Daily Archive: Saturday, November 20, 2021

Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn today again invoked his concern that the country was facing a “trial by fire” as a large section of a building in the Eve Leary Police complex was gutted by blaze just weeks after the main Brickdam station was  consumed in an inferno.

Firefighters are currently seeking to contain a fire at the Guyana Police Force’s Office of Professional Responsibility at Police Headquarters, Eve Leary.

Accusing the PPP/C government of being “autocratic” by imposing a 7% pay hike for public servants, the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) on Friday urged President Irfaan Ali to direct the start of overdue negotiations between his administration and the union on increases of wages, salaries and allowances for 2020 and 2021.

Minister of Health Dr Frank Anthony on Friday announced that COVID-19 vaccine booster shots will be made available from next Monday for persons 50 years and older and persons with comorbidities.

Suriname-based SEOS Sustainable Solutions, a sustainable energy solutions firm, has established a presence here with a US$1 million investment in partnership with Floor It Guyana.

Two foreign pilots, who claimed they were lost and in search of gold when they illegally landed at the Mahdia airstrip on Diwali evening, were on Friday sentenced to two years in jail and ordered to pay over $11 million in fines after they admitted to four charges.

Former Bishops’ High School teacher Coen Jackson has been awarded $5 million in damages after winning a defamation suit he brought against writer Ruel Johnson over statements made about him in Facebook posts.

The Ministry of Human Services and Social Security yesterday held ‘engageMENt’, an event to observe International Men’s Day 2021.

There has been an increase in reports of rape in Region One (Barima-Waini) and this crime is often only reported when it results in pregnancy, according to Police Commander of Region One, Super-intendent Boodnarine Persaud.

Dear Editor, We have descended to a state of barbarism and anarchy when we turn a blind eye to vigilante justice.

A new water supply system was commissioned on Wednesday in Kamarang, Region Seven and over 700 persons are expected to benefit from a potable water supply for the first time.

Dear Editor, I would be grateful for an opportunity to follow up on my letter published November 17 titled “We should not give up on railway along the embankment.”

President of the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA), K Juman-Yassin is urging Guyana’s delegation to be great ambassadors during the inaugural Junior Pan American Games which will be staged in Cali, Colombia, from November 25 to December 5.

The daughter of strangled security guard Indira Lall is claiming that the taxi driver who was the last person to see her mother alive refused to transport her to the hospital.

The truck driver who collided with a couple along the Caledonia Public Road, East Bank Demerara on Thursday, was trying to avoid hitting another vehicle.

Dear Editor, I would like to follow-up on SN November 18, 2021.

The Guyana Police Force yesterday issued a wanted bulletin for Chinedu Emmanuel Aniekwe, who is being sought for questioning in connection with money laundering and operating a pyramid scheme.

Dear Editor, I have read the accusations against the government for violating tendering and procurement laws and regulations, the latest being NPTAB award of contract to St8tment Construction. 

Like many other students, 16-year-old Vishnu Surendra of Queenstown, Region Two, was balancing studies with his commitments outside of school as he prepared to write this year’s Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations.

Dear Editor, Goethe once professed that “the writing of histories is one way of getting rid of the weight of the past, writing of history liberates us from history”.

Dear Editor, I am a business owner in Georgetown and I believe the decision of the police to restrict container movement to late hours is a terrible one for the business community. 

The recently established Ahilia & Bish Panday Foundation has agreed to sponsor three students to pursue their studies at the University of Guyana (UG).

Dear Editor, It is no doubt that the Covid-19 pandemic brought about severe challenges for countries.

Sean Dos Santos and Stephon Howard yesterday both said that they are innocent of the charges levelled against them over the shooting and killing Abdool Fazal Saheed during a robbery at Freeman Street, East La Penitence just over four years ago.

“Keen rivalry and fast times” is what is expected when the local leg of the South American 10K Classic is staged tomorrow on the streets of the city.

At 22, singer Haliday HD has been freestyling music for almost six years, but only recently took his career to another level, becoming a recording artiste.

KENOSHA, Wis.,  (Reuters) – A jury acquitted teenager Kyle Rittenhouse yesterday of murder in the fatal shooting of two men during racial justice protests in a decision that re-ignited fierce debate about gun rights and the boundaries of self defense in the United States.

After being cancelled for the past two years due to the pandemic, The Aliann Pompey Invitational (API), Guyana’s annual athletics showpiece is set to make its return next year at the National Track and Field Centre, in Leonora, West Coast Demerara.

Dear Editor, It was very positive to see representatives from the American construction firm Bechtel meeting with senior ministers this week.

This week begins a new series in Tastes Like Home. It is called, On My Plate (OMP).

Acting Chief Justice Roxane George SC will on January 20, 2022 commence hearing the action filed by the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU), the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) and umbrella body the Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC), which are all contending that former President David Granger acted outside powers conferred under Section 21 of the Public Health Ordinance when he issued the first COVID-19 emergency measure back in March, 2020.

Dear Editor, It was good to see affirmative action is being taken regarding fire hydrants in the City. 

Guyanese national basketball players, Israel Yaw and Akeem Crandon, once again assisted ASA College of New York to a lopsided 78-54 win over Essex County College on Thursday.

YENAGOA, Nigeria (Reuters) – Oil has been spilling from a well owned by Nigeria’s Aiteo Eastern E&P and state-run NNPC for two weeks in southern Nigeria, local residents and politicians said yesterday, saying it threatened the environment and local economy.

I don’t remember “the talk” that was given to me when I got my period.

A labourer who admitted to stealing an electric fan was yesterday sentenced to two months in jail for the crime.

Two members of the Joint Services yesterday found themselves in court facing charges that they broke the law.

Dear Editor, Permit me to applaud the Government of Guyana for their 7% across the board increase announcement made yesterday for all public servants.

Marcie De Santos, designer of the clothing line Marsae, launched her new hand-painted collection on Sunday.

MEXICO CITY, (Reuters) – The Nicaraguan government initiated the process of withdrawing from the Organization of American States (OAS), Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Denis Moncada said yesterday, after the OAS denounced Nicaragua’s recent elections as illegitimate.

WASHINGTON/OTTAWA/MEXICO CITY,  (Reuters) – When U.S. President Joe Biden gathered the leaders of his closest neighbours at the White House on Thursday, far-off rival China was top of mind.

The Ministry of Health has confirmed the deaths of three more persons who tested positive for COVID-19.

Dear Editor, I saw the caption in SN about the file for the PS in kickback/bribe scandal returning to the DPP. 

(Reuters) – Casper Ruud completed the last-four line-up at the ATP finals yesterday, setting up a meeting with holder Daniil Medvedev after a 2-6 7-5 7-6(5) victory over Andrey Rublev.

(Reuters) – Distraught and in tears, Tim Paine stepped down as captain of Australia’s test cricket team yesterday after revelations he had been investigated and cleared over sexually explicit text messages sent to a female colleague four years ago.

There is a man who once slept the night inside a dead horse, threw lobsters at FBI agents and drew Kate Winslet like one of his French girls.

(ESPN Cricinfo) – Pakistan made it unnecessarily complicated for themselves, but their bowlers had done enough in the first half to ensure they held on for an exciting four-wicket win in the first T20I against Bangladesh in Dhaka.

(Reuters) – Former South Africa international AB de Villiers said he has decided to retire from all forms of cricket having lost his hunger for the game, bringing to an end a 17-year career where he established himself as one of his country’s greats.

Latin singer/songwriter and radio personality Carlos ‘Karlo’ Jerez recently released his second single since settling in Guyana a few years ago and is getting ready to create the video for the song, “Como Tu Mujer”, which translates to “Like You Woman”.

(Reuters) – India openers Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul scored half-centuries as the hosts romped home by seven wickets against New Zealand in Ranchi yesterday to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match Twenty20 series.

(Reuters) – An outcry over the whereabouts of Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai escalated yesterday as the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) said it was prepared to pull its tournaments out of China over the issue, prompting an influential Chinese state media editor to criticise the organisation for using a “coercive tone”.

Stephen Curry saved 20 of his game-high 40 points for the final 12 minutes as the Golden State Warriors rallied from a 13-point deficit to defeat the host Cleveland Cavaliers 104-89 on Thursday.

(CMC) – Head coach Courtney Walsh has hailed West Indies Women’s emphatic win over Thailand Women in their opening official warm-up, saying the winning streak was crucial to team morale.

(CMC) – Rookie opener Jeremy Solozano has brushed aside concerns about his ability to tie down a place in the Test squad, after being a surprise selection for the two-Test series against Sri Lanka starting tomorrow.

BRASILIA, (Reuters) – Diplomats expressed shock and disappointment yesterday at new data revealing higher-than-expected deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon this year, saying it increases pressure on President Jair Bolsonaro’s government to do more to stop the destruction.

PARIS,  (Reuters) – Authorities imposed a curfew on the French overseas territory of Guadeloupe yesterday following five days of civil unrest over COVID-19 protocols that have seen barricades burned in the streets and firefighters and doctors walk out on strike.

Three stories about the rape of children disturbed me recently. In one instance, it was reported that a 21-year-old man was remanded for the rape of a 12-year-old girl.