Daily Archive: Saturday, March 20, 2010

Cash crop farmers in the Mahaica Creek are moving from bounty to bare as the relentless El Nino phenomenon bakes their plots and rice farmers are not far behind as their already limited access to water continues to dwindle.

The Ministry of Health is moving to decentralise its Diabetic Foot Project, which is responsible for a 42% reduction in diabetes-related amputations at the public hospital.

The Trade Union Recognition and Certification Board (TUR&CB) is considering an application made by some RUSAL workers to have the Guyana Bauxite and General Workers Union (GB&GWU) derecognised as their bargaining representative.

Deeraj Sanmogan, who suffered severe burns when the fuel boat he was working on exploded, died on Wednesday.

The Alliance For Change (AFC) yesterday described Minister of Labour Manzoor Nadir’s suggestion of changing the legislation to facilitate children from the age of 13 working in some jobs as “unbelievable and disgraceful.”

Queries are being made to determine the origins of the three-toed sloth that was featured on the front page of our Tuesday edition.

-Williams Should the government decide to legislate the supervision of credit unions by the Central Bank, a special department to deal with the peculiarities of regulation would have to be set up, Governor Lawrence Williams says.

The teen wounded in Wednesday’s shoot out with police ranks responding to an attempted robbery on Mandela Avenue, has refused to give up the identity of his accomplice and is denying any wrong doing.

The Ministry of Public Works and Communication’s demolition campaign has resulted in a reduction of the number of illegal structures on state reserves, which are considered hazards to traffic safety.

Two Transport and Harbours Department (T&HD) workers were charged jointly with break and enter larceny Thursday.

Magistrate Ann McLennan sentenced a trainee teacher to three months community service after he pleaded guilty to possession of ½ gramme of cannabis.

-co-accused in hospital after ingesting poison A woman, who was allegedly an accomplice in a fraudulent house lot scheme, was on Wednesday charged with obtaining money by false pretence.

Keron Thompson, 28, of Pattenson, Turkeyen, was yesterday remanded to prison for allegedly raping a woman.

– poised to retain champion lifter title By Marlon Munroe Randolph Morgan seems poised to retain the champion lifter title after he set a new National, Regional and Caribbean record in the Bench Press on the first day of the fourth IPF/NAPF Caribbean Islands Bench Press and Powerlifting Championships at the Princess Hotel yesterday.

Two policemen were yesterday arraigned on charges that they were involved in corrupt transactions.

Courts Pacesetters basketball team emerged victorious against Macaabees Thursday night at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall as the Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association (GABA) Open and Third Division Leagues continued but their 91-80 victory was marred by indiscipline from some of the team’s players which was sparked by claims of biased officiating.

A man was remanded to prison yesterday after being accused of unlawful possession of a gun and ammunition.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – West Indies A will tour England later this year following a pull out from New Zealand, the England and Wales Cricket Board has announced.

(Cricinfo) The match was hurtling towards a dull climax when Irfan Pathan tried to pull off the improbable with an audacious innings, but eventually Deccan Chargers prevailed and sealed their first win against Kings XI Punjab in IPL history yesterday.

‘Evocations on Caribbean Literature Revisited,’ an exhibition of recent works by artist Ron Savory, opened to the public yesterday at the National Art Gallery, Castellani House.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua,  CMC – West Indies women will assemble in St Kitts next month for a training camp and a series of matches, as they intensify their preparation for the upcoming World Twenty20 Championship.

(BBC) Michael Clarke brushed aside his off-field issues to put Australia in a strong position after day one of the first Test against New Zealand yesterday.

The government’s intention to have Members of Parliament (MPs) declare annual declarations of income to the Integrity Commission or face disciplinary action was temporarily put on hold when a motion to give effect to this was deferred at Thursday’s sitting of the National Assembly.

A group of eight birding and natural history tour operators has flown into the Iwokrama reserve in Region Nine as the Guyana Sustainable Tourism Initiative (GSTI) hosts its seventh tourism familiarisation trip.

(Cricinfo) India, say hello to the Mongoose, the shorter, thicker bat with the longer handle.

Mark `Jumbie’ Wiltshire spearheaded Mix-Up to victory in the fifth annual Lyall Gittens-organised one-day domino tournament which was held on Sunday at the National Gymnasium.

Thirteen contestants were selected to enter the 7th preliminary round of the Cellink Kidstage workshop, when auditions were held at the New Amsterdam Town Hall last Saturday.

PHOENIX (Reuters) – US Hispanics, frustrated that President Barack Obama has yet to fulfil a pledge to revamp the immigration system, are warning him to deliver this year or face the consequences in congressional elections in November.

Dale Hing and Dr. Johan DaSilva shared the honours when the Guyana National Rifle Association (GNRA) Small-bore Section held its two-day handgun shooting championship recently at the Tactical Services Unit (TSC) and Timehri Ranges.

NAIROBI (Reuters) – Armed rebel groups in Somalia are using the Internet for fundraising and recruitment, and they achieve better results through the Web than they do on the ground, a United Nations report said.

– for solar energy, expansion of centre Red Thread signed a contract with the Japanese Embassy yesterday for grant assistance which will fund several projects at its South Georgetown office including expansion works and the installation of an alternative source of energy.

One man’s trash, Australian engineer Christopher Clash knows, can be another man’s treasure.

MONTERREY, Mexico (Reuters) – Armed men likely linked to drug gangs blocked highways with trucks and buses in the northern Mexican city of Monterrey yesterday in an apparent attempt to hamper army operations near the US border.

THE  VALLEY, Anguilla, CMC – High jumper Shinelle Proctor is part of three-member squad named by track and field officials here to represent Anguilla at the CARIFTA Games scheduled for the Cayman Islands next month.

– take soca global The labels are many as are the accolades, and the hype about him is real.

The Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) on Thursday officially launched the third annual Under-19 tournament sponsored by Manoj and Narine Spready’s Bakery at a cost of $200,000.

The report on the investigation ordered by President Bharrat Jagdeo into the treatment that late minister Dr Desrey Fox received at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH) has been forwarded to the Office of the President following its completion.

Balance is very important. An obvious statement isn’t it? Yet balance is something we all seem to struggle with.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Nigerian acting President Goodluck Jonathan has consolidated his grip on power, easing a political crisis that fanned fears of instability in Africa’s most populous nation, a senior US official said yesterday.

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) – Almost a quarter of a billion people moved out of slum conditions in the past decade, driven by rapid economic growth in emerging giants India and China, but the number of people living in them continues to rise, the United Nations housing agency said yesterday.

Hi Everyone, last week when I read about the current vegetable glut in the market (in Guyana), I wanted to hop on a plane, go to Guyana and cook, and cook, and cook!

Lawman’s luck? Police Commissioner Henry Greene seemed deeply engrossed in the slots at last evening’s official opening of the Princess Casino.

Assad Fudadin and Shemaine Campbell were adjudged the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTYSC) male and female cricketers of the year respectively and will be honoured on March 28 when the club hosts its 19th annual awards ceremony at the J.C.

-Persaud The authorities will continue make relevant interventions during the current El Nino weather phenomenon, while an existing contingency plan will be reviewed and revised at the end of the prolonged dry spell, Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud assured Thursday.

Dear Editor, On March 9, 2010, the Guyana Chronicle published a letter in its ‘Letters Column’ accusing the Linden Salvation Council (LSC) of using donations from the Food for the Poor organization to garner support in the upcoming Local Government Elections.

The Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development stated yesterday that no authorisation has been given for increased rates for properties in the Good Success-Caledonia Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) area, on the East Bank Demerara.

Dear Editor, In response to the Kaieteur News article of March 16th Re: `National Chess Champion at odds with executives of local federation’.

This year nine beauties are vying for the Miss Bartica Regatta crown and all of them believe they have what it takes to reign.

Three Guyanese cricketers Royston Crandon, Neil Williams and Mahendra Nagamootoo were in great form over the weekend in the North Championship cricket league of the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board.

SANTO DOMINGO (Reuters) – A Dominican Republic man who acted as legal adviser to a group of US missionaries held for several weeks in Haiti on child kidnapping charges has been arrested in Santo Domingo, local police said yesterday.

Dear Editor, Government sounded a clear warning to rice millers by establishing a drying floor at Bengal.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – A top-ranking Colombian rebel was sentenced to more than 20 years in prison by a judge in New York yesterday for conspiring to import tons of cocaine into the United States.

Solid Youth is back! More than four years after his last album, the local gospel star has just released his third album and a new video.

Will we win? Ministers Jennifer Westford (left) and Jennifer Webster took the opportunity last evening to try their luck in the casino.

A seven-round Swiss System rapid play chess tournament commences today at the Keishar’s Sports Club Camp and Hadfield Streets.

Twenty-two-year-old Lucria Rambalak, who copped the second runner-up position in the Miss Guyana Universe pageant last year, has been selected by the Miss India Worldwide Organi-sation as Guyana’s delegate to the Miss India Worldwide Pageant in South Africa.

Fortune seekers: Attendees at the opening of the Princess Casino last evening.

Dear Editor, When will the Guyanese electorate demand more from their elected leaders in government and the opposition? 

Another intriguing weekend of football is anticipated when play in the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) Super League tournament continues this weekend with two matches.

TIJUANA, Mexico (Reuters) – Police running scared from drug gangs in one of Mexico’s deadliest cities are using bizarre rituals involving animal sacrifice and spirit tattoos to seek protection from raging violence on the US border.

HAVANA (Reuters) – Cuban farmers are pressing for greater autonomy to produce and sell their crops, blaming government inefficiency for Cuba’s falling food output despite agricultural reforms introduced by President Raul Castro.

Dear Editor, The World Cup is around the corner and Guyanese everywhere have to be excited at the prospects of seeing this great spectacle unfold in South Africa this summer.

DAKAR, (Reuters) – In the eight months since U.S.  President Barack Obama’s first visit to sub-Saharan Africa, the  army has seized power in Niger, a power struggle in Nigeria  bedevils its government, and Guinea’s then leader stands accused  of involvement in a massacre.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – They turn heads on the red carpet, are besieged by the world’s top designers, give tearful acceptance speeches, and go home with a little gold man called Oscar.

Second division cricket captains or their representatives are invited to meet with the Competitions Committee and the Cricket Development Committee of the Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA).

Dear Editor, Some time back I wrote to you about the New Amsterdam Town Council.

The view from the Demerara River shows the dilapidated state of the Stabroek Market’s wharf. 

Price control An official of the Caricom Competition Commission says Caribbean governments may not be adequately equipped to spearhead price control mechanisms.

KUALA LUMPUR, (Reuters) – Malaysia’s government is  considering proposals to shake up its economic and social  system to boost competitiveness and growth, a government source  told Reuters.

An eclectic batch ranging from Swedish pop group Abba to punk pioneers the Stooges entered the rock star firmament Monday on being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

The first thing that strikes a visitor (Guyanese or otherwise) to Georgetown is the chaos that prevails on the roads and the noise that attends this burlesque: of cars over-accelerating and swerving, of brakes screeching, of horns uniformly blaring and (until recently) of music pulsating from every minibus.