Daily Archive: Saturday, February 29, 2020

The US stands ready to work with the next democratically elected government, US Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah-Ann Lynch said in a message to the Guyanese people.

Chief of Mission of the CARICOM observer team Cynthia Combie Martyr at a Polling Place today at the St Pius School.

The Ministry of the Presidency today condemned an attack by commentator Christopher Ram on President David Granger which was contained in a letter in the February 27th edition of Stabroek News entitled ‘Granger and his Administration have violated Constitution on more occasions than all the previous seven Presidents combined’.

The US-based Carter Center – one of the key observer groups for Monday’s general elections – today deployed its team across the country.

(Jamaica Gleaner) The baby who was rescued from a pit latrine in October last year in Cox Piece, St Mary, and subsequently dubbed ‘Baby Moses’ by residents is out of hospital and has found a new home in St James.

(Jamaica Observer) The body of 16-year-old William Knibb Memorial High School grade 11 student Jonathan Eccleston was yesterday removed from a river here, a day after he fell into the water while fishing with friends.

(Jamaica Gleaner) Italians aboard the Costa Luminosa cruise ship were restricted from disembarking on Jamaican soil when the ship docked at the Ocho Rios terminal in St Ann yesterday.

KABUL/DOHA,  (Reuters) – The United States signed a deal with Taliban insurgents today  that could pave the way toward a full withdrawal of foreign soldiers from Afghanistan and represent a step toward ending the 18-year-war in the nation.

QUITO, (Reuters) – Ecuador has confirmed the first case of a fast-spreading new coronavirus in the Andean country, its health minister said on Saturday.

(Trinidad Guardian) A shal­low mag­ni­tude 4.8 earth­quake struck 113 kilo­me­tres west of Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and To­ba­go at a depth of 10 kilo­me­tres at 10.25 pm Fri­day.

Nine of the 11 political parties contesting Monday’s general and regional elections have signed on to a Guyana Elections Commis-sion (GECOM) Code of Conduct.

Residents in Mon Repos will be voting at a total of five polling places on Monday following the approval of three additional sites by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), which yesterday declared that it is in a state of readiness.

A Mahdia, Region Eight driver died yesterday after being accidentally shot by a police sergeant.

Moments after being handed three life sentences for the three persons killed in a fire, which he set to their Sophia home back in 2015, Gavin Graham wreaked havoc in the courtroom of Justice Sandil Kissoon, causing injury to the prosecutor, whom his mother also assaulted.

Former Chief of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Rear Admiral (ret’d) Gary Best has been charged in relation to the February 8th crash that claimed the life of cyclist Jude Bentley but has not yet been arraigned since he is currently  “crisscrossing” the country ahead of the Monday’s General and Regional Elections.

The Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) last evening confirmed that a Presiding Officer was fired after she was found to be publicly campaigning for the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C).

A 58-year-old pedal cyclist died on Sunday evening after she was struck down by a car driven by a police officer along the Anna Catherina, West Coast Demerara Public Road.

Police are yet to establish the motive behind the shooting which claimed the life of Collissa Hunte, of Amelia’s Ward, Linden, and left ex-lawman Teon Allen nursing a gunshot wound, Regional Com-mander Hugh Winter says.

FLORENCE HALL, Jamaica, CMC – Discarded Test left-hander Vishaul `Cheesy’ Singh was eyeing his ninth first class hundred as five-time reigning champions Guyana Jaguars took command of their sixth round contest against Jamaica Scorpions.

A North Road, Bourda man was shot early Friday morning and is now currently nursing his wounds at a city hospital.

Negotiations between the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) and the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU) continued yesterday with no resolution so the two sides will meet after Monday’s general and regional elections to discuss a proposal that 2019’s retroactive payments be staggered throughout this year.

One of Guyana’s leading cyclists, Jamual John, recently departed to ply his trade in the United States of America with the intention of transferring his success onto the international circuit.

Graphic photos of the Kobe Bryant crash scene were shared by Los Angeles County sheriff deputies, the Los Angeles Times reported yesterday.

A miner was yesterday charged with murdering his drinking companion during a fight at a Port Kaituma bar.

A taxi driver has been sentenced to 18 months in jail after being found guilty of sexually abusing an 11-year-old girl.

Footballers walking to training venues will soon be a thing of the past after the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) received a donation of two buses from the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA).

Alabama Trading donated several team and referee benches to the Petra Organization on Thursday which will be utilised for the respective football tournaments at the Ministry of Education ground, Carifesta Avenue The donation occurred at the Ministry of Education ground where Alabama Trading Proprietor, Wooed Phillips, during brief remarks said, “Alabama is pleased to be associated with the enhancement of football.

A homeless man has been sentenced to two weeks in jail after admitting that he “forgot” that he was given money to make a purchase for a Water Street vendor.

TOKYO, (Reuters) – Tokyo has no Plan B for this year’s Summer Olympics despite alarm over the spread of the coronavirus in Japan and elsewhere with under five months before the event, a senior official said yesterday.

Two members of the Brahma Kumaris faith escaped unhurt yesterday after a fire of unknown origin gutted the Raja Yoga Centre at Kingston, Georgetown.

DUBAI, (Reuters) – Two luxury hotels in Abu Dhabi were in lockdown yesterday to isolate guests including scores of professional cyclists after two Italian members of the tour the riders were participating in were suspected of contracting the coronavirus.

Dear Editor, If the Guinness  Book of Records were to establish a category for the longest delay  in announcement of results of national elections in inverse proportion to the size of  the voting population, Guyana would undoubtedly have been the repeated undisputed record holder for at least the last 25 years.

Peter Ramcharran, the former Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) accountant who was recently sentenced for fraud, was injured yesterday while making his way into a city court for a report ahead of his next trial.

SYDNEY, Australia,  CMC – Head coach Gus Logie has urged his senior players to lift their performances, as West Indies find themselves facing a tricky path to the semi-finals of the Women’s Twenty20 World Cup.

Trinidad and Tobago firm Commissiong and Company Limited is suing the Guyana Oil Company (GUYOIL) for US$291,055, which is equivalent to just over GY$60 million for what it says is breach of contract.

Dear Editor, Already our beloved country is on edge over who will win the elections and unless the Guyana Elections Commission acts decisively and transparently to defuse this situation there will continue to be fear mongering.

BASSETERRE, St Kitts, Feb 28, CMC – Trinidadian Amir Jangoo defied his countrymen with a compact, unbeaten half-century to lead a Leeward Islands Hurricanes fightback against Trinidad and Tobago Red Force.

Based on her interactions with various stakeholders, the Chief of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Election Observer Mission Cynthia Combie-Combie-Martyr says she believes that Guyana is ready for Monday’s polls.

Dear Editor, We the residents of Lots 51, 52, 53, 54, 56 and 57 Aurora Village, Essequibo Coast by way of this letter are hereby making a special appeal for some form of assistance so that we can enjoy the peace and tranquillity of our surroundings and amenities of our homes, which we are entitled to.

WASHINGTON,  (Reuters) – The United States will invoke a federal defense law to boost production of masks, gloves, gowns and other items to protect against the new coronavirus, the Trump administration said, as a new case of unknown origin was confirmed in California yesterday.

LAUSANNE, Switzerland, (Reuters) – China’s top swimmer Sun Yang said he was shocked and would appeal after being handed an eight-year ban yesterday for a dope test violation that rules him out of the Tokyo Games.

The European Union Delegation Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) yesterday deployed 20 short-term observers to complement its long-term observers in monitoring polling activities across the country. 

(Reuters) – A U.S. appeals court yesterday blocked one of President Donald Trump’s signature immigration policies that has helped to sharply curb a migration surge on the southern border and forced tens of thousands of mi-grants to wait in Mexico.

Dear Editor, Youth Challenge Guyana (YCG) is pleased to be observing the March 02nd General and Regional Elections and wish Guyanese well as they go out to exercise their franchise.

SAN JOSE,  (Reuters) – Prosecutors raided the headquarters of Costa Rican President Carlos Alvarado yesterday as part of an investigation into possible data privacy violations by the government, the public ministry said.

Dionne George of Edible Treats by Georgie is on a mission to deliver scrumptious delicacies that will leave customers of her two-year-old catering business craving more; so far, she seems to have been doing just that.

Up to Tuesday, the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) had officially written to parties contesting the upcoming polls, including the incumbent APNU+AFC and the opposition PPP/C, to cite them for public utterances, behaviour and ads “deemed unhelpful” to the promotion of harmony and tolerance.

(Reuters) – The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has cancelled next month’s annual symposium, the main event on the annual global anti-doping calendar, and related athlete session in Switzerland because of the coronavirus, it said yesterday.

MARSTON, Missouri,  (Reuters) – A bankrupt aluminum smelter that re-opened in 2018, after U.S.

Dear Editor, The Change Guyana and the Liberty and Justice Parties have indicated their intentions to renegotiate the oil contracts for months now.

SPARTANBURG/NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C.,  (Reuters) – Presidential contender Joe Biden told South Carolina’s Democrats yesterday that they can take control of the White House if they pick “the right nominee” to face President Donald Trump.

Tobias Harris scored 34 points to go with seven rebounds and seven assists to lift the short-handed Philadelphia 76ers past the visiting New York Knicks, 115-106, on Thursday.

(Trinidad Express) Gunmen attempted to kill a woman at her workplace in Fyzabad on Friday.

Earlier this week, one of my senior journalism students and I were talking about agriculture in Barbados.

The achievements for women under the APNU+AFC administration were celebrated at a rally at Parade Ground in Georgetown on Thursday evening.

Dear Editor, One of the troubling features in our country today is the frequency of domestic violence, leading to the death of many women in our society at the hands of their spouses.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Barbados Pride, leading by 159 runs on first innings, were six without loss in their second innings at the close on the second day of their sixth round match in the Regional Four-Day Championship at Kensington Oval here  yesterday.

(Trinidad Express) A Guyanese national is expected to appear before a Tunapuna Magistrate today charged with the February 23 murder of Nicole Hackshaw.

Businessman Fazaad Hameed is refuting claims of the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) that he smuggled chicken into the country, while saying that he believes he is being targeted by the agency.

About a week ago, I learnt that AF Vandevorst was closing.

KUALA LUMPUR,  (Reuters) – Malaysia’s Mahathir Mohamad will stand for the premiership on behalf of the former ruling coalition, the interim prime minister said yesterday, less than a week after he quit and plunged the country into turmoil.

Dear Editor, The selling of state land in recent months in the middle of a No-confidence Motion in the name of development is troubling.

(Trinidad Express) A fight over a woman during ‘las lap’ Carnival celebrations has led to the death of a Chaguanas man.

Sports Extra Promotions in collaboration with the East Bank Football Association (EBFA) will stage an inter-village tournament during the month of March.

Bunty Singh won the Chutney Monarchy last Saturday at Better Hope Community Centre Ground, besting nine other competitors with his song “She Want Me To Be She Raja”.

Magistrate Renita Singh will next week rule on whether it is necessary to visit the reported scene of the crime when the Preliminary Inquiry (PI) into the murder charge against Marcus Brian Bisram continues.

As Covid-19, which claimed its first British victim yesterday, continues to spread around the globe the World Health Organization estimates that it will soon reach most “if not all countries.”

(Reuters) – U.N. chief Antonio Guterres yesterday described an increase in fighting in northwest Syria that killed dozens of Turkish troops as “one of the most alarming moments” of the nine-year-old war and – along with most U.N.

Dear Editor, The NIS responded to the request for an explanation on no increase for persons in receipt of an NIS pension above the minimum, by announcing a four percent increase (NIS hikes old age pension’ SN Feb 28).

Taxi drivers are some of the most interesting people to talk with.

PARIS, (Reuters) – Roman Polanski cast a shadow over France’s Cesar Awards on Friday even as he won best directing for his film “An Officer and a Spy,” with several women in the audience walking out in protest at honouring a man facing rape accusations.

Eleven witnesses are expected to testify in the Preliminary Inquiry (PI) into the murder charge against Shaleza Ellis, who is accused of the fatal Christmas morning stabbing of another woman.

The Guyana Police Force yesterday notified the general public that due to the current condition of sections of the Linden Highway due to erosion of the soil, a decision was taken to have the speed limit on the highway reduced from 100km/h to 80km/h, with immediate effect, in the interest of road safety.

A total of 54 persons arrived in Guyana with a history of travel from areas at high risk for the coronavirus (COVID-19) since active monitoring of ports began on January 18th, according to the Public Health Ministry, which says that 18 are continuing to be monitored while the others are no longer being subjected to surveillance.