Chevy Devonish

A meeting between a government representative and residents of Plaisance to discuss the controversial erection of a signal tower was aborted after perturbed villagers sent the proceedings into disarray.

APNU MP Deborah Backer yesterday cautioned that in the aftermath of the death of President Hugo Chavez, Venezuela has to be closely watched as it relates to the border controversy with Guyana and trade ties but Foreign Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett was confident of continuing good relations.

Engineer with the Ministry of Public Works and Communications Walter Willis yesterday said that the tower which was slated to be erected at the Plaisance/Industry Community Centre Ground for the government’s e-governance project will be sited elsewhere.

Over two dozen residents of Plaisance, East Coast Demerara yesterday returned to the Plaisance/Industry Community Centre Ground to protest the erection of a tower at the site for the government’s e-governance project without their knowledge, while a community meeting to address their grievances is still being considered.

Dozens of irate residents from the East Coast village of Plaisance yesterday blocked the erecting of a tower for the government’s e-governance project noting that it was to be placed on their community centre ground.

A fire tore through the Teachers Living Quarters of the Bygeval Multilateral Secondary School, Chelsea Park, East Coast Demerara, on Monday night, displacing five families in its wake.

If the University of Guyana (UG) is to attract the knowledge of additional PhD-level academic staff to add to the meagre 3% it possesses, it may very well have increase current salaries by as much as 200%, according to a consultant, who added that while the cost might seem steep, it would be far costlier to have an ignorant population.

The Guyana Water Inc (GWI) yesterday tried to make a convincing case to the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) for approval of a tariff proposal that it expects would help it bring its revenue levels within range of meeting its annual $7B operations cost by 2016.

A €8.6 million programme to boost the region’s agriculture sector, particularly small producers, was inked yesterday between the European Union (EU) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation in Agriculture (IICA).

An accident which occurred at Le Ressouvenir on the East Coast last evening has resulted in the death of a Buxton resident.

The decision to use Chinese labour to construct several Guyana Power and Light Company (GPL) Sub-Stations was based on the extensive skill sets of the workers and the need to get the projects completed as quickly as possible, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Bharat Dindyal says.

New University of Guyana (UG) Vice-Chancellor Professor Jacob Opadeyi today stated that if the university is to be rebranded a high quality tertiary institution, its administrators must, among other things, find ways to increase the “ridiculously low” tuition fees currently paid by students.

The family of the late Seon Scott says that he never received any kind of formal training from the Guyana Power and Light Company (GPL) or the private contractor he was working for at the time he was fatally burnt by a livewire last month.

Labour Minister Dr Nanda Gopaul yesterday signaled that the wage dispute between the Guyana Power and Light Company (GPL) and the union representing striking workers may be headed towards arbitration.

Guyana Power and Light Company (GPL) workers continued protesting for higher wages and while their union and the company’s management remained at an impasse over the demand, Bartica, Wakenaam and Leguan were all without power up to last night.

Guyana Power and Light company (GPL) workers represented by NAACIE yesterday took to the streets to press for higher wages even as the company said high fuel prices were ruining its bottom line and pointed to a $5B loss last year.

Garbage collection in the town of Rose Hall and neighbouring communities in Berbice has been handed over to private contractors.

One day before the February 16 deadline, students from several schools across Guyana are busy putting the finishing touches to their Project Description Proposals as they attempt to edge each other out to become the national winner of this    year’s Sagicor Visionaries Challenge for Secondary Schools.

General Secretary of the People’s National Con-gress Reform (PNCR), Oscar Clarke was rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) last night after he sustained three gunshot wounds attempting to fend off home invaders.

Retrieval of monies from the GRA and the NIS was the key issue queried with Region Seven officials at yesterday’s Public Accounts Committee’s consideration of the 2010 report of the Auditor General.