Year: 2012

The crusade against Rohee

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Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee Clement Rohee, the home affairs minister, is a creature of the ruling People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/ C). He is a stalwart and one of the foremost members of the party whose tough stance against opposition forces makes him a target for attacks and vilification. Not long after the budget cuts, the opposition shifted its focus on another matter, this time zeroing-in on Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee, laying the blame at his feet for the killing of three Lindeners during the opposition-orchestrated demonstration…

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The NoGel Diaries

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Satiricus was not a voyeur. But he must say he was enjoying these peeks into the diaries of the politicians who dominated the headlines every day. Some of those headlines he’d written himself. Lilawatee, his wife’s niece (five times removed) hadn’t disappointed him. As the opposition’s maid-on-call, she had total access and for Satiricus, this was better than breaking news. It was certainly a heck of a lot more exciting. Today he was glancing at the last page of Big NoGel’s diary. Dearest Diary, Is what I gon tell you…

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Laughing stock

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Mother of all piffle Rafael Trotman is determined to make the parliament of Guyana into the laughing stock of the Commonwealth. Advised by his own lawyers that the ‘no-confidence’ motion he allowed the Opposition to pass against Minister Rohee was of no effect, he advised them to bring a ‘more specific’ gag order. So said; so done. After the Opposition complied, he exclaimed that the ‘gag motion’ now infringed on a ‘privileged right’ of Rohee: to speak in Parliament! And in an amazing act of contortion he sent the latest…

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The HIV/AIDS fight

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By Jainarine  Deonauth World AIDS Day, which was observed on December 1, brings together people from around the world to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS and demonstrate international solidarity in the face of the pandemic. The day provides an opportunity for public and private partners to spread awareness about the status of the pandemic and encourage progress in HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care in high prevalence countries and around the world. Countries pledged in 2011 to take specific steps to achieve ambitious goals by 2015. While some have already achieved measurable…

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Agriculture development set to take off in Linden

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With the recent establishment of a Region 10 Land Selection Committee, brought on through an agreement between the government of Guyana and the region, Chairman Sharma Solomon says opportunities for farmers and investors are now being made more accessible. “We’re trying to set out a very comprehensive programme for agricultural development in Region 10, since we have farmers who are not being given the type of supporting services that will allow them to advance their agricultural skills; so, what we want to do, in a very comprehensive way, is take…

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The Agricola mayhem: A shameless display of criminality

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Just when citizens were beginning to settle after a series of police killings and protests, the opposition-backed Agricola turmoil on the night of October 12, further set the country back, while driving fear into thousands, some of whom were left stranded when residents of the East Bank Demerara village and elsewhere set fiery blockades on the road, and beat and robbed hapless commuters. It was a shameless display of criminality that had come hours after the Alliance For Change (AFC) Chairman, Nigel Hughes, issued an ultimatum to President Donald Ramotar…

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Mining school to open doors in January

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The Guyana Mining School and Training Centre is expected to start rolling out its programmes in early January in an effort to improve the quality of skilled workers in the mining sector, according to Natural Resources and Environment Minister Robert Persaud. He said that over the past several months, the ministry and stakeholders have been conceptualising the idea of the mining school, which has been a work in progress. Persaud noted that the institution is still in its developmental stage. “We had hoped that by the end of the year,…

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Ramsammy optimistic sugar production target will be met despite bad weather

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Agriculture Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy Agriculture Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy said the current rainy season is the biggest threat to local sugar production. “We have lost some production in the past couple of weeks because of the rain, and I think that remains the number one threat at this point,” he noted. Nevertheless, the minister stated that he remains hopeful that in spite of that threat, the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) will be able to meet the annual production target of 237,000 tonnes. At the time of the interview, he…

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PNCR honours party stalwarts at final general council meeting for 2012

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The People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) held its fourth and final general council meeting for 2012 in the auditorium at Congress Place last Saturday. In a release, the party said the delegates attending the council – which is the highest decision-making organ of the party between biennial congresses – represented each of the 10 administrative regions. The party chairman, Basil Williams welcomed the delegates and gave the opening address. He also chaired the morning session of the programme. Since 2012 marks the 55th anniversary of the party, the programme included…

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Gold export earnings could top US$600M – Ganga

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By Indrawattie Natram Guyana could earn in excess of US$600 million from gold exports this year, Guyana Gold Board Chairman Gobind Ganga said on Monday. He was at the time addressing a gathering at the opening of a branch of the entity at Charity, Essequibo Coast. Ganga said the new branch is being opened at a time when the gold market is quite volatile owing to global political and economic turmoil. He said the Guyana Gold Board is an economically viable entity that provides services that benefit a number of…

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