Daily Archive: Sunday, June 7, 2020

(Jamaica Gleaner) The police in St Thomas are probing a suspected murder-suicide involving a member of the Jamaica Defence Force.

The last of 2,339 ballot boxes from the controversy-ridden March 2nd general elections was recounted this afternoon at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre.

GECOM has decided to tabulate the votes from the 29 East Coast boxes that weren’t accompanied by statutory documents, sources say.

WASHINGTON,  (Reuters) – U.S. protests sparked by George Floyd’s fatal encounter last month with Minneapolis police crossed a new threshold as weekend rallies demanding racial justice stretched from Washington, D.C.,

 (Reuters) – Brazil removed from public view months of data on its COVID-19 epidemic on Saturday, as President Jair Bolsonaro defended delays and changes to official record-keeping of the world’s second-largest coronavirus outbreak.

(Trinidad Express) Dionne Ligoure, head of corporate communications at State-owned Caribbean Airlines, is under public scrutiny for a Facebook post in which she accused the United National Congress (UNC) of trying to “mash” her up in 2010 “for being black with a working brain”.

With the votes from 95% of the 2,339 ballot boxes from the March 2nd elections tabulated, the ongoing  national recount show-ed the opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) holding a lead of 14,317 votes over the incumbent APNU+AFC coalition at the end of yesterday.

Production at Exxon-Mobil’s Liza-1 project in the Stabroek Block, offshore Guyana, has plummeted from 80,000 barrels per day (bpd) to now between 25,000 and 30,000 bpd as compressor problems continue and the company would not increase flaring above about 15 million cubic feet of natural gas per day, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Director Dr Vincent Adams has said.

(Jamaica Observer) Claims by local medicinal herb practitioner, Carlton Bennett, that herbal remedies can cure COVID-19 and other diseases, have stirred up controversy and caught the attention of several individuals who are eager to test his hypothesis.

The first group of Guyanese repatriated amidst COVID-19 protocols landed at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), Timehri, yesterday afternoon.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – West Indies fast bowling icon Michael Holding is surprised by the non-selection of rookie speedster Oshane Thomas in the 14-man squad to tour England starting next week.

A Sister’s Village, West Bank Demerara youth is now dead after an argument with his brother in the wee hours of yesterday morning ended with his throat being slit.

Emile Mervin was at work on the evening of April 4th, when he realised that something was wrong.

A Corentyne man yesterday died yesterday after he was pinned under a tractor, which toppled while he was operating it in the Number 72 Village, Upper Corentyne backdam.

Guyana Jaguars’ premier all-rounder, Raymon Reifer, says he is ready to rumble as he joins the West Indies team for its three-Test tour of England next month.

With host Alfredo Ballesteros at the helm, ‘Hola Guyana,’ currently the country’s sole Spanish/Latin radio programme, hit the airwaves some six months ago on MEGA 102.1 FM and has since attracted thousands of fans from Spanish communities around Guyana as well as from a number of Latin American countries.

A 25-year-old mother of three is seeking answers from the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH), where doctors performed an emergency operation on her after she visited to have an Intrauterine device (IUD) removed.

The competitive fallout from the current Covid-19 pandemic continued in the CONCACAF region yesterday with the announcement by the regional confederation that the girls U15 championships and men’s U17  Qualifiers have been suspended until further notice, dealing a further blow to Guyana’s international youth programme.

A new positive case of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was confirmed by the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) yesterday, resulting in the total number of confirmed cases rising to 154.

(Trinidad Guardian) Hairdressers, barbers, beauty technicians, gardeners, domestic workers and spas have been granted permission to resume operations from Monday.

(Jamaica Observer) A Jamaican man living in the United States (US) who was beaten by police officers at his daughter’s graduation in 2016 is adding his voice to the throng of protesters across North America agitating for racial justice following the recent murder of George Floyd.

BARCELONA, (Reuters) – After an almighty push by all parties concerned, Spain’s La Liga roars back into action next week after a three-month pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with matches taking place every day and with everything to play for.

As a delivery man, Carl McKenzie is almost always on the go—a state that has become even more pronounced now that many persons who are confining themselves to their homes due to the COVID-19 pandemic are relying on him.

Students are beginning to express anxieties about a Ministry of Education plan to have classes begin on June 15 for CSEC and CAPE exams in July.

A local fashion designer has moved to use her skills to assist those in need in the fight against the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) by making and donating masks to those in need.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Fast bowling legend Michael Holding has lamented Darren Bravo’s decision to opt out of this month’s tour of England, but says he understands the left-hander’s decision especially considering the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in the United Kingdom.

The Amerindian Peoples’ Association (APA) says that the Ministry of Education’s (MoE) decision to hold key examinations in July is further depriving hinterland students of opportunities to have access to quality education and putting indigenous communities at greater risk.

What does it mean for art to become political? The question occurred to me this past week watching the way protests against anti-blackness spilled out from the USA to the rest of the world after police killed yet another black life.

The Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) has written Cricket West Indies (CWI) seeking a logical explanation for the continued exclusion of Guyanese left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul from the Region’s Test side. 

With the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) nearing the end of the recount of votes cast at the March 2nd polls, President David Granger yesterday said irregularities reported by the APNU+AFC pointed to a deliberate manipulation of the electoral process even as he reiterated that he would abide by the final declarations of the elections body.

The effects of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic on the mental health of Guyanese is among the main issues on the minds of budding filmmakers who have submitted short films for the “592 48 Hour Film Challenge” that has been organised by the Timehri Film Festival and Bent Street Films.

(Reuters) – San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich yesterday issued an emotional statement about the death of George Floyd, saying the “country is in trouble” and that he is “embarrassed as a white person” to know that a black man can be still be “lynched”.

Former Foreign Affairs Minister and government consultant Sir Shridath Ramphal has issued an appeal for the rule of law to prevail as Guyana nears “the tipping point of its ‘elections crisis.’”

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo on Friday called on the Commissioner of Police Leslie James to withdraw a list of voters that he purports were out of the country on polling day due to inaccuracies that have been uncovered.

Dear Editor, The Board of Directors and Administration of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) wish to clarify that contrary to the information contained in Ms.

President Donald Trump on Friday criticized Drew Brees’ decision to publicly apologize and walk back his comments about “disrespecting the flag.”

It is not unusual on anniversaries to reflect on what is and what has gone before, and the independence commemoration is no different.

Dear Editor, As a true friend of Guyana – who spent part of my childhood in Guyana in the early 1980’s – and as a former senior United States government official – I want to make clear that the Guyana election recount will soon be completed, and call upon all parties in Guyana to respect the voters and accept the election results.

(Part 2) In last week’s column, I gave some useful tips to ensure that when the lockdown is finally over, you can come out of it looking and feeling almost as good as before.

LONDON, CMC – England opener Rory Burns expects a “stiff test” from West Indies in next month’s three-Test series here.

WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – Tens of thousands of demonstrators marched in Washington and other U.S.

Almost a year after being diagnosed with a rare brain tumour, a mother of eight of Kato Village, in Region Eight, is now slated to undergo the first phase of her treatment tomorrow.

Last week we looked at the psychological effects of lockdown and the importance of the population’s mental health wellbeing at an unprecedented time like this.

Dear Editor, Like the rest of the world, we in Guyana witnessed with pain and horror the brutal murder of George Floyd on May 25th in Minneapolis, USA by a white policeman, invoking memories of the centuries of lynching of black men in the United States of America, where so many of our Guyanese and Caribbean citizens have made their homes.

(Jamaica Gleaner) Prime Minister Dr Timothy Harris yesterday said that it appears that his coalition Team Unity administration will be returned to power with a “resounding victory” after the three-party team won eight of the nine seats declared to date.

Suriname’s electoral authorities on Thursday finally announced preliminary results from the May 25 elections won by opposition parties, which on Friday accused the government of Desi Bouterse of stymieing efforts to seat a new legislature, according to the Associated Press (AP).

The Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD) is celebrating the 17th anniversary of its founding today.

HAMILTON, Bermuda, CMC – Bermuda captain Danté Leverock said he was confident of making a swift return to the professional ranks after racial discrimination forced him to cut short a brief but traumatic spell with a Polish club and return home Leverock, a 28-year-old defender, told the Royal Gazette newspaper he contemplated quitting the game because of racial discrimination at Radomiak Radom, a second-tier outfit based 60 miles from the Polish capital Warsaw.

Diagram 1: This diagram shows all squares on the chessboard identified by their coordinates.

The Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) has promised to take “strict” action against a local water company, which it said was caught filling one of its trucks from a fire hydrant in order to sell to its customers.

(Reuters) – World number one Novak Djokovic has said participating in the U.S.

SAO PAULO, (Reuters) – Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro yesterday defended his government’s move to partially withhold official data on the scale of the world’s second-largest coronavirus outbreak.

(Trinidad Guardian) Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley announced yesterday at a press conference that on June 8th all places of worship can reconvene.

Dear Editor, The recent statement on the recount process by the Organisation of American States (OAS) that, “A declaration based on these results would lead to the installation of a legitimate government” is that organization’s opinion.

Dear Editor, My letter of February 22 was published under SN’s heading `Do not squander the goodwill of the electorate’.

The late architect Lennox Hernandez has been remembered as a principled teacher who motivated some of his students to do their best.

The Miss Earth Guyana Organisation has selected former contestant Cintiana Harry as Miss Earth Guyana 2020 after taking the decision to postpone the holding of a new pageant until next year.

WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser has drawn a battle line right up to the White House.

(Trinidad Express) Approximately 1,000 nationals are expected to be repatriated to Trinidad and Tobago in the coming weeks.

(BBC) Britain’s world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua described racism as a “pandemic” when he addressed protesters at a Black Lives Matter march.

(Jamaica Observer) KINGSTON, Jamaica – Members of the public staged a protest yesterday in front of the United States Embassy in Kingston.

CARACAS,  (Reuters) – Venezuela’s government-friendly Supreme Court yesterday said the opposition-held congress had not named rectors to the South American country’s electoral authority in time, a move denounced by the opposition as an attempt to derail election plans.

Dear Editor, In his letter `Guyanese likely to be the perennial losers again no matter who wins the elections’ (SN, 5th June 2020) Mr Emile Mervin seems to have lost hope in Guyana ever being successful.

The Regional Health and Emergency Committee (RHEC) of Region Ten is currently at odds with the Mayor and Town Council (M&TC) over its decision to keep Linden’s markets open despite the dangers presented for the spread of novel coronavirus disease.

By John Seeram Introduction Last month was designated International Internal Audit Awareness Month by the Institute of Internal Auditors Global (IIAG).

(BBC) World 400m champion Salwa Eid Naser has been given a provisional suspension for failing to make herself available for anti-doping tests.

In my time as a writer of songs and plays and other stuff going back to 1966, I learned always to pay attention to feedback from the public.

DUBAI,  (Reuters) – A wedding party contributed to a new surge in coronavirus infections in Iran, President Hassan Rouhani said yesterday but insisted the country had no option but to keep its economy open despite warnings of a second wave of the epidemic.

Dear Editor, The PPP/C had mounted a much more robust, well-organized and issue-oriented campaign than any of its political rivals.

The recount winds down amidst the 40th Anniversary of the assassination of Walter Rodney, one of Guyana’s most prominent and courageous fighters for democracy and free and fair elections.

Tullow Guyana and Caribbean Surgery Incorporated (CSI) have partnered to acquire and distribute 10,000 reusable cloth masks for free at central hubs of Georgetown as part of their response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Many people go to the ends of the earth to find beauty.

Introduction Today’s column shifts the focus of my analysis of the likely impacts of the 2020 General Crisis, (as I have portrayed this) on Guyana’s infant oil and gas sector to its more speculative or forward-looking dimensions.

The one examination which all 11-12 year-olds across the length and breadth of Guyana have to sit is the National Grade Six Assessment.

NEW YORK, (Reuters) – The National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) agreed to further talks with the NBA on a proposed 22-team return-to-play format on Friday, another step towards resuming a season upended by the coronavirus outbreak.

(Barbados Nation) Scores of protesters gathered outside the United States Embassy, Wildey, St Michael around 11 a.m.

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Scientists in Sweden are hoping an alpaca named Tyson can help deliver a knockout blow in the fight to develop a treatment or vaccine against the novel coronavirus that has killed nearly 400,000 people worldwide.

BEUNOS AIRES (Reuters) – A new Amazon Prime Video series starting this week called “El Presidente” casts a satirical look at South American football’s dirty dealings through the eyes of deceased former Argentine football boss Julio Grondona.

(Reuters) – Actress Cate Blanchett suffered an accident with a chainsaw during the coronavirus lockdown with her family, she revealed during a podcast.

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Genetic sampling of the Dead Sea Scrolls has tested understandings that the 2,000-year-old artefacts were the work of a fringe Jewish sect, and shed light on the drafting of scripture around the time of Christianity’s birth.