Daily Archive: Thursday, January 12, 2012

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC) – A High Court judge yesterday ordered the Trinidad & Tobago Football Federation to have its former special advisor Austin “Jack” Warner present all “relevant documents” regarding all the finances of the country’s participation in the 2006 World Cup.

(Trinidad Newsday) The Civil Aviation Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (CAA) is disassociating itself from a statement by the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) which says that Caribbean Airlines flight, BW 523, which crash landed in Guyana on August 30 last year, was not in a position to land safely.

President Donald Ramotar this evening said he was disappointed at the opposition’s breach of parliamentary convention by taking both the Speaker and Deputy Speaker positions and he said he will be closely watching developments in the National Assembly.

(Jamaica Gleaner) Federal judge Robert P. Patterson has granted a request for a postponement in the sentencing of confessed Jamaican drug baron Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke.

The Guyana Government today denied a report in today’s Stabroek News that a consensus has been reached with the West Indies Cricket Board on the role of the Interim Management Committee it has set up for Guyana’s cricket and the Guyana Cricket Board.

Police say that investigations are being conducted into the circumstances surrounding the death of Denesh Persaud, 54 years of Adelphi, East Canje, Berbice, whose body was found in his home at about 0720h on January 10, 2012.

AFC leader Raphael Trotman was this afternoon elected Speaker of the National Assembly.

(Trinidad Express) Former finance minister Karen Nunez-Tesheira yesterday said it was a “coincidence” she and her sister broke their fixed deposits at CLICO Investment Bank (CIB) weeks before a billion-dollar bailout of CL Financial was brokered.

(Trinidad Express) Former prime minister Patrick Manning called for secrecy in the government’s handling of the financial difficulties facing CL Financial, in an attempt to prevent an immediate collapse of the conglomerate.

(Trinidad Express) KOLKATA: Trinidad and Tobago is wooing the Bollywood film industry to shoot their film on its exotic locales while pitching its own oil and natural gas and LNG to the Indian government.

(Trinidad Express) Police Commissioner Dwayne Gibbs has been directed to investigate the police officers responsible for leaking a security intelligence report used by Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley to discredit a purported plot to kill Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and three other Government ministers.

(Trinidad Express) The Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB) “sold out” Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo.

(Trinidad Express) Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC) Prof Ramesh Deosaran has summoned an emergency meeting, scheduled for 10 a.m.

The controversial contract awarded to Fip Motilall for the construction of US$15.4M worth of access roads to the Amaila hydro project site has been terminated.

President Donald Ramotar yesterday signed a book of condolence in memory of Dr Moti Lall at the Central Housing and Planning Authority.

(Jamaica Gleaner) Just under J$1 billion in cash and other assets were confiscated primarily from drug dealers and persons involved in the lottery scam last year, the Financial Investigations Division (FID) of the Ministry of Finance has revealed.

PERTH, (Reuters) – Mahendra Singh Dhoni has hinted he  will quit test cricket if he decides to lead India in their  World Cup defence in Australia and New Zealand in 2015.

PERTH, (Reuters) – India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni  has rejected suggestions of in-fighting in his team on the tour  of Australia, saying the claims were possibly the result of a  beer-induced fantasy.

Alliance For Change Leader (AFC) Raphael Trotman has confirmed that he has been selected by the opposition parties as the consensus candidate for the post of Speaker of the National Assembly following the withdrawal of previous AFC nominee Moses Nagamootoo.

Preliminary findings  into last July’s crash landing of a Caribbean Airlines ( CAL) Boeing 737 at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, Timehri points to  pilot error as the pilot may have undertaken a “long landing” without having sufficient space to bring the aircraft to a safe stop.

The PPP/C will nominate and vote “solidly” for Ralph Ramkarran to continue as Speaker of the National Assembly, acting Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Gail Teixeira, said yesterday.

The Central Executive of the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party (ALP) has condemned the island’s police for what it calls the defamation of party officials and supporters, including Guyanese-born diplomat Sir Ronald Sanders, saying it is another chapter in the political harassment of its leadership.

The plot of land that once housed the Metropole Cinema, at the corner of Robb and Wellington streets, in Georgetown, has been sold.

Police at the Central Police Station at New Amsterdam, Berbice are probing a report that US$4,900 (around $1M) was stolen from a bag which was left in the office of the officer-in-charge of the station.

The HPV vaccine was yesterday launched at the East La Penitence Health Centre as part of cervical cancer awareness month and it is being promoted as increasing life expectancy among females.

The Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) yesterday said it was “increasingly concerned” about the number of domestic aircraft accidents, and safety seminars were held last month to ensure that the aviation industry maintains high standards.

The police say there was a decrease of 8% in murders during last year when figures of 140 for 2010 and 129 for 2011 are compared.

Wordsworth Castello, of Strathspey, East Coast Demerara, won the Gizmos & Gadgets ‘Green Machine’ promotion, which made him the owner of a new Mazda RX-8.

Chief Roads Engineer Leon Goring said preparatory works for the expansion of both the East Coast and East Bank four-lane highways are moving apace.

Representatives of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and the Guyana government, yesterday reached a consensus concerning the roles to be played by the Interim Management Committee (IMC) and the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) in the administration of cricket locally.

By Emmerson Campbell President of the Caribbean Boxing Federation (CABOFE) and the Guyana Boxing Board of Control (GBBC), Peter Abdool recently attended the historic 49th Annual Convention of the World Boxing Council (WBC) in Las Vegas, USA where it was disclosed that the WBC will launch a tournament to mark its 50th anniversary.

Police said that for the year of 2011 there was a 5% increase in fatal accidents, but the number of deaths was the same, while there was also a 57% increase in the number of children who lost their lives on the roadways.

A local cycling coordinator, suspected to have attempted to export some $20M worth of compressed marijuana to Barbados earlier this week, is believed to have fled to neighbouring Suriname, according to a police source.

South American junior bronze medalist Stephan James is feeling confident going into the 2012 season as he plans to represent Guyana at every international junior competition there is this year.

Preparatory works began on Monday afternoon at the site designated for the construction of Guyana’s specialty hospital.

SYDNEY, Australia, CMC – Chris Gayle was dismissed cheaply in controversial fashion, as Sydney Thunder slumped to their fourth straight defeat in the Big Bash League Twenty20, when Perth Scorchers crushed them by nine wickets on Tuesday.

NORTH SOUND, Antigua,  CMC – Johnson Charles hit a flambuoyant, unbeaten 61 to lead Windward Islands to their second victory in the Caribbean Twenty20 tournament with a nine-wicket victory in a low-scoring affair against Canada yesterday.

Health Minister Dr Bheri Ramsaran yesterday challenged claims by the Guyana Nurses Association (GNA) that the quality of training in Guyana has declined but he promised to address several of its concerns.

Dear Editor, Please permit me to respond to a letter which was penned by an unknown writer under the caption ‘Too many man hours wasted by the public waiting at the Licence Revenue Office.’ 

Almost two weeks after an 18-year-old mother of two died of injuries she sustained during a botched abortion, relatives are calling on the doctor involved to come forward and a probe has been launched by the Ministry of Health.

(Reuters) – Senior batsman Rahul Dravid has batted down suggestions of a rift in India’s struggling test team and said he was working hard to correct flaws in his defence which has been repeatedly breached in the series against Australia.

Dear Editor, The weekend news reports on the Amaila Falls road (‘Sithe Global eager to engage MPs, stakeholders on Amaila Falls project’ SN, January 8; ‘Two local contractors to help ‘Fip’ finish US$15.4M road’ KN, January 8) appear to exaggerate progress on this shambles. 

NORTH SOUND, Antigua, CMC – Marlon Samuels drew on all of his experience, smashing an unbeaten 66 that trumped the same score from compatriot Chadwick Walton to usher Jamaica to a thrilling, two-victory over the Combined Campuses & Colleges in the Caribbean Twenty20 tournament on Tuesday.

Cabinet has offered its no-objection to several contracts including US$74,000 for the procurement of handheld explosives detection sets.

Dear Editor, I refer to an article published in your Friday, December 23, 2011 edition (‘IDB approved $72M for impact study of Lethem road’).

SYDNEY,  (Reuters) – Caroline Wozniacki faced a battle to be fit for the Australian Open after being reduced to tears during a dramatic defeat by Agnieszka Radwanska at the Sydney International yesterday.

Dear Editor, Recently my dearest mother died in Guyana at one of the leading private hospitals.

A large crowd gathered at the Sandy’s Funeral Home yesterday afternoon to bid farewell to four-year-old Antuane Lovell who was electrocuted by faulty GPL wires last December 28.

NORTH SOUND, Antigua, CMC – Marlon Samuels said he hopes to inspire Jamaica to victory in the Caribbean Twenty20 tournament this year with another strong batting performance.

Dear Editor, There seems to be no improvement in the garbage situation here in Bartica.

A taxi driver was yesterday arraigned on multiple charges stemming from Monday’s Bent Street robbery, in which he allegedly abducted a teen girl with whom he had shared a long-term relationship.

NEW YORK, (Reuters) – After years of  predictions that the “$1,000 genome” – a read-out of a person’s  complete genetic information for about the cost of a dental  crown – was just around the corner, a U.S.

Police say that Sohan Busjit is wanted by the police for questioning in relation to robbery and murder committed on Delon Collins, a fireman, on 2011-12-24.

(Reuters) – At the ninth time of asking, the Washington Wizards finally earned their first victory of the season with a surprisingly comfortable 93-78 home triumph over the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday.

Dear Editor, I will be very disappointed if Deborah Backer is not elected as the Speaker of the National Assembly of Guyana.

WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – U.S. and international  health officials yesterday formed an alliance to  end a cholera epidemic in Haiti and the Dominican Republican  that has killed thousands and spread to other countries since an  earthquake devastated the region two years ago.

Dear Editor, The outstanding contributions the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T) have made over the past decades to create and develop the communication sector must be acknowledged and also appreciated.

The Bahamas is launching a wage and productive survey that is expected to inform the country’s planning and development of labour force and training programmes and attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

(Trinidad Express) Acting Minister of National Security Herbert Volney on Tuesday described as “treachery” the leaking of a report by Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley to discredit the alleged plot to assassinate Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and three other ministers.

 TEHRAN – An Iranian nuclear scientist was blown up in his  car by a motorbike hitman yesterday, prompting Tehran to  blame Israeli and U.S.

(Reuters) – Kobe Bryant turned back the clock with a 48-point effort to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 99-83 win over the Phoenix Suns yesterday.

PAARL, South Africa,  (Reuters) – Sri Lanka collapsed to their lowest one-day score of 43  yesterday when they lost by 258 runs to South Africa in the first one-day international at Boland Park.

Fresh ideas and innovative thinking create the kind of foundation for progress to happen.

CHICAGO, (Reuters) – A respiratory illness that  strikes the elderly knocked homicide off the list of the top  killers in the United States for the first time in 45 years in  2010, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said yesterday.

(Trinidad Express) Planning Minister Dr Bhoendradatt Tewarie was part of a three-member audit team mandated to ensure good governance at CL Financial and must accept some responsibility for the conglomerate’s collapse.

Dear Editor, I recently heard an official from the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) commenting on the news, that the problem at the council is basically financial.

On occasions, the US Embassy may request that immigrant visa applicants and their petitioning family members undergo a DNA test to prove a biological relationship.

Dear Editor, The result of the November 28 polls has so shattered the credibility of Vishnu Bisram and exposed his suspect biases towards the incumbent PPP/C government that he has offered shallow explanations to dispute the accusations of deception and the humiliation he invited on himself.

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WASHINGTON,  (Reuters) – U.S. first lady  Michelle Obama shot down any notion of infighting between her  and the president’s top aides in a television interview yesterday, downplaying her role and influence in the White  House.

OSLO, Norway, CMC – Organisers announced on Wednesday that sprint megastar Usain Bolt will contest the 100 metres at the Bislett Games on June 7 in the city.

(LIMA, Reuters) – Dutch citizen Joran Van der  Sloot apologized in court on Wednesday for killing a young  Peruvian woman in 2010 and accepted murder charges against him  in a plea that could lighten his sentence.

Before the end of the school term last year, on December 10 to be precise, this newspaper had reported on the situation at the Nismes Primary School.

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