Daily Archive: Wednesday, February 24, 2010

By Tiffny Rhodius The 40th anniversary Mashramani costume band and float parade was a multitude of colours as revellers tramped through Georgetown yesterday, however the long gap between the attractions left many of the onlookers restless.

Three men appeared in a Schenectady, New York court yesterday charged with the Saturday murder of Guyanese Ganesh Ramgoolam and were remanded to prison.

Guyana, Guatemala and Suriname are now members of the Forest -11 (F-11), following the outcome of a Ministerial-level meeting of group members held yesterday in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia.

-suicide suspected A 74-year-old businessman of Rosignol, West Bank Berbice was found dead in his house around 2:15 pm yesterday and it is believed that he shot himself in the head with his gun.

A 69-year-old resident of Rose Hall Town, Corentyne was struck down by a pick-up while crossing the road around 8:15 pm on Monday and died while receiving treatment at the New Amsterdam Hospital.

Two ranks of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) were last evening rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital  (GPHC) following a parachuting mishap.

Trotman draws parallel between budget and ‘Mama, I don’t want to be born’ PPP General Secretary Donald Ramotar says government’s fibre optic cable project is aimed at breaking the monopoly controlled by the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph (GT&T) in the sector, but he also called on the opposition in Parliament on Monday to see it as a path to job creation.

– Gibson Ottis Gibson, West Indies’ incoming coach, believes there is sufficient talent in the region to turn the fortunes of Caribbean cricket around, despite the ignominy of their bruising one-day tour of Australia, in which they failed to win a single match in either the 50 or 20-over format.

Table tennis players 21 years and under will be in action this week-end when the Oscar Shew Memorial mini-cadet, cadet, juniors and 21 and under tournament is staged at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.

The Guyana Cycling Federation (GCF) has sent a congratulatory message to young cyclist Geron Williams on his selection as Junior Sportsman of the Year.

Victory Valley Royals and Retrieve Raiders continued their superb run in the Linden Amateur Basketball Association (LABA) U-19 competition in matches over the weekend at the Mackenzie Sports Club hardcourt.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, CMC – Just weeks after being dumped as vice-captain for the one-day series in Australia, Denesh Ramdin has been named to lead West Indies in the one-off Twenty20 International against Zimbabwe on Sunday.

SYDNEY, Australia, CMC – Chris Gayle is hoping his inexperienced squad learnt the harsh lessons dictated to them by Australia after the reigning World Cup holders clobbered his hapless West Indies in a lopsided eight-wicket win with 50 balls to spare yesterday.

SYDNEY, Australia, CMC – West Indies’ miserable Australian summer ended in further gloom on yesterday, when they plunged to an embarrassing eight-wicket loss in the second and final Twenty20 International at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

-taxis implicated Three men are in police custody following an armed robbery at a home at Triumph, East Coast Demerara around 7:30 on Monday evening, in which a family of five was attacked and relieved of cash and jewellery.

Lalit Modi has insisted that the IPL will not be moved out of India, despite security concerns raised in an independent report commissioned by the players’ unions in England, Australia and South Africa that led to talk of shifting the event to another country.

DUBAI,  (Reuters) – Russian fourth seed Nikolay  Davydenko overcame a surprise first-set loss to beat France’s  Florent Serra 6-7 6-4 6-1 yesterday in an error-strewn  first-round battle at the Dubai tennis championships.

Minister of Agriculture Robert Persaud and a team on Saturday reassured rice, cash-crop and livestock farmers at Den Amstel that measures are being intensified to help them to combat the prevailing drought-like conditions.

Rahul Dravid has called on India to follow a set domestic calendar within which they would play their annual quota of home international games to secure the future of Test cricket.

-court told A 40-year-old female trader was on Monday remanded to prison when she appeared before Magistrate Hazel Octive-Hamilton charged with possession of cannabis for the purpose of trafficking.

LONDON, (Reuters) – Two Wayne Rooney headers led  Manchester United to a 3-0 win over West Ham United at Old  Trafford yesterday, taking the champions within a point of  Chelsea at the top of the Premier League.

More than six months after the Essequibo River boat incident that left two men dead and ten-year-old Ricky Jainarine missing, tests on paint samples that could determine whether a Coast Guard boat was involved, are still to be done.

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – Trinidad and Tobago will have to do without the talented, youthful duo of Adrian Barath and Darren Bravo for their final round WICB regional first class clash against Jamaica in Grenada this weekend.

Police on the Essequibo Coast are investigating a robbery which occurred around 9 pm at Mainstay on Monday evening during which a farmer and his family were attacked and robbed by three men armed with handguns.

Dear Editor, I am a concerned parent of two children, one of whom is attending St Rose’s High School currently in his final year.

(BBC) Australia fast bowler Brett Lee has announced his retirement from Test cricket with immediate effect.

DOHA/KHARTOUM, (Reuters) – Sudanese President Omar  Hassan al-Bashir signed a ceasefire deal with the main Darfur  rebel group yesterday that is intended to lead to a broader  peace deal, a Reuters witness at the signing ceremony said.

The U. S.  President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)  will host a contest  to highlight the contribution of outstanding individuals  or organizations in the fight against global HIV/AIDS.

CHICAGO, (Reuters) – A firm owned by Chinese-born  U.S. financier Kenny Huang and by China’s Adrian Cheng, a  member of one of the world’s richest families, said yesterday  it has signed a long-term agreement to run China’s National  Basketball League.

PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico, (Reuters) – Cuban  President Raul Castro called for Latin American solidarity yesterday at a summit in Mexico to create a new organization that  could weaken U.S.

Dear Editor, It’s very disturbing to read and hear of cases of child molestation which are increasing each day in our country.

Dear Editor, I guess the next few months would be a gamble, pun intended, to see if the recently opened casino in Guyana would be a success with just the support of foreigners.

…EU to launch J$1.4b support programme (Jamaica Observer) The European Union (EU) will, within the next six months, launch a euro 11.25-million (J$1.4-billion) support programme aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of local exports to the EU market.

PHILADELPHIA, (Reuters) – Former professional basketball star Jayson Williams was sentenced yesterday to five years in prison for the shooting death of a limousine driver in 2002, prosecutors said.

WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – Toyota Motor Corp apologized  for letting safety standards slip during a period of fast  growth and vowed to respond more quickly to    consumer  complaints as two days of congressional hearings       crucial  to the automaker’s reputation began yesterday.

– Manickchand Human Services Minister Priya Manickchand says that issues relating to women’s development will be a priority of her ministry for this year.

SALT LAKE CITY, (Reuters) – Atlanta’s Joe Johnson produced a big-time performance in the fourth quarter to steer the Hawks to a 105-100 win over the injury-hit Jazz yesterday, their first victory in Utah since 1993.

An 18-year-old will be spending the next 24 months in prison since he admitted to breaking and entering a woman’s home and carting off cash, along with gold and diamond jewellery among several other items when he appeared at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court.

(Trinidad Guardian) Heavily-armed gunmen stormed a house in Gonzales, early Monday morning and executed four family members, as they lay sleeping.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, (Reuters) – Haiti’s government and  its foreign relief partners plan to start “decompressing”  earthquake-stricken Port-au-Prince by clearing rubble to allow  displaced families to return home or be temporarily resettled,  Haitian and U.N.

Dear Editor, In order for Guyana to maximize its true potential, it is necessary to securely engage all its citizens, wherever they reside, within, and outside the borders of Guyana.

WASHINGTON,  (Reuters) – New Washington Wizards  guard/forward Josh Howard will miss the rest of the season  because of a torn cruciate ligament in his left knee, the team  said on their website (www.nba.com/wizards)

A 40-year-old carpenter was on Monday denied bail by Acting Chief Magistrate Melissa Robertson when he appeared in court on a charge of indecently assaulting a three-year-old girl.

BRASILIA,  (Reuters) – The acting governor of  Brazil’s federal district resigned yesterday over a corruption  scandal that has tarnished one of the main opposition parties  and could affect the campaign of front-runner Jose Serra in  this October’s presidential race.

Dear Editor, The Preamble to the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana declares the Guyanese people to be “Proud heirs of the indomitable will of our forebears…” and proclaims the constitution as “Safeguard[ing] and build[ing] on the rich heritage, won through tireless struggle, bequeathed us by our forebears…” During our Mashramani celebrations on February 23, we commemorate the tireless struggle of the first and foremost of our forebears, Kofi (popularly known as Cuffy), who had formed and led the first Guyanese republican government during the enslaved Africans’ revolution against the Dutch which commenced in Berbice in February 1763.

(Barbados Nation) In excess of 15 000 tonnes of cargo, valued in the millions of dollars and bound for Barbados, are now at the bottom of the Caribbean Sea after a large container vessel sank on Sunday night.

(Jamaica Observer) Tension was high in the tough Portmore communities of Newlands and Naggo Head yesterday following the police killing of an area ‘don’, Dante Morris, who was said to be involved in the slaying earlier of a policeman.

SINGAPORE,  (Reuters) – The allure of $30 billion in  climate aid for poor nations holds the key to helping restore  confidence in U.N.

-court told Acting Chief Magistrate Melissa Robertson on Mon-day ordered that Michael Tim of East La Penitence be remanded to prison when he appeared before her at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court accused of breaking into the home of a woman and attempting to rape her.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados,  CMC – Barbadian Central American and Caribbean (CAC) bodybuilding overall champion Martinus Durrant has been hit with a two-year ban for using performance-enhancing drugs.

Dear Editor, Former PPP/Civic cabinet minister, Dr Henry Jeffrey’s letter, ‘The many difficulties faced by Malaysia do not preclude us from learning from its experience,’ (SN, February 19), though informative, failed to justify why Guyana is an ideal candidate for the shared governance concept.

BROOKLYN, New York, CMC – Guyana’s former world boxing champion Vivian Harris is enraged over his loss to Argentina’s Lucas Martin Matthysse Saturday night and has described the referee’s decision to halt the contest as the “worst injustice” he has ever experienced.

VIENNA, (Reuters Life!) – A Vienna art gallery has  opened a nightly swingers club as part of a two-month project  aimed at provoking debate about scandal in art.

The earthquake in Haiti and its aftermath, coming not too long before the country’s anticipated assumption of the chairmanship of the Caribbean Community, has thrown into clear relief the changing dimensions of the country’s relationships with her Caricom and hemispheric neighbours.

Dear Editor, Mr Ravi Dev’s column in Kaieteur News (February 7) questions my recording of the killing of Felix Ross as a political murder.

Fifty-six more women have graduated from the Life Skills Education and skills training programme hosted by the National Training Programme for Youth Empowerment (NTPYE).

Belize clears way for CCJ The Belize senate was expected to approve legislation allowing the country to adopt the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as its final appellate body, when it met yesterday.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has published more names and addresses of businesses across the country which have been classified as noise nuisances.