Daily Archive: Sunday, July 5, 2020

The number of persons in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) has risen sharply overnight from three to 10 according to the dashboard released today by the Ministry of Public Health.

The Ministry of Public Health has confirmed Guyana’s 15th COVID-19 related death, according to the Department of Public Information’s (DPI) Facebook page.

NEW DELHI,  (Reuters) – Visitors to the Taj Mahal will have to wear masks at all times, keep their distance and not touch its glistening marble surfaces when India’s 17th-century monument to love reopens on Monday after a three-month COVID-19 shutdown.

SANTO DOMINGO,  (Reuters) – The Dominican Republic heads to the presidential polls today in a pandemic-driven drama, with delays caused by one of Latin America’s worst outbreaks and the leading candidate briefly suspending appearances after testing positive for coronavirus.

(Trinidad Guardian) Tobago Police are probing the circumstances surrounding the island’s fifth homicide for the year.

(Trinidad Guardian) Officials within the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) have uncovered an alleged plot to kill Police Commissioner Gary Griffith, Supt Roger Alexander and members of the Special Operations Response Team (SORT).

ExxonMobil should prove it is using efficient gas flaring technology in oil operations offshore and it is also imperative that both Guyana and the company have stringent measures in place to monitor for leaks from its equipment as such emissions have stronger greenhouse effects, physicist and energy researcher Dr Robert Kleinberg says.

Residents of the Moruca sub-district in Region One say that the special measures, including a lockdown, instituted in the area by the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) to curb the spread of COVID-19 are long overdue even as they called on government to support vulnerable persons by providing food and other supplies due to the expected impact.

SOUTHAMPTON, England, CMC – Team manager Rawl Lewis believes West Indies are mentally and physically prepared for the challenging three-Test series against England bowling off here Wednesday.

Sixteen more cases of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) were recorded in Guyana yesterday, taking the total number of confirmed cases to 272, inclusive of 14 deaths.

Recognising blatant disregard by many Guyanese for restrictions on social gatherings during the current pandemic, the National COVID-19 Task Force (NCTF) has moved to establish emergency response and enforcement teams to rectify the situation.

With the inclusion of Shannon Gabriel to the West Indies squad ahead of their first Test against England, Shamarh Brooks reckons it will be a big boost for the Caribbean side.

The Liberty and Justice Party (LJP) has written the Chairperson of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) urging the immediate dismissal of Keith Lowenfield from the post of Chief Election Officer (CEO).

Recently deceased Guyana Cricket Board Assistant Secretary, Anil Persaud, who will be cremated today and not yesterday as was reported, will be remembered for his commitment.

Guyana’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Michael Ten-Pow has served notice of the end of his term and he will not be seeking a renewal of his contract.

Junior Hercules, senior men’s coach of the Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation  (GABF) will next week, participate in a Sports Psychology Training Course geared towards high performance tacticians.

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – Another Cricket West Indies (CWI) director has made it clear he will not support former president Dave Cameron in his bid to become the next chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC), and he does not expect the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB) that he leads will either.

The National COVID-19 Task Force (NCTF) is currently organising repatriation flights from Cuba for Guyanese who are seeking to return home, Chairman of the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority’s (GCAA) Board of Directors, Lt Col.

MANCHESTER, England, (Reuters) – Manchester United’s three-pronged attack combined to devastating effect as they crushed Bournemouth 5-2 in the Premier League yesterday to move into the top four and stretch their unbeaten run to 16 games in all competitions.

Prevented from holding gatherings as part of the measures put in place to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19), many churches have started to utilise online platforms to continue to spread their messages to their followers.

Almost half of businesses in the manufacturing and services industry that were canvassed for a COVID-19 needs assessment survey have had to dismiss staff or plan to in the future and many of them see financial assistance, such as loans, subsidies, and cash grants, as being vital for their survival.

TURIN, Italy, (Reuters) – Cristiano Ronaldo finally scored from a free kick for Juventus and goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon made a record 648th Serie A appearance as the league leaders beat their smaller neighbours Torino 4-1 in the Derby della Mole yesterday.

By Allyson Stoll, PhD Guyana’s enduring maritime heritage encompasses many celebrated personages and noteworthy events.

Residents of Region One are continuing to question the reliability of the Ministry of Public Health’s testing protocols after two persons were revealed to be positive almost two weeks after being tested for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

(Reuters) – Formula One drivers expressed unity in the fight against racism yesterday but said taking a knee before today’s season-opening Austrian Grand Prix would be a matter for each to decide.

With the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) changing almost all facets of life across the globe, a number of workplaces have put alternative mechanisms in place in order to maintain output by allowing employees to work from home.

The family of the 10-year-old boy who was told he had to leave the examination room in Santa Rosa, in the Moruca sub-district of Region One, where he was preparing to write the National Grade Six Assessment, was never told that he was not going to be allowed to sit the exams.

Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Lionel Hollins and New Orleans Pelicans assistant coach Jeff Bzdelik won’t join their teams in the NBA’s Orlando-area “bubble,” according to media reports Friday.

With each new day, Andre Brandon puts himself at risk of contracting the novel coronavirus disease but his passion for his job knows no bounds.

With public sector construction now once again allowed, works are to recommence with the implementation of safety measures and policies onsite to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), according to Chief Works Officer at the Ministry of Public Infrastructure Geoffrey Vaughn.

BANGKOK, (Reuters) – Thai boxing matches resumed yesterday after more than three months as the nation eases its coronavirus lockdown, but fans of the popular sport will have to make do with watching on television for now.

Dear Editor, Let’s talk turkey. If David Granger continues with his ‘foolishness’ (as my Guyanese mother used to call it) the rewards of a pariah state are simple: a.

As part of efforts to provide support during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) has provided vouchers to 22 mothers with children born with microcephaly.

In “The Personal History of David Copperfield”, Armando Iannucci’s adaptation of Charles Dickens’ bildungsroman paints the varied locales of Victorian-era England with strokes of playful whimsy that bleed into its mood and form.

[Suite of 5 Poems]                                                       1.   Unwritten histories of human hearts Who knows one day the books will write themselves in magic language soon transforming us to image, symbol and the ultimate silence.

WASHINGTON,  (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump yesterday vowed to defeat the “radical left” in an Independence Day speech at the White House, condemning recent efforts to remove or rethink monuments to historical figures as attempts to destroy the United States.

Dear Editor, This writing is for President Granger, the appeal of a humble citizen, me.

An asthmatic woman is among the country’s COVID-19 survivors after a near-death experience with the deadly virus.

The NBA yesterday released the scrimmage schedule for the upcoming 22-team restart.

“The first time he hit me was the last, it had to be.

Dear Editor, Despite the major acts of fiscal mismanagement of the Guyanese economy by members of Team Granger, when one reflects at the manner in which the Bank of Guyana continues to manage the monetary sector, one is pleasantly surprised.

LONDON, (Reuters) – Serpentine produced an electrifying display of front-running to claim a shock win at the Epsom Derby yesterday as Aidan O’Brien became the most successful trainer in the history of the famous flat race.

A teacher who has been in isolation for almost three weeks at a COVID-19 facility in the Moruca sub-district in Region One, is concerned that hygiene standards at the facility may not be conducive for recovery.

(Reuters) – Florida and Texas, two states that have emerged as the latest hot spots of the U.S.

Dear Editor, I was fortunate prior to retirement from the Public Service, to have worked under the stewardship of a number of individuals who insisted on excellence.

If there is one thing this pandemic has taught some of us it is how precious and valuable life really is.

A Corentyne woman has been arrested after she was found with a baby she is accused of keeping from its mother for four months.

LONDON, (Reuters) – People relished their first pub drinks in more than three months, went to restaurants and finally got haircuts yesterday as England took its biggest steps yet towards resumption of normal life after the coronavirus lockdown.

(Barbados Nation) Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley on Friday announced that the shareholder governments are forging ahead with the decision to liquidate the cash-strapped LIAT while welcoming six private airlines to take its place.

(Reuters) – China’s two-time Olympic badminton champion Lin Dan, one of the sport’s greatest singles players, announced his retirement yesterday.

With the closure of gyms owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, more and more people have gravitated to the outdoors – like the seawalls, the National Park or D’Urban Park – to exercise. 

Dear Editor, As we await a ruling from the CCJ, there is little dispute in the minds of Guyanese that the National Recount delivered valid votes which satisfied the criteria established by GECOM for the process of counting votes. 

GENEVA, (Reuters) – The World Health Organization (WHO) said yesterday that it was discontinuing its trials of the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine and combination HIV drug lopinavir/ritonavir in hospitalised patients with COVID-19 after they failed to reduce mortality.

(Trinidad Express) The United Kingdom is allowing travellers from Trinidad and Tobago and 58 other Covid-19 low-risk countries to enter England from July 10 without being made to self-quarantine for 14 days.

LONDON, (Reuters) – Spinner Dom Bess was named in England’s 13-man squad for the first test against West Indies and there was no place for Moeen Ali among nine reserves, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said yesterday.

The Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG) and the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) have received funding from the Latin American Trade Association (LATA) Foundation to create a Counter Wildlife Trafficking Communications Toolkit.

LONDON, (Reuters) – First-half goals from Olivier Giroud and Willian and a late strike from Ross Barkley earned Chelsea a 3-0 Premier League victory over struggling Watford yesterday and a boost to their ambitions for Champions League football next season.

Dear Editor, Lots of pundits are today calling for shared governance, but the raison d’être for this concept of government no longer exists.

The Guyana Police Force (GPF) is planning to restrict road use by container trucks during peak hours on roadways in Georgetown, and the East Demerara and West Demerara, in order to ease congestion.

LONDON,  (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – A former England boxer who was trafficked from Nigeria as a child and forced into domestic servitude has won the right to remain in Britain after a 16-year legal battle.

(Trinidad Guardian) “The police are our friends, they are our protectors.”

This week, to emphasize for beginners the longevity of chess, we take a look at the famous Hastings tournament, hosted by a club in England in 1895.

Los Angeles Clippers point guard Landry Shamet tested positive for the coronavirus and is unlikely to travel with the team to Florida, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported yesterday.

Dear Editor, Each year, the United States celebrates its national Independence Day on July 4.

President David Granger’s revelation in a radio interview last Monday that he supported Chief Election Officer Keith Lowenfield’s report to Gecom, and that he thought the declaration of results should be based on it, set alarm bells ringing throughout the country.

MONTGOMERY, Alabama,  (Reuters) – Judge Les Hayes once sentenced a single mother to 496 days behind bars for failing to pay traffic tickets.

The Stabroek News feature “History This Week” used to provide readers with a most valuable series of vignettes from Guyana’s past.

Curious monkey, up a tree Jumping up and down, a spree Only sound, a boatside paddle Two bosom friends and me Then Gunns Strip… way way down below, And Barima, way up high From Mazaruni, Vergenoogen, Eh heh, Imbaidmadai From Malgretout to Rosignol Schoonord to Lusignan From Windsor Forest to Mahaica From Wismar to Leguan From Crabwood Creek to Ituni And  Paramakatoi All of that, yes all of that, Is Guyana, boy.

With Monday being a national holiday, the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) has announced that the payment of old age pensions will commence on Tuesday, July 7, 2020, at post offices countrywide.

Introduction Today’s column continues my exploration of Guyana’s world class offshore petroleum discoveries located mainly in the Stabroek Block, and under operational control of ExxonMobil and its partners.

President Granger’s undertaking to accept the declaration of the election results by GECOM leaves Guyana with the hopeful expectation that the election ‘torment’ will soon be over.

CARACAS (Reuters) – With Venezuela now three months into a coronavirus quarantine that has kept children locked indoors, music and art teachers and storytellers are for the first time moving their classes online.

(Reuters) – Damage done by the coronavirus to the membranes of red blood cells that carry oxygen may explain why many COVID-19 patients have alarmingly low oxygen levels, according to new research.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Researchers diving into dark submerged caves on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula have found evidence of an ambitious mining operation starting 12,000 years ago and lasting two millennia for red ochre, an earth mineral pigment prized by prehistoric peoples.

TOKYO (Reuters) – As face coverings become the norm amid the coronavirus pandemic, Japanese startup Donut Robotics has developed an internet-connected “smart mask” that can transmit messages and translate from Japanese into eight other languages.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Two of the biggest Harry Potter fan sites on Thursday distanced themselves from author J.K.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Five years after taking Broadway by storm with its multi-racial, hip-hop take on America’s founding fathers, “Hamilton” arrives in millions of homes around the world on Friday as a film.

GENEVA (Reuters) – There is ‘very little risk’ that pets can infect their owners with COVID-19, the chief scientist of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday.

TRIPOLI, Lebanon (Reuters) – For Amer al Dahn, the idea of eating meat is now a dream.

SEOUL (Reuters) – An augmented reality (AR) mirror at the new Seoul flagship boutique of cosmetics powerhouse Amorepacific makes easy work of seeing if that scarlet shade of lipstick or long-lash mascara suits you – even if you’re wearing a face mask.

NAIROBI, (Reuters) – Eat them, poison them, and use scent to drive them to cannibalism – as a second wave of locusts threatens to devour East Africa’s crops, scientists in a Nairobi lab are experimenting with novel ways to kill them.

ROME (Reuters) – Andrea Crisanti says his one regret is that he didn’t yell loudly enough at the beginning, when the dead had yet to pile up. 

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