Daily Archive: Friday, February 5, 2021

 (Reuters) – Christopher Plummer, a patrician Canadian who starred as widower Captain von Trapp opposite Julie Andrews in the blockbuster 1965 musical “The Sound Of Music” and in 2012 became the oldest actor to win an Oscar, has died at 91, his longtime friend and manager said today.

A 40-year-old man died today at the Georgetown Hospital after he was beaten at the Lusignan Prison last night.

ExxonMobil today said it had safely removed a faulty compressor from its Liza Destiny offshore platform for repairs overseas and in the meanwhile production levels have been cut to limit the controversial flaring of gas.

Minister of Home Affairs, Robeson Benn and Permanent Secretary,  Mae Toussaint Jr.

Vernan Ravi Rangadoo, the Number 43 Village, Corentyne man who fatally stabbed his nephews on Sunday, was this morning charged with their murders and remanded to prison.

 (Reuters) – Cricket West Indies (CWI) on Friday signed a five-year deal with broadcaster BT Sport for exclusive live coverage in the United Kingdom of all the Caribbean team’s international home matches, including the test series against England next year.

MOSCOW,  (Reuters) – Russian mining giant Norilsk Nickel was fined $2 billion today for the damage caused by a huge fuel spill last year in the country’s worst environmental disaster in the Arctic.

 (Reuters) – Teachers and students in Myanmar rallied today to a growing civil disobedience campaign as the anti-coup protest movement won the support of ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s party.

The National Assembly yesterday approv-ed an increase of the domestic debt ceiling and up to press time was still debating a motion for a similar increase of the external debt ceiling.

Less than a day after it was disclosed by the US embassy here, the setting up of a Taiwanese trade office in Guyana was scrapped yesterday amid a blast from the Chinese Government, raising questions about decision-making at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and whether Cabinet had been aware of the plan.

Almost two months after contractor Peter Gonsalves was fatally shot and robbed of his XR motorcycle in front of a Kitty bar, the police have arrested the alleged shooter who has since confessed to the crime.

The identity of the holder of the two controversial trawling licences continues to be a mystery, as fisher folk here and in neighbouring Trinidad are unacquainted with the name Rampersaud Sookhdeo, the man purported to have had operations in the twin-island republic, according to the Ministry of Agriculture  President of the Carli Bay Fishing Association, and member of Fisherman and Friends of the Sea, Imtiaz Khan, who has been a part of the fishing industry for years in Trinidad and Tobago, yesterday told Stabroek News that they are unfamiliar with the name of the individual and the name of the operations.

Stating that he will not be intimidated by “front yard or back yard bullies,” House Speaker Manzoor Nadir yesterday reprimanded Opposition Leader Joseph Harmon and fellow APNU+AFC member Sherod Duncan for publicly accusing him of showing bias in the National Assembly.

Guyana could receive approximately 149,000 doses of approved COVID-19 vaccines through an arrangement between CARICOM and the African Union.

No one with knowledge of the long-standing territorial controversy between Guyana and Venezuela is likely to be shocked over the recent seizure of two Guyanese fishing vessels by the Venezuelan Navy and the detention of their Guyanese crew in Guyana’s territorial waters late last month.

Prospects for an aggressive stepping up of the oil search in the Guyana/Suriname basin in a bid to further enhance the world-class oil discoveries made in that region in recent years now appear to loom large after the London-based multinational oil company, Tullow Oil, announced this week that it will be following what a February 1 Caribbean Business Report describes as “a year of relative inactivity” with the resumption of drilling activity in the basin in the region this year “in an area where it has already recorded one discovery of “high-quality crude offshore Guyana” with imminent commencement of “drilling of Goliathberg-Voltzberg North (GVN-1) exploration well in Block 47 in Suriname.”

Guyana’s COVID-19 fatalities now stand at 179 with two new deaths yesterday and 66 new cases of the virus were recorded.

The Ministry of the Public Service distributed 446 scholarships for both local and overseas studies to persons across the country since the PPP/C government was sworn into office on August 2nd, 2020.

The steady growth of the agro processing sub-sector from a modest and little-regarded pursuit used mostly to subsidize the incomes of poor families to what, in some instances, are, these days, significant investments in the manufacture of condiments from locally grown fruit and vegetables, is, arguably, one of the recent noteworthy successes in the agro-processing sector.

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has instructed the Guyana Police Force to institute charges against a police constable who fatally struck and killed a Golden Grove woman while driving a Guyana Police Force minibus.

Latin America and the Caribbean have suffered what the UN World Economic Situation and Prospects Report (WESP) Report for 2021 has described as “an economic downturn of historic proportions” arising mostly out of the health crisis resulting from the onset of the novel coronavirus.

Police have arrested a suspect in relation to the murder of Osafo Pollard, the 29-year-old man who was shot while attending a party in North East La Penitence earlier this week.

The January 2021 World Economic Outlook Report issued by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is projecting a 5.5% growth in the global economy this year, though its projection is underpinned by a distinct hedging of bets arising out of what is now believed to be fresh chameleon-like assaults from the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Dear Editor, It is public knowledge that I have been sick with Covid-19 and recovering in New York.

WASHINGTON,  (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden yesterday promised a new era after the scattershot foreign policy of his predecessor, Donald Trump, declaring “America is back” on the global stage in his first diplomatic address as president.

Dear Editor, I write in response to the letters ‘Bring back the constituency system…’ (2 February 2021 by B.

(Trinidad Express) The search for missing 23-year-old Andrea Bharatt ended yesteday afternoon in the forests off Aripo Road, Sangre Grande.

A mini-bus driver was yesterday charged with causing death by dangerous driving and released on $250,000 bail.

Two-time defending Elite League champion Fruta Conquerors will officially compete in the 2021 Concacaf Caribbean Club Shield, following the slated resumption of the regional competition, after the 2020 edition was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

CHATTOGRAM, Bangladesh, CMC – West Indies gifted the gutsy Mehidy Hasan Miraz his maiden Test hundred before quick strikes by seamer Mustafizur Rahman put them under further pressure, but captain Kraigg Brathwaite propped up the innings with a breezy knock on day two of the opening Test here yesterday.

BEIRUT, (Reuters) – A prominent Lebanese Shi’ite publisher who criticised the armed Hezbollah movement was shot dead in a car in southern Lebanon yesterday, the first such killing of a high-profile activist in years.

WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden will seek to raise annual refugee admissions to 125,000 in the coming fiscal year, he said yesterday, a more than eight-fold increase after former President Donald Trump slashed levels to historic lows.

Eating fruits and vegetables (Third Instalment) Fruit and vegetables are a vital part of cuisines around the world.

Dear Editor, I heard a lot of people in the country mutter sotto voce that the oil caused the earthquake, so I decided to float the hypothesis that it did.

APNU+AFC  Region Six Councillor, Shurla Scott-Richardson has informed Stabroek News that, based on her own investigation, Skeldon Estate’s General Manager, Vishnu Panday, has been replaced by former finance manager, Rama Persaud.

Gold Prices for the three day period ending Thursday February 4, 2021 Kitco is a Canadian company that buys and sells precious metals such as gold, copper and silver.

BRASILIA,  (Reuters) – Brazil’s prosecutor-general has opened a preliminary investigation into its president and health minister for possible negligence in response to a COVID-19 outbreak in Manaus city, according to a document seen by Reuters yesterday.

(Reuters) – Johnson & Johnson said yesterday it has asked U.S.

With former Demerara Harbour Bridge Manager,  Rawlston Adams currently facing a charge of  financial fraud, Shadow Minister for Culture, Youth and Sport Jermaine Figueira, has stated that he should step away from roles in the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) including that of Chair of its Financial Committee.

Dear Editor, Leaving aside the interpretation of historical facts, I am grateful to Terrence Campbell (SN Letters, February 4th)  for his articulation of the idea of removing the list requirement in the Constitution, which corresponds to my own thinking, as well as his support for a single powerful, independent human rights commission.

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony has provided details of government’s continuing plan to combat COVID-19.

(Barbados Nation) Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce’s (CIBC) plan to sell most of FirstCaribbean International Bank (FCIB) for $1.6 billion has been rejected by regulators.

Dear Editor, Distinguished Guyanese Dr. Bertrand Ramcharan – and now Mr.

With the presence of COVID-19 resulting in the continued lockdown of the football season, West Demerara Football Association (WDFA) secretary Adrian Giddings confirmed that the association observed zero movement during the recently concluded January transfer window.

LONDON,  (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell’s profit last year dropped to its lowest in at least two decades as the coronavirus pandemic hit energy demand worldwide though the company’s retail network and trading business helped cushion the blow.

(Reuters) – Cricket West Indies (CWI) yesterday signed a five-year deal with broadcaster BT Sport for exclusive live coverage in the United Kingdom of all the Caribbean team’s international home matches, including the test series against England next year.

The Ministry of the Public Service and its associated agencies have employed 889 employees on contract, inclusive of those renewed on contract since August 2, 2020.

A North West District resident was stabbed by two men at Baramita early yesterday morning.

The police yesterday issued a wanted bulletin for Akeem John, 22, also known as ‘Fineman’, who is wanted for escaping from lawful custody.

(Reuters) – Pakistan captain Babar Azam and Fawad Alam put on an unbeaten century stand to rescue the hosts from early trouble and lead them to 145 for three at the close of a rain-shortened first day of the second test with South Africa in Rawalpindi yesterday.

GASCI (www.gasci.com/telephone Nº 223-6175/6) reports that session 900’s trading results showed consideration of $35,707,095 from 340,135 shares traded in 35 transactions as compared to session 899’s trading results which showed consideration of $72,180,515 from 870,482 shares traded in 33 transactions.

The prospects that could accrue to the local business sector arising out of the Local Content opportunities deriving from anticipated oil and gas-related foreign investor pursuits was one of the focal points of last Thursday’s address by Dr Ashni Singh at the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce’s 131st Awards Ceremony, unsurprisingly so, since Local Content and what it could mean for the fortunes of the Guyana business community has, for the most part, been uppermost on the agenda of our Business Support Organisations (BSOs).

Dear Editor, Irfaan Ali`s presidency, so far, has been identified with a call for unity and the cleansing of GECOM, among other things.

SAO PAULO,  (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – More than three-quarters of Brazilians think Amazon rainforest fires have hurt the country’s image – and that environmental protection should become a priority for the country, even at an economic cost, a new survey has found.

If it is something Guyanese generally seem resistant to, it is learning from our mistakes.

President Irfaan Ali hosted the traditional annual media brunch at State House on Sunday, telling the assembled journalists that he was “open to constructive criticism”, to ideas, and the “sharing of responsibilities for the development and advancement of our country.”

The Preliminary Inquiry (PI) into the 2019 murder of a Better Hope, East Coast Demerara money changer and his daughter, will continue on February 9 with Mark Rufino removed from the joint charge.

– The dumb-boy and the commissioner It happens, almost ‘naturally’, when a newly-elected government spends its first weeks in office.

MANAGUA,  (Reuters) – Nicaragua’s parliament yesterday passed a law forbidding banks from closing accounts of sanctioned individuals, a move that one prominent business group said poses a systemic threat to the country’s financial system.