Daily Archive: Monday, April 16, 2012

The police say they are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of Stacy Conway, 40 years, who is reported to have been a destitute and whose body was found with bruises and a suspected fractured leg at about 0800h today on the roadway at No.11 Village, Berbice.

LONDON,  (Reuters) – Fifteen people were injured when a Virgin Atlantic plane made an emergency landing today at London’s second airport, Gatwick, the airport said.

PORT OF SPAIN,  (Reuters) – Australia, abandoning conventional wisdom by opening their bowling attack with a spinner, seized control of the second test against West Indies at Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad today.

WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – The U.S. Secret Service said today it revoked the top security clearance of 11 agents and uniformed division personnel over alleged misbehaviour in Colombia, and the Pentagon said more of its personnel may have been involved than was first reported.

The ruling PPP/C today denounced the claim by AFC Chairman Khemraj Ramjattan that it was preparing to buy-off MPs to ensure passage of the national budget now being debated in parliament.

(Barbados Nation) Barbados suffered an embarrassing collapse to hand Jamaica a comprehensive 139-run victory in the WICB regional four-day final and a record equaling fifth successive title today.

Police today said that  vendor Joseph Taylor is wanted by the police for questioning in relation to the attempted murder of Euricka Garraway on 2012-04-04.

Former Commissioner of Police, Winston Felix this afternoon challenged Minister of Home Affairs, Clement Rohee to produce evidence that he (Felix) is in possession of a radio belonging to the Guyana Police Force.

(Trinidad Guardian) The T&T Free Zones Company Ltd (TTFZ) will sign a US$65 million deal with Bredero Shaw Middle East Ltd (BSMEL), the largest division of ShawCor Ltd, a global energy services company specialising in products and services for the pipeline and pipe industry.

(Trinidad Guardian) Trinidad and Tobago and other Caricom states are expected to benefit from US$130 million in financial assistance from US President Barack Obama to deal with crime and security in the region.

OSLO,  (Reuters) – The Norwegian far-right militant who massacred 77 people last summer gave a clenched-fist salute, smirked at the court and pleaded not guilty on the first day of a trial that threatens to turn into a “circus” showcasing his anti-Islamic views.

(Reuters) – The British businessman whose murder has sparked political upheaval in China was poisoned after he threatened to expose a plan by a Chinese leader’s wife to move money abroad, two sources with knowledge of the police investigation said.

CARTAGENA, Colombia, (Reuters) – U.S. President Barack Obama said yesterday the Secret Service would fully investigate reports that agents assigned to protect him in Colombia were caught with prostitutes, saying he would be angry if the allegations proved true.

(Barbados Nation) Government has been warned that the impending closure of the Almond resorts in Barbados can hammer the proverbial nail in the country’s economic coffin.

(Barbados Nation) Fists flew again. Now local basketball has itself another black eye.

The 13th annual Caribbean Tourism Organization conference yesterday opened in Georgetown with its keynote speaker lauding Guyana’s effort to lead in sustainable tourism while urging stakeholders to take advantage of the adventure and eco tourism trajectory this country offers.

-suspect held at airport A 24-year-old taxi driver was yesterday gunned down execution-style in front of his Dennis Street, Campbellville home and relatives suspect it was the result of a triangular affair.

Be on your toes.  This is the message from AFC Chairman, Khemraj Ramjattan to opposition parliamentarians as a vote on the budget nears and as they plan to bring amendments to certain legislation in the future.

There are “serious limitations” in the 2012 Budget with financial experts yesterday expressing concern that an accurate fiscal picture is not being presented and raising questions including on the whereabouts of $33 billion that was supposed to be transferred to the Consolidated Fund.

The leader of the Linden Civic Society (LCS) says he disagrees with the decision of the government to gradually remove the subsidy for electricity in the mining town.

New Member of Parliament for the Alliance For Change (AFC) Catherine Hughes spoke out against the allocation in the budget for the Government Information Agency and the National Communications Network while noting that organisations like Help and Shelter and the David Rose School receive next to nothing.

Attorney-General Anil Nandlall says that the opposition parties are “in confusion” on the Henry Greene issue and accused them of adopting “impulsive positions.”

Persons with HIV in Guyana are living longer lives, have a better quality of life, less morbidity and are back in the productive workforce, according to the findings of an evaluation of the National Strategic Plan 2007-2011, looking at the area of care and treatment.

APNU Member of Parliament James Bond has called for Government to review laws to make it easier for persons to sue for wrongful imprisonment and Police brutality, having himself been a victim of this on December 6, 2011 when he and others were shot with rubber bullets.

Cash-strapped, low-cost carrier REDjet is seeking financial assistance from Guyana to help it get back into the air, according to a report in yesterday’s edition of the Barbados Nation.

Australia grinds on Oval turner From Colin Benjamin in Trinidad In what is easily the most competitive West Indies versus Australia test series duel since that famous 2-2 draw in 1998/99, both sides fought out a keen battle of attrition on the opening day of the second Digicel test at the Queen’s Park Oval, Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, yesterday.

From Colin Benjamin in Trinidad One of the greatest off-spin bowlers in test history, if not the greatest – Lancelot Richard Gibbs has stated that Devendra Bishoo’s  being dropped for the on-going second test versus Australia is the best thing that could happen to 26-year old leg-spinner at this early stage of his career.

Minister of Natural Re-sources and the Environment, Robert Persaud has rejected as “flawed” an analysis by forester John Palmer that purpleheart  in Guyana’s forests is being unsustainably managed saying that concessionaires are only achieving about 31% of annual sustainable production.

A 62-year-old man was yesterday taken into police custody after his neighbours reported to the police that he was seen committing a sexual act with a 13-year-old girl in his backyard.

Last Saturday, local distance queen Alika Morgan received a pair of long distance running shoes from Colors Shoe store on Robb Street.

Bayrock Blazers, Mahaica Raiders, Trophy Stall Angels & 4R Lioness are into the quarter finals of the third annual Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company Limited 10/10 softball competition following Super 16 play on Saturday.

An elderly man and his wife were on Saturday last attacked and robbed of $1.2 million at their business place at Anna Catherina, West Coast Demerara.

A helmet-trick and a hat-trick were the highlights of the latest round of the Banks DIH Guiness Greatest of the Streets futsal competition Saturday in Linden.

A wide cross-section of practitioners in the field of HIV, including National AIDS Programmes and civil society, will attend the second meeting of the Technical Working Group on HIV Prevention at the CARICOM Secretariat Headquarters at Turkeyen from  today.

Dear Editor, Reasoning and writing as a West Indian academic, I believe to my brittle bones that the crisis of West Indies cricket performance is first and foremost a crisis of political governance and intellectual disenchantment. 

Minister of Home Affairs, Clement Rohee yesterday stated that former Commissioner of Police, Winston Felix still has in his possession  Government’s property in the form of a radio that is tuned into the police frequency.

For the third year in succession, Grace Kennedy Remittance Services (Guyana) Limited, has thrown its support behind the Hikers Hockey Club Junior Programme.

Wisburg Secondary received a 15-51 points thumping from the Linden Technical Institute (LTI) while Mackenzie High School blew out New Silvercity Secondary 53-22 when the Victory Valley Royals School’s Basketball Championships continued at the Mackenzie Sports Club hard court last Friday.

Dear Editor, There is this saying, ‘If one wants to know how humane a nation is, examine how it treats its vulnerable groups, especially the disabled, children and the elderly.‘

BOSAI and Republic Bank Limited recently made financial contributions to support the activities of Linden Town Week (LTW) 2012.

A 12-year-old Tucville boy sustained severe injuries about his body yesterday morning after he was struck down close to his home by a speeding taxi.

CARTAGENA, Colombia, (Reuters) – Unprecedented Latin American opposition to U.S. sanctions on Cuba left President Barack Obama isolated at a summit yesterday and illustrated Washington’s declining influence in a region being aggressively courted by China.

A repeat drug offender from Blue Berry Hill, Linden was sent to prison for two years and nine months and fined $45,000 when he appeared before Magistrate Ann McLennan at the Christianburg Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday.

Dear Editor, For thirty years I have studied the reasons for failure of a high proportion of “Development” projects in Guyanese Amerindian areas.

CARTAGENA, Colombia, (Reuters) – The U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement will enter into force next month, far earlier than expected, as a result of what the Obama administration called “historic” progress for Colombian worker protections and human rights.

KINGSTON, Jamaica,  CMC – Jonathan Carter fell agonisingly short of a century on 99 as Barbados took a giant step towards the capture of the Regional Four-Day title on the third day of the Final against reigning four-time champions Jamaica here yesterday.

BEIRUT, (Reuters) – U.N. peace monitors are due to start their mission in Syria today to oversee a shaky ceasefire undermined by persistent violence and the shelling of the opposition stronghold of Homs by forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad.

Dear Editor, In all the furore and noise surrounding CJ Chang and his ruling in the Greene case, let us not lose sight of two things: a.

(Reuters) – Bangladesh have agreed to tour Pakistan for two matches later this month, the first full internationals in the country since March 2009 when Sri Lankan cricketers and officials were attacked by gunmen in Lahore.

A man from Canvas City, Wismar, was on  Tuesday sentenced to prison on two counts of break and enter and larceny and indecent assault when he appeared before Magistrate Ann McLennan at the Christianburg Magistrate’s Court.

Twenty-four students graduated with certificates in electrical and mechanical engineering, when the Machinery Corporation of Guyana Limited (MACORP) held its annual graduation on Friday.

Dear Editor, In his excellent letter of April 5, (‘The Greene case is a manifestation of a socio-cultural phenomenon‘) Abu Bakr wrote, “the point that remains is that ‘rape’ in all of its definitions, is facilitated and covered up by a certain way of life, certain values, liberties and the ambient immorality.

KABUL,  (Reuters) – Heavy explosions, rockets and gunfire rattled Kabul yesterday as Afghanistan’s Taliban launched a “spring offensive” with multiple attacks targeting Western embassies, the NATO force’s headquarters and the parliament building.

KINGSTON,  (Reuters) – Jamaican triple Olympic champion Usain Bolt opened his 2012 season with a sizzling anchor leg as his Racers Track Club logged a world leading time of 37.82 seconds in a 4×100 metres relay Saturday.

SAN SALVADOR,  (Reuters) – No one was murdered in El Salvador on Saturday, officials said, in what was the first homicide-free day in nearly three years for the Central American country plagued by violent drug gangs.

The acting Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce Irfaan Ali has highlighted the need to regularize and standardize  the tourism industry in order to protect the nature of community-based tourism and strengthen the product to give it access to larger markets.

NEW YORK,  – LeBron James and Dwyane Wade combined for 57 points to help the Miami Heat overcome the New York Knicks 93-85 yesterday in a possible preview for the NBA playoffs.

Dear Editor, There are continuing calls for across-the-board pay increases. One cannot deny the need and wisdom for pay to at least keep pace with contextual changes in, for example, inflation, cost-of-living, productivity and profitability.

By Janette Bulkan Janette Bulkan is a Social Anthro-pologist who was Coordinator of the Amerindian Research Unit, University of Guyana from 1985 to 1999 and Senior Social Scientist at the Iwokrama International Centre from 2000 to 2003.

Corruption is clearly a priority concern for Guyanese. The 2010 Latin American Public Opinion Poll (LAPOP) conducted by Vanderbilt University in 26 countries, found that 78.5% of the Guyanese surveyed perceived corruption to be high, thereby placing the country in the upper tier along with Jamaica and Peru.

(Trinidad Express) Ninety-one or 40.8 per cent of the 223 cancer patients over-radiated by the Brian Lara Cancer Treatment Centre (BLCTC) are dead.

SHANGHAI, China,  CMC – Britain’s Lewis Hamilton weaved his way from seventh at the start to finish third as pole-sitter Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg captured the Chinese Grand Prix to claim his maiden Formula One win here  yesterday.

With World Press Freedom Day approaching on May 3rd, the collective mind of the press will be focused on the restraints that continue to be in place on the media and the government’s own approach to openness.

The budget debate and VAT Photos and interviews by Frances Abraham and Alva Solomon This week we asked the man and woman in the street about their views on the budget debate and the Value Added Tax.

Dear Editor, Look at the speed that police cars travel when they accompany a minster‘s car.

OKLAHOMA CITY, (Reuters) – Clean-up efforts were underway across the Midwest yesterday after dozens of tornadoes ripped across the region, killing five people in one Oklahoma town, three of them young girls, after storm sirens failed to sound and houses were reduced to rubble.

(Trinidad Express) A teenage relative of two-year-old Aliyah Johnson was charged yesterday with the child’s murder.