Monday 25

Three placed on bail for burglarising car

FIFTY-YEAR-OLD Albert, De Freitas, of Lot 100 Leopold Street, Georgetown; sixty-five-year-old Burtie Gulliver, of Lot 16 Goedverwagting, East Coast Demerara; and 53-year-old fisherman, Phillip Khan (no address given) were in court charged with stealing $55,000 cash from Farah Arjune. Arjune parked her vehicle in the vicinity of Thomas Lands, leaving her purse containing the money in her car. De Freitas broke the victim’s car window and stole the article before making good his escape in a waiting car. The defendants were each placed on $75,000 bail and will return to court on October 10. As the trio was entering the court lock-ups, De Freitas was seen dropping his pants towards the media.

Outcome of UNSIDS conference important to CARICOM

THE Caribbean Community (CARICOM) is viewing the Third International Meeting on Small Island Developing States (UNSIDS), scheduled to be held in Apia, Samoa, from September 1 to the 4, as an important opportunity to engage the international community on the development challenges facing the Region. Over the past two years, CARICOM Member States have been fully engaged in the processes leading up to the meeting which is being held under the theme ‘The Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States through genuine and durable partnerships’.

Carpenter denied bail for stealing truck batteries

FORTY-FOUR-YAER-OLD, Clifton Dowlin, a carpenter of Lot 41 North Sophia, Greater Georgetown, was placed on $75,000 bail for stealing two 27-plate batteries. He pleaded not guilty to the charge, which detailed that on August 18, at Ganges Street, Prashad Nagar, Georgetown, he stole the said batteries, which, together valued at $115,000, property of Michael Gaskin. The prosecutor opposed bail for the unrepresented man on the grounds of the nature of the charge and the fact that he had been convicted for a similar offence. His case was put off for October 1.

Tuesday 26

GECOM recruiting trainers as part of overall preparedness plan

AS part of its overall preparedness plan, the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has embarked on a recruitment process that will see the establishment of a “reservoir” of personnel who would be trained comprehensively in Guyana’s registration and election process. Deputy Chief Elections Officer (DCEO), Mr. Vishnu Persaud, told the Guyana Chronicle that the move to have a pool of trainers will ensure that the Commission has personnel readily available for temporary employment for any registration or election process at short notice. He added that this exercise will also remove the need for extensive continuous training, which is both time consuming and costly.

Adequate supply of furniture in schools assured for new school term

THE Ministry of Education has announced that the new academic year 2014/2015 will see additional furniture in all schools to accommodate every child in the new school term, commencing September 1. So far, 90% of schools have already received their supply of furniture, while schools in Region 4 (Demerara/Mahaica) and Region 8 (Potaro/ Siparuni) are expected to have all their furniture by the end of September. The Government of Guyana allocated $300M for the construction and provision of furniture, thus allowing each child with a better environment to pursue their education. In addition, Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand met in July with builders to discuss the importance of contractors meeting their contractual obligations, specifically emphasising the importance of contractors delivering the furniture on time and of an acceptable quality.

Mahdia to benefit from massive infrastructure upgrades this year

RESIDENTS of the mining community of Mahdia in Region 8 (Potaro/Siparuni) will benefit from massive infrastructure works, including asphalted internal roads and a $80M water treatment plant, among other development initiatives this year. Disclosing this at the commencement of Mining Week 2014, the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment (MNR&E) said that along with the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), it remains resolute in its commitment of support to the mining sector in general and to the community of Mahdia in particular. Among the imminent upgrades, the GGMC recently signed a contract for $70M for the rehabilitation of the road from Brian Sucre Junction to Mahdia.

Wednesday 27

Barber put on $70,000 bail over hammer attack on sister’s lover

FIFTY-THREE-YAER-OLD, Allan Straker, known as Holder, is accused of hammering his sister’s lover after the man was seen having lunch at his relative’s home at Lot 36 Stanleytown, New Amsterdam, Berbice.
Holder, a barber, appeared before New Amsterdam Magistrate, Sherdel Isaacs Marcus, where he was not required to plead to the charge of attempted murder. He was granted $70,000 bail, and is expected to return to court on October 14 for report. Police Sergeant Godfrey Playter, prosecuting, said that on August 16 last, Straker visited his sister Alicia Downer, 39, and after enquiring who was with her, he snatched the hammer from her hand and approached Phillip Wayne. Wayne had just consumed his lunch when Straker allegedly delivered several blows with a hammer to the left side of his head, rendering him unconscious.

Man caught on surveillance footage arrested for restaurant murder

THE man who is allegedly responsible for gunning down 48-year-old waitress/cashier Debra Blackman has been arrested after his face was caught in surveillance footage from her workplace at the Chinese Delicious Restaurant. Blackman was fatally shot at the D’Urban Street, Wortmanville restaurant where she served for over 14 years. She was at the time of her demise performing her duties as a waitress/cashier.

GGMC to place emphasis on social responsibility to hinterland communities

THE Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) intends to ensure that hinterland communities benefit directly from their proximity to large- scale gold and diamond mining activities. Speaking with respect to Foreign Direct Investors (FDIs) in the mining industry, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the GGMC, Clinton Williams said that it was the view that mining must improve the quality of life of surrounding communities. He said: “Let me say this – that for those of you who are FDIs. In the past you have come up with strategies that talked about corporate social responsibility, etc! etc! But in a number of cases this was not defined at all. So you putting up a couple of hospital beds or school furniture or something here and there and that was then sufficient. But things are going to be different pretty soon.”

 Thursday 28

Guyana, Brazil military in groundbreaking meet here

DECLARING open the first Bilateral Defence Workgroup Meeting between the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) and the Brazilian Military at the Guyana International Conference Centre (GICC) at Liliendaal, Georgetown, GDF Chief of Staff, Brigadier Mark Phillips, remarked that the meeting was significant because it was being held 45 years after the first Goodwill Games mission from Guyana had visited Brazil. He recalled that during the period August 26 -30, 1968, the then Chief of Staff (CoS) designate, Colonel Clarence Price, who later became Brigadier Price, was part of the Goodwill Games delegation to Brazil, and that had laid the foundation for the Armed Forces of Guyana to have friendly relations with the Armed Forces of the Federative Republic of Brazil.

Retired NA Hospital staffer thwarted in suicide attempt

A RETIRED member of the auxiliary staff of the New Amsterdam Hospital was saved from a premature death, after her attempt to commit suicide was foiled by an alert member of the constabulary. Esther Pollydore was overheard saying minutes earlier that she was fed up with life and wanted an end to issues she was facing with family members. Seconds later she was seen dashing towards the Municipal Wharf behind the New Amsterdam Market, from where she had intended to take the deadly dive into the murky Berbice River. However, an alert member of the constabulary staff, aided by a member of the public, grabbed the woman just as she was about to ‘give up’.

Police Force establishes Facebook Page

THE Public Relations Department of the Guyana Police Force is in the process of adding content to an already existing Facebook Page which was established recently. Acting Commissioner of Police, Seelall Persaud said the page was still being developed by the Public Relations Department and when the developmental stage has been completed the police will officially make the announcement. The page features several photographs relating to police activities, security tips and other information. It was also pointed out that the social media site will also see the police sharing press releases which are usually disseminated to the press.

Friday 29

Female corpse found at Kitty foreshore identified

THE nude corpse of a woman which was discovered on the Kitty foreshore has been identified as Sharon Ford, a mother of five of 37 West Ruimveldt, Georgetown. A police source confirmed that the woman was identified by her brother who saw images of her lifeless body on the internet and newscasts and later identified same at the Lyken Funeral Parlour. This publication was informed that the woman was not in her right mind and that began to take a toll on her shortly after she was separated from her husband. Persons who were going about their routine jogging along the seawalls between the Celina Resort and the Russian Embassy noticed the nude body of the woman amidst high winds and powerful waves.

Cabinet gives no objection to critical expenditure on DHB

EIGHTEEN pontoons for the Demerara Harbour Bridge (DHB) would be rehabilitated following Cabinet earlier this week giving its no-objection to a contract worth $97.7M. This was announced by Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr. Roger Luncheon, at his weekly post-Cabinet press briefing at the Office of the President, in Georgetown. The contract would also see the fabrication of connecting posts for the DHB. Cabinet had earlier given its no-objection to several contracts in the public works sector, which would result in strengthening the DHB. In excess of $45M were approved for the supply and installation of cluster piles at the bridge, and more than $140M were granted for fabrication and installation of two extra-large pontoons. Cabinet also approved more than $66M for the supply of 8,000 feet of one-inch DIA hot dip galvanised anchor chains and 180 ‘snatch’ blocks, which would aid navigation of the bridge. Moreover, $25M would be spent to rehabilitate 80 buoys for the bridge.

Cabinet OKs $185M Linden/Lethem Road contract

LAST Tuesday, Cabinet granted its no-objection to a contract worth $185M for the rehabilitation and maintenance of the Linden/Lethem Road. Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr. Roger Luncheon made the announcement at his weekly post-Cabinet press briefing at the Office of the President in Georgetown. Maintenance to critical sections of the Linden/Lethem Road has started with works scheduled to be completed by mid-September. The work is intended to cut travel time by four hours.
Currently, it takes approximately 16 hours to commute to Lethem from Georgetown using a minibus. The Linden/Lethem road is one of the projects that falls under the hinterland road rehabilitation programme. For 2014, the Ministry has set aside $1.08B to facilitate repairs to roads countrywide.

Saturday 30

President Ramotar calling on Granger to ‘Bring back the guns’

PRESIDENT Donald Ramotar has called on Brigadier (rtd) David Granger, leader of People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) to return the guns that were given to the PNC by the Guyana Defence Force (GDF).“When those weapons were given to the PNC, the present leader of the PNC was the commander of the army at the time and now that he is the leader of the PNC, I would expect that he would make some genuine effort to return those weapons,” he said, during a news conference. The President’s call follows revelations from testimonies given at the ongoing Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the death of Dr. Walter Rodney. According to Lieutenant Colonel Sydney James’ evidence, the GDF loaned 200-odd weapons to the Ministry, as well as paramilitary organisations and other agencies.

Teen plunges to death
THE body of 18-year-old, Shawn Denzel Atkinson of Timehri was pulled from a canal hours after he took a splash without even knowing how to swim. The canal is located opposite the Barama Complex where the young man only began working recently and was taking part in a fun day. The teen was at the time playing a game of cricket with his friends when he decided to plunge after a ball and attempted to swim and never resurfaced. It would be his struggles in the water that caused his friends to realise that the young man was not a swimmer. Persons used implements from the Barama compound as they tried desperately to locate the body of the man and even an excavator was used to assist in clearing the canal as they sought to get a clearer path to search.

Craig man fatally beaten after committing robbery

ELDON Sampson, 25, of Craig East Bank Demerara met his demise after vigilantes from Samatta Point apprehended him when he rode up his bicycle to a teacher and snatched her bag containing $50,000, a cell phone, and laptop computer. The woman raised an alarm and persons in the area responded and chased after the man. The bandit, who was obviously unfamiliar with the area, in which he chose to commit his crime, attempted to flee from the persons pursuing him and ended up through a street which leads to nowhere. The man, before he was caught by the more than two dozen residents who responded, fell off his bicycle and got up as he attempted to flee from the persons until he was cornered deep inside the street with nowhere to run. It was there that residents inflicted several blows on the man before he was rescued by a taxi driver who took him to the Diamond Hospital where he was pronounced dead.