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ARCHIVES FOR SEPTEMBER 04, 2009

Mormons who broke the law must leave
-- government reiterates
THE Guyana Government yesterday reiterated that 50 members of the United States Mormon religious organization, who overstayed their visitors’ permits and whose work permits have expired, have to leave the country within a month.

Head of the Presidential Secretariat and Cabinet Secretary, Dr. Roger Luncheon, stressed that the Mormons were asked to leave because they broke the law.

“…if the competent authority advises you, an intended visitor, or you a visitor whose permit for stay in Guyana has expired and is not being extended or renewed then, like everywhere in the world you subscribe to the law and you leave. This is the norm…that is the issue”, Luncheon declared.

The Home Affairs Ministry Wednesday denied claims that they were being expelled because they were involved in espionage and said the church has agreed to replace them with other missionaries.

The Mormons were detained at Police headquarters in Georgetown Wednesday and were released after church representatives met President Bharrat Jagdeo on the issue.

The ministry said the church’s High Representatives here agreed that the 50 will leave voluntarily within a month

The ministry said that after considering all the circumstances of this matter, and committed to finding a workable solution, a meeting was convened at the Office of the President at the request of President Jagdeo.

At the meeting were Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee and the two High Representatives of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints in Guyana.

The ministry said the church leaders were informed that while Guyana is a free, open and tolerant society, the laws of the land must be respected by all.

They were also assured that there is no intention to deport the 50 missionaries, it said.

“However, in keeping with the laws of Guyana those 50 persons whose work permits and extension of stay have expired will leave the country voluntarily within one month.

“Replacement missionaries associated with the church will be allowed to enter the jurisdiction and to conduct their activities provided they are granted work permits in advance of their arrival”, the ministry said.

At his weekly post-Cabinet media briefing yesterday, Luncheon said the convention is “once you are advised that the stay is no longer being entertained, that visitor leave…that’s the issue.”

He said when this does not happen, there are problems with the “undocumented…because you would have exhausted the period permitted for your stay.”

The Home Affairs Ministry said claims that the church members were asked to leave the country because of espionage activities were “false and unfounded”.

It said the 50 were asked to leave because they had overstayed their approved time in the country and efforts were being made to locate an additional 13 missionaries whose whereabouts are unknown.

The 50, it said, had overstayed their time in Guyana and did not have valid work permits since November 2004, April 2005, April 2007, January 2008 and March 2009.

According to the ministry, the church in October 2007 requested work permits and extension of stay for 10 American nationals to be attached to it as missionaries and this was denied.

It made a new application in February 2008 requesting work permits and extension of stay for an additional 22 American missionaries to be attached to the church and that to process the application, the church was asked to submit a list of all the foreign nationals attached to the organization and their locations.

The list was submitted in February 2008 indicating that there were 54 missionaries with the church here but the ministry said it found that these included those persons who were previously denied work permits and extensions of stay as well as those for whom the ministry had no records.

It added that during the processing of the application for the 54 missionaries, the church again applied for work permits and extension of stay for an additional 69 American missionaries to be attached to the organization. Included in the list of 69 were eight from the list of 54.

According to the ministry, they were given slips acknowledging receipt of their applications.

The church was informed in writing of the findings of the ministry and was invited to an interview in September 2008, it reported.

It said that Mr. Wayne D. Barrow, the Georgetown District President of the church reported to the ministry with his lawyer Mr. Nigel Hughes, and the matter was discussed with the then Head of the Immigration Support Services.

In June this year, the church was again asked to provide a list of all the foreign nationals attached to the organization, their location and copies of their passports.

“On June 10, 2009, the church submitted a list indicating that it has 66 persons attached to the organization. The letter also requested work permits and extension of stay for the 66 persons.”

The ministry said that of the 60 missionaries, the records showed that 50 had overstayed, the whereabouts of 13 were unclear and three had valid work permits.

It said that the head of the organization resident in Guyana was invited by the Permanent Secretary for a hearing and Mr. Sanjay Y. Pooran, Counsellor within the organization, reported to the ministry and the matter was again discussed.

Pooran was informed of the ministry’s decision and issued a letter denying work permits and extension of stay to the 50 who had overstayed their time in Guyana, it said.

Home Affairs Ministry blasts American Embassy’s false report
The Ministry of Home Affairs has dismissed a report, purportedly originating from the Embassy of the United States of America, as false and unfounded.

The release stated that the Embassy issued a report to the effect that Missionaries belonging to the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints have been asked to leave the country because they were engaged in espionage activities.

The Ministry asserted that upon acting in accordance with the Laws of Guyana (the Immigration Act Chap 14:02) Work Permits and Extension of Stay to 50 Missionaries belonging to the said Church, were rejected and ordered to leave the jurisdiction. These Missionaries, according to the release, over-stayed their time in Guyana and did not possess valid Work Permits for various periods since November 2004.

On June 10, 2009, the Church submitted a list indicating that it has 66 persons attached to the organization. The letter also requested work permits and extension of stay for the 66 persons, of which 50 had overstayed, while the whereabouts of 13 were unclear and three had valid work permits.

Committed to finding a workable solution, a meeting was convened at the Office of the President at the request of President Bharrat Jagdeo. Present at the meeting were the Minister of Home Affairs and two High Representatives of the Church, who were informed that while Guyana is a free, open and tolerant society, the laws of the land must be respected by all.

The persons whose work permits and extension of stay have expired will leave the country voluntarily within one month and replacements associated with the Church will be allowed to enter the jurisdiction and to conduct their activities provided they are granted work permits in advance of their arrival.

Land Cruiser collides with Route 48 minibus

Bus driver Heywood writhing in pain from injuries to his right arm.

The Toyota Land Cruiser involved in the accident

A Route 48 minibus turned over on its side on Duncan street yesterday after it was struck by a Land Cruiser coming out of a cross street.

Among those severely injured who had to be rushed to hospital were the driver of the minibus, whose name was given as Heywood, and a woman and school girl who sustained multiple injuries. Several others sustained injuries of varying degrees.

LCDS advanced at World Climate Conference in Geneva
- Agri Minister makes statement at Second Plenary Session

Minister of Agriculture, Robert Persaud, and UN Secretary General, Ban ki Moon, exchange handshake at the World Climate Conference in Geneva, Switzerland

Minister of Agriculture Robert Persaud yesterday delivered an address at the third World Climate Conference in Geneva, Switzerland. His address was of remarkable relevance to the theme of the Conference – ‘Better climate information for a better future’ – considering the message he delivered regarding Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS).

The Conference, organised by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) of the United Nations and hosted at the Geneva International Conference Centre (GICC), brings together the Secretary General of the United Nations (UN), representatives of related organisations, and heads and ministers of government from a number of countries.

Minister Persaud reasoned that the manifestations of a rapidly disintegrating global environment have arrested the attention of many states of the world, impacting economic and social developments and the natural environment. Consequently, policy frameworks and strategic focus have started to shift over recent years to take into account the impact of climate change.

“We are at a point where our policies and technical capacities at the national, regional and global level need to undergo a radical review in order to revamp climate services and make climate change adaptation, climate change mitigation and economic and social development possible in the years to come,” Minister Persaud posited.

He discussed Guyana’s approach to combating climate while advancing economic development as is contained in the LCDS draft document.

“It was recognized very early in Guyana that tackling the increasing challenges that climate change brings, cannot be successful, if initiatives to strengthen climate modeling are separated from other programmes aimed at economic development and social equity. The Government of Guyana has therefore sought to develop a holistic approach that aims to strengthen our climate services, adapt to and mitigate against climate change, preserving our ecosystem and biodiversity, all the while pursuing economic development and reducing poverty,” Minister Persaud stated.

The Agriculture Minister informed participants that 80% of Guyana’s territory is covered by pristine tropical rainforest. Unlike other countries with large forest cover, Guyana has had historically very low deforestation rates, averaging around 1% annually. Notwithstanding the low deforestation rate, the forest has come under pressure through the pursuit of economic opportunities. However, to preserve the forest without compromising the right of Guyanese to higher welfare and prosperity has been a cornerstone of the strategy. Deforestation, therefore, could be addressed in a pragmatic way by the provision of productive economic and employment alternatives which are more economically viable than the current drivers of deforestation.

Minister Persaud opined that actions to address tropical deforestation must, therefore, consider the root causes of deforestation - legitimate economic activities and creation of livelihood opportunities for all peoples. It is against this background that Guyana’s President Bharrat Jagdeo commissioned a pioneering study executed by McKinsey Consulting Group, with support of the Clinton Climate Initiative, to assess the true value of Guyana’s forest by determining the value it provides to the nation and the world. The study found that Guyana’s forest could generate economic value to the nation of between $430 million and $2 billion per year. This wide range relates to variability driven by fluctuating prices for commodities such as logs, palm oil and rice –but the most likely economic value to the nation is about US$580 million per year.

He discussed the main tenets of the LCDS.

“The main areas for investment identified in the LCDS are: promoting the generation and use of renewable energy through the building of a Hydro Plant and various biofuels projects; improving access to unused, non-forested land for the purpose of high potential low carbon sectors such as aquaculture and fruits and vegetables, promoting the service sectors in Guyana through improved fiber optic bandwidth technology and thus make business process outsourcing services possible and help building the infrastructure for sustainable ecotourism,” he added.

The Conference concludes today, subsequent to conclusion of other Plenary Sessions and the closing ceremony.(GINA)

Concerned Citizens picket Corbin’s residence

A group of some 17 persons, calling themselves Concerned Guyanese, yesterday picketed the home of Opposition Leader and Leader of the People’s National Congress Reform, Mr. Robert Corbin.

The group carried placards saying that PNC party elections were rigged, and that everyone has a right to picket peacefully.

It is understood that media personnel asked the picketers whom they were picketing for, and the picketers replied that they were just a group that got together and wanted the questions on their placards answered.

One other placard asked, “ Who killed Walter Rodney”. Photo shows picketers outside Corbin’s home.

MORE EXCUSES FROM CITY HALL
By Parvati Persaud-Edwards
DEPUTY Mayor Robert Williams, currently performing the duties of City Mayor while Mayor Hamilton Green is in Seoul, briefed the media at a press conference yesterday at City Hall on several issues, primarily payment of emoluments to employees of the municipality and to garbage collection and disposal contractors.

The Deputy Mayor said that intensified efforts at garnering revenue have enabled the municipality to make payments to all its employees as at 18:00h h yesterday.

However, he is not sure that City Hall can honour its financial obligations to its waste disposal contractors today because he is contending that the municipality is operating from a 1998 tax base, and that overhead expenses and City Hall’s wages bill have increased considerably since then.

Deputy Mayor Williams said that expenditure of the $10M per month allocation from the Government is overseen by the Ministries of Public Works and Local Government, and a report is presented to the latter ministry upon the completion of each tranche of the work schedule, which is a collaborative effort between the two ministries and City Hall.

He spoke about the rehabilitated vendor’s mall on Water Street, which provides accommodation for 166 vendors.

Touching on the Burrowes Commission Report, which was lauded by Mayor Green as a comprehensive document, the Deputy Mayor said that the Report is a useful tool that points the way forward for the municipality, and that the M&CC is awaiting the Minister’s pronouncements on the Report before taking relevant actions based on the recommendations in the Report.

Managing-Director of the Puran Brothers’ waste disposal firm, Mr. Lakenauth Puran, is highly dissatisfied with the way the municipality is doling out payments to the firm. He says that after striking for days they only received part-payment for May. Since then the bill approximates $19 million, with the firm still awaiting payments for cleaning up the city after the Mashramani and Easter celebrations, as well as payments for the months following the part payment in May.

He said that several promises of payment, including one for Friday last, were not honoured, thus they were forced to discontinue their services, because they would not be able to honour their own financial commitments.

The Manager of Cevon’s Waste Management, Alicia Edghill, said that the Council’s indebtedness to them is an approximate $22 million. She also said that her company cannot offer its services if there is no forthcoming payment and that although they had agreed to stave off the strike, which was scheduled for last Monday, on the basis of a promise of payment by the M&CC, she was forced to discontinue the services because again this promise was not kept.

In a release, the council has stated its regret for not being able to honour its financial commitments to contractors and staff, but cited defaulting rate-payers as the primary reason for this.

The release stated that, at its last statutory meeting, held last Monday, the council had decided on emergency measures to acquire enough income to pay its employees.

The release outlined several revenue-generating measures, as well as the intention to guard its resources with more care.

Pushing development in our Amerindian communities

President Bharrat Jagdeo hit the nail on the head recently when he said that one of the major hurdles in raising the income in the indigenous communities is the distance from the coast and the transportation logistics.

Our indigenous brothers and sisters have the capacity to produce large amounts of food, apart from their traditional art but because of the landlocked situation which face many of our indigenous communities, it is almost impossible for them to access markets for their produce and at the same time bring in goods they need. Because of these logistical problems the cost-of-living in these communities tend to be higher than that of the coastland.

Region eight in particular has a huge agricultural potential, and notably, many of the food items such as, potatoes and onions, which are imported, can be grown there in commercial quantities, but because they can access markets on the coastland only by air transport it is not economically feasible to grow such crops.

Against this backdrop the announcement by the President that some $2 billion dollars will be spent on the development of road access in the hinterland is most timely and welcomed; and could not have come at a better time than during the observances of Amerindian Heritage Month.

As the World Bank notes, roads are the backbone of a country’s infrastructure and the frame of a country’s economic development. They support growth in agriculture and industry, open corridors, port links and tourism areas, and connect each region to the rest of the country. Roads also furnish access to internal markets and social infrastructure such as schools and health centers.

“So upgrading the road network in Regions One, Ten and in the southern part of Nine, going beyond Lethem and connecting Region Eight to Region Nine could all be very instrumental in not only shipping things out but reducing the impact on people,” President Jagdeo posited.

The announcement too that there is a recognition of the need for some form of electricity supply in these communities is another step forward in the direction of improving the income and living conditions of the indigenous people.

The availability of electricity will go a far way in moving towards processing, rather being simply producers of raw materials.

"We recognise that the time has come for these villages to have some form of electricity," he declared

He said the government has embarked on a pilot project and close to 1,000 small solar units have already been distributed and, within four years, every household, among the 10,000 Amerindian households, will have one.

However, in all of this the President made a very significant and pertinent observation that in many parts of the world, there is this view that indigenous people must become museum pieces and kept in “a historically intact state.”

“We can ensure that our indigenous people progress materially. They can dream big dreams for themselves and their children and yet, at the same time, we can create the conditions for the preservation of this wonderful culture,” he assured.

The essential point here is that, unlike what some are contending, indigenous people can improve their economic and material well being like every other people without disrupting or destroying their beautiful culture and traditions.

It must be noted that these wonderful aspirations for indigenous people have not sprung up spontaneously or sporadically but rather on the contrary it is a deepening and expansion of the vision of the late President Dr. Cheddi Jagan, who worked tirelessly among the Amerindians listening to their concerns and plights.

This vision led him to establishing, for the first time in Guyana, a Ministry of Amerindian Affairs to methodically work towards the upliftment of our Amerindian people who endured tremendous repression and suffering during colonialism and even the post colonial period.

THE Parrot
Are you Dumber than a 5th Grader
‘Let’s examine the basic Maths. A fortnight is 14 days. The guard gets $16,000 for 14 days. To find one day earnings, $16,000 must be divided by 14. This gives $1,142.8571, to be exact. How did Uncle Adam get $100? Yes, $100! Was this Maths done in the Garden-of-Eden? Even then it was simple; a pair of everything; a pair meaning two. So how come this big fancy Editor-in-Chief of the Waterfall paper which boasts of having in excess of 60,000 hits online per day, can’t do simple calculation?’
The Parrot, like many others, is aware that the sciences are not confined to just Biology, Human Biology, Physics and Chemistry.

Mathematics and Additional Mathematics were integral components. Physics and Chemistry entail competence in Maths. Maths was and is still an important requirement when seeking a job and for further studies. Only English may rank higher.

Despite this importance, a large section of students dread Maths. The thought of Maths immediately evokes scorn, fear and “long faces”. Some people, maybe many, just hate to compute. Some just can’t.

This is evident in examination results and the way some people perform when given a job opportunity.

The Maths deficiency is difficult to conceal. Even some in the media who have big fancy titles and plenty experience years, have serious Maths Deficiency Syndrome (MDS).

Some are so deficient that, in their interaction with basic Mathematical principles, a different syndrome surfaces; Maths Always Deficient Syndrome (MADS).

Those with MADS are easy to spot. Some may argue that the MADS is deliberate as in the case of some mini-bus conductors who don’t give change despite the note tendered being higher than the fare and some vendors with similar disposition. I know at least one local Editor-in-Chief who got MADS.

Uncle Adam from the Waterfall paper has shown signs of acute MADS. Now, Uncle Adam we all know is a nice chap. But being nice doesn’t prevent one from having the MADS.

In Uncle Adam’s case, the evidence of his MADS is clear as reflected in an article captioned “AG to examine PC security contract-$1M per month but guards get below minimum wage”.

Long caption. Big headline on the front page. Details carried on page 6. AG in the article refers to the Auditor General and PC to President’s College.

The now page six article claimed that the Waterfall paper, “…understands that the institution is staffed by 15 guards at the peak of employment and each guard is paid a wage of $16,000 per fortnight, which works out to just above $100 per day, well below the stipulated minimum wage paid by the government”. If you don’t believe me, read the paper. If you ain’t got one, borrow Kwame own.

Let’s examine the basic Maths. A fortnight is 14 days. The guard gets $16,000 for 14 days. To find one day earnings, $16,000 must be divided by 14. This gives $1,142.8571, to be exact.

How did Uncle Adam get $100? Yes, $100! Was this Maths done in the Garden-of-Eden? Even then it was simple; a pair of everything; a pair meaning two. So how come this big fancy Editor-in-Chief of the Waterfall paper which boasts of having in excess of 60,000 hits online per day, can’t do simple calculation?

The Parrot recalls the famous Bud Abbot and Lou Castillo duo that divided 28 by 7 and got 13. To prove how right it is, they added 13 seven times and got 28 and multiplied 13 by 7 and got the same 28. The Parrot wonders if Adam and Bud Abbot and Lou Castillo attended the same school.

Over the last few weeks, Uncle Adam’s paper has been focusing on some government projects and questioning the sum paid.

He would put a big picture on the front page along with a million dollar sum next to it. In some cases he even showed plenty numbers which he added up to get the big million dollar sum.

According to the said paper, the million dollar sums are too much for the projects. How did he get the sum? Did he apply the same Mathematical principals (or lack thereof) as in the case of the PC guards? It seems as if he did, because the boys from the Finance place down at the end of Main Street and the contractors disputing the sum Uncle Adam got by his Maths.

It is obvious that the Maths was wrong as in the guards’ case mentioned. It is therefore not unfair to believe that if this simple Maths was wrong, then all the others Uncle Adam calculated for the projects are also wrong.

So is seems as if Uncle Adam is putting plenty wrongs in the paper. If Uncle Glenn had “marked” the paper with the guards’ salaries, Uncle Adam would have gotten a “duck-egg”; zero; 0.

It’s obvious that Uncle Glenn didn’t mark the paper because it passed; passed through the press.

The Parrot wonders what would the AG now examine; Uncle Adam’s Maths or the guards’ salaries? It looks as if the AG would be examining AG; Auditor General examining Arithmetical Goriness. It looks like the AG would ensure that PC now gets PC; President’s College getting Precise Calculations.

Given this, the Parrot has found the true meaning of Uncle Adam’s initials; AH—Arithmetic Hard.

With MADS, Uncle Adam would not be an automatic contestant on Jeff Foxworthy’s popular show, “Are you smarter than a 5th Grader?”

It seems more automatic for, “Are you dumber than a 5th Grader?” Poor Uncle Adam. Maybe it’s not his fault.

His MADS could be because Bud Abbot and Lou Castillo may be the Maths instructors down at the waterfall complex. Reincarnation? You figure. Squawk! Squawk!

Friday Musings
Twirly and Twisty
Those trying to be guardians and watchdogs for society and masquerading as truth crusaders should realize how sacred is the calling and how weighty is the responsibility they should shoulder. It’s not about twisting and twirling stuff, like hairstyles, to look good. It’s much, much deeper than cosmetics and those who try to screw with the truth can end up getting seriously screwed.
By Sharief Khan
IT was Sparrow, the Calypso King of the World who brought Twirly and Twisty to more popularity in his `Dan is the man in the van’ calypso.

An acknowledged West Indian social commentator through his enormous repertoire of songs, he used `Dan is the man in the van’ to mock the nursery rhymes taught in schools in his boyhood.

Twirly and Twisty was one about two screws. And there was the ass in the lion skin; the stupid woman who pushed the cow on top of her house to eat grass, the pig who danced a jig for a fig, and Mr. Mike who rode to school on a bike.

Sparrow made his point about nonsense being taught to kids, but as Trinidadian journalist Kim Johnson pointed out in an article in the Trinidad Express in 2000, nowadays, the ever-popular Sesame Street and educational TV shows use similar nonsense rhymes to teach the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic.

So nonsense can sometimes help make sense.

But in Guyana’s case, peddling nonsense is becoming endemic in some sections of the media and the Twirlies and Twisties are trying to screw the public.

They are fast becoming masters of twirling and twisting stuff to suit their own agendas and have become so adept at it that when confronted with the truth of the matter, they cannot recognize it.

The twirling and twisting skills have made them so dizzy that they are in danger of becoming strangers to the truth.

It’s all part of the con game – dazzle the people so much by bull-sh*t that they soon come to believe that the bull-sh*t is the truth. Like asses in lion skins.

Those nonsense nursery rhymes were designed to teach kids some basics in getting an education and it’s time for the Guyana Press Association and company to seriously try to get some of their ilk back to basics.

Perhaps it is providential that a series of Government of Canada/Guyana Press Association workshops aimed at improving the state of media governance in this country is on this month and it is to be fervently hoped that the organizers succeed in preaching the gospel to those invited to attend.

Lord knows some of us badly need a conversion and a baptism of sorts in the commandments of the world of journalism.

I see some serious old backsliders standing up trying to preach to others like they have seen the light and I gnash my teeth and tear my hair in amazement.

My Lord! Some of these cats were suckled on how to become Twirlies and Twisties with the truth and they now act as though they have been to the mountain top and come back with the golden rules.

And all they are good at is bending the rules.

Those trying to be guardians and watchdogs for society and masquerading as truth crusaders should realize how sacred is the calling and how weighty is the responsibility they should shoulder.

It’s not about twisting and twirling stuff, like hairstyles, to look good.

It’s much, much deeper than cosmetics and those who try to screw with the truth can end up getting seriously screwed.

Sanction all road-hogs
By Parvati Persaud-Edwards
ROAD hogs are in the habit of causing accidents, then disregarding and/or abusing victims as a norm, and until the citizenry of the land join the police and the judiciary in a collaborative campaign to get road hogs off the road before they take even more lives than they currently do, no one can feel safe when they leave their homes, even if they themselves engage in safe practices on the roadways.

Chronicle and the staff at GNNL would be initiating and sustaining a campaign in an attempt to attract the attention of the authorities to the urgent need to deal condignly with road hogs who treat other road users with disdain, even to the point of endangering their well-being, beginning with incidents in which myself and Chronicle reporter, Shirley Thomas, were involved.

Shirley is one of the most ladylike women I know. She is courteous to a fault and well-liked by everyone with whom she interrelates.

However, an accident in which she was injured, with no redress – not even an apology, nor an enquiry from the driver has tried even her patience.

On her way to work one day Shirley was standing at the corner of Vlissengen Road opposite Lama Avenue, patiently waiting to cross the road into Lama Avenue, where the offices of Guyana National Newspapers Ltd (GNNL) - the home of Chronicle where she works, are located.

A woman driving a RAV 4, licence number PLL 1847, suddenly began reversing against the one-way traffic and slammed into Shirley, severely injuring her arm.

The next day, when pain and other after-effects, which included swelling and severe bruising of her arm, forced Shirley to report the matter, she discovered that the woman, whose name she knows, had not reported the accident.

The traffic rank never followed up the matter and the woman, who had been provided contact address and telephone number for Shirley never once called to apologise or to enquire about the extent of her injuries, which had disallowed her from working for a while.

One apology to Shirley would have ended the matter right there, but the woman is one of the distinctive breed of arrogant road-hogs, who show scant regard for other road users, who need to be taught a severe lesson before they kill someone with their vehicles, which is a very potent weapon in their hands.

Yesterday morning Shirley was covering her normal hospital beat and I decided to accompany her for observational purposes.

Afterwards we had a meal in the restaurant opposite the entrance to the emergency section of the hospital while we awaited transportation back to the office.

When Chronicle’s vehicle pulled up a few feet away behind a parked vehicle, Shirley and I began walking toward it in single file, with Shirley in front, bearing in mind the congestion on the street.

I suddenly felt a glancing blow on my left elbow that engulfed my entire left arm in excruciating pain. Priya Nauth, who was in the backseat of our vehicle looking back at Shirley and I, said she saw when Route 45 minibus, licence No. BGG 9465, hit me from behind.

However, instead of apologising for hurting me, the driver began abusing and threatening me, saying to the effect that if I had broken his mirror then the outcome would have been different and that he would not have let me walk away freely.

He followed our car and stopped alongside when our driver stopped at the major crossing, continuing his threats and abuses.

At the moment I am typing with basically one hand, as my left arm is very painful, but I would not waste my time reporting this matter to the police station, as I might end up like Shirley, waiting in vain long after the accident, for either an apology or redress.

The staff of GNNL are asking the citizens of the land to join us in our campaign to disallow road-hogs from getting away with their thoughtless and even dangerous behaviour, which has become endemic in the society, by informing us about instances where any road-user has been guilty of traffic violations that could have proven inimical to the safety of either pedestrian or vehicular traffic.

Once we are provided a licence number and can verify the truth, we will publish the details of the incident.

GECOM’s managerial staff leave will be staggered
ELECTIONS represent arguably the most important component in the complex processes which result in a democratic system. It is therefore disingenuous and ill-advised to undermine the functions of any Elections Management Body with spurious statements and innuendo.

Recently, there have been reports in the media purportedly reflecting positions from those who should know better and who do know better.

It has been offered to the public that GECOM’s top brass was going on its annual vacation until January 31, 2010. The report continued that “this will result in the absence of the full complement of the middle and senior management during this period”. The statements further give the unambiguous impression of “abandonment”, “questionable commitment” and collective stupidity relative to our supposed belief that the production and distribution of ID cards are “now seen by GECOM as the sole determinant … in the process of handling elections in Guyana.”

Firstly, let it be very clear that the production of ID cards do not exist in a vacuum, rather it is linked to other major activities like “Claims and Objections”; and is the most important precursor undertaking to several future activities.

Secondly, the relatively short leave allocations to deserving senior staff are so staggered that at no time is the implementation of the activities associated with the final completion of Local Government Elections compromised. Only one manager is out at a time! This is neither a new nor an abnormal management practice.

Thirdly, many of the activities which are precursors to the Local Government Elections in general and the production of the ID cards in particular are either completed or will be completed even during the period of absence of any one officer. GECOM staff, unlike what is being portrayed, has not been sitting by sedentarily and uninterestedly.

Fourthly, my senior managers have been working, unheralded and unbeknownst to the public, under severe stress, not lastly since the implementation of the House-to-House Registration exercise. It becomes obvious when and which officer is reaching a point of exhaustion and diminishing returns on input. We need these officers at their full productive capacities when we enter the difficult “homestretch” of the last couple of months before Election Day.

Finally, as every institution which falls within the category of “Budget Agency” (since December 2003) knows, it is government’s policy and dictat that no monies will be paid in lieu of leave. Officers are told in no uncertain terms that they must take their respective leave allocations!

Notwithstanding the inexplicable current wave of abuse projected at GECOM, the nation need not worry about Local Government Elections preparations unless those with special motives stymie our preparation.

We have already explained (see published Media Releases dated July 28, 2009) how the preparation of the Local Government Elections, for the November 30, 2009 projected date, was thwarted.
Dr. R.S. SURUJBALLY A.A.
Chairman
Guyana Elections Commission

Baseless, erroneous claims nullify credibility
HAVING waited for the opportunity to register my commentary on the relentless proliferation of innuendos of government’s improvidence by the Kaieteur News in recent weeks, I am confident that my concise response will have profound significance.

My response is occasioned by an article titled: ‘Contractor refutes Kaieteur News charges on Stanleytown pump’, published in the Guyana Chronicle dated September 2. In his article, contractor Harrychand Tulsi provided statistics to vindicate the cost of the project. I use the word ‘project’ where the Kaieteur News repeatedly used ‘Stanleytown Pump & Engine’ because the total contract cost envelops far more than those two items. The pump and engine must be transported from the place of procurement to the place of installation; they must be installed with other mechanisms and by technical human resources; the assembled, ready-to-operate machinery must be housed; the housing must be founded upon a plot of land; the land must be prepared in a way to withstand the pressures that will be exerted by the machinery in operation, among other things I, being devoid of sound engineering knowledge, may not be able to cite. The point I am making here simply is that there are a number of components which must constitute the whole. The ‘pump and engine’ Kaieteur News points to discriminately, do not operate in a vacuum; they cannot operate in isolation of other components.

Not that I am eager to educate Kaieteur News, but those are the variables that must be taken into account. But should it come across as a lesson on how critical, robust investigation should be conducted, it is purely subconscious on my part, and I hope Kaieteur News will take it in good stride.

To scrutinise governmental projects with the interest of ensuring value for taxpayers’ dollars is unequivocally one of the critical roles of the media. However, when the results put in the public domain represent a lack of critical analysis based on authentic information, the reading public is done a grave disservice. Investigative journalism would provide findings that are empirical and irrefutable.

Certainly, the fact that Kaieteur News has been able to publish highly contentious articles and photographs with impunity is evidence of an abundance of freedom of expression, and by extension, democracy in Guyana. However, the baseless, erroneous, mischievous claims of this newspaper have already begun and will continue to nullify its credibility. There are people who read the Kaieteur News only because they know that it has become notorious for sensationalising realities. There seems to be a deliberate attempt by the publication to cast aspersions and create doubts in the minds of readers as it relates to what the Government is doing. But the very impressions Kaieteur News hopes to indelibly etch in the minds of readers will be deconstructed by the indisputable truth. The sins of Kaieteur News will find it out. Kaieteur News will destroy itself in its bid to brainwash the public and advance its mercantile agenda – to maintain high sales, fulfilling its insatiable quest for circulation.
GUY SCHOLARI

What was the motivation for choosing Mr. Corbin?
IN accepting his defeat by Mr. Corbin for the position of leader of the PNC, Mr. Murray is reported as saying "I am prepared to accept the results…because the margin is so wide, that even if there were – as I believe there were – flaws in the process and irregularities in the procedures, it is clear that Mr. Corbin would have won". To me, this statement is an honest admission by Murray that Corbin had the support of the majority of delegates.

In my view, a victory for Mr. Murray would have changed the dynamics of politics in Guyana and demonstrated this party's commitment to change the race based politics of the country. I believe he would have been able to rebuild the party to become a serious contender to win the Presidency, if not in 2011certainly in subsequent elections. As for Mr. Corbin, assuming he is the party's candidate in 2011, I do not see him winning. Worse yet, I do not think he has the same goodwill as Mr. Murray to be able to rebuild the party for success beyond 2011.

Now that the delegates have made their choice, one has to wonder what motivated them to choose Mr. Corbin. After all, he lost the last two contests against the PPP. Mr. Mervyn Williams may have provided the answer. The Stabroek News of July 17, in reporting on Williams resignation as Chairman of the party's Region Three Committee, states "In a letter (seen by Stabroek News) to PNCR General Secretary Oscar Clarke dated July 7, 2009, Williams offered his resignation with immediate effect,...he explained that he had the first inclination to resign when a representative to the Central Executive Committee (CEC) told a meeting that "the PNCR is essentially an African Guyanese party voted for at elections by the African Guyanese population.” The paper further quotes Williams as saying "What, however, both shocked and surprised me is that the Leader [Robert Corbin] who was present during the two presentations and addressed the meeting subsequent to both presentations did not take the time to correct the situation...,”

Some columnists and letter writers have consistently blamed Indo-Guyanese for keeping the PPP in power. Would these scribes now be writing to blame Afro-Guyanese for preventing the PNC from gaining power?
HARRY HERGASH

Good governance requires impartial enforcement of laws
THE actual performance of the Police and Army must have been a source of concern to the Commander in Chief of the armed forces President Bharrat Jagdeo. An organisation such as the military with its stated intention to transform itself into a people protection entity having as its guide the principles of the rule of law, the legal frameworks should be fair and enforced impartially particularly the laws on human rights.

The administration must continue to pay heightened interest to performance evaluation at the individual, collective and organisational levels of the disciplined forces and the selection of recruits. The obligations and demands on officers of the military and the expectations of the public should remain high with professionalism, honour and dignity. It’s the duty of the Commander in Chief and the Defence Board to monitor the performance and behaviour of these officers and new recruits whose aims are to rob, kill and harass ordinary citizens on a daily basis.

Crime fighting and prevention has two prerequisites. The first and foremost is widespread public support and the second is concerted action. But to do that the Police and Army must uphold the deeds and respect the traditions of the rule of law and commit themselves to the citizens of this country by protecting them.

To understand a particular organisational order, therefore, the administration must take into account of the nature of problems faced by the army and police in its historical formation and development and the historical processes which allowed parallel distinctions. Evidence of increasing party reliance on the military was provided by its role in the 1973 general elections there were complaints that it played a central role in electoral tampering.

Good governance requires impartial enforcement of laws and requires an independent judiciary and an impartial and incorruptible police force.
MOHAMED KHAN

Pity Rawlins did not identify the police officers
P. RAWLINS, a concerned Guyanese, wrote to the Guyana Chronicle to expose the brutalization of a man at Splashmin’s Jamzone on Sunday August 30th (Surprised that people still have superstitious beliefs – Sept 3rd.)

Rawlins says he is stunned to see that Guyana is left in the dark ages with many or most of its citizens still very superstitious with the belief in bacoo, jumbie and other things of that nature. Rawlins may not know that a short while ago a woman was beaten to death for being an “old higue.”

Returning to visit Guyana after 36 years must be shocking for Rawlins but a mere glance at the daily newspapers would have revealed that this country has a penchant for stupid violence and unthinking brutality.

What shocked Rawlins the most was that medical professionals and the police stationed at Splashmin did nothing to help the man being brutally assaulted in public. Will the police force investigate this alleged dereliction of duty? Doubtful. Accountability is not a Guyanese trait.

It’s a pity Rawlins did not identify the police officers in this situation. A law should be made that officers must provide their name, number and rank to anyone in public who asks for it.

“I believe this atrocity must be brought to the attention of public officials and members of the public,” Rawlins says. Why bother? In Guyana such everyday occurrences are no big thing. Primitive minds are not averse to incivility.

Life in the “Thunderdome” continues.
JUSTIN de FREITAS

Mini-museum dedicated to Shri Goosai
I write to applaud the executives of the NY Guyanese-based Shri Bhuvaneshwar Mandir for honoring the late Shri Prakash Gossai with the establishment of a mini-museum at the mandir in tribute to their fallen leader. Gossai passed away in late June in Florida following a massive heart attack.

A mini-museum dedicated to the popular bhajan singer is most appropriate and was welcomed by the large congregation at the mandir. Gossai was enormously popular among Hindus. Even non-Hindus got to like his singing and interpretation of the scriptures. They came flocking to his discourses. And at a seven nights discourse on the Ramayana in Queens last week, worshippers talked about how they miss him. No one could interpret the holy books as he did relating them to present day life and that was evident by the quality of presentations from the pandits who graced the Ramayana in the Park in Richmond Hill.

The museum is a gift by the mandir’s members to Gossai for his long years of service to the mandir and to humanity. In the museum are displayed personal paraphernalia belonging to the late guru including copies of his CDs, tapes, Ramayana, Gita, and other holy books. One can actually see the belongings and holdings that were once used by Gossai.

In dedicating the museum to him, special Ganga and Lord Krishna Poojas were conducted for Gossai's soul. Services were presided over by Pandit Manoj who was trained by Prakash.

The mandir has also put on display on the first floor two beautiful life size cardboard portraits of Prakash sitting cross legged in the chanting (pandit) mode. These portraits were donated by supporters of the late Pandit.

The executives of the Bhuvaneshwar mandir expressed their gratitude to everyone who contributed in making the museum a reality and those who assisted in the construction of the portraits.
VISHNU BISRAM

Support for expulsion of religious fanatics
PLEASE permit me to express comments on an article in Kaieteur News (dated September 3) entitled “Mormons expelled from Guyana.”

I wish to express my full support to the Ministry of Home Affairs to expel these religious fanatics (missionaries) from Guyana. Guyana needs folks who can assist with its on-going development and not people who come to Guyana with their main purpose to denigrate other religions and proselytize (conduct religious conversion). I am shocked to learn that there are over 50 Mormons in Guyana. It is time that our Immigration Department filters potential visitors.

One cannot help but ask the question: “Who would want to leave the wealthiest country in the world with its concomitant luxuries to come to Guyana to proselytize?” Possible answers are:

1. The uneducated who cannot find decent jobs in the USA

2. The unemployed who needs something to do in the USA

3. The unqualified who lacks basic skills in the USA

4. School drop-outs who cannot fit into a normal society in the USA

5. Since Mormons are known polygamists (having multiple spouses) which is illegal in the USA , they want to find an escape for their polygamous behavior which is also illegal in Guyana

6. Individuals or groups who conduct other illegal activities (similar to Jim Jones many years ago)

These people operate under a nebulous organisation that hides its true purpose. They operate in third–world countries where they “buy” naïve locals and use them as pawns to further their nefarious acts. While Guyana may be a third-world country by economic standards, Guyanese are way too smart to fall for this kind of deception by radicals.

Now will be appropriate for the Immigration Department to seriously question the intent of visits by Mormons before they are allowed entry into Guyana and deny entry to anyone whose main purpose of their visit to Guyana is to proselytize.
SHIV MAHARAJ, PhD

REAP tries to rescue helpless children from child labour
I was transferred from Holy Family Church, Andheri, on June 1, 2009. At present, I am working in a new educational Programme of the Jesuits for slum children and the empowerment of women in the slums of Mumbai, at a place called Kalwa. It is known as REAP (Reach Education Action Programme) and was started by Fr. Trevor Miranda, a 56-year-old Mimbai Jesuit. He began in a very humble way, with one small class for the street children around Churchgate Station, in the St. Xavier’s Boys’ Academy (one of our elite schools in South Mumbai ), in 1997. Today, REAP has grown well beyond his expectations, to cover slums and footpaths spanning vast areas in the remote northern suburbs of Mumbai, along the Central Railway Line. In 2005, when I was still in Guyana, REAP received international recognition in the form of the OPUS AWARD of 1 million US dollars from Marquette University in the US. Fr. Trevor travelled there, together with two or three of our humble teachers from the slum areas, to receive this Award and an honorary Doctorate degree. Right now, REAP conducts over 300 ‘balwadis’ (nurseries and KGs) plus several classes from Stds. I to V (after which these students are admitted into government schools); classes for Std. VIII; and now, a few classes for Std. X (enabling students to appear for the National Open School leaving examination).

By conducting classes in small huts, old sheds, and a few temple-spaces within slums, at their very doorsteps or inside their small huts, REAP tries to rescue these helpless children from child labour and give them a chance to get an education; otherwise their parents would never send them to school. In these humble classrooms, the children (10-25) squat upon mats placed on the floor. Our teachers are quite regular, even during the rainy season, and there are supervisors who go round visiting their classes to guide them and report on their performance. In addition, REAP has around 200 self-help groups for the empowerment of women. Our women-animators, who are themselves from the slums, organize these women and motivate them to save money in the banks, to get bank loans, and to organize demonstrations to municipal and government offices or police-stations to get justice for the people. REAP caters to around 9,000 slum and street children, empowers hundreds of women, and has built up the self-confidence of over 300 teachers and women social workers, who now comprise its staff. As for my own work, I am presently attending various meetings with our teachers, supervisors, coordinators and office staff so as to acquaint myself with the work REAP is doing. I have been put in charge of the non-formal classes (I to V) and the teacher-training programmes. Soon I also hope to teach English and Maths to the higher classes and spoken English to our teachers. Most of them time we speak in Marathi (the local language) or in Hindi (the national language).

I am living in a first-floor flat with another Jesuit priest, Fr. Bob (Robert) Menezes, in a 4-storey building 5 minutes from Kalwa Railway Station and just opposite the 7-storey building in which we have our main office, on the 5th floor, where Fr. Trevor resides in the adjoining flat. From the 5th floor we are lucky to have a soothing view of the beautiful hill behind the Kalwa Railway Station. The three of us also help out with Masses and various Church services in the parishes and convents in the surrounding areas along the Central Railway. Some of the scenes we witness daily are not very different from those in the Oscar-winning film, ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. I have already come to like the work and the people we are working with, the flat in which I live, and the surroundings. We have simple, mostly vegetarian food, while the work we do is satisfying. I feel quite relaxed, as there is much less tension and responsibility than in a large and complex parish.
Fr. JOE M DIAS, S.J.
Mumbai, India

Veterans for McCain: Bondage of America
AS I was going home today around 6:00pm in Kennesaw, Georgia, I saw a light brown Envoy GMC with a Florida license plate. It had a sticker at the top left corner of the rear window that read "Veterans for McCain - We will keep our guns, freedom, and money... You keep the change".

After eight years of national hell brought upon this great nation by Bush, McCain, and their party, we still have veterans, who are supposed to be the old and retired defenders of our great nation, affiliating themselves with the worst period of American history since the great depression. This is clearly a grave contradiction in character and principle. How does a group that fights for the happiness, peace, and freedom of its people also be the supporters of another than clearly brought hopelessness and misery to their nation?

They always talk about their right to guns, but forgot to use it when President Bush stole the American election twice. They always mention freedom, but it appears to be creating enemies based on falsehood in order to get contracts to make bombs. What money are they talking about? Is it the old money they made from the forced servitude of others or the one their executives stole from banks that will trickle down to them against the will of the workers and the people? Regardless of what they think, America will fulfill its destiny in this generation with or without them.
EHI AIMIUWU
Business Instructor, Atlanta, GA. USA

We need to re-examine the Godless assumptions
TUESDAY marked the 70th anniversary of the first shots fired in World War II when Poland was invaded by German troops. We might have expected that such expressions of man’s inhumanity to man ultimately might have conferred upon our societies the wisdom to truly value life and liberty.

Unfortunately, in the years following World War II, after the collapse of Nazism, the West voluntarily succumbed to a new dictatorship of relativism that is no less evil than the fascism that preceded it. This new tyranny recognises nothing as being definitive and whose ultimate goal consists solely of satiating one’s own ego and desires.

We have seen the contemporary results - nihilistic yet impeccably democratic legislation that repudiates life itself! I am thinking here of existing, enacted and pending articles of legislation that legalize various drugs, prostitution, contraception, homosexuality, same-sex marriage, abortion, euthanasia, and genetic manipulation.

We must put a halt to this demoralizing slide toward an anti-life state philosophy. We need to re-examine the Godless assumptions that we permit to serve as the foundation of our lives. Then and only then will we be able to breathe a new and vibrant culture of life back into our society.
PAUL KOKOSKI

T20 action at National Stadium tonight…
“We are ready to go out there and put our best foot forward”
-says Bravo and Ganga
By Calvin Roberts

In this Adrian Narine photograph, Minister of Tourism Maniram Prashad (second from right), Minister of Housing and Water Irfan Ally (third from left) and Director of Sports Neil Kumar (second from left) strikes a pose with the Trinidad and Tobago contingent of the Caricom Superstars team after their arrival yesterday morning.

SKIPPER of the CARICOM Superstars XI for the first match tonight in the President Premier League Dwayne Bravo yesterday told Chronicle Sport his side is ready and raring to have a go at the President’s XI at the Guyana National Stadium from 19:00h.

The two matches which will both be played at the latest sports venue here in Guyana, will be having a winner take all purse of G$1m each night.

Bravo’s sentiments were backed by skipper of the Trinidad and Tobago’s (T&T) national team which is preparing for their upcoming ICC Club Championship League in India next month Daren Ganga, who stated the side is a very confident bunch.

‘We have been preparing as a unit for the past month and a half for the ICC Club Championship League so with that in mind, we are confident of overcoming whatever, they, Guyana President’s XI throw at us” said Bravo who will be leading his side in the first match whilst Jamaica’s Christopher Gayle will take the reins for the second one tomorrow night.

He further stated, “Both teams are equally balanced and with the caliber of players on show tonight, the local cricketing public would be getting their monies worth in a highly and keenly contested game.”

When asked on which players he would have his eyes on with regards to the opposition, Bravo stated that skipper Ramnaresh Sarwan and Sewnarine Chattergoon who are both West Indies players, along with fast bowler Brandon Bess who has lots of potentials are the ones.

Ganga echoed Bravo’s sentiments and added that the team has been a part of similar matches in the past, wherein proceeds will be going to charitable organisations around Guyana and they are happy to be playing such a role here.

“We have been a part of such exercise before back home and to be able to do so here in Guyana is a surplus for us, to which we are happy. It will definitely be two good days of cricket involving some very good players who will be on showcase for both teams.”

He added, “As you are aware, T20 cricket is on the rise around the world and it would be an exciting opportunity for cricket fans here in Guyana, as from the players’ point of view, we are looking forward to competing against the home team in the matches.”

The CARICOM Superstars will be having in their batting line-up, Jamaica’s Xavier Marshall, Darren Bravo, Lendl Simmons, Sherwin Ganga, Kieron Pollard, the two additions in Kavon Cooper and Daron Cruickshank, along with skipper Dwayne Bravo and Daren Ganga.

Their bowling rest on the shoulders of Bravo, Pollard, West Indies fast bowlers Ravi Rampaul, who is the leading fast bowler for T&T, and the fiery Barbadian Fidel Edwards, along with the wily Dave Mohammed who took four wickets in the 2008 Stanford T20 finals triumph over Jamaica.

The President’s XI had their final practice session in sweltering conditions and under the eye of coach Mark Harper at the Demerara Cricket Club ground yesterday morning and all the looked in the pink of condition and ready to have a go at their opponents tonight.

Skipper Ramnaresh Sarwan in a telephone interview said that these two matches is the perfect opportunity for the younger players to showcase their talent in a well balanced team and against worthy opponents.

“This is the first time that a makeup Guyana team which has been hastily put together, will be competing against a makeup Caricom Superstars team and I am excited and I am sure the other players are excited to be competing against the Caricom Superstars in these two matches.”

He further stated, “Our team which is a well balanced one, is a mixture of youth and experience and this game will serve as the perfect exposure for some of the younger players in the team, in this format of the game, but I know that they can handle it well and see Guyana as the victorious team at the end.”

The President’s XI batting will hinge around the pugnacious all-rounder Christopher Barnwell, Chattergoon, Sarwan, Narsingh Deonarine, Lennox Cush, Steven Jacobs, Leon Johnson, Assad Fudadin, Darwin Christian and to an extent, the late inclusion Mahendra Nagamootoo.

Veerasammy Permaul and Devendra Bishoo have proved in times past that they are no rabbits with the bat, especially the latter who played many responsible innings for Guyana as a night watchman in the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) Regional four day competition held early this year.

Esaun Crandon and Brandon Bess can produce with the bat, with the latter’s belligerent innings against Jamaica in the inaugural Stanford T20 tournament back in 2006, being his best innings to date for Guyana.

The bowling will come from Bess, Crandon, Barnwell, Nagamootoo and Cush who shared the new ball with Crandon in the Stanford tournament, with added support from Deonarine, Bishoo and Permaul, whilst Jacobs is known to be a miserly bowler in this form of the game on the local scene.

The gates will be opened from 16:00h with live entertainment being provided before, during and after the game, while a fireworks display will be an added attraction for the fans who will be filling the stands at the fastest drying venue in the Caribbean.

Teams from:
President’s XI: Ramnaresh Sarwan (captain), Christopher Barnwell, Sewnarine Chattergoon, Assad Fudadin, Lennox Cush, Narsingh Deonarine, Leon Johnson, Steven Jacobs, Darwin Christian, Mahendra Nagamootoo, Devendra Bishoo, Veerasammy Permaul, Esaun Crandon and Brandon Bess.

CARICOM Superstars from: Dwayne Bravo (captain), Christopher Gayle, Darren Ganga, Sherwin Ganga, Darren Bravo, Kieron Pollard, Lendl Simmons, Xavier Marshall, Kieron Pollard, Dinesh Ramdin, Fidel Edwards, Dave Mohammed and Ravi Rampaul.

Umpires: Daverteeth Anandjit and Shanon Crawford (Gowkaran Dindiall)

Gibbs invokes memories of Tied Test tour for Champions Trophy
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, (CM)C – New West Indies team manager Lance Gibbs has invoked the memories of the legendary 1960-61, Tied Test tour, in defending the under strength regional team which will contest this month’s Champions Trophy.

With the top players ruled out of the tour because of a bitter contracts dispute with the West Indies Cricket Board, veteran Barbadian batsman Floyd Reifer will lead a makeshift squad to the September 22 to October 5 tournament in South Africa.

The 14-squad comprises several players with little or no international experience but Gibbs said he had drawn hope from Sir Frank’s side which were beaten 2-1 by Australia after the historic first Test at Brisbane finished in a tie.

“In 1960-61 [Sir] Frank Worrell had an unheralded West Indies side that went into Australia and we came out with full credit [and] the Australians accepted us,” said Gibbs, who has been appointed to oversee this tour.

“I’m saying that this team is hungry, eager and willing to stamp their authority on the game and I don’t want to hear them being called a second [string] team. It’s a West Indian team, that’s what the selectors had to select from.”

The side comprises much of the same players who contested the Bangladesh series when the first choice players made themselves available. They were whitewashed in the two Tests and the three One-Day Internationals.

Faced with the likes of Australia, India and Pakistan in the Champions Trophy group stages, Gibbs again came to the defence of his fledgling side.

“You know sport and know how it can change from day to day. As I said, the guys are keen, eager and willing to go and they are going to surprise [everyone],” said Gibbs, who grabbed 309 wickets from 79 Tests to become the region’s greatest ever spinner.

“I went to Australia in 1960-61, personal friends of mine asked me ‘what they send you there for, they have [Sonny Ramadhin] and [Alf Valentine]’. I never looked back since then. You must have strength, and heart and courage to know that you can go out there and fight.”

The squad went through a rigorous training camp here this week and will leave for Johannesburg tomorrow to continue their preparations for the tournament.

Gibbs said what the squad lacked in experience, they had made up for in courage and had already shown excellent commitment so far in training.

“We have selected a side and from all indications and what I’ve seen so far, these fellows are hungry and willing and eager to go,” he noted.

“I was particularly impressed with the camp we’ve had here. They have really done a lot. They’ve been training hard. It is a West Indies cricket team and it is the best team that was selected at this period of time because of what has happened.”

WIPA keen on CARICOM solution to impasse
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, (CMC) – West Indies Players Association (WIPA) president, Dinanath Ramnarine said yesterday his organisation would welcome the intervention of CARICOM governments in a bid to end the long simmering dispute with the West Indies Cricket Board.

“The answer is yes,” Ramnarine said in a radio interview here..

The two bodies have been at odds over issues relating to players’ contracts and the latest row resulted in many of the top West Indies players, including former captain Chris Gayle, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Dwayne Bravo boycotting the Bangladesh series and missing out on the Champions Trophy scheduled for later this month.

Former Commonwealth Secretary General Sir Shridath Ramphal, who was appointed mediator, said earlier this week that he had failed and urged cricket followers in the Caribbean not to despair because “cricket is in our regional genes; it cannot be lost”.

Ramnarine said that the WIPA executive and the players would be meeting in Guyana over the weekend to discuss the way forward.

“After our meeting over the weekend we are going to be very clear as to how we proceed going forward given the action taken by the board.

“You had a situation where even in the mediation they were talking about let us settle A, B, C, and D and we will consider the players for the championship [in South Africa]. To me they had absolutely no intention whatsoever of reaching an agreement,” Ramnarine said.

Guyana’s President and CARICOM Chairman Bharrat Jagdeo in a statement expressing his disappointment at the failure of the talks between the two parties, believes the WICB prejudiced the effort from the start by not disclosing they had already selected a Champions Trophy squad without the top flight players.

“When the mediation under Sir Shridath Ramphal was agreed upon with me on 21 July 2009, it was in context in which WIPA made all their players available and I understand this is to be basis of a return to normalcy in team selection,” Jagdeo said.

“The members of the Board did not disclose to me or to WIPA that the Board had already selected a ‘B” team for the Champions Trophy in South Africa,” he said, adding that WICB President Julian Hunte acknowledged the board’s selection position some time after when the process was too far gone.

“The President later apologised for the omission; but the damage had been done; the mediation was weakened from the start,” Jagdeo said.

Ramnarine said that WIPA had agreed to have Sir Shridath, who was nominated by the WICB, mediate the discussions.

“It was the board that proposed Sir Shridath Ramphal to be the mediator. We could have said we don’t want Sir Shridath Ramphal ... but we accepted at President Jagdeo’s office in Guyana to accept Sir Shridath and proceed on the basis that we would make our players available without any conditions whatsoever.

“We were hoping that this process would have been dealt with in a responsible manner and there will be agreement and even if there was no agreement, (there would be) agreement of a process going forward.”

Ramnarine said he had been told numerous things when Sir Shridath had been named.

“I did not know the man personally so it was difficult for me to really assess and I had to go by what people were saying. I have to admit we were a little bit sceptical at first but we said given the status and given what the guy has accomplished we needed to trust somebody,” said the former West Indies leg-spinner.

“Sir Shridath Ramphal has been exceptional by listening to both parties, the manner in which he conducted the mediation has been extremely professional. It has been a learning experience for me and I have the greatest amount of admiration for the man.

He is between 70 and 80 years, and we were having meetings from nine o clock in the morning to seven or eight o clock in the night and by 9.30 we will get a document summarising the issues and a document that could take us closer.”

Ramnarine said that it was sad when both parties appeared to be close to a resolution for the WICB to introduce this new document and inform the mediator “this is not negotiable ... and the document has to be accepted by both the mediator and WIPA.

“And then the third thing is that the document must be kept confidential. In other words the mediator and WIPA must never share this document with anybody,” he added.

‘I would give it to the CARICOM Superstars’
-says former Windies all rounder
By Calvin Roberts
FORMER Guyana and West Indies all-rounder and coach Roger Harper yesterday told Chronicle Sport based on their combined experience, he would give the advantage in the two Twenty20 President Premier League (PPL) matches between the President’s XI and CARICOM Superstars to the latter.

“Let me first of all say, that I am looking forward to the games and I hope we can see some good and exciting cricket between the teams.

Having said that, you will have to say that the CARICOM Superstars are the favourites as they have a lot more experience, along with the fact that they have played this type of cricket all over the world.”

The 46 year- old Harper who took 46 Test wickets from 25 matches at an average of 28.06 with one five wicket haul, was a spectator in the pavilion admiring the coaching tactics of his older brother Mark, the man in charge of the President’s XI team at the Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) ground.

“It’s not to say that the President’s XI cannot get past their opponents in the two matches because they can do so once they play to their full potential. People tend to think that because it is T20 cricket, everything has to be done in a hurry, but there are 120 balls you have to play and each ball is a different event” said Harper.

“It is what you do also with those deliveries that speak volumes for you at the end of the day. The President’s XI is a good combination, but they are playing against a team which have more experience and they are higher skilled than our guys, but it is a tremendous opportunity for our local guys to make a name for themselves.”

Like his elder brother Mark, Harper believes that the batting lineup of the President’s XI which includes skipper Ramnaresh Sarwan, Sewnarine Chattergoon, Narsingh Deonarine, Christopher Barnwell and Lennox Cush, is capable of getting any total that is thrown at them, from their bowlers’ performance.

“They are capable and with the potential in their batting line-up, I would back Mark in saying yes they can get their total set by the opposition, once they play to the potential they possess. Such a batting line-up is as good as any.”

In closing, Harper said, “In cricket, it is all about who plays well on the day as well as who plays smarter cricket for as we all know, the game is played in the middle. Not because I said I favoured the CARICOM Superstars means they would automatically win, as it is how they play on the day, who plays the better cricket as well as who displays the hunger for success will be victorious.”

Berbice name 24 man squad to prepare for Inter-county cricket
-disappointed Mahendra Nagamootoo airs concern
By Calvin Roberts
THE Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) selectors have reduced the 36 man squad named last week after two trial matches at the Albion cricket ground.

The selectors as mandated by the Executive Committee have started early preparation for the upcoming four day and one day Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) Inter-county tournaments.

The squad does not include West Indies one day selectee Royston Crandon who would be unavailable and former West Indies allrounder Mahendra Nagamootoo who was absent without excuse at the trials.

In an invited comment with Chronicle Sport, Nagamootoo who was drafted into the President’s XI squad which will oppose the CARICOM Superstars XI at the Guyana National Stadium, tonight in the first of two Twenty20 matches, expressed his disappointment at not being selected.

“I have Berbice cricket in my heart and it is with that in mind, I called Carl Moore and explained to him that I am unable to make it to Guyana for the trials, after being informed that I was selected in a 36 man squad, even though I did not notify the BCB that I was going to Canada to play there, for which I apologise.”

The record holder for most wickets at the Regional four day level further stated, “I was referred to first vice- president of the Board David Black, who was acting as president at that time and I told him that due to flight problems, I would not be able to make it home in time for the first trial, but I will be available for the second to which I received an okay from the then acting president, but now I am home, I heard a squad was selected and I was omitted because of my absence from the trials.”

“It is appalling to know that a player, who has given yeoman service to his country, is finding it difficult to make his county team. If they had wanted me to give up my contract in Canada and return home, I would have readily done so, even though I erred in not notifying the BCB about my whereabouts” said Nagamootoo.

In a shocking twist of things, ‘Yanko’ as he is also called by his fellow players, stated that even the president of the GCB Chetram Singh told him that his eligibility days for representing Guyana at the four day level is over, but he has a lot to offer at the limited overs level in Regional cricket.

“You may want to ask me how I took such a statement from the president and in all fairness, I must say that it hurt when he told me so, but the consoling part of it, was when he mentioned that I still have a lot to offer Guyana in limited- overs cricket at the Regional level.”

He stated, ”How would I be able to do so now, when my county board has turned their back on me, even though I made contact and notified those in authority about my whereabouts, after learning about my selection. If they knew they did not want me, then they should not have included me in the 36 man squad in the first place.”

The full 24 man squad reads: Sewnarine Chattergoon, Karamdat Bissoondyal, Assad Fudadin, Rajiv Ivan, Devon Clements, Andre Percival, Jonathan Foo, Delbert Hicks, Devendra Bishu, Veerasammy Permaul, Brendon Bess, Esaun Crandon, Michael Newland, Narsingh Deonarine, Stephen Latcha, Arthley Bailey, Homchand Pooran, Ranga Lachigadu Latchana, Eugene La Fleur, Keon Joseph, Keyron Fraser, Krishnadat Ramoo, Anthony Bramble, Alexander Amsterdam and Anthony De Andrade.

Giftland Office Max contributes to 6th
English/ Kashif and Shanghai Futsal football

Wonita Joseph a Personnel Clerk at Giftland Office Max presents Frank “English” Parris with the cheque towards his upcoming futsal tournament.

IN another corporate show of faith in the local sporting arena Giftland Office Max yesterday bequeathed an undisclosed sum of cash to Kashif and Shanghai and Frank “English” Parris in support of their upcoming Futsal Tournament.

Giftland’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ian Ramdeo in making a few brief comments said that his business entity is proud to be a part of the tournament for this 6th year of its existence.

He further stated that it is with pleasure that Giftland Office Max gives it support and as it goes a long way in the development of sports and entertainment in Guyana.

English” in expressing his gratitude acknowledged Giftland’s 6 years of dedication to the event.

On behalf of all the organisers he said that he was very thankful for the support as it will help them to fulfill their wish of doing more for the fans and making this year’s tournament better.

U.S. Open tennis..
Oudin shocks Dementieva, Jankovic also falls
By Pritha Sarkar
NEW YORK, (Reuters) - Elena Dementieva and Jelena Dementieva were left punched-out, breathless wrecks after their U.S. Open dreams were dashed in the second round yesterday by a pair of young opportunists.

On a day when top seed Dinara Safina was again lucky to survive, teenager Melanie Oudin was hailed as the new sweetheart of American tennis as she dazzled fourth seed Dementieva 5-7 6-4 6-3.

Flushing Meadows was still buzzing with Oudin's spectacular feat when Kazakhstan's Yaroslava Shvedova provided the second shock of the day, saving two match points to squeeze past 2008 runner-up and fifth seed Jankovic 6-3 6-7 7-6.

Teenager Oudin looked close to tears as she struggled with cramps and a left thigh strain but blocked out the pain to hustle out an opponent who began playing on the WTA Tour when the American was just six years old.

As Oudin fired down an unreturnable serve to seal Dementieva's fate, 23,000 hollering fans rose to their feet on Arthur Ashe Stadium to salute the player many believe will spearhead the next generation of American tennis.

"I am so excited, you have no idea," gushed the 70th-ranked Oudin as she basked under the sunshine in a courtside interview.

Safina was anything but excited as she shrieked and screamed her way through another battle of wills to defeat 67th-ranked German Kristina Barrois 6-7 6-2 6-3.

Forty eight hours after huffing and puffing past obscure Australian wildcard Olivia Rogowska, a misfiring Safina again found herself a break down in the deciding set before her fighting instincts kicked in to carry her into round three.

So far, the Russian's U.S. Open struggles was summed up by 26 double faults and 86 unforced errors in just two matches.

"I know I'm not playing my best but I'm still fighting," said Safina, who was once again quizzed about her status as world number one despite not owning a grand slam title.

"There are so many players who won a grand slam and where they are now? Nowhere. But number one will always stay there. People remember you by number one, not by winning a grand slam."

BLEW $1 MILLION BONUS
Like Safina, Dementieva too has yet to win one of the four majors. But she had been the best player on the women's tour in the run up to the Open and stood to pocket a cool $1 million bonus if she had captured her first title in New York.

Instead she blew her chance for a big pay day when she ran into an inspired Oudin.

At 17, Oudin would not look out of place if she had been running down the corridors of an American high school and has admitted she envies her twin's regular lifestyle.

But yesterday, Oudin the tennis player was the envy of girls and boys across the country when she pulled off the biggest upset of this year's tournament.

A dejected Dementieva blamed her defeat on playing too much 'during the summer' before adding: "She's very talented. She was in the court and not afraid to play. It's just the beginning, but it looks like she has a good future."

Oudin's victory was even more remarkable because at 3-1 up in the third set, she appeared to be breaking down in tears as she started to cramp.

But the player who draws inspiration from Justine Henin because "she proved you don't have to be six-foot-something to be number one in the world" was soon meting out more punishment on Dementieva.

Seeming to play almost on tip-toes to make up for her 12-cm (five-inch) height handicap, the 1.68-metre tall (5-foot-6) Oudin buzzed around court in her bright pink and yellow shoes to sting Dementieva with her rasping drives and two-fisted backhands.

After two hours 45 minutes of high drama, victory was hers. Next up for Oudin could be Maria Sharapova if the Russian overcomes American wildcard Christina McHale.

"The whole thing was just amazing. I can't believe I won," grinned Oudin, who beat former world number one Jankovic en route to reaching the last 16 at this year's Wimbledon.

Jankovic joined fellow Serb Ana Ivanovic on the Open scrapheap thanks to her lack of conviction in converting the two match points she held in the final set tiebreak, the second of which evaporated with an overcooked forehand.

French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova avoided all the drama with a 6-4 6-2 win over Latvian Anastasija Sevastsova, while fellow Russian and 13th seed Nadia Petrova was a 6-4 7-6 winner over France's Julie Coin.

Danish ninth seed Caroline Wozniacki almost pulled off a perfect victory when she beat Croatian Petra Martic 6-1 6-0.

Wimbledon runner-up Andy Roddick will complete the night session against Frenchman Marc Gicquel, while Serb Novak Djokovic will also be in action.

FIFA bans Chelsea from buying players until 2011
…dispute over French youngster Gael Kakuta
By Brian Homewood
ZURICH, (Reuters) - Chelsea have been banned by FIFA from registering new signings until January 2011 after being found guilty of inducing a player to break his contract with another club.

"Chelsea are banned from registering any new players, either nationally or internationally, for the next two entire and consecutive registration periods (transfer windows)," FIFA said in a statement yesterday.

The English Premier League club described the ruling as "extraordinarily arbitrary" and "totally disproportionate" and said they would appeal.

The decision is a crushing blow for Chelsea. The next window is in January followed by another in the middle of 2010.

The punishment was handed out by world soccer's governing body following a contractual dispute involving the transfer of reserve team player Gael Kakuta from Racing Lens in 2007.

Following a complaint from Lens, FIFA's dispute resolution chamber ruled Kakuta, now 18, had breached his contract with the French club and that Chelsea had induced him to do so.

The player was ordered to pay 780,000 euros ($1.11 million) compensation, which FIFA said Chelsea were "jointly liable" for, and he was given a four-month ban from competitive matches.

Chelsea were also ordered to pay "training compensation" of 130,000 euros to Lens.

"This underlines how important contractual stability is for FIFA and football in general," said a FIFA spokesman.

Lens president Gervais Martel told French radio station RMC: "We expected that decision. It's not because you're called Chelsea that you should not respect the law.

"They contacted him when he was not even 16 which is not acceptable. There is a rule you have to respect.

"I don't know what will happen next. I don't expect he will be back with us," added Martel.

"We spend a lot of money on schooling. There's no reason why others should use us and benefit from it."

CHELSEA FURY
The London club were furious at the decision.

"Chelsea will mount the strongest possible appeal," the club said on their website (www.chelseafc.com). "The sanctions are without precedent to this level and totally disproportionate to the alleged offence and the financial penalty imposed.

"We cannot comment further until we receive the full written rationale for this extraordinarily arbitrary decision."

Kakuta had been at Lens since he was eight, going through their schooling system. A midfielder, he is a France under-19 international and was due to play in the Sendai Cup in Japan this month.

Hampered by injury, he made only five Chelsea youth team appearances last season and two for the reserves.

He began last season with hamstring problems before being sidelined in February after suffering a double fracture of the ankle in a friendly.

Kakuta's first season was more successful as he finished as the youth team's top goalscorer.

Four years ago Chelsea were fined 300,000 pounds ($184,049) by the Premier League over the "tapping up affair" involving the move of Ashley Cole from Arsenal.

Jose Mourinho, coach at the time, was fined 200,000 pounds and Cole 100,000 pounds after the three parties were found guilty of breaking league rules by attending a meeting at a London hotel.

The fines against Mourinho and Cole were later reduced to 75,000 pounds but both had appeals dismissed by the league.

In May, Swiss club Sion were banned by FIFA from registering new players for one transfer window after the controversial signing of Egypt goalkeeper Essam Al Hadari from Al Ahli last year.

The ban was put on hold by CAS in July after Sion appealed.

Leave my sister alone, pleads Safin
By Pritha Sarkar
NEW YORK, (Reuters) - Marat Safin threw a protective arm around his little sister Dinara Wednesday after the Russian world number one was slammed for her wobbly performance in the first round of the U.S. Open.

Ever since Safina ascended to the top of the rankings in April, she has come under a barrage of criticism as she had yet to back up her standing with a grand slam title.

A mauling by Venus Williams in the Wimbledon semi-finals, where Safina won just one game, followed by Tuesday's match in which she almost suffered the humiliation of becoming the first women's top seed to perish in the first round of the Open has only served to give her detractors a louder voice.

But Safin, a former world number one himself, said people should just shut up and accept the WTA rankings.

"Everybody is hard on her why she's number one. Is she a real number one or not?

"You open the page (of a newspaper and all you read about is), she made eight double faults, 43 unforced errors. She struggled, almost lost to (an) 18 year old," former U.S. Open champion Safin said after he bowed out of the grand slam arena with a first-round loss to Austria's Juergen Melzer.

"Who cares? I mean, she's number one in the world. I have to protect my sister. The poor girl, she's trying her best. She's doing really well. She gets the attention, but not the kind of attention that a person deserves, especially when you're number one in the world."

Serena Williams was one of the most vocal critics of the system as she struggled to understand how she could be ranked second despite winning two majors this season. However, outside the slams, the American's last tour victory was in April 2008.

Safina on the other hand has been rewarded by a system that values consistency rather than the quality of tournaments won.

Safin pointed out his sister, who has contested 15 finals in the past 12 months and won seven of them, was not the one to make up the rules and pleaded: "She didn't do the ranking. Deal with that. Leave her alone."

ICC asks for own WADA testing code
THE International Cricket Council (ICC) will ask the World Anti-Doping Agency to consider a cricket-specific code for its controversial "whereabouts" rule, ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said.

The influential Indian cricket board rejected the WADA directive last month, backing its players' refusal to sign up over security and privacy issues.

The ICC became a WADA signatory in 2006 and world cricket's governing body last year unanimously approved out-of-competition tests on players in accordance with amendments made to the code.

The issue is yet to be resolved and will be discussed by the ICC board in October.

"We will ask them (WADA) for a cricket-specific code or a relaxation of the whereabouts clause," Lorgat said.

"For the time being, we have referred the issue to our executive board. We will take the matter from there. The issues need discussion with a broader range of people. The code cannot be country-specific.”(Eurosport)