Dear Editor,
A PULSATING holiday weekend transfixed with chaos, confusion and consternation, commenced the week marred by accidents on the road and in the river.
The accident by a Panamanian vessel that crashed into the Demerara Harbour Bridge caused the bridge to be out of commission for over 48 hours, inconveniencing thousands of users.

President Ali chose to spend Youman Nabi, on Monday, visiting Linden and interacting with the residents. The Guyana Government joined the rest of the world to remove the vaccination requirement for entry. Guyana also observed World Mental Health Day, noting its theme, “Creating hope through action.”

World Food Day 2022 was observed with the theme, “Leave No One Behind.” The Human Services and Social Security Ministry launched the “Be Real” anti-body shaming campaign to coincide with International Day of the Girl Child. World Sight Day, under the theme, “Love Your Eye,” was observed. Blue Water Shipping, a Danish international transport and logistics company, launched its services to the local petroleum industry.

The Islamic Development Bank approved a US$120 million loan to resurface the Soesdyke-Linden Highway. Iconic star of the US series “Murder She Wrote,” Dame Angela Lansbury, passed away at the age of 96.
Another street in South Ozone Park, NY, is renamed after Guyanese Ritwantee Persaud, aka ‘Aunty Rita,’ a popular singer and social worker who was mowed down by a car in 2020. Norton frets, fumes and frowns again, as the President was acknowledged at the CPL cricket games. The Coalition MP, a young, smiling Figueira, showed what a gentleman he is by shaking the President’s hand and accompanied him on the walkabout in several communities in Linden.

Qatar’s Energy Minister, Al-Kaabi, is visiting Guyana and leading a high-level delegation to explore various possibilities. The fifth Canadian High Commissioner for the day was Ellen Gopaul. As the nation prepares to celebrate the “Festival of Lights,” do enjoy the colourful and brightly lit motorcades, the Berbice Expo Fair, local cricket and horse-racing and do take time out to relax and digest the selective quotes of the week and reflection:

1) President Ali in his Youman Nabi message said: “Without God in our lives, we are rudderless.” Commemorating the event is an occasion to reset moral compasses and become closer to God and all of His people.
2) A Mr Morris wrote: “Wake up folks. We do not have to be Sanctimonious Gangsters again.” Having wasted three years talking about renegotiation of the oil contract and spending another 20 years talking about how bad the contract was, he would rather Guyanese “focus on the future” and “build around the periphery of the existing contract.” Guyana needs to move on.
3) Minister Edghill commented on the new harbour bridge saying, “Everyone in the media can see that preparatory works for the new harbour bridge are underway.” Had the former administration acted prudently, the new bridge would have been a reality by now, but the nation knows that the PNC has proven to be a complete waste of time, money and resources!
4) AFC Chairperson Cathy Hughes, said: “And we take that position because you would recall the amount of persons who got pink slips that are still holding pink slips today.” During the last cruel PNC administration, the diabolical AFC also took the delightful position of closing the sugar estates and firing some 4,000 sugar workers, joyfully driving them to poverty, hunger and starvation!
5) Barbara Broccoli said: “Thank goodness they cast Sean Connery originally because I think if it had not been him, who knows whether we’d still be here 60 years afterwards.” The hunt for a new 007 is on.
6) Jagdeo is becoming more of a crowd pleaser and gaining more fans in the diversified arena, “Jagdeo is the best: the best in America, North and South!”
7) President Ali told teachers: “There was a backlog since 2016. I have instructed that, by the end of this year, the entire backlog (permanent certificates), must be cleared.” Once again, the PPP/C government has to clean up the PNC’s mess!
8) World champion, Ethiopian marathon runner Gotytom Gebreslase, said: “It’s like they turned the clock back by 30 years. People are suffering, but you might know about it because we’re cut off from the world. It’s pretty depressing.” Since fighting erupted between Tigrayan rebels and government forces in November 2020, few have been spared the effects of a nearly two-year internet and phone shut-down in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region.
9) President Ali told residents in Linden: “We’re working on generating employment, building tourism, expanding the economy of Linden. Opening up opportunities. Linking Linden and Region 10 with what is happening in the macro environment of our country.” With so many ongoing projects, naysayers cannot claim that the government favours one community over another.
10) Education Minister Priya Manickchand said: “We’re working really hard to achieve universal secondary education within this first term [in office] is up.” By 2025, the PPP/C government intends to complete building a number of new secondary schools in all the regions in order to enhance the education system.
11) Minister Edghill praised the repair team at the Demerara Harbour Bridge, saying: “Getting this to where it is right now was no ordinary job.” The bridge is back in operation and reopened to vehicles weighing up to 18 tonnes.
12) Minister of Health Dr. Frank Anthony, said: “If we are able to detect depression early, it means we will be able to work with those patients, and we will be able to prevent cases of suicide.” The PPP/C government will train doctors to offer basic psychiatric care at the community level.
13) Pakistani Senator Shahadat Awan reasoned: “Attempted suicide is not a crime. It is a mental ailment, and it should be treated accordingly.” Pakistan recently passed a Bill to decriminalize suicide. There are some 20 countries worldwide where suicidal behaviour is a criminal offence, carrying a maximum penalty of up to three years in prison.
14) UNICEF representative, Nicolas Pron, said: “I want to emphasize that this project is not only gender-responsive, but we aim for it to be gender-transformative.” Funded by Canada, some 10,000 children from Region Nine will benefit from UNICEF’s donation comprising various packages of sports and hygiene equipment.
15) Dr Anthony said: “We see school health as a very important aspect of delivering healthcare in Guyana.” The PPP/C government is again showing its care and concern for children by implementing soon, a screening programme within schools that will help in detecting various health issues among students.
16) Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha said: “Guyana has to play a leading role in agriculture in order to have a reduction on the food-import bill by 25 percent by the year 2025.” The PPP/C government distributed free seeds and seedlings to the public as part of the activities for Agriculture Month 2022.
17) Former West Indies cricketer and commentator Darren Ganga said: “President Ali has the heart and soul of the Guyanese people within, and he’s a breath of fresh air in terms of leadership, not only in Guyana but in the entire Caribbean nation.” President Ali and his government were congratulated for creating an environment for great cricket, celebration, entertainment and tourism.
18) US President Joe Biden in a CNN interview when questioned about Putin, said that he is a “rational actor who has miscalculated significantly.” President Biden doesn’t feel that Putin will use a tactical nuclear weapon.
19) Director-General of the T&T Civil Aviation Authority, Francis Regis, said: “We further confirm that the radar system was out of service at the time of the incident.” The pilot of a Jet Blue Airways aircraft was forced to take evasive action in order to prevent a possible collision with a Caribbean Airlines aircraft last Sunday at the Piarco airport.
20) Programme scientist for NASA, Tom Statler, said: “The outcome demonstrated we are capable of deflecting a potentially hazardous asteroid of this size. The key is early detection.” The US$330 million first world’s test of a planetary defence system, successfully sent a spacecraft crashing into an asteroid last month.
21) Dr Leslie Ramsammy said: “Let us give the sugar workers and the sugar industry a chance.” Being one of the largest employers, sugar supports the economy of many villages, its drainage and irrigation system, contributes significantly to agriculture and its spinoffs ground the foundation of life for thousands of Guyanese. Sugar brings in much-needed foreign currency and Guyana cannot afford to import this local commodity. Giving up on sugar is indeed reckless economics, politics and sociology.
22) Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Oneidge Walrond, said: “There was a purported launching which was nothing more than a farce, an attempt to fool Berbicians and the nation…. There was no equipment, no furniture, no staff and no budget. There was nothing here but an empty building.” The PNC was caught with their pants down again as the Belvedere Business Incubator Centre in Berbice was recommissioned, after the PPP/C government had injected some $100 million to develop agro-processing in Region Six.
23) Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Philips said: “There are about 720 consumers connected to the Mahdia power company and those consumers will benefit from the energy placed on that mini grid from solar. It influences cost in a big way, because the cost is currently subsidized.” Some 3,000 hinterland residents will benefit from a $362.4 million contract signed for a solar farm at Mahdia by the PPP/C government.
24) Human Services and Social Security Minister, Dr Vindhya Persaud, warned: “Don’t comment on people’s body type, their hair, their complexion, their mental attitude; don’t do these things, because those things have serious scars.” Body shaming should not be done on social media, on the streets, in communities, in homes, and particularly, not in school.
25) The Agriculture Minister said: “After consultation, we decided to have one constructed here so you can benefit from the same services the farmers in Georgetown and other coastal areas receive.” A new $4.3 million coconut nursery was commissioned at Hosororo Village in Region One.
26) The CEO for Guyana Water Inc. (GWI), Shaik Baksh, said: “Across the coastal belt there is a crying need for treated water. At the present time, we have 52 percent coverage and we intend over the next two years, this project will be completed.” The PPP/C government is putting in capital investment of over $30 billion in water-treatment plants in order to bring treated water to a 90 per cent target.
27) Chinese Ambassador, H.E. Guo Halyan remarked: “Today, as we officially launch the civil aviation cooperation, we see the further expansion of cooperation between China and Chinese.” An Air Service Agreement was signed between the PPP/C government and the Government of the People’s Republic of China to enhance passenger travel and trade between the two countries and also to broaden Guyana’s global connectivity.
28) Prime Minister, Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips, reminded Guyanese: “There is no place for racism, marginalization and oppression in Guyana. It is all about development, inclusivity and improving all the lives and livelihoods of all Guyanese, inclusive of African Guyanese.” The Prime Minister and Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Charles Ramson Jr., paid tribute to African ancestors as they joined ACDA at the Seawall Bandstand for the 29th Annual Observance of African Holocaust Day, also known as the MAAFA of Kiswahili.
29) Head of El Dorado Offshore, Sherry Ferrell, said, “Our slogan at El Dorado Offshore is Everyone Deserves Opportunities. As a Guyanese company servicing Guyana’s oil and gas sector, we believe Guyanese should be the first to benefit from these opportunities.” With a staff which grew from five to 400, this Guyanese company continues to provide training for young, skilled Guyanese seeking employment in the oil and gas sector.
30) During his visit to Cotton Tree, West Coast Berbice, President Ali told the residents, “I’m here to talk to the people. I’m here to listen to the people…to listen to your concerns and to work with you on solving your problems… to work with you on developing your communities… to work with you on uplifting the lives of the people in this community.” The PPP/C government will soon implement a programme for residents from Belladrum to benefit from a skills- development course that will see more young people being trained in heavy machine operations and mechanics.
31) Fresh from his successful and welcoming visit to Linden, President Ali was in a no-nonsense mood when he said: “You make no sense anymore, and guess what, your narrative will not derail us because we will continue to work with all of Guyana, all of the communities, we will work with them. I intend to go to every single community and deliver the truth, deliver the truth, deliver the platform on which this country is developing, so that they don’t have to listen to the false prophets that continue to spread hate and division, but that they will see us for who we are, they will see Guyana for what Guyana is and will see the community for what the community is, because the rising tide will lift every single community, every single Guyanese, all of us up, together.” He made minced meat of the PNC.
32) President Ali reiterated to the nation: “The structure of the economy that we’re building, the dynamism of the economy that we’re building, the diversity of the economy that we’re building will be so integrated and multi-dimensional that we will be able to compete against the best economies in the world. We are doing the hard work now to ensure that the economy, 2030 and beyond, will be the strongest in the world. This is how we want to position our country.” The Head of State delivered the feature address at the opening of the 16th Annual Berbice Expo and Trade Fair.
33) The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture, Manuel Otero, said in Rio de Janeiro: “The war in Eastern Europe has further reaffirmed the fact that food security is at the top of the planet’s concern and that the American continent is strengthening its leading and relevant role as a guarantor of healthy and abundant food at the level.” The PPP/C government has prioritized agriculture with preferential and diversified treatment in order to make Guyana the “Food Basket” for the Caribbean once again.
34) President Ali told Berbicians: “All of us together will benefit from this infrastructure, all of us together will be uplifted from this infrastructure.” At the commissioning of the newly constructed farm-to-market road located in Number 58 village, Corentyne, thousands of acres of land will open up to farmers and residents of Region Six.

An 11-year-old Bryaneliza Latchman is all smiles after receiving her prize for placing third at an international letter-writing competition for young people. GDF Corporal Trevon Jeffers is smiling after his ITEC Training programme selection to India, courtesy of the Indian High Commission. Also, eight Guyanese are smiling with their selection to visit India via the “Know India Programme.”

Ornissa Gordon is smiling after being selected to go to India for the 69th Professional Course for Foreign Diplomats. Some nine Guyanese from the T&HD are smiling after being selected to go to India to participate in the Major Equipment Training Session on the M.V. Ma Lisha. The cargo/passenger vessel will ply the Georgetown/ North West route.

Ales Belyatsky, a Belarusian smiling in jail, won the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize. The parents of baby Shailah Ariya Persaud are smiling after doctors at the GPHC performed a successful operation to separate a large malformation/ mass attached to her head and upper cervical spine. Shawn Shewram is again smiling after copping five prizes at the “High Wooding” Law School. Also, Reon Miller, Dhuchanik Peters and Special Dazzell are also smiling with their prizes. The Guyana Cancer Society is smiling with Grace Kennedy Money services Ltd.’s donation of $250,000.

Delon Simpson is smiling with his $1 million prize in the AmCham Guyana Business Pitch Competition. Attorneys-at-Law Saskea Sara Lynch, Nicklin Belgrave, Calvin Brutus, Delon Fraser and Ismat Bacchus are smiling after being admitted to Guyana’s Bar. The owners and employees of Silvie’s, a mega complex at Good Hope, are smiling after being in operation for some 50 years. Residents in Region Two are smiling with the completion of phase two of the Lima Sands asphaltic road and concrete drains.

Providence residents are smiling with their new $25 million plus modern post office. Former Ambassador to Suriname, Keith George, is smiling as the new High Commissioner designate to Canada. Squash ace, Nicolette Fernandes, is all smiles as she won silver at the South American Games, along with boxers Keevin Allicock and Desmond Amsterdam with bronze medals.

Some 24 NGSA students are smiling with their bursary awards from GAWU. Additionally, 600 residents in Number 75 and 76 villages from Berbice are smiling with their house lots. As you begin the new week, please remember to smile, because, “Smiling not only offers a mood boost but helps our bodies release cortisol and endorphins that provide numerous health benefits, including: reduced blood pressure, increased endurance.”

Yours respectfully,
Jai Lall.