MONDAY, 6
Multi-million-dollar hotel opens at Farm
THE multi-million-dollar Park Vue Hotel was opened at Farm, East Bank Demerara. The hotel, which has a black, white and grey colour scheme, boasts a pool, a lounge, a restaurant, and a gift shop. The design features a fresh and modern style in local hotels, and the staff is focused on providing visitors a ‘signature’ experience. The hotel’s 200-plus rooms reflect five custom styles, with costs ranging from US$99 to US$199.

DHB back to normal after accident
Hundreds of commuters were delayed for several hours after a vessel traversing the Demerara River accidentally slammed into the Demerara Harbour Bridge (DHB), causing that structure to develop mechanical problems which eventually led to its closure in order to effect repairs. After the incident, mobilized workers of the DHB began working on the bridge,and it was soon declared open for normal traffic.

Hope Canal misses 2013 deadline
THE $3.6B East Demerara Water Conservancy (EDWC) Northern Relief Channel has missed the scheduled December 31, 2013 deadline for completion, the major reason being that the contractor implementing the eight-door sluice component of the project has thus far completed just about 50 percent of that task. Considering that the project is being built for the first time in Guyana, and will be a major engineering construction achievement done by Guyanese engineers and workers, the Ministry of Agriculture has extended by two months the deadline by which the project must be commissioned, and is working with the contractor to have more than 90 percent of the work completed so that the project becomes functional by February 14.

TUESDAY, 7
GRA launches US$4.3M mobile container scanner
THE GRA HAS launched its US$4.3M state-of-the-art mobile container scanner, which will significantly boost its operations. The mobile container/vehicle inspection system is the first such system in the world using an electronic linear accelerator (LINAC) as its X-ray source. The bodywork dimension is designed to follow the rules of the road that apply in different countries; and upon arriving at a new site, the working preparation time of the system is less than thirty minutes. The system, manufactured by NUCTECH, is being utilized in more than twenty countries and districts.

Prisoner disarms constable, shoots corporal dead
DETECTIVE Corporal 14998 Seburn Elias was shot dead by 23-year-old Delon Abrams of South Ruimveldt, Georgetown, a prisoner escaping from lawful custody at the Turkeyen Station, and with whom he had had a scuffle. At the Accident and Emergency Unit of the Georgetown Public Hospital, the prisoner disarmed a police constable after giving him a sound trashing. The constable put up a fight, but was overpowered by the prisoner, who took the weapon and attempted to fire it, but was unsuccessful. The prisoner then bolted out of the hospital compound and into a nearby community, with the disarmed rank in full pursuit.

X-ray mix-up causes panic at GPH
A young mother has accused the staff at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH) of endangering the life of her young son after she was given the wrong x-ray film by technicians attached to that institution. The woman said she had reason to take her child to see a doctor at the GPH after the child had suffered a fall from which she felt he could have been injured. After a brief search and query, it was discovered that another waiting adult patient had inadvertently been given the toddler’s X-ray film by the technicians, and was ironically busy trying to understand the strange miniature skeletal structure on that film. The medical staff at the hospital promptly swapped the X-rays, and everything was seemingly back to normal again.

GRA to randomly select imported goods for examination
THE Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) has indicated that it is introducing a system of random selection of imported goods for examination with effect from January 2014. The main feature of this system will involve daily selection of imported goods (commercial quantities) for examination by GRA officers. This selection will be done at the Guyana Revenue Authority’s Headquarters at 200/201 Camp Street, South Cummingsburg, Georgetown, while actual examination of the goods will be done at the respective wharves/transit sheds in the presence of the stakeholders and the importer.

WEDNESDAY, 8
Police swoop down on Orange Walk Businesses
THE Guyana Police Force swooped down on businesses operating in Orange Walk, Bourda, seizing beverages and other items from shop owners as they effected a joint operation with the Loss Reduction Department of the Guyana Power and Light Inc. The Guyana Chronicle was informed that the power company was investigating reports it had received that businesses operating in Orange Walk, better known as “Sweet Point”, were stealing electricity or otherwise tampering with GPL connections; and GPL enlisted the support of the GPF in order to effectively investigate those reports.

Eleven homeless after Good Intent fire
FIRE destroyed a three-bedroom home at Goed Intent, West Bank Demerara yesterday, leaving a family of eleven homeless. Those devastated by the blaze were Mr. Inshab Ali, a fisherman; his wife Ramrattie, and their nine children, aged between 18 and three years.

Mrs. Ali, who collapsed in the house on witnessing the flames, was saved by a neighbour who rushed into the blazing building and pulled her out in the nick of time. In wake of the blaze, residents in the area complained bitterly about the absence of a fire-fighting service in the area, saying that telephone calls to the West Demerara service went unanswered, and a fire tender which eventually reached the scene did so long after the flames had been extinguished.

Carlotta Dodson dies
MS. Carlotta Dodson, former Assistant Commissioner of Police and Deputy Chief Immigration Officer, died at a city hospital on Monday, following a brief period of illness.  Carlotta Dodson, D.S.M (W142), who had been a member of the Guyana Police Force for more than 30 years, served with distinction, rising to the level of Assistant Commissioner of Police. She served as Deputy Chief Immigration Officer for a number of years, retiring on February 1, 2002.

THURSDAY, 9
Stabroek Bazaar beggar sentenced to four months’ imprisonment for assault
KWAME Bruce was sentenced to four months’ imprisonment by Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine Beharry for unlawfully wounding Pauline Simon at Stabroek Bazaar in Georgetown, and for using threatening language to her husband, Safraz Ghani. The husband and wife were shopping in the Stabroek Bazaar area at about 13:10 hrs when the defendant, in crutches, approached Ghani and told him that he ‘did stuff’ to him when he was in jail. Bruce then dropped the crutches, pulled out an ice pick from his waist, and advanced on the couple. After Simon saw what was happening, she held on to the weapon and tried to disarm the defendant, but he hit her to the mouth with his hand, causing her to receive a swelling and laceration to her top lip.

Investors’ confidence in Guyana under political attack
THE decision of Muri Brasil Ventures Inc. to abandon its exploratory licence in Guyana is regrettable, and threatens the likely loss of investor confidence in Guyana, Cabinet Secretary Dr Roger Luncheon has observed. Cabinet has examined the implications of the decision made in the natural resources sector by Muri Brazil, and has noted the similarities in the way the political Opposition dealt with this project and that of the Amaila Falls Hydropower project.

“Combined with the concurrent Parliamentary Opposition to the Anti-Money Laundering Amendment Bill and the consequences that led to CFATF November recommendation to blacklist Guyana; that combined with these incidents of loss of projects by investors, Cabinet was convinced that these impediments to the Government’s plans for economic development in Guyana, these were real impediments being created, being sustained by the Parliamentary Opposition,” Dr Luncheon said.

Snake causes stir at the zoo
A live snake approximately three feet in length was discovered on the fence that protects the caimans swamp at the Zoological Park when it was noted by a passerby. He alerted the park security, who then took a twig and pushed the snake back into some nearby trees. It created quite a stir among the persons present, while parents could be seen ushering their kids away and out of the zoo.

Terrence Holder dies
Veteran broadcaster Terrence Holder, who until recently held the position of Deputy General Manager of the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company Limited (GT&T), has died after battling with cancer. He was 73, and had retired on account of illness. He was better known for his involvement in broadcasting as the General Manager of the Guyana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) for a number of years.

FRIDAY, 10
Over 4000 animals removed from roadways in 2013
THE Home Affairs Ministry’s Stray Catching Unit has recorded reasonable success in 2013 in regard to keeping stray animals off the roadways, so much so that there were no reports of fatal accidents involving strays during the course of the year. For the period January 3 to December 31, 2013, the Unit caught and impounded 4,434 animals: 2,089 cows; 1,167 goats; 430 horses; three asses (donkeys), and 745 sheep.

Three charged with murder of Mahaicony farmer Deoroop Siewchand
PREMNAUTH Seepersaud, 37, of Planters Hall, Mahaicony, East Coast Demerara; and Karran Ramhit, 23, and Doodnauth Siewchand, 47, both of Zeeland, Mahaicony, ECD, were charged with the murder of Deoroop Siewchand, committed on January 5, 2014. They appeared at the Mahaica Magistrate’s Court before Magistrate Sueanna Lovell and were remanded to prison until February 5, 2014.

More public complaints surface about unsanctioned minibus fare hikes
SEVERAL more commuters have complained about the arbitrary hikes in fares, this time imposed by minibus operators plying Route 44. It has been the second such outcry emanating from passengers within the last month, the first being against minibus operators on Route 32. Following the rise in Route 32 charges, the last word from Ali was that an advisory had been issued by the Commerce Ministry urging persons to report the unauthorised charges to either the police or the ministry. In December, Minister Ali had told the Guyana Chronicle that there was no way the Route 32 drivers could unilaterally decide to raise fares, adding that there had been no consultation with the minibus association on the matter.

He had said that the ministry has a standing agreement with the Guyana Minibus Association which clearly states that, in the absence of higher gasoline prices, there cannot be a raise in fares.
Unilateral fare hikes by minibus operators have been an on-and-off cause for concern among the travelling public in the last three years, and there have been some incidents resulting in minibus strike actions that had left hundreds of commuters stranded.

SATURDAY, 11
CARICOM accredits Haiti’s first plenipotentiary representative
HAITI’S first plenipotentiary representative to the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Ambassador Peterson Benjamin Noel, has presented his credentials to CARICOM Secretary-General Ambassador Irwin LaRocque. The Secretary General stressed that CARICOM would continue to work with Haiti to ensure that that country fully integrates into the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME).

Alleged penis dangler gets two years for assaulting mother
SIXTY-two-year-old Balram Ramkhalawan of Belvedere Village, Corentyne, Berbice was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment after he confessed to assaulting his Octogenarian mother, Rogina Ramkhalawan, at their home on December 12 last.

Police Sergeant Phillip Sherriff, prosecuting, said the defendant returned home in a drunken stupor and was rebuked by his aging mother. However, he became annoyed and an argument ensued between the duo, resulting in him dragging her by her long braids out of the hammock she had occupied at the time, whilst dangling his penis before her face.

Cabinet approves $170M contract for rebuilding One Mile Primary
CABINET has given its no-objection to a contract worth more than $170M for reconstruction of the One Mile Primary School in Region 10. The school was destroyed by arson on the night of July 18, 2012.

 ‘I stop giving traffic cop iguana’
HIRE car driver Ron Duff has confessed that he failed to confirm to a sign marked ‘Stop’ at New Street in New Amsterdam. Consequently, Magistrate Rhondel Weaver, presiding at the New Amsterdam Court, imposed on Duff a fine of $7000 or an alternative of ten days’ imprisonment. Prior to being sentenced, Duff, of Alness Village, Corentyne, informed the Court that he was constantly harassed by a certain traffic cop.

“Your Worship, this policeman (he called his name) would always harass and threaten me. Madam, is all because I don’t give he iguana. I used to give he, but I don’t go in the backdam anymore, as I working hire car now; but this man would not leave me alone,” Duff complained.