January 2013 – Page 2 – Guyana Times International

Agriculture Ministry reaches out to struggling Wakenaam farmers

January 31, 2013 TIMES INT'L

The Agriculture Ministry through the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) has come to the rescue of farmers on the island of Wakenaam, who are suffering from a water crisis. Junior Agriculture Minister Ali Baksh said two three-feet tubes will be deployed to the area to assist in the smooth flow of water onto farmlands on the west and eastern sides of the island. Baksh, who was accompanied by NDIA Chief Executive Officer Lionel Wordsworth and a team of regional officials, told scores of frustrated farmers of the move to…

UN Rights committee lauds Guyana’s child care policies

January 31, 2013 TIMES INT'L

Guyana was the first country to be reviewed at the 62nd session of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (ROC) at the Office of the High Commission on the Human Rights (OHCHR) in Geneva, Switzerland, on January 15. This review was represented by Human Services and Social Security Minister Jenifer Webster, Presidential Advisor on Governance Gail Teixeira and National Commission on the Rights of the Child (ROC) Chairperson Aleema Nasir. Head of the Presidential Secretariat (HPS) Dr Roger Luncheon explained that the committee in Geneva noted and welcomed…

GT&T launches 2013 ‘Jingle and Song Competition’

January 31, 2013 TIMES INT'L

The Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T) on Friday launched the sixth session of its popular ‘Jingle and Song Competition’. This year, the telephone giant has introduced an online component of the competition that will allow persons to do home videos, which can be uploaded to YouTube and their Facebook pages. The persons with the most votes every week will be the winner of a GT&T BlackBerry phone. This aspect of the competition will run simultaneously with the auditions that will be held throughout the country until the day of…

Walking-Dead Diaries

January 31, 2013January 31, 2013 TIMES INT'L

Satiricus was a staunch admirer of PadRick Yarte. Any man who could remain at the head of a union way beyond the retirement age of all its members, who shelled out their money for his well-appointed upkeep, had to be admired. More so since PadRick hadn’t earned a single salary increase for his members since 1999. Satiricus figured that it was PadRick’s incredibly slow way of speaking that kept him in his position: opponents invariably fell asleep during debates with him! Satiricus wondered whether PadRick had written the diary entry…

Poli-tricks

January 31, 2013January 31, 2013 TIMES INT'L

Free at last? It’s an old truism that the only ways to get a politician’s attention is to either wave some money under his nose or suggest a way for him to get some more votes. Or both. The two attention-grabbers, of course, aren’t unrelated. The more votes the politicians get, the more money they command. In the U.S., lobbyists for assorted ‘interests’ – ranging from ‘big oil’ to ‘gun freaks’ – take care of the money waving. The vote garnering has moved away somewhat from the days of the…

Guyanese men battle suicide, spousal abuse

January 31, 2013January 31, 2013 TIMES INT'L

By Svetlana Marshall Every 40 seconds someone in the world commits suicide. More than one million persons take their own lives every year. The global suicide rate has increased by a whopping 60 per cent for the past 45 years, with the majority of the victims being men. This is according to the World Health Organisation. Guyana is no exception. In 2003, it ranked sixth in the world, with 42.4 men in every 100,000 committing suicide while women stood at 12.1. By 2006, the figures had dropped with 39 men…

EU quota extension gives sugar industry chance to rebound – Dr Ramsammy

January 31, 2013January 31, 2013 TIMES INT'L

Agriculture Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy Agriculture Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy said the European Union’s (EU) extension of the sugar quota into European markets is testimony to the relentless lobby by this country, noting that the grace period will give the ailing sugar industry some time to rebound. Last week, the European parliament’s Agriculture Committee voted to maintain the bloc’s system of strict national sugar production quotas and minimum prices for sugar beet until 2020, rather than scrapping them from 2015 as proposed by the commission that would delay the lifting…

Fifth ‘Wedding Expo’ launched

January 31, 2013 TIMES INT'L

This year the government will set out to revise the legislation which governs weddings in Guyana, a move aimed at promoting wedding tourism in the country. Acting Tourism Minister Irfaan Ali made this announcement at the launching of the fifth annual ‘Wedding Expo’, at Duke Lodge, on Monday. The minister stated that one of the major setbacks remains the outdated legislation overriding the time in which one can be registered and licenced to get marry. “We are looking to engage the attorney general in looking at the legislation as against…

Guyana/Trinidad engage in discussion for oil and gas support

January 31, 2013January 31, 2013 TIMES INT'L

Natural Resources and the Environment Minister Robert Persaud on Tuesday met with Trinidad and Tobago Energy and Energy Affairs Minister Kevin Ramnarine to further bilateral discussions on the future development of Guyana’s oil and gas sector. Minister Persaud’s visit was at the invitation of Minister Ramnarine to share Trinidad’s experiences and to extend support to build Guyana’s capacity and skills. As such, a technical team will finalise a memorandum of cooperation between Guyana and Trinidad by the end of February to formalise training, support for the private sector and technical…

PPP/C seeking Gy$2.5M in compensation for damaged Linden office

January 31, 2013January 31, 2013 TIMES INT'L

Compton Fraser, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Region 10 organiser, is claiming some Gy$2.5 million for items that were damaged in the party office when a fire was set inside the building on July 18 last. As the Linden Commission of Inquiry continued on Tuesday, with its compensation aspect of the probe, more witnesses came forward to claim compensation for injuries sustained and/or damages to their property. This aspect of the probe is in keeping with terms of reference number three which states, “Make recommendations for compensation where necessary for…