Dear Editor, There is a sharp contrast in election officials’ response to a request for a ballot recount in the United States and Guyana. In the state of Kentucky, Senator Bernie Sanders requested a recount of the ballots in Democratic presidential primary held on May 17 in his contest against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for the party’s Presidential nomination. The final unofficial result had Clinton winning the contest by 1911 votes. Sanders immediately asked for a recount of all the state’s ballots and it was granted right away…
Read MoreMonth: June 2016
President urged to quickly implement recommendations of Prison inquiry
By Shemuel Fanfair The report on the findings of the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the deadly Camp Street Prison riots was finally handed over to President David Granger on Wednesday. This comes one day after the May 31 deadline. At the handing over ceremony at the Ministry of the Presidency, retired Justice James Patterson, who served as Chairman for the CoI, expressed gratitude at being a part of the Commission and urged the Government to quickly implement the recommendations. “We should proceed along our journey with the hope that…
Read MoreCrime on the high seas: 3 fishermen still missing 5 days after they were thrown overboard
Some five days after a fishing vessel was attacked and its occupants thrown overboard by pirates in the Corentyne River, three of the fishermen remain missing. The three missing fishermen – Dochan Sukra, 54, called “Butcher”, of Number 55 Village; Dhanpaul Rampaul, of Number 67 Village; and Munish Churman, 26, called “Boyo”, of Number 60 Village – were thrown overboard in the Corentyne River on Saturday and are still missing while their colleagues and relatives continue to search for them. On Friday last, five pirates carried out attacks on three…
Read MoreThere is need for neutral third party to push for constitutional reform
Dear Editor, Constitutional reform in Guyana is not likely to happen anytime soon and if it does, it will not be anything substantial. One night in 2012 after my TV programme at Channel 9, I was invited by a group of PNC stalwarts to have a drink at the shop across the road from the TV station. (I drank Vita Malts). The conversation revolved around the 1980 (Burnham) Constitution. The general consensus that night from the PNCites was that nothing was wrong with the Constitution but rather, those who were…
Read MoreRepaying UG Student Loans
The audit of the UG Student Loan Facility did not provide any surprises save exposing the names of several prominent members of our society who contributed to the Gy$13.6 billion in principal and interest outstanding as of December 31, 2014. Back in 2014, the then Minister of Finance Ashni Singh, while announcing the moderate increase in fees at UG, had pointed out the unwillingness of students to repay their loans even though many were in a position to do so. He hoped the delinquent defaulters would respond to moral suasion…
Read MoreAmazon Warriors among big winners in Guyana’s Independence Float Parade
Georgetown, Guyana: Two-time finalists of the Caribbean Premiere League (CPL) T20 Cricket, the Guyana Amazon Warriors team was named first place winner in the ‘Semi-Costume’ category of Guyana’s Float and Costume Band Parade which was held on May 26, 2016 as part of activities to celebrate the country’s 50th year of Independence. The Ministry of Education, on Tuesday, May 31, 2016, announced the winners of various categories of the national event which saw twenty–nine groups participating. With two fully loaded trucks on the road, hundreds of cricket fans and supporters…
Read MoreGuyanese teen killed in NY apartment told cops who shooter was
…moments before she died A bleeding Guyanese-born Brooklyn baby-sitter shared the first name of her cold-blooded killer with cops before taking her final breath, police sources said Wednesday. A barely conscious Shemel Mercurius, lying on a toy car in her family’s Brooklyn apartment in New York, died from gunshot wounds shortly after fingering her killer, the New York Daily News reported. Cops withheld the suspect’s name as a video surfaced showing a man armed with an assault rifle coercing his way inside the home where the 16-year-old was babysitting her…
Read MoreMahaica woman hacked to death by jealous husband
Residents in Chelsea village, Mahaica, have plunged into a state of mourning and are still in disbelief after learning of the details leading up to the gruesome murder of 31-year-old Candacy Pitt who died at the hands of her husband. For the past 13 years Candacy and her now 41-year-old husband, Athlone Pitt, had their shares of ‘ups and downs’ like any other married couple but as time passed the intensity of their arguments escalated. This eventually led to Athlone publicly insulting his wife and even telling neighbours and family…
Read MoreJagdeo warns ‘economy could hit rock bottom’
… says Govt must focus on well planned out approach urgently Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has warned the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government that Guyana’s economy could soon hit rock bottom – a situation that would affect every citizen – and that a well planned out approach is urgently needed to keep this from happening. He made this pronouncement on Wednesday, even as he called on the Administration to “wake up” and acknowledge the problem so that a remedy could be derived. Jagdeo was at the…
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