2015 – Page 27 – Guyana Times International

State audit exercise: Ram, Goolsarran present “clear” conflict of interest

June 15, 2015 TIMES INT'L

An accredited accountant is urging the David Granger-led administration to engage one or more international accounting firms to conduct the forensic audits it is undertaking at several state agencies, arguing that some of the local firms identified present a clear case of conflict of interest and could destroy the credibility of the work they are being contracted to do. The accountant, who asked not be named, is also contending that a forensic audit is usually underpinned by legislative provisions, which are non-existent at the moment, and also called for greater…

Dr Vindhya Persaud’s email: Rohee says members can “agree to disagree”

June 15, 2015 TIMES INT'L

In wake of criticism from one of its members, Dr Vindhya Persaud about it not entering Parliament, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) said party members can agree to disagree. In an email addressed to several of her colleagues, Dr Persaud strongly expressed her disagreement with the Party’s plan to protest whilst the 11th Parliament was being convened. The former Member of Parliament (MP) and current Head of the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha, which represents a major part of the PPP/C’s constituency, argued that previous protest actions organised by the Party…

Crime concerns

June 15, 2015 TIMES INT'L

When a new administration takes over the reins of government, they are usually given a “honeymoon period” in which they are not challenged too aggressively. However, from the reports in the press, it appears that the criminals in our midst have not only ignored the honeymoon for the new Minister of Public Security and the Police Force that falls under his bailiwick, but have actually upped the ante in challenging them. In the first four months of the year, there was an average of 14 murders per month but following…

Bollywood is here!

June 15, 2015 TIMES INT'L

– megastar Shah Rukh Khan buys stake in T&T Red Steel Bollywood megastar Shah Rukh Khan has purchased the Trinidad & Tobago franchise in the Caribbean Premier League, the Times of India reported on Wednesday. Shah Rukh, co-owner of the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL, joins Hollywood stars Mark Wahlberg and Gerard Butler in the CPL owners’ club. Shah Rukh, who is the first IPL owner to own a team in an overseas league, says it is just a step in their global expansion vision. “This is in line…

Guyana’s crime rate soars: 9 murders in 7 days

June 15, 2015 TIMES INT'L

As the worrying crime rate continues to spiral, Guyana recorded an alarming nine murders in the space of seven days. Over the period June 3 to June 8, the Police reported on several matters that resulted in persons being killed or injured during criminal activities, including both victims and perpetrators. During this period, some seven persons died. Six other persons lost their lives during the course of May 29 to June 2. This week saw two persons being killed in separate robberies and one person injured; one man was fatally…

Success Elementary School grabs top spots at Common Entrance

June 15, 2015 TIMES INT'L

The Success Elementary School, which is a private school, has grabbed the top two positions at this year’s National Grade Six Assessment Examinations in Guyana. Just over 15,000 students from across Guyana wrote the NGSA examinations commonly known as Common Entrance. The top student is 11-year-old Solomon Cherai of Success Elementary who gained 530 marks out of the total 535. He will be going to Queens College when the new school year begins in September. The #2 position went to Shania Eastman who also attends the Success Elementary. The Success…

‘Land grabbers’ will be prosecuted – Govt

May 29, 2015 TIMES INT'L

The A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) Government has once again warned the defiant land grabbers against their unlawful activity as it urged those persons to simply apply for house lots, warning that lands squatted on after January 1, 1998 would not be regularised. Since the announcement that the APNU+AFC Government has won the 2015 General and Regional Elections, hundreds of Guyanese strangely began combing their areas for unoccupied lands to start squatting. The defiant land grabbers have already declared their reluctance to stop, claiming that the Government,…

What will become of the National Toshaos Conference?

May 29, 2015 TIMES INT'L

Dear Editor, The assigned Head of the Presidential Secretariat Mr Joseph Harmon said that as part of the APNU+AFC government’s 100-day work plan, they will be de-politicising the National Toshaos Conference for genuine-decision making. But can Harmon say if this is a pretext for the APNU+AFC government to scale-down the size of the National Toshaos Conference, disallowing Toshaos (Amerindian Village Chiefs) to speak for their respective communities in the presence of the President, his Ministers and Government officials about the abolishment of presidential grants to Amerindian communities, the abolishment of…

Mr Gaskin’s appointment as a Minister

May 29, 2015 TIMES INT'L

Dear Editor, Firstly, had I been permitted to vote in these past elections I would have voted for the PPP/C, reason being my deep appreciation for the major progress that was made by the PPP/C in bringing the country out of the abyss it had tunneled into during a past era. Setting this aside and just to ensure that I have no political axe to grind, I think it is quite unkind and unfair for any to target Mr Dominic Gaskin’s appointment as a minister due to the perception of…

The Chancellor and Chief Justice positions should be confirmed

May 29, 2015 TIMES INT'L

Dear Editor, Chief Justice Carl Singh and Justice of the Appeal Judge Ian Chang have been acting as Chancellor and Chief Justice respectively for the past decade. The reason why they were acting and not confirmed for such a long time is that under Article 127 (1) of the Constitution, the President and Opposition Leader must agree to their appointments. The new Constitution removed the term “consultation” with “agreement”. Both Justices Singh and Chang were appointed to act under the PPP/C administration and discussions took place between the former President…