2015 – Page 2 – Guyana Times International

PPP, Govt squabble over cancellation of Ed Ahmad land lease

December 18, 2015December 22, 2015 TIMES INT'L

Conflicting reports are emanating from Government Ministers regarding the status of the disputed land which was leased to Edul Ahmad in 2008. Governance Minister Raphael Trotman disclosed during a post-Cabinet press briefing on Wednesday, that the lease agreement was terminated since the beginning of this month and that the land was automatically returned and is under the responsibility of the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU). These revelations significantly contradict statements from State Minister Joseph Harmon who, just a week ago, disclosed that Government will be taking steps to revoke the…

Economic development plan needed

December 18, 2015December 22, 2015 TIMES INT'L

It is now clear even to the most rabid supporter of the Guyana Government that it needs some help to craft an economic development programme that would lift us out of the slippery slope to recession on which we are careening. We repeat the advice proffered before – that the Government adopt without reservations the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) developed by its predecessor and yoke the 17 “Sustainable Development Goals” (SDGs) we signed on to last September. This, of course, would need strong State intervention. Even though the Washington…

2 burnt to death in horrific two-car collision at Bath

December 18, 2015December 22, 2015 TIMES INT'L

By Andrew Carmichael Two men are now dead and five other persons hospitalised after the cars in which they were travelling ended up in a head-on collision at Bath Settlement, West Coast Berbice (WCB) on Wednesday afternoon resulting in one bursting into flames. The dead persons have been identified as Nero Bankay, 24, of Bush Lot, WCB, Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice) and Shiv Persaud-Hanoman, 48, of the same village. The injured are Rookmaine Trotman of Bennett Dam, Rosignol; Nigel Trotz, 34, of 126 Main Street, Cumberland, East Canje; Fiona Rossoul, 32,…

Gov’t under fire

December 18, 2015December 22, 2015 TIMES INT'L

…Private sector, human rights bodies slam APNU/AFC for “rushing” Bills through Parliament The Government is coming under more criticism for its “lack of consultation” on three Amendment Bills that are being taken to the National Assembly today (Thursday) for tabling and passage. The Private sector commission in a statement on Wednesday, warned the administration about moving ahead in the future with legislation while not hosting consultations with stakeholders. The PSC is particularly concerned about the amendments to the Anti-money Laundering Bill and being left in the dark about those amendments.…

Brooklyn woman found guilty of murdering Guyanese

December 18, 2015December 22, 2015 TIMES INT'L

A New York jury has convicted a Brooklyn woman in the death and dismemberment of a Guyanese woman whose body parts were found on Long Island, New York. Leah Cuevas, 44, right, was charged with second-degree murder, accused of killing her neighbour Chinelle Latoya Thompson Browne, 28, left, over a dispute about rent and a utility payment. Leah Cuevas was on Tuesday convicted of second-degree murder in the death and dismemberment of Chinelle Latoya Thompson Browne, according to the New York Daily News. Browne’s dismembered body parts were found in…

Two Guyanese beauty Ambassadors in title-quest this weekend

December 18, 2015December 22, 2015 TIMES INT'L

Two of Guyana’s beauty ambassadors are on separate missions to capture the crowns in the two most prestigious international pageants this Saturday and Sunday. International vocalist Lisa Punch will first have the opportunity to advance her position in the Miss World 2015 Pageant in Sanya, China on Saturday December 19, having claimed a spot in the top 25, while former Scholar and Foreign Service Officer Shauna Ramdyhan will seek to gain the judges nod in the Miss Universe 2015 Pageant in Las Vegas, USA on Sunday, December 20. Despite variances…

Blatant discrimination!

November 20, 2015 TIMES INT'L

– Jagdeo slams Govt for removing street lights at Bath BY DEVINA SAMAROO Bath Settlement, Region 5 residents continue to protest against what they deem the unreasonable removal of their streetlights simply because “Government cannot afford it” while the people of Linden continue to benefit tremendously from a whopping Gy$3 billion electricity subsidy. Government is claiming that it cannot afford to inject monies to pay the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) for streetlights installed in Bath Settlement, but they can afford to award themselves super-salaries after only four months in…

Teixeira fingers Fmr COP Winston Felix in ducking passport scams

November 20, 2015 TIMES INT'L

BY EDWARD LAYNE Home Affairs Minister under the People’s Progressive Party/Civic during 2005, Gail Teixeira, has said that then Police Commissioner and now Minister of Citizenship Winston Felix, failed to act on an investigation, which revealed that there was a massive scheme at the General Registrar’s Office, where birth certificates were being issued with information of persons who did not exist. Teixeira’s comments came in face of a “malicious” report in the State-owned daily newspaper, the Guyana Chronicle, with allegedly twisted facts about a conversation between US diplomats in Guyana…

Jonestown 37 years after

November 20, 2015 TIMES INT'L

In those days, most of the news came through the radio and some from the popular newspapers. The first reports were that hundreds were dead, but by the time the newspaper could get images of the massacre at Jonestown, the radio news had already confirmed that more than 900 had died. With no Internet or television available, Guyanese were glued to their radio sets at midday and in the evening to listen to the updates coming out of Jonestown. It was the second most newsworthy story in Guyana; the first…

Still too many maternal deaths

November 20, 2015 TIMES INT'L

In one of their latest reports on maternal mortality, two leading international bodies – the World Bank Group and the United Nations agencies – reported that maternal deaths have fallen by 44 per cent since 1990. This is quite encouraging news for Governments and international development partners who have been intimately involved in working towards reducing maternal deaths. However, the road ahead for many countries, including Guyana, is still a long one, as much more remains to be done in order to meet this specific Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target.…