Lakhram Bhagirat

Chief Election Officer (CEO) Vishnu Persaud has proposed February 13, 2023, as the earliest possible date that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) would be able to hold Local Government Elections (LGE).

Despite having only the third lowest bid, the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) has awarded the contract for the reconstruction of the North Ruimveldt Secondary School to Kares Engineering Inc – the company responsible for the problem-riddled construction of the Kato Secondary.

The size of the recently released Preliminary List of Electors (PLE), which he says contains 684,354 names, equivalent to over 91% of Guyana’s population at the last census count, is proof that a clean voters’ list is needed before any election is held, Leader of the Opposition Aubrey Norton said on Tuesday.

Toshao of Chinese Landing Orin Fernandes has said officers from the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) and the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) who recently visited the community concluded that there are no glaring violations at the Tassawini mines.

Responding to questions on preparations for the overdue Local Government Elections (LGE), GECOM Chair, retired Justice Claudette Singh said that the body is aiming to host the polls by the end of November.

One day after Chair of the National Toshaos Council (NTC) Derrick John said that the community of Chinese Landing should formally write the council requesting intervention to address the violation of their rights, Minister of Amerindian Affairs Pauline Sukhai is now saying that nothing more can be done for the community.

Just over two weeks after he told Stabroek News that the rights violations in Chinese Landing and Isseneru had been identified as an “immediate priority” for the newly formed National Toshaos Council, Chair Derrick John has now made an about-turn stating that the communities must now write the Council requesting its intervention.

With the main APNU+AFC opposition boycotting the National Assembly in protest at the decision to suspend eight of its members, the government yesterday went ahead and approved  $44,794,011,175 in supplementary financing.

Although both the government and the National Toshaos Council (NTC) have promised to send high-level teams into the Region One indigenous community of Chinese Landing to ascertain the level of devastation caused by miners, they have yet to materialise while mining activities have intensified.

Amidst calls for the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to identify a date for the constitutionally overdue Local Government Elections (LGE), Chief Election Officer Vishnu Persaud has said that the Secretariat is currently in preparation mode.

Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall has said that the government would more than likely be tabling the Constitutional Reform Bill when the National Assembly meets again on August 8.

It has been over 17 months since the government sent a bill to amend the narcotics laws for the removal of custodial sentences for the possession of less than 30 grammes of cannabis to a special parliamentary committee for further consultation.

The US$100 million Pegasus luxury suites and corporate centre, which is perhaps the largest single investment by a Guyanese person, was commissioned last evening with proprietor Robert Badal hailing it as “historic” and “unrivalled in the region.”

With members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) community and their allies expected to take to the streets of Georgetown today for a pride parade, the Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD) is urging the government to make tangible steps towards the decriminalisation of same-sex intimacy in Guyana.

Demerara Bank Limited is now poised to begin the construction of its $150 million Leonora, West Coast Demerara (WCD) location and according to its Chief Executive Officer (CEO), the bank will be offering its full range of services.

Indirectly referencing Su Zhirong and the VICE News docu-series, President Irfaan Ali last night said that his government will be going after investors who utilize “middlemen” to conduct their businesses in Guyana.

Chair of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) retired Justice Claudette Singh on Tuesday shot down yet another motion by the Opposition-nominated Commissioners to have the March 2020 polls reviewed internally.

The Ministry of Amerindian Affairs is being accused of attempting to hijack the agenda of the National Toshaos’ Conference (NTC) by seeking to take full control over the agenda for the meeting, which will commence on Monday.

President Irfaan Ali has agreed to set up a ‘Saudi Arabia Desk’ in the Ministry of Finance with the aim of furthering investments from the kingdom.

The invasion of the Region One indigenous community of Chinese Landing, by miners, continues to increase along with threats against the village leaders, according to toshao Orin Fernandes.