Dear Editor, Against my knowledge of the reliability of the tried and tested Caribbean Airlines, and tempted by the prospect of enjoying non-stop flight, I utilised the services of Fly Jamaica on a one-week return trip to Canada. It proved to be a terrible decision! As I am typing this letter, I am stuck in Canada, because Fly Jamaica cancelled its flight (OJ 257) to Guyana scheduled for 26th May. Several phone calls to a toll-free number in Georgetown and to Fly Jamaica Customer Service Office in Canada, and constant…
Read MoreMonth: June 2017
GAWU desirous of win-win situation for sugar
Dear Editor, The Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) refers to Mr Eric Phillips’s letter: “All voices of reason must step forward on GuySuCo”, which appeared in the May 29, 2017 issue of Stabroek News. We must admit that we agree with Mr Phillips when he says GuySuCo and the sugar industry requires a win-win situation. In such circumstances, we see the industry/company being viable and sustainable, while at the same time the full complement of estates remain operable, and the masses who toil in the fields and factory…
Read MoreWas a feasibility study carried out for the Leguan plantain chip factory?
Dear Editor, In an article which appeared in the news media on May 23, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Business (MoB) reportedly told the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the National Assembly that a plantain chips factory now under construction on the island of Leguan will become operational by June 30. The factory is expected to initially employ a manager and 30 employees, none of whom have been identified for employment or are available for training and pre-trial runs before manufacturing starts in a month’s time, as was…
Read MoreGovt should include people sovereignty issue on ‘same sex ballot’
Dear Editor, Your newspaper reported that the Government has informed the international community of its plans to put the issue of “decriminalising buggery” (to appease the gay community) to a referendum. This is a laudatory move giving the population a voice in law making. So why doesn’t the Government want to give the voters a voice in amending the Constitution or in drafting a new constitution? Why the duplicity? How come the Government can now afford the cost of such a referendum? This same Government said last year and again…
Read MoreKN should apologise for creating panic
Dear Editor, The nation would recall that on May 9, 2017, a Kaieteur News headline stated, “Over 200 persons blacklisted from leaving Guyana – SOCU.” This information caused great concern, restlessness among our people and was widely believed. The article prompted my immediate action. As a citizen and a representative of the people, I wrote to the Commissioner of Police/Chief Immigration Officer to determine the veracity of the article and to make available to the public the true information of this Administration’s position and action on blacklisting. Significantly, after approximately…
Read MoreHorror at sea: Fishermen recount brutal attack at Waini River
By Shemuel Fanfair Piracy has plagued the high seas for a number of years with many seamen meeting a callous end as several of them have lost their lives, miles off the coastland. The latest attack by pirates was recorded at the mouth of the Waini River, some 10 miles off the Essequibo Coast into the Atlantic. On Wednesday, Guyana Times International met with three of the terrorised West Coast Demerara fishermen who called for more Coast Guard protection on the Atlantic Coast as they recalled the harrowing ordeal. Boat…
Read MoreCuomo announces USD$11.5m to upgrade drinking water and wastewater systems in NY
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo on Thursday announced that the New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation Board of Directors has approved more than $11.5 million in grants, interest-free loans, and low-cost loans to support vital drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projects across New York. According to the Governor’s office, this funding will provide assistance for drinking water and wastewater projects in Upstate communities. The Board approval includes nearly $3.4 million in grants awarded under the Water Infrastructure Improvement Act. “Investments in our water infrastructure are vital to the growth and prosperity…
Read MoreA national debate on sugar
It is quite unfortunate that in spite of the mounting calls for the coalition Government to reconsider its decision to downscale the sugar industry via closure of sugar estates, the Administration seems unmoved and is bent on moving in a direction that will see thousands of workers and their families being severely affected. On May 8, Agriculture Minister Noel Holder presented Government’s ‘white paper’ on the future of the sugar industry to the National Assembly. He had announced that two sugar estates would be closed and the annual production of…
Read MoreFlat Tire Productions brings ‘Love Bites’ to Queens, NY
Flat Tire Productions will bring their newest stage show, “Love Bites” to Queens, NY this June 10 and 11. Some hope for it, others run from it and some get bitten by it: the age-old concept of love. This June 10th and 11th, Flat Tire Productions, a West Indian theatre and film company, makes their comeback with “Love Bites,” a stage show featuring five one-act American plays that tackle love and all its nuances to premiere in Queens, New York. Founded in 2004, Flat Tire Productions is mostly known for…
Read MoreICE officers summon backup as residents attempt to prevent arrest of Guyanese man in Queens
A Queens, New York woman tried to block federal immigration officers from arresting her Guyanese husband Tuesday morning, prompting a standoff when neighbours started ripping into President Donald Trump, law-enforcement sources said. According to a report in Wednesday’s New York Post, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers went to detain the woman’s illegal-immigrant husband, Hardat Sampat, after he had been released from jail on burglary and other charges, sources said. The New York Post reported that ICE officers stopped the couple’s car at about 10 a.m., on a one-way street at…
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