example, the better things will be for all of us,” remarked Ffolkes Abrahams, who is also the member of Parliament for West Central St James.

“Let me commend (you) Miss Tomblin and the other members of your team on this very important initiative, and as you continue to partner with your customers so that they can better understand and manage their energy us-age,” she added.

(Barbados Advocate) EXTENDING the mandatory age for education in Barbados and taking advantage of the skills and knowledge of the Barbadian Diaspora are two of the major ways that this island can lift its head out of the global economic crisis.

This is the belief of Barbadian Olympian and Satellite Sys-tems Scientist at Telesat, Dr. Victor Gooding who delivered the 38th Sir Winston Scott Memorial Lecture at the Frank Collymore Hall recently.

Speaking on ‘View From 45 Years North: A Barbadian in Canada,’ he said that extending the school leaving age from 16 years to 18 years old would ensure that these students are allowed to develop to their fullest capacity as the extra two years would provide them with more time to develop their skills and knowledge.

This includes the educational capabilities necessary to pro-mote entrepreneurship and to develop innovation which means that “transformation to the Barbados educational system as it stands now is required.”

It also involves the education system teaching these young persons to think for themselves instead of just regurgitating the information that they have learnt in the various subjects in their respective classrooms as this would help to develop well-round-ed citizens.

“This approach doesn’t apply only to science, because it is important that we develop well-rounded individuals. So you want programmes that involve fine arts, business and you also want a variety of sports,” he contended.

By extension, the development of these skills garnered from the extended two years of education would help these youth stay away from crime and being unemployed.

As for utilising the skills of the Barbadian Diaspora, the Satellite Systems Scientist stated that this could have significant advantages for this nation, especially considering the level of expertise that some of these Diaspora have.

“Given the significant, diverse and extensive experience and accomplishments of our overseas nationals, I strongly be-lieve that the unique perspectives and inputs from those abroad represent valuable and important contributions to the ongoing restructuring of the country’s social and economic platform.”

However, what is not needed at this point – or at any other point in a country’s development – is those persons who sit idly by and do nothing more than criticise everything that they see and hear without making any valuable contributions themselves. (PJT)

Build on knowledge

Gang war continues in Diego ...


EDITORIAL

GUYANA

die-hard PPP member. He must be the only person on planet earth who has ever applied in writing for a ministerial appointment. He applied to President Bharrat Jagdeo for the position of Minister of Finance when Sasenarine Kowlessar demitted office. Perhaps he felt that one Sasenarine should replace another. When Dr. Ashni Singh was chosen instead, all hell broke loose. Bharrat Jagdeo and the PPP suddenly became devils. To think that he is even a match, intellectual and otherwise, for Dr. Ashni Singh vividly illustrates his mental state.

Corruption is Sasenarine Singh’s favourite topic on which he writes. Perhaps he thinks that readers have short memo-ries. I recall a few years ago a businessman was on television complaining that while Sasenarine Singh was employed at the National Flour Mill, he extracted money from the businessman and in return guaranteed the businessman a regular supply of flour. In fact, a businessman claimed that he purchased a car for this very Sasenarine Singh in this corrupt scheme of ex-tortion. When these disclosures were made, Sasenarine Singh threatened to file legal proceedings. We never heard of any proceedings filed.

These guys are a bunch of mavericks. The quicker people ignore them, the better for everyone.

REEAZ HOLLIDAR.

This bunch of mavericks must be ignored

SASENARINE Singh, Emile Mervin, Dr. Asquith Rose and Har-ish Singh have many commonalities. They are all residing in the United States of America. They inundate the letter columns of our newspapers with writings. From the length and frequency of these writings, they do not appear to be gainfully employed. They are all critics of the PPP/C Administration.

These gentlemen have intentionally chosen to migrate from Guyana to the first world, presumably, to eke out a better existence. It does not appear that they are successful. One would expect that they would try to improve their lot where they are. However, that is not the case. From the comfort of their first-world home, they bombard us in Guyana with their views, as they relentlessly attempt to shape public opinion and influence governance in Guyana. Their adopted home must have thousands of newspapers. What happens in the political arena in the U.S. will have a greater impact on their lives than what happens in Guyana. Why they do not write about American politics in the U.S. newspapers is mind-boggling. They prefer to pollute us with their toxic raving and ranting. I appeal to readers to ignore them.

They do not appear to be either credible or stable. After writing for years, jointly, with Sasenarine Singh, in support of the A.F.C., Dr. Asquith Rose, suddenly, one day jumped ship and is now a bap-tized supporter of APNU. His ex-sidekick, Sasenarine Singh, was a

On the second anniversary of Guyana’s Eighth Presidency…

NO ONE ANTICIPATED THE DESTRUCTIVE REALITY BROUGHT BY THE APNU/AFC ONE-SEAT MAJORITYTODAY marks the second anniversary of the commencement of Guyana’s Eighth Presidency.

On December 3, 2011, Donald Rabindranauth Ramotar took the oath of presidential office and assumed the helm of Govern-ment, under circumstances that were completely unprecedented in this country’s history. He became president and head of an executive that did not, for the first time in the history of Guya-nese Government, have a parliamentary majority.

There was much anticipation by some about the “new dis-pensation” that an Opposition-controlled Parliament heralded and all that this promised for Guyana. There can be few, how-ever, who could possibly have anticipated the dysfunctional, unproductive, and utterly destructive reality that the APNU/AFC one-seat parliamentary majority brought with it. This 10th parliament of Guyana has witnessed the hijacking of the speakership and deputy speakership by the APNU/AFC one-seat majority; indiscriminate cuts to the national budget; obstruction of critical developmental projects; and legislative filibustering and foot-dragging with the aim of bringing Guyana into disre-pute in the international community.

If one were to examine the items cut by the APNU/AFC from the national budget in 2012 and 2013, one would observe an array of obvious development projects aimed at improving the circumstances of the Guyanese people and the competitiveness of our country, with the inescapable conclusion being that the Opposition had no concern for the people or nation of Guyana in expunging these items from the budget.

Much the same can be said about their steadfast undermining of the Amaila project and the Money Laundering Bill. Ignoring the views and voices of thousands of Guyanese persons and, in particular, the voices of legitimate stakeholders, including the organised private sector and labour, they persisted in obstructing these two important national initiatives, undermining investor interest in Guyana, and inflicting injury on Guyana’s credibility internationally.

With this background in mind, it is to the credit of President Donald Ramotar and the Government he leads that the country has continued to make visible progress. The economy has con-tinued to grow, investors have continued to come to Guyana and consummate their projects, jobs have continued to be created and persons have remained in work, infrastructure has continued to be built and rehabilitated, and notwithstanding the frustrations faced in Parliament, progress has been made with the legislative agenda, all of this, despite the best efforts to stymie progress. These accomplishments should not in any way be trivialised, especially given the most challenging circumstances in which they came.

Furthermore, the current presidency has been marked by a demonstrated and concerted effort to involve and engage the Opposition on all matters of national importance. On the Amaila project, the President convened meetings with the Opposition and participated in these meetings himself, making his entire technical team available to the Opposition, answering every

question that was asked and supplying every item of information that was requested, only to be greeted at the end by an adverse vote. The same can be said of the Money Laundering Bill, in which case President Ramotar’s administration placed the Bill before a special select committee, spared no effort to have that committee complete its work on time, all to no avail, as the APNU/AFC opposition persisted with their agenda to frustrate its timely passage and damage the nation’s credibility. This has been the inescapable pattern of the Parliament.

It is to the credit of President Ramotar and his Govern-ment that such a strong chorus of national support was built around the major initiatives taken to Parliament. The public indignation at the budget cuts, the shock and anger at the obstruction of Amaila, the palpable outrage and disbelief at the vote against the money-laundering legislation, all point to

a stakeholder community and public at large that are in tune with President Ramotar’s Government’s position on issues of national importance.

When it comes to the question of representing the best long-term interests of the people of Guyana, Pres-ident Ramotar’s administration would undoubtedly emerge favourably on account of its performance over this first two years and the position it took on all of the major issues of national importance that emerged during this period.

It remains to be seen for how much longer, and how much more frequently, the APNU/AFC one-seat majority can try to ignore the largest party in Parliament, the na-tion’s stakeholder community, and the Guyanese public at large. They do so at their own peril.

Midwives conference 2013 aimed at increased awareness

THE 2013 annual Midwives Conference was held last Friday at Regency Suites Hotel in an effort to increase awareness among midwives about the key and current issues with regards to maternal health; midwifery practices and edu-cation and to develop strategies to advance the midwifery profession.

The conference brought together midwives from the 10 adminis-trative regions and was aimed at highlighting proper health care prac-tices among them as they are considered key health care providers for achieving the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of ‘Improving Maternal Health’.

500 MORE NEW DOCTORS

Minister of Health, Dr. Bheri Ramsaran in his address to the midwives pointed out that they are invaluable to the health sector with regards to the assistance they provide to doctors. He added that 500 more new doctors will be deployed into the health system and urged the midwives to assist in training them.

He explained also that the Maternity Ward Inspectorate Unit is concentrated in finding where the problems are within the hospital wards so things can be improved. The unit is made up of members of the Women’s Affairs Bureau, the Gender and Equality Commission, Red Thread and Women’s Progressive Organisation, among others. Unexpected visits are paid to the ward by the Units to determine if all is going as it should and required standards are met.

Minister Ramsaran observed that maternal mortality has been stabilised and commended nurses who were called to go on

emergency trips into the regions. He also commended regional midwives who follow-up on their patients who disobey their medical instructions. The minister said that 99% of maternal deaths are caused by hemorrhaging and lauded the fact that the Blood Bank is ahead in its collection rate which helps with safe motherhood.

The Health Minister also explained the twinning of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation with the West Demerara Regional Hospital which is being under-utilised. This, he said, was obligatory since the heavy workload of the nurses, as well as overcrowding at the GPHC would be eased with moving or transfer of patients.

Presidential Advisor on Governance and former Health Minister, Gail Teixeira who delivered the feature address to the midwives told them in no uncertain terms that they were specialists. She explained that their work involves dedication, advocacy, and assessment and experience which all help them during the course of their work to determine if everything is all right or something is wrong. Ms. Teixeira said this was especially so with the accumulation of expe-rience. She urged the midwives to continue their work with the aim of moving ahead and becoming better.

The conference was held under the theme “Midwives: Improving Women’s Health in Guyana”. Topics covered were cultural practices and beliefs in pregnancy and childbirth, respectful maternal care, maternal death audit and surveil-lance, ruptured uterus and malaria in pregnancy, bathing the infant and what is affecting midwives in the performance of their role and possible solutions. (GINA)


This situation needs urgent attention…

School children commuting on the Pomeroon travel without protection of life jackets

By Shirley Thomas

WHY would parents of school-aged children in the Pomeroon refuse the offer to have their children accommo-dated at dorms provided by the Regional Administration at Charity and Anna Regina, thus daily exposing them to dangerous modes of travel costing exorbitant prices?

The Regional Administra-tion has long been trying to grapple with this dilemma; and while it is the general percep-tion that parents would prefer to have their children ‘live under their own roof’, with the steady increase in the cost of fuel, parents are beginning to ‘feel the squeeze’, and some are crying out.

The Guyana Chronicle re-cently discussed with residents in the Charity/Pomeroon area the problem of the steep speed-boat travel costs. Residents claimed that many of the chil-dren travelling from Grants along the Lower Pomeroon to attend primary and secondary schools at Charity have to pay one-way speedboat costs rang-ing between $500 (for smaller children) and $1,000 for older ones (depending on where in the Pomeroon they live). And for those attending schools at Anna Regina, there is the added minibus fare, which could be about $500 return.

Simply put, it could, at min-imum, cost anything between $1500 and $2000 per day per child. For households where say three children have to travel from the Pomeroon to Charity

from Monday to Friday and for lessons on Saturdays, this could cost a pretty penny.

Some families are now pro-posing that the regional admin-istration introduce a special boat service for school children at a reduced cost, so as to ease the financial burden on parents’ pockets.

The Guyana Chronicle raised this request with the Regional Executive Officer for Pomeroon-Supenaam, Mr. Sunil Singh, who recalled that, sometime in the past, a private humanitarian arrangement had been put in place to facilitate reduced travel cost to school children. However, for reasons unknown to him, the service was discontinued.

Singh also reminded that Region Two is operating four dormitories at Charity, Anna Regina, Pomona and Wakapao to benefit children living far distances away from school. Charity dorm alone can accom-modate 200 students. However, it is unfortunate, he said, that all of these facilities are currently under-utilized.

Under such circumstanc-es, the regional administration would like to reiterate its call to parents to make use of the safe and comfortable facilities provided for the children. The added benefits, he said, would be that, with the daily rigours of travelling up and down the waterways removed, children would be able to focus more time and attention on school work.

However, one of the con-cerns foremost in the parents’ minds is the incidence of

‘demonic attacks’ children at the Charity dorms have come under from time to time; and so, naturally, parents have reservations.

In the meantime, speedboat operatives are resolutely hold-ing on to their fare structures, claiming that it would not be cost effective for them to reduce their fares, since they have to contend with steadily rising fuel costs.

DANGEROUS TRAVELBut even as speed boat

operatives haggle for their fares and refuse to flex, it was ob-served that they are committing a fundamental breach of the Maritime Laws by not providing life jackets for their passengers.

The use of life-jackets is seemingly alien to persons ply-ing the Pomeroon waterways, and everyone seems comfort-able with that. And this is de-spite the Pomeroon waterway being currently littered with floating dry coconuts which, coming into contact with pro-pellers of boats, could prove disastrous.

Asked for a comment on this development, the Regional Executive Officer gave this publication this grim prognosis: “Depending on the speed at which the boat is travelling, if a coconut is hit by a 200 H.P. mo-tor, everybody would be thrown overboard.”

Singh said the regional ad-ministration has collaborated with the maritime administra-tion to carry out campaigns ad nauseam, attempting to sensitize the public about the importance of wearing life jackets when travelling in open boats; but the travelling public in that part of the region has not been viewing the situation with the serious-ness it deserves, and so have not been complying.

Many contend the travelling public from Pomeroon does not want to share life jackets with other people. And even though, in the interest of their personal safety, they are free to provide their own jackets, they still con-tinue to travel without jackets.

MARITIME INTERVENTION

But there’s news for the defaulting speedboat operatives. The maritime administration is reminding licensed speedboat operators of their obligation to provide life jackets for their passengers before taking off on any journey.

Contacted, Director of Maritime Safety, Mr. Stephen Thomas, said there is a penalty for certified operators failing to equip their vessels and provide passengers with life jackets, and that is because they could be prosecuted and fined, or have their operational licences suspended. Accordingly, the administration is moving to intensify its campaign to get speedboat operators to comply with the rule.

Meanwhile, Thomas said, as an incentive to getting people to use life jackets, the Maritime Administration has,

of late, been distributing free life jackets in hope that re-cipients are making good use of them. He said that, earlier in the year, the people of Pomeroon were issued about 100 jackets; and just last

week, areas in the Demerara river were targeted.

Reiterating his call for compliance, Thomas would like to remind the travelling public of the seriousness of wearing life-jackets. “Life

jackets are important. They save lives in the event of a river disaster, and offer even greater life protection than a seat belt in an automobile would in a motor vehicular crash,” he said.

School children at Charity who have to travel into the Pomeroon River wear no life jackets and are exposed to dangerous travel. (Shirley Thomas photos)


Corporal punishment is also

a national issue – Chief Education Officer

By Tash Van Doimen

CHIEF Education Officer, Olato Sam says corporal punishment is not just a Ministry of Education issue but a national issue that requires the collective understanding of all national institutions and bodies.

In an interview with the Chief Education Officer on Monday morning he told the Guyana Chronicle: “Corporal punishment is not just a ministry issue but a national issue; consultations were conducted at the highest levels to reveal the views of the public on corporal punishment and the findings showed that most Guyanese are divided on the issue.”

He continued: “There is no general consensus. However it is necessary for Guyana’s leaders to shape and define direction for the best interest of the nation in keeping with the contemporary international system. This issue requires collective understanding.”

In 2012, the Ministry of Education completed a National Consultation on the draft Educa-tion Bill 2008, including the issue of prohibiting corporal punishment in schools. By January 2013, a Parliamentary Special Select Committee was appointed to examine the issue and receive representations from civil society.

Throughout the last year the Government of Guyana launched a series of consultations on the abolition of corporal punishment in schools as well as a panel discussion hosted by Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand.

Earlier this year the consultations revealed that there is no consensus on the issue of abol-ishing corporal punishment in schools. It is an issue that individuals are either staunchly for or against.

Additionally, a survey by the Ministry of Education on the use of corporal punishment in schools, announced in June 2007, revealed that 53% of schools use corporal punishment and 47% do not. (Guyana progress report: www.endcorporalpunishment.org)

By Tash Van Doimen

THE Ministry of Education launched its Culture Village and Art Exhibition 2013 on Monday morning at the Umana Yana in Kingston, Georgetown.

The event is the first of the ‘Week of Events’ planned by the Ministry of Education in honour of the visiting delegates from the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) and the top awardees for the Caribbean Examinations.

Guyana will be hosting the 45th Annual Caribbean Examina-tions Council Governance Meeting later this week. In honour of the event the Ministry of Education is hosting a Culture Village and Art Exhibition to showcase Guyanese talent and arts at the Umana Yana.

Chief Education Officer, Olato Sam, welcomed visitors to the exhibition and declared it open for viewing. He said: “The 45th CXC Governance meeting will put Guyana on display; hence the Ministry of Education agreed to host this Culture Exhibition to display all aspects of Guyana’s culture; the things that make Guyana wonderful that we are proud of.”

Superintendent of Examinations and Local Registrar for CXC, Saudia Kadir, assured the Guyana Chronicle that the Culture Village and Art exhibition is open to the public. She said: “The culture village is open to the public so all are invited to come out and enjoy this wonderful display of Guyanese culture, not only the delegates.”

The exhibition includes a display of Guyanese art and craft, clothing, paintings, pottery, leather and coconut products and even items made of corn starch.

The management of the Guyana Entertainment magazine also participated in the event by donating several complimentary copies of the locally produced lifestyle and entertainment mag-azine.

The Culture Village and Art Exhibition will be opened from Monday December 2 to Friday December 6 at the Umana Yana from 099:00hrs to 17.00 hrs daily.

The Ministry of Education plans a ‘Week of Events’ in honour of the delegates and awardees visiting Guyana for the 45th Annual Caribbean Examinations Council Governance Meeting which will be hosted by Guyana on Friday morning.

The week of events began with the Culture Village and Art Exhibition at the Umana Yana which opened yesterday morning and will continue until Friday afternoon. The CXC delegates and top awardees will be taken on a trip to Kaieteur Falls and Baganara

Culture Village and Art Exhibition at Umana Yana to be open until Friday

A local artist showcases her pattern designs and pottery

Resort on Tuesday.And courtesy calls will be conducted tomorrow morning

to President Donald Ramotar and Opposition Leader David Granger as well as other top Guyanese officials. In the afternoon, there will be a stakeholders meeting at the International Con-ference Centre to allow head teachers and teachers to raise any concerns and queries they might have regarding the Caribbean

Examinations Council. In addition, the opening of the official meeting and the Awards

Ceremony will be held at the National Cultural Centre on Thursday evening.

And finally the 45th Governance Meeting will be held on Friday morning, and the entire week of events will come to an end with a press conference on Friday afternoon.

Prisoner escapes from GPHC

NINETEEN-year-old Edgar Blackman of 9A Tucville, Georgetown has allegedly recently escaped from the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), where he had been re-ceiving medical treatment while under guard pending investigations into robbery under arms.

In making his escape, Blackman is alleged to have scaled the East Street fence of the hospital compound and disap-peared uninjured.

Sources said police officers consigned to guard the prisoner fired shots at, but failed to hit, their intended tar-get. In the process, they damaged windows of the hospital.

While there seems to be several stories surrounding the pris-oner’s escape, at least two persons from the institution have in-formed that the police officer left to guard the prisoner had fallen asleep, thus making it possible for the prison-er to escape. Another source told this publi-cation that the prisoner

was just being discharged when he made his escape after pretending he needed to use the washroom.

The damaged windows at the GPHC


Rohee calls for joint Opposition to undo error in Local Gov’t Bill

Mom turns in ‘Big Foot’ for questioning in hotelier’s murder

THE young man who was identified in a wanted bulletin in connection with the murder of South Central Hotel proprietor, Joseph Alexander Jagdeo, was handed over

to the police on Saturday a f -ternoon by his mother.

Brian ‘Big F o o t ’ L e i t c h w a s w a n t e d fo r ques t i on -i n g o v e r t h e murder of the hotelier whose b o d y w a s found , bound and gagged on November 14, 2013, under a

bed in Room 10 of the hotel at 218 South Road, George-town.

The 19-year-old remained in police custody assisting with investigations.

By Vanessa Narine

THE President’s assent to three of the four local government bills is an indication of his support, on behalf of the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C), towards having those elec-tions soon, according to General Secretary of the ruling party, Clement Rohee.

And Rohee said the joint op-position should use the President’s non assent as an opportunity to undo the errors contained in the fourth bill, which was not assent-ed to.

The four local government reform bills are the Fiscal Trans-fers Bill 2012, the Municipal and District Councils (Amendment) Bill 2012, the Local Government Commission Bill, and the Local Government (Amendment) Bill 2012.

The latter was not signed by President Donald Ramotar as he termed the Bill unconstitutional, since it seeks to remove ministerial control over local authorities.

The PPP General Secretary stressed that the original provi-

Cool Square surveillance

camera pictures tendered in court

- to support evidence at murder trial

By George Barclay

PICTURES captured by surveillance cameras in the com-pound of Cool Square on the night of an alleged murder were shown at the trial yesterday to support the evidence of a star witness for the prosecution.

Star witness Mr. Andre Patterson, manager of the Cool Square business, said that after he heard the explosion, he learnt that Harding was killed. He carried out an inspection and then consulted his cameras.

According to him, “I was able to recognize two men who participated in the alleged robbery/murder – a fair skinned man whom I can recognize if I see him again, and the accused Junior Bourne, the man accused of the killing of Rawle Harding.

Patterson said that Cool Square had been in operation for the past 16 years. He said that at about 9.30 p.m. on that date, he arrived at the business and went into the bar area, where he saw Mr. Rawle Harding with two friends drinking. “I had a conversation with him, then I went upstairs and retired to bed,” Patterson said.

Witness declared that while he was in bed, at about quarter to eleven, he was awakened by an explosion. He went downstairs to see what had happened, and observed that there was a hole in Harding’s chest. He did not see any blood.

Witness said that he went back upstairs and reviewed the camera footage. From the review, he saw the two men enter the bar, call on the waitress who was working at the time, bought a drink and began sipping at it. Later they launched an attack on Mr. Harding, both of them being armed with firearms.

After they attacked Mr. Harding, they began relieving him of his jewellery. Another shot was fired, and then Mr. Harding fell. One of the men jumped over the counter and into the bar. He opened a drawer and took some cash from it.

Witness told the judge and jury that the accused sitting in the dock was one of the men who had entered the bar that night and killed Mr. Harding.

In answer to defence counsel Mr. Huckumchand, witness said he did not make a mistake. He had viewed the film over and over again, and had recognized the accused by his face.

The video was shown, but neither the defence nor the pros-ecution asked Paterson any question.

The hearing continues today.State Prosecutrix Miss Natasha Backer is prosecuting.

Justice James Bovell-Drakes is presiding.

sions of the bill recommended that the Neighbourhood Demo-cratic Council benefit from the task force’s recommendations. He made it clear that the task force’s recommendations were a result of consultations that ought not be thrown out the window for political reasons.

Rohee also lauded the work of the Guyana Elections Commis-sion (GECOM) in getting underway with preparations for the hosting of local government elections.

Following passage of the four bills, GECOM Chairman Dr. Steve Surujbally said the Commission was fully equipped and ready to stage the elections. He said GECOM has already demarcated the various boundaries and constituencies, a total of 71 districts; and each of these areas has been targeted for voters’ education.

The GECOM Chairman also noted that the Commission has support from foreign donors to cover its Budget.

Rohee pointed out that the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, on behalf of the Government, has also been hosting seminars and workshops with relevant stakeholders in an effort to promote education.

Other activities are scheduled for this month.The General Secretary made it clear that the People’s Progressive

Party continues to monitor other initiatives in the preparation for local government elections, which have not been held in Guyana since 1994.

Local government elections were last held in 1970. Subse-quent to 1994, the elections could not be conducted because they had coincided with the general and regional elections of 1997.

General Secretary Clement Rohee

Brian ‘Big Foot’ Leitch

By Savitri Laikram

WITH its mandate to provide betterment for all Guyanese, the Government of Guyana through the Ministry of Legal Affairs is fervently working to provide a better judicial system by ren-ovating and establishing a number of courts in various areas.

Minister of Legal Affairs and Attorney General, Anil Nandlall in an exclusive interview with this publication last Friday at his office at Carmichael Street, Georgetown, indicated that while some of the courts have been completed and will soon become operational, others are a work in progress.

He noted that when these courts have been completed, it is the responsibility of the judiciary to have them become operational.

Minister Nandlall pointed out that the Wales Magistrates’ Court (West Bank Demerara) and the Leonora Magistrates’ Court (West Coast Demerara) have been completed. He said also that the rehabilitation of the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court has been completed.

Additionally, air condition units have been installed in all the courtrooms, the chambers of the magistrates and all other offices in the buildings. However, the acquisition of additional furnishings is still ongoing.

Minister Nandlall noted that while additional furniture is being awaited, he has been informed by the acting Registrar of the Supreme Court of Judicature, Mr Rashid Mohammed, that existing furniture which had been removed from the court will be returned and this process was said to have started last Friday.

FAMILY COURT

The Attorney General said that he was also informed by the Registrar that the furnishing of the Family Court is still a work in progress. The Guyana Prison Service was contracted to do most of the work, but this has not yet been completed.

This new facility will handle issues such as divorce, division of property, domestic matters, adoption, guardianship and custody.

The new, two-storey building, has replicated the architectural

Renovation of some courts completed, to be operational soon

- others are a work in progressstyle of the Supreme Court, its adjoining mediation centre and library.

UNSATISFACTORY WORK PERFORMANCE

Minister Nandlall further stated that he was informed by the Registrar, that with regard to the Lethem Magistrates’ Court, the original contract was awarded to Horizon Electrical and Associates in July 2011 and was termed phase one for the construction of the building. Another contract was termed phase two and awarded again to Horizon in July 2012 for external works.

Despite several extensions being granted to the contractor, only 87 percent of the works on phase 1 (construction of the building) and 90 percent on phase 2 (external works) have been completed.

The Registrar also reported that both projects were terminated on May 21, 2013 for unsatisfactory work performance. Another contract titled phase 3 was awarded by the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) in October to R. Kissoon Contracting Services to complete both of the projects.

Materials have already been purchased for the construction of court furnishings and works are moving smoothly and the completion date is expected to be in February 2014.

LINDEN MAGISTRATES’ COURT

The Registrar in his report to the Legal Affairs Minister noted that phases 1 and 2 of the Linden Magistrates’ Court project were awarded to Horizon Electrical Associates and General Construction in November 2011 and July 2012 respectively, but as in the case of the Lethem Magistrates’ Court, the contracts were terminated in May 2013 for unsatisfactory work performance.

Another contract was awarded by the NPTAB to Pioneer General Construction to complete both of the projects by November 2013 (phase three) but as October approached, only five percent of the works had been completed.

After some amount of delays, the contractor was contacted and work has recommenced with an undertaking that the project would be completed by December 2013.


By Tash Van Doimen

WORKERS of the Nation-al Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) intensified their drainage plan works Fri-day morning, putting into op-eration two open back trucks and an excavator to clear the canal between Vlissengen Road and Irving Street.

The work is part of the NDIA’s Drainage Plan to pre-pare for the rainy season and reduce the occurrence of flood-ing. The workers were tasked with clearing the canal of all debris to allow the water to flow freely, thereby reducing the pos-sibility of water accumulation in the area.

And within the next few days the work team was expect-ed to clear the canal separating Vlissengen Road and Irving Street from Church Street to Carifesta Avenue. This work is intended to improve drainage and irrigation in the city with the release of any excess water.

Two open back trucks and an excavator that were seen working along Irving Street removing the overgrown grass and build-up of garbage from the canal hindered the flow of

NDIA workers intensify drainage works

A 29-year-old gold miner is lucky to have survived after a portion of a mud wall in a gold-mining pit caved in on him at Waramadong, Region 7 last Thursday. He was air-dashed to the Georgetown Public Hospital where he was admitted.

The victim, Subryan Joe, suffered a broken left leg and is currently a patient at the Male Surgical Ward of the institution.

Joe recalls that around 16:00 hrs, he and two other men were about closing off operations for the day and were sitting under the wall checking soil when suddenly a portion of the wall caved in. It struck him on the left side, from his head down. He collapsed and had to be rescued by the other men who, fortunately, were not injured.

His condition is stable, but doctors are continuing to monitor him.

Drainage Works: The excavator at work scooping out debris from the canal between Irving Street and Vlissengen Road (Photo by Sonell Nelson)

traffic and left a trail of slush and muddied water along the road.

Early in November, Min-ister of Agriculture, Dr Leslie Ramsammy had said that the NDIA was going to take extra care to monitor drainage and irrigation structures as well as equipment and machinery. He explained that they would be working closely with all the Regional Democratic Councils and pump station operators to ensure that they have enough lubricants and 48 hours of fuel available at all times.

OUTFALL DREDGINGMeanwhile, the NDIA is

also working to speed up out-fall dredging in Regions 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 and ensure that all pumps are ready for continuous operation. Additionally, they will be deploying a minimum of 20 mini-excavators to vari-ous communities to help with maintenance of secondary and tertiary structures.

Last Wednesday a heavy and prolonged downpour caused accumulation of water in parts of Region 2, 3 and 4 as well as flooding in Georgetown which severely affected some

commercial and residential areas. The inclement weather caused inconvenience to per-sons in their daily routine at business places as well as the suspension of schools.

Meanwhile, President Don-ald Ramotar has expressed pro-found concern for citizens and businesses located in George-town who were severely im-pacted by the flooding. The Head of State said that even though the 5.1 inches of rain-fall was a lot for the six-hour period, the impact could have been significantly lessened had there been a better functioning City Council.

“The APNU manages the City; they are in control of the City at this point in time, and we have seen a lot of neglect,” the President lamented.

Over the last few years, the Government of Guyana has pumped in millions of dollars to bail out a heavily indebted City Council as a result of misman-agement of its resources.

At the moment, the govern-ment through the Ministries of Agriculture and Public Works, is doing all that it can to remove floodwater from the land as quickly as possible.

Gold miner survives as pit caves in

The President posited that hopefully with the holding of the long-awaited local gov-ernment elections, this situ-ation will be resolved soon.

Heavy rainfall that flooded Region 4 and parts of Regions

2 and 3 was attributed to a high pressure system over the Bermuda which forced the Inter-tropical Convergence Zone (ICTZ) to shift from its last position, to about six degrees north of the equator,

bringing it directly over Guy-ana’s Coast.

The rainfall recorded at the Botanical Gardens mea-sured 128.9mm or 5.1 inches, the highest recorded in the city since 1892.

Science and technology not being harnessed in Caribbean

– PM, Education Minister at Caribbean Science workshoption, noted that while Guyana is bringing home the science prizes at the regional level, there is lot more to be done locally and regionally. “As a Region, we cannot be satisfied with the level of science, technology and mathematics education,” she said.

She explained that in Guy-ana, a larger number of students needed to be attracted to the field, to be able to accelerate national policy. Pointing out that science classes need to have the old traditional method of teach-ing replaced, the minister said that secondary school students lose their way because of the way the subject is taught.

PRIME Minister Samuel Hinds yesterday expressed concern that the science and technology sector is not being harnessed in the Caribbean.

Speaking at the two-day Caribbean Science Foundation’s third annual science workshop at the Grand Coastal Hotel, he noted that the sector can be im-proved at several levels.

The workshop was hosted in collaboration with the Ministry of Education of Guyana and the Caribbean Diaspora for Science, Technology and Innovation.

PM Hinds expressed con-cern that while the Caribbean does not share enough of its education for the development

of its people, this may be due to the system not being suffi-ciently harnessed to lead to the development of Guyana and the Caribbean.

He urged that persons in the field engage in closer col-laboration, and create improved networking between those at home and in the Diaspora.

PM Hinds also observed that while the workshop would generate in students the reali-sation and challenge that their contribution would help them advance, there is potential in having revised methods in the presentation of education.

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand, in her presenta-

She explained that this has been recognised in the draft National Science and Technol-ogy Policy, and while initiatives have seen the introduction of the subject in Grades 5 and 6, where great results have been recorded, the curriculum is also being reviewed to make improvements.

Micro science kits are being used in 40 secondary schools with the others slated to receive theirs by the end of 2015. She explained that for the policies drafted to be adopted and to be successful, partners are nec-essary.

She noted that the workshop was taking place at an oppor-

tune time, bringing together experts in the various fields of science. “Power of collaboration will propel our development as a country, as a people and as a Region,” she concluded.

Professsor Arnoldo Ventura, of Mico University, Jamaica, said the workshop will stimu-late improved understanding, without which chronic and emerging problems will remain unresolved. He observed that while the workshop will provide methods and information that are appropriate in all jurisdic-tions, it will also focus on the Caribbean, because of its special culture and problems.

The topics during the first day of the workshop will cover highlighting science and tech-

Participants at the Caribbean Science Foundation Workshop

nology in the Region, Math and Science Education initiative (STEM) teacher training in the Region, trends in modern biol-ogy, implications for the Carib-bean, inquiry and project-based learning, and STEM, in addition to a focus on entrepreneurship.

Day two of the workshop will see the presentation of reports from the Caribbean Diaspora for Science, Technol-ogy & Innovation (CADSTI) branches within the Diaspora, including the United King-dom and the United States of America; and reports from the regional network of Ca-ribbean Science Foundation (CSF) which will include Guy-ana, Grenada and Antigua and Barbuda. (GINA)


For Wednesday December 04, 2013 -05:00hrs

For Tuesday December 03, 2013 -14:30hrs

For Thursday December 05,2013 -05:00hrs

FARMERS Tom Misir and Jasmattie Lakhan of Auro-ra Village on the Essequibo Coast have set up a plant nursery and are aiming to make Region 2 self-suf-ficient in the production of vegetables and also to export the excess to oth-

By Rajendra Prabhulall

SEVERAL vendors who have set up stalls without the permission of the Char-ity-Urasara Neighbourhood Democratic Council just in front of the Charity market sluice at the end of the road-way, are causing serious prob-lems in terms of drainage for the Charity community.

The illegal vending is also obstructing the regional ad-ministration from desilting the sluice channel which is blocked with tons of garbage, including hundreds of soft drink bottles and plastic bags.

Regional Chairman, Mr. Parmanand Persaud who visited Charity on Wednesday, inspect-ed the silted- up sluice channel. He said excavators will be sent to the site to clear the channel so residents can get relief in terms of drainage from the excess rainwater.

T h e R e g i o n a l C h a i r -man said the sluice is very important to drain the market, business places and residential areas at Charity.

Illegal vending near Charity Market sluice affecting community drainage - Regional Chairman

Mr. Persaud said the rainy season has just started and al-ready residents of the Charity Housing Scheme are complain-ing about a high build-up of rainwater in drains which is overflowing into their yards.

The Chairman who inspect-ed another sluice at the end of the Charity River defence dam said he saw another pile of garbage, including hundreds of plastic bottles and floating grass blocking the channel which stopped the flow of water into

the Pomeroon River.According to the him, the

canal that links to the sluice is connected to drains in the Charity Housing Scheme. He said the careless dumping of garbage by business owners and residents has led to the blocked sluice channel and accumulation of water in the housing scheme.

He said some residents of the housing area have filled their yards with earth during the dry season and have also

caused drains to be blocked, while others have placed narrow pipes and wooden kokers into drains, adding to the drainage problems.

Meanwhile, the Regional Chairman is urging residents and the business community at Charity to desist from dumping garbage into waterways. He also assured that should the rains continue, a mobile pump will be sent to Charity to help drain excess rainwater into the Pomeroon River.

Two Essequibo farmers set up plant nursery to push

vegetable productioner administrative regions and overseas.

According to Mr. Misir, the focus is to encourage Essequib-ians, especially households, to embark on gardening. He said his nursery currently has some 17,000 celery seedlings in stock which are blooming and ready for planting. The farmer, who is a retired sec-ondary school teacher and does farming on a large scale said he also cultivates green stem pak choi, red cabbage and lettuce.

Mr. Misir said he supplies the Imam Bacchus Supermarket at Affiance with fresh lettuce from his farm.

The farmer is encouraging r e s i d e n t s , e s p e c i a l l y housewives, to plant kitchen gardens so as to become self-sufficient in the production of vegetables for their families. Misir said he has sold 3,000 celery seedlings already to Essequibians from a stock of 20,000 plants at his nursery. (Rajendra Prabhulall)

Pick It up Guyana Campaign misrepresented IN response to an article which was placed on the November 29thonline edition of INEWS: www.inewsguyana.com, the Pick it up Guyana Campaign wishes to respond to the state-ments by APNU regarding the effectiveness of the campaign which is a drive to clean up our country through clean-up exercises, public awareness and collaboration among other governmental agencies, businesses and local communities.

The campaign is an initiative of the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment which encourages all citizens to join the efforts being made and clean up their community as part of the “Pick it Up Guyana” campaign, to adopt more environmentally sound practices, to rid our environment of the unsightly litter and garbage.

While components of the campaign include supporting community clean-ups and other environmental enhancement initiatives, “Pick it up Guyana” seeks to address one of the main causes of improper solid waste management; the atti-tudes of citizens towards their environment through various public awareness tools, inclusive of on-going education ses-sions with students and community groups; and Volunteer Empowerment Workshops hosted in various regions across the country.

Additionally, the ministry provides policy directive in this regard through the drafting of the Anti-Litter Regulations, and imposing a ban on Styrofoam importation effective June, 2014.

It must be noted that the collection and final disposal of garbage falls under the purview of the City Hall and the Ministry of Local Government, through its Neighbourhood Democratic Councils.

Further, the Ministry of Local Government is the lead agency on solid waste management. As such, the ministry is currently finalising its Solid Waste Management Bill which is expected to enhance the on-going efforts for a healthier environment.

Meanwhile, the Pick it up Guyana Campaign is dis-appointed that INEWS did not seek clarification before publishing such inaccuracies by discrediting the efforts and achievements of the campaign which is still on-going and receiving the support of all agencies, government ministries and the business sector .

Pick it up GuyanaEnvironmental Protection AgencyGanges Street, Sophia, Georgetown [email protected]

EnglishRacing TipsSouthwell08:15 hrs Bennys Well08:45 hrs Moorlands Jack09:15 hrs Midnight Macarena09:50 hrs Hannibal The Great10:20 hrs Stephanie Francis10:50 hrs Transfer11:20 hrs Delta Forty

Sedgefield09:00 hrs Dakar Run10;00 hrs Bright Applause10:30 hrs Ravi River11:00 hrs Monbeg11:30 hrs Vasco Pierji

Wolverhampton10:10 hrs Jordaura10:40 hrs Vodka Chaser11:10 hrs Bazooka11:40 hrs Royal Alcor12:10 hrs Cash Is King

12:40 hrs Heezararity13:10 hrs Brown Pete

South Africa Racing Tips

Vaal08:25 hrs Fighting Force09:05 hrs Magic Approach09:40 hrs Perfect Winter10:15 hrs Hang Fire10:50 hrs Wishful Heart11:25 hrs Savannah Montana

French Racing Tips

Deauville08:30 hrs Fitz Roy09:05 hrs Aquasif09:35 hrs Theo Danon10:05 hrs Special Request10:40 hrs O ‘ Brianth11:10 hrs Amerix11:40 hrs Commando Cat

plan to keep them in the running for the title.

As Malvern and GCC squared off in the final, striker Kerensa Fernandes set the pace with a neat deflection off a penalty corner pass to score the first goal for the Tigers and the match three minutes into play.

Ladies competition leading goal-scorer Krezia Layne, man-aged to produce a rare penalty corner goal for Malvern against tournament top goalkeeper and ladies MVP, Alysa Xavier in the sixth minute.

GCC’s Trisha Woodroffe however answered one minute later with a similar penalty cor-

ner strike for GCC to maintain their one goal lead at the half.

Five minutes into the sec-ond half, Captain Sonia Jardine produced a moment of brilliance in eliminating the defence down the right flank before drawing the goalkeeper and sliding her pass to Fernandes who scored her second of the match.

At 3-1 down and time against them, Malvern opted to withdraw their goalkeeper from the court in preference of an extra field player.

The tactic changed the com-plexion of the game as the Tigers defence struggled for a bit with the additional pressure.

The risk however left Mal-vern vulnerable in defence and with outstanding goalkeeping from Xavier, it was GCC who

would score next as youngest player of the side, Aliyah Gor-don, pounced on a loose ball after a goal-mouth scramble to score her first goal of the match four minutes from full time.

Layne managed to pull one goal back for Malvern in the dying minutes but it was too little too late as the Tigers held out for the 4-2 victory and fourth title of the Festival.

The Carib veterans’ final saw the younger Hickers out-run an aging GCC, with the game all but decided at 4-1 by half time.

The addition of Jera-zeno Bell to the defending champions’(Hickers) side put the game beyond GCC’s reach as Bell himself scored two of his team’s first half goals

while Amanda Garnett and James Mentore notched the other two.

GCC’s Alan Fernandes was on target with the first goal of the game in just the fourth min-ute but it was all Hickers for the rest of the half.

The second half belonged to former national captain and Hickers’ midfielder, Devin Munroe, whose athletic abil-ity made him a menace for the GCC defence.

Munroe was first to score in the second half of play be-fore GCC finally came alive through a Damon Woodroffe penalty corner and a Philip Fernandes field goal.

Munroe then scored two more to complete his hat- trick before GCC’s Alan Fernandes

scored his second of the match in the very final minute.

Canada’s Jonathan Rob-erts and Pardeep Koonar, both of Revamp HC, were voted MVP and best goalkeeper of the men’s competition while Queen’s Park’s Nicholas Wren was highest goal-scorer.

GCC’s Alysa Xavier was the recipient of both the MVP and best goalkeeper awards for the women while Malvern’s Krezia Layne was highest goal-scorer.

In the veterans’ competi-tion, Jerazeno Bell, making his veteran debut was voted MVP with Azad DeAbreu also of the Hickers being selected as Best goalkeeper.

GCC’s Philip Fernandes was the highest goal-scorer.

Revamp, Hikers and GCC Tigers share honours on ...

From Back Page

By Andrew Downie

SAO PAULO: (Reuters) - Just four days before the draw for the 2014 World Cup, FIFA faced yet another embarrass-ment when a Sao Paulo pros-ecutor opened an investigation into possible racism by soc-cer’s world governing body.

Brazil to probe FIFA in racism case ahead of World Cup draw

A Sao Paulo state prose-cutor has asked FIFA and the company it hired to organise Friday’s draw to explain why it chose two white-skinned actors to present the televised show instead of two black-skinned actors.

Two Afro-Brazilians had been suggested as possible hosts but were overlooked in favour of light-skinned model Fernanda Lima and her white husband Rodrigo Hilbert, a TV presenter, news magazine Veja reported without saying how it obtained the informa-tion.

“I opened the investigation due to the suspicion of a crime of racism on the part of FIFA, or by the company they select-ed to organise the show, GEO Eventos,” prosecutor Christia-no Jorge Santos told Reuters, adding that, if the report is true, he will seek to open criminal proceedings.

Lima and Hilbert do not represent the racial make-up in Brazil - a country where half the people declare them-selves either black or dark-skinned - “and so the change was not justified,” Santos added.

Santos asked FIFA, GEO Eventos, Veja and TV Globo, the broadcaster reported to have

suggested the black couple, well-known soap opera actors Lazaro Ramos and Camila Pi-tanga, for more information about the choice.

The GEO Eventos web-site was under maintenance and additional efforts to reach spokespeople at the company were unsuccessful.

NO VETOIn a statement sent to Re-

uters late yesterday, FIFA said it “never vetoed anyone” and pointed out that Pitanga herself denied she was invited to host the event.

“The selection of Fernan-da Lima and Rodrigo Hilbert was mainly based on the pos-itive experience made during the launch of the Official Em-blem and the Preliminary Draw,” the statement said.

Lima and Hilbert participat-ed in the launch of the official emblem of the 2014 World Cup in Johannesburg three years ago and Lima was also one of the presenters of the preliminary, or qualifying, draw in Rio in 2011.

“FIFA’s stance against any form of discrimination and racism which is even enshrined in our various reg-ulations amongst others is well known,” the statement added.

The organisation also point-ed out there will be black faces

on show during the event that precedes Friday’s draw to de-cide who plays who in next year’s 32-team tournament.

The participants, including hip hop artist Emicida, veteran samba star Alcione and samba singer Margareth Menezes, all of whom are Afro-Brazilian, “represent the cultural and mu-sical diversity of Brazil,” FIFA said in a statement last week.

STADIUM, COMMENTSThe investigation is just

the latest in a string of embar-rassments to hit soccer’s world governing body.

Some 18 months ago FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke infuriated Brazilians when he suggested their slow pace of building work might be improved if they got “a kick up the backside.”

Last week, part of the sta-dium that will host the tourna-ment’s opening match collapsed when a crane toppled over and two workers were killed.

The accident at Sao Pau-lo’s World Cup stadium may delay its opening until Feb-ruary, but FIFA has said it is not worried about the venue being ready on time to host the tournament’s opening game in June.


MONTY PANESAR

World Cup draw like a box of chocolates, says Hodgson

By Martyn Herman

LONDON: (Reuters) - England manager Roy Hodgson bor-rowed a line from the hit movie Forrest Gump yesterday when he described his thoughts ahead of this week’s draw for the World Cup.

Hodgson flies to Brazil today for the draw on Friday when his team will discover who they face in next year’s finals.

England are not one of the top seeds and could find themselves in the same group as hosts Brazil, world champions Spain or Germany.

“We will hope for the best but it is like Forrest Gump and his box of chocolates,” Hodgson said, without a hint of irony, at a news conference.

“We will open it up and see what we get, then try and digest it.”While their fans will chew over England’s opposition, Hodgson

said he was equally concerned with where his side would play in the vast South American country.

The southern cities like Sao Paulo will be relatively mild in the Brazilian winter but matches in northern venues such as Recife, Fortaleza or the jungle city of Manaus will be hot and humid and could favour some Latin American and African sides.

“I think the draw comes at a time when speculation is rife and people have a lot of fun looking at the potential possibilities,” said Hodgson, 66.

“It is a nice game to play but I have got to say that I have not involved myself too much in that. We will get what we get really - the most important thing is to be there.

“You always hope the draw is going to be kind to you in terms of where you are going to be asked to play,” added Hodgson.

“There are venues in Brazil that will be harder to play in than others. Maybe in terms of the teams you are drawn against, some on paper look harder than others, but I’m more concerned, if anything, by the venues than by the teams we draw.”

Hodgson, whose side lost two consecutive home friendlies against Chile and Germany last month, said being drawn against Lionel Messi’s Argentina would not necessarily be a bad thing.

“We don’t know how good Argentina are, we would all think ‘blimey, Argentina are strong’, but we don’t know that,” said Hodg-son who was also coach of Switzerland at the 1994 World Cup. “They might be no stronger than Chile.

“The good thing is that if we get Argentina, for example, we will be there and have a chance to play them and believe we can go out and beat them.”

England manager Roy Hodgson speaks to his players during a training session at Arsenal’s training facility in London Colney, north of London.. (Credit: Reuters/Andrew Winning).

SYDNEY: (Reuters) - Bowling all-rounder Tim Bresnan was called into the England squad for the Ashes series yesterday and will be available for the second test against Australia in Adelaide this week.

Bresnan, who suffered a stress fracture in his back which ruled him out of the final test of the first Ashes series earlier this year, which the hosts won 3-0, travelled to Australia with England’s Performance Programme.

Having proved his fitness, Bresnan’s stock rose as, apart from Stuart Broad, England’s attack disappointed in the first Test at Brisbane, which Australia won by 381 runs largely on the back of aggressive pace bowling.

It rose even further after more disappointing bowling in England’s two-day tour match in Alice Springs last weekend.

The 28-year-old was a key member of the squad which won the Ashes in Australia in 2010-11, taking 11 wickets in the final two Tests at an average of 19.54 as England sealed a 3-1 triumph.

He also played a major role in England’s victory in the fourth Test of the first series earlier this year, scoring 45 runs in the second innings then taking the key wickets of David Warner and Shane Watson as England won by 74 runs.

Chris Tremlett is likely to give way for Bresnan if he is selected for the Adelaide test, which starts on Thursday.

Asked about England’s outstanding player, Wayne Rooney, who is in scintillating form for Manchester United, Hodgson added that he wished he could “bottle him up and keep him on a shelf until next May or June.

“But that is not possible so we just have to hope he is in the same form for the finals — and that would make a major weapon in our armoury.”

Rooney, 28, scorer of 12 goals this season, has yet to shine at a World Cup. He appeared unfit after injury at the 2006 finals in Germany where he was sent off during a controversial quarter-final defeat by Portugal and endured another dismal tournament as England made a second round exit in South Africa in 2010.

Announcer hits back over allegations of mocking Panesar

(CA) over his removal after denying any slur was made.CA had deemed the conduct of David Nixon, a producer for local

broadcaster ABC, at the Alice Springs ground as inappropriate and withdrew him during the second day of England’s two-day warm-up match against a Chairman’s XI.

Left-arm spinner, Panesar, was born in Luton and is of Indian descent.

“It comes as a complete surprise to me to be at the centre of a controversy about racial slurring, and I absolutely refute any alle-gation that I feigned an Indian accent,” Nixon said in a statement, according to an ABC report yesterday.

“‘There’s a change of bowler at the Traeger Avenue end... its Montyyy!’ That was it. I fail to see how anyone could interpret my introduction of Monty Panesar as racial slurring.

“I am certainly responsible for what I say, but not what people hear.”

Nixon admitted he had been warned by a CA official for some of his comments but insisted the Panesar issue was never raised.

“Upon arriving back at my post after the lunch break on day two, I was met by a Cricket Australia representative who politely said words to the effect of, ‘We think that your personal style conflicts with ours and so we’ve relieved you for the afternoon’,” he said.

“There was no mention of my introduction of Monty Panesar or of a complaint being made.

“There was and is no evidence to support the allegation what-soever and I will seek clarification from Cricket Australia on their decision to stand me down.

“There are few worse things than to be branded a racist. To have such an accusation levelled at me is not only offensive, but defamatory.”

(REUTERS) - The ground announcer who was stood down for allegedly introducing England spinner, Monty Panesar in a mock Indian accent, is seeking clarification from Cricket Australia

Bresnan called into

England squad for Adelaide

Test

TIM BRESNAN


CRICKET QUIZ CORNER

By Calvin Roberts

THE UPPER pavilion of the world renowned Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC), will be buzzing with activity from 19:00 hrs tonight, when the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) will, for the first time in two years, host their awards cer-emony.

West Indies Cricket Board Director and Chairman of their Marketing Committee, Baldath Mahabir, who also heads the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board’s Coaching and Youth Development Committee, will deliver the feature address at the ceremony, one which was last held at the Umana Yana in 2010.

Looking ahead to tonight’s affair, Honorary Secretary of the GCB, Anand Sanasie, in an invited comment with Chronicle Sport yesterday said a nomination process was done to arrive at the Main awards such as the Male and Female Cricketer of the Year.

“Notices were sent to all the clubs and recipients who were nominated by the Special Committee set up by the GCB to arrive at the winners of the various categories for tonight’s proceedings and, while some of them may not be here for rea-sons unknown, they were asked to send a representative on their behalf,” said Sanasie.

The Special Committee which is being headed by the GCB’s Marketing Manager, Rajendra Singh, comprises Territorial Development Of-ficer Colin Stuart, the two Chairmen of Selectors in Na-zimul Drepaul and Rayon Griffith and Savitri Persaud, the GCB’s Administrator.

Some of the nominees for the Male Cricketer of the Year include dependable West In-dies middle order batsman, Shivnarine Chanderpaul; West Indies ‘A’ team batsman, Leon Johnson; T20 all rounder, Chris-topher Barnwell; and left arm orthodox spinner, Veerasammy Permaul.

On the distaff side, names such as June Ogle Thom-as, Shemaine Campbelle, Tremayne Smartt, Erva Gid-dings and Sabrina Munroe - all who have West Indies

By Firdose Moonda in Johannesburg

MS Dhoni and his team ar-rived in Johannesburg yester-day morning to cloudy skies and cold shoulders. But they don’t know too much about the latter. At least, not yet.

Matters seemed routine when Dhoni and his delegation got into the team bus, drove to the hotel in Sandton where they will spend most of their time on this tour, given that Durban is the only other city they will see, and the captain readied himself for his first media engagement.

The number of South Af-rican reporters outnumbered their Indian counterparts and they had more than just the cricket on their minds.

The second question - the first was an almost mandatory one about how the Indian squad is coping with the absence of Sachin Tendulkar - was whether Dhoni was aware of the anger surrounding the tour. Dhoni smiled his signature smile. If people were upset with him, he seemed to be saying, he would meet that with pleasantries.

“We can arrange a match for the administrators and let them go at it,” he sug-gested. There was laughter

(Tuesday December 03, 2013)Compliments of THE TROPHY STALL-Bourda Market &The City Mall (Tel: 225-9230)&CUMMINGS ELECTRICAL CO. LTD-83 Garnette Street, Campbellville (Tel: 225-6158; 223-6055)

Answers to yesterday’s quiz:Reginald ‘Tip’ Foster-287 (ENG vs AUST, Sydney, 1903-04)Once (WI vs ZIM, St. Vincent, 2010)

Today’s Quiz:How many runs did Sir Gary Sobers make in Tests? How many wickets he took?Who is the first player to be given out ‘obstructing the field’ in an ODI game?

Answers in tomorrow’s issue

GCB to host awards ceremony tonight... New format to select Main awards

Leon Johnson

Christopher Barnwel

experience - readily come to mind.

While Chanderpaul played his 150th Test match against India less than two weeks ago, the 26 year old Johnson, who led all of Guyana’s batsmen in this year’s WICB Regional four- day tournament, stands head and shoulders above the other three players named alongside him above.

The former West Indies Under-19 skipper ended the preliminary phase of the com-petition as the third highest runscorer with 430 runs from six matches at an average of 35.83, scoring three fifties in the process, with Wind-ward Islands’ Devon Smith (682) and Barbados’ Kraigg Brathwaite (440) occupying the top two positions.

In the Super50 tournament, Johnson, who is averaging 29.65 from the 45 first class matches he has played, from where he accumulated 2,224 runs with a highest score of 144 for West Indies ‘A’ against Sri Lanka ‘A’ last June, also finished the preliminaries as the third leading runscorer with 204 runs from six games at an average of 34.00, with a solitary half-century.

The Windward Islands duo in Andre Fletcher (239) and Smith (222), sat at the top of the run scorers’ chart leading into the semi-finals of the tournament which Guy-ana failed to qualify for, thus decreasing Johnson’s oppor-tunity of scoring more runs.

The experienced Assad Fu-

-

dadin was Guyana’s next best batsman in the four-day tourney with 289 runs, while fellow left-hander in a pugnacious opener, Trevon Griffith, was the second most productive batsman for Guyana in the Super50 with 152 runs, but would find it hard to be in the mix for the individual award tonight.

Barnwell’s feat on the Re-gional circuit was exceptional for Guyana, especially in the T20 format, wherein he blast-ed his way to a pugnacious 88 against Jamaica in the semi-fi-nals of the WICB Caribbean T20 tournament.

He also became the third Guyanese after Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan, to be successful at an Indian Pre-mier League (IPL) Auction after being bought by the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) franchise for this year’s tourna-ment, even though he failed to make the final 11.

On the local scene, Barn-well and Johnson likewise have been wielding their Stone Hill sponsored bats with pride for their respective clubs in Demerara Cricket Club and GCC respectively, especially in the Georgetown Cricket Association/Carib Beer first division T20 competition.

The selectors will certainly have their work cut out for them, when the name, Veerasammy Permaul, is being considered for the Male Cricketer of the Year award.

He was elevated to the

haul of 32 wickets at 23.93 in first-class cricket and in 2011-12 he finished the season with his best return of 37 wickets at 22.05, which prompted his call up as a second spinner along-side Sunil Narine for the West Indies tour of Bangladesh, where he made his debut in the first Test at Dhaka, taking four wickets in a West Indies’ victory.

At 39 years of age, Chan-derpaul’s feats on the cricket field whether it is for Guyana, West Indies, Lancashire, or even at Unity XI, have never been under the microscope.

His ability to bat for long hours even at the present age, leaves many individuals speechless and while the crick-et world was obsessed with Brian Lara’s unquestionable talent, Chanderpaul has shown that there are alternating ways to be consistent and prolific in Test cricket over a long period of time, becoming only the second West Indian and first Guyanese to score 10,000 Test runs and the first to play 150 Test matches.

For the past 19 years, the left-handed Chanderpaul, who possesses the crabbiest technique in world cricket has been the mainstay of the West Indies’s middle order which, for a period of time has been brittle, averaging 51.71 from his 255 Test innings.

He has scored 10,963 runs from those innings with 28 tons and 61 half centuries, with a

highest score of 203 not out against South Africa at the GCC ground.

When Chanderpaul started out, he had a couple of prob-lems: first, a low conversion rate of around one ton to every 10 half centuries and secondly, his physical frailty, widely thought to be hypochondria.

That myth was exploded when a large piece of floating bone was removed from his foot late in 2000 and suitably liberated, he set about rec-tifying his centuries scoring problem, scoring three in four Tests against India in 2001-02, and two more in the home series against Australia the following year, including 104 as West Indies successfully chased a world-record 418 for victory in the final Test in Antigua.

captaincy of the Guyana team for all the Regional tour-naments this year, ahead of Johnson and Barnwell who served as his deputy in the four-day and Super50 tourna-ments respectively, along with Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan.

In addition to that, Permaul, who hails from Albion became the country’s latest Test player in October, 2012, after making his first-class debut for Guyana in the 2006-07 Carib Beer Se-ries and picked up four wickets against the Windward Islands and also scalped his first five-for against Jamaica in the KFC Cup.

His breakthrough season came two years later with a

Shiv Chanderpaul

Dhoni deadbats suggestions of tense reception for India in SAall around. “The relation-ship between the Indian and South African teams has been good. Though we’ve seen a bit of chirping going around, it makes cricket interesting. The guys have not become too personal, which means we will have a good series.”

A l t h o u g h t h e S r e e -santh-Graeme Smith incident from three years ago goes against the good-natured sports-manship Dhoni made reference to, no-one was talking about that.

Members of the teams have friendships which stretch back to their time playing together in competitions like the IPL, but that’s not what will be in the spotlight.

Instead, the public’s re-sponse to this whistle-stop tour that was supposed to headline the South African summer will be the backdrop against which this series will be played. From a bumper schedule of two T20s, seven ODIs and three Tests, the big-gest series South Africa was due to host this year has been shortened to a piddly three ODIs and two Tests. For that, people are angry.

Worse for Dhoni and Co, those people have no-one to

whom they can direct their anger except the Indian team. Administrators will not make appearances mere metres away from where a fan’s voice can carry. Already social media plat-forms have been buzzing with a few harsh words, and words are not the only thing some journal-ists think will be hurled at the Indian team. One asked Dhoni what he would do if an object was flung at his team. “We’ll pick it up and give it back,” he said. “That’s all we can do.”

Then again, he may not have to think about any of that because there has also been a suggestion that sup-porters would consider not going to matches at all, in a vote with your feet demon-stration of their displeasure. Dhoni hopes that will not be the case either. “Whenever we come here, we get fantastic reception,” he said. “I don’t think that will really change.”

Luckily for Dhoni, his team won’t be going to Cape Town where the irritation is at its highest, so he may not see the worst of it. The New Year’s Test was cancelled because of the curtailed tour and people in the Mother City have to make do with a festival of 20-overs cricket instead.

Only Johannesburg and Durban will host Test cricket for the remainder of this year, a disappointment for those in the rest of the country who long to watch their No. 1 team in action.

While Graeme Smith has made public comments calling for an end to two-Test series and asking for South Africa to play more in the longest format, Dhoni would not be drawn into doing the same.

“I don’t pay that much attention to how many games we are playing,” he said. “We have a busy schedule and it’s a schedule we need to respect. What is in our hands is three ODIs and two Tests, so we will look to make the most of it and move on to the next series.”

If pure cricket is all that concerns Dhoni then he will be relishing the prospect of playing a South African ODI team that is still grappling to get its bat-ting combinations right.

India have been a force in the 50-overs version, led by explosive hitting, and Dhoni expects more of the same starting on Thursday. “If you love the ball coming on to the bat, that’s what you will see,” he said.


By Calvin Roberts

CO-DIRECTOR of the Petra Organisation, Troy Mendon-ca, yesterday expressed his displeasure at the way the teams have been battling for supremacy in the sixth an-nual Banks DIH Guinness ‘Greatest of de Streets’ Futsal football competition, which continues tonight on the tar-mac of the National Cultural Centre.

Speaking with Chronicle Sport in an invited comment from his Durban Street based business entity, Mendonca, who forms the core of Petra Organization along with Mar-lon Cole, singled out defending champions, Leopold Street and former champions Back Circle, as two of the teams whose per-formances to date have been lackadaisical.

“For me to say that I am pleased with the two nights of action that we have had so far, would be a big fat lie because I am not pleased with the dis-play by the teams, especially the defending champions, Leopold Street and former champions Back Circle.

6TH GUINNESS ‘GREATEST OF DE STREETS’Mendonca not pleased with teams’ performance so far

... Action continues tonight

By Michael DaSilva

A N O T H E R f o u r t e a m s were sent packing when the Georgetown Football Associ-ation/Banks Beer Knock-Out Tournament continued on Saturday and Sunday at two different venues.

The multi-million dollar prize money tournament which started two Saturdays ago with 32 teams has now boiled down to 26 teams as Houston Stars, Grove Hi-Tech, Beacon and Silver Shattas have been sent packing to join Essequibo and Topp XX who both lost their opening match when the tournament got started at the Georgetown Football Club two Saturdays ago.

Essequibo were beaten 10-0 by defending champions, Sunburst Camptown, while Topp XX went down 0-1 to Pele.

Over the weekend, Houston Stars were humiliated by Guy-ana Football Federation’s (GFF) Premier League team, Santos, losing by a 10-1 margin on Sun-day at the GFC ground, while at the same venue, Grove Hi-Tech

“These two teams have represented Guyana in the Ca-ribbean Guinness ‘Greatest of de Streets’ competition and one would expect that having had such exposure, they would have brought something far different that what they are bringing to this year’s tournament,” posited Mendonca.

He added, “I do hope that the weather conditions which prevailed during the period those matches were played, had a part to do with the performances of the teams and we get a better showing from tonight, since it is what the fans come out to see - good quality football - and we are expecting the same as organ-isers.”

Quizzed on whether some of the teams were going through the motion, knowing that they have at least $10,000 to collect at the end of the preliminary rounds, Mendonca without hes-itation, replied in the negative.

“All the teams were eager to compete. We had registra-tions from so many teams who were wiling to compete, since the bigger picture is getting a chance to represent Guyana in next year’s Caribbean Guin-

chalk up their first win, when they face Norton Street West in the third fixture, followed by North (last Entrance) and Berlin Massive’ encounter be-fore the Guinness break.

After the break, Broad Street ‘B’ will go head to head with Laing Avenue, Tucville and Riverview will keep their date, Durban Street will seek to get a better result when they oppose Bent Street, while East LaPeni-tence and Alexander Village will culminate the night’s proceedings.

Thirty-two teams from across the City are playing for the top prize of $500,000, with the second, third and fourth placed teams taking home $300,000, $200,000 and $100,000 respectively along with trophies.

Along with the above mentioned prizes, teams can pocket an additional $25,000, $20,000, $15,000 and $10,000 each, according to their plac-ing at the end of the prelimi-nary round.

The top two finishers of this tournament will go on to represent Georgetown in the national playoffs, with the winner representing Guy-ana in the regional Guinness Street Football Competition to be held in Trinidad and Tobago next year.

ness’ ‘Greatest of de Streets’ tournament, but some of the teams lacked the technical aspect for this type of football.

“With that in mind, you can certainly guess without ques-tion, my disappointment at the performances of both Leopold Street and Back Circle, for as I said earlier, they have tasted victory in this tournament and also experienced playing in the Caribbean tournament.”

A strong testament of Mendonca’s words, was ev-ident on the opening night when Leopold Street were handed a wake up call by

Laing Avenue, who, thanks to Anthony ‘Awo’ Abrams’ hat trick, came away with a 4-2 win.

And on the second night of action, Festival City, another pre-tournament favorite were given their own wake up call from North East LaPenitence, who edged them 2-1 in an en-thralling encounter, while Back Circle used penalty kicks to defeat South Sophia.

To date, 49 goals have been scored during regulation time in the tournament, 26 of which were recorded during the opening night and the re-

mainder on the second night, with South Sophia’s Stayon Frank holding the fastest goal to date, his five seconds strike against Back Circle, while Abrams’ hat trick remains the most by any player.

Tonight’s action will see Festival City looking to redeem themselves when they go up against Sophia North in the night’s opening fixture, with Back Circle hoping for an im-proved performance against North East LaPenitence in the second match.

S t e v e d o r e H o u s i n g Scheme will be looking to

Flashback! This player from Festival City (red) goes on the attack during his team’s first round matchup against North East LaPenitence (black bib), which occurred at the National Cultural Centre tarmac last week Thursday.

GFA/Banks Beer Knock-Out tournament

Another four teams sent packing as tournament intensifieswere trashed 8-0 by their GFF Premier League counterparts and points leaders, Alpha `The Hammer’ United.

On Saturday, Milerock edged Beacon 1-0 at the Den

Amstel ground, West Coast Demerara, and on the same day at the very venue, the home side, Den Amstel, edged Silver Shattas 3-2.

Michael Pedro was Santos’ leading goal scorer on Sunday, netting a treble with a ninth minute goal from the penalty spot and two field goals in the 41st and 89th minute.

He was supported by Ryan Seales who scored a double in the sixth and first minute (91st) of injury time, a double from Trevon Lewis in the 83rd and third minute (93rd) of injury time and one goal each from Adrian Adams (4th), Odel Williams (26th) and an own goal in the 15th minute.

Houston Stars’ lone goal came off the boot of Lawrence Murray in the 10th minute.

In the Alpha United versus Grove Hi-Tech game, Anthony `Awo’ Abrams netted a hel-met-trick in the 6th, 17th, 25th and second the minute (92nd) of inju-ry time. The latter goal coming from a penalty kick.

Gregory `Jackie Chan’ Richardson supported with a treble in the 74th, 81st and 82nd minute. His opening goal was scored from the penalty spot.

The other goal scorer was team captain Dwight Peters who found his target in the 15th minute.

Over at Den Amstel on Saturday last, Clarence Huggins scored a 61st minute goal to help his team, Milerock, advance

to the next round and in the feature match that day, Delon Lanferman, Andre Hector and Trevon Bobb scored a goal each in the 11th, 57th and 70th minute respectively to see their team, Den Amstel, advance to the next round.

Scoring for Silver Shattas were Colwyn David and John Waldron in the 15th and 31st minute respectively.

The tournament wi l l continue tomorrow with a double header at the GFC ground.

In the opening game from 18:00 hrs, GFF Premier League second place points leaders, Guyana Defence Force, will come up against Botofago , while from 20:00hrs, Riddim Squad face Mahaica Determi-nators.

The winner of the tour-nament will take home $4M, while the runner up will receive $2.5M.

The third and fourth placed teams will be rewarded with $1.5M and $1M respec-tively, while the eight quarter finalists will receive $250,000 each.

DHAKA, Bangladesh, (CMC)- A 15-member West Indies U-19 cricket team has arrived in Dhaka to play against Ban-gladesh in a seven game Youth One Day International series starting on Friday.

The team, led by captain Ramaal Lewis, is hoping to reverse their fortunes after losing a similar series between the two teams in October in Guyana 4-3.

U-19 skipper Mehidy Hassan Miraz says Bangladesh is ready to carry on from where they left off in October.

“We had a very good tour, winning the series. I believe the good memories will give our confidence a boost and we’re look forward to the home series that starts in few days,” Miraz told the media.

“The six-day training camp that the 15-member Bangladesh squad have undergone will help the home side, thought Miraz”.

The seven-match series will begin with the first ODI at Chittagong’s Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium on December 6 and climax with matches at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on December 19 and 20.

West Indies Under -19s lost their final practise match to Sagicor West Indies High Performance Centre (HPC) by three runs at 3Ws Oval on Friday.

West Indies Under-19s and Bangladesh are using the series as part of preparations for the ICC Youth World Cup in United Arab Emirates in February 2014.

Anthony `Awo’ Abrams

Windies Under 19s arrive in

Bangladesh for seven game

ODI series

Revamp, Hikers and GCC Tigers share honours on final night

SportSportCHRONICLE

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Printed and Published by Guyana National Newspapers Limited, Lama Avenue, Bel Air Park, Georgetown. Telephone 226-3243-9 (General); Editorial: 227-5204, 227-5216. Fax:227-5208 TUESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2013

Please see story on page 27

By Michael DaSilva

CANADA’s Revamp men’s hockey team along with Guy-ana’s Hikers veterans and Georgetown Cricket Club’s (GCC) ladies shared the hon-ours when the Guyana Hock-ey Board/Diamond Mineral Water International Indoor Hockey Festival came to an end on Sunday night at the National Gymnasium, Man-dela Avenue.

The Canadian side, led by Roberts’ efforts, defeated Trini-dad and Tobago’s Queen’s Park Oval 4-0 in the men’s final. Roberts contributed a double.

Roberts who represents Canada internationally was sub-sequently named the Most Valu-able Player of the tournament

In the Carib sponsored men veterans’ final, Hikers

GHB/Diamond Mineral Water Int’l Indoor Hockey Festival

---Canadian Guyanese, Jonathan Roberts, voted MVP

Hikers’ veterans show off their Carib trophy for winning the veterans’ title in the just concluded Diamond Mineral Water int’s Indoor Hockey Festival.

Canada’s Revamp men’s team show off their first place trophy for the just concluded GHB/Diamond Mineral Water Int’l Indoor Hockey festival. At extreme right is the tournament’s MVP, Guyanese Jonathan Roberts.

GCC Tigers’ captain, Sonia Jardine (centre), accepts the Diamond Mineral Water Int’s Indoor Hockey Festival first place trophy from Digicel’s Marketing executive, Gavin Hope.

out-ran GCC men’s 7-4 to re-tain the veterans’ trophy and cash prize.

In the Digicel sponsored la-dies final, GCC Tigers outlived Trinidad and Tobago’s Malvern by a 4-2 margin to clinch their fourth title since the tournament started some nine years ago. A roaring and vociferous crowd witnessed the close of the Festival as the Canadi-an men of Revamp Hockey Club completed their domi-nation of the men’s division by winning the men’s final. The crowd, however, was even more enthusiastic to see local national champs, the GCC Ti-gers, defeat Malvern in a more competitive and highly enter-taining Digicel ladies’ final.

In an all Guyana Carib veterans’ final, Guyana en-joyed two of the three grand

prizes at stake.In the men’s final, Rob-

erts’ fellow international, Mi-cah Texeira, opened Revamp’s account through a well-exe-cuted penalty corner in the first half.

However, Queen’s Park remained competitive with a tight defense marshalled by Guyanese Jerazeno Bell.

Roberts netted his first goal of the match five minutes into the second half and Canada went ahead by three when Jew-an Bath found the back of the net with a deceptive penalty corner strike three minutes later.

While Queen’s Park was more competitive than the score suggests, men’s goalkeeper of the tournament, Pradeep Koonar, thwarted several of their attacks to maintain a clean sheet.

Roberts then sealed the

deal for Canada with his sec-ond goal in the closing min-utes to pull off the 4-0 victory for Revamp.

The GCC Tigers, having qualified first for the Digicel

women’s final, had to await the outcome of the pool match between Toronto Toros of Can-ada and Malvern to know their opponents.

Based on the outcomes of

earlier matches most in atten-dance expected the Toros to qualify but Malvern managed to show their quality and execute a success-ful game See Page 24

Mendonca not pleased with teams’ performance so far

6TH GUINNESS ‘GREATEST OF DE STREETS’

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