Daily Archive: Friday, October 16, 2020

Through funding from the European Union, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), in partnership with the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), has secured down payments to purchase over 1M doses of the expected COVID-19 vaccine(s) for Caribbean Member States.

President Irfaan Ali today held a virtual meeting with the Canadian High Commissioner, Lilian Chatterjee and representatives of the Canadian Commercial Corporation (CCC) to discuss several major infrastructure projects in Guyana, including the Corentyne River Bridge.

A release from Sleepin Hotel today said that Justice Sandil Kissoon has awarded damages  for libel by the Guyana Chronicle against Clifton Bacchus of Sleepin Hotel, Pasha Global Inc and Yokohama Trading Guyana Inc.

Two more COVID-19 deaths have been recorded, the Ministry of Health said today.

Accountant Nigel Hinds today resigned with immediate effect from the Board of the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) over the manner in which it has handled squatters at Success on the East Coast of Demerara.

(Reuters) – Pfizer Inc said today it may file for authorization of the COVID-19 vaccine it is developing with German partner BioNTech in late November, making it unlikely a vaccine will be available before U.S.

LONDON, (Reuters) – “Human challenge” trials of potential COVID-19 vaccines, where volunteers are deliberately infected with the disease, could become a reality after a British biotech firm said it was in advanced talks with the government to create and provide strains of the virus.

ZURICH/GENEVA, (Reuters) – A World Health Organization (WHO) trial that concluded Gilead Sciences Inc.’s

MUMBAI,  (Reuters) – Chris Gayle announced he was ready to shine in the 2020 Indian Premier League with a crucial half-century for the Kings XI Punjab in his maiden innings yesterday, having missed the first half of the campaign due to selection issues and sickness.

(Trinidad Guardian) Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley says “under no circumstances” will Trinidad and Tobago implement an open-door policy to migrants.

Officials from the Special Organized Crime Unit (SOCU) on Wednesday raided a property belonging to principals of the Accelerated Capital Firm Inc (ACFI) at Coldingen, East Coast Demerara during which equipment containing records of their clients were seized and this has caused a halt in the repayment process which commenced just days ago.

Both of the Elections Petitions challenging the 2020 general elections result could be resolved in less than a year according to APNU+AFC Member of Parliament Roysdale Forde.

Allan Sim was yesterday afternoon sentenced to 60 years behind bars after a jury found him guilty of the murder of his former partner—hospital ambulance dispatcher Melissa Skeete whom he stabbed on November 23rd, 2015.

President Irfaan Ali has reaffirmed his government’s commitment to transparency and accountability in managing the economy while recognising the role of the private sector as a partner in development. 

Some squatters have started to vacate settlements at Success, East Coast Demerara, after a confrontation led to police firing pellets at them.

With the National Public Health Reference Laboratory (NPHRL) now using the Nucleic Acid Extraction System that was recently donated by the Chinese Embassy, the processing of COVID-19 samples is being done in less than an hour.

A man has confessed to being the driver in last month’s hit and run accident at La Grange, West Bank Demerara, that claimed the life of Imran Abdul, according to the police.

Minister of Public Works, Juan Edghill has warned that the contractor in charge of $32 million worth of incomplete roadworks in the Diamond/Grove district must finish it soon or face the applicable sanctions which include termination of the contract.

The People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) government has terminated the contract of Dawn Holder-Cush who has served as Director of the Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission (CCAC) since 2015.

As government continues engagements to procure approved COVID-19 vaccines, Minister of Health Dr.

Guyana yesterday recorded one more coronavirus disease (COVID-19) related death and an additional 31 additional COVID-19 cases bringing the total number of cases to 3620.

The fact that even though our two international airports reported earlier this week that they were ready to execute the protocols and procedures associated with the re-opening of the facilities there remaining a measure of public doubt about the wisdom of the decision, is entirely understandable. 

The prosecution has closed its case in the trial of former army Chief of Staff Gary Best, who is accused of causing the death of cyclist Jude Bentley.

What has been, for several months, a sustained global discourse on the role of so-called ‘lockdowns’ in pushing back the spread of the dreaded novel coronavirus as against its impact on the socio-economic well-being of countries, is gathering a fresh head of steam.

Beyond the post COVID-19 recovery process which Latin America and the Caribbean will have to endure, countries in the hemisphere will also have to deal with what a United Nations study completed in July says will be “the worst recession in the region in a century that is likely to trigger a 9.1% contraction in regional GDP this year.”

DNA testing has confirmed that the burnt remains which were found at Moleson Creek, Upper Corentyne almost two months ago are those of missing Canadian citizen, Nicholas Ramkissoon Jaipaul.

With approximately six months of his tenure as President of the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) remaining, Jamaican-born Dr William Warren Smith has been talking up the role that the Bank has been playing in supporting the growth of the economies of the region.

Member of the Georgetown Public Hospital’s Task Force for COVID-19, Dr Mahendra Carpen on Wednesday stated that because of the encouraging signs observed, the institution will continue to use the remdesivir drug to treat mild cases of COVID-19 and will ensure that it is always in stock.

MIAMI/PHILADELPHIA, (Reuters) – Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden yesterday criticized what he called President Donald Trump’s “panicked” response to the coronavirus pandemic, while Trump defended his handling of a crisis that has killed more than 216,000 Americans.

Dear Editor, I would like to appeal to GuySuCo and the new government to reconsider their current approach in the handling of the squatting problem at Success.

BRASILIA, (Reuters) – Brazilian Senator Chico Rodrigues was caught in a police raid with money hidden between his buttcheeks yesterday, a judicial source briefed on the matter told Reuters, amid an investigation into the misuse of COVID-19 response funding.

Dear Editor, Venezuela has the largest reserves of oil in the world (300 Billion barrels).

With the rampaging COVID-19 having quite possibly snuffed out the entrepreneurial ambitions of large numbers of Guyana’s emerging agro-processors and seriously dimmed the enthusiasm of a great many more,  twenty-two-year-old Kelshine Griffith who was named the Stabroek Business’ Agro Processor of the Year at the end of 2019 has an impressive grasp of the situation.

Minister of Home Affairs Robeson Benn on Wednes-day said that there has been an increase in attacks on members of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) by members of the public as of recent, a situation which he described as “very distressing”.

With less than 10 weeks before the conclusion of 2020, football’s local governing body, the Guyana Football Federation (GFF), has floated the idea of possibly staging an abridged year-end championship during the traditional Christmas period, once approval is given by the National Covid-19 taskforce.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) situation in the Lusignan Prison is presently under control with only 21 persons being considered active cases.

MUMBAI, (Reuters) – Movie theatres in some parts of India opened for the first time in eight months yesterday, but with no major Bollywood releases likely any time soon, beleaguered cinema owners worry about whether audiences can be lured back to the big screen.

(Reuters) – The risk of exposure to the coronavirus on flights is very low, a U.S.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Convenor of selectors, Roger Harper, has pointed to West Indies’ erratic batting as the key to any hopes the Caribbean side harbour of winning their first Test series in New Zealand for quarter of a century.

Dear Editor, From the outset let it be made clear, I am not condoning or encouraging squatting but what I find abhorrent is the means by which the government is seeking to deal with the squatting of citizens in Success, East Coast Demerara.

Kings XI Punjab 177 for 2 (Rahul 61*, Gayle 53, Agarwal 45) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 171 for 6 (Kohli 48, Ashwin 2-23) by eight wickets (ESPN) Two men who had been part of the Royal Challengers Bangalore’s most recent successful year combined to put on a 93-run stand that was the bedrock of a win that turned from a stroll to a last-gasp win for the Kings XI Punjab.

The Group of 20 nations, representing the world’s biggest economies, agreed Wednesday to extend the suspension of debt payments by an additional six months to support the most vulnerable countries in their fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

An NGO, Global Perspective Inc (GPI), is planning to set up a programme to assist those persons who have been let go from public sector agencies over the past months.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados,  CMC – Player fitness has created headaches for West Indies selectors and have forced a delay in the announcement of the Twenty20 squad for the tour of New Zealand.

BANGKOK,  (Reuters) – Tens of thousands of Thai protesters cheered and chanted into the night in central Bangkok yesterday in a show of mass defiance to a ban on demonstrations designed to end more than three months of anti-government action.

Dear Editor, As usual, Rusty woke me up at 5:00 am this morning and took me for a walk around the village of Success.

Almost 60 per cent of low-income households in Jamaica, that is, those earning less than the minimum wage, have registered at least one job loss linked to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the findings of a recent survey undertaken by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

MEXICO CITY,  (Reuters) – The former defense minister for Mexican ex-president Enrique Pena Nieto, General Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda, was detained at Los Angeles airport at the request of the U.S.

The Canadian airline, WestJet, has been granted approval to operate two repatriation flights between Canada and Guyana, as there is a significant demand for flights by citizens of both countries.

Dear Editor, One could not help noting the concern expressed by the General Secretary of GAWU about the derelict condition of ‘closed estates’.

                                           Kitco Market Data Gold Prices for the three day period ending Thursday October 15, 2020 Kitco is a Canadian company that buys and sells precious metals such as gold, copper and silver.

GASCI (www.gasci.com/telephone Nº 223-6175/6) reports that session 884’s trading results showed consideration of $19,427,631 from 111,412 shares traded in 29 transactions as compared to session 883’s trading results which showed consideration of $14,629,903 from 171,501 shares traded in 23 transactions.

Celebrated around the theme of “Working together to prevent suicides,” a lot of focus last month was placed on how we can support each other to live healthier and long lives.

SAO PAULO,  (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – As farms expand into the Amazon rainforest, felled trees and expanding pastures may open the way for new Brazilian exports beyond beef and soybeans, researchers say: pandemic diseases.

(Reuters) – South African pace bowler Anrich Nortje bowled the fastest ball in Indian Premier League (IPL) history on Wednesday during his team Delhi Capitals’ 13-run victory over Rajasthan Royals.

Once in a while – although very infrequently nowadays – someone raises questions about Georgetown’s nomenclature, and by implication that of coastal Guyana as a whole. 

Dear Editor, In his riposte to Ravi Dev, Tacuma Ogunseye makes the highly refutable claim that since 1992 “African dominance in the coercive arms of the state” was “ineffectual” in guaranteeing African security (SN, October 14,2020).

-Lawfully punishing electoral thieves – possible? Very briefly today I attempt to discuss in my usual simple, grassroots, man-in-the-street manner – the issue of the responsibilities of both citizens and government as partners in national, community and personal developments.

It is, truth be told, a considerable pity that relations between Guyana and Suriname at the government-to- government level have not, for the most part, matched cross-border people-to-people relations.

(Trinidad Guardian) If the tax exemption cap of $350,000 proposed by Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley is implemented, the list of cars considered luxurious that can be purchased without exemptions could be significantly reduced for Members of Parliament and other public officers who are entitled to the exemption.

(Trinidad Guardian) Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley last night hit back at the British MP who raised the plight of Trinidad and Tobago nationals stranded in the UK due to the closure of T&T borders since March.

(Trinidad Express) Trinidadian cruise ship workers who remain stranded on board multiple vessels throughout the world are asking for exemptions to return home.

(Jamaica Star) James Smith, 75, started losing his sight in 2010.

(Jamaica Star) Emergency responders had to pull a man from underneath rubble after the roof of his house collapsed on him.